Sneak Preview

This week has been/will be a bit on the crazy side. I'm preparing the centerpiece arrangements for a friends wedding this weekend and I'm trying to make a dress for the wedding at the same time (more on that later). I'm incredibly excited about the "vintage fall" look of this wedding! Fall in New England is of course beautiful in it's own right, but when you put a vintage spin on it: gorgeous!

Here's a preview of a few bits and pieces for this weekend. Just wait to you see the arrangements in their entirety with the ambiance of a fall evening....hmmm. I love weddings! And thanks to Deborah Zoe Photo, you'll have the best possible look at them!

Stay tuned for my wedding-outfit fiasco....or could it possibly be a victorious triumph? You're guess is as good as mine;-)

--Sarah

Festival Wrap Up

In the least it was an exhausting weekend, but overall a successful one. Saturday was unseasonably warm, if not hot, for New England in the fall which drew the fair weather crowds and Sunday was a typical New England fall day: cloudy, windy, a bit rainy with temperatures dropping as the day progressed which drew the hearty New Englanders who prefer cold weather and bulky sweaters (after four years of living in Arizona I really can't say I'm one of those folks: I'm more of the fair weather type). By 4pm on Sunday I was exhausted, cold and ready to pack everything up and head home, which I did in short order. 

Here are a few new items we debut at the festival:

Matching onesie for the re-cycled fashion skirt.

Corduroy Twirl Skirt

Tunic in White Gardinia and brown floral.

 Zippered Ruffled Wallet

 Burp Cloths in new girly colors!

 This beautiful tunic went home with a sweet little girl!

Minky Lap blanket in soft pinks.

Saturday was unseasonably warm, if not hot, for New England in the fall which drew the fair weather crowds and Sunday was a typical New England fall day: cloudy, windy, a bit rainy with temperatures dropping as the day progressed which drew the hearty New Englanders who prefer cold weather and bulky sweaters (after four years of living in Arizona I really can't say I'm one of those folks: I'm more of the fair weather type). By 4pm on Sunday I was exhausted, cold and ready to pack everything up and head home, which I did in short order. 


I'm happy to say that today I'm not going anywhere, it's raining outside and I have a cup of tea in hand. Ahhh. Relax. And spend time with my festival buddy, this little cutie:

--Sarah

Newmarket Heritage Festival

If you happen to have the afternoon free tomorrow, you should come down to Newmarket, NH! Not only do we have a booth there (featuring some of our newest items that have yet to be posted here or on our Etsy shop) but you can watch local potters, leather workers and carpenters at work crafting beautiful pieces. There's dancing and drumming, train rides and kettle corn, face painting and more! It's a darn good time in New England!

--Sarah

Capturing the Moments

Last night Sophia and I were in the kitchen, just as the sun was casting a swath of evening light in through the window and onto the refrigerator. Mesmerized by her shadow, Sophia began reaching out as if to grab hold of the silhouette of the little person she saw.

I wanted to capture the moment--like I want to capture almost every moment with her. I tried to snap a few shots with one hand while helping her stand with the other. At that moment I wished I'd had a third hand, or an alter-ego that only saw the poetic moments in life and was there to take pictures.


I love the profile of her face because it reminds me of the profile from her ultra-sound, when she was still so unknown to us. I'm so grateful that what was just a silhouette is now soft little face that I can hold in my hands: kiss and caress, and so aware that this little person won't be little for long: which makes me want to savor and capture each moment even more.

--Sarah

Recipe Organization

A few years ago I decided it was time to get organized. I had a small spiral bound recipe book, the kind that you'd find in a gift store. I'd filled the pages and had begun stuffing recipes between the pages. It was a mess. 

I was frustrated by other recipe organization systems because they didn't have enough categories, so I was left with recipes that didn't fit anywhere. 

So I decided to get myself a large three ring binder, page protectors and a tab dividers and organize my recipes. The hardest part about organizing your recipes is dividing them into categories.  I labeled my tab dividers with the following labels:

• Appetizers/Beverages
• Salads/Dressings
• Soups/Sandwiches
• Veggie Sides
• Casseroles/Crockpot
• Meat/Poultry
• Fish/Seafood
• Grilling
• Pasta/Rice/Grains
• Breakfast/Brunch
• Breads/Pastries
• Cakes/Cookies/Desserts
• Holiday/Entertaining
• Cooking Basics/Instructional 

I put page protectors on the page dividers too, so they would be protected from spills, splatters and slimy hands. To accommodate the tab I made small slits down the side of the page protector, usually static cling keeps the page protector sticking to the divider, but you could also use double sided tape. 

In my recipe book I have both full-page print outs, clippings from magazines and the pages cut-out from my old recipe book. I've taped the clippings to blank 81/2x11 pieces of paper. 

The page protectors also act as pockets, for say, little recipe booklets that come with some appliances: like I have a small booklet that came with my crockpot which I keep in the "Crockpot" section. 

There's nothing that makes me want to cook more than a well-organized recipe book!


--Sarah

Over the River and Through the Woods...

Over the river and through the woods to Great-grandpa's house we go! That was our (Me: Sarah, my husband Mark and daughter Sophia) weekend: a trip to Pennsylvania to visit my grandfather and Sophia's great-grandfather. The weather was absolutely gorgeous for the few days that we were there, which afforded us a nice afternoon at the Trexler Nature Preserve and Lehigh Valley Zoo. If you happen to live in the area it is a great place to spend the afternoon, especially the Trexler Nature Preserve; there is no admission to the preserve and the views at some of high points along the car-path are amazing: vistas of the entire Lehigh Valley. There were a few picnic tables along the way: perfect for a picnic lunch.

At nine and half months I wasn't quite sure what kind of reaction to expect from Sophia at the Zoo. We were all surprised at her response, while she wasn't able to distinguish some of the smaller animals in their natural habitat enclosures (like a lynx among trees) she was able to see and observe the larger animals: the camel, ostrich and zebra. 

And she was fearless when we arrived at the goat pen, of course it helped that the goats were equally as interested in her (well, the food they thought we had) as she was in them. 

The trip gave my grandfather the perfect opportunity to show off his great-granddaughter to his neighbors, the members of his church and his favorite waitress at Yannni's Tavern, a greek restaurant in the town where he lives. This trip was really about Sophia and her great-grandpa, we were just along for the ride:-)

I love how nothing changes from the first picture to the second, except for Sophia's expression. 

Of course, this trip was really about Sophia and her great-grandpa, we were just along for the ride:-)

--Sarah

Latest Additions to the Fall Collection

Here are some of the most recent additions to our fall collection: 

"The Poppy" Tunic in a beautiful colors of wine, raspberry (very "in" this fall) complimented with a soft gray print. This one looks super tiny and cute cause it's our 3-6 month size. For this tunic we modified a pattern from Libby Lu's Boutique: the peasant dress pattern.

And this lovely jumper is made from a print with great grape hues and bright greens--perfect over a long-sleeve onesie. 

--Cindy

A few new Terry Cloth Burp Cloth Sets

I spent this weekend working with a few of our fall fabrics, along with one of my favorite reds from my stash. The burp cloths are backed with terry cloth, which is super absorbent. And when you're cleaning up a spit-upy mess, absorbent is good. 

I am really in love with these colors: wine, raspberry, plumb and gray (in charcoal and subtle dove gray); they are perfect for fall and winter!

And this red Heather Bailey print has to be one of my favorites. It is so retro and fresh. 

With this set I added a little more decorative stitching and I really like how it turned out...I might just make it a permanent part of how I make these. What do you think?

Here's a close-up of the stitching.

And our little bee.........

--Sarah

New Fabric and Burp Cloth Experiments

I ordered new fabric today from Hawthorne Threads (my absolute favorite place to get fabric!). I placed my order on Friday afternoon and it arrived on my doorstep on Monday! Most of what I purchased are Amy Butler prints in a palate of citrus/sherbert-y goodness. If I had a sun room (which I don't) I would make pillows out of all of these fabrics, they are so bright and fresh!

And then I saw this very whimsical script print by Michael Miller and something in my really wanted it. Perhaps the ex-English teacher in me was responsible for that purchase. 

I also spent some time doing a little sewing. I experimented with appliquéing flower petals onto a burp cloth. I like how it turned out. Now I have to think of some complementary appliqueing I can do to make a set.  

-Sarah

Friends

If you don't have photo blog to follow, you should! And I have just the one for you! Debbie Parker at Deborah Zoe Photography takes A-M-A-Z-I-N-G pictures! In my opinion, she is THE wedding photographer to have in the New England region. Take a look at her gallery and you'll notice she has an amazing eye for beautiful shots. Her photos are romantic, whimsical and completely unique. Not to mention her posts are witty, fun and inspiring. 


She recently featured our Business Card Wallet in one of her posts; and of course she took fabulous pictures of the little blue ditty. 


I'll be at and in several weddings she'll be shooting this fall and winter, which means I'll get to see her in action! Can't wait!


--Sarah

Yard Saling with the Girls

Every year, on the second  Saturday in September all the churches in Durham,  New Hampshire have a  yard sale. Touted as a 700 + family yard sale this thing is a behemoth, and a popular one at that! The event starts at 9am, but people line up to scope out the goods WAY before. Everything is roped off with caution tape and when they blow the whistle everyone RUNS to the object of their desire.

Here's Everyone waiting for the whistle to blow.

It has been a tradition amongst the gals in my family to attend this yard sale, last year I went while 7 months pregnant with Sophia. It was great, everyone got out of the way. This year I carried Sophia on my back instead of my belly. 

My mom, sisters and a few friends  all converged on the yard sale in time to scope out a few things from a distance before mad rush.

Here's what we could see from our vantage point.

The line of people wraps around that big tree and down the street on the other side of the church. 

I was looking for a dresser to refinish, and a little rocking chair for Sophia. I didn't find a dresser, but I did find a little rocking chair which I plan to paint. It's quite sturdy and the cain seat is in great shape. 

I haven't decided on a color: I'm thinking a bright pinky-red or maybe a bright green. 

Here's Sophia enjoying her  new chair.

Here are some of our other finds: A white antique high chair ($8, mine), a yellow shelf which my  mom plans to re-paint and use in her sewing room ($20), a wall mirror ($8, my sister Rachel) and the rocking chair ($15, mine).

And this red chair: LOVE! I'm leaving it exactly the way it is with its worn read paint. So cute! I also found that galvanized bucket ($10) and a Bake King loaf pan (free!). 

And the piece de resistance! My sister, Alissa got this great steamer trunk for $20! It's going to make a great end-of-the-bed storage or coffee table. It's awesome, and who knows where it has been in its lifetime. 

Old things are SO FUN and yard sales are great way to spend a Saturday morning. Can't wait 'till next year to do it again!




--Sarah