Merry Christmas!

Posted by on December 24, 2011

It’s been a while since my last post ~ Christmas season busy-ness is to blame! Yesterday afternoon I got a Starbucks Peppermint Mocha Frappaccino (yum) and inadvertently took 2 Excedrin (grabbed those instead of Ibuprofen). I was wired!! I don’t recommend that combo. This is a result….

Much better than a pile of Christmas cards sitting on the counter and the kids LOVE it! It’s just red ribbon I happened to have a spool of and a pack of clothes pins (wooden) from Publix. I’ve also used that raffia twine in the past but couldn’t find any around the house.

I have some progress to report on our sewing room slash office. We’re still trying to work with the white walls (emphasis on trying). Yesterday I went to Hobby Lobby and got Jeff a matching bulletin board. The open frame was 50% off and I used a 40% off coupon on the actual cork board (regularly like $16.99). AND… you may or may not notice that these are not our regular chairs, although they look identical. Ours, with armrests, are down in Spanish Fort, AL being refinished/painted black. Long story short I have a college sorority sister who refinishes furniture. I got a dresser from her for Mallory’s room this week and traded the dresser for the chairs when her husband came through town. I LOVE LOVE LOVE restored/refurbished/re-purposed furniture. I think I posted a while back that I had purchased liquid sander and 2 cans of spray paint to attempt to paint the chairs myself. Those items went back to Walmart and Home Depot today! I’ll be sure to post when I get them back, maybe as early as next week. My friend’s business is called Chic Restoration – her Facebook page is: Chic Restoration. I will post her pic of Mallory’s dresser below and will try to post a pic of it in her room later! LOVE IT! When I get the chairs back I’ll recover the cushions in something other than RED.

The dresser looks great in Mallory’s room! I’ll work on a picture for my next post!  

I hope you all have a Merry Christmas! I’m so thankful for family and healthy kids (AND family). I’ve read on Facebook today that a friend of a friend of a friend lost her husband last night after a long battle with cancer. He was younger than me with a young son and a daughter on the way. I think I have also posted about a little girl from Montgomery named Karlie who was put BACK in ICU tonight. She contracted HUS disease weeks ago (a month or longer ago) and is still battling all of the complications. She is around Mallory’s age. So we celebrate Christmas and the birth of Jesus and pray for these families who have lost a loved one and who are on their knees praying for healing for their precious daughter!! 

Mallory & I watched this flash mob video today – you may have seen it circulating Facebook ~  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vnt7euRF5Pg I LOVED IT!!!! A) who doesn’t love a good flash mob and B) the songs and reactions of the people were wonderful!! If you have a few minutes watch it!

p.s. I did a guest blog post not too long ago on the Rock Bottom Tees blog ~ you can read the post HERE, which was published today!

another p.s….. While I was at Hobby Lobby yesterday waiting for them to put my bulletin board together, I saw this fabulous fabric (and bought a yard). The picture is not so great (I-phone), but the colors are GREAT!! It’s a good thick fabric too! $8.99/yard so catch it on sale or take a coupon!

MERRY CHRISTMAS from Applique Cafe!

Filed Under: Applique Cafe, Family, Misc, Shopping | Tagged: Tagged With: ,

Shop, Sew or Crawl in Bed?

Posted by on December 7, 2011

It’s that crazy time of year we call “the Holidays”. We all have so much to do it’s hard to know where to start! Do I work on customer orders that have piled up, do I work on that last wreath that goes on the outside window, do I try to knock out some Christmas shopping and that long list of teacher gifts, or do I crawl back in bed? This week I’ve opted for work. I’ve done 6 tees today so far and am now working on AC samples. It was too cold and rainy to shop or run a single errand. Here are 4 shirts I did this week for a friend’s nephew. We had a hard time finding 3T shirts so these are the colors we came up with. I did Santa on navy last year and I liked it! I also like the tree truck colors on the blue shirt (both Old Navy). The gray and black were from Target I think, and I like the brown and red on the gray. Black is a tricky color to me always, but I like the tractor patch ~ the tires and initials tie in the black. These are all Applique Cafe designs, but I also do designs from other websites if that’s what my customer wants. 

Which brings me to one of my favorites!! This is the Raggy Angel from Embroidery-Boutique! I also LOVE her on this aqua tee (Garanimals from Walmart this year). I have also been asked where these dress forms came from, and I think E-bay (search “plastic dress form”)? They are plastic with hangers on them. I have 2 in 2 different sizes.

I used similar fabrics as the EB sample on her website. I think it turned out cute and this could be worn after Christmas.

We’re having a little fun with our elf, which we can’t remember what his name is? We have been racking our brains and we think his name is “Red Hawk”. Browder named him several years ago and no one remembers. If you have an elf, there are lots of great ideas on Pinterest as to what to do with him.

Next we have my SEWING TREE! I saw a similar tree on a blog a year or two ago and I finally broke down and bought a little tree from Hobby Lobby (50% off no doubt). I only have a few ornaments (it is hard to find sewing related ornaments – I looked at Joann, Michaels and Hobby Lobby with no luck this year). I cut up some fabric and tied that one. It’s pretty cute in person and I hope to add to my ornament collection. I think these came from Joann, but I saw none this year.

 

I LOVE ART!! I would fill my walls with paintings if I could. I also like to pretend I am artsy and can paint. Last night I went to Corks & Canvas with some friends. The theme was an angel, and I have to say I am slightly pleased with my painting! I’ve done corks & canvas one other time and it did not turn out so well. I really like this angel and it may even get hung somewhere? A bathroom maybe? It was a lot of fun and I’d love to do it again!! It’s kind of like sewing ~ total distraction from all the “stuff” in our busy lives! For 2 hours I focused on this canvas. I’d love to do it again, and Browder is now drawing the angel ~ maybe he & I need to go do it again!

I’m working on AC samples of new designs now. BYE!!

Filed Under: Applique Cafe, Misc | Tagged:

nothing…

Posted by on November 30, 2011

I have absolutely nothing to post, but I thought I should say I’m still alive! We had a great Thanksgiving ~ Wed through Sun in Orange Beach. It’s the most wonderful time to be at the beach and we’ve been doing it since Browder was like a toddler. Great family time and a slow pace ~ a little shopping and go kart races, a little indoor swimming and a couple of great puzzles. I read a book (Hunger Games [book 1 only]) which is a rare thing. Lots of yummy food too and quality time with cousins and in-laws (we go w/ Jeff’s fam)!

Here is a picture of my lovely little assistant. Monday we did a few fun things on Facebook for Cyber Monday ~ free designs, a couple of refunds and yesterday we drew for a winner of a $20 AC gift certificate. Sissy drew the name and the winner received a voucher code for $20 off! You had to utilize the $5 off $20 special on Monday to be entered. Dorcas Jones was our winner, so happy shopping!!

Not much to report on the home front. We haven’t brought out the first Christmas decoration yet, but plan to do so this week. Below is our neighbor’s house. How do you compete with life size toy soldiers and swans? Our across-the-street  neighbor has some massive huge wrought iron toy soldiers in front of their house too. Something tells me slapping a wreath on the front door ain’t gonna cut it!

I guess I can share that Jeff is getting braces today! He has never had them, so I’ve tried to gently forewarn him of the pain that is surely ahead of him. I have sharp memories of not being able to eat, brackets jabbing in to mouth ulcers, wires poking in the back of my gums, etc. One of the bloggers I read recently got braces on her bottom teeth and jokes about sucking on potato ships. I told Jeff that I am afraid she was probably NOT joking! At least for the first several (4-5?) days. You might ask why he is getting braces ~ he’s never had them, decided he wanted them and in actuality here where we live we have several adult friends who have them or have had them recently. I had them as a teen, but need them again! Anyway, this should be interesting!!

AC shoppers – designs are 30% off through tomorrow! Have a great day and stay warm!!

p.s. no updates on the sewing room. I’m convinced I may not be happy until I paint the room? I have not painted the chairs yet and have not got Jeff’s bulletin board yet. The paint stuff is sitting in the garage, but it has been too windy (and now cold) to attempt anything!

Filed Under: Applique Cafe, Family, Misc | Tagged:
« Previous Page
Next Page »