featured

I was featured in two different ArtFire collections recently!

My tie covered with playing cards made it into the "Poker Face" collection.  Although I am not really a poker gal - I can appreciate the workmanship in some of the items!  (I'm more of a cribbage player).

My bodysuit with a sock monkey made it into the "Monkey Business" collection.  How cute is the little kid in the monkey hat?!

Thanks for the support.  I feel honored to be amongst such great stuff!

10 days!

Here's the rules for the 10 DAYS promotion:

- The first person to order an item from my ArtFire shop gets 10% off their order.
- All orders placed through ArtFire by October 1st will get totaled. The 1st person who ordered will get store credit for 10% of sales during this promotion. (Shipping not included)
- The 10th person to order by October 1st gets $10 store credit.
- As with all ArtFire orders, if you are local & choose to pick up your item from me, shipping will be refunded.
-Be sure to put 10 DAYS in the checkout notes.

What does this mean? Gather up all your friends, and start shopping! You have until October 1st!!!!
If you like this idea and would like to host your own be the thread online party sometime, let me know and we can figure out the dates & details!

*I will continue to take custom orders, they just are not included in this promo.

my stash... my collection... ???

So when I began this crazy business a couple years ago, I was focusing on baby blankets. I bought a lot of fun fabrics & flannels so I'd have choices to offer customers.
I'm beginning to think maybe I overbought. just a little.Here's my plan - I paired up a bunch of the fabrics, and they are waiting over in my shop to be turned into blankets. It takes some of the guesswork out of the process, and customers will be able to preview a bunch of choices.The blankets will be 34 x 40. I will embroider names, birthdates, short phrases, or a small symbol or design as well.
What do you think of my plan?

BOO!

Check out my latest Halloween adventure...Aren't those eyes the funnest?
And the pink pompoms on the bottom???

Hop on over to my RapidCart on the side and grab it quick!!

sew, mama, sew WINNER!!!

surreal.
What a whirlwind the last few days have been. The number (and quality!) of comments I've received on my little creation has been overwhelming. Thanks for all the love, everyone!
It is fun to create, and even more fun when other people love what you create!
There were a couple of you who wanted a tutorial or were interested in sewing your own. I'll see what I can put together in the next week or two.

So... the real news you're here for - - -

THE WINNER IS.... ROSEY LITTLE THINGS!


roseylittlethings said...
Strawberries and raspberries are our faves! Darling dress!
May 27, 2009 10:24 AM

I know a lot of people use random.org - I like to do things a little differently. I printed off everyone's names on one single sheet of paper (small print!) and told my son to pick one and circle it. I have no idea what his thought process was, but figured that was pretty random.
So - please email me with the size you would like your dress to be, and your address & I'll get this sent off as soon as possible!!!

For all of you other sad folks out there, I am always selling at ArtFire - please check out some of my other items! Free shipping until June 10th if you mention SEW MAMA SEW in the checkout notes. If you email me with a custom order or request by June 10th, shipping is still free!

pink & green WINNER!

Thanks everybody for your kind comments about my pink & green items. I'm glad you spent a minute (or two) of your Memorial Day weekend with me!

The news you've all been waiting for....

Sarah you're the winner!
YAY!
Email me with the name for the bag & your mailing address.

Now for all the rest of you heartbroken folks, if you head on over to my ArtFire shop and buy something by the end of the month, shipping is FREE! (well, I don't really know how to make it show up as free, but I'll refund it to your PayPal right away.) Just be sure to type PINK&GREEN in the comments at checkout.
Of course, I love custom orders too - so if you have something special in mind, please let me know!!!!

(Still sad? I have another GIVEAWAY tomorrow through the Sew Mama Sew giveaway day. Come on back!)

pink & green & a GIVEAWAY!

If you're stopping by courtesy of the ArtFire Pink & Green Blog Tour - thank you!
I've made a ton of pink and green things - it was so hard to pick my favorites, but here we go...

This bag is a customer favorite - perfect for little girly-girls and ballerinas everywhere!

This sweet onesie was for a little baby named Ivy - the center of the swirly heart is minkee. So soft and cuddly!

This table runner was made for Jen - as part of a swap hosted by Crafty Mama. She said she loved bright pinks, with a little bit of green. So I went to work on a couple whirligigs for her - added some Cuttlebug stars & a pink button, squiggled in the white - and I was done. It was so much fun to find all these great fabrics in my stash!

These dresses were made for my friend's two daughters in Arizona. So simple and easy, made from a soft lightweight fabric - perfect for their hot months!

I made a quilt for my 1st niece out of a mixture of pink and green fabrics. I had some leftover star stuff - and made her this cute hat. I love the scalloped edge on it!


I figured I better stop now and tell you the best part - I'm giving away a tutu bag to one of you!
My very first giveaway - YAY!
Here's how you can win... (3 entries possible!)
1. Make a comment about your favorite item (even if it's not the tutu bag) - or tell me who you would give the bag to.
2. Become a follower (if you already are, you'll still get the extra entry)
3. Blog about me & the giveaway. (make sure you let me know!)

I'll be drawing names May 26th at noon.
Make sure you leave your email address in the comments if you don't have a blog. I'd hate for you to win and then not be able to receive your special bag!
If you can't think of any girls who would want this bag, let me know and I'll design a bag for your favorite boy. I don't want the boys to be left out. :)

Thanks for stopping by. Even if you don't win - I'm glad you're here and I hope you'll come back often! I review books every Sunday, and I'm always up to something else during the week. See you around...

some more new stuff

Just wanted to share a couple new things I've been up to...

A hooded towel for a little boy named Zach. He's a sporty one - and a little ribbon on the side just helps make the design a little more interesting.
This shirt is for a dear Grammy. All 6 grandchildren's handprints have been traced, stitched, and their names embroidered.
A perfect summer road trip bag - ready for a few new toys, games, coloring books, and activities for that long car or plane ride. There is enough room at the top for a name to be embroidered, or a name can be appliqued in the middle of the car fabric.

A nursing cover - a little bit of boning at the top makes for a little "window" to peek at your little one.
The strap that holds it around your neck is made from matching ribbon and 2 D rings.

This shirt has a bright yellow lightning bolt on the front - and has been stitched about 1/4" from the edge so the edges will fray a little with additional wear and washings.
Head on over to my shop if you're interested in any of these items!!!

coming up

A couple fun things I'm excited to be a part of...

My first official be the thread PARTY! This Friday night a group of gals will be getting together at a friend's house for a sewing and decorating extravaganza.
When they get there, munchies and drinks will be served of course! But they're each going to get their own little party packet - a bag with paper, Sharpie, scissors, crafting instructions and tally sheet. (oh yeah, and my business card too)I'm thinking I might have to toss in a little piece of chocolate too. That always gets my creative juices flowing! It will be so much fun to see what everybody comes up with. I will of course, also be selling items from my ArtFire shop.

Spring Market - May 27th - It is hosted by Gretchen. She lives at 0s350 Ellithorp Lane in Geneva - if you're local, please stop by between 3:30 and 7:30. She makes bottlecap necklaces. I can't wait to see them! Nata-Leigh (my very 1st follower!) will be there with her Children's Party planning business.

If you are just a "virtual" friend - don't worry, here's your opportunity!!! Starting May 15th, the ArtFire Sew What Guild is hosting a "Pink & Green" Blog Tour. I'm not sure yet what my day is (she's still organizing) - but I'm going to have a giveaway! My first!

Last thing - I have a new button on the side! Just Something I Made is giving out free buttons and I snagged the email one - it was just too perfect. Now you don't have to look around, go to my profile, blah blah. It's just right there. Yay! (so the coming up part is I hope that there will be some fun emails coming up in my inbox!)

sock monkey fun

I was having a little too much fun with sock monkeys today.


I did the whole frayed edge applique thing on a yellow onesie, with just a simple smiling monkey. Cute, huh?


This was my son's favorite so I'm brewing up a little something special for him. Hopefully I can share that tomorrow. For now, I used this monkey on a burp cloth and on a onesie.


Hop on over and grab this little guy before someone else does!

be the thread official kick-off!!!!!

Hi! Thanks for visiting. Here's my new and improved blog. Whaddya think???
For those of you who visited my old Sew Personalized spot, this will look slightly familiar. All the old projects are still hidden in the archives here. (click on "sewing" or "clothing" over there under labels) I've just chosen to make it a little more chatty and hopefully a little more friendly. I'm going to be doing weekly book reviews too. I just can't stop myself.

Have you checked out my ArtFire shop yet? There's a "Rapid Cart" feature on the sidebar on the right - I've picked out a few items from my shop that you might be interested in. You can just click on the items right there and it will take you through the checkout process.
***Don't forget - if you order an item online this weekend you will receive 10% off. If you are local, shipping will be refunded to you upon delivery. If you are interested in the deal, but would rather place a custom order, please email me by Sunday night. All orders will be processed in the order they were received, beginning Monday.

Are you interested in hosting a workshop? Check out what my friends made at the very first workshop held in early March... please excuse the poor photo quality. I was in a hurry to get the items to them! I think we can have a lot of fun creating something together, so please contact me soon to reserve a date.

Thanks for your support of me in this crazy endeavor. If you ever want to comment, click on the place below that says "thread thoughts" - then you can share your excitement with me.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend. Mine will be full of birthday happenings and Easter rejoicing. Please stop back next week!!!

be the thread...the business

My business is evolving. It started out almost two years ago as a little dream called "Sew Personalized". It has expanded from personalized children's blankets to include toys, clothing, baby gear, and numerous other personalized items. I have had SO much fun making custom items for my friends and family. I was blogging about my items as I made them.

It is time to grow again. I am going to start selling items on Art Fire. I still REALLY want to do custom orders for my customers, so I will definitely keep doing that. But I have fun creating brand new stuff and I want to be able to share that with the world!
I am also reminded how much I love teaching. I held a workshop for some friends a few days ago and I had so much fun sharing my love of fabric with them and helping them create something special.

So I am taking the name be the thread and claiming it for my business. I have merged the old blog with this one.

I want to encourage you to be the thread too.
be the thread - become a stronger person by hosting your own in-home workshop (locally of course!) and learning a new skill.
be the thread - design something with me - creative custom orders are still near and dear to my heart. Those can be done long distance too. The internet is a beautiful thing!
be the thread - so many opportunities to use the beautiful materials available (and I'm not just talking about thread here folks - there are so many gorgeous fabrics, embroidery designs, ric-rac, ribbons, need I go on...?)


be the thread - sewn into something beautiful, strong, and creative.
Official launch date - April 10th.

artfire

It's this new place I heard about from jumpupanddown. I'm not sure what I'll do, how much I'll list, etc. etc. But I decided what better time and PRICE to jump on and see what selling magic I can make.
Only one way to find out!

be the thread - I'm not sure what I'm going to list there. hmm... today is for computer planning, details, and figuring it out. Then off to create and list this weekend!