Dream Crusher

You might be wondering what happened with my sewing projects or more specifically the baby boots. For a while there I was a sewing maniac. I had morphed the original boot pattern into something wonderful that i think people might actually buy instead of scoff at, and then i began looking for a more durable type of fleece.....and that's where i ended. Not because a more durable type of fleece is impossible to come by, but because according to the CPSIA JKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ regulations, fleece is banned. Only materials that are natural (cotton, wool, etc) are allowed to be used without being tested. So if you know anyone who would be willing to put wool boots on their babies, send me an email.

Confession

Hello, my name is Kari and I'm a sewingaholic. It's been 3 weeks since I've seen the light of day. Just kidding. It hasn't gotten that bad yet. I have spent the past 3 nights sewing continuously until midnight. Who knew sewing could become an obsession? I just wish the stuff I was laboring hours and hours on actually looked cute.....or fit somebody. The first dress I tried to make turned out disgustingly awful. I'm tempted to make Mariah wear it anyway just because it took so much work, but it is truly hideous....I blame the pattern, clearly it doesn't have anything to do with my lack of sewing prowess. The second dress I attempted took me 5 hours to make and actually turned out stinking cute....if only it wasn't 3 sizes too big. Oh well, maybe it will fit next summer.

I've been meaning to get an Etsy store set up this week, but got a little side tracked on the dresses. I'm still working on perfecting the boots and at the rate I'm going they'll be absolutely perfect just in time for summer. wah wah wah. I found out too late that since the government passed all those manufacturing laws last year on what you can and can't use for children's clothing/garments, that I can't use buttons on them as decorations. I'm going to design my own flower pattern and use those instead I just haven't gotten around to it yet. Anybody have any ideas for other alternate decorations for them?

P.S. Hayden's 3rd Birthday is this weekend and we're having a party on Saturday for him. If you haven't gotten an invite email me! I couldn't find everyone's email addresses and have lost the ability to write with a pen.

P.P.S I know the picture at the top totally makes me look like a grandma.
Image courtesy of heartsandhome

Boots in Progress

Okay, so it's about time that I show you what I've been up too. These are some pictures of the boots I've been trying to figure out how to make. I've revised them from the original pattern about 4 times and I still think they need some more revising before they could be sell-able. What do you think? Opinions? I would LOVE [read: tolerate] constructive criticism. As you can see Mariah wasn't to happy about getting her picture taken this morning, so that's the reason for the random shots of a mini baby tantrum....

Shoes

I was going to use tonight's post to show you my shoe sewing progress, but when i got all my ugly little shoes together and tried to set them up to take pictures Hayden woke up from his nap, threw a colossal tantrum and I decided in order to avoid further tantrums I would lure him into a good mood by taking him to the park.

So far I've had absolutely no luck with the shoes. They're so ugly I can't even give them away. I did make some boots that turned out pretty cute....well, not the first pair. I'm not sure if I'll ever figure out how to make them cute enough to sell, but I am excited about giving them out as baby gifts. Tune in tomorrow for some pictures.....because I'm pretty sure you've been waiting your whole entire life to see a bunch of pictures of gag worthy shoes.

Baby Shoes and Why Target Brand Pregnancy Tests are the Devil

Sorry I have been neglecting my blog. I have been sewing shoe after shoe in the attempt to figure out how to use my sewing machine and make a baby shoe that is actually wearable. There are little brown shoes littering the living room floor and not a single one of them even fits Mariah....not to mention how NOT cute they are. Apparently my sewing skillz leave something to be desired. I am learning though, and having a surprising amount of fun doing it. I've never considered myself to be "crafty," in fact, years of motherly encouragement and repeated attempts to even LIKE knitting had me giving up on myself, but i'm realizing that sewing is completely different and for some reason that i can't put my finger on i'm actually liking it.

In other news that deserves to be written about, I almost found out I was pregnant on Thursday. I had been feeling really tired for a few days, and add to that a few other unmentionable symptoms and rather than sweat it out I decided to take a pregnancy test....not to mention how much I enjoy peeing on sticks. If those things were cheaper I would buy piles of them just for the pure enjoyment of taking random pregnancy tests. I'm not sure where this fascination comes from, I hope for Mariah's sake it's not genetic. Off to target I went and bought myself a box of pregnancy tests. I should mention that I didn't really think I was pregnant....I mean, the possibility was there, but lets say it was only 2.3%. We have been unbelievable careful since Mariah was born, shell shocked into not wanting another baby just yet.

We put the kids to bed, then I took the test and sat there waiting for my answer. Two minutes later I was still sitting there, staring at the test window and trying to decide if a very very verrrry faint line was a mistake or if I could actually be pregnant. These things don't lie right?? I've read it's almost impossible to get a false positive, but HOW IN THE WORLD COULD I POSSIBLY BE PREGNANT?! I followed that performance with two heart attacks, a shudder, some tears, frantic praying, and then many feelings of guilt over how the baby would feel if it ever found out my initial reaction to it's presence. I laid in bed trying to go to sleep, but unable to think about anything accept how that test couldn't be right. Finally I got up the nerve to ask google about it. Google knows, people. Apparently I'm not the only one who has gotten a false positive from target brand pregnancy test. It happens ALOT. In fact, there are so many people complaining that I'm surprised they haven't done something about it yet.

I read multiple stories about women who have fertility problems taking them and being overjoyed thinking that had finally gotten pregnant, only to find out later from a doctor that the test was wrong. Reading those heartbreaks and disappointments was convicting. I know that if I were to get pregnant now I would love the child unconditionally, as I love my other children, but ideally for the sake of my sanity I would like to wait 5-10 years.....or at LEAST 2.5.

That information obtained I waited for the morning and then peed on another stick just for fun....and too add yet another false positive to the pile. I then thumbed my nose at target brand and went on to tell the story to a couple of friends thinking it was funny. Neither of them thought it was funny and both insisted that I take another test to be sure. I bought the expensive brand the second time around and came up with a NOT PREGNANT on the first try.

For a tightwad I have spent an awful lot of money on pregnancy tests this week....about 22$ to be exact....22$ that i could have been blowing in Etsy's general direction.

Never buy store brand pregnancy tests when you want to know the truth the first time. Lesson Learned.

Etsy Revealed: The Never Ending Addiction

Okay, So tonight I got suckered into looking at cool Etsy stuff again. This time it was uber cute little girl shoes. I don't think I'm a very creative person, or very crafty, but now I'm determined to learn. I talked myself into buying a pattern to make little baby shoes. Little babies don't need shoes, so who even knew there would be an industry there, but whatever. I bought shoes for my babies, and I'm sure other people will too...So, now i will have a new hobby. I will be called "Shoe Maker," or more specifically "Baby Shoe Maker." If you have had a baby, are planning on having a baby, or may even become pregnant in the not so distant future I will probably send you free baby shoes as a promotional gift. BUY FROM ME ON ETSY....errr, i guess i better figure out how to use the pattern first.

Etsy Revealed

I've got to make a post tonight if for nothing else than for the sake of getting my face off the front of my blog. Maybe Mariah's not the only one who is camera shy...

I've been fighting the pull of Etsy for a while now since I first heard of it at the very beginning of Mary Pat's Etsy career. My reasons? Time and MONEY. It takes a long time for me to find anything that I like and even more time to find something I would be willing to pay boutique prices for. I mean, who wants to pay boutique prices when you can just go to Wal-Mart and get it for pennies....Joking, JOKING....put your shirt back on. Since Meichiko is getting ready to open her store in a few days, her excitement has been rubbing off on me and I finally went and had a look around last night.

The Mission: New Diaper Bag (that doesn't look anything like a diaper bag).
Price Range: 20$-30$ ( I know I'm cheap)
Time Allotment: 30 minutes

Here's what I found and bought:

Courtesy of Christystudio

I'm totally in love with it. It's so big I can fit my own junk, diapers, wipes, and probably several boxes of crackers a hoard of sippy cups and my own personal chef.

Here are my stats:
Diaper bag that doesn't look at all like a diaper bag: Score
Price: 31$
Time: 20 minutes to find and another hour ogling all the other bags in the store.

Etsy 1 - Kari 0