I love snowy mornings. The view from my front window feels unspoiled, quiet and calm. Have a great day!

Yikes! Where is January going? Mine has been spent largely on family (yay!) and on a monumental work project (double yay!).

In the meantime, a couple of my posts were featured on Tip Junkie over the last few days, so “Hi” to anyone jumping over from there, so glad to have you!

Gotta get back to that project, I hope to have it wrapped up in the next week or so. Ta-ta for now!

While I’d dearly love to snap up a gazillion dollars worth of J. Crew goodness…it’s not in the cards this year. So, I decided to do the next best thing–make something I already have work! I purchased this necklace at da-da-da-daaaaa: Walmart for about $5 a couple years ago, and it just wasn’t sitting right with me as-is. It’s cute-ish, but just a little too bulky and blah at the same time:

I fiddled with the necklace until it had the drape I wanted, then tacked black grosgrain ribbons to the links:

And just for fun, I attempted a little self-portait. (OK, that was harder than I thought it would be!) I’m LOVING my new trinket, especially the fact that it cost nothing and took literally minutes to do!

Back to sewing now…I’ve got some fun things to share soon!
Audrey

P.S. Disclaimer: I’m *not* the professional photographer in the family, so please don’t judge Kayla’s work on my blurry, blotchy photos!! )

I’m a lucky girl! And darn if I didn’t almost forget to tell you all about it!

Back in April, Kristen of Gock’s Frocks held a giveaway for this GORGEOUS rug on her blog, and I won it! It is soft, luxurious, looks perfect here on my landing, and goes beautifully with the projects I have planned for this room…if I ever get to them! Ha!

Anyway, jump on over to her blog and etsy store…she makes gorgeous things for little girls.

Gratefully,
Audrey

A quiet afternoon at the lake with cousins, snacks, sand, sun, swimming…perfect.

Wishing you all the same,
Audrey

I was in dire need of a good way to visually store my ribbon stash, and when I saw this storage idea in a recent issue of Creating Keepsakes, I knew I’d found it!

Additional shelving…a girl can never have enough!

The sun came out for two gloriously warm days this week, and in hopes that today wouldn’t be bitterly cold, I talked Miss M into wearing something Spring-y, and grabbed this pretty little skirt made by my good friend Esther. I wanted to share it with you for two reasons: 1-because it’s darling, of course! and 2-because I want to mention CPSIA.  

Most of the hubub about this law has died down with the stay of execution of testing enforcement granted by the CPSC in February, but the law itself is in full force. It has had devastating consequences for small entrepreneurs like Esther, who chose to shut down her Prairie Roses online boutique and walk away from her dream of designing her own line of girls’ dresses rather than face the astronomical costs associated with proving her products to be safe. (An aside here: I’ve never met a designer more conscientious and precise in compliance with safety and ethical standards than Esther.) 

In the eight months since the CPSIA passed, nothing has been solved or clarified in the midst of the buck-passing going on between Congress and the CPSC. An amendment sponsored by Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina (which offered common sense solutions to the problems while ensuring safety standards) failed to pass the Senate last week by 19 votes. Do you know how your senators voted? Do they know you know? Do they know how you wish to be represented when the next amendment bill (cross your fingers for a good one) comes to the floor?

It’s snowing outside and I just bought a swimsuit. Makes perfect sense, doesn’t it? Actually, I bought a suit similar to this last year (at full price) and loved it: it is flattering on, doesn’t gap at the top when I move, sucks my tummy in, and has a nice modest leg line…so I stalked this puppy for a couple months, waiting for it to go on sale. Then forgot about it. I just stumbled on it again today, for $19.99. Score! It’s on it’s way to me now…I’m so thinking a tropical escape is in order for my near future. Even if it might be wishful thinking…..

I discovered the world of hair blogs a couple months ago. These girls have some fun, different, ideas…some are complex, others just look that way. It’s been nice to have new options, because since mid-Kindergarten, Miss J has had this thing about her hair: it must be in a ponytail at all times. Which is fine, but bo-ring. So I try to spice things up with knots and flips and a weave here and there when she’s feeling magnanamous and I’m feeling inspired.

And just for you girls out there who need a little lift today (okay, and me!), here’s the saying on the back of Miss M’s shirt today, courtesy of the fabulous Matilda Jane:

My mom “surprised” me with this necklace from Lisa Leonard Designs for my birthday (thanks Mom!), and I’ve worn it constantly since. I love it’s simplicity, the meaning of the three little initials, the hammered texture of the silver discs, the luminous pearl charm. I’ve been wanting some cute earrings to wear with it, and finally found some time to sit down and make these little babies:

They came together in about three minutes (once I gathered the items I needed), and they look perfect with my favorite necklace. Here’s how they work:

Items needed:
1 pair silver french hook earwires
2 freshwater pearls
2 silver 2″ headpins
1 pair round nose pliers
1 pair needle nose pliers

Thread the head pin through the hole in the pearl, form a loop using the round nose pliers, slip the earwire onto the loop, then wrap the rest of the pin around the base of the loop using the needle nose pliers. (You might need to trim a little bit off.) Since I forgot to take pictures of the process, here’s a good demonstration of the technique.