Uncertainty
Um, hi! Remember me? It’s been a while. Sorry about that…Thanksgiving came and went and my husband ended up in the hospital and was seriously sick for three weeks. Thankfully he’s doing better now. Between that and the issue I want to talk about in a minute…I’ve been pretty distracted.
As many of you know, I’ve worked in my family’s business, One Small Child, for many years. Designing, manufacturing, and marketing christening gowns and children’s special occasion wear has been a huge part of my life. I’ve been so blessed to do something that means so much to me, in some ways my heart and soul are wrapped up in that business. And now it is in jeopardy, along with every producer of children’s products…from huge corporations to individual crafters and artisans.
Over the past several weeks I’ve been following what is happening as a result of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008, passed by Congress in August. In a nutshell, this law lowers the allowable limits of lead in children’s products and provides for strict testing requirements to prove safety. It sounds so good…we all want safe products–who doesn’t? But unfortunately, there are consequences that weren’t perhaps really taken into account when drafting the legislation. At least I hope this wasn’t intentional!
The unforeseen consequences? Lead testing by a certified lab is very, very expensive. So much so, that in some cases, the cost to test far exceeds the actual value of the products being tested. We produce products that inherently contain no lead. However, the law requires that ALL products be tested, including already existing inventory.
What does this mean for you the consumer? It means that as of February 11th, any product not having proper certification is automatically deemed a hazardous substance and is unlawful to sell–in fact, it’s a felony. Stores will be returning unsold merchandise to manufacturers…manufacturers will be going bankrupt…more employment losses and bankruptcies added to an already faltering economy. It will escalate in August 2009 when lower limits go into effect and more in-depth testing and labeling will be required. There will be little selection of products to choose from and significantly higher prices. This bill will effectively wipe out most Etsy and Ebay sellers.
If you care about our economy, about having a wide variety of affordable (and safe) products, about the livelihoods of thousands of people, please help–contact your Congressmen and Senators, contact the CPSC, let them know you want amendments made to this bill that will allow for less expensive testing methods (component, vendor supplied, and XRF testing) and relax the retroactive requirements.
Our Gratitude Garland
Wow, where did November go? I’m not sure where I’ve been, just busy being busy, I guess! I’m ready to get back to business though, lots to do! Yesterday I wanted to do a Thanksgiving activity with the kids, and thought these ideas were nice, so I printed up some cute tags (used images from this digi-kit) and we talked about gratitude and what we’re each thankful for, then strung them up on a ribbon. Fast, simple, easy…and so nice to bring our attention back to what is really good in our family. Here’s the low-down on what we’re grateful for at our house this year:
-Miss M is grateful for Miss M
-Mr. M is grateful for his family
-Miss J is grateful for horses and her family
-Mommy is grateful for our home and our family
-Daddy is grateful for his “beautiful, non-ornery wife” (awww…eye-roll)
Okay, so we’re not awfully creative, but we are truly blessed.
Scrappin’ Around
I had a few minutes to play around with some digital scrapping tonight, and thought I’d share…this could be seriously addicting. You know, if I had oodles of time.
Punkin’ Head
I realize this tutorial is a bit late for Halloween, but I got in a crafty mood yesterday morning when I was feeling all full of energy and thinking I could pull a quick little project off in nothin’ flat. So I thought I’d share the process with y’all and see what you think. I started out with these inexpensive pre-lit jack-o-lanterns from good old Walmart. I think they’re cute and friendly, but the orange, it’s way too bright for my taste. They need some white-washin’!
I learned this technique from Sandi’s blog: mix 1 part paint and 1 part crackle medium with 1 part water. Brush on, allow to dry just a bit, then rub off with a dry cloth. I followed that up with a dab of watered-down stain to age the look a little bit.
And there you have it: my version of a white-washed punkin’ head.
Halloween Frill
I found a link to this tassle making tutorial on The Shabby Nest last week, and knew I had to try making one of these! In an effort to avoid putting away all the stuff strewn about my house yesterday, I cleared off a bit of countertop, plugged in my glue gun and, voila! Not perfect, but fun nonetheless…gonna have to try it again!
Bits & Pieces
I love Fall decorating, it feels so warm and cozy, and I’ve scheduled time to do it for the past several weeks…and then I’ve promptly been distracted and busy being busy and have accomplished exactly nada! So last night my darling Miss J gave up on me and literally dragged our bins full of Fall bounty out of the storage room and dug in. Which means that today, instead of sewing as planned, I have a lot of household stuff to process and fluff and find places for! Sheesh, I drive myself crazy.
My friend Arynne tagged me the other day, so I’ll finish off today with some random bits of information about me:
Four TV Shows I Watch:
1-Project Runway
2-Curious George
3-Everybody Loves Raymond reruns
4-Heroes
Four Favorite Restaurants:
1-Carrabba’s
2-In-n-Out
3-Roadhouse
4-Bajio Grill
Four Things That Happened Yesterday:
1-Miss J was pretty much meltdown-free
2-Miss M took a nap…those are sadly becoming things of the past
3-Had my in-laws over for a yummy supper
4-Started my fall decorating! 😉
Four Things I’m Looking Forward To:
1-Sewing!
2-A truly clean house
3-My birthday
4-Bedtime
Four Things On My Wish List:
1-Overcoming my tendency to not follow through on projects
2-Building a garage
3-A nice sharp pair of fabric scissors
4-An adorable winter coat
Four Things I’m Grateful For:
1-My family
2-My friends
3-My internet connection
4-Each new day!
Four People to Tag:
That’s it…my brain is now officially fried, so if you read this, consider yourself tagged!
Floundering
I read this blog called Stop Staring and Start Sewing. Love that title–it’s exactly what I need to do, ’cause I’ve found myself floundering around, with 500 ideas and projects I want to get to. If I’m not careful, all 500 will crash around in my head and tire me out before I lift a finger! This is the situation I’m finding myself in this morning…I’m supposed to be working on Halloween costumes and handling some household chores, and instead I’m surfing and ooh-ing and aah-ing and wishing I was being productive. Blech.
Anyway, back to the point of this post: time to focus and get something done…just as soon as I run the potty-training duo to the loo and get us some lunch! (eye-roll)
Mommy & Me Pampering
At the request of my birthday girl, we took a little trip to the local day spa for some “mommy & me” mini-pedicures. If you asked me three years ago, I’d have told you it was beyond frivolous to take a seven-year-old for such pampering, but since discovering the joy of soaking and shaping and exfoliating and massaging those tootsies at the ripe old age of thirty-one, I’m of the opinion that every girl needs to indulge on occasion. I’m loving the groovy purple polish she picked out!
10 Steps to Something Pretty for You
Inexpensive wood plaque from Michael’s + slap of paint + smidge of sandpaper + wipe of stain + Mod Podge + patterned paper + Mod Podge + a meaningful photo + Mod Podge + ribbon = something pretty for you. 🙂
DIY Roman Shades
My husband’s family is the ultimate DIY poster family (think Tim the Tool Man Taylor…without the trips to the hospital). Their motto is: if you don’t know how to do something, you figure it out! They’ve (we’ve) done everything from concrete to framing to wiring to plumbing to drywall to tile to paint…and don’t get me started on the mechanical projects outside. Suffice it to say, they can do anything!
When my dear mother-in-law decided to rip down the 14-year-old wallpaper in her dining room and kitchen to make way for some new texture and color on her walls this summer, she didn’t know she was getting herself in for a bottomless remodel project! She ended up with new texture, color, pretty new trim, new flooring, and new fixtures in the bathroom just off the kitchen to boot! The project is finally finished…it just needed a few finishing touches, so I volunteered to provide some pretty roman shades for the windows.
I fit in pretty well with this crew, in that I like to do things myself…meaning patterns aren’t regularly consulted. I have made a few shades for my home in the past, and felt confident in my process and skills, so I just dug in. After a lot of measuring, some OH NO! moments, a really late night with a good chunk of ripping-out, and some improvising (the shades below weren’t supposed to have those cute stripes down the side, but they turned out way better after a “minor” measurement fiasco!), the blinds are installed and functional and we’re ready to tackle the next big project! After a nice long nap, that is.
Sage Meadow Studio 
