Win an Ergo baby carrier!!

Just click here to enter!! They even have organic ones, and if you win, you get your choice of carriers.

Whales in wool

Here's a pic of the surprise custom that I talked about a few posts back. I love the way it turned out. It also doesn't hurt to have such a cutie wearing it.
I'm hoping to do more customs with wool appliqué. I love the way it looks, and it's a fun technique. It's almost like sketching with wool.
I also made a pair of shorts that match this underwool, as well as the other one with the sun appliqué. They have waves along the bottom hem, and a splashy pocket.

WAHM Spotlight -The Elemental Muse

I have to say, Michelle is pretty incredible. She has at least 5 different WAHM-related sites, and they are all packed with helpful information for anyone who wants to get started on HyenaCart or start a small business. Hyena Cart info is a great starting place for those wanting to open up shop on Hyena Cart, or learn how to make their shop better with many tips and tricks. WAHspirations is so encouraging. It's a great place to read about other parents who work at home and packed with little bits of inspiration. At Elemental Muse, you will find a one-stop shop for all your website needs. She offers graphic design services, web hosting, domain registration, and more. The Muses Guide is where you will find her business guides and how-to packages. Finally, There's the Small Business Muse, a free email subscription which offers "weekly tips and ideas to help you effectively balance, manage, and market your small business."
This very busy mama is such a valuable resource to the WAHP community and she holds a very valued place in my bookmark file.

Looking for comfort?

Recently I blogged about the Blog Party, and mentioned that one of the prizes that I was interested in was an underwear set from Karen Neuburger. I didn't win, but a few days later was contacted by Daisy, one of their PR reps who asked if I was interested in trying and reviewing the set. I was, so she sent a couple of sets out to me (I wasn't sure which size I would need). It's the KN Cool daywear cami and hipster panty. I gave one set to a friend, and have been wearing mine for the past two weeks (not in a row, that would be gross). The fabric is incredibly soft and light. The cami has enough stretch to it that it doesn't loose shape by the end of the day, but still is comfortable and non-restrictive. It's also stretchy enough to nurse in! It's a great underlayer since it wicks and helps regulate body temperature, I also love to wear it to sleep.
Daisy also sent me a few other things to try from their sportswear collection. I was surprised how much I like the embroidered cropped pants. Not my usual style, but the are super comfortable and easy to wear. They are great to wear when playing with the kids, but still look put together enough to run out to the library or the grocery. The only complaint that I had with these, is that the pockets seemed to be a bit bulky to me, but I'm not used to wearing non-woven pants so it may just be me. She also sent the matching 3/4 sleeve zip front jacket which I've only worn for a few minutes since it's been getting so warm here. The short time that I had it on was uneventful but cosy. It will see more use in the fall. Last to talk about are some super sweet and soft baby socks that Daisy sent for the twins. They are as soft as the softest thing you've ever touched, and maybe even a little softer. Like little kitten feet. They are perfect for bedtime, and the kids like to pet them. They are really into socks lately, so anything sock-related makes them happy. When they are happy, so am I.
Thanks, Daisy and Karen Neuburger!

From now until May 31st, take 15% off your total online purchase at www.karenneuburger.com using discount code MOM2008

Clothes for Cute Babies

I've been enjoying spending some more time enjoying by family and the beautiful weather now that the Open Market is over. I'll be starting preparations earlier the next time I have a fair or show to do. It's not that I waited until the last minute, I just wanted to make sure that I had enough variety and selection that I could give everyone exactly what they wanted. I think I have a better idea now what types of things to bring with me and I think that will streamline the preparation process a bit.
I recently finished a couple of custom shorts for a friend's son. She told me yesterday that she's going to need a couple more pairs because every morning her son brings them to her to put on him. I love having tiny fans :). These are the shorts that I made for him...













I Dyed the wool to look like denim and Carhartt jeans. I love the color of the Carhartt ones, it's a really good match. Next I'm going to make him a forest green pair, I dyed the wool this evening.
I've also been working on another custom for a mama on HyenaCart. I made a set for her a few weeks ago which was my favorite until now. I can't show pictures yet, because she wants it to be a surprise, but I am so completely in love with this new one. The last custom that I made for her was also a surprise, but now that she has it, I can show it off. It was really fun to watch it evolve from sketch to finished piece. Wool sometimes has a mind of it's own and appliquéing with it is really fun. It's also great to have a customer just give me a few ideas/themes and free reign to run and play and create. I've had such a great time making things for this mama and I hope she'll let me work with her again.

Back to normal

Open Market was a blast! I met many people who I've only know online, and had a great day talking about the clothing that I make and the other products that I had available. My best seller by far were the cloth pads. So many mamas commented to me that they had been thinking about making the switch from disposables to cloth, but didn't know where to get them. One of my customers hadn't even considered cloth pads before, but loved the idea and bought a couple to try. I'm always happy to help keep a little more paper out of the landfill.
This evening has been really relaxing and I'm so happy to have a break from the craziness of getting ready for market. The kids went to sleep easily and I got to spend some time just hanging out on the couch knitting. Tomorrow I'll start updating my website and start getting it ready to stock again. The next sunny day we get, I'll take photos of all the new things that I'm stocking for warmer weather and get those online too.

Excuses, excuses

I just wanted to pop in and say that I'm sorry for the lack of posting and updates. I'm working like mad for the upcoming Open Market, and will resume my normal life after it's over. I'll have many photos to share and some exciting news.