The adventure and mishaps of Shoog cont..

The Shoog is not holding up to her end of the truce. She has a major shoe addiction that Sour Apple cant help.

UGH! Do you know how hard it is to find cute black and white striped heels that don't look too Tim Burton-ish?

This one really hurt. So much so, that I can't bring myself to throw them away. I think I'm going to try black electrical tape to hide some of the inflictions. I'll let you know if it works.

Another Shoog story...

Last night, while watching Survivor, my youngest noticed the Shoog acting strange. "What Shooger doing?" he asked, and we all quickly turned to see what my 3 year old was talking about. Sure enough, it was strange alright. The Shoog was trying to... umm... lets see... how should I put this- BREASTFEED from my French Mastiff! Now, in the Shoog's defense, my mastiff's umm... lets see... how should I put this...udders... are abnormally large. Seriously! We've had kids come over to visit and wonder where the puppies are. When seeing Hanna (the mastiff) they've asked, "So why does your dog have udders?" I assume that the Shoog must have likewise noticed them and had a flash back to when she was with her mother. Instinct just kicked in. We had a good laugh, separated the two dogs, sprayed Sour Apple on the udders and went back to watching Survivor. Just joking about the Sour Apple, but it's not a bad idea.

Happy weekend!

Jamie

Hooded Scarf photo shoot

As previously mentioned, Sunday was the big shoot for the Hooded Scarf pattern. The weather was perfect for the mood I wanted the shoot to have. The natural lighting wasn't too harsh and not too dark. It didn't rain. At least not until the end, and that was only a light drizzle.

Before I share pics from the shoot, let me introduce you to the crew...

Pierre-olivier Briglio was the photographer. He totally caught the vision I wanted for the pattern. If we didn't have to leave by a certain time, he would have shot all day. He was very professional, yet approachable with other ideas. I really enjoyed working with him! Here is the link to his website.

Sellecca was the makeup artist. I told her I wanted a natural look and she nailed it! Her makeup was flawless.

This is Carmel. Carmel and I go way back. I've known her since she was 7. I grew up spending my summer weekends with her and her family at the beach. She was a natural in front of the camera.

This is Christi. She is a friend of my sister's and she's as sweet as they come. She was a total trooper, because it was pretty cold out there and she's just a little drink of water. We had her in a little dress with boots and she was trying so hard to not look cold.

There are a few more pics from the shoot on my flickr page (link).

We did the shoot at my sisters house, which has the charm of a doll house on a farm. I told her to never move, because I will need her house for future shoots.

Then there is my sister. I can't thank her enough for all that she did during the shoot. Not only did she provide the house, she's also my coordinator that linked everyone together that were involved with this shoot. She's awesomeness!

(She's probably going to hate this pic, but I love it. She didn't want me to take her picture, but being a typical big sister, I didn't listen.)

So back to working on the pattern, and putting it all together.

Cheers,

Jamie

Secret sale & new Alexander Henry fabric

New Willow fabrics by Alexander Henry fabrics. They all go together so nicely.

The last one is called Alamandas. Beautiful colors! Here is the link to the new fabrics.

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Yes, I'm having a secret sale at Phat Fabric. I suppose that's what you call it when only people with the secret code can get the discount. However, I'm not sure it's such a secret being as I'm blogging about it. Anywho, the sale is for 20% off Anna Maria Horner's new fabric line Little Folks, including her voile solids. And the secret code is... anna. Bet you didn't see that one coming. Simply enter the code anna at checkout and the discount will be applied to your Anna Maria fabric order. The code will expire March 6th. Here is the link to Anna Maria Horner's fabrics.

Lastly, the photo shoot that took place on Sunday for the Hooded Scarf went great! The weather was perfect for the shoot - no rain, yet not too sunny. I'll share some pics later on this week. Until then, cheers!

Jamie

Photo shoot

Happy Friday everyone!

So right after I posted about my daughters brightness, she came out of her room with florescent rainbow striped knee highs on. The knee highs were accompanied with a black dress over cut off shorts. And I was totally cool with it. Growth!

This Sunday is the cover photo shoot for the hooded scarf. Yippee! Yippee not only because the pattern is almost finished, but because I'm not in the shoot AND I have a photographer for the shoot. So I get to be the director of the shoot. I think I'll wear a beret and drink coffee through out the shoot. I am so excited about it.

It's supposed to rain everyday except Sunday, so please pray the weather guy is right. I will take pics of the event and share them with you all next week.

Happy weekend!

Jamie

Her future is bright!

She almost left the house this way. When she emerged from her room early the other morning, my daughter was wearing the brightest knee highs I ever did see. The knee highs brought out the brightness of the Hawaiian print shirt too. That combined with the "a couple of sizes too small shorts" and worn out black shoes (buckle is broken on the side) were quite a shocker for me. Several thoughts ran through my mind within a 3 second period...

WOW! She's bright!

Who bought those socks for her?

I thought I donated that Hawaiian print shirt to a clothes drive.

How did she find her favorite shorts that I threw out awhile ago?

How do they still fit?

Should I make her change?

Should I encourage her independence and individuality?

Why doesn't she wear the clothes I make her?

What am I going to cook for dinner tonight?

As I said before, she almost left the house this way. I told her she needed to change her shorts because they were too small. So she did and emerged with a jean skirt instead. And off went my little Punky Brewter to school.

Up until this point, I have always thought of myself as a mom who encouraged her kids to be unique and to express their individuality, but now I question that. I had to fight myself from making her change everything. I tried to justify it by thinking to myself that possibly the brightness could cause another child to have seizures and I was only concerned for the safety of others. But the reality was that I was worried about other kids making fun of her at school. Yet, when she came home from school I asked her if anyone mentioned her socks and she looked down at her feet as if she had forgotten she was wearing them and said, "no."

Hmmm! What do I know?

Jamie

Hey there little red riding hood...

This past Sunday we celebrated my mom's and my sister's birthday. My mom didn't receive a hooded scarf for Christmas; instead, she got a Bibury Capelet. However, for her birthday she made a special request for a red hooded scarf.

I really like the plaid lining.

For my sister, I purchased a print from one of my favorite artists, Flossy P (Sarah Lyttle).

The print (on the right) is titled Up-Doo, and the postcard version is available in her etsy shop Flossy Particles. The bottom left is her business card. Yes, I'm going to frame that for myself. My daughter has already claimed the top left print titled All The Animals Know The Secret Of Life. She also has a blog full of lots and lots of inspiration. Here is the link to her blog.

I just love Flossy's work. My husband, the other day, told me about a speaker he had in one of his classes. The speaker is a professor in the art department and the lecture topic was on how to evaluate art. He said that judgement should be the last thing you decide when evaluating art. First, you should look at the colors, movement, emotion you feel when looking at the painting, and those that you believe the artist may have been trying to convey. The lecturer went into far more detail, but I found this interesting even in terms of people and first impressions. Anyways, my husband said that when he thinks about all of those points on how to interpret art, he concludes with, "Does it bring life or death?" Because in the end, you do have to make a judgement... if it's good or bad. Thinking in those terms, I would have to say that is exactly why I love Flossy-P's work. For me, her work is full of life and I like that.

Cheers,

Jamie

We've come to a truce

The Shoog and I have come to an agreement. She gets the couch and I get my floors, shoes, and bras back.

I'll spare you the bra image. It's a bit disturbing. Actually, I would like to thank Sour Apple for giving me the tools to force the new peace treaty between my dog and I. I may have to use that stuff to get my soon to be 4 year old off the sippy cup. That would be OK right????

I've come to realize the saying, "If you can't beat them join them," is good advice. Every morning, I start the day with a cup of coffee. Shoog gets up with me, her eyes flickering, still trying to adjust to the light. She waits for me to sit on the couch with her. As soon as I sit down, she cuddles up with me and lets me drink my coffee... in peace. We have an understanding of each other now.

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Ree Drummond is re-posting a great series on Aperture. I've read this series before and didn't quite get it, because I was still trying to understand the buttons on my camera. However, this time around I'm totally getting it. And loving it!

I know they're not the greatest, but I've been shooting in manual mode which is a big deal for me. I like having control over the exposure. Anyways, most of you probably already know of Ree Drummond, but if not, here is a link to the series (link)

On a different note, the shop is all updated.

Have a great weekend!

Cheers,

Jamie