And now, back to reality.

This week off has been great. The boys have slept in till 7:00 am almost every day (which is a record), and then we get up and cuddle.





It's been a great week off, but a little part of me is ready to be back in our routine. And out of our house that is filled with 2 pies, 3 types of cookies, truffles and various other goodies that I can't control myself around. Surely being out of the house 8 hours a day will help!!

Just three weeks till Christmas break! Already counting down the days!

Welcome, Friends from The Gift Closet!!

Hello! I hope some of Heather's followers are dropping by to see what 'Stag Designs' is all about. This is my little piece of the internet to showcase my sewing projects, my crafts and my life! I've been sewing for years, and I love looking at sewing/crafting/sewing/mommy blogs, so I decided to try it out for myself.

Today on Heather's blog, we're giving away this apron:



I created this apron because I was constantly wiping my hands on the bottom of the aprons I wore at school. I was always looking for a dishtowel, and it was always on the opposite side of the kitchen. So an idea was born! I must say, it's great! I teach a Nutrition and Wellness class to high school students, and this apron has been wonderful! My towel is always nearby, and at the end of an especially messy class, I can just rip the towel off the velcro and put a new one on!

In addition to the giveaway, I still have several aprons for sale. If you're interested in any of my Adult Aprons with Removable Dishtowels, they are $25 plus shipping. These are the options I currently have available:







In addition, if you look through my blog and see other aprons you like, let me know. I can custom make one for you in just a few days. I've also got some more 'manly' aprons in the works, with solid colors and camo.

In addition to the Adult full size aprons, I also have some Half Aprons availabe for $15 plus shipping.









If you've got a little helper around the house, they might need an apron too! The Children's Aprons are $12 plus shipping.







And finally, the project that is closest to my heart is my Baby Clothes Blanket. This one is made from my oldest son's clothes from his first year. I had to limit myself to the first year, or it would have been a king size blanket!! I can take your onesies, pajamas, burp cloths, receiving blankets, or any other fabric that is sentimental to you and create a one of a kind blanket. These custom blankets are backed with Minky fabric in the color of your choice. For a blanket similar to this one, with 80-90 squares, the price is $120 plus shipping. Price can be adjusted if you would like a smaller or larger blanket. Just send me your clothes and a few weeks later (generally 3-4), I'll send back a blanket!








I hope you like what you've seen! If you would like to purchase any of the items seen, or learn more about the custom blanket, please email me at jry25@yahoo.com.

And a big thanks to Heather for featuring me on The Gift Closet!

I did it!

Since I'm on a brief sewing hiatus, I busted out the glue gun, a wreath and my bucket of acorns:



After baking them to kill any worms, bugs or other gross things that might be residing inside them (see last post), I carefully and slowly hot glued them to my wreath:



It eventually went all the way around...



And then came to reside on my front door!










And I LOVE it!! My gold fabric is not very attractive, but I was excited to get it hung. I bought some bright red spray paint that I'm going to use after Thanksgiving, to turn this into our Christmas wreath. But until then, I like the natural look. I got this idea and the instructions from Dana, over at Dana Made It, my all time favorite blog. The instructions are here:

http://www.dana-made-it.com/2008/07/tutorial-acorn-wreath.html

I think Dana's is more cute, especially with the dark acorns, but I went with what I had readily available in my backyard.

And I love it! Yay!

Whew....

Well, my first ever craft show is over. I would say it was a moderate success. The organizer told us only about 100 people came to the show, which I think was disappointing for everyone involved. But, it was a good experience...I got to meet some really nice people, sell some aprons and spend the day with my sister. So all was not lost!

We got there early and set up our "booth."













We had everything set up in about 30 minutes, so we had an hour to kill before the show started. It was a long day, but went by fairly quickly. My dad came down to see us (and bring lunch!), and my sister's mother-in-law brought a few friends down too.

Now that it's over, it's nice to relax. I think it's been almost 48 hours since I've touched my sewing machine...the poor thing must be getting lonely! I'll be back to sewing soon, I'm sure.

But first I have another project I've been itching to get started on. It involves these:



And let me tell you...it wasn't easy getting a bucket full of acorns. Because SOMEONE thought it would be fun to keep dumping out my bucket...






And then step on them.



We eventually came to an agreement that he could dump out the orange bucket, but had to leave my white one alone. The acorns came inside and got a quick rinse, then went in the oven.





Apparently the oven is an essential step when dealing with acorns. It kills any bugs or other unpleasantness that may be living inside. We found this out the hard way....I had a third bucket of acorns that was left outside for about a week. Henry wanted to play with them, so I poured some into his orange bucket and was immediately grossed out to see maggots ALL OVER THEM. Sadly, I don't have a picture. :) But trust me, it was GROSS.

So take it from me...bake all acorns that you may use for future crafty activities!

Hopefully I'll get my project done in the next day or two. Gotta love Thanksgiving break!

If anyone from the craft show stopped by my blog, thanks for taking my business card and stopping by to see me! Let me know if I can create a baby blanket or anything else for you!

It's Getting Closer....

I'll be attending my first craft show in about three weeks. I'm so excited and so scared!! What if no one likes me? Or my stuff?

Enought self doubt! I've been working every night from 9-11 pm on sewing projects. I'm so grateful that my boys are good sleepers and are generally out by 8:30. Leaves me a little time to socialize with my husband, then it's off to sew! Here's a recap of what I've been working on:

Aprons with Removable Dishcloth





Half Aprons made with Dishcloths

Children's Aprons made with Dishcloths

Baby Clothes Blankets

Finally, Henry's clothing blanket is almost done! I've been searching for navy Minky for 2 weeks. I'm going to try one more store, then give up and get a different color. I'm very impatient to finish! I hope to take this to the craft show and take orders. I'll only be able to do 3 or 4 before Christmas, so if you're interested, please contact me!




If I have time, I may also try to make a few "Sippy Savers" like these:

Whew...I've been busy! ;)

Blog Button

I THINK I may have made my first Blog Button! In a few weeks, I'll be featured on a great blog: www.thegiftcloset.blogspot.com. Heather, the creator of the blog needed a blog button. So here it is:



Go me!

The other buttons on her site are super cute and fancy. One day I'll get there. For now, this works. (I hope!)