Wedding Pillows

'Tis the season for spring weddings.  Here are two pillows I made and shipped to Arkansas earlier this week.

The first one is what I call "Stamped Suede", this is going to a couple who had a country themed wedding last month.

 

The second pillow is what I call "Cream on Cream", it is a cotton printed to look like taffeta. The Ampersand is a taupe colored suede.  This is for a wedding THIS weekend. 

These are available in my Etsy store.

Baylor University Zipper Pouches

The Baylor University Zipper Pouch is now the top seller in my Etsy store.  All the ladies that order tell me they are happy to find something girly promoting Baylor.

These are a few of the pouches I have made in the last few weeks.

These and all the pouches in my blog are available in my Etsy store.  Thanks for stopping by.
 

Flat Makayla on the road again...

Happy Memorial Day Weekend

As the school year comes to an end, it's time to wrap up Flat Makayla's visit with us.  As we looked at the pictures we have taken all over the state, we realized we had not taken her to many places in our backyard, so this weekend we headed south to Dallas.

Here's some of the snapshots around our "backyard" Dallas.

Our first stop was one of the BIG signs... This one is located at Klyde Warren Park and is sponsored by Southwest Airlines.

 

Klyde Warren park is a park built on a bridge.

 

Our next stop as the clouds started to move in, was the Guadalupe Cathedral in the Arts District.  This cathedral is more than 100 years old, we got to attend Spanish mass while we were there.

  

Our next stop was Pioneer Plaza located near the Dallas Convention Center and Dallas City Hall.    The sculptures commemorates nineteenth century longhorn cattle drives

It was about to start raining, but we took at quick picture by Reunion Tower

And another by the JFK Memorial at Dealey Plaza.

All in all it was a fun day.  Micaela got to see some places we've only talked about and now we want to go back when we have more time and hopefully no rain in the forecast.

You can see more of the pictures on Instagram and Flickr by searching hashtag #micaelamakaylacousinbonding.  Thanks for stopping by!

Texas Woman's University Zipper Pouch

Here is a zipper pouch I made for my own alma mater, Texas Woman's University.  The school colors are maroon and white and the mascot is a pioneer woman. 

This is what I came up with for the first version.

I have had my eye on this scrolly maroon fabric for a while, I think it looks good as the topper and lining in the pouch.












I got some feedback from some sister alumns on what I should change for the next one, hopefully I will get around to making another one very soon.  Available in my Etsy store.  Thanks for stopping by.

Orca Whale Zipper Pouch

When I first got my embroidery machine, I said I would make "every gift we gave as a family".  Sometimes making the making of these gifts drives me a little nuts but all in all, I enjoy it.

One of Micaela's buddies is a girl named Raven (cute name), Micaela and her have known each other since preschool.  Raven is facinated by sea life and loves Orca Whales.  When Micaela got invited to Raven's birthday party TOMORROW, she quickly told me we had to make her something with orca whales.  You know what I was thinking-- Yes, darling I have orca whale fabric in my stash--- Not!

Well, I went on a hunt and found some online and had it quickly shipped in so I could make our standard zipper bag gift. 

Tada!

Needless to say, this is unique and Raven loved it.  I got it done right before midnight, she's headed to the party in the afternoon

I embroidered Raven in purple because it is her favorite color.

Here is the back of the zipper bag.

I used a black and white dot for the lining.  I really think it turned out cute!  I love how you can find fabric with just about anything printed on it.  This and all my zipper pouches are available in my Etsy store.

 

 

An order of 9

A total of 9 zipper pouches is what a friend ordered last month.  I remember my first order of more than one zipper pouch just over a year ago, I was so excited.  Now 5, 8, or even sometimes 12 has become the norm. 

Wow, I never dreamed I would sell these little zipper pouches the way I do.  I simply started making unique gifts for family, friends, teachers and even acquaintances.  Fabric is really endless and when you find a perfect fabric for someone, you just want to make them something.  A simple little zipper pouch seemed just like the perfect thing and before I knew it, a fun hobby turned into a side business.   I've truly lost count of just how many zipper pouches I have made, but I am confident it's more than 500 in the last 18-20 months.  Who would have thought!

I've had a lot of people ask me about why I do this and how I manage.  I do it because I love the creative process and I secretly and openly LOVE fabric.  I simply love making useful unique things for people.  More than 85% of the items in my store were a gift I made for someone initially.  The reward comes later when someone I don't even know thinks it's the perfect gift for a loved one and makes a purchase with their hard earned money.   If you really look at all my bags, they are the same, I am not reinventing the wheel for each pouch, only the fabric and charms are different.  It's amazing how a little simple but unique zipper bag in the 'perfect' fabric with name personalization can become a treasured item for the recipient.

I have a demanding fulltime job that requires me to work way beyond 8 to 5.  I mostly do my sewing at night as a way to wind down, it's kinda like therapy.  Yup, I am crazy that way.

I've just finished a busy season of Mother's Day, Teacher Appreciation and Graduation orders.  Yes, I lost some sleep getting orders out the door and some of the requests were a little out of the ordinary and hard to fulfill but at the end of the day I really feel touched that customers picked ME to make a little zippered pouch for their mother, grandmother, teacher or graduate.

Here's the order of 9 I just made for a friend.  These are all for graduating seniors girls going off to the following colleges: New York University, University of Kansas, University of North Texas, University of Texas, Texas Tech University, Stephen F Austin State University and the University of Tulsa.  I wish all these girls well and I hope the little simple pouch I made reminds them that someone opted for a thoughtful handmade item to celebrate the beginning of the college chapter of their lives. 

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms in Blog Land,  I am so proud to be Mom to this chickadee.  Here we are when she was 2, 5 and 9!  Hope you have a great day!

Texas Ranger Game

My parents just spent a week with us.  One of the things we did was go to a Texas Ranger Game.  My Mom & Dad had not been to the new stadium so it was a special treat for them.  The Rangers beat the Boston Red Socks 8 to 0, so it was a fabulous game.

We had not been to a game since Micaela was a toddler.  Here are pictures from 2006 and of course yesterday.  She is such a Daddy's girl. 

Hope you are having a great weekend. 

Front Flower Bed Progress

Here is my front flower bed five weeks after this post and the original picture at the bottom.  The daffodils are done blooming and I am patiently waiting for the leaves to turn brown. 


I think it's coming along nicely...  Thanks for stopping by.

Dad

My Dad turns 84 today.  I can't believe it.  Most girls my age have much younger fathers and grandfathers my Dad's age. 

Here are two of my favorite pictures of my Dad and my Aunt Bettye. My Aunt B is two years younger than my Dad so she just turned 86.  (I hope I look that good when I am 86).

The top picture was taken in Kauai back in July when 30 plus family members met in Kauai for a destination family reunion to celebrate anniversaries and the bottom one was taken about 1933 when my Dad was about 3 and Aunt B about 5.... As you can see, it was really humble beginnings for them.  My Dad always tells the stories of segregated schools and very few opportunities for young Mexican American children.  He has always instilled a good work ethic and giving back to the community.  I feel so blessed and grateful that they are both in great health.  

Here's to 80 years of Sibling Love!

New college zipper pouches.

Here are a few more college zipper pouches I have added to my Etsy store.

University of Kansas

Stephen F Austin State University.  Had to improvise on this one, their colors are purple, red and white mainly and the mascot is a lumberjack...  Found an axe for the charm and I think it works...

Kansas State University.

Louisiana State University.

Oklahoma State University.  Did you know their mascot is a cowboy named Pistol Pete, thought the "pistol" charm would be a bit much but an OSU alumni thought it was right on...

All these pouches are available in my Etsy store. 

UNT Zipper Pouch

The University of North Texas is a local universityin Denton.  I've had lots of requests for a zipper bag with their theme but hadn't had a chance to design one.  UNT does not license fabric or their logo so I really had to start from scratch. 

I finally sat down and came up with something.  Their colors are green and white with some black and their mascot is an eagle.  This is what I came up with. 

The lining is green and white hounds tooth, I think it turned out pretty cute.  This pouch is available in my Etsy store.  Thanks for stopping by.