Paintbox progress

So I'm in the process of cutting all of the pieces for the Paintbox Quilt. Let me just say right now, there are way too many pink strips in that Kona Roll. And I still have two pink strips that I really didn't have any fabric that would match them, so I'm gonna have to buy some fat quarters to match....oh darn. :)





I also started one more project. I've placed a limit on myself though. 3 projects at once. That's it. So I can't start anymore now, until I finish one of the ones I've already got going. But this third one I've started shouldn't take too long. It's going to be a small series of embroidered wall hangings for the babies' room. All will be patterns from Bad Bird's Andrea Zuill. If you haven't seen her work...please go check out her blog. Her designs are sweet and her art quilts are awesome! She's been very generous and every month posts one of her original embroidery designs for free. So I'll be choosing 3 of those for these wallhangings. The first one is her Two Squirrels pattern.



I haven't decided yet what the other two will be. I do already know what my next quilt will be though. I'm planning on purchasing some of Andrea's patterns from her etsy shop Bad bird and will make sort of a redwork quilt out of them. That will be alot of fun!

So that's my progress so far. I've got another coat on the fabric bowl drying. This seems like the longest part for me just because it's nothing but waiting for it to dry.

Twin Watch - 25 weeks

The little fluffernutters are getting to be not so little! Well...ok they're still little. But my back certainly doesn't think so! I've been hobbling around like an old woman.

We had our first of a 4 part birthing class on Saturday. So far it's been nice and informative. I really love the set up. Well, first off it's only a couple blocks away from our apartment. Very nice. And it's set up in this woman's home with 7 other couples so it's small and intimate. My favorite part of this class...learning some positions to get in for some lower back massage. I'm sure Willie's going to be sorry he learned this when I ask him for a massage every night...but it was soooo nice.

So today I made some chili for game watching and Willie decided to turn that into the photo session. Luckily none of the photos that he took of me crying from the darn onions made it in. :)





The chili was yummmmm!

Mighty fine!

My creative groove is coming back! And it feels goooooood!

I've felt kind of lazy, lost, out of it and just generally not in the mood to do anything creative. But I'm finally starting to feel motivated and I'm so glad! It just feels wonderful to be working on some new projects.

I started a new bowl. It's in the final stages. I just need to get a few more coats on it to get it all sturdy and it will be ready to list.





With this new process I'm trying out with this bowl...I'm able to embellish and embroider and do whatever I want to the fabric before I harden it. I love it! I'm having alot of fun and I already have a really cute idea for the next one.

And then, my other project is just a personal project. Not to sell. Which also feels great because I haven't made anything just for me in awhile. But I came across the Paintbox Quilt Along on Oh Fransson's blog and I really fell in love with that quilt.



So I'm in the process of cutting all of the pieces right now.





My first bit of fabric for the quilt came in on Friday. A roll of Kona Cotton Brights. Look at all those colors! How can you not get giddy?
So yeah...I'm feelin' mighty fine right now. :)

Etsytwitter Shop of the Week - Sweetwater Inspirations

In Sweetwater Inspirations , owner and designer Wendy Hamilton offers her customers distinctive hand-crafted jewelry of exceptional quality and value. Within her shop you can find gifts for men, women, brides, and teens. You can see that in every piece that Wendy makes she takes pride and is very meticulous with her workmanship to ensure a special pieces for each of her customers. Please see her shop for international shipping details and convo her if you need more information.

Wendy admits that "I love to work with metal wire (sterling, copper, brass) and love the sparkle and unique qualities found in glass, stone, and semi-precious beads. I choose materials of quality and pride myself on representing my materials and jewelry with integrity. I purchase my materials in small quantities, so I sell limited production or one of a kind pieces."



She explained to me that her inspirations really are not much of inspiration as it is an "Addiction. Really, my inspiration is as uncontrived as seeing something new to 'play' with, the interplay of color, or the hypnotic affect of sparkly things. Although my husband groans at stepping into a bead or craft store, he has learned to bring his Blackberry for company and is really very patient when my head starts spinning with possibilities."

Although Wendy is new to Twitter and Etsy (opened on 1/5/09: Happy One Year!!) she would like to share what she has learned on Twitter: "I’ve tried to develop a following for my business by tweeting new items in my shop; but I also like the camaraderie of tweeting with other business owners. I think that Twitter and especially the Etsy Twitter Team offer a great way for business owners to connect and help support each other. It’s amazing how a kind tweet or re-tweet has the ability to open each business to a whole new network of people."

Since her store just celebrated its first anniversary on Etsy, Wendy has taken on the following resolution for 2010: "Last year I put a lot of time into learning about e-commerce and developing the software I needed to make my business end run efficiently. This year I am taking courses to hone and expand my metalworking skills and will put more of my time into design development and building my portfolio."

Good luck Wendy! We look forward to seeing your new metal work and designs in 2010!

From January 18th-24th Wendy is offering the following discount in her shop:

FREE US SHIPPING on all items in her Etsy shop
- PLUS a 10% discount on purchases totaling $50 or more* ·
Discount will be refunded to PayPal after payment or you may convo her before payment for a revised invoice. Texas residents - applicable purchase of $50 is calculated before sales tax. International shipping is not included in applicable minimum purchase and discount does not apply to shipping.

To learn more about Sweetwater Inspirations please visit Wendy's shop at:
http://sweetwatergifts.etsy.com/

Use the links below to follow Sweetwater's latest information:

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/SweetwaterGifts
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Sweetwater-Inspirations/115542896770

Twin Watch - 24 weeks

Only pregnancy would make me bare my belly like this. :)

Giveaway winner......

Alrighty folks...the day has come to pick our winner. 121 comments....wow!

And the winner is........number 27....Jennifer, who said "My favorite would be the Oatmeal and Milk Soap. Sounds wonderful!"

I'll be sending emails out shortly.

Congratulations Jennifer!

Thanks so much to everyone who entered!

Twin Watch - 23 Weeks

We're at week 23 now and the kiddos can actually here us now! We've been having fun playing them some tunes through Willie's awesome headphones. And they seem to be digging it! Of course Willie instantly played them some Beatles. But while Willie was busy with this week's picture taking, I snuck in some 80's. Nothin' wrong with a little Duran Duran or A-Ha.





We've also started looking at strollers and such. We'll be registering this weekend most likely at Target and Babies R Us. Those seem to be the two best places to go since almost anyone is near at least one of those.

I'm just so overwhelmed though. I would like to say that for any first time moms out there not sure what to buy and all that good stuff...Baby Bargains is a godsend! It's been really informative not only regarding things that just aren't necessary but also for reviews on items. One thing it helped me decide on is NOT to get a convertible crib. They made a good point that most toddlers move straight to a twin bed and also, for the ones that convert to a full bed...most people don't have the room in their nursery to convert to that big of a bed....we're definitely in that category. So yeah, we'll just wait and buy a bigger bed when it comes time for that.

My biggest stress right now is the stroller. I have so many expectations that it's proving to be very difficult to find one that meets my requirements:

*First off, the obvious one...twins. So we need a double.

*I live in the city with no car so we'll be getting around by subway. I need a stroller that won't be too heavy or big. Which means I DO NOT want a side by side stroller. Those take up the entire subway aisle. So tandem it is.

*Again, being in the city, I want my babies facing me...not out. Too many people get touchy when it comes to babies and I don't want random strangers coming up and touching my babies. If they're facing me, I have a better chance of blocking them. Once they're older it won't be a big deal. This is actually my biggest requirement.

*It would be very awesome if this stroller could last us as long as possible so it would be great if they could fit in it when they get to be 2...3..ya know.

Sooo...with all of that in mind...so far these 2 strollers seem to be the top contenders:



Kolcraft Contours Options Tandem Plus Stroller



Peg Perego Duette Stroller

The downside with the Kolcraft is alot of people say it's really heavy.
And the downside of the Peg Perego...that thing is expensive! Also, not so sure about that steering wheel. Seems like one more thing to break.

If anyone out there has some suggestions....I would SO love to hear them! :)

Handmade soap giveaway!

If you've never experienced using handmade soap...you don't know what you're missing! Thanks to etsy I have a whole new addiction.

If you're looking for a place to start....Aquarian Bath has some really awesome products. Everything she makes is gentle and all natural. Really good stuff if you have sensitive skin too...which I do.

Ya know what else I love about handmade soaps...how yummy they look! This is Aquarian Bath's Sweet Hearts Rose Geranium Soap. Yummm....



I seriously could go on and on about why you should switch but how about you decide for yourself? Aquarian Bath has been generous enough to offer up one of her yummy Yin Ylang bars to one lucky individual here!



Here's how you can win (each of these will give you 1 entry):

1. Go to her shop and come back here and tell me what your favorite item is there.

2. Tweet about this giveaway. Then come back here and comment with a link to your tweet.

3. Follow her blog and come back here and comment.

4. Become a fan on her facebook page here and comment again! :)

5. Blog about this giveaway...linking back to this post. Again, post a link to your blog entry as well.

6. Follow my blog and comment back.

That's 6 chances to win! Wowee! You must comment separately for each of the above entries. This giveaway will be open until the 15th, when I'll use random.org to pick the lucky winner!

Twin Watch - 22 weeks

Happy New Year!! This is marshmallow and peanuts year! And they're starting off quite active! For the first time today, Willie and I were able to see loads of kicking from the outside! Very cool!

Eleanor's Bday Bash

We had a little get together with some friends to celebrate Eleanor's birthday and do a little delayed holiday baking as well.

Yes...we bought her a party hat.



And yes we bought her a cake. She absolutely is spoiled. She's our original baby!



So Eleanor got to have some birthday cake AND open her birthday present!



I love watching her open presents. It's so cute!



And I also invited some friends over to do a little baking. We decided on 3 cookie recipes. This was a total success!! I had alot of fun! The girls baked....







The boys played their video games....




And the end result!


We wound up making chocolate chip cookies (of course):


Lemon Cookies


And Butterscotch cookies


I think my favorite was probably the lemon cookie followed by the chocolate chip. The butterscotch was good and the cookie itself was very sconelike in flavor. But the icing was a tad too sweet.

It was just really great and wonderful to have our friends over..do a little baking...spoil the pug....awesome awesome day.

And if you'd like to make some cookies yourself....

We used Alton Brown's Chewy recipe for the chocolate chip cookie.

Lemon Drops

1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
4 tsp finely shredded lemon peel
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 egg
1/2 cup dairy sour cream
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 cups all purpose flour

Lemon Glaze

1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice

Preheat oven to 375. In a large mixing bowl beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add the 3/4 cup sugar, the lemon peel, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in egg, sour cream, and lemon juice until combined. Beat in as much of the four as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour.
Drop dough by slightly rounded tablespoons 3 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake about 8 minutes or until tops are firm. Transfer to wire rack. Brush the tops of warm cookies with Lemon Glaze (see directions). If desired, sprinkle tops of cookies with chopped gumdrops and coarse sugar. Let cookies cool.

For the lemon glaze, in a small bowl stir together granulated sugar and lemon juice.


Frosted Butterscotch Cookies

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup shortening
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 8 oz carton dairy sour cream
2/3 cup chopped walnuts
Browned Butter Frosting (see recipe)

Preheat oven to 375. Lightly grease a cookie sheet; set aside.
In a medium bowl stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a large mixing bowl beat the brown sugar and shortening with an electric mixer on medium speed until combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Alternately add flour mixture and sour cream, beating in after each addition. Stir in the 2/3 cup chopped nuts.
Drop dough by rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are light brown. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool. Frost cooled cookies with Browned Butter Frosting. If desired, top with walnut halves or chopped walnuts.

Browned Butter Frosting

In a medium saucepan heat and stir 1/2 cup butter over medium low heat until butter turns golden brown. (Do not scorch). Remove from heat. Whisk in 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, 5 teaspoons boiling water, and 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla. Beat until frosting is easy to spread. Immediately spread on cookies. If frosting begins to get stiff, stir in a small amount of boiling water.

Enjoy!!