A pre-Christmas catch up!

Well what a busy few weeks it has been! Firstly, I had my first ever Market at the Epping Twilight Markets! I had an insane week of late late late night sewing, but I had loads of stock which was great. The markets went really well! I made my first sale before opening time, and as far as I was concerned, I could go home then  :)  It was great to meet people, and get some feedback on my products. I also got quite a few orders from people who liked a particular hat, but wanted a different size, or liked a shirt design but in a different colour. My fav request was for a train t-shirt, and an elephant t-shirt for twin boys to wear on Christmas Day! I love making things, but I REALLY love making things that I know people want!

On the competition front, we had 3 winners! The winner of the blog post was Anita Forbes (selected a sunhat), the referral award went to Sarah Irvine, who referred like a bizillion people! (selected a nursing cover), and the last winner was the random facebook fan: Jules Bee (selecting a bucket hat). I just love giving things away, and was tempted to keep going... But thought why not wait and spread the cheer over the year! So for 2010 Taylored4Baby will be having a monthly giveaway! What are the details?? No idea yet! But I will come up with something!

And lastly, this morning I discovered that one of my hats has been featured on an etsy treasury - Summer Lovin! Australian Treats! I am SO excited. Mine is the red & white Saffron Craig sunhat!

Well all of my orders have been made, and the last one shipped out today. So I guess it's time to finish off the Christmas shopping! Happy holidays people!!

Something for the boys!

So you know how during interviews you always get asked what your weaknesses are... and you always come up with something like 'I'm a perfectionist', 'I just care too much' blah blah blah. Well, if someone were to ask what my weakness is in regards to my home business, that would be easy: I DON'T THINK BOY!

As you may or may not know, I have a 13 months old beautiful girl. I find that when I am creating, I just naturally think girl! Ideas flow so easily I need a lid for them! But boys... not so much. I am sure if I am lucky enough to have a boy one day that this will change, but until then, it's takes active effort!

Here is my first definite boy effort: Hats!! It's just hit summer here in Australia, and we need hats to protect those precious little heads - esp for those hair challenged like my daughter  :)  The trouble that I have, is that when I look at fabrics, I think 90% of them are too 'girly' for boys. For the two newborn hats pictured I chose 'softer' fabrics, and I LOVE them. I think they work really well. Maybe I just need to bite the bullet and trust my instincts a little more.

So the next challenge... boys t-shirts! Fabrics?? Designs?? Do I go traditional trucks and boats, or maybe animals... Stay tuned... I have no idea what's to follow, but something will!

On a more personal note, I just have to share how much I LOVE Snow Fairy body wash by LUSH! I discovered it about 4 years ago when I was living in California. It's released every Christmas, and each December I buy myself just one bottle. I could buy enough to have it all year round, but it wouldn't be as special. It has the most amazing smell... You really should rush out and treat yourself!

Competition Time!!!

Yikes... I have been in denial about Christmas, and I was told last night it's only 3 weeks away!! So, I really need to get started on my huge Christmas giveaway!! So how do you win? There are 3 prizes, and 3 ways to win:

1) Leave a comment on this post... how easy is that? Be sure that I can contact you though! Or check back on the 16th!
2) Become a fan on the Taylored4Baby facebook fanpage - See link in the right sidebar below
3) Refer your friends to become fans of the facebook fanpage, then have them email me at taylored4baby@gmail.com and tell me your name!

So you can enter draw 1 once, you can enter draw 2 once, but draw 3... there is no limit!! Get cracking people!!

What can you win? On the draw day, the three lucky winners will to choose ANYTHING that is for sale in my madeit store! (www.madeit.com.au/taylored4baby) ANYTHING.... how cool is that! Competition will be drawn on Dec 16th, just in time for Christmas!! Good luck everyone!

Promotion for the Epping Twlight Markets!!

As I mentioned a couple of posts ago, I will be having a stall at the Epping Twlight Markets (NSW) on Dec 11th, from 5-9pm. As it's my first market, and because Christmas is coming up, I will be marking all of my items on sale! And, the first five customer to mention the $5 promotion will get an additional $5 off any one item (One discount per customer). So if you buy something like a hat or fabric block, or one of my new t-shirts or singlets, you will get an absolute bargain!

Spread the word to anyone you know in the area!!

Taylored4Baby hits Facebook!!

I have finally set up a Facebook Fan Page for Taylored4Baby! Please join if you are interested in getting updates through facebook, and if you looking for more frequent yet minor updates  :)  I will also have some special offers and promotions in the next few weeks. Just in time for christmas!! To join, just click on the Facebook become a fan link in the right sidebar!

Time for some inspiration!

I was pleasantly suprised this week to find the latest issue of MixTape in my mailbox! I first heard of MixTape a few months back, and signed up for an annual subscription. It's basically an Australian craft magazine that profiles real Aussie artists, it has a small but delicious recipe section, some music and book reviews, some tutorials, and so much more!

So what did I love about this issue? Well there is an interview with Rachel Power, the Melbourne based author of The Divided Heart - Art and Motherhood. It sounds like a really interesting book which talks about an issue that I struggle with daily! It just may have to go on my christmas wish list!!

There was also an interesting article where Angela D'Alton talks about the top 5 reasons to Twitter. She makes some very compelling arguments. It's just that with a blog, maybe a website, a facebook fan page perhaps, and twitter.... there is so much you can do outside the realm of actually creating. However, 'tweeeting' probably doesn't take long to do. Some food for thought...

Anyway, I highly recommend MixTape if you are interested in Australian Craft! I am sure I will be contantly re-reading this issue, until the next one comes out in Feb! 

To Market, To Market... for the very first time!

Well I just got the wonderful news today that I will definately have a stand at the Epping Twilight Markets!! I am very excited. This will be my first market - I am keen for the public to see my goods! And to start having a physical presence on the creative, homemade scene.

The Epping Twilight Markets are a great little local market, with loads of fresh produce, and gourmet food and gifts. The Chinese DimSum King, and Jackie M Malaysian Cuisine are among my favorites for an easy Friday night dinner!

So, if you happen to be in the area, come along and say hello! The market will be held on Friday Dec 11th from 5pm-9pm in the grounds of Our Lady Help of Christians School - 29 Oxford St, Epping NSW. As it will be my first market, everything will be on sale!! So come along and grab a christmas bargain!

Hat Mania!

Well, the heatwave of this past weekend has inspired to make hats! Most of them are in beautiful bright colours. I just love them. If only I could get my daughter to keep one on her head. Yes, that's right, she has learned to pull it off! Looks like we're sticking with the sunscreen!

Anyway, if you like any of the hats, please visit the buttons to the right for my stores at either madeit or etsy  :)

Fairy Floss Mini Quilts!

Recently we have had two special little girls born into our circle of friends. I wanted to make them something special, and decided that a mini quilt would be perfect. I looked through my stash, and picked out my favorite fabrics. I was trying to steer clear of the typical 'pink' colours... and then I thought why? They ARE girls, let's embrace it! So the name fairy floss mini quilt is because the fabrics of the quilts are deliciously sweet!

Here is a picture of little Estella enjoying her new quilt! I decided to put Hannah and Estella's initials in the bottom corner of each quilt, and I think that's the perfect way to finish it off!

While I was making these, I decided to make up a few extras, and they will be for sale on etsy and madeit soon! They are the perfect personalized gift for a newborn girl - for laying and playing on, and are also the ideal size for the pram and car seat!

Mummy... It's too hot for real clothes today!

Recently we have had a couple of very warm days! I found a pair of bloomers that Emily now fits into, and they were the perfect solution.

With summer approaching, it inspired me to make some more bloomers for her, and add in a matching singlet! I didn't have a pattern, so it took a little fiddling, but I am really happy with how the came out  :)

And check out my model! Showing off her standing skills no less! She is very clever...

Newborn Fabric Blocks!

I have just finished these lovely fabrics blocks, which are ideal for newborns! It takes a while for babies to be able to see properly, so high contrast colours, and easy to see shapes are best to help them along the way. Newborns were my inspiration for this design, however, my 11 month old has showed me that I shouldn't count other kiddies out! I attached a block to her pram just so I could get a pic to be honest, but she LOVED it, and has claimed one as her own!

I have attached a small loop which is securely sewn so that it can be attached to a pram, above a cot, or simply played with as baby starts to develop and explore  :)

           

Matryoshka Dolls!

I got some amazing fabric back at the Sydney Stitches and Craft show, and I am working my way through it. The latest that I stumbled across was the Matryoshka Doll panel by Kristen Doran. Kristen hand screen prints these fabrics here in Australia and they are just lovely. The panel produces 8 gorgeous dolls that would make fabulous stocking stuffers for a sweet little girl. Check out Kristen's blog, she does has some amazing prints!  Meanwhile, here are some pictures of how mine turned out...

Boorowa Irish Wool Fest '09

On the weekend, Emily and I travelled back to my hometown Boorowa for the annual Irish Wool Fest event. I must say, the weather wasn't great, however the rain did manage to stop just before the parade. It's a shame it was so cold though! A nice hot latte from the Bakery was the perfect solution :)

The parade had it all, starting with the famous 'running of the sheep', a number of sheep being shorn on the back of trucks (as pictured), the worlds longest bike, fire trucks filled with cute kids waving, noisy tractors, colourfully decorated cars filled with sheep, Celtic pipe bands and much much more.

Emily and I also visited the farm animal station, where we got to visit with this beautiful sleeping calf. We also seen some little chicks, some duckings, a nice quiet rabbit, some bigger ducks, and some big sheep: one of which took quite the liking (and a little nibble) to my green handbag!

To finish off the day, we went to the main stage and watched Luke Dickens, Australian Idol 08 runner up perform. I remember watching Luke on Australian Idol back when Emily was in my tummy, I am a huge fan. His performance was great. He sang a song that he wrote for his partner and son in public for the first time, and it was just beautiful: got me a little teary, though it's not hard to do :)

A beautiful hat for a beautiful little girl...

Well I finally created a hat from Beautiful Booties! And I just love love love this Gingko Blossoms fabric from Saffron Craig! I have made this hat, and a few others in the same fabric to sell. I want to make Emily some bloomers, and maybe a cute top too. Everything can be made from this fabric!

Anyway, I am happy to say that Emily gladly wore her hat all through playgroup on Friday.

And lastly, here is a pic of Emily trying on the internal layer mid creation :)

Ready, Set... SEW!

Sorry about the cheesy title... I couldn't help it, I am just so excited! I went away for the weekend, and needless to say, I got some supplies! I told my husband that I wasn't getting much this weekend, as I only needed a few things. Well, I am not sure what happened! I did move house recently and my stash has disappeared, so I thought I would stock up on some basics: hence the fat quarters. I also got some bells, embroidery frames, buttons, velcro, ribbon, elastic, glue and a bunch of other stuff. So here's what I am thinking: I am thinking baby wraps, thinking nursing covers, thinking hats, thinking mobiles, thinking fabric blocks, thinking diaper/nappy covers, thinking thinking thinking!! Looks like I better stop thinking, and get creating :)

Before I sign out though, I wanted to show off my new labels! They are from customcouturelabelco and I LOVE them! They are going to make my products looks that much more professional, and it's a bit of advertising thrown in as well :)

Cheap fabric, oh how I love you!

I love to have bundles of cheap fabric laying around the house - it give me the freedom to experiment! I can try different projects, and if they work, great! And if they don't... then I learn from my mistakes at a low cost :)

Here are a couple of my recent experiments:

The bib is my own design, and this was a bunch of experiments in one! I wanted to try ribbing as the binding, and have to say, I am not loving it. I also want to make waterproof bibs, so I tried two things here: one was placing a 2mm thickness sheet of plastic between the fabrics, and the other was using iron on vinyl on top. I found that the sheet on plastic made the bib way to stiff, and I don't love the look of the vinyl on top. However I may use the vinyl between layers next time... I also tried the duck on front, and sure, why not! It works. Maybe in some funkier fabrics next time :) So will I continue to work on the bib?? Maybe. I have some ideas on how to make it better, but I think I will put this one away from now.

The hat design was from the book Sweet Booties, and.... it was a success! I know it doesn't look like much here, but I did a quick rough job just to get the feel for it. I really wanted to find a great hat design as it's just turned Spring here, and my daughter doesn't have much hair to protect her precious little head! I plan of getting some of the Gingko Blossoms fabric by Saffron Craig this weekend so that I can make Emily the cutest little hat ever! Stay tuned...

Daddy's Day!

Yesterday was Father's Day, and it was my husband's first. Emily and I wanted to make it extra special for him. Her first gift was her first ever finger painting! And what an experience that was! Let's just say it revealed a little about her personality :) We did hand and foot prints in the corners, and Emily was protesting very much! She was not a fan, however when she was allowed to freestyle it in the center, she had a ball! We are really happy with how it turned out, and Daddy loves it to! It now hangs proudly on our living room wall.

The second gift was a swimming lesson! Emily and I have been doing swimming lessons for about 5 months now, but my husband hasn't been able to come and watch as he is working. So we had a special Sunday lesson so that he could see how clever his little girl is!

And finally, the last gift was a hardcover picture book. I filled it with photos of Emily and my husband on special occasions, starting with the first day they met. Some others included the first bath he gave her, the day he drove her home from hospital, the first bottle he fed her, her first vacation and so many more. They now have a wonderful new book to read together xoxo

New product!!! Nursing/Breastfeeding Covers

It's been a while since I last posted, but I have been busy working on a new design! These nursing/breastfeeding covers are great! ...even if I do say so myself :) At the moment, I have made more of a cooler weather cover, which doubles as a blanket. I have selected some amazing fabrics to work with which makes the process such a pleasure. My favorite is the Owls on Trees by Safron Craig. The covers have a pocket on the front to hold the important items such as breast pads or pacifiers, and it has a removable strap. This means that the cover can be used as a blanket when you are not feeding, and then mum has one less item to lug around! The cover also has flexible boning at the top which allows fresh air to reach the baby while feeding, and allows the mother the perfect, private view of her baby. My Taylored4Baby labels are due to arrive next week, and once I have them and add them to the covers, they will be appearing on etsy and madeit! Stay tuned...

Another lovely non-doddle swaddle!

Last night my husband and I were trying to come up with a name for my baby wraps. Looking for something a little catchier... So he came up with Doddle Swaddle. Doddle apparently means simple or easy. Nathan thinks this is a great idea because finally with my wraps, he is able to successfully swaddle our daughter. So I did a little market research on facebook last night, and the results showed a 100% negative response to the name! Looks like we need to keep our creative vocabs flowing... Anyway, here is my latest wrap. It's so beautiful esp. with the butter yellow oh so soft dot fabric!

Stitches and Craft 2009

Yesterday Emily and I went to the Sydney Stitches and Craft Show to visit her Nana and Pop, and also doing a little shopping and looking ourselves :) My in-laws travel everywhere doing quilt and craft shows across Australia and beyond! We were just happy that this week they are in our own backyard! Of course we checked out their stand, Just Patchwork and Emily decided to sneak in a little cuddle time too!

I did a little venturing and found some great stuff! Firstly, I learned about a site called MadeIt which just for Australian homemade products! I have a feeling this will be a great site for me to sell some of my creations. I also purchased a book called Sweet Booties! which has some adorable products and designs that I plan on making for Emily. And my very last purchase, a subscription to MixTape, which is a cute little craft magazine apparently about making time for the small things! So have I read it yet? Nope! I plan on waiting until I need a little lift and inspiration. Right now, the show has left me so inspired that I came home last night and got straight to sewing a beautiful new wrap!

BTW - This pic is my daughter showing me that she has had enough... Poor little pet. She never falls asleep when we are out, so she must have been really tired xo

Build 'em up buttercup!

My sister-in-law, Alison reminded me recently of one of my unfinished projects. It seems that once I see how a project is going to end up, I lose steam. Many moons ago I started to make some fabric building blocks for my newborn daughter Emily. After I seen how the first block looked when it was finished, it went up on the shelf. I was pleased with it, but the mystery was gone. Well this past weekend I finally finished the other eight blocks! I paired together some beautiful fabrics with a pattern from Amy Butler's book "little stitches for little ones". Emily is now 9 months old, and happy to sit and play. So I say it's perfect timing to learn how to build 'em up... and knock 'em down!

The good stuff we hide from those we love the most....

So last night I was making dinner, when it occured to me that my approach to veges is the same for my husband as it is with my daughter... I hide them!

While the adults were dining on homemade lasagne, my 9 month old dined on yoghurt. I managed to sneak onion, tomoatos, carrots, capsicum and mushrooms into ours, and pumpkin and sweet potato into Emily's xoxo

My first order! The wrap in a girly version!

So I had an order for a wrap in the pink internal fabric, and the white fabric with butterflies. I hope the buyer loves it as much as I do! Although Emily has enough wraps, these colours are just delicious together! I am thinking I might make another for her...

Anyway, it came out beautifully, so I thought I would publish some pictures. Enjoy :)

My first creation!! Baby Wrap (0-6 months)

My daughter loves to be swaddled! It's become her cue for sleeping. I have used a number of swaddles in her lifetime, but decided to make my own. That way I can make sure it fits all of my (Emily's) requirements, and I can use beautiful fabrics! And what's more... I get to create!

These wraps have been so popular with my friends and family, that I have decided to sell them! See: taylored4baby.etsy.com I have tried to make them unique by adding a pouch at the bottom which folds down, and then clips up so you can get the baby in easily, and don't have to worry about tiny toes getting cold! I also added a hood to help keep the baby warm, although you can easily leave it off and place the babies head on top of it if it's too warm. What I find frustrating though is that when I find an item I love, Emily grows out of it so quickly! I get to use it for a while, and then have to buy another! So I have used press studs so that this wrap easily converts from 0-3 months, and then 3-6 months.

I have decided that all wraps that I make will be individually made for each baby as ordered. Although I may regret this later, I think it will help make a great unique product for each buyer - the way that I can when I made things for Emily. The buyer can choose the inner and outer fabrics (see below), I can flip the pattern if the user is left-handed, and I can also adjust the design if the baby if significantly taller or shorter than average. The internal fabric that I use is called ‘Oh so soft’. It's totally soft and delicious for even a newborns precious skin. Hmmm... Maybe I should make a big wrap for myself!


Internal Fabric Choices ------------------- External Fabric Choices









Materials: Cotton, cotton wadding, polyester 'oh so soft', thread, and press studs