Busy, Busy, Busy (again)

It seems like whenever I have a festival or market coming up, the week prior is super-hectic. I do this to myself, as I am an Extreme Procrastinator. Always have been, most likely always will be. There doesn't seeem to be anything I can do about it, and I've learned to live with it. I'm comfortable! So, in my mad rush to get more things finished for Saturday's Kirkwood Spring Fling, I've produced some cool stuff! Or at least I think it's cool. Of course, it is only Wednesday, so that means three more nights of production...more stuff to come!

Yesterday, since it was dead at the day job, I decided to take a half day to work on some goodies. I embroidered a nice pile of key fobs, and just have to add the hardware. Ever wonder what a stack of unfinished key fobs looks like? Here you go:

I was able to do 12 pieces per hooping, so I was super-impressed with myself. Those who do machine embroidery, you know what I'm talking about. :-)

Also did a couple of bibs last night with a new theme. Introducing...Miss Monkey!

Isn't she adorable? More designs featuring Miss Monkey are on the way, and personalization is avaiable on bibs and burps. I haven't mastered t-shirts yet, but I'm working on it. These designs will not be available in the Shop until afer this weekend, but if you simply cannot wait, just email me! And if you're in the Atlanta area, come out and see us at Kirkwood!

I'll try to update again before Saturday with more new stuff.

It's Almost Grilling Season...

I know this doesn't really have much to do with the main focus of Sugar Plum Delights, which is stuff for babies and kids, but I thought this design was cool, and I couldn't wait to stitch it out. So, I present the "Grill King" Apron:

And a closeup:

Isn't it fun? I thought this would be a perfect gift for Father's Day! There are so many wonderful embroidery designs out there that I'm finding it hard to limit myself to items for children. I might have to move "other" items to another shop. We shall have to see! Anyway, this apron is not currently available in the shop, but if you're interested, please email me. I'm thinking of offering customization on these as well. So your Grill King can have a personalized apron of his very own! Keep an eye out for towels with this design coming soon. Birthday season is coming up in our family, so this might be a winner all around (Katie: shhhh!).

These aprons, as well as some I'm working on for the ladies, will be available at upcoming markets. Come and check us out!

Burps Galore!

Does three or four burp cloths qualify as "galore"? Exactly what is the number of something to be considered galore? I'm not sure, but I think this qualifies. I'm on a burp cloth kick. After arguing with my embroidery machine the other night (I won), I was able to produce these lovelies:

I was really happy with the way they turned out. "Hannah" was the first one I did, and I decided that I placed the design too high. "Addison" was a little better, and finally on "Boy" I hit it just right. I think they're super cute with the ribbon on the bottom. And much easier to deal with (in my opinion) than a fabric bottom. In case you're wondering, these do have a purpose. Hannah is expected to arrive May 5 to my friend Heather in Orlando (don't look Heather!), and Addison is my cousins new little girl. The Boy cloth I just thought was a cute design, and it's now available in the shop. I decided to do a bib to match, and they're available as a set:

Bibs are new to me, but I thought this one was easy, so be on the lookout for more bibs popping up! Next I need to order some bloomers/diaper covers and see how those do. I'm also looking for a cute "Girl" definition to go with the "Boy". Any suggestions? Hey wait a minute, this could be a contest...I'll have to think on that one. Stay tuned!

Mondays, Home Cooked Dinners and more...

Ah, Monday. The day after Sunday when it's hard to drag yourself out of bed and get back into the routine. Fortunately, it's a little lighter in the mornings now, so it doesn't seem like you're getting up to go to work in the middle of the night. That is a definite positive. It's still difficult, though. But I'll keep on until someday (ah, someday) when I can quit the dayjob and actually do something I like to do all day. Hope springs eternal!

Speaking of liking what you do all day, my partner-in-crime/sister-in-law Katie has started up a little business of her own, and I'm really excited for her. From her flyer:

"At the end of a busy day when you don't have time to cook for your family, wouldn't it be nice to have a prepared, home cooked meal, ready to pull out and put on the table? Consider these simple (kid tested and approved) meals from Katie's Kitchen. Let Katie do the work for you and make dinnertime at your house a little less stressful for a change."

She's offering two different sizes of meals; the Small serves up to 3 people, and the Large serves 4-6 people. I can personally attest to Katie's skills in the kitchen. When we first brought my daughter home from the hospital, we had 3 or 4 meals of hers in the freezer, and everything was very quick and easy to prepare, and most importantly, yummy! For more information, visit her website: http://www.katieskitchenonline.com/.

In other news, I've been working on my embroidery machine skills, and I think I might be getting the hang of it. I have so many ideas I want to put into action, and not enough time! I did recently buy some blank aprons, so be on the lookout for those soon! I've gotten lots of great designs and can't wait to use them. Want a sample? Of course you do!

I think this one is perfect for Father's Day..I bought black bib aprons to put this design on. Isn't it fun? Be on the lookout for this to be in the shop soon!

April!

Wow, it's April. I'm still trying to figure out where March went, but I guess when you're sick for a month, you lose track of time! Anyway, I realized I hadn't posted anything in a week, and thought I better catch up!

Katie and I are planning on doing the Northside Drive Farmer's Market on April 12th, which is only next Saturday. Yikes! Katie's been knitting like a fiend while I am running behind. I haven't put together a single tutu yet! I'm just hoping the market goes off without any problems, since as far as I know there hasn't been any advertising. This worries me! So we may or may not be out there next Saturday. I'm going to look into the Peachtree Road Farmers Market as well, and see what they have to offer.

I've slowly but surely been practicing embroidery. It's so much fun, I wish I had more time to do it! So far I've done my little key fobs, seen in a previous post. I was very excited when a few of them sold on Etsy! I'll have to whip up some more for upcoming markets. I've also done my first burp cloth:

I was really happy with the way it came out, I think it's super-cute. I want to do some basic non-personalized burps to have available at markets, so people don't have to wait for me to do a custom job. And it's always fun to be able to take something home right away! I also thought of just doing initials, any comments on that? I want to do up bibs that way as well. Let me know what you all think!

Aside from those little things, I've made up some more clippies:

I love the colors on these, I think they're lots of fun for Spring. They would be great to mix and match and make your own sets! They're available in the shop now. Get them while they're hot!

Keychains Galore!

This embroidery thing is pretty cool. I've been playing with my machine and learning more about it every chance I get. I still haven't figured out the whole stabilizer and what to use when, but that may take a while. I also have this software that seems complicated, but everyone says it's the best on the market. Whatever! I want point and click interaction here. But, I'm learning, and in the meantime I can at least monogram! Okay maybe not monogram in the guest towel monogram sort of way, but I'm getting there. Tonight, I produced these lovely objects:



Aren't they cute? I was pretty impressed with myself, I have to admit. My husband said I should have spelled out "ASK" in the picture, but I wanted the pink one in the middle. Anyway, I'll be listing them in the shop this evening. Customers will be able to choose the color of the webbing and the font. I better order more webbing, I'm running low. Yikes! The colors I currently have are fuschia (limited), pink, red, black, turquoise and brown. Font choices are Curlz, Girls Are Weird (the fuschia one), and Tina (red). I'm working on getting more. I LOVE fonts, almost as much as I love fabric, so you can bet I'll have a ton of choices!

It's March?

I haven't been updating much lately, as I've been sick with the flu/sinus infection/crud that everyone else around here seems to have. I missed 3 days of work, went back to work while sick, and am still not feeling altogether myself. Seems like it's been months since I've actually felt well! Oh well, what do you do? Keep plugging along. Anyway, I just recently realized that it's March already, and time to start planning on Spring/Summer festivals and events. I need to get on the ball! Katie and I have pretty much decided that we're basically going to stick to Farmer's Markets and smaller markets this year. We seem to have much better luck with sales at smaller venues. I'm not sure why that is, but of all the shows we did last year, we had the greatest sales at the Northside Drive Farmer's Market. It was pretty exciting. So, stay tuned for where you can find us in the upcoming months. I'll be updating as I find out where we'll be!

Katie Knits! Over the last several months, Katie has taught herself how to knit, and she's doing great! There are new knit items up in the shop, and here's a preview:

Aren't they cute? There's more to come, as she's knitting up a storm.

Embroidery Update: I'm ashamed to say that I haven't even taken my new embroidery machine out of the box yet! With being sick, and the house being in total disarray, I just haven't gotten around to it yet. But I do have lots of plans of what to do with it once I actually get it out and play with it. I've found some wonderful resources online and am getting all sorts of cool designs and ideas! Stay tuned...

My New Toy!

I'm so excited I can barely stand it! Yesterday I finally ordered something I've been wanting for a long long time: an embroidery machine! That's right, very soon you'll be able to order customized gifts from Sugar Plum Delights! At this point I'm planning on doing bibs, bloomers, and blankets (the 3 B's), but there may be more added as I get used to the machine and learn what it can do.

So, you say, what machine did you get? Well, here it is!
Its a Brother PE-700 II, embroidery only machine. I got a super good deal on it, I was so impressed. If you want more info on the hows and wheres, just let me know. I just have to give a shoutout to Yahoo Answers for tipping me off (I'll have to look up the specific user, but she posted a lot of great info on this machine!).

Anyway, that's what's going on in the land of Sugar Plum Delights. Check back soon to see my nifty new embroidered goodies!

Clippy Crazy and more!

I've gone hair clip crazy! I've been seeing these little hair clips all over ebay, etsy, everywhere, and decided that they might look good in my daughter's hair. And of course, why should I buy something that I could easily make myself? So, after purchasing a bulk of hair clips and ribbon, voila! Hair clips galore!

The ones pictured are all available in the shop right now. There are many more to come, as I've recently gone a little ribbon crazy. Let's just say a ridiculous amount of money was spent at Michael's last week. So stay tuned for more designs! I'm also working on a non-slip clip, so I'm trying different methods. These are just simple and cute ways to hold back the "crazy hair" toddlers often have. My daughter is not an exception. Her hair is out of control!

I also designed the little cards the clips are attached to. What do you think?

I've also had some exciting news over the weekend; I've been made! I was accepted into the Atlanta Craft Mafia! I'm very excited at the prospect of joining this wonderful group of ladies in all their crafty glory. It will open up lots of opportunity for networking, and different shows that come available. Stay tuned!

Tutus Now Available!

Finally! My tutus are now available online! I'm still working on that section, but in the meantime you can view all of the colors that I have available here. Feel free to mix and match! I will soon post pictures of the different ones I've made, as well as some super-cute models! If you simply can't wait to get your custom tutu, simply send me an email with your color choices (as many as you like!) and waist measurement if possible. I'll add the tutus to the etsy shop soon, so that will make it even easier to order. Stay tuned!

Renewal

Ah, January. The start of a new year and an opportunity for new beginnings. That's what we're working on here at Sugar Plum Delights central. I have a few goals I want to accomplish with the "biz" this winter, so that's what I've been working on. I've taken a bit of a break from the sewing machine and craft table to figure out exactly what it is I want to do, and where I want to go with it. I'm still working out details, but ideas are flowing through like mad! One of my main objectives is to work out a real web design presence. Anyone graphic designers out there looking for pro bono work? I lover to barter! I could offer tag blankets and tutus for your work.. :)

We're looking at spring festivals and Farmers Markets to see where we might set up shop, so stay tuned for that information. In the meantime, the etsy shop is still up with a few goodies available, and I'm always open to custom orders! The shop will be updated soon, hopefully with a new banner and an introduction to the "2008 Spring Line".

Check back soon for more updates!