I'm such a {GOOD} mom!!!

It happened again……we have an additional family member. This time the little ball of fluff will only (& I use this term loosely) be with us for 9 days.

For the entire Thanksgiving break rather than the standard 2 day weekend.

So, Eilish (my 12 year old) loves animals and on the 18^th she frantically calls me asking me to write her a note stating that she can bring home “said” animal over the break. It happens to be a race for whose parent responds the quickest as to who brings “him” home. I of course respond “NO”! Later that night she’s on the phone with my hubby and tries to persuade him. He says, “I am cool with whatever your mother decides”. Mmmmmm………you know what she heard right? “I am cool with whatever”! Now I love animals too, I do not love cleaning up after them when it’s my children’s job (and it would be her responsibility). But, “I am a sucker for bunnies”!

Now Friday of all days, I am working until noon, Eirawyn (my 6 year old) has her Harvest Feast at 1:30pm and Eilish gets out of school at 2pm. It was a tight schedule but I managed to do it all………even in the rain! We now have “Benjamin” until the 29^th, along with cedar shavings all over the floor and bunny hair everywhere. He is getting plenty of attention, while “Jack” our guinea pig squeals for any sort of mild affection.

I {LOVE} the tufts of fur in-between his GI-normous feet!!!

XOXO,

Amy

BIRTHDAY LOVE

Amy and I {Lori} have this gift giving, idea creating and picture taking competition between us. Sadly, its mainly to impress each other on our craftiness. It drives me to search for new ideas, play with new patterns, draw my own, pull out yarn once a project is complete... you get the point.

Yesterday was Amy's birthday (which we will be celebrating tomorrow), so I took Elora and Eirawyn out in their made birthday outfits from their Auntie Lori and took photo's of them that they could give Amy. Typically we shoot only our own children, so I thought a different perspective on Eirawyn and Elora would be fun. I took the girls to a place where they had not been shot at so it would be new and exciting for them as well. OK... maybe not exciting, but I did promise to take them back to the same spot in exploring clothes next week.

Eirawyn looking sooo sweet!

Our newest addition to the Toile Tales shop! http://www.etsy.com/listing/50053856/shelled-headband-with-large-flower

Eirawyn's Birthday Outfit

Elora

Eirawyn

Just because Elora's eyes are soooo striking!

The {Flirt} in Black

Took Eirawyn's pictures today, against her will...........ha ha!!! I decided to try some indoor shots, and this is what "we" got.

This one turned out to be my favorite!

My kids do pose on command now. The minute a camera comes out, my kids know to sit still and NO cheek to shoulder posing!!!

The serious face is much better than her "nose wrinkled, chipmunk cheek, cheesy grin". I do however, have to show her those pictures so she won't make "that" face!

Like what you see??? Buy it here http://www.etsy.com/shop/ToileTales

Memorial Day SALE!!!

This weekend only............save 15% off your entire purchase from {Toile Tales}. When you purchase anything from our shop Saturday (5/29) thru Monday (5/31) enter code {MEMORIAL15} in note to seller @ checkout!!!

Check out our shop.........

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ToileTales

Why'd the Chicken Cross the Road?

Cadence, Eirawyn and Corea watching the chickens kiss.

The little black chic turned out to be Eirawyn's favorite.

Rock-a-bye chickie.......

"Gently loving"

To come and play with our girls of course!

This last weekend Amy got suckered into chick sitting for the weekend. Elora's (Amy's 8 yo) 2nd grade class hatched the eggs with apparently no preconceived home. The chickens will be going to a horse farm in a day or so, but until then, our girls get to "gently" hold and "love" the poor chickens.

Theta Mom Giveaway!

Go visit www.thetamom.com to enter to win a Toile Tales gift certificate! Runs through May 27 @ 8 p.m. Good Luck!

Everything Etsy {Giveaway}

Enter to win a FAB.U.LOUS Toile Tales crocheted hat now thru Thursday, April 1st. Just visit {Everything Etsy} Blogspot @ http://www.everythingetsy.com/2010/03/toile-tales-giveaway/ Follow the instructions and you too could own a lovely hat!!! Good Luck

Beach Brights Spotlight & Giveaway

We are doing a GIVEAWAY with Beach Brights! Go check it out for a chance to win one of Toile Tales hats. Make your head happy! http://beachbrights.blogspot.com/2010/03/spotlight-and-giveaway-toiletales.html

The Voice Club

On the first Thursday of every month {The Voice Club} with it's many talented young singers holds an open mic night. This evening happened to be @ It's a Grind Coffee House. So, with our cameras in hand we {Toile Tales Mommas} headed to the {small} cafe to see Claudia {Lori's 11 year old} perform to a medley of songs. So without any apparent nerves to speak of, Claudia used the skills she has been perfecting for over a year and left us all breathless....... WOW!!!! If we could only harness the courage and talent of a child, we too would be a great success.

{The truest life is when we are in dreams awake} Henry David Thoreau

Toile Tales Giveaway

The first giveaway was so fun and a great success, that we have decided to do it again. The giveaway runs from 2/25/2010 thru 3/2/2010. Thank you Tracy of Sweet Harper!!!

http://mysweetharper.blogspot.com/2010/02/sweet-etsy-shop-and-giveaway-toile.html

Craft Faire Review

Had a great time at the Third Saturday Design Downtown!!! Lori and I always have fun when we are out selling our hats and accessories. We didn't get to hang out much with Maria (Curly Birdie). We thought we would be able to setup next to each other..........apparently NOT! They had live entertainment.........and we were ENTERTAINED!!! However, the "Tweener" band was super loud. We have a pretty good idea of how to quickly setup our space now. Not to mention the SN&R had people to help us move our product, that was a pleasant surprise. Here are a few pics of our booth. Thank you to all who came to see us and support our growing little business;-)

Toile Tales Giveaway

We have a fabulous Giveaway from 2/15/2010 thru 2/22/2010......Thank you Celeste of Etsy it Up!!!

http://etsyitup.blogspot.com/2010/02/toile-tales-giveaway.html

The Aviator..........

Yesterday, I decided that I was going to take pictures of Eirawyn in one of our new hat styles, the Aviator Ear Flap Beanie. The flower is new as well, it's our broach inspired flower clip. It sells for slightly more than our traditional flowers we pair with our hats, but it's larger and more intricate. Eirawyn, however had different "plans". What might the plans of a five year old be you ask? Who knows, all she knew was that she did not want me taking pictures of her. So I pestered her and kept asking and gathering all the camera gear and her outfit......she still said "No"! After a while, she came to me and said "Ok mom, you can take my picture now". Yes, it worked!!! Who would have thought that kids had it right all along..........keep asking and eventually, you'll get the answer you want. The day was perfect for outdoor shots, a little overcast with big fluffy white clouds sprinkled throughout the sky. Eirawyn was a great model (this time)! On the way back to the car we spotted many cloud animals in the sky.............a bunny, elephant, mermaid. I love her imagination:)

The location of the shoot is close to our house..........thank you Lori for finding it:) I managed to capture the black and white image above (in the header) of Eirawyn on the tree swing and with a little editing actually got a great shot. This is now "The Toile Tales Tree".........I love it!

NEW***NEW***NEW***NEW

This is our "new" Aviator Beanie.
So we "needed" another hat to add to our already large assortment of beanies!!! I have to say that I really love this one. It's a variation of our Sun hat. With the open weave pattern, it's light and airy but keeps little noggins warm. We can make it in sizes ranging from 12-24 months up to a tweener size (although our Etsy shop doesn't reflect that yet). Way TOO CUTE to pass up!!!

Third Saturday Design Downtown

We'll be there!!!
Third Saturday Design Downtown

Saturday, February 20, 2010
Westfield Downtown Plaza
6th and K Streets
Noon-5, Free

"All-ages event, filled with diversity, unique vendors, local musicians, fashion, and art, featuring local arts/crafts vendors."
— Michelle Champoux, SN&R

"It’s kind of like a Second Saturday, but condensed into one block of awesomeness."
— Jenn Kistler, SN&R


Third Saturday is a creative block party presented by the Sacramento News & Review.

Our mission is to bring people & diversity to the Downtown Sacramento region every month to participate in this unique creative event.

Downtown Sacramento is made over into a burgeoning district of creativity and diversity, complete with music, fashion, and art featuring local arts/crafts vendors. People of all ages will discover some of Sacramento’s greatest artists while supporting downtown businesses.

We are featuring:
25-30 local urban vendors
Local Musicians
Informal fashion shows
Crocker Art Museum Student Exhibitions

Upcoming Craft Fair..............

Free Museum Day in Sacramento Area Feb. 6, 2010

Once a year, for the past 11 years, the greater Sacramento area museums have been offering free admission, all day long. This event is sponsored by the Sacramento Association of Museums (SAM) and supported by Umpqua Bank. Center Co-op Preschool takes advantage of the free day and visit the Aerospace Museum of California. There are 26 museums that offer free entrance such as the Sacramento Zoo, Fairytale Town, Governor's Mansion, Sutter's Fort and 22 more. Our family had a great time and I think next year, we'll visit something that we haven't been to as of yet.

Visit http://www.sacmuseums.org/museumday.html to get the complete listing of the participating museums.

Beach Brights-*Shey*[B] Camera Strap Giveaway

Check out this awesome Giveaway..................We love these camera strap covers!!!

Beach Brights is having a cute giveaway for a $30 Gift Certificate to *Shey*[B].

If you are a follower of Beach Brights, do nothing,

you are automatically entered in this giveaway.

If you would like to increase your chances, you can do the following:

1. +1 entry, leave Beach Brights a comment with your email address (easy!)

2. +1 entry, Tweet about this giveaway, you can copy &; paste the following: Win a *Shey*[B] Camera Strap http://bit.ly/7w5QiE @beachbrights @Shealynn

3. +1 entry, blog about this giveaway.

4. Giveaway open to US & Canada only. Ends Friday, Jan. 29th.

MAKE SURE YOU LEAVE ME A COMMENT FOR EACH ENTRY!

THIS IS HOW I COUNT THE WINNER!

The Curly Q Scarf

Thought I would share this great pattern. One of my daughter's friends just celebrated her 8th Birthday. Knowing that I crochet, she had a special request for a "green ruffle" scarf. This is the result of her request. I can say that the pattern is quite easy to read. Being that there are only two rows for the entire project it progressed rather fast. I used an acrylic yarn, which I usually don't like. But I figure the scarf will hold up longer that way. I decided to add the teal color into the scarf, instead of making it completely green and I have to say it is much more striking that way. Needless to say, it was a hit and now ALL of my girls expect one.

Try it out, here is the link http://www.patonsyarns.com/pattern.php?PID=2132

You'll need to open an account, but it's fast and free:-)

Lori's Birthday Blog!

Today is my birthday and I found it most fitting to kick off our blogging with how I procrastinated with yarn gifted to me for my LAST birthday. I'm sure that many of you can relate to yarn receiving or purchasing with no project in mind. This was a gift from my friend Maria. She gave me skeins of Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton yarn with the instructions that I make something for myself, and not my children. Scouring the internet and books for the perfect pattern with which to honor my birthday yarn, I came up short until a few weeks ago. The following pattern I found on the Bernat website under the crochet/teen category. You have to create a membership to view the pattern, but it only takes a few minutes.

Using a different yarn for the pattern, I had to make a few alterations. In the initial chain 29, 7 chains needed to be added so that a whole pattern could be repeated. That made the initial chain 36. If not, the chunky neckwarmer was not so chunky. Also, I found it helpful to make the ch 36 tight. If not, the pattern tended to bell out in the first few rows. Being a perfectionist, I remade the neckwarmer 4 times before I was pleased. Since then, I have made 3 more of this pattern, with no need to remake.

What I like about this neckwarmer is how many different ways you can wear it. Also pleasing was the brevity of the project. If one does not remake the scarf, this can be made in under an hour. I do crochet fast, but an hour and a half at most.

http://www.bernat.com/pattern.php?PID=4078 Softee Chunkky - Neckwarmer (crochet)