Our Thanksgiving Day Trip!

Oh..hello there...it's Me...I know. It's yet again been awhile. I'm reaching the bottom of my list of orders...well at least over the extremely large hump. I think once I can breath a bit I'll be happy. But for now I'm happy to take a few minutes to say hi to my readers. 

So hello.

Ha...I won't leave you with that.

I hope you all had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving! I know I did!!

I was re-reading my blog and I saw the post from 9/11. I teared up. Mostly because as non of you know (since I didn't tell you) for Thanksgiving, Studley, my dad (pop) and my step mom, literally PILED the 4 kiddos into their Honda Odyssey (yes that's a shameless plug hehe) and we drove up to New York City.

We had such great seats!! Almost so close you could touch people. The boys got countless hugs and high fives from passing people IN the parade. They had a BLAST. This was our second trip up to NYC for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. It SHOULD be on EVERYONE's bucket list. You have to go once. It's such an amazing experience.

This was our view for the parade!

We really didn't do as much sightseeing as we did our first trip, but that was mostly because we had SOMEWHERE to be. I was so honored to be able to visit "Ground Zero" this trip. Mostly because 9/11 had such a profound impact on my immediate life. The kids knew what happened on 9/11 but to them its some boring event in their history class. They weren't alive when it happened, it wasn't as sensitive an issue for them.

The South Reflection Pool (this photo doesn't even do it justice)

The whole atmosphere was just so quiet and respectful. It was such an amazing place. To be honest it was completely sobering to be there and to know why we were there and what had happened to be needing to create such a beautiful memorial. Even now I tear up. It was completely moving.

 

Freedom Tower

Definitely take the time to check out their website 9/11 Memorial.

Get your tickets to go visit. It's definitely worth the trip.

All in all, our Thanksgiving was wonderful. I am completely thankful for my family & extended family. I couldn't live without them! 

Happy Holidays!!

Sewing Love

I love to sew, but I seriously haven't had the time in literally ages. 

When I dusted off my lovely trusty old machine I come to find out that storage ghosts have been playing with it and broke my backwards button. 

Eventually I need a new sewing machine. Studley thinks I can make mine work *which I can* but who doesn't want a new one.

Until then I continue to collect these LOVELY fabrics...which again...drives Studley INSANE! But whatever...it's my job.

But of course before I get it a machine I needed a dress. I have been shopping and shopping for pillow case dresses FOREVER. Mostly because when you see them you think "oh, gee. I could do that myself" or "um well that kind of looks tacky" and to be honest...some of these dresses out there are just that..."tacky". Cheap ribbon is used to tie up the sides? What ever happened to craftsmanship? Seriously?

So I continued to shop....and shop, and shop, and shop and shop...and then WAIT. What is this? The most adorable dresses in the fabrics I've been dying for...because let's be honest...they're gorgeous!

Which brings me to the point....Etsy is such a lovely place...

a place where I found Marissa Smith. 

The most brilliant, accommodating seamstress, I think, I have ever met! 

Her shop can be found HERE! It's called "Creative Bee by Marissa Smith". She is just that! Amazing!

I'm shopping for Hadleigh's birthday present. Literally on her birthday because I have been searching for weeks...and finally I see this picture. I'm in love. It's perfect. Then I say well shoot, I need it by next Sunday, I wonder if she can do it...

Wouldn't you know she could! 

This is my Hadleigh in her beautiful custom dress from Creative Bee. I love it. When I got it (literally 3 days after I paid for it) I just fell in love with it. The quality is just AMAZING.

The fabric is designer. 

It's everything you're looking for in a boutique style dress from a SAHM!

So if you're looking for dresses, or skirts, or anything of the kind...you should go check out her shop.

I am so thrilled with her work I just bought another dress for my little princess...

Want to see some more?

 Yes I'm shameless...that is a headband I just made specifically to match this dress...turned out adorable!!!

(want to order one? shoot me an email at {lovehadleighdesigns(at)gmail(dot)com})

Ok. I'm done for now. Go check her out..because she's pretty awesome! :) She also makes women's shirts...so you could definitely get a matching outfit with your princess! :):)

Until next time! :)

Xoxo,

Bows, Clips & Headbands...Oh MY!

Good Monday to you! :) How'd the weekend treat you?

Early Saturday morning found me freezing my little tail off down at a local yard sale/ craft show (mostly yard sale) in the freezing wind with some lovely rain to accompany it...I was excited once I sold a bunch of "junk". Not really junk...rather great stuff that was actually well loved :).

Mid Saturday found me at Tommy's baseball game....(still cold and breezy...less rain!) The game was great...he loves baseball...

Saturday afternoon found me at a BBQ/ Fall Bash at one of Studley's co-workers. They have it every year and it's a party we go to religiously. It's one of the BEST times around and it really shows what amazing people Studley works with and for...and how "family" oriented they all are. It's a great group of people and ALWAYS a great time!

Sunday. Sunday was a lovely lazy Sunday. Freezing cold, which meant the most delicious white chili for dinner with homemade tortilla chips. (definitely forgot to make my famous cornbread!) I also spent nap time doing a lovely craft while my boys practiced their drawing. They decided it was time to practice being an artist because "Mom is an artist" hehehe....

So would you love to see my end product? How about a tutorial on how to make your own? I know plenty of Etsy shop owners who are going to be pretty upset at this...but it's ok :).

Yes, that's Studley's hand...whatta sweetheart! :)

Hadleigh has a nice collection of bows, clips and headbands...not to mention hats and such...but I've been finding bows and clips all over the place. Everytime she decides she's done she pulls it out and I set it down and then spend more time looking for them than she does wearing them! 

SO...boom...accessories holder......SUPER CHEAP!

What you'll need:

Letter (it was already white and it's big! Michael's + coupon = $2.39)

1.5 inch ribbon (1 spool, it will use an entire spool, I used what I had on hand.)

7/8 inch ribbon (just used for an extra embellishment)

Thread

Embellishments (I used scrapbooking elements I had)

Glue gun & glue stick

Matches or a lighter

This particular letter had holes in the back to hang on the wall so I didn't even need to hang it from anything. WIN!

First cut your first strip. Its length really depends on you and how much you plan on hanging on it.  Mine are between 26" and 28" I just roughly measured it. Hot glue it down.

Now what you wanna do is take the rest of your 1.5 inch ribbon off of the spool so you can freely loop and tie it up. You wanna hot glue the tip of the other side as well.

Now you're gonna loop up your 1.5 inch ribbon up and behind. The loop is as big as you want. I did 3 loops, but your goal is that at the bottom it's as long as your straight side. So when you hang it they match. This is the most tedious part because you also need to make sure your loops are matching widths. For a perfectionist & OCD sufferer this part was not my favorite, but still pretty easy! 

 Then tie it up. I just used a couple square knots on top of each other. Don't worry this gets covered by your extra ribbon. These loops are what will hold your headbands. You'll do this 3 times to get 3 loops on the one side. Once you've finished with that you're just about done.

Now it's all about embellishments!

Take your 7/8" ribbon and cut nice sized strips. Wrap it around your ties. Tie a bow. This also took me a little while, because clearly they had to be perfect. I could still mess with them! :)

This is before I trimmed the ends of the bow.

Once you get those three bows done, cut the extra length off of your 1.5" ribbon so it is even with your straight side. Now it's time to move on. Get a match or lighter & run it close to the ends of the ribbon. This will heat seal your ribbon so it doesn't fray.

Take your extra 1.5" and tie an extra bow and put it on the top of your letter, or really wherever you please! Embellish as you like! I started out with a wooden word Princess, but it got nixed when it didn't look like it should (Brien had broken it, I tried to fix it...never looked cute again! I'm sure I could have taken more time with it, but I didn't want to.) I went minimal with the embellishments, but painting polka dots on the "H" crossed my mind. I went with 1 heart, 1 heart with a lock & 1 key. Threaded on itty bitty ribbon and hot glued by the bottom of the big bow.

 And now you're done and have saved yourself a bunch of money! :) There's a lot that can be said for Michael's and their coupons :)...and a little ingenuity! 

This is just a small selection of bows Hadleigh has from Girls & Curls Accessories!!! We love Mindy!

Go check her out! She's also on ETSY!!!

I hope you enjoyed the tutorial and I hope to see some photos of your own bow holders!! :)

XOXO,

Remembering

I can't believe it's been 10 years already...I remember it like it just happened yesterday. I didn't have any babies yet...in fact I wasn't even in my last trimester with Nathanael. I was sitting at home watching the news, having a cup of tea and in the middle of laundry.

I sat and cried most of the day. Thinking of families who've now lost loved ones due to the selfishness and repulsiveness of the people willing to take not only their lives, but the lives of millions of others. Not stopping to think that maybe these people had husbands, wives, babies, kids, moms, dads, and any other branch of relationship a human can have. No they saw terror. The way to bring the biggest terror possible.

It wasn't like a that for America. No. I saw it as a reason to bring the entire country together and fight back against these people so willing to take away from people they didn't even know. We banded together like a giant family. Consoling those who've lost, comforting any fears that were there, and standing strong....Together.

Watching the news today brings back all of those feelings. My eyes are welling up with tears and just listening to the stories is just heart breaking.

They tried to break us. We didn't break...we got stronger. I thank all of the firefighters, our soldiers, the courageous men and women in the towers trying to help, on flight 93, all of the men and women in the Pentagon and the families who've lost and a country who has bonded and come together as a family. Thank you of all of your courage, bravery and strength.

You might ask..."Who are you?"

Good evening my lovely bloggians! (yes...I just made that up)

I've missed you all dearly. I know...you want to know...Who the heck are you? Oh duh...I know...It's been a long time! Since I last posted a few things have changed!

First...my awesomeness has gotten even awesomer...haha (also a new word.) I have decided that the super dark brown hair must go....considering that I've had dark hair for forever...and NO that is NOT my natural hair color. I am actually a dirty blond. So with saying that I have decided to go back to the blond, but a PRETTIER blond, because honestly I don't like the color of my hair. SO...I'm making it prettier...well actually my fabulous stylist is making it pretty.

ignore the crazy 80's wear and silly photo....I love my friends....(and I know...you can't really see the blonde yet...be patient!)

Second...Oh and yes, because I wasn't nerdy enough....I have succumbed to the eye doctor finally and purchased glasses...headaches gone, terrible blurry vision gone...awesomeness reinstated! I must say I'm liking nerdy chic though...I'm kind of in love with it! :)

Things have been going completely fabulously this summer in the life of "Love, Hadleigh Designs" as well as myself...We have been completely blessed and things have just been smooth sailing. For the most part :) Every life has a bump now and then right?

So Studley takes me to the Apple store and we get my iPad fixed for free...because seriously Apple is amazing. Followed by Studley buying "us" (yes me) a new iMac. I'm officially in love. Amazing. That's all I can say. Like best machine ever. (aside yes from the innovative iPad, which I adore to a million amazing little pieces) 

My kids have officially started back to school...loooooovin' that I'll be getting more one on two time with Hadleigh and Brien. :) We'll be learning and crafting up a storm this fall...so hopefully you'll be able to see. I have a new project in the works for the kids' teachers as a Thanks for Being awesome teachers...so stay tuned! :)

Ok I'm out of here for now, but believe me...I will be back.........sooner than later :)

XoXo,

It's Thursday...time for a laugh!

I found this on another blog...however I can't remember it right now off the top of my head...
It's Thursday and I found this and had to share it. So let’s celebrate with a little bit of crochet humor. We all know that crocheters are often called “hookers” and there are lots of puns associated with the term. But crochet hookers do have some things in common with those women who sell themselves, don’t they?

I'm not trying to market myself as a hooker...but...since I am a "hooker" hahaha....sigh...

Here are ten things that hookers and “hookers” have in common:

1. Hookers make money doing something that other people do for free.
2. Although there are some male hookers the majority of hookers are women.
3. Some hookers work for a boss but it’s better to work for yourself in this business!
4. There are some jobs that are quick and easy and others that take more effort and energy.
5. Women have been hooking for hundreds of years. It’s an age old art although not one that society always looks favorably upon. Some women are proud to be hookers and even flaunt it in public. Others hide their hooking in the privacy of their own homes.
6. You constantly have to market yourself as a hooker if you want this to be a profitable job.
7. Hookers put a little of their souls into every job they do.
8. Amateurs and experts alike can do a great job at hooking if they put some passion into it.
9. You don’t need a lot of special gadgets to be a hooker but the right tools do make the job a lot easier.
10. The best hookers are using their skills to take care of other people.

I hope you all had a good laugh. This amused me! Happy Thursday everyone!!

Welcome to my new fans on Facebook!

and

Welcome to my new readers here! 

xoxo,

Creepin' on some blogs...

haha.

I love that word...

Creep.

It amuses me the many ways you can use it...

Eww. That guy was a totally creeper.

I was totally creepin' on you.

The Creep by The Lonely Island

hehehe.

It amuses me.

Here I sit with a HUGE grin on my face at saying it.

Well I was doing a creep on some blogs. Mostly just scanning since I really don't have the time right now to be playing on here. I have about 1983293472 orders to fill. I know I'm not complaining.

But I found this fabulous tutorial which I will be making a run to Target and Joann's to do this week.

Mostly because I HATE my lampshades with a passion currently. I think they're lame. And they're brown. Which is weird because my house is greys, blues, whites, and a red kitchen (soon to be blue).

But my lamp shapes are really just a hodge podge since they were meant for a different reason. I just acquired them and put them in my living room because I needed the light.

So I'm going to make this, but with a bleached burlap. Because you all  know I love me some burlap.

So what do you think? Are you as much in love with this lamp as me? Because I am freakin' dying to make it right now!

If you want the tutorial for the no sew ruffled lamp shade go here....

A Little Piece of Heaven: NO Sew Ruffled Lampshade

or the original ruffled lampshade that does require you to sew or use a machine....

Dear Lillie:The Ruffled Lampshade

I adore both of these blogs. They're absolutely love.

So check them out and keep a lookout for when I finally get around to doing my lampshades...I think I'll see if I can get out to Joann's tomorrow...especially since burlap is currently on sale! :):)

Much love readers...go check out my fan page! We're round the bend close to 600! You all are absolutely amazing! I love you all!

Fans of Love, Hadleigh Designs

xoxo,

Beautiful Custom Bags...that are homemade?

So excited.

I should have had this out this morning, but my night last night was thrown off by a major storm and to be honest I didn't want to be on the computer during it. So I worked.

Now I get to share with you my new find!

During the craft show Jackie and I participated in back at the beginning of May, I met this man. His name is Rand Kuenzi. He was also a vendor at the show and was doing a raffle! Me being me I said absolutely I'll add myself to your raffle! I love the chance to win anything! :)

Now let me say this. Rand makes these amazing bags. Out of tshirts and canvas,  fabric and canvas, uniforms, all sorts of stuff are in his designs. Basically he can take a tshirt or uniform and make it into this adorable tote!

A couple days later I received an email saying I had won! Me! I never win stuff like that, but boom! I won.

So me being me...I have all of this stuff that I wear and stuff that Jason wears and to be honest I had A MILLION ideas swarming my head. I couldn't decide. Then I went to my storage closet to put some stuff away when I saw my BEAUTIFUL Heidi Grace bird cage fabric. So I immediately sent him an email asking if he could use that instead. Of course his answer was yes. When we finally got together to talk about my bag and the design of it I had so many ideas. He must have been wondering what in the lords good name he had gotten himself into! I definitely had some demands LoL. But he delivered in a way I couldn't imagine! I LOVE IT. Want a peak at my fabulous new diaper bag/ overnighter?

Check it out...

You can view even more pictures and all of it's features at the end of this post!

Ok now. I had the opportunity to chat quite a bit with Mr Kuenzi and I decided that I wanted to do a Q&A with him. To let you all know how awesome he is :)...so here it goes! Enjoy!

Let's get started!

LHD: How did you get started making bags?

 

Rand: Daughter Grace, now a college Junior, was in Home Economics class in Middle School and had a sewing project and I was the available parent to assist. Additionally, my grandmother was a world-class quilter and my mom used to make some projects when we were growing up on a small family Dairy Farm in Southern Wisconsin. My hometown of New Glarus, Wisconsin is full of crafty Swiss and Norwegian people and I am Swiss-Norwegian so crafting is just in the genes.

LHD: Did being in the military have any influence on you getting started?

 

Rand: Yes, my military values and experience are embedded in Kuenzi Fabrications. Being in the military is a daily exercise in "defining requirements" at best value and ensuring Quality is in each product and service. Also, most of my military career has been in aircraft maintenance which is essentially engineering.

LHD: Once you got past making the first bag, how did you expand and move into selling your bags?

 

Rand: I gave away totes for about seven years as I improved the quality and then in 2009 I sold some bags because ladies I made them for DEMANDED to pay something for my effort and the quality. My wife says I would "give away the store" if I let my heart lead the enterprise and she's probably right. In the last year I have given away more than 50 totes, mostly to teachers, students, and other parents.

 

 

LHD: How do you juggle family and creative-time?  When do your ideas and inspirations come to you?

 

Rand: Juggling family and creative-time is pretty easy because my family inspires most of my creations.  For inspiration, I just keep my eyes open all the time and have traveled extensively outside the United States which has certainly broadened my horizons.

 

LHD: What's your typical day like?

 

Rand: Typical day is get up and go work full-time job for the Department of Defense and then I get home and craft for 4-5 hours while getting ready for the next day's activities and schedule.

 

LHD: With work and then more work :) how do you and your wife make time for each other?

 

Rand: Making time for my wife is a challenge but because we're both Mid-Lifers and we both have family at the top of our priorities, we are nearly always together when I am not away at my first job. 

 

LHD: How did you first come up with the idea to make tshirt conversion tshirts?

 

Rand: Ah, T-Shirt conversions. That's a funny inspiration. I was at a local Thrift store and noticed how many cool and stylish t-shirts were in near new condition yet selling for around $5 apiece and thought the previous owner must have let the shirt go with a sad grimace. Also, the thought of just throwing away clothes was irritating.  Just because an outfit or t-shirt doesn't fit anymore does NOT mean it can't be transformed into something useful--and why not a tote?   

 

LHD: What is your favorite date night thing to do with your wife?

 

Rand: Olive Garden dinner out.

LHD: Best part of being a dad of girls?

 

Rand: The best part of being a dad of daughters is STILL having them call me "Dad" and knowing I always will be that special guy to in their lives.  

LHD: Least favorite thing about being the only guy?

 

Rand: Being the only guy in the house means I am misunderstood ALL THE TIME so I have somewhat learned to deal with it but also have become less sensitive when they say I am not making sense.

LHD: If I want to order a bag...how do I go about it?

 

Rand: If anyone wants to order a bag or just look at the possibilities, they can visit www.kuenzifabrications.etsy.com or send me an email atkuenzifabrications@gmail.com

 

LHD: Final Thoughts? 

Rand: If I NEVER make another sale or face the prospect of never making a profit I will STILL CONTINUE to fabricate because it's a passion. I am also seriously considering writing a book about my passions and intend to intermingle the sewing/fabrication ambition and success to tell my story.

Thank you so much, Rand, for answering all of my questions and also for the opportunity to have a custom Kuenzi design! I've been toting it proudly EVERYWHERE! :)

Now want another peak at the rest of my bag...and everyone...here's the deal. You'll have a peak INSIDE my diaper bag...so NO judging hehehehe

Features:

One HUGE front pocket for all my stuff...normally my cell phone, Ipad2, chapstick & camera go in here.

Two fabulously big end pockets. I can fit a bottle and juice cup in one! Leaving the other for my keys!

Six interior pockets.  Which tickles me because I can have my diaper bag organized...as much as possible.

One super glorious hard bottom that can be removed so I can toss the bag into the washer! 

Can you tell I'm thrilled? Go check him out! The possibilities are endless!

Don't forget to always check up on us! I know I'm not always on top of my blog like I should be, but I've been a busy girl :) I still love you all! :)

xoxo,