handmade...

handmade is my favorite... i'm very happy when i'm creating something... it's a big part of who i am...

 

my dining room has been overrun this summer with supplies, my sewing machine, and fabric... piles of fabric...

 

now that the girls are back in school, i have high hopes to get everything moved back up to the studio space on our third floor... i love working up there but in the summer months it's not the most convenient... and it's hot!

 

the pocketful of posie garlands are one of my favorite things to make...

maizie and marina help pair fabrics and choose buttons...

  they enjoy it and it's a nice way to spend extra time with them while i'm working...

 i just love all of the colorful combinations...

and i'm so happy that so many of you love them, too!

 

i've had a few questions come up about the flower and mason jar hoops...

i honestly am working on things as fast as i can and i'm hoping to have a few more of these available soon...

 

but right now i'm up to my ears in pumpkins...

the requests for these have way exceeded my expectations...

 i'm so thankful for all of you who've shown an interest in the pumpkin patch garlands... it means the world to me that something that i've created will be in so many of your homes...

 

i recently added these hand crocheted hats to my etsy shop...

super cute for fall...





{removable frilly flower clippie that can also be worn as a hair clip...}

 

sharing my love for handmade and creating is something that i've always wanted to do and i'm so thankful for all of your orders and patience as i try to find balance in it all...

 

xo

angie

15 years...

i was 25 and he was 27... and here's a little tidbit you may not know... we got married in las vegas... {for the record... not drive through style or by an elvis officiant... but in the outdoor gardens of the flamingo hilton with our closest family and friends}

 

i always thought that i might regret that decision... getting married away from home, not in the church that i attended my whole life...  to not have a full reception, a wedding cake or a first dance...

 

but as it turns out... i've never regretted the destination of where we were married... {yes... going to get our marriage license felt a little sketchy... and there were some people dear to me who were unable to attend...} but all in all... it was perfect for us... a lot less stress than a traditional wedding and really a lot of fun...

we exchanged vows on august 25th, 1999... 

 

i remember that day so well...

 

watching them set up the white chairs on the lawn from my hotel suite... laughing hysterically with my maid of honor after she had her hair done and it slightly resembled flo's hair from the tv show alice... my mom holding back tears... taking the elevator down and walking through the lobby of the hotel in my gown... my dad partaking in a margarita {or 2} prior to walking me down the aisle because he was SO nervous... having a wonderful dinner with everyone afterwards at the embers... taking pictures at the bellagio... walking along the strip... strangers congratulating us along the way and touching my dress for good luck...

 & being able to have that first dance the day after we were married at an outdoor concert... {we were announced because my dad was sneaky and told the band that we were just married the day before...}

 

you start off marriage naïve... it's blissful... not really realizing what lies ahead...

 

 i remember that first year in our cute apartment... going out, special dinners, decorating like nobody's business... the following year we bought our home and then real life kicked in... house issues, car problems, bills, miscarriages, lost jobs, losing loved ones to sickness... it's been quite a journey since that day... we've been through a lot... ups and downs... good times and bad... marriage is hard work and not always easy... 

but journeying through this life of ours together, with our two beautiful daughters, is so worth it...



back to school...

i'm so thankful that the girls didn't have to go back to school until after labor day... it was nice to enjoy the long holiday weekend with them... dinners together, a movie night, and a little last minute school shopping at grove city on monday to round out our weekend...

 

 

maizie started 7th grade and marina started 3rd...

 

big years for both of them...

 

middle school begins in 5th grade and ends in 8th where we live... when i went to school elementary school was through 6th... junior high was 7th and 8th... high school was 9th through 12th...

 

in my mind, 7th grade is where things started to get tricky... feelings easily hurt, clicks formed, drama... we've all been there...

 

my wish for maizie this year...  stay true to yourself... do your best as a student...  be a good listener... and a good friend...  use your best judgement with situations that may come your way...

she had to choose quotes that she felt were a good representation of herself last night for one of her first assignments... she really liked this one by maya angelou...

 

“i've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

 

i couldn't agree more...

 

 

*****

 

 

my wish for marina... 3rd grade is a time for learning harder things... reading to comprehend... and switching classes... but I don't want you to get so bogged down by those things that you forget to enjoy your day... try to let worry roll off of you... be kind... use manners... and have fun...

gosh... the years go by so fast... especially once they begin school... i love these girls more than anything in the world and i hope and pray that they have a fun year... even when things seem harder than what they're used to... that they stay positive and make lots of happy memories...

 

xo

angie

#mugswap14

each year on august 1st, kim with a cuppa kim blog kicks off her annual mug swap... it's been going strong for 4 years... i stumbled upon it in 2012 and signed up... and have done it each year since... {you can read about last year's experience here}

for those reading that don't know what the mug swap is... basically you sign up... you're assigned a partner and someone different is assigned to you... a pretty neat way to spread kindness...

 i've met such nice girls along the way... {hi meghan, salla, amber and dana}
we keep in touch via instagram which is fun!
 

this year my mug swap package traveled to illinois... a few of albion's likes were color, handmade, and cross stitch... we set out to find the perfect mug...

 

our first stop: starbucks

marina was my assistant for the day... we went to so many stores and came home empty handed... i'm so indecisive...

 

ultimately, we ended up choosing a white mug with a cute shape and chose to add color to the package with the other goodies that we tucked inside...

i knew that i wanted to send her something handmade so i went with a pocketful of posies garland in the colors above...

a starbucks card, yummy chocolate bar, embroidery floss and the cutest cherry suckers were also added in...

seeing it all come together was so fun!

i added some chevron hand towels and little details to the packaging...



and wrapped layer after layer of tissue paper and bubble wrap around that mug to keep it safe... then, off to the post office it went!

 

after much stalking of the #mugswap14 hashtag, i saw that she finally received the package... yay!

 

*****

 

in the meantime... i was waiting for mine to arrive... watching daily for our mail truck...

 

when john handed me the box, i could hear it rattling... my heart sank a little...

my pretty, world market mug from sarah was broken beyond repair... so sad because it was such a lovely little mug... tea, shortbread cookies, a truffle pig chocolate, owl lip gloss and a mini hand sanitizer were also tucked inside...

 

thank you, kim, for hosting... always SO fun!

 

 

have you blessed someone's mailbox lately?

 

xo

angie