these are a few of my favorite things...

In my attempt to think of something to post about today this song popped into my head. :) So today I'm going to be sharing a few things that I LOVE and hope to own someday...

I'd LOVE to do a makeover in my bedroom one of these days. These are just a few things I wish I could include...

I've recently developed a love of metal bed frames, brushed silver is my favorite finish. I love the simplicity of this one.

Caldwell Bed from Pottery Barn

I'm not wild about the posts, I think they should be cylindrical with rounded knobs on top, more like the frame above. But I ADORE that beautiful scroll work!

Avery Bed from Pottery Barn

 Another pretty, but simple design. Lovely!!

Savannah Bed and Headboard from Pottery Barn

 Also very cool is the current trend of fabric covered headboards. This one has a lovely shape. :)

Riley Headboard and Slipcover from Pottery Barn

but if I were picking out some new bedding I would want something more like this:

I love this one, though I'd skip the 'cheetah' looking print and accent with a mustard-y yellow something! :) I'm totally stuck on gray lately, and I really like how it looks paired with a bright color like yellow or orange for a nice bright POP!

Garden Nights Comforter Set by Bed Bath and Beyond

yep, more gray. Though the big petals could be seen as a little more on the childish side, I love the simplicity and the clean lines of this one! and those little bits of lime green... FABULOUS!

Echo Design Fan Floral Comforter Set from Bed Bath and Beyond

I'm always back and forth about red. I think it just needs to be the perfect shade of red. I definitely like this red paired with the taupe and cream, and those little clovers... SO cute!

DKNY City Clover Mini Comforter Set from Bed Bath and Beyond

now this is what I'm talking about! how fantastic does the yellow look with the gray here?! I could go either way with the inclusion of the turquoise but I think it works. and I seriously ADORE that bold graphic pattern.

Kas Maysun Mini Comforter Set from Bed Bath and Beyond

of course then we need a few accent pieces...

cute bedside tables!

Charlotte Bedside Table from Pottery Barn

and how fun is this mirrored nightstand?! 

Park Mirrored Bedside Table from Pottery Barn

a little light to read by...

oh I love EVERYTHING about this lamp. the simple base, that GORGEOUS shade!!! I even love those little orange flowers next to it, I want those too! ;)

Briana Glass Table Lamp Base from Pottery Barn

apparently I have a thing for clear lamp bases because I love this one too! Super fun design!

Stacked Crystal Table & Bedside Lamp Base from Pottery Barn

 AND something not so clear... I also happen to love candlestick lamps. :) I like the silver one here and I think it would be just lovely with the lamp shade from the first lamp above!

Gillian Candlestick Bedside Lamp Base from Pottery Barn

I could probably go on for days! If only the cash flow was limitless! ;)

Today's gratitude: I am thankful for lazy Sunday afternoons! The kids and I are camped out, still in pjs, and watching a few movies (while I sew). I don't think there could be anything better!

CIC Saturday!

It's been a few weeks since the last CIC Saturday but I'm ready to pick it back up again. :) And if I remember correctly this week we should be on the color BLUE!! :) As a bonus, since I missed so many weeks, I'm doubling up on this one and sharing not one set of lovely blue items, but TWO sets of fabulous blue items! That's 18 chances to find something you really LOVE! :) So here we go...

Group number one and the talented artists who made everything seen above:

• crochet winter scarf in navy blue, sky blue and white by DonidoDesigns
• blue sparkle flower hairpin by KimArt
• blue denim necklace, polymer clay by efiwarsh
• man musk handmade vegan glycerin soap by Batty's Bath
• ornament in blue, green, gold polymer clay by Starless Clay
• cobalt blue glass soap dish by BPR Designs
• electric blue chicken doorstop by swirlyarts
• four inch frame purse pattern by Studio Cherie
• balloon dog necklace pendant by roscata

Group number two and the talented artists who made everything seen above:

• gone swimming necklace by My Soul Can Dance
• linen and leather card holder by Lucy Blaire Creations
• fleur de lis brass earrings by black cat craft
• polka dot apple ring by tizzalicious
• paper earrings - light blue tulips by Rely Design
• blue stripe circle earrings by hidden treasure
• Spring Sprang blue bird matted print by kittybutt
• blue glitter cupcake earrings by kitschtique
• old school prep madras clutch by looking4lilly

(As always, if you click the shop name you can see everything each artist has for sale, if you click the item name it will take you directly to the item pictured here)

and don't forget to check back next Saturday for another batch of colorful handmade goodies!!

OH and one last note, my gratitude for today: Today I am thankful for SNOW!! Yesterday I saw the very first snowflakes of the season (though nothing is sticking yet). I can't WAIT until we're smack dab in the middle of Winter with a foot of snow on the ground and more falling from the sky. Because even though I HATE these cold temperatures, the snow totally makes up for it by being so beautiful! :)

Friday Favorite Finds!!

“The purest and most thoughtful minds are those which love color the most.” ~John Ruskin

I recently ran across this great quote and I just loved it. :) I am madly in love with color, can't get enough of it. Which brings me to today's Favorite Finds! Fellow "color lovers" that just so happen to be selling on Etsy. Check 'em out!

• Silly Buddy (offering super awesome stuff for stylish doggies)

I have two dogs (Elmer and Oliver) and I am obsessed with super cute collars! They both get at least one new collar/leash set each year (as a Christmas gift) and sometimes more... if I find something cute that I HAVE to have in between (like the green and brown polka dots that they're sporting right now). ;) Silly Buddy is SO on my list! I LOVE these cute collars!

I found them on Facebook too! If you have a dog, or know someone who has a dog, these would make great Christmas gifts! Go become a fan and heart the shop! LOVE! :)

One more colorful find for this week... 

• Lubu (adorable little clay figurines that make me squeal)

First of all, the shop tagline cracks me up... a superfacepunch of love! lol Twilight fans will get me when I say I always think of the scene where Mike asks Bella to go see a movie and after inviting everyone else Bella suggests they see 'Face Punch'. rofl Ok, back to the cuteness! Here are some of my favorites from the shop

I couldn't find Lubu on Facebook but you should definitely go check out the shop asap! I can definitely see adding one or two of these little guys to my collection of Etsy goodies that hangs out on my desk. :)  ADORABLE!

...superfacepunch ;) lol

Today I am thankful for laughter. :) I laughed so hard at the dinner table last night I almost choked to death on my dinner. By the time I finally caught my breath I had tears running down my face. My kids crack me up all the time (especially my 13 year old, that kid is a comedian). Even though there are a number of NOT funny things going on in my life right now, I'm so thankful that I am still able to laugh every day. :)

back to the beginning again...

This whole crazy business thing I've been doing for the last five months, it all started with a sock monster. In case you haven't read the story before here's the short version. My youngest son had a sock with a hole in it... instead of throwing it out I decided I'd try to turn it into some sort of little sock animal. It became an owl... he took it to school... kids started bringing in socks from home asking me to make them a monster... friends started asking if I could make a monster for them too... and here we are today!

I wouldn't be here without that (impossibly tiny) camouflage ankle sock and so many supportive friends. :)

I keep VERY busy making Lens Pets these days. I get requests for sock monsters every so often but I've had a very hard time finding the time to squeeze them in since they take hours to design and put together. I have a short list of sock monsters to get done in the next week or so and I finished two of them this past weekend. I forgot how much fun the sock monsters are to make! :) If I can get caught up on Lens Pet orders I fully intend to get some sock monsters made up to list in my shop in the next couple months. 

At any rate, I thought today I would share the two sock monsters that I have managed to finish! :)

first is a CARD SHARK! 

My good friend Misty is a poker player. When she asked me to make a sock monster for her I had a hard time coming up with a good idea... In the beginning I was just going to use a basic sock and embellish with the card suits cut from felt (heart, diamond, club, spade). Then she found this totally awesome pair of socks. As I was looking at them, still trying to come up with a decent idea, it hit me... a card shark! lol Corny I know, but it cracks me up. And so the card shark was born. He's got beans in his butt and with a little help from the big fin on his back he can sit up on his own. :)

Next up, one blue monkey. Nothing too out of the ordinary but I like how he came out. I love his big monkey ears. I made his tail out of fleece instead of felt like my last monkey, it's sooo soft. :)

just hangin' around

As for everyone else who is waiting on a sock monster (Gretchen, Melissa, Jen, Susan, Becky, Melissa, Ann, Aunt Eeny and Marci)... they're coming! And I certainly hope they'll be worth the wait!! :)

Last but not least... today I am thankful for IBUPROFEN! I know it's silly, but I went to bed early last night (midnight) because I could feel a headache starting. I woke up around 430am with a SPLITTING headache. I got up and took 3 ibuprofen then laid back down and though I never did fall back to sleep, by the time the boys got up for school at 630 my headache was gone. That means I will be able to get lots of sewing done today instead of wasting another day hiding from light and sound under the covers on the couch. :)

THREE THREE THREE

My very favorite number! The number of pets we have, the number of sons I have AND the number of days I have posted consecutively on this blog so far this month. ;)

The final batch of the 'Chilly' lens pets collection was supposed to have been added to the store today...BUT because I stayed up way too late again last night, I wasn't up early enough in the day to take the pictures for the listings. SOOO that will have to wait until tomorrow.

In other news... 

So, one of my dogs is trained to ring a bell that hangs on the front door when he needs to go potty. This is Elmer... dog genius! ;)

The bell can be a great thing... when you're in the other room or doing something that would otherwise keep you from noticing that one of the four legged critters in the house needs to use the potty.

The bell can also be a curse... pretty much, ALL the time. :p Like when he repeatedly rings it, pausing only to look at you to see if you're coming yet... or if you're maybe just not moving fast enough. It can be especially annoying at 4 am, waking me up out of a dead sleep. Or even better is when he stays all warm and snuggly on the couch, until the SECOND I lay down to go to sleep... then he gets up and rings it. :p

Oh sure, I'm glad he alerts me to the need to go before having an accident on the floor. But sometimes I REALLY hate that bell.

These days I tend to stay up pretty late (or early, depending on how you look at it) sewing. I usually go to bed sometime between 5 and 9 am, sleeping while the kids are in school and waking just before they get home at 2 or 3. Last night (this morning) I finally put the needle down and hit the sack at 5am. So you can imagine my frustration when that bell rang just three hours later. GRRRR But I'm a good doggy mommy. So I dragged myself up, shoved my feet into my shoes and stepped out into the FRIGID morning air. Frost covered the entire lawn. My eyes still foggy and unclear from lack of sleep... and the lack of glasses, which I forgot to grab when I got up. But as I turn down the sidewalk I am greeted with an amazing sight. 

It was actually even more amazing when I first walked out... but after waiting for Elmer to finish his tinkle, running back in to grab my camera, only to find out I was missing a memory card... running back in for the card, only to find out someone snatched two of my batteries for use in the video game controller... then running back in for said batteries... and trying to focus with my half blind eyes, it faded a bit. But the clouds just looked SO cool. And the colors of the sky thanks to the just rising sun were absolutely breathtaking.

So today (and only today) I am thankful for that bell, for my crazy dog who wakes me up at all hours ringing it and for nature's most incredible gifts that are just outside the door to greet me! :)