Theme Thursday: Modern Handmade Child Staff

The past couple of weeks have been crazy busy for me, as we've been finishing up the next issue of Modern Handmade Child. This week, I thought I'd give a little shout out to a few of the talented ladies who are working with me on the mag:

Gretchen and I are the co-founders and editors of Modern Handmade Child. She's a very talented illustrator and designer, and her shop is filled with the most adorable artwork, like this print:

Oh Happy Day Print by Chichiboulie


Kristi is a writer for the dwell section, and her shop is full of all things cute and girly, such as this sweet little headband:

Dainty Blooms Headband by Zuzu Girl


Kim is a writer for the play section. She has a background in early education, and makes these wonderful little flipboards:

Educational Flipboard Games Set by Tootsie Bear


Rozzi does sewing tutorials for the magazine, and in her shop you will find sweet little outfits for your little sweet peas, like this darling bowling shirt:

Buster Bee Bowling Shirt by Rozzi's Sweet Peas


Nicole is a writer for the taste section. She makes boo boo cubes, paper party goods, and these fun redesigned crayons:

Lil Scribblers™ by Lil Boo & Co.


The newest addition to our team is Marissa, who will be writing for our 'wear' section. Her shop is full of super cute clothing for babies and toddlers, like these diaper covers:

Garden Lover Ruffle Diaper Cover by Rae Gun

Painting

Little g loves to paint. And when she paints, boy, does she ever paint!

she paints the table...

she paints her chin...

she paints her hands...

Thank goodness for washable paints!

Customer Appreciation Pic - look at this cutie pie!

Ashley recently bought some of my felted flower hair elastics for her daughter, and sent me this pic. Isn't she the cutest?? I couldn't resist sharing the photo here. It's so fun to see my items being enjoyed by their recipients. :)

Theme Thursday: Halloween, Part 2

Been a busy week, so this Thursday's theme is from my post on the Crafting in Color Blog:

If you don't fancy the traditional orange and black color combination for Halloween, perhaps something a little more vampire-esque would suit your taste. Bold reds against deliciously deep blacks make for a striking combination that's sure to quench your thirst for color.

Trick or Treat Candy Necklace from Dina Fragola

Temptress Sugar Scrub from BL Soaps

Team Edward Necklace from Misty Aurora

Gothic Inspired Felted Wool Handbag from Maddy and Me

Mourning Glory Baroque Cameo Necklace from Zombuki

Sparkly Kitty Giant Heart Resin Pendant from divokc


Shades of Fire Bangle Bracelet from Crafty Chick 101

My little pumpkin's growing up!

This weekend my husband and I took little g to Pumpkin Land. Although she's still a bit young for some of the activities there, she was very excited to see the pumpkins, and play on the slide and swing. Looking at her standing next to my husband by the "How Tall This Fall?" board makes me realize just how much she has grown. At almost three feet tall, she's getting pretty close to half of his height (6'4"). It's hard to believe that not long ago she was still a tiny little baby. I'm pretty sure one day she will be taller than me...I guess then I really will be her "little momma"!

Flower Friday: A study of color, line, and texture

I love when we get a breather from the usual chaos of working at a flower shop, and I can take the time to create an arrangement that's more of an art piece than a bouquet. It's fun to get a chance to experiment, and try something completely different from the usual dozen roses or pick me up bouquet.

This piece is really a study of color, line, and texture. It all started with the sunflowers...we had a couple of sunflowers that were missing a few petals, so I plucked the rest of the petals out, which leaves you with a wonderful color combination of soft green and dark chocolate brown. I had seen sunflowers used this way at a floral design show before, and was amazed at how beautiful they looked without their petals. To compliment the centers of the sunflowers, I chose a rich brown container, which unfortunately you can't really see in these pictures. I really wanted to stretch the limits of the small container I had picked out, so I opted for these incredible Japanese Fantail Pussy Willow branches that had been sitting around the shop. These are one of my favorite branches to use, because they create such beautiful lines. In order to really highlight the lines, I kept everything else in the arrangement low and close to the container. And remembering a bit of what I had learned from my class over the summer, I made sure to pay careful attention to how the lines looked from every angle.

I chose a Fatsia leaf to cover the base of the arrangement, and folded a couple fingers of it back to reveal the soft green underside which is a perfect match to the edges of the sunflowers. And lastly, I filled in with some beautiful golden Celosia, green Hanging Amaranthus, and some sort of dried pod (not sure what exactly it is), which made for an interesting combination of textures.

Overall, I was very happy with how this piece came out. And I'm looking forward to the next little breather, so that I can experiment more with floral design as art. :)

Theme Thursday: Halloween cuties

Halloween is such a fun holiday...when else can you dress up like a chicken and not have people look at you like you're crazy? Ok, so maybe you will still get some strange looks, even on Halloween, if you dress up like a chicken. But your kids certainly won't get any strange looks wearing these Halloween cuties!

Cheeky Cheshire Cat Tee from The Trendy Tot

Child's Pumpkin Hat from Oh Baby dotcom

Bony Tot Set from Small Threads

Pirate Girl Tunic and Bloomers from Rae Gun

Boo Fifi Tutu Panty Diaper Cover from Sherbet Baby

Friday Flower: Circus Rose

With it's bright yellow petals tipped in the most vibrant orange, Circus is an eye-poppingly beautiful rose. Just look at that color! Wowza!! It looks completely fabulous on its own, but it also looks gorgeous with other autumn flowers as in this bouquet:

Hand-tied bouquet of Circus Roses, Flame Calla Lilies, Red Mikado Spray Roses, Viking Poms, Hypericum Berries, and Seeded Eucalyptus

Such beautiful colors for this time of year...I love Autumn weddings. :)

Theme Thursday: Calendula

October is here, and what better way to celebrate than by showcasing the birth flower, Calendula. With it's vibrant yellowy-orange, Calendula is the perfect flower for October.

Petals - 5x7 Fine Art Photograph by Two Dog Gardens

Pampering Floral Bath Tea from The Pig And The Peacock

Calendula, a flower fairy from Camp Cactus


Natural Calendula, an Herbal Vegan Body Soap from Daisycakes Soap

Orange Calendula officinalis Seed, All Natural, Wisconsin Grown, 1 oz. from beck online

Calendula Vest from trnka

1/2 Pound Dried Calendula Petals from Layla