In Memorium

For all who gave their lives to make or keep us free and safe.  Thank you.

2010 in My Rearview Mirror

It's been such an amazing year! My daughter came into the world, my son turned three, my brother graduated from law school, my husband got a new job that he'll be starting before long... and my shop has done me proud.

I don't know about you, but the last few days of the year always make me introspective. What went right this year? What didn't? What do I need to work on in the coming twelve months? What do I want to improve on?

I know my parenting skills need work. I lose my patience too often, even my temper sometimes, and I need to get better at maintaining my cool. I also need to take more time for Dano -- he's had a rough ten months, having to share his world with a noisy little stranger. I try to spend Mercy's morning nap time with him, doing whatever he wants, but lately I've been squeezing laundry or dishes or checking email into that time slot, which is not at all fair to him. Having my Mom here the last week and a half illustrated very clearly to me how much he's missing having lots of attention -- he soaked up her time with him like a happy sponge. Sure, all kids want more attention than they get, but I feel like I've been capitalizing on his ability to amuse himself too much lately. So no more multitasking during Mercy's naps unless it's truly unavoidable.

Creatively, I've had an awesome run. I've nearly completed my fifth novel -- one of my aims for January is to finish the first draft so I can let it sit for a few months, then see if I think a rewrite would make it viable, publishable material. Who knows -- by the end of 2011, I may be on my way to getting a novel published!

As for my more crafty creativity, I've done well there too. I've had satisfying sales with Huggermugger, I've created some new products, and I've got ideas for more. I want to collage more composition-sized notebooks, try out some new hat patterns, maybe even branch out into something altogether different. I'm currently crocheting a cardigan for myself, my first attempt at crocheted clothing if you don't count hats, scarves, and mittens. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Happy New Year!

Sea Willow Herbs

Done baking cookies -- on to the blogging!

Thanks to a giveaway that was part of the Autumn Harvest Extravaganza on the Nutshell blog, I won a lip balm from the Etsy shop Sea Willow Herbs. Which lip balm? Kissed by a Vampire, of course.


This is the best handmade lip balm I've tried yet! It's neither too greasy nor too hard, unlike most of the other lip balms I've tried. And it smells sooooo good! Orange and cinnamon :-9 And if you don't particularly want to be kissed by a vampire (really, it depends on the vampire, doesn't it? Angel or Spike, absolutely. One of those nancy-boy vamps that are soooo popular right now? No thanks) -- this is really the same as her Orange Spice lip balm. And she has some Christmasy flavors too, like this Peppermint Stick lip balm.


Sea Willow Herbs also sells aromatherapy body oils, bath salts, healing salves, and more. A great place to pick up some stocking stuffers or treats for yourself!

Picnic Time!

Michele of This Decorated Life featured one of my canteens on her blog today! Their post was all about picnic items. Just so happens the kids and I had a picnic at the zoo today. (Pics of that tomorrow, I hope.)

Here's my latest Instant Canteen, just in time for the 4th of July. I love those bright stars!

Sale Time!

Through January 1st, I am having a sale in my Huggermugger store. I'm getting rid of some older items to make way for new designs and ideas.



If you're like me and looking for Christmas stuff this week because you know they'll probably be on sale, my Christmas items are no exception. They're all 50% off this week!


Also, I've marked all my winter hats, scarves, and mittens down by 25%-50%. All of them -- the baby hats, the child hats, and the adult/teen attire. So if you want to keep your family warm with handmade items, here's the perfect opportunity!

Christmas, Tradaholics Style

Time for my third -- and final -- selection of five Christmasy items, this time from the Tradeaholics team.

This adorable tutu comes from TheGirlyPlace, where you'll find lots of other tutus, hairbows, and more.

I love this ceramic Cowboy Santa pendant! And it's two-sided, with a moose on the other side. It's from ArtrageousClay, which has lots of other holiday jewelry too.

These holly blossom hairpins from TattooAnnie are one of a big variety of Christmasy accessories you can find in her shop.

These six mini thank-you cards are only one set out of many you'll find at PeculiarParchment, where you can also get Christmas cards and gift tags.

And these felted whatnot bowls from MissyAndMe would be great for holding all those little doodads that seem to multiply this time of year. They have some cute felted ornaments too.

This concludes my last-minute team gift guide. I hope it gave you an idea or two for that hard-to-shop-for person on your list, or maybe you've found something you'd like to give yourself for Christmas :-) Happy browsing!

Christmas, BusyMoms Style

Tonight, I continue my last-minute Christmas shopping gift guide by bringing you five festive items from members of the Busy Moms team.

First off, here are some lovely red lampwork and silver earrings from NewHopeBeading, where you can find lots of other Christmasy jewelry as well.

Next up are a pair of microwave mitts that will lend some joy to your kitchen. They're from BijouxDesignsForYou, which is advertising $5 stocking stuffers right now!

This Christmas berry candle comes from OzarkScentsCandleCo, a shop replete with Christmasy candles and soaps in all sorts of scents, shapes, and containers.

This half-apron with attached hand towel is from SlingabyeBaby, a relatively new shop that also has some holiday hats for little ones.

And lastly, this peppermint patty soap is just one of many Christmasy gift ideas available from Cassia'sKitchen.

That's all for tonight -- stay tuned for one last set of gift ideas tomorrow!

Christmas, CAST Style

I belong to three "teams" on Etsy, the Christian Artists Street Team (CAST), the Busy Moms Team, and the Trade-a-holics Team. This week, I'm going to highlight a few of my favorite Christmas items from each team.

Tonight, I bring you five items from the CAST team that have caught my eye.

This cute little ornament comes from BlackBrookShop, which has lots of Christmas ornaments, jewelry, and more.

This Snowflake Sparkle wreath or centerpiece comes from Ivyndell, which has a variety of lovely Christmas-themed wreaths and centerpieces, some of which can pull double duty like this one.

This set of five cross-stitched gift tags comes from BountifulBlessings, where you'll find Christmasy quilts, baskets, and more.


This hand-painted First Christmas Together ornament is one of many in the DoodlePadDesigns shop, where they offer free personalization of ornaments.

Finally, this unique Christmas card comes from LemonadeSun, where you can also get a variety of Christmasy handcarved stamps.

Remember, there's still a little more than a week before Christmas, but you need to order soon to ensure timely shipping!

Santa Hat Pattern

I just added my original pattern for baby/child Santa hats to my store! It's in my Crochet Patterns section (obviously). This pattern is really easy, perfect for beginning crocheters. If you can chain and work a double crochet stitch, you can make this hat! This pattern has instructions for five sizes: 0-3mo, 3-6mo, 6-12mo, 12-24mo, and Child. I also include the directions to make the pom-pom.

I've been selling my crochet patterns quite a bit lately. I love the idea of someone taking my pattern and making something of their very own with it -- it's like getting to be a teacher, in a way. And since I also love making up my own crochet patterns when I can't find one for what I want to make, I'm sure I'll be adding more patterns to my store in the future.

If you order this pattern now, you'll have plenty of time to make one or two of these before Christmas, even have your kids' portraits taken in them if you want. I also sell the already-made hats in my store if you don't feel like making them yourself, and if you don't see the size you need, contact me because I love making custom orders.

Up next week -- a giveaway!

Turkey Treasury

I got a treasury today! I call it Turkey Tots, and it's full of turkey-themed wearables for kids. Hope you like it! Remember, it'll only be available for viewing for a couple days, so check it out while there's still time.

Also, my Free Shipping offer will end tonight, so if you've been putting off taking advantage of that, don't wait much longer.

Still See a Pattern?

Remember the snowman hat I talked about in my last post? I've made another one and listed it in my shop in my brand new Child Hats section. I'm planning to add some more hats there soon -- after all, why should babies have all the fun? I've also added the pattern to my shop, so now I have five of my original patterns for sale! I've expanded my pumpkin hat pattern to include a child size too.

No Trick, Just a Giveaway Treat

This hereby kicks off this blog's first giveaway!

What am I giving away? These three spooky glass candle holders! They're perfect for tea lights or small votives. Each one is 2 1/2 inches tall, 2 1/2 inches across, and 9 inches around at the top. One is decorated with spiderwebs and a tiny spider; one with a black cat, a black witch's hat, the word "Boo!," and a ghost; one with the line from Macbeth's three sisters: "Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble."

The cool thing about these, as you can see from some of the pictures, is that when they're lit, they cast shadows of their decorations on whatever surface you set them on. These make a great decoration for a table, counter, desk, etc. Add them to a centerpiece or set them up alone, whatever suits your fancy. I sold these for $5 each at a craft fair last fall, so this set is worth $15, and it can be yours for free! I'm even throwing in three free Halloween-y tealights, the ones you see in the top picture.

You see, I'm going on vacation until the 23rd, so you have until midnight that night to enter. On the 24th, I will draw the winner.

How can you be that winner? There are three ways:

+ 1. Leave a comment here listing your favorite item from my store, www.huggermugger.etsy.com , and either your email address or your blog so I can contact you if you win.

+ 2. Follow my blog. Leave a comment here letting me know you're a follower, plus either your email address or your blog so I can contact you if you win.

+ 3. Post about this on your own blog. Leave a comment here with a link to your blog post, plus either your email address or your blog so I can contact you if you win.

This means you can be entered up to three times!

Enter by midnight on the 23rd! I'll draw the winner on September 24, announce who it is here, and contact them to get their mailing address. Then I'll ship these three candle holders to the lucky winner, and that will be that! Good luck :-)