Friday, December 16, 2011

Peppermint Bark Snowflakes

I fell in love with this pretty way to make peppermint bark with a snowflake mold. I saw the idea on Pinterest, of course.



So I set out to make mine this year using the Wilton Bite Size Snowflakes silicone mold.


I like how they came out. The Wilton mold I found was a little less detailed than the pretty ones I saw on Pinterest, but I'm happy with them. For the larger ones in the center of the bags, I used a regular snowflake cookie cutter, placed on parchment paper. Here they are, all wrapped and ready to go to my husband's office, the neighbor's house, the mailman, and anyone on our list that deserves a special-something at Christmas.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

HoliDaze

Our family has always loved halloween. The kids were really looking forward to it this year, because we are in a big, family-friendly neighborhood now. Rumor was that we would get over 200 trick-or-treaters, a neighbor up the street would offer hayrides to the kids, and there was a special house that gave out humongous candy bars.

Unfortunately we were the victims of storm Alfred here in the northeast. On Saturday night before Halloween (which was Monday) we got a very heavy, wet snow that wreaked havoc on the trees that were still covered in leaves. So many trees fell and caused damage to power lines- over 800,000 people lost power here in Connecticut alone. And to think, we were some of the lucky ones that got power back after six days. My friend just a mile away suffered on for eight days.

This is my pumpkin on my front step at the beginning of the storm. I love it- I bought it a few years ago in our old town. It is made out of a recycled propane tank. It's heavy and it can't be smashed!

Here is the morning after, and what was left of a pretty dogwood tree in our front yard. The whole tree is lost now. So sad. I'm not going to cry over this one, though- dogwood trees make an awful mess in the Spring.



The kids ended up losing 4 days of school, and halloween was cancelled. So many power lines were down in our neighborhood that it wasn't safe for trick-or-treating. We slept by the fireplace in the living room all week, kept our food in coolers covered with snow, and cooked as much as we could on the grill before the food spoiled in the thaw. We all became characters from "Little House on the Prairie" and told funny stories by candlelight at night.

Over a week later, we've put that sad holiday behind us and we're looking forward to Thanksgiving and Christmas. I've put all of my halloween decorations away in hopes that next year they will be enjoyed a little more!

I've been busy getting some new holiday items listed in my Etsy shop. I missed having power for six days- I couldn't make much of anything, and I was having withdrawals!



I hope everyone else had a nice Halloween. I'm enjoying a quiet week before I start thinking about holiday baking and Christmas shopping next week.

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Hello Kitty!

Here's a Hello Kitty bouquet listed on Etsy. The last one I made lasted only about an hour before it was purchased, so if you want this one, go grab it quickly!

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

October 19 Giveaway!

Click "like" on my post over on Facebook today, and your name will be put into a drawing for a free wool felt flower from my Etsy shop...pick one, any one. If you are the lucky giveaway winner, you can choose your flower to be placed on a clip or headband, or even a pin brooch, ladies!

So go here and click "like".
Ladybug Bowtique on Facebook



And then go visit my shop on Etsy and decide what flower you might choose if you are the winner!

I'll choose the winner tonight at 8:00 EST.

Thursday, October 13, 2011

I love horses. And purple.

I've neglected blog posts, I know. Here's why. 1. Soccer. 2. Soccer. 3. Soccer. We are on the other side of town at the soccer fields 7 days a week. Sara is on a rec team and a travel team, Adam is on a rec team, and Julia is on a rec/travel team. That means practices Monday through Friday, and three to five games on the weekends.

I don't know what we'll do when November comes- I wonder if I'll be bored to death!? As busy as we are, I wouldn't change a thing. We enjoy being out on the fields in the cooler weather.


I had Julia in mind when I made this bouquet. She loves horses, and she loves purple. So I combined the two into a bouquet. Now I have to hide it, because she'll surely want it for her room when she gets home from school! It's available on Etsy, and ready to ship. :)






Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Pretty in Pink

Summer vacation is coming to a close...this is our last week off before the kids go back to school on Monday the 29th. It has been such a fun summer visiting friends, traveling to Cape Cod and Maine, and some trips to MA and NH. Fall brings us routine, but too much of it. We are bracing ourselves for a full schedule of soccer, with all three kids playing again. On top of karate, girl scouts, etc, etc, etc.

I'll be back in the swing of things next week with new fall designs as well. But in the meantime, this might be my favorite set of clips- so pretty in pink with cotton crochet flowers. Am I too old to wear these?




Sunday, June 12, 2011

Pink Ladybug

Here's a pretty custom bouquet I made for a customer with a ladybug theme in green and pink. I never get tired of this color combination.



Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Rain, rain!

It's raining, it's pouring. And it will be like this for several days. I'm okay with it, though- it gives me a chance to get some Spring cleaning done inside while the kids are in school. Rain does make for some lazy days, though- the kids sports games and practices usually end up being cancelled, so it means we can all relax and have a leisurely evening.

Over the weekend I found these hot pink bleeding hearts in three or four parts of the yard. We had one of these plants in our last yard, so it was nice to see them here.


The rain subsided just long enough for me to get out to the deck to take a picture of this new bouquet. It's listed on Etsy. It definitely brightens things up!





Friday, May 13, 2011

Juicy Fruit

Here's another ready-to-ship bow bouquet listed on Etsy. I love the citrus colors in this one.

And this Seuss-ish bouquet didn't last long...it is sold already, but I loved how it came out!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Mayday, Mayday!

Happy first day of May! Where did the first four months of the year go? Oh yeah, complaining about snow, rain and cold...that's where. Well today we had another beautiful Spring day in Connecticut.

Everything in the yard is starting to grow, and since this is our first spring here, we're watching to see what comes up. We have lotsa hosta (lol, which I hated in our last house, so I dug it up and tossed it in the woods, only to find out that my neighbors loved it, so they went and retrieved it.) We also have a beautiful bed of ivy in our side yard that makes a nice backdrop for my pictures. It just produced some small white flowers, which are now going away. Everything is so green. Green, green, green. So green that we didn't have one flower in the yard. Until just recently, when I looked out back and noticed this lonely little daffodil had poked through that ivy bed.


It was the only flower we had in the yard. I couldn't believe it! Until a couple of days ago, when it got a friend! It's friend is white with a yellow center.




So those are the two flowers in my yard. Pretty sad, huh. Well, I've added some color to my yard, with this pretty rainbow bow bouquet, that is available on Etsy!





You can see that bed of ivy in the background. The bouquet adds some color to my yard, don't you think? I'm okay to part with it though, since my kids brought me loads of pansies and marigolds from their school plant sale. I will no longer have a green yard once I get a few things planted.


And maybe I'll be surprised, and something that is currently green in my yard will flower. Happy May, everyone!

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Happy Easter!

Julia made these eggs today during our family egg-coloring. Of course I love them.


I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter. Since we're a bit of a distance away from our families now, we will have a leisurely morning, a family bike ride, and an easy New England-style boiled dinner.

The Easter Bunny usually plays some tricks in our house, so I'm looking forward to a fun morning. Many blessings to all of you!

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Dreaming of the Beach

It's only the first day of Spring, but I have summer on my mind! We live so close to the beautiful beaches of southern CT now- we'll be able to go often, instead of planning an entire day trip to see the ocean. We visited a beach last weekend in our hoodies, puffer vests and mittens- it was cold! But still beautiful, and we found some gems to bring home. The kids have plans to collect sea glass all summer and store it in a clear jar to show off their loot.

So with the beach on my mind, here is a headband that makes me think of warm sand, hot sun, and crashing waves.


Saturday, March 19, 2011

Charming!

I am in love with these gorgeous charm/fringe bracelets by Kim Smith. I'm deciding which one I'll buy myself. Right now the one pictured is my favorite, but it seems to change every time I visit her store. She has an eye for beautiful color combinations!


Sunday, March 13, 2011

Springing Forward

I can see signs of Spring! Yesterday we saw a yard full of purple crocuses on our way out to explore the coastline east of New Haven. That's a sure sign!

Once the kids are awake and have recovered from their hour loss of sleep (not really, they'll just sleep in) we're heading over to the rail trail so that Mark and I can get a run in together and the kids can haul on their scooters.

Our house is a stone's throw from an entrance to the Farmington Canal Rail Trail. We are going to get lots of use out of this gem this summer!


Saturday, February 5, 2011

Snow Brain!

I've completely lost count of how many snow days we've had already. The kids haven't had a full week of school this winter. More snow is coming today, with two more storms expected next week. The snow banks are enormous, so the kids are having a blast getting outside and climbing, digging tunnels, and sliding down them. We have an ice cover on top of the snow now, so they love the fact that they can walk on top of the snow.

I took a walk through the icy neighborhood yesterday, and couldn't help but dream about spring coming. I can't wait to see yards full of flowers!












Sunday, January 23, 2011

Frigid!

We woke up to temps below zero this morning, so it's an inside day for everyone. If frostbite can set it after five minutes in temps like this, I don't want my kiddos exposed too long. Luckily the sun is bright, and it's pouring through the windows. We're all hanging in today doing our own thing. I love days like this when there is no shopping to do, no places to be, no visitors to clean for. We must look like the silliest family hanging around all day in our bathrobes, the five of us. I did get out of mine long enough to hit the elliptical machine, but as soon as I was out of the shower I was back into my comfies!

I made this multi-toned flower today. I love the colors in it, especially for Valentine's Day.


Enjoy your Sundays, everyone. It will be interesting to see if the kids have a 5-day school week. We haven't had one yet this year with all of the snow and ice. There's something about another big storm coming in on Tuesday/Wednesday.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Spacing Out

I'm enjoying my new, sunny workspace in our house. My work area is smaller than what I had before- a compromise I made so that my middle child Sara could have her own room. She and her sister Julia shared everything before- a room, a grade in school, clothes, toys...it was about time for her to have her space and she deserves it. The house we are in now lets us spread out a little.

Our master bedroom is big enough to fit our huge elliptical machine, and besides our bed, furniture and television, we still have plenty of space for my work area. So even though I lost out in the deal spacewise, I love my creative space. It is on the first floor, and I have two windows that give me plenty of sunshine. (My craft room was in a finished basement before...I felt so isolated!) I keep most of my supplies downstairs in my basement, which leaves a minimal mess where I'm working- I'm forced to keep it cleaned up and tidy, and I'm feeling more organized this way. One of my windows looks out into our back yard, so today while I was working I was able to watch the kids sledding outside.

I realized during the move that I have *way* too many supplies. I've been making bows and clips for eight years now, so I have accumulated thousands upon thousands of yards of ribbon, and thousands and thousands (that's sick to say, but true) of gorgeous appliques, silk flowers, buttons, beautiful beads, and so much more. So I've decided for now to continue to create ready-to-ship items on Etsy at a very reasonable price. My website is open also, so if you need something custom-made, you can look there. But for now, my love is finding new things to create with the boxes full of beautiful supplies I have.

Let's not talk about the bins and bins of fabric I have...

Saturday, January 15, 2011

A wee bit cold...

First a blizzard, then a nor'easter, and this morning I woke up to a temperature reading of -10 degrees! Brrrrrrrrr! We got 2 FEET of snow in the nor'easter on Wednesday. I don't think we'll have any melting in these temperatures.

What is this I hear that Florida is the only state without snow on the ground? Here are some snowflake clips for winter, whether you're dreaming of snow or buried in it, like we are here in CT!

Friday, January 14, 2011

Love and Hearts...real ones.

A customer recently purchased 20 of these sweet infant flower headbands to donate to two organizations that send baskets to babies that are in the hospital for open heart surgery to repair congenital heart defects. Some will go to Annabelle Baskets, and some to Love from Lindsay Baskets.


I was so taken by these two organizations that I plan to make a donation of my own of some spring-colored headbands for Easter. Thank you to my customer "D" for contacting me to make these for some special little girls. God Bless.