Some of my Items Found Locally in Bemidji, MN

@ the Yellow Umbrella Gift Shop & Gallery
422 4th St. SE Suite A
Bemidji, MN 56683

They are located down towards Nymore and are just behind the Ameripride.
Store Hours- Tuesday-Saturday 10am-6pm

Here is a link to their website also- Yellow Umbrella

Darn you blogspot..

This darn blogspot has been driving me crazy for the past few months. I've tried posting a few different times when i had some awesome ideas to post.. but after a couple hours of frustration trying to get pictures to go with the correct words I gave up. so.. I'm not sure what I am going to do. Maybe just more frequent shorter posts instead of the long posts I was trying to do. We'll see how this goes.

Juanitas Handmade now found locally!

Well, locally if you live in the Bemidji, MN area that is. I am so excited to be one of the newest artists to be selling my things at The Yellow Umbrella in Bemidji, MN. The shop is so cute and filled with lots of handmade and vintage goodness. I dropped off a lot of things when I was just home for a visit to see family and I thought I'd post what you can find there and I have a lot of new things made up that I am working to get in the mail soon, hopefully in about 2 weeks. So I know I've sold a few things already but this is the list of things I dropped off. I am not sure what has sold specifically, so you'll just have to stop in and check things out. I guarantee you won't be disappointed and if you're like me you will be overwhelmed by the shops handmade beauty! Its about time a shop like this has opened up in the area. =)
So I will post in a separate post some of what I dropped off at the shop in Bemidji, MN.

Some Recent Projects

Just some recent projects that I've been working on. We're going home to MN for a visit in a few weeks and I want to take a lot of things home with me. I am looking at selling locally at a cute shop back home so I want to have a lot of things made up. So that is what I have been busy with lately. Lately any spare time that I have is spent sewing or sleeping. So here are a few things I've been working on...

Little Rock, arKansas

the girls in our new home, for now atleast, little rock, arkansas, with our pug lexi and our new little kitty we got at the shelter here, mr. wilson. =)

Summary of the past 6 months,...left germany (sad, very sad), went home to minnesota for a visit, garrick and brooklyn drove to little rock, cameron and i flew, found a nice place to stay, girls had their birthdays the end of november and i now have a 5!! and 2 year old, got on the waiting list for preschool *yikes, had company for 2 weeks over the christmas holidays- lots of garricks family and my parents for new years, school started last week... i think that about sums it up....I wasn't intending to be gone from blogging so long but these past few months have been crazy and gone by way too fast. I thought that this blog would rob me of time I hardly seem to have these days but I have been stumbling on some great blogs this last week and I just keep thinking that I should keep at it. Sewing is back in nearly full swing. It was going well and then my little Brooklyn started pre-school last week so we've spent the last week trying to adjust to the new and oh sooooo early wake up time.. I am not a morning person. It has been nice though having only one little one at home during the week (for now atleast * #3 will be here this spring). The first day brooklyn was at school I didnt even know what to do with myself so Cameron and I read books and I am pretty sure we sat on the floor being goofy and giggling for a good hour or so. It was so nice to get the one on one time with her, that brooklyn had for her first three years. So now it is Cameron's turn and she is loving every minute of it. I do feel guilty for 'sending' brooklyn away for such a long day and 5 days a week. But she really loves it and was getting soo bored at home. I wish I had the energy to homeschool and to trust myself with their schooling.So sewing is coming along and I have finally gotten back into cooking like I used to. I love trying new recipes and making things, like bread, that I need around the house. I have been cooking up a storm and try to make something big on the days that garrick will be home then on the days he works (24 hr shift) the girls and i eat the left overs or make something simple and quick. I made up this the other day and garrick Loved it. He robbed my leftovers and took them to work the next day. The guys he works with didnt believe that I made it and swore they were leftovers from a resturant. I had a big smile when garrick told me that. I love making his tummy happy even though he blames me anytime he will gain a pound or eat too much. I love flavor and color and soo many things about cooking. I love doing it and letting the girls help with things in the kitchen. I hope they grow up to love being in the kitchen as much as I do. I got a pressure canner for christmas this year from my parents and am so excited to use it. I am a little nervous about learning but can't wait to give it a try. I grew up with my mom canning every summer and I completely forgot that I had mentioned to her that I wanted my own so I could start canning. She found one at an auction that she never intended to go to and I am so happy that she did. I can't stop dreaming of all the wonderful things I can preserve, filling my cupboards with those beautiful jars of my hard work, dreaming of all the wonderful things I want to plant in my garden this summer. Its all I have been thinking about lately. I ordered the Ball's book on home preserving and have been stalking the mailman for a week waiting for it to arrive. I tried to find some books at the library here but they don't seem to have anything so I am going to try the extension service and see if they have anything to help out my gardening also. I have never gardened in the south before and am excited about being able to get things in the ground so much earlier then up north. I want to start seeds this year too and need to get those ordered soon. There is so much I want to write but I am such a scatterbrain and its getting late, making it extra difficult to collect my thoughts. I will just have to leave you with a few pictures of us from the last 6 months..


soo glad to be back.

halloween 2009,

costumes thrown together in about 5 minutes and dug out of a mountain of moving boxes...

but they had sooooo much fun. i'm glad we did it.

=)

little cami paige turned two the 23rd.

my big girl brooklyn turned 5 the 26th.

happy christmas from arkansas.

(below) our 'step-brothers' christmas pose.. lol

makes me laugh every time i am looking at this one

christmas cookies for santa,

christmas eve 2009

August Already!

There is a lot going on for us lately with the movers coming in less than a week and getting everything ready to move half way around the world. I am still not really that stressed which is great. For the last 2 weeks I have been trying to do a couple things a day to get ready for the move. Even if it is just something small, its all been adding up and has helped out a lot. The movers already took a small shipment of stuff that will hopefully be waiting for us in Little Rock that will help us get by until the big shipment arrives. We shipped the kid's beds and some kitchen things, linens, and a few other things I don't even remember. But we shipped the crib with the first small lot and now cameron has been sleeping in her pack n play that I found a yard sale for only $10! =) But within the first 24hrs of having to sleep in it she has taught herself how to climb out. So now everynight and at nap time I have to keep putting her back in bed a hundred times until she finally gives in and is too tired to climb out again. I thought it would stop after the first week or so but she keeps doing it. I get scared at night that she will wake up and wander around when we're all sleeping but she sleeps pretty hard and hasn't done it yet. Thank goodness!
I was looking for some fitted sheets for the pack n play and found that they are really expensive, even on etsy. So I found an online tutorial with instructions on how to make my own. I was so happy to find it and made my first sheet within an hour. The second one is going to be so quick now that I know what I'm doing. It is really easy and I am going to make a few larger ones for the crib after we move. I just wanted to share the tutorial though so everyone can give it a try. So you can find it here. It is a good way to get some fabric used up too. I've been trying to thin out my fabric stash too so the movers don't have to deal with so much of it. It has been so hard not to order any fabric either. I just keep reminding myself that when I get to the states I can stock up and actually be able to go to the store and pick things out without having to order on the internet and pay s/h. I did order some a couple weeks ago though. I am just in love with this Heather Ross line, Mendocino. The oranges and teals are what caught my eye first and I found this adorable top that really loved. And then this bedding set. So I think that when I am pregnant next time that I am going to make a crib bedding set like this out of this print. I thought it would work well for a girl or a boy. That is what I am thinking now, and I am always changing my mind so we'll see if I actually go through with it. But I am so in love with this fabric and can't wait to move so I can order more of it. I wish I knew how to make a collage of pictures that I love so I could post them all in one thing, but I know that it will take way too much time and I have things to do. soo.....

Oh and my little sister gets married today! I wish we were able to go but it was pretty much the worst month out of the year to take off to the states and pretty much not even possible. So we're here thinking of her and mike right now and of all the wonderful family that I haven't seen in so many years that I am missing out on seeing. But it feels good to know that we'll be home in just a few weeks. We'll have to make the rounds and visit everyone ourselves then. I can't wait. With the movers coming it just makes everything feel a little more real and gives us that 'this is REALLY happening, eekk' kind of feeling!! And it feels great! =) Hopefully it won't be so long between blogs again, but who knows with everything going on here. We are going to be staying in a hotel for about 2 weeks between getting out of our apartment and flying out so I will have lots of time on my hands.

Busy Busy Bee...

^^ This top/dress is so adorable with a pair of jeans. ^^ and this top is a combination of a thrift store top (the pink part) that still had the tags on and then the striped top I made and attached the two.

Love this REVERSible dress^^^^^^^^^ I made it from a dress I had laying around that didn't fit right but I never returned because I liked the fabric. So I cut it up and made it reversible with the solid black. I am so happy with the result and can't believe how far my clothes making has come in just a week or so.

^^ my little stash of dresses/tops ^^ love this top.. it turned out way different from what was in my head but I just went with the idea and it turned out so beautifully. And all the fabric came from my scrap bin. I can't believe I almost got rid of the yellow fabric. I'm so glad I didn't. I am such a pack rat some times but I guess it pays off sometimes.

This yellow top I have lined with a yellow solid so there aren't any raw edges or seams showing. Cameron loves the little birds and the silky feel.

^^^This teal garden party dress and this ^^ butterfly one are the same dress only reversible!

I have been sewing a lot lately and have put in two nights this week that I didnt go to bed until 3:30! Just yesterday I think I set a record by getting 2 dresses/tops, 2 diaper bags, and a messenger bag made up in ONE day! I've never done so much before. But I love to stay up late and get things done without distractions. I live off of this stuff and I see on the site they have other flavors so maybe I'll be able to find those in the states. We only have the Original here and it's a lot cheaper here at only 3$ something compared to the site at almost 5-6$. crazy. But it's organic so that is always wonderful! Anyway...

I've figured out how to make up these little dresses and I already posted about them before but I've made up a few more and am getting really quick at getting them made. I used one of cameron's dresses and then looked online for a few tips to make the reversible ones. I am going to make up a few more hopefully soon and start listing them on etsy. I love how they fit well but they grow with my girls. Cameron will be wearing them for a long time. And I love anything reversible because I love to have options. This winter I will just pair them with a long sleeved top and a pair of jeans or thick tights. Well it is nap time here so I need to hurry up and get sewing while everyone is sleeping.. I'll post some pictures of the adorable elephant diaper bags I made up later. Or you can go to my etsy; www.juanitashandmade.etsy.com and get a preview now.. have a great weekend. its beautiful in germany and my hubby doesn't have to go back to work until tuesday!! yay for days off finally! he deserves it.

Oh and new things in the shop

I forgot to put a link to the shop.. juanitashandmade.etsy.com

Check out the new things and hopefully I'll have some more things posted in the next day or two.

2:30 a.m.

Well I am back and sooo much has happened since I last wrote. And now it is 2:30 am so I guess I will catch you up on things.. lol I have no idea why I all of a sudden felt like writing now, but please over-look the typo's if there are any because I get really sloppy at typing late at night (and early in the morning).

So, my husband returned from Iraq, safe and sound, and I am so thankful he is home. Things are so different with him home but its a good different. The girls were so happy to see him. They followed him around non-stop for the first two weeks he was home and I just couldn't get enough of saying 'go see your daddy'. He was lucky enough to get 3 weeks of R&R before he had to return to work and we did absolutely nothing and it was Great! We do live in Europe and could have gone 100 different places but it all didn't matter. As long as we were together I didn't even care to go anywhere, just to sit around and watch movies with him was as good as it could have gotten for me. But he is back at work now and we've gotten into a good routine. I am just so thankful to have him home, its the best feeling!

Little Cameron decided she would start talking once daddy got home too. She had a few words before that but her vocabulary has multiplied ever since he got home. I guess she didn't want him to miss anything.

I have been busy sewing and have gotten a lot done in the past couple of weeks. I had a rummage/craft sale last weekend and did alright. People keep emailing me and telling me they couldn't get to the sale and if they could stop over. So I've been making money all week from different people stopping over. It's like the longest yard sale I've ever had.. lol But I have a lot to get rid of before we move in a month. And I sold a few bags and posted the ones I still have on my etsy page. I've been doing well and have sold a few since I posted the other day too, so things are going really well. I've decided to try and make some clothes for the girls lately too. I've read a lot of different craft and sewing blogs and there are a lot of challenges out there, that challenge you to repurpose the clothes you have in your closet or repurpose things you got at a thrift store. So I've sort of started to try that out. I've never really done any clothing before but little girl dresses are the easiest thing and a great way to start. I've made Cami a couple pillow case-type dresses and they look so cute by themselves or with a pair of jeans. The tops will even fit Brooklyn as a tank top, so I was so happy with myself on how they turned out. I made one more that I will have to post later because I haven't gotten pictures of it yet. It's my favorite of the three too.

The movers will be here tomorrow to take the first shipment of things and it feels good to get the entire process started. It will just be a small shipment of essentials that we will need once we get to Little Rock AFB. And it will be there waiting for us so we have some kitchen things and other necessities.

I thought there was more I wanted to post but it's now 3 am and I am about to crash. So I'll have to write later. I just had to get something posted since it has been so long. Hopefully now I'll keep things posted a little more frequent and get updates on the move and all.

Home

I have been m.i.a. for the past week and probably will be for a little bit longer. My husband just returned from his deployment in Iraq the other day and we are so happy to have him home again!
I will be back soon. =)