Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, prompting a variety of emotions and feelings. Are you a die-hard romantic who can’t wait to shower your sweetie with presents? Or are you the constant cynic who is fed up with the over-commercialization of this so-called “holiday”?
Although Feb. 14th is a day like any other, we CAN use it to remind the loved ones in our lives that they’re just that…loved!
Crafty projects with the kids are great excuses to spend time together and maybe create a special tradition with one another.
One simple craft for kids of any age is to create a heart out of your children’s fingerprints. Just dip those little thumbs in red or pink paint and make them in the shape of a heart. It’s easy, but it’s a precious keepsake, a perfect present for moms, dads and grandparents!
Ready for love?
Seller Interview “AsherDesigns”
SMC: How long have you been doing (this craft)?
I made my first fabric flowers in January 2011 and the obsession has grown from there!
SMC: How did you get started doing this?
I have two daughters of my own and first wanted to create for them. I love dressing them up in pretty accessories, and I love being creative so this is a perfect match.
SMC: When did you move from doing this as a hobby to selling?
People started to notice the things my daughters were wearing and asking where I got them, etc., and inquires starting coming in. Then I was asked to participate in a Craft Fair fundraiser for our church’s building fund, and so I started creating lots of pieces over the summer and fall to prepare for that. And I found out that I really, really enjoyed doing it:) Having found an online shop that continues along those lines of giving back and charity, I was all too happy to jump on board.
SMC: Out of your creations, what are you most proud of?
The shirts take a very long time since they are all hand sewn (no fabric glue), and have to be able to withstand the washer and dryer, so I would say I love those creations the best. Particularly this one: http://www.stylemychild.com/product/79/
My second favourite is the flower headpiece: http://www.stylemychild.com/product/99/
Basically, the more time and effort I put into creating something one-of-a-kind and special, the more I love the finished product!
SMC: What’s next for you?
I will continue to create as I’m inspired and add things to my StyleMyChild shop. I am also a photographer (www.asherimages.com) and so this is an advantageous side project to that business. I’m looking forward to the year ahead!
Let’s get together!
It’s cool how most skilled crafters develop communities. I was first taught how to knit by my friend Sheryl at a weekly knitting night she had at her house. Anyone could come and learn. Of course, you know how it is when a bunch of women get together, sometimes we would just start chatting and realize we’d only done two rows the whole night!
I love that crafting communities pop up wherever there are like-minded lovers of the craft, and that there is a readiness to help and guide each other! It’s what makes crafty girls great!
- Andrea
Seller Interview “LuLuetGiGi”
SMC:How long have you been doing (this craft)?
I started sewing about a year and a half ago and although it was the thing I wanted to do the least, I fell in love with it.
SMC: How did you get started doing this?
My mother is an accomplished seamstress and there was not a time, when I don’t remember her sewing. But I never had any intrest, in fact I did everything in my power to shy away from sewing. About a year ago, after I had bought my daughter a whole wardrobe of rather expensive clothing (for school and in general) and she refused to wear anything I bought. She complained that everything was ichy! Of course all the tags were taken off and the clothes washed, I could not return them. I had some fabric lying around at home, compliments of my mother (who was always telling me I should try sewing) and I thought “oh what the heck, lets give this a try”. So, I went out to the local fabric store, bought a pattern, and some extra fabric, borrowed my mothers machine and taught myself how to sew on my first pattern. There was a sense of gratification that I had never experienced before…seeing a piece of material just lying there, and having it tell you what you should create with it…. It is like a puzzle that you create yourself, with love. I have never had that feeling in anything else I have ever done before. I have been sewing children’s clothing ever since.
SMC: When did you move from doing this as a hobby to selling?
I didn’t start doing it seriously until just a little while ago. I lost my job in September of 2011 and although I tried to get work, I simply couldn’t find anything. So I started sewing more and more. I focused on getting my creations out there to see how it would go. I am a mother and opera singer, so even when I am not singing (because I am mothering all the time – even when my daughter wished I wouldn’t) I am constantly creating. I got the idea to go viral, when people kept asking me to create things for their children, and grandchildren. It is a lot of hard work, especially the networking, but I really do love it. Since I have decided to make this my new full time job, I have realized that i love it and my occupational hazard, is being covered in thread….at all times!
SMC: Out of your creations, what are you most proud of?
Wow, that is a hard question. I think I am most proud of continuously perfecting my craft, pushing my boundries…I do not use a serger, I enclose all my seams, it is called a French seam (to avoid the ich factor). Learning that and finishing each garment with this kind of detail makes me exceedingly proud. Each time I complete a piece I fall in love with it and it becomes my most favorite creation, until I create something else. Presently, I am working on my Parisian Dress line, that features some very avant guarde collars and necklines…..I am particularly proud of those.
SMC: What’s next for you?
To make more designing mistakes….my best creations happen when something in the design goes wrong 
Also, I am trying to merge more into one of a kind (OOAK) creations, to have something very individual and unique for my clients. I don’t think I will ever be able to just make OOAK’s but that is a direction I am eager to head towards.
WE ARE LAUNCHED!!
We are very excited to say our StyleMyChild website is up and running!
Please take a look around, sign up, buy, sell and give! We would also love it if you kept in touch and let us know what you think! Please feel free to share the link with as many of your friends as possible.
There are over 100 products on the site at this moment and we would love to see more users add much much more product! Take a look around the site, take the time to read about who we are and what we are wanting to do in the future!
This has been a labour of love and we hope you love it too!
Happy New Year & happy shopping!
Thanks,
The StyleMyChild Team
Kids Get It!
StyleMyChild – Kids Get It from StyleMyChild on Vimeo.
Favourite Christmas Decor
Freaky or fun?
I’m a huge fan of the ballet “The Nutcracker”. I guess it helps me remember the magic of that ballet and what it was like to see it as a kid. So awesome. Ironically, my son was afraid of them when he was 2 years old. I put some up with all the rest of our decorations that year and he just stared at them and wouldn’t go near them. I eventually had to take them down! Didn’t want to traumatize the poor kid! Thankfully he’s over it now and I can display them again!
Christmas time is here…
Treasured Gifts
One of the awesome things about handmade items are the effort and time that went into it, whatever it may be. Sometimes there is a story behind it. Sometimes it was made specifically for you, and that’s the story!
One of my most treasured gifts is actually a quilt my grandmother gave my daughter when she was born. We named my first daughter after my great-grandmother, Evelyn. I wear her engagement ring that was passed down to all the women in my family, and I love that history.
But when my Evelyn was born, my grandmother called me and said she had been cleaning out her closets and found a quilt that was made for my great-grandmother Evelyn around 1944 by one of her sisters (she was from 11 children!) and Evelyn’s name was stitched into it. Now that quilt covers my daughter’s bed and every time I make the bed, I marvel at the craft(wo)manship of it!
What’s your most treasured gift, either passed down or just for you?
- Andrea
Tips and Tricks
You’d think after 10 years of marriage and 5 years of motherhood that I’d have it figured out, but it turns out that’s not the case! Who knew life could be so busy?! (Btw, if anyone DOES have it figured out…let us know!) But one huge, helpful tip I learned recently and have started implementing into my routine is a daily cleaning schedule. After my third child arrived, I found I was overwhelmed more often than not and it was driving me crazy. The kicker is that I’m not an organized person. I wish I came by it naturally, but I just don’t. So a friend who is told me about this.
Each day of the week has a designated job. Monday-changing the sheets. Tuesday-oiling my wooden butcher block counter tops and cleaning the doors of the kitchen cupboards. Wednesday-dusting. Thursday-floors. Friday-bathroom. Saturday-organize ANYthing. And Sunday-rest! Now of course there are days when it’s too crazy and that one thing doesn’t get done, but now I’m not left wondering how long it’s been since I’ve dusted or when I last changed the sheets. So I encourage everyone to do the same. Everyone’s list will look different depending on what works best, but having something planned like this has really taken a load off for me! Hope it does for you too!
- Andrea
