2010

Today is the last day in a very difficult personal year. I cannot remember ever feeling this way on New Year's Eve: just wanting the day and year to be over and behind us.
Do not get me wrong, so many blessings came our way, the biggest of which is our dear son. However, this was our first full year without my mom. Doing each thing without her was so hard, to say the least. Pregnancy was hard, painful, and HOT. There was the surgery that my 2 year old endured (preceded by a tough stay in the hospital). There was my husbands lay off from work (which was a blessing in disguise in many ways). And these three months of colic have been enough for me. Thank God it's pretty much done.
But, I did graduate from college! And our son was born at home safely and peacefully. And my little home business has flourished in it's own little mini way.
2010, goodbye. There is a strange sense of peace that comes from surviving this year without Mom. And I am so happy to say that I feel her with me and around me more now than this time last year.
2011, bring it on!

Christmas

Christmas was very special and very fun this year. The girls had a blast playing with their cousins, second cousins, aunts, uncles, pop pop, great grandma, and several great aunts and uncles. Santa was good to them! The mermaidens were finished up just in time, and the girls love them.

Wool Diaper Cover in Pink and Black

I am almost tempted to put my son in these shorties. I love girly clothes that are a little edgy, especially because my two girls will only wear princess dresses or fancy dresses everyday. These shorties were just listed in my shop:

Mermaiden

I am finally making a Christmas gift for my girls. We are not buying them anything, but I thought it would be nice to give them something handmade. I am making three of these little mermaidens (free pattern), two for my girls and one for my sweet little niece.

Cuddle Bugs

Here is a terrible quality photo of my boys snuzzling together.

Ryder is a bit snotty today and has been sleeping a heap. Poor boy!

Finally, Rebourne in a retail shop!

I just got home from dropping off some Rebourne woolies, cloth diapers and wet bags at The Nesting House. Located at 606 Carpenter Lane, in the Mount Airy section of Philadelphia, The Nesting House is an awesome little consignment/retail space whose motto is, "Responsible Retail for the Next Generation." Look how cute it is:

If you are local and you want to feel, examine, and compare cloth diapers and covers, The Nesting House is an amazing resource. Jen, one of the founders, runs cloth diaper workshops for parents or expecting parents.
Go check out The Nesting House and 'like' them on Facebook!

Chunk a Love and labels

He's such a chubby little thing! Here he is at 9 weeks old.

 Today I'm working on some twill tape labels to sew into cloth diapers. My woven labels are too large to put on the back. I have to have the Very Baby labels on the front, so I needed a small label for the back. We'll see how these work. I am using the Iron On Print 'n Press transfer sheets from June Tailor, Inc. I got them for 40% off with my coupon from Joann's, they are quite expensive!

Colic

Can you believe that this little angel is a screamer? Well, the last couple days have been fine, but it's been a rough month.
I don't know if any of your kids had colic, or were incredibly needy or fussy, but it is really rough. There are tons of things to read on the internet or in books about causes and ways to treat it. I found that certain things worked at certain times, and sometimes nothing helped. Here are some things I used when a screaming bout would start: belly massage, white noise, metronome at 60 bpm, homeopathic colic medicine, bach rescue remedy, different holding positions and gentle swaying, walking him around, changing his diaper, and putting him in his swing for a minute so I could compose myself when I started to feel resentful/angry/impatient/frustrated. This break helped me feel creative again to help troubleshoot and think of new things to try to help him. One thing that helped me a lot is Dr. Sears' philosophy that the colicky baby is a hurting baby. When I can approach it knowing that baby is in pain, it's sometimes easier to keep my cool.
Thankfully the last couple days have been great, and it is so nice to see him happy and bubbly and content.
Today while he and Fern napped, I made some slippers. They were supposed to be for Fern, but they're too big for her. She doesn't like them anyways, so hopefully they will fit Sage. Another reason I don't often make things for my kids: I spend hours designing and sewing during precious alone time, and then they don't even like the item or use it!! I love Wooly Baby slippers, but they are out of my price range unfortunately.

 

Do or did your baby have colic? How did you get through that time? Do you feel good about how you handled it? How did your partner help you and baby? Did your baby with colic go on to be a fussy toddler or child?

Doll Sling

My midwife recently asked me if I would be interested in sewing a sling for her 16 month old daughter to carry her dolls. She gave me a few specifications and I went from there. Although custom work can be exhausting and cost much more than I charge (usually in hours designing and redesigning and fixing mistakes), I do love them. And I have learned to make more than one at a time so I can maximize my productivity and sell the extra.

Here is my daughter Fern trying the sling on for size and photographs. The second sling is for sale here.

The Twinery

I just fell in love with The Twinery. They are a local (Philadelphia) shop that sells 100% cotton, domestically made, eco-friendly baker's twine. Their site and Etsy shop have a great vibe, color scheme, and helpful feel. There are tons of great ideas for ways to use their twine, and some super cute holiday crafts. I would mostly wrap my woolies and wet bags with their twine to be shipped to customers, and I think some Mandarin would go well with my company's color scheme:

I think this might be my Wednesday purchase!

Wet Bags

What is a wet bag? A wet bag is a cute little zipper or drawstring bag that is waterproof. I use mine to put dirty diapers in while I am out of the house, until I get home and (hopefully) remember to put the diapers and bag into the diaper pail.
I make mine with cute outer materials, either from my stash or from dead stock material. The inner waterproof layer is sewn separately from the outer layer, making for a very waterproof system. I have been sewing wet bags for three years now, and feel confident about my product. I have fixed issues with zippers and seams and material. I have a handful of wet bags in my shop now and a few more to list. Check them out! There are two sizes, small and large. Small is best suited for 1-2 diapers or a bunch of cloth wipes. The large ones feature a strap with a snap to attach the bag to your stroller or wrist or whatever.

29 Days of Christmas Giveaway TODAY!!!

Okay, today is your day to win some rebourne shorties!!!
Click here and enter to win, and that includes free shipping to Canada and the US!

A Merry Fluffy Christmas-going on now!

Go check out Knocked Up and Nursing, where Rebourne is part of the giveaway package today!! It's easy and free to enter and the other woolies in the giveaway look awesome!!

Please check out my shop for some wet bags. I'll be listing them as time allows.

Why so few blog posts or updates??

Why haven't I been very active on blogger, facebook, or Etsy?? Well, my little 7 week old has been screaming. A lot. Here he is looking super chipper though:

I don't know if it's colic, or just normal fussiness, or what. Here is what I do know: it is hard trying to keep up with a toddler and a preschooler, a house, and my own personal hygiene, when I can pretty much never put the baby down. He doesn't like carriers (moby wrap, baby bjorn, OR ergo baby with the insert). I am trying to remember my mom's motto at this tough time, "This too shall pass." I have a print with the saying framed in my living room, but it is tough when it seems like he has been screaming for hours.

Anyways, enough doom and gloom. On the first of December I am happy to report that I have been featured in an interview over at Kristen's blog, Ramblings. She was sweet enough to contact me through Etsy and has since offered to interview me. Go check it out and give her some love. Thanks so much, Kristen!!

Black Friday

Do you go out shopping on Black Friday? I avoid driving and shopping of all kinds on Black Friday. And with kids, I avoid shopping all the time, even food shopping. It stresses me out waaaaaaaay too much! I do a lot of shopping online, and I like Amazon, drugstore.com, and of course Etsy. Of course I love the thrift store and the fabric store too!

At the thrift store the other day, I found this great grey sweater with flowers on it. I cut it up and stitched it into some woolies, and I love how this pair turned out:

They are still available in my shop by clicking here, along with tons of other woolies! And I've added a shop by size feature into my sections to make it easier to find what you're looking for.

Stocking more woolies

Check my Shop for more stocking this week. I have 11 pairs to list including these fringed ones.

A Merry Fluffy Christmas

Please check out Sarah's blog, Knocked Up and Nursing, where Rebourne is one of the featured sponsors of A Merry Fluffy Christmas.
 
As quoted from A Nation of Moms, A Merry Fluffy Christmas is:

"What: A 5-day Cloth Diapering Blog Hop Giveaway event (cloth diapers, trainers, accessories)

When: December 1st -5th

Who: More than a dozen blogs are each hosting 5 prize packages, one per day for each of the 5 days

Why: Because we love our cloth diapering mamas!"

If you are a mom, do/did you cloth diaper? What is your number one reason for choosing to cloth diaper or not cloth diaper?

Meal Planning

One of the many things that stresses me out is dinnertime. Growing up, my mom almost always had us four kids and my dad sitting down for family dinner. We all griped, and she made the same thing all the time, but it was an important time for so many reasons.
Now I am married with kids, and I want that same tradition. Unfortunately, my husband works til 7 and has a 45+/- minute commute home. Our 3 kids are ages 4 and under, so add that all together and you get no family dinner, a crazy mama trying to make dinner, and then an even crazier mama trying to keep the peace while feeding all the cranky kids, with another hour or two til dad gets home. NOT FUN. Oh, add in that this is what my kitchen looks like (note the size and lack of dishwasher): 

Towards the end of my pregnancy, I got super stressed about this, and at one of my appointments with my midwife (therapist), she suggested Bust-a-meal.com. I was very hesitant to pay money for something that I should be able to do on my own (come up with meals, make a shopping list, and keep recipes organized), but let me tell you, it's been SO helpful. I recommend checking it out, you can get a week free if you remember to cancel your subscription before it starts charging you. It's been a lifesaver. And if you are one of those lucky iPhone owners, there's even an app for the site. My kids have even liked most of the recipes, which is saying A LOT (thank you 4 year old who won't even eat plain pasta if she's in the mood to battle).
 (I wish I was being compensated for this plug, but I'm not)
What tricks do you use to make meal planning, shopping, cooking, etc. easier and more enjoyable, whether you have kids or not?

Rainbow Striped Shorties

Rainy Tuesday morning, and the baby is actually NOT screaming. 2 year old Fern goes to a friend's daycare on Tuesdays, and Sage is at school for the morning. Ah, quiet, it is divine!!! Yesterday felt like a nonstop scream fest, I hope today goes better.
In the shop are these two pairs of shorties made from this extra cute and extra thick lambswool. I think they would look adorable on two little siblings, maybe for a photo shoot or something like that. The first pair is a size large, and the second pair is a size medium:

29 Days of Christmas

Rebourne Clothing will be participating in the 29 Days of Christmas Giveaway event! The winner of the Rebourne day will win a free pair of woolies of your choosing with free shipping to the US and Canada. Check out the site to see the other vendors that will be participating and to add the blog to your feed to get updates on the giveaways as they are posted! The event begins on Black Friday and includes the following vendors: Nifty Nappy, Sloomb/Sustainable Babyish, Mommy’s Touch, Happy Heinys, Itzy Ritzy, Leslie’s Boutique, Thirsties, Bummas, Rockin’ Green, Zoe Organics, Weleda, Ecofrugal Baby, EcoMom.com, Pure Clean B detergent, Rebourne (Etsy), Babyxpressions (Etsy), Annie’s Organics, The Little Seedling boutique, Crunchy Angel, Diaper Parties, and Episencial.

restock-no caps as i type while nursing the babe

even with the sometimes frustrating lack of personal time of having a newborn, i have found myself very productive with the tiny slices i get. tray always makes sure i have time to myself, and we have been blessed beyond belief with help. in my mind and heart, having a baby and not having my mom alive seemed like it was going to be horrible. and while i still miss her so much each day, there has been a big round up of support from friends, family and even strangers (well, friends of friends). tray has taken one or both of the girls with him to work, friends have watched them, my dad has taken them overnight, my brother watched them overnight, meals have been lovingly cooked, and gifts of money and sweet cards have arrived. thank you, everyone. while my mom's shoes could never be filled, i do feel her helping me and i feel god providing for us.
that being said, here are a few of the new things going into the shop as today the girls were with emily. check the shop for listings as i get to them.

sewing

This is what sewing looks like lately: baby strapped to me and increments of 5-15 minutes. I'll take whatever I can get.

Time Change

This time change is making it possible for me to list a new item and sit down to write a blog post. Tray is holding the baby in the bjorn, so my hands and body are free of baby right now! It's a miracle! That boy is attached to me 24/7 usually!
So here is the blanket I finished the other day and just listed to my shop. The wool is a bolt end and the cotton is from the thrift store. The material I used to make the bias tape is from my mom's stash that I inherited.

Etsy listing here

My mom taught me how to sew when I was about 5, and when I was an adult she taught me how to hand quilt. She made some incredibly beautiful quilts in her days, and I thought a lot about her as I was crafting this blanket. (The "quilting" on this blanket was done by machine to keep the cost down-hand quilting takes forever)

Woolies Restocked

I have restocked woolies in the shop, miraculously having some time to cut and sew and photograph and list this week. I am not counting on that continuing, but I can still dream, right?!
These are my favorite ones just listed because of the colors as well as the super thick merino. The cream was actually a Smart Wool sweater that was my mom's. It got felted to the point where it wasn't wearable anymore, even by my very petite sister-in-law. It will make a great cover for longer periods of time and it still has maintained the qualities of merino that I love: a soft touch and no scratchy sensation. The orange is just great for this time of year.



Ryder is a little love. I fall more in love with each passing hour. I am just overjoyed to have a little boy! I can't wait until he can giggle and smile back at me while he's awake, but until then I am loving these little glimpses of what's to come:

Oaxacaborn Interview

Gina at oaxacaborn asked to do a quick interview with me about cloth diapering with wool. Check out her blog to read the interview and check out her beautiful creations also!
Thank you Gina!

Welcome Ryder Doyle

Our son, Ryder Doyle, was born in the very early morning on Monday. He was born in the water in our home, into the waiting arms of our midwife Christy and my husband Tray. Almost 2 pounds heavier than my girls, he weighed 8 pounds even. I definitely didn't think I was going to be able to birth him, and could not feel him moving into my birth canal, even after what felt like a lot of pushing. It was very discouraging. Then, he was moving down during contractions, and retreating back between them, and I just felt like he was never going to come out. I remember repeating, "I don't think I can do it," and "I want this baby OUT."
When his head finally crowned, I felt the most overwhelming ecstasy, relief and joy at knowing he WAS coming out, and it was going to be very soon. My midwife explains the expression on my face at that moment in her blog here.
We are all adjusting to our new life. Tray has been all star dad/house cleaner/short order cook/ water bearer/ herb sitz bath preparer/school taxi-er/ kid tender/ laundry doer/ errand runner. All of this while still keeping up with his business emails and ordering. Sage is head-over-heels for brother, while Fern is having a tough time adjusting to ANOTHER person competing for energy and attention. Already family and friends have shown enormous support and love with food, visits, toys for the girls, calls, emails, and by taking the girls overnight tonight and when I was in labor. Thank you all for your support!!

Combination Deal

I am still pregnant, at 40 1/2 weeks, and trying to keep myself busy. This is the longest I've ever been pregnant, and it's exhausting. I am excited to meet this little boy, but I know the exhaustion coming our way will be more intense than this late-pregnancy tiredness.

I just added a combo deal to my Etsy shop. Save a couple bucks and pick the diaper and cover of your choice. I have sold one combo already, and hope to add a couple more combo sets in the future. I know I like to save when ordering online.
Check out the listing HERE.

Big Stocking of the Store

Pink and grey (merino and cashmere heaven)

I finished a bunch of new items the other day, so check out my shop for a view of them! I am putting them all up today as I don't know when this baby will arrive, and I don't want to slowly add them day by day.

Giveaway

Amanda is a mama who runs a blog that features reviews of baby items and giveaways. She is featuring my cloth diapers now and you should visit her blog to enter to win a free cloth diaper from my Rebourne Shop!

Thanks so much for featuring me, Amanda!!

Diaper bag and sleep sack

I have loved Novita's blog for a long time, and finally made a bag from her free reversible bag tutorial. I have been resisting the notion of carrying a diaper bag, kind of bitter about having to carry clothes, diapers and wipes with me at all times again. But, after making this bag, I feel like it's large enough to carry what I need, and pretty cute too.
I made a couple of adjustments to it: I made the pink side with a zipper pocket, I put a key fob (why are they called that?) for my keys, and I put a three section open pocket area on the denim side. It was pretty easy to construct, even with all my added stuff. I will say that turning the bag right side out was more difficult because of the zipper, so next time I'll leave more room for turning it out.
Fabric is Ikea print and a denim from my stash.

My friend Constance commissioned me to make a sleep sack for her son. I made one, but it was a bit too short, so I made a second one. I learned a lot about drafting and making creations, as always. She is choosing between the two for which one she prefers. Here is a photo of the second one, which I made the separating zipper start at the top and go to the bottom. Again, another Ikea print with a cotton flannel from the dead stock factory:

Stamps and Washcloths

I made some stamps today for packaging and labeling. I have felt like I am missing a little personalized touch when I send out packages to customers, and thought about buying a custom stamp. Then I remembered all of the thousands of dollars I spent on art school and printmaking classes, the tools I already had on hand, and the carving blocks already in my possession. While I truly believe in supporting those around you who are making things you COULD make, this just seemed like an inappropriate time. So I designed in Photoshop, transferred the design to the block, and started cutting. It was kind of therapeutic, and kind of painful, but the results are GREAT. I made a larger one and a thin, one line one. I can use a brayer and apply fabric paint if I want, or just use an ink pad for paper.

I also finished some organic cotton terry washcloths for my friend Lisa of Volta Organics. She had some twill tape made with her logo on it which I used to make a little loop to hang the washcloth. They are beautiful, and this cotton is SO SOFT.

On Thursday, I have my first appointment to get acupuncture. I am beyond excited.

BurdaStyle Pattern

I just finished a maternity top for myself based off the BurdaStyle pattern Desira. Here's a photo I took of me in it today:

New Wool Items

I made another mini stash of wool items over the weekend as my husband was home Sunday and Monday. I have three of them up for sale in the shop, more to come each day this week:




Keep checking back to see these listed soon:

Finished sweater

I finished the sweater I started for boy. I found the pattern on Ravelery, and it is located here.
I used stash organic cotton yarn and stash buttons.



Hmm, what to make next?