ex libris handmade

366 Photos: Week Three

2012-01-22T11:02:00.003-05:00

Time just keeps flying by...
This week I (finally!) finished and mailed out all of my Kickstarter rewards, launched the Cloth Book of the Month program, started work on a series of printed alphabet books, gave my girl bangs (adorable), relived my 80's summer vacations with some spirographing, fell in love with my new Silhouette Cameo, and chilled with my favorite people.

Cloth Book of the Month, officially launched!!

2012-01-16T17:48:00.003-05:00

All of the details are finally in place and it's with enormous excitement that I announce the official commencement of the Cloth Book of the Month program!

January 2012 Book of the Month: BIRDS!

January's book is Birds, available as part of a subscription or on its own. Birds are one of my favorite things to make and for this first book I wanted to include a broad spectrum of types of birds. I will surely make lots more bird books with a more specific focus!

The subscriptions come in 3, 6, 9, and 12 month lengths and would make a wonderful gift for a baby shower or birth. Check out the options here.

I had a blast working on the details to make the subscriptions super-special, including these library card welcome letters!

Here's to many months of cloth books!!

366 Photos: Week Two

2012-01-15T11:38:00.004-05:00

It's the second week of the year and halfway through January and it looks like winter may have finally arrived, but still no snow. Boo.This week was filled with lots of sewing, a new haircut for the girl, painting rocks with friends, lots of hot beverages, kids crafting, and weekend shopping (tractor not included). Living the life!

366 Photos: Week One

2012-01-04T16:04:00.006-05:00

The days, weeks and months seem to go by so fast I can hardly remember what filled all of the moments that constitute a year. I'm hoping to capture one of those moments each day this year, 366 (a leap year!) little moments to make up a picture of 2012. Here we go, week one!

This week we found a live dandelion, reorganized and restocked for the work ahead, convalesced after a bout of pneumonia, cultivated a family-wide obsession with Tintin, resumed our homeschooling with some research into ocean animals, made and gifted some things for the cousins and visited with the extended family. A good start to the best year ever!

The Best Giveaway Day Ever!

2011-12-12T09:30:00.002-05:00

UPDATE: We have a winner: congratulations, Danny! Thanks to everyone for stopping by this week :)

I'm so excited for another Giveaway Day!!

2011 has been an incredible year for Ex Libris Handmade and this Giveaway Day is perfectly timed with the release of the first four of what will be many printed cloth book designs to come. What better way to celebrate than to give one of them away? ;)

One lucky winner will receive their choice of the following 100% organic cloth books:

1. Nature

2. Mustaches

3. Science

4. Woodland Creatures

To enter please leave a comment with a topic you'd like to see come to life in a cloth book.

♥ I'll gladly ship internationally so everyone is welcome to join in.
♥ Comments close this Friday, December 16 at 5:00pm PST.
♥ One winner will be chosen at random and announced on Saturday, December 17.
♥ Make sure to leave contact information.

Don't forget to check out the rest of the amazing giveaways at Sew, Mama, Sew this week!

Printed Books!

2011-12-02T23:21:00.007-05:00

**UPDATE: These 4 designs are now for sale!! I'm not sure when I'll have a chance to get them all listed in the shop but they're available and can be shipped in time for holiday gifts. 2012 subscriptions to the Cloth Book of the Month Club are also available! If you're interested get in touch (exlibrishandmade@gmail.com or convo me at the shop) and I'll hook you up:)

I'm so excited to announce the launch of my line of 100% organic printed cloth books! The smashing success of my Kickstarter campaign has allowed me to design and print 8 books and I am releasing 4 of those designs next week! Here's a sneak peek:

The remaining 4 designs will be part of my Book of the Month line that will launch in January. Each month I'll release a new book design that can be purchased individually or as part of a subscription (3, 6, 9, or 12 month lengths will be available). I'm bursting with ideas for these books and am always open to more suggestions!

The last day

2011-11-16T08:24:00.006-05:00

My Kickstarter campaign ends at 11pm today and I've officially tripled my initial goal (!!!). This means that not only will I be able to launch the printed cloth book of the month project but also create a full line of alphabet books with one book for each letter. I'm so excited and so, so grateful to everyone who has helped make this happen!

There's still time to get in on the action if you'd like a book (or more) of your own! Here's a list of the books that will be available for pledge rewards:

Mammals
Birds
Woodland Creatures
Science
Transportation
Musical Instruments
Mustaches
Nature

:I'm collecting ideas for books to make in the future, too. Suggestions welcome!!

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T21:47:00.002-04:00

♥ Alice & Harry

Boo!

2011-10-31T08:35:00.004-04:00

It's Halloween! I've miraculously finished both my kids' costumes (photos of Alice in Wonderland and Harry Potter tomorrow) and am feeling pretty optimistic about my ability to get things done.

That said, I just want to remind everyone that tomorrow, November 1, is the last day to place a custom book order before the new year (check out the options here). I'm not exactly sure when I'll resume custom orders in 2012 so if you have a holiday or winter book order in mind now's the time to act! Even if you're not quite ready to order I'm happy to reserve a place for you, just let me know and we can work something out. I am going to be strict about this deadline, though; I have a ton of stuff coming up and really need to be able to schedule it all. Exciting times!!

p.s. My Kickstarter campaign is going great! We're almost at the halfway mark and I've more than doubled my goal, but no need to stop there! I've raised enough to develop and print 12 book designs and would love to add a line of alphabet books to that--one book for each letter of the alphabet. If you'd like to get in on the action and receive one (or more!) of these awesome, 100% organic books I'd be ever so grateful!

The plan to manage it all

2011-10-21T08:23:00.005-04:00

Happy Friday! And for me it really is--I feel happier than I have in a long time.

Not that I've been miserable or anything but with the success of my Kickstarter I'm waking up to the fact of just how much and how hard I've been working, and at times it's felt like I've been spinning my wheels. I love the custom work I do and will be continuing with it regardless of the success of the printed books but there's really only so much of it I can do and it was limiting the growth of my business. Now, with the boost from Kickstarter, I'll be diversifying into the less labor-intensive printed books and I really believe that the balance between some custom work and some readymade work is the key to my continued success without killing myself to get it all done. It's really quite exciting!

Of course, the vast majority of my work thus far has been custom and with the addition of another line of books something will have to give. I will need to limit the number of custom projects I take on and right now I'm not really sure what that will look like. I'm thinking I'll be able to manage 3-4 custom book orders per month, though it may be more or less and it will likely vary with the month. As much as it pains me to do this I will also need to increase the cost a bit, looking objectively at the amount of time it takes me to complete a custom book (at least 6 hours, often more like 10). It won't be an insane increase, but it's something I need to do in order to make it sustainable.

That said, I have a couple announcements to make:

1. In order to fulfill my Kickstarter rewards (and not go completely insane this holiday season) I will stop accepting custom orders on November 1. Any orders placed before then (and those already placed) will be guaranteed for delivery before the end of November (or at least in time for the holiday, in case I get a mad rush ;).

2. I will resume accepting custom book orders in January at the new rates and will be limiting the number I accept.
So, if you've been thinking of ordering a custom book, either for the holidays or just because, now is the time!

Less than 3 days!!?!

2011-10-20T22:13:00.005-04:00

Today, less than 3 days from launching my Cloth Book of the Month Kickstarter campaign, I not only reached my goal but surpassed it! I am so completely amazed by the overwhelming support I've received, and much of it from folks who have never met me or seen my work before!! My deepest gratitude to everyone who took the time to watch my video, perhaps pledge something, and spread the word. From the bottom of my heart...

Of course, there are still 27 days left in my campaign! There's no reason for the momentum to stop here; with every additional $450 my project receives I can create another book design! I have so many more ideas for books and suggestions are always welcome!

It's an exciting day!

2011-10-18T08:34:00.005-04:00

I've had a couple of big announcements to make for a while and I'm so excited to share the first of these with you today:

I've started a Kickstarter campaign to create a line of organic printed cloth books!!!

If you've never heard of Kickstarter, it's a site that hosts creative projects in need of funding. It's a really ingenious idea wherein folks can pledge any amount of money from $1 up to projects they are interested in and receive rewards for their support. These rewards reflect market value so if the project is funding the production of an item it is almost like pre-ordering that item which will then be created in the near future. My project has a range of rewards and they all reflect retail value, e.g. the reward for a pledge of $35 is one cloth book, which will retail for $35. It took me a while to get comfortable with the idea of asking folks for money for my business but this rewards system makes it feel like a worthwhile venture.

When the project is funded (I'm being optimistic here--the funding on Kickstarter is all-or-nothing so if I don't reach my goal the project won't be funded. But I will reach my goal!) I will create six books in broad topics like birds, transportation, and instruments and scan the pages to be printed on 100% organic cotton sateen by Spoonflower. I'll then make the fabric into cloth books for babies everywhere to enjoy!

Subsequently I will release a new printed cloth book design each month as the cloth book of the month and folks will be able to purchase these individually or subscribe to receive them as they are released.

This has been a dream of mine for some time now and the logical next step in making Ex Libris Handmade truly sustainable. I'm especially excited about being able to offer an affordable 100% organic product. I hope you will check out the project, watch the video and, if you're able, consider pledging.

Here's the link: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1421207180/cloth-book-of-the-month

Spread the word!

♥ V.

Custom cloth book round up

2011-10-17T20:41:00.011-04:00

Here are my latest custom cloth books...

6-page book for Apollo ::

6-page monogram book for Amelia ::

6-page book for Miles, with wrapping ::

8-page 'e' book for Eve ::

8-page book for Caroline ::

12-page full name book for Jack ::

The rain in Maine

2011-10-14T08:08:00.005-04:00

Our little family took a much needed vacation last week to the coast of Maine.

We stayed in the most amazing house in one of the most beautiful places in the world.

It rained a bit but that didn't even matter.

We escaped the world and embraced it at the same time.

It was magic.

Already dreaming of a return visit!

Get off your ath let's do some math!

2011-09-06T16:45:00.004-04:00

Today was Tigerlily's official first day of homeschooling! We're starting with a half day per week (with T.L. at the Free School for the remainder of the week) but may add another afternoon because it's so much fun. Today we did some math, geography, art, writing, and played UNO.

We're having a ridiculous amount of fun playing school ;)

Tomorrow is the first day of "real" school, so it's a big week. I can't wait to learn and do lots more with my best girl this year, it's going to be amazing!

Businesskids

2011-09-03T21:47:00.004-04:00

As a last hoorah of summer Tigerlily got it in her head that she MUST have a bake/lemonade sale. Her determination won us over and plans were made. She decided on her menu (which we whittled waaay down), made a shopping list, figured out what everything cost (with some help; math is not her strong suit), made signs and decorations, and of course led the effort to make everything. She and a few friends had a blast selling all of the treats and in the end made $31.65! I was impressed. She's still not decided what exactly she'll do with the money though she has promised at least half to help with some local flood relief efforts.

I love that this whole experience was such a great homemade learning experience, the perfect way to segue from summer into the start of school next week! And we're extra excited this year because, in addition to attending the Albany Free School, Tigerlily will be doing some home learning with me one morning (and maybe one afternoon) each week! I have lots to share about this exciting new adventure in the next few weeks.

Books, books and more books! Part 5

2011-08-11T09:28:00.015-04:00

Rounding out this series of custom work is a batch of 10-page place books. I consider these my ode to New England and dreamed of our upcoming vacation on the coast of Maine while I made them.

:: Naples, ME

:: Salem, MA

:: Cape Cod, MA

:: Marblehead, MA

:: Beverly, MA

:: Lab Lodge

Books, books and more books! Part 4

2011-08-10T09:41:00.017-04:00

I'm almost done playing catch up with my custom work. Today I'll share some 10-to-12 page books:

:: Kelsey

:: Lyla Rose

:: Kiley

:: Indonesian animals (binatang)

:: Cove Henry

:: Betty Sage

Books, books and more books! Part 3

2011-08-06T08:46:00.006-04:00

Today I'll show you a bunch of the 8-page books I've been working on...

:: Hazel

:: Gulliver

:: Calliope

:: Addison

:: Jack

:: Juniper

Books, books and more books! Part 2

2011-08-05T18:43:00.008-04:00

More 6 page cloth books comin' atcha...

:: Hunter

:: Eliana

:: Violet

:: Shelby

:: Sophia

Books, books and more books! Part 1

2011-08-04T09:36:00.012-04:00

It's been far too long since I've shared the custom work I've been doing! Today I'll share some of the 6-page books I've made these past several months.

:: Linden

:: Liam

:: Sydney

:: Daisy

:: Edward

:: Beckett

:: Alison

Summertime

2011-08-03T17:05:00.007-04:00

...and the livin' ain't so easy. I seriously cannot believe how busy things have gotten since the end of school in June, I've been caught in a whirlwind of activity this whole time. So much for the lazy days of summer!

I thought I'd take a breather long enough to show you some of the work I've been doing; it's been a while! First up: banners.

Tomorrow I'll start sharing some custom books. There are a lot!

End of an Era

2011-07-25T17:10:00.004-04:00

We went to see the last Harry Potter movie this weekend and I definitely had a tear in my eye, so sad to know that it's really all over. I have loved reading this series, both silently to myself and out loud to Tigerlily, and seeing and enjoying each movie in turn. I will surely read them again and watch the movies repeatedly, but in a lot of ways it was like saying goodbye to an old, wonderful friend.

Skye wasn't pleased with some of the omissions in the movie (and at one point even Tigerlily was like, "where's Grawp?") but I thought it was really well done. But that may be because my very favorite character, Severus Snape, was finally redeemed.

I love Snape. I love how vulnerable, complex and flawed he is, and how deep his love for Lily. And if I wasn't sure that he was my favorite character before seeing this film, Alan Rickman sealed the deal for me with his amazing portrayal of Snape. I don't care what anyone says, I love Severus Snape. Always.

Making time!

2011-06-14T17:20:00.017-04:00

So the kids are home all day for three whole months, now what? Time to get creative!

Now that their days are solely my responsibility I want to get my kids really amped about making stuff! Of course that's always a part of their lives since both of their folks make stuff all day every day but during the school year our creative time together is much more limited. In the summer I like to really engage them creatively and I'm always looking for new ways to do that while continuing with our favorites from the past.

Here are some of our tried and true, super simple, easy-to-throw-together projects:

1. Fabric-in-hoop.

Lyric's first piece, age 3

Gift to me from Tigerlily, age 6

This can mean a lot of things. Usually it begins with me envisioning the kids embroidering and evolves from there into their own imaginations. I put lots of supplies at their disposal and they always come up with things that amaze me. Tigerlily loves to stitch bits of fabric, zippers, yarn, buttons, and whatever else she can find on to her base fabric and often also embellishes with markers. Lyric is much more of a purist and mostly sticks to embroidery floss and perle cottons, using meticulous stitches to create a myriad of designs.

2. Stuffies.We most often make these with felt because of ease of use (so easy to cut and sew through even without a sharp needle, and no unraveling!) but my kids have also made them with cotton fabrics, often after embroidering them. When they were little I cut the shapes for them and they sewed them together and filled them themselves. Tigerlily (8) now mostly designs and cuts her own shapes and Lyric (4) is doing it more and more too.

3. Reclaimed paper books!

Who doesn't love cool little blank books? This has been a mostly mom-made project for us (cutting the cardboard and paper, sewing it all together on the machine) but the kids are involved in collecting bits of paper and hoarding every cereal and cracker box we go through for later life as books, as well as decorating the covers if they're to be given as gifts. Tigerlily has been running them through the sewing machine lately, too.

4. Painting on stuff.

I always cringe when my kids beg me to buy them the wooden trinkets at the fabric/craft store (more mass produced junk, no thanks!) but I admit to caving a couple of times. And, of course the kids have a blast painting them. Still, there's no need to buy things to paint when the world abounds in stuff that is unused and unwanted, ready to be painted and reborn! Rocks, glass jars, cardboard boxes....these are just a few. There's always something to paint, and my kids will always accept the challenge.

5. Plein air painting.
There's no greater inspiration than nature! This summer I hope to spend a lot of time with the kids outside and painting.

6. Fabric collage.

crafting at The Free School

I know not everyone has piles of fabric and yarn scraps kicking around like I do, but paper works just as well!

7. Nature collages/transient art.

winter and summer!

All kids love nature and all kids come to creativity naturally (or most of them--I've never met one who isn't creative in some way). The two together can make for some really inspired (and inspiring) kids! I find I don't even have to prompt this creation in nature, my kids just go for it and I encourage it. I try not to interfere but will sometimes collect piles of "supplies" to fuel their creations. This is especially true with fairy houses, which both of my kids love to create on walks either in the woods or the city. Fairies live in the city too, you know ;)

8. Origami.

The whole family took part in creating these gift boxes
filled with truffles for the kids' teachers

This one might seem like it's only for big kids but actually even toddlers can be involved in creating really cool origami by decorating the paper itself. And Tigerlily has been able to tackle some simple designs with a little guidance since she was 5 or so.

9. Collaborative sewing.

'T' ornament: T.L. chose the fabric, designed and cut the pieces, and stuffed it
after I sewed it on my machine.

2010 Father's Day gift: Tigerlily wrote and embroidered the text, chose the fabrics
and pinned, I cut the pieces and sewed it all together.

School pencil pouch: Tigerlily chose the fabrics, traced and cut the letters, and pinned it together, I cut the large pieces and sewed it together.

I sew for a living so my sewing machine is in constant use, and my kids want in. I've just started allowing Tigerlily to use a machine (I learned to sew by hand first and I want my kids to do the same) but for the most part any machine sewing that is required in the projects we do together is done by me. Garment making and the like are a year or so off for my aspiring designer. Still, she is a designer and I want to encourage that in her! She will often bring me drawings of things she wants to make and we will work together to finish the details, choose fabrics, cut and pin. That is the meat of the creation, I just run it through the machine at the end. I truly believe that even if our kids aren't ready to run a machine themselves they can do a large part of the creating in sewing projects.

*Honorable mention: Digital Paint.

'Butterfly Wings' by Tigerlily, age 7

'Dad' by Tigerlily, age 6

'Spiderman and Luke's Home' by Lyric, Age 4

'Apple, Tree and Person' by Tigerlily, age 7

Untitled by Tigerlily, age 6

'Desert Off Dead' by Lyric, age 4

My kids spend very little time on the computer but when they do and I can pry them away from 80's music videos on YouTube they're on Paint. I don't know how they do it but they come up with some pretty cool art!

Some other stuff we like to do and even more that I'd like to try for the first time this summer:

* making paper dolls
* making doll clothes
* felting
* finger knitting
* straight up knitting
* cross stitch
* patchwork by hand (Little House style!)
* potato prints
* kid designed fabric (hello Spoonflower!)

Let the making commence!

Summer already?!?

2011-06-10T21:42:00.007-04:00

It's official: today was the last day of school and graduation at The Free School and the kids are home until September! I'm completely unprepared but realize that I will always feel unprepared for this huge change in our schedules and am determined to embrace it and make this the best summer ever!

Unfortunately blurry photo of my girl singing Like a Prayer at graduation. This year she received the "Put another dime in the jukebox baby" award--pretty apt!

As is my yearly tradition I made gifts for all of the staff at the (small) school because they all play a part in teaching/learning with my kids. I like to change it up each year (last year was personalized tote bags) and this year decided to do a bit of cross stitch after finding a bunch of perfect, simple, fun-to-stitch patterns from the awesome Etsy seller andwabisabi. So I made embroidered hoops for the teachers and zipper pouches for the interns. And even though I began this project this past winter I was finishing it this morning, true to form. Granted, it was a lot of stitching:

another inexplicably blurry photo--what is wrong with my camera?!?

This pile of poo was given in deepest admiration, honest! It's a long story :)

And with that another school year ends. Next fall Tigerlily will be in 3rd grade and Lyric will be in Kindergarten! I cannot believe it. Though I can believe that Lyric is finally old enough to go to a local day camp this summer :)

Skye's up in the Adirondacks this weekend for a bike race so I'm flying solo with the kids for the next two nights. Tonight we watched Jurassic Park which was actually way too scary and I nearly turned it off more than once but they made it through and now want to learn everything there is to know about dinosaurs. Awesome, me too! First stop: up to the Museum tomorrow to check out the dinosaurs that lived in our backyard!

Here's to the summer of '11: the best summer ever! What do you have planned?

First swim of the season!

2011-05-29T08:46:00.004-04:00

Not even officially summer yet and I'm already getting cranky about the heat. Time for a swim!

We have a winner

2011-05-26T08:22:00.003-04:00

Thanks to everyone for another great Giveaway Day! I was too busy to check out as many blogs as I would have liked but I did manage to put my name in the hat for some pretty cool supply giveaways. Now, on to the main event!

The winner of the vegetables cloth book is #114, Cass, all the way across the world in Australia. Cheers Cass, you'll be hearing from me soon!

Back to work!

My studio space: if only it were that tidy right now...

Yet another awesome Giveaway Day!

2011-05-23T00:01:00.001-04:00

:: Comments are now closed; thanks everyone for your kind words!

Though I'm finding it difficult to believe that it is already May I am super psyched for another Giveaway Day with Sew, Mama, Sew! This time around I'm giving away one of my readymade cloth books:

I finally stocked some readymade books in my shop so it's perfect timing! The book measures approximately 6" square and has 6 interior pages plus front and back cover. All images and letters are appliquéd on to the pages. Super fun for babies to chew on even if they won't eat the real thing ;) It's made with cotton fabrics and organic cotton batting and is machine washable.

To win all you need to do is leave a comment. I will choose a winner at random on the morning of May 26. I will ship worldwide so everyone is invited! Good luck!!

To the hills

2011-05-22T21:54:00.006-04:00

Today we loaded up ourselves and a pal and trucked it to the hills and a very special state park outside our fair city. I had been cooped up far too long with the rain and backlogs of work and though more work was calling to me, the call of my family and the sun was stronger. We all had a blast!on clearer days Albany is visible in the distance

we eventually walked under that waterfall, which was roaring with all of the recent rain

these little guys were everywhere, totally freaking me out

under the falls
"too many stairs, my head hurts"

Crafty Round Up: 8-page books

2011-05-21T15:26:00.009-04:00

Here's the latest round of 8-page custom cloth books:

:: Madeline

:: Rosalind

:: Samantha

:: Maxwell

:: Myla

I've been busy...

2011-05-20T09:42:00.008-04:00

...and haven't been so great about the old blog, eh? But really, I've been busy! With work, with kids, with life. It never ends :)

Here's a glimpse into what I've been up to:

Buntings/Banners!

kickin' it
Turning 8! Rock on little girl.(Madonna, Janet Jackson, Jack White, and Dee Snider were all in attendance)

I have so much more work to show you, tons of books and other things completed and in the works. I'll post more over the weekend and then on Monday I'll be hosting another giveaway for Sew, Mama, Sew's May Giveaway Day!!

Crafty Round Up: Books, Part 2

2011-03-26T10:58:00.008-04:00

I have so much more completed work to share, and even more coming up! So, here's the next installment, more 6-page books:

One:

Two:

Three:

Four:

Five:

Six:

Covert Picture of the Day

2011-03-14T15:39:00.006-04:00

I love to spy on my kids from the window. Here they are walking home from a friend's house (with a pal):

Crafty Round Up: Books, Part 1

2011-03-10T19:59:00.010-05:00

Get ready for some crazy book action! I've got so many to show you I'm going to break them up into several posts. First up: 6-page books...

One:
Two:

Three:

Four:
Five:

Six:

Crafty Round Up, Part 1: Banners a.k.a. Buntings

2011-03-09T17:31:00.014-05:00

Looking back through the archives I realize it's been quite a while since I've shared any completed work. And there's a lot to see, I've been busy!

We'll start with name/word banners, which I really love to make and personalize in interesting ways. Check it out...

:: That's a lot of letters! Wait until you see all of the books ;)

Lapse in Pictures

2011-03-08T09:50:00.004-05:00

I haven't been great about keeping up with my Picture a Day project but I'm going to be as faithful as I can be in the midst of some very hectic times. The boy has been sick and I've satisfied a bit of my itch to gussy up the place, moving things around a bit. Plus I'm super busy with work! One of these days I will find time to post about the tons of work I've been doing, promise.

My little guy, feverish and goo-eyed

work in progress :)

Can't wait to find the time to paint some walls and trim!

Picture a Day: Quiet play

2011-03-03T17:03:00.002-05:00

With two very boisterous kids in the house (and often their friends as well) I really appreciate these moments of peaceful quiet play.

"talking guys"

Picture a Day: New Couch!

2011-03-02T21:12:00.003-05:00

The perfect couch, already at home amidst our mess

I've got a bit of the old Spring fever these days. I've been dreaming of sprucing up the place and have big plans for re-imagining the lay out of our amazing space. Top on my list of priorities has been to find the perfect couch for our main living area. I've been checking Craigslist twice a day for a couple weeks now to no avail. It's really shocking what people are asking for their gross giant sofas on Craigslist! I was even prepared to pay a similar price if the perfect vintage modern sofa appeared, but to no avail.

And then this morning, on a whim, I asked Skye if he wanted to go to our local Salvation Army store just to take a peek and, lo and behold, there it was! I literally walked in the door, spotted it across the room (kinda hard to miss that bright orange velour) and knew right away it would be mine. Upon closer inspection we found that it's in excellent shape, not gross or smelly or stained at all, and only $50! It was obviously meant to be.

Now if I can just find the perfect rug to go with it...any suggestions? I'm shocked at the lack of rug options out there!

Picture a Day: My Girl

2011-03-02T09:39:00.004-05:00

...is crazy. Good thing she's so cute.

Picture a Day: More Snow!

2011-02-28T09:05:00.002-05:00

snowman, made and melting, at Grammy & Grandpa's

Picture a Day: out to eat

2011-02-26T21:18:00.002-05:00

:: At Wine N Diner. Oreo pancakes for the kids, turducken pilgrim sandwich for the grown ups. Yum!

Picture a Day: Pancakes!

2011-02-25T22:34:00.002-05:00

Lots of Pictures Today: Valentine's revisited

2011-02-24T21:19:00.004-05:00

This year I am all about being ahead of the game, especially with making gifts. So far, so good--I churned out a scarf for for each kid's Valentine's Day gift with plenty of time to spare!

They were a hit and inspired lots of love:

Both patterns (and yarn) are from Morehouse Farm. They turned out super cute, Tigerlily's heart scarf was super quick and easy and I love how the hearts kind of link together when she wears it. The bandit look of Lyric's raccoon scarf is totally killing me! This one took a bit of time, partly because it calls for sport weight yarn. Next time I'm totally using worsted.

Picture a Day: Osu!

2011-02-23T19:18:00.005-05:00

Lyric has been talking about joining a karate class since he was at least three and I finally got around to signing him up at the beginning of the month. Tigerlily wanted to give it a try too so I signed her up for their introductory 3-lesson course for everyone over age 7. She's never really followed through with anything she's tried before (dance and piano) so I didn't have high hopes. Man, was I wrong!

Tigerlily at the dojo

I have never seen the girl take anything so seriously. The juniors are expected to attend at least 2 classes per week and my girl has asked to go every. single. day since she officially began as a student last Tuesday. She's gone every weekday since then and has become this amazing karate sponge! I am so, so proud of her, not only for her determination to do her best but also for working hard to bring the key principles of her karate practice, self discipline and self control, into her life outside the dojo. It's so exciting to see her confidence grow and to hear those spirited, "Kiai!"s.

Picture a Day: Day 4

2011-02-22T19:05:00.003-05:00

When the girl is at camp....

up in his sister's loft listening to tunes (and winking)

Once a slacker always a slacker

2011-02-21T13:49:00.004-05:00

Only three days into the Picture a Day project and I've already missed one. Rats.

yesterday: Lyric wearing the infamous sushi pants (given to newborn Lil and worn by both kids from infancy to age 4) strummin' on the old mandolin

today: Tigerlily at skateboard camp (in the pink helmet)

Picture a Day

2011-02-19T09:53:00.002-05:00

I was just over at Abi's blog and was totally inspired to follow her lead and try to regain my blogging groove with a picture a day. And what better time to start than right now?

A glimpse into a typical Saturday morning chez van der Laan. There's no tv during the week but weekend mornings are zone-out time!

Gifts made and given

2011-01-22T20:55:00.006-05:00

Thanks to everyone for the rave reviews on the fairy house! It is definitely a hit around here, too.

While we're on the subject of gifts given this holiday season I thought I would show you more of the gifts we made to give to friends and family this year.

chocolate truffles in handmade origami boxes for the teachers
(paper decorated by the kids before folding)

super yummy apple wine à la Skye

simple and modern candle holder made with this tutorial along with fabric bag wrapping (which has a second life as a baguette bag)

more bread bags for my Mom (who makes the best bread in town)

monogrammed pencil case and notebook set for the cousins

:I feel like I must have gotten the idea for these little notebooks somewhere online this fall but I can't seem to find any tutorial that I referenced. It's not like I invented anything here but it's such a cool idea and so easy to make (with all recycled and vintage materials!) that I think everyone should have a go at making at least a few of these. If folks are interested in hearing my process I'd be happy to share!

Playing catch up

2011-01-21T09:53:00.003-05:00

Yup, I'm still alive. This here blog might be on its last legs but I'm determined to rejuvenate it! I have so, so much to share and am brimming with ideas and have just accepted that "the time to blog" will never just appear so I need to make time.

I've been dying to show you the Christmas gift that Skye and I made for Tigerlily for Christmas. It was such a perfect collaboration of his carpentry skills and my sewing skills and we had a blast working on it together. So, of course, it turned out wonderfully!!

Presenting: The Fairy House!

Skye had this hollow tree stump that he thought would be perfect (and it so totally was). He cut off a bit of one side and attached it to the top for the roof, drilled some large holes for windows and made a door. He also added an elevator and made the table, fireplace (complete with firewood!) and bed. So cool!

I made the bendy fairy dolls (with this tutorial--so easy!!), a little fairy hut, lots of leaves (including the leaves on the roof, the leaf sleeping bag, leaf bench, and lots of "throw" leaves), log and bark benches, mushrooms, and scattered logs. I had to stop myself, it was so much fun!

A winner!

2010-12-18T10:07:00.002-05:00

Giveaway Day (well, week really) is over and I've got a winner!

Congratulations to comment #253, Kiza! I'll be in touch to work out all of the details for your banner :)

Thanks to everyone for stopping by and entering, and for all of your kind comments. Have a wonderful holiday!!

Giveaway Day!

2010-12-13T00:00:00.001-05:00

It's that magical time of year again--Sew, Mama, Sew's Giveaway Day! I haven't had much time for the blog this past month but the end of my crazed schedule and a return to regular blogging is just a few days away. What better way to make a come back than with a give away?

This year I'd like to offer a custom name (or word) banner/bunting, a new and very popular addition to the shop this year. One lucky winner, chosen at random from the comments on this post, will receive a custom made banner with the name or word of their choice, up to 10 letters.

Comments will be open until midnight EST this Friday, December 17. I will announce the winner on Saturday morning and will be in touch with the winner to discuss the details. I am prepared to make the banner over the weekend and have it in the mail on December 20.

Sound good? Leave a comment for your chance to win! Everyone is eligible, I will gladly ship anywhere in the world.

Good luck!

So Thankful

2010-11-25T08:49:00.003-05:00

I've been a bad blogger, I fully admit it.

I've been trying to do it all, and the blog (among other things...) has suffered. I have big plans for it in the not-too-distant future but just haven't had the time lately for it.

Still, I want to say ♥thank you♥ to all of you who have stuck with me, supported me, and just all-around kept me going. I am so thankful that I am able to do something that brings me (and hopefully lots of others!) such joy. It is all of you who have made this possible--thank you!

As a small token of my gratitude I'm holding a Black Friday-to-Cyber-Monday sale in my shop. All readymade items in the shop are 10% off from 8pm tonight (11/25) to midnight Monday (11/29) EST. This includes all cards, letter folios, quilts, and hoops. I had hoped to have a lot more stock in the shop by this time but it was another of the things that has been pushed down the to-do list during this busy season.

Still, Lyric's Star Wars party was EPIC and so totally worth all of the work ;)

Great shot kid, that was one in a million!

Technical difficulties left and right

2010-11-09T08:42:00.005-05:00

Hello!

I'm a bit sore from falling off the blogging wagon so many times but I've finally got a plan for some holiday-related content, so stay tuned!

In the meantime I just wanted to put a few things out there.

1. I'm more than a bit freaked out about this one: my Etsy convos have gone really wonky. Some messages arrive at their destination but an increasing number do not, or are very late in arriving. I'm not receiving all of the messages that are sent to me, though I have no conclusive evidence of this. The thought of any one of my clients or potential clients thinking I'm ignoring them has me quite upset and I'm really panicked that this is happening at my busiest time.

I reply to each and every convo I receive so if you've sent one to me and haven't heard back please know that I'm not ignoring you, there's simple been a communication breakdown somewhere along the way. My email is exlibrishandmade at gmail dot com and I welcome inquiries there.

2. I'm having another sale! 10% off all items in my shop (custom and readymade!) until November 15. Prices on listings have been discounted (and I have found a new love: etsy on sale). Woo hoo!

That is all ;)

The Day After

2010-11-01T17:45:00.004-04:00

I hope you all had as good a time as we did this Halloween! (and that you're recovering from the sugar crash better than we are...)

Hermione Granger

Luke Skywalker/Karate Kid

costume cyclo-cross in Bennington

Crafty Round Up, Part 2: Books

2010-10-27T19:17:00.010-04:00

Nest up: BOOKS!

1. An Edgar Allan Poe book, 6 pages (I think this is my favorite book ever).

2. Mystery books book, 6 pages.

3. Genres of Books, 6 pages.

4. 6-page M book for Madeleine.

5. 8-page full name book for Emiliana.

6. 6-page full name book for Dakari.

Crafty Round Up, Part 1: Banners a.k.a. Buntings

2010-10-26T22:01:00.004-04:00

I've been really busy with work lately and I think it's about time I shared some of the things I've been working on. I've completed so much since my last round up that it's a 2-parter (maybe 3!). First up: Banners! I've been having so much fun with these, playing with colors, shapes and typography. I'm also working on a whole series of special occasion banners/buntings, most with 100% vintage fabrics and I'll be showing them soon, too.

Here we go....

Our tiny little coastal vacation

2010-10-19T21:13:00.007-04:00

:: Nickerson State Park and Coast Guard Beach, Cape Cod

But, soft! what light from yonder window breaks?

2010-10-07T10:45:00.005-04:00

Could it really be the sun?!

We've been deluged for several days running and of course the day the sun finally returns I come down with a miserable cold :(

Luckily I just finished a book order and can take the rest of the day to relax and read my latest in a string of dystopian YA fiction I've been devouring lately: Winter's End by Jean-Claude Mourlevat. Well, the rest of the day until the kids come home anyway. I was hoping to put on a movie for them afterschool--Tigerlily and I finished Book 5 of Harry Potter last night and the tradition is to watch the movie the next day. But now that the sun is out I suppose I really should take them outside.... I should stop my grumbling, some fresh air and sunshine is probably just what I need, too!

Playskool tragedy

2010-10-05T08:47:00.006-04:00

Well, I've done it again: fallen of the blogging wagon. I think I'll just jump back on with something totally random, shall I?

Each evening after Lyric's been tucked into bed with a story and a song I read to the girl (Harry Potter--we're nearly on book 6, yo!) while she draws at her art space. That girl never ceases to forget to turn lights off when she's done with them, so I nearly always end up going back to shut it off. I had a laugh-out-loud moment the other night when I went back to find this:

:Skye and I had a good laugh, then I turned off the light and started devising my teaching moment for this tragic scene....

Readers only sale!

2010-09-16T09:40:00.005-04:00

Well, the kiddos are settled into their school routine and I'm keeping busy making lots of new stuff for the shop and working on custom orders. I'm determined to maintain my sanity this holiday season (unlike last year...) so I've planned out the next few months to ensure that I stay on top of everything.

A big change this year is that I am limiting the number of custom orders I accept and will stop taking orders by Thanksgiving. I've plotted out completion dates for a finite number of custom orders and at the moment there are 19 spots left for custom books and 4 spots for custom quilts. For now I'm not planning on limiting the number of custom banner orders I will accept but that may change as I get busier.

If you're considering ordering a custom book to give to a little one this holiday season I'd like to encourage you to think about doing it sooner rather than later with a bit of a sale, just for my blog readers!

From now until the end of September I am offering my blog readers 10% off orders of $50 or more, 15% off orders of $100 or more, and 20% off orders of $200 or more! This includes everything in the shop, custom and readymade, and is in addition to the free shipping promotion already in place in the shop!

To take advantage of this promotion place your order and include the phrase "readers only sale" in the Message to Seller. I'll send you a revised invoice or, if you've already paid, a refund of the discounted amount.

Cheers!

Crafty Round Up

2010-09-09T12:27:00.013-04:00

It's been a while since I've shared my completed projects and it seems like a good way for me to ease back into a routine here. Hopefully I'll be productive enough this season to make this a weekly post!

Cloth Books ::

monogram book

first and last name book

transportation-themed book in Spanish

10-page full name book

Buntings ::

Small shaped quilts ::

Large quilts ::

Gifts made & given ::

skirts made with a favorite pattern

Hello, stranger!

2010-09-08T12:51:00.005-04:00

I apologize for my disappearance from the blogging world for the past month. I decided to throw in the towel on the 85 days of summer documentation when I realized it was turning into a desperate countdown to the first day of school.

No more countdown--the kids went back to school today! I love my kids and enjoy being with them but there definitely comes a time when all of us need some space from each other. We were all rather chipper this morning, excited to go off on our own little adventures. Well, all of us except Skye who is on his fourth cigarette-free day today....

I'm excited to really get to work on my blog, my shop, my business, my life in general. At the moment I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed by all of the possibilities and all of this new-found time but it's only halfway through the first day. I'm sure it won't be long before I settle into a good routine and hopefully start checking some things off the old to-do list.

Over the next week or so I plan to share a lot of the work I've been doing, some of the ideas I have for the coming season, and a special offer just for my blog readers!

Thanks so much for sticking with me!

Best. Movie. EVER!

2010-08-19T23:54:00.005-04:00

So, okay, I haven't really blogged at all in the past couple of weeks. The end of summer camp for Tigerlily saw the unraveling of all my amazing summer plans but I do have some things to share. Soon--as soon as I can find more than a couple of moments to breathe.

I just had to tell you all to drop what you're doing and go see Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. Seriously, right now! I don't often go to the movies and when I do I often leave feeling like I just wasted $11. Not with Scott Pilgrim!! I really, really loved it and highly recommend it. How could you not love Michael Cera? And in this movie he's not only adorable and funny but he kicks some serious ass!

I'm definitely sneaking away soon to see it again as soon as I can. Wanna come?

85 Days of Summer

2010-08-03T08:23:00.004-04:00

Are we really halfway through already?!? I seriously have to get on planning an end-of-summer vacation at the coast...

Happy toes on Monday (she totally cracked herself up with this one, and me, too.)

Tuesday: No shirt no shoes...scoot!

Some pretty awesome birthday art for a friend's birthday on Wednesday.

On Thursday we tackled the city as an obstacle course.

Full contact chalk drawing on Friday (shirtless, as usual)

To the Mac-Haydn for Jack in the Beanstalk with Grammy and the boys on Saturday (my nephew Andy went, too). He enjoyed it much more than this photo lets on :)

I was sick as a dog on Sunday (and am still recovering...). Tigerlily thought it might help if she, too, was a dog.

Thursday Thrifting (a day late again)

2010-07-30T12:38:00.006-04:00

Sometimes I can't believe our luck. We picked up all of these amazing treasures at one yard sale!

even without a baby to give this to I couldn't pass this up

I love to find old bits of patchwork!

pretty blue enameled bowl

old school ice cream scoop

too funny to pass by

makes me want to bake, even in this heat

some special little touches

I've been wanting something pink for our home so I painted this stool for my workspace

A bit of advice--be on the lookout for multi-family sales!

85 Days of Summer

2010-07-26T19:33:00.000-04:00

Goofing around with Trixie on Monday

Though this heat is making me consider relocating to Northern Canada our near daily trips to the lake have helped us cope.

Rainwater + paint roller + lawn furniture = hours of fun on Wednesday

Nothing like a cleaned up sewing space to inspire me.

Friday night sleepover!

After considering this piece on our last several visits to our local junk shop I finally fell in love and brought it home on Saturday.

Just errands on Sunday, but who says you can't dress up for the grocery store?

Hard rock heals all wounds

2010-07-24T20:25:00.001-04:00

Wednesday and Thursday were hard days for me. I haven't been sleeping well and have been exhausted and Lyric has become somewhat bipolar--sweet as pie one minute and then unbelievably angry, violent and prone to epic fits that have tested me more than Tigerlily ever did, and she was not an easy 3-year-old. I was feeling really overwhelmed and Skye took the kids out for a bit when he got home so I could rest (and cry a spell).

When they came home they gathered around me and all three serenaded me with "Living on a Prayer."

So awesome, and just what I needed.

We've got each other and that's a lot for love!

Thursday Thrifting...on Friday

2010-07-23T09:01:00.004-04:00

It's been a slow thrifting week but they can't all be quite so spectacular as the last several. It's nice to find some little treasures and spend less than $5!

never used and super cute

building our musicals collection

we can never have enough of these babies, especially at 10¢ a piece

a good pile of these comes in handy when the epic birthday parties roll around each year

I'm developing a thing for hex signs

that little framed piece is no larger than 3" square

Just f.y.i....

2010-07-20T17:38:00.003-04:00

Custom book order listings are in the shop!

Keep in mind that these listings are only the most popular options, I'll gladly put together any type of book you can dream up. Also check out the new pages at the top of my sidebar which explain custom book pricing and list all stock image options. As I was going through all of the appliques I've made I realized that there needs to be another "most complex" level for pricing so that will be reflected on those pages.

All in all I'm very pleased with how the pricing formula has worked out--most options remain around the same price for a book with simple images (which are pretty cool, if I may say so ;) and go up in price slowly as more complicated images are added.

Please don't hesitate to get in touch if you have any questions or comments or ideas! Or, you know, if you'd like to order a book ;)

Right now I'm only accepting 6 to 8 custom orders per month so please get in touch soon if you're interested!

85 Days of Summer

2010-07-18T12:52:00.003-04:00

Roscoe, Lyric and Trixie snack time on Monday

an overnight at Grammy's on Tuesday (while I did some major paper-purging)

some cuddle time with my favorite boy on Wednesday

bubble blowing after errands on Thursday

picking up the girl at camp on Friday--she didn't want to leave!

some sweet treasures found thrifting on Saturday

our big monthly cleaning day on Sunday (Lyric would rather read)