I Didn't Forget, I Promise!

There has been random chaos and craziness in the Padgett household for the last few days which has caused me to fall further behind than usual on this blog, my shop, and life in general. :-( But I promise I did not forget about the giveaway! A winner was chosen at random by me, since Schmooley was not being cooperative to say the least. And the winner is....bethysak!

I promise I will post pictures of the finished bib tomorrow, but my camera hasn't had batteries for a few days. Xavier received a toy airplane as a gift in the mail earlier this week that required batteries. I tried switching out batteries from almost every other toy in this house and apparently my camera's batteries were the only ones I had strong enough to power the airplane. I've been camera-less since because getting to the store to buy brand new batteries just hasn't happened yet. The picture above is a patchwork bib currently for sale in my shop as part of a gift set.

Thanks to all who entered, and congrats to bethysak!

I also wanted to let everyone know that Inspired by Schmooley will be closing at the end of this week while I travel for the holidays. The shop most likely will re-open in mid-February after undergoing some big changes. Thanks to all for your support and I will be back here with updates on the changes.

I had a proud Mommy moment this week and since my camera finally decided to cooperate I can share it with all of you! Schmooley has decided to share in my fabric obsession...this gorgeous Michael Miller disco dot print arrive the other day and she just couldn't get enough of it.

A new style of blankets, as well as bibs and burp cloths will soon be available in this print in my shop.

Warning!

With the holidays fast approaching I'm constantly thinking about toys for the kids, my niece, and my nephew. All the recent toy recalls have me completely freaked out! I asked my Mom the other day how many of my toys were recalled when I was a child. She can't recall a single one. In the last few months I've had to return, replace, or throw away six items between both Schmooley and Xavier, and I know I'm not alone. Therefore this year I am going all handmade, or made in the USA.

The latest recall I've read about has to be the most shocking one I've heard so far. It was reported on The Mommy Designer Blog (go check it out if you havn't already...it's FABULOUS!) that Spin Master's Aqua-Dots have been recalled. They may possibly contain a date-rape drug. A date-rape drug! Can you believe that?! The coating on the beads that causes the beads to stick to eachother when water is added contains a chemical that may turn toxic when many are ingested. If your child swallows the beads they may become comatose, develop respiratory depression, or have seizures. And, of course, they were made in China. No suprise there. If you have any of these beads you can read the CPSC report HERE, or by visiting Spin Master's website HERE.

Scary stuff! On a positive note, I am having fun finding toys I think my little Schmoolies will be delighted with this year. I thought I'd share a few of my recent finds with you...

First up is Chester the Sock Dog by Doodlebugfinery on Etsy. He's about 15", and looks as if he's fully housebroken. That's my kind of dog! Xavier has been asking for another puppy so this is definitely on my list for him. She's also got some great onesies and tees listed in her shop.

Next is a Kawaii owl hat crocheted in any size you'd like by tiptopapplesauce. Schmooley HAS to have one of these this year! She guarantees everything 100% and takes custom orders. I know Schmooley will be unique in this, as well as the oh-so important CUTE!

I'll be posting more of my finds soon, but in the meantime if you have great handmade or made the USA gifts and toys you'd like to share with me, either leave a comment or send an e-mail over to inspiredbyschmooley@hotmail.com. I'd love to hear from you!

October's Burp Cloth Giveaway Winner!

Busy busy busy we've been, so I'm sorry I'm a little late in posting this. I'm proud to announce that the winner of the first official Inspired by Schmooley giveaway is...Hilary! AKA mommyknowsbest. Hilary if you could, please e-mail me at inspiredbymyschmooley@hotmail.com and let me know if you'd like these burp cloths in lime, tangerine, or cherry dot. I can't seem to find an e-mail address for you. I will get to work on them as soon as you let me know your color choice and you should have them in about two weeks.

Just in case anyone was wondering, the winner was drawn by a very fair and impartial judge...Schmooley! She picked the name out of a hat. I have pictures and will post them as soon as I can locate the USB cable for my camera, which seems to have gone missing.

Thanks to everyone who entered! More giveaways will be coming in the near future. Make sure to check back often. You can also visit http://www.inspiredbyschmooley.etsy.com for more goodies for your Schmooley.

Shop debut is coming soon!

The adorable little birdie over there <<<---------------is my new logo! Thanks to Joan from Bitsy Creations I now have a logo I'm in love with. Thank you Joan, for being so patient and for taking my ideas and input into consideration during the design process. I couldn't be happier with the outcome. Guess the 3rd time is the charm. Hopefully my shop on Etsy will be up and running no later then the 15th of next month. I'm busy "creating" every spare second I get, which hasn't been a lot lately. I rethought my entire debut collection this morning and have decided to scale back a bit. I've just come to realize with the deployment coming up so soon I just won't have the time to go quite as grand as I wanted to :-( But I definitely want to be up and running in time for the holiday rush. I'll have more details soon, but during our grand opening you can expect giveaways and promotions galore!

And so it begins...

Well here we are, two weeks away from Dathan leaving AGAIN. This time he's headed back to the big sandbox. I've decided to start keeping a blog while he's gone because there's so much I want to accomplish during this deployment and I figure this is a good place to keep track of it all. Aside from trying to save what's left of my sanity and take care of the kids, I'm starting a business. Crazy, I know, but it's been brewing in my mind since last year and at least it'll keep me busy during the next 15 lonely months.

So what started this crazy idea? Well shortly after Schmooley (AKA my daughter Cadence) was born, I decided I needed to have a shopping cart cover. Not because I'm germaphobic, but because I wanted something super plush between her wobbly head and the shopping cart. I shopped around and found the kind I wanted was selling for $80 or more and just couldn't justify spending that amount. So instead I convinced Dathan to let me spend $100 on a sewing machine, and I don't even want to think about how much on fabric and what-not, and I created one. Instant hit with family and friends!

Things just took off from there...burpies, bibs, painted wall letters, hair accessories, blankies, you name it, I was sewing it into the wee hours of the morning. You see, I have been creative ever since anyone who knows me can remember. I sewed, drew, painted, played with clay, and aspired to be the "starving artist" type all throughout my childhood (well, after I got over my ambitions to be a trapeze artist for Ringling Brothers) and well into my high school years. Circumstances in my life pushed me in another direction after school and it was sort of like someone just put a stopper in my bottle of creative juice. After Schmooley came into my life the bottle broke open and I havn't been able to stop since!

Aside from sewing, painting, and crafting I have an obsession with http://www.etsy.com/ (where you will soon be able to see my handcrafted goodies...more on the shop debut coming soon!) and finding unique and charming goods on the Internet. You will see many of them featured in my blog and if you have any suggestions or want to share a nifty product with me, shoot me an e-mail inspiredbymyschmooley@hotmail.com More to come soon!