ARE YOU READY?

Are you ready? For Christmas that is. I am so not ready. It is already December 21st and I don't even feel close to ready. Leave it to me to wait until the very last second to take on a sewing project to give away as a gift. I just finished the apron that you see pictures of. What I thought would be an hour or maybe two hour project was much longer than anticipated. I bet I logged about 6 hours on this one! I sometimes forget that I am still such a novice. I got everything done fine until the last step. I just couldn't figure out the darn waist band/ties. The instructions were SUPER confusing to me! I was so frustrated. I just kept reading and rereading the instructions and FINALLY a light bulb went off and I figured it out! I do like a good challenge but not when I am on a time crunch. My poor husband kept asking "are you almost done?" He was in charge of the kids yesterday as I sewed and pondered yesterday. Thanks babe!

Anyway....I think it turned out super cute. I have had my eye on this fabric for a very long time. I kept trying to figure out what to make with this fabric. The green bird fabric is called bird seed by Alexander Henry and the orange polkadot fabric is an Amy Butler fabric. I think it makes a perfect apron. I love the combination of the two fabrics. I may make one for myself because I like it so much. It is a gift for my sister in law who is a fantastic cook/baker. I am also going to try to tackle a matching hot pad and a tea towel. I don't know how I will find time because I still haven't finished shopping, wrapping, cooking or cleaning before my 5 house guests arrive on Wednesday! Wish me luck and have a fantastic Christmas!

EXCITING NEWS!

I am happy to announce that Just Jules Boutique Creations will now be carried at Madi's Closet in Leawood! Madi's Closet is where you go to find all of the super cute boutique baby and children's items. They just relocated from Stanley, Ks. to Leawood. The new spot is a GREAT location that gets tons of traffic. It is located at 119th and Roe in Hawthorne Plaza. I am hoping Just Jules will become even more popular! To see more about Madi's Closet visit www.madiscloset.com. I am finally finishing up all of my holiday orders so I can start on sewing some of my own gifts to give away. Stay tuned for some cute items.....

Jules

5 AND ALL BOY!

5 years ago today I had the pleasure of becoming a Mom for the second time. This post today is dedicated to my son, Brady, who turns 5 today! I know it is cliche but time on this earth is really just a blink of an eye. 5 really is a huge milestone in my opinion. As a stay at home mom-5 really is a bittersweet number. It marks the year when your child enters Kindergarten. I know it is only December but I only have about 8 more months with him home with me everyday. No more will he ever be with me EVERYDAY ALL DAY which I will say again is so very bittersweet. Sure I will have more free time on my hands but oh how I will miss our quite lunches together everyday, our occasional games, our outings and our hanging out. He is so ready though. I would say I am partially ready but not totally ready.

At 5 he is very stubborn and hard headed. He is very sensitive and sweet too. He is extremely competitive and isn't the best loser. We are working on that. Lately he is obsessed with football. He really is getting good at catching and throwing. I am actually really impressed at how well he is doing. He is a follower at times and a leader at times. I secretly love how he still says "mom-I throwed the ball" or "mom-look how hard I hitted the bat" even though I correct him everytime. I also secretly love that everytime and I mean EVERYTIME he takes off his pants at night to put on his PJ's he flicks them in the air as high as he can and then laughs. I love that any day of the week he prefers to be outside rather that sitting watching tv or playing video games. He is such a good big brother. He kisses his baby brother all day and it really is priceless. He is not a touchy feely person with anyone but his baby brother. He doesn't like it when I try to hug and kiss him. I usually have to trick him by saying I have to tell him a secret and when he gets close-I get my kiss. It makes him so mad but I will never ever stop. Even when he is 50 and I am 80 I will still be pulling that trick on him. He probably will never know how much he has taught me throughout his 5 years. Here's to you Brady! I love you so very much!

TGIF!

Happy Friday! Why is putting up a Christmas tree so hard? It never just goes smoothly. I am really proud of myself for not only putting up our Christmas tree but putting the lights on as well. Sure there was a few F bombs (in my head of course), a few fights w/ the boys about where to put ornaments and of course the yearly trip to Target right in the middle of assembly because with out fail one strand of lights is burnt out. Well there she is in all her glory. I understand that the ribbon that I decided to wrap around the tree is just a tad short but I really don't care at this point. The tree is up and it looks decent. I love how excited the kids get when decorating the house. We are taking our yearly trip to Halls tomorrow night where the kids get to pick out a new ornament for the tree. They are giddy with excitement.

Anyway...a few more pictures of my sewing projects. I don't know what it is about animal print lately but I am really drawn to it. Anything animal print and I LOVE it and it shows in things that I have been making lately. Let's just hope other people like it too! I was so close to buying a pair of leopard high heel shoes the other day. I refrained but I keep thinking about them. Do you think that would be a bit much? I am kind of a gaudy person. I just don't know. The last picture is of this beautiful blanket. In the picture you really can't see it's beauty. It is a satin brocade fabric that is so soft, luxurious and gorgeous. It would be so soft against a baby's skin. I am going to be making more of these soon! That's enough for now. I hope you have a fabulous weekend!

Jules

BUSY BEE

I have been a total blog slacker! I have just been super busy making new things and of course there was Thanksgiving. I hope everyone had a great holiday. We had a good low key (which is rare) Thanksgiving. It felt weird to not have Thanksgiving at my house for millions of people like we usually do. We did, however, host a mini-Thanksgiving for 6 on Saturday. My husband cooked everything! He really wanted to do it all and he did a FABULOUS job. I love that he likes to cook and try new things. It makes life interesting.
This time of year forces me to think about how fortunate and blessed I am. I will never know why God decided to bless me so much but I am forever grateful. I really try to not take things for granted and to feel grateful and thankful all year but it is this time of year especially that I really take time out to think about all of my blessings!
What are you thankful for?
As you can see from my pictures I have been busy. For some reason this blog site will only let me post 5 pictures. I have a TON more to post. I have my first Just Jules show this weekend so I have been scurrying and sewing and pinning and cutting for weeks. It still is proving to be a bit tricky with a 5 month old in the house. I can only really get alot done on the days he takes good naps and that is totally unpredictable. It is a little frusterating but I think I have still accomplished alot. Wish me luck!

Jules

2 DOWN AND TONS TO GO!

Okay-here are 2 blankets done but I still have lots more to do. I did these both yesterday. I have been frustrated today because I haven't been able to do any sewing. I just feel like I can't get my head above water today. I just feel like my to do list is 1 million miles long and I can't catch up. It is mainly because of a fussy baby that won't take good naps today. Poor baby got some shots yesterday and I think his chunky little thighs still hurt. I have the next 2 projects lined up and ready to go in the sewing room so as soon as I am done I will post pics. Have a good Thursday!

Jules

SNEAK PEEK

I have been a bit out of sewing commission for the last couple of weeks. My trusty sewing machine failed me. It worked fine one day and then the next day it was broken! It has been in the shop getting fixed. I must say it was a nice little break. I am ready to put her to good use now though!

I had the privilege of shopping at Sarah's Fabric's in Lawrence, Ks. on Saturday. Lawrence is only a 40 minute drive for me and it is well worth it. The first time I stepped into her store I just stood there staring. There is the largest selection of fabrics I have ever seen. I actually get a little overwhelmed when I go there. Millions of thoughts go racing around in my head. Ideas come flooding in to the point where I never know where to start. I always leave there with great fabrics and great ideas. This trip was specifically for blanket making fabrics. I am very happy with my purchases. The website is http://www.sarahsfabrics.com/. Here is a sneak peek of what will be transformed into several boutique blankets in the days to come. They will be backed with chenille, minky and rosebud swirl. I will post the pictures when they are done.

I also made the black and pink tutu today. I am really happy how it turned out. Now I just have to think of a shirt to go with it. I hope everyone is having a happy Monday!

Jules

DREARY

Dreary, dreary morning here in Kansas. I had a ROUGH night last night. The baby is teething and was up a TON last night. I am a tired mama today with a really bad head cold. I think my other two boys are just getting over the swine flu. It seems everyone in this city is soooooo sick! I love this time of year but I hate all of the sickness that comes w/ it. At least I did finish everything that needed to be done for the Holiday Mart! If you want more info on the Holiday Mart go to www.holidaymartkc.com. It starts today. I did not do nearly as much as I had planned for but that is okay. Now my focus is on my next show in December. The pictures I posted today are old but I am going to start making some of these flower shirts for the December show. I am also going to try to make more blankets and burp rags for that show. It will be a tiny little show so I don't feel so overwhelmed to get tons and tons made. I am sharing a table with another lady so that should help.

Anyhoo.....School is out today for conferences and I have about 20 people from my husbands office coming over here for dinner tonight so guess what I am doing today....lysoling my house to get rid of germs and trying to clean. We have everything catered so at least I don't have to cook!!! Have a good Thursday.

Jules

Crazy Friday

Today is crazy. I should not be sewing today let alone blogging. I just can't help it though! I really need to get as much done for the holiday mart as I can. We are having a party at our house tomorrow so I should really be cleaning and tidying up around here. I did manage to vaccuum yesterday. I cleaned all the bathrooms today. I have a sick kid I am taking care of and a really fussy baby today. I kinda feel like a chicken with it's head cut off. At least I got these shirts done! My goal was to make at least 40 of the necktie onesies but that is definitely not happening. I think I have a total of 15 neckties and I am quickly running out of time. I have run out of Just Jules labels and have ordered more. They better get here fast or else all of my shirts will be label-less. What do you think of the fleur-de-lis shirt? I think it is cute. I really like the green and brown together. This is my first fleur-de-lis shirt. I guess we will see if people like it or not. Anyway.....I am done w/ my sewing and blogging today! I am off to feed the baby and cook some food. Have a great weekend!

Just some pictures of what I have been sewing today. Actually the ruffle butt onesie is an old picture but wanted to show it because I am obsessed with it. It is really only for the summer months because you can't really put pants on your baby w/ that shirt. I made a couple of the heart shirts w/o the ruffle to try to sell over the winter months. I found another use for the zebra fabric and I am REALLY happy with the outcome! For some reason it looks alot better in person than the picture shows. I really wanted to add a little "bling" to that shirt but I am just really paranoid w/ it being a choking hazard to a baby. I really don't want to get sued!

Anyway.....I am calling it a night. It is only 9:00 and I am super exhausted. I wonder if my baby will ever sleep through the night? At least my husband is back in town and can help me out tonight!

Till next time......Jules

OK-I know these pictures are HORRIBLE. These are a couple of poncho's I have done. I have never really been a peace sign person but for some reason I felt like that black poncho really needed a peace sign on the back. I am dying to get a picture of a child wearing one of these. I have had that zebra fabric FOREVER. I never knew what to do with it, I just knew that I really liked it. Well it finally found it's home! I even made a peace sign tshirt for me with that same fabric. I know it sounds weird but it actually turned out really cute. I will be making more of these and will post more soon. Have a good Tuesday!

Jules

Monday....Blah....

Good morning! A dreary morning but a good morning non the less. It is really cold, rainy and dark this morning. I am supposed to leave and do a kickboxing class in about 30 minutes and I keep trying to tell myself that it is just too cold to leave. I need to get that thought out of my head! Anyway.....I wanted to post these pictures. I made the little "asian" outfit a long time ago. Probably over a year ago. I totally forgot that I had it until I was going through my things. I have someone who wants to buy it so I wanted a picture of it before it is gone. I have actually sold probably three of these outfits. The other picture is of a onesie I am going to try to sell at the Holiday Mart. I am going to make several of them. I think they are really cute and I really hope they sell. Any opinions welcome. I will take good or bad ones! I have alot of sewing to do today and hopefully more photos tomorrow. Happy Monday!

Jules

I'M BAAAAACK

I'm BAAAAAAAACK! I have taken quite the hiatus! I delivered Nicklaus Michael on June 23rd and haven't touched my sewing machine since then. It was a nice break but I am and was sooooo ready to jump back in and get my creative juices flowing again. I have sewn up alot this past week. The ADORABLE picture I posted isn't of my son but of a beautiful baby taken probably last year at this time. It was a picture posted in 435 South magazine for an add by Addie Rose Boutique. I am showing this picture because I am making TONS of onesies just like this to sell at the holiday mart this year. Last year I sold about 20 of these shirts in one day! This year I am trying to double that. It has proven to be a bit challenging to sew with 3 boys in the house. The days that baby Nick takes good nap are the days that I get the most done. I also have some new poncho ideas and will post more pictures soon! I have also booked a show (albeit small) in December to sell some things. I am a little concerned about time constraints but I guess we will see how it goes! Wish me luck. I will post more as I complete more projects.

XOXO Jules

BEAUTIFUL BABY GIRL!

THANK YOU Lindsay for sharing pictures of beautiful Millie in this dress! It took me FOREVER to figure out how to get these pictures from my email account to my blog. I finally figured it out. I rarely get photos of kids in my clothes so when I do I get excited! Isn't this dress precious? It is so soft. The skirt is sewn right onto the onesie. The onesie is still all in tact and still snaps closed so it won't ride up. I know I usually go all out in pink and frilly for girls but sometimes it is refreshing to do other colors for girls. You can't have everything pink I suppose.

It is only 6:44 am and the kids are already wanting me to be some sort of a short order cook so this entry is going to be super short today. I need to wake up and get them some food before school! I hope everyone has a fabulous Wednesday!

Jules

BABY GIFT

These pictures are of a gift that I will be giving one of my oldest and closest friends. She is due to have her baby any second now! I wish I could remember the name of these fabrics so I could tell you what they are b/c I think they are so beautiful. The blanket is backed in the most luxurious, softest material ever. It is called minky swirl and up close it kind of looks like little rosebuds. Babies love this fabric b/c it feels so good against their skin. I wish I had a blanket that soft! Most of my blankets that I have made lately are out of this material. The only down side is that it is a bit pricey. The only place besides online that I can find it is at Hobby Lobby. I always save my 40% off coupon and use it to buy it. If you buy it online it is even more that Hobby Lobby and you have to pay shipping too. I am anxious to give this to her and see how the onesie washes up. I used some iron on crystals on the shirt and I am so curious to see if they will hold up during several washings. I am nervous to actually sell shirts w/ the crystals b/c I am unsure of how they hold up. I love how it looks though. Okay-I guess it is time to be done with this entry because my four year old is crawling under my chair repeatedly asking me if it is time for lunch yet! Have a great Monday.

Jules