Bubbly Magnets Craft Project

Looking for an easy project for solstice/Christmas presents? Jump over to The Mother Load for instructions on making easy bubbly magnets. I recently bought some of these off Etsy for solstice and birthday presents, and knew they were easy to make, just didn't know what to use for glue! I'll be making some magnets this year!
Another suggestion, use a domino with the picture on the front for a rectangular magnet. I find these even cuter because the picture is so clear.
Happy Crafting!

SaS Fabric Co-op Yahoo Group

I just created a yahoo group for leftover fabric & notions from sling and diaper making. I will also offer chances to go in on wholesale orders with me, as well as pre-sales from my site. There is a database for hemp / certified organic cotton fleece that will be open for at least a couple more weeks.

The address is: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SaS_Fabric_Coop . Feel free to join and invite others!

Cutest Diaper Package Ever!

Here's 1/2 a package of flannel front Boo Bear Buns diapers that were sent out recently. These are one size fitted diapers with cotton flannel outers and 3 thirsty layers of hemp/organic cotton fleece. I love the prints!

EGCG Trunk Show

Stop by for some free samples of Itsa Greener Clean and check out the scrumptious bath & body products!

Dancing Hands Bookmarks

Alex Miller, a 9 1/2 year old homeschooled artist, is now selling her original, hand drawn bookmarks. They are beautiful, laminated, and finished with natural fibers. You can purchase them here. While you're there, take a look at her mom's beautiful creations. I greatly admire her felted bowls and goddesses.

Fieldstone Gardens - A Day of Enchantment

The 10th annual Garden Party, "A Day of Enchantment" at Fieldstone Gardens in Vassalboro, Maine is this Saturday, June 16th. Special guest Tracy Kane, artist and author of "The Fairy House Series", will offer 2 two-hour workshops at 9:30am and at 1:00pm. Kane will read aloud from her book Fairy Houses and then accompany children and their adults into the pine forest at Fieldstone Gardens to help build a "Fairy House Village". Children are encouraged to dress as fairies, butterflies or dragonflies. Kane will be available for a book signing at mid day. Aiden (dressed as a wood nymph) and I will be there, so please stop by the Slings and Sacks/Blessed Baby booth and say hi! For more information on the event, visit www.hvwa.org/special-events.shtml .
Hope to see you there!

Getting ready for this event and completing orders has kept me busy lately. I will be sure to post pictures of my little wood nymph. His outfit is nearly done, I just need to sew the elastic into his pants, sew leaf jewels onto his shirt and pants, add a hanger to his wings for form and sew the wings to his shirt.

If you want to see some real talent...

Check out Calvin's most recent sewing projects. His work is amazing. The thought and time he puts into them truly shows. What a talented boy!

Busy, Busy

The Wilton WAHM Co-Op, which I am a proud member of, is opening a storefront in downtown Wilton, Maine. It's coming together fast. I have been busy this past week with meetings and creating. You may not hear from me as much until the store is running smoothly. Only 18 days until we open, and 15 before we stock the store! Ah! I'll be sure to post updates and some pics of finished products as the days wind down. I hope to see all you local readers May 1st when Blessed Baby is born! By the way, why the heck is it snowing in the middle of April?

Back to the sewing room I go...

Pictures that I have been meaning to post...

Aiden playing at my Mom's. Too bad I don't have the patience to upload the videos of him head-butting the horses. It was hilarious!

Lovely view in No View Greenhouse! Mom has lettuce and spinach growing in one house and seedlings in another.

Look at those greens! Yum!

I made Aiden a fleece cover. All but a couple wool soakers were bought and are ruined. Why all the bulk? That's NOT a Boo Bear Buns diaper underneath, but one of the few I bought back in the days before Slings and Sacks.These were my Scooby toe socks. I cut off the toes and made an tank top that was never going to fit again into cuffs. Very cool!
Rambling side note: In high school I had a glow in the dark Scooby comforter and an orange Scooby lunch box (my school was not vegetarian friendly so packed lunch was a necessity). This was while I was living own my own mind you. Ah, the days of driving my friends around listening to CKY and punk. Video taping those sweet kick-flips and ollies. Wearing questionable tee shirts to school.

Real Men Wear Babies - The Latest in Spring Fashion

Dr. Sear's isn't the only man who wears babies. Check out these rugged men and their babies:

This is Dave. He's showing off his new pouch sling. You can't get more manly than black and green camo! Here you see beautiful little Bellatrix all cozy in her sling. I love the look on her face :)

Jon and Aiden modeled it for me literally minutes before I rushed it to the post office. I love custom orders, but this one was my favorite. A pocket is hidden in the seam. Perfect for a wallet and cell phone.

Thanks to Dave and Christy for sending the pictures!

Also check out these other baby wearing dads:
Babywearing: A Dad's Experience
Hyena Cart Forum: Pics of Babywearing Dad's
Dr. Sears - Father's Wearing Babies
Does this baby carrier make my manboobs look big?

Aiden's new tote & toy

Here are pics of Aiden's new tote. I love this fabric! Inside is Aiden's favorite book "Owen" by Kevin Henkes. Aiden reads it all the time. I adore it as well :) I made this toy since my last post to go with his tote. It is stuffed with a rice cakes bag for noise factor and hemp/organic cotton scraps. I plan to grab up a lot of this fabric next time I go to the fabric store!

Boys' day out, Mom's day in

I’m still here. Not sure when I will be off-line, if at all. I do plan to check in every few days regardless.

Jon took Aiden out without me for the first time today. (Thus far they have met up with Uncle Joe, sat on motorcycles at a Harley dealership and visited Pappy.) It’s amazing how quiet the house is without all of Aiden’s noises. I’ve had to keep music on just to feel comfortable. I miss the little bugger. With him being gone, I had to do something I hadn’t done for a while; pump. If you don’t want to read about it, feel free to scroll down, I won’t be offended :) I could not believe how much milk I produced. 4 ounces on one side. Man, when Aiden was little and I was pumping nearly every day (because I thought I needed to have milk in the freezer just in case), I was lucky to get 4 ounces total. By the way, Aiden wouldn’t drink out of a bottle, and all that milk got thrown out. (Next time I will be donating to a milk bank. I looked into it when Aiden was 10 months, but by the time all the testing was complete, I would have only been able to donate for 1 month. They only accept it for the first 12 months) I’m sure he will be happy to find milk in his cup at dinner. We’ll see if he downs it like it’s lemonade.

Without little fingers helping me, I was able to get a lot done, and I plan to continue as they won’t be home for another hour or so. I got 11 pair of nursing pads cut out, 3 sets of flannel backed wipes and 15 flannel front diapers. Yesterday I completed an additional 3 pair of nursing pads, 2 sets of flannel wipes and a pair of pants & tote bag for Aiden. Add to that a beautiful morsbag that I intend to keep for myself, and you can see that I have been busy!

Alright, back to work…

**CONTEST**

Between the new site and custom order slings, I have been busy. My mother has been a huge help. She has cut out so many diaper, wipe and nursing pad pieces that I am beginning to wonder whether I can complete them all! She has also helped with the formulation and testing of my new products. Very soon, natural laundry detergent and all-purpose cleaners will be available on www.slingsandsacks.com!

The story: I was quite excited when the family from Maine who makes natural laundry detergents and cleaners agreed to me selling their products on my site. I was equally as disappointed to find, through personal experience and that of other retailers, that they are unreliable. My passion for natural cleaning products drove me to create a detergent. (I in no way copied their detergent, or any other. The formulation is my own.) I am even more pleased to find that my products out clean the other natural products I had been using.

**The contest: Come up with an original name for my natural detergents and cleaning products. Send it to aimee@slingsandsacks.com with "name contest" in the subject line. If I choose the name you have come up with, I will send you a free 16 load bag of detergent. Contest closes whenever I decide :) **

Some more info that may help: Products are free of phosphates, biodegradable, safe for sensitive skin, suds free, and do not contain any sodium lauryl sulfate or dyes. All scents are created using essential oils.

The small print stuff: By sending me a name idea, you release all rights regarding that name, and any variance of it, to Slings and Sacks to use at our discretion. The free bag of detergent will be mailed in the cheapest way possible, therefore it may take a couple weeks or longer (depending on the postal service and where you live) before you receive the product.

I'll post some pictures soon (I know, I said that a week ago). I made Aiden a pair of pants from corduroy my mother used when I was a wee one. And the new flannel front diapers, nursing pads and wipes are un-fricken-believably cute. The old Euro-Pro machine I have been using is in need of a new foot control so I have switched to a Singer that we're guessing is from the 60's. Alright, back to adding bath & body products to the site, only after messing with threading a bobbin on the old singer. But first, off to my weekly visit/cleaning spree with my favorite person in the world besides Aiden, my Gram. Ever noticed how much easier it is to clean someone else's home?

Rust/Multi Swirls Batik Wet Bag

My Etsy store now carries wet bags as well. They are ideal for soiled diapers and other wet items. Lined with PUL, they are waterproof.

Blue Batik Tote Bag

This tote bag matches a ring sling I sold recently. It can be used as a small diaper bag, purse, craft tote, lunch bag, etc.

Finally added some "sacks"

My newest item is this gorgeous tote bag. I am so tempted to keep it for myself... 100% cotton batik shells, reverses to brown. I am going to try getting some better photos. I just had to list it when I completed it last night! More to come.

Cloth Diapering Packages

Cloth diapering packages are now available in my Etsy store. I am also working on tote bags to add soon. I used to offer them and hadn't made any since I opened my store on Etsy. I forgot how much fun they are to make. The tote I made for my nieces birthday will be blogged about very soon...

You Pick the Size Pouch Slings

These fabric swatches are from current listings in my Etsy store. All of these listings are for a pouch sling made to fit the buyer.

Barley Hemp/Cotton Blend

Earthy Stripes 100% Cotton (Picture does not do it justice)

Purple Paisley 100% Polyester

Felted Recycled Pocketbook

I turned this felted wool sweater

into this pocketbook. I didn't get a picture of it with the brown handle but it came out nicer than the picture did. My sister is now the proud owner of my first handmade pocketbook.

Artist Caddies

These are the artist caddies I made for my nieces and nephew for Christmas. I know I am a little late in posting this, but I've been busy :) The pictures are pretty bad but they came out well.