tis' the season

This is the 'tis' the season' paper banner I made. It is displayed above my TV hanging between the two bookcases. I used a solid paper for the back with alternating circle and square for every other letter using Christmas scrapbook paper. I wrote the letters in glue and covered the glue with 3 different colors of glidder. Some of the glidder colors are difficult to see in the picture. The red overall turned out the best and created the best contrast.

yellow & grey toy bag

 I was recently commissioned to make a toy bag for a baby shower gift similar to the one I made here. The color preference was yellow and grey, which was a difficult color combination to come across, yet I am pleased with the gender-neutral result. Toy bags like this one can be used as the "gift basket" for the perfect baby shower gift You can put a few small things from the baby registry, or even just a pack of diapers and then use a  cellophane to "wrap" the gift that any mother-to-be would be ecstatic to receive!

Here is the finished product.

 

Rosebud Designs "baby" product tags

The inside.


I hope the mother-to-be enjoys filling the baby's toy bag with all the new things she gets at her baby shower! Best Wishes!

bridesmaids' clutches

After a friend (the bride-to be) from nursing school happened upon my blog from my link on facebook, she contacted me to see if I could make her bridesmaids' gifts. She had searched Etsy's website with no success for what she was looking for to honor her ladies. I was so flattered and happy to take on this project that I did not hesitate to say, "Yes!".

We discussed colors and design and then I set to work, drawing up different design ideas and picking out materials. We went with black so that her bridesmaids could use the clutches again for a fancy night out or even a night out on the town yet they would still match the dresses. I added a flower detail to complement the flower on the dresses the girls would wear at the wedding and a black whimsy feather to pick up another element from the wedding.

For the inside of the clutch I went with a eggplant purple color to go with the color of the bridesmaids' dresses. Not only was this my first commissioned project that I've had the opportunity to create but it was also my first product that I was able to incorportate my product label and tags onto!



Megan, I am very honored to have created these bags for you and I cannot wait to see pictures of the ladies in their dresses holding their new personalized clutches! I wish you and your soon-to-be-husband a lifetime of love and happiness!

I'm back!

So it's been awhile since I've blogged here but don't you worry, I have been busy sewing and creating away! I will soon be revealing my first commissioned project...clutches for my friend's bridesmaidss gifts! Stay tuned for pictures...

cube squared

With some bright contrasting fabric remnats I had and some scraps of trim I came up with these stuffed blocks any baby would be excited to play with. They are large enough not to be a choking hazard, soft enough not to lead to any injuries, and bright enough that any baby would be interested (even if only for the short time that most babies are interested in anything!) The fun trim serves a dual purpose of being cute and gives the smaller baby hands something easy to grab onto until they gain arm strength. I was told that these were a big hit with my friends baby who received them for her first Christmas from me.

silver jewlery set

For another gift for Pati's birthday I made a matching necklace and earing set using clear and silver beads. The finished necklace is rolled up and adhered to the display paper with the matching earings hanging in the middle. The paper is stamped with silver ink saying "Happy Birthday"! She thought it was quite the professional display and didn't know I made it until she saw my name in the corner!

an emblished frame for the new happy family

My friend Kristin has inspired my to take a stab at some paper crafts. Here is a something I made this week for my friend Pati's 25th birthday today! I enclosed a picture of the new family of 3 in the frame when I gave it to her so it would be all ready to display! I wish I had made myself one too!

On the back I added a ribbon for added strength and support. The back is painted brown and the front paper and back is covered in Mod Podge for a matte seal protectant.

Dispayed next to my first gardinia bloom!

Happy Birthday Pati!

burp cloths

I've seen these darling embelished cloth diapers to be used as burp cloths in many boutiques and I thought I will try to make some of my own. For my friend's baby shower I recently posted about here, I enclosed these darling burp cloths in her gift bag. The flannel is prewashed and sewed onto the prewashed burp cloths. The soft flannel is the perfect surface for the sensitve skin on a baby's face, and the cloth diapers are ultra absorbant, what combo could make a better burp cloth!

If you are in the need for custom burp cloths I will be taking orders through: RosebudDesignsCA@gmail.com

They will be sold in themed sets of 3 burp cloths for $14 and the transaction will take place through Esty.

product tags

I recently ordered tags to attach to my products with my blog and email addresses, they aren't exactly as I would have hoped but they will do for now and when I run out I can start fresh maybe making a label image of my own. (Any graphic designers out there that are willing to help with this would be greatly welcomed!) My hope is that these tags will help promote my label when I give things I make as gifts or when I try to sell them.  The first tag will be attached to the baby items and the other for all other items, bags, jewlery, aprons, etc. I now look forward to going full force into my product design, production, and marketing!

rosebud designs labels

I recently received the 'rosebud designs' labels I ordered from Name Maker They came out exactally how I expected. Instead of ordering the woven clothing labels, I ordered the ribbon with 'rosebud designs' printed repeatitively throughout the 10 yards of ivory ribbon. There is about an inch of blank ribbon space between each area of text. I attached my first label onto a darling baby bib I was making for a friend!

give away!

Who is in need of a fabric grocery bag, a beach bag, or a gym bag?

Well....the first lucky and loyal blog reader to respond to this blog post will recieve a free handmade tote bag!

toy bag

I threw my friend Pati a baby shower today for work and church friends in San Diego. For her gift I wanted to do something creative (as is very typical of me). I came up with an idea to make a toy "bag" and put a bunch of misc. things in it I have been "collecting" since I first knew she was having a boy.

Each side of the bag has two pieces of thick canvas like fabric and a piece of lightweight interfacing ironed between the two for stiffing purposes. The end result is a bag whose sides will hold up enough to keep the toys contained in it, yet soft enough a young baby could pull it down to get the toys out when they are sitting on the floor. I also used a complementary fabric and iron interface to spell out T-O-Y-S on one side of the bag. Another option would be to use one fabric for the inside and a different for the outside so when the edge is folded over (creating more support for the bag) you get to see the contrasting fabrics!

I canot wait to see all Isaiah's toys in the bag and him playing near by, pictures of that when it happens many months from now!

martha

Today Martha Stewart, a huge inspiration of mine, released her new book, Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts. I was very excited when I first heard about this book coming out since I have her book Encycolpedia of Crafts which came out last year and just love it!

Unfortunately Martha sets us all up for failure cause she comes off as if she is coming up with all her ideas and pulling it off all alone with such ease when in actuality she has a staff of thousands. I grew up with a creative mother and gradmother and they are even more of an inspiration since they pull off their work all alone! I feel I was destined to follow in their footsteps. Growing up my mom used to let us pick out a pattern for our Halloween costume and then she would sew it for us. She also needlepointed my Christmas stocking and sewed a beautiful lace flower girl dress for my sister and I. I didn't realize until later in life that this was not a normal occurance for other children and that I was very lucky!

I got the bug for sewing when I was 7 years old in the 2nd grade. My teacher that year was very creative and among the many projects we did throughout the year, she taught us how to cross stitch. Over the next few years I got more into art and crafts, taking classes in art and during summer school would always sign up for the craft and sewing classes. At some point my mom also taught me how to hand stitch. I started off making pillows for my dolls, bedding for my Barbies, and little bags that couldn't hold much because the stitching was so big. Sometime around 10, 11, or 12 I begged her to show me how to use her sewing machine, she obliged and taught me the basic straight stitch.  She would get very annoyed when I would sew because everytime the thread got stuck (which happened frequently, ok very frequently) I would call out for her to help me fix it, and this usually happened while she was getting dinner ready. In highschool I needed an extra class for the credits so I took Home Ec. It was an absolute joke and I got an A+ with no effort needed. I made my first pair of wearable pants in this class too!  Around this time I asked for a sewing machine of my own which I got for my birthday or Christmas one year. Since then I have started experimenting on my own and rarely use patterns for my creations. You can find some of my creations below in past posts.

Stay tuned to see which of the 150 projects from the book I attempt to make! I cannot wait!

the sweet life

I recently was feeling that there were things I wanted to post on this blog that didn't fall under my 'label' Rosebud Designs so....I decided to start a new blog. My new blog will feature my recent happenings and thoughts on life, photography, favorite recipies of others, ones I alter and my unique food creations, and where ever else it takes me. I welcome you to check it out and follow me on Sara's Sweet Life.

nursing cover

My friend Pati is expecting and she found this fun fabric for me to turn into a nursing cover for when the baby arrives. I think it turned out darling!

The inside has pockets on either side to put nursing pads or pacifiers, it also helps weigh down the sides so they don't blow up while nursing. The neck strap is adjustable as well to make it easy to come on and off.

With the extra fabric I made a matching pouch for nursing cover which could be doubled as a clutch! 

simply fabulous

What do you think about this fun new blog background?

You too can find something unique to fit your you and

your blog's personality that all your friends will drool over!

Check out Simply Fabulous to get your free blog background now!

save the date!

My good friend, Pati, is expecting her first baby, a boy, in June!  Since we fill out or work schedules 6 weeks in advance I wanted to give people heads up about when the shower would be. These are 2 pictures of the Save the Date I made to post. I would like to thank Martha Stewart for her darling scrapbook paper which helped make this, if I can say so myself, very cute!

pretty little beads strung in a row

This past summer I was inspired to make a necklace from the fact that I couldn't fathom paying for one of those expensive trendy necklaces from stores like J.Crew. Since I do really like the necklaces they sell, I set out to make something similar. Although these pictures don't really give the necklace justice I thought I would post it anyways. The ribbon (black grosgrain) is woven around the beads (clear blue and marble sized plastic) and left free at either end to tie into a bow to make necklace to desired length.

when life gives you lemons make lemonade

While at Joann Fabrics on one of my many excursions to buy craft and sewing items I came across a cute 'vintage' lemon fabric. This fabric and the cute aprons they sell at Anthropologie inspired me to make an apron of my own. I found an accent pattern with polka dots (of course!, big surprise) to go with the lemon pattern. I think they complement eachother well and the end product is something that any cook would love to have in her kitchen! Now what to make for dinner?

seeing spots

I LOVE polka dots! Plain and simple. Most all of the projects I make have some thing in polka dots included. This is a tote bag that I made. These bags are great and can be used for anything from a beach bag, overnight bag, green alternative to a grocery bag, etc... Any other ideas what you could use this versitile bag for?

My love for making bags and polka dots goes back to almost 7+ years ago. I came up with an idea to use ribbon, ruffle it and then layer it to make the outside of the purse. I have since collected lots of ribbon to make more bags but the time these bags take to make has hindered me from making many more. Seeing these pictures again though is giving me inspiration to start making more!

Here are two bags using this style that I have pictures of. The first was made with my sister in mind who has a "funky" style. It is made with 18 yards of black grosgrain ribbon with white polka dots.

I also made a little "going out" bag with black satin blanket binding. The perfect size for a night out on the town!

You can be sure there will be more bags to come! I recently bought laminated fabric to make a bag, not sure if it will become a beach bag or diaper bag, but the ability to wipe the fabric clean it could work well as either...stay tuned!

tickled pink

Back in November my good friend was expecting her first baby, a girl! I couldn't have been more excited and I thought what could be better than some personalized gifts for baby Haley and her room. My inspiration came from the Peter Rabbit themed bedding, and the fabrics for the first 2 projects shown were picked with a vintage feel in mind. These are a few of the things I came up with...

A stuffed bunny.

A matching pillow for the rocking chair.

A few other things I made included a matching padded clothes hanger for that extra special outfit (not the one pictured below, this one is from my childhood), flannel burp cloths, a reversable bib

And a pink extra soft, fuzzy blanket with white satin blanket binding. Here is the little princess herself to model the blanket!