card month!

It is here! August!

Finally I can share what I have been working on for the past month.

The entire month of August will be card month here at little lovelies! I am so excited for all that I have planned - tutorials, tips, a giveaway, and even a linky party for you to share your work!

Plus you know it is a big deal because I learned to make a button just for this...

 <a  href="http://littleloveliesbyallison.blogspot.com"><img border="0"  src="http://i962.photobucket.com/albums/ae103/allisonmaestri/cardmonthbutton2copy.jpg" /></a>

(Grab a button! I will love you forever!)

Here is a little rundown of what is coming:

Tutorials:
I will have at least 8 card tutorials over the course of the month showcasing different tools, techniques, and styles. Best part? I have something for everyone - all skill levels!

Five Things Friday:
This month's FTF's will be centered around card stuff - supplies, ideas, features. Yay! 

Giveaway:

Watch for a super awesome giveaway - you will not want to miss it, I promise!

Link Party:

Sometime in the next week, I will be setting up a link party for you to share your cards. They can be cards made from my tutorials, your own designs, or even cards that you have already posted on your blog. If it's card related, it counts! I will pick 5 of my favorites to be featured on a Five Things Friday post - and there might even be some small prizes involved :)

Are you excited? I know I am! Here we go - card month at little lovelies!

july giveaway winner!

It is time to announce July's giveaway winner! 

Chosen by random.org...

the winner is...

Yay Jennifer! I will email you about getting you your prize. 

A big, huge thanks to everyone who entered - you guys are the best!

5-0-0

Just taking a moment to share with you guys - I have reached 500 followers! The big FIVE - OH - OH (anyone know what SNL skit I am sort of referencing?)

It is just so awesome and I am so excited! I actually kind of can't believe it. It is so fulfilling to have a dream, set goals, work hard, and see things happen. I have talked about a blog for years, and I actually did it - I am doing it. It's a good thing.

No big giveaway - no party. (I already have a giveaway going on here - open until tomorrow). 

Mostly, I just want to thank all of my followers and readers and visitors. You make this fun. Your comments encourage me and make me laugh, and I just love the little community that is going on here. 

I still don't know what my major goals are for this blog - monetizing? nope. etsy? hopefully. designing patterns? that would be fun. For now, I will just let it be. It's my blog, my little corner, something I dreamed of and I am doing. 

And just to break up the mushy - I may have bought this to celebrate: 

I have had the money saved for months,  but I made a little challenge for myself that I would not buy that baby until I met my first big huge milestone blog goal - 500 followers. Next milestone? 10 million. So, there is much work to be done.

 Yay! Thanks again for being a part of this. I know there are SO many blogs out there to choose from, and I am glad you are taking the time to read what I have to say :)

i am awesome

Just thought you would like to see something. At the start of this blog, I shared my craft room with you. Need a refresher? K:

It's so perfect. Pretty, organized, serene. 

It has never looked like that since this picture was taken. This is a clean version of what it usually looks like: 

Oh, yes. That, my friends, is creative brain throw up. I can count about 7 projects I have out and working on. Some of them are fails, yet I did not clean them up. I do this to keep myself humble. 

Here is a closer look at some of the finer things you can find in brain throw up studio. 

My trashcan. Classy.

My "studio" I am experimenting with because my daylight hours are spent at work or taking care of Sawyer. I am jealous of all you nap time photographers. Oh, for some clean, white light!

Hello still unwound skeins of embroidery thread. I bet when you read this, you thought I had all my embroidery thread all wound up and organized. 

Here is a waste of money. A stamp I bought like a year ago, finally got around to using, and it doesn't stamp in the middle. I think I might try stepping on it to get the stamp to actually stamp. Either way, I am mad at it. 

Mug rug, circa 4 months ago. (What, you can't tell that it was supposed to be a mug rug?) It has been sitting next to the sewing machine for 4 months, so I am thinking maybe it will end up in one of those bags of scrap craft things I give to my granddaughter. She will have fun playing with all my unfinished projects. That's a good future memory. 

The fuel behind it all. Diet Coke, my bff. Sad, isn't it? 

Note to self: I am awesome.

a new lovely

Don't you just love when you find something that you really really love?

I found these nesting doll measuring cups in the "college" section at Target. I bet you know the one - there are about 100 desk lamps in neon colors, thousands of plastic bins, and gigantic body pillows. You know, because you need an enormous body pillow in a 10x10 dorm room. Seriously though, I do love Target and all their back to school stuff - especially the fun stuff like these cool measuring cups. 

The can nest into each other and each half of a doll is a different measure.

I even took a picture of the box so you guys would know what to look for if you want to go pick up a set for yourself. $9.99 by the way. Well spent.

in the works

hey friends!

Just popping in to tell you a bit about what is in the works around here. 

1. I volunteered to stitch a new embroidery pattern for Sara at the Split Stitch. You can head on over there to read about the pattern I chose. I have already started embroidering and I am excited for what it is turning into. There is a project and giveaway from me involved when Sara introduces the stitched patterns on her blog, so you should just give her a follow so you don't miss any of the fun!

2. I have started work on my big ol' August plans for my blog. I just know you will love it! A whole theme month with tutorials and fun projects and tips centered around one theme. Want a hint? It is not something you have seen a lot of from me here on my blog. Any guesses? I mean, I won't tell you if you are right, but guessing is fun! I have now said fun twice in one paragraph. It will be fun though. Funny fun fun. 

3. I also have a new weekly series in the works centered around Pinterest. It may even turn into a link party. We'll see how it plays out but I will let you know when I have finalized things.

I am such a tease! I wish I could crank out a project a day, but there are only so many hours. What in the world did I do with my time before I was a mom and had a blog?! No, really, I don't know what I did with my time.

fabric button bookmarks

All I have to say is...

Fabric covered button bookmarks. The easiest, cutest little craft. 

I bought the paperclip blanks on Pick Your Plum last week with these little bookmarks in mind. 

I am betting that you have seen fabric covered buttons all over the blog world. They are cute, cheap, easy to make, and I am in love! I bought my button covering kits at Joann for a few dollars each.

I stitched an "A" onto Aida cloth and made that into a personalized button bookmark. 

Since it isn't within me to leave well enough alone, I had to make a matching set to package up for a cute gift. 

The stamp is from Papertrey Inc. A sweet quote by one of my favorite authors. 

I loved the cross stitch letter so much, I stitched up a tiny heart to make into a button. I am kind of in love. 

In honor of HP7.2, I used my Deathly Hollows book to photograph this cute little clip in action. Magic is Might. 

So, what do you think? Want to make a couple? Or twenty?

p.s. Don't forget to enter my July follower giveaway here. ooooh, glitter!

linking: