A place to lay your head

I feel as though I am always looking for a unique and different gift idea for my kids to give at birthday parties. One of our all time favorites is to give a pillowcase. Not your run of the mill, plain jane pillowcase - but a KIDcase PILLOWcase from Sister Sue Designs! Kids LOVE them because they are bright and fun; parents LOVE them because it is a practical gift with a twist! We generally give them paired with a book, so kids can kick back and relax. I LOVE to give books, as we are big readers at our house!

There are so many occasions you could gift a KIDcase PILLOWcase! Celebrate birthdays, accomplishments, vacations, sleepovers, transition to a "big bed" or make a hospital stay special and memorable. I am sure you can think of other great ways to give one! Boys and girls alike love to receive them. This weekend, I made 7 of them to fill local orders! Whew! Happy moms everywhere as kids want to chill out and read a book - maybe they will sneak in a nap too! Always good when the kids want to LAY DOWN and be quiet; or look forward to going to bed.

So, try one - your kids will LOVE them!

Hollywood, here we come...

I received this photo today from Style Cafe Moms that our Original Diaper Tote and Cloth Play Blocks have been packaged into the gift basket for Rebecca Romijn's twins! Can you spot the Sister Sue items? I feel like they got such a prominent place, smack in the middle of the picture! They also included a press release that will be sent out as well.
I am so excited, and can't wait to hear any feedback they receive from Rebecca and Jerry. Coming up next should be the photo and press release for Gwen Stefani's swag for her son Zuma. Oh, I am smiling! ....movie stars, swimming pools....

Sweet mother of mine...

Today is my mom's 61st birthday. Happy Birthday, mom! I am so grateful to my mom for more things than I could ever list here. But, without her, I would not have learned to sew; nor would I have started Sister Sue Designs. She is my best friend, my rock and support, and one of the most beautiful people I know - inside and out! I can only hope that I have enough of her genes, to age as gracefully as she has!

My daughter and I made this sweet pincushion for her birthday. Isn't it just yummy looking?! A very easy pattern by Cindy Taylor Oates. I highly recommend making these for anyone who loves to sew.

Happy Birthday, mom! Here's to many more cupcakes....

Houston, we have a problem...

Just to "keep it real" following my post that introduced all of you to my work space. I promised you it doesn't always look that clean. I didn't lie.

As you can see, my son's "space guys and space monkeys" have landed in my studio. Not to be outdone, my daughter's horse stable has also set up camp. It is starting to feel smaller in my studio as the toys migrate to where I am. *Sigh*

I tell myself to step over the horses and astronauts, and remember that before I know it the toys won't be there. Before I know it, my kids will be grown and I will long for them to play in my studio. I will want to step over their toys and not just my own mess.

So, really, it isn't always clean. *Laugh* The funny thing is that I seem to thrive in clutter! I was so productive this weekend as I worked around the toy obstacle.

Like I said, just keeping it real.

New look

I am so excited to unveil my "new look" to all of you! As my business has grown over the past year, it was time for my image to grow also. Maybe "grow up" is a better way to say it. In the beginning of Sister Sue, I loved the flower. But it was time to lose it and find my own identity. My good friend Beth, at Ruby & Roja, designed my new Sister Sue logo (she also designed my blog. Love it. Keepin' the flower here). Don't you love the font that looks like I sewed it? *Sigh* Love at first sight.

Next step was to take my new logo to my local MO girl, Julie, of Stockwell Designs. Folks, she does incredible work! Just look at it, that is my business card! So, for all of my Etsy friends looking for help with their look, she's your magician. I told her thoughts I had and what I definitely didn't want; and she made it very difficult to narrow down my options! She is the Art Director, Creative Designs at a big company; but is spinning up her own company on the side. She doesn't have her own website yet, but if you are interested in her contact info, let me know. She also designed awesome stickers, tags, and letterhead. I have letterhead! So, someone request that I send you and letter, m'kay? Then order something from my shop, so that I can send you something with a sticker on the box and a lovely new tag. I love stickers. Guess I'll eternally be a 6 yr. old sticker collector.

So, go now and check out the new look at my shop (Julie designed my banner too)! Go. Now. Please....

Isn't it divine? *Sigh. LOVE.

Sister Sue Studio - Part 2

So, on the last post, I realized I posted my pictures backwards from how I planned for you to see them! I guess you walked backwards through my studio. Ha, Ha!

I also couldn't post all of the pictures I planned to show. That's why there's a part 2. Out of my ignorance of Blogger.

One of the other best things about the space is the closet. It's....well, GIANT. At our last home, I had all of my fabrics stored in plastic storage bins. Now, they are folded neatly (for now) on lovely shelves; where I can see ALL of them.

You may be thinking how amazingly clean and organized the studio looks right now. But, alas, I cleaned and put everything in it's place for the pictures. Anyone who knows me will agree that it won't stay this pristine for long. Creativity thrives in clutter - in my opinion!

And the last picture turned out dark because when I look out of my studio on a beautiful day, I can see the sunshine in the backyard. I love that.

Come on in...

I always think it's fun and interesting to see where people live, and work, and play. I thought it might be interesting to you to see my new studio!

Back in September, we moved to a new home. I love it. We have lived in several homes since we've been married (14 years), but they've always had a "time limit" of sorts. The "first house" when we got married was a "fixer upper" and we got our fill of fixin'. Then the "grown up" house in Colorado that reminded us of the one's we grew up in. It was 4 bedrooms, two stories; the one we planned to start our family in - and did. Then was the "transfer - brand new home" back to Kansas - unexpectedly, due to my husband's promotion. That's when we decided a brand new house that was quickly finished; required a lot of fixin' too! But it was our "10 year plan"; great neighborhood, close to schools and everything else. Our son was born while we lived in this home. But, we gradually neared 10 years (without realizing it) and slowly outgrew the space.

This summer we happened upon this house and instantly knew it would be our next home. This is "the one." This is the house we will raise our children in, they will grow up here and bring their friends here. We will grow old here.

All along our plan was to finish the basement and give me the studio I always wanted. My own space. I am a lucky girl. The construction was finished in November, but my studio continues to "evolve". I tried to do my homework and really make sure the bones of the space were work friendly to me and that everything flows. Most everything is unpacked. I am still working on the "stuff" and decorating it exactly how I want it. But it's fun to have my own area that is everything I love. It is LOVE.

Everything has a place in my studio. I love that. It is right in my basement! All I have to do is "go downstairs" and BAM, I'm at work. I love that. I just bought the chair at my writing/laptop desk; it is green! I love that. It's from here, and I love this store. Last, but not least are all of the little things on my shelves above the work stations. Birds. I love birds!

I gotta go to work. I love that.