Keeping it SIMPLE...

So, I thought I was doing a good thing.

Simplifying my life.

 I mean, I rarely have time to take care of my little blog...

hardly post, very late answering comments.

And even worse, I have very little time to visit my special friends on their blog.

Shame on me:)

So...time to make a change, right?

I turned over my little tutu making "business" to my daughter, Taylor.

She makes better tutus than I did anyway!

Look at this sweet peach tutu dress

she made for a lady in Australia.

 This week I went downtown to deliver a few of her tutus to Vintage Charm,

 the most "charming" store in all of Naples,

and also to deliver a few of these CUTE pumpkins,

if I say so myself, as a little gift to say thank you for wanting Taylor's tutus in her store.

I felt lighter as I went along. 

Good move, Suzanne!

Sometimes you have to take time for yourself...

right?

Time to work on whatever projects make me happy.

The lovely lady who owns the shop was very kind...

still wants the tutus...

and fell in LOVE with the pumpkins!

So much that she immediately ordered a bunch of sets.

Guess I know what my next project is!

Oh, and she remembered hearing about some beaded belts I made a few years back...

  loves the idea of those...

and wants as many as I can make before Christmas.

And then there is the little matter of the beaded Christmas tree I made one year...

she would like to order those too...again, as many as I can make.

Yikes...so much for scaling back!

Me and my BIG mouth!:)
 What to do, what to do...
I know, what I want to do, right?
Stay tuned...

Speaking of Christmas, only 79 more days:)

I know, I know...you're all enjoying a lovely Fall.

But since we don't get much of a Fall down here, 

we might as well get excited about Christmas!

And to get us in the spirit, we found these Santa Snuggies...

...you know, for all of that

frigid weather we get in Florida.  hahaha

BUT...no crafts or Christmas plans until I have checked in on my friends:)

See you soon...promise!

Keeping Busy With My Shabby Chicks...

When you come in our house,

especially if my husband is on a business trip...

there is no mistaking the fact that we make tutus.

As you can see, the dining room becomes the tutu room:)

 

And lately we have been making quite a few tutus.

Shabby Chick Jordan made a bunch of tutus this summer,

especially for a photographer who wanted some to use in her studio as props.

 

 

Here are a few photos from the photo shoot...

yes, these are Shabby Tiara Tutus!

Pretty cool, huh?

 

And then Shabby Chick Taylor came home from Maine...

and started organising the business.

She also worked on a bunch of NEW tutus.

Check these out...

 

 

 

Cute...a Candy Corn Tutu...

(Her creation!)

And finally, here are a few models whose mommy bought our

Hawaiian tutus...

 

 

PRECIOUS!

We've now been a part of many 1st birthday celebrations:)

So that's pretty much been keeping us busy.

We're currently working with a lovely lady from Australia.

Even though I sometimes get tired and think enough with the tutus,

the girls are working and we do have fun creating together.

And no doubt about it, they are learning a bit about working for their money,

taking and fulfilling orders, 

and dealing with customers from all over the world.

I bet not a lot of moms get to share this with their teenage girls,

So for now, we're still covered in tulle:)

 

Now for the shameless plug,

you can buy their tutus at The Shabby Tiara.

(Sorry...couldn't resist!)

How about you? 

Any fun creations in your life these days?

I have lots of things I want to make...

So many ideas, so little time:)

And now I'm beginning to think about Christmas.

Okay...no groans.

As I write this, there are 123 days, 2 hours and 40 minutes until

Christmas!

I make it my business to know these things!

Hope you have a great week!

Feeling Romantic...

Oooooh...got your attention there, didn't I???

But first I have to thank all of my pink friends for stopping by on Saturday. I'm looking forward to visiting each and every one of your blogs and getting to know you if we haven't "met" already! I'm so happy you liked the tutu and wish I could send each of you one...but as you know, I can't exactly do that.
What I can do is send Courtney a tutu for her litle girl since she won the giveaway.
Yay...Yippee!!!!!!!!
Please stop by and visit Courtney at her blog, Women Living Well......you will truly be inspired and blessed.

Okay...now on to the romantic part.
No, not what you're thinking...hee,hee
THIS is what I'm talking about...
Romantic Country Magazine



Oh my gosh...have you ever seen this magazine?
Every single issue is more beautiful than the one before.
This, combined with the amazing shabby/romantic shops I discovered this weekend
have convinced me I have to get my house to this place, as much as possible.
My husband may resist a bit here and there
but when I remind him how much time is spent in our home...
we not only live here but my children learn here...
I think he'll be okay.
Maybe.
Hopefully.
Anyway, he has a business trip coming up.
He almost expects to smell paint when he walks in the door so...
I can't disappoint him, right?
When I tell him that we are being green and giving "new life" to old furniture...he will be unimpressed.
(No...I'm not going to paint my bedroom furniture...yet.)
But when I tell him we are saving money in other ways...BINGO!!!
Here are a few pictures that have me in a "romantic...decorating that is...mood:-)
Hope you all have a beautiful day!





Okay...so this next one is more beachy/shabby...with a touch of romantic...and totally irresistible:-)

Think Pink...

What's the big deal with PINK?
Pink is a combination of red and white. The shade of pink is determined by how much red is present. Shades of deep pink, such as magenta, are effective in neutralizing disorder and violence. Some prisons use limited deep pink tones to diffuse aggressive behaviour. Pink is the color of universal love. Pink is a quiet color. Lovers of beauty favor pink. A pink carnation means "I will never forget you".

Hmmm...lovers of beauty...I like that!

Speaking of beauty, I have a little giveaway for you today...
A sweet little Pink Tutu from The Shabby Tiara.


You do not have to follow, subscribe, blog about it, FB it, tweet it or any of that stuff.
All you have to do is leave a comment today and let me know if you have a little girl in your life who might love a tutu...that's it!
Even if you're not in the market for a tutu, please let me know you stopped by.
On Sunday, I'll select a number by random generator.
Remember...Valentine's Day is coming up:-)

Thank you to Beverly from How Sweet The Sound for hosting Pink Saturday!

Back to Blogland...

Happy Monday...I'm back to my little home on the internet. Amazingly, I managed to pick up about 30 followers in the few weeks I was gone. How does this happen? I don't know but I'm happy it does:-)

Yes, I took a little break. I can choose between writing about my life/family and the Holidays or I can live it. Unlike many of you gifted people out there, I'm not capable of doing both.

The bad news...I had my annual Holiday meltdown. The good news...it's over early and I'm good to go:-) About 2 weeks ago I called my mom and started bawling on the phone about how I feel I let everyone down... Blah, blah, blah. (Martha, this is because of you and my quest for the perfect Holiday:-) I've let go of a few things since then. Since my girls were little, I've always had to have the perfect Christmas card. I know photo cards have been around forever but I think I was one of the first that I know of to go with a "theme" picture for our cards, such as angels, mermaids... maybe I'll do a post about it and show a few. I can't show you the one of them when they were 7 and 5, lounging around the pool in old-fashioned bathing suits with flowered bathing caps on like some vintage bathing beauty, because that was the one card they refused to be a part of...and I never let them forget it! hahaha...

Anyway, this year the cards are ready to go out with a short, sweet note and a simple, fun photo. And it's killing me... lol

Okay, well, this is Thanksgiving week. Hope you're all enjoying this special time of year. Me...I'm not a big Thanksgiving person. In the old days when cousins aunts and Uncles crammed around a long table at my Grandma's...that was Thanksgiving. These days just aren't quite the same. Don't get me wrong, we are very thankful. But we are more than ready to move on to Christmas.
Sorry...one of those people:-) To top it off, I don't like turkey.

(You're safe from me, Mr. Turkey!)
But I do love mashed potatoes and gravy, dressing, sweet potato casserole and pumpkin pie. Carbs anyone??? Geez...good thing I am serving dinner at the hospital with my husband instead of eating it! My girls are spending Thanksgiving with their grandparents so I will have my first Holiday with an empty nest...seems kind of strange but they'll have fun.

What else, what else... Well, we are in full Nutcracker mode around here. This is the Flower Fairy or Dew Drop, which is Taylor's main role. And she wears pink:-)



Rehearsals, rehearsals and more rehearsals...long ones...but it's looking good, so it's worth it. And we are making lots of these little cuties...




I know I write about a pink Christmas but the only rooms I can pull that off this year are Taylor's room and maybe the guest room. The great room is mainly a white Christmas with touches of red. Because I am worried about my curious BIG puppy, our tree has only those family ornaments that are not breakable as well as a lot of other sturdy ones, just in case I come home to find the tree toppled over. We glittered some starfish and white poinsettias and it looks so pretty.



One of my favorite decorations was the simplest. I had all of these colored glass ornaments and a huge glass cylinder I picked up for $7 at a yard sale this year so I dumped them in and voila...instant decoration!




I also love, love, love feather trees and here is one by the front door...




Just look at these shells...I'm not sure you can see but they're all glittery. Thanks to Tales from an OC Cottage for the idea!



Guess that's enough rambling for today. I'll leave you with a thought for the Holidays...
"Remember, the more expensive and big the gift, the more kids will enjoy playing with the box it came in more than anything".

Have a great day!
Au revoir,
Suzanne

Friend Makin Monday: Hobbies

Happy Monday, everyone! I'm joining in on Amber's Friend Makin Monday for the first time. It sounded like a topic I could get into...Hobbies...or things I love to do...things I want to do...and that list is long. (But I'll trim it a bit, don't worry:-) I think my life goes in "phases"...as in my "beading" phase, "knitting" phase (This happens every time I read a Debbie Macomber book as I am now:-) Anyway, I have said before if only I could focus on one or two projects, I might actually master them. As it is, there are too many wonderful things to make out there so I fear I will never change. Anyway, in no particular order, here are some of my "hobbies"...


I love taking photos and one of these days, would love to take a photography class just for fun.




Crafts...This was in one of my crafty phases when I turned every pen in the house into flower pens. We still have them...how can you not smile when you are writing with a big flower???




I still love these! I don't care what Clinton from What Not to Wear says...cute flip-flops are a MUST in the south, thank you very much:-) I made these in every color. I had a neighbor with a flip-flop business and she taught me the ropes...lucky me:-)


I love looking for seashells. This is a hobby I share with my girls and it is one of my favorites. There are few things as relaxing to me as walking along the beach looking for pretty shells or that rare piece of seaglass.



Okay, I love beads. There are so many things you can do, even though I am not exactly in a bead phase at the moment. I think I got hooked on the name bracelets and it went from there. This was one of my biggest sellers. I made a long colorful bead strand from a mish-mash of pretty beads and wore it to pick up my daughter at school. I think I had it on as a double necklace and a teacher asked me about it. I told her it was a triple threat...long necklace, double necklace and belt. She went crazy over it and that year there was hardly a teacher to be found who wasn't ordering these belts. Fun times:-)




Let's see...I got hooked on these a long time ago when I saw one for sale that cost $175. Seriously!!!!! I drove straight to Michaels, bought the most beautiful flowers I could and attached them to a small purse. Voila...a "blossom" bag. (That was what I called them at the time. hehehe)

I also love to read, but prefer uplifting books or those with happy endings. Yep...I'm a sap...big time:-)


...and you know about these. This one is called "Buttercup", made by Taylor.


Wait...there's more. I have also been knitting...it's spotty at best but it keeps me from eating at night so that's good. Hahaha!

Then there are my weak attempts at scrapbooking. I have such fabulous scrappers in my family...what happened to me? But I have been trying lately so maybe this time I will get those albums done for Christmas.

I am learning to speak French...does that count as a hobby? My girls have to learn as part of their schooling and their teacher is letting me in on the class...Yay!!!

What's up with you???
Au revoir, Suzanne

"Pink" Sugar and Spice...

...and everything nice...that's what little girls are made of.

Welcome to another Pink Saturday!
Today's pink photos will be short and sweet. It's been a busy week of painting and fixing up the house, as well as making.............tutus!
This is something my girls and I love to do together. We have sold them locally and I hope to get some listed in my "store" this weekend but who knows if that will happen. Did I mention I have a computer armoire to paint???:-) They did convince me to get a booth at a few Holiday bazaars so that should be fun. Anyway, here is our contribution to pink Saturday...








Thank you to Beverly at How Sweet The Sound for another wonderful Pink Saturday!
Beverly also asks us to introduce you to a new blog each week. One of my "blog friends" just started a beautiful new blog called Hue Knew...and it is full of beautiful photo collages of decorating in various color schemes.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!