I'm back with cozy slippers!

And back to our regularly scheduled programming...

So I made it through my first giveaway and multiblog event. It was fun to reach out and find interested sponsors; to collaborate with the bloggers; and I'm thrilled to have more readers (hopefully you'll visit now and then!).

I do feel slightly knocked off my groove now though so I'm going to have to make an effort to spend a little more time here again.

My class ended yesterday and I feel like I've been given the gift of some extra time. I cleaned and we can see parts of the living room we haven't seen in a while. And by now I've got a long list of gifts I want to make. I'm sure I won't get to them all but I'll have some fun.

I've shared that I've been playing with upcyling wool sweaters. I still love the idea of wool longies but I have yet to make a pair for my girls that really feel finished. But I did make a pair of slippers that I'm super happy with! I've tried them on just to make sure they work (and I will have to make a pair for myself) but they will be a gift.








Kinda funky! But fun. Easy and quick to make (important these days when my brain is still adjusting to being split in so many directions!). Comfy and warm.

I wasn't sure what to do with a really thick wool sweater I got. I was scared to felt it because I sure what would happen. That's kind of just me. Kind of a creativity buzz-kill to be like that though. So after making longies out of the sleeves, I felted the body. And it came out thick! Really thick! It sat on the back of a chair for a week before I realized it would be perfect for slipper soles! Then my husband threw the matching longies in with the rest of the wash so they felt too, but not quite as much. So they made perfect top and sides. Some matching yarn and edging from another sweater and voila! Slippers!

Just in case you want to see them again...



I haven't put them away yet because I like looking at my successful projects (a nice thing about being a SAHM, I get to look at my girls all the time! Ha ha.). Tonight I'm taking it lazy, I mean easy, for the first time in a while. But tomorrow, on to the next gift!

Merry Fluffy Christmas - The Winners!

We have reached the end of A Merry Fluffy Christmas! It was a lot of fun and now I get to announce the winners of these great prizes!

I used random.org to get these numbers (just in case one becomes your lucky number).

Day 1 - #86 Rachel L

Day 2 - #206 .:karen:.

Day 3 - #95 MommyTrenches

Day 4 - #156 MommyTrenches (randomness likes you today!)

Day 5 - #94 Stacy V

I will email the winners later today. I look forward to seeing more of you all and here's wishing everyone very Happy Holidays!

Merry Fluffy Christmas - Giveaway #5

Wow. This marks the last day of the Merry Fluffy Christmas event and there have been some great prizes!

I've saved something different for the end.

The hands behind Hippogryff's Nest belong to Janet, a mom of two who discovered the wonders of wool when she was using cloth diapers and doing part-time elimination communication with her youngest.

I made a polyester fleece pad for her to sleep on but noticed she would wake up all sweaty, even in the winter! Right about then I also tried wool diaper covers, and just loved how breathable but waterproof they were. When I found out there were wool pads for sleeping on I looked all around, but couldn't find any I could afford!

(Does that sound familiar? It does to me. That's about where I was when I found Hippogryff's Nest on Etsy!)

I had visited our local Pendleton Outlet Store in Washougal before, and knew they carried some fabric back in the corner behind all the clothes and blankets. I went and bought some, and fulled it a little (which I had done before with projects I'd knitted), not nearly as much as I do on the ones I make now, and they have worked great for us ever since! I thought surely there were other folks like me, who need this item so basic to baby and toddler care (at least it became a real essential for us!), looking for an affordable option. And I love to support a local business that has been here for so many years, and in turn the farmers/ranchers that grow the wool here in the US. I think that is pretty cool.

So Janet makes and sells (at a very reasonable price) wool pads that are very useful both in and out of the house. We bought one (and then another) from her earlier this year and they were great in the summer for letting our infant lie and sit around with just a cloth diaper, or less, on. And now that it's cold out, we still use them (see the second part of this giveaway). I must admit, I've only used them in my girls' beds a couple of times, but I'd love to use them more. Anyway, more from Janet (who also writes books!).

I enjoy making them too. I have been sewing since I was in junior high school, thanks to my mom. I learned to sew on my great-grandma's 1940s Singer, which I still have (and use, sometimes!). And I love sewing for my kids. It feels great to make something useful and custom-made just for them, and gives a great sense of purpose to a hobby I already enjoy.

So for this giveaway, one lucky winner will get a Hippogryff's Nest crib-sized wool pad (worth $28)!

AND, there is a second piece as well.

BabyLegs is generously giving a gift pack (worth $50) to a winner on each of the Merry Fluffy Christmas blogs.

I'm guessing that if you use cloth diapers, you know about leggings and probably own at least a pair. When I first saw them at a store, I thought they were just too cute and I think I was still pregnant with my first! Now each of my girls has a few pairs and they get a lot of use out of them. They make diaper changing really quick and easy with these little squirmy ones. We used them a lot this summer for our infant as she hung around on the wool pad (see above). And now they are great for wearing with pants or dresses as an extra layer.I've heard they are great as arm-warmers, but we haven't tried that yet.

They have a lot of cute prints too, which the winner will be able to choose!
The gift pack will include:

(2) BabyLegs Leg Warmers
(1) Pair of Baby Socks
(1) Pair of Girl Tights OR (2) Pairs Boy Socks

So, for this giveaway you'll need:

the Hippogryff's Nest Etsy Shop link at http://www.etsy.com/shop/hippogryff

the BabyLeg's website at http://www.babylegs.com/

my blogging Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mama-Bubbles/169768056373576

This giveaway will be open until 11:59 pm on Dec 7th. The winner will be contacted by email and will have 48 hours to respond before another winner is chosen.

**CLOSED**

You'll definitely want to visit all of the Merry Fluffy Christmas blogs for more fabulous giveaways! All winners will be announced on December 8th.

Merry Fluffy Christmas - Giveaway #4

Wow, we're already on Day 4 of the Merry Fluffy Christmas Event! The first day's giveaway is over but feel free to scroll down to enter day 2 and day 3 if you haven't already!

Today I'd like to introduce you to

Here's another really creative seamstress that works magic with upcycled wool sweaters! The My Eco Baby Etsy shop has a variety of cozy selections such as:

Fun right?

Well one lucky winner is going to get to choose a pair of longies from this shop!!

I've said why I love wool longies before so here are some words from the artist herself:

The thing I love about my longies is the fact that they have elastic in the waist. With a generous and roomy fit, the elastic is key. Now you don't have to worry about your little ones cover constantly coming off, or pulling up their pants 10 million times! Myecobaby longies are only one layer of wool, so this is a great day time cover. Now that it is fall, and now that it is getting chilly out, a nice pair of wool longies are perfect. Put on your favorite prefold or fitted, and slide these right on over it! Diaper cover and pants in one! Plus, with as cute as these are you wouldn't want to cover them up!

I love work with recycled wool,cashmere,angora. I design my clothes and love to add little appliques.
I had set my heart on eco-friendly and handmade clothing for our children. 

For this giveaway you'll need:

the My Eco Baby Etsy Shop link at http://www.etsy.com/shop/Myecobaby

my Twitter page at http://twitter.com/mama_bubbles

my blogging Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mama-Bubbles/169768056373576

This giveaway will be open until 11:59 pm on Dec 6th. The winner will be contacted by email and will have 48 hours to respond before another winner is chosen.

**CLOSED**

You'll definitely want to visit all of the Merry Fluffy Christmas blogs for more fabulous giveaways and visit me again tomorrow for Day 5!

Merry Fluffy Christmas - Giveaway #3

We're on Day 3, which means that the Day 1 giveaway will end at midnight tonight and there's still time for the Day 2 giveaway.

Today I'm showcasing two more lovely Etsy shops:

AND

It's getting cold out (for most of us, I assume) so we're pulling out our warmer clothes. Barnyard Baby has a variety of arm and leg warmers made out of cotton, fleece and soy. There are even some sweet gift sets that include a matching hat!

And, there are some oh-so-useful nursing covers with a handy pocket sewn in (for holding a spit cloth, keys, or rocks that your older one picks up while you are at the park that are very useful when it's windy!).

When I contacted Monica with Barnyard Baby about this giveaway event, she generously offered to send me some soy wipes/washcloths to try out. Now I love natural materials but I am not very familiar with soy yet. And wow, it is soft! The soy wipes from Barnyard Baby are the perfect size and thickness for using with little ones. We used them as wipes. Speed is the key these days so wipes have to be efficient, and these fit the bill! They wash up great and I'm sure they will be in our diapering arsenal for a long time!

For this giveaway, Barnyard Baby will be sending a set of 12 soy washcloths/wipes!

And that's not all!

Berchta's Belly is another Etsy shop absolutely worth checking out! This stay-at-home-work-at-home-mom from Vermont takes full advantage of the abundance of cold weather to take upcycling wool sweaters to a whole new level! Her shop is filled with enchanting overalls, hats, jackets, and capes made from wool and cashmere sweaters. Some of them have felted and crocheted elements added to them.

So the lucky winner from this giveaway will also receive a $25 Gift Certificate to the Berchta's Belly shop! You will have until 11:59 pm on Dec 5th to enter. The winner will be contacted by email and will have 48 hours to respond before another winner is chosen instead.

Without further ado, here are the links you will need to enter to win these wonderful gifts!

Berchta's Belly Etsy Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/Berchtasbelly1

Berchta's Belly Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Berchtasbelly1/154208447945033?v=wall

My Barnyard Baby Etsy Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/MyBarnyardBaby

My Barnyard Baby Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/BarnyardBaby

My Barnyard Baby on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Barnyard_Baby

This giveaway is closed. Winner will be announced and emailed on Dec 8th.

You'll definitely want to visit all of the Merry Fluffy Christmas blogs for more fabulous giveaways and visit me again tomorrow for Day 3!

Merry Fluffy Christmas - Giveaway #2

It is Day 2 of the Merry Fluffy Christmas Event! There's still time to enter the Day 1 giveaway if you haven't already but here we are moving on to more cute cloth diapering must-haves.

Introducing:

 

and 

I've mentioned my love of wool longies before so I'm thrilled today to showcase a SAHM of two who does creative and wonderful things with upcycled wool sweaters! Mandi, or Three Happy Trees, will be giving one lucky winner a $25 Gift Certificate to be used at her Etsy shop.

Let me show you a few of her pieces:

Cute, right? There are always new pieces in her shop.
And, she's got some great stocking stuffers (well, grown-up stockings) too!

You read right, we do have two sponsors for this giveaway! 

BabyXpress is another Etsy shop definitely worth a visit! I'll let Marina tell you about herself:

I am a mother of 4, residing in Florida. I have always been very creative and creating my items comes very natural to me. It has always been my dream to be able to own a business where I could put my creativity to work. Now that the kids are away in college I decided this was the perfect time to follow my dreams.

Babyxpress specializes in creating individually handcrafed baby gifts made with high quality garments at affordable prices. I am a perfectionist and spend a lot of time perfecting each gift. I never stop creating and thus my shop will always have something new to offer.

It seems that these days I'm always looking for a 'new baby' gift for someone. BabyXpress has a variety of gift items and she packages them beautifully! Take a look:

BabyXpress will be sending someone a package of Baby Washcloth Cupcakes to be kept or gifted (a hard choice!).

So of course you'll want to enter the giveaway now!

Here are some links you'll need:

Three Happy Trees on Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/threehappytrees

Three Happy Trees on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/ThreeHappyTrees/305666437404

BabyXpress on Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/shop/babyxpress

This giveaway is closed. Winner will be emailed and announced on Dec 8th.

This giveaway will end at 11:59pm on Dec 4th. The winner will be chosen by random.org and contacted via email. If I don't hear back within 48 hours, another winner will be chosen.

You'll definitely want to visit all of the Merry Fluffy Christmas blogs for more fabulous giveaways and visit me again tomorrow for Day 3!