Success in Suffolk

I was very happy with how the craft show went on Saturday at the Suffolk Seaboard Station Railroad Museum!

The weather was perfect! I had a nice shady spot for most of the day and it wasn't too windy. (which meant I was able to put up my pennant banner on the front of the table since the wind wasn't blowing it around too much)

These were some of my neighbors during the show:






I couldn't figure out if it was a good thing or a bad thing that I was near the petting zoo. On one hand, the interest in the petting zoo drew people over near my table. On the other hand, people would start looking at my table and then notice the petting zoo and get distracted. At least the area was set up so that the walkway took them back by our tables after they had spent time at the petting zoo.

My table was also next to a very nice lady from Suffolk who was attending her first craft show.... Carly's Classy Clips

The crayon wallets remained in the spot of the #1 selling item. Here are some photos of the newer version that I have been making.

I started placing the crayons in sideways to prevent them from slipping out if it was turned upside down. I haven't had any problems with the original style that I made, but I just wanted to prevent it from possibly happening.

Also, the new designs have crayon pockets large enough to hold either 8 regular sized crayons or 4 larger toddler sized crayons.

They now measure approximately 11" x 5.5" when opened and 4.5" x 5.5" when closed.

These make great birthday gifts. Please contact me if you would like a crayon wallet made with a specific fabric pattern or with a certain licensed character.

I also started listing some of my items on Dreamaid today. 10% of the money I make will be donated to the Dreamaid Charity. They provide staffing, internet access, computers, cameras, etc to third world artists which helps them to promote their art around the world. It is obviously not as popular as Etsy is right now, but there is still a large variety of handmade items available to purchase from artists around the world.

Here comes the clothing...

A couple of weeks ago, I posted some pictures of a couple of the clothing items I had been working on. I had to put that on hold until this week because I had some custom orders to complete and a craft fair to get ready for, but it was very hard because I had so much fun doing the clothing.

These techniques had been on my forever growing "to do" list for a couple of years now, but other things always came up. The day before Thanksgiving last year, I finally decided to put some shirts together for my daughters...hand print turkey shirts.

They came out very cute and just made me want to make more, but of course......other things came up that kept me too busy.

So, now that I finally made the time to work on some, here are some of the designs that I have come up with:

Please let me know what you think! I am always open to suggestions on things you would like to see. Trust me...I have a huge list of designs to use, but you will just have to keep watching to see those!

Travel in Style

Here is a new product that I am going to have available very soon.....a travel Hair Accessories Wallet.

Take it along for your vacation or even for a short day trip. It will keep all your hair clips neatly in one place and prevent them from getting damaged in your bag. There is a pocket on one side to hold hair bands and other accessories that won't clip onto the ribbons. The two wide ribbons can hold up to 24 hair clips.

There are seams at the folding points to make it easier to close. It measures approximately 15"x7" when opened and approximately 4"x7" when folded. It folds up easily with a velcro closure. The inside pocket measures approximately 4"x6" and also has a velcro closure.


The Hair Accessory Wallet will soon be available in all the fun and stylish fabrics you can expect from Handmade by Kiki! Also, like most of my products, custom orders are always accepted!

Treasure and Craft Market

On Saturday, I was able to participate in my second Craft Show.....The Blair Middle School Treasure and Craft Market in Norfolk.

All week long there was rain in the forecast for Saturday which would mean that we would have to move the craft show into the cafeteria rather than be outside. Obviously, this would not have been an ideal situation since the craft show would not be visible from the street. Thankfully, the rain held off for the show and we were able to set up outside!

The thing that I was not planning for was the wind!! I brought a tablecloth this time, but that almost made things worse because the wind would get up under that tablecloth and try to tip everything off of the table. I probably spent the first half hour of the show troubleshooting how to set the table up and tie the tablecloth down so that my items remained on the table. I was so glad that I had found a cute tray and basket this week for my display. They really helped to anchor the tablecloth! I had originally thought that it would be nice to have a pop-up tent for upcoming craft shows, but I changed my mind after watching people wrestle to keep their tents on the ground the whole time. I really can't complain though because it turned out to be beautiful weather.....besides the wind!

In the above photo, you can see I have redesigned how I am making the crayon wallets.....more on that later!


I had made a cute little pennant banner to go on the front of the table that matched the fabric I was using for the tablecloth, but it just kept blowing around. (like you can see in some of the photos) I ended up taking it down and using the safety pins I had brought for it to pin the corners of the tablecloth around the legs of the table. Hopefully next time I will be able to leave it up! Now I know to keep my fingers crossed for no rain....and no wind!

I'm really looking forward to the upcoming craft show in Suffolk at the Suffolk Seaboard Station Railroad Museum. Between the seasonal re-opening of the Suffolk Farmers Market adjacent to the museum and the Rattle & Roll Spring Car Show just down Main Street, I am hoping for a great turnout!


I'm also hoping to be able to bring my clothing items that I have been working on. I have a busy week ahead of me trying to get ready for this one!

Pink, Pink.....and more Pink!!!

I had to take a break this week from sewing in order to get ready for my daughter's 5th birthday party. Only a couple of days after her 4th birthday, she decided that she wanted to have an all-pink party. All year, she has been pointing out everything pink and saying that it could be for her "pink party."


I secretly (well, I guess not secretly anymore since I am posting it on a public blog) dream about being Amy Atlas so this party was so much fun. I am a very visual person and have been faulted by some as being too "matchy-matchy" so I loved the monochromatic look!

Just ignore the rust colored wall. I seriously considered painting it pink.....ok, maybe just putting up some pink fabric....so that it wouldn't clash so much! (remember......matchy-matchy).

Kylea helped me with the goody bags a couple of nights before the party.....everything pink of course!



We had a great turnout for the party.....all little girls dressed in pink....and the weather was beautiful!






Now......back to sewing!!

Easily Distracted...

I have been following craft blogs for a while now. I really do *try* to avoid them as much as possible when I have other things that I need to do. Looking at one blog leads to a link to a new and different (and usually just as wonderful) blog. Before I know it, I have 15 different tabs on my browser open and I am still not done looking at the first blog that I started looking at! My husband can attest to this since he is usually very irritated by how many tabs and windows I have open!

My daughter's 5th birthday party is coming up on Saturday and my list of things to get done before then is quite overwhelming. I also have a craft fair coming up at the Suffolk Seaboard Station Railroad Museum on May 15th and I really need to restock my crayon wallets!! I'd like to say that I was able to mark a few things off of my party list or complete some crayon wallets yesterday, but......instead I decided to make my youngest daughter a dress. Well, at first it was just going to be a halter-top style shirt, but then I decided to make it into a dress instead. (because a little girl can never have too many cute dresses) The only problem with these "distractions" that I come across online is that I usually don't have all of the supplies that I need to complete them. I was going to make this dress reversible, but I didn't have any interfacing so I had to give up on that.

Despite the fact, that I didn't get as much done on the projects that I should have been working on, I think it came out pretty cute. I still might add a ruffle or two....because a ruffle always makes something cuter!


My 5 year old really wanted one too so it looks like I'll have a chance to get some interfacing and try out the reversible style.

Where it all began...

I have been making burp cloths for a couple of years now.....since I was pregnant with my youngest daughter. I have always used prefold cloth diapers for burp cloths since they seem to work the best, so.....why not make them look pretty, right? I began making these and giving them as gifts for the many baby showers that I have attended over the past couple of years.

I started off using just regular cotton fabric prints, but I found that these were not initially as absorbent as the flannel that I now use. All of my burp cloths are now made exclusively with flannel. The flannel also seems to get softer and more absorbent with each wash. I know from personal experience that there isn't much that these burp cloths can't handle!

Each burp cloth is approximately 18" x 13". They are also large enough to be used as a changing pad in a "pinch".

These burp cloths are the ultimate accessory for any new mom and make wonderful baby shower gifts!


Now for the part that I am most excited about! As much as I enjoy making baby and children's items and accessories, I am really looking forward to debuting some baby and children's clothing!! I will slowly be introducing these clothing items into my product lists over the coming months. I was able to finish up one example of what is to come. This particular item was inspired by the visit to Just Cupcakes that I was finally able to make yesterday. I have been waiting for an "excuse" to pay them a visit and was finally able to for a baby shower yesterday as well as my daughter's 5th birthday. All I have to say is "Yum!" So, here it is....

I also was able to start on a skirt this afternoon as well...

I'll probably add a couple more flowers to it and then make a shirt to go along with it.
I may even debut a couple of products just for the moms since I love these so much! That way the babies and kids aren't the only ones that get to be 'stylin!
Keep checking back for more exciting clothing products in addition to the baby and children's accessories!