Spring is here!

It's March 14th and the flowers are blooming!  Yesterday it reached 80 degrees here in Maryland and today it was warm, sunny, and in the high 70's.  We really did get through the winter without a big snowstorm!  I think this is the first time I've ever remember this happening.  The trees all along the highway have big buds just ready to burst.  The cherry and apple blossom trees are already showing their beautiful soft pink and white flowers.

The sun feels good and inspires me to create.  So much to do this year.  My triplet grandchildren are turning two in June.  It's still early enough to create birthday hats for them.  I'll have to make sure I schedule time in my calendar to do them.  My middle daughter will be graduating high school this year.  I'll have to come up with some creative party ideas for her graduation party (I can't wait)!  My youngest daughter is graduating eighth grade also in June.  She's extremely creative, so it will be hard to come up with a clever gift for her.  She also loves Pinterest and usually beats me to the great projects pinned on there.

Easter is coming soon and the triplets will have their first Easter egg hunt.  I remember all three of my daughters loving the Easter egg hunt.  Even if it was just some eggs scattered on the lawn when they were babies, they loved the thrill of "finding" the eggs.  Then there were those years that the eggs were hidden in really hard to find places.  Some years those eggs weren't found until months later!

I love the progression of generations. I love to see the joy the simple traditions bring to each child as he or she grows up and then those children carry on the tradition with their own family. It shows how much they really meant to them as they were growing up.

Here's to Spring, Easter, flowers, warm weather and especially to new generations!  Have a great week! ~Terry

Mondays didn't work.

Here it is Wednesday and I was trying schedule my blogging for Mondays.  I found Mondays just don't work for me.  It seems that Tuesdays don't work either!  I was so busy today that it's 9:40pm and I realized that I still hadn't blogged this week, so I ran to the computer before heading off to bed to write a little something. 

I just read the book, "Midas Touch," by Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki.  I'm starting to get the whole idea about running a business instead of just having a job.  They are two completely different things.  Running a business helps to create jobs for others.  Having a job means that you do the work yourself or with others.  You need to work on a business, instead of in a business.  Your main objective should be to promote your business, otherwise there won't be any customers to keep it running.  It's very daunting to think of all the things that need to get done in order to run a successful business.  I'm going to have to sleep on this tonight in order to digest everything I've learned and to figure out which I want to be...a small self-employed company or a large business. 

My daughter brought home a strawberry shortcake tonight.  It reminded me of Spring.  Here we are on February 29th and we still have not have a big snowstorm where I live in Maryland.  Spring is literally around the corner and flowers are starting to bloom.  The trees already have buds on them and the birds are singing like crazy every day.  It's been great not having to shovel snow!

Let's see how Wednesday's work for blogging next week.  It's trial and error until I find the right fit. 

I hope the rest of your week is a sunny one! ~Terry  

     

Hair Accessory Line

Here are a few of the new hair accessories from our new product line.

I'm still here!

A long time has passed since I last posted and a lot has happened.  I finished the eleven Irish Dance Dresses in November and once they were done I had back surgery the day before Thanksgiving to remove two discs from my neck and had them fused. 

The one down side of surgery is the recovery period.  You are so limited with what you can do, but you still want to do everything.  I was really good during my recovery and did what I was told.  I rested and was very careful not to lift anything heavy. 

Thank goodness my family was so great with helping me in and out of the recliner, cooking for me, waiting on me, and pampering me.  I was even tucked into bed each night...very sweet.  I also want to thank all the women who brought dinner and desserts over to my family during this time.  The food was so good and they didn't just bring food...we got complete meals.  What a treat!

There is an upside to the recovery period, however.  I was able to stock up on many books and I took the time to read them from cover to cover.  I'm currently reading four books at the same time.  It's my equivalent to changing channels on the TV!  When I need a break from one, I'll switch to the other.  

I love business books.  Most of my classes in college dealt with business theory and the fundamentals of business.  I prefer the real life stories of how people started businesses, had to overcome problems, and prospered.  Social media is something that almost all the books talk about.  A great tip I just got from one of my seminars is to pick one day a week to update your social media.  When you pick one day a week you can make sure you have it scheduled and then you won't forget to do it.  It's so easy to put social media on the back burner, when you're trying to make  your production goals, but in order to connect with your customers you really need to keep them informed.  So, I'm not sure what day works best for me, but I put every else aside today to sit down and blog.

I also do a lot of research on the Internet.  During my "down time" I discovered Pinterest.  What an amazing website!  It's a feast for the eyes and if you need inspiration, this is the website to visit.  I happened to show my daughters this website and they are now hooked on it.  We are a family of handmade gifts and projects.  We constantly talk about different gifts for upcoming holidays and events.  Creativity is key and this website has a wealth of creative ideas.

Since I'm still recovering, I needed to refocus my business.  I'm not able to sew at the sewing machine for any length of time, so I decided to start a new product line that allowed me to create without needing a sewing machine.  We are no longer doing alterations, but we are now making hair accessories.  We had our first show last week at the C. Milton Wright Fashion Show in Bel Air, MD.  We received such positive responses about the new product line, that it looks like it was a good move.

I will be posting photos shortly.  

Already September!

Wow!  So much has happened since I last blogged!  I took a ride by the Conowingo Dam in Maryland this afternoon and saw the massive amounts of water rushing through the gates.  All this because of Tropical Depression Lee, which followed Hurricane Irene.  What destruction has occurred all over the East Coast. 

My home town in northern New Jersey was completely devastated.  Flood waters reached inside houses that never got water before.  Not only does the water destroy everything, but then the mud and mold leave a coating on the furniture, walls, carpeting...everything.  I did hear, however, that people are coming out of the woodwork to help each other up there.  Food is being made for flood victims, neighbors are helping each other out and those who weren't flooded are taking in those who were, until they can get back into their houses.  From such tragedy comes the true heart of the human spirit.  People reaching out to other people in their time of need. 

I'm in the process of making 11 Irish Dance Dresses!  Lots of work!  But I can't wait to see the faces of the girls when they put on their dresses and they know it was custom made for them!

We're still working on the samples for our new line of products in the midst of trying to consolidate ALL my sewing notions, paints, doll supplies, fabric and the rest of my craft items.  My family has had enough of me taking over the kitchen table, the kitchen island, the living room, my studio, the basement, the spare room, etc... In other words, I have invaded every single room in my house and my things have also spilled into the shed out back!  I have to go through boxes of items and sort through them all to see what I actually have in them.  I went through the shed over the summer and found some wonderful things I forgot I bought!  I think of them as little inspirations for future projects!!! 

When we moved to Maryland three years ago my husband teased me and said that 80% of all the boxes we moved were my things!  I thought about it for a minute and then realized he was absolutely right!  Yikes!

Once the Irish Dance Dresses are done I will post pictures of our new line.  I've updated my website using a new host site, so if you'd like to see how it looks, go to www.sewtopieces.com .  The pictures are much bigger and I have more room to write! 

Keep smiling! ~Terry~

  

New Product Line

Sew To Pieces will be expanding our product line in July!  We will be offering mixed media banners and prints.  Production has already begun on this exciting new line and we will have photos posted, with purchase information given, as soon as we are ready to launch our new items.

Check back soon to see what we have in store for you!

~Terry~

Info on Irish Dance Dresses

Last week I posted pictures of the Irish dance dresses I've been sewing.  I wanted to let you know that the beautiful embroidery on the dress panels was done by Clare M. Owings from Top Stitch Embroidery & Graphics, Inc.  Clare does amazing work!  Take a look at her website www.topstitchembroidery.com for more information and keep her in mind for your next embroidery job.  ~Terry