tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-753226457706410332024-03-04T20:53:50.298-08:00Successful Cloth Diapering With WoolWe are dedicated to making your cloth diaper journey a success!Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-30730499727230850362013-03-16T18:00:00.000-07:002013-03-16T18:00:09.922-07:00What is the best fitted cloth diaper to use with wool?We are asked this question time and time again. What is the best cloth diaper to use with a wool cover? Cloth diapers seem to be like technology.... if you stop using it, everything seems to change before you know it. Our last little one potty trained over 5 years ago and in that short amount of time, so many new (and awesome!) cloth diapers have arrived on the scene. Many of the diapers we used with Caleb are no longer available, so when asked the infamous question about what to use with a wool diaper cover, I find I am quickly becoming out of touch. We already established in the previous post, that the diaper underneath your wool cover is the foundation to successful diapering. With all of the overwhelming information out there it is tough to know what to choose. Plus cloth diapers can be a pretty big investment and you want to make sure you are investing in something that will work. With the help of our "well-seasoned" customers, I am going to work on compiling a list of the top trending fitted diapers. At the moment this is going to be a rough draft list in progress and I will be adding links and more information as I go. <br />
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You might ask, well what exactly is a fitted diaper? A fitted diaper is a cloth diaper comprised of natural fibers such as cotton, bamboo, or hemp. There are no waterproof layers in a fitted diaper which means that you will need to top off the diaper with a cover that will keep wetness from the diaper leaking through to clothing or furniture. Covers commonly used to cover the diaper are made from wool, fleece, or PUL (we will talk about all of these in another blog post).<br />
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This list can be overwhelming and doesn't come close to covering every single fitted diaper. Over the next few days we will work on getting this list a little more organized and easier to browse. <br />
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Kiwi Pie<br />
Thirsties<br />
Muttaquin Baby<br />
Sloomb/Sustainable Babyish<br />
Goodmama<br />
Bagshot Row Bamboo<br />
GMD (Green Mountain Diapers) Workhorse<br />
Bubu Bebe (B4)<br />
Motherease<br />
Forty41<br />
Little Boppers<br />
Pianisimo Cloth<br />
Piddle Poddles<br />
Kissaluvs<br />
String Beans<br />
Loveybums<br />
Babee Greens<br />
The Cloth Canoe<br />
Firefly<br />
Tinkle Traps<br />
Twinkie Tush<br />
Tots Bots Bamboozle<br />
Dunk N Fluff<br />
Zimsy Wimsy<br />
Zany Zebra<br />
Orange Diaper Co.<br />
Lil' Pooligans<br />
Sugarpeas<br />
Bumboo<br />
Poppy Fields<br />
Bum Stoppers<br />
Cherub's Kiss<br />
Holden's Landing<br />
Baby Ten<br />
First Class Baby<br />
Urban Bums Boutique <br />
SOS Diapers<br />
Little Fancy Pants<br />
Rainshine Designs<br />
Sun Seedlings<br />
Monkey Snuggles<br />
Itti Bitti<br />
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<br />Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-64015000406480657182013-03-02T20:11:00.000-08:002013-03-02T20:15:56.438-08:00Does Your Cloth Diapering System Leak at Night?One of the most common emails I get is from frustrated parents that are waking up at night with wet sheets and a wet baby. They are sleep deprived most of the time as it is, and they have tried many things only to end up in frustration and often resort back to disposable diapers at night. Getting a good diapering routine can be a bit of a challenge..... believe me I know! One big reason why leaks are so much more prominent at night is that as your little one sleeps soundly, they begin to hold urine for longer periods of time. Then when they go, they really GO. If you don't have an adequate diapering solution in place and ready for the flood, you probably will experience leaks around the legs and front.<br />
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There are many successful ways to cloth diaper at night and a solution that works for one, may not work for another. I am not going to talk about all of the options out there.... I am just going to cover using the breathable option of a fitted diaper plus wool. Whatever option you go with, one thing is the same....It all starts with having a really good foundation with your diaper. The diaper needs to have several layers of absorbent materials.... the more, the better. I had posted on our Facebook page asking what diapers our customers were using with their Woollybottoms. Since my little diapered baby is going to be 9 this year, I wanted to stay in touch with what diapers were being used successfully today. We had an overwhelming positive response to Sustainable Babyish aka Sloomb diapers (<a href="http://www.sloomb.com/">www.sloomb.com</a>) I have a date in a couple of weeks to talk to our local Rotary Club about Woollybottoms and cloth diapers so I needed to get my hands on a "modern" cloth diaper for show and tell and this Sloomb diaper is to be my model. I received this diaper in the mail last week and immediately I said now this is a GREAT diaper! OK people.... look at all the layers of material in this diaper! It is amazing!!! I think there are 9 total layers of organic bamboo/cotton fleece in this thing. No wonder this diaper is a success at night. There are enough layers to handle the flood your little one throws at it. The urine is slowly absorbed through the layers without just shooting straight through everything. In conclusion, you MUST have a good diaper with plenty of absorption power. If you have a diaper that doesn't seem to cut it, you can easily add layers! We had success by simply tri-folding an infant prefold and laying that inside our not-so-absorbent diapers and that gave us the extra layers we needed. <br />
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So, now that you know what to look for in a diaper, you need to find the right cover. Again, there are many options out there for covers and many of them work wonderfully! However, nothing is going to allow air flow like wool. I can feel some wool intimidation from some of you already and we will cover that on the next blog post :) I don't want to hear from any of you that wool is too hard to care for, too scratchy, there is no way it can hold back urine, the thought of lanolizing wool is scary, yadda yadda. Just trust me on this one OK? We will debunk the wool myths soon enough. On a wool cover, you want to make sure it is on the thicker side for overnight use.... just like the diaper. All wool covers are not the same. An extra heavy weighted wool will help ensure you will make it through the night with dry sheets. There are tons of wonderful options out there for wool and again, we will cover those in a future blog post. Pictured here is a Woollybottoms pull on style soaker made from a gentle felted recycled lambswool and there is an added sewn in layer of wool in the wetzone. This Sloomb/Woollybottoms combination is destined for success!<br />
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<br />Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-11613186401596558692011-12-22T15:42:00.000-08:002011-12-22T15:56:29.642-08:00Finally Some Sewing For Us!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJJW553R6wFGzF9ELZQwFtD4VwqAZSkXG25Rl-rPRUGM0_qTwKSU6AYBhfLiW3KBgOAU-YVbn9YclcyP4-dzpLJ_B3lFT7djHtrw0eH7c_pEA3_UlFr0IPtXV9ZhR5XHa2nCjlG7531NPm/s1600/20111222_47.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJJW553R6wFGzF9ELZQwFtD4VwqAZSkXG25Rl-rPRUGM0_qTwKSU6AYBhfLiW3KBgOAU-YVbn9YclcyP4-dzpLJ_B3lFT7djHtrw0eH7c_pEA3_UlFr0IPtXV9ZhR5XHa2nCjlG7531NPm/s320/20111222_47.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689105430850809794" border="0" /></a><br />Poor Caleb has been after me to make him some footies of his own for oh, at least a year (he is now 7 1/2). I had the greatest intentions of getting right on that project. After all, I make footies all the time so what was one more for my son? I even went so far as to purchase fabric just for him.... adorable Corduroy the Bear fabric. I had the perfect piece of wool to use too. I had received an ankle length fine merino wool skirt that was the perfect material for him since it was light weight, soft, and had plenty of length that I could use to get his footies. I pulled everything out and had Caleb here so I could tailor them to fit him perfectly and I was ready to go. Caleb had decided though that the oh so perfect bear fabric was no longer so perfect. My little boy had decided I think that it was a bit on the babyish side. Now he is into "cool" things like cars and pirates and he dug through my fabric stash and decided that the pirate skulls was the most awesome material ever so I obliged. I wondered how I could have allowed this planned project to go on as long as I did and kind of sniffled at the sewing machine as I realized just how fast he was growing up. I got the footies done and was rewarded with the most awesome hug and kiss as Caleb stripped down as fast as he could to put them on. That was worth more than sewing up 100 pairs. Why don't I do this more often?Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-4454497412546794562011-11-01T19:03:00.000-07:002011-11-01T19:19:19.726-07:00More T-Shirt Recycling!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCdG0pxfaI5P6SYnKUwyWA1Kn8y5bjD7Gq_J_9lTkwZEgfbkbsip_65yfPxQBpcZiGPXsgLc5U3qQkVkzVqN3IoHj0ms39YCQ7eEzL8dtGro0XcdoOufsMPDjUojmbV5MJ0aS9p8cjt5Bk/s1600/20111101_2.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 283px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCdG0pxfaI5P6SYnKUwyWA1Kn8y5bjD7Gq_J_9lTkwZEgfbkbsip_65yfPxQBpcZiGPXsgLc5U3qQkVkzVqN3IoHj0ms39YCQ7eEzL8dtGro0XcdoOufsMPDjUojmbV5MJ0aS9p8cjt5Bk/s320/20111101_2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670216258763765074" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY9hYhWfGUO8xTCZSyBtXZ0QxXNLNgsGf3gDUzuuUJhZmc-KqLaf-pZ9z8-5XgQ0OUnd4Etr5t0eiezp6Bn4FuvvTaaQyHxv90-nqMid6vr0G42uovuOhgId6IYi3Nroq1x5Jf2MTqQ90g/s1600/20111101_3.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 256px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY9hYhWfGUO8xTCZSyBtXZ0QxXNLNgsGf3gDUzuuUJhZmc-KqLaf-pZ9z8-5XgQ0OUnd4Etr5t0eiezp6Bn4FuvvTaaQyHxv90-nqMid6vr0G42uovuOhgId6IYi3Nroq1x5Jf2MTqQ90g/s320/20111101_3.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670216251439005202" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh17FK_P_74eMDENKiGCRbphL5v58Ilu-WN3txa13-ehmXVbWsO6tCWVRBWlF3b6fKh2_0wYiUP7z2xuF8-fEYNSTIx3LTdLCZwX3EIqRCijWxoPPvO0xA-S0TbrfLyiwFswhNP97SlonOM/s1600/20111101_1.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 216px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh17FK_P_74eMDENKiGCRbphL5v58Ilu-WN3txa13-ehmXVbWsO6tCWVRBWlF3b6fKh2_0wYiUP7z2xuF8-fEYNSTIx3LTdLCZwX3EIqRCijWxoPPvO0xA-S0TbrfLyiwFswhNP97SlonOM/s320/20111101_1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5670216244268684050" border="0" /></a><br />It has been a VERY busy fall this year with sewing. We have had so many new retailers and we barely have time to breathe in between orders. I decided to carve out some time this weekend to tackle my laundry room. The laundry room has become the abyss of all things forgotten, unwanted or dirty. It really is a great room to throw things in. So I decided to jump in with both feet and found some cool things and some not so cool including some garlic bulbs I had intention of growing and they dried completely out into some kind of petrified hard to recognize thing. I found a big package of playsilks I had bought to dye up and a pile of old T-shirts James had put together for me to donate. Usually whatever James decides he can't wear anymore is in really sad shape and I would be ashamed to donate to anyone (OK, so the hummingbird shirt was NOT his :) ) I hated to just throw them away though. I also came across some yardage of great cotton terry toweling fabric that someone had graciously sent me along with some sweaters probably over a year ago. So, I cut rectangles out of the old shirts, cut a layer of toweling, and simply serged them together to make hand towels. Some of them I just serged together 2 layers of T-shirt. They turned out wonderfully and they work so well! We use hand towels in all of the offices and kitchen at work so these made great additions to our stash. Plus Caleb especially enjoys seeing his daddy's shirts turned into a towel and it seems like I don't have to remind him as often lately to wash his hands :) This is a great way to recycle and only takes a few minutes to do. Don't worry if you don't have toweling material! Putting 2 layers of T-shirt together makes a really absorbent and sturdy towel. Another idea is to use those flannel receiving blankets as a backing.Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-2050033287447165582011-08-21T21:05:00.000-07:002011-08-21T21:43:06.097-07:00The End of a Season<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3b_ORGdA_ga8ejJtoHjnLfzVBa2gt5-LVurNPyrov0ccd5Fua3rnUc6rhWj0gYeqiKBd6bl0n02eWpEVUMeEaR1YA5srog_rQ441LDkG9Xg4NCzvLupk8enHPRAaJaDMwPdqPt70VJboN/s1600/20110524_90.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3b_ORGdA_ga8ejJtoHjnLfzVBa2gt5-LVurNPyrov0ccd5Fua3rnUc6rhWj0gYeqiKBd6bl0n02eWpEVUMeEaR1YA5srog_rQ441LDkG9Xg4NCzvLupk8enHPRAaJaDMwPdqPt70VJboN/s320/20110524_90.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643535565737310034" border="0" /></a>
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<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikI8PW0lLoL_7RXIKQQ8pQR6T99tLJbssWi4IeYPQzQTr70tAgqIJPFBVKuSsAAGltc4XKttyMVBdt8FYNzPdYqYjlpWDZvB3wlxtdqcwzrvopdCkMtTDP6Yc-7lxiOm3gmmoaNL_ySnVc/s1600/20110820_2.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikI8PW0lLoL_7RXIKQQ8pQR6T99tLJbssWi4IeYPQzQTr70tAgqIJPFBVKuSsAAGltc4XKttyMVBdt8FYNzPdYqYjlpWDZvB3wlxtdqcwzrvopdCkMtTDP6Yc-7lxiOm3gmmoaNL_ySnVc/s320/20110820_2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643535345562323890" border="0" /></a>
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<br />School officially starts again for Sarah and Caleb tomorrow morning. Where has the summer gone? As a working mom, it has been a real trial to balance work with helping to create a magical time with the kids. We had the BIG "planned" trip but the kids seemed to have just as much fun with a spur of the moment trip to the lake, fish hatchery, or Collin's Creek... all just minutes away. It has been fun to watch the kids grow and learn this summer. We have ended our summer with memories of our first views of the Rocky Mountains at sunrise, feeding Stumpy the mallard off the back of the boat, Caleb finding the courage to jump off of the top of a houseboat, Sarah learning to ride a dirt bike, and so much more.
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<br />One thing I have just started doing this summer is carrying my camera EVERYWHERE. For the past couple of months, it has been as important as my phone or wallet. I could have kicked myself when I forgot it yesterday. Sarah had been feeding a red ear water turtle off the back of the boat and then actually picked it up out of the water. The thing was not small and I would have loved to get that on camera as it fondly reminded me of myself at that age. I can not encourage everyone enough to keep the camera handy at all times. While it is sad to see the end of summer, I know fall will bring many more wonderful memories.
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<br />Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-6551168247292406042011-08-08T21:46:00.000-07:002011-08-08T22:05:38.502-07:00Awesomeness in Arkansas<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyABVWJRIOrmopKUAfAne7wncD90Xo-SUiqXTWWmB-2UlMqJ8IwdAetiBtlOAkX-NS1E9fHxgykz9jvxT8sBYkUbglUk9duIH_tN6qq03Ox-MCUlYb0otwxUBGSAUPaxGzcI35r9P-c1B2/s1600/20110808_2.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyABVWJRIOrmopKUAfAne7wncD90Xo-SUiqXTWWmB-2UlMqJ8IwdAetiBtlOAkX-NS1E9fHxgykz9jvxT8sBYkUbglUk9duIH_tN6qq03Ox-MCUlYb0otwxUBGSAUPaxGzcI35r9P-c1B2/s320/20110808_2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638717184410554338" border="0" /></a>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinkAW8Z593zvkcWAZa2yFibfiKhsIjp-7MMRoCKyUDVXuejL5D5_ju_QIEGBidojWbnw-SzxU6Jb9tWrFIh2M-w7PcZrEL_vi1w6TYmVUSeh_9p085S_J1llv81v-JN2pyMM0n-ryBorR_/s1600/20110808_6.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinkAW8Z593zvkcWAZa2yFibfiKhsIjp-7MMRoCKyUDVXuejL5D5_ju_QIEGBidojWbnw-SzxU6Jb9tWrFIh2M-w7PcZrEL_vi1w6TYmVUSeh_9p085S_J1llv81v-JN2pyMM0n-ryBorR_/s320/20110808_6.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638717179951522146" border="0" /></a>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidU-lBUF8-l6LQ8NEfvdyvZLjAutdFWamrIGORhJeXBUC9_jUDYSnGi3ey7DlkokjX6iq0wfS1bKUO0zLsJmcNOBWd_vq54IWoK6tkKDrF_OQVb8v41JmPAfVnmIykVfFijFxYMhDcRYLy/s1600/20110808_12.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidU-lBUF8-l6LQ8NEfvdyvZLjAutdFWamrIGORhJeXBUC9_jUDYSnGi3ey7DlkokjX6iq0wfS1bKUO0zLsJmcNOBWd_vq54IWoK6tkKDrF_OQVb8v41JmPAfVnmIykVfFijFxYMhDcRYLy/s320/20110808_12.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5638717175674751778" border="0" /></a>
<br />We are finally enjoying some cooler temperatures after what has seemed like endless weeks of extreme heat. Not just heat.... heat plus super high humidity. Give me a dessert out west any day compared to this weather. Everything green has pretty much died outside and swimming in the lake feels more like taking a warm bath. As we headed home from work today, we ran into some serious rain. The kind of rain where you are driving and really can't see anything. To my shock, we got several inches of rain within probably an hour. As soon as the rain and lightning show ended, I sent the kids out to play and let the chickens out to free range. I was so happy I had the camera home today because what came after the storm was sheer awesomeness. First we had a rainbow in a dark sky in the backyard. Then a few minutes later the show moved to the front yard with these mammatus clouds. God's handiwork is truly awesome.
<br />Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-89902537911624950382011-08-03T20:26:00.000-07:002011-08-08T21:46:33.662-07:00Throw Your Sweater Shaver Away...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNPbHaeeojUcTVWFJLjnEtJ4-zhA8UyGfmwVa6iahcun0NbNedMR2CkLBonguFtyaY7EByHg3nXRn7F0hDnPnAYPsWZUGPJRM7-cytHlEL7N_V5EzsVt8bokvDUI8Vq57v6x5oCZfIPyIR/s1600/20110803_41.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNPbHaeeojUcTVWFJLjnEtJ4-zhA8UyGfmwVa6iahcun0NbNedMR2CkLBonguFtyaY7EByHg3nXRn7F0hDnPnAYPsWZUGPJRM7-cytHlEL7N_V5EzsVt8bokvDUI8Vq57v6x5oCZfIPyIR/s320/20110803_41.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636841284654100178" border="0" /></a>
<br />Or run over it with the car or bury it. I hate those obnoxiously loud things that can't suck up a lint ball or hair if its life depended on it. Believe me... I have threatened them and it doesn't work. Working with wool every single day I tried many things. Each Woollybottom that we ship out must look like new wool when it leaves here free of lint, fuzz, and those matted pill balls. We have received some pretty nasty wool. When we get a shipment of sweaters, we have no idea what kind of life it had previously. Everything goes into a hot wash to remove any impurities and to gently felt the wool (felting helps a diaper cover be more effective). While this cleans the wool it doesn't take off the pill balls and fuzz. In a time of desperation and sore fingers, I picked up a pumice stone in the beauty department of a local store and took it back to the shop. I found that it worked better than I could have imagined. Just lay the wool flat and "brush" it with the stone and everything collects in a ball at the bottom of the wool. The stone is gentle and even putting a lot of pressure on the wool, there has never been any damage to the wool. I have this piece of gnarly lambswool and did half of it as you can see here. It took about a minute to completely clean the left side of the wool and it looked brand new! If your woolies are looking kind of shabby (as they will from normal use) brush them with a pumice stone, gather up the fuzz and you will have a brand new looking pair of woolies again. If you have black wool, you can take a piece of packing tape and press it on the wool to remove any lint. Hopefully these tips will make life a bit easier on caring for your wool. And if you are wondering how long that pumice stone will last, well we haven't been able to wear one out yet. We have used a single stone literally on several thousand pieces of wool. If you buy a new stone, you may want to pre-rinse it in water to remove any dust or loose particles. You may see some small particles come off with the first time you clean your wool. If that happens, just shake the wool out and with further use, the stone will not do that after the initial use.Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-39286864820041962882011-08-01T19:21:00.000-07:002011-08-01T19:49:01.917-07:00Recycled T-Shirt Market Bags Results<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXpDNDKKkiEK6fvbxbIlK_MniprbGCFQZD1Ekqxay6NxN6HQHa1l-nfGWbnzzbvJHjt6xBALzMLwpDeGL-CVkecGCqSqyQ1cG82ygsBTAvALH5Er5_AywiRQddaZc6scNSh2mQdFUbo7wh/s1600/20110801_8.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXpDNDKKkiEK6fvbxbIlK_MniprbGCFQZD1Ekqxay6NxN6HQHa1l-nfGWbnzzbvJHjt6xBALzMLwpDeGL-CVkecGCqSqyQ1cG82ygsBTAvALH5Er5_AywiRQddaZc6scNSh2mQdFUbo7wh/s320/20110801_8.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636083590365341698" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_1NFO5J5F0SfONdFXuOWvywa-AJ4kzANluG7Ld-30jIJqCASrtBExgjHdp3vvTqJS7JGflOQ5ileLpqB7302c3iFp-TnARKEHGyeO_s8xn6nJYIJ7cdIpZ8KaYz0vnaj6wWVQ2fdhEG_p/s1600/20110801_1.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_1NFO5J5F0SfONdFXuOWvywa-AJ4kzANluG7Ld-30jIJqCASrtBExgjHdp3vvTqJS7JGflOQ5ileLpqB7302c3iFp-TnARKEHGyeO_s8xn6nJYIJ7cdIpZ8KaYz0vnaj6wWVQ2fdhEG_p/s320/20110801_1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636083389331457298" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkegK1Gyf-CZBeN2IID15XHz7KFXCwF0tKIhe6uVZvgc-gM4kg7WihG7jl5YL5TdoVt5YcoU8kIyKnudnF-1ametVlJo_KkWv2Or4i_cL_sGOkI3dUZflzXZf3vrlGat8UWLJNa4gQnVh4/s1600/20110801_2.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkegK1Gyf-CZBeN2IID15XHz7KFXCwF0tKIhe6uVZvgc-gM4kg7WihG7jl5YL5TdoVt5YcoU8kIyKnudnF-1ametVlJo_KkWv2Or4i_cL_sGOkI3dUZflzXZf3vrlGat8UWLJNa4gQnVh4/s320/20110801_2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636083382575194546" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_vnk1VgGMi8BbDKqIIoUeKlux-STnT6GgB_kTSL2D4y9r341e-vuVExgQp89kB6L1TexCgdr5IyapYpynBLa8GajyFHz6HZjD1vd46hsMn-eae_dJdmOXneNrz4_EbS0ItNSFakxZG4gn/s1600/20110801_3.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_vnk1VgGMi8BbDKqIIoUeKlux-STnT6GgB_kTSL2D4y9r341e-vuVExgQp89kB6L1TexCgdr5IyapYpynBLa8GajyFHz6HZjD1vd46hsMn-eae_dJdmOXneNrz4_EbS0ItNSFakxZG4gn/s320/20110801_3.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636083375794231682" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiujKwQzagiWe_pkT4TiLH0VsBp35t2frxteYxrKGu_S6m0CqVXmrybLwurFFWCz9DsbQTe-Zr_ztG_JnKAK9XGvvktCGVQwaZhD4uBj4D1T2oZnuZFCZAzXjSFn_Jk6_3BHJ8ICsV3Sjtr/s1600/20110801_4.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiujKwQzagiWe_pkT4TiLH0VsBp35t2frxteYxrKGu_S6m0CqVXmrybLwurFFWCz9DsbQTe-Zr_ztG_JnKAK9XGvvktCGVQwaZhD4uBj4D1T2oZnuZFCZAzXjSFn_Jk6_3BHJ8ICsV3Sjtr/s320/20110801_4.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636083371863709538" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBgLco6-5q4xb5sfU05tBBu77QUmLZWhubIXmKs1H5XRu9Q1qwsdOnkB2jojRkcGIHslxet1gqSF9DtVDTCFuQ_KwuXROPhheMsykFPyiJkizrDd8bvZ5_6nNTmhAY5Lk0JDLSnaR8Cl5y/s1600/20110801_5.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBgLco6-5q4xb5sfU05tBBu77QUmLZWhubIXmKs1H5XRu9Q1qwsdOnkB2jojRkcGIHslxet1gqSF9DtVDTCFuQ_KwuXROPhheMsykFPyiJkizrDd8bvZ5_6nNTmhAY5Lk0JDLSnaR8Cl5y/s320/20110801_5.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5636083368646843970" border="0" /></a><br />So, I had hoped to finish these bags last week and it didn't happen until today actually. They were so time consuming and all ;) Seriously it took me less than 10 minutes to finish 4 of them. I found that the small t-shirts work the best and are actually more close to the size bag I wanted. I wasn't really thinking when I bought a couple of XL shirts and started cutting them and realized these bags were going to be BIG. Not really what I will reach for to use with groceries but I realized these will be great for hauling towels and blankets back and forth to the boat this summer. I usually load everyone's arms up with towels and blankets to try to make one trip from the car to the boat and then I hold my breath that nothing ends up into the water on the walk across the dock. These big bags will really help and we can carry back the dirty laundry easily.<br /><br />So, do you want to know why I was a slacker last week and didn't finish the bags? Well, we moved.... again. Many of you that have been around since we started back in 2004 have followed my nomadic trek through the years. We started off here at the house in the kitchen and had the infamous wall of wool that actually insulated the east side of the house. Then we bought a small cabin and put it in the back yard (you can scroll down to some older posts to see that). Then my husband and I bought a building in town and shared it. It is divided into 3 spaces and I moved into one and he moved into another. We had someone come by that wanted to rent the space I was in so I packed up and scooted to another office. Not really easy with tons of wool and machines and things. This past week our tenant moved out and I really wanted that space again so we moved again. Here is where we are now. I thought I better take some pictures while it is fairly clean and I have had several people ask what my setup looks like. I am not done with it yet obviously. I am going to add some things to the walls and the kiddo section is kind of temporary. I want to put in a table and chairs so they can have a fun space to craft, do homework, or play. The long table is the packing/shipping area and the big L-shaped area is where all the constructing goes down. You can sort of see through the doorway to the room with the green walls... that is my husband's office. I often help him through the day so I can easily move from one space to the other and keep my space closed off with the door. The kids can also easily visit with both of us at any time. You can also see the doorway to a room with beige walls... that is where the cutting, wool washing, and storage happens. I am so NOT taking you in there with me right now. I have just kind of thrown everything in there until I can go through and organize and it is scary.... really scary. The space back there is about the same size as the sewing/packing/kiddo area so it is really going to be a great space with all my materials close at hand.<br /><br />Have you all been making your t-shirt bags? If you haven't, get to it! This is a great summer day project to do with the kids as well.Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-64920743074790008322011-07-25T18:02:00.000-07:002011-07-25T19:00:20.619-07:00Recycled T-Shirt Market Bags<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBOLqTwrtSls7_DiXLoU-RYGUOGycszmOjEQDCudYIiod4ffevNAUSApW1w9DgL4Q9CCVOnepSkbDoJIX5bBr-SoF5VaAhmZf-dL105PBqZeSd8Qaj0mkwx0uGwbAM4UwBpdexvarNlMBz/s1600/20110725_28.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBOLqTwrtSls7_DiXLoU-RYGUOGycszmOjEQDCudYIiod4ffevNAUSApW1w9DgL4Q9CCVOnepSkbDoJIX5bBr-SoF5VaAhmZf-dL105PBqZeSd8Qaj0mkwx0uGwbAM4UwBpdexvarNlMBz/s320/20110725_28.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5633467731846920178" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAlMiyOt6j0SvggmMF_HxvUmd7bg3XD7dtm2O15EOX4Of1fGswxhy9BGgSh0aR1IQHq64IWyfyMrYsv2P8YnmReI0LdF7NkodvXQ1JyQI0gH9Oe4uG_ZFLy4RRrPYpr6AkNOc3Yz8mL-hM/s1600/martha.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 225px; height: 281px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAlMiyOt6j0SvggmMF_HxvUmd7bg3XD7dtm2O15EOX4Of1fGswxhy9BGgSh0aR1IQHq64IWyfyMrYsv2P8YnmReI0LdF7NkodvXQ1JyQI0gH9Oe4uG_ZFLy4RRrPYpr6AkNOc3Yz8mL-hM/s320/martha.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5633467731370424914" border="0" /></a><br />James and I have settled into a Sunday afternoon routine of going to Goodwill, heading over to Zaxby's to share a Zalad, then doing our grocery shopping for the week. We are blessed to have parents that love taking our kiddos home with them after church to spend the afternoon so Sunday afternoon has become our designated "just us" time. It is summer vacation so the kids are with us most days at work so they enjoy the time away from us as well :) It all started with this white t-shirt on the end.... a cool Maine t-shirt with this big lobster claw on it. James has lost a lot of weight over the past several months, but sometimes he thinks he is smaller than he actually is. I told him when we got home there was no way he could wear this thing to which he replied he thought it would be cool if I wore it. Um, no thanks.... cool shirt, but I am not wearing it. I have never been to Maine and I don't care to have a big claw across my chest. So there it sat on the back of a chair in the bedroom for oh, about 3 weeks now.<br /><br />Rewind a couple of years.... I bought several of those recycled grocery totes (I can't even remember the brand now) and was super proud of my perfect rainbow of bags. Kind of when they first started to become "the thing". I kept them neatly in a bowl on the counter so I could grab some to take to the store when I went out. I really used them but eventually they have been lost or misplaced one by one and I have fallen back into my plastic bag ways. Then came my light bulb moment. While making bags from t-shirts is not my original idea and not the light bulb moment, deciding I would recycle that shirt so I could get some use out of it was. The whole project takes less than 5 minutes and I can sit back and smile that I have accomplished something. I went to the local thrift store last week to pick up a few more t-shirts for the project. I love fun shirts that feature places or have cool pictures in general. I think I am going to make a couple of super simple ones that don't even bother with finished edges and I may make a couple that are actually lined with another layer for a more finished bag. I need to figure out a way to have them roll up easily for better storage and I am going to plan on keeping them in a basket on the counter. You can find tutorials all over the internet for making grocery bags and you can spend days looking at <a href="http://tipnut.com/35-reusable-grocery-bags-totes-free-patterns/">Tipnut's</a> site.<br /><br />So, pull out those old cotton t-shirts from that concert back in the day (um, you don't have a New Kids on the Block shirt lurking around do you?) that you won't dare wear in public but just can't bare to part with and whip a few up. Come on, I know you have some. Every time you reach for that bag for groceries (or hauling around whatever) you can re-live the fun memories. We will share our finished bags later this week :)<br /><br />(Pictured: T-shirt grocery bag by MarthaStewart.com)Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-22925487104043429722011-07-20T17:37:00.000-07:002011-07-25T13:59:13.113-07:00Super Simple Onesie Conversion Tutorial<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMx6YmBh3BCN-QNx4FMJPE4vknaOfureww9_7ce3n4OsKvYx9hkD5cR2VfFZCpSaYAnjCWpXjknnRYrZhLY-EFBh5SNZhwZV8b_efr55sVES2EN9jQJOKJqsmfZTRvaru6Fu8Qit8za_Hq/s1600/20110720_35.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 282px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMx6YmBh3BCN-QNx4FMJPE4vknaOfureww9_7ce3n4OsKvYx9hkD5cR2VfFZCpSaYAnjCWpXjknnRYrZhLY-EFBh5SNZhwZV8b_efr55sVES2EN9jQJOKJqsmfZTRvaru6Fu8Qit8za_Hq/s320/20110720_35.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5631606022697135794" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQpn5LOefU7qn7NA3T7jMMXf_ws-u33B4MCxfPuasUdrtB84weG0IWb11TiTJk0lNcRArqiWmA6euUf5lrWg1UlCHlkXJb-zGffEqkc10yuTLuvXL-WAsJjR5zH78rXM2lS-bI9APShyPH/s1600/20110720_36.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 266px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQpn5LOefU7qn7NA3T7jMMXf_ws-u33B4MCxfPuasUdrtB84weG0IWb11TiTJk0lNcRArqiWmA6euUf5lrWg1UlCHlkXJb-zGffEqkc10yuTLuvXL-WAsJjR5zH78rXM2lS-bI9APShyPH/s320/20110720_36.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5631606014094604786" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI1FetuXb_eBM0vCcKlYOQ_bBFEeRkJZn0N3wvkKh68WnKKISMJ-Dd19AfFW8e6bNZNBYIazG0ln_ESPOdIoVlycW6sohephH7cBSzYTSw6fd6UtN0oIo-tK6um0hiCK46ROYrsM4s05c3/s1600/20110720_37.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 237px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI1FetuXb_eBM0vCcKlYOQ_bBFEeRkJZn0N3wvkKh68WnKKISMJ-Dd19AfFW8e6bNZNBYIazG0ln_ESPOdIoVlycW6sohephH7cBSzYTSw6fd6UtN0oIo-tK6um0hiCK46ROYrsM4s05c3/s320/20110720_37.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5631606013702239906" border="0" /></a><br />We get asked often, "What kind of tops do you pair with your <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">woolies</span>?" I have found the best thing to pair with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">woolies</span> is just a simple t-shirt. There is nothing extra to unsnap and getting down to business with a diaper change couldn't be faster with the combination of our pull on diaper covers and a t-shirt. If you are like me, you probably got about a billion <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">onesies</span> as baby shower gifts. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Onesies</span> are the best thing ever for keeping tummies covered, but they just don't work so well with cloth diapered babies. With the extra bulk of a cloth diaper, it is difficult to get the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">onesie</span> over that extra bulk and often times the pressure from the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">onesie</span> on the diaper area will force your wool cover to wick moisture through. They soon become the least treasured item of clothing and you end up with a big pile in the drawer and they are never reached for. So, you have <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">onesies</span> but need shirts like yesterday, so get your scissors out. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Onesies</span> are usually made from a great cotton interlock. Just cut straight across as you can see in the photo. Try to leave as much length as possible on the shirt. The cotton will not fray so you can actually stop here and say Voila! With washing, the hem may naturally curl which actually seems to now be "the thing" in many clothing items. If you are handy with a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">serger</span>, you can set your machine to a rolled hem and run it along the bottom to give a ruffly edge (great for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">girly</span> tops!). On this one, I went ahead and did a straight <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">serged</span> edge with navy blue thread to finish it off. If you are handy with a sewing machine and don't care for the "raw hem" look, you can always add a finished hem. As for the extra that I cut off, I am trying to decide how to recycle that piece. I may be saving that for another tutorial :).<br /><br />I picked up this little <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">onesie</span> at a thrift store for today's tutorial. My daughter was appalled that I was looking through the baby clothes and wanted to know why with a raised eyebrow since no one is here that small. I haven't looked at baby clothes in oh.... almost 7 years now so I do admit the ovaries twitched just a little as I handled the little bitty clothes. But I am over it now.... don't get any ideas people. We are giving away this outfit to one of our readers (free shipping too!). The shirt is a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Circo</span> brand 18 month size and the shorties are a size medium. The shorties are made from a soft lambswool and have a rise of about 18 and an inseam of 3. Just post a comment here... something you like about wool, or if you haven't tried wool, just post something interesting. If you could post your first name and last initial or just some way that you can recognize yourself when I announce the random winner on Saturday.<br /><br />And the winner is...... Julie S./The Dullmore Family! Congratulations! I will try to contact you but if you don't receive anything, please contact me at woollybottoms @ gmail.com.Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com41tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-80961563443320452242011-07-15T17:43:00.000-07:002011-07-15T18:12:14.869-07:00If I Wasn't Sewing....<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi7Duy-FMCTerlZFIiThSWNoPeVOc9KzBo1WPqrbDQ_-05apca2CjlyXuXy-jdsmsggYx0sYRHH3jq-eEoXAW1eP3qpOPKs0DP17AFSrZi0UuB-pOHsekgkeB_I7UQzxb9Iy8RnFNKK31v/s1600/20110715_3.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 275px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi7Duy-FMCTerlZFIiThSWNoPeVOc9KzBo1WPqrbDQ_-05apca2CjlyXuXy-jdsmsggYx0sYRHH3jq-eEoXAW1eP3qpOPKs0DP17AFSrZi0UuB-pOHsekgkeB_I7UQzxb9Iy8RnFNKK31v/s320/20110715_3.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629750569920827554" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN0JdHQe5epPosbpRbF6ZsHFuaYLC8NCwgOH6qhVIc8R7ZwecM6S-OTnvmzPvVJcMlyh8OyRHpml7z2WR14oywITNl171KuhbffTU3ieSizIhTaJxm4h7CmiRY_kXXKWdeYeaXsASBovHR/s1600/20110715_1.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN0JdHQe5epPosbpRbF6ZsHFuaYLC8NCwgOH6qhVIc8R7ZwecM6S-OTnvmzPvVJcMlyh8OyRHpml7z2WR14oywITNl171KuhbffTU3ieSizIhTaJxm4h7CmiRY_kXXKWdeYeaXsASBovHR/s320/20110715_1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629750324358115378" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbrkqQv9_2MQNtKiaVPIGzx9K0WVdAdZjMTwCE5Og4oYq4BioFFbs02LFNzVP15Uy4Uq2ojhYOIrCJk9xTeX36nb2vOIXFTc9PdsMxezZFdisftKgneLpyaM1rirwYzBCnpUuXhlSicJhb/s1600/20110715_4.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbrkqQv9_2MQNtKiaVPIGzx9K0WVdAdZjMTwCE5Og4oYq4BioFFbs02LFNzVP15Uy4Uq2ojhYOIrCJk9xTeX36nb2vOIXFTc9PdsMxezZFdisftKgneLpyaM1rirwYzBCnpUuXhlSicJhb/s320/20110715_4.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629750314843234114" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggtFEIs-2OXlMVLcZRJm6Sm1In6vLExBZlfMaNkReUJYbzf2gg5LmGDsDB6F0ZR6LvQZuXSeAfdruUElxm1cF0rz5DpIJauCiHCik0FqlxcVRxCoMOlg_ZZd43dOM-WZ-KC26Eug_6uAgr/s1600/20110715_11.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 272px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggtFEIs-2OXlMVLcZRJm6Sm1In6vLExBZlfMaNkReUJYbzf2gg5LmGDsDB6F0ZR6LvQZuXSeAfdruUElxm1cF0rz5DpIJauCiHCik0FqlxcVRxCoMOlg_ZZd43dOM-WZ-KC26Eug_6uAgr/s320/20110715_11.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629750306249032130" border="0" /></a><br />If I wasn't sewing, I would be raising rare breed chickens full time. Seriously, I enjoy them that much. What is not to love about chickens? They are incredibly fun animals and have individual personalities. Our chickens get a lot of loving from everyone in the family. James was more than happy to build them a chicken mansion since these pets actually give something back in return.... tasty eggs (unlike Miss Kitty, the 20 pound cat that gives back the occasional hair ball). I didn't even have to whine to get him to build the space for me. The kids love to play with them and caring for them is a task that even small children can do and help instill responsibility. It is baby time around here and we had 2 newbies hatch yesterday. I am pretty sure we will have at least one more within the next day. Our hens are as tame as dogs, so they really don't mind us doting over their babies. I think they are actually proud to show them off. We kind of had an experiment this time putting one of our small eggs from RC (the black and white small bantam breed) under our setting hen. Bud, the big red rooster, is our daddy. I could not believe that the little egg hatched! What hatched was this adorable little brown fur ball. I can't wait to watch it grow and see exactly what it is going to be. It is kind of like breeding a chihuahua and a lab :) The chickens stay in a large, secure lot during the day. They have plenty of running space, shade, and sun. Nest boxes are set up inside the roost so they can go in and out as they please and have a space where they can get out of the rain. After we get home in the evenings, we let them out in the yard so they can have plenty of free range time. Free range eggs from happy chickens can not be beat!Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-53815868808001949122011-07-13T18:37:00.000-07:002011-07-13T19:00:46.693-07:00Disguising Brussels Sprouts<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-l297_-Xd-ECCi36mznleBKwl7wl7Be_i7n0ycrWnjtntJtfpmjiO34b6JqLul0zqV-FU6GikO7hBxEMDFLr6mQ0sD3_AbojO1Tg785GFYOluBpeOAG5keBjuZ7A3oWEC3XNByYGIv757/s1600/20110713_60.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-l297_-Xd-ECCi36mznleBKwl7wl7Be_i7n0ycrWnjtntJtfpmjiO34b6JqLul0zqV-FU6GikO7hBxEMDFLr6mQ0sD3_AbojO1Tg785GFYOluBpeOAG5keBjuZ7A3oWEC3XNByYGIv757/s320/20110713_60.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629021843764184562" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuf7qRWN_Z6TuxzzvJIQOXpYfUQMTsgx3n0UzKBd2S2yr-lsHGagc0Ofy57E-1seVbDbSv3F56ZFPE4gw2R-4vYFNtvGldlmTM9RBAvlaqecqy4zBL9wJYjcVZ1f-z40K4YdoQbUXGJ3bs/s1600/20110713_61.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuf7qRWN_Z6TuxzzvJIQOXpYfUQMTsgx3n0UzKBd2S2yr-lsHGagc0Ofy57E-1seVbDbSv3F56ZFPE4gw2R-4vYFNtvGldlmTM9RBAvlaqecqy4zBL9wJYjcVZ1f-z40K4YdoQbUXGJ3bs/s320/20110713_61.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629021843124151330" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />Since we have started eating a <a href="http://primalblueprint.com/">"primal diet"</a> back in April, we have been eating a lot of foods that we normally didn't eat. James and I had been vegetarian for about 12 years and we were just not feeling as healthy as we should. This has been the BEST lifestyle change for our family... more about that coming in a later post. So, I was all fired up to make pork chops and shredded brussel sprouts the other night. I shredded the sprouts in my food processor and then cooked them in a pan of oil to lightly brown. Boy did they look good, but the unmistakable bitter tasted was there just the same. The kiddos were troopers and cleaned their plates. We had LOTS of leftovers though and I said we will be finishing them later in the week. They smiled and nodded figuring they would end up in the back of the refrigerator and never be seen again until they were a fuzzy mass of unrecognizable green. Fast forward to this evening. After we got home, I gathered the day's fresh eggs from our pet chickens. Cracked a dozen in a bowl, added just a bit of milk and coconut oil and whisked it all together, poured it into a hot pan and then threw some of the sprouts in and cooked it all up. Then I added a touch of soy sauce and gave everyone the option of garden salsa or ketchup. It was really quite good. I warmed up some leftover steak from the night before and had a tall glass of orange juice and it was a filling meal. The poor kids skeptically eyeball everything I cook now... they know I always have some kind of a "healthy surprise" hiding but they are always willing to try out new foods. One of our favorite meal time games is "Guess What's In the Smoothie" :)<br /><br />Sarah is thinking.... umm, mom WHAT is this??? What did you hide in my eggs this time???Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-58884989575382813042010-02-10T21:17:00.001-08:002010-02-10T21:22:55.798-08:00Second Verse.... Same As The First (Only MORE!)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjez59G5B0nX-ynjVrs92C6uwQdivWCOGrGl73RdzzEMYJDAGBD2kyCP3sO3Xkv7a5upofO82smAyAafY3kL_cdrBh2jsvaeaI4k3QmQSD4qAs-NOm0zPWiH1ek_9awK-y9mt0uvBrbk-o-/s1600-h/20100210_1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjez59G5B0nX-ynjVrs92C6uwQdivWCOGrGl73RdzzEMYJDAGBD2kyCP3sO3Xkv7a5upofO82smAyAafY3kL_cdrBh2jsvaeaI4k3QmQSD4qAs-NOm0zPWiH1ek_9awK-y9mt0uvBrbk-o-/s320/20100210_1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436851899556687106" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHM4lODrZls6GA0pKpQClJ2nRa_f9zt90CW9fMaEv6IqLsghf6FCop6Le1k1XebL-06HjxFbOHGk64ae-idfWMJokEbQD5lbf3uYIrc42OzXewxVTFxMCm0fJ0WJzGL4heRC3SR5rER3Kt/s1600-h/20100210_3bronze.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHM4lODrZls6GA0pKpQClJ2nRa_f9zt90CW9fMaEv6IqLsghf6FCop6Le1k1XebL-06HjxFbOHGk64ae-idfWMJokEbQD5lbf3uYIrc42OzXewxVTFxMCm0fJ0WJzGL4heRC3SR5rER3Kt/s320/20100210_3bronze.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436851727808022418" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRS4H6DKsXdGkKtbaOWhkuBndqbDd0IRyGCqtdTZXlvo3K7z5nwqKn08SDQyaRURyxPFOftBB_AHoGE5mSKN-vyD8fIpnvhdi5wjAQd6Zgy9iM5JOnoKQH1SBhxzZe-oiyjHdhWJ6DQhf7/s1600-h/20100210_3.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRS4H6DKsXdGkKtbaOWhkuBndqbDd0IRyGCqtdTZXlvo3K7z5nwqKn08SDQyaRURyxPFOftBB_AHoGE5mSKN-vyD8fIpnvhdi5wjAQd6Zgy9iM5JOnoKQH1SBhxzZe-oiyjHdhWJ6DQhf7/s320/20100210_3.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5436851551499196354" border="0" /></a><br />We haven't seen snow like this here in over 20 years! Such a beautiful and wet snow that stuck to everything. Thought I would share a couple of pictures I took of the yard before it got dark. I went out and measured and we had about 8 inches. We probably got another inch of snow after that so all told, 9 inches!!! That is CRAZY for Arkansas. I played around with Photo Shop and think the sepia toned one is kind of neat. May end up using that one for Christmas cards this year.Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-55717432225731235552010-02-01T20:10:00.000-08:002010-02-01T20:38:20.665-08:00Woohoo! Snow Day (Not!)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKiKLQuQFsPkZ_k1cFJuoO18CltRRQXbiFD5TXp8BFfVAzjNJSp6TyP_LQVO4QMw2yd9Njs1HPIah1d8W4eDK5rhKivqNE_-rzonjtqEutzJPWHMmvsE6JpVw-tCeqvkPftUpcSwfJ7asl/s1600-h/20100131_16.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKiKLQuQFsPkZ_k1cFJuoO18CltRRQXbiFD5TXp8BFfVAzjNJSp6TyP_LQVO4QMw2yd9Njs1HPIah1d8W4eDK5rhKivqNE_-rzonjtqEutzJPWHMmvsE6JpVw-tCeqvkPftUpcSwfJ7asl/s320/20100131_16.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433500814524356082" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi58dRsSZMU2mpBim9IGlhMdQH-xOuyi0bNMj27dCAtJlQgjRjZHHcYqWrytyA6HxtArYYljKd5_IkzuTNEYTXuv3YdXfVge2zAfuzMJ8-uKcWxdx-4MaB45L1VIhaEHIlCJthOBzsHs2jT/s1600-h/20100131_13.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi58dRsSZMU2mpBim9IGlhMdQH-xOuyi0bNMj27dCAtJlQgjRjZHHcYqWrytyA6HxtArYYljKd5_IkzuTNEYTXuv3YdXfVge2zAfuzMJ8-uKcWxdx-4MaB45L1VIhaEHIlCJthOBzsHs2jT/s320/20100131_13.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433500581362103746" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3EblRgwYa5H-4_HocJmxj6yuHcwPnu5lFQ4TOSxSb-ykIchuHVInymZthmC3kwZsVh0NpZBR3OkjMsIHXNNqeiAoRhXVVZ7tN9e5qhidbWmVd3COfvZA9HX9v0aKosnvwF4CT2FS5-nRt/s1600-h/20100131_10.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3EblRgwYa5H-4_HocJmxj6yuHcwPnu5lFQ4TOSxSb-ykIchuHVInymZthmC3kwZsVh0NpZBR3OkjMsIHXNNqeiAoRhXVVZ7tN9e5qhidbWmVd3COfvZA9HX9v0aKosnvwF4CT2FS5-nRt/s320/20100131_10.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433500230771386850" border="0" /></a><br />We don't get a whole lot of snow here in Arkansas so when they forecast lots of ice and snow (even if they forecast a flurry), everyone in town runs to the store to stock up on the standard milk, bread, and of course toilet paper. I shake my head every time. People stock up like they are heading into the end times. I knew school would be out the next day so I planned ahead bringing scissors and lots of wool home to do some cutting. The snow and ice came and it was the perfect day to stay at home as a family and enjoy being lazy. That was until shortly before 5pm Friday night. The power went off and I knew it wasn't a good sign. I had flash backs to earlier in the year when we were without power for a couple of days due to ice. I first went and took a bunch of heavy quilts and covered Caleb's nameless angel fish couple to hold the heat in the water as long as possible. Then we prepared for the worst and James headed out to gather plenty of wood. No chain saw. He had forgotten he let his brother borrow it and it had not been returned. So, he gathered whatever lumber he could (and whatever he could break to fit into the fireplace). We had just enough to last through that night. We all slept around the fire. The kids loved it.... thought it was the biggest adventure ever. James was up probably 10 times taking care of the fire (since we didn't have anything big to burn, it was constant to keep the fire up) I didn't sleep at all thanks to snoring people and afraid I would fall asleep and the fire would go out. By 7am the temperature in the house was down to 57 which was pretty good considering it was below 20 out there. We were totally out of wood so we loaded up in the car and hit the roads despite the ice. Since snow and ice are kind of a rarity here, most of the roads had not been cleared at all. We ended up at the shop and just kind of sat there since we were cold and tired. I was able to check the progress of our power online which was kind of cool. I could see the power would come on, then go off, come on, then go off. I could see how many other houses around us were out. Very frustrating yet entertaining. Power was restored after lunch and we were all SO thankful for having electricity and heat. We all settled in and finished watching "Inn of the Sixth Happiness" which we were in the middle of when we lost power. Sunday we all went out and played in the snow. It was great to laugh and have so much fun. I took my pet rooster George and set him in the snow. Needless to say he was NOT a happy bird with his first snow experience. We had about 6 inches on the ground and he had been staying under our shed away from all of it. He walked a few steps with exaggerated high stepping and stopped at my feet, looked up at me, and refused to move another step until I picked him up and put him back :)Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-45531172931628454052010-01-29T09:32:00.000-08:002010-01-29T09:51:32.207-08:00Really Awesome Site for the Wool Obsessed<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.resweater.blogspot.com/"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 92px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimx3zflLnrqgn-4gMHldWBRt5pvgML6m4eN_wpx8j0bn94DMKGr2bBDwmmU9c4asDt2YurG6s_NL5hQRG68-lEOEQ-U4Z35Y9eJqXYDgBDQj5YofzORXnp08sYvKwxgECEy80KcnIVNsGM/s400/resweater.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432216392591602594" border="0" /></a>In my poking around, I came across this site that just made me drool. I realized that there was someone out there just as obsessed with wool like I am. Kris has a super abundance of recycled wool that she crafts with and offers wool for sale too!<br /><br /><br />I found this really awesome sweater that I HAD to have with little roosters all over it. The colors are even more vibrant in person and I imagine making a soaker and several pairs of slippers from this one. Kris is constantly posting great tutorials. You can find tutorials for making regular socks, blankets, dryer balls, and tons of other cool things. If it can be made from wool, she has probably made it. I hope you enjoy poking around this site as much as I do. So many great projects for a rainy (or icy day like we are having today).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7QBu5lP0LKPSkXaE7pmELhquCJVNYbMeEiUCrMIFBar5-DuagK8AgXWZG4onW46VbX7yFFoMJpooEChq8qE0eHgzguOM8IxxNeAh7xyxxsrxX_gOBX1o0RJnGPQcRxnzCFs5ahbrnvYZE/s1600-h/roosters.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 395px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7QBu5lP0LKPSkXaE7pmELhquCJVNYbMeEiUCrMIFBar5-DuagK8AgXWZG4onW46VbX7yFFoMJpooEChq8qE0eHgzguOM8IxxNeAh7xyxxsrxX_gOBX1o0RJnGPQcRxnzCFs5ahbrnvYZE/s400/roosters.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432219842697220322" border="0" /></a>Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-79244220494049541792010-01-07T15:33:00.000-08:002010-01-07T16:06:45.640-08:00Happy New Year!!!I am excited to start a brand new year AND a brand new decade. I am working on my annual business plan and hope to be a little more organized this year. I am planning on cutting out a few things, and growing in other areas. My main struggle has always been to come up with oodles of great ideas and then would not have the time to cultivate those ideas. Those of you that have been with me since the beginning in 2004 have seen me make just about everything under the sun out of wool at one time or another. I realized this and really did well on working on my crafting obsession this past year. I plan to continue that trend this year. I had started up a second website (what was I thinking?!?!) that grew beyond what I could handle very quickly. I sold Artisan Baby so I could completly focus on Woollybottoms. I made another decision for 2010 that I will not be doing all interlock pieces any longer. I LOVE the fabric as do many of you, but the unpredictable milling and cost of the fabric just kind of caused me to loose all my joy in it. I have realized that I can not do everything and be scattered across the board. I will only be using the interlock in our hybrid soakers and longies. We have also kind of moved away from stocking on hyena cart last year. I will probably continue that trend into this year as well. We will still have our fun "uglies" sales and will stock through hyena cart for those but that will probably be it. We will be sticking with stocking (wow... say sticking with stocking 5 times fast lol) the main website several times a week and I am working on stocking on Etsy (one of many unfinished projects from last year LOL). I don't want to be spread all over the place.<br /><br />The main theme I guess I should say for 2010 is balance. It is becoming increasingly hard. I am not a big business. It is just little old me and I do have one person helping me full time doing sewing and inspecting each and every piece we make. I still handle all of the computer work and answering phones and emails. I also package and ship each and every package along with sewing. I am so incredibly thankful for the increasing business but in order to keep up and still be able to keep this a local mom owned business (and most importantly my sanity) some changes will be made throughout the month of January.<br /><br />My accomplishment for today (well besides the typical sewing and shipping) was working on the Etsy store (as you can see over on the side of the page now). One thing to cross off the list woohoo!<br /><br /><br /><script src="'http://www.etsy.com/etsy_mini.js'" type="'text/javascript'"></script><br /><script type="'text/javascript'">new EtsyNameSpace.Mini(5368134, 'shop','gallery',4,2).renderIframe();</script>Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-11540375111790812212009-11-16T06:40:00.000-08:002009-11-16T06:54:52.170-08:00And the winner is.....<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr2a-lsnR97951tW9PqnUtw5PCQsw8Jtae8BRFLKzLAY-pJ0PygsMkmf727LUoaH32h0GeTlpWzr3ACDnv_Rft8uZgJuMZVEQbjQD__qHsl6rx3bOKMO7mxSYNJ0SHc_JMZf2V-3WIDEJ1/s1600/DSC_0462[1].JPG+copy.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404715059360718626" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr2a-lsnR97951tW9PqnUtw5PCQsw8Jtae8BRFLKzLAY-pJ0PygsMkmf727LUoaH32h0GeTlpWzr3ACDnv_Rft8uZgJuMZVEQbjQD__qHsl6rx3bOKMO7mxSYNJ0SHc_JMZf2V-3WIDEJ1/s400/DSC_0462%5B1%5D.JPG+copy.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDCN31e4YXFuuzK8ZYB6pobisOzSzLZB4VYyz7SuuUW2Vz7pglybsoyL7gUYbWB9jJP7z2i2nbPN_-VQKUCLinC96E19yGentD4eaM-KdxFiE6Icz4zcqZ9aPecf6bx_OphXdQ7axVyzvQ/s1600/DSC_0462[1].JPG+copy.jpg"></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinnD9lOYBT8nQb4-aeFujHwr1YRBmAqJthm88a88dmkCRPLCZ0hZnhyu8NrMx0QHZ20yIiIEjiHg-x3SmBQ4KcdrRhe3gqQBngT68PLuEryQcYtuuaMj2yHqmdjrJwVUTbmYE1bzkCsPV8/s1600/DSC_0462[1].JPG+copy.jpg"></a><br /><br /><br /><div>......Randi and her little boy, David! Randi asked "How big is David?" and David raised his little hands to show that he was "sooooooo big!" We received over 100 entries for our first photo contest. We were excited over all the entries we received and really enjoyed seeing each and every one of them. Randi will receive a $100 gift certicicate to use on the website. We have really had a great time doing this and will plan to do it again. Thank you to everyone that participated! </div></div></div>Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-87491184571148672472009-10-09T15:09:00.000-07:002009-10-09T15:28:43.377-07:00Fall Photo Contest!<a href="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h15/jamesshannon96/calebfooties.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 512px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 550px" alt="" src="http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h15/jamesshannon96/calebfooties.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Yep, Woollybottoms has fallen for doing a photo contest as well. The prize? A $100 gift certificate to Woollybottoms. We are going to open for submissions from today until November 15, 2009. No theme or any piece in particular.... just your baby in Woollybottoms. Have fun with grabbing some great photos. Please be sure to include with your photo your baby's first name and a few words or sentences. Submission of your photos gives Woollybottoms permission to use the photo on our website or in printed forms. Sound like fun? I think so and I look forward to seeing your photos. One winner will be chosen and will be posted here. Entries can be sent to woollybottoms @ gmail.com (no spaces) and please put Fall Photo Contest in the subject line. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>This picture is a little blast from the past of Caleb from about 3 years ago. My how he has grown! I found it buried in photobucket and had to share :)</div>Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-24322794510518794122009-07-11T08:20:00.000-07:002009-07-11T08:35:51.520-07:00More Soap On The WayI manage to do this every single time. I wait until the last minute to re-order soap and sure enough, I did it again. That doesn't seem to matter though as I can email Katie and she ALWAYS responds within minutes and tells me it is no problem. Saying Katie is fast is an understatement. So we currently are having more Love Spell being made up and instead of the Butt Naked scent this time (which I really DO love), we are going with Yuzu which is in the same family of scents in my opinion, but something different to offer and another scent that I really love. <br /><br />If you are not familiar with Katie at Ewe Need It,( <a href="http://hyenacart.com/EweNeedIt/">http://hyenacart.com/EweNeedIt/</a> ) check her out if you get a chance. Excellent products for wool and baby, and of course stellar customer service.Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-58651467111067356892009-07-08T15:46:00.000-07:002009-07-08T15:55:45.160-07:00Already Preparing for Fall.....Our busiest time of year is soon coming up. With all the sewing that goes on and wrangling of kids, sometimes the details get overlooked. I finally took a couple of hours to do a little bit of house cleaning on the website. I had a stack of 6 or 7 new footies prints that have been sitting here for weeks waiting on photos and to be listed. I think yesterday I must have listed 20 new recycled pieces and today cleaned up the footies listings and divided them neatly into "boys" and "girls" catagories. After customer requests a few months ago, we now have an option to customize footies with the addition of an interlock waistband rather than a traditional waist band. I want to further the idea of customization and will be working on adding a slot to "build your own footies" or something to that effect. We should have that activated by tomorrow if all goes as planned.Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-24750173254924453192009-03-18T13:40:00.000-07:002009-03-18T13:47:50.660-07:00New Footies Print, Inspired by Mom & Baby<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmN6O-HDi1weI2RZPzXXjqtiXrwrkQwofL5FtJiJThX3v2Z1hoKMVeewWxY7W_k-sifId9fB2pZ1IM6n7HwmUeIocamVAkA2hhXvYSKz-CieMvz4YQuzTAAZkuGSp6udbfzvLFXlfwdJVx/s1600-h/000_8102r.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314632309817997170" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmN6O-HDi1weI2RZPzXXjqtiXrwrkQwofL5FtJiJThX3v2Z1hoKMVeewWxY7W_k-sifId9fB2pZ1IM6n7HwmUeIocamVAkA2hhXvYSKz-CieMvz4YQuzTAAZkuGSp6udbfzvLFXlfwdJVx/s320/000_8102r.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>We recently ran a large group order for our customers signed up on our yahoo news group. It was a lot of fun to put together custom footies for our customers where they were able to pick out the footie fabric and wool colors. This was a particularly fun print. I had this fabric sitting in my stash for quite some time and had never used it. I pulled it out for this custom order and put it with the blue wool and the result was one of my favorite combos. It is such a fun print and the name Solana (named for Solana Beach, California and the little girl who inspired these footies) fits it perfectly. </div>Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-10679346804395354852009-03-17T06:54:00.000-07:002009-03-17T07:07:11.281-07:00Lots of Changes in Store for 2009!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCXRGsr94Z68qqc-o-xRDZ3TOcEU6oyzLniQs7hdWlyW6jqrC-vi7dfa9Ny_RFOJcKVbgKFtmJANvtw8fv0ArnHp2iv4b6GOJhBAxjf1xShrKrIb0_iEvbjKO-jdv7lQtSlX8o8DO7TiGY/s1600-h/000_8083r.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5314156565766734850" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 252px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCXRGsr94Z68qqc-o-xRDZ3TOcEU6oyzLniQs7hdWlyW6jqrC-vi7dfa9Ny_RFOJcKVbgKFtmJANvtw8fv0ArnHp2iv4b6GOJhBAxjf1xShrKrIb0_iEvbjKO-jdv7lQtSlX8o8DO7TiGY/s320/000_8083r.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Our new footie fabrics are finally in and are being sewed up as quickly as possible. The fabric is incredibly soft and fluffy. We are also moving to a new location in beautiful Heber Springs and closing on the property today. To start with, it will be a workspace/shipping area only with the potential to grow into retail space in the future as we continue to grow. We are very excited about these changes and thank our customers for helping to making this possible. New patterns are being stocked daily and we have also added an "outlet" section on the website.</div>Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-51085949952969265242008-12-23T06:03:00.001-08:002008-12-23T06:30:49.194-08:00Gluten & Eczema????<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDM25nAwlX8p6BvN-hkWyibDKNI9R45UiLF3PLM54JemEk4wuOcN2tPrhbK0qX18y-MPIvKsie3LOS6nckqALPJx3q0lbqUXR6Q1LgMm3-QYPwdguGKPJRsXuwpHZBX8osXT0jJWyrRxeQ/s1600-h/000_7460.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5282992383763812050" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 309px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDM25nAwlX8p6BvN-hkWyibDKNI9R45UiLF3PLM54JemEk4wuOcN2tPrhbK0qX18y-MPIvKsie3LOS6nckqALPJx3q0lbqUXR6Q1LgMm3-QYPwdguGKPJRsXuwpHZBX8osXT0jJWyrRxeQ/s320/000_7460.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>As many of you know, my little boy who is now 4 has been plagued with eczema since he was a few months old. It has mostly settled in on his legs down around his ankles. We tried cutting out dairy for a few weeks and there was no change. Then we thought the culprit may have been eggs. We cut them out and no change. It would seemingly flare up for no reason at all. When it was at its worst, we took him to the dermatologist and I tried to find out from her what internally could be causing this???? She wanted to only give me creams filled with crap and tret the symptoms. They worked at first and then quit working. I thought, well, I guess he will grow out of it. He turned 4 last September and guess what.... he hasn't outgrown it. He has always been skinny but I felt he just has a high metabolism like me. No big deal. I was talking online with another mom and as moms do, we discussed poop. Caleb may kill me for this later talking about his poop, but the boy has always pooped 2-3 times a day and it was never "normal" stuff. I chalked this up to high metabolism again and dubbed him Sir Poopalot :) I never put the 2 together until I started researching, but the symptoms really seem to line up with a gluten sensitivity. I don't think his body is absorbing the nutrients he needs. Along with being skinny and the eczema, I have noticed his hair seems a little dry and he just overall doesn't seem healthy like he should. I am very excited to try this new theory about the gluten because for once, the symptoms seem to line up. We will be on our way to the health food store for some snacks and some bread that he can eat hopefully. If this is it, we should know in a few days.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>On a more fun note, the kids put together a gingerbread house. They had so much fun. A day later they ate most of the candy off and demolished it :) </div><br /><p>I will be back to update in a few days about the gluten prognosis. This has got to be the answer. We have struggled with this so long and it is so hard to see my baby afflicted with this mess.</p>Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-25455760064403436872008-12-08T15:02:00.000-08:002008-12-08T15:19:00.661-08:00The World's Worst Blogger<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7YWKgIMIuUa7LAiUgUxqvxAXX75VFNkuqqIBEbkqMJLL5la-XpL9U-oRdzYk6WfyiI_qmvhnUmMc2tL7hFLrbwxFUF8GEva9MaTBFp73UKmngSD9qtTHhvWbV_L3zBllCjlkM5cJGfPRN/s1600-h/bebops2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5277562722232709586" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 287px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7YWKgIMIuUa7LAiUgUxqvxAXX75VFNkuqqIBEbkqMJLL5la-XpL9U-oRdzYk6WfyiI_qmvhnUmMc2tL7hFLrbwxFUF8GEva9MaTBFp73UKmngSD9qtTHhvWbV_L3zBllCjlkM5cJGfPRN/s320/bebops2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div>That is me. I have come to realize I just stink at blogging. We have had soooo much going on and I barely have time to breathe. Even though Caleb is now 4 years old, he seems to be more demanding of my time than ever. Running a full time business from home and helping James with his really wears me very thin many days. I am very excited about where Woollybottoms is heading for 2009. We spent months developing a perfect fabric to start using in our footies made from a yummy blend of 80% wool, 10% cashmere, and 10% angora. It is incredibly soft and just perfect. I know at first many were like WAIT!!!! We want our recycled wool!!!! The truth is, I can not meet the demand in numbers dealing with recycled wool only. It is unpredictable to work with and does not offer the consistency in product that we want. We will continue to offer recycled wool and are NOT doing away with it. Working with recycled wool is a passion of mine that will not be done away with. This is merely going to be an expansion to help alleviate the supply issues. I would love to eliminate the whole stalking thing and that is my goal for 2009. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>As for what I have been doing here around the house, we decided to paint our kitchen cabinets after living here for about 10 years. The house was built in 1962 and the cabinets were honey stained pine with ugly beaten copper hardware. I wanted to go white being the conservative that I am, but James wanted color so I went and picked up all kinds of samples. We ended up going with tomato salsa RED!!!! I was a little freaked out at first but now that it is up, I LOVE it. I would post a pic but James has the doors at his shop and they are still being painted. With the cold and rainy weather, drying time is taking MUCH longer than anticipated so the doors are still off. I feel like my whole life is exposed to everyone since everything is out in the open. For the cost of a gallon of primer and paint and a LOT of muscle power, it looks like a new kitchen. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I also wanted to share this adorable coat of Caleb's. Now that we have ours, I can share :) It is made from wool and lined in THE cutest vintage cowboy print. Priscilla of Bebops makes the most adoable coats for kids and they are each so unique and timeless. This is the Audubon coat and we love it. You can find her shop here: <a href="http://hyenacart.com/Be-Bops/">http://hyenacart.com/Be-Bops/</a></div>Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-75322645770641033.post-82600220437792151002008-10-23T17:24:00.000-07:002008-10-23T17:42:13.586-07:00My New Best FriendMove over June Cleaver... I am tearing it up in the kitchen now. I work a LOT of hours through the week including odd hours at night, helping my husband with paperwork at his business, taking care of kids, yadda yadda. Sometimes I don't even schedule time to shop for groceries much less cook. So I end up staring blankly into the pantry and either give up immediately and go out to eat, call James and ask him to bring home something frozen, or throw together something pitiful. I hate to cook but not because I can't do it, but because I was not organized. People, I had spices that expired in 2001 in my cabinet and moldy things in my fridge. I buy healthy food with good intentions and then it goes to waste much of the time. So I came across this site, Relish <a href="http://www.relishrelish.com/">http://www.relishrelish.com</a> and was skeptical. I thought why should I pay $7 per month to have someone tell me what to eat and probably be some kind of recipes where I couldn't even find half the stuff on the list much less the time to make all this stuff. So I thought eh, I will try it for 3 months and see. I am going into week 3 now and there is no turning back. I am spending a little more at the grocery store now, but I am not eating out. I am feeding my family healthy stuff. Everyone is happy to see what I am making at night and the food is sooooo good!!! I am buying things that I would have never picked up before and my cart is filled with fresh fruits and veggies. I bought Bok Choy last week people! Never had it before or even knew what to do with it. The only down side is I am having to buy a lot of spices and things that I didn't have before which really isn't a bad thing, but I am spending more than I would like every week. I know it will get better once I get my spice "base" down. I love how you have 15 meals to choose from and you get an organized list and menu to follow. We are semi-vegetarian here (we eat fish and chicken) and have have had no problem coming up with a wonderful menu every week. Sometimes I choose something that may call for beef or pork and if it really sounds good, I substitute for chicken or turkey. We ususually have leftovers every meal so there is plenty for lunch which is really great. So, overall I give it a huge thumbs up and it is worth a try.Shannonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02140542497272537277noreply@blogger.com0