Getting Ready!!







Several of us spent some time this evening at the coffee house getting things set up and ready for the morning!

Can't wait to see you all there!!!

Time & Location Reminder:

Date and Time: Saturday, November 17, 2007 from 9am- 2pm

Location: New Song Christian Fellowship, Woodbine (in the coffeehouse basement)

Address: 2949 Nolensville Pike, Nashville TN 37211

Contact: http://mamamade.biz/, Chelle's e-mail: chellebaldwin AT comcast DOT net, or by cell: 615-579-0452

As a way of giving back to the community, the Mamamade event will be equipped with bins to receive non-perishables for the Second Harvest Food Bank that operates out of New Song Woodbine. Consider bringing an item or two with you when you come to shop; you'll be helping local families in need.

Elizabeth's Bio



My name is Elizabeth Hutchison. I am a native Nashvillian, homeschooling mother to four wonderful boys, and married to my best friend, Ben for almost ten years. I have a "vintage inspired baby items" business called two green olive trees.

I hand make baby bibs, burp cloths, diaper sacks, blankets, and other baby accessories from top of the line, designer fabrics. I also have a series of "recycled" baby accessories which are made from the ever so abundant, articles of clothing that would otherwise end up in our landfills. I am excited about this new creative phase of my life! You can check out www.twogreenolivetrees.etsy.com for up and coming items.

Window Shopping

Thought I'd put a few photos here of items that will be available this weekend!

Quite a neat variety of things!

From Julie:

This week has been challenging to say the least. I have had a raging head cold that has involved snot galore, coughing, sore throat, you name it. Being a mama and being sick is one thing. Being a mama with a cold with 2 children who have colds takes it to a whole 'nother level. Add in there that I have basically waited until this week to get all my stuff together for the mamamade show PLUS this month and next are my busiest of the year at my i-get-a-paycheck-for-this job and well... It's been a teensy weensy bit chaotic here at Clark Central. But hey! I am a mama and that means I can do things under pretty chaotic circumstances (with lots of help from my wonderful husband and of course by the grace of God!) Thankfully, I am on the mend and other than this horrendous cold sore that has shown up ON MY NOSE (ick!) I should be 100% by the show.

So all that to say this: I will have at least one of each version of my "chore charts" available at the show on Saturday (Click the picture below to see all available themes) as well as CD's of note cards. I spent the better part of last night printing the charts and I have to say, I'm pretty thrilled with the results! We have been using our chart here for months now and it really is a great motivator. I have made several for friends here in my neighborhood and for some other mama friends and the feedback I am getting is very positive. The ones I will have Saturday will not be personalized but will be great gifts nonetheless. Personalized ones will be available for $15 *if* your order is placed at mamamade. Personalization includes: Your child's picture incorporated into the chart (you'll have to e-mail me a high resolution digital image) and your choice of 4 of the chore tiles. (There are 28 tiles for each chart. 24 of them include common household tasks. The last 4 can be left blank or you can tell me up to 4 that you want specific to your child.)

Also available is a "Love Chores" chart for your significant other. It comes with blank tiles that you can fill in yourself with a sharpie. This would be a fun Wedding Shower gift. You can write things on there like "Give me a back rub" - It's the ultimate "honey-do" list!

Finally - I will also have sample designs of my Birth Announcements and Christmas Cards and will be ready to take your orders for custom designs.

Only 2 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Grab you hats and pull up your britches people and get ready for the big event!! Can you believe it starts in 56 hours and 15 minutes?!?! I have been living in a cloud of dust trying to get all the cutting boards done for the show. There have been some shall we say "mechanical difficulties" along the way. As you know my router switch bit the dust a while back. That was actually the second thing to break on me (my sewing machine went on strike weeks ago) and as I was soon to discover not the last. I had one of my orbital sanders literally go up in smoke and then my drill press decided that I had drilled one too many holes and went KER-PLUNK! Thankfully it did that just as I was finishing up so I only had to hand drill a few boards. I ended up with 3 different sizes of boards. The biggi, mini and skinni. Here they are in walnut.
I have all the sizes in three different woods. Walnut, Cherry and Mahogany. The maple on the skinni and mini is curly maple. On the biggi it's rock maple. Here is a pic of the three different woods.


I spent my nights whirring away at the sewing machine making a bunch of Placemat-a-doodle-do's. I have 4 colors available this year. They are vinyl so cleaning them up after a meal is a breeze with a wet wipe or washcloth. Make your outings with your kids easier and pick up one for them. Heck for that matter make your outings with the kids more fun for the rest of the people in the restaurant and pick one up for them.

So it's quarter to one in the morning and I have to go make lunch for my oldest daughter for school tomorrow. As excited as I am about the show I must admit I am looking forward to some earlier bedtimes starting Saturday night! ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ......

Mamamade.biz featured in the Tennessean today!

The Tennessean has done a story about our upcoming open house this Saturday! If you've just surfed in from the Tennessean, welcome!

See you on Saturday!

Number of days to MAMAMADE 2007: 5

Number of projects on my plate: O, Thousands!

Number of minutes spent sewing this week: 218 (approx.)


Number of minutes spent exercising: 405 (EXACTLY)


Christmas Gifts purchased: 2

People to buy gifts for: O, Thousands!


MAMAMade Items:

LUNCH TOTES! Finished: 5


These lunch totes are insulated, oh so pretty and born out of necessity! I must pack in my own food everyday to work, lest I be tempted by the vending machine Sirens. And those puny lunch bags gross me out with their unwashable plastic and only enough space for a couple sticks 'o celery and a Capri Sun. So I made myself a big ole bag that I can throw in the wash and get rid of that fat-free dressing spilled last Tuesday.

BOOKIES! finished: 20


Wire wreaths! Finished: 2 (and hopefully more to come, depending on your reaction!)


Bibs! Finished: 12

On The Go Wallets! Finished: 6


Assorted totes, cd boxes, etc! O, Thousands

Come by and see us! We've all been busy whipping up some beauties!

From Carrie


Making their debut at Mamamade, our holiday offerings: "Despertador,'' Spanish for "Alarm Clock'' and "Ni Un Pio!'' or "Not a Peep,'' our version of "See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil" and otherwise known as the thing my Abuela said most commonly to her noisy grandchildren: "No quiero oir ni un pio!'' The perfect toddler tee!


These funny Spanish T-shirts and onesies will each include a card with the lyrics to Los Pollitos Dicen, the traditional lullaby we take our name from.

Despertador is available in 0 to 6 months and 6 to 12 months; Ni Un Pio is available in 2T and 4T. Both are 100% cotton and made in the U.S.A.

We also will have some closeout baby onesies, bibs and adult T-shirts with fun Spanish sayings and designs such as this beautiful tropical bird, the Cuban Tocororo:

From Julie:

You know, the neat thing about designing digital products is that I can give away things for free easily just by uploading them to the 'net!

I thought I'd put up some samples of my note cards (available at open house on CD) for our blog readers to experiment with!

I'm giving blog readers samples of:

• CHRISTMAS TREAT COVERS (simply cut, fold and put over a lollipop. Then staple or secure with a ribbon send them to school with your child!)
• A sheet of 2 Christmas "Print and Go" Cards
• 1 Assemble yourself Christmas Card
• 1 Coordinating Envelope
  

The links above will take you to full size images. All you have to do is save the full size images to your computer and then print and play!


Enjoy!

I just wanted to show a few of the holiday pillows I've worked up. I'm looking forward to Saturday Gals!!

~jenni

Hi there! It's Angel from Babybearshop. I want to introduce you to some cute and cuddly friends we'll have available at the Mamamade Event. Our "Best Friends" doll is on the back row of the photo, they are made from recycled vintage fabric and stuffed with 100% cotton. At 18 inches tall they make great companions and can even be a stand in for a pillow in the car or out of town! In the front row are our 6.5 inch tall fairies, they are made of 100% cotton and stuffed with organic fill. Both items are handmade in the USA, sourced from small craft businesses. They can't wait to meet you!

To see a larger image, just click on the photo!

FROM TISRA:

Just the perfect thing for getting in the holiday mood: Christmas tree ornaments!

These are completely hand-sewn coffee cup ornaments that capture the cozy warm feeling we get as the air is getting chilly and we're waiting for St. Nick.  Made of felt, stuffed, and embroidered with a creamy swirl, these colorful cups will be perfect on the tree, hanging in a wreath, or dangled from a lamp to cheer up your workspace.  Each ornament will be available at the Mamamade sale for $10, and comes with a modern ball chain loop for hanging, which is easily replaced by a more traditional length of ribbon, should you desire.

From Julie:



I took some time this evening to put together some of the cards that will be available on the CD that I will have for sale at mamamade.

I had so much fun making them and can totally see this being a great thing to have on hand - I'm so excited about offering it at open house!

The CD will have a collection of 8 sets of cards - Within each set there are 4 printable cards with 2 different designs. Two of the cards are print-and-go and two are assemble yourself for a layered 3-D effect. Each set also includes 2 coordinating envelopes that you can print, fold, and glue (I use scotch tape).

I embellished the note cards with things I have laying around the house - some ribbon, a few random scrapbook brads and flowers, and even a few leaves from the back yard. All you need is a printer, some cardstock, scissors & some adhesive (glue or a glue stick, tape, or other adhesive like like zots). Optionally, you can add some embellishments like the ones I mentioned above.

My 4 year old has not mastered cutting things within the lines but she loves to play with her craft scissors. I print an extra set of cards and she cuts and glues right along with me.

The great thing about having these in digital form is that you can use them over and over again!

There are 2 Christmas Themed sets, 1 Patriotic Set, a Valentine Themed Set, a Sweet Pink and Blue set (perfect for baby announcements or thank you notes), a party themed set perfect for birthday invites or thank yous, and 2 other sets in shades of brown and pink.

Also included on the CD are bonus Lollipop Treat Covers for Valentine, Birthday and Christmas Party days and Mini Christmas Gift Card tags.

Lots of Fun!!!

Mamamade has been featured in Whip Up today!

If you've visited our site via Whip Up, get acquainted with our group by reading the participant bios (links to the left), and clicking on the individual site links of The Mamas. Lots of talent, and passion- you are sure to be inspired. The complete event details are here.

We'll see you in Nashville on November 17th!

FROM TISRA:

Today I worked on hand-printing some linoleum block print cards (lino cards) from my Speech Bubble line.  I love these cards and use them myself.  Hand carved from natural linoleum, the artwork is then inked up with a brayer and printed.  Some people use printing presses, but I hand print them by rubbing on the back of the print with a wooden spoon.  I like this hands-on approach and the slightly rustic look that can be achieved this way.  Each print is an original, unique piece of art.  This particular line of is so fun to use!   The silly cards feature a character with an empty speech bubble- write in anything you want!  "Congratulations!", "Thank You", "Happy Gum Chewing Day!"... you name it.

Every white or ivory card is roughly 4x6" and comes with a matching envelope.  At Mamamade, I'll have all my cards available individually, but they may be purchased in multiples for a a better price- you pick and choose (like going to one of those bulk bin candy places- you only grab what you want).  And whether you choose one or 10, I'll have plastic sleeves on hand to protect your artwork, and package them nicely.

Greetings from Babybearshop! It's finally starting to feel like Fall around here, which can only mean one thing: the holidays are getting closer every day! I can't wait to meet those of you that are coming to our Mamamade Event on November 17th.

Today I want to share some information about our signature product: Cheeky Baby Butter.

Let's start with the ingredients: Shea Butter, Beeswax, Sunflower Oil, Rosehip Oil, Calendula Flower Oil, Olive Oil, Essential oils of lavender, roman chamomile and red mandarin, and Non-GMO vitamin E.

Notice anything missing? Maybe the unpronounceable chemicals and ingredients you find on the back of your average baby lotion? Our products are truly organic and truly natural unlike many of the baby products out there that make that claim purely for marketing purposes!

This nutrient rich hydrating creme is great for massage, dry skin, eczema, scars and stretch marks. It is 99.9% organic, 100% natural and has 100% plant derived ingredients with NO parabens, pthalates or synthetic fragrance.

It is packaged in a recyclable brown glass jar and comes in two sizes: 1.7 oz. and 4 oz.

Check back here for more information about pricing as the sale gets closer!

FROM TISRA:

I have quite the passion for stationery.  As a young girl, having family and friends spread across towns, cities, and oceans, I wrote and received a lot of letters.  The handwritten word is so personal.  It warms my heart to see the slant of a friend's cursive or the haste in which they've crossed their "t".  And in a day when e-mail and telephone communication is speedier, knowing that someone took more time to drop a note in the mail affirms the value of that friendship.  In fact, I will say that it is my dearest friends that I am able to close my eyes and visualize their individual handwriting.  The fonts of my friends.

At Mamamade this year, in addition to the line of hand printed lino cards, I will be offering blank cards with my photography on the front.  Each are high quality prints, attached with black photo corners, and signed by me.

From Julie: 16 days?

Well - Guess where I've been lately? IN DENIAL! I haven't done ONE THING (other than get this website together!) to prepare for mamamade! I am setting some time aside this weekend to get the responsibility charts printed off and I think I am also going to offer a "make it yourself note card kit" - This will be a CD of digital files with everything you need (except the scissors and glue) to make your own note cards - Even the envelopes! I think this will be a great gift for moms to give to daughters and maybe even as a project that mamas and their kids can do together. The CD will contain 7 "kits" and there will be samples of assembled cards at mamamade. I might even bring some unassembled ones to put together at the table to show folks how easy (AND FUN!) it is!