8
Nov

The Cottage Mama Sewing Patterns ~ Blog Tour

I’m excited to announce that over the next two weeks, The Cottage Mama Sewing Patterns will be going on tour with some of your favorite bloggers!  Seven of my blogging friends will be sewing up one of the two newly released The Cottage Mama Sewing Patterns, sharing their creations and giving away two of my patterns on each blog……that’s a total of 14 patterns!

Here are the blogs that will be participating:

These ladies are all incredibly talented and I am so excited to see what each of them has created from my new patterns. If you aren’t a regular reader of these blogs, I highly recommend you check them out.  You can click on any of the links in the schedule below to visit these crafty, super-sewing ladies!

I’d love for you all to follow along on the tour.  I will be announcing each stop on the tour, but in case you wanted to plan ahead, here is the schedule below.
 
The Cottage Mama Sewing Patterns ~ Blog Tour Schedule:

November 8th – The Cottage Home
November 9 th – Craftiness is not Optional
November 10th – A Lemon Squeezy Home
November 11th – No Big Dill
November 12th – Kojo Designs
November 14th – Aesthetic Nest
November 15th – Girl.Inspired
November 16th – Noodlehead
November 17th – The Cottage Home

Patterns can be purchased here on the blog (in the right side-bar) or through my etsy shop, The Cottage Mama.  Patterns are also available for wholesale purchase.  Please email Lindsay at thecottagemama[at]gmail[dot]com for wholesale order minimums and additional pricing information. 
8
Nov

Bounce Dryer Bar Review and $50.00 Visa Gift Card Giveaway

This is a sponsored review from BlogHer and Bounce. All opinions are 100% mine.

Laundry, laundry, laundry – does it ever end? Well, with three kids under the age of four, the answer is……….no. I was recently asked if I would like to try out the new Bounce Dryer Bar and I jumped at the opportunity. Have you heard of this product? Well, it’s the newest in the line of products from Bounce and it is fabulous! It has all the benefits of dryer sheets, but brings it to you in a more convenient form. I know I have reviewed products here and there on the blog, but trust me when I tell you that I would not recommend a product unless I truly thought it was great!

The Bounce Dryer Bar was so simple to install that I actually installed it in the dark. I’m not kidding. Our laundry is in the basement (otherwise known as the dungeon) and when I went down there to start using this product the light was burned out. I didn’t realize my husband had installed a light elsewhere, but that’s beside the point. The point is that this product could not be any easier to use. If I can easily install it in the dark, you know that you will have no problem at all installing it in the light!

Here’s how the Bounce Dryer Bar works……… You remove the bar from the packaging and peel off the paper on the back side of the bar to reveal the sticky adhesive. You open your dryer and place the bar (sticky side down) on the side wall of the dryer. All you have to do is hold it down for 15 seconds and you are good to go.

How many times have you forgotten to put a dryer sheet in with a load of laundry? Or have you ever been doing laundry and ran out of dryer sheets? Well, that can be a total bummer and with the new Bounce Dryer Bar you do not even have to think about it. You just toss in your laundry and forget about it. You end up with months of great smelling laundry as well as softness and static control.

Granted, a dryer sheet may not seem like a very big deal, but in the life of this busy mom, it’s just one less thing to have to worry about. I think we all want to find ways to make our lives a little bit easier and the new Bounce Dryer Bar does just that! The bar lasts for three months and after it runs out, you can simply buy a refill pack. The holder stays in the dryer and you just replace the bar. So you only have to think about it four times a year, instead of thinking about dryer sheets for every load of laundry.

The Bounce Dryer Bar comes in the scented and unscented varieties depending on your taste. I tried out the scented version and it smells great! I love the way fresh laundry smells and this has the perfect scent. Some people are very sensitive to scented products, so in that case I would recommend going with the unscented bar.

The bottom line is that the Bounce Dryer Bar is great. Like I said before, it’s all the benefits of a dryer sheet, but it a more convenient form……….now that makes life easier and I’m all about that!
To find out more about the Bounce Dryer Bar, please visit the Bounce Facebook page for videos and additional information.
Do you want to win a Bounce Dryer Bar and a $50 Visa gift card from Bounce and BlogHer? To enter the giveaway, please tell me how the Bounce Dryer Bar would make your life easier?

Follow the rules below to enter.
Rules:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods
a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older.
Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.
You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.

Giveaway open through 12/6/2011.

For more opportunities to win, visit the Bounce round-up page on BlogHer.com to read other bloggers’ reviews!
7
Nov

Butterfly Kisses Fabric ~ Sponsored Giveaway

 There’s a new fabric shop online!  I am pleased to welcome a new sponsor to The Cottage Home blog ~  
Butterfly Kisses Fabric!
Butterfly Kisses Fabric is a brand new online store dedicated to all your fabric and sewing needs.  Their goal is to offer you a wide selection of beautiful and modern designer fabrics at competitive prices.  Their quality, 100% cotton fabrics are perfectly suited for creating quilts, clothing, home decor and more.  Additionally, they carry a variety of contemporary sewing and quilting patterns from today’s most popular designers. 

Butterfly Kisses Fabric strives to provide you with a diverse collection of sewing and quilting supplies, personalized customer service, regularly updated inventory and helpful options to help stretch your sewing budget.

Here is a note about Butterfly Kisses Fabric from the owner, Tammy:

My name is Tammy and along with my husband, Chad, we turned my hobby into a family-friendly business by starting Butterfly Kisses Fabric. Three years ago, I became a stay-at-home mom. Now instead of managing employee benefit plans, I manage our two children: Brendan, 7 and Kinley 3. 

I made my first quilt at the age of 18 and since making that first quilt, I’ve developed a passion for all things fabric, sewing and quilting! I have been an avid quilter and sewer for 20 years and I sew as often as my schedule allows.   I love fabric and have a considerable stash. Almost all of my personal fabric stash was given to me by others and quite a bit of it is vintage. I also have a significant collection of vintage children’s sewing patterns. 

Sharing my love of fabric and sewing is a great outlet for me and gives me a Mommy-break. I can’t wait to sew many of the patterns we are currently offering and one of my guilty pleasures is browsing all the new fabric lines that we hope to offer.

Chad is an accounting professional so he keeps me on the right track business-wise. He also likes to use the long-arm quilting machine. He tagged along when I attended the complimentary class that came with the long arm machine and was hooked. He has used the quilter more than I have and has helped me finish up charity quilts. Now if I could just teach him to use the regular sewing machine!
We’re really excited about Butterfly Kisses. We have a lot of ideas and can’t wait to see what the future will bring.


I’m so excited for you all to go over and visit Butterfly Kisses Fabrics.  They are still working on building their inventory as they are a newer shop, but they have some things that I definitely have my eye on.  Here are some of my favorites from their shop:






Today Butterfly Kisses Fabric is giving away a $50.00 gift certificate to their shop!
 You can spend it on anything you would like……..patterns, fabric, pre-cuts, ect……..

To enter the giveaway, please do one or all of the following.  Leave a separate comment for each entry (3 entries per person):
1)  Visit Butterfly Kisses Fabric and let us know what you might buy with your gift certificate. Click HERE.
2)  Become a fan of Butterfly Kisses Fabric on Facebook. Click HERE.
3)  Sign up for the Butterfly Kisses Fabric mailing list.  Click HERE.

Giveaway open until Thursday, November 10, 2011 at midnight (CST).

Even if you don’t enter the giveaway, I hope you will stop by Butterfly Kisses Fabric and support this new and growing fabric shop.  Let’s all take the time to support new businesses and besides, we can never have too many fabric shops in town!
7
Nov

Shortcake Reversible Knicker Shorts ~ Tutorial

Many of you have purchased my recently released ‘Shortcake Reversible Romper and Dress’ pattern and I want to say a big, big thank you for all of your support.  I plan to offer several tutorials on the blog to help you get the most out of your pattern purchase and today is the first one.

Today we are going to use the ‘Shortcake’ pattern by The Cottage Mama to create a fall knicker short that can be worn over tights for the colder weather months that are upon us.  These knickers are a great way to add a little pop of color to your little ones wardrobe and are fully reversible ~ two looks in one!  I chose to use coordinating fabrics, but you could certainly make them out of totally different fabrics for two completely different looks.

So yes, in order to complete this tutorial you will need to get your own copy of the ‘Shortcake Reversible Romper and Dress’ pattern, but once you have it there are many clothing possibilities.  Let’s get started……..

Find any pair of pants or shorts that fit your child.  We are going to use these to determine the proper rise for the knickers.  Line up the pants/shorts with the pattern size you are using.  Draw a line with a pencil 1″ higher than the top of the waistline.

Fold the top of the romper pattern down (don’t cut it or you will ruin the pattern).  Now you have your knicker pattern.  Cut the knickers out according to the romper cutting directions and also cut out the leg bands using the included pattern piece.  Sew the seams together for the lining of the knickers and the exterior fabric.  Stop before sewing the crotch seams.

Once you have your seams sewn, turn the lining inside out and place the exterior piece inside the lining.  This will make the knickers have their right sides together.  Line up the top edge of the knickers.  Sew around the entire top of the knickers with a 1/4″ seam allowance.

Pull the exterior fabric out of the lining fabric and press the top seam open.  Turn the knickers right side out by tucking the lining fabric down into the outside (exterior fabric) of the knickers.

Edge Stitch around the top of the knickers in coordinating thread.

Measure your elastic.  I cut mine 1″ smaller than my daughters waist.  Check the width of the elastic to know how wide to make the second row of stitching.  I used 3/4″ wide elastic.

Sew a second row of stitching 1″ (depending on elastic width) down from the top edge of the knickers.  Leave a 2″ opening to thread elastic.  Thread elastic up through the bottom leg of the knickers through the opening.  Use a bodkin or safety pin to pull the elastic through the waistband.  Overlap the elastic 1″ and sew with a zig-zag stitch to secure.  Close 2″ waistband opening.

Now continue to sew the crotch seams and leg bands according to pattern directions.  Once leg bands are complete you will have your an adorable pair of Shortcake Reversible Knicker Shorts!

Matilda Jane wearing a fall version of the ‘Shortcake Reversible Romper and Dress’ pattern.
I always have a fun time taking pictures of my girls and truth-be-told, I’m never quite sure what I’m going to get.  Some days Matilda is loving the camera and other days it’s Savannah.  Here are a few more sweet pictures of my girls taken during the ‘Shortcake Knicker’ photoshoot.  They are growing up too fast and are just too cute……..I’m their mama, so I can say that right?
If you would like to purchase the ‘Shortcake Reversible Romper and Dress’ pattern, you can do so here on the blog (below) or through my etsy shop, The Cottage Mama.

Size 6 Month – Girls Size 6
$12.50
To read more about The Cottage Mama Sewing Patterns, click here.

Patterns are available for wholesale purchase, please email Lindsay at thecottagemama[at]gmail[dot]com for order minimums and additional pricing information.

4
Nov

The Joy In Blogging at Lil Blue Boo

Today I am guest blogging over at Ashley’s blog, Lil Blue Boo, and I’m sharing a little bit about how I find joy in blogging.  Ashley has gone through a lot this past year and is currently undergoing cancer treatment.  Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers.  Ashley is an inspiration through her creativity, positive attitude, honesty and outlook on life.  She somehow manages to always view the glass as half full. 
As Ashley would say, “Choose Joy”.
Dresses created by The Cottage Mama
Click HERE to head over to Lil Blue Boo.
4
Nov

‘Granny Square Love’ by Sarah London – Giveaway WINNER!

And the winner of ‘Granny Square Love’ by Sarah London is……….

Congratulations, Momma Ward!  Please email me at thecottagemama[at]gmail[dot]com with your mailing address and I will send this book out to you right away!  Thank you to everyone who entered.  
We’ve got some wonderful fabric shop giveaways coming up so stay tuned!
2
Nov

International Quilt Market ~ Fall 2011

This past weekend I packed up myself and my little man (Caspian Finn) and flew down to Houston, TX for the fall International Quilt Market.  Luckily my mom lives in Houston, so attending market was not a ‘must’ this time, but it was a good excuse to visit family and do some business at the same time!

I’m not sure if you remember my post from Spring Quilt Market 2011, but in that post I explained that International Quilt Market is a trade show for the quilting and sewing industry.  Every fall the market is held in Houston, TX and every spring it is held in a random city across the U.S.  Spring 2012 will be in Kansas City, MO.  All market attendees must submit credentials to attend market as it is pretty much for wholesale buying.  However, there is the International Quilt Festival that will take place this weekend in Houston and it is open to the public.

I was so busy with appointments, meetings, and heading out to the lobby every 2.5 hours to feed my little baby boy (no infants or children allowed in the market) that I didn’t really feel like I took all the pictures I wanted.  But after looking through my camera, I think I got enough to give you a feel for Quilt Market 2011.  Are you ready for some eye candy?  Here we go……..

I love this fabric artwork found at the BasicGrey booth.  It’s so pretty with all the different fabric prints, embroidery thread, and layered buttons. So creative!

 Printed fabric labels from BasicGrey.

 Pretty bags and gorgeous buttons also from BasicGrey.

My first appointment was with MODA fabrics.  I always love Aneela Hoey’s whimsical fabric designs and her new line, ‘A Walk in the Woods‘, was no exception.

 More from ‘A Walk in the Woods’.

‘Salt Air‘ by Cosmo Cricket was another line that I was really loving.  The colors are unique, but I don’t think the pictures even do it justice.  Just so pretty!

 I don’t do a lot of quilting, but this design made from ‘Salt Air’ had me at hello.

At the MODA booth a lot of the newer designers are together in one booth handing out samples of their fabrics.  I love these teeny-tiny squares of each line.  They are so much fun and they are free!!  I’ve got a few projects in mind for the fabric squares I picked up.

 I just had to share this gorgeous booth design!

 Buttons, oh how I love buttons.
In the morning of the first day of market, I ran into Dana from the blog MADE and Deborah Moebes author of Stitch by Stitch and owner of Whipstitch Fabrics.  I love being able to meet friends in person that I have chatted with over email.  Yes, I knew what these ladies looked like, but it was totally different actually meeting them and hearing their voices.  So glad I ran into you ladies!

The Windham Fabrics booth has some really beautiful new lines of fabric.  I can’t wait to work with ‘Cabana Blooms’ (the pink and gray one in the middle) – it’s just my style!

Also at the Windham booth was Lotta Jandsdotter, author of ‘Simple Sewing for Baby‘ (and many other books), who is coming out with a new line called ‘Echo’.  It’s a really beautiful, modern line of fabric that is perfect for clothing and home decor.

Now I’m sure many of you have heard of Amy Butler, but did you know her husband designs fabric now too?  It was pretty neat to see David Butler in his booth with his line, Curious Nature by Parson Gray, set up next to his lovely wife.  He is a graphic designer so the transition into fabric design was a natural step for him.  He was a really down to earth guy and reminded me a lot of my husband, Brett.

Next to David Butler, was his always lovely wife, Amy Butler, with her new line ‘Lark’.  I’ve said this before but I truly feel Amy Butler is one of the nicest people I have ever met.  She really is a celebrity in the quilting fabric world, but yet you would never know.  She speaks to each and every person as if they are the most important person in the world.  She is so genuine and kind – definitely a wonderful role model.

 More from Amy Butler’s ‘Lark’ collection.

 Tina Given’s gorgeous, creative booth.

 A pretty dress from Anna Maria Horner’s booth.

Sandi Henderson and I had a little time to chat and she was promoting her ‘Secret Garden’ laminate fabric.  The umbrella and several of the kites were great ideas for using that type of fabric.  Sandi said she has another book in the works and will be releasing some new sewing patterns in about three weeks for women, girls and boys.

 Another pretty booth.

 I just thought this fabric cake was too cute!

There is a new division of Timeless Treasures Fabrics that was debuting at market called ‘Dear Stella‘.  This is a contemporary, hip, young group of fabrics and their booth was just that!  I believe they won the prize for best new booth exhibitor.  I loved all the white, clean lines…….it was like no booth I had ever seen there before.  I may be working with some of these fabrics in the future, so be on the look-out.

 Riley Blake Designs always has a fun, happy booth display.

 All the collections from Riley Blake Designs.

 Loved this bed display with the upholstered head-board and gorgeous pillows.

 Jenean Morrison’s booth for her new line, ‘Power Pop‘.

 How cute is that lamp shade?

 Isn’t that floor lamp so creative?  It’s tied with strips of fabric.

My favorite part of Jenean’s booth display had be the flooring.  She had these vinyl tiles printed to look like a string block quilt.  Genius!

Anna Griffin is one of my favorite designers and this year she has brought on several other designers with their collections to be licensed under her brand.  I would have loved a little bit of everything from each and every line in her booth.

 More from the Anna Griffin booth.

 These fabric prints were too adorable not to photograph.  The Japanese fabric is always to-die-for!

 I have a real thing for trims (if you haven’t noticed).  May Arts had so many beautiful ribbons, velvet trim, lace and so on.

 More eye candy from the Japanese manufacturers.

 I was loving the large floral print from Camelot Cottons.

 I stopped by the organic fabric company, Monaluna, to visit with designer Jennifer Moore and her husband.  They were so down to earth and their fabrics are some of the best I have ever felt.  I’m thinking that apple print might have my name on it.

I had to show you Betz White’s booth – isn’t it adorable?  What a great idea way to use all of those embroidery hoops.  Her display really caught my eye.  I found myself drawn to her booth every time I walked by.

And finally, I leave you with another of my favorite booths.  Those 3-D flowers coming out of the wall are just so beautiful and creative.
This is my second time attending quilt market and I think it’s going to become a semi-annual event for me.  Like I said earlier in this post, I didn’t take nearly as many pictures as I would have liked, but I hope you got a feel for the whole experience.  With over 2000 booths, it’s hard to make it around to everyone! 
I spent my time at market meeting with different manufacturers, distributors, promoting my new sewing patterns, purchasing fabric for my etsy shop, networking and just trying to stay on top of the new trends, tools, and fabric lines that will be released over the next several months.  I almost decided not to go seeing as though Caspian is only 2 months old, but I’m SO glad I did…..it was well worth the journey!
1
Nov

Dish Towel Cake ~ A Bridal Shower Gift

A couple weekends ago was my sister-in-law’s bridal shower that was given by my mother-in-law.  The shower was french themed since the couple will be honeymooning in France.  I took lots of pictures of all the amazing details from the bridal shower, but I’ll share those with you in another post.

For now I wanted to share a fun little gift idea that I came up with.  I really wanted to make something for my sister-in-law, but with the craziness that comes with life with a newborn and two toddlers, I just decided that this was not the right time.  However, I still wanted to do something kind of crafty.  Have you seen those diaper cakes that some people make for baby showers?  Well, I thought I would try to make something similar, but use dish towels instead of diapers.

I purchased three packs of solid color dish towels as well as one with a print.  I rolled up each dish towel and put a elastic hair-tie to hold it in place.  I got a pie dish that I decide was going to be the base for my cake.  I put a small, round craft box (the cardboard kind) in the middle and put the dish towels on their sides surrounding the box.  Once I had put the dish towels all the way around, I took a grosgrain ribbon and tied it around all the towels.

For the second tier, I laid a dish towel that was folded on the top of the craft box lid to give me a little more height.  Then I placed more rolled up dish towels all together.  This time there was nothing in the middle.  Once I had them all on top, I tied the grosgrain ribbon around them to hold in place.  I used straight pins to secure the top tier to the bottom tier.

For added decoration, I folded a printed dish towel and wrapped in around the top tier and made a bow.

Once the cake was complete, I needed to add something to the top.  I had purchased a french rolling pin and I stuck that into the middle of the top tier.  Then I placed bamboo cooking utensils into the middle of the rolled up towels on the top.  I put an oven mitt over the top of the rolling pin and put the other oven mitt in front.  I had one extra dish towel, so I folded that and place it behind the rolling pin which actually added a little more support.  I tried to pick a print on the dish towel that looked sort of french country.

Since the shower was french themed, I thought I would try to make the gift entirely themed.  I bought four Le Creuset french ramekins and a baking dish as well as on of my favorite cookbooks, Barefoot Contessa Paris by Ina Garten.

I think my sister-in-law really liked the towel cake and now she and her hubby-to-be will never have to buy another dish towel again!

Linking Here.
27
Oct

Halloween Costumes ~ Princess Witch and Princess Ballerina

Every year I have made my kids Halloween costumes.  It’s something I looked forward to ever since Savannah was born.  I have some of the best memories of the costumes my mom used to create for my brother and I.  I loved those costumes and always felt really special wearing them to school and showing them off to my friends.  There’s nothing quite like handmade.  I know they only wear the costume for a day, but those memories will last forever.  Trust me, I still remember being Daisy Duck, a clown, a bird, a bunny rabbit, ect. 

It took my girls a little while to decide exactly what they wanted to be for Halloween.  They started out both wanting to be witches, then they wanted to be hummingbirds, then some sort of insect……..but they eventually made their final decision ~ a princess witch and a princess ballerina.  I was pretty surprised that Matilda chose a different costume than her sister, but pleased that she seems to be developing her own sense of self.

I wasn’t exactly sure what these costumes were going to end up looking like, but I figured they couldn’t be too tough.  So here is the finished product……….

I didn’t use a pattern for either of these dresses.  I went to Joann Fabrics and let the fabrics just kind of guide the way.  I do that a lot.  I go into a store having no idea how something is going to turn out, but once I start pairing fabrics together a vision starts to form.

Miss Matilda loves her princess ballerina costume.  When I finished the look, I tried it on her to make sure it fit and she danced and twirled around for about an hour.  I think she might be my little ballerina, but only time will tell.

This dress was incredibly quick and easy to make.  I simply measured Matilda’s chest and measured from under her arm down to where I wanted the dress to fall.  Then I added and inch on the top and bottom to allow for hemming.  I cut a piece of elastic 1″ smaller than her chest measurement for the top of the dress and added a ribbon to act like a halter top.

The flower detail in the front of the dress was all stitched after the elastic had been threaded.  These were flowers that I found on a long branch at Michael’s craft store.  I simply cut them off of the branch and arranged them on the front of the dress.

The head piece has a backing made of felt and the flower trim and lace is hot glued to the felt.  There is a clip through the felt to hold the head piece in place.

One of my favorite aspects of this dress is the flower trim around the bottom hem.  This is something I happened to already have and I think it adds a nice weight to the dress and makes it really fun and special.  The entire dress is lined because the outer, sparkle fabric is pretty rough on the skin.  Plus I didn’t want the dress to be too see-through.

My little sweetheart keeps saying, “Thank you, mama, thank you!” about her special costume.  She makes all the time and effort that goes into creating an outfit well worth it!

The princess witch costume was really fun to create!  It took a little more time than the princess ballerina but that was because there was more detail involved.

The princess witch costume is a double layered skirt with a solid cotton bottom layer and a spider-web top layer.  The top layer is somewhat stiff so it adds a nice volume to the bottom of the dress.  The bodice has a corset-style detail and ties with black satin ribbons on each shoulder. 

I used a large artificial flower I found a Michael’s craft store for the detail at the waist and on the hat.  I cut all the petals apart on the flower and placed them how I wanted them.  It’s amazing how far one giant flower will go and I still had some petals left over.  The dress is completed with the plaid ribbon around the waist and the coordinating bow on the hat.

 

I can’t believe how old my 3.5 year old princess witch is getting.  It’s hard to believe that is my little baby in the picture above.  Time really does fly by!  

I am really looking forward to seeing my two princesses in their costumes going door-to-door trick or treating on Halloween night.  I think they are going to have SO much fun together this year.  
Hope you have a super Happy Halloween!
25
Oct

‘Granny Square Love’ by Sarah London ~ Book Review and Giveaway

I like to crochet.  Have I mentioned that before?  It’s hard to keep track of what parts of my life I’ve told you about and what parts I haven’t quite gotten into.  All in good time, I guess.  Anyway, I started crocheting back in college and I am by no means a pro.  I can do your basics such as blankets, scarves and hats, but nothing super-fancy.

Crocheting and knitting are making quite the come-back and it seems to me that the more retro the project, the better.  Most often, when people think of crocheting, they think of granny squares.  I recently got a copy of the new book Granny Square Love by Sarah London and it is simply lovely.  Now if you want to talk about retro, this is totally the book for you!  My mom said that granny squares were really popular back in her day, but I’ve been seeing them popping up everywhere.

Today I am going to give away a copy of Granny Square Love by Sarah London to one lucky The Cottage Home blog reader, but before I tell you how to enter, I thought I’d share a little bit about the book.

Granny squares are easy.  You do not need to have serious crochet skills to make one or a dozen. You actually don’t even need to know how to crochet to use this book.  The beginning sections are great because Sarah London goes through all of the basic crochet stitches, which I found really helpful.  I don’t crochet enough to remember each and every stitch, so this brought it all back.  I found her illustrations to be very useful, even more so than a beginning crochet book that I have.

There are many different, fun retro projects throughout the book.  The most classic would be the granny square blanket, but there are some other more different projects such as a lampshade, tablecloth and ottoman.

The pictures and colors used in the book are beautiful and every project has a retro vibe about it.  Each project has very thorough instructions and tells you exactly what type of yarn, hook size and notions will be needed as well as the finished project dimensions.

If you’ve never tried to crochet, I would highly recommend it.  Personally, I think it’s easier than knitting – you only use one hook and can fudge a little if you mess up.  I enjoy crocheting because it’s something I can do while sitting on the couch enjoying my favorite television program or can be brought in the car on a long trip.  I can’t very well bring my sewing machine along for a car trip, now can I?

So, would you like to win your very own copy of “Granny Square Love” by Sarah London?  
Well, today I am going to giveaway one copy of the book!

To enter, please do one or all of the following below (use a separate comment for each entry).

1) Follow The Cottage Home Blog via Google Friend Connect (found in the left side-bar of the blog).
2) ‘Like’ The Cottage Mama on Facebook (click HERE).

Giveaway will be open until Friday, October 28, 2011 at midnight (CST).