26
May

DIY Framed Pegboard

I've been working on getting my sewing room all neat and organized since we moved into our new house last August. Seeing as though it is 'my space', it seems to have taken a back burner to all of the family spaces in the new house. There's something so hard about committing to putting holes in the walls of freshly painted drywall. But I've gotten tired of not having my sewing room looking and feeling the way I wanted, so I'm slowly, but surely getting things up on the walls! I can't wait to share my entire sewing room with you (if you're following @thecottagemama … continue reading

16
May

Dresses for the Girls

We've had a lot going on around here lately with the end of the school year. Lots of fun events.......piano recitals, dance recitals, open house, ABC countdown, Daddy-Daughter Dance, etc. The end of the year always seems to bring so many fun events! The girls recently attended their school's Daddy-Daughter Dance. It was their first time since our other school didn't offer this type of event. They loved it. Luckily for these two ladies, we just picked something off the Cottage Mama rack. The sample rack is currently overflowing up in our attic. It's always fun for … continue reading

9
May

Lessons with Lindsay: Edge Stitching Sewing Video

I've got a new Lessons with Lindsay Sewing Video Tutorial for you. Today I'll be teaching you how to add professional looking Edge Stitching to your children's garments or any sewn project. It's really a lot easier than you've probably ever imagined. This technique is easy enough for a beginner, but even if you are a seasoned sewer, you may learn a thing or two. I hope you enjoy today's video, Lessons with Lindsay: Edge Stitching Sewing Video. … continue reading

25
Apr

Lessons with Lindsay: Tying the Perfect Bow

You spent all that time creating the most adorable dress ever, only to finish it off with a crooked bow. You tried and tried and it never seems to look right, so eventually you just give up on tying the perfect bow. On today's Lesson with Lindsay, I'm teaching you how to tie the perfect bow on your little girls' dress. I promise you, it's really so simple! I get it.......tying a bow can be tricky, but with my easy-tie method, you'll never have to worry about having a messy looking bow again. Plus your bow will be straight, perfectly fluffy and stay in place … continue reading

8
Apr

15,000 Facebook Group Sale

I'm so pleased that The Cottage Mama Patterns Group on Facebook now has over 15,000 members! What a huge milestone! The Cottage Mama Patterns Group is different than The Cottage Mama Business Page, in case you were wondering. If you're not familiar with the way that Facebook works these days, they no longer allow for 'fans' of business pages to see their posts unless the business pays to reach all of their fans. Sadly, the majority of posts on The Cottage Mama Business Page on Facebook only reach 300 people out of the 24,000 fans.  On the flip-side, The Cottage … continue reading

5
Apr

Girls Camping Themed Birthday Party

Savannah loves camping. Brett takes the kids camping several times a year. So far I haven't been able to go since we always have a baby at home, but once Josie is a little bit older I'll be joining them as well. Savannah decided she wanted a Girls Camping Themed Birthday Party, but with the weather in Chicago in March, we convinced her that the party would be best as an indoor camping party. We set up our HUGE tent in the basement, put a bunch of white twinkle lights on top and the girls got to sleep under the 'stars'. It was perfect! I thought I would share some … continue reading

21
Mar

Fabric Woven Tote Tutorial

For Savannah's 8th birthday party I wanted to come up with a simple craft that the girls could complete. I wanted something that would be useful, cute and I didn't want the process of creating it to be messy. I don't like a whole lot of mess with my own kids, so I knew I would not be able to handle it with 12 little girls. When my mom was visiting from Texas we went to the dollar store to pick up a few things for the party. I spotted these plastic totes in the organizing section of the store and instantly thought that I could have the girls weave something … continue reading

16
Mar

Girl Scout Swap Dance Theme

We are new to the world of Girls Scouts this year. But I currently have a brownie and a daisy and my girls are just absolutely loving all things Girl Scouts. I did Girl Scouts in elementary school, so it's fun to see my girls enjoying some of the same songs, sayings and activities as I did as a child. I had never heard of swaps, but we got an email a week or so ago from one of Savannah's troop leaders saying they were going to be doing a swap within their own brownie troop. Basically a swap is just a little something that a girl creates to express her unique … continue reading

14
Mar

Fabric Silhouette Art

My husband, Brett, gave me one of the sweetest gifts of all time this Christmas. I've come to realize that you do not need to spend a lot of money to have an extraordinary gift. My two most favorite gifts from my husband (aside from our children and my wedding/engagement rings) have been handmade and truly from the heart. The first was when he wrote 100 things he loved about me. He put this list into my Christmas stocking and I unrolled it like a scroll.......the whole thing was so poetic and was just perfect. And the other favorite gift from him came this last … continue reading

9
Mar

Campfire Birthday Cake

As I mentioned last week, we hosted a camping themed sleepover birthday party for 10 girls (12 including Savannah and Matilda). It was a lot of fun and I will share more party details with you next week (you can check out the invitations here). But first, I wanted to share the recipe for the Campfire Birthday Cake that I created for the party. … continue reading