September 2008

Proud Scotty:
Hope you had a chance to check out the great Heather Hales interview in our last post. Heather was incredibly kind to share with us this vintage scotty dog pattern from her private stash! It’s a cutie! Thanks so much, Heather!

Here’s another great little interview from one of our newest recruits — the talented Heather Hales! Heather has just recently completed several exclusive designs for the shop that you won’t want to miss (click on the photos for details). Her broad scope of design talent and impeccable workmanship will blow your mind (and make some of us just a tad bit jealous)! We’re truly thrilled to have her as a contributing designer at The Baby Gardner!

What’s the 411 on the talented Heather Hales?
I’m a wife, mother and part-time crafter! I live in the suburbs of Phoenix with my husband of nearly 11 years and our 2 children (boy 6, girl 3). I grew up in a creative family. My mother is a photographer and painter and my father is a sculptor and an amazing sketch artist. They both hold down day jobs and do their creative work on the side. Being creative is something I guess I learned at an early age. I need creative outlets to find balance in all the other areas of my life!

How do you juggle a typical day? Where and when do you usually create when you get the chance?
A typical sees me up between 6:30am-7am. Mornings are a scramble to get my son off to school. I am not a morning person and no amount of planning seems to squelch the rush! After getting everyone to school/preschool I usually come home and divide my time between the sewing room and answering emails. The afternoons are spent with the kids, homework, play and such. After the kids are in bed then the real crafting begins! Unless I have an extreme deadline I usually quit work at 10pm and spend an hour with my husband before going to bed and starting it all over again!

How long have you been embroidering and creating? What started you down that path?
I tried embroidery years ago in Girl Scouts and never got it (my leaders were shocked as my mother can effortlessly embroider beautiful things!). I picked it up again after my son was born and it seemed to click. My husband had just taken a new job that required him to be in another state for about 5 months of training. I felt very isolated with my new baby and no one to talk to. I really yearned to be creative and to express myself outside of the role of caregiver. Embroidery really filled that need for me.

On the creating/sewing side; I learned to use a needle and thread before I could read! I was always trying to make Barbie clothes or buttoned coin purses as a child.

Broad question: vintage or modern?
Oh most definitely vintage! From an anthropological point of view I am captivated wondering who owned the object first, what were they like, what was their story? I recently bought an old flour sack quilt, every time I wrap up in it I wonder how many people have slept under its warmth. I wonder about the woman who created it and what she was like.

Where do you find your inspiration?
Everywhere! I know that is such a generic answer but it’s true. I can be looking through a catalog and see a pattern that jumps out at me. People inspire me, my children, really it is all in how you view the world around you.

On the short end and long end of the spectrum, how long does it take to embroider a project?
Oh depending on the project it can take any where from a few hours to a week, based on how much time I can devote to it. A onesie for instance will take me about 45min to embroider; while a blanket may take me 3-4 hours.

What’s been your favorite project you’ve worked on in the last 12 months?
Oh, that is a hard question! I’ve liked so many of my past projects, but I guess I have to say that the “Sunshine Boys” towel was my favorite. I think it embodies a lot of what I love about crafting. The bright colors, the happy attitude it portrays and the romanticized view of World War II America. Another wonderful crafter I met on the internet sent the pattern to me which added to its appeal as well. I love the idea of sharing the passion for embroidery with others!

You create some of the most charming embroidery. Do you design any patterns yourself or do you have a top-secret source you might like to share?
Aw thanks! I am a horrible sketch artist and have only attempted a few of my own patterns, however I have no qualms about asking my Dad to sketch patterns for me! I find a lot of my vintage patterns on flickr, there are so many of us pattern hoarders out there and we love to share our patterns! There is also a local antique mall where I have found a lot of my patterns as well. [--in an effort to pass the love around I'm including a vintage pattern I've never shared before--see next post]

Do you have any upcoming plans or future goals for your work?
At this point in my life my children come first, they are still so young. All I ever wanted at this stage was to have my items carried in a few stores (few, because that makes the work manageable!) and I feel that I am getting there.

I’m currently working on some fun vintage Christmas-y items!

What was it like to work with The Baby Gardner? Any new ideas or collaborations in the works for the shop?
Deanna has been great to work with! She is very understanding of the time it takes to create beautiful pieces, and I love that she shares my passion for vintage inspired items! There are some projects in the wings for the shop, think bath time fun, and maybe a few of those vintage-y Christmas items!

Thanks a million, Heather! It’s great to be able to feature your talent in the shop and on the blog! And an extra cool thanks for sharing the adorable scotty embroidery pattern I’ll be putting in our next post!

Congratulations to Sarah and Tracy K – winners of last Friday’s giveaway! Please email me your shipping address so I can get your win in the mail.

If you didn’t win last week (or even worse, you didn’t enter!), all hope is not lost. Check back this Friday for a brand new FREE VINTAGE FRIDAY GIVEAWAY!

Looking for ideas to throw a vintage-themed baby shower? We’ve got a few. You can modify these ideas for a baby girl or boy. Don’t know what the expectant Mommy is going to have? Neither did the mommies of the 40s and 50s! Determining the sex before baby was born was unheard of back then! So baby shower invitations and favors were designed to work for either gender. Hard to fathom that nowadays, right?

Where to start? Well generally I like to start with the vintage baby shower invitation and use that as my inspiration for the entire shower. Lucky for you, The Baby Gardner has an assortment of exclusive vintage baby shower invitations (and vintage birth announcements) you’ll want to explore. Here’s some of our best sellers that might spark some ideas.

Feeding the masses: In my humble opinion, the biggest job is the food prep and the presentation. And for a vintage baby shower, there’s nothing like the classic petit fours. Most bakeries can offer an array of decorating options from monograms to baby booties and rattles. They are perfectly vintage and absolutely yummy!

Another idea to infuse vintage into your feast is vintage planters. These can be very easy to find if you know where to look. Try antique shops, flea markets and even thrift stores. Heck, your mom may even have one that she kept when you were a baby. Give them a good soaking and use them to hold mints, nuts, small favors and more.

You can also find crepe napkins or doilies that coordinate with your invitations and your colors. Fold them to look like diapers and pin a safety pin through the center. Add these to your food table to add another charming hint of vintage.

Can you do me a favor? Of course. And The Baby Gardner has a vintage baby shower favor exclusive. Check out our Proud Papa Pins. Hand these out as guests arrive at the shower. They’re charming and can even be kept to wear on delivery day as well!

Decorating delights: Decorations don’t have to be over-the-top. Place them in key locations and they will really pack some punch. Place adorable garlands like the ones at the beginning of this post (available at The Baby Gardner) above the entry way or behind the banquet table. Choose a beautiful centerpiece of fresh flowers or vintage-inspired millenery bouquets for the banquet table as well. People tend to graze, so the banquet table is usually where the biggest crowd will form. Make your biggest visual impact there.

Games anyone? Some love shower games; some think they’re torture. But here’s a really cute one that goes way back — and the embarrassment factor for the expectant mom and the guests is relatively low. Did you make a mental note about the diaper napkins we talked about above? Well you can alter this idea for a party game as well…

Before the shower, make sure you’ve made enough napkin diapers for each guest. You don’t want to use the same napkins that you’re using on the food table. Trust me. It will help avoid confusion. In just ONE of these napkins, take a small dot of creole mustard and smear just a bit on the inside fold of the diaper. Pin up each napkin diaper with a safety pin. When it’s time for the game, you’ll want to make sure each guest has been given a napkin diaper. Have everyone open their diapers at the same time. The person with the ‘dirty’ diaper wins a prize. Not too humiliating, right?

Thank you, thank you, thank you! If the shower hosts really want to be on the ball, give the expectant mom a gift of thank-you cards that coordinate with her vintage baby shower invitations. That way she’ll be ready as soon as the event is over to get cracking on all those many thank-you notes for her guests. She’ll thank you for it!

An unexpected gift for the expectant mom: Here’s a treat the new mom won’t be expecting. Assign one of the shower hosts to be ‘photographer’ for the event. Get shots of all the great moments. Check out our one-of-a-kind small albums at The Baby Gardner. These are the perfect size to hold all the special photos from her shower — even better, it conveys the whole theme of her ‘vintage’ baby shower. Put all the great moments in her album with captions under each one. Present the album to her on delivery day! It will be the gift she treasures forever.

UPDATE: The Baby Gardner has introduced an entire collection of Vintage Baby Shower Party Ideas that include a variety of themes, favors, banners, and more. View all of our shower offerings here.

Not only are we hosting FREE giveaways every Friday this month in celebration of the shop’s birthday, but I also thought we should really kick things off by offering TWO free giveaways today!

So here’s the scoop. It’s not hard, but you do have to work for it a little bit. All you have to do is visit the shop and pick out the one item in the shop you heart most. (Well ok, it may be a little hard to pick just one.) Leave a comment reply for this post and tell us what that favorite item is. You’ll also need to leave your name and email address so we can contact you if you win. Be sure to specify if you are entering to win the DOGGIE diaper cover OR the KITTY diaper cover.

*Both diaper covers are a size 3-6 months.

Winners will be chosen at random. Entries will be accepted until this Sunday at 11:59pm GMT. Check back on Monday to see if you won! And then we’ll start all over again next Friday with a new item!

Special Note: If you really heart these, you’ll definitely want to check out the Mabel and Abel Layette Set and the Amos & Aggie Layette Set in the shop. These diaper covers coordinate perfectly with them!

We’re pretty excited around here! It’s been an amazing first year! We’re still a ‘baby’ but first birthdays are a huge milestone for every proud parent and their little one. And we’re no exception. So we want to celebrate and thank YOU!

Here’s just a sampling of the festivities all month long…

MAKE A WISH
We’ve had wish requests for more boy items, toddler sizes, monkeys and more. Great news! Your wish has come true! We’ve got so many new items this month, we can’t feature just one! Be sure to check out all the great NEW PRODUCTS. In fact, we’ll be continuing to add new stuff throughout the month, so keep checking back!

PRESENTS GALORE
We’ve got presents! And they’re all for you! Every Friday throughout September we will be hosting FREE FRIDAY GIVEAWAYS right here on our blog! If you haven’t yet subscribed to our RSS feed, now’s a great time to get on the band wagon!

HAVE YOUR CAKE & EAT IT TOO
For all our wonderful e-mailing list subscribers, we’re also hosting a very special SECRET SALE this month! Doesn’t that make you want to rush over and join our super secret club? (*wink*wink*)

And finally, I just want to send a personal, heartfelt thank you to everyone I’ve had the pleasure to meet and work with over this past year. The shop has been a true labor of love and each of you have made it a wonderful experience! I’m looking forward to another awesomely fun year with all of you!

- d