**** This Giveaway is now closed. The winner has been announced in this post. Thanks to everyone for stopping by! *****
Welcome to everyone who has popped over here from Sew, Mama, Sew’s Giveaway Day!
I looooove Giveaway Day! Last year we were moving during Giveaway Day & were without internet — so I missed the whole thing. It made me weep. And gnash my teeth. This year, I didn’t want to let my chance to participate go by.
Since you have hundreds of giveaways to enter, I’ll make this quick:
I’m giving away 2 1/2 yards of fabric from the Swanky line by Chez Moi (Moda).
There’s a yard each of the multi-color prints & a half-yard of the green with dots. They have been pre-washed and are 100% cotton.
To enter:
Leave a comment telling me a good book you’d recommend. (I am always open to those suggestions!)
Comments must be made on this post on my blog — NOT on Facebook (for my FB readers….)
International entries welcome!
The rules: The giveaway ends at 5 p.m. Central Time on Friday, May 25th. One entry per person. Only entries answering the question are valid. I’ll email the winner by Sunday afternoon as well as announcing it here.
I am in the process of reopening my vintage fabric store, Ruby’s Retro City. I have over 200 yards of vintage fabric that needs new homes! But, to do that, first I have to clean out and organize my office/craft room. So, I’m destashing some of my goodies in the shop right now. This post tells you more about that. Use the code DESTASH at checkout to get 15% off. You may want to check back throughout the week. I’ll be listing some Katie Jump Rope bundles, some MoMo Wonderland FQs, and tons of other stuff!
And, make sure you all head over to Sew, Mama, Sew’s Giveaway Day blog post to see all of the fabulous goodies you might win!
When we moved into this house, there was a fabulous, fabulous space for my office. I was thrilled! But, as I unpacked my boxes full of crafty crap (or crapft), I realized I have waaaaay too much. So, I’ve decided to get rid of some of my stash — or destash. All of the items have been listed in my Etsy shop.
My shop, Ruby’s Retro City, usually was filled with vintage fabric & housewares. But, until I get more of the office cleaned out, I can’t even unpack all of my supplies. I’ve got over 200 yards of vintage fabric that’s just waiting for me to get it back out & relist it!
So, help me clean out the office & also get yourself a great deal on some arts & craft supplies. And, if you use the code DESTASH, then you can have an additional 15% off.
I’ll be listing additional items regularly until it’s all cleaned out. Fabric, beading supplies, stamping, scrapbooking….. it’s gotta go!
Thanks for all who entered! I’m nearing my 600th post (whaaaa?!?!), so expect a giveaway again when that happens. (More on that in a bit.)
Let’s get right to it…. I forgot to take a little snapshot of the Random.org number generator, so you’ll just have to trust me. 🙂
The winners of the 3 giveaways are:
Gingham fat quarter pack — #167
Teresa December 15, 2010 at 9:29 am
Wow, you have a lot of comments! I think I like living in this time period. What with Chick Fil A and internet and all. 
Sorry to be not creative at all!
Teresa! I’m so glad you entered! Maybe you can use these goodies to make something for your sweet new baby girl. An e-mail is on it’s way to you. And, in your honor I’ve decided to take the girls to CFA tonight. 🙂 (That was a difficult decision, eh?)
Designer FQ pack & wristlet — #1
Sally December 13, 2010 at 8:47 am
hmmmm – I guess I’d be yellow-green: mostly optimistic but capable of holding a grudge and even an occasional tantrum. How about you?
Sally, my favorite color is yellow, but right now I’d be a dusky blue. Why? Because I’d like it to be dusky and dark so I could take a nap!
Flower — #24
Claire December 15, 2010 at 2:50 am
I bought my husband a coat and some books and dvds…games are good, too. iTunes cards if they dig music, especially if they have an ipod. I also ordered a mug with my husband’s favorite hockey team logo on it, as well as a picture of our family. A few ideas – hope you find everything you need!
Thanks for everyone’s manly gift suggestions. They really helped! Since the guys I need to still buy for read this blog, I can’t reveal what I’ve decided to get/make…. yet. 🙂
I’ve sent e-mails to the winners. If they don’t get back to me by Wednesday, I’ll draw new winners. It was super interesting to read all of your comments. I’m glad I asked you to answer crazy questions. I hope you guys all decide to stick around a bit — at least until the next giveaway. I haven’t decided exactly what to give away yet, but it will be something that all of my readers would like, regardless of hobby interest, gender, or whatever.
Now, my wonderful hubby just said he’d watch the kids so my dusky blue self can take a nap and return to being my crazy red self!
I loooooove Sew, Mama, Sew’s Giveaway Day! And it’s here. So, call your favorite babysitter, tell your boss you’re sick and can’t work, and sit down with your favorite beverage and a box of cookies — you’ve got hundreds of giveaways to go through today! Woo-hoo!
I am delighted to participate…. so excited that I’m actually doing 3 giveaways. I’m putting each one in a separate post so you can enter the ones you’re interested in and skip any you’re not. (Yes! You can enter all 3!) And, no jumping through hoops — just a single comment on each post will do nicely.
I hope you’ll stick around a bit and browse through the past 4 1/2 years of posts. Whole lot of crafts, crap, kids, and living adventures to read about…
For now, let’s get to the first giveaway!
My newest Etsy shop, Ruby’s Retro City, features vintage fabric, notions, and fun vintage housewares. I have yards and yards of vintage fabric — more than I could sew with in a lifetime! So, I decided it was time to share. I run the shop with Ruby Sue Roux — someone I met in a thrift store who lives in her own retro time period and is obsessed with shoes, cat’s eye glasses, and vintage decor. She is particularly drawn to anything featuring poodles or copious amounts of glitter. She is also rather boy-crazy, but has not been successful in that department yet. I can say all of this about her because she never gets on the computer except to write a little introduction to each listing. I find them to be silly, strange, wild, and purely Ruby.
So, what are we giving away? Well, I’m super excited about the vintage gingham fat quarter pack! I’ve got many colors and sizes of gingham fabric. As a quilter I love having little bits of each color to put with projects. So, I made the customizable pack to meet the needs of other quilters and craft sewers. (Sewists? People who sew?)
For each pack, you get to pick 5 fat quarters out of my list of available gingham goodies. (And, at only $8 for the pack, that equals out to be $1.60 per fat quarter!) So, for my first giveaway, you get to pick your own vintage gingham fat quarter pack. Put them together for a great, soft baby quilt or add them to projects that need a classic basic… super versatile!
(Gee, mab, how many pictures of the same stack of fabric can you put in here?)
Here’s what you need to do to enter:
1) Leave a comment and answer the following question: If you could live in any time period in history, what would it be? (If I have to read a bunch of comments, I want them to be more than ‘pick me!’ — so let’s go with this question. Because that’s what I want to do.)
Super easy, eh?
Now for the rules:
You don’t have to visit my Etsy shop, but I would be happy if you do. 🙂 And, until December 17th, use the coupon code GAD2010 to get 15% off all purchases! (Yes, even the Katie Jump Rope and Flea Market Fancy Home Dec Knock-Offs!)
This giveaway is open internationally!
Only enter once. Because that’s the nice way to do it.
You have until Friday, December 17th at midnight central time to enter.
I’ll announce the winner on Saturday, December 18th. The winner will be chosen by Random.org.
Now, head on down to the next two posts to see what other giveaways I’ve got going on today! Then, check out Sew, Mama, Sew’s main Giveaway Day listings. But grab that beverage first….
Who else loves fabric? For Giveaway II, I’ve got some fabric cuts for you….
On the left is a pretty sky blue lacework print. It’s by David Textiles, but I don’t know the name of the print. I think it looks like snowflakes. This is a 22″ x 22″ piece of fabric. Next is the Lemon print from Alexander Henry. Then there’s a print from Amy Butler’s Lotus line. Last is Sunspots from Amy Butler’s Love line. It’s a bit of random, but they’re all fun and fabulous! The last 3 are all Fat Quarters (about 18″ x 22″). This is over a yard of fabric!
But let’s add something else…
(Ignore that terrible lighting! I couldn’t take pics until both kids were in bed.)
I’m also adding a wristlet keychain made with Heather Bailey’s Ivory Sway from the Pop Garden collection. (Love that fabric!) Some people call these key fobs. I personally HATE the word fob. So, I call them wristlet keychains. 🙂 If you win, you can call it whatever you’d like.
Here’s what you need to do to enter:
1) Leave a comment and answer the following question: If you were a color, what would you be? (If I have to read a bunch of comments, I want them to be more than ‘pick me!’ — so let’s go with this question. Because that’s what I want to do.)
Super easy, eh?
Now for the rules:
You don’t have to visit my Etsy shop, but I would be happy if you do. 🙂 And, until December 17th, use the coupon code GAD2010 to get 15% off all purchases! (Yes, even the Katie Jump Rope and Flea Market Fancy Home Dec Knock-Offs!)
This giveaway is open internationally!
Only enter once. Because that’s the nice way to do it.
You have until Friday, December 17th at midnight central time to enter.
I’ll announce the winner on Saturday, December 18th. The winner will be chosen by Random.org.
Now, head on down to the next post to see the last giveaway I’ve got going on today! Then, check out Sew, Mama, Sew’s main Giveaway Day listings. I go through every one and enter a bajillion of them. It usually leads to a serious case of Numb Butt. But you do what you gotta do….
Lately I’ve found myself seriously overusing the word fabulous. This is funny because I’m not exactly a fabulous person. I don’t wear glittery things, I don’t have fancy sunglasses, I don’t wear heels or clothes that require ironing. I think if I ever make it on What Not to Wear, Clinton Kelley will call me the antithesis of fabulous.
But these new fun flowers make anyone fabulous.
Oh, snap!
Those of you who have already been reading The mab Blab will remember that I first made these flowers for the craft fair here on the campus where we live. I love them. I wear one all the time. And, I want you to wear one, too.
So, here’s giveaway #3…..
Here’s a lovely red flower with green ribbon leaves — great to add some holiday fun to your outfit, but it’s not overtly holiday or Christmas. You can wear it all year round. It has a pinback to attach to your shirt or jacket lapel.
Here’s what you need to do to enter:
1) Leave a comment and tell me a gift idea for a guy. (I have several guys to buy for and I’m at a loss! I need creative ideas! Otherwise Uncle Filbert will be getting a red rose pin. And that’s not his style.)
Super easy, eh?
Now for the rules:
You don’t have to visit my Etsy shop, but I would be happy if you do. 🙂 And, until December 17th, use the coupon code GAD2010 to get 15% off all purchases! (Yes, even the Katie Jump Rope and Flea Market Fancy Home Dec Knock-Offs!)
This giveaway is open internationally!
Only enter once. Because that’s the nice way to do it.
You have until Friday, December 17th at midnight central time to enter.
I’ll announce the winner on Saturday, December 18th. The winner will be chosen by Random.org.
Now you’re finished with my 3 giveaways. I hope I made it easy and fun for you! Now, head over to the Sew, Mama, Sew’s main Giveaway Day listings. But don’t enter any of them. That will decrease my chances of winning. 🙂
My awesome friend Tara helped me take a bunch of photos for my Etsy shop, Ruby’s Retro City. Here’s some of the photos of new stuff!
Look at this awesome fabric! the little hunter dude is trying so hard to get those zebras and lions, but they don’t seem to worried about his aim.
This gorgeous vintage rose fabric is actually what inspired me to start my shop. I’ve got about 15 vintage fabrics listed, but I have literally hundreds of yards more to put up. What’s taking me so long? Read the post below if you want an answer to that question…
This photo made me crack up. I found this awesome set of vintage harlequin romance novels. GOLD ones. We felt that a set of gold harlequin novels needed a special backdrop. And special copy for the listing. Hee, hee, hee!
Loving these cutie owls! I don’t have them listed yet, but will soon. Or, maybe not. Since Bean hasn’t actually taken a nap yet (but has been turning somersaults in bed instead) and now Peanut has woken up screaming because of all of the bumping around.
Go check out Ruby’s Retro City and see the other goodies I’ve got up!
Peanut woke up today and decided to talk. I mean, she’s been saying a few words here & there, but not much. A few weeks ago she said her first sentence: “I want cookie.” (Yes, she is clearly my daughter.) But, today she’s been talking like crazy.
I’ve been taking more pictures for my new online shop and she was helping me. The pics are blurry because I had the camera set to “fabric shots for my shop,” not “very active toddler.”
“Whatcha doin’, Mama?”
And a note to the grandparents: Yes, I do comb her hair. Yes, I do put bows and barrettes in it to keep it out of her face. Yes, she takes out those bows and barrettes and prefers to look through a mass of hair.
As for the shop, it’s not completely stocked yet, but I am still making sales! Yay! Here’s the link so y’all can all go check it out….
So, I haven’t posted in awhile. This is for a few reasons:
1) I was making the Grand Pilgrimidge through Louisiana and Texas (a.k.a. the Promised Land) to take Bean and Peanut to see their grandparents. My hubby was on a trip and there was no way I was staying home alone with two toddlers. No way.
2) Since I didn’t check e-mail, blogs, my shops, or anything while I was gone, I had over 1,000 things to read in my Google Reader, about a bazillion e-mails to deal with, and 2 sales on my new shop that isn’t even officially open yet. (Woo-hoo!)
3) The L key and space bar on my computer are freaking out. I have to hit them double hard. It drives me nuts. This is the real reason I’ve used my computer only for Google Reader, Hulu, and reading e-mail for days on end. For real, it’s time for a new computer.
4) Good thing my hubby just got a new job! (Ok, this isn’t a reason why I haven’t blogged…. but I’m in list mode. Can’t seem to get out of it.) Now, in addition to actually having disposable income, I may be able to save up for a computer that doesn’t type correctly spaced and L-ed sentences without me banging! See, he’s a grad student. I’m a SAHM. I like being a SAHM. And, I can’t even afford to be a working mom. Decent childcare is so freaking expensive that my take-home pay each month would be less than our rent. And we live in cheap on-campus housing. Not worth it.
So, the trip to the Promised Land was sooooo worth it. Great Mexican food, two Chocolate Extreme Blizzards, ice cream from Braum’s, and even Thanksgiving Dinner. (Aside #1: Yes. It’s all about food. With mab, everything is all about food. Or fabric. Or crafting. Or napping. And food.) (Aside #2: My brother was in town to visit. He wanted turkey & dressing. So, on Memorial Day while y’all were all grilling out, we were eating Turkey, dressing, & all the trimmings. I told the fam this was fine as long as we didn’t decide to grill hot dogs and hamburgers next Thanksgiving. That won’t fly.)
I spent a lot of time working on two new quilts and would like to post pictures. However, all of these quilty and crafty bloggers are intimidating with their stellar photo skillz. I’m actually not terrible myself, but it’s the lighting that’s an issue. See…. I have limited time with natural light when there aren’t small children messing up my gorgeously staged tableau. I may have to resort to poorly-lit-flash-photography. But, I think this is some type of Craft blog sin.
Ok, to end my randomness, I’ll say that my bro suggested I pop off the L key and space bar and clean them. It might work or it might break them. We shall see…. if I don’t post again for a few weeks then it’s because I broke my L key and space bar….. or that I couldn’t take the deprivation any more and drove to Mississippi or Texas for another Chocolate Extreme blizzard.
My girls love the Busy Ball Popper. It pops balls all over the place and plays music really loud.
As I could have predicted, most of the balls were instantly lost. I got online and tried to find some for sale. People had them listed on eBay for $15. Then, I saw a post on some board where they recommended just calling Hasbro and ordering new ones. I did that today. You can get 5 for $4 (including shipping). I’ve got 10 of them heading to my house right now.
I received my paperwork listing Ruby’s Retro City as an LLC. So, tonight I decided to spend my time getting my EIN — it’s like a SSN for a bidniz. I found a site that looked governmenty. I filled out the form. Then, they wanted me to pay them $187. Say what? Since I went to a handy class on starting your own bidniz, I knew this was crazy. I found the real government site and filled out the same stinkin form and paid big fat $0.
I’m finding inspiration in the scamminess of the eBay Busy Ball Popper Replacement Ball Sellers and the Not-Really-Governmenty Bidniz Form Filler Outers. I will be ditching the vintage fabric and housewares shop I was opening and instead I will be finding ways for people to pay me to do things they could easily and quickly do for free or stinkin’ cheap.
Here are some examples of services I provide:
For $15/week I will download the free iTunes songs of the week to your computer.
For $20 you can hand me your credit card and stay snug in your vehicle while I pump your gas (that you will pay for yourself).
For a mere $5/channel, I will work the remote control for you.
For $100, I will take your mail to the mailbox.
I’m thinking that I can make an absolute FORTUNE if I find a few suckers clients who see the value of the services I provide.
The mab Blab 