Unlike most people I clearly remember the Independence Day Bicentennial celebration in 1976 (yes, I'm that old). And now we're celebrating the 250th! 

I've added this wonderful decorative 10" wide pillow to the Etsy shop, it's almost identical to my 7" pillow and the two complement each other perfectly.

 

I'm on a short break from markets so getting the shops filled and lots and lots of fall and winter items ready for season, so keeping checking the Jude Harbor and Because I'm Me shops for new "must haves".

 

Quick foster update, since I haven't mentioned that in years (side effect of not posting much in years). I now have two darling toddlers in my care. Both are 17 months old - they're not twins but are four days apart, so it's like having twins. And both are amazing. I have to admit that I do a horrible job keeping up with pictures of them since most of the time I'm holding at least one of them ... but if I am able to get a nice picture I'll share it. :)

 
Cat bow ties, of course. :)  

 

If your cat will wear a collar he/she will easily wear a bow tie, as it's just attached to a cat collar (made with a breakaway clasp for safety!).

 

If your cat isn't used to a collar it may take a bit to get used to it - usually a couple days. Our cat Hippo would wear a collar and bow tie without any complaints. Lucy, on the other hand, will run and hide as soon as it's put on her. She's actually getting better about it as long as lots of treats are involved, but for these ties you'll just have to imagine they're on a cat. 

I have to say ... cat bow ties are great conversation starters at markets, always good for a fun chat with shoppers.

Bow cat bow ties are here, cat cat bow ties are here.

 

I had the pleasure of recruiting one of my favorite pets to model for me today. 

 

Ellie, my oldest daughters dog, is a perfect model (and a pretty perfect pup), and was super accommodating and adaptive today. 

Today she's modeling some new bandana prints in our reversible cotton bandannas, this time for Christmas. I sell bandanas at markets and they are quite popular, but these are the first I've listed in the Etsy shop (more to come!).

Choose from either plaid with candy canes or plaid with holly and berries.

These bandanas are self-tying, like a traditional bandana, are are fully reversible. They can be worn rolled so both sides show, or not rolled so one side is the sole focus.

 

All my bandanas are crafted from 100% cotton fabric, are super durable, and are machine washable.

 

This is not Ellie. Or my cat, Lucy (I tried, she wasn't in the mood today.). I forgot to get pictures of Ellie in the holly and berry print so had to improvise. 

Ellie is wearing a medium size bandana, stuffed dog is wearing a small bandana.

 

Two of my granddogs, Ellie and Tully

For the last several years I've been selling dog bow ties (along with cat and people bow ties) at local markets. I also sell dog bandanas, but I haven't yet listed those online anywhere yet we'll just forget I mentioned that.

Finally, finally, finally they're listed in the shop too. It has been a long time coming and I'm super excited.

The bow ties have a velcro piece in the back to attach to the dog collar. And they come in three sizes - Small, Medium, and Large. AND dog bow ties are not just for the boys, girl dogs look pretty terrific in them too.

A quick click on each image will take you to the Etsy shop listing.

All dog bow ties can be found by clicking here.

 

Oh  my gosh, I didn't mean to disappear for months again.

Over the last few months I've been focusing on in-person events and shows, mostly building inventory and getting my 10' by 10' booth "just right". I never, in my wildest imagination, could have grasped how much time and energy and money could go into such a small space! Of course, it's still not exactly right and I'm guessing the reality is that it will never be perfect, but it's getting better. If you follow Because I'm Me on Facebook or Instagram you've probably seen many booth pictures, and also many pictures of products I'm selling face-to-face that aren't available online. I'm working on bringing more of those products to the shop - hopefully more very soon, but if you're interested in something you see just message me. Oh, also follow the Facebook page for locations of upcoming events.

 

So here I am with some new bow ties, just added to the shop.

These fun bow ties are available with the added Easter bunny or chick for both adults and kids. And cats, each bow tie comes with it's own collar with breakaway clasp. And .... our first bow ties in the shop for dogs! The dog bow ties have a velcro closure and they simply attach to your pup's collar ... easy peasy.

 

The gingham and dot bow ties can be happily mixed and matched with these large-scale gingham print bow ties, in pink, green, and soft blue. These fun bow ties are also available for adults, kids, cats, and dogs.

 

Stopping by to let you know that Because I'm Me and Jude Harbor are both having storewide sales this weekend. Save 20% on everything through September 7, 2021!

 

 

It feels like for-e-ver since a new bow tie line was introduced (fact: it has been forever, since before Covid was on our radar), and I'm extra super excited to introduce you to our seven print Liberty of London cotton bow tie collection.

 

These prints were culled from Liberty of London's Winter Flower Show and High Summer Flower Show lines, in 100% woven cottons.

 

I'm so in love with these prints! I can't even begin to express how pretty and fun and versatile each of them are. They coordinate so well with a black tuxedo or a trendy blue suit coat, and stand very well on their own with a coordinating shirt (and maybe add solid suspenders?).

 

Right now these prints are available in men's sizes only, and there are only eight bow ties in each print. If you need a child size or more than eight reach out to me and I'll see what I can do.

These ties are available while they last in the Because I'm Me etsy shop or through Jude Harbor's shop.

A few works in progress to share!

First, two quilts that just need to be photographed. They are both super cute and, unintentionally, share a lot of similar colors.

This one is ready to be quilted on the long-arm quilter. I'm waiting for sewing machine oil to arrive before getting started on it, in the meantime it's loaded and waiting.

I started quilting it a few days ago and ran into some tension issues. Not a big deal, but then the bobbin got wonky and the machine stopped working completely - the motor ran but nothing else happened. In reading the manual I came across a blurb that said to look at what you were last doing to find the source of your problem - so I surmised this was a bobbin issue. The bobbin came out and got fixed, but still nothing. I played around with the bobbin housing for a bit and got some tweezers out and found a little stuck thread. Worked on that and still nothing. Hmm. Googled and googled and googled some more and finally found a video that dealt with the issue. Sure enough, there was a tiny piece, maybe 1/2" long, of thread stuck in the bobbin. My son Adam and I worked at it for about 2 seconds and that pesky thread came out and the machine worked again. Seriously, the tiniest little piece of thread!

I finished this top last night and, once I find a great background fabric, it'll be ready to be quilted too. 

My mother has been supplying me with quilts to practice long-arm stitching on. These two are the next to be played with. She donates these quilts to a local hospital and they are perfect for learning new techniques on. After seeing Instagram videos of the amazing work long-arm quilters do I am excited to keep learning (and there's so much to learn and practice!).

Lastly, this sweet charm square pack is next in line to be made into a quilt. I know Christmas is a long way away and even Hobby Lobby doesn't have their Christmas stuff out yet, but I can't wait, this one is just way too cute.

 What projects are you working on this month?

 

Continuing with our Because I'm Me collection of sports key chains we have custom, personalized basketball tags.

The acrylic 2" circles have an orange basketball in the center and are complemented by a name, jersey number, nickname, or whatever you'd like in black block jersey-style print. The key chain is sealed on both sides for a shiny, long lasting key tag.

We're searching for new uses for these tags - so far we've come up with key chain, duffel bag tag, locker key marker, sun catcher, ceiling fan pull, earring (this was not my idea! but who knows?) ... what other uses can you see for them?

These are available at Because I'm Me.

My 6-year old pal Bradley is starting football in a few weeks, so he needed a football key chain / tag. Bradley did point out that it'd be a few years before he'd be driving, so he doesn't need a key chain quite yet, but that he could use the tag on his back pack until he had car keys.

I met a few challenges along the way to making these (getting the design "just right" took some trial and error) but when all is said and done it's exactly what I was hoping for and I'm thrilled with the way these turned out.

 These are available at Because I'm Me, for $7.99 each.

 
Continuing the sports themed personalized key chains ... today we serve up a game of volleyball.

Available in a variety of colors - choose your team colors or your personal favorite. Choose a name, nickname, or numbers of your choice. Available in the Because I'm Me Etsy shop.

 

River played soccer for the first time this fall - he was supposed to play last spring but the season was cancelled due to Covid and moved to this fall. He had so much fun! I wouldn't say it clicked as well as water skiing did for him, but still he enjoyed it and met some great new friends.

Confidentially, and I've probably said it here before at some time, I'm not a big fan of hanging out at soccer practice and all that goes with it. I loved sailing and skiing, I'd gladly drive for hours and spend all day sitting in the Florida heat for those sports, but soccer - which is walking distance from our house and the games and practices are no longer than an hour - is a pain in my side. No idea why - and it really isn't unpleasant at the soccer fields at all and I can get a lot of quilt binding done during practice ... so no idea where this lack of soccering love come from.

But the point is, River loved soccer and while I was making Kane's baseball bag tag / key chain River asked for a soccer one, and that seemed like a pretty great idea. So personalized custom soccer key chains are now available in the Because I'm Me shop, and they're pretty cool.

And for those kiddos who don't want their name on the tag I can also do initials, nicknames, or numbers.

My grandson, Kane, started t-ball two weeks ago. I can't wait to go to his first game, I've seen pictures of him at "batting practice" and it's adorable! His Mama played t-ball one season when she was about his age and it was not a huge success - she spent most of the games sitting in the outfield playing with the clay (she found her sport once she discovered sailing), thankfully Kane doesn't share her disdain and seems to be having a great time.

Kane was hanging out with us the other day and saw me making key chains and asked me to make him one. Thinking maybe Lilly Pulitzer wasn't his style I decided to make him a baseball themed one instead and I love, love, love how these turned out!

 

They're available at Because I'm Me, personalized with the ball player or fan's name. These are great as equipment bag tags and backpack tags, or to keep a locker key on ... or whatever else you can think of.

Gearing up for spring sports, I'm also creating football, volleyball, soccer, and basketball key chains, which will be in the shop as soon as I finish tweaking the designs.