It’s here!!  With all sorts of holiday goodness!  I love the use of color- Matthew has many monochromatic layouts that are just SO beautiful! This is such a great little book/magazine with so many great ideas.  I love how Matthew highlighted bloggers for his projects and ideas- it makes it feel like the magazine is a communal effort of the holiday-best the internet has to offer!

A while back I was contacted and asked to make a banner for the photo shoot at Smeeks.  Trying to think outside the box I decided to put a whole new “spin” on Christmas carols!  I used old 7″ vinyl records as my base and had my sweet husband drill holes (use a SMALL sharp drill bit) in them so they could be strung up.  Next I used red crepe paper folded accordion style, and edges dipped in aqua glitter, to cover the record label.  A cricut was used to cut large scalloped circles out of vintage sheet music and layered on top of the crepe paper.  Add letters (Michaels has cute glitter letters) and voila!  Oh- and it helps to have a great friend like Jaylee to help you assemble everything!

Matthew’s photography skills throughout the magazine are just amazing!  I love his use of natural light and his layouts- talk about having an eye!  I was also able to meet him and his assistant Linda when they came to Smeeks, what amazing, kind and TALENTED people!

So…if I had to pick 2 of my favorites from the magazine…I would have to say that I luuurrrve Linda’s blue/aqua/white kitchen. That people, is my dream kitchen- vintage aqua mixer and all!  Don’t you love the blue stripe in the back splash?

My second fav?!  This awesome “bookshelf tree”!!  Wish I had an empty book shelf and a collection of vases to try this!

Soooo, if you haven’t purchased a copy yet- you still can HERE.  Although, one lucky reader is going to get a free-copy from me! I am sponsoring this give-away myself, because I want to share the love.

Leave me a comment telling me what your favorite holiday decoration or tradition is, if you want more entries, blog about this or tweet or fb it and then leave me another comment.  Comments open until 7pm MST Sunday the 21st.

The holidays that is! This is just a little heads up, come back tomorrow- I’m announcing a Holiday giveaway. Its going to be good and full of inspiration!

p.s. I confess to listening to my Frank Sinatra Holiday Station on Pandora last Sunday…I couldn’t help it!!

Thank you to everyone who entered the “Sweets From Smeeks” giveaway!  The winner is:

If you haven’t received an email from me…email me and I’ll give your the prize details!

This next giveaway is open to EVERYONE!!  I had so much fun making this, it was inspired by this dress that Kathleen made.

I’m calling it the Tuxedo Ruffle Set.  The bloomers are made of a medium weight blue shirting fabric, trimmed in a red bias tape.  I love the little ruffles at the legs and the tuxedo ruffle on the top!

The outfit will fit a 6-9month sized baby, the leg elastics are loose and will not leave marks on baby legs!  The onsie ruffle is accented with 2 white flower buttons.

To Enter:

1. Leave me a comment
2.  for an extra entry post this button on your blog, and leave me a second comment telling me you’ve blogged it.

copy & paste the code:

<a href=”http://heatherhalesdesigns.com/blog/winners-tuxedo-ruffle-giveaway/”><img src=”http://www.heatherhalesdesigns.com/images/july_button.jpg”></a>
Winner will be announced Saturday July 24th.

You’ve all heard me rave about smeeks many many times on the blog, now I want to share some of the sweetness with you!

I’m giving away the following to one lucky LOCAL (greater PHX area) reader:

$5.00 in smeeks bucks so you can buy yourself some tasty treats!

One lollipop zippered coin purse that I will fill with some of my favorites from smeeks.

TO ENTER:
1. You must reside within the greater PHX area

2. Leave me a comment, telling me your favorite candy

3. for an extra entry, blog the button below (be sure to leave a second comment to tell me you’ve blogged it)

copy and paste this code:

<a href=”http://www.heatherhalesdesigns.com/blog/sweets-from-smeeks”><img src=”http://www.heatherhalesdesigns.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/button.jpg” border=”0″ width=”200″ height=”300″></a>

Winner will be announced Thursday, June 15th!

OK, before I get to the meat of this post, here are some linky loves that I must pass along.  Tasha, of A Little Sweetness is giving away some of her personally designed fabric.  It is SO CUTE, and if you don’t win, you can always pick some up in her shop!  I think the Little Red Riding Hood on white is my favorite!

Also, if any of you are a Flea Market Fancy fans like myself (I still have a few pieces I’m hoarding!), go sign this petition to get Free Spirit to reprint the line (oh to dream!), and while you are there enter to win this selection of 29 FMF fat quarters and some great books.  If you win, will you share a  FQ with me?

Yesterday my daughter was invited to a birthday party of a girl from her preschool class.  I always have a hard time buying gifts for families/girls I don’t know very well.  Not everyone appreciates the homemade, and I don’t want to waste my efforts if they won’t be appreciated.  Soooo, off to the big box store we went for some plastic Princess crap.

After getting it all wrapped up I felt guilty for A. Shopping at Target & B. Not making something…then I remembered all of the great felt I bought from the HB booth at Blissfest (you can also buy it online) and whipped up a little flower.  Not only does it look great as part of the wrapping, but it’s a barrette for the little girls hair!

First, I strongly recommend that you use wool, or wool blend felt for this project.  The cheap craft felt you can get at most craft stores will pill and stretch and not give you the lasting look you are going to want.  Here is what you’ll need:

2 colors of felt
1 piece of green felt
1 metal snap barrette (or a pony tail holder)
1 coordinating button
thread/needle/scissors
any other trims that appeal to you

Here is the pdf with the pattern pieces I free handed for the above barrette.  Cut all your pieces out, for the front circle, I folded it in half and cut little triangles out of it to give it the fringed look.

Layer the pieces as you’d like them to be, place the button on the top and stitch through all the layers.  For the back, take the circle and cut 2 small slits in the back about an inch apart in the center, thread the pony tail holder through.

Attach the circle to the entire flower, stitching through all but the top layer.  It should look like this when you’re done.

To do a barrette back, you can do it 2 ways.

You can measure your clip and cut out a piece of felt the length of your barrette, be sure to cut a small slit in it for the metal arm to go through.  Then sew this to the back of your flower, sewing through all but the top layer.

Using the circle pattern provided for the back, you can cut a small slit for the barrette arm and then stitch the whole circle to the flower.  The barrette side goes against the flower, the metal arm is what you should see when your barrette is finished.

I made this one to match one of my daughters shirts!  Be creative, try different shapes, add embroidery, seed beads, ribbon anything that appeals to you!

AND, because you made it through this whole LONG post, I made a holiday poinsettia barrette to give away.  Just leave me a comment telling me you’d like to win, I’ll pick a winner on Monday Nov 29th.

Yesterday I took a break from “work sewing” to sew a little gift for (as my husband called it) an “internet friend”.  They live here in Arizona, where winter means 50degree days, so I made a light jacket.

100% cotton, lined in white flannel so it’s soft against baby’s skin!  I thought snaps would be easier to use than buttons, so I went that route.  Except I put one of the snaps on backwards!  Holy heck those things are hard to pry off!

I cut a small square of flannel and added binding around the edges to make this coordinating blanket.  It’s small, and meant to be used while the babe is in the car seat.  I appliqued the elephant (a pea pies design) in the jacket fabric to help tie the items together.  I’m worried his ear looks too much like a tennis ball though.

All in all, I think the little travel set ought to keep the sweet babe warm and looking adorable.  Thanks Lindsay for this opportunity!!  Oh- and each fabric is a Michael Miller print from a Pillow & Maxfield line.

**Now, be sure you come back tomorrow, I’m cooking (ha!) up some great ideas to keep our families well fed this winter with SIMPLE, INEXPENSIVE meals.  Be sure to come check it all out!!**

*update* comments are now closed, thank you to everyone who entered!  A winner will be posted later this afternoon!

Do you remember penny candy?  As a kid in rural Idaho the local grocer had a penny candy gumball machine.  After each shopping trip my mother would give my sister and I each a penny and let us buy some gum.  You got what you paid for; the flavor was usually gone by the time we walked across the parking lot to the car but we were happy!   I wish they still had them, I’d be happy to give my kids a penny for some cheap gum…seems most of the machines now want at least 50 cents for candy- I, of course, never have quarters on hand!

In anticipation of my new embroidery patterns (to be released later this week, I still have to prettify the pdf’s) I thought I would offer some penny candy!

I will send one lucky reader the whole pattern set (it will be 3 patterns) for a penny!  (ok, really the penny is symbolic, who wants to deal with paypal just for a penny?!).  The patterns were inspired by my work on the smeeks bucks.  The candy jar went through a few more edits before I finally came up with the above jar!

To enter the contest just leave me a comment telling me what your favorite candy as a kid was!  The comments will stay open until Wednesday, September 30, 7:00AM PST.

This morning I woke up at 5:30am because the sun was creeping in under my shades…  Call me crazy but I just don’t think 5:30am is an appropriate time to rise in the AM, in fact anything before 7am is a challenge for me.  Whilst laying in bed trying desperately to fall back asleep it occurred to me that a sleeping mask could prevent this problem.  Then I realized I have the skills to make such a thing….

So, I made a sleeping mask today, one for me and one for you.

That’s right, I made this pretty little number for one lucky blog reader!  It’s been WAY too long since I’ve had a giveaway.

Leave me a comment to enter; telling me what your trick is for falling back to sleep after being awakened before morning.  Again- extra points if you link this from your blog (no need to tell me, it will show up in my incoming links).  Comments will be open until Saturday (may 30th) Afternoon.

It’s no secret that my kids love classic Disney Cartoons, they adore watching mickey, pluto, goofy and donald in all their antics from the 30′s-50′s.  I don’t mind them watching because well…there are no mad scientists trying to destroy the world, very few if any guns, the colors are bright and cheerful (opposed to the dark color palette of a lot of modern cartoons).  They are full of a lot of slap stick physical comedy, the kind of stuff that my kids go nuts for…and your kids will too!

I’m giveing away a Classic Cartoon Favorites Vol 2, you can read all about the DVD here on amazon.  Leave me a comment and tell me what your favorite cartoon was growing up and you’ll be entered.  Comments open until Sunday 10pm PST.

Have a great weekend!

today over at Grosgrain, Kathleen posted about Strano Designs, a wonderful company that produces really great ribbons here in the USofA (i’m all about buying homegrown products these days).  While clicking around on their website I found these SUPER CUTE inspiration boards.   I’ve always had a thing for ribbon, I love using real ribbon for gift wrapping!  Grosgrain ribbon is the best for fun hems on little girl skirts, or sewn down the side seam of a pair of pants (a la tuxedo style).

If you’ve got some clicking time, go check out Grosgrain for all the current giveaways, personally I want to win this little number!  Oh, come back tomorrow, I’ll be having my own give-away!