New listing for dressup capes on Etsy!

New Listing at the shop.

This toddler reversible dressup cape can be used for as many as activities as your toddler can imagine - owl wings, kitchen apron, or a superhero cape! 

Check out the listing here.

9 months

Has it been 9 months since I last posted?  Do you know what can happen in 9 months?  You can have a baby.  Well, I haven't had a baby, but I'm about too.

I had all these plans to blog about the misery of shopping for maternity clothes and dressing an ever-changing sized bump, but when it came down to it, I spent the time with my daughter.  I will be back to this blog, but right now, I have exactly 1 month left and am in full-prep mode and then will spend time with my growing family.

In a nutshell, here's what you missed you last the 9 months:

It's a GIRL!  That makes 2 little princesses for our family and even though I was 99% sure this baby was a boy, I cannot wait to have these girls in matching outfits!  This shirt is from Ann Taylor Loft and is non-maternity.  Jeans are maternity and the company no longer exists (sniff) - they are from pregnancy #1.

This is me at 22 weeks.  I stay small for a long time so I didn't really bust out my maternity clothes until this point (I couldn't see my toes anymore).  I have fake-maternity-clothes, i.e. regular clothes that I know can fit and handle the belly for first and some of second trimester.  This dress is non-maternity, from DownEast Basics.  

This is at 34 weeks - the downhill stretch. Yes, I cut out my beautiful daughter out of this picture but her finger is just too dangerously close to her nose to make her post-worthy.  So you get an eye and a half-smirk. Sweater is from Gap (non-maternity).

What'd you do in the last nine months?

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Clean Out Your Closet Part 1

Clean Out Your Closet - Part 1

The new year has begun! At this time, many go through their homes and CLEAN OUT.  Before you touch the clothes in your closet, make sure you have a plan.  What? You just throw things out left and right and then wonder why you feel like you have nothing to wear a month from now?  I thought so.

The first phase is to go through every item in your closet and separate into the following piles:

• Pile #1: I wear this all the time and love it
• Pile #2: Throw out or donate; I will never wear this again
• Pile #3: Needs repair or dry cleaning; I won't wear it until its done
• Pile #4: Wrong size and I don't want to get rid of it just yet (maternity clothes go in this category)
• Pile #5: Sentimental clothing; I don't ever plan on wearing it, but it means too much to get rid of

As you go through this first phase, keep a list of things you realize you need (like a classic white shirt) and things you love but are so worn out you need to replace them (like your favorite jeans).  To help keep track of it all, I uploaded a free printable - the Closet Cleanout Sheet!  Easy and simple - cut in half, and tape the sheet somewhere in your closet.  If you put it on your fridge, you'll never see it and never use it. PUT IN CLOSET!  I made sure there were two because when I clean out my closet, I clean out my husband's at the same time!

As you clean out, keep the list handy and fill out as you go. By the time your piles are sorted, you've got a (hopefully) cleaner closet and a list of things you still need to make your wardrobe function effectively. 

Now, what do you do with all those PILES?  Let’s start with the easy ones and work our way backward.

Pile #5: Sentimental Clothing

Fold everything nicely as you reminisce; then put it in a box.  This box goes at the top of your closet in those places that are hard to reach.  Don’t get rid of the clothes if they mean something to you, but they shouldn’t be taking up precious space!

Pile #4: Wrong Size

If there are clothes you love that are too big (REJOICE) then put them in a box next to the sentimental clothing box.  If the clothes you are looking for are too small they may go in the box – if they are I-just-need-to-lose-that-last-5-pounds-from-the-holidays too small, they get to be hung in your closet.  Else, they go in the box with the clothes that are too big.  Maternity clothes should also go in a box until you’re ready to use them.  Once it becomes that time in your pregnancy where nothing but maternity clothes fit, I’m sure you can find them a home hanging up in your closet!

Pile #3: Needs Repair or Dry Cleaning

Make sure each item in this pile is fixable and that you will wear it when its fixed.  If not, move it to pile #2!  Now that you’ve done that, put the rest of the pile (and hopefully this is a small pile) in your car.  The next errand you run, stop by the dry cleaners and drop them off!

Pile #2:  Throw Away or Donate

If the clothes you no longer are wearing are still in good repair, donate them.  If they are completely worn out and beyond repair, throw them away.  Put them in garbage bags and add them to your car (don’t get them mixed up with your dry cleaning from pile #3!)  Donate at a Salvation Army or Goodwill near you. 

Pile #1:  Clothes I want to Keep

Oh, pile #1!  Hopefully this was the biggest pile, nevertheless, we want to make sure that as we put everything back in your closet, we arrange it in such a way it makes it fun, easy, and efficient for you to get dressed in the morning – it really is possible!  Putting clothes back into your closet is going to need a post all of its own, so look for Clean Out Your Closet Part 2!

Don't forget to download your Closet Cleanout Sheet!

Closet Cleanout Sheet

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Favorite Outfits of 2011

Below are a few of my favorite outfits from 2011!
Click any picture for more details.

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Happy Black Friday Shopping

It's 12:30 am and I know there are plenty of you already out shopping.  Wish I could join you, but I'm actually enjoying my (early) Black Friday purchase already...my new laptop!

I try to get all my Christmas shopping done on Black Friday every year, and am usually successful.  There wasn't anything I needed to get up extra early for (even though I somehow stayed up extra late) so I better get a move on so I can hit the sales in the late morning, after all the crowds have left.

Enjoy your Thanksgiving weekend and happy shopping!


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