Goodbye to Little Window Shoppe
May 18, 2009 by Emily · 62 Comments
My Dearest Window Shoppe Readers and Friends,
This post has taken me over a month to write - partly because this is my last post on this blog. I am so sad to announce that as of today, Little Window Shoppe is closing for good.
The decision was not taken lightly and was really hard to make, but a combination of factors came together that brought me to this post…very much wanting to spend more time with my family (I have a very busy two year old who needs more mommy-time), 
getting ready for baby #2 in November (I’ve been out sick for two months! But it’s totally worth it as we’re so excited to have a new baby come to our family), and finally getting ready for a move to a new state with my family this Summer (my hubby is starting a new job).
{Photo source: Wilson Library Reserve}
I have learned so much from blogging at Little Window Shoppe and will be forever grateful for the kind friends I have made and the amazing experiences that I have had here!! Thank you so much for taking time to make Little Window shoppe a part of your lives and for being such a fantastic community. And also, thank you for all of the nice emails and inquiries about how we are doing.
Before I say goodbye for good, I want to thank a few people who helped me along the way:
First and foremost, my husband Scott. He is an incredibly supportive husband and friend and was the first person to listen to my every idea and concern throughout my blogging adventures. He has also been Superman at my house and has cooked, cleaned, taken care of our two year old and helped me out while I was sick over the last seven weeks! I couldn’t ask for a better man in my life and I love him so much!!
I also wanted to thank Holly of Tutus and Turtles. She is so cool and listened and talked to me for hours on the phone as I worked out how I would end my Window Shoppe blogging days. Her blog has been an inspiration to me from the beginning and I think that her blog ideas rock!!
Finally, I wanted to thank each of the writers and contributors for Little Window Shoppe. Each of them had creative and beautiful ideas to share and I’m so grateful and honored that they wanted to be part of this blog with me. They have become some of my dearest friends and were the best group of writers a blog ever had! They even sent me tulips when I was sick (just about made me cry, I felt so loved).
Please visit each of their blogs to keep up with their cool ideas!
- Vanessa - her blog: I Never Grew Up
- Lauren - her blog: Supermom Central
- Michelle - her shoppe: Sweet Mady’s Paper
- Michaelle - her blog: Monkeys Momma
- Cassie - her shoppe: Madison Envy
- Kelly - her blog: Albany Mommy
Also, I wanted to leave you with a few additional recommendations of blogs I love - in case you are looking for new places to subscribe:
- www.simplemom.net - this is my absolute favorite blog to follow…it has the best family tips and ideas that make sense, the ideas are easy to follow and I just can’t get enough of its coolness.
- www.howaboutorange.blogspot.com - artsy, tons of crafts, diy ideas, printouts, and the best time-wasters ever.
- www.thepioneerwoman.com - recipes, photoshop tutorials, photography 101, down-to-earth life.
- www.makeandtakes.com - the coolest (and most creative) kids crafts ever!
- www.metropolitanmama.net - and for all you contest lovers, this Metro Mama has excellent giveaways all of the time - and she writes helpful articles with tips for parents. Love it.
There are so many more…but I think this is a great start.
If you want to stay in touch with me, you can follow me at a few sites:
- www.emilyjune.com (I’ll still be designing blogs and websites - starting again this fall).
- I’m also going to be checking in and updating my facebook page and my family blog regularly. They will have weekly updates of my family life and the cool fun things we are doing.
**If you want to stay in touch with me at my family blog or on facebook, just email me or leave a comment letting me know and I’ll send you the links.**
Thank you again for making this the best blogging experience I have ever had!!
Always,
Emily
Cupcake Party
March 30, 2009 by Michelle · 13 Comments
A cupcake birthday party is a fun and fabulous theme for girls of any age, especially when you combine your daughter’s love of cupcakes with her favorite color as the inspiration behind the party planning. In our house, pink is the color of choice!
If you enjoy planning parties like I do, then you definitely want to go all out with your decorating. The invitations are the first step. Invitations set the tone for the party. Here is an adorable Cupcake Invitation that you can customize in your color of choice. You can also purchase address labels, thank you stationery and party favor stickers that all coordinate. Don’t you love that?!
For the party, your daughter would look so sweet wearing this Cupcake Dress or the matching Cupcake Aprons shown below. You could serve pink lemonade and small sandwiches cut out with a Cupcake Cookie Cutter served on these Cupcake Carousel Plates. Your daughter will also love seeing her birthday cake when you present her with a large cupcake using the Wilton Cupcake Pan.
If you wanted to do individual cupcakes instead, this book, Crazy about Cupcakes, has a lot of cute decorating ideas to help you to get started. You could set up a decorating station and have several different bowls of sprinkles and tiny bits of candy for your guests to add their own toppings. Your guests could also decorate cupcake shaped cookies to package up and take home with them.
In addition to cookies as a favor, Etsy has a great collection of Cupcake Soaps that any girl is sure to love. Place the cookies, soap and maybe a few cupcake stickers into a little bag topped off with the cupcake favor tag and ribbon and you have the perfect goody bag! Of course if you really want to go all out with your cupcake themed party, what little girl wouldn’t love this fun table made by Imaginative Play Toys.
Written by Michelle of Sweet Mady’s Paper and Sweet Mady’s Notes
Make Your Own Matchbox Announcements
March 19, 2009 by Emily · 33 Comments
I love the originality of this matchbox announcement and how easily you can match the theme and colors to your preference. Good things really do come in small packages.
The tutorial and picture are from one of my very favorite books “B is for Baby” written by Suzonne Stirling. This Matchbox Announcement is one of 26 baby-themed projects from the book that help you to create memorable, classic keepsakes for your little loved ones.
Supplies
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Patterned paper
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Solid colored paper
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Cardstock (for the Announcement)
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Ruler
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Scissors or rotary blade
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Decorative edged scissors (optional)
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Craft glue (optional)
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Plain matchbox
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Double-sided tape
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Diaper pin
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Padded envelope (for mailing)
Steps
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Cover the matchbox: Cut a piece of patterned paper to 2 1/4 in. wide by 4 1/2 in. long. Adhere one of the short edges of the paper to the bottom of the matchbox cover with double-sided tape. Be sure to align the edges of the paper with the top and bottom edges of the matchbox cover. Wrap the paper around the matchbox cover, overlap the ends, and secure them with more double-sided tape.
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Embellish: To embellish your box a little bit, cut a piece of solid colored paper into a strip 1/2 in. wide by 4 1/2 in. long. Trim one long edge of the paper strip with decorative scissors, and layer it over the base paper on the bottom of the matchbox cover. Use craft glue, to adhere small buttons or other embellishments.
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Create announcement cards: To create the announcement card for the interior of the matchbox, use a small font size (approximately 10 points) to print the baby’s birth information onto the cardstock. Repeat the information approximately 12 times on each 8-1/2 by 11 inch sheet of paper. Cut the sheet into cards, each measuring 2-1/8 inches long by 1-1/8 inch wide, with the text centered in each card. Secure the card to the bottom of the matchbox with a small strip of double-sided tape. Enclose a diaper pin in the matchbox as a finishing touch.
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Mail: Finally, enclose the announcement in a padded envelope to mail it to your friends and family.
Emmie Cakes Giveaway
February 23, 2009 by Emily · 346 Comments
Contest Update:
*We have a winner!! The randomly chosen winner for this contest is: #309 Jan M. - Congratulations! Thank you to everyone who participated - please stop by again as we have a new contest each week.*
Deliciously Yummy Banners are exactly what you’ll find at Emmie Cakes. They are handmade and simply perfect as decorations for birthdays, special occasions, new baby arrivals, parties and holidays too. Emmie Cakes also takes custom orders!
These banners are made from heavy duty cardstock and pretty patterned paper, all tied together with a variety of coordinating ribbon, yarn and tulle.
Win It:
One lucky Window Shoppe Reader will win an Emmie Cakes banner!
To Enter:
Simply check out Emmie Cakes and leave a quick comment letting me know which banner you would like if you win! This giveaway ends on Monday, March 2nd at midnight PST. The winner will be chosen randomly and will be announced at this post Tuesday, March 3rd. Good luck, everyone!! (Please feel free to read our contest rules for additional details)
(Optional) For extra entries:
- Are you a Subscriber? Just let us know you’re subscribed to Little Window Shoppe in an additional comment.
- And (Or) Add this contest to Twitter. Simply let us know about it with your Twitter name in an additional comment.
Paper Coolness
February 6, 2009 by Emily · 9 Comments
As I was doing a little window shopping of my own, I couldn’t help but notice the cool ways people are using their paper. For example:
The classic sock monkey design by Kim’s Custom Gifts. This one is printable too so that you can print it out as much as you want onto gift tags, note cards and stationery.
Or, how about this randomly cool sweet tooth baby shower game by Expressions Paperie? If you love candy, this one’s for you. Simply have your guests choose which candy best fits with each description and award the person with the most correct answers. (There are actually 20 entries in the original - I only listed 4 for posting purposes).
Then I found this darling birdhouse kit…made out of paper. Created by Scrap Simply, this easy peasy project comes with everything that you need to make your very own paper birdhouse and includes designer papers, brads, stickers and flowers.
And finally, how cute are these family matchbook mini albums by Paper Blessings? Each album comes with 8 pages inside that are ready for pictures. All are handcrafted, hand stamped and hand colored too.
A Clever Little Cozy
February 3, 2009 by Emily · 13 Comments
This clever little business card cozy is simple, cute, compact and it comes straight to you handmade by Andrea Baker.
Cozy definition: A padded or knitted covering; Snug…
Here’s how it makes you look stylish and professional: It can fit in your pocket, which makes it a nice alternative to packing a purse when you’re on the go. It doubles as a key chain making it extra lightweight. And it has two pockets on both sides that can hold 20 cards each - for a total of 40 cards! How’s that for cool?
Pretty Art, Prints, Cards and Stationery
January 30, 2009 by Emily · 10 Comments
I simply couldn’t wait to share these beautiful shoppes with you - their art, prints, cards and stationery made me smile, such pretty work.
“Aa is for Airplane” is part of an Alphabet Print Series by ModernPop - where you can find even more beautiful illustrations with letters and numbers (you may want to have your favorite web bookmarker ready to go here).
What is it about little chicks, they are just so cute! Find this one on stationery at Ink Obsession Designs - (I heart this shoppe - the designs are so sweet and simple - it’s totally my style).
This pretty card, found at Expressions by Devin, is handmade, handstamped and embossed by Devin herself. She takes custom orders too! I think pink and green look so good together - especially in this design.
Print * Pattern * Paper is the home for this lovely “Shop Talk” print. This shoppe has beautiful art, prints and bags - all inspired by daily life. Love it all!
Crafty Ideas for Valentine’s Day Cards
January 21, 2009 by Cassie · 13 Comments
With Valentine’s Day just a few weeks away, cute cards are everywhere! I want to try and make my own Valentine’s Day cards this year, so I have started a file for a collection of my favorites ideas. Many of them are quick, easy and great for an afternoon project.
Kristina Werner has such darling ideas, and I am in love with this adorable button card. You can view her video on how to make it on her blog.
And we couldn’t forget Martha’s cute ideas…this hand stitched card and this quilled card are so pretty and easy to make. Simply follow their step-by-step instructions to make your very own.
Scrapscene displays a card a day, and these cupcake ones would go perfectly with Valentine’s Day cupcakes! Check out the instructions here.
Finally, I can’t get enough of Target’s Dollar Section - they have mini mailboxes right now that would be great for kids’ Valentine’s Day parties. Kasey, on her blog Beautiful Mess, put letters on her mailboxes for each family member and she lists cool ideas for filling the mail boxes too! Do you have Valentine’s Day cards that you like to make with your family?
Written by Cassie of Madison Envy
Heirloom Paperie
January 15, 2009 by Emily · 7 Comments
I think vintage art is beautiful. You’ll probably find me raving about vintage every so often since I’m such a fan. If you’re with me, then I know you will be head over heals for Heirloom Paperie. This shoppe won my heart with its stunning photography, vintage photos, custom silhouettes and cards.
Candis, founder of Heirloom Paperie, will help you turn your ordinary photos into vintage art. These quality pieces are ”meant to mean something” so that they will become a treasure in your home for years to come.
*FREEBIE ALERT* If you want to take home a small piece of this paper goodness for free, every Tuesday, you will have a chance to download free templates from her blog! And you don’t want to miss her $5 Fridays with more customizable templates at a great price.
Cute Shoppes: Ajo Bebe and CityBird Designs
January 2, 2009 by Emily · 6 Comments
I love that it’s Friday! ;) Today we’re doing a little window shopping with these two cute shoppes:
Ajo Bebe’s contemporary, handmade baby & children accessory line is perfect for cool moms on the go.
Using vintage-inspired fabrics, you will find one-of-a-kind bibs, changing pads, baby wipes cases, burp clothes and nursing covers. You can buy these items at any of the “where to shop” locations listed on Ajo Bebe.
CityBird Designs is a paper design shop offering unique, hand-made invitations and cards. Currently they are having a sale for $1 cards! Check it out here.
These cute circle shaped tags are made from reclaimed file folders (recycled!) and have been distressed for the old-timey look. The birds are made out of vintage dictionary pages and are hand embroidered with cranberry colored floss. These tags were originally meant for the holidays, but I thought that they looked perfect for using throughout the year too.
Featured Shoppes
