it's genius...

We made a quick stop last weekend at the newly opened IndieGenius, a new "shopping mall" in the Bishop Arts District. Opened by Julie at Make, it's kind of like a permanent Urban Street Bazaar, where makers have booths, similar to an antique mall.

I snapped a few pics of displays from fellow Etsy Dallas'ers Three Yellow Starfish, Cut Out and Collect, and Tefi, but there's lots more to see.

And all of the Etsy Dallas artists I saw will also be at the Jingle Bash this year, which is this Saturday! I won't have a booth (this baby needs to get on a nap schedule so I can get back to L+L!), but I'll definitely be there shopping. Details here.

boo...

I started and finished Little V's Halloween costume while she was taking her morning nap, which means it took less than 30 minutes to crank out! It's the first thing I've sewn since she was born, so I'm glad it was painless. She'll wear it with a little white hat. Happy Halloween!

nursery mini tour

In between the activities associated with taking care of a three month old (so much laundry!), I managed to find five minutes where Little V's nursery was clean, and snagged a few pictures, as promised in this post. Here's a peek:

Since we didn't know whether Violet was a he or a she until she was born, we painted the walls grey and now I want to paint every room in our house this color. It's so soothing! Her dad and I had a great time putting together this room for her, and hunting down things that were in our own rooms when we were little to include. We're also glad her room includes lots of things bought and made by the people who love her. She hasn't told me so, but I'm pretty sure she likes it!

new to the shop...

I've listed a few new tee designs in the shop. They're also available in a few other sizes, which I'll be updating soon. I'm also working on photographing some new dresses and shirts for the shop as well. All in good time...

a birthday cupcake for me...

I've blogged before about Anthropologie's birthday coupons/giveaways, and how they inspired me for a little L+L giveaway. So I was really excited when I saw this year's birthday coupon arrived in my mailbox. The little birthday candle is actually attached to a necklace, but what I found most inspiring was the cupcake punched into the card stock with a needle. I'm thinking a punched shape or logo would be a fun addition to a business card or hangtag. The wheels are turning...

baby gear: puj tub

Well, not much is going on in the world of L+L here since I'm just trying to keep this baby fed, diapered and napped, so this blog may get a little baby centric for a while. My apologies if this doesn't interest you and you'd rather hear about the stuff I'm sewing! So, I decided to post about some of the gear that I've found helpful so far in taking care of Miss Violet.

I had originally registered for a larger plastic bathtub, but browsing around one of my favorite blogs, found this post about the Puj Tub. I had read some about this tub, but the free shipping to readers of the blog sold me, so we ordered one, and I have to say I love it. It disassembles and stores flat, which is great for our small house, and the soft sides seem to cushion the Little Miss during bath time. I also like that she doesn't slide around in the tub like babies seem to do in plastic tubs. Keep in mind that this tub only works in a pedestal or bathroom sink, not a kitchen sink, but it's perfect for us right now. See a video about the tub here.

counting up....

I got the idea to photograph Violet weekly against a fabric backdrop from these guys, who I tell my husband are my "blog friends" (people you creepily know everything about through their blog, and feel like their friend, but they have absolutely no idea that you exist.) I knew all that fabric I've collected through the years would come in handy!

LOOP + LIL related posts will be scant through the upcoming weeks, because I've got my hands a little full. I hope you understand!

and everything nice...

It's a girl!

Violet Louise was born July 7 at 5:18pm.

There are no words...

fun this weekend: supplies me!

If you're a crafter/creative person who lives nearby, you should head this Saturday to the Supplies Me craft supply destash sale at South Side on Lamar. Members of Etsy Dallas will be unloading some of their stashes of craft supplies, so there should be jewelry supplies, fabric, and lots of other treasures for your crafting needs.

More details here.

feathering our nest...

I'm still practicing with my new camera, so here's a little sneak peek at the baby's room.

I made the crib sheet, crib skirt, and you can also see a bit of my very first attempt at making a quilt. I made all of the bedding using tutorials I found online, which I've linked to at the bottom of the post. We'll be adding a few more touches after the baby is born, and then I'll post a full "nursery tour". I have to say we've had more fun putting together this room than any other in our house.

All of the fabric is from the Denyse Schmidt Hope Valley line, which I picked up at City Craft, a fantastic fabric boutique and sewing lounge here in Dallas.

Tutorials I used:

Quilt Tutorial

Crib Sheet Tutorial

Crib Skirt Tutorial (I made a few modifications to make a false pleat with contrasting fabric in the center. Hard to see in this pic though.)

counting down...

We finally upgraded our camera here, so we've been having a lot of fun/frustration learning how to use it. Any tips are appreciated! Here's a ubiquitous belly shot. I have two more weeks until my due date, and I can't believe how fast time has flown by.

renegades...

One of my booth helpers and I took a break from helping customers to sport some ironic mustaches at the Magnolia Photo Booth at Renegade Austin. It was a fantastic show, and I really hope they decide to do it again next year. Besides having a great time at the actual show, I was also able to work in visits to one of my favorite Austin patios! I can't go to Austin without taking in at least one meal there.

I'm now t-minus 35 days until the arrival of our little one, so updates could be sparse, or could be plentiful, we'll just have to see!

deep in the heart...

We're in the final stages of preparing to head down I-35 to Austin for the first ever Texas edition of the Renegade Craft Fair. We've had a fantastic time in Los Angeles and Chicago doing the Renegade shows, and are super happy we've just got a 3 hour drive to this one, especially with the little one on the way and me as big as a house!

I am hoping we'll have time to grab some breakfast tacos from here, our absolute favorite taco place in Austin.

We'll be at Booth #24 for the show (near the entrance it looks like), and would love for you to stop by!

mark your calendar...

This Saturday, I'll be setting up shop at the Etsy Dallas Spring Bash at South Side on Lamar. And I would love for you to visit me. Mention this blog entry for 20% off your purchase!

Details here.

readymade for my closeup...

I'd like to extend congrats to fellow Etsy Dallas members Jeff Barfoot and Shay Ometz from bee things, for their feature in April/May issue of ReadyMade magazine, and also give them an enormous thanks for outfitting their little one in a Loop and Lil tee shirt for the pics!

I started Loop and Lil with mostly sewn garments – dresses, skirts, pants. But after requests from customers for more clothes for boys, I made a few screenprinted and button embellished tees. Those met with a lot of success, so I talked to some good friends who were screenprinting posters about screenprinting tees for Loop and Lil. The red shirt pictured in this article, designed by Rob Wilson, as well as the other screenprinted shirts in the Etsy shop, are a product of that partnership.

To see full scans of all the spreads and get a peek at their cool pad in East Dallas, check out Shay's blog here. (Just a warning that their studio is pretty jealousy-inducing.) Or better yet, pick up a copy of the April/May issue of ReadyMade with the delicious strawberry tart on the cover. And if you've never screenprinted before, the article has a great tutorial that will make it easy to try!

on the wall...

We're getting the nursery ready for our new addition, so I've picked up some artwork from Etsy to spruce up the walls. I'm so excited about this print from the shop Megan creates, which I thought had the perfect message for the little one!

Image from Megan creates

countdown...

The blogworld is abuzz in anticipation, and I'm counting the days until the Liberty of London for Target line debuts on March 14! There's a fabric store down the street from me that carries Liberty of London, and each time I go in, I longingly touch the fabrics, wishing I could just go ahead and win the lottery and buy a few hundred bolts. It's just so soft!

The line includes home accessories, clothing, and I've even seen pictures of a bicycle! And prices look pretty affordable, starting at $3.99 for a headband. If you love Liberty of London too, there's a fun Facebook quiz here to help you figure out what pattern you are. I was Maddsie Green - Subdued exuberance, like fresh-cut flowers bought at the farmer's market. A little, innocent, but very, very real.

Beautiful Liberty of London fabric image from The Purl Bee.

on my nightstand: artisan bread in five minutes a day

I was on the library wait list for this book, which I've been eyeing for a while, and picked it up yesterday! I've attempted homemade bread many times, but I never seem to be able to get it quite right. Sure, I can bake cookies, cakes and other baked stuff with no problem, but once you throw yeast into the picture, it usually ends up a failure. So I'm hoping that this book, which promises that "bread baking can be easier than a trip to the bakery," can deliver. We'll see...

we now return...

Many apologies for the blog absence. You see, we here at Loop and Lil are expecting our own little Loop or Lil in June, so I've been a little under the weather the past few months. That coupled with the craziness of the holidays added up to the perfect storm of  blog neglect. But I'm feeling much better now, and springtime promises to be an exciting time for us! Stay tuned!