November's Theme Winner is.....

Linda at KidsFashions!!

With her Adorable Thanksgiving Dress!

Meet Team Member Kenzy Bug!

I am a work at home mom of 4 kids. I love making tutu bags. Since my daughter started dance we were looking for cute unique bags for her to carry her dance shoes and leotards in. Perfect size for that.

You can find her shop HERE!


If you've got a cute little girlie girl to buy gifts for, these bags are just too cute!

Meet The Girls Room Designs!

Hi there! Thank you for stopping by my little piece of Etsy. Wanna know a little about me? I have an adorable 2 year old boy who is a total whirlwind, I love making my crafts and hope you love them too. I'm currently not "working" outside of the home, but you mama's out there know raising children is a full time job.

You can check out The Girls Room Designs on Etsy on HERE!

And here are a few of my favorite items!

Meet Bugsie of Cardiology!

Hi, I'm Bugsie, aka Michelle.

My previous handmade wares have included everything from purses to pillows to PJs and now I am simply doing back-flips about my latest creative endeavor! These handmade cards fashioned from all recycled and reused materials are, well ... so ME! I love vintage and I love letter writing! I like the idea that the cards are recycled AND pretty at the same time. Kind of girly and green all at once! Let's just say girlygreen! And I adore making them!

After spending my entire life in California, I moved to Texas with my husband and daughter almost 13 years ago. It has been a great experience for us, we've made wonderful friends here, and it's been a place where I have enjoyed so much creative layering.

A perfect day for me means spending hours and hours in my workshop (you should see it....it's really cool!) fueling my soul through creative work. Dogs snoring at my feet. Sunlight falling across my worktable spread with scraps of lovely old linens and bits of embroidery. It is my wish that you will enjoy my Cardiology line of stationery as a way to breathe life back into the art of letter writing, go green while you're at it, and with the help of a little postage stamp, sprinkle a few kind words around the planet.

A few of my favorite items from her shop!

Fall Cards
Watch Ring

And these adorable quilted tags!!

Still Looking For Halloween Costumes?

So... Your like me... the last minute person.... Searching through your local Wal-Mart... Looking for whats left of the Halloween Costumes? And you pass up on the Dorothy that looks she was from "the wrong side of the yellow brick road" and put back the $30 Made in China Bumble Bee Costumer that looks something like Charlie Brown's Shirt with that squiggly line.....

So, here you are... searching Etsy... looking for that PERFECT costume... The one you know that your little angel (or devil) Will just love!

So... I'm here to help you out! Here are some awesome costumes, that are ready by Halloween made by some Cafemom Etsy Moms!








This is a Spooky Gothic Bat Girl Costume by Tiara's Tutus. Which also happens to be one of my NEW favorite Etsy Sellers at the moment. I love the purples and teals in the tutu along with those tiny, adorable bat wings! What a creative momma!














Ah, and heres another cutie in Tulle! Trinity's Tutus has this adorable made to order Tinkerbell Tutu Dress. It is absolutely full to the brim of pretty shades of green tulle! Big pink flowers and a big pink ribbon set this costume off perfectly!









One of the more eclectic shops on Etsy... and believe me, I mean that in the MOST respectful way! Another Favorite Seller, Pumpkinhaus! This is her "Frou Frou Skirt" . Made from Witchy Fabric and full of color, and texture! What Little Girl wouldn't LOVE wearing this for Hallowen? It will be perfect for the skirt of a Witch's costume, or even something cute to wear over leggings when going out! Be sure to check out Pumpkinhaus' shop for all kinds of cool, kooky, and "Hey, I never thought of that" kind of stuff!



And Just in Case you haven't had your daily dose of ADORABLE! Here is a Totally Cute idea and tutu by Maggie's Rose Garden! Any mom who is ANY mom has heard of Gymboree, and we all have seen the adorable lines of matching clothes they have. Well, Maggie's has come up with such an adorable tutu to put your little punkin' in for halloween!

I just love how the tutu goes so perfectly with the pumpkin hat, tights, and sweater. If you haven't got that costume yet, you have got to hit up Gymboree, and Maggie's Rose Garden!









And of course, I will add my Halloween Costume Too! Just to give a spin on the everyday tutu, I, Rockerchic, have added large wire ribbon and strips of fabric for a completely shabby look!

This is my favorite Tutu in my shop with purple spider web fabric, and white with black polka dot fabric... along with black tulle and a spider wire ribbon for a totally spooky look!








This is a SMALL taste of what our CEMs have to off you for halloween this year. Throughout our shops we have clothing, costumes, jewelry, and home decor for Halloween, Fall, and all year round!

While your browsing etsy, make sure you search for the tag "cafemom team" you'll be so glad you did!

Hope you all have a SPOOKTACULAR HALLOWEEN! Lots of Handmade Love and Wishes for a Safe Halloween from all the super cool Chics over at Cafemom Etsy Moms Street Team!

Kristie (aka Rockerchic)

No Sew Tutu Tutorial by The Creative Princess!

First you need to decide two things:

1. Decide how full and how long you want your tutu. Depending on the size you will need anywhere from 2 yards up to 100 lol
2. Decide if you want the base to be ribbon or elastic.
Now, on we go
You will need to decide how long you want your tutu (when doing this remember that the tulle MUST be folded in half so you end up with a double layer effect and the way we knot them will affect the length if you only cut for a single layer)
~The tulle should be folded in half already, now fold in half again, and again until it looks like this

You should basically have one long skinny piece of tulle.
~Now we cut. You want the pieces to be 3-6 inches long, then just keep going down the long piece until there is no more tulle left to cut

~If you are using ribbon you will need to make two knots (I was able to measure Madison and where the ribbon met, that is where I tied it off. If you do not have a live model you will need their waist measurements. Find the mid point, say their waist is 20 inches, the mid point would be 10 so you would tie the ribbon off at five inches from each side of the mid point.) You do this so the tulle stays in place.

~Starting at one knot we will now tie the pieces on to the ribbon. You are going to do a basic loop knot so you should have one side of the tulle open

And the other side should be connected at the fold

You can either place the tulle on top or under the ribbon, I did this one under

~Place your hand through the loop part of the tulle and grab the remaining tulle and pull through

~Pull to tighten into a knot, but don't pull too hard or you will tear the tulle

~Scrunch the tulle pieces together as tight as you would like, the tighter you scrunch them the fuller the skirt

Just keep tying the tulle on until you reach the other knot. At that point if it is scrunched enough for you then you are done, if not scrunch the pieces together more and keep tying. I like to scrunch them just a little bit, that way as the girl grows the mom can undo on of the ribbon knots and unscrunch the tulle so it can grow with her.
Your finished product should look something like this

You can add to this whatever you want.

If using elastic you will need to make it a few inches smaller than the actual waste size and just sew the ends together then start applying the tulle.

*Please ignore my gnarly finger nails! lol

Cantonese BBQPork by busylittleelf.etsy!

Cantonese BBQ Pork

1/4 cup light soy sauce

1/4 cup dark soy sauce

1/4 cup honey

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons dry sherry

3 tablespoons hoisin sauce

1 teaspoon ginger paste

1/2 teaspoon five spice powder

4 pound pork tenderloin

For Honey Glaze:

3 tablespoons honey

2 teaspoons soy sauce

1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil

In a small saucepan, combine the light and dark soy sauces, honey, sugar, salt, sherry, hoisin sauce, ginger, and the five-spice powder. Heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat and let cool.

Cut the pork into strips about 2 inches wide, 7 inches long and 1 1/2 inches thick. Place in a lock-top plastic bag, add the marinade and seal closed. Massage to coat the meat fully with the marinade. Refrigerate overnight or for up to 3 days( I always marinate for the full 3 days). Bring to room temperature before roasting.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Pour boiling water into a roasting pan to a depth of 1/2 inch. Rest a cooling rack slightly larger than the pan on top of it. Drain the pork and set the strips across the rack. Roast for 15 minutes. Turn the strips over and roast until browned and firm to the touch, about 15 minutes longer.( as long as your strips are 2x7x1 1/2, it really only takes this long)

FOR HONEY GLAZE: In a small bowl, mix together the honey, soy sauce and sesame oil, stirring well. Brush the strips with the glaze and roast until the edges begin to char, about 1 minute longer. Remove from the oven, cover and let rest for 15 minutes, then cut the strips across the grain into thin slices. Serve warm or cold.

The Fruitiest Fruit, is a Marshmallow!! A PINK marshmallow!

Congrats to PinkMarshmallow for winning our "Fruit" Contest with her entry of the Cherry Applique Lounge Set:


Here is an applique lounge set complete with tiny coordinating mary janes :)






I mean what an adorable outfit, and idea for that matter! What expecting mother wouldn't love this as a shower gift? And what little punk princess wouldn't love wearing it??

Here are some other things that are fantastic from Pink's Etsy Shop!



Sk8er Boi and Nascar Fan Checkered Shoes

How Adorable!!! Little Lace up shoes for your little one to race off in!!!




Custom Sassy Momma Gauzey Lounge Set

These are the first of these I've seen on Etsy, and I really hope they do well for miss Pink!

Thanks for taking a look at our weekly featured artist!!!

Be sure that as you click the artists on the right of our blog, you'll be amazed at every shop you see!

Featured artist of the week: MiaBella!

Congrats to miabella for her EasterBella entry in our #16 Easter theme.

MiaBella Designs

EasterBella......

Quote Reply

Here are more items from her cute shop!! stop by her shop and say hello!!!!

CinnamonSpice, how does your shop help others??

t's been wonderful reading all the posts about sources of inspiration. I wanted to share how my site helps others. I know many of us have a gazillion photos of those "Awwwww" moments, like baby's first steps or baptisms, holidays etc. stuffed away in boxes, old magnetic photo albums, under the bed, you name it! How many moms really want to haul out those photos, sort them and then create an album or spend a small fortune on a traditional album to put the pictures in? Better yet, how many have the time, especially us crafty mommas. Well, my shop offers a variety of handmade items but I specialize in pre-made mini scrapbooks, I guess you could say I'm crazy about my minis! I love creating a mini for just the right occasion, like the birth of a new baby.

Baby boy "My Word" Album
























All a mom would need to do is choose the right photos, add them to the album and journal or write interesting tidbits on the journaling cards provided. I will even add the photos (free for Etsymoms through Mother's Day) if you email or snailmail them to me!

Baby shower favor tins






























Scrapbooking isn't just for albums! I enjoy seeing what other types of altered art I can use my scrapbooking for. These are baby shower tins which, along with birth announcements, scrapbook and/or picture frame will be part of a baby shower in a bag bundle due out soon.




My albums really do become heirloom pieces. They are made from photo safe materials and can be passed on to your kids, their kids and on...preserving your family's photographic history so to speak. I get so excited when I get the design of an album right. Some might thing scrapbooking is not art, but to put together just the right mix of colors and patterns and techniques I think requires an artistic eye.



I love doing custom work and will be adding more examples of what I can create to meet any momma's tastes. I will be designing some items that are a bit more contemporary than "cute". The other huge way we help others is by donating a percentage of our proceeds to the Angelwish.org which works to save the lives of children living with AIDS/HIV.

Stop in and see some of our other gifts. http://www.cinnamonspice.etsy.com or http://cinnamonspicecrafts.blogspot.com.

Cinnamonspice

aeBaby, where do you find your inspiration???

Where do you find inspiration?


Inspiration comes from everywhere but mostly my children, ages 3 and 5. So many times I hear "Hey mama, can we...?" "Hey let's do..." and off we go. We start with a simple idea and expand it to be more than just a game or toy. The process becomes an experience where fun and adventure is the goal.

My First Bake Shoppe - Felt Play Set for Preschool


I have a degree in Therapeutic Recreation and use it everyday with my kids. ( Yeah explain to your parents your majoring in recreation- ha) This background taught me that every toy and game should do more. It should teach, it should allow for exploration and creativity it should be fun and it should not need batteries!

Taggie Blanket with Satin and Minkee ages 6 months+


I look around and see what my kids want and they help me make something good into something wonderful. They love to pick out fabrics and match colors. They want fun but also beauty, and fabrics to delight the sense of touch; super soft cottons, plush minkees, smooth satin.

(What toddler doesn't love to have something a little special just for them? What mommy either?)

Britax Marathon Car Seat Cover


Other than my children the inspiration for my shop is simple. Moms and kids want beautiful things that will inspire, be cherised and last.

visit www.aebaby.etsy.com a boutique for mom & baby