A New Adventure

It's only February and what a year it has been so far!

DBB is just thriving! I hit over 100 sales in my etsy shop. I've had more than double that in non-etsy sales in less than a year. I hit 2000+ fans on my fan page on Facebook. And, well, now ... DBB is gearing up to move across the country!

Yep, that's right ... Doll Baby Bowtique is headed to Tennessee! I'm sitting in my hotel room right now in TN and yes, it is 3 am. I am tired, but I am working on a late coffee (that's happening a bit to often these days), a 4 hour nap (after all, we took a red-eye), and, well, adrenaline.

As many of you know, because of this move, I decided to close up shop early to prepare my family. Some people may think I'm crazy ... why close and lose momentum and customers? Yes, that concern - well, worry really - has crossed my mind. I worked so hard to get DBB to this point ... are these customers going to take off on me and not return? Well, some might. But I built this little business from nothing ... this time if I have to rebuild, it won't be from nothing like last time.

One of my fans said she admires a mom who knows when to stop and has her priorities straight. That gives me courage and hope. I have fans, loyal fans, people I am dedicated to and many who are so very supportive. I love creating for them ... you. And I will again. Heck, I don't plan on disappearing; I plan on making some fun new stuff that I haven't had a chance to make before because y'all (hehe) been keeping me so busy. It's not just about making money ... I spent most of this past year paying off a debt from my first (and last) few craft shows back in 2010. (I spent $ to make $ ... and I didn't make a whole lot of $ ... lots of people who just don't appreciate handmade items). Anyway, I'm off track now ... I enjoy doing this for the fun of it. Yes, I have to keep it professional in many instances. Still, I love creating and I love having someone to create for.

While I will still be creating (don't forget that now), my priority has to be my husband and 2 children and myself as we prepare for a giant life-changing event. I know many people have done what I'm doing, I'm not the first person to move away from home. Yet, after 32 years of living in the same place ... I've got a lot of memories to pack up, a lot of people to spend time with before that time runs out, and a family to make certain is okay through all of this. Plus, once I'm told to pack up that sewing machine, there ain't nothing I can do about it until it arrives in TN.

But I'll be back, in a new state, on a new adventure, with new creative energy and a new outlook. I hope you'll be here, too, so I can share it all with you!

Much love,
Katrina

Broken ...

2011 brought a few new "gadgets" into my life. Things to make my sewing life better, easier and much more fun. Alas, that didn't last very long ... they're BROKEN.

First, my portrait lens ... I've had it for a year. Mid-December I picked up my camera to take a picture of my kids and the lens just fell off. No, I did not mistreat my camera and my kids did not do anything to it. The lens just fell right out of it's socket. Sad sad sad.


Next, this little sewing machine was one of Miss A's birthday gifts. She wants to sew just like mommy! Well, we took it out of it's packaging for the first time since she got it in October. We tried and tried and, yep, it's broken! Sheesh!


And finally ... all I wanted for Christmas was a serger. My wonderful hubby surprised the daylights out of me and actually got it for me! I was excited to say the least. When it finally arrived and I opened the package, this is what I found. You see that gray stick piece sitting on top of the machine, well, it's supposed to be attached to the one sticking up at the top. Yep, it's BROKEN (at least this one is being replaced).

A Happy New Year!

Wow ... it's been a long time since I've posted! Still, there is no better day than today to pick this blogging thing back up :)

Let me begin by saying ... Happy New Year!!!!

2011 was a fantastic year for Doll Baby Bowtique! I kept my resolution to try new things ... sewing new things that is. I did it and the best part is that so many of you liked what I made! Because of all of you, I went from a couple hundred fans to almost a couple THOUSAND! How amazing is that?! Because of DBB, I have made many wonderful new friends and have grown in ways I never could have imagined.

I'd like to ring in the new year by thanking each and every one of my fans, friends, family, supporters for bringing me to where I am now!

I am looking forward to 2012 and the grand adventure it holds for me and my family. I know that means it may put Doll Baby Bowtique behind just a bit ... I may miss a couple of holidays here and there, but it will be a fabulous change that will only serve to inspire me and my family even more.

I look forward to spending this wonderful new year with all of you! Thank you and love to all.

Katrina

And the final winner ...

Our final giveaway winner is Michelle!

I don't have a last initial or anything ... but you are lucky number 20 picked by random.org! Feel free to contact me at dollbabybowtique@gmail.com with the item of your choice! Can't wait to see what you pick!

Thank you to every single person who participated and supported and even "liked" the giveaway and of course for supporting Doll Baby Bowtique! You will never know how much your love and support is appreciated!

Come back soon ... I think I may do this again sooner than 2000 fans ... it was fun!

Love,
Katrina

Final Day of the Giveaway!

Good Morning Friends!!!

I can't believe 4 days came and went so fast. I can't believe 9am came so fast (as you know I should have posted this at 8am). So as a huge thank you to all of you here is what I am offering up today:

One Free Item of Your Choice!!!!

That's right ... one item of your choice. Loved the mega tote or kids tote from days 1 & 2? You can have your own! Need a skirt/dress or how about a boy's item {pants, tie, vest, etc.} ... you can have it!

{now, this is not for an outfit, just one item ... but if you would like an outfit, half of it is free!}

So you know what to do ... leave your comments here to win this cool offer! Winner will be chosen at 8pm tonight!

.... and you know if you feel like it, follow the blog and let people know about DBB ....

Lucky No. 10 wins on Day 3

Congratulations to our Day 3 winner ... Amy {with a little guy named Connor}.

Please email me at dollbabybowtique@gmail.com so we can work out the details of your prize!

Thank you again to all who participated today! I love seeing so much excitement ... makes me happy!

Stay tuned for Day 4 - our final giveaway day ... this is for something you'll want to get your hands on for sure! Come back tomorrow at 8am for your final chance to win something :)

BOO! It's Giveaway Day 3!

Good Morning everyone!!!!

I am having a lot of fun with this giveaway. Thank you so much to all of you for your support and participation ... it makes all the love and sweat so worth it!

So today, as asked, I'm bring you a little Halloween ... this is for a girl OR boy outfit! {just because the photo is my daughters outfit, doesn't mean it's not for boys}

Today I will be giving away a BOO tshirt (or onesie) with the Eek!Boo! bottoms {skirt or pants ... your choice}!

You know what to do ... just comment on this post to enter! Simple as that.

If you feel like "following" my blog or sharing my facebook fan page with your friends, please do so! More fans means another giveaway at 2000!

I will pick the winner at 8pm (PT) tonight!

Day 2 Winner Is ...

Kimberly Veteto! Congratulations Kimberly!!!!

Please email me at dollbabybowtique@gmail.com with your fabric selection and mailing info!

Thank you to all who participated today!!! I'm excited to bring you something new tomorrow.

1500 Fan Giveaway Day 2!!!!

Oh my that Mommy Tote went over really well!!! Thank you to all who participated yesterday and I hope you enjoy today's item!

To start off our 2nd giveaway day, I would like to giveaway a kids tote! The best part ... you can customize it to what you (or your doll baby) would like!

Ideas for customizing your bag:
~Get it in a Halloween Fabric and use it for trick-or-treating.
~Or get it in a fabric that matches you child's Halloween costume!
~Get in a fun print to last all year round
~Or how about your child's favorite color?
~Give it as a Christmas gift!
~Get it for a boy OR girl ... if it's for a boy, it won't come with ruffles






So, you know what to do ... comment below and include your name since some comments come up anonymous. And if you feel comfortable, leave your email address. If not, that's fine, just watch my Facebook Fan Page for the announcement of the winner after 8pm (PT) tonight!



And if you feel up to it, "follow" my blog by clicking the "follow" button on the right. And if you are really feeling it, suggest my page to your friends www.facebook.com/dollbabybowtique {big multi-vendor giveaway at 2000 fans}.



That's it!!!! Enjoy :)

And the Winner Is ...

Our Day 1 winner ... chosen by random.org ... is

#2 Ashton Haight!!!!

Congratulations Ashton!

Thank you to everyone who participated today - your support is appreciated!!! Please stay tuned for more of our giveaway tomorrow :)

1500 Fans! Wow! Giveaway Day 1

Good Morning!!! I've decided to go with my typical giveaway a day {I'm thinking maybe 4 days}!!!


The only reason I got to 1500 fans is because of YOU, so that is the first giveaway I will do. Something for YOU - MOM!


Today's giveaway is for a Large Tote and card wallet. These will be made in a surprise fabric (you know how much I like to surprise you).

{pattern by little lizard king}{pattern by butterbeans&chicpeas}




***All you need to do to enter is comment on this post. Some of you may come up anonymous, so make sure you at least leave your name so your entry counts, and if you feel comfortable doing so, leave your email and I can contact you directly. If you choose not to, please watch my page on FB for the winner!***


And these are not required, but if you feel like it:
~Hit the follow button on the right side of my blog. That way you can follow me during this giveaway or once I am done with my stack of orders and will finally be able to blog again!!!

~Suggest Doll Baby Bowtique's fan page to your friends on Facebook! {I'll be doing a multi vendor giveaway at 2000 fans}

Favorites ...

I love when people purchase my items and I see pictures of them in use. I love creating and love that there are so many people in this world who love handmade as much as I do. Selling my hand made goods is so rewarding and now that I sell them, I love to support others who do the same!



Recently I've bought a few wonderful items from some wonderful and amazingly talented WAHMs. The first is from my all time fave! ButterBeans&ChicPeas. Beverly has an extraordinary talent and makes this Homemade Business stuff look like a breeze. She is always an inspiration to me with all the new things she's coming up with. It makes me stop and think "What can I make now?" I love and appreciate all her comments and encouragement and her talent!
She made this camera strap cover back in June for her Moms Can Whine Too night! I had been toying with the idea of making my own, but my first attempts a year ago were no good. So after playing in "Whine Night," I saw her post on her FB Fan page {here} about this camera strap. I got this one by guessing that she was drinking Red Whine ... oops, I mean Wine ;) . Once I purchased it from (Etsy Shop), I had it within a couple of days and on my camera in seconds ... it's been on there ever since! It's comfortable and stylish and eye catching! I'm always getting complements on it where ever I go! Bev has also made my kids "Easter Bunnies" and warm cozy slipper boots which I just love. I <3 Beverly and BB&CP!

My other recent purchase came from the sweetest and most wonderful CJ from The Fancy Hooker. Yes, that is the name of her {shop}. My Aitana was browsing Etsy and came across CJ's flower and then another treasury I had made and asked if she could make a treasury too. So, what was the first thing Aitana chose for the list? This fuchsia crocheted flower. See the treasury (here). The entire treasury was based on this one flower.Once the treasury was made, Aitana would not stop talking about this headband! She loved it so much, I couldn't help from getting it for her. And she loves it! CJ is so talented. She has an amazing skill the I very much admire and I am so thankful for it! And so is my girl. I'd take a picture of it in her hair, but her hair is a mess ... she needs a bath. One day soon I'll have a pic of it on Aitana because "Fuchsia is Fancy."


I also received another awesome package in the mail. I recently did an exchange with Kara from Lucky Lu Creations. We're a couple of Gnome lovers ... I made her baby boy a "My Gnomeo" Tie Shirt. (It's in the mail, BTW). From Kara I got these wonderful handmade paper craft items! I just love them. I've long admired her Gnomes greeting card and she handmade me one saying "Happy Birthday" for a special little birthday girl having a gnome party. Much to my surprise, I also got the adorable matching gnome tags ... I just can't wait to use them! The detail on both of these is just AMAZING! I cannot believe these are handmade. The quality is superb.
And you see those thank you tags on the left? My girl also chose those for the Fuchsia is Fancy treasury! In the treasury you'll see that they say Happy Birthday. I got the idea that I just HAD TO HAVE these for Aitana's 4th birthday in October. Because in case she hasn't told you yet, it's a Fancy Nancy Tea Party ... and if you know Fancy Nancy (or even Aitana) her fave color is Fuchsia and she's always wearing a Tiara. These tags are perfect for that, but I wanted them to say thank you for the goodie bags. And you know what ... Kara made it happen for me! Why? Because she just loves custom orders! And I love all my new paper goods. I think LuckyLu Creations may just be may new paper goods guru!

These ladies are amazing and I think ... wait ... I KNOW you'll love them just as much as I do. Not only are they talented, but they are some of the kindest, most generous women I've had the pleasure of knowing!

Weight Check Wednesday ... Parties, Vacation, Oh My!

So, does the title give you a hint as to what happened the last couple of weeks?

Birthday party, "vacation" and a graduation party. Lots of food, lots of eating out ... a few too many beers. Um, not good!

I know I've missed 2 weeks of checking in. The first week I was rapidly trying to finish orders before vacay and gearing up for Gabriel's birthday party. I simply forgot and I'm sure nobody can blame me. The second week (last week) was vacation ... I thought about my weight check for about a second before running out of the house for G's 2 year old physical and a day at Disneyland which turned into an afternoon at the zoo :P

Last week I did great with the exercising (but not with the eating). I did 2.5 hours walking up an down hills all around the zoo. One may not consider that exercise, but my kids have been there enough times to not want to stop and look so we just cruise by and keep walking at a good pace. I only got in a mile on Friday, but then Sunday was a full day at Disneyland. Lots of walking and bonus is we NEVER take the tram, we always walk the long walk from the parking structure to the park (LONG, believe me). Monday followed with a 2 mile walk away the pounds video that includes arm work. Yay! 4 great workouts!

There was one other problem with last week ... otherwise Friday would have been more. Early in the week, Aitana was playing around and slipped and fell on my lower back. Some of you may know that I have a back issue and my sciatica flares up any time it wants ... this time it was extremely painful thanks to the fall! I did my best to complete the one mile walk as I cried through most of it because of what I realized when I got on the scale that morning.

So, 3 weeks ago I was at 182.4 (not loss, no gain)
Friday, I was at 186.4 ... gained 4 lbs thanks to all the party food, sweets and eating out. Super depressing.
However, today I was 185.7 ... I lost .7 lbs of the vacation gain! I'm on the right track!

Still, I'm back up into my size 14's. I don't want to be there ... put most of them in the attic because they were too big, so I have very few things to wear. I just don't want them around.

I had a great workout week last week and I started this week off right with a great morning workout ... I'm hoping to keep it up so I can finally make it habit again! I'm shooting for exercising 5 days this week instead of just 4! Plus since vacation has ended, I've really upped my water intake once again and that seems to be really helping a lot as well.

I'm hoping for another loss next week and being back on track.

How have things been going for you?

What a Difference a Year Makes ...

I was just looking at my loft with all my piles and all my notes and all my mess trying to make sure in my mind that I have not forgotten about someone's orders or prizes. {Luckily I have everything in a special place to double and triple check and then check again}. As I was "viewing" all of these items I was struck with excitement and nervousness. I realized that just one year ago I was still struggling to get Doll Baby Bowtique recognized on a bigger playing field.

One year ago I had only ONE 4th of July skirt order. This order was from a very sweet, very dear friend from high school who had just found out I had my business. I could hardly say I was busy, but I was certainly proud of selling that one 4th of July order.

Just one very fast, very short year later, I'm sitting here organizing all of my things and realized that in just the last week or so I have had 8 orders for 4th of July gear! That's not including all of my non-4th orders. So exciting! That's a huge difference in just a year!

Thank you to all of my fans and friends for your continued support! Thank you to all the ladies who have helped me get my name out there {I'm just no good at self-promotion} and thank you for helping my little business grow and grow! This will be a great 4th of July!

I'm looking forward to seeing all the adorable doll babies in their Red, White and Blue!

Friday's Winner Is ...

Stephanie Alvarado!

Congratulations on winning Friday's giveaway and thank you to everyone for participating!

1000Fan Giveaway Friday!

Hooray! Hooray!

It's 1000Fan Giveaway Friday!

That means today is the last day of our giveaway!

What a success this has been and I hope it has been fun for everyone!

To begin, Leigh from BowzArt has donated

a Puppy Dog Bow Holder and your choice of ONE of the bows in the photo!

www.bowzart.net

For our next item, Jodi from Hussey Hoots Knits has given

25% off any item in her shop!

{she makes boy and girl items!}

See her items here as well: www.livingartcongo.com

Now, we have Liz from Little Lizard King.

She's donated another 2 patterns for a lucky winner!

{patterns for boys and girls!}

www.littlelizardking.etsy.com

www.littlelizardking.com

Finally, for my final giveaway item from Doll Baby Bowtique

A custom OUTFIT (yes, outfit) for either

a Boy OR a Girl!

www.dollbabybowtique.etsy.com

www.dollbabybowtique.com

How to enter ...

1. Make sure you are go to each FB page using the links above each photo and like all 4 of us! Then comment letting me know you have done so!

2. Browse each FB page and our Etsy shops or web sites and tell us what your favorite items are!
Then leave a 2nd comment letting me know what those items are!

That is 2 entries for each person! Have fun!

{Winner will be announced tomorrow morning!}

Thursday's Winner Is ...

Dalyn S
Congratulations Dalyn!

Thank you to everyone who participated in Thursday's 1000Fan Giveaway!

Now, on to our final day ... we've got some great vendors and 2 of them are new ones who came in at the last minute to round out a wonderful giveaway!

See you in a few!

1000Fan Giveaway Thursday!

What another great day!

I'm so happy with this giveaway ... it's been a lot of fun for me and I hope it is as well for you!

Now it's time for our

1000Fan Giveaway Thursday!

First up is Lucky Lu Creations

Kara is giving away a $5 GC to her Etsy shop!

www.luckylucreations.etsy.com

Next we have This-N-That by: Melanie Strohm

Melanie is giving away her

"WEAR ME 2WAYS" My Little Sweetie "Priss-Pot" necklace

This-N-That by: Melanie Strohm ... offering many styles for you! Handmade jewelry,hats,

headbands and hair clips to name a few. I create my own designs with today's styles in mind.

Some things are alike, others are one of a kind! Sometimes you have a special design that you would like or you can use mine.

So when you need something special, please let me know. With accessories from This-N-That, you'll be ready to go!

And then we have another great items from My 3 Girls Bowtique

Lisa is giving away one of her cutie 4th of July bows!

{Free shipping in the U.S. only}

And Finally ... a custom item from Doll Baby Bowtique

A custom 4th of July something for either a Girl or a BOY!

(yes, an item for your little guy!)

www.dollbabybowtique.etsy.com

Now how to enter:

1. Make sure you visit each of the FB pages using the links above the pics. Like them all and give some love if you'd like!

2. Then look around at either the FB pages or Etsy shops and tell me the products you like or love from their shops!

Simple easy ... 2 entries to help you win!

Have fun. {Winner announce in the morning!}

Wednesday's Winner!

Lavette is the winner of Wednesday's goodies!

Please contact me at dollbabybowtique@gmail.com

Congratulations :)

Thank you to everyone who participated. Here comes today's giveaways!

1000Fan Giveaway Wednesday!

Happy Hump Day!

Welcome to our Wednesday Giveaway!

I can't believe we are already at the halfway point! I am having so much fun with this giveaway ... Thanks to all who are participating!

Now on to more great things from some awesome women!

Our First item in today's giveaway is this adorable bow holder

from the awesome Lisa at My 3 Girls Bowtique

(remember her key fob from Monday?)

{free shipping in the U.S. only}


Next we have this absolutely adorable Hello Kitty Bow

from the very sweet Jennifer at Cutie BOWtooties BOWtique

And now we have the great $30 Gift Certificate

from the lovely Helen at Glorious Memory

And finally, a bouquet of Ribbon Flowers in cheery colors

from my shop, Doll Baby Bowtique!


Love these prizes! Wish I could win some of them myself!

Now, on how to enter ...

1. Visit all these vendors and like all the pages. Just click the links above the photos :) Come back here and let me know you've done so.

2. For a second entry ... while you're busy liking all these pages, take a look around and come back and let me know what your favorite items are from each of these 4 shops!

Simple as that ... have fun and thanks for playing!

{winner announced tomorrow morning!}