Thank you for a wonderful year!

Wow! It has been a long time since I've posted. There is a good reason, though...

Thank you to everyone for all of the Christmas orders and your patience as I worked many late nights meticulously painting your very special gifts.

My sister-in-law Julie has been a wonderful help to me, helping here in my little workshop, my year round elf, painting away the backgrounds so I can add the beautiful finishing details. Without her, I don't think I would have slept at all for the past month.

I also attended 2 craft shows during the Christmas season, and being able to talk face to face with many moms and grandmas and aunts has convinced me how much I miss the connection with people when everything is being done over the internet. So, watch for me at a couple spring shows in March and a few more next November and December.

And also, thank you to all of you that I have had the pleasure of creating a special item for. I sincerely hope that you and your precious children are enjoying the extra little touches to your bedrooms and nurseries.

May God bless you and your families this coming year!
Tyann

Winter 2009 Issue of Modern Handmade Child...

...is HERE! Thank you to all of our contributors for their wonderful stories that they have shared with us for this issue. Shannon and Gretchen did the bulk of the editing this time around since the different sicknesses hit our household the past month, and I finally was able to jump in at the end. Here is the result, and, in my humble opinion, we just get better and better. ; )

Oh, and don't forget to read my articles, "Room Party 101: Tips for Classroom Parties," on page 92, and "10 Tips to Surviving the Holidays with Family" (featured on the cover), on page 96. Then my little teddy bear quilt clips are featured on the top row of items on page 2!

Do you have an idea or would like to write an article? Or maybe you have used a craft idea or tutorial featured in the magazine? Did your child take the greatest picture ever? Please submit to editor@modernhandmadechild.com, and you may be in the next issue!

www.modernhandmadechild.com

12 inch Wall Letters, Quilt Clips, and Wall Plaques - MiGi's Blossom bedding

Done in my new birch wood letters in the Victorian font, ZOEY turned out absolutely gorgeous, in my humble opinion. Each letter set that I finish becomes my new favorite set. It's been difficult choosing a few themes to create for samples to take to an upcoming craft show!

ZOEY is actually in 12 inches, as my new letters can be done any size up to 24 inches tall, and in many different fonts. First, I started with a pale pink background. Then I added the burnt umber tree branches and vines twisting through the letters.

I also had the sweet little birdies custom cut to coordinate better with the Blossom bedding. Each bird is painted white and layered with a wing and eye. The wings are bubblegum pink with pale pink and burnt umber polka dots. The eyes are burnt umber.

The blossoms are also in the white, bubblegum pink, pale pink, and burnt umber. Adding the polka dots on the large blossoms almost made me cross-eyed!

Lastly, I used a sheer pale pink ribbon, securely stapled to the back of each letter, for the letters to hang by.

You can see more detail in the quilt clips that I created to go with the letters.

Then on the wall plaques, I started with 5x5 squares in pale pink and added the burnt umber branches to match the letter set.

Would you like your own set of nursery decor in the Blossom theme by MiGi? Please contact me today!

Construction Trucks - Cement Truck, Backhoe, Dump Truck

Inspired by the Eddie Bauer bedding "Little Builder," this cement truck is simply every little builder's dream. My 3 year old wanted to to keep it for his own collection of shapes, as he loves Tonkas in general.

The cement truck's cab and body are a denim blue with a light blue and sage green cement mixer. The window is white and layered onto the truck. The wheels I handpainted onto the body in black and then layered the sage green center of the wheels on top.

A perfect addition to the backhoe and dump truck in my
regular line (or have the regular shapes custom painted, too, like this set), the custom handpainted cement mixer will complete any Little Builder's nursery decor.

Contact me today to custom order your own cement mixer. Remember, nearly all designs are available in nearly all my products - wall letters, growth charts, curtain holdbacks, and more!

modern handmade child is officially here!

Custom Clouds for Pottery Barn Kids "Stork" bedding

Even though Pottery Barn has discontinued their "Stork" bedding, I had a chance to create a couple beautifully detailed clouds to hang the precious quilt in the bedding set.

These particular clouds are a special laser cut shape that coordinates with the "Stork" bedding very well. I then painted them a light blue and added chambray blue polka dots and navy blue lateral stitches.

Each cloud measures 3" x 5" and can be used to create any of my other nursery decor items - wall letters, curtain holdbacks, a growth chart, wall plaques, and more.

Contact me today to special order a set for your baby's nursery!

Edited: September 26, 2009

This summer I created another version of the clouds for the PBK Stork bedding. This version is also light blue, but it has tiny white swirls going in two different directions and meadow green lateral stitches. This version has become the more popular one, traveling across country and into Canada even.

Original Canvases and Prints

New to the Little Elephant Company are handpainted original canvases (and their prints) by artist (and dear friend of mine) Mary Hoven.

Mary has an eye for such beautifully detailed creations. I just love the brush strokes in her skies and landscapes. A few of her pieces are available now to add to your shopping cart! See them here.

A little bit from Mary -

"I'm so grateful to be alive every day. And I love the Lord for all that he has done in our life. Bob and I love our farm, and can't wait to get animals. We now have two kittens (Jack and Jill), cattle, chickens, and horses maybe next year." read more...

As always, if you don't see what you want, just ask! I know Mary would be delighted to create a special piece of artwork for you.

Modern Handmade Child - Handmade Living in a New Way

"A fun and valuable resource helping families to embrace the handmade way of life."

Look for the first issue early August 2009! This exciting publication is truly an international publication, as the editors and contributers hail from all over the world - Europe, Australia, Canada, and many parts of the Unted States - including myself.

As one of the managing editors and the Explore editor, I know first hand the array of information that will be coming your way. I'll let you know as soon as the first issue is here in August!

Polka Dots - a Modern Touch

Geometric shapes, specifically circles, have been the "mod" design for a bit. And, it will probably stick around, since circles are clean, simple, and fresh.

So, I have painted the cutest polka dots for quilt clips! They can be any combination of color that you desire. Have a set all the same, or mix it up.

My first set was for the Land of Nod's "All Creatures Great and Small" bedding (love that set!). The colors I used are light blue, denim blue, and white. Other colors that I have done the polks dots in for this set are light green, aqua, burnt umber, orange, pale orange, and cream.

Kidsline's "Mod Turtle" bedding is another adorable set that the polka dots look fabulous with. For this bedding, I did pale blue, with burnt umber and white.

See my website for more color combination samples, and then order your own mod polka dots today!

Beavers for Enchanted Forest by Lambs and Ivy

This bedding set is so refreshing! The Enchanted Forest is unlike other baby bedding in that it has a forest theme to it, perfect for nature lovers. The modern touch of geometric shapes of teardrops and circles in most of the squares and the neutral colors with splashes of light blue sets off the animals in the quilt.

A customer wanted the little beavers to hold up the baby's quilt, so I had the shape custom cut to match. I then handpainted the beavers to coordinate with the bedding. I used a bambi brown and country twill on the beavers' bodies, and then nutmeg brown and black on their tails. Of course, I couldn't forget the white buck teeth!

Other options for this quilt would be owls, birds, mushrooms, polka dots, or leaves. Or even custom cut squirrels or leaves.

Nearly all of my designs can be done in almost any of my nursery decor items!

Contact me today to handpaint a set for you!

PBK Spring Butterfly in Pink - Custom 9 inch Letters

As I promised, here are the letters in the Pottery Barn Kids "Spring Butterfly" in pink theme!

CATHY is done in the bubblegum pink to really "pop" off her bedroom wall. Accenting the T and the Y are pale pink stitches around the edges.

Other colors I used in the set are dark pink, dark yellow, light yellow, meadow green, and white. The ribbon is vertical stripes of green, pink, white, and a bit of brown.

Are you looking for a fabulous piece of art for your child's room? Contact me today to create a set of letters that are a true piece of art, just for you!

Cherry Blossom by Kidsline

The Cherry Blossom bedding is one of my absolute favorite patterns. As a kid, I used to think it was a faux paus to put pink and red together, and now I love to do it all the time!

For this set, I handpainted the backgrounds of the lightswitch plate and the 9 inch letters in a very pale pink. The blossoms are done in red, dark pink, and white, with accents of pale pink and light pink. Other colors include burnt umber, sage green, and light green.

Are you absolutely in love the Cherry Blossom design, too? I would be happy to handpaint beautiful artwork for your little girl's room. Please email me at info@littleelephantcompany.com with your desired items, and I will send over an estimate.


Do you have another theme in the room? Let me know! Tyann

***NEW ITEM*** - Diaper Stacker Hanger

I am so excited about this brand new item that I am now making. It began as a request from a friend, and I have made the first one to go into a gift basket for my neighbor:

Diaper Stacker Hanger

Why do you need one of these to complete your nursery decor? Not only are they absolutely adorable, but a very functional piece of wall decor.

With a thick and sturdy knob, you simply place your diaper stacker's top over the knob and let it hang. The knob is very subtle and does not protrude like a long peg.

The plaque is hung by either a ribbon (stapled for security) or a sawtooth hanger (your choice).

I handpaint the plaque in your choice of colors. This one is done in pale orange, iron oxide brown, and regular orange. I added the little polka dots in the corners to draw in the color and design from the cute giraffe.

You can choose any design for the Diaper Stacker Hanger that will coordinate with your nursery's theme. I can also do a custom design for you!

It may be a while before I get these added to my shopping cart, but in the meantime, contact me to order yours today. Depending upon the details, number of colors, and the center design, they will be between $14.99 and $39.99 (the above giraffe one in 3 colors would be $22.99).

Here is the completed gift basket with 3 quilt clips, diaper stacker hanger, nite lite, and Tag Blankie:

Pottery Barn Kids "Spring Butterfly" in Pink

Another Pottery Barn Kids set! The butterflies and daisy turned out just so cute and look perfect with the quilt.

The daisy is a dark pink with pale pink and dark yellow accents. The leaf is in meadow green with leaf green accents.

The first butterfly is dark yellow, pale yellow, white, dark pink, and meadow green. The second butterfly is dark pink, bubblegum pink, pale pink, pale yellow, and meadow green.


This set would be $29.99 if you would like one for yourself. I would be happy to change up the color combinations as well - just contact me!

I am now working on a set of wall letters in this theme, so look for them at the end of March or the beginning of April!

"Teddy Trucks" by Sumersault

This little teddy bear is so adorable! I just want to poke his little tummy. : )

Little teddy here is created to go with the Teddy Trucks bedding by Sumersault. He is an antique white with a vintage white (cream) belly. His details are done in nutmeg brown.

It's difficult to judge colors just from pictures on a computer screen, and I usually do a pretty good job. I am thrilled that teddy's colors are "right on." This teddy bear quilt clips is $7.99 per clip and is available by special order only at this time.

It's amazing what a little quilt clip adds to a nursery's decor. You can custom order quilt clips and almost any other nursery decor item in my custom designs to coordinate with your theme. Contact me today!

Quilt Clips for Pottery Barn Kids "Abby"

I think Pottery Barn Kids must be one of my top 3 favorites in baby bedding lines. Their designs are rich and colorful and always have some whimsy sewn in.

This set of daisies I created to coordinate with the PBK "Abby" bedding. I used bright red, sage green, pale yellow, light pink, and white colors. Notice the "stitching" details on each of the flowers - a zig zag, a horizontal, and a vertical. I then contrasted the details on the leaves to compliment the petals. What also makes my quilt clips stand out, is that they are handpainted in custom colors and layered to make them "pop" when you hang your quilt.

Would you like a set of your own daisy quilt clips in the PBK "Abby" design? Just email me, and I would be happy to send you a custom invoice for your order. Don't forget that all of my designs come in practically all of my products - 9 inch wall letters, curtain holdbacks, growth charts, name signs, hair barrette holders...

Quilt clips are the perfect final touch to your child's bedroom. They add artwork to the room and keep the quilt safely out of the baby's bed.

Little Elephant Company

Survey of Economic Impact of the CPSIA

Please be sure to take this survey created by National Bankruptcy Day that will measure the economic impact that the CPSIA will have.

SAVE HANDMADE

From the HandmadeToyAlliance website:

"The issue:

In 2007, large toy manufacturers who outsource their production to China and other developing countries violated the public's trust. They were selling toys with dangerously high lead content, toys with unsafe small part, toys with improperly secured and easily swallowed small magnets, and toys made from chemicals that made kids sick. Almost every problem toy in 2007 was made in China.

The United States Congress rightly recognized that the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) lacked the authority and staffing to prevent dangerous toys from being imported into the US. So, they passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) in August, 2008.

Among other things, the CPSIA bans lead and phthalates in toys, mandates third-party testing and certification for all toys and requires toy makers to permanently label each toy with a date and batch number. All of these changes will be fairly easy for large, multinational toy manufacturers to comply with. Large manufacturers who make thousands of units of each toy have very little incremental cost to pay for testing and update their molds to include batch labels.

For small American, Canadian, and European toymakers and manufacturers of children's products, however, the costs of mandatory testing will likely drive them out of business.
A toymaker, for example, who makes wooden cars in his garage in Maine to supplement his income cannot afford the $300 - $4,000 fee per toy that testing labs are charging to assure compliance with the CPSIA.

A work at home mom in Minnesota who makes cloth diapers to sell online must choose either to violate the law or cease operations.

A small toy retailer in Vermont who imports wooden toys from Europe, which has long had stringent toy safety standards, must now pay for testing on every toy they import.

And even the handful of larger toy makers who still employ workers in the United States face increased costs to comply with the CPSIA, even though American-made toys had nothing to do with the toy safety problems of 2007.

The CPSIA simply forgot to exclude the class of children's goods that have earned and kept the public's trust: Toys, clothes, and accessories made in the US, Canada, and Europe. The result, unless the law is modified, is that handmade children's products will no longer be legal in the US.

If this law had been applied to the food industry, every farmers market in the country would be forced to close while Kraft and Dole prospered.

How You can Help:
Please write to your United States Congress Person and Senator to request changes in the CPSIA to save handmade toys and children's products. Use our sample letter or write your own. You can find your Congress Person here and Senator here."