Growth Chart to coordinate with Arctic Babies bedding

Yep! Yet another super cute and adorable handpainted growth chart! This one is made to coordinate with the Arctic Babies bedding by Cotton Tale Designs.

I started off with the background being chambray blue, a pale grayish blue. I then added the black night sky on the top two-thirds of the top board and then a teal for the dark ocean on the bottom two-thirds of the bottom board.

Next, using the back end of my paintbrush, I tediuosly dotted every white polka dot, carefully lining them up in the black and scattering them randomly throughout the chambray blue. What's the Arctic without snow? The polka dot snow is what really added detail and finished off this piece.

Each of the animal shapes is laser cut specially for the Little Elephant Company. The polar bear is a pure white with black and gray details. The penguin is black andwhite with a pale orange beak and rust orange feet. The whale is black with a white eye. (See below for close ups of each animal.)

Lastly, I added black stitching for the whale's water spout and behind the penguin. The measure marks and the nail cover are in the rust orange to tiw it all together.

Would you like your own Arctic Babies coordinating growth chart? Please email me today! I am running a good 4 weeks on handpainted items, so don't wait too long to place your order. Remember that I can also do the polar bear, penguin, and whale in other coordinating room decor...wall letters, quilt clips, and more!

Army Themed Wall Letters

I create many items for our brave and wonderful families in the service. I don't mind one bit any extra work involved for shipping to the APO and FPO addresses (thankfully the post office has made this simpler over the past couple of years).

This letter set was for a little boy whose daddy is in the US Army. I created a letter set for his baby sister while they were stationed overseas, and now that the family was back in the United States, it was his turn to have a set.

Every little boy idolizes his dad, so it was pretty obvious what he wanted his letter set to showcase. I had the tank, helicopter, jet, and Army star all specially laser cut for this project. Each shape is a navy blue, just a silhouette so they stand out strong against the red of the letters. I then carefully drew a star shape that I was happy with and cutit out to easily trace and then paint the white stars on the letters.

Lastly, I added navy blue ribbon. The ribbon I ended up special ordering since I couldn't find any locally, and I think the navy blue really draws the entire set together.

Would you like your own Army themed set of wall letters, or maybe quilt clips, growth chart, or other decor item? I would be happy to create it for you! Please contact me today!

PBK Cottontail Friends

I first painted a duck and a rabbit to coordinate with PotteryBarn Kids' "Cottontail Friends" bedding several years ago, and they were so very cute.

But last month, a mom wanted a little lamb to go with the set as well, so I steered the creative juices into lamb painting...and ended up with such an adorable set for her.

Here is what I did:

The duck is my usual duck shape, but I painted it a pale yellow with a cream wing. Then, I mixed the honey brown with pale orange to get the orangey/brown beak. The little stitches are in nutmeg brown to accent the little guy.

For the rabbit, again a regular shape (but it's almost gone, so then I will have to get it custom cut!), I painted it toffee brown. It's ears and nose are light pink, and the tail is white. To see his feet and ears better, I added black stitches.

The lamb is a custom laser cut shape that works well with many different lamb bedding themes. His overall color is a cream, and then I added his toffee brown legs and face. I outlined his head in white to differentiate it from his body and added white stitches around his body. The insides of his ears are light pink.

Thank you to Lenore for sending me the picture of the quilt hanging! I love to see my creations all set up in their new home.

Are you looking for a special set for your child's quilt, don't hesitate to contact me today!

And don't forget that nearly any shape or theme can be done in wall letters, growth charts, curtain holdbacks, name signs, and more!

NEW!!! Handpainted wooden growth charts with personalization

My newest addition to the Little Elephant Company line of room decor! I have upgraded the growth charts to a gorgeous handpainted solid wood style.

Each growth chart is 42" x 5.75" without the ribbon, and measurements top at 6 feet for your child. The wood is 1/8" thick and is in 3 sections for easy folding and storage.

Of course, I can customize to your theme and add personalization for FREE! And, my new nail cover is also included for FREE with each growth chart!

For the growth chart pictured in this post, I started with a light pink background and painted white hash marks every 1/2 inch. Then I meticulously added twisting iron oxide branches and tiny leaves for the birds to rest on.

The birds are in my PBK Brooke design with a light colored body outlined in a darker tone, then the wings in meadow green white stitches and tiny dots.

Lastly, I hung the growth chart by dark brown ribbon. For the picture, the nail cover is orange to match the beaks on the birds, but you can choose any color you wish!

The new growth charts arenow on my website, and a few are in my Etsy shop. Please do not hesitate to contact me for a custom one for your child today!

5 years - WOW! - Thank you!!!

It's difficult to believe, but, yes, it has been 5 years since I first began selling my quilt clips on Ebay and my own website. I later added an Etsy shop and an Amazon store to my venues, and last year I began bringing my creations to a few craft fairs in the St. Louis, Missouri area.

And in the past 5 years, my quilt clips have expanded into an entire line of children's room decor. Not only do I now create nearly any room decor item, but I have hundreds of different shapes that I custom paint to coordinate with a child's bedroom theme.

Thank you to my wonderful and very supportive husband, my 3 sons whom I do this for so I can stay home with them, my helpers so I am not up until 3 a.m. every morning painting and packing boxes, my family and friends for their love and encouragement, and to the many, many moms, grandmas, aunts, dear friends, and even dads who have purchased my quilt clips and creations. And, especially, thank you to God, who has blessed my little business tremendously over the years.

Autumn 2010 issue of Modern Handmade Child

Open publication - Free publishing - More home decor

Peek-a-Boo Bear and Busy Bees

I am really enjoying my vacation currently, but I just had to post...I just received a picture from a mom of hernursery with her custom quilt clips that I made for her with the baby's quilt, and I wanted to share it. I thought the clips turned out so very cute, but when hung up with the quilt, the whole set is just so precious!

Take a look:

The quilt is Neiman Marcus' Boogie Baby Peek-a-Boo Bear Blanket. I painted the bees in a bright yellow and white with black accents. The bear head is in nutmeg brown and country twill and layered with ears and adorable little black eyes...too cute!

Would you like your own custom quilt clips or other room decor? Please contact me today!

9 inch Wall Letter Initial Hair Barrette Holders

Lately I have been creating several initials for little girls and adding ribbons to the bottoms of the letters for hair barrettes.

This purple toned and white flower initial turned out just beautiful! I used wisteria, light lavendar, and dark purple (violet pansy) for the tones, and then white and light green to show them off.

The mix of the simple daisy and bits of polka dots really make this 9 inch initial K stand out. The light purple sheer ribbon with white polka dots really compliments the entire piece.

At the bottom of each ribbon strand is a 1 1/2 inch wooden disc to help weigh down the ribbon. I painted them wisteria, light lavendar, dark purple, and white to accent the colors in the K.

What is the purpose of a hair barrette holder? To hold all of the adorable hair barrettes and clippies your little girl has such an abundance of! Simply clip the barrettes to the ribbon, and they stay snugly in place, easy to view to choose the perfect barrettes to compliment her outfits.

Remember, every hair barrette holder from Little Elephant Company includes a FREE hair barrette from Sweet Madelynne Designs! This is a $3.99 value, and even includes the basic $9.99 hair barrette holders. Please note that the hair barrette is chosen at random by me.

And don't forget to add a custom painted nail cover (aka drawer knobs) to hang the letter by! Add a simple one for $3.95 or a more detailed one for $6.95...see below picture.

Are you ready to order one for your little princess? These run between $32.95 and $59.95, depending on how detailed you would like it. All of the ones shown in this blog post are the $32.95 designs. Your letter will come with either 3 or 4 ribbons, depending on the letter. Just contact me with your color and design choices, and I will create one for you! Perfect for birthday, Christmas, and just because.

Below are more examples of 9 inch letter hair barrette holders...

PBK Emily Flower Quilt Clips

These are just the most adorable flowers to match the Pottery Barn Kids "Emily" bedding! They definitely took some time, but they turned out perfect...

I started with pale pink 5 petal daisies. Then I layered bubblegum pink over a few of the petals and then pale pink over some of the bubblegum pink, topping the inner petals with white.

Then, I took dark pink and stitched inside each set of petals and topped off the flowers with dark yellow centers with tiny dark pink polka dots.

Would you like your own set of PBK Emily quilt clips? Or maybe something similar? I can even do these gorgeous flowers on wall letters, as curtain holdbacks, or even on a growth chart! Contact me today!

Burberry Inspired Wall Letter

A mom special ordered this Burberry inspired wall letter for her very good friend who just adores anything Burberry, even adding it to her new daughter's room.

I started with a pale pink letter and outlined it in burnt umber. Then created the light pink daisy inspired with signature Burberry plaid in burnt umber, magenta, and white.

Lastly, I finished the wall letter with a sage green stem and leaf and a light pink ribbon.

Contact me today for your own Burberry inspired wall letters!

Summer 2010 issue of Modern Handmade Child is out now!

Moo Cow by Sumersault Quilt Clips

When I finished these brown and white cows, I told myself, "These are too stinking cute!" The pictures just don't do them justice.

The mom wanted to pull the turquoise color from the bedding, so we did a turquoise background circle. For the cows, I have iron oxide spots accented with white stitches, a honey brown face, and nutmeg brown accents.

Would you like your own set of Moo Cow quilt clips or another custom theme? Please contact me today!

Modern Handmade Child *SPECIAL* Mini Mother's Day Issue

Butterflies for the "Butterfly Flowers" bedding

These sweet butterflies are some of the most adorable butterflies I have yet painted. I created this set to coordinate with Carter's (Kidsline) "Butterfly Flowers" bedding set.

First, I started with a pale pink upper wing and added the Valentine pink lower wing. Next, the iron oxide (chocolate) body on each butterfly.

My favorite part is using a tiny detail brush to carefully paint the tiny flowers in magenta and pale pink. Lastly, I finish off the butterflies with iron oxide stitches around each wing.

I would be happy to handpaint a set for you as well! I could even create a matching growth chart, a pair of curtain holdbacks, a set of wall plaques, or even your daughter's name in wall letters using this pattern. Contact me today for your own "Butterfly Flowers" butterflies!

Featured in the Spring 2010 edition of MHC

My Cherry Blossoms letters have been featured in the spring issue of the online magazine Modern Handmade Child! Take a peek and have fun with the other articles as well.

Read my articles about parents choosing a pediatrician and a tour of Purina Farms! Also see my son Noah's photography featured in the View section - just for kids.

PBK Penelope Bird Quilt Clips

The past few months I have had many requests for quilt clips to coordinate with the Pottery Barn Kids' "Penelope" bedding. Well, I finally got around to creating a set, and here they are!

For these sweet little birdies, I used a light pink and dark pink for one, and then light yellow and cream for the second one.

Both birds have white stitches and iron oxide beaks and eyes.

The bird shape was specially laser cut for the Little Elephant Company, and the birds can face either direction.

I can also do birds in more detail to go with the bedding, or even other bird shapes if you don't care if this particular simple bird.

Contact me today for your own set of sweetly tweeting birds! Remember, my designs are available in nearly any type of room decor, not just in quilt clips. So let me know if you are interested in wall letters, curtain holdbacks, wall plaques, or a growth chart, just to name a few options.