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.