Giveaway #1: Buffalo Lane

buffalo lane giveaway  

Today starts off a whole batch of wonderful giveaways! I don't offer giveaways much, but with Mother's Day coming, and spring fever in the air, the time is right. Are you ready?

Welcome Buffalo Lane: A new boutique founded by 2 amazing (and gorgeous!) women that I completely admire and love. I grew up with these two ladies, and they always turned heads with their ability to splash on color with no effort at all.

They are giving away 9 necklaces featured above, as well as a jelly watch (my fav) in the color of your choice.

watches

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And for all the readers here, you can enjoy 10% off your whole order this week!

GIVEAWAY GUIDELINES

1) Visit Buffalo Lane

2) Leave a comment here below and give them some love

OPTIONAL ENTRIES

3) LIKE their Facebook page, and leave a comment below telling me you've done so

4) Follow them on Instagram, and leave a comment below telling me you've done so

DATES & TIMES

5) Giveaway ends Friday @ Midnight EST

6) Don't forget to order your items by April 27th, 2013 with the code: SPRING10 for 10% off your order

Good Luck!!

And ALL WEEK I'm going to be offering some amazing things...so come by for a daily deal! 

 

COMMENTS CLOSED: Winner is Kate who said "Oh, I'd love to get one of those watches for my daughter! :)"

Looking ahead...

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I'm so ready for a weekend. You? I've been spinning up lots of little things  I'm super excited to show you (new fabric anyone?) and I'm kinda pooped out. I get tired SO much faster. This is my 4th pregnancy, and you kinda forget (or at least I kinda forget) that I'm not invincible. I never was Wonder Woman, but if I ever WASN'T her, it's now. Ya know? Things take 10 times longer it seems with having to be down and resting more. But on the positive side, taking breaks and resting is sooooooo important, and something that I am really blessed to make the excuse to have more.  Did I mention I have pre-term labor tendencies? It's a blessing that my work mostly takes sitting. Dishes and laundry...that's another issue! (But it never was my fav to begin with so, who am I kidding).

So. Next week. I thought we could all use some pick-me-ups. Spring excitement, ya?

I'm going to be hosting a whole bunch of giveaways next week (from my lovely Fabric Store sponsors, some favorite new boutiques of mine, and some from me too!) and I'm thinking you'll all want to be invited. The first giveaway will be posted Monday, and we'll just keep adding more all week! Sound fun? We are going to shake things up here, and add some excitement. I could for sure use it. Can't wait!!

And lastly, I've got to share with you this photo. It's our FIRST lemon we grew. I live in Utah, and it's very dry here. But we bought a Meyer Lemon tree in California over a year ago, strapped it in a seatbelt, and drove it to our lovely little desert climate. It took a year, but this little baby tree produced it's FIRST lemon this month, and it was such a family affair. In fact, we all picked it off at the same time. And now, there are about a dozen more lemons starting, and it's quite exciting. Meyer lemons don't ship well, so being able to grow one in a pot that fills our living room with lovely smelling blossoms, is such a treasure.

Anyways...had to share.

So see you Monday bright and early!

Have a lovely weekend!

xo

Sarah

Free PDF Print: Shining Brighter

how bright will you be? I've been thinking a lot. Like I'm sure you have too.

I'm a mother. I spend most of my time vigilantly watching over my kids. It's my calling. My life.  Everything I do, I am thinking of them and their safety, growth, happiness. Just like you do.

And when booms go off, my mother-heart gets on high alert for the moment, and then sad. Affected by the darkness that can so easily permeate. Torn for the families affected directly. Worried, only like a mother can.

But last night, as I lay trying to sleep, I kept reminding myself of the incredible duty I have to shine brighter. Overwhelm the darkness. Make a lasting mark. Vigilantly shine out the yucky stuff. It's not going to get any better unless I keep shining.

This passage came to mind, and I felt so much better knowing that it's up to me. I can make a difference.

This is a FREE DOWNLOAD for you today!

I needed it, and I thought you might too.

Shine a little brighter, and it will make all the difference.

Spring Sewing Ideas

pin and flickr fridays Spring has brought my sewing machine out again. I've got new fabric (squee!) that I'm cutting into, and I find myself collecting ideas for spring projects. You? Like, I need some more picnic quilts, a good skirt for my daughter and I'd love to get Ian a bed quilt for his bed. All projects that I've not really been motivated to create lately. Something about spring gets me all excited again.

I was browsing through your AMAZING Flickr photos and Pinterest photos last night, and I wanted to share a few. The Flickr Groups are rockin' awesome and I just love getting inspired by your ideas. Please go and take a peek....get inspired, cause there is no way I can include all your amazing designs here!

(click on the links below each image to see the source)

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{Fleur Cahill}

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{Party of Eight}

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{Lisa Toronto}

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{Quilt Story} {Pattern}

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{Quilt Story} {Pattern}

il_570xN.367591621_koqh

{Quilt Story} {Pattern}

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{Quilt Story} {Pattern}

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{Me Sew Crazy/Circus Wear} {Pattern}

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{crozette} {DIY}

narwhal hunt detail 3

 

{Snips Spippets}

 

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{Violet Vata}

All these images were sewn using Children at Play fabric or Out to Sea Fabric.

(For more photo groups, see my sidebar to get more inspiration!)

I'm so excited to add a third line to the mix....stay tuned!

I hope that gets you in the mood! What are your sewing projects you are working on? Share your pinterest pages, or your projects below!

xo

Sarah

 

SALE SALE SALE

SPRING SALE balloons print  

Just a final shout out for a great chance to stock up on some new Sarah Jane yummies in the shop!  I love having a good sale, but they don't come around all that often.

And just as a side note, did you know that I offer flat rate shipping of $6 (for both domestic and international) and FREE SHIPPING on all orders over $100? I don't think I've done a very good job of mentioning that here. But I've tried to make it really comfortable for all my friends over seas...and for all you who like to order in bulk.

Thanks for all your lovely support as well! I've loved hearing your responses to the new collection, and your warm and inspiring emails!

Sale ends tonight, April 10th at midnight Mountain Daylight Time (2 hours behind NYC time if that helps!)

 

Cheers!

New Art Collection & spring SALE

lets-pretend collection page  

With my new fabric collection coming out this month, I've been bursting to show you JUST a hint of what it's all about.

This new art collection (as well as the fabric)  is paying homage to one of the favorite phrases I love to hear around my house--"Let's pretend....."

i-see-you-peek-a-boo

poppies-framed

poppies

 

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box-and-shadow-puppet

 

my-box-crop

 

cloud-gazing

reach-for-the-stars-photo

 

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What I love about this collection is that it's not matchy-matchy and there are so many ways to use them.  Some are quite loose and playful, which is how children really play. The colors are meant to work with the new fabric collection (squee!!) that will launch later this month, but the images are just a small part of what the collection offers.  I can't wait to show you!

 

let's-pretend-crop

 

This print I think is my favorite. It's rooted in my love for this Picasso painting that I grew up with in my bedroom as a child. It always made me so happy, and so thoughtful at the same time. Funny how childhood influences become such a part of the work that I do.

lets-pretend-poster-photo

reach-for-the-stars-photo-frame

So, there you have it! EIGHT new prints to start off the Spring season! And the best part?

We're having a SALE 25% off the entire shop, now through Wednesday! Horray!

spring-sale

 

Use the code HAPPYSPRING at checkout both in my online shop and in my ETSY shop.

It's been so long it seems since I've restocked the studio with some new art for children. It feels good!

If you like this new collection, share on Pinterest (just hover over each image to PIN) share on Facebook or Instagram or wherever you hang out to let your friends know what you are looking at. But make sure to tell them about the sale code as well! That's what friends are for, right?

Have fun and enjoy! xoxo

 

setting up

room arranging We painted the kids rooms 4 months ago. We ripped out their floors 4 months ago. We put in one room of floors 3 months ago...but we never had time to paint and reassemble the bunk beds, or floor the second bedroom. This year, like most, has been really full. But I'm realizing (because I'm pregnant and actually on "pelvic rest") how much Kenneth and I are a total team. We get so much done when we are working on projects together!  But this year, he's been pulling 80 hour weeks, and I'm unable to move around very well. Hmmmm. Tricky.

See, I think and feel SO much more clearly when my spaces aren't cluttered, and the house is in order.  Not perfect order. I'm NOT a neat freak by any means. But the truth is, we've been under a lot of clutter because I've had to been on "pelvic rest" and I've not been able to do things like assemble and paint bunk beds. And it's something that's obviously second to making a baby, but not having beds for your 3 children gets to you after a while! It's something really only a woman can understand. When you have all three kids camping out in a small room with no floor space because the mattresses are sprawled out in a room the size of 3 mattresses, it's cute for the first couple weeks. But 4 months, and pretty soon you have a bunch of kids and a mommy that just need a bit more space.

room arranging 2

 

And we are starting to get there. I'm excited to show you the progress in the next few weeks. It's been quite the transformation. And the kids are really involved with which art piece of mine they want where...and are even giving me ideas for what they want me to make next. I love hearing their ideas. So clever.

And with this new space, I've been inspired and will be showing you some new art prints this week as well! I can't wait! They coordinate with my up and coming fabric line that I'll be sharing with you at the end of this month, and I'm tickled.

owl clock

Something that's really hard to articulate, is the dilemma of the mother-artist that lives in a constant ebb and flow of creativity and order. For me, when life is out of order, I'm not very creative. But on the flip side, when I'm crazy creative, things get out of order. You'd think I'd have this all figured out by now. But something about not having order in my home these past couple months with rooms under construction, being on partial bed rest, and managing on my own most of the week, I've found that I've been less creative than I normally am. Any of you fall into this boat? And maybe it's the nesting, or maybe it's just me....but something about starting a room from scratch and reorganizing my home makes all the juicy creativity flow again. I could be odd, but I bet I'll find a soul mate reading this and saying....."Um...Yes. That'sexactly the way it is."

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But on a good note, I actually got cooperative, happy children for Easter pictures right before church. Like 3 minutes before church. Score! I haven't always been so lucky:) Actually, I've never been that lucky. Happy kids. That's what I live for. And 3 faces in focus:) Eek! Soon to be 4! I can't wait.

But really....I'll be posting lot of new things this week. New art, originals, sewn items, and a sale! So stay tuned:)

Sarah Jane & Modcloth

Screen shot 2013-03-28 at 10.53.13 PM It takes a lot for me to get genuinely excited about things. Well, genuinely excited about the outcome of a studio related project. I do what I do because it's what I do! And so to see unexpected little surprises always gets me.

Are you a MODCLOTH shopper? I am. Especially in the spring. Such awesome stuff.

So when I saw that this skirt was going to be available soon at MODCLOTH....I was so excited!! And then when I saw that it already has 426 likes and it's not even available yet....I thought it would be the respectable thing to let you know. So you can grab one first:) In case you want to, that is.   It makes me SO happy to see my fabric designs on grown-up people. So darling, right?

 

skirt copy

 

I have no idea when it's going to be available, but you can sign up to get notified. I'm sure I'll post on Facebook when it's up and ready, so check there too.

Happy Easter weekend everyone!!

xo

sarah