Pregnancy & Newborn

So I'm on the home stretch with my pregnancy, and things have been hit and miss. I have preterm labor tendencies, so some weeks are totally fine, and others I'm down and out. It's a balancing act for sure! For me, pregnancy is actually harder than the newborn stage. At least then I can bend down and pick up my floor with a baby on my hip. Inside the belly, not so much. Just trying to keep baby inside is work enough! :)

Speaking of Pregnancy, can you spot a Sarah Jane art print up there? I got a little lovely piece of mail this morning! Thought this was so nice. Thanks Pregnancy and Newborn for featuring this print in your June issue! It's an older piece, and a favorite in fact. Now that my kids are learning French, I should totally do more of these.

I always love seeing which prints people claim as their favorites. I love getting to know people by what art they like. Do you ever do that? Notice what art people have on the walls, or pin on Pinterest to get to know them better? I do. It's like knowing what books are on a persons night stand.  Although, I have Three Little Pigs on my nightstand because I have a certain toddler who likes my bed more than hers.....

I digress.

But not really.

Good art makes for good conversation. Always. Which is why I think I love creating art for children so much. I love starting a conversation from producing something that I'm feeling or thinking about.

Which reminds me...back to the drawing table today. So much to do, so little time!

Have a lovely, lovely day everyone!

xo

sarah

Drawing Drawing Drawing

 

Hello! I hope you had a lovely, lovely weekend. 3 Day weekends are bliss. This weekend, my husband took the kids out of the house on a fun Daddy trip so that I could play major catch up on work & art. Like I mentioned before, we've always played tag team at home, and since this year so far has been a bit different than most, I have weeks and weeks of art making to catch up on  (books, fabric, portraits....and much more!) So this weekend was a welcomed guest. But the kids are coming home in 10 minutes and I've better go put the icecream away. Hee Hee.

So, at the beginning of the year, I made the goal to draw every day. Or at least as often as I could. It's so theraputic for me. It's what I love. It's how I think. But like anything, it takes setting aside time. I try to have  a sketchbook out when I'm with the kids, but it usually gets overthrown by their drawings. Which, of course, I love seeing monsters and dinosaurs in my sketchbook. But I need time to refine my skills daily. It's how I come up with ideas. Ideas don't just HAPPEN. They come when I'm putting pencil to paper. I have to be actively getting things out of my head for anything good to ever come.

How about you? How do you make time to do those things that truly make you feel like  YOU? It's seriously something that takes conscious working out.  But so worth it.

We have 2 days left until school is OVER! I can't wait. I really love summer time with the kids home. Summer period.

PS: I will be posting daily sketches to INSTAGRAM, but I'll be sure to upload batches of them at a time here on the blog from time to time. Instagram  is a mother's helper! So easy to keep up with you all. Are you doing #365drawings? There are a lot of you on instagram now. Hope to see more of you! xoxo

Pre-Order Your Fabric

So, quilt market is currently in full swing, and I'm missing all the action. But I just got word that HAWTHORNE THREADS has my fabric available for presale! 

This is really great news, because it means you'll get is as soon as it's available (early June) and it also means that you won't have to wait for it to be backordered (which has happened in the past...and soon after release)

Thanks Hawthorne for the option!

Have a lovely, lovely weekend!

xo

sarah

I'm here, I'm here.

Hi!

How are you?

I feel like this space has been so chalk full of giveaways, specials, new fabric....I haven't even really had a chance to pipe in and share what's going on around here. I know this isn't like my personal family blog or anything, but it just feels off to me to just be posting information all the time. Ya know?

Truth is, that things been a bit slow around here. Eventful, but so many things that I typically do in a day have been put on hold. Book projects, design projects, portrait projects....it's been really hard to press pause. Maybe I didn't mention that this year so far, Kenneth has been pulling 80 hour weeks at work, and so I've kinda been playing single mom. Which, when you are on pelvic rest and pregnant and working with 3 kids isn't exactly something I'd wish on anyone. It just basically means it's taken most of my energy on just getting dinner on the table and clean socks for the kids (although, that didn't really even happen consistently!) Thankfully, his crazy work schedule is over, and we're slowly getting back to the tag-team lifestyle that makes our family tick. So many people ask me how I do what I do, and the real answer is I have a best friend who is flexible and is awesome with the domestic stuff around the house when I'm under deadlines. Without that these past 5 months, my hands have been tied. Sometimes you don't realize it until it's gone. Kenneth and I really are a duo deal. And I'm totally ready to get him back.

So, first off....here's my 26 week bump! Last time I checked in, I was 15, and I felt big then. This is baby #4 and I still am surprised when I feel those kicks and butterflies. It's starting to hit me that we'll have 4 buckled in the car now, 4 beds and all the seats at our table will be used up.  It's a miracle. The adjustment will be an adventure for sure, and I am definitely not ready for sleepless nights (I don't do those very well!) But I'm determined to rise up. I love the baby stage. Love it. I love all stages really, but newborns turn our house into a bit of heaven. But last night I was up with a sick child for the better part of the night, and didn't wake up  in time to get my kids out the door and they were late to school. Oh dear. Gonna have to work on that one:)

In other news, Ella (our climber and balancing act girl) fell off the couch last week and broke both the bones in her forearm. My first trip to the ER with a child, and one I'll never forget! It's a good thing it's summer in that she can really only squeeze into tank tops, but when the morning after she woke up from the drugs she asked to go play on the monkey bars at the park, I melted. It will be a long 8 weeks. Any suggestions for toddlers with broken arms in the summer time?

She's still not in a full cast yet because it was such a complete break, and her bones are so little. So until then, I'm coming up with really creative indoor activities which is hard when it's warm for the first time in 9 months!

She broke her dominant arm, so while she's getting used to doing things with the other hand, it's quite darling to watch her try and use her broken one. That's her trying to itch an itch.

And I'm thinking of everyone at Quilt Market right now! Any of you going to be there? I'm not able to travel till the baby comes, so it's odd to have a fabric line out with no booth. If you are going, say HI to the Michael Miller team! It's always SUCH a party there...I just love presenting with them. I will have a few samples that will be there that you can ask to see. Here's a pillow that I think turned out so cute. Super simple to make, and that panel print makes for really fun projects.

So, as I come out of my cave of single-mommy-bed-rest mode, I hope to be more purposeful in so much of what makes me thrive. I'm actually feeling so much better physically and am able to do more (for the time being) and being creative again really makes me feel like a real person again. It's such a part of who I am.  But it's amazing how it can shut off when you get in survival mode.

But looking back, it's the ebb and flow of life that keeps me on my toes and feeling alive. And alive is good.

Sarah Jane Pop Up Shop

 

I'm really looking forward to getting these lovely pillows and quilts into your hands. They have been waiting in my studio for some time and are ready to make new homes.

Each one of these pillows, quilts, prints and aprons are one of  a kind and sewn with love . These pillows above, for instance, each have vintage trims that I've collected from various places. It's hard to give these up!

I'm going to be listing these MONDAY 11am Pacific/2 pm Eastern time in my shop. So be ready! I hope to have more pop-up sales like this in the future, but this is the last of my hand sewn goods that I'll have for a long while!

Here are snapshots of what's in store. Feel free to ask any questions in the comments below.

So, this is most of what will be available tomorrow. There are about 30 items I'll be selling off, so be sure to check the shop for all the listings!

Again, feel free to ask questions here in the comments! Prices will be listed at sale time in the shop, and international shipping is welcome.

STUDIO SALE IS UP: Click here for the link

Happy Mothers Day

How about a little bonus for being so awesome? Mothers Day is the best. I usually just ask for a nap. But it's nice to get a special treat too:)

Sale ends Sunday Night.

Out to Sea lovelies just for you

 

So, it may or may not have been 5 months since my Out to Sea products were featured on One Kings Lane, and I'm finally getting around to putting what's left up in my shop!

Last holiday season, One Kings Lane wanted to feature a children's themednautical collection around my fabric. It was a delight to design some pillows and quilts and aprons, as I just love the design process. I had lots of help sewing to get it all ready, and most of it sold in the 72 hours it was up. But there are some items that weren't even listed and I'm going to be putting them up in the shop next week.

The last time I had a sale like this in my shop, things sold out in minutes, and lots of people weren't prepared for that. I wasn't either. So I want to make sure that I give plenty of warning:) You might want to play with the checkout process before hand, just to get a sense. I've heard signing up with an account can make things go faster too. Just sayin'

I'm going to be posting all the items that will be for sale over the weekend (so be sure to check in saturday or sunday) so you can really spend time knowing exactly what you will be searching for. There are some gorgeous quilts and decorative pillows, original art....it really is lovely. And I'm sad to part with it, but I can't keep it all!

The sale will be Monday May 13th at 2pm Eastern/11am Pacific time. Here's a time zone converter if you need one. And if you have any questions, ask away!

Thank you for all your lovely comments about the new fabric line:) I can't wait to dive into it more. So having this last little sale for Out to Sea feels like perfect timing.

Introducing: Let's Pretend

Well, here it is!!!

Say hello to a new friend....the Let's Pretend Fabric Collection. I think you two will get along great.

Let's start off with a  simple "Hello."

Let's Pretend was inspired by that phrase that I just adore as a mother. It's a daily scenario: I'm in the kitchen, and the kids are in the next room pulling out toys or maybe nothing at all, and I hear "Hey! I know! Let's Pretend that I'm a super hero and you are a dinosaur king......" and it goes from there. It's the kinda thing we take for granted. But it's exactly the thing I'm going to miss when my kids are too old for that kind of play (sigh.)

I wanted to create a collection that really had spontenaity and life to it....but at the same time pulled on that playfulness we all love about children at home.

But while I was designing it, I was also pulled into awareness of some of my favorite Scandinavian children's designers, and what they were creating with this same theme. So much of what I've seen in fashion, decor and even runway action has pulled on this theme of a "child's imagination." And while this collection stays pretty close to your own living room, it still has those elements of whimsy and drama. Masks, marionettes and some fun geometrics gives a bit of a European flare. But then there are play forts, wooden blocks and dress-ups too.

And let's not forget about color. I have really been a bright jewel tones kick lately. And with this theme of play and drama, it was the perfect fit. There are two color ways, but the fabrics (once again) are really  just one big family. Bright jewel tones against cool grays.

I'm not going to be going to Quilt Market this Spring (another sigh) simply because my pregnancy has been fragile, and I've been off my feet and trying to keep a baby inside me:) I am doing really well this week, but it could change in any moment. So, I'm sad to be missing all the action, but I'm super glad I can stay home and take care of this tummy of mine. Priorities.

But while I won't be having a booth, I hope I can continue to feature great projects of mine and yours over the coming months!

The fabric is getting ordered by stores now, and will be shipping in a couple weeks. But, if you have a favorite Fabric store that you like to go to, here is a PDF PRINTABLE CATALOG for you to print and give to your local shops! So, feel free to start asking them about it now, since it's available for order already.

It's always a bit exciting and nerve-wracking to share a new collection. This one I came up with a year ago. Wow. And it's fun to relive all those early design moments again.

I have lots more to share....and I will be trickling in more inspiration and ideas over the coming weeks and months. But for now, here it is!

I'd love to hear your feedback!

Here are the specifics in one place: 

Let's Pretend Fabric Collection

Sarah Jane for Michael Miller Fabrics

30 designs printed on Cotton Couture (a high density cotton soft enough for apparel, yet perfect for quilts and home projects)

Shipping May 2013

Here are some places you'll want to visit:

Fabric available for Wholesale Order Here.

Click here to see the PDF catalog

Share photos of your work in my FLICKR group  here.

Need to find a shop that carries the fabric line? Click here.

I can't wait to see how you sew with this!! Let's get making!!

Enjoy:)

xo

Sarah Jane