Back to School Sale

The Homefront Team on Etsy is doing a Back to School sale in August. Each shop that is participating has their own sale, Maddie & ME is having free shipping the entire month of August for any purchase over $30.00! Go to Etsy and search *homefrontbts* to see all the great shops having sales. Support the military buy from the Homefront!

Children's Book Review

"Different Like Coco"
by Elizabeth Matthews

This is a definite favorite. We've enjoyed this book enough to have checked it out no less than 3 times in the past few months. This is a kids version of a genuine biography.
Taken from the book jacket:
"Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel was always different. She was poor, skinny, and orphaned, yet she held stubbornly to the belief that she was just as good as any of the wealthier, well-bred girls of Paris. ... With a talent for sewing and creative mind, Coco began inventing clothing that suited her (and her pocketbook). A new generation of independent working women fell in love with the comfort, simplicity, practicality, and freedom they found in Coco's innovative clothes."

Coco is my inspiration and role model. I picked up this book when my daughter was too young to enjoy what it was really about. Now we love to read it over and over and both identify with it. She loves to point out that Coco worn her scissors on a long string of pearls "just like you do mommy!" I will eventually have to tell my little one that Coco was the original on that idea. We also identify with Coco being skinny as my little girl is very thin and no matter what, there are some things that just don't and won't fit her no matter how we try!

All in all this is a wonderful book that we both love for our own reasons. I recommend it to anyone who has a little girly girl - not the best for boys or tomboys - but lovely if your daughter aspires to be a fashion designer (or even if you are the aspiring fashion designer). This book is a biography and so has a time line of Coco's life and works and a Bibliography. I'd say it would be a great choice for a elementary age girl having to do a book report!

"Elizabeth Matthews makes her chic picture-book debut with this lovely and inspiring look at a woman who was so much more than the legendary inventor of 'the little black dress.' She was and is a role model for people everywhere who dare to embrace their uniqueness and to dream big." Excerpt from Jacket

Customer Appreciation Pictures

These photos bring a new meaning to "Customer Appreciation Pictures" because once you view these pictures you'll see why I am so appreciative of my customer for sending them. Without further ado here are the photos I received that left me speechless.

The feedback she left me? Oh my I was blushing!

"I am so thrilled with this purchase, I do not know where to begin! After searching high and low in retail stores and on the internet for sweet and simple, cotton nightgowns, I purchased two good night princess nightgowns for my toddler and a matching bubble for her baby sister. Kristina was wonderful to work with. Each item was custom made to each of my daughter's measurements."

"When the pieces arrived and I tried them on my daughters, I was amazed by the craftsmanship. The fit was beautiful and the quality was excellent. Kristina is a very talented designer and seamstress. I could easy convince my family and friends that I bought these pieces at a high-end children's boutique. In fact, I think they are nicer than many higher priced items that I saw in local boutiques. The value for the money is really unbelievable! Turn-around time was excellent, considering the pieces were custom made. They were well worth the short wait!"

"I look forward to being a long-time customer of Maddie & Me. Thank you so much!"

skirts, skirts and more skirts

I love the length!!!!!!!!!!!! Most of her skirts were getting so short! :) And most today are made shorter, too. They are GORGEOUS! I am in total awe!!!!! Plus--she'll get to wear it probably into next yr!!!!

I completely adore it! The material was superior quality, the stitching perfect, and most of all my daughter loved it so much she had to wear it the next day! Thanks...we'll be back!

Oh --got the skirts this afternoon-- They are AWESOME!!!!!! I was pinging--hubs thought I was nuts! They are very well made!!!!!!!! Love em!

I am in awe of your skirts--you do a very, very good job on them! I could see your whole shop being full of them!

My daughter adores these skirts!!! And I love them because they aren't mini skirts! Great lightweight/quality fabrics that wash well.

Too cute! My niece is going to look adorable in it! Thank You!

Very cute! Just as pictured. These will look cute for summer with a little tank top! I'm glad I got 3 of them!

Coming Soon!

Coming soon! Maddie & ME, Children's Handcrafted Couture is introducing a line of Jersey Knit skirt sets. Comfortable and fun, easy to care for
and great for back to school.
Here is a sample of the style and look for more coming soon!

Believe in the Dream

This too is from my new daily meditation book, Hours of Power, My Daily Book of Motivation and Inspiration by Robert H. Schuller.

"Success begins once we start to believe in the beautiful dream that God sends us. How marvelous that our response was positive and not negative. How remarkable that the simple dream was not dismissed offhandedly as an impossibility, when in fact the moment was a meeting of a human mind with the dream of the Creator - God!"

"Blessed are those whose dreams are shaped by their hopes, not by their hurts."

Photograph graciously provided by "Creations Anew" at www.CreationsAnew.etsy.com

You Can Begin With Nothing

"Dreams cost nothing, Do you have a dream? Are you facing money problems? Remember this: all great projects begin with a dream. Projects can be started without a single cent! The most valuable things in life are free. An idea, an hour in the early morning, a friend who encourages, the freedom to sell your idea, an article in the newspaper. All of these are free! So is talk. If you have a need-filling, God-glorifying, humanity-inspiring, imaginative idea, share it with trusting Possibility Thinkers and you will at least give the dream a chance to come alive. Truly, the most valuable product in the world is an idea. Good ideas magnetically attract support from unexpected sources."

This was my morning reading for July 12. Cool huh? Yeah, I think I'll keep reading this book. Thanks Mom and Dad for giving it to me.

My first flier and logo - yes I designed the logo using MS Paint.

Sneek Peak

Here is a peak at some of the back to school / early fall offerings from Maddie & ME.
More to come at www.1MaddieAndMe.etsy.com.

Wishes and Dreams!

Is there really anything more to say? This is NOT where I am, this is a picture I took last year at my absolutely favorite beach resort . This is where I wish I could be and where I dream about going again soon.

New item - Notebook Tote

I'm not sure if this is going to be something I do a lot of or just once in a while. At my mother's request I made a laptop carry bag for her notebook. There is a Velcro pouch going across the whole length of the front for cord storage or what ever else might need to be tucked away. This is a trial run and will continue to be worked on and improved upon. I've got one of the same notebooks (in fact that is mine in the picture) so expect at least a few more of these to show up. I hope to make matching check book cover, business card holder, and mom would like a Passport Cover as well. We should have fun with this and after all Maddie & ME is suppose to be a little about the items for the mom as well as the child. Hence the "ME" in the name. To see more pictures please check out www. facebook.com/MaddieAndMe the pictures will be uploaded soon.

Monogramming Available

All items are now able to be monogrammed for a small fee. Please choose either the single or 3 letter listing. If you'd prefer a full name or anything else larger please contact me in my etsy shop for a price quote depending upon the size, number of letters, etc that you'd like done.

Back on the Horse!

I've been offline, off blogging, off etsy and off in LaLa Land for long enough.
I am going to get back on that horse! So to start, here's my new and MUCH smaller (and still a work in progress) workroom. I am proud that I hung all shelves by my self and they're level!