Giveaway: Mahar Dry Goods Animal Themed Collection

I have a feeling that Design Mom Readers are going to go crazy over today's very generous Giveaway from Mahar Drygoods. It's not just one thing. It's not just two things. It's a whole ANIMAL THEMED TOY COLLECTION packaged in Mahar Drygood's SIGNATURE VINTAGE SUITCASE!! Including: a Fisk & Fern animal themed coloring book, garden critters finger puppets by Die Ottis, animal ABC magnets and teddy bear by MyMimi — plus a large suitcase.




Mahar Drygoods, an excellent company that's barely a year old (if I remember correctly), has done an amazing job of putting together an envy-inducing collection of vintage and artisan crafted products for children — many of them designed exclusively for Mahar. If you've been reading Design Mom for very long, you've probably noticed posts about their products, like this one on crochet play food and this one about their tiny Doc inspired baby boots.

Well, the products featured in this Giveaway are just as amazing as you'd might expect. And since each item really deserves it's own post, I'll give each one a turn in the spotlight quoting from the excellent writing on the Mahar Drygoods site:



Garden Critters Finger Puppet Set — by Die Ottis
"Austrian artist and mother of two, Sonja Otti has created the wonderful world of Die Ottis. We’re completely charmed by her unique and imaginative characters, which include pirate bunnies, ballerina mice and all manner of delightfully handcrafted critters. Our finger puppets are beautifully detailed right down to their painted eyes and floss antennae. Both the bee and the grasshopper feature a silken gauze material on the underside of their fleece wings and the snail's shell is created from a perfectly suited textured fabric. Every set contains a grasshopper, a snail and a bumble bee sized to fit little fingers and provide hours of hopping, slithering and buzzing fun."



ABC Animal Magnets — by MyMimi
"What's a girl do to balance her day jobs working for the largest toy manufacturing companies in the world? She comes home in the evening and creates her own line of toys and plush by hand! We adore Mimi's wonderfully simple design aesthetic and are very pleased to be able to offer her work to you. Each magnet features a different letter of the alphabet and a corresponding animal. These are a great alternative to the traditional plastic letter magnets we all grew up with and they look pretty darn cute on the fridge door."



Animal-themed Coloring Book — by Fisk & Fern
"More than just an exercise in staying within the lines, Laura Fisk of Fisk & Fern has created a book packed full of lessons in color, animal fun facts, silly stories and activities that will make Jr’s imagination spin. Following Pink Prancing Pig to the National Oinktrosky Ballet and learn why she slathers herself in mud when she’s not performing ‘Swine Lake’; and take a rare glance into the world of the Blue Bodacious Beetles, discovering their special skills in a prestigious Division I circus. Sharpen your crayons and grab a kid, It’s coloring time!"



Teddy Bear — by MyMimi
From the same artisan that created the animal magnets. "Do you remember the story of Flat Stanley a little boy squashed so thin that he could squeeze under doorways, be flown as a kite and fold himself up like paper to travel in an envelope? Well, we're absolutely convinced that if Stanley had a favorite toy it would be the MyMimi Teddy Bear: silky soft, unbelievably cute and flat as a stack of pancakes!"


And my favorite part: a Large Suitcase to house all the goodies.
"These handsome suitcases are the perfect way to present your Mahar Drygoods gift. Any kid or lucky adult will love these suitcases, now offered in two colors: apple green with deep eggplant colored handle and stitching or sky blue with caramel colored handles and stitching. We'll beautifully package your items with recycled kraft tissue, a Mahar Drygoods label, a postcard 'luggage tag' and vintage inspired travel decals. Please note that our suitcases are gift packaging and only available with a Mahar Drygoods purchase. They are not available for purchase a la carte."

The whole collection is so charming — and retails over $100. (I wasn't kidding when I told you it was generous.) I'm sure you're imagining the perfect recipient of this suitcase-of-joy as we speak.

Frankly, the whole Mahar Dry Goods site is charming and I love spending time there. You can read about the Robert Mahar, the creator here and see the Mahar blog here. Illustrations throughout the site are by the talented Jen Corace. Excellent product photography, excellent writing. Well done from start to finish.

If you don't win this lovely giveaway, keep in mind that Mahar Dry Goods can fill a suitcase with toys and products you've selected from their collection in a price range of your choosing, just contact them for this custom service at: hello@mahardrygood.com.

You can enter this Giveaway today, and over the weekend, and through Monday night. Now, on to the comments. . .

Thank you Mahar Dry Goods!

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Random Giveaway Guidelines:
-You have until midnight EST on Monday, April 2nd to enter this giveaway.
-Just make a comment ON THIS POST to enter — any comment.
-Anonymous comments will be ignored/removed.
-One entry per person, please.
-Winner will be randomly picked and announced Tuesday morning.
-What are Random Giveaways? Read about them here.

Good On Paper

These sparse, sophisticated cards from Good on Paper are so Spring appropriate.

Maude's Birthday Report

I realize I never reported on Maude's birthday party, so here's a little recap:

The party favors turned out wonderfully. My original vision was wide-mouth Nalgene bottles that I could fill with rock candy and a bandana. The final version was a variation of this, but still very cute — and coordinated with the invitations.

I picked up the water bottles at Target. I liked their sporty straps, but the mouths were too narrow to stuff the favors into. No biggie, the kids just received an empty water-bottle with their other favors on the way out the door.


I found an excellent online source on the rock candy, but because I didn't order until the last minute, I couldn't get the candy delivered in time with out paying more than the candy was worth in shipping charges, so I used Gold Nugget Bubble Gum instead and repackaged it as Rock Bubble Gum.


Instead of bandanas, I packaged up bags of 5 sticks ofsidewalk chalk renamed as Climbing Chalk. And I attached the chalk and gum together with carabiners picked up in the Target sporting goods department. So each child went home with chalk, bubble gum, a carabiner, and a water bottle.

Two hours before the party started, the climbing gym called and said they had to shut down for the day because of a gas leak.

I'm not kidding.

Alternative plans had to be made. And fast.

If you're dying for details, I wrote up all the drama in my latest post at NY Metro Parents.

March Giveaway Winners

At the end of each month, I like to feature the winners of that month's Giveaways — in an effort to help the Design Mom community make a few connections — and to give a little shout out to the fine winners. (It's all voluntary of course, If you're a winner and would rather remain relatively anonymous, I promise not to post about you.)

Check out these lovely ladies!!:
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Winner of the $50 Gift Certificate to My Charmed Life:

Beth of Folding Laundry
My name is Beth, from Northern Indiana. I have been married for almost 8 years and have 2 children — an energetic 4 year old girl and a lovable 3 year old boy. (They are 360 days apart!) I spend my free time volunteering for Friends of Heroes and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Wanting to offer support, Friends of Heroes originally started over the internet by a group of moms wanting to find a cure for pediatric blood cancer patients. I have been volunteering for close to 4 years now and devote 10-20 hours per week from home on this national organization. Together, we raised over $844,000 and earned 3 pediatric cancer research grants in our honor!

I LOVE to blog, which is what I do in my spare time. I enjoy the community of mothers created by fellow bloggers and I love to learn and honor the differences between women and mothers. I also enjoy shopping (a lot), taking pictures, and a good cup of coffee.


Winner of the Urban Botanic Custom Scent Beauty Package:

Sarah Starr Smith
I am an Herby, (according to the UB personality test). Here is a little of what that means: "An Herby's favorite place to be is at home. They're happiest there when a friend is with them, relaxing on the porch with a cup of tea, talking about the latest drama in life. Herbies feel deeply for others have the gift of empathy. They are very sincere when they encourage others; they genuinely want people to succeed." Yes, I'm a porch girl. It is a great place for me to get centered and connect with friends that pass by. I am also pretty Fruity with equal parts Leafy, Floral, and Woodsy, with just a pinch of Spice.

I live in Valhalla, New York with my husband, Dave and baby boy, Malcolm. The biggest thing for our family right now is getting ready to move to Cleveland, Ohio in a few months. I heart NY and will miss it. I'm getting excited to design a new space, although it's looking like I will be taking down some wallpaper, ahh! I love making things. Right now my projects involve knitting, sewing, and writing. I love to read and talk about it. I love to make guacamole and eat it too!


Winner of the Yoon Kids Custom Wall Art:

Dalene Rowley:
I'm Dalene Rowley, but I channel my latent OCD as Compulsive Writer. After growing up in the Pacific northwest, I traded the lush green of the Willamette Valley for the majestic mountains of the Wasatch Front. My husband, a third-grade teacher, and our four fun kids and I live in beautiful Provo, Utah.

During my adult life I graduated in English and French, worked for a year as an editor and writer for a local newspaper, then got busy being a mom. When my youngest child entered school two years ago, I went to work as a quality assurance supervisor for a press clipping service company. Other hats I wear include the following: soccer mom, band mom, choir mom, softball mom, quilter, sister, gardener and friend.

Oh, and when it comes down to blogging just a few minutes longer or doing the dishes, blogging wins almost every time.

Glass Lanterns by Sean Conway at Target

The other day I received Target's Spring Home magazine/catalog in the mail and of course it was gorgeous.

Check out these amazing glass lanterns by Sean Conway. I couldn't find them online, but they were listed in the mailer as $9.99. Not bad.

Book of the Week: The Stinky Cheese Man

This book was introduced to me as a design student and if I remember correctly, we owned it before we had children. It's a collection of very short, very silly versions of the classic Fairy Tales: Little Red Riding Hood is Little Red Running Shorts. The Ugly Duckling is The Really Ugly Duckling. The Gingerbread Man is the Stinky Cheese Man. My personal favorite is the Princess and the Pea turned into the Princess and the Bowling Ball.

The stories are not isolated. Characters from one story can show up in another. The Table of Contents arrives late. The narrator takes time out of narrating to be featured in his own story. The whole story feels like it's in a hurry. If read aloud, it's a book that makes sense only when you're looking at the pictures — the text and illustration are so completely interwoven.

Lane Smith's illustration style is sort-of dirty and messy. Lots of texture. Bits of repurposed material worked into the drawings/collages. Very distinctive. Sometimes I find them a little on the dark or icky side — but my children don't see them this way at all. My son Ralph studies the illustrations and could easily identify the work of Mr. Smith long before he could actually read.

I think part of the appeal is that parents get a kick out of this book as much as children, and once kids are old enough to get the humor, they feel like they're sharing some kind of inside joke with their parents.

Jon Sieszka and Lane Smith have teamed up on a number of irreverent or slightly irreverent books and my kids seem to just eat them up. Their picture books are appealing from about age 4. Then, their collaboration on the Time Warp Trio Series with titles like See You Later, Gladiator and Your Mother was a Neanderthal, are perfect early-chapter-book-material for 2nd, 3rd & 4th graders.

available here

My New Locket

I took my mom to the airport yesterday. It was wonderful to have her here. In addition to cooking, cleaning, babysitting, and providing good conversation and companionship, she also brought gifts. Mostly fun things for the kids, but she also brought me a treasure from my Grandmother.

This amazing locket had belonged to my Grandfather's brother. Since I'm now a Blair (my maiden name is Stanley) and I'm married to Ben and have a daughter named Betty, I am the grandchild with the most claim on B and my Grandma Lucille sent it to me care of my Mom.

It's a generous inch and a quarter across, and instead of flipping open, it slides. So cool. The picture above shows it open with a picture of my great-uncle inside. Isn't it great? I can't wait to find a chain for it.

Speaking of Interviews. . .

The very kind Kristen from Shakadoo interviewed me by email. And is posting the answers at Love Shak Baby this morning.

Check it out and discover my evil plans for taking over Martha and eventual world domination.

Crescer Magazine Interview

Tuesday morning was beautiful. It was the first day of really, really good weather — which meant people were out on the streets of Manhattan in droves — and even smiling at each other. Better than that, I met Paula Perim, Editor in Chief of Crescer Magazine, at a lovely little restaurant in Grand Central Station.

Crescer is a Brazilian magazine — the equivalent of the American Parents or Child. Paula brought me a few of the latest issues and I was very, very impressed. The photography is great. The articles are important. And remember those really neat pull-out sections in Martha Stewart Kids? The ones on matte paper with a theme, good illustrations and directed toward kids? Crescer has those too — on the same lovely paper.

Paula was in New York doing research. She was meeting with Parents, with Cookie, and with Child to learn about their magazines and tell them about her's. She also met with me because she has recently started a Crescer Blog and wanted to discuss blogging-for-parents.

We were instant friends — especially after she forgave me for being 25 minutes(!) late to our meeting — and we could have talked for hours. In fact we did talk for two hours, over some of the best french toast I've ever had. We talked about the different social classes in Brazil and what she's trying to do with her magazine to bridge the wide social gaps. We talked about the nuances of breastfeeding in public in the United States. We talked about suburban vs. urban living for families. We talked about childcare. We discussed how we both feel mothers have a lot of information, but are looking for inspiration. We talked about blogging. We made plans to go ice-skating with our families when she returns to New York over Christmas.

Paula took notes because she was interviewing me for an article. And then, during the last 10 minutes of our meeting, I took notes. Because Paula asked me to write an article for Crescer to be published in May. Topic: the 21st Century Mother. 3000 characters. Due Tuesday. And I'm getting paid for it. What the. . .? (And this after I just explained to someone that I wasn't a writer, I was a designer.)

Can I say just how excited I am to do this?!! How unexpected and how much fun!

Of course. It will be in Portuguese, so no matter what I write, it will sound prettier than it is. Which reminds me, if there are any Portuguese speaking moms in the neighborhood, feel free to come by and borrow my 4 issues of Crescer. . .

Ask Design Mom: Felt Crafts & Paper Embroidery

The talented and creative Cindy from the really, really wonderful craft blog Skip To My Lou, is our 2nd Guest Expert! Take a look at what she has to say.



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Ask-Design-Mom Question:
Hi Design Mom. I love working with felt and I love hand embroidery and want help thinking of some new projects. Do you have any good projects for home, gifts, or kids that involve either? Or good sites to go to? I'm also wondering about hand-embroidered cards — what materials work best? And would I need a backing for these? Thanks!! — Carrie

Guest Expert Answer:

FELT CRAFTS
I see a a lot of talk about felt these days. There are some really creative people out there making some amazing things. There are various kinds of felt. There are inexpensive felt squares sold in craft stores, usually made from acrylic fibers. Fabric stores will sell a heavier version of this on bolts and you can also find wool felt. I would use wool felt for anything you want to put a lot of time and effort into and that you want to last. You can also buy old wool sweaters from thrift stores and make your own felt. It is really simple to do — I have done it many times by accident.


-Betz White is making some beautiful things with felted wool sweaters. She has appeared on Martha Stewart making her teacup pin cushions. She has a darling bunny tutorial on her blog.

-Bella Dia makes beautiful felt pin cushions and a spectacular tea cozy out of felt.

-Here is a link for a cute felt bunny pin tutorial by Maize. Her site is full of great ideas using embroidery and felt.

-Anna Maria Horner has a fabulous felt garland and ornaments. Here is a tutorial for her cute felt owl ornament.


-I loved making felt food for my daughter to play with. It was simple and I used the inexpensive felt squares. You can see a picture here. In fact, I will post a tutorial here at Design Mom in a few weeks about making felt food. I receive tons of inspiration for felt food from Colorfool Blog and My Paper Crane.


PAPER EMBROIDERY
Here is a link on how to embroider on paper. This can be done by hand or on the sewing machine. I could imagine some beautiful cards made with bits of felt and embroidery embellishments. I have sewn a lot of paper on my sewing machine. I find if I use card-stock weight I usually have no problem and no need for backing. It does dull your needle so make sure you change it before sewing on fabric.

-Here are some free stitching patterns for cards. This could be a great way to get kids stitching.


-Lisa Solomon does some clever embroidery on paint chips.

I hope you are inspired!
Cindy from Skip to My Lou



Note from Design Mom:
Thank you Cindy! So many great ideas and useful links. I think I could spend a week browsing craft blogs and never tire of it. If you're a mom on the lookout for clever, kid-appropriate crafts, make sure to bookmark Skip To My Lou — you won't be disappointed.

Pretty Pillows

Just fell in love with these Santee Sioux pillows from Company C.
Not inexpensive, but inspiring.



I like Kyoto Velvet pillow as well.

Ask Design Mom: Decorating the Mantle

Ask-Design-Mom Question:

Dear Design Mom, My family just moved into a new apartment and it has a fireplace with a mantle in our main room. I'm wondering what ideas you have for decorating a mantle? The first thing (and only thing really) that pops into my head is picture frames and candles. Not a totally bad idea, but I'm wondering if that's my only option. In my case, there is also a very large mirror behind the mantle (not mine, it came with the apartment and I can't take it down). Anyway, I love all of your ideas so I was just wondering if you had any on mantle decor. Thanks so much for your advice & your blog. — Beth

Design Mom Answer:

Another excellent question! Thanks for sending it in Beth. And let me start by saying that I think anyone with a mantle is super-lucky. Think of your mantle as the perfect place for an ever-changing display of the seasons or even your moods. As usual, I'll give you a few suggestions, but I hope Design Mom Readers will add their own favorite tips on how-they-decorate-the-mantle.

One idea is to have your mantle function as a catch-all for any pretty little things in your home. If you're life is busy and full, own it, and fill your mantle up with the crazy: assorted picture frames in a variety of styles, and pretty cards you've received, and a tiny pitcher with flowers in it, and some interesting little jewelry box you set aside earlier in a closet, etc. Then lay a branch in the background of cherry blossoms your children spotted on a Spring walk. Make it as busy and interesting as your life. When you walk by it, if an item irritates or tires you, remove it. Add or subtract, or shift things, around as the mood strikes.


This photo is a good example of kind of an ordered crazy on a mantle. Lots and lots of little things that you could add too or subtract from or rearrange.

Or. If your life is too crazy, make the mantle a place of simplicity and order. Try a simple, seasonal, symmetrical display. Something like this: take 7 or 8 glass votive holders, the 2-inch ones you can pick up 4 for $1 at Michaels or Ikea, and use them as tiny vases. Set them neatly in a row, centered on the mantle, with several inches between each vase. Fill them halfway with water and set identical single blooms in each one. 7 yellow daffodils. Or 7 pale pink tulips. Anytime you're tempted to set something else on the mantle — even temporarily — resist. Reserve it as a place of true order that you can sit and study when you need to be renewed. Pick up new blooms on your weekly grocery trip.

Another ordered variation would involve begging, borrowing or buying 3 identical vases. I like a simple square glass shape, maybe 6 or 7 inches across and 8 or so inches high. Center them on the mantle, again, with a few inches between each vase and fill the bottom couple of inches with charcoal grey smooth rocks — the kind you'd find in an orchid display. If rocks are a little too zen for you, fill them with fall leaves, Christmas ornaments, wheat grass, fresh flower arrangements, whatever.


Imagine the sideboard in this photo as a mantle and you've got yourself a tranquil, ordered, symmetrical display. If your house has a more traditional or casual feel, you could still mimic this photo. Just pick out two lamps in a style that would be more appropriate. The concept would still be the same. The fruit in the center doesn't even need a container necessarily. You could just line up some gorgeous pears, like the ones in the Martha photo at the top.

If you're not a symmetrical kind of person, another option would be to let your mirror be the main focus by keeping the center area of the mantle empty and just concentrating some details on the sides. Maybe a tall ceramic vase to the left — pretty with flowers or a branch in it — or pretty standing empty. Then add a group of three low and earthy items to the right.


Pretend this shelf is a mantle. The large, tall vases would look wonderful to one side of the mirror, with the low stacked books and the aged, textural box to the left.

If this kind of decorating makes you nervous, you're in luck. Find a catalog that appeals to you — maybe Crate and Barrell or Pottery Barn — and look at the mantle displays and shelf displays you find in their pages. Feel free to copy or imitate or take inspiration from what you see.


I saw this photo at Pottery Barn. The display isn't on a mantle, but it would look just as good or even better if it was. You could take inspiration from this photo and gather your own collection of lanterns — from tag sales, from Target, from hardware stores, from the mall — and set up your own display. Different finishes, different shapes. Even hang one or two at varying heights. The candles and lanterns reflected in your mirror would look fantastic.

Frankly, it's hard to go wrong. Especially if you consider your mantle decorations as temporary and ever-changing. I hope those ideas help. Good luck, Beth!

My Main Citrus Squeeze

Clearly, I'm experiencing a vitamin C deficiency, because I can't keep my eyes off these citrus pieces by Serholt of Sweden.

My Charmed Life Giveaway Winner

The winner of the $50 Gift Certificate and Mini Charm Diary from My Charmed Life is Beth who said... "Oh my...this is the BEST CONTEST EVER! I Love those charms!! at 7:58 on Saturday night.

Congratulations, Beth! Please email me from the link on my blog and I'll send you your Gift Certificate information right away. And have fun picking out your charms.

Thanks to everyone who entered the Giveaway — all 190 (!) of you. Thanks to My Charmed Life. And thanks for reading. More Giveaways ahead. . .

What's a Design Mom Random Giveaway? Find out here.

Penny & Maude

I recently received an email from Jolene of Penny & Maude, letting me know about her small design company based in Oakland, CA that screen prints cool tees for babies and toddlers. Of course I was curious about their wares because of the delicious company name — you know how I love "Maude" . . .

My favorite tees were the two pictured above. What is it that's so appealing about having something screened on both the back and front of the tee?

My Charmed Life Giveaway Reminder

Just a quick reminder: You have until tonight (Monday) at midnight to enter the My Charmed Life $50 Gift Certificate Giveaway. Just go to that post and leave a comment. The winner will be announced tomorrow morning. Good luck! And, as you've come to expect: more excellent Giveaways ahead.

kisses, Design Mom

Matchstick Garden Books

Here's something perfect for an easter basket or small spring gift: matchstick garden books, available at Zebra Hall toy store.

Each book holds 10 garden matchsticks — "Tear out a matchstick, plant it's tip in soil and you will soon have a flower or herb garden growing. Herb garden contains Basil, Chives, Parsley, and Thyme. The Wildflower Matchstick Garden contains Cornflower, Shasta Daisy, Corn Marigold, and Field Poppy."

The idea is lovely and the packaging is pretty. Two thumbs up.

via shelterrific