Christmas Shopping? May I suggest....

Less than 6 weeks until the Jolly man in the red suit pops by for a visit - Yay!
I've been buying bit and pieces all year long and adding them to the secret gift cupboard in my house but now that we are so close I thought I'd share a few of my purchases with you - maybe sparing some inspiration for your gift list too??

What better place to start than with these gorgeous 'Jingle Sox' from Deekie Belle Designs.


Only last weekend my whole family (we are talking Mum, Dad, my 2 sisters, my brother, my sister in law, my brother in law & 6 nieces and nephews plus my little clan) all were spoilt to a weekend away together by my Mum & Dad. So I was on the hunt for a special thank you gift for Mum and Dad from us all and had decided a Christmas decoration of some sort would be perfect as they would have it time to enjoy it the entire 'Silly Season'.
I finally narrowed my hunt down to a personalised Christmas stocking each so when I spotted the Jingle Sox I just had to have some!!
The very clever, Jenny, behind the Jingle Sox was so very lovely and after all my questions, queries and demands she came up with exactly what I had in mind - I LOVE them. You might not be able to see in the photo but Jenny embroidered 'Papa' & 'Grandma Barbara' on the stockings at my request too.


Mum and Dad were so excited to receive these stockings and are just thrilled with them!!
Jenny has plenty more listed in her etsy shop HERE in all kinds of bright, fun and funky designs. I highly recommend theses stunning Jingle Sox -you won't be disappointed! Happy Shopping!

'The Great String of Bunting' - Part 2

Done Diddely & delivered!! That's right all 200 flags have been cut, sewn, ironed, attached to their 60 metres of ribbon and hand delivered!!
There were a few bumps along the road like the ribbon I originally ordered for the banner not showing up on time (in fact it still hasn't arrived!) and the customer deciding they would like a floral fabric thrown into the mix - but neither of these things deterred me from completing this fun challenge in time... with a little help from my two kiddies for having an extra long snooze on the perfect day :)
After sewing the final flag into place yesterday I just had to snap some shots of 'The Great String of Bunting' to share.




My very well behaved 3 kids and I hand delivered the bunting this morning to Belle Laide Events and have been told there will be a professional photographer at the event the banners are to be used at, on the 22nd of November, so I will be able to see (and share) some snaps of 'The Great String of Bunting' in use - Stay Tuned!

Polka Dots Style!

Just a quick thanks and 'shout out' to Thetis of Little Sooti for including Giggleberry's best selling bunting set 'Strawberries & Cream' in the fun and funky Polka Dot Style finds on her blog. Take a look HERE for all the gorgeous red and white polka dot items that the bunting is with - so very cute!!


Thanks also to Thetis for sharing in the blog post about the online kids boutique Little Styles. I hadn't heard of this great site before and after just one virtual wander through the shop I made a few purchases to add to the Christmas gift pile including these great lime green suitcases for my little girl to store bits and pieces in at the same time as being a fabulous decorating addition to her lilac and lime green room! Yay!

Customer Feedback Photos

The best part of making a custom ordered bunting banner is seeing the finished product 'in action'. I just LOVE getting photos back from my Giggleberry customers showing off their new banner/s in use and these latest images are just too cute to not share with you.
I was asked to make a set of banners for a 'Bob The Builder' themed 1st birthday party. The banners were to have red, blue and yellow flags and then a yellow flag banner needed to be personalised with the birthday boy's name: WILLIAM.


Just today, William's mum emailed me these adorable photos of her little guy posing with his new bunting banners. She hasn't decided which one yet but one of these photos will be used for the party invitation... what a honor!!

Search 'Red'

Giggleberry was spotted as one of the gorgeous & vibrant handmade RED finds on the Madeit.com Christmas Gift Guide blog. This Strawberries & Cream bunting banner would not only be great for decorating a bedroom or play house but what about adding a fun festive touch to your home for the Holidays? Perfect!
Be sure to check out the Madeit.com Christmas Gift Guide regularly for all kinds of fabulous Australian Handmade finds!

Featured Artists - Jennifer & Samantha of Sassy BouChic

It has been sooooooo long since my last 'Featured Artist' but never fear because this week I am pleased to feature the talented Jennifer and Samantha of the gorgeous Etsy shop Sassy BouChic.


1) Tell us all about yourself and your craft?
We are Jenn DesAutels and Samantha Lowery, cousins and Stay at Home Moms! Collectively, we have five beautiful children (Jenn: ages 6, 3, and 1, Samantha: ages 3 and 2 months) and two wonderful husbands. We love one of a kind, unique items and clothing that can't be found in a typical store. Our outfits are so much fun, they make perfect gifts and are a lot better than a generic off-the-rack gift. We put a lot of thought and heart into each and every piece we make and of course we always get the opinion of our daughters Olivia and Penelope, both age 3, as they are up to date on all of the latest fashion trends! Plus we love taking our girls out and having people stop us and ask "Where did you get that?" Now we can tell them, "I made it, check out my website!"

2) How long have you been creating your craft?
To be honest, not long! We have dabbled in crafty things in the past but nothing that really kept our attention. Then, about a month ago we where discussing Halloween and thought it would be fun to make Olivia and Penelope’s costumes. We started doing some research online and came across a ton of tulle tutus. Although they are all adorable we wanted something different then the rest, something that would really stand out. We went to the craft store and found (on clearance, gotta love a bargain) a teal spool of ribbon and right there in the Hobby Lobby, Sassy BouChic was born ! From there we decided to tweak the idea some to make our skirts and outfit a little more functional so they could be worn for any occasion, Halloween, Christmas, Family Pictures or for Church. We designed a patter for the shrug made a few and started selling them to friends and family.

3) What is one of the biggest lesson you have learnt about your craft & selling it?
We would have to say, even though we have only been doing this for a short time, to stay ahead of the game you have to constantly be looking for ways to reinvent yourself and your creations. Also, crafting takes time and to create a good quality piece of work with children running about your feet you have to have patients and perseverance!


4) Which of your items did you have the most fun creating & why?
We have a few – first would be the Wild and Whimsical skirt because it was our first order and it’s totally sassy, I mean, who doesn’t like hot pink and lime green! Second is the Pixie Perfect outfit. It was fun to make and we could definitely see Tinkerbell buying this! Finally, the Pretty and Playful skirt & headband, it just radiates everything baby girl. With all the polka dots and sheer pink ribbon you just can resist a baby wearing that!

5) Is there a basic ‘household’ item you use when creating that seems to work just as good if not better than the actual ‘tool’?
Clothes pins! After rigging up a stand made of two scrap blocks of wood from a shed and two dowel rods we stretch the elastic from one rod to the other and hold them in place using the clothes pins. From there we start constructing the skirts.

6) What is your favourite candy bar & why?
Jenn: I like all candy! It’s not really a bar but I love Chewy Sweet Tarts. When I was a kid my dad would bring them home for myself and my older brother, good memories!
Samantha: I like to mix it up so either a Snickers or a Score Bar. I love the sweet and salty of a Snickers and the heath of a Score Bar!


7) If money, responsibilities, and time were no issues where in the great wide world would you go & why?
Jenn: Italy all the way! The countryside is absolutely beautiful and the art/culture is fascinating. I think it would be a wonderful experience!
Samantha: I would travel or backpack through Europe with my husband so that we could experience new and exciting cultures.

Be sure to check out the cute creations at Sassy BouChic's Etsy shop and keep up to date with the Sassy happenings through the Sassy BouChic Facebook page.

Happy Halloween!

Just a quick post to wish you all a happy Halloween from my spooky family to yours!


Have some fun with your photos for Halloween at Picnik... you can 'zombify' yourself or use the creepy face paints like I have done.... I think my kids are the cutest zombies in town hahahahahahaha!

Oh and while we're talking Halloween be sure to check out the spooky finds, including this custom ordered Giggleberry banner over at Mini-Stylista blog.