P is for Photography

For any online retailer, photography is crucial to business. Pictures are the main resource a potential customer has to decide if they will purchase your item or not. Customers want to see every detail, every angle, to be able to "feel" products with their eyes. Pictures can literally make or break a sale, and even an online business.

Here at Timberleigh Baby I'm usually so busy actually sewing new products or fulfilling orders that there is little time left for great photography. But in this new year I am working to improve my product photography with better lighting and better backgrounds.

I have used a light box in the past, which resulted in some wonderful photos. The colors were brighter and more crisp. Photos on the left show the "Before" and the ones on the right are the "after."

The downside to a lightbox - it works best for small items, but you can forget about anything that won't fit inside. It also requires lots of lights pointing in different directions which I don't generally have on hand.

Unfortunately, the cardboard light box got unknowingly squashed by another member of my house, so it had to be retired. My options were either build another lightbox or find a different approach. Of course, since I like trying new things, I opted to try a different method.

This time I placed my wooden desk right next to window in my craft room so there was lots of natural light. I set up a white piece of poster board at the opposite end to reflect the light and reduce shadows. This approach resulted in pictures with colors that were more true to life and no post-editing required! I couldn't believe the difference just a location change makes. It was so easy and effective that I think I'll continue doing my product photography this way. The one downside is that you can only take pictures in the daytime, so it takes some scheduling ahead of time.

I absolutely love my new and improved photography. All that's needed is a few small lighting changes and the time; I didn't even need a new camera! Hopefully with better photography my Etsy store will get more traffic and more sales. In fact, I'm counting on it. ;)

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Where is Timberleigh Baby?

This week I am past the double digits in sales on Etsy. 12, baby! Woot! Of course, I have sold more than items altogether at various craft shows and to family and friends. But Etsy orders are my favorite. Why? Because my products get to go all over the country. It's amazing that with our current technology and the internet, someone from California or Arizona or Illinois can enjoy the blankets and stuffed animals that I sew in my craft room in Massachusetts.

So where in the world can you find Timberleigh Baby? Check out the map for yourself!

I'm not trying to take over the country or anything, but I would love to see some more states represented here. Maybe Florida, Nevada, or even Tennessee!

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S is for Summer

The weather is getting warmer here in Rhode Island; I think it’s safe to say that summer has officially arrived! Over the last weekend it was actually so hot in my house that I was sweating. As someone who is often cold, this means something.

As a child the summer was the best time of year because it meant no school for 3 whole months. We would go on our yearly vacations, spend countless hours outside, sleep in as late as we wanted, and didn't have to worry about anything. I miss those days; things were simpler, slower, sunnier. Perhaps I’m overly nostalgic and/or romantic, but those summers seemed to be like an iconic country song.

I can taste that honeysuckle
And it's still so sweet
When it grows wild
On the banks down at old Camp Creek
And it calls to me like a warm wind blowin' 

It's where I learned about livin'
Its where I learned about love
Its where I learned about working hard,
And having a little was just enough
It's where I learned about Jesus
And knowin' where I stand
You can take it or leave it
This is me
This is who I am
Give me a tin roof, a front porch, and a gravel road
And that's home to me, feels like home to me
- Little Big Town, "Boondocks" 

Growing up, my three sisters and I would play lots of imaginative, make-believe games outside. We made forts in the woods and pretend that we were the early American colonists and had to live off the land. We climbed trees pretending that there was a large tidal wave coming and we needed to get to higher ground. We jumped around our backyard playground pretending that the ground was lava. As we got older, we spent our summers taking walks down on the farm and in the woods, swimming at the pool, having bon fires and cookouts, laying out on our beach towels in the yard hoping to get a tan, going out to the movies, and doing a lot of babysitting.

So this summer, Timberleigh Baby has a bunch of new bright and colorful blankets. Pinks like gorgeous summer sunsets. Blues like the clear ocean water. Woodland animals like those that would roam our farmland.

All of these blankets (and more!) are now available on my Etsy shop!

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A is for Apron, Part II

Remember those sweet child size aprons that I made back at the beginning of May? They really are darling and so simple to make! Over the last month, I have been brewing up another batch of aprons, this time from a pattern of my own creation. These aprons have a ruffled skirt, but also the adjustable. The trick is in the double layered top part. Sorry, I can't say more, it's a trade secret. :)

There a two sizes - a small and a large, so you can have a matching aprons for you and your child or even siblings! The small typically fits ages 3-8. The larger one typically fits 11+. Actually the larger size fits me just right, and I am definitely older than 11!

I love love love these aprons. My two friends, H & M, helped model them for me. It was a fun mini-photoshoot! H is 11 and is wearing the large size. M is 8 and is wearing the small size. These sisters crack me up and I enjoyed getting some great candid (or almost candid) shots of them playing in my backyard.

These aprons are now available in my Etsy shop. I only have two left in this blue and white stripe print, but I can make them custom in any print you would like!

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A is for Apron

What little kid doesn't like helping their mom in the kitchen, especially when she is baking something sweet! Whether it was chocolate chip cookies, brownies, cakes, or fresh bread, if I ever asked my mom to help she would say, "Wash your hands and put on an apron." There is something about an apron that makes you feel like an official baker or chef. It says "I'm ready to get to work and get messy!"

I still love baking–my favorite is making cupcakes and then piling on the frosting. However, as my husband can attest, I do make a big mess. There is usually batter splatter and powdered sugar all of the countertops. This is exactly when an apron would come in handy, but of course I often forget to put it on until it’s too late. Haha.

The only think I like more than baking is baking with little ones! While it can be slower and even messier than usual, I love to see their eagerness to stir the batter, their expression of delight when they get to lick the spoon, and pride when they taste their handiwork. For a child it’s an opportunity for learning and following directions and for an adult is an opportunity for teaching and a lesson in patience. It’s like a team building exercise.

And what does a star baking team always need? Matching aprons of course! Like sport jerseys for a coach and player, these are the uniforms for mother & daughter, aunt & niece, big person & little person.

I have been working on perfecting the perfect apron pattern that is easy to sew, but also adorable and feminine. (Let’s face it, guys don’t wear aprons). Currently, in my stash, I have a variety of half aprons and full aprons, some matching and some not. But soon I will be unveiling my own collection of reversible “Mommy & Me” aprons once I get the pattern just right.

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M is for Mom

There are few words in the universe that conjure up such powerful emotion as those three little letters. M-O-M. When I think of my mom I think of freshly baked bread, pizzelles, cozy afternoons by the fire, yard sales and thrift stores, crocheting, and spaghetti Sundays. I think of long conversations in the kitchen about anything and everything. I think of endless chores, but also endless love. I think of object lessons where any small item could become a strong reminder for biblical truths. I think of consistent devotion to her husband, children, and Savior. I think of home, a home where anyone was welcome no matter who they were or where they were from, a home where showing love was more important than showing off.

My mom has and does profoundly influence on my life, my decisions, and even my perspective on the world. Through her actions and words she taught me (and still teaches me!) the importance of compassion, kindness, patience, and forgiveness. She continually demonstrates that serving others brings more joy than serving yourself. Today, I love to have people over to my house because growing up my mom loved to have people over at our house.

If you have a mom who stayed home to lovingly raise and nurture you, you are extremely blessed. She deserves to be honored. If you have a mom who was often away from home to work so that she could provide for you, you are extremely blessed. She deserves to be honored. No mom is perfect, and whatever your feelings toward your mom, whatever she has done, she deserves to be honored. Even if just for the simple fact that she gave you life.

So this Mother’s Day, remember to honor your mom for all she has done for you and all she has given you. Not just with flowers and a hallmark card, but really honor her. Tell her, in your own words, what she means to you. Tell her, in your own words, how much you appreciate her. Tell her, in your own words, how much you love her. (I emphasize in your own words because I strongly believe that a hand written card or note is so much more meaningful than just signing your name to someone else's words.) Then after you are done telling her, show her that you mean it with your actions. Clean the house, make her dinner, give her that one thing she has always wanted but won’t get for herself. And don’t reserve these actions for one day a year on Mother’s Day, show her honor and love every day. Any woman can be a biological mother, but it takes a special woman to be a mom, your mom.

Timberleigh Baby loves moms. Use the promo code ILUVMOM14 to get 30% off your order for the entire month of May.

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Little Red Boots & Winnie the Pooh

Every little kid seems to have some material thing that they love so much that they won’t let it go. This item comes to signify comfort or safety, so that they won’t go anywhere without it. When it’s lost, they will cry for hours until you find it. And forget about sharing it with anyone else.

This may be a particular toy, stuffed animal, blankie, passifier, or article of clothing. You may still even remember that one object that brought you so much joy as a child. Sometimes it’s a phase that you grow out of, sometimes we cherish these items even when we are adults because they remind us of when we were children.

For my youngest sister “B”, it was her red rain boots and Winnie the Pooh blanket.

There was a time in B’s life, when she was about 4-5, that she absolutely loved her red rain boots. She wouldn’t wear any other shoe. She would wear these red boots with jeans, sweat pants, dresses, everything. No matter how much we pleaded, she wouldn’t take them off. It’s almost impossible to reason with a child when they are unconditionally attached to something. Eventually she grew out of them and she couldn’t wear them anymore. But even today, when I think of B as a little girl I think of her in those red rain boots. If I can find a picture, I'll be sure to post it.

When my oldest brother was born, he received a pristine new quilt with a pattern of Winnie the Pooh. My mother used it for all of my siblings and B was the last one to have it. By this time, the colors had faded and the batting had gotten a little lumpy. But B loved this blanket. She would take it everywhere. She needed to have it for naptime, bedtime, or when there was a storm and she was scared. However, unlike with her rain boots, this wasn’t a habit that she quickly grew out of. To this day, even though she is now in college, B still has her Winnie the Pooh blanket on her bed.

When I make blankets for Timberleigh Baby, I think back to that old tattered Winnie the Pooh blanket. (I wish I could still find the fabric!) I want my blankets to have a story, to be treasured. I don’t expect them to be heirlooms, or passed down from generation to generation like some exquisite piece of jewelry. I don’t even expect that people will remember who made it. But I do hope that these blankets will provide some amount of comfort or joy to a child who needs it. And someday when a mother is recounting a story to her then-grown child she’ll say, “Remember that blanket you used to have? It was your favorite.”

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D is Dinosaur

When you think of dinosaurs, you probably automatically think of a big roaring T-Rex with razor sharp teeth like in the classic Jurassic Park. I never saw Jurassic Park as a kid because it was way too scary. I really did not like or want to watch dinosaurs killing people. I actually didn’t see it all the way through until I was in my 20’s. Terrible, I know. There are still lots of “classic” movies I haven’t seen, but I digress.

While unrealistic, I much prefer to think of dinosaurs as the cute and funny baby dinosaurs like Littlefoot. Or possibly even Dragon Tales.

Land Before Time is a movie that I associate with my childhood. Even though I am not a huge fan of dinosaurs in general, I loved these little guys. We would watch it often when we went over to my cousins’ house to visit. The first one of course was the best. But then the sequels never seemed to end. A quick Wikipedia search told me that there were actually 13 Land Before Time movies, with the most recent being released in 2007. There was also a television series. Kids really love dinosaurs. (Barney, anyone?)

To commemorate these majestic creatures, I made several stuffed dinosaurs, more specifically a stegosaurus. But rather than scary, they are really cuddly and cute. They are really fun to make and even more fun to play with.

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