Girls Getaway Weekend! come play!

Boutiquecafe would like to extend an invitation to all women, mommies and work at home entrepreneurs to the 1st Annual Boutiquecafe.com Girls Getaway Weekend April 20th -22nd. This weekend event will be a mixture of business and fun! Designers and podcast fans from all over the U.S. and Canada will be attending the Boutique Café Girls Getaway, which will include a Saturday morning conference that boasts an impressive list of guest speakers:

Amelia: Owner of Sweet Feet Boutique and a fashion guru
Liz Carlson: Owner/founder of Chatti Patti
Keynote Speaker, Charlene May: Owner/founder of Greggy Girl

Attendees will learn about everything from keeping your fashion style as a mom to how to grow your business. The Saturday morning session will begin at 9:00 a.m. in the Topaz Room at the Salt Lake City Hilton., and tickets are $25 in advance. Space is limited, so contact daria@boutiquecafe.com to reserve your spot.

We would love for you to help us spread the word and reach those ladies who might be interested in attending. Interested attendees can also find more information about this event in the following link:
http://www.boutiquecafe.com/home/?cat=15

This will be such a great event and a great opp to meet these talented business women, network with other women, showcase your designs and have great time! We hope to see you there!

It's my Birthday, it's my birthday!

March is big month for me full of lots to celebrate! and in honor of my Dad's Holiday and Birthday traditions of always giving gifts to others instead of asking for or recieving on these occasions, I am going to give a gift to YOU!

Just listed is a 99 NO RESERVE auction for a pair of my Girls Shaggy Mosaic Jeans! you pick the fabrics you love, what length - full or capri - and I will create them for you!



Celebrate with me and have fun bidding! and a HUGE THANK You to all my customers, mailing list members and other designers and friends out there who have supported me all along the way!

BIG NEWS!!!!

I am so excited to annouce that Mary of Sweetpea-Totes will now be selling her FABULOUS handbags in my Blossom Street shop. We are "teaming together to glamourize and accessorize!"

She does amazing work. I have personally bought 3 handbags from her and recommended her to several friends and family members. Her handbags will be a great addition to our store and compliment my women's line I offer there - my MOSAIC jeans and women's tops. To learn a bit more about Sweetpea - Totes click here.

In other EXCITING business news you can now find my designs a bit easier on ebay and in my store. All my store and ebay listings will now sport the word - CODesigns. It will be a quick easy way to find my items by typing in a shorter version of my business name. I hope you will find this convienent for you. Take a peek at our store to see the items I currently have available.

and just a little reminder that our store will be stocked fresh every 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month along with all the stores in the Villa Fresca Neighborhood on Blossom Street.

Fashion Guru Q&A

Do you have a Fashion question? do's, don'ts, or how to make it work? Boutiquecafe's own HOT MOM moderator Amelia of Sweet Feet Boutique is now doing a Fashion Q&A session to help her prepare for our upcoming Boutique Cafe Girls Getaway weekend in which she is one of our speakers. LOTS of great questions being asked and some even better practical advice being given. HOP on over - we'd love to have jump aboard and chat with us!

My head is spinning!

Whew! Ok spring has sprung here and brings it's own projects - spring cleaning, yard work, etc. But suddenly my design ideas have sprung as well! My head is spinning with fun new ideas, designs, etc. It's great but there's no way I will get to everything I would like to. Such is life though right? We all do what we can do. Here's a little peek at my latest fabric pile I have bought. Lots of fun new outfits and designs coming your way! INCLUDING - stuff for boys! yeah!!! I also have some exciting business news to announce - just working on some finishing touches. Stay tuned!!!

Ok - You didn't hear it from me!

Complaning that is! LOL!!! I've been tagged to stop complaining! Who ME? I supposed we all do a bit of grumbling from time to time. Now I have been Challenged by my good fried Daria to join the worldwide movement to stop complaining. This has all started from Oprah's Good News Show today. Can I go for 21 days without complaining? I guess we'll see! Can YOU? Here's what you need to do:

1. Click on Beki's blog to order a free purple Complaint Free bracelet.

2. Tag at least 3 people and spread the word. Challenge them to participate.

3. Sign the Mr. Linky On Beki's Blog so we can see how far this goes!

4. The final step, and most important. STOP COMPLAINING! You put your bracelet on and any time you catch yourself complaining you must switch it to the opposite wrist. The goal is to go 21 days without switching it. If you switch it, your 21 days starts all over again.

Ok - here we go! The three people I will tag are Nicole, Lisa, and Morgan TAG! you're it!

Clickety click - MARCH!

Oh yes! It's Clicking Spree day on Boutiquecafe.com!All you have to do is click on the ads, post your comments or great finds and get a chance to win some GREAT prizes!!!
ClickHERE to play!


***PLUS if you post on the Boutiquecafe CHAT forum that you saw it on my Blog I will give you an extra entry to win one of our great prizes!***

**OR blog about it yourself and post your link on the CHAT forum! It's fun for everyone!!!! Just be sure to post about it so I can give you another entry! **

HURRY - Tuesday is the day - so go get clicking!!!


you can win some great prizes from our donators this month!
Dreamin Bohemian, roxidesigns, Tutti Fruity Designs, Collective Elements, Ashton's Garden

Do you velcro?

Can you be creative with Velcro? I bet you can! and guess what? you could win for that creativity as well!!! some sweet cash and other great prizes! The contest is being put on Adorn Magazine. Check out the details here!

Whatcha listening to?

If you are on the go or kickin' back this weekend take a "TIME OUT" for you! It's a great time to catch up on some of the great podcasts that boutiquecafe.com has put out these last couple of weeks. If you are into celebrities and feel the desire to be inspired you will LOVE the interview Daria did withWendy Bellissimo - nursery designer for celebrities. Such a great interview - you will love every minute of it!

and if you like to put the interviewer in the HOT seat take a listen to the latest podcast where the microphone is turned onDaria and she gets interviewed! It's a fun peek into the Daria's life, interests and how she got where she is today.

Looking for great products for Spring and a discount too? or looking to advertise your own products? The boutiquecafe SPRING Gift guide is up and ready for YOU! Have a look!

PLUS - one more tidbit for ya - our famous CLICKING SPREE day will be on Tuesday! don't miss it! stop by the chat forum, click on the ads you like and post a comment in our Clicking Spree thread to win some FABULOUS prizes! see you there!

Open call for BAG Ladies!!!!

I love totes, bags, purses, clutches, etc. I don't very many but I love them anyway! I found this open call for FABULOUS pictures of YOUR handbags!!! It's a chance for you indie designers to get your picture out there and possibly be included in a new book - 500 handbags. Check out all the details here!!! don't miss this opportunity!

Stick to IT!!

I LOVE vinyl lettering! it's fun to add a fun saying to a wall, door or even a distressed board and add it to a room. BUT I always wanted more than just letters! I wanted fun decals and fancy scroll work, etc. I did a quick search and boy howdy did I find some AMAZING decals! If you haven't already discovered BLIK surface decals prepare to be surprised!!! They have it all - sophisticated, fun, whimsical, retro, geometric, large, small, you name it! A few of my favorites are the Iron Vines, the blik Paisley, and the Eames cirles. I love the versatility of them. The floor, walls, doors, windows, even furniture! the only limitation I believe is your imagination! take a look - you will definately have some fun!

and here's an array of companies and designs all in one spot! Check out thisnext.com links for wall decor! FABULOUS!

Homework...........I got 4 stars!!!

LOL!!! Santa delivered a photography class in my stocking this year to attend at the local university. It's a six week course for beginners and I have really enjoyed it so far. We have a great age range in the class and also experience and knowledge. We were given our first homework assignment last week - Light and Line. Each student in the class had to bring 2 photos to share with everyone and get critiqued on in front of the entire class! ack! I was certainly nervous but I volunteered to go early in the class so I didn't have to sit there for much longer with a knot in my stomach. ;) Luckily the teacher had some great things to say - good suggestions and really loved my second photo. He said I hit it right on the mark and it had a good "POP" power punch factor. whew! It's been a loooong time since I have had to be critiqued on homework. Here's the photos I shared with the class. We were supposed to look for color, repetition of pattern, how light can be a factor, etc.

"Come on girls, Shake your Tail Feathers!"

My Daughter had her first dance competition this weekend with her group from the Dance Studio we go to. My daughter really only knew and understood that there were judges and would be trophies given out at the end. She was pretty excited about that! Her group performed 3 different numbers, a tap, jazz, and a fun/novice number. They won 2 gold and 1 platinum trophy for their dance numbers. Then they gave out individual awards to the dancers in each age category that stood out of their groups. To my surprise they called my daughters name!!!! She was a bit stunned too! She received a scholarship for the next dance competition and also a jacket sporting the Competition name. It was pretty exciting to know that out of all the girls in her age group they singled her out. Every mother gets a bit of bragging time right? ;)

Here's a few pictures from the weekend in a couple of her costumes. My favorite picture is the one I snapped of her putting on her own lipstick in the mirror before we left. *sigh* they grow up to fast!!!!

GREEN Bloggin' winner!

A HUGE thank you to all those who Blogged about the Boutiquecafe.com SHOW your GREEN contest to win some GREEN! Everyone who blogged about it and emailed me their link is eligible to win a free apron from ME! I posted all the links on the boutiquecafe.com chat board as an extra thanks! Here is the list one more time!

Bonnin Designs

Designer's Notion

Designing Minds

Jaybird Designs

Botanical Earth

Art Addict

Precious Stitches

Like a Fox

Secrets from the Studio

A Pretty Rock

Roxi Designs

Goddess in the Groove


and the WINNER is................................Erin from Like a Fox Blog!!! congratulations! Thank you again to everyone for playing! we will be doing this again!!!!

March Clicking Spree Swag!

As if our "SHOW Your GREEN" contest on Boutiquecafe.com wasn't enough, Daria has posted a sneak peek of the swag we will be giving away this month for the Clicking spree day! Take a peek HERE to get those taste buds salivating for some great prizes!!! hehehehe

Show your GREEN - Win some green!!!

Well as St. Patty's day nears closer (pretend you can hear me in my best Irish accent ) we thought it would be fun to show off what YOU have created in a green theme! Come on! Be a SHOW OFF! it could win you some CASH!!!

Just post something on the BoutiqueCAFE forum in our "show your GREEN" contest thread that you have created - could be from a long time ago or currently up for sale! if it's available right now be sure to give us the link! By posting you are entered for a chance to win $20.00 cash via paypal from ME! - www.creativeoutletdesigns.com!!!

It's the Luck of the Irish for the winner! You only have a few short days! I will post the winner on Sunday! ready, set, GO! go green!!!!!

****If you blog about our "GREEN" contest and link to it - send me an email! info@creativeoutletdesigns.com. I will put you in a special drawing for a free apron from me!*****

It's warm, it's bright and it's YELLOW!

Well Spring has arrived! Ahhhhhh.....I love to breath deep the fresh warmish air and take in the sunshine! I just love Spring. Changes my mood around and gets me removitated to take on projects, clean out and clean up, and many more things. As promised in an earlier post, I said I would show a few of my Spring decor touches I have added to my home and a few fun sprucing up accessories as well. I like to change my home decor a few times year to keep it fresh. In the Spring I always adds Yellow and a bit of green splashes of color here and there around my living room, dining room and kitchen area. Makes me feel happy! I have always loved lemons and pears so naturally adding yellow to my decor at sometime in the year just fit! Now........on with the pictures.

Living room - the best part it I got the silver pieces totally on clearance!!!!

Quick color change for the candles adds a splash of color and mood lighting in the evening.

I love forsythia bushes when they bloom! they are just so bright and yellow and they are one of the first plants around here that really show off their Spring Blooms. This wreath is hung above the window in the kitchen

I put some artificial lemons and pairs in a vase and set it on my plant shelf. I always get compliments on it and a few of my friends has adapted this idea to their own homes using fruits they love.

I was soo excited to find these in the Home and Garden section at a local discount store. I hadn't been there in over a year and I fell in love with these! I added them to our guest bath and it completely changed the feel of that room.

Well you know I LOVE black and white and use in my home decor as well as my designs. I found these pillow again on clearance ;) for super cheap and couldn't pass them up. They adorn my living room and add comfort while we watch TV and hang out with family and friends. I love the round shape they have to them as well.

Here's a project I took on and luckily it didn't take too long. I am sure my husband is laughing about that comment if he is reading this. I am just not one to really enjoy LOooooNG drawn out projects. I guess I like a quicker result. I've had this window for a fews years and just love it. It's old but still has the glass in it. It hangs by our front entrance and I have struggled to really make it it's own piece and show itself off! LOL!!! Well I decided to paint it, add some fun fabric behind it and make it functional as well. Now it can hold jackets, etc from our guests that stop by and still look FABULOUS!

It's hard to see the large black hooks on the bottom for coats and jackets when guests stop in. I also tacked the fabric to the back so I easily change it, or just leave it blank. I added the lemon wreath which I found on ebay as an added POP of color! what do you think?

Well that is it! Just a little sneak peek into a few items I have added to my house this Spring! have you been busy with Spring projects as well?

Under $10 gift guide!

WooHOOO!!! Rare Bird finds has put together a FUN gift guide - 100 items under $10.00!!! How fun is that!?!? I definately spotted a few fun items and at that price, how can you go wrong!

Sweet, sweet customer

I love to receive pictures from my dear customer of their kids or themselves wearing something they have purchased from me. It's so fun to see the pictures and hear the wonderful compliments they receive when wearing my outfits. I received a couple of sweet photos today and wanted to share them with you! Thank you Sweet Bella! Enjoy your Minnie Halter!

Stocked up!

I spent some time this weekend stocking up my shop on Blossom Street in the Villa Fresca Neightborhood. I will continue to add a few items over the next couple of weeks as well! You only have a few days left to enter for your chance to win the OPEN House Prizes our neighborhood is giving away! Search our shoppes for the OPEN HOUSE PRIZE listings, collect them all and email them to the address listed. It's easy and fun!

I also have my MINNIE Mosaic Castle outfit ending Tuesday morning as well as 2 Minnie Halters still avaiable! the 5T halter started at .99 NO RESERVE!!! It's at a great bargain of a price still!!!

Time keeps on ticking...........

Into the future. hehehe. Ok that song is stuck in my head this morning. I usually don't dread when we change times but this year I am. It's sooo much earlier in the year than it usually is and I am on a serious lack of sleep with week so the thought of losing another hour before my head hits that pillow (rolling eyes).....................*sigh*. Well it's coming today whether I like it or not. SO - here's your reminder to set your clocks ahead 1 hour (waaaaaaah!) when you go to bed tonight.

Villa Fresca invites you......

The Villa Fresca Neighborhood on Blossom Street would like to invite you to our OPEN HOUSE. Our Neighborhood has expanded and we have welcomed several new shoppes to the neighborhood. To celebrate we are giving away 7 "open house" prizes. Just browse the shoppes and look for the titles - "OPEN HOUSE PRIZE". Collect all 7 prizes and email them to the address in the listing for a chance to win! Thank you for all the shoppes of Villa Fresca.

Wild at Heart

Oooooo! anyone check out the Fall/Winter 2007 Catalog from Baby Gassy Gooma? I am sooo looking forward for Spring to mearly hit but it's almost more fun to see this year's Fall and Winter from them and get excited for Back to School styles and sales to begin. ;) A couple of favorite lines I noticed right off the bat are the Wild at Heart line and the Jade Dynasty. I'm a sucker for black, white and green! I've always loved thier styles. They are trendy, sophisitcated and posh yet funtional and you don't have to be afraid for your little girl to wear them everyday. Love the colors and fabrics for the Diamonds are Faux-ever line too! CUTE name!

Think SPRING and WIN!

It's finally time to reveal the THINK Spring event! Youcanmakethis has teamed up with 4 fabric websites to showcase some great Spring fabric lines. The authors from youcanmakethis.com were given 1 month to pick from the fabric selected and create something for Spring that they had written an ebook on. BUT YOU can WIN with this THINK spring Challenge! Now it's YOUR turn to choose fabrics and create something for your child, your home, an accessory, etc and win some fabulous prizes! More details here. I created my THINK SPRING outfit from the fabric selection at fashionablefabrics.com

Random Acts of Kindness

Here's a feel good post for today. My friends Sarah recently "tagged" me to post a Random Acts of Kindness thread - a chance to show gratitude. I happened to have heard a song on the radio today and seemed to really sum up what I was feeling. I wish I could play it for everyone to hear. It's a beautiful very moving song by Sarah Mclachlan.

Ordinary Miracles

It's not that usual when everything is beautiful

It's just another ordinary miracle today

The sky knows when its time to snow

You don't need to teach a seed to grow

It's just another ordinary miracle today

Life is like a gift they say

Wrapped up for you everyday

Open up and find a way

To give some of your own

Isn't it remarkable'

Like every time a raindrop falls

It's just another ordinary miracle today

Birds in winter have their fling

And always make it home by spring

It's just another ordinary miracle today

When you wake up everyday

Please don't throw your dreams away

Hold them close to your heart

Cause we are all a part

Of the ordinary miracle

Ordinary miracle

Do you want to see a miracle'

Its seems so exceptional

Things just work out after all

It's just another ordinary miracle today

The sun comes up and shines so bright

It disappears again at night

It's just another ordinary miracle today

It's just another ordinary miracle today

It's great to reflect on your blessings and all that each of us truly has. All the material things we have been blessed with, friends, family, happiness, sadness, trials that have made us grow and become stronger, the beauty of nature all around us. The new buds in spring, a cleansing rain, the soft falling snow, the sunrise and sunset each day. I could go on and on. Thank you sarah for giving me the gift of reflection this day. I'd like to share a few photos like will hopefully speak to you in their own way and give you some peace inside as you take a moment to contemplate the random acts of kindness you have recieved today. You may have just been someone else's ordinary miracle and you didn't even know it.