Meg Hall Photography Giveaway **ENDED**

Last month we had our family pictures. You've already seen one of them that I did for our FREE CANVAS. BTW, that offer is still valid for first-time customers. You can also take advantage of 50% off and FREE SHIPPING until Dec. 3rd. here.

We had taken by Meg Hall Photography and I couldn't be happier.
She listened to any ideas we had, and had lots of her own ideas as well (which I prefer).
This could be my very favorite one: my husband and our son.

This little guy just melts my heart.

And these little girls fill my heart with joy. It was cold and rainy, but Meg was so good with the kids and still got them to smile. This picture captures their relationship so well.

Me and my sweetheart - married 8 years and still my best friend. Our disc included the original image, plus black & white, and other softening/color effects.

Meg came completely prepared with various chairs and stools.

She has such a knack for capturing those precious smiles.


Do you want your own photo session with Meg Hall Photography? I know this is limited to local readers, so I apologize, but for you Utah/Vegas people: that is exactly what one of you is going to win! Total prize package includes:

- Session fee for up to 5 people (each additional person is $5)
- Disc with up to 40 images along with copyright release letter.

If session is done in Utah county there is no travel fee. Otherwise, the travel fee to Salt Lake county is $15, Davis County $25. Please contact Meg (meghallphotography@gmail.com) to discuss other locations.

To enter: (Leave a separate comment for each entry)
1. Leave a comment, telling me the last time you had family pictures taken.
2. Visit Meg Hall Photography's blog and become a follower.
3. Like Meg Hall Photography on Facebook.

Giveaway runs until Sunday, December 5th @ 9 pm MST. Go ahead and enter the giveaway, but make sure to book your next photo session with Meg. She also does weddings and is very reasonably priced. Our entire session, CD, everything was only $85! That is unheard of, especially for the quality. Contact Meg today! (meghallphotography@gmail.com)

Silhouette Winner

HOLY COW! 2,356 entries!!!

And the winner of the Silhouette is...

dddiva @ discriminating_diva(at)yahoo(dot)com who said "Like you on FB Sherry Conrad"

Congratulations! Hurry and contact me to claim your prize. (sewdangcute@gmail.com)

If you didn't win, tomorrow (Nov. 30th) is the last day you can grab the Silhouette for only $199 (normally $299)! Use code "DANGCUTE" to get $100 off the machine, plus you'll get a roll of vinyl, a roll of transfer tape, and the Home Decor CD free! Total package $370 value, yours for only $199. Hurry and get it here now! This deal expires at the end of the day.

Santa vs. Grandma T-Shirt

Winner of the Three Scoops of Love giveaway at the end of this post.

You still have a few hours to enter the giveaway to win your own Silhouette, click here and do it now! You have until 10 pm MST tonight.

And if you just have to have one now, remember the INCREDIBLE deal going on right now, but hurry today is the last day:
Silhouette cutter, $10 Gift Card, 1 Roll of Vinyl, 1 Roll of Transfer Tape, and the Home Decor CD, all for only $199!!! Grab it here and remember to enter promo code "DANGCUTE" to get the discount.

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A couple of months ago, I bought a couple of red t-shirts at Target on clearance for $1.00.

When I received my Silhouette machine, I knew what I was going to do with them - make a holiday t-shirt for my girls. First I had to get rid of the pocket, so I took my seam ripper and picked it off.

Then I took some white knit and added sleeves. Last I used the flocked white heat transfer for the design. "Who Needs Santa When You've Got Grandma"

Fonts: Rebekah's Birthday, CK Tipsy
Shapes: 3_christmas_ornaments_C00817_20509, holly_C20090914031948_20509

Winner of the Three Scoops of Love giveaway is:

Dresden who said "I really like the custom guitar pick, mama's nest, but my favorite is "to remember that special day"...is it still available, I would love it as a gift"

Shoot me an email Dresden to claim your prize. (sewdangcute@gmail.com)

Let's Talk Motivation

You still have a few hours to enter the Three Scoops of Love custom jewelry giveaway. Click here and enter before 10 pm MST.

If you haven't entered the giveaway to win your own Silhouette, click here and do it now! You have until Monday @ 10 pm MST.

And if you just have to have one now, remember the INCREDIBLE deal going on this weekend only: Silhouette cutter, $10 Gift Card, 1 Roll of Vinyl, 1 Roll of Transfer Tape, and the Home Decor CD, all for only $199!!! Grab it here and remember to enter promo code "DANGCUTE" to get the discount.

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Sorry this post is so late getting up today. I've had sick kids this week, and yesterday I was lucky enough to catch the bug. Stuffy nose, sore throat, achy - it's been fun.

I have to admit that I was pretty surprised at the reaction to my personal post about fitness, surprised that you guys seem to want to know about me. Thank you everyone for your kind words. While I have a lot of thoughts buzzing around in my head of what to talk about (and I definitely want to address each of your concerns and questions), I'm feeling like I need to start with the basics. I'm going to try to keep all these fitness posts simple and direct so you don't get overwhelmed. With that said, let's talk about motivation.

I think everyone would agree with me that unless you have a DESIRE to do something, it won't get done. Many of you have expressed this desire to change and incorporate exercise and better dieting into your lives. Once you have that desire, you have to have the motivation to make it happen. So dig down and figure out what motivates you.

For me, it's responsibility. I teach classes, therefore, I have to show up or the class doesn't happen. This is what gets me to the gym, because if I didn't have to teach that class, I wouldn't go. I can think of a million other things I "NEED" to do with my time, and it would be so much easier to just stay home, run errands, etc.

Here is another example of responsibility. I always sign up for a race before I actually start training. Once I'm signed up, I HAVE to do the workouts because I don't want to hate life during the race.

I have women who come to my classes say they make reservations in the gym's playroom, then they have to come. If they don't show up or cancel their reservation soon enough, they get charged a fee.

Other people have a workout partner, whether it's running/walking or a gym partner. They have to show up because that other person will be waiting for them.

So before we talk about specifics on ways to change, come up with your motivating factor. What is it that is going to get you to start this journey, and more importantly, stay on it? What is going to keep you going when you want to quit?

I want to leave you with one of my all-time favorite videos. I watch this frequently. It is one of the most inspiring and motivational things I've ever seen, and I dare you not to cry.

A son asked his father, 'Dad, will you take part in a
marathon with me?'

The father who, despite having a heart condition, says
'Yes.'

They went on to complete the marathon together. Father and
son went on to join other marathons, the father always
saying 'Yes' to his son's request of going
through the race together.

One day, the son asked his father, 'Dad, let's join
the Ironman together.'

To which, his father said, 'Yes.'
For those who don't know, Ironman is the toughest
triathlon ever. The race encompasses three endurance
events of a 2.4 mile (3.86 kilometer) ocean swim, followed
by a 112 mile (180.2 kilometer) bike ride, and ending with
a 26.2 mile (42.195 kilometer) marathon along the coast of
the Big Island .

Father and son went on to complete the race together.? View
this:

I Used What to Cut My Appliques?!

There's still time to enter the Three Scoops of Love custom jewelry giveaway. Click here and enter before Sunday, November 28th @ 10 pm MST.

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For whatever reason, I love making blankets. When I saw this blanket on the Moda Bake Shop back in February, I knew I wanted to make it. Fortunately, my friend was kind enough to have a baby a few weeks ago, and I finally found my excuse to do it. I made mine with a few changes, but here's how it turned out.

Let's take a closer look at those appliques, shall we?

Do you want to know how I cut them? With my Silhouette! Yup, the Silhouette cuts fabric!!!!

I put wonder under (a fusible interfacing) on the back of my fabric. Then on my Silhouette, I used the green cutting mat along with the pink cap and set the cutting speed to 2 and thickness to 33. It cut through the fabric like a charm, but only perforated the wonder under. No biggie. I just took my Exacto knife and gently slid it along the places the paper hadn't cut all the way through. It only took a few minutes and was still WAY faster than cutting out everything by hand. Woohoo!!!!

I stitched my appliques with my machine. The best way I've found to do this is set your machine to a short stitch length then go slow and pivot frequently (lift the pressure foot as needed).

Font is Aharoni. I used my wide binding blanket tutorial, and backed the blanket with minky - my favorite for soft, cozy baby blankets.


If you haven't entered the giveaway to win your own Silhouette, click here and do it now! You have until Monday @ 10 pm MST. While you are there, be sure to look at the list at the bottom of the post of other blogs giving away a Silhouette. There are 26 total (including mine), so enter them all!

And if you just have to have one now, remember the INCREDIBLE deal going on this weekend only: Silhouette cutter, $10 Gift Card, 1 Roll of Vinyl, 1 Roll of Transfer Tape, and the Home Decor CD, all for only $199!!! Grab it here and remember to enter promo code "DANGCUTE" to get the discount.

Silhouette SD Giveaway & SCREAMING Deal!!!! **ENDED**

I am so excited to share with you this incredible giveaway (over $300 value). It's a Silhouette SD cutting machine.

Many of you have probably heard of this fabulous machine, but if not, here's a little background.

The Silhouette SD is a digital cutting tool. It connects to your computer (both PC and MAC compatible) just like a printer, but instead of printing designs it cuts them with a small blade. No need for cartridges, it will cut any True Type font on your computer, and you can download shapes and images from the Silhouette online store for only 99 cents!

What can it make? I think the better question is, what can't it make?

There are so many possibilities for what you can do with this baby. It cuts paper like a dream and saved me a ton of time by cutting out all my leaves for our thankful tree this year.

I cut some contact paper to make a stencil so I could spice up my footstool with some paint.

I thought about doing the same thing for my plain Scentsy warmer,

but then I saw what my friend, Char, did in this post over at Crap I've Made, and cut some vinyl to make mine just a little prettier.

You can create custom apparel with the heat transfer material.

Do your own glass etching.

Make incredible cards or scrapbook pages.

The list goes on and on. Just wait until I show you tomorrow what I cut with mine.

In honor of Black Friday, Silhouette is offering an amazing deal. For the incredibly low price of $199, you get the following:

•Silhouette machine
•Software for Windows XP/Vista or Mac
•Power cable, USB cable
•2 Cutting mats (one for thick media, one for thin media)
•Cutting blade
•$10 gift card to the Silhouette Online Store
•1 roll of vinyl
•1 roll of transfer tape
•1 Home Décor CD

That's about $400 worth of product, which means you are getting 50% off. To get this screaming deal, click here and use promo code "DANGCUTE" at checkout. This deal is valid until Cyber Monday (November 29th), so don't let this offer pass by you.

As if that wasn't awesome enough, one of you is going to win one of these machines! YAY!!! To enter: (please leave a separate comment for each entry)

1. Become a follower of "Sew Dang Cute Crafts".
2. Like "Sew Dang Cute Crafts" on Facebook.
3. Visit the Silhouette site and come back telling me what the first thing is you would make.
4. Follow the Silhouette blog. (Where they offer tutorials and free downloads).

Giveaway runs until Cyber Monday, November 29th @ 10 pm MST. Good luck everyone!

And guess what? Here is a list of other blogs that are also giving away a Silhouette. Go enter these as well.

1. How Does She?
2. Make It and Love It
3. Homemade by Jill
4. Colies Kitchen
5. Infarrantly Creative
6. We Are That Family
7. Grosgrain Fabulous
8. Thrifty Decor Chick
9. The Idea Room
10. NoBiggie
11. Shanty2Chic
12. Moms Review 4 You
13. Love Stitched
14. Decor Chick
15. Tatertots & Jello
16. Dollar Store Crafts
17. Be Different...Act Normal
18. House of Hepworths
19. Our Best Bites
20. Kara's Party Ideas
21. A Beautiful Mess
22. TomKat Studio
23. Crazy Coupon Mommy
24. Eighteen25
25. Ucreate

A Little Personal For Me

First things first...

I have a HUGE giveaway for you tomorrow. I'm talking GIGANTIC! You will definitely want to stop by and enter. Undoubtedly, this is something on your wish list.

You still have a few more days to enter the Three Scoops of Love custom jewelry giveaway. Giveaway runs until Sunday, November 28th @ 10 pm MST.

Winner of the Say It On The Wall giveaway at the end of this post.

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Happy Thanksgiving to all my U.S. readers! I hope you are all going to stuff yourselves silly (if you haven't already) and spend time with loved ones as you contemplate what you are grateful for.

I have thought about writing this post for a very long time - like months. However, something always stops me. I think I'm afraid to open myself up on this blog. Many of you know that fitness is a HUGE part of my life. It always has been, but it's even more so now. I grew up playing numerous sports, I'm a certified group fitness and cycling instructor, and I am an addicted triathlete. While I don't think there is any way I can put into words just what fitness and exercise means to me, if you don't mind, let me share one experience that stands out.

It's summer of 2007, I had an 18-month old and a 3-month old, both girls. My 18-month old is quite a little demanding. My 3-month old is an angel, but she's a newborn which means she also requires a lot of attention, and I'm not sleeping at night. Ever since becoming a mom, I have completely dedicated myself to being a wife and mother. I teach three group fitness classes a week, but sometimes that's more work than a break by the time I quickly nurse the baby, load up the diaper bag, haul both babies in the car, drop them off in the playroom, teach my 60-minute class, then rush to pick up my kids so I can hurry home and nurse the baby again, then try to jump in the shower at some point between meals and naps. Did I mention that my 18-month old only takes power naps? I'm lucky if it's an hour.

Add to this the fact that we are finishing our basement (I am the general contractor). My future SIL is living with us, their wedding reception is going to be in our backyard, my husband travels for work about once a month for 1-2 week periods, we are out-of-town almost every weekend for various family functions, and you can guess that I am about at the end of my rope.

So one day, we are driving in the car. I'm sitting in the back seat because my kids, who are usually angels in the car, are both screaming. My husband is driving and suddenly I LOSE it! I mean absolutely break down. After spilling everything I'm feeling, my husband turns to me with the sweetest, most concerned face and asks, "Honey, do you need help? Like medical or counseling or something?".

I DID.

In the midst of everything going on in my life, I forgot to take care of myself. I didn't feel like Tamarynn. I felt like I had lost myself. This is where fitness came in. The very next day, I signed up for my first triathlon. I LOVE intense workouts. Something about pushing my body to its limits as I expend all my energy has a purging effect for me. I can feel the stress leave my body. My thoughts are clear. Endorphins run through my body and I am happier.

So I started training. I bought a double-stroller/bike trailer to take my kids with me on runs and bike rides, then swam at night when they went to bed. It wasn't easy, and there were definitely days I didn't want to do it, but I had already signed up and didn't want to die in the race. I didn't know how to swim. I hated running. But I did the workouts anyway. Gradually my endurance built. After 12 weeks, the day of my race came.

When I crossed that finish line, I felt the biggest sense of accomplishment. I had done this. Me.

Even though I look exhausted in the above photo (because I was tired), I felt empowered. I felt strong, and I felt alive. Three years later and I've got more than a dozen triathlons under my belt (had a baby in between some of those), and completed my first IRONMAN (Boise 70.3).


Bottom line - I did need help. I was lucky enough to find the solution. My triathlons are now my "anti-depressants". That is why I say I am an addicted triathlete. I feel a very noticeable difference in my mood when I'm not training. My husband knows if I haven't worked out that day. I am a better wife, mother, sister, daughter, friend, etc. when I take that little bit of time to exercise. I'm happier, I sleep better, I'm more patient with my kids - the list goes on and on. I also notice a big difference in how I feel by what I eat. The healthier I eat, the more energy I have, and the better I feel.

I'm also a major fan of "The Biggest Loser" reality TV show.

So what does any of this have to do with you? Well, a big part of this season on "The Biggest Loser" is paying it forward. That's where I want to help. My goal is to reach out and help in any way I can. I know this has nothing to do with crafts or sewing, but it does have to do with life and health, so I feel it is applicable to EVERYONE!

I get questions all the time about fitness and diet - from people who come to my classes to friends and family. While I don't consider myself an expert by any means, there are many things I have learned in these areas, and if I can help even one person, I will consider this a success. I've thought about starting a new segment on my blog like "Fitness Fridays", where every Friday I dedicate the post to sharing something with you. It could be various exercises for a certain muscle group, a healthy recipe, training programs, etc.

Before I do this, though, I want to hear from you.

1. Is this something you would be interested in?
2. If so, WHAT specifically would you like to know about?

So I'm opening up the floor to you. Please let me know your questions. ANY question you have. Please don't be afraid to ask anything. I will do my best to answer them.

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Winner of the Say It On The Wall giveaway is...

Who is...
¨*:·.TIFF.·:*¨ "I "like" Say it on the Wall (Facebook). camerons555@msn.com"

Congratulations Tiff! Shoot me a quick email to claim your prize (sewdangcute@gmail.com).

If you didn't win, Say It On The Wall has a great deal going on this week: Get any one of these three wise men products 40% off with promo code WISEMEN40. Go here to check them out.

Gathered Flower Leather Purse

Check out CSN Stores for all your holiday needs. From bathroom shelving to kitchen appliances, they are sure to have what you need. Visit CSN Stores today.

Today is the last day to enter the "Say It On The Wall" giveaway for some free VINYL. Giveaway ends tonight @ 10 pm MST.

If you are looking for the Three Scoops of Love custom jewelry giveaway, click here. Giveaway runs until Sunday, November 28th @ 10 pm MST.

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Remember last month when I didn't get my purse done in time for Purse Week at A Lemon Squeezy Home? I still promised you guys a tutorial. In case you missed me guest posting at Ucreate where I posted the tutorial, here it is now - the gathered flower leather purse. Just to show you a better idea of the size, here's me holding it. I love the bold, turquoise color. My camera is not the best and my sewing room is in the basement (which means bad lighting), so the color doesn't quite come through in these pictures.

It's a big, spacious bag with a side pocket to hold those items you don't want to dig around for (i.e. cell phone, keys, etc.).
Let's get started.

Materials needed:
- Bag pattern piece (click to download)
- Leather ** (1 1/2 yds cotton or vinyl)
- 1 yd lining fabric
- 1 yd fusible interfacing
- Sew-on or magnetic snap
- 2 D-rings (1 1/4")
- Coordinating thread
- Upholstery thread
- Leather sewing machine needle (Not necessary but I recommend it for leather/vinyl)

* All seams 1/4" unless otherwise noted.

** If you don't want to use leather, you may use cotton, since I explain how to use either in this tutorial. Leather doesn't fray. You can also use vinyl instead, which is sold by the yard. I wanted a brighter color than what was offered in vinyl, so I went to Beck Leather and Crafts and bought a remnant piece (with a 40% off coupon). Leather is sold in hides, so take your pattern piece with you to make sure the piece you like will work. You could also check your local thrift store for a leather jacket and cut that up.

1. Print the bag pattern piece. Place the edge on the fold and cut out two pieces of your exterior fabric. So when you unfold the fabric, you'll get your piece. Cut out two pieces from your interior fabric and fusible interfacing as well. To make my fabric go further, I folded it like so before cutting. You'll also want to cut:
- (2) 1" x 20" pieces from leather or vinyl for the strap. OR if using cotton, cut (1) 2 1/2" x 20" piece.
- (2) 6" x 12" pocket piece: 1 from exterior, 1 from lining
- (2) 2" x 1 1/4" pieces leather/vinyl for loops or (2) 2" x 3" pieces cotton

2. Iron fusible interfacing to the two lining bag pieces and pocket piece. If using cotton, also iron to strap piece.

3. We are going to start with the rosette (Layer 1). I used cotton for mine because I didn't have enough leather, and it's easier to gather into a tight flower. Cut a 3 1/4" strip. If you want your whole flower in leather/vinyl, cut a 1 1/4" strip and proceed to below, "Cut a piece of upholstery thread...".

Fold RST (right sides together) lengthwise and sew along the short raw ends and long raw edge, but leave about a 10" opening in the middle of the long raw edge. Clip the corners and turn right-side out. Press.

Cut a piece of upholstery thread about 10" longer than the strip. Zig-zag stitch over it on the same edge as your seam, like so. Now hold both ends of the upholstery thread and slide the fabric along it to gather. Use a needle and thread and handstitch the layers together as you roll the rosette to hold it together. You should end up with this.
4. For the rest of the flower I alternated fabric***, so we will need to cut:
- 2" x 19" piece leather/vinyl OR 4 1/2" x 19" cotton (Layer 2)
- 3" x 40" piece leather/vinyl OR 6 1/4" strip cotton (Layer 3)
- 3" x 38" piece leather/vinyl OR 6 1/2" strip cotton (Layer 4)

***If you are using the same fabric for the entire flower, cut (3) 3" x 40" pieces leather/vinyl OR (3) 6 1/4" strips cotton, and sew short ends together to create one really long strip.

Repeat the process in step 3 to gather. I recommend pinning all 4 layers to get an idea of where you want them on the bag, then pin one layer at a time, starting with layer 4, to one of your exterior bag pieces and stitch down. Layers 4 and 3 are shown below. Handstitch the rosette (layer 1) to the bag piece.
5. Sew both exterior bag pieces RST along the side and bottom edges. Turn inside out and set aside.

6. Grab your two pocket pieces and sew RST, leaving about a 4-5" opening. Clip corners and turn inside out. Press. Position on top of one of your lining pieces and stitch down along sides and bottom.
7. Position one piece of your snap on one side of the lining and sew on. Then position the other piece of the snap in the same spot on the other lining piece.
8. Sew lining pieces RST along sides and bottom, but leave about a 12" opening in the bottom and set aside.
9. Edgestitch the (2) loop pieces.
Loop a D-ring over one piece and pin to the top, side of the exterior bag, lining up raw edges and centering. Repeat on the other side.
10. Place the exterior bag inside the interior so they are RST. Line up all the seams and raw edges. Pin in place. Sew along the top of the bag. Turn inside out through the opening of the lining. Topstitch along the top of the bag.

11.Sew the opening in the lining shut. You can use a blindstitch, but I just used my machine because it's faster and no one is going to see the inside of the bottom of my purse.

12. Last we need to make our strap. Take the two strap pieces and edgestitch WST (wrong sides together) along long edges if using leather/vinyl. If using cotton, fold RST lengthwise and sew along short raw edges and the long edge, but leave an opening to turn out. Clip corners and turn inside out. Blindstitch the opening shut, then press with seam in the center of the strap. Topstitch along the long sides.

13. Fold one end of the strap through the D-ring and stitch down to the underside of the strap. Repeat on the other end and you are done!!!