Ok, had your eye on some City Gate merchandise for a while?  Now is the time to snatch it up for free!  I’m finishing up my last few orders from Spring Show and am looking to keep the momentum going so here is the offer . . .

It’s pretty simple . . . host a show and I’ll give you free stuff!  Invite all your friends, have some snacks, and host a City Gate show and I’ll give you $20 in merchandise, plus an additional $10 in merchandise for every $100 sold at your show.   Use your merchandise credit on anything and everything The City Gate makes!

Now, I recognize that a lot of you are out of the area, out of the state, out of the country (this is my special shout-out to my fine customers in Canada!)  I’ve got something special for you too.  If you are interested in hosting a web party, you can get all the same perks as my local friends.  (Local people can do web parties too!)  We’ll set up a special coupon code on the Etsy store to make sure you get credit for the orders, and I’ll help with all the marketing.

I’m not sure how many of these parties I can handle (I’m not running a sweat shop here) so I’ll offer them on a first come, first serve basis until I feel overwhelmed and cut it off.  If it’s successful, maybe we’ll do it again.  Let me know if you’re interested and we’ll bang out the details.  I’m so excited!

If you haven’t checked out the Etsy store lately, stop by.  I’ve added a lot of new things.

William and I have been watching a lot of The Cat In The Hat together lately.  It has been so much fun to watch him discover the world of Dr. Seuss, because let’s face it, no one can paint a picture quite like he can.

If there were two authors who defined my childhood, it would have to be Dr. Seuss and Shel Silverstein.  I have recently been spending some more time in Dr. Seuss books with my children and am getting ready to introduce Hannah to the world of Shel Silverstein.  Some of my favorites?  The Cat In The Hat, There’s a Wocket In My Pocket, Where the Sidewalk Ends, A Light In The Attic.  The list could go on and on, but we’ll stop it there.

The stories and poems that I enjoyed as a child have a lot more meaning to me as an adult, and I am able to recognize these men for the geniuses that they were.

I have put my inspiration to good use and designed a line of simple onesies/t-shirts based on the simple words of these men.  You’ll see more in the weeks to come, but let’s start with this one.

“Yes we’ll walk with a walk that is measured and slow, And we’ll go where the chalk-white arrows go, For the children, they mark, and the children, they know, The place where the sidewalk ends. ” –Shel Silverstein

Have you been wondering what the bestseller was from our Spring Show a few weeks ago . . .

Beach Towel/Bag $25

These cute bags have become a favorite of City Gate Customers!  They are full size beach towels that fold-up and create a tote bag to take all your things with you to the pool or beach.  When you get there, this bags unfolds to become a usable beach towel before folding back up to carry all your things back home.

 

 

 

 

 

Needless to say, I am looking forward to my kids carrying their own stuff to the pool this year!!

 

They come in a variety of colors and can be personalized with a name or applique on the front pocket.

 

Soon I will have all of these order filled from Spring Show and what a relief it will be to see the floor of my sewing room again.  Right now if you were to stop by, it probably looks like a towel factory around here.  I have made good progress and am making good progress.  I thought I would share this photo of some of the Beach Towel bags going out in the first batch.  It looks so fresh and summery, I can’t wait for the pool to open!

 

 

Place your order early to be sure yours is ready to go when summer starts!!  These are currently not in my Etsy store so if you want to order one, send me a message or give me a call and we’ll go over all the details.

Well, instead of spending today finishing up unfinished items and tying up loose ends, I got a little distracted this afternoon and designed yet another new item for Spring Show.  Don’t start yelling at me . . . y’all are the ones who will reap the rewards.  You, my loyal fan base.  All three of you.   (Actually, on a side note, I have been looking at my stats lately and I don’t know where y’all are coming from, but thanks for stopping by!  I just hope you find my products interesting.)

Anyone who knows my daughter well, knows that she doesn’t really do the whole hair bow thing.  She never has.  Be that as it may, we have still managed to amass a large collection of hair clips and bows.  This is where they usually live . . .

. . . in a little metal bucket filled with hair clips, silly bands, and other items she has taken as treasures.  Don’t ask me why, but I decided to tackle this problem today and came up with this.

and this

For those of you who actually use your hair clips and bows, I present the first option.  Two smaller ribbons (approx. 30″ long) hang down to allow you to hang up ALL of your hair clips and bows.  You can find The Etsy listing here.  For those of you who have children like mine, I give you the second option.  A larger ribbon, still just as long, but only one ribbon.  This is more than enough space for all of Hannah’s hair clips and bows.  You can find the Etsy listing here.  Of course, I can put almost any applique on these as well.  (Check out my Flickr page to see some of my other applique files.  This is a work in progress so not even a fraction of what I have is up there right now.)

Like the little lamb hair clip shown in the photos?  These are coming soon to The City Gate.  I have a couple to show at Spring Show, but we will not go into full production until after the show when I get my hands on a small hoop for the embroidery machine.  A lot of my applique files will be able to be turned into one of these hair clips so you will be able to match any outfit.

As always, thanks for stopping by, and stop by in person this Sunday at our Spring Show and say hi!  Details can be found here.  You can also see a mostly complete photo album of what I’ll have available by clicking here!

Why should the grown-ups have all the fun?!  The City Gate is now offering deluxe baby bibs with your favorite team logo embroidered on them.  These bibs are so soft and absorbent I wish I had made them when my kids were little.  They are terry cloth on the top with a coordinating cotton fabric for the back.  Sandwiched between these two fabrics, is a thick piece of batting making these bibs soft and super absorbent.

I have recently partnered with a company that can supply me with almost any sport logo from NCAA to NFL to MBL and beyond.  These logos aren’t just for bibs either.  You can put them on a purse, tote bag, shirt, or almost anything your (or my) imagination can come up with.  Here are a couple of the bibs I will be taking to Spring Show this weekend.

Check out the Etsy listing here.

Check out the Etsy listing here.

These bibs make great baby gifts and all City Gate items come gift wrapped and ready to give!

A few weeks ago, I had a startling revelation.  I was heading down to Hannah’s school and I needed to take some gifts and “stuff” down with me.  I looked around my house for a cute bag that I could just throw everything into.  Nothing.  I couldn’t find a tote bag to take with me.  I settled on an old purse, but things were sticking out the top and in general, I wasn’t happy.

So, I fixed the problem . . .

I love this new bag.  It is measuring in at about 20″ wide and 18″ high so it is big enough to fit almost anything in.  I can see us now, filling it with toilet paper rolls and heading down to our favorite oak tree on Toomer’s Corner this fall to celebrate an Auburn win.  (I am going to maintain a positive attitude and will continue to believe that we will still have beautiful trees to roll come fall!)

Alabama fans . . . don’t feel left out, I have one for you in the works too.  I will hopefully have it done later this week.  In the meantime, you can check out the Etsy listing for this one by clicking here.  Thanks for stopping by, and WAR EAGLE!

So, have you heard Spring Show is coming? . . . It seems like that is all I can talk about lately.  I have a list of all the ideas I want to make for Spring Show and I am slowly flitting around my list making things here and there.  I have a whole section of baby items that I have been wanting to sew up, but they always seem to get moved to the bottom of my list.  Probably because my kids are past that stage and I don’t get the instant gratification that I get for sewing for my kids.  However, I got some fabulous news this week that has inspired me to move up all my baby sewing.  No, I am not pregnant!  However, some old friends of mine, who have waited a very long time for that news, are pregnant.  So, I have moved up some of my baby sewing . . . let me know what you think!

My Wild Thing

Baby Bibs have a terry cloth front to be soft and absorbent.  Backed in a contrasting fabric with an adjustable velcro closure.  Sandwiched between the two layers of fabric is a  layer of cotton batting for extra absorbency.  Check out this bib here.

A few posts ago, a friend of mine commented that a baby dress I had made made her want to have more kids, just so she could use it.  That is how I feel about this blanket!  Why didn’t I sew one of these when my babies were little!!??

This  blanket has a beautiful toile fabric outside, and the softest, fluffiest fabric I could find for the inside.  There is an adjustable tie closure to keep baby nice and secure.

This blanket has to been seen and felt to truly be appreciated.  Make sure you  stop by Spring Show on March 6 and check it out!

If you call me right now and ask me what’s going on, you will get the same answer, every time . . . Spring Show.  I’m full of great ideas, the only question is, will I get them all done before March 6?  We’ll see how it goes.  I got three things done today, but then had another idea, so I guess that gives me a net of only two.  I need to turn my mind off to new ideas, but where is the fun in that?

First off the table today, was a St. Patrick’s Day shirt for William.  My favorite part of this shirt is that I used a brown fur for the beard, so it is soft and fuzzy.  The pocket on this shirt is usable, and the letter can be changed out for any letter.  Long sleeve t-shirt price $25.

Next was another shirt for Hannah.  She found this owl applique and fell in love with it.  Notice the extra stitching around the owl’s wings.

Unfortunately, when it came off the sewing table, I realized that this shirt really needed something else . . .

 . . . So I made her a little skirt to go with it.  Short sleeve t-shirt price $19, skirt price $15 or buy them as an outfit for $30.  Stay tuned, hopefully later this week, for a brother option to go with this outfit.

All of these items will be available at Spring Show, but feel free to place your order early, especially if you are looking for some St. Patrick’s Day shirts.

This sweet little outfit will make your little one look like a princess.

With a soft V-neck and tie, and a one-button closure in the back, it’s easy to put on and take off and offers maximum comfort for baby.

Paired with a pair of bloomers in a complementary fabric.

Available in sizes 0-3 months, 3-6 months, 6-9 months, and 9-12 months.  Come by our Spring Show on March 6 and see it in person!

Things have been really busy here at The City Gate!  We have officially set the date for Spring Show . . . Sunday, March 6 from 1-5 pm.  My mother-in-law has graciously offered to host this one at her home, so we’ll be able to have it in Montgomery.  Once again, I will be doing the show with my friend and partner Laura Bonner of PB&J Kids Clothes.  We had so much fun at Fall Show, so make sure you stop by and hang-out with us again!

OK, so on to some of the things I have been working on . . .

I made these cute little hand towels for the kids.  I took a plain hand towel, added some ribbon, and an applique with their name for each towel.  I thought it was a great idea until Hannah decided they were too pretty to use, and hung hers up in her room instead.  Oh well, it’s still a cute idea.

This is one of William’s shirts for summer.  It has three different surf boards and says “Surf’s Up” under the boards.  This can also be done with a name instead.

This is your basic terry cloth swimsuit cover-up.  I added a cute surfboard applique and Hannah’s name so when she throws it off at the pool, we will always know which one is hers.

You may have noticed a new feature on the sidebar to the right on the blog.  I have opened a Flickr account and I will be updating it with photos of applique files I have so you will be able to search my stock and find just the right file to fit your needs.  It is a work in progress so keep checking back as I continue to add more files.  In the meantime, please let me know if you are looking for something in particular and I would be happy to try to help you.