You should check it out - QUICKLY!

Shawna has three giveaways going - that end today!! Holy moly! Go check em out!!! HURRRY!!

CLICK HERE or HERE. Or you can click HERE. But, they all go to the same place. So, HAPPY CLICKING! =)

A Muggy Ruggy Swap? #1

There were a few of us talkin bout doin a mug rug swap on #talknt - any takers leave a comment and we will get organized over the next week!

Now onto the good stuff!

A BIG Thank you to Chelsie of Sweet Baby Hiccups for thinking this up! YOU ROCK, sista!

As you all can see by the comments (THANK YOU!) there is real interest! WOOHOO for #talknt!

Details... Yes, unfortunately there are some details we need to attend to.

First off - this is an INTERNATIONAL swap. It is super exciting to get something in the mail from another country. I dont know bout the rest of you, but my mail man thinks Im crazy when I dance away from the mailbox. =) Maybe he is a little bit right...

Next - the deadline to enter the swap will be midnight Pacific Daylight Time on Friday April 29th.

This is a blind (HAHA! you cant see!) swap.

Lets keep the mug rugs to about a six by ten inch rectangle.

Please email me at muggyruggyswap at gmail dot com (I will send an email to those who have already commented!)

In the email please include the following:

• Your name
• Your mailing address
• One (yes you have to choose one) thing that you HATE on your fabric
• And please let me know if you really aren't okay with shipping internationally.

Your mug rugs will need to be in the mail on the way to thier new homes by Saturday May 14th. (It was going to be Friday the 13th, but I didnt want to scare you!)

Please feel free to include a little note about yourself, the address to your blog (if you have one), and your email address. Goodies are always welcome but are NOT mandatory.

Now. Here are a couple of links to tutorials that may help those who have never made a Mug Rug before:

Ryan Walsh of Im Just A Guy Who Quilts has two tutorials that will help for ideas. You can find them here and here.

Terri from Sew Fantastic has a cute idea here.

Florence over at Flossie Teacakes has a FANTASTIC binding tutorial that can easily be translated into mug rug size. You can find it here.

Please keep in mind that these are just ideas to be helpful. They are by no means directives to make your mug rug the same. If you 'google' mug rug tutorials you will find LOTS of great ideas and ways to make mug rugs.

Have fun and be creative!!

xo
Jacqueline & Chelsie

If you havent used it in six months...

You know the drill.

If you haven't seen it, used it, thought about it in six months it needs to go buh-bye.

{And let me tell you! Its been more than six months in this household}

So.

I posted on facebook for all the local crafty friends -

 if you want to come by and look through it before it gets put in a yardsale,

 leave me a comment on this post with a way to get ahold of you.

xoxo

Jacqueline

One Day Without Shoes

Yesterday I pirated (with permission, Arg!) Hannah's post - Blogging Barefoot Something Bigger Than Me.
Today I went the entire day without shoes.
I went to work.
I walked in the parkinglot (yes the very same one that has seen many a bar fight and much bar vomit)
I walked through my office.
I walked to the local bakery to meet a girlfriend for coffee - along the way a man asked me why I was barefoot.
He sat on a bench and took off his shoes and wished me a good day.
At the bakery, one of the owners asked why I was barefoot -
She, too, took off her shoes.
I walked back to my office
My path took me in front of two bars -
You and I both know how gross drunk people can be...
I used the restroom at work.
I drove to my old high school to pick up a sister.
I went to Safeway.
I came home.

I have shoes waiting for me to put on tomorrow.
I have disgusting feet that will be washed before putting them in my bed.

I have a profound respect and severe heartache for each person that walks every day without shoes.

Shoes.
Something so simple, so incredibly taken for granted.

I will never look at a pair of shoes the same way again.
I promise.

{For more information on One Day Without Shoes please visit the link here}
{For more information on Tom's Shoes please visit the link here}

Blogging Barefoot

My dear friend Hannah, over at Peggy Ann Design pleaded with the world to join the movement- the One Day Without Shoes movement. I have asked her permission and she has granted it - the following is from Hannah's blog, but honeslty, friends, I couldn't say it better.

Blogging Barefoot: Something Bigger Than Me

Today I will be barefoot. 
I will go through my workday without shoes, including trips to my office's bathroom and kitchen. 
I will get gas this afternoon and probably cringe as I carefully step around the spilled gasoline on the ground.
I will take packages to the post office and hopefully not get kicked out. 
I will spend One Day Without Shoes. 

But then tonight, I will take a hot shower and wash my dirty feet. 
I will eat a full, satisfying dinner. 
I will get a good night's rest in my own queen size bed. 
And tomorrow? I will put on my shoes and go about my day. 

I am lucky. WE are lucky. 
Children all over the world don't get the luxury of a pair of shoes. 
They deal with pain, injury, and disease as a result of the barefoot life they have to endure.
They are often excluded from school when they don't have shoes. 
This leads to a never-ending cycle of poverty and pain. 

My One Day Without Shoes may not mean much to many people. 
My two bare feet may not make a huge impact. 
But if I convince one person to try going barefoot, that makes four bare feet, and possibly a new TOMS Shoes owner. 

For every pair purchased, another pair is given to a child in need. 
A child that spends EVERY DAY Without Shoes. 
One For One. 

This movement is so much bigger than me, bigger than you.
It's bigger than any small thing we can contribute. 
It's bigger than 24 hours of bare feet. 

I am called to serve. To do for others. To give my time and my voice. 
And today?
Today I will give my feet. 

"They embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment -- a moment that will define a generation -- it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all."  

-President Barack Obama

I encourage you to go barefoot all day if you are able to do so. 

If you are blogging barefoot today, please link up your post below. 

Help me spread the word about the impact that a single pair of shoes can have on a child's life. 

Link up your blog post showing your bare feet! {click here to find the link up button}

I will be going barefoot. And I will be showing a photo of my nasty disgusting feet at the end of the day. Will you?

Thank you again, Hannah, for allowing me to use your words (and your feet!).

xo,
Jacqueline

Blogger Shame? Guilt?

I have been shamed into blogging.

Or maybe guilted into it.

This process brought me to a few questions:

• Why do I not blog regularly?
• What is the thought process that goes into a blog post?
• Have I been avoiding this out of fear of 'will they like it'?

Then I thought about it.

I really dont give a flying eff if you like my blog or not.

Key words: MY BLOG.

So. Here it is.

I dont blog regularly because I don't.

I will try to get better about it. For myself.

I think this is called 'guilt free blogging'

I LIKE IT!

The thought process - well, frankly, I do think I have  been OVER thinking it.

So, no more thinking.

{well, minimal thinking, anyway!}

Prepare yourself for more rambling -

which will therefore lead to -

You've guessed it!

More posting.

I wont always have something witty or smart to say.

I wont always be cheery and bright.

But I will try my darndest to be present

And it will always be honest

And heartfelt.

xoxo

Jacqui