New ribbon!

I placed my very first online ribbon order last week! I was very nervous, that it wouldn't be good quality, wouldn't be enough to make more than 1 hair bow, or wouldn't arrive in time.... I was so wrong! I ordered from http://www.theribbonretreat.com/. It arrived within 3 days! I usually buy ribbon from Hobby Lobby, Joann's, or Wal-Mart, since I like to have what I want right away, and so I can take it home and immediately get started on it.... so, I was a bit impatient for this ribbon to arrive! So, I was thrilled when I came home to find it waiting for me!

The ribbon retreat sells ribbon by the spools, but also sells color coordinating sets. It's so overwhelming to look at tons of ribbon at one time, I always go for the bright colors or the polk-a-dots, so I decided that I would order some of the color coordinating sets. The site says that you get enough ribbo to make 2 bows. I will probably be able to squeeze out 3 bows out of the sets that I bought. The first set I bought is "juicy watermelon" and the 2nd is "4th of July".

I got started right away on a watermelon bow for Gretchen. She has this adorable yellow bubble outfit with watermelon's for this summer. I wanted a large bow, and that's how it turned out! I put it on her head this morning, and it's huge! DJ thinks it's too big, but I think it will be just right, and it will last for years to come!

I haven't started on her 4th of July bows, yet. I want to make her a pigtail set for 4th of July, although she already has a small bow that my mom's friend bought for her last year. Gran is making Gretchen a pillow case dress for the 4th. Personally, I want her pigtail bows to be really "over the top", but DJ has already asked me to make sure that the bows aren't as big as the watermelon bow! So, I'll have to scale it down a little bit!

Sometimes, I don't think I'm great at making boutique style hair bows, there are times where I don't get the loops exactly even, but with the watermelon ribbon; it was so easy! Well, not very easy, but easier! I am so pleased with the look of the bow so far! I do still need to buy a watermelon center for the bow before it is complete.

Anyway, I was too excited to not share! Hopefully, I will be able to make similar bows to sell on the website!

Caring for your tutu

Tutu's are simply adorable! Your little girl will love wearing hers, whether it's around the house, on a shopping trip, or to a birthday party. However, with the many times it will be worn, you have to wonder how to care for the tutu!

Your tutu will arrived wrapped in tissue paper, most likely in a tyvek envelope. You will need to remove your tutu and unwrap. Hang your tutu on a hanger, and with your fingers brush the tulle straight down. If your tutu is wrinkled, you can hang it in the bathroom while you shower and let the steam work out the wrinkles.

To wash your tutu, hand wash or spot clean only. Hang to dry. You do not want to put your tutu in the dryer, as it will melt!

Once your little girl wears her first tutu, she'll fall in love! Why not, let her express herself and wear it all the times, especially since you know now how to care for it!

Orders

April has been a busy month for Honey Pie Accessories! We've had orders for pillow case dresses, hair bows, bow bands, bow holders, and burp cloths. I am almost caught up on all the orders, so I thought that I'd post a few pictures of what we've been working on.

Twitter

Twitter is the new social networking site. I'm not great at learning how to run new programs, but I thought I'd give it a try. You can "follow" people; friends, celebrities, groups, strangers, etc. People "tweet" about what they are doing, in a tagline, so to speak. I'll be honest, it is not something that I check every day. I have a busy life, but every once in a while I'll tweet about life, my business, offer promotions, etc. So, if you'd like, follow me on twitter. www.twitter.com/gsmommy126

How to wash your pillow case dress

I don't know about you, but I hate doing laundry! Especially, when I have a new item and I'm not exactly sure how it should be washed. I hate shrinking clothes or ruining them in the wash.... i'm just not that good at laundry! So, I wanted to share the best way that I've found to wash your pillow case dress.

I bought a sweater/lingerie laundry bag from Wal-Mart. It's a mesh zipper bag found in the laundry aisle. The dress easily fits inside, and the bag zips closed. Then, I simply wash it with like colors on cold water (I wash everything on cold water!) in the gentle cycle. You can either lay flat to dry or you can go ahead and throw it in the dryer; make sure it is still in the mesh laundry bag! I do not remove the ribbons on the dress, and they manage to stay in place. I have found that the pillow case dresses do have to be ironed! I simply use a warm iron on a cotton setting.

If, for some reason, the ribbon does fall out when the dress is washed. Simply, add a safety pin onto one end of the ribbon, and push it through the hem at the top. If your ribbon gets snagged a bit from the safety pin, snip it off, and then quickly run a lighter across the edge of the ribbon. This heat seals the ribbon and helps to prevent fraying!

Happy Laundry day!

Lower Prices

Again, I lowered my prices on my hair bows. I have done this twice now since opening my website. Obviously, as a "business woman" it's not something that one would want to do. But, as a mom it's something that is necessary, espcially in our troubled economy. The down side is that I am now charging for shipping. Bows will be shipped in boxes, so they will not get smashed, and will continue to hold their shape in the shipping process. Other items will be shipped in tyvek envelopes; these are very sturdy envelopes, and do not tear, so items will be protected. They are also wrapped in tissue paper to keep clean.

Stacked bows, bows with loops, and bows with sprays are now $4.00. Most of them had been marked to $6.00
Boutique bows (small, medium, or large) are $3.00 each; lowered from $4-5.00, a matching pair of boutique bows will be $5.00
There are some very simple stacked boutiqie bows that fall directly between the prices at $3.50 each
Small bows and lined clips are $2.00 each, sometimes they will be $2.00 for a pair if they are simple or $3.00 for a pair if they take more time to make

At this time, prices for other products are not being lowered since these items cost more to make. I hope that by lowering these prices, that it will allow more mothers to afford adorable hair accessories for their daughter (s).

Pillow case dresses

GG's Collections

GG's Collections are created by Gretchen's gran (my mother).

My mother is a much better seamstress than I am, so I begged her to help create pillow case dresses for my little honey. And now, these adorable dresses are available to you!

At this time, we aren't making any pillow case dresses in advance. We want you to be able to fully customize your daughter's dress! If we make these dresses in advance, then you won't be able to choose key pieces to seperate your daughter's clothes from other's. GG will make a sample dress, that will be posted online. If you see a dress that you want, then you can order a dress that is pictured because we will have extra fabric available to create your dress. Then, you can make changes to ribbon color, hemlines, and monogramming.

You can also order a coordinating hair bow to match your dress! If you see a dress online that you would like us to create, send us a picture! Or, if you have colors and fabric in mind, let us know! Even if we don't have it available, we can create it for you!

We work with our customers to make sure they are satisfied! Let us work with you to create a custom pillow case dress for your daughter!

Pillow case dresses can be worn with leggings or jeans and with short or long sleeve shirts underneath. Once a dress becomes too short, it becomes an adorable shirt for your little honey!

Bunny and Carrot Clippie

How adorable for Easter! I found instructions to make a bunny rabbit and carrot clippie. I've listed these on my website, for only $5.00 each! The bunny sits on a non-slip alligator clip partially lined with light pink ribbon. The bunny has small googly eyes and an adorable satin pink bow tie. The carrot serves as a delicious bunny snack, also on a partially lined non-slip alligator clip.




You can buy these instructions to make your own from:




http://www.youcanmakethis.com/info/easter/Bunny-Curly-Carrot-Clippie-Instructions-.htm


Or, purchase the clippies:


http://honeypieaccessories.webs.com/apps/webstore/products/show/490968

Bunny is available in light or bright pink.

HPA

To view products go to http://www.honeypieaccessories.webs.com/
Accessorize your little honey!

Custom hair bows, tutus, bling, burp cloths, and pillow case dresses.