Happy New Year! I hope you and yours had a wonderful Christmas and a great celebration last night! I am ever so grateful for the last year and am looking forward to all that 2013 brings. I have had a wonderful and restful break at home with my family during our annual holiday hiatus. Shop hours will resume tomorrow! Here’s a peek at some of the yummy fabrics I’ll be incorporating into items I’ll be making for the shop and home this year. Here’s to a creative 2013!
Category: Quilting & Sewing
Jan
01
Happy New Year
0
comments
Oct
27
Halloween Scramble
I owe my love for Halloween to my mom-she would make popcorn balls, caramel apples, carve pumpkins with us, decorate the house, and even make our costumes each year. Now that I have my own household, family, job, and business, too – I wonder how she did it all.
Are you and your little ones ready for Halloween? We’ll be scrambling this weekend to decorate the front door (better late than never), unpack and set out the modest Halloween decor we still have stored, and get treats ready for Halloween. I’m hoping to finally make and decorate some sugar cookies with some Halloween cookie cutters I procured a decade ago. Each year I want to do this or do that for Halloween but it just doesn’t happen-and that’s okay. I almost succumbed to not having a costume for our baby’s first Halloween last year. I knew I would regret that, so, in just a couple hours the night before Halloween using a pattern from an old issue of a Martha Stewart Kids magazine, I made a fish costume for the baby. It came out pretty cute if I may say so myself! Tip: If you need to enlarge a pattern, use wrapping paper that has 1×1 grids on the back–buy a bunch on sale after the holidays. 
On that note, we’ll be having a Halloween Costume Contest on Wed., Oct. 31st at 5pm for children ages 0-12. Kindly let us know if your little one will be participating by commenting below, via our website, FB, or calling 956-968-READ so we may have enough treats for all! Hope to see you and yours then!
0
comments
Aug
08
A year ago tonight…
…on 08.08.08 at the Villa de Cortez, my husband and I celebrated our marriage with a wonderful wedding reception with family and friends. We were married a few weeks earlier in the San Antonio Temple. Here is a little peek into our celebration…
All our floral centerpieces were set atop a stack of vintage books surrounded by amber votives.
Our guest book table.
The photo bookmark favors were a surprise from my parents who are professional photographers…they photographed our wedding day photos in San Antonio. A photographer friend of mine photographed our reception photos so my parents could enjoy the evening. We had fabric squares and fabric markers available so guests could write a message…they will be part of the backing of a quilt that is in the works. Hopefully I will get that done by our 10th anniversary–I have nine years now…
Our Wedding Cake
We danced all night.
Here are some photos and some details from our wedding day in San Antonio a few weeks before our reception…
My mother made my wedding dress and my daughter’s wedding day dress and reception dress. Believe it or not, my bouquet and my daughter’s pomander ball cost more than the price of the fabric for my wedding dress! My florist in San Antonio was great–we were able to work everything out via e-mail & phone. They used the fabric I shipped them to wrap the bouquet and other accessories. She even helped me find a hair stylist who was willing to do my hair before the crack of dawn.
Together Forever…
After the marriage ceremony, we had a lunch at El Jarro. I’m wearing a sheath my mother made with leftover fabric and lace. Our actual wedding day cake was a delicious fruit topped cake from H-E-B which the small wedding party had no problem scarfing down since we had no choice but to eat it all since we were away from home. My little one wasn’t too happy after this photo once she discovered she wasn’t staying in San Antonio with us.
♥
Indeed, I’ve had much to celebrate this season–our first wedding anniversary and the 8th anniversary of my business. As with all celebrations, there is gratitude–I am grateful for my patient husband, my precocious little one, my ever supportive family, and all my wonderful friends and customers that have supported my business all these years. Above all, I am grateful for my Father in Heaven for all my blessings.
♥
If you’re planning a wedding these were some of my resources…Fabric, Dos Rios, McAllen; Reception Venue, Villa de Cortez, Weslaco; Reception Flowers, Something Special, Weslaco; Vintage books, Friends of the Weslaco Public Library Bookstore; Votives, Jamali Garden; Reception Cake, Ybarra’s, Weslaco; DJ, Jump & Party, Brownsville; Reception Caterer, Oyoque’s, Mercedes; Wedding Announcements, Wedding Paper Divas; San Antonio Wedding Portraits by my mom & dad, Cuadra’s Fine Photography, Mercedes.
1
comments
Jul
24
Pioneer Day
Today is Pioneer Day in my church…a day to remember the sacrifices early church members made on their trek across the plains to Utah. Tomorrow, we’ll be having a celebration at our local chapel so I am making my little one a pioneer outfit–bonnet, dress, apron, and all. When I was her age, my mother did the same for me. 
I needed some bias tape to make the bonnet and fortunately my mother had some matching tape in her stash–can you believe this was originally purchased for 25 cents! I even used thread that was on a wooden spool that had belonged to my grandmother to complete the project. I felt a wonderful connection to my heritage as I was sewing this outfit…and although I may not have literal pioneer heritage, I am eternally grateful for the legacy of the early Saints. You can read more about the pioneers here.
0
comments
Feb
21
RGV Quilt Guild – 2009 Quilt Show
I closed the shop an hour early today so that I could get over to the Pharr Convention Center for the Rio Grande Valley Quilt Guild’s Quilt Show. I just couldn’t miss it! With only an hour to walk through the venue and admire all the beautiful quilts, I managed to find some great fabric to complete a project, purchase a couple of cute patterns, and meet up with some of my friends from my quilting bee. Thanks to my wonderful husband for accompanying me–reluctantly of course!
1
comments
Happy New Year
0
comments
Halloween Scramble
I owe my love for Halloween to my mom-she would make popcorn balls, caramel apples, carve pumpkins with us, decorate the house, and even make our costumes each year. Now that I have my own household, family, job, and business, too – I wonder how she did it all.
Are you and your little ones ready for Halloween? We’ll be scrambling this weekend to decorate the front door (better late than never), unpack and set out the modest Halloween decor we still have stored, and get treats ready for Halloween. I’m hoping to finally make and decorate some sugar cookies with some Halloween cookie cutters I procured a decade ago. Each year I want to do this or do that for Halloween but it just doesn’t happen-and that’s okay. I almost succumbed to not having a costume for our baby’s first Halloween last year. I knew I would regret that, so, in just a couple hours the night before Halloween using a pattern from an old issue of a Martha Stewart Kids magazine, I made a fish costume for the baby. It came out pretty cute if I may say so myself! Tip: If you need to enlarge a pattern, use wrapping paper that has 1×1 grids on the back–buy a bunch on sale after the holidays. 
On that note, we’ll be having a Halloween Costume Contest on Wed., Oct. 31st at 5pm for children ages 0-12. Kindly let us know if your little one will be participating by commenting below, via our website, FB, or calling 956-968-READ so we may have enough treats for all! Hope to see you and yours then!
0
comments
A year ago tonight…
…on 08.08.08 at the Villa de Cortez, my husband and I celebrated our marriage with a wonderful wedding reception with family and friends. We were married a few weeks earlier in the San Antonio Temple. Here is a little peek into our celebration…
All our floral centerpieces were set atop a stack of vintage books surrounded by amber votives.
Our guest book table.
The photo bookmark favors were a surprise from my parents who are professional photographers…they photographed our wedding day photos in San Antonio. A photographer friend of mine photographed our reception photos so my parents could enjoy the evening. We had fabric squares and fabric markers available so guests could write a message…they will be part of the backing of a quilt that is in the works. Hopefully I will get that done by our 10th anniversary–I have nine years now…
Our Wedding Cake
We danced all night.
Here are some photos and some details from our wedding day in San Antonio a few weeks before our reception…
My mother made my wedding dress and my daughter’s wedding day dress and reception dress. Believe it or not, my bouquet and my daughter’s pomander ball cost more than the price of the fabric for my wedding dress! My florist in San Antonio was great–we were able to work everything out via e-mail & phone. They used the fabric I shipped them to wrap the bouquet and other accessories. She even helped me find a hair stylist who was willing to do my hair before the crack of dawn.
Together Forever…
After the marriage ceremony, we had a lunch at El Jarro. I’m wearing a sheath my mother made with leftover fabric and lace. Our actual wedding day cake was a delicious fruit topped cake from H-E-B which the small wedding party had no problem scarfing down since we had no choice but to eat it all since we were away from home. My little one wasn’t too happy after this photo once she discovered she wasn’t staying in San Antonio with us.
♥
Indeed, I’ve had much to celebrate this season–our first wedding anniversary and the 8th anniversary of my business. As with all celebrations, there is gratitude–I am grateful for my patient husband, my precocious little one, my ever supportive family, and all my wonderful friends and customers that have supported my business all these years. Above all, I am grateful for my Father in Heaven for all my blessings.
♥
If you’re planning a wedding these were some of my resources…Fabric, Dos Rios, McAllen; Reception Venue, Villa de Cortez, Weslaco; Reception Flowers, Something Special, Weslaco; Vintage books, Friends of the Weslaco Public Library Bookstore; Votives, Jamali Garden; Reception Cake, Ybarra’s, Weslaco; DJ, Jump & Party, Brownsville; Reception Caterer, Oyoque’s, Mercedes; Wedding Announcements, Wedding Paper Divas; San Antonio Wedding Portraits by my mom & dad, Cuadra’s Fine Photography, Mercedes.
1
comments
Pioneer Day
Today is Pioneer Day in my church…a day to remember the sacrifices early church members made on their trek across the plains to Utah. Tomorrow, we’ll be having a celebration at our local chapel so I am making my little one a pioneer outfit–bonnet, dress, apron, and all. When I was her age, my mother did the same for me.
I needed some bias tape to make the bonnet and fortunately my mother had some matching tape in her stash–can you believe this was originally purchased for 25 cents! I even used thread that was on a wooden spool that had belonged to my grandmother to complete the project. I felt a wonderful connection to my heritage as I was sewing this outfit…and although I may not have literal pioneer heritage, I am eternally grateful for the legacy of the early Saints. You can read more about the pioneers here.
0
comments
RGV Quilt Guild – 2009 Quilt Show
I closed the shop an hour early today so that I could get over to the Pharr Convention Center for the Rio Grande Valley Quilt Guild’s Quilt Show. I just couldn’t miss it! With only an hour to walk through the venue and admire all the beautiful quilts, I managed to find some great fabric to complete a project, purchase a couple of cute patterns, and meet up with some of my friends from my quilting bee. Thanks to my wonderful husband for accompanying me–reluctantly of course!
1
comments
Shop happenings & insight into the life of wife, mother, bookseller, & educator Sarah Cuadra.
