Sapo Verde

What happens when...

2010-03-18T15:08:00.005-05:00

So when this happens to me...

...this (among many repeately horrible medical things) happens to me constantly.

So now that I am 32 wks along, I am doing better, but Hyperemesis Gravidarum is no joke with me. I would say I've had at least 100 IV bags run through me since September, countless needle/injection pokes in my arms & legs (can you see some of the arm bruises & how skinny I was from the severe weight loss?) and a crazy amount of medication to keep me alive during this pregnancy. On a good week, I needed to have 1 liter of IV fluids every other day. On a bad week, I was admitted into the hospital for days and days.

So with the worst of HG behind me, I am finally having more up days than down and do not feel or look terminally ill but somewhat pregnant. Baby is fine through all of this...it's generally the mother that goes through hell with a strong case of HG - as long as the mother can receive the right medical care.

I am so enjoying getting back to doing some 'normal' things like sewing or taking (short!) walks with my girls. Before I know it, this babe will be here and I'll be sleep deprived and all that comes with a new wee one. Thank you everyone for your prayers and well wishes. <3

Do you knit? Want to trade?

2009-09-01T15:53:00.006-05:00

I have *forever* been in love with little knit things similar to what www.blablakids.com sells. I could buy just about everything on that site if I could afford it. LOL Somehow they just melt my heart. If anyone knits those types of items (dolls, finger puppets, backpacks, rattles, etc) and likes my work at Sapo Verde, I would love to work a trade with you.

I mean...who doesn't think these are adorable?

Their dolls are so unique - I just love them :p

Anyways, I just thought it was worth a blog to see if I could somehow work a knitting trade. :)

Vintage Fun

2009-08-27T16:08:00.003-05:00

Yesterday I had the girls help me sort out my vintage button collection. I had bought some cute jars at Ikea and wanted to color sort them. There were soooo many buttons that I didn't have enough jars. I only bought 4 when I should of bought 12. LOL Anyways, I snapped some pics of some of the coolest buttons and then of my newly displayed button jars, which I think are too pretty!

Here's the button trays that were my grandmothers. I'll use these until I can get back over to Ikea for more jars.

Jars displayed above my serging table. L to R blues & greens, pinks, whites, orange & yellows.

And then as I was organizing, I snapped a quick pic of some of my vintage ribbon and trim collection. Such cool stuff back then! I'm a sucker for vintage. :)

Oh and just for fun, here's a pic of most of my vintage ric rac collection!

Twist on ModKids & DWK collaboration!

2009-08-26T15:18:00.002-05:00

I recently made a dress for a customer using Patty Young's Modkid Frida pattern. The customer wanted it to be a bit more grown up looking so I changed a few things and really like the outcome! She wanted me to use the same Tillbrook fabric that I had used on my own dds Frida dress, which I just love!
The changes I made were to eliminate the sleeves and pockets completely, and then I added a sash that is sewn to the dress in the front and then ties around the back. What do you think of the results? I really like this pattern!

Front:

Back:

Also, I wanted to post pics of a recent collaboration I did with Andrea of Dwell Wool Knits on the Universal Mama hyenacart congo. I cannot tell you how much I wish this set was mine! I love that yarn colorway (Mosaic Moon winter pear) and adore anything with birdies! This round neck top is from an Ottobre pattern.

~ The start of Fall ~

2009-08-06T14:27:00.002-05:00

More sewing for my girls - although this time they are dresses that will be layered up during the fall! I've been itching to play with some of my more 'fall-ish' fabrics and spent the last day and a half on these.

Tiered knot dress

Panel knot dress

Tons of mixing and matching between fabric designers and lines. I love how these turned out!

A dress of my own.

2009-07-27T14:09:00.003-05:00

Abigail just loves twirly clothes and it's starting to even rub off on Evangeline. LOL I've had this dress idea in my head for awhile now and finally had a few hours to sit down and make it come to life. No pattern, just the idea! I love how it turned out...what do you think?
front:

back:

with the neighbor's new kitty:

The straps come from the back, loop on the front of the dress through button holes and then tie behind the neck. It makes for a *very* fun look!

I've yet to tire from girly sewing!

~Down on the Farm~

2009-07-02T15:18:00.004-05:00

So I took the girls to a local farm this morning b/c there had been a pony born not too long ago and the owner said we could come pet him and the mama horse. So I brought along my camera and snapped some shots. Don't know if you can tell, but it was HOT!!

And then here's a dress I won in a blog contest and A just loves it!!

She loves twirling and this fit the bill nicely!

Girly sewing!

2009-06-23T16:53:00.005-05:00

I've been soooo busy during the month of June, but I always try to squeeze in some personal sewing time for me and my girls. Here are some recent pics in the garden in outfits sewn by me - can you tell I've been practicing with my new camera?!?!

Squeeeee!!!

2009-06-03T18:02:00.001-05:00

This is what just landed on my doorstep :D

Finally a decent camera! I'll be soooo enjoying snapping pics of my girls as well as my Verde goods.

Shamless Bribery!

2009-05-03T01:45:00.003-05:00

Yes, I am going to shamelessly bribe you guys. hehe! I entered a contest and need your votes. If you vote for me, I will hold a lottery and the winner will receive a $20 credit to my store for anything that I stock! That can be towards wool, tee appliques, wool embellishing, sewn by me clothing, etc. So here's the deal...cast your vote for me by 10pm EST and email me @ sapoverde@live.com with a pic of the receipt you can print for casting your vote. By emailing me the pic of your cast vote, you will be entered into the $20 store credit lottery. Now where and how to vote...
Here:

You must add "the prism" to your cart and completely check out. There is no cost involved, except your time. After casting your vote you will have the option to print out the receipt of your vote. Then snap a pic of the receipt and email it to me with "I voted" as the subject.

Thanks for putting up with my silliness! x]

Update on Sapo Verde Wool color choices.

2009-04-21T11:21:00.003-05:00

So I've added some new colors to my wool choices and wanted to post the pics. Sometimes they don't look the same in real life as the do in pictures, so I hope these pics capture the colors as best as possible.

From L to R: nickel, asphalt, toasty gray, cafe, sock monkey, blueberry, sky, arizona, robin's blue, cucumber, limelight, canary, melon, cranberry, lipstick and thistle.

I still need to update my wool crepe color pics and will add to this post once that is done. ;)

Roses in full swing...

2009-04-20T22:28:00.004-05:00

So I definitely have a green thumb for those of you who do not know me well. Gardening is another way that I find artistic satisfaction in life. However it is very challenging to grow things that will survive and thrive through our rough 100 degree summers here in Texas. And I am not a gardener who will babysit a plant it's entire life. I don't mind talking sweetly to it for the first year, but after that, you either make it or you don't. So that leaves me to be very waterwise and use well adapted, native varieties that are drought tolerant if I want to have a happy garden here. With that said, I have some roses that just don't stop! Every year they get happier and happier, despite the harsh summers. Here are some pics I snapped this morning of my roses. They are in full blooming swing!

This was one of the very first plants I planted when we moved to our house. There was zero landscape so this baby has lasted the longest.

Here are some buds from that same bush that are just gorgeous...

It is a tiny specimen that works well as cut flowers for little girls! hehe.

Next is a climber rose that is in my back yard. He is wild and unruly and I have to give him a stern haircut each year since our backyard is small. But he blooms profusely several times a year and that makes for a great view out of my back door. :)

Next is a super fragrant rose that is the typical rose shape most people are familiar with. I rescued this beauty from a jobsite where my dh was working. It was going to be ripped out and thrown away, but I brought my shovel and rehomed her. She's so pretty that my next door neighbor went out and bought one too. Because this one was so neglected for years at a vacant old home, she requires very little attention, despite her gorgeous show. My kind of plant. hehe.

And finally the new kid on the block is showing she is happy as a lark in my garden. I received this plant as a gift last fall and it took me almost a month to get her in the ground. lol But once I finally put hand to shovel, I put her next to my favorite bird bath. She's blooming up a storm, despite the many hours of shade she gets. I'm sure she will appreciate the shade here in a couple of months. I know I will ;) Seems she likes cluster blooms as you can see...

Here's a pic to show you how profusely she's blooming despite her size. E always loves getting in the flower bed there and playing in the bird bath water. So I finally put some smooth (native) sandstone rocks there so she wouldn't squish other plants. Oh and that's a single layer wool skirtie of mine that she's wearing.

And finally, here are a few pics today that I thought I would add. The iris don't like that I'm talking so much about the roses b/c they are happy and blooming right now too and feel a little jealous.

Isn't this step railing pretty? I live in a historic little neighborhood and just love this railing so much I wish it was mine. *sigh*

And here is A with her daily roly poly find. She loves finding these guys and has a little roly poly playground that I got her for christmas. Fun way to watch them in the house.

So that's a little gardening fun for you. I need to get some dried molasses to rid my yard of fire ants for the season! Always a battle here in TX. grrrr!!! Happy green thumbs to all of you :)

~Hopscotch Capris Preview~

2009-04-10T15:24:00.004-05:00

I know a number of you have been waiting for my new wool item to be released. Here are some pics today of a pair on E. These are undyed so you can see how they fit. These are a loose leg style with ruffles and an elastic waist - perfect for a game of hopscotch! I plan on making these from a nice 97/3 wool blend that has a wonderful texture which mimics linen. This particular wool is a bit lighter weight than the current 95/5 used on my other wool items so that it can breathe enough on your little one since these have more coverage than normal wool shorts. I hope you like them as much as I am! These will be adorable paired with swing tops and dresses or anything girly you want to put with them :] I will be starting with testers in about a week! And just so you know, these are a totally different pattern than my classic and board shorts. These are cut differently and have a side seam (which my other items do not). So take a peek and see what you think...

And here's the cute pic of E holding a "baby worm" that was promised in my last blog post. Isn't that dirty little hand adorable holding that little earth worm? Don't worry, we put it back into the dirt once we planted the geraniums. :] We love gardening around here!

Spring has sprung!

2009-04-02T18:28:00.002-05:00

Me and the girls have been playing out in my garden alot lately. Beautiful sunny days has given us the opportunity to get some vitamin D. We've been digging in the dirt and E's favorite thing is to find 'baby worms' and hold them. (lots of earthworms in the soil - yay!) A's favorite thing is to help dig and to find 'roly poly's' so she can play with them. Here's a few pics of the first spring flowers that have popped open.
The early daffodils:

The snow drops:

Some tulips:

I have more garden fun pics to upload. I've got some cute little dirty hands holding bugs to share. :] I know I've been a horrible blogger, but really do try! lol

Collaborations...and summer wool.

2009-01-25T15:10:00.005-06:00

I really enjoyed being able to offer a collab set with Amy of Crankypants! It was just perfect for the monster stocking this month. I have another collab going up with Claudia of Stickypeas next week on her HC. The collaboration is the start of my spring/summer instock wool and clothing items for the year.

Speaking of summer wool...I have been tweaking my wool shorts pattern and have decided to offer longer and shorter inseam options. The longer version will be board shorts for the boys and capris for the girls. Then I will have my standard, above the knee shorts like last year. Here's a pic of some of the capri/board shorts on my dd2. These are size ML and yes, it's been warm enough to be comfortably dressed like this already. :o)

Sapo Verde is one! Happy Birthday!!

2009-01-07T15:48:00.004-06:00

It has been exactly one year since Sapo Verde began on hyena cart! I cannot believe it's been a year honestly! Thank you for all the support over these many months. I could not do it without my fantastic customers. I am alway amazed by how many repeat customers I have. It's truely and honor to sew for you and yours :)

~Christmas is a wrap~

2008-12-30T23:27:00.002-06:00

So as Christmas festivities are coming to a close with my family and we take down the decorations, it made me sad this year. I just love our simple, classic Christmas decor we put up around our home. We live in a wonderful little historic bungalow built in 1922 and the house always seems happy to be decorated during Christmas time. So I thought I would share a couple pics from our home! First is our fireplace - I just adore our old fashioned knit stockings :p

Then there is the cute little nativity set that I bought at a yard sale one summer. The girls just love to play with it! I found the little wooden barn at a thrift store and the set fits in it perfectly!

I hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas, big or small, with those you love. Happy Holidays from my family <3

CPSIA - what does the future hold for Sapo Verde?

2008-12-10T12:46:00.003-06:00

Well, some of you may not realized that there are new CPSIA regulations going into place mid February which will affect almost every wahm out there. I do not have any intention of closing up shop because of this. I am reading and investigating what will be required for the new testings implemented. I hope to comply with the new regulations instead of just quit. I love what I do, enjoy working with you mamas to make diapering as fun as possible. So know that I'm not closing up if at all possible :) But between now and then, I am going to try and hustle and have 3, maybe 4 fantastic stocking themes so that if things do put a temporary hold on my selling, you will all of had the chance to get a bit more verde in your life! :D If you have any questions about this or would like to email me if interested in custom work, I'm always here!!
xo
Nissi

Winter Wonderland arrives at Sapo Verde

2008-11-25T22:22:00.003-06:00

I am so excited to be offering this 'winter wonderland' stocking this week on Black Friday!! It's such fun to create winter theme designs and I hope you find something that will make your kiddos wardrobe a bit more festive!

Also, I am stocking custom slots for the much anticipated 'chica pants' as well as some wool seconds at a discount to clear out more space around here. lol And in the spirit of christmas, I wanted to offer a few things for older children, and not just for diaper wearing littles; in case you'd like to get some christmas shopping out of the way. Stay tuned for more items to be stocked between now and Friday :)

As always, I truely appreciate all the support from my customers! I love sewing for you and strive to exceed your expectations with my creativity <3

Many thanks for your patience <3

2008-11-05T16:57:00.002-06:00

I just wanted to say that I have the best customers ever!!! I so appreciate everyone's patience as I work through custom orders. Since my last stocking, my family has endured many difficulties which has set back my sewing a bit. Thankfully I am getting caught up now, but October was not a kind month. We had three boughts of sickness in the house, I had a death in the family which was completely unexpected and in between all of that, my dh was crazily assaulted by some drug addict in a parking lot one evening. Everyone, including my dh, are better now...but it's been a rough road. I am just about back on track with my sewing and hope to offer more Verde fluff again soon :) Thanks everyone for your kind words and patience as life hit hard here.
xo
Nissi

Enchanted Forest stocking

2008-11-03T20:50:00.005-06:00

Thanks so much to all the mamas who showed up for my 'enchanted forest' stocking. I had been dying to do that theme for months! There were so many designs I wish I could of just kept for my dd2, but that's the way it goes being a wahm - right? lol

I also appreciate all of the custom slot buyers, as it's just as much fun working with you all to create fun stuff as it is on my own. Here's some recent custom work I've finished for different ones...there's been a big Jolly Roger/pirate theme requested lately. Loads of fun!!

Retro week - a thing of the past

2008-10-03T00:30:00.002-05:00

I really enjoyed doing all the fun retro/vintage inspired designs for my first winter wool stocking. Thanks to all my shoppers and buyers - it was a near total sellout within the hour that everything stocked! Much appreciated and I look forward to sewing more great things for your fantastic kiddos!!!

More collaborations very soon :-)

2008-09-09T23:01:00.002-05:00

I finished up my second collaboration with Goodmama and it shipped to GM headquarters last week! It is my first time to do a collab with my wool and I am very excited about it. I hope you all enjoy the creativity and fun that I came up with. I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to work with such a big wahm, being so small myself and hope that you see the generosity that Suzanne and her team extend to those of us who live stocking to stocking, so to speak. :) Here's a look at one of my covers that will be a set along with a print Goodmama diaper...

Winter wool is coming along!

2008-09-09T22:44:00.003-05:00

So I've been busy as ever trying to finalize my wool designs for winter. I have both a casual, wide leg pair and a girly pair that will be showing up soon. Here is a sneak peak at a pair in my yummy 'toasty grey' color...

Testers are helping me finish up the final tweaks and we will be on our way. Thank you to everyone who has shown interest in my winter wool! I look forward to offering you great interlock wool covers that have fun embellishments Sapo Verde style and twists on the traditional winter wool that is currently available :)

Sewing passion....

2008-08-06T15:08:00.002-05:00

I have been doing alot of learning this past year and truely enjoy sewing for my family! Having two girls makes it that much more fun to gush over gorgeous fabrics and patterns. I continue to discover more and more sites, blogs, designers, patterns and people who love this and are waaaaay ahead of me in their sewing experience. I find my aspirations far exceed my skill, but each day as I sit at my sewing machine or serger, I know I grow closer to what I hope to be and accomplish one day. Today I stumbled upon someones blog who is both fabric and pattern designer and *love* what I see. :p Go check out Lila Tueller's blog here and enter her contest for one *gorgeous* handbag: http://lilatuellerdesigns.blogspot.com/2008/07/woodland-bloom-giveaway-contest.html I can't wait to create more patterns of my own and hope that it extends much further than my current cloth diaper cover designs. :)

Lots of collaborations coming very soon!!!

2008-08-04T18:01:00.004-05:00

I have been working on several different collaborations recently and hope that you enjoy them! It is so great to get to know different people and put our 'products' together for one great set! The first three that are either done and soon to showcase or in the works right now are with Dunk-n-fluff, Goodmama, Sustainablebabyish and Stickypeas! Please watch for them in the next month or two. :)

Wool is finally stocking - Yay!!

2008-07-22T23:57:00.003-05:00

OK so I have been madly sewing to get my stocking up for today as promised. Unfortunately things have been a bit slow on the size large testing so I will only be stocking size small and medium (with one lone M/L) right now.
I amalso still getting the swing of sewing & dyeing this many things at once so I will not be one of those wahms who can do massive stockings right now. I am thinking to stock wool covers once a month, so if you see something you like, grab it while you can :-) I may up the stocking frequency as things get more smooth.
Lastly, I have been asked several times now if I have plans for longies. Yes! I am just still trying to get my shorties and skirties off the ground and so once that is cruising, I will begin testing my longies. So stay tuned.

Stocking soon! Thanks for your patience :)

2008-07-09T22:23:00.004-05:00

So now that I am back from our out of state family reunion travels (phew!), I am chomping at the bit to finish up the final details of wool tweaking so that I can stock covers soon! I will have shorties and skirties to stock in sizes small through large very soon. I will also be offering some new slots for velour diaper applique, as well as custom wool embellishment and tee slots. It's gonna be a busy next few weeks for me as I begin this new phase! I appreciate all of my testers for their time and patience. But mostly I want to thank Erin of Sustainablebabyish for her encouragement, help and friendship in this new journey of creating wool covers :-) Thank you so very much Erin!!! So to everyone that buys my variety covers, shop Sustainablebabyish for all your essential covers!

Goodmama collaboration thoughts

2008-06-20T14:08:00.003-05:00

Thank you everyone who bid on the goodmama/sapo verde collaboration yesterday and today! There was way more interest in it than I thought would be since I'm so unknown still. lol I don't have any glorious plans to tell you about for my earnings, except to pay off my serger and some of my initial wool costs. I really appreciate it because I just don't like being in debt when possible. I truly hope everyone who won these sets enjoys them as much as I put time, thought and effort into them :)

Are you ready to Rhumba?

2008-06-05T23:00:00.006-05:00

My first skirtie pattern is well on its way and is now with my testers. I am SUPER excited about these, as I love fresh, girly stuff for diapering! lol Here's a sneak peak at my up and coming Rhumba skirtie :D

My dd really loved hers and started trying to twirl seconds after this photo was taken.

I am hoping to begin stocking my wool early to mid July, so stay tuned!

Everything sold out???

2008-05-31T23:42:00.003-05:00

Hi everyone! I just wanted to let you all know that the reason most everything shows that it is sold out right now in my cart is because I am going to be going out of town in about a week and didn't want purchases made that I could not fullfil promptly. I will be putting everything back in stock that was previously available when I return. Also, I have recently had several requests for more custom slots. I will be stocking the week of the 15th for all interested. Thank you for your support! I very much appreciate it!

Wool Covers in the works!

2008-05-28T11:17:00.005-05:00

Many of you may not know this, but I have been hard at work to create my very own patterns for wool covers. For those of you who want to buy 'the whole package' instead of mailing me your covers for embellishment, this is for you!! I am working now with testers for my patterns of interlock shorties, soakers and skirties. Eventually I will be offering longies, but that season is quickly behind us now. I am very excited about this and hope you give them a try! Here's a sneak peak at some shorties...

No updates?

2008-05-28T11:06:00.002-05:00

So, to everyone who has checked my blog, you probably know that I haven't updated it in forever. It's because I'm such a dork and forgot my password and never took the time to reset it. lol Sorry everyone! I'm back in now and will update and utilize it better now. Promise :D

Birds of a Feather...

2008-02-25T22:19:00.005-06:00

This week I have several different bird theme designs! I adore birdie anything and had a lot of fun doing these designs. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
I am also stocking a new custom slot for hemp/cotton fleece diaper conversion. I loved how my bunny on my Sustainablebabyish fitted diaper turned out and received many positive remarks concerning it so want to offer that for someone!
Last week I also received my boutique fabric orders and white t-shirts in the mail and am very excited at what all I am planning for them! Wipes are definitely in the near future and am drooling over the quality of velours I got! Yum! There will be some fun stuff in the future here at Sapo Verde and it's not just wipes, hint hint!

Week 2 - Space Invaders

2008-02-20T12:21:00.003-06:00

Hi everyone! I have chosen to stock some of my favorite embellishments this week. I created these space martians right after new years and just adore how they turned out! I hope you do too. Also stocking this week are a couple of patches that I made that would be fun for a soaker or longies. And if you ever have any questions, please do not hesitate to email me :-)

Opening week is here!!!

2008-02-10T16:02:00.000-06:00

Well Sapo Verde is ready to open! We will be stocking several yummy wool embellishments this week including, cupcakes, chocolate covered strawberries and more! We will be stocking weekly during the first month and then set the regular pace after that, TBA. Thank you to all who have encouraged me to begin this adventure and thanks to all my customers who helped me get started.