The 1st Annual It's a new year Baby! SALE

All of us at Elle Belle hope that your 2008 is off to a great start! To make room for new items, and thank you all for a terrific 2007, we’re offering our first annual It’s a new year Baby! sale. Check out all the details below or just click here to view everything that’s on sale for one week only.

50% off seasonal print pillowcase dresses
50% off seasonal print Mommy’s Favorite Tops
1/3 off ALL crinkle corner satin & fleece tag blankets
1/3 off select pillowcase dresses
1/3 off music box picture frames
30% off personalized tag blankets
20% off chalkboard placemats
20% off shopping cart/highchair covers

The Beanbag Groove

Just last week, we celebrated my daughter Elle’s 2nd birthday with lots of friends and family and Music with Mar. Mar is a very talented woman who lives here in the Tampa Bay area and has written and recorded some wonderful children’s music and developed a class that parents can bring their children to. Elle & I listen to Mar’s CDs in the car all the time, and love to go to Music with Mar classes to play and sing together. Mar said the other day “Elle’s in her very own “Music with Mar” world when she’s here” and what a happy world it is! One of Elle’s favorite Music with Mar songs is The Beanbag Groove. I made beanbags to include in the kid's favor bags with their names embroidered on them.

Once again my little one has inspired another Elle Belle product, and I’m looking forward to making another set (in a more child friendly fun print – I made these in black and white polka dot and music notes because that was theme for Elle’s party) very soon to list in my shop.

These beanbags fit so well with my desire to encourage my daughter’s curiosity and imaginative play. I am continually surprised by how creative her little mind is, even at only 2 years old. It’s so important to me to find toys for her that help her think on her own and provide more than just entertainment value. She’s been zipping around the living room while trying to balance the beanbag on her head, throwing it onto the wood floor to hear it splat, mushing the beans around with her little fingers, shaking it to a rhythm, counting each one, using it as a pillow for her dolls, pointing out the letters embroidered on them… it’s wonderful how even the simplest things can provide hours of enjoyment… and it didn’t even require batteries!

The finished size of these beanbags is 4x4 and I filled them with navy beans (they had a nice feel and make a good sound when they shake). They're so simple to maket, my only tips for you if you’re going to make some yourself is to set your stitch length shorter than usual to ensure there’s no gaps for beans to slip through and not to make the opening that you turn them through too small or it’ll be more difficult to pour the beans in. I made a “funnel” out of a piece of card stock to pour the beans into the bags, and didn’t fill them up too much so that I could top stitch them closed on my machine (I avoid hand sewing at all costs!!). Have fun and if you don’t want to do the work yourself, or can’t embroider on them yourself, check out my website http://www.ellebelleonline.com/ or Etsy shop ellebelleonetsy.etsy.com to buy a custom set for your little one. I hope to have them posted by the 15th.

Have a creative day!
Stacey