tutu bug

And so it comes to an end...

2011-05-01T18:06:00.000-07:00

Over the past few months, I have decided to shut down my business and blog. It has been a fun run, but it is time for me to move on :). I have thoroughly enjoyed creating handcrafted tutu's for the cutest little princesses around and I want to thank everyone for their support!

I am starting a new blog called Additive Free Foodie and it centers around one of my passions, eating as all natural as possible. Please stop by and say hi when you can!

Warmest Regards,

Melanie H.

Tutu Clearance!

2011-03-23T10:37:00.000-07:00

I have 10 tutu's that I am clearancing out...Each tutu is $15 shipped or $10 cash (regular price is $28.75 shipped or $23.50 cash). If interested, please email me at az_melanie@yahoo.com.

12-18 mos Washington Redskins/USC/KS Chiefs (Red/Gold)

12-18 mos FL Gators (navy/orange)

12-18 mos Phx Suns (orange/purple)

2T Michigan (navy/yellow)

2T Texas Longhorns (burnt orange/white)

2T Arizona State (Burgundy/Gold)

3/4T Chicago Cubs/Giants

It's MY SITS Day!!!

2011-02-21T21:24:00.000-08:00

After ~~47 years~~, about 1 year of waiting, it is FINALLY my SITS day! I honestly was shocked when I got the email last month that my blog would finally be featured. I am very excited and honored to be featured on SITS, which stands for The Secret in the Sauce. It's an amazing community of fellow bloggers who support eachother through comments. Its a simple and ingenious way to meet other bloggers!

A little bit about me...I am currently a stay at home mom to two elementary aged boys. I decided back in 2009 that it'd be fun to open up my own little boutique style store and I started selling tutu's! Yeah, I live with a bunch of boys, but make tutu's - kind of ironic, isn't it?! It's definitely been a journey and for those of you who own your own small, online business, you can attest to the fact that it takes a lot of hard work, time and marketing of your product....

Anyway, I am just so happy that you have stopped by my blog! Besides writing about my tutu's, I also talk about food (who doesn't love a peanut butter bon bon?!), books, crafts and other bloggers to keep things interesting! My posts are usually pretty short, as my attention span is not at all long these days. I totally blame that on parenting two rowdy kids! So, in my promise to keep things short, I will sign off for now....thanks for visiting and come back soon!!

Melanie

Spring is HERE! Well, almost...

2011-02-20T21:24:00.000-08:00

Here are some fun springtime tutu's....

Lollipop

Blue Raspberry

Lemon Burst

Pink Bubblegum

Watermelon

Valentine's Day and the Matching Tutu

2011-02-07T08:46:00.000-08:00

OK, so I have to confess, I am not a big fan of Valentine's Day. It's weird because I grew up in a home where I got Valentine candies and gifts from my parents and grandparents. We'd do the red foods and heart shaped meatloaf (which is about the only Valentine tradition I do) and all that jazz. Once I got married though, I just figured I was done with Valentine's Day. Here's the biggest reason. DH's birthday is in November, Christmas is in December and our anniversary is in January. By February, if he doesn't know he's loved, he needs to open his eyes and unplug his ears :). As for our kids, we still say Happy Valentine's and do the heart shaped meatloaf but w aren't big candy eaters, so all the chocolates and sweet goodies are out (hence the meatloaf). I try to keep it simple and most importantly, show my boys that they are loved every day of the year. Please don't think I am anti-Valentine's day, I'm really not, it's just that, we keep our little traditions low key and minimal when it comes to this day!

Now if I had a daughter and could get her all dressed up in something super cute, I might change my tune :). I made this Sweetheart tutu, for those that like to go all out for Valentine's Day and want to dress up that little Valentine in their life! It's made with shimmery pink, red and white tulle, with a white satin ribbon covered in hearts. Too cute!

Tutu-rific!

2011-01-31T11:31:00.000-08:00

I have a friend who creates the most adorable crocheted hats . She did a photo shoot with Sunflowers Photography and I was able to squeeze some tutu's onto one of the model's she had. Here's a picture of this cutie patootie wearing some of tutu bug's tutu's!

Bumble Bee

Razmataz

There are a few more shots, but I need to get them resized. I will add them later :)!

Peanut Butter Bon Bons

2011-01-24T09:05:00.000-08:00

I meant to post up this Peanut Butter Bon Bon recipe in December, but just didn't get around to it, but hey, better late than never! This is one of our favorite Christmas treats and peanut butter has lots of protein, so they must be good for you! I originally got this recipe from a coworker of my DH several years ago. It's been a holiday staple since. I have simplified the recipe as well (who had a double boiler these days?!), so keep this in mind when you're hankering for a great mix of peanut butter and choclolate when nothing but homemade will do :)!

Peanut Butter Bon Bons

1-7 oz. Chocolate (this is the giant sized bar. You can substitute milk chocoloate chips if needed)
8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/8 stick parafin wax (found in baking aisle)
1-18 oz jar peanut butter
1 stick butter
1 lb box powdered sugar (I use a little less than the whole box)
3 c. rice crispies cereal

In microwave safe bowl, combine chocolate bar (broken into pieces), chocolate chips and wax. Be sure to shave the wax into the chocolate otherwise it will never melt. Heat on high for 30 seconds. Stir. Keep heating and stirring in 30 second increments until chocolate and was are melted.

In large bowl, combing peanut butter, stick butter and powdered sugar. Mix together then add rice crispies (can use a little less if mix gets too dry). Roll into balls and dip into melted chocolate. Place on cookie sheet lined with wax paper and place in fridge till firm.

These are delicious, enjoy!!!!

Ohio State University Tutu

2011-01-17T08:23:00.000-08:00

I had a client email me asking for an Ohio State University tutu for her 9 mo. It's made of shimmery red and grey tulle, with a 5/8" white bow. Here's a photo of it - it turned out so cute!!!

What the heck is a cornbag?!?!

2011-01-10T11:05:00.000-08:00

Yeah I get that question a lot. I sell cornbags at boutiques as well as my tutu's. They seem to be very popular sellers, I have a lot of repeat buyers and people who purchase them for stocking stuffers, teacher gifts, etc. Anyway, a corn bag is pretty much just that -a bag filled with corn. It's a little fancier than that, I actually sew fabric (flannel or cotton) and fill with a special non-popping corn (no that isn't a dumb question, people ask it all the time). The cornbag is used as an all natural hot pack or cold compress and is great for sore backs, cramps, achy muscles, headaches, etc, etc. My favorite use for the cornbags is during the winter. I heat it up and throw it under the covers at the foot of the bed. I then put my cold toesies on the cornbag instead of my husband. I think it actually saved our marriage. Anyway, they are great little inventions and super affordable too.

We store ours in the freezer so you always have an ice pack available and then take out and microwave as needed. I currently have 4 in the freezer and am thinking of making a few more. My kids love them and sleep with them year round. The kids love them for some reason, two of my friends who bought them told me that their kiddos sleep with them as well. Anyway, I know I had mentioned in a previous post about these and I wanted to finally explain them :).

Happy New Year!

2011-01-02T11:06:00.000-08:00

Hope you had an exciting new year. We were invited to a family s'mores party, wich was very fun and then we came home to ~~blow up stuff~~ light off fireworks with the neighbor kids. It was fun times for all, although FREEZING. I got my ski coat out for the first time since 1996 - and it still fit - yeehaw! Anyway, I digress...I was asleep well before midnight - I choose sleep over fun, as I knew the kids would be up plenty early and they didn't disappoint!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-26T11:09:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a very Merry (I just typed messy on accident, freudian slip?!) Christmas! We went small scale this year and it was great! The kids got enough, we got enough and everyone was happy - even the cat (hey, what cat doesn't like catnip?!) We even let the kids decorate the Christmas tree this year - that was my idea, I was beat by the time the dang tree was up with lights on it. I thought it was cute that there were no ornaments from the middle to the top! Anyway they had a blast and were very proud of themselves.

My plan was to make a holiday tutu this year, but I have been having health issues for the past two months and never got around to it. I guess I will have to save my ideas for next year!

Rush Orders

2010-12-15T11:12:00.000-08:00

Oh how I ~~hate~~ love rush orders! I love to create awesome tutu's for customer's, but sometimes its hard when I get last minute orders. I had about three of those in the past week and I was a bit stressed out over it! The stinky thing was, I didn't even get to take pictures of the tutus to share with you all, I just had to ship them out asap. On one of the orders, I got to the post office at 4:59 p.m. Whew!!! I know other tutu makers charge extra for rush orders, but I don't. As long as I can still do rush orders, I will, but at some point I might have to rethink that policy!

Thanksgiving

2010-11-29T10:55:00.000-08:00

Well, I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We always enjoy eating a bunch of great food, oh yeah, and spending time with the family as well :)! My husband always participates in a Turkey Bowl he coordinates through his work, so he was gone in the morning, then we went to my family's house for the meal. We were most thankful that my MIL was able to get out of the hospital on Thanksgiving eve just in time to be able to celebrate with us. She had been in since the first of November, so we were all very happy (most notably, her!)

Unfortunately, turkey day colors leave much to be desired when it comes to tutus, so I've got no new Turkey Tutu for you, although it would be kinda funny-brown and orange with a feathery bow :).

It's Boutique Time

2010-11-20T10:50:00.000-08:00

I've participated in two boutiques this month and I have one more next month so it has been very, very busy around here! I sold about 9 tutu's so far and 20 cornbags*! My best seller was Sassy Pink and people seem to really be enjoying all of the sports tutu's.

I'll be explaining the cornbags further in another post.

Recent Sales

2010-11-10T10:45:00.000-08:00

Here's a couple of cute tutu's I've sold recently:

NY Yankees to Texas

Lollipop to Texas

Ladybug to AZ

Sales are starting to pick up as the holiday's draw near!

Happy Halloween!

2010-11-01T10:42:00.000-07:00

Well, I hope you all had a very wonderful Halloween with your family. We usually go trick-or-treating with our kids in our neighborhood and this year was no different. My goal this year was to not spend any money on costumes and do everything from stuff we had at home. Fortunately it worked out with my oldest going as a football fan and my youngest going as a baseball player. I just used sports clothes we had from home. It worked great!

I've Been MIA

2010-10-27T10:35:00.000-07:00

Hello Bloggy Friends! I am so sorry I've been gone for the past two weeks. I had surgery last week and am finally getting around to catching up on things! Whew, being unable to care for your family and get your normal chores done is hard on everyone. My boys are definitely happy that mom is back in the kitchen!

Anyway, I am back to work and looking forward to a successful holiday season. I am planning on coming up with a few super cute holiday tutus. Let me know what Christmas color combos YOU'D love to see :)!

Halloween Tutus

2010-10-14T06:00:00.001-07:00

Looking for a cute and original Halloween Costume for your little princess? I have lots of tutus that would make an excellent start for your Halloween costumes!

Here's my newest creation specifically designed for Halloween 2010:

Tinkerbell

Ladybug (or Minnie)

Snow White

Bumble Bee

Looking for something else? Just let me know, I do custom work! All orders made by October 22nd will be delivered in time for the big day!

How Cute is This?!

2010-10-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

This little girl has a super nice mommy that entered into one of my giveaways and won the tutu of her choice. She chose Lemon Burst and as you can see by the look on her face, I think she is in love with her new tutu bug tutu!! I try to do giveaways once a quarter, so look for the next one in early January, as I just finished my last giveaway a few weeks ago :).

14 tutus on Clearance - $13-15 shipped!

2010-10-10T06:30:00.000-07:00

I still have some tutu's left over from new tutus I created while putting together my website. All prices INCLUDE shipping. Save up to 60% off here:

If interested, please email me at melanie@tutubug.com with any questions or with the tutu you are interested in purchase. I will send you a paypal invoice and once payment is received, I will ship within 24 hours!

2T Arizona State University-$13

4/5T Bumble Bee - $15

2T Dallas Cowboys - $13

2T Greenbay Packers / Oakland A's - $13

4/5T Blue Chocolate Truffle - $15

2T Chicago Cubs / NY Giants - $13

2T Phoenix Suns / Clemson University / Auburn College - $13

4/5T Pink Bubblegum - $15

4/5T Tropical Breeze - $15

12-18 mos University of Florida - $13

2T Chicago Bears / Denver Broncos / Syracuse-$13

2T University of Texas - $13

12-18 mos. Washington Redskins - $13

12-18 mos University of Michigan - $13

Good Reads

2010-10-07T06:00:00.000-07:00

Photo courtesy of Amazon.com

I just finished the trilogy, Humger Games by Suzanne Collins. Wow! That is the only one word phrase I can think of that *attempts* to sum this series up and that doesn't even come close to describing how unique, interesting, creative and just plain GOOD these books are! I tried to summarize this book to my mom the other day and she was like, "huh?!?" so I will leave it to the publishers over at Scholastic to explain it better:

'Twenty-four are forced to enter. Only the winner survives.

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. Each year, the districts are forced by the Capitol to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the Hunger Games, a brutal and terrifying fight to the death – televised for all of Panem to see.

Survival is second nature for sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who struggles to feed her mother and younger sister by secretly hunting and gathering beyond the fences of District 12. When Katniss steps in to take the place of her sister in the Hunger Games, she knows it may be her death sentence. If she is to survive, she must weigh survival against humanity and life against love.'

HAPPY READING!!!

And the Winner is...

2010-09-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

The tutu bug giveaway winner is #37, which is Jaime from From My Kitchen to Yours. She chose the Dallas Cowboys tutu from the sports collection. CONGRATS, Jaime!!!

Start of Football Season 2010 = tutu bug Giveaway!!!

2010-09-13T06:00:00.000-07:00

In honor of my new sports line and the start of the 2010 football season, I am hosting a tutu giveaway!! The winner will receive a free (shipping included) sports tutu from my website. If your team isn't on there, I will make it for you! All entries must be received by Monday, September 20th and a winner weill be chosen via http://www.random.org/ on Tuesday, September 21st. Here's how to enter:

Required:

1-Become a follower of my blog and leave a comment telling me which sports tutu is your favorite or which sports tutu you'd love to see (1 entry).

Optional:

2-'Like' me on Facebook (1 entry). You can click on my Facebook button that is in the right column of this blog.
3-Post my giveaway linking back to my site on Facebook (2 entries).
4-Blog about my giveaway linking back to my blog (2 entries).

For each entry, you MUST post a comment to this blog letting me know which step you completed. If the entry is worth 2 entries, please be sure to post twice. I want to be sure you get that second chance to win! Thanks and goodluck!!

Giveaway Scout

2010-09-13T05:00:00.000-07:00

Ever heard of Giveaway Scout?! They automatically scan thousands of blogs to bring you the latest blog giveaways, sweepstakes and contests! You can visit them here and sign up to receive daily updates on blogs doing giveaways!

I Love My Breadmaker!

2010-09-08T06:00:00.000-07:00

Anyone out there have a breadmaker? Well, I technically don't have one, but I did borrow my mom's about 2 years ago and I think she's forgotten. Who am I to remind her that I still have it out on loan?! Anyway, one thing I LOVE to make with it is homemade pizza dough. I also make homemade sauce and this is now a weekly family tradition. Every Friday or Saturday night I make sure to create pizza for my boys. I always make two pizzas. The first is plain cheese for the boys and the second is half mushroom (for me-yum!), all pepperoni and sometimes sausage too. So yummy! Anyway, if you have a breadmaker, here's the recipe I use:

In order, place the following ingredients into your bread machine:

1 c. beer or water (I use water, I don't really drink, so never have it on hand)

1 Tbsp. shortening (they do have organic shortening out there, if you don't do the trans fats)

1 Tbsp. sugar

1 tsp. salt

shake garlic powder (opt)*

1/4 tsp Italian seasoning (opt)*

3 c. Flour

1 1/4 tsp. yeast

*These two ingredients really add some flavor to the dough

Set bread machine on dough or if you don't have that setting, for 2 hours. The dough should have a 25 min preheat delay before mixing begins (this is included in the 2 hours). When cycle is complete, remove dough from pan and split into two. Roll out both circles on floured surface and place on pizza pan or stoneware. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Par bake the dough for 6-8 min (watch for bubbles in the dough and use a knife to break as necessary). Remove from oven, place sauce (see recipe below), ingredients, cheese, and more ingredients on pizza and cook for 5-8 more minutes. You really need to watch it so it doesn't burn or undercook. So worth it, though! Cut and enjoy!

Sauce

1 can crushed tomatoes

1 Tbsp olive oil

Dash Ital seasoning

Pinch of sugar

Simmer above ingredients for 2at least 20 minutes in saucepan.

The finished products...