hear us roar - the third

My spotlight today is on my sister-in-law, Kim Boman. We married the Boman boys and I'm so glad to call her family. And this is one amazingly talented woman. You must follow her very creative blog easy peasy pie where you will see projects like this bench she mostly made from scraps laying around:

That is adorable Olivia - just one of her super-cute kiddos.

Kim also has a shop called Dainty Blooms where she sells accessories like this beautiful headband:
and these precious felt tissue-packet holders:

Here's what she had to say about being a business woman momma:

I started up Dainty Blooms in May 2010. I had just learned about Etsy prior to opening up shop and loved the idea of buying and selling handmade items! I knew that there were already hundreds of shops selling cute hair accessories on Etsy. I just figured that if I never sold a single one that I was only out a few bucks and my daughters would just wear them anyway. So why not give it a try?

At first it was just a few felt flowers that I had designed to clip onto headbands. My daughter was just a few months old at the time and I found it difficult to find cute headbands for her that were also comfortable. So I started making felt flower clips that could clip onto any crocheted hat or headband I wanted. And the best part was they could be worn alone, which meant my older daughter could use them, too. I loved the versatility! Eventually I branched out into other fabrics and techniques to achieve different styles.

My absolute greatest joy is seeing other people wearing my hair clips. Several of my friends have purchased my hair clips for their daughters (or themselves!). It's very rewarding to look around and think, "Hey! That's my clip she's wearing! Oh, it looks so cute on her!"

Generally I work in the evening when the kids are in bed. But if inspiration hits me mid-day, I pull out my stash of fabric, my needle and thread, and work a little here and there. Obviously it can be frustrating trying to juggle between "wife", "mommy" and "creative gal". But I have learned to make it work. And sometimes having a little extra time in-between creating something allows me to think about how I can make it even better!

I currently live in southern California with my husband and our four kids, two boys and two girls. In addition to Dainty Blooms I do a little photography on the side which I also enjoy.

As for tips, she has this to say:

When I'm shopping around for new fabrics I always just buy a little bit to see if it will work for my particular need (like 1/8 of a yard). If it works beautifully, I go and buy more. If it doesn't, I'm not really out that much. And chances are I'll find a use for it anyway. Also, keep your eye out for inspiration. It can be anywhere!

I have to admit that that tip helped me the other day and I bought 1/8 yd lengths to try fabric out instead of my usual 1/2 yd (I thought that was the smallest you could ask for!). Now go check out her blog and shop (I suggest looking at her "sold" items, too!).