Katie Kay Tees

Twins: Eliza and Hadley

2011-05-01T22:21:00.000-07:00

My cousin and his wife recently welcomed their third and fourth children: twin girls! I can't imagine life with four kids, much less twins. Whew!

I sent the girls a little love from Katie Kay Tees, and made them pseudo-matching cardigans.

Their mom is holding out on sending me a photo of the girls in their cardigans. She's using a photo as leverage to make me attend family festivities at Thanksgiving. Hmmm...

Capes

2011-02-05T12:21:00.000-08:00

We have cabin fever from being cooped up during snow storms, so I've been crafting a lot lately. I decided to make these capes that I saw on Ohdeedoh, and I love how they turned out!

Jackson wanted his cape to say "Super Boy" and have a lightning bolt.

I made this cape as a birthday gift for one of Katie's school friends (who is also named Katie).

Blog Winner

2011-01-10T06:49:00.000-08:00

My friend Paula writes a great new blog called JC's Loft. She recently held a giveaway to honor the milestone of reaching 100 followers and asked me to make a custom shirt for one of the winners. I happily agreed!

Staci from Lizard & Ladybug was the lucky winner. I found out we have a few things in common: we both have boys named Jackson, and we share the same birthday! Staci could pick any Katie Kay Tees shirt design from this blog, and she chose the sibling love set.

I hope her kids love wearing these shirts, and I can't wait to see a photo of them!

Love

2011-01-10T06:41:00.000-08:00

My husband's coworker has a new baby girl. This is the first child for the coworker and his wife, and I love hearing about the new baby through my husband's word-of-mouth.

To welcome the new baby, I made a tiny little onesie for her to wear. The shirt was actually supposed to say "loved," but I miscalculated the letter placement and ended up with just plain "love." Which isn't so plain after all, you know?

Advent Conspiracy 2010

2010-12-10T13:59:00.000-08:00

Last year's Advent Conspiracy shirt doesn't fit Katie this year. I found a long-sleeve red shirt for $2 at Target, and spiffed it up for this year's holiday season. You can't see the cute snowflakes I put on the sleeves too, but you get the idea from this photo.

Our family is part of Advent Conspiracy. Not sure what that is? Here's a link to a video Katie made about how Advent Conspiracy changed us - not only our Christmas, but all year long! (Feel free to vote for her video to help her win the contest!) If that doesn't help explain it, this video will!

Gifts for High School Friends

2010-10-28T07:05:00.000-07:00

Two old friends from high school each recently had a daughter. I made onesies to welcome the babies to the world!

EDIT: Here's one of the sweet girls in her onesie. So cute!

A Joint Production

2010-08-13T12:52:00.000-07:00

Our friends Troy and Lori had their third baby recently. I made her a little onesie with her parents' names listed. Having babies is truly a joint production!

Four

2010-08-13T12:50:00.000-07:00

This shirt was made for our friends' son, Liam. He just turned four this weekend.

Worth the Wait - Two Versions

2010-08-13T12:45:00.000-07:00

My cousin Catherine just had her first child. She and her husband have waited years to welcome this baby to the world, and her arrival was a big cause for celebration! I made this onesie to send to the baby. I'm hoping she'll be able to wear it by the time I meet her at Thanksgiving this year.

Also, one of our college friends had his first child - make that children! Kevin's wife gave birth to twins - a boy and a girl. Their parents had a little wait of their own, so I made a set of Worth the Wait onesies for them.

These three babies have been eagerly anticipated by their parents. They are the culmination of many years of longing, and I'm so glad to welcome them to our world!

Twins: 1 of 2, 2 of 2

2010-08-13T12:37:00.001-07:00

One of my best friends just gave birth to twin boys. This is one of the shower gifts I gave her:

It's a set of matching onesies for the boys. The writing is chocolate brown, which is one of her favorite colors. Since the boys were premature, it'll be a while before I get to see them in their onesies. I can't wait!

Sibling Love

2010-03-12T12:02:00.000-08:00

A mom can dream, right?

In hopes of encouraging good relations between the warring factions in our house (just kidding, they're not THAT bad... yet), I stamped some shirts for Katie and Jackson. They modeled the finished products for me today, along with the face paint I put on them this morning.

Christmas Gifts

2009-12-26T11:55:00.000-08:00

I made two shirts and gave them as Christmas gifts. They were both iron-on transfers. The first was for my daughter, as part of one of her gifts (tickets to St. Louis' City Museum).

The second shirt was for my niece, who is about to turn 15. She says when she gets older, she wants to have wings tattooed on the nape of her neck, just below her hair line. I'm hoping this shirt with wings on the back will suffice instead!

Advent Conspiracy

2009-11-28T08:31:00.000-08:00

To help us get in the spirit, I made Katie an Advent Conspiracy shirt. The movement's four cornerstones are listed on the shirt: Worship Fully, Spend Less, Give More, Love All.

I wrote about Advent Conspiracy on my Six Golden Coins blog here.

Iron Ons

2009-11-28T08:29:00.000-08:00

I found two iron ons recently that I used to make shirts for the kids.

The first is a US Mail patch. I put this on a shirt for Katie, since she has always been fascinated by the mailman.

The second is a little tie that I ironed on to a shirt for Jackson. He wore it on Thanksgiving Day as a way to dress up.

Here's a photo of the little man in the shirt:

ONEderful Jude

2009-09-17T11:40:00.000-07:00

My little nephew Jude turned one in August, and I just received a photo of him in his ONEderful onesie. Isn't he so cute, with that wrinkled up face and smile? You should see those chubby thighs in person too. They are so squishy!

I met him for the first time two days ago. He barely talks yet, but he does make little grunting sounds to tell you what he wants. He is active and curious, and reminds me of how my son Jackson acted just a year ago. It was a nice reality check to see Jackson and Jude together. It helped me visualize how far we have come in just a year!

Scrappy

2009-06-26T05:21:00.000-07:00

I ran a little giveaway on my Six Golden Coins blog back in April, and my bloggy friend Scrappy Sue was one of the two winners. Technically she and the other winner were the only people to even ENTER the contest, so they won just for being nice.

I promised photo bracelets as prizes, and also a customized Katie Kay Tee of their choice. Sue told me to surprise her, so this is what I made:
I hope she likes it!

Costumed Crimefighter

2009-06-19T12:50:00.000-07:00

My new friend Gina asked me to make a shirt for her unborn niece. It appears that the daddy is a BIG superhero fan, so Gina requested a girly superhero shirt. I have to admit I'm not so good at freehanding logos and things that are supposed to look like something besides a letter or digit, so I was a bit nervous about this. But I surprised the heck out of myself and came up with not one, but TWO shirts for the little one!

I cut a Batman logo out of a foam meat packing tray, and used that as my stamp. Isn't that just so creative and out-of-the-box? (Can you hear me applauding myself! I'm so corny.)

I ended up making two shirts because at first I couldn't find a pink six month onesie and only found a pink 12 month tank top. And then, of course, I found the six month shirt and decided to just decorate them both. Gina has promised me a photo of her niece in the shirt when she is born and can fit in it!

EDITED to add photo of the little cutie in her shirt. So sweet!

Lydia

2009-06-04T14:23:00.000-07:00

Last night at the last minute, I made a onesie for Katie's teacher. No, it's not for the teacher to wear! It's for the baby girl in her tummy! Silly!

Mrs. Teacher and her husband have already named the baby Lydia. So instead of a teacher gift like chocolate or something else she might not like, I decided to make a onesie with the baby's name on it. And luckily the onesie was dry this morning and I sent it to school with Katie for the last day of school.

Now I'm hoping that when Lydia is born in October, Mrs. Teacher will send me a photo of her in the onesie!

Sophie

2009-05-01T11:46:00.000-07:00

I met Stacy in my mom's group a few years ago. She is quite a character. Both she and her husband come from a big Greek family, so she is outwardly loving and enthusiastic. She's one of those people you meet and can't believe life can always be so great. I've wondered if she has bad days like me, or if she ever has a crappy attitude like I seem to harbor sometimes. I think she probably does, she it doesn't bother her much. She's perpetually happy. She and her family moved to Las Vegas a few years ago, and we saw her on our trip there last May.

Stacy already had a son, then gave birth to her daughter in January. Sophie was premature, but is catching up and growing like a weed. I found out about Sophie's arrival a little late, but wanted to send a gift to welcome her to the world.

I made Sophie a onesie to announce herself to the world.
I also decorated a fleece blanket.

Then I personalized a hat for her, although it's toddler size and might not fit for a while.
Lastly, I made a bib for Sophie - but it's truly a gift for her mommy anyway.

Hopefully I'll get a few photos of Sophie in her new gear and I can post them later for you to see!

EDIT: Here's our girl!

Yahoo! Jackson is Two!

2009-04-07T11:42:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's official. We have survived two years of Hurricane Jackson! His birthday is as much a celebration for him as for me and Daddy.

I made Jackson a different shirt for his birthday, but decided I didn't like it very much. I'm not sure it'll ever see the light of day, especially after I made him this one and it turned out so much better. It's simple, but captures his current love (obsession) with basketball. He calls it "baa-ket-gone." I think that's because Dan always sings "Basketball Jones" to the kids, so Jackson thinks the basketballs are actually called "basketball jones."

I love how our little baby has turned into a little boy!

For Cale

2009-04-07T11:28:00.000-07:00

We had a tiny attendee named Cale at Jackson's second birthday party. He's tiny enough that he can't eat the marshmallow party favors that the other kids received. I decided to give him four onesies as his own personal party favor. I chose some phrases for his onesies that might be a little uncommon. But since he is a family member, I figured his parents wouldn't mind too much. I think this first one is my favorite. It's so bright and colorful!

My second favorite is this one, which features his parents' last names. After all, babies are joint productions, aren't they? (I blurred the photo a bit to protect the family's privacy.)

And wouldn't we all rather be?

Lastly, this one just makes me snicker.

Ladies Man

2009-02-09T09:08:00.000-08:00

I made a shirt for Jackson to wear for Valentine's Day... and for as long afterwards as I can get away with it! I used a new set of letter stamps, and I think he looks adorable in it.

I'm Going to Hollywood!

2009-01-27T13:34:00.000-08:00

American Idol is back, and that means Katie wants to watch it. So, we've been trying to watch about 30 minutes a night after bathtime - which is when we usually let the kids watch their 30 minutes of TV per day. It hasn't been easy, because Jackson doesn't like American Idol and fusses when we turn it on instead of his current favorite, WordGirl. But when we do get a chance to watch AI, Katie talks about how she wants to go to Hollywood too.

This weekend, I bought some blank shirts to decorate for Katie. I asked her what she wanted to put on the shirts, and we wrote a list of about 12 different things. She narrowed it down to four choices, and here is what we have. Of course, one of them is "I'm Going to Hollywood!"

Katie also chose to have another Dude shirt.

And she said she wanted another nickname shirt with Peepers on it, because "I know you like it, Mommy."

The last shirt is something that Dan has said for about as long as I've known him. He doesn't get riled up about things as much as I do (he still gets riled up, just not as often), and will say, "It's all good." I've been repeating it to myself lately as a mantra to get me through Jackson's temper tantrums. It truly does help! And now my Katie will be a walking mantra. (Sorry the photo is fuzzy. I'll try to upload a better one when she wears it the first time!)

Photo Art

2008-12-04T12:41:00.001-08:00

If you've seen my Six Golden Coins blog, you have seen one of my newest crafts: photo art! I have been making photo art Christmas gifts this year, and wanted to show them to you. My friend Danielle posted her gift on her blog, and here are some other samples:

If you are interested in having photo art custom-made for you, please let me know. I can do virtually any word you like and then email you a JPEG of the image for your own personal use. All I need is your photos! You can email me through my contact info, or leave me a comment in this post. Thanks!

Quilt

2008-10-28T17:14:00.000-07:00

What do you do with a custom-made Katie Kay Tee when your child has outgrown it? Make it into a t-shirt quilt!

I have saved almost every single shirt I made for Katie. My plan was to sew them into a quilt one day, maybe when she turns 18. I mentioned this to her, and she was so excited about it that I wanted figure out a way to make her one now. I asked Grandma, and she agreed to make it for me.

Grandma came over today and we went to Wal-Mart and picked out fabric for the backing, interfacing to iron on the back of the shirts for stabilization, and quilt edging. Then we came home and cut the shirts apart, and I bled on some of the scraps after running the rotary cutter into my finger - ouch! We placed the shirt squares in the order we liked best. It kind of made me sad to know that my baby won't ever wear the shirts again. When we were done, Grandma took everything home and will start sewing and doing all the hard work.

Here's what we have ready so far. I'll post a photo of the completed quilt after Christmas.

EDIT: I'm weak, okay? I am not good at keeping surprises. So I couldn't wait until Christmas. Blame it on Grandma because she finished the quilt so quickly. (It took about four days, y'all! I can't wait to retire...) So here's the finished product, with Grandma and Katie. I LOVE it, and I'm so thrilled with how it turned out.

Daddy's Girl

2008-10-26T19:03:00.000-07:00

I made Katie a special shirt on Friday, and she wore it today for the first time. Last winter, she had a cute brown shirt with "Daddy's Girl" pre-printed on it. She wanted to wear it again this year, but her arms have grown way too long! So I promised her I'd make her a new one. Here it is, on my sweet girl:

Worth the Wait - Anna Kathryn

2008-10-24T10:37:00.000-07:00

I had a rush order that I completed last night after the kids were in bed. It says "Worth the Wait" and could not be more fitting for a little girl named Anna Kathryn. Her parents finally adopted her after waiting two and a half years. (See what I mean?) Her aunt Hillary ordered the onesie for a coming home party in Anna Kathryn's honor next weekend. I'm hoping that Hillary will send me a photo of Anna Kathryn in the onesie, and I can post it here for you soon.

I'm glad the wait is over!

EDIT:

Hillary left me a post on her blog with a photo of Anna Kathryn in her onesie. You can go check out Hillary's blog here, or you can just see the photo below. Isn't she absolutely adorable?! I love it!

Jackson for President

2008-10-17T12:18:00.001-07:00

Alright, y'all. I'm tired of hearing all the hoopla over the presidential candidates. I think it's time we elect a true leader. Someone who is strong-willed and won't be pushed around. Someone who wears his heart on his sleeve, and lets his genuine emotions show through. We need a leader who is bipartisan. Someone who is in touch with the next generation of America. Someone who likes to throw bananas and play with Elmo. Someone who loves his mommy better than anyone in the world. I present to you: the next President of the United States!

Sure, he has no voting record. But he's cute, sweet (mostly), and has lots of potential. Vote Jackson for President! (If you want your own presidential t-shirt, leave me a comment and I'll whip one up for you ASAP!)

Contest Winner

2008-10-11T13:39:00.000-07:00

My friend Danielle held a contest on her Extraordinary Mommy website, and the prize was a Katie Kay Tee custom shirt. The winner was Preppy Mama, and she asked me to make a shirt for her son's third birthday next month. I just finished it today, and will be mailing it to her this week. Hopefully she'll send me a photo of the birthday boy in his shirt next month, and I'll update this post and add it too. For now, here's the shirt after it was painted:

UPDATE: Here's an early preview of the birthday boy in his shirt!

Steele Butterflies

2008-10-06T20:03:00.000-07:00

I completed my first Lupus Walk yesterday after being diagnosed with lupus last week. (It was more of a coincidence that the timing was so close - it wasn't planned that way!) My friend Catrina (who walked with me) and I decided to have shirts made with our team name, Steele Butterflies. Steele is my maiden name, and butterflies are the symbol of the Lupus Foundation. I contacted friends who own Missy Doo's Embroidery, and had them make a rush order for us. They put together these awesome shirts:

I didn't have a shirt made for Dan because I thought the butterflies might be too girly, and I didn't expect him (or the kids) to walk with me. So I made Dan and the kids their own shirts, to show support for our team. They turned out pretty well! Here's the close-up, and a photo of our family in our shirts.

I love the Team Steele shirts. I think I'm going to have the kids wear theirs when I'm having a bad day, as a way to boost my own morale. Is that too self-serving of me? Some days you need all the inspiration you can get!

ONEderful Maclain

2008-10-05T19:53:00.000-07:00

I'm behind in posting on my Katie Kay Tees blog! I've been meaning to post a photo of the shirt I made for a friend's son, Maclain. Here it is:

And here's a photo of the lucky guy. Isn't he cute?

Favorite Animal

2008-09-02T13:10:00.001-07:00

I made a new shirt for Jackson. I haven't been able to get a decent photo of him wearing it, so for now I'm going to just post a photo of the shirt by itself.

Jackson really likes monkeys, and it's one of the few words he says. (Actually, he only says "Ah ah," like a monkey saying "Ooo ooo ah ah.") We received a hand-me-down shirt and I decorated it with a monkey and the word "monkey." He seems to like it!

Photo Bracelets

2008-08-28T12:16:00.001-07:00

My friend Danielle, who owns ExtraordinaryMommy, has encouraged me in so many ways: helping me start two blogs, praising my writing, encouraging me to start selling my onesies and shirts, and now she's telling me to add another treat to my Katie Kay Tees blog. I agree with her, so I'm following her advice (yet again!).

Besides my custom onesies and shirts, I also make custom photo bracelets. I love wearing my photo bracelet, and get lots of compliments on it. Five of the six photos I have in it are of me and my husband and kids, and the other photo is one of me and my sister. I love keeping my loved ones close!

In case any of you are interested, I also sell these custom photo bracelets for $40. You send me six photos by email or snail mail, and I will shrink them and crop them to fit into the frames. I also seal the photos to protect them from moisture before I insert them in the bracelet. (Trust me, if it ain't sealed, you might as well not wear it!)

The bracelets make GREAT presents for Christmas or Mother's Day, and they are an easy idea if your husband is looking for something personalized to buy for you. I've made them for sisters and moms and grandmothers at Christmas, for women who want to remember loved ones who have died, and for new moms who want a sort of "story bracelet" with photos of their baby's ultrasound and birth. You could also give them to the bridesmaids in your wedding.

If you'd like to order a bracelet, just leave a comment letting me know how to contact you. I'll send you all the information separately, and we'll go from there.

100 Buttons - Finished!

2008-08-23T13:38:00.000-07:00

I finished the 100 Buttons shirt today. I decided to find some VERY small white buttons (the smallest I could find in my collection), and sew them on in the shape of a "K." I was hoping that the smaller buttons wouldn't weigh the shirt down much more, and I think they worked well! And I chose mostly buttons with only 2 holes (not 4) to make it easier on me for sewing.

Last night while watching TV, I laid the white buttons out in the "K" shape I wanted, then covered them with packing tape to keep them in place. I hand-sewed right through the tape, then carefully tore it off after all the buttons were tacked down. I sewed 56 last night, then put the last 5 on this morning. I think it turned out well!
Katie has already counted the buttons twice to double-check that there are 100. She says she really likes it, and can't wait to wear it!

I think this will be the only 100 Buttons shirt I'll ever make (unless Jackson begs me for one). It was very labor-intense, of course!

My New Nephew

2008-08-15T19:18:00.000-07:00

I made two onesies today for my new nephew, baby Jude. He's the son of my brother's widow, who remarried last year. I'm going to mail the onesies Jude and his mom Bonnie and dad John. I'm hoping they'll send me photos of him wearing the onesies too! If so, I'll post them here for you another time.

No Peanuts

2008-08-15T19:10:00.000-07:00

My friend Kerry has a three-year-old who is allergic to peanuts. She asked me to customize a shirt for him, to help adults and teachers remember his allergy. Here's what she requested:

I'm honored to be able to use my talents to create a shirt that will help little Jacob be a healthier, happier boy! And potentially help save his life. Thanks for asking me, Kerry!

Uncle Eric

2008-08-15T19:07:00.001-07:00

I got a request to make a shirt through Craig's List. The woman asked me to make a shirt that says, "My Uncle Eric is the greatest!" I have no idea what sort of inside joke that's all about, but I made the shirt and I hope she likes it!

RyGuy and WeeMan

2008-08-15T19:03:00.001-07:00

My friend Beth asked me to make nickname shirts for her boys. She calls the boys any number of things, but mostly "Ry-Guy" for Ryan. And Ryan calls Liam "Wee Man." Beth found some cute ringer tees at Old Navy, and gave them to me to decorate. I'll post a photo of the boys in their duds if/when I get one!

UPDATE: I got a photo of the boys in their shirts. So cute!

Titus

2008-08-15T11:55:00.000-07:00

I got a photo yesterday from the winner of my Bloggy Giveaway, Paula. She sent me a photo of her little boy wearing a special bonus shirt I made for him. Ain't he the cutest?! I just want to squish his cheeks!

Yes, you observed correctly: he isn't wearing a "Tater" shirt, is he? That's because I made him two shirts. I couldn't find an 18 month plain shirt (not a onesie) at four or five different stores I checked. So I made him a red onesie with "Tater" on it (which I'm hoping Paula will send me a photo of later, once he grows in to it). And as an added bonus (and because I had a 12 month regular shirt on hand), I made him a shirt with his real name on it. I added the monkey because Paula says he really likes them. Now she says he runs around with his Titus shirt on, making monkey noises. Yay!

I'm glad Titus/Tater is happy with his shirt!

100 Buttons

2008-08-04T11:18:00.000-07:00

I got the idea for Katie's newest shirt by reading two library books about celebrating the 100th day of Kindergarten. Both books had a character who had a shirt with 100 buttons sewn to it. I decided I wanted to make one like that for Katie, because her school celebrates the 100th Day. I pulled out my button collection, and she picked out 100 buttons for me to sew onto her shirt. I bought her three different shirts: red, pink, and white. The sweet girl told me she wanted the red shirt, since it's my favorite color. (!)

This weekend, I started sewing the buttons on the shirt in the shape of a heart. The idea was to complete the heart, then fill it in with the remaining buttons. Well, I finished the heart and only used THIRTY-NINE buttons. Ugh! I don't know if I can do the remaining 61! First of all, that's a lot of work. But more importantly, that's a lot of weight on the shirt. Just the 39 that are already on there make the shirt pretty heavy. I guess I could switch to tiny, lightweight buttons for the remaining 61, or I could just leave it at 39. I also thought about adding buttons to the bottom of the shirt, around the hem. But that will still be heavy.

Does anyone have any ideas of how I can complete the shirt with 100 buttons?

Giveaway Winner

2008-08-01T13:03:00.000-07:00

I chose Paula H as the winner of my Katie Kay Tees giveaway. I loved her kid's nickname, Tater. I would love to use my creative talent to make a Tater shirt! Who wouldn't?!

Thanks to everyone for their feedback and encouraging comments. It helped me to know that at least someone thinks I have a smidge of talent! I will take all your words to heart, and ponder them. And I might even be contacting some of you, after I get a grip on my life again. (This Bloggy Giveaway thing is crazy!)

If you would like to contact me to order a shirt, leave a comment in this post. I will give a 20% discount to those of you who posted a comment in my contest. The 20% discount is good for the next week, until 8/8/08. (Don't you just love that date?!)

Thanks again to all of you!

Bloggy Giveaway - Custom Shirt!

2008-07-28T06:37:00.001-07:00

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED. Thanks to all who participated!

Thanks to my friend Danielle, I am trying a Bloggy Giveaway for the first time. Please be gentle with me!

First, let me reveal what everyone wants to know: the prize! I am giving away a custom shirt or onesie of your choice, made by me of course. I'll contact the winner of my giveaway and you can tell me which design you would like, who it's for, which birthday it's for (if it is for a birthday), what size, color, etc.

Please leave a comment in this post, and here's what I would like from you:
1) Please look at all the entries on my Katie Kay Tees blog and tell me which design you like the best. This doesn't have to be the one you'd pick if you win the giveaway, since maybe your kids are already too old for a onesie or maybe you have all boys but you love the girly stuff.
2) Please also give me any other feedback you can think of, like ways to make my blog or shirts more appealing, or maybe tell me a cute onesie or t-shirt saying that you've seen. I'd especially love to hear cute phrases to celebrate a birthday. (What rhymes with four? I've thought about dino-four. What about six, or any other b'days?)

I'll keep the contest open until noon CST on Friday, August 1.

Please also stop by my original blog, Six Golden Coins. I'm doing another giveaway there for a lovely custom photo bracelet.

Thanks for the feedback, and good luck. Wish me luck too in my first Bloggy Giveaway! (I'm sure hoping I did all this right!)

Customized Shirts & Onesies

2008-07-25T20:44:00.000-07:00

I made my first customized onesie when my daughter was about 6 months old. I saw some cute iron-on flowers on clearance at Wal-Mart, and decided to use them to decorate some plain white onesies. The idea was that iron-ons would dress up the white onesies, but I would still be able to bleach them when the inevitable drool or food stained them.

Then I started making customized shirts. It started as something fun that I could do for my daughter. Soon after, I decided to make one for her friend as a birthday gift. I think that was borne out of desperation to find something unique as a birthday gift, and something that would celebrate the birthday girl's sense of style as well as her new Big Girl status of being a whopping three year old. Plus, it was very inexpensive for me because I already had the fabric paint on hand. All I had to do was buy the shirt in the correct size, and I was on my way!

Now I love making shirts for my kids, plus our friends. I've even made one for myself that says "Boy's Mama." It matches my son's shirt that says, "Mama's Boy."
Since those first iron-on onesies, I think I've gotten better at making the shirts fit a child's personality and, at the same time, I've gotten the hang of using puffy paint. I've learned how to sort of grind the paint into the fabric while I'm writing, so the paint won't peel off after the first washing.

Lately, I've had friends start asking me how much I'll charge to make a shirt for them, so I decided to start this blog and see if anyone else might be interested in buying a customized shirt or onesie. If you're interested, let me know by leaving me a comment with your email address. I'll contact you as soon as I can. Thanks for checking out my blog!

One

2008-07-25T20:33:00.000-07:00

I got the ONEderful idea for a baby's first birthday when I made this shirt for our friend Jacob's first birthday. (He just turned three and his most recent shirt was the one with all the zoo animals on it here.)

The next one I made was for Cooper, whose daddy LOVES baseball. So it had to have a baseball theme, and most of the ones I've made since then do too. I've also made some girly ones, but I don't have photos to share with you.

EDIT: I got a photo of a girly ONEderful shirt that I made, modeled by our beautiful neighbor! I made the shirt for her first birthday, and was happy to see her wearing it.

Two

2008-07-25T20:28:00.001-07:00

I made this shirt for our friend Cooper Doo's second birthday. His mom tells me she gets lots of compliments on it, and people always ask her where she got the shirt. (She's the motivating force behind this blog!) I love the way this shirt turned out. The little boy face actually looks like Cooper Doo in his baseball cap.

This tank top was made for Cooper Doo's sister, Delaney - back when she was turning two. (I can't believe it's been so long ago!)

And this monkey shirt was made for our Cousin Adam when he turned two this year too. (Two too!)

Three

2008-07-25T20:20:00.001-07:00

This "Three" shirt was the second shirt I ever made, after the Dude shirt (not including those original iron-on onesies). I made it for Katie's friend Anna, when Katie was about two and a half years old. I made it one night before Katie went to bed, using an iron-on transfer in the center and puffy paint words around it. I put it on a countertop to dry. The next thing I know, I looked over and saw (in slow motion), Katie's hand smashing down into the wet paint. I screamed to stop her, but it was too late. The shirt seemed unsalvageable to me, so I made Anna another one. I kept the ruined one for a while, until I decided to doctor it a bit and I made it wearable for Katie. This photo shows her wearing it. Needless to say, now I make sure the shirts are out of harm's way when I make them!

Since then, I've made the Three shirts with stamps instead of using an iron-on. The iron-ons don't seem very durable.

Four

2008-07-25T20:15:00.000-07:00

My favorite Four shirt is the one that says "I'm four and ready to roar" and has a stamped lion on the front. The others are cute too, but I really like the lion.

The monkey one was made for my daughter, who runs and jumps around the house like a monkey. So I tried to make it girly, but also monkey-ish too! She wanted to stamp the smiley face by herself.

Five

2008-07-25T20:12:00.001-07:00

I made various "Five" birthday shirts for neighbors and friends, and my own daughter. The blue and orange ones were supposed to be complimentary because they were made for twins on our street.

Six

2008-07-25T20:10:00.001-07:00

The Six Snake is one of the more recent shirts I've made. I was nervous about whether it truly looks like a snake (or even a six), because I am my own worst critic. But friends and family (and ever-honest six year olds) assured me it truly does look like a six AND a snake!

Ten

2008-07-25T20:07:00.001-07:00

I made this shirt for a neighbor girl who is so sweet and helpful with my kids. She liked the shirts that she saw them wearing, so I made a "Perfect Ten" shirt for her as a surprise. She really liked it!

Big Sister, Little Brother

2008-07-25T20:04:00.001-07:00

Of course I had to make Big Sister and Little Brother shirts for my kids when the baby arrived. What else would they wear in the hospital to claim each other as their own? I've also made "Biggest Sister" and variations on the theme.

Dude: The One That Started Them All!

2008-07-25T19:58:00.000-07:00

When my daughter was about two, she learned the word "dude." She loved saying it, so I decided to make her a shirt with DUDE on it. My first attempt was with iron-on letters, which didn't last the first washing. I decided to try puffy paints instead, on a lime green tank top. It worked like a charm! She loved that tank top, and still squeezes in to it once in a while. I've made lots of DUDE shirts now, including one with metal studs. It's kind of my "signature" item that I make for her! Here's a photo of the first lime green tank top, plus the one with studs.

Nicknames

2008-07-25T19:55:00.001-07:00

I made matching shirts for my two kids, with their nicknames stamped across the front. I like for them to wear the shirts when we are out together as a family.

EDIT: I took some photos yesterday (9/3/08) of the kids in their shirts. It's the last time Katie will be wearing hers because she cut a hole in it at school. I don't think it was intentional, but that's the last of that shirt!

Onesies

2008-07-25T19:48:00.000-07:00

I love making onesies for babies. There are soooo many cute sayings to use! Here are some of my favorites.

Bibs & Burp Cloths

2008-07-25T19:44:00.000-07:00

I made this bib and burp cloth for an old high school friend. It was made on short notice, with very little embellishment.

Twins

2008-07-25T19:40:00.000-07:00

My neighbor asked me to make two shirts for a coworker who is pregnant with twin boys. She requested the sayings on the shirts. I tried to make them as identical and plain as possible, so the babies would match each other.

Starting Another Blog

2008-07-25T19:06:00.001-07:00

I already have a blog called Six Golden Coins. It's all about me and my family and things going on in my life. I want to start a little side business, so I decided to open a new blog.

This Katie Kay Tees blog will be where you can find my craft projects: for sale and not for sale. If you're interested in anything, let me know!