Wicked

Curtsy Mama and I enjoyed a mother-daughter theatre night on the town with Curtsy Girl Pamela and her daughter this past Saturday. We saw Wicked, and it was absolutely divine!!!! I had never heard a bad review, and it did not disappoint in the least. It was a fantastically funny & fabulous take on the Witches of Oz and how they came to be...that is before some farm girl and her little dog arrived in the Emerald City. I adored the "Popular" number, during which Glinda decides she wants to make Elphaba (one day WWOTW) popular. It is set in their college dorm room in which Glinda has a wall of sparkly shoes....a girl after my heart. This of course gave us the perfect excuse to rock our new Tarina Tarantino "My Pretty" gems.I love love love this collection!!

The wedding plans are coming along beautifully...we have a date!!! Next August 7th will be the big day, at the Artic Club downtown....I fell head over heels for the amazing Northern Lights Dome room. It is a circular ball room with a gold gilded dome and gigantic chandelier....loves. The ring we have been designing is in production and should be done within a few weeks. We were very much inspired by this Tarina ring....... :)



Word around town is that pirates have been invading bath time!! Arrgh...if you can't beat 'em...join 'em, right?! Our new Wry Baby Bathe like a Pirate cotton hooded towel be just th' thing fer dryin' yer soggy booty an' keepin' ye from shiverin' yer timbers off! The matching washcloth set reminds young bucaneers that a Clean Booty is a Happy Booty, that No One Likes a Smelly Pirate, and to Live Clean! Fight Dirty!





And to entertain said swashbucklers while cleaning the booty....the Ahoy Matey bathtime learning shapes from O.R.E.. The pieces float and the board can be used like a puzzle. Add the matching Ahoy Matey! bathtub toy bag and your little pirate is sure to rule the seven seas!

xxxx

September Shop for a Cause

On Saturday, September 26th Curtsy Bella will donate 10% of our total sales to WACAP.

WACAP (World Association for Children and Parents) is a leading adoption and humanitarian aid agency. Since 1976, they've placed over 9,600 children with loving adoptive parents and provided food, medical care and education to over 200,000 children worldwide. WACAP is one of the largest and most experienced international nonprofit adoption and child assistance agencies in the United States.

Please join us in helping to support this worthwhile organization.

XOXO

The Curtsy Girls

Great New Finds!!

The Curtsy Girls love this time of year!! The days get shorter (OK we don't love that) and fall is in the air. As it begins to cool off, most of us begin to spend a bit more time inside and our thoughts turn to making home a bit more inviting. The new Parfumerie Curiosite Travel Candles from Tokyomilk can help take care of that. Not only are they pretty to look at, but they burn wonderfully and gently scent the air.

This is also the time of year that our new fall merchandise begins to arrive and it's like Christmas every day! We frequently kinda forget what we ordered and it's just always so fun un-packing the boxes. One of my favorites are the new Jeweled Skull Pillows. My bedroom is done all in black, furniture, accents and linens and these will add just the bit of edgy sophistication I've been looking for.


This Saturday, September 26th, Curtsy Bella will donate 10% of our total sales to WACAP - The World Organization for Children and Parents.

WACAP is a leading adoption and humanitarian aid agency. Since 1976, they have placed over 9,600 children with loving adoptive parents and provided food, medical care and education to over 200,000 children worldwide. WACAP is one of the largest and most experienced international nonprofit adoption and child assistance agencies in the United States.

Please join us in supporting the important work of this worthwhile organization.

XOXO

Curtsy Mama

Mary Jo

Good Girl Gone Bad

The day got off to a bit of a slow start, which gave the Curtsy Girls time to catch their breath after 2 really busy days. Seems since everyone heard that the recession is "over", they have decided to come out shopping and we have been hopping! We are absolutely loving the new glassware that's gracing the shelves. I can think of several girlfriends who absolutely need the Single and Sexy Wine Glass. I'm thinking that even though I don't drink, I need the glass as well. After all, if we don't tell ourselves that we're sexy...who will?


Did you know that tomorrow, September 19th is Talk Like a Pirate Day? I kid you not, it was started by 2 guys many years ago and celebrated in obscurity until humor columnist Dave Barry picked up on it back in 2002, it's become pretty near a national holiday! They even have an official website http://talklikeapirate.com. Pretty funny!! For the little buccaneer in your life, we have this awesome new Ahoy Matey Divided Plate. What's totally genius about this plate is that is has a big suction cup on the bottom, so your little pirate can't dump his food all over the floor, causing you, to have to swab the deck.

Don't be scared off by the Husky football traffic this weekend. The game starts at 12:30 and from then until probably 4, it's absolutely delightful in the area. We have parking right in front of the store and loads of cool Halloween goods to trick out your place.

XOXO
Curtsy Mama
Mary Jo

Graphic Images

It's been a productive day at Curtsyland - the Captain came in to finish the graphics for a shirt he was making for one of the players on his Footy team commemorating his 100th game. He had to produce 5 custom graphics to embroider and it turned out truly spectacular. He then spent time this afternoon giving me lessons on the graphics program. I was able to create a custom graphic to embroider as well. After sewing out the sample of my creation, it's clear that it still needs a bit of work, but I'll share it with you as soon as I make it perfect.




For those who have been patiently waiting, Danielle has once again transformed the store into a Halloween wonderland. Silhouette votive holders & ornaments, glitter skulls in so many fun colors & spiderwebs are just a few of the scary treats that we have adorning the store. We're beginning to receive the merchandise ordered in New York, so as always, things are ever-changing at Curtsy Bella. Keeps us all from getting bored...right?


XOXO
Curtsy Mama
Mary Jo

It's Gettin Creepy in Here!

Danielle has been hard at work trying to get the Halloween goodies out on the floor. Of course the way it works in our world is that the store can be completely dead, we bring out a ladder, climb it and voila....a store full of customers. Anyways, today, Old Funny Bones and Olde Crow made their debut at Curtsyland. With their cool top hats they remind me of some of the characters in the series I've gotten hooked on lately. Deadwood, was a show that aired on HBO several years ago. It's set in the 1870's in Deadwood, South Dakota. Started out a bit on the bloody side, but now that I'm into it, it's hard not to stay up way too late every night. These 2 characters would fit in perfectly!




The Don Vorhees book Disgusting Things is perfect for that hard to buy for person in your life. I was going to say that "hard to buy for guy", but this book is pretty fascinating (if not more than a little gross) and so I can't just limit it to the gentlemen. Did you know that "Japanese Researchers have succeeded in making the sweet smell of vanilla from one of the most offensive smelling things around - cow dung?" Then there's the chapter entitled Members Only - The Male Body, and let me tell you there is some fascinating stuff in there!

XOXO

Curtsy Mama

Mary Jo

Softness in Stock

Curtsyland has been invaded! We received a shipment of the softest, sweetest most wonderful animal friends today. Truffles the Sheep comes in large and small sizes and is so adorable we can barely stand it (we're such suckers for soft, we've been hugging them ever since they arrived!) If I Were A Sheep is the perfect first book for a little one. Sturdy cardboard pages combined with different textures to feel, will make this a favorite.

Tomorrow, Danielle will begin the Curtsyland Creepification Process. She has all the new Halloween goodies ready to go in the back. One of our new favorites is the Jeweled Skull Pillow. Even though he'll be making his debut for the Halloween season, he'd be a very cool addition to to your couch all year long.
We were busy little bees this weekend working with the Captain to perfect the embroidery alphabets and monograms that we will be offering. The Emilie Sloan bags monogram really well and will make awesome personalized gifts for any occasion. We just received a large new shipment in, so we have a great selection to choose from.




XOXO
Curtsy Mama
Mary Jo

A Wedding to Plan

Exciting things are happening in the Curtsy Girls lives right now. Several weeks ago (actually while we were in New York at the gift show) Danielle got engaged. The captain flew in to surprise her for her birthday and proposed while they were there as well. We didn't want to spread the word until all of the family members had been told. Last week they embroidered a special towel for the captain's mom and e-mailed her the above picture. Needless to say they received a very excited phone call from her a few minutes later.

The 3 of us had several appointments this morning to look at wedding venues, which was just so much fun! We were standing in one location and the coordinator was talking about the ceremony and I got a huge lump in my throat. I can't even imagine what kind of a mess I will be on the actual day! I'm just so happy for them both. They are a wonderful couple and I know they will have a fabulous and fun marriage.


They haven't yet picked a specific date, but it will be some time next summer. Now, anyone who's ever been in Curtsyland, knows how creative Danielle is, so she will be acting as her own wedding coordinator. She is also uber organized, so many pieces of the Mindy Weiss Wedding Collection will be pressed into service. The Accordion File is a great place to keep some of the many magazine cut outs that she is collection. The Response Organizer will be a real help when it comes to figuring out who's going to be able to join them on their special day. The captain has a huge family, so that alone will be quite a job.

Over the course of the next year, we'll be sharing lots of information and pictures of what is sure to be a special time in our lives.

XOXO
Curtsy Mama
Mary Jo

Birthday Cape

Remember when you were little and it was your birthday? You wanted absolutely everybody to know that IT WAS YOUR SPECIAL DAY!!! The Birthday Cape will do just that. Sized just right for little Birthday Princesses, it has "Happy Birthday" and colorful pom poms sewn all throughout the cape.

The Itty Bitty Birthday Banner is the perfect size for decking out some one's cubicle, a party buffet or to just tuck into a birthday card. I always loved to decorate the breakfast table when my kids were little. Made them feel special right from the very beginning of the day.


We've been learning and experimenting with Bella Barudan, our new embroidery machine. The new Emilie Sloan Bags that we just received in monogram so well and look really beautiful. I've included pics of a couple of our early samples. We're in the process of adding some more monogram styles and should be up and running with monogramming the bags by next week.

XOXO
Curtsy Mama
Mary Jo