Little Otis Loves Fetch

Look What Katie Made

Katie is working here at LBD world headquarters for the summer. This fall she'll start her senior year at Ballard High! The other day she made these new bubble necklaces with candy colored images that I recently designed.

These are all new styles, now available in the store. If you are interested in ordering any from afar, just shoot us an email. ($24 each with chain and giftboxed.)

Ballard Women

Once a year about this time, a neighborhood customer Lori comes in to design a new bag. The photo shows her 2007 model - an Amy made with plum suede and merlot Naugahyde. The center panel is gorgeous vintage lily of the valley fabric.

This green fabric is extra special. It's cut from a petite antique dress that once belonged to another regular customer's mother. A couple of years ago Beth generously gave the dress to us, knowing that we would use the fabric and buttons. When Ashley made this bag, it made me a little sentimental. I'm so lucky to have such incredible customers.

Recently Shipped

We made this collection for a terrific shoe store in Portland.

If you're in Oregon, go check out Switch Shoes.

Customer Photo: Guy Style

Doesn't the LBD custom teal checkbook look hip, yet manly in this photo? (The cool chapeau definitely enhances the look.)

Sunshine on a Cloudy Day

A creative bride chose sunset colors for her twilight wedding.

We were impressed that the orange clutch was for her - to match her orange shoes!

Another customer designed this Sophie as a gift for girl who loves everything orange.

Finally, we have a winner!

Entries have been processed, numbers tabulated, and one name drawn at random! Here she is:


Catherine M., of Seattle, won a $50 gift certficate to our shop!

Thanks to all of you for your submissions. I will post more when I get the chance. It was great fun to receive photos of our work in action.

Beach Picnic with the Girls

Introducing The Smiler

When we first adopted Otis the weather was cool. We didn't witness his panting until a few months later, when we were surprised to see that his tongue is as curly as his tail.

Now we've dubbed the face pictured above as "The Smiler." As in, "Otis has his Smiler out, it must be hot."

Refresh Me

This sprig of mint came from a little herb garden that we planted about a week ago.

In that short time, the plants have nearly doubled, even though we've been pinching off leaves daily for our iced tea.

We planted both peppermint and spearmint. I don't generally have a green thumb, so it's nice to watch these grow. (I think it's hard to kill mint, luckily. Plus, Jeff generally handles the important details like watering.)

This morning, I tossed a sprig of spearmint into my ice water bottle. Next stop: mojitos.

Happy Dogs Update

Isn't Albert, pictured above, an adorable beach dog? He's one of the many dogs that has been placed by Seattle Pug Rescue in new, "forever" homes.

I wanted to write you with an update on our Happy Dog Zipper Case fundraiser. Today I mailed off a donation check to SPF for over $400, which represents money raised by the sale of the little bags. These funds will directly toward health care expenses of the rescue dogs. Thanks to everyone who supported our cause so far. Our Otis the Pug is very proud. (Stay tuned for our new charity fundraiser item, coming soon.)

I spoke with Sherry of Seattle Pug Rescue (and pug-mom of three) and she told me that the number of pugs being surrendered is up this year, both in Seattle and across the country. She said that the number one reason for this surge is that people who have small children do not feel they have enough time to give their pugs. Pugs are wonderful with kids, but they have been bred to be companion dogs and thus they need more attention than the average canine.

Right now there are more than twelve pugs available on their website, many are puppies. If you know anyone who is thinking of getting a dog, please let them know that there are wonderful rescue dogs looking for good homes. If a pug isn't your cup of tea, then look for other breed rescues in your area, look in your local shelters, or on Petfinder.

If you haven't yet bought a zipper case, don't worry. We're going to continue to sell these cases as long as we can get the fabric. They are still for sale on our website, in our store, or you can order over the phone.

Fun with Pinback Buttons

Our 1.25" button machine is such a blast. Here are some buttons that we made using tattoo-inspired images. (Available in the store $1.50 each, or four for $5.)

Love on the Rocks

Old school, unsweetened sun tea is my beverage of choice on these lazy summer days. We bought a huge package of Lipton, which is chock full o' antioxidants the yellow box proclaims.

A ratio of five teabags to one gallon of cold water makes a crisp, strong batch. We use this glass jug to make our tea, and park it in sun patch out in the front yard.

After an hour or two, remove the teabags from the water. Fill a tall glass with fresh ice cubes, then pour the tea over the ice. Add a sprig of fresh mint for an extra treat.