Hat-ology

Well, "hatology" might be too big of a title for this post, but basically I just wanted to talk about hats and my love for them today.

It was about 3 weeks ago... Mr. TRH and I were packing to move. In the middle of a really, I mean critically busy time packing our belongings I ran into my hat collection. Then, I had a desire to write about my hats. I started taking pictures of them and dragged Mr. TRH to take my pictures with some of my hats (sorry, hun).

My earliest memory with hats is of a very unattractive cap we all had to wear at gym class at elementary school. They were just regular shaped caps, and were reversible. One side was red, and the other side was white. So when we are separated into teams, one team would wear the red side, and the other team would wear the white side. I didn't like how I looked in that cap and the elastic went under my chin was very tight, and I never liked it.

I didn't wear any form of hat for a long time after that until I graduated from high school.

One day I was at a store when I saw this wool bucket style hat... it is a rather plain looking hat, but for some reason I fell in love with it. Yeah, I guess I could say that this hat started my love for hats.

Over the years my hat collection grew. All of my hats are not expensive at all. Most of the times I find them at Target, TJ Maxx, and some other retailers. Also, I never go shopping thinking that "I am going to buy a hat today". It's just happens. I just happen to find one I really like.

What I found out about buying hats is that, it is not always "more expensive is better". As I mentioned, I tried on some really pricey beautiful hats before for fun but when I looked in the mirror, it didn't look good on me at all. On the other hand, one of my most worn favorite hats came from Target; I only paid $15.

Hats are like sunglasses, you don't know until you wear it if it suits you or not. I am not an expert, but I think many things affect which hat is suitable or not for the person. For example, the shape of the head, width and height of the forehead, facial type, so on and so forth. Also, keep in mind what kind of clothes you own when you are trying to decide which hat to buy. I love checking out men's hats too.

I really love Fedora Hats. I own more of this style than any other style of hat. They go well with pants, and sometimes, I wear them with maxi dresses and skirts too.

This one is kind of a mix of Fedora and Homburg in my opinion. I love the color combination.

The straw hat with BIG brim is my "must have" during the summer to protect my face from the strong sun.


This flat cap is also one of my most beloved hats. It is made out of linen, and I wear this three out of the four seasons.


These conductor/Military style hats are made out of wool and velvet (the black one). They are such a fun and casual design that’s perfect for when wearing pants.

Beret is such a cute hat, I feel like whenever I wear one I'm a bit more girly. There are so many variations out there, but those are my favorites.

As you can see, I am pretty neutral in the color choices of my hats, because I want to wear them with many different outfits. I want the hat to be part of the outfit, not to stand out by itself to distract the whole image. Although, sometimes I can't help myself, I can be drawn to a hat with a little drama (really, it still has conservative colors).

Hats can spice up a simple wardrobe. Some hats are for practical use, and some are simply to make a statement. Whichever it is, I am so glad that I tried on the first wool hat despite the memories of the awful red and white reversible hat. :)

Do you love hats? What is your favorite style?

Jewelries 2 ~ Spring ~

Since the last post, I made some more jewelry. I have been wanting to list them on my Etsy shop, but each process takes a long time and I have been putting it off. I guess I really enjoy creating something, but I am not ambition enough at marketing and the other aspects of running a business.

Are you ready to take a look at what I have been working on?

The first pieces are these earrings. I wear more silver than gold, but I love how these pair turned out. Don't you think they look a little antique-ish?

I had these parts for a while; I finally made up my mind on what to do with them. I threaded them with silver pearl and made them into a bracelet. I know this will go with many different outfits.

Then, I decided to play with some antiqued brass finished chains. I combined four different types of chains to create this bracelet. I have to say, this is one of my favorite pieces.


If you have been reading my blog for a while, you probably have a pretty good idea that I have weakness for ruffles, laces and stuff. Wouldn’t it be so lovely if I could wear a lace motif necklace?

Lace motif by itself is wonderful; but how about 3 times the lace motif? Awesome!

After making fairly simple jewelry pieces, I wanted to make something with more detail. How about some fun bracelets with spring/summer colors?

After going through my jewelry making supplies, I know what I have and what I want to make with them. I am excited as they come along, but I started missing my sewing machine too... :)

Jewelries ~ Spring~

I had to put away many of my sewing/crafting items in to the storage, but I kept some fabrics and jewelry making supplies with me. I promised to make a couple jewelry pieces for one of my friends a while back, so I was working on that, and then I wanted to make more jewelry and kept on going. My problem is that I want to keep them for myself. Though, this time I am thinking about listing them on Etsy. I have been window shopping for furniture and day dreaming of how I can decorate the new house. I better start saving up for them! :)

I will share some jewelry pieces I have made so far...

I wanted to work with solid color beads that are kind of summery. I love this color combination, and the rose on the bracelet is my favorite.

This is another project that I used solid color beads. Originally, I was just going to do all the same beads and make it simple, but as I was making the necklace, I changed my mind. I added some sparkly pieces and I love how it turned out.

This necklace and earring set is for my friend. She has a really fun, outgoing persoanlity and I thought she would look good in the fun colors.

I love how this necklace hangs, and looks great with baggy tops you see in the shops right now. Usually, I don't wear this style of necklace myself, but I really like this one.

I am definitely keeping these earrings! I love the colors, and as you can tell from my blog name, I have a weakness for "rose" or floral items. I think these blue colors are giving the earrings the perfect edge to look sweet without being too cute.

Which one was your favorite? I will share more pictures of my jewelries as I create some more.

Have a nice weekend!

The Reason Why I am So Happy Right Now

Yesterday, for the very first time after I moved out the house I made a couple pieces of jewelry. Though, I am not quite ready to share them with you yet. Hang on tight, I promise that I will post the pictures by the end of this week!

Meanwhile though... I have really exciting news that I have been dying to share with you. Last month, a couple of my projects were published in two separate magazines. If you are interested, or happen to be at the book store, please take a look.

The first one is my otedama (juggling bean bag) and carrying pouch in “Bags Pillows & Pincushions” by Better Homes and Gardens. I always drool over BHG magazines for their beautiful photos, and amazingly written instructions. Seeing my project in their magazine made me so giddy! My project is on pages 49 through 53.

The other project is my She Carries Flowers Bag on Haute Handbags. All of my projects are very close to my heart, but this bag is especially so. It took me quite a while to decide on fabric choices, size of flowers, placement of them, what beads to use etc... it was so exciting to receive the magazine in the mail! You can find my bag on pages 64 to 66.

Thank you everyone for keep reading my blog, and being so supportive with your comments and emails. I love designing and sewing. Coming up with new ideas and project is so much fun and sharing them is added joy to me.

Almost 10 years ago, I started selling stitchery patterns at the local quilting stores and as a business it did fairly well. Most of all, I had so much fun! Then, my third baby came... I was in love with her and wanted to take really good take care of her. Also, it was a huge adjustment to having three kids for me (two very busy boys+baby) and I just couldn't keep up with the business. I know there are quite a few talented designers who have many children and very successful with their business too. I guess I am not very good at multitasking.

I still sell my existing patterns, but I haven't produced any new patterns to sell for a long time. Having Tea Rose Home has been such a great way to share my creations, though, I have been longing for going back to pattern business again for quite some time. Psst... so my friends, what do you think? I want to keep blogging, and anything too big or too busy might overwhelm me, so maybe start small and slow? If you have some tips to share on how to successfully run your own business I am all ears (eyes?)! Thinking about this makes me a little nervous, but at the same time excited and happy. Is that a good indication?

Love you all, thank you again for being here. :) ((hugs))

My Moving Story Part 2 and More

First of all, thanks to all who left very supportive comments or sent me emails on my first moving post. I appreciate them very much and enjoyed some of your experiences too. A couple of you mentioned, "I hope the worst part is over..." Hehehe... Believe or not, there is more to tell. Now when I look back at it, it is kind of funny and I can laugh about it (also, there is something I can write on my blog to share!), though, at the time it wasn't funny at all.

So, after we packed everything and the movers took our stuff to the storage unit, we still had a lot to do. We had a couple more days to pack other things we need to take to my in-laws, clear out the food from the refrigerator and pantry. Also, the storage we rented didn't allow us to store food items or paint and such. We decided to rent a small U-Haul truck to take all of our food storage items and more the next day. We were so tired and decided to crash that night...

The next morning came... and guess what. Mr. TRH got sick. A week before that, one of our kids got the stomach flu and we guessed that that's what he got. He was so pale and weak and I told him to stay home. I thought I could do as much as I can by myself in my minivan (I can't drive other cars with my prosthetic leg) but he insisted in coming along. As soon as we got to the house though...he rolled on the carpet with a bucket. I felt so bad for him, but at the same time I was thinking to myself "Really? Why now, bahhhh!".

Long story short, the next day he was feeling so much better and we were able to do everything we needed to do before the deadline. Phew! Although, it would have been so much harder if it wasn't for our neighborhood friends who came over and helped me to carry stuff out to the garage. There is no way that I could have done it all by myself. Thank you SO MUCH you two!

After we moved in with my in-laws I still had lot to do to situate ourselves and belongings. A couple days later, we celebrated my mother-in-laws birthday and that same night we received a phone call from one of Mr. TRH's aunts saying that his grandmother wasn't doing well. I am not going to go into details, but the next day we all went to see her. Many of her children, some of her grandchildren, and some of her great grandchildren were there. Then, surrounded by her loved ones she took her last breath and passed away.

She used to live in a different state, and I didn't really get to know her, although I am extremely grateful for her and how she lived her life. Because of her, my mother-in-law is here, then Mr. TRH and my children. I feel a strong bond to her through them. It was a very sad and tender moment, but also it was so wonderful to see everybody how they interacted with each other, shared stories about great grandmother and laughed while we cried. They all are her legacy and I am so blessed to have married into such a nice family.

My kids were able to sit by her and hold her hands just before her passing. They were very sad but took it very well. Mr. TRH and I told our kids that death is a part of life, but we have the gift of hope that we will see her again.

Yesterday was such a beautiful day, we decided to take the kids out and enjoy some family time.

Aren’t you spinning a wee bit too hard daddy?

They are growing way too fast!

Life is a mixture of happy times and not so happy times but I am going to create and enjoy as much happy moments with my family as I can and I will not waste an ounce of it. :)

My Moving Story and How the "Sh" Word Escaped My Mouth

Hi all! It has been a few days since I posted last. I am still in the process of unpacking at our temporary place and I am trying to set up a sewing area as well. It is a bit difficult to do since my kids are on their spring break and we are trying to spend time as a family.

I know I said I will share more about my moving drama, but there are so many things that happened I am not sure where to start and what to tell...

We were supposed to move out of the house completely by the 28th, and our moving truck and movers we hired were scheduled for the 26th. I was not done packing at all. I mean NOT AT ALL. I was packing here and there, but the couple rooms I was avoiding came and bit me hard. Can you guess which rooms I am talking about? The hobby room and my closet. Because we are not moving in to our new place right away, I have to decide what to put in storage and what to take with me. That is really hard to decide. I ended up packing till 5 am the night before I slept a couple of hours and got up to continue on. In fact, when the movers came, I was still packing!

Ok, turn the clock back to the 26th... that's where I will start telling you one of my mother of the year award moments.

I have been slowly packing and cleaning for a few weeks, but by the 26th I was under a ton of pressure. All I did was packing and I felt like the packaging tape and marker became parts of my body. We wanted to reschedule the movers to the 28th but since they are so booked, we couldn't. I was so disappointed that we couldn't, but what can I do? I just have to keep packing.

Then, several hours later, Mr.TRH talked to the sales rep of our builder and heard some bad news. We were supposed to move in to our new house in July, but now they are saying August or September. We signed the paper in January, but the paper work wasn't even submitted to the city. WHAT??? Was I upset? Ohhh...that isn’t a good enough word to describe how I felt. If we had known that was going to happen we would have waited to sell our home until May or June. I really wanted to stay in our house and move straight in to our new house. Sometimes I wish I could see the future and decide what to do, but I guess that defeats the purpose of having the ability to make choices.

I was feeling lava boiling in my stomach, but I decided to keep working. We sold our house; we have to move out there so I have to pack up everything.

The boys’ room was nearly done packing, all I needed to do was to take off the bedding and wash them and pack. I ducked down into the bottom bunk to pull the sheets out and then found TONS and TONS of socks, pajamas, books, and toys between the wall and the bed... SERIOUSLY??? Now I have to repack them but this time separately from the other things. I still kept my cool and was going to pull myself out of the bunk bed when...

BANG!!

I hit my head so hard on the rail. "SHxx!!"

The lava boiling in my stomach was reached its limit, hitting my head on the rail was the last straw. I had enough! The word just rolled out of my mouth.

The thing is though, I never swear. That's just not what I do. I am not tying to say that I am miss perfect or anything, but there is a standard I live by and strive to be. There are things I don't do and swearing is one of them.

In fact, my 10 year old was looking at me with wide eyes. He didn't say anything, but his eyes were saying, "What just happened?" Mr. TRH who was packing down stairs even heard that and came running up to see what was going on.

"Are you ok? What happened??" I took a deep breath and tried to explain myself, but near the end my voice failed and I knew I would start crying if I kept talking, so I stopped.

The great thing was that he understood that I was under a lot of pressure and gave me a hug. phew, he always knows what I need and makes me feel better (I am still mad at the builder though!).

I apologized to my son for my behavior later on and he said it's ok, but I told him that it's not ok. I should be in better control of my anger and be a good example for him.

I guess it left a vivid impression and he told several people that mommy used the "sh" word. I felt like it was the talk of the town. He told my mother-in-law (we laughed together though), and my oldest son came to me that night and whispered, "Mom, I heard that you used the "sh" word today??" his eyebrows were moving up and down. Why are children so excited when parents make mistakes.

My response? "what? Oh, you mean "shoot" or "sheesh"?"

Later we found out that the reason the paper wasn't processed yet was that the lady who was supposed to do that got mad about something and quit her job. When she left, she hid all the paper work in a drawer and didn't tell anyone. When the company started getting phone calls from clients they didn't know what was going on and started opening drawers and found the papers. Who does that?? The way she handled her anger was so unprofessional and irresponsible, now we are the ones that get to suffer. :(

I guess big or small, it's better to be in control of our emotions don't you agree?