Quintuplets - wow!

Recently we were contacted to create a gift for a family welcoming quintuplets to their family...all I could think was, wow! The least La Plates could do was provide placemats for the "fab 5" and their big sis!

This really lit a fire under us to figure out a way to show our custom placemat designs online. We always offer them at trunk shows, but it's tough to show the endless possibilities online. Right now we are offering a Dots (side 1) & Stripes (side 2) combo. Be sure to check back soon, as we continue to add new designs and options.

Only one boy in the bunch and they picked one of my favorite names!!

Blogorama for Mabel

One of our favorite mompreneurs, Mabel's Labels, is posing the question, "What have been the rewards and benefits of participating in the blogging community?" I must admit, when I began this adventure in an internet business, I was a newbie to the blogging world. I quickly realized that bloggers were the link to entertaining/prep/mom/monogram junkies of America! I will never be able to properly thank the number of bloggers that have mentioned La Plates in their postings. Truly, they are what gave us our confidence to keep going in the beginning and what continue to give us happy boosts when they send us a link to a new posting.

A woman in my home town is a national phenomenon of a blogger...some of you surely read Mrs. Blandings. The first time I was introduced to her, I literally hugged her, as she was the first person to blog or write about La Plates - she was our first national PR! At that time, I mentioned to her that I had been thinking about starting a blog. She told me to go for it - and I did! Needless to say, I don't have the enormous following like Mrs. B, but it adds a personal touch to our website.

For anyone starting a business, do not underestimate the power of the blogging community - they are a powerful and fabulous crew!

Luck of the Irish

After a request from our favorite travel agent, we added a La Plates shamrock retro Holiday Plate. It's perfect for the upcoming holiday. Feel free to customize with a name, monogram or phrase. We think white and black text shows best, but it's up to you!

Hoohobbers

I was fortunate enough to run into an old friend at a recent holiday faire in Chicago. Wouldn't you know, La Plates' first customer was a sorority sister from college?! Now, I must say, I wasn't the most active member and I was a couple of years older, but I still remembered this great woman!

Courtney and her family have a fabulous company, Hoohobbers, which has designed and manufactured its own line of products since 1981. They are based out of Chicago, but you can get everything online too. I highly recommend stopping by their website or retail store!

Here's my artist enjoying his new Hoohobbers easel

Cabin Fever

It's been a long couple of weeks with the crazy cold weather. Everyone in our household is getting a little stir crazy. If you have kids and are looking for some artistic fun in your house, head to Michael's for this fabulous contraption! I remember having something like it back in my younger years...somehow mine seemed bigger and more sturdy. However, the Paint & Swirl has been a huge hit with old and young in our home!

My 4-year old following my direction in taking the "guard" off to make it more fun. It's not as much fun for mom to clean up a entire paint splattered kitchen!
Really cool finished product...we "overpainted" the upper right paper!

Another Valentine Idea...

If you are thinking about plates for Valentine's Day and aren't into hearts year round, just add a little message of love on one of our standard designs. We can't share our design for our Nana plate, because she is one of our loyal blog readers...sorry Nana, yours will be to you in a couple of weeks!

Keeping up with the Kardashians - holiday style

When we got a call from The Silver Spoon to set a holiday table for the Kardashians, we had to say yes. We think the women in the family are fabulous (Keeping up with the Kardashians), but we really did it all for Bruce. Ever since the Wheaties box, I've been a sucker for him. So we're not sure if Bruce Jenner actually noticed the La Plates - squares design plate set, but in our hearts, we know he loved them! You're a lucky lady Kris!

We did alternating red & green SQUARES La Plates for the Kardashian Krew!

Jonas Brothers, oh la la!

Back in my tween days, I covered my walls with the pics of the cutest boys from all the tween mags. In my era, Ricky Schroeder ("the Ricker", as I knew him) was the star of the magazines...now it's the Jonas Brothers. I was so proud to hear that they loved La Plates at the American Music Awards - Silver Spoon Suite!

Yes boys, we'll make some for you too!

Oh, Ricky, what a cool kid!

Monogrammed Totes

La Plates is always keeping an eye out for fabulous monogrammed gear! If we find something we think you won't be able to do without, we'll add it to our website. Here's a little something we found while on a beach vacation. Once we consulted with our resident expert on all things cool (Aunt Apple), she gave us the stats on the must-have totes. We hope you will excuse the indoor photos, but it is just too darn cold to stage an outdoor shot these days. We'll be sure to update the photos once the snow clears. Until then, order up a fabulous monogrammed tote and dream of your next beach getaway!

Don't forget, your friends and family discount works on everything at La Plates - just enter friend10 at checkout for the 10% off!

Healthy Competition

I'm just about the most un-competitive person around...until this little contest came out for "mom entrepreneurs" at Startup Nation. We've thrown our hat in the ring, now we need your help! Use this link: http://www.startupnation.com/leading-moms-2009/contestant/2997/index.php in your browser and vote for us! Or just search for La Plates once you're on their site. Let the world know La Plates was started by a cool stay-at-home mom!

Valentine's Day...are you prepared?!

I don't usually count years by holidays, but Valentine's Day is an exception. Exactly 8 Valentines ago, my husband pulled a fast one - he proposed! I was expecting luggage with wheels and when I opened my eyes, he was on one knee.

I'm not saying you have to run out and propose, but a thought out, personalized Valentine's gift would be nice. Checkout La Plates Heart Plate. It's listed under Holiday Plates and you can use our friends and family discount - friend10 for 10% off your entire order. Order soon, as turnaround is 10-15 business days. Happy Valentine's Day!

Select multi-colored background/heart-retro for this look -
the font is copperplate

Discounts & Coupons

Here at La Plates, we are all about a good deal! Be sure to sign up for our e-mails and we'll send you coupon codes when we create them. For the launch of our 2009 Collection, we sent friends and family a 10% off code for your entire order. Feel free to enter friend10 at checkout and you'll receive the same discount! Thanks for your interest in La Plates and thanks for shopping with us, Happy New Year!

La Plates 2009 Collection

We have been so excited to show off our new designs for 2009, but had to get through the holiday craze before we could add them to the website. Checkout some of our favorite combos below.

SQUARES PLATE in light blue
monogram: script in navy

KNOTS PLATE in red
monogram: roman in navy

PAISLEY PLATE in navy
center square with initial in orange

CHEVRON PLATE in khaki
monogram: circle in brown

If you head to the La Plates website, you'll see we've changed a few things around. We've added new designs and fonts, and also tried to make things a little more clear on ordering. Continue to check back throughout the Spring, as we have a lot of new ideas to share with you! Happy New Year!

Birthday Bowling Bash, check!

Today was the big day - the big boy turned 4. The only thing he wanted to do for his birthday was have a bowling party. I thought I had it down, we booked a morning party to avoid "league bowling". I picked up the requested sprinkle donuts and juice boxes. As I drove to the bowling alley, I thought, things are really going smoothly...then I got there: bowling alley closed! Luckily, the coach from the high school team was talking to the owner on the phone - she saved the day! By they time the first guest arrived, all was well and my 4 year old never knew I almost had a panic attack in the bowling alley parking lot. Happy Birthday Bug!