Our goal at ’3seams’ is to help create opportunities for you and your kids. As much of our country is experiencing great heat waves right now, we’re thinkin’ that there are some thirsty people in your neighborhoods! How many of your kids are itchin’ to have a Lemonade Stand?? I think our kids are just hard-wired with this ‘itch’! Why not turn this uncontrolable itch into an opportunity?!? An opportunity for you to do something hands-on with your kids as well as an opportunity to help your kids make a difference in their world!

Mission: Lemonade Stand (with a Cause!)

* choose a time and place for your venture.
* create your stand! (idea: go old-school and make your stand out of a refrigerator box! Remember doing that?!?)
* choose your ’cause’ and teach your kids about what your organization does to help our world…
* make lemonade and any other added treats TOGETHER (cookies, rice krispie treats, etc.)!
* post signs around your neighborhood and personally invite family/ friends/neighbors…
* at the close of your venture, let your kids count the money and be a part of mailing it into your ’cause’ of choice!

Choose an organization that your kids can excited about! Not only will your kids learn something new, but they can help educate those that stop by! Never under-estimate the plans God has for your children…they too can make a mighty difference in their world!

If you do choose to make ’3seams’ your ’cause’ for the day, we would be honored! Let us know and we will send you a little flyer to make available to your patrons! Email us at info@3seams.com

Much of what I write in ‘the blog’ will be based on foreign lands and different cultures because I’m passionate about growing the ‘bubble’ we all live in…growing perspective on a global level. However, I also want to throw things back home a bit… Our country is known as the land of plenty, of opportunity, and of privilege. Though, needs are quite great in the United States right now…whether due to the economy or natural disaster, many of our people are struggling. What are we doing to help? We don’t have to go far….

This week, I am in Tuscaloosa, Alabama with an organization called, Youth For Christ. On April 27th of this year, a tornado ripped through this city and destroyed anything in it’s path. An estimated 15,000 people were displaced due to the damage that occurred. So, why am I here? I have the privilege of leading a group of people (primarily teenagers) throughout the week as we do our part to help Tuscaloosa. Through the clearing of debris, hearts will be changed. The hearts of these teenagers will never be the same….Tuscaloosa will leave a fingerprint on their lives!

A few weeks back, 3 families in our neighborhood got together and made sack lunches for the homeless population in our town. The kids dug out their markers and crayons to decorate bags, cookies were baked, sandwiches were made…. We stuffed those ‘cutie-pie’ bags, loaded ‘em into the car, and headed down town. As we handed out lunches and water bottles that day, I was struck by something. Despite this food being very much needed, the love that went out with the lunch was far greater than the sandwich within it. How often does someone show love, concern, or interest to these people? When was the last time someone smiled at them? As we left down town that day, we had one lunch left. We saw an elderly man pushing a cart…he was frail…his hair was long and white…. My daughter and her friend jumped out of the van and ran over to him. His story? He had been a school teacher once… What happened? We don’t know, but his face certainly lit up as the girls put that sack and 2 water bottles into his cart… Love. The girls stepped out of their ‘comfort zone’ and showed love that day… yet somehow that experience will linger in our girls’ hearts forever… a fingerprint left by a school teacher!

Everything a child experiences molds them into who they will become…why not, in these precious few years that we as parents have them, give them opportunities to experience greatness; to experience things that will mold them into more and more of who Jesus was here on earth. Who knows? You just might go home with a little fingerprint too!

I so want my children to have a desire to show compassion and love. Not just because, “mommy says were gonna”, but because they just do! ….from the depths of their souls, they just do!

Our challenge to you….find something to do this month that challenges you, that grows you, and that ultimately shows love! I promise you won’t have to go far…look around your neighborhood…around your town…there’s an opportunity waiting for you…go snatch it up! You’ll never be the same!

For…as long as we have air in our lungs and we allow Him access to our lives, God will continue to mold us into who He created us to be! How great is that!?!

Parenting…..the most exhilarating, fun, amazing, and challenging job in the world!!  From the mother in Africa raising her child in a mud hut to a father raising his child in the Bronx of NYC, we are all up against one challenge in common.  We have been blessed with the opportunity to shape and influence the lives of the next generation.

Everything
matters. 

What are we doing?

What are we saying?

What are we teaching?

Everything we do… say… and teach… is molding the next generation….  Wow, huh?

As a mom of three, I hear this and can get overwhelmed.  It can be daunting.  Just the other day, I realized that my youngest, Jordyn, was 8 years old.  How did that happen?   All of the sudden, I am faced with the realization that I am almost half done raising her!  Stink!  I’ve got to get movin’….  There’s so much to teach her! 

What is it that I want to teach my Jordyn in the next 10 years?  I could rattle off a whole list of things!  I want her to be respectful, kind, compassionate, and generous throughout her life.  I want her to know the difference between right and wrong.  Not just for the sake of staying out of trouble, but because I want her to desire the right choice from the deep crevasses of her heart.  I want her to have a relationship with her Creator.  I want her to tap into all the God-given abilities and talents that have been built within her.  I want her to shine with the love of Jesus. 

The last thing I want to teach my daughter is the premise that threw me into the ’3seams’ journey.  I want her to have a global perspective.  I want my kids to grow up knowing how very fortunate they are.  I want my kids to be passionate about helping the poor and the destitute.  I want my child’s eyes to tear up when hearing about the injustices of this world.  I want them to desire change in the world and I want them to pursue it! My hope and prayer is that through this ’3seams’ BLOG, you will learn and become passionate about instilling a global perspective within your children.  I want to give you information and practical tools to use.  I want you to start each week equipped and excited about teaching your children about their world.   This is gonna be fun!  Stick with us and I guarantee you that your hearts and the hearts of your children will be challenged and filled with excitement!

with JOY in the JOURNEY,
~inga

’3seams’ needs to do an ”911″  SUPPLY DROP this month!  Our amazing seamstresses are out of supplies and we need to remedy this situation.  Unfortunately, the airline tickets have sky-rocketed making it impossible.  Our goal is to raise $800 by the end of next week…. If you would be interested in contributing to “Mission SUPPLY DROP”, we would be so grateFULL!!  Here’s how….

Please mail all (tax deductable) donations to:

3seams | P.O. Box 270601 | St. Paul, MN.  55127 

Thank you so much!  Be sure to check back Monday for the official beginning of ’3seams – the blog’.

 Many of our accessories are currently available in our Online Store. However, we are getting many emails about how you can get your hands on a ’3seams’ dress! Thank you so much for all your interest and enthusiasm! Here’s the scoop….

We are in the process of prepping for an event in Atlanta on June 25th. If you are in the Atlanta area and are interested in stopping by, please email us for details: info@3seams.com

Beginning Friday, July 1st, we will be having an ONLINE extension of the Atlanta show. You will be able to purchase dresses, accessories, and more!! 

NEW Website! Along with dresses being available on July 1st, so will our NEW WEBSITE!! This launch of our NEW site is a long awaited moment. We are so EXCITED about bringing you a new and fresh way to get involved in what ’3seams’ is doing! We can’t wait for you to see it!

‎’3seams’ bracelet fundraiser begins next week! These cute little girl bracelets are made in Haiti through our partnering organization, The Apparent Project. They are made from hand rolled paper beads! They are absolutely adorable and super durable for the little girls in your life!! You purchasing these bracelets will support the ’3seams’ seam- stress program in Haiti! $5/each or $12/set of 3 PLUS $3 S/H. They will hit our online store this next monday! Your purchases will truly make a difference! Thank you for being a part of the journey!

The time has come again! We are Haiti-bound and have a few people going along with us! Yay, FUN!
The 1st person coming along this trip is extra special to me….my daughter, Skylar! Skylar is 13-years-old and full of life! For the past few years now, Skylar has been talking about how she doesn’t know if she is going to have any kids of her own, biologically. She told me recently that she wanted to travel the world and find little ones that needed her. Couldn’t be more proud of the young woman she is becoming! I am so excited to introduce her to a part of the world that has captured my heart.

The 2nd person coming for the first week is a dear friend of mine, Sara D. Harper. Sara is a photographer/ videographer that has impressed me with her work from the day we met (www.saradharper.com). Sara is coming to Haiti this time to capture some moments that will allow all of you to feel even more connected to what ’3seams’ is doing! We want you to feel like you are truly a part of the journey and I know that through Sara’s work, YOU WILL! Click HERE to learn more about Sara and her work!

The 3rd person coming in for week #2 is someone that I am incredibly excited about introducing to you! This is Tori Rayle! Tori is the newest member of our ’3seams’ team and we are SO thrilled to have her on board. Tori is planning to move to Haiti this coming September to manage our production there! This is a huge answer to prayer. Tori, living in Haiti, will allow us to not only improve the quality control of our ’3seams’ product being manufactured in Haiti, but we will be able to do so much more for the people of Haiti by having someone on the ground 100% of the time! Welcome to the team, Tori!!

Stay tuned to our website and to our FB page for more updates from Haiti over the next couple of weeks! It’s bound to be an exciting ride…

With GREAT JOY in the journey, ~inga

What makes a dress so special? When I started on this ‘3seams’ journey, I had a vision….it was simple….a little dress in duplicate….cute, right?!? What I didn’t realize was that God had such a bigger vision for this ‘cute-ness’ than I. While in Haiti during our first distribution, God started to reveal His vision. Many of you remember that first distribution….those first smiling faces amongst a shaken land…they were truly “flowers amidst the rubble”. At the conclusion of that day as we watched them run back to their families, my friend leaned over to me and said, “Inga, do you realize what just happened?” All I knew was that it was something 100% wonderful….something that was producing a LOT of tears! He proceeded to teach me about Haitian ‘church culture’. The Haitian people are a very spiritual people and Sunday mornings are filled with worship. The majority of the people live in tents, under propped up tin, amidst stacked cement block….yet, on Sunday mornings, they walk to church in the most pristine clothing…. You see, in Haiti, it’s very important that you have “Sunday clothes” in order to attend church. In most cases, without ‘proper’ attire, they simply aren’t able to attend. It was in this moment that I realized what made the dress so special! As much as I would love for MY son to wear his ‘nicer’ pair of jeans to church, I know that if he does wear the ones with grass stains or a rip in the knee, he will still be welcomed and taught about Jesus. Who knew that a little dress could be a “ticket” for a little girl to learn about Jesus? ….God did! God’s vision is always bigger than anything we could possibly imagine. As we approach Easter, know that because of your ‘3seams’ purchases, little girls in Haiti are learning about their Creator. Thank you for being a part of the journey.

After an exciting FIRST YEAR, we are ready to CELEBRATE! We will be celebrating ALL WEEKEND long with special promotions, discounts, and more! Our DAILY SPECIALS will be posted here on our website as well as on our Facebook Fan Page by 10pm (Eastern), the night before! Each day’s special will run from Midnight to Midnight (Eastern). As well as the daily specials, we will have some quick 2-hour SPECIALS throughout the weekend… If you happen to order more than once, we will combine your orders for shipping and refund the appropriate shipping costs! Yay, FUN!
This is the perfect opportunity to think in terms of gifts as well! Remember, our WRISTLETS and Coin Purses are not just for little girls….they make great jewerly and makeup travel bags for Mommies, Aunties, Grannies, and “Besties”!
We are looking forward to what is in store for ’3seams’ this next year, but first we have to celebrate YEAR ONE! We hope you join us this weekend for our ONLINE STORE Celebration!

We are excited to introduce to you the newest item in the ’3seams’ accessory line….THE WRISTLET! This little bag will fit ever-so-cuteLY on your little girl’s wrist and will hold all of her little treasures safe! Like the COIN PURSES introduced earlier this month, these sweet little creations are made by ladies from our seamstress program in Haiti. You will again recognize the fabrics as the bags are made from our dress scraps! Too FUN!
(…..Hey Mommies, Grannies, Aunties, and all other –ies out there… these little WRISTLETS make great jewelry bags for travel!…… let that ‘little girl’ inside of you enjoy this new item as well!) Wristlets will be available online by the weekend! Enjoy!

Your purchases are making a HUGE DIFFERENCE!
One of our ladies in Haiti is the mother of 5 children…2 of which are baby twins! As our shipment was being packed up this past week, Madam Bessa was working long hours to get as many pieces done as possible. One simple reason… her babies needed milk. ’3seams’ is truly a means of survival for this mama of 5! THANK YOU for supporting Madam Bessa and the other women living in similar circumstances through your ’3seams’ purchases. Hope has been restored in the lives of these women. Hope for their future and hope for their children’s future! How GREAT is that!?!