13 | June | 2015 | Cindy Rice Designs

Strawberry picking is so much fun even though it is a lot of work filling those baskets to the top. But maybe that’s because too many strawberries get eaten before making it into the baskets.

I haven’t been strawberry (or blueberry, or raspberry, or apple) picking for years and years and years. It was always something that I enjoyed doing when my daughter was young. For sure, it is an educational experience for the little ones. They get to see how the berry needs to be a blossom first, and then with the help of bees, will start to become a strawberry. They see the color changes it goes through before it is ready to be picked and eaten. And, if they eat one before it is ripe, they can taste the changes too. So very interesting…

Here in northern Illinois/southern Wisconsin the strawberries aren’t ready for picking . They are just about ready, but not quite yet. Maybe we’ll get out to pick a few this year. This is where we go to pick our strawberries.

I got a bit nostalgic while creating this outfit for Talyssa, so I retreated to our photo albums to find when we last went strawberry picking; it was 2003! My daughter was dressed in her strawberry top and pink shorts from Gymboree. I don’t remember being so “event coordinated,” if you know what I mean. Oh, and I had on a top that perfectly matched her shorts. Sheesh! At least my husband wasn’t wearing pink.

This brand-spanking-new strawberry print (I couldn’t wait to use it!) came in pink gingham and aqua gingham too. The sunny yellow gingham appealed to me the most, so I chose the yellow.

It was fun creating the little accessories to go with this set. The little strawberry is a mini stuffy with beads and a crocheted top. Talyssa can hold the berry by the loop. The crocheted basket will hold the strawberry too. I had the strawberry charm in my bead drawer waiting for the perfect fabric. Those little aqua bead blossoms matched the blossoms on the fabric oh, so nicely.