Princess Peanut and Friends Review (plus giveaway!)

I have grown to love upcycled clothing, it seems to fit Abby better and is quite honestly cuter than many things I find in the stores. Wait… you’ve never heard of upcycles before? Oh my, you are completely missing out! Let me introduce you to one of my favorite boutiques who specializes in creating beautiful and unique upcycled clothing.

First of all, in case you are new to the whole “upcycled clothing” world, let me give some quick information. Upcycled clothing is taking something old and turning it into something new! You can take your daughter’s favorite tee that is just too tight or too short or even stained and create a brand new dress for her (or shirt for him)! It is a great way to make clothes last longer, keep old favorites around longer, turn your old favorite into your child’s new favorite and of course, a wonderful way to recycle and reuse! I started buying Abby upcycled dresses last summer and they quickly became both of our favorites. Another great thing about upcycles is that once you can no longer use it you can pass it along to another family. Other moms are always posting their child’s outgrown dresses/shirts/skirts in “resale” groups so that the dresses can continue to be used and loved! I love the dresses for Abby because they can be custom made. I can take her exact measurements and have a dress made that will actually fit her instead of going to the store and having to deal with things being too tight, too low cut, too whatever. Having a dress custom made means it will fit her just right! Even when buying a used dress I can shop by measurements. This has really helped lately since she’s an odd size. Upcycles can be made from anything! A shirt that is too small, a shirt that is stained, a cute character shirt bought brand new at the store that just doesn’t seem to fit right, even a shirt from mommy’s or daddy’s childhood. Endless possibilities! Okay, you get the picture, upcycled clothing is awesome!

Back to introducing you to one of my favorite designers!

Meet Princess Peanut and Friends!

Isn’t her logo super cute! and I love her boutique name!

I actually found Princess Peanut and Friends after Facebook suggested her page to me. Yes, I know what you’re thinking. Who actually pays attention to those suggested pages that Facebook puts in our feeds constantly. I’ll be honest, I normally hide them all from my feed, try to do everything I can to rid my feed of those annoying posts. But one night I was playing around on FB while attempting to work (it helps get the creative juices flowing again if I take small breaks) and when FB suggested her page to me, I decided to actually take a look. I am so glad I did! Not only is her clothing absolutely adorable but she’s also one of the nicest/sweetest boutique owners I have ever met. I think at last count, our email had 41 messages in it and we have since become friends on FB. She has a heart of gold and I am blessed to have the opportunity to work with her and share her boutique and story with you.

Heidi is the owner of Princess Peanut and Friends and while she created her business for many reason, the biggest reason was to try to help bring awareness to special needs individuals. This is a topic that I know, after speaking with her for a little while, is very near and dear to her heart. Her wonderful daughter has special needs and is both her inspiration and biggest fan. I love hearing Heidi share stories about her daughter, she keeps her fans/customers up to date on her daughter’s accomplishments and any big news there is to share! Her daughter attends OE which is a non-profit and Heidi donates some of her Princess Peanut and Friends profits to OE as well as hold auctions to help raise money for them and for the Special Olympics! After hearing Heidi talk so much about OE, I just had to check it out and discover more for myself. What I found was an amazing organization that really helps individuals! Take a moment to check out their website HERE!

I asked Heidi a few questions about Princess Peanut and Friends and here is what she shared with me:

AnA: Where did the name Princess Peanut and Friends come from? What is the meaning behind it?

Heidi: Princess – Every little girl deserves to fell like a princess, Peanut – Ashley’s nickname, And friends – All my fans. Plus I draw, so one of my goals is to get a heat press and start making my own transfers and draw Princess Peanut some friends!

AnA: What made you decide to start Princess Peanut and Friends?

Heidi: I started PPandF for several reasons. I have fibromyalgia so thought it would be a good idea to work for myself so when I’m having troubles I can rest when I need to. Kind of funny now I work nonstop! But I love it. Also my only child (could not have more) is special needs. She has a rare genetic disorder called Cohen syndrome. Ashley is 24 now and when she was growing up there was no social media and very little support and very little awareness, so I thought I could help bring awareness to all special needs on my page. You would be surprised at the lack of compassion so I’m hoping to help change that. Lots of prayers and planning with my husband went into it.

AnA: What sets you apart from the other boutiques out there?

Heidi: I think I’m different because I do my very best to keep my prices down and I offer what I call sweet and simples to make items more affordable. Also I make a lot of boy hoodies. Boys need something fun too!

AnA: Is there anything you would like my readers to know about you and/or Princess Peanut and Friends?

Heidi: Lots of love really does go into everything I make, I know I will never be a grandma so in a way all my little ones wearing the stuff I make are my grand kids I sneak little gifts for kids every once in awhile in their package, little things like that. I also do not have fancy tags or labels in efforts to keep prices down.

One of the greatest things about starting my business has been some of the sweetest people I have gotten to know, the prayer chains I have been on, the feedback from moms, the love others have offered us, asking about Ashley has been beyond wonderful. I truly love what I do!!
As I spoke with Heidi and learned about Princess Peanut and Friends, I became even more excited to share her review! Not only does she make adorable clothing for children but she also helps out a fantastic organization! I couldn’t wait to get started on her review.

To get started, Heidi asked me for Abby’s sizes and favorite characters. All of her dresses, shirts and skirts are custom made and she loves to make sure to pick something the child will love. I sent over a list of a few favorites such as Rapunzel, Minnie Mouse, Strawberry Shortcake, really just anything since Abby has so many favorites. Then I waited patiently while Heidi went to work. A few days later we received a package in the mail:

Oh my gosh at the cuteness! And I don’t think she could have picked something that fit Abby more perfect considering Abby’s obsession with shoes! As soon as I showed Abby, she immediately demanded to wear it and it has been a favorite ever since.

The quality of the dress is superb, it is beautifully made and I know it’s going to hold up to my rough playing daughter. I love the fabrics that were used, it really makes the dress stand out and is so unique. I also love that this is more of a “created” upcycle than just a shirt with a skirt added. She took the top with the cute design and really added to it to make the dress completely unique. She added the collar, sleeves and of course the bottom. I especially love the cute little details like the ruffle in the sleeves, it makes the dress girly without going over the top! Absolutely perfect for my lil girly tomboy. I also really like how the edges of the sleeves and skirt ruffles are finished so nicely, the stitching she used added even more cute detail to the dress instead of it just being a plain stitch. I believe that’s even what helps it curl up and “ruffle”. A simple picture out in the yard just wouldn’t do to show off this amazing dress, we had to do a “photo shoot” for it! We headed out to one of my favorite locations and let Abby have fun in her new dress:

It’s Minnie!!

Perfect for swishing back and forth!!

Love the sleeves!!

Perfect for running and playing! She LOVED running in it!

She was telling me no more pictures, my lil diva.

Gorgeous! I love this dress on Abby, it fits her perfectly and the colors are just beautiful!

As you can tell from the pictures, Abby loves the dress! She had so much fun running and twirling and swishing back & forth, it didn’t bother her one bit that she was in a dress. That is what makes a dress perfect for her, one that she can totally be herself and play in without any restrictions. I really like the length of the dress, I know some might think it is a little long but I think its just right. I don’t have to worry about her lil bottom showing or her outgrowing it too quickly. We have worn it to town several times now and she always gets tons of compliments, I direct everyone to Princess Peanut and Friends’ website so that they can order something unique for their child.

I highly recommend Princess Peanut and Friends for upcycled clothing, her designs are super cute and the quality of her work is fantastic. Plus she’s so sweet and very easy to work with! She takes the extra time to really talk to you and get to know your child so she can make their item perfect for them. She makes dresses, skirts and even shirts for boys! Make sure to stop by her Facebook Page and check out her custom creations!

And……………………………………………………………

She even offered a fantastic giveaway!

One Adventures in Abbyland reader will win a free custom made just for their little one!

Giveaway Time!
One lucky reader will win 1 free custom from Princess Peanut and Friends!

To Enter: Simply fill out the form to gain entries. The Mandatory Entry is all that is required, all other entries are Bonus Entries. The more entries, the better your chances. Please make sure you are completing the entries you submit, all entries will be checked. Giveaway will end June 15, 2013 at 11:59 pm CST. Winner will be randomly selected and contacted via email. Winner will have 24 hours to respond via email and claim their prize, if the winner does not respond within 24 hours a new winner will be selected.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I can honestly say that I have learned so very much from Heidi during my time working with her. She has brought so much to my life, has helped opened my eyes to so much and has even been there for me when I had a few questions. When Facebook first lead me to her page, I thought I was going to find a great boutique that sells upcycles. What I stumbled upon was an amazing woman who not only creates custom clothing to bring delight to other children and families but she also helps out such an amazing organization. She’s also one extremely proud momma! I want to thank her for the opportunity to share Princess Peanut and Friends through a review as well as for offering such a wonderful giveaway. I plan on ordering lots of dresses from her in the near future!

Disclosure: I received the above mentioned product(s) free of charge in exchange for an honest review. My opinions were in no way influenced by the company, all thoughts are my own. This review is my honest opinion of the product(s), I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. My thoughts and opinions of the product(s) may differ from yours; I am not liable for any issues you may incur from use of above mentioned product(s). If you have any questions you are welcome to contact me.