Five Dot Design

Moved!

2010-06-25T11:22:00.001-07:00

so i followed suit and moved the blog. i needed something with more flexibility- so you'll find me here now.

Check me out

2010-05-06T08:30:00.000-07:00

I'm over here today... talking about my favorite midget.

Just watch

2010-03-11T04:03:00.000-08:00

and listen.
and then go do something great.

Words to remember

2010-03-05T16:28:00.002-08:00

So, I pretty much finished Kelly Cutrone's book in a matter of days- had I had the option of reading it cover to cover uninterrupted, it would have been finished in hours. Obviously, it's a pretty quick and easy read, but she does manage to sneak in some good thoughts in between describing her spiritual take on the world and the roller coaster ride that is her business.

I found that most of what she had to say was reiterating what we all know, but just need to be told every once in awhile so that we don't forget that it's important. I figured why not share some of her thoughts- i mean, I WAS practically peeing my pants to read this book- might as well pass along the message

• Start by identifying people in your community you look up to and then, graciously and with their blessing, use their hard work and experience to your advantage. Pick their brains. I can't imagine anyone refusing to mentor if they're asked in a spirit of sincerity and humility...you never know who will end up being your family or where you'll find them. All that matters is that you do find them.

• ... if you act as if you know what you're doing, and as if you're in charge, you'll be surprised how many people will let you be in charge... you can fake your way to the table, but ultimately you have to learn how to eat.

• Everyone is selling something these days, and if you don't have a clear point of differentiation-something that makes you special, unique, effective-you won't get far in fashion or in any other competitive industry, and you certainly won't succeed as an entrepreneur. In thinking about this question, consider your whole self, and don't be afraid to embrace everything that makes you unique.

• There will be days when, regardless of what you do and how much you love it, you'll be disgusted and/or exhausted by it... Detachment is about learning to have faith in your actions and remembering that you're more than what you do for a living.

• My mistakes have been some of the best teachers of my life.

Remember me?

2010-02-25T12:54:00.000-08:00

so i'm sure most of you are going- um, what the -- where have you BEEN? let's be honest here... because it's an honest space, right? i've been learning... lots. i've been immersing myself in webinars, blogs, articles- anything that puts words on a page and can enlighten me just a tiny bit more.

i'm also designing and scheduling and meeting and talking and concepting and thinking ( a lotta thinking) and chatting and delivering and administrating and wrangling and...

you get it. i got stuff goin' on over here. a lotta stuff.

BUT, i haven't forgotten about you... i've really tried hard to get over here into this space and check in, but visual proof that i've done anything just isn't there- well it is, but i'm not going to spoil the fun of revealing anything until the client reveals :-) i will say that is has a very "elegant" touch that gets to the very "essence" of the company. (how's THAT for a teaser? i know, you're still lost and i love it.)

so who am I to say that i've been soaking in all this knowledge and not pass some of it along? if you follow my tweets, you may have already read a link or two i'm posting here- good for you... that makes me happy to know the 2-3 tweets a week i put up make it out into the world (i really do need to get better at that- i know... put that on the ol' improvement list.)

• go here for amazing words of wisdom. This link was passed along from a client and every post is making a light bulb ding above my head.

• now, this is a post geared toward photographers (and we all know my love for a great photo-- i have photo envy of all the GREAT photographers in my immediate circle of trust... and the ones i've never met... but, i digress), BUT in my mind it can be adapted to any business in any industry.

• my borderline obsession with kelly cutrone and the way she runs her business is in full swing... and kell on earth has only fed my addiction more. i'm just hoping that her no BS style is in full effect in this book (and thanks to a few hints and reminders, a copy landed in my hands just a few short hours ago).

• oh and i'm learning so so much from this. go search around for people you know and for people you don't know- ask them anything and see if they answer you (this site is so addicting if you find people that really tell it all). it's been nice to finally ask those mentors and, well, people that have MADE IT just how they got there, what mistakes they made, a few trade secrets and how many sugars they take in their coffee. amazing. word vomit at it's finest.

there are plenty more, but i can't give away ALL my secrets, now, can i?

oh, and i hear just about everyone is up to their knees in snow... even fat boy, here.

Better late than never... I guess

2010-01-12T14:51:00.000-08:00

So, I've tried to write this post at least 4 times and each time I've been lead away by the sing-song sound of "come on mommy" and been lead away by the index finger. I just can't seem to get back to finishing this up. So, let's start this again... 5th time's a charm maybe?

It only seems fitting that I should post my personal goals for this year- in yet again such a cryptic and vague manner. got to leave a little mystery, right?

[Focus]
- child
- house
- relationships

[Strategy-child]
- interaction
- creativity
- teach

[Strategy-house]
- comfortable
- inviting
- open-door

[Strategy-relationships]
- build
- maintain
- strengthen

[Method]
- patience
- patience
- patience

Where 'My Goin?

2010-01-06T18:34:00.001-08:00

Dear 2010. I have big plans for you... don't go screwing it up.

... so let's be honest. I know what I need to do this year- it's just the moment of paralyzing panic and feeling overwhelmed that's keeping me from hitting the ground running right now. My moves need to be focused. They need to be strategic. And they need to be methodical. They need to be exactly what my mind doesn't do very well.

[Focus]
- collections
- collaborations
- materials

[Strategy]
- build
- grow
- expand

[Method]
- marketing
- connections
- network

So, sure they aren't specific goals, but this somewhat vagueness is what works best for me. I'm also making a conscious effort to blog more so if you haven't heard from me in awhile, send me a reminder, will ya?

Now check this: Merry Christmas to me! Mama knows her daughter well...

Sweet Sixteen

2009-12-30T05:59:00.000-08:00

makes you wonder what you could have accomplished by now if you figured out your true path at 16... and you were this good.

16 years old. Seriously.
Gorgeous.

I already forget where I found the link for Lauren's site, but this girl's eye is amazing.

click the photo to be taken to her site

2009 Recap

2009-12-29T00:00:00.000-08:00

These "looking back on the year" posts are all the rage about this time of year... and after the year I've had, I'm more than happy to give my run down of 2009 and get all mushy with you guys.

This year, Five Dot truly became a "family business" in the sense that its success caused many "come to order" meetings and discussions on next steps and future investments. The hubs usually flies under the radar when it comes to the business, but believe you me, he's there every step. I'm so lucky that the hubs has truly embraced the idea of my own business- throwing my name around his office, talking me up to friends and family and networking on my behalf when I'm not available. No business can truly grow and thrive without total support, encouragement and at times- involvement- of the family. He's been my paper cutter, bow tie-er, folder, PR rep, sounding board and best of all- biggest fan. He's endured nites at home by himself when I've been out mingling and meeting and constant talk about wedding this and wedding that, paper, envelopes (blah blah blah)... all in total support and understanding. He's always been on board with me, but even more this year- we worked hard toward the same goal and we will continue to work even harder next year to surpass the goal WE, yes we, set for Five Dot.

I've worked with amazing clients this year and with each new client I'm inspired all over again. I've had a great mix of families, brides and professionals this year and I thank all of you for encouraging me to continue this journey. Thank you for seeing and trusting my creative vision. You are the reason I do this and for that I am forever grateful that you chose me to represent you to all your friends, family and clients.

This town is filled to the brim with amazing talent and I've met so many of those faces in the past few months. I hope to continue to see you more and more and possibly get to work with you in the near future. I wish you, my clients and colleagues, enormous success.

My extended family and friends have been fantastic supporters of my endeavors as well- so a big thank you goes out to them! Word of mouth is a small business' BEST form of advertisement- and usually, the only way they have to get their name out into the world. Having a secondary circle outside of your home-dwelling family that recognizes what you do, what you're capable of and shows faith in your talents and abilities has proven to be invaluable to the growth of Five Dot. So to all my friends that have not only asked me to do work for them, but have passed my name around their circle of friends and family- thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. You're fantastic.

I'm extremely lucky to have a handful of great friends that have proven to be fantastic sounding boards, idea generators and game planners. It's one thing when your family supports you, but it's a whole new ball game when your friends get behind you and really push you to succeed... and most, if not all, do it out of the kindness of their heart- never asking for a thing in return. I appreciate you lending your advice, talents and knowledge to me and hope that you continue to do so. I know they want me to succeed. They want me to break the mold. They continue to encourage and offer up ideas to make me and my business go further. That, in itself, is humbling and I thank you- one day I'll find a way to return that favor.

2009 has opened many many doors to 2010, so to that I pop my cork to the new year and wish all of you continued success on your journey- professional and personal. I hope that our paths continue to cross in the new year and I look forward to more collaborations with other artists/designers that lend compliment to what I do here at Five Dot. I'm going full force into the new year and not stopping to look back- I just hope those people that were with me this year continue to be with me in 2010... and make a little room for new people along the way.

Happy 2009 and here's to 2010!

Happy Holidays!

2009-12-23T09:22:00.001-08:00

The Goods

2009-11-24T18:10:00.000-08:00

As promised.

Done!

2009-11-10T12:56:00.000-08:00

I can't show too much because the recipient hasn't even seen it yet, but I consider it a big time success!

Once I am 100% sure the lovely lady receives this package, i'll show its content! YYEEEEE! so excited about these! and judging by the last post, there are more to come!

This week is production, production, production. My holiday photo card collaboration with Lil Monster Photography had a great opportunity presented to us last week, so photos and more when that gets completed. Five Dot itself was presented with a great opportunity that will require a little planning, but I hope to have that up and running (with photos- promise) soon as well.

So, lots going on- plus the holidays are right around the corner (have you started your address list so you know how many holiday photo cards you need to order?). I don't see a break anywhere in site, but we all know I thrive on multi-tasking and a full plate. More photos (because really a blog post is slightly worthless without photos) will be coming soon- can't wait to show them off!

A little peek at my next project

2009-11-04T19:36:00.000-08:00

After a chat this afternoon, I was hit with an idea that I knew I had to at least attempt to pull off... and I think I can do it. So, off to Jo-Ann's to do a little fabric hunting and I'll have the final product... and it's contents... come Friday. So excited!

Quick post

2009-10-28T10:58:00.000-07:00

have you been following us on our photos journey? you should.

Etsy Treasury!

2009-10-22T11:15:00.000-07:00

Good thing I relisted!

Free Digital Download!

2009-10-21T08:09:00.000-07:00

Head over to Simply Hue and download a free 2010 calendar designed by Christy. Can you find my image? (if you have trouble downloading, just right-click and save-as!)

tsk tsk

2009-10-13T17:59:00.000-07:00

i know i know. bad blogger! i was even called out on it (sorry!!) i'm working thru a lot of the administrative stuff right now so nothing is all that exciting... but i've been spending A LOT of time behind the lens of my fancy camera, so here are a few of those shots.

my hubs family has a 50+ acre farm that i'm just getting around to exploring. these are just 3 of the 250 i took the other weekend after trekking around for 5 hours on the property with hubs' cousin. it was such a relaxing day (even though i was climbing fences, mulling down trees on a 4 wheeler and contorting into positions i didn't know i could just to get my shots. totally worth it. so proud of these- and i haven't even gotten around to processing my favorites. i just hope i did the property justice.

Imma sucker

2009-09-14T06:01:00.001-07:00

for a a full skirt.
I would have DIED to wear something like this at my wedding...

check out Style Me Pretty for a few more...
what i wouldn't give to own one of these!

Linked

2009-09-09T10:14:00.000-07:00

Check out Christy, the guest blogger on Simply Hue today!

Inspiration Board :: Vintage Cameras

2009-09-08T00:00:00.000-07:00

Photography is slowly becoming more and more prevalent in my day to day life (more on that in a second). With two professional photographers and a slew of amateur photographers in the family and multiple friends pursuing their professional careers, beautiful images are in front of me constantly, allowing me to fill the walls of the house with nothing but shots I've taken, hubs has taken or friends/family have taken-you'll be hard pressed to find many mass-produced images in the shoebox.

Starting up next week, 3 lovely ladies and myself will be taking "a shot a week" and posting them over here (there's nothing to look at just yet, but give us a week and you'll have all sorts of eye-candy). Mary, Katie and Melissa are just as excited as I am to get this project rolling and I'm just super excited to flex my camera muscles a little. (Note, Katie and Melissa are two of the above mentioned friends pursuing their professional careers, so any ol' shot won't do in this collaboration). A shot a day seemed too intimidating (and honestly, I would only be setting myself up for failure if I would have agreed to a project like that), so having a full week to take some shots will give me plenty of time with my camera while keeping things relaxed and fun.

We headed out to the country yesterday to visit the in-laws and my MIL produced a lovely little gem- a vintage Brownie. It now sits proudly on the shelf in the living room, waiting for more friends to join her... don't you worry- I'm on the lookout!

(Did you notice the "Becker's Potato Chips" block next it? Super excited to get goodie bags printed up with this! You can bet I'll be shoving this idea onto every Becker that gets married from here on out... I'm all about starting some traditions!)

Please.

2009-08-29T17:27:00.000-07:00

Dear House,
Please stay clean. Seriously.

Dear Wordpress,
Please work. Pretty pretty please. With a cherry. Or sprinkles. Whatever you like. Just please please please please please work. Because right now I think you really suck and I really don't like fighting with you anymore. And the people I keep bugging to help me are really regretting they ever mentioned they know you- do you REALLY want to be THAT kinda blog? Whadaya say? Why don't you work for me and keep the friends you already have, yeah? We don't have to be friends if you don't want to be- see how reasonable I'm being? I'm willing to accept that someone doesn't like me (but, I mean, seriously? How could someone NOT like me?) if you'll just work. That can be the end of us... you working properly. Win-Win situation- whadaya say?

Dear Little Miss,
Please grow out of your I-don't-want-to-wear-clothes phase soon. That's all I ask. I know my reasoning is selfish... fall clothes are out and, COME ON little girl! How CUTE will you look in most of them?! You saw them at Gap yesterday- you even pulled one off the hanger and carried it around the store. See? You know those clothes were made with you in mind. Do it for your Mama, little girl.

Dear Junk Food (aka best food ever),
Please leave me alone. I mean it... I even said "please."

Dear Walking Shoes,
Please show yourself. I need you right now.

Dear Motivation,
Please hang on a little bit longer. I promise we'll see results soon- well, I can't promise, but a girl can dream. But that doesn't mean you should bail on me now.

thankyouverymuch

Favorite shop mention!

2009-08-29T04:50:00.000-07:00

Thanks Melissa!

Read the interview here (it's the August 29th post)

Inspriation Board :: Letterpress

2009-08-11T20:34:00.000-07:00

click on the image to be directed to links for each image.

I have to admit that I'm a sucker for type locked up in a chase-there's such a simplistic beauty about it. Letterpress is such a great test of one's knowledge of typography and design aesthetics... kerning using slivers of metal, placing each letter one at a time... and then crossing your fingers that your lock up holds tight when you go to put it on press. My little letterpress has been on my mind a lot lately, so i couldn't resist pulling some images from flickr to create an inspiration board.

Operative word: Productive

2009-08-07T16:37:00.000-07:00

This has been a very trying week for me. Between tight deadlines at work and figuring out my next steps for Five Dot, I found myself over-whelmed and questioning where I wanted to be. I needed to prioritize, but wasn't sure where to start. I knew I need to talk it out, so my dinner with Christy couldn't have come at a better time. We've been taking what we like to call sanity walks for the past few months and they've really helped both of us stay focused and talk thru an abundance of ideas.

We were able to mix a little business with pleasure, gabbing like two college friends but still managing to get timelines set up to keep each other on track with the adventures that lie before us. We have different goals, but similar paths and a mutual respect for what the other is hoping to accomplish.

What's on my plate you ask? LOTS. but it's the only way i'll stay motivated. my main priority will be to get my website up and running. this will mean taking on another blog and switching over to wordpress, but i'm excited for the content and the concepts that will be posted over there and i'll hope to keep this blog updated and just as active.

Once the website is up and running, then the marketing pieces come into play. i have 2 main pieces to get out this year and i'm hoping to be able to find a site/blog or two to advertise on as well. this is the step that i'm a bit nervous about because it will require a substantial amount of financial backing, but could possibly yield a great result.

after the marketing pieces go out, it's basically pulling together loose ends and finalizing conceptual work- work that will involve a lot of designing and a lot of thought and care, but i'm ready for it. i'm ready to start pulling my brand together and taking control of my work.

... addicted

2009-07-20T13:34:00.001-07:00

Who would have thought I would find such a great collection of letterpress lovelies within running distance from my parents' house! Just a little eye candy for letterpress lovers...

The S's are already locked up on a chase ready for some test prints. The K's will get locked up later this week!

photographic evidence

2009-07-17T06:39:00.000-07:00

i look a little awkward, but whatever. i wore it. no one threw up. and i'd wear it again.

oh the suspense!

2009-07-14T06:39:00.001-07:00

i know it's killing you... waiting to find out if i wore the blue dress or not.

i don't have photographic evidence of what i wore yet, so as soon as it hits my inbox (all processed and hopefully slightly airbrushed...) i'll post it.

but i rocked that little blue dress, y'all.
rocked. it.

or at least that's what my tipsy mind told me that nite :-)

scrapbooks, new kids and what's a girl to wear?

2009-07-04T00:00:00.000-07:00

Last week was a blur. Literally.
I flew out of Cincinnati with a coworker on Wednesday morning to help out at the Great American Scrapbook Convention in Chantilly, Virginia. I wasn't quite sure what I was getting myself into, but I was definitely game for anything and it ended up being a lot of fun. Long days, longer nites, little sleep and overall a good weekend for GASC. I had a great time meeting and getting to know Crystal and Stacey, two of the educators for the weekend, and walked out with a renewed appreciation for the scrapboooking community.
As a trade off for leaving Chantilly early, I took a 6am flight back home to ensure I would catch my beloved New Kids concert.
Oh.
MyGod.
I can't even describe it.
Nothing can.
3rd row seats.
Meet n Greet (still waiting on the pictures to be posted).
After party.
After-after party.
Fire-blowers.
4am heart-to-hearts on the porch
Amazing.
I'd do it again next week.
'Nuff said.

I think all my antics caught up with me on Monday because I literally crashed around 7... Little Miss and I went to bed at the same time that nite. But I keep telling myself that this is what summer is for and you're never guaranteed a "next year" so do it now.
So what's up next? Too much.

Independence Day, Y'all! We'll be spending time with family mostly but it's the following weekend that's pretty big- for me at least.

If you know me outside of this blog or just started reading recently, you know my struggle with getting the baby poundage off (and yes, I'm lumping the pre-baby poundage in with the baby poundage because that makes me feel better). I made a goal and I tried hard to stick with it this time (ignore the circled date. that's back when I thought the wedding was on the 6th). Hubz has been bugging me about what tie to wear to this wedding (since it needs to be based off the dress I wear), so I had to make a quick decision last nite (and we all know I suck at decisions). It was a hard decision. I've told a few people (so don't you guys spoil it!) so far, but I'm going to wait until the following week to let everyone else know what I ended up wearing... I'm continuing to work hard this week and next with my 30 Day Shred (will Jillian ever have mercy on my thighs?) and walking to see if the decision I made was the right one.

After the wedding weekend it's off to Gaitlinburg with the Hubz family for a long weekend in the mountains. I plan on parking it on a lounge chair by the pool with a cooler full of cold ones most of the day. It's Va-ca-tion.

Laps around a concrete building

2009-07-02T12:20:00.000-07:00

Afternoon walks with a coworker has become ritual lately (and much needed for our sanity)... and productive. We met in college thru design, but we have different paths we want to take with our talents, so bouncing ideas around and just talking about how to navigate has been a tremendous help as of lately. Our walk today was especially helpful (thank you, dear!) in just getting motivated to get organized. I try to make a 6 month timeline of key points I want to hit with Five Dot at the beginning of the year and at the beginning of the summer. Needless to say I'm way behind. Life has taken over and I'm happy to put some of it on the back-burner so I'm not working a full time job and then coming home and working another 4-5 hours every nite. BUT. I can't keep it back there forever. Eventually, it doesn't need to marinate any longer and you need to start cooking those ideas.
I'm giving myself a year to really dig in. I'm doing well with the avenue I'm taking now (word of mouth and references), but I need to step up my game and really push my limits. I need to get out of my comfort zone and I need to get some of those half started projects wrapped up and seen thru to the end result (especially one in particular that I'm SUPER excited about).
Plans are coming together. Conversations are being had. Decisions are going to have to be made- whether I like it or not. I'm getting there. I'm much more optimistic now, but I think what's more important is that I'm now working toward something a bit more tangible... and that's motivation in itself.

The Brightest Bulb in the Pack

2009-06-19T08:48:00.000-07:00

My mornings/early afternoons usually consist of a little work and a quick walk outside with a good friend from college that I just so happen to work with now. We do a few laps around the building to get out of the office and chat- which offers a great break to the monotony of the day. This morning our chat consisted of the recent cease in production of one of our scrapbooking magazines here in the office... a publication in which she art directed. We agreed that it's slightly bittersweet.

I was telling her how I could never really get into scrapbooking and that sometimes people just can't believe that with me being a designer, I can't put together a scrapbook layout to save my life. (in my opinion at least... it's quite a pathetic sight to see how frustrated i get.) I can't see the layout in my mind and become very overwhelmed and unsure of what I'm doing... even though there is no wrong or right.

I was also venting my frustrations of not being able to see any layouts lately that didn't involve a wedding invitation. I've hit a bit of a creative wall when it comes to marketing and direct mail design work, but do you want something that incorporates an earthy feel without going too granola and has a punch of color in a quantity of 100? I'm your girl. I could concept about 4 or 5 different layouts in 20 minutes. It's all I see anymore- weddings. I secretly love it.

This is when my friend told me it's probably because that's what I should be doing with my life. Now, keep in mind that this light bulb turned on about 3 or 4 months ago for me , but it was set to dim and I haven't really tried to turn it up. With her saying it out loud (and having some encouraging words about the next step I want to take with my designs), my bulb's getting brighter... and my enthusiasm for working toward progression is slowly building. I'm finding more and more materials I want to work with in order to pull my designs out of the run-of-the-mill feeling. I'm working under the naive notion (don't you love oblivion sometimes?) that I'll find an audience for what I'm offering... even if it's not right here within the 275 loop. I figure the less I worry about WHO I'm marketing to, the more creativity will come out of me. I'll find those brides, don't you worry.

Time is my nemesis right now, however... which it seems to always be for those that have a hard time leading a simple life. I just finished reading this post by Michelle of Cicada Studio. When I first found her, her life was very similar to mine... working full time, working semi-full time on her own business and trying to keep somewhat of a life in order in between- husband, kid (plural in her case), family, friends and home. I think I'm keeping a good balance, but that could also be me thinking naively (again, sweet oblivion). But I do know that right now I'm not making the time to push my business past this comfort zone it's fallen into and at the same time, I'm not sure I have the time to devote to doing so right now. Summer always makes being productive a challenge... and even moreso that my Little Miss is off and running (literally). Thank God for grandparents and their insistence on spending as much time as they can with that little girl otherwise I don't know what we would do.

With that said, though. Summer allows me to get out and get inspiration. You can only soak up so much from reading blogs and watching some occasional television. I'm pulling together snippets of inspiration, color palettes and materials... so in some ways I'm being pretty productive on the backend of things- which is encouraging.

This next month is going to be a whirlwind of trips, plans and people... Come August, I'll welcome s less-scheduled calendar and a little more down time (and I say all of that with hesitation because I know there's a strong possibility down time might not happen.) Next week I'm off to Virgina, come back for the NKOTB concert, the 4th of July weekend, followed by a wedding weekend, followed by a vacation and then the aforementioned down time... hopefully. I'll try to post a little more regularly- the camera is coming with me everywhere I go pretty much, so there should be some fun documentation along the way (even if it's for the sole purpose of reminding what it was I did the day before.)

• • • • •

Weight loss update: Yesterday my 30 Day Shred video arrived in my mailbox. This DVD scares the bajesus out of me. Tia is my unofficial mentor on this... and her candid account of how she's getting along after this video is what frightens me. But I've got 10 lbs sticking to me like glue and it needs to go away... fast. I'm perfectly happy with the progress I've made so far- it's definitely more than I honestly expected out of myself... it's this last hurdle I need to get over to really feel like I've done all I could do. So, with that said, Jillian Michaels, please have mercy on my soul.

Love this...

2009-06-16T10:59:00.001-07:00

... and even moreso that the couple is from cincinnati :-)

Love from Brooklyn...

2009-06-10T09:09:00.000-07:00

Brooklyn Bride that is!

Our Save the Dates...

A renewed love affair

2009-06-08T18:56:00.000-07:00

... with my blog. yes. i need to rekindle the flame. we need to make nice again... i need to let my insecurities go and just write. so look over there----> on the sidebar. there's where i click on a daily basis. go over there, look around and bookmark 'em... they offer up good stuff.

to do
• heather's invitation quote
• meshawn's invitation quote
• first letterpress quote (yay)!
• pool party goods
• moving card reprints
• finish printing up jacki's invitations

here's what i've done lately...

that third one down is the best thing i've done so far...

almost...

2009-05-29T20:53:00.000-07:00

this is for those of you keeping score (which i'm sure there aren't that many of you). and if you have no interest in weight loss talk- skip down to the • • • • •

down 15.

10 to go.

here's how that pans out. ignore the bad photos. there isn't much lighting to work with up in the loft at 11:30 at nite.
to recap, the red dress is what i was in after Little Miss came about. attractive, i know. the blue is my goal dress. my coveted blue dress. the dress i've only been able to wear once in my life... but WILL wear again. to a wedding. in july. come hell or high water.

the green dress is what i'm in now... and it's actually a tad bit big, but i'm not going to press my luck. i'm in it. i'm comfortable and it still looks good with 3 inch heels. cannot WAIT to get out in this.

and just for fun i tried on the coveted blue dress tonite. it zips up... but it ain't goin out in public any time soon. it fits. i could wear it... but i'd get a few looks and i DEFINITELY wouldn't be comfortable or confident. and that's okay. i have time... and i'm making progress.
(side note- express is selling the exact same coveted blue dress except 5 inches shorter right now. i think i might have to go buy the green one just because...)

so, slowly but surely i'm getting there. biggest loser starts up again this week at work and i'm determined to win this time (watch out lynn!)... i've really severely cut down my wardrobe since most things from last year don't fit (and i stupidly threw out most of my favorite stuff in a pregnancy this-will-never-ever-fit rage), so i'm desperately in need of a summer wardrobe. i'm hoping i'll be able to make some slight alterations to some of my favorite "bigger" clothes in an attempt to not go out and spend a lot of money on clothes i'll hopefully have to replace in a month or so. i already need to buy new jeans-- even though i just bought 2 new pair a month ago. yikes. good thing i really only wear dresses in the summer.

• • • • •

so here i am... doing the same thing i do everytime i'm absent from blog world. i write a post, save the draft, write another draft. read both, feel awkward and completely moronic in both post and then end up writing whatever finally gets posted. um, get a life. i know. just write the damn blog post.

... and this is where i blank. every form of my social media that requires updating has been terribly neglected (except facebook which is my new BFF).

let's do this in list form...
• first big wedding out the door last week. i didn't design them, just sourced materials and printed, but nonetheless it was a big job. who knew finding magenta envelopes and navy envelopments would turn into phone call after phone call and countless ask.com searches. but, i found both just in time and no one has called me crying yet to tell me they hate them, so i think i'm in the clear with this one.

• second big wedding started printing this weekend. this bride is absolutely adorable and she's been a dream to work with- all the way in PA. more on that after i get them printed and assembled.

• i've had a few more inquiries for quotes, so we'll see how those pan out. my Sarah invitation seems to be pretty popular these days.

• so many projects going on in my head and not enough projects making it into layout. it's a bit frustrating... especially when i think one has really great potential. i've somewhat decided to concentrate more on the wedding aspect of my business but i want to keep the custom stationery pieces available for options sake. i've begun to offer the invitations "unassembled" as a money saver and almost all of my brides have taken advantage of this.

• i'm hoping to get a few descriptions written up this week for a few of my new invitations so i can get them listed on etsy. i haven't listed any new product for awhile, just renewed what's been in there. not sure if it will get done, but it's on my to-do list.

• i ordered a fun new printers block for margaret. Little Miss is headed to the grandparents house this weekend- all weekend- so i'm hoping to spend some quality time printing downstairs. i've already gotten shot down for buying a bigger press because "you don't use the one you have" to which i responded that wasn't fair because i haven't had time. so margaret... let's hang out this weekend, okay?

i think that about sums it up. it's girls-only-no-boys-allowed week here... hubs is on a business trip and then off for a bachelor party, so Little Miss and i will be fending for ourselves. i've already got my girls lined up for the week and i'm working on the weekend festivities, so i'm definitely excited to have the nites to myself to hopefully (cross your fingers!) get some work done and just be productive.

... yeah and i'll work on posting more regularly. promise.

A few things

2009-05-10T19:09:00.000-07:00

I've been busy with

and...

2009-04-14T20:09:00.001-07:00

This is the second blog post I've started today. The first was at work- got caught up in, you guessed it- work and then here we go again at 10:30 at nite thinking I'm going to have anything witty and meaningful to post and that even if I DID have anything witty and meaningful that I would be able to string two sentences together to make it comprehendable- or comprehensible. Whatever. I'm tired over here.

Very random : can i just say that according to my webtracker, 2 of the top searches that land you on my blog are "let's get to the party don't be tardy" and "let's have a party don't you be tardy." I'm not sure if I should curse or thank Kim from RHWof Atlanta for that.

The day job is definitely keeping me busy leaving me somewhat unproductive on new product, which frustrates me to no end. I have some great opportunities in front of me (um, hello TheKnot.com!) and I can't run with them like I should. I've been toying with a few changes to my business plan and I'm thinking I might like the path a little better than the one I'm on now. It wouldn't shake things up too much, but it would discontinue a few things, which is okay by me. I've been contemplating a gradual move out of the stationery world and strictly into the wedding world, but I'm not 100% convinced I'm ready to give it up. It just gets a little frustrating when I make plans to unveil a new line or new branch of the business and then find I don't have time to execute things properly. I've never been one to hesitate to hold off on releasing new product, when I've said it would be coming, for lack of cohesiveness and to make sure it's just right (um, hello? typewriter project? still in my brain waiting to have the final details ironed out!). I'm thinking stationery might have to become one of those "filler" projects or a "when the idea strikes" project.

And then there is my poor neglected Margaret, The Letterpress... *sigh*

I've had a slew of lovely brides fly thru my door as of lately... invites, reception pieces- the works! It's been great pulling together variations of my "staple" designs and being able to find ways to work with all budgets. I've found that many girls are able to put their craftiness to work and opt for a slightly fancier invitation in exchange for assembling all the pieces themselves. It's a great timesaver for me and a great budget saver for the girls. That has also left me with a stack of finished work that needs to be photographed and uploaded to Flickr.

With that said, I'm afraid I won't make my self-imposed deadline for my desk accessory line. I have a few pieces of fabric designed, but not ultimately "finished" (are they ever really finished though?)- I need to do a shelf line up to see how all the components will work together (i kinda sound like i know what i'm talking about, huh? it's all a façade, i promise).

And then, as usual, there's that pesky website I have to get up...

TheKnot.com

2009-04-03T05:49:00.001-07:00

Thanks to Alison at Aviva Events, I was mentioned on TheKnot.com today!

go check it out!

Way behind

2009-03-25T09:49:00.001-07:00

I'm so behind on so many things, but we had a very important and big event this month that consumed all of us for the better part of the month: a first birthday. We celebrated until we could celebrate no more. I spent more on cake mix in the last two months than I have in the past 28 years and i used my oven more times this month than I have since we moved in.

On top of that, I've been helping with the paper goods for my cousin's baby shower (a baby is blooming!), helping to organize my 10 year High School reunion (where and HOW do you people hide so well!) and I've been fortunate to have a few awesome bridal clients come my way (um, hello- LEMONADE STAND at the RECEPTION?! and caramel apples as favors- i LOVE IT abbey!). So needless to say I've been keeping up with my oldies but goodies design pieces, which is a great pat-on-the-back because it shows me I'm doing something right- doing something I love and someone else appreciates as well.

I'm behind on my new venture for Five Dot, but my vision for the line is become much more clear. I have the phases mapped out fairly well and I'm excited to dive head first into all the components. It's a bit difficult designing for multiple elements when you don't even know what all of those components will consist of, but it's a trial by fire process that I'm happy to jump feet first into.

Here is my latest finished piece

i love how this business card came out and I'm so happy Amanda was able to make time to photograph Little Miss in exchange. She did such a beautiful job and we're so excited to order prints. (Those are two of her shots up there at the top of the post).

This weekend we're headed up to my old stomping grounds (Miamisburg) for a semi-staycation. It's definitely needed!

Check me out-

2009-03-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

My Save the Dates are on PaperShopInk !

Thank you- how fun!

Happy Birthday Little Miss!

2009-03-18T04:55:00.000-07:00

My little one may still be Little (in more ways than one), but she's becoming such a big girl! Happy Birthday Charlotte!

No shop talk... just birthdays :-)

(P.S. but somewhat shop talk... in honor of all the birthdays in March, free shipping all month in my shop!)

Big Fat Failure... Literally.

2009-03-13T12:44:00.001-07:00

I'm sucking, you guys. SUCKING at Biggest Loser. SUCKING at winning my $400 plus a new dress plus new shoes to match. SUCKING! so i'm having an intervention on myself. But let's take a look at my efforts thus far.

1. I use my elliptical. I actually get on the thing and sweat for at least a half an hour in the smelly basement while my fat dog lays down there with me to keep me company and my sweet neurotic pooch sits vigil at the top of the steps with her head peeking around with sad eyes, terrified that I will flee the premises at any given moment. Remind me to get those pooches some extra treats when I'm out again.

2. I've cut my food intake by 1/2 (i haven't calculated this, but it has to be at least half. it feels like half. it has to be half.)

3. And i've substituted my beloved pop for coke zero. and water. and crystal light. none of those semi-quenching beverages have anything in them (okay coke zero has a pinch of sodium, so shoot me).

4. I literally count out a serving of baked ruffles. BAKED RUFFLES you guys. i've become numb to the artificial taste and devour them as if they are mikesell's groovy reduced fat potato chips (oh how i miss my mikesell's- which by the way, the reduced fat taste EXACTLY like the regular chips and not taste-the-same like coke zero tastes like real coke. um, no. this time it's the truth). I make sure each chip last as long as possible because I can only eat 9 friggin' chips. NINE CHIPS! i ran out of my beloved reduced-fat wheat thins- a food so forgiving you can eat 15 for the same effect as 9 chips, so I've been even more careful with my chip consumption.

5. I chose a SALAD over CHICKEN N DUMPLINGS at my birthday dinner... at Cracker Barrel... the leading factor in clogged arteries across America. Come on- that right there deserves at least $150, right?

6. I even measure out my servings of pasta and mashed potatoes! I get the stupid measuring cup out, pack it full of my mac n cheese or noodles and dump it on my plate. You guys, that is BIG for me because i'm the girl that eats mac n cheese for breakfast.

7. I've succombed to printing out photos of my blue dress and hanging them in strategic places to remind me of what will appease the depth of my soul.

And let's look at what I haven't done

1. I haven't been able to resist dipping my finger into the tub o' frosting in the fridge leftover from my adventures in cupcake baking. just one *heaping* scoop after work to tide me over the 15 minutes before Hubz gets home. luckily for me, he polished it off last nite while watching "Doom" (really, Doom. don't ask. Everyone else in America was watching the 6OT UConn/Cuse game and my hubs was watching Doom on TNT.)

2. I haven't had a consistent work out routine. Last nite I blamed it on getting work done (which I really did need to do). Every other nite I've blamed it on being lazy. PLUS I haven't had soccer in FOREVER which means I need to be abusing that machine on Thursdays in lieu of having a game. I do not.

3. I had a whole doughnut this morning. And I'm considering a piece of my Diet Coke cake and a small piece of brownie. Nuff said.

4. I may have cut back on the amount of food I eat, but I haven't really incorporated the healthy stuff much. I need to get some veggies and dips for my snacking impulses.

5. I honestly haven't felt the motivation (as if STILL wearing maternity jeans wasn't enough) It's very hard- I think- to watch what you eat when the whole house isn't involved... and the whole house doesn't eat healthy stuff unless it's the last bit of food to be found and the house is really only eating out of boredom (as much as you argue that you're hungry, house, you're not. you're bored). There is little motivation to go down into the smelly basement when the rest of the house is upstairs watching more than 3 fuzzy channels on tv. And it doesn't help when the rest of the house blames their indecisive food choices for a meal on not knowing "what you can eat". I can eat food, thank you. I'm just sayin'.

6. And damn you girl scout cookies for falling into the season of Lent AND Biggest Loser!

What I vow to do.

1. Buy veggies this weekend for my new veggie and fruit enriched adventure. my struggle is my palette is not very adventurous, so "fancy" food is out for me... which leaves me few choices (and YES, i've tried fancy food and I don't like it.)

2. Read the suggestions on "filling foods" and take those suggestions (what about reduced fat triscuits? think those will work? regular ones fill me up to the brim and maybe I can eat MORE per serving of the reduced fat? yeah?).

3. Schedule the workouts and stick to them as close as possible, pending Little Miss' bedtime stays consistent (I like to workout after she's gone to bed to ensure maximum playtime with her after work). In the instance that she becomes like her mother was at her age and decides that nite time is play time, I shall come up with a Plan B that does not include getting up before my regularly schedule time.

4. i'm sure there's more, but i'll have to figure out most of that in time.

so there you have it. my failure as a dieter. i'm sure there will be more to come on this.

side note :: can i just say that i passed up CHICKEN N DUMPLINGS AGAIN for SALAD! i'm serious here!! but i still had some Diet Coke cake and a small brownie... :-)

another side note :: i promise i'll get back to the work as well. i need to take some photos this weekend to make that possible, but trust me... i've been working like a dog. here's proof

that's not the final (or her photos... those are mine from our zoo trip) but close enough. see. i'm working.

They're so thoughtful

2009-03-06T05:01:00.000-08:00

aw shucks, etsy. thanks

just so ya know

2009-03-05T18:26:00.001-08:00

we're workin' on our first toofer over here.

Reality Hits

2009-02-25T19:53:00.001-08:00

I've now found out that "dieting" (gasp- she said the "D" word out loud! yes, i said it. i'm not proud of it, but i'll own this one) can very well be equated to pregnancy. awkward, uncomfortable and all-consuming.
Hear me out.

I've been at this thing for 2 weeks. 2 measly weeks I tell you and I'm driving myself mad. How many points is that? How many do I have left? Can I eat that? What IS that? It rules your thoughts and it's all you can think about... just like being pregnant.

How are you doing with your program? Did you lose this week? How are you losing- What are you doing? People want to ask how you're sticking to your plan, but they don't want to insinuate that you're overweight or that you should be on the program at all, yet they want to comment positively if you ARE doing well and motivate you. It's all you can talk about with other people because, like I said before, it rules your thoughts and actions... just like being pregnant.

"Oh, no thank you. I don't want any double chocolate chip rum cake with extra rich super fudge topping." WHAA?? "Oh no thank you. I don't care for a delicious glass of Coca-Cola/Merlot/Cristal. I would kill for a nice glass of ice water, however." WHAA?? "Oh I would love to have a nice Garden Salad with no fat dressing instead of that Cheeseburger with extra cheese, mayo and ketchup, please. Oh yes, that would be just perfect." WHAA? Exactly. You have to give up everything that is good TO you for things that are good FOR you. No caffeine, no chocolate, no greasy goodness and no alcohol... just like being pregnant.

And then the ever so popular... I WEIGH WHAT?!... just like being pregnant.

The one thing that makes dieting and pregnancy worth all the complaining is the end result. One perfect little munchkin and one perfect little tush. Now, I've got the perfect little munchkin part down. I just need to find the perfect little tush underneath all the padding I've been hoarding back there.

Those of you looking to suppress a sweet tooth without ruining your whole day- go here and follow all the steps- even the food coloring because food coloring just makes us happy. I'd even say take a gander at her whole site... that girl is good.

So, that little download I've been talking about. I can't figure out how to make the blasted thing a download, so I'm uploading a jpg into flickr and you can download it from there. I suggest "Original Size". If you have problems, send me an email and I can email a PDF to you. Friggin' technology.

I give you my grocery list/coupon teller/meal planner. I print out a bunch front and back, fold in half and then staple together on the spine (saddle stitch for you fancy pants people) like a book. It allows me to look back on other weeks to see what I've bought and if I really do need another tub o' mayonnaise or if the one I bought 2 weeks ago should tide us over for a little longer.

It just might change your life... BUT please don't go mass producing and selling this as your own. I'll find you... I promise you this.

But, back to the download... not only is your grocery list NEXT to your meal plan for the week, but you have somewhere to write down what COUPONS you have. Because we all know you're that lady that brings EVERY coupon you own in a #10 business sized envelope and every time you come across an item you THINK you saw a coupon for or you can't remember how many you have to buy to use the coupon, you stop and rifle thru your stash... blocking aisles, canned goods and non-perishables.

I know, I know, you're all going- WHAAAA? Not ME! Oh, no no no. Yes. You. You do it. I've been in the aisle when you do it and it drives me insane. So, please download this and use it. Feedback would be great too. I've been using it now for 2 years trying to work out the kinks and I think I've got it where it helps me out. So, help me help you.

Bad blog lady

2009-02-24T12:42:00.000-08:00

I've been a very bad blog lady... but I'm getting there!
This next month is going to be a tornado of cupcakes, tutu's and sugar highs!

My Little Miss is turning 1 in 21 days.
In 21 days, I will have a 1 year old little spring chicken.

So, before my entire house is covered in frosting and streamers, I'll get a good and decent post up here... and that free download I've been yammering about.

Until then...

no, this is not appropriate to the post, but what am i if not random?

Catching Up... Kinda

2009-02-16T12:10:00.000-08:00

I have no idea where I left off so I don't know where to begin. So, I guess I just need to start rambling as usual.

My ginormous paper cutter came...

...someone was a little too curious for her own good. Why it was necessary to put it together on the floor in the living room- no clue. But it was promptly taken downstairs to mingle with my letterpress. I'll be heading down a little later to cut down all those projects I've been talking about in a bit. Photos of those projects somewhat soon.

Speaking of photos, I bought myself a mini tripod today. I'm actually really excited because this will make taking photos so much easier- I won't have to set up the big floor-standing tripod to take product photos, especially macros. I can take a decent photo, but sometimes the slightest hand shake can screw up a potentially great photo. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Other than working on some of the freelance I have waiting for me, I haven't done much today. Hubs cleaned the downstairs pretty well yesterday (Thank you!), but when I went to sweep Little Miss' room, the Dyson won't turn on. Great. One. More. Thing. Here's a snippet of one of the projects I'm working on.

Hopefully it's just something simple. I went and picked up some ribbon today for a Graduation Save the Date and Invitation I'm doing for a good friend and picked up our new TV.

Yes. We have joined the 21 century and bought a new plasma. Note to buyers :: If you're buying a big ticket item like this, ask if there is an "off the wall" or "out of box" pricing for the item on display. We took advantage of this and saved BIG TIME. Luckily for me, Hubs looked at my yesterday and said "We're even. The letterpress. The paper cutter. We're even. I'm so excited." Sweet small victory.

Other than that, taxes are done as of last nite, refund is being anxiously awaited and that's about it. Next up :: Little Miss' 1st Birthday. Who in the world knew it could be so hard to plan this?! In my defense (or at least I'm claiming it as a defense) everyone we would normally invite won't fit in our shoebox house. If we had the option of going outside- no problem. But seeing as March in Ohio is unpredictable, we can't chance it. And seeing as how we're having it on March Madness weekend, we have to consider not only Little Miss, but those invited. So, I think I finally have it under control.

Though I do like this house, I can't wait to have space and be able to invite more than 5 people over at one time. Yes, we're beginning to look, but that's a whole new post!

Next up, a free download. (and if I forget, someone remind me!)

Again... busy

2009-02-13T12:21:00.000-08:00

The more blogs I try to read thru out the day, the more common the theme seems to be- busy. This makes me feel so much better knowing I'm not the only one neglecting this space. Long weekend for me- a post with photos will be coming soon.

pinky swear.

In the meantime, here's Little Miss' birthday shirt.

made by: OliveandOllie. We stumbled upon each other and it turns out her husband teaches in my old program at UD!

It's Go Time

2009-02-05T11:01:00.000-08:00

The Deadline:

The Objective:
this dress

Current State:
this dress

The Difference:

In an effort to not totally kill what's left of my self esteem, I decided posting clothes felt a bit less... exposed... than pictures of yours truly.

i.
can.
do.
this.

I did it...

2009-02-04T10:14:00.000-08:00

I freakin' did it.
This January, I silently vowed that I was going to buy a heavy duty paper cutter when I made enough money from sales to do so. It's all apart of my Better Business Practices that I adopted last year- if you don't have it, don't spend it. I thought I would have to wait until the summer or even longer. Typically, the first few months of the year are not great sales months, so I didn't expect to see anything for awhile.
So, I researched and found one I liked, kept it in mind and went about my way. I have to mention that I made no sales # goals to achieve this. (I don't really believe in monthly sales goals right now- only yearly, but that's another post). I just let my product do the talking.

Low and behold.
This Friday, I will (hopefully) be the owner of this new little beauty.

It's on Ebay, but it comes with a "if you don't like it, send it back" deal, so I'm not as scared to hit the "Buy Now" button. I'm going half-sies with the hubs so it can be a Valentine's Day present. Who gets freakin' excited for an industrial strength paper cutter? Me.

I can't even tell you how much this is going to make my life easier. I was trimming out a few things last nite and hubs looked at me and said, "Imagine how much easier that would be if you had your paper cutter." i looked at him and said, "I tell myself that everyday." He's been on trimming duty, so he knows how painstaking it is to trim EVERYTHING by hand- including 150 multilayered invitations.

I have a handful of big projects coming up (a wedding and a set of Graduation invites), so I can't wait to use this bad boy.

This year is shaping up to be a mighty fine one, indeed.

You win

2009-01-30T20:07:00.001-08:00

LINDSEY WINS! She's been notified and things are in the works.

Congratulations Lindsey!

...now. we're off to cleveland.

It's Bone and Biggie... and Paula

2009-01-30T10:19:00.000-08:00

So many people say you can tell a lot about a person by their playlist.

Yikes.

my "training*" mix...

rodeo clowns :: g love and special sauce
break anotha :: blake lewis
crazy chick :: charlotte church
break the ice :: britney
since you've been gone :: kelly clarkson
circus :: britney
tambourine :: eve
single ladies :: beyonce
rumors :: lindsay lohan
breathe, stretch, shake :: mase
body language :: heidi montag
toxic :: britney
reach out :: hilary duff
about us :: brooke hogan
stronger :: britney
(all nite) don't stop :: janet jackson
low :: kelly clarkson
shake ya body :: tyra banks
balla baby :: chingy
dirty dancing :: NKOTB
i hate this part :: PCD
mercy :: duffy
valerie :: amy winehouse
whole hearted :: extreme
wait a minute :: PCD
womanizer :: britney
SOB :: lisa marie presley
piece of your heart :: natasha bedingfield
elevator :: flo rida
shake it :: MC shy d
full service :: NKOTB
head sprung :: ll cool j
live your life :: t.i.
gimme more :: britney
naughty girl remix :: beyonce
girl you know it's true :: milli vanilli
naked :: debbie gibson
tilt ya head back :: nelly and christina
give it to you :: jordan knight
step by step :: NKOTB
top back :: t.i.
this is me :: dream
forever your girl :: paula abdul
screwed :: paris hilton
son of a gun :: janet jackson and carly simon
wanna be startin something :: MJ
don't stop til you get enough :: MJ
drop :: timbaland
let's ride :: bone thugs n harmony
victory :: p diddy
freedom :: george michael
maneater :: nelly furtado
give it to me :: JT, nelly furtado, timbaland
party people :: nelly
hello :: alex m.

if you would like a copy, let me know. i'm happy to share.

nice little mix, huh? i like random and from people that have no business recording music (um, paris hilton? alex m. from laguna beach? tyra? heidi montag?). i also like rap. this goes back to my BMX days and why my husband almost didn't continue to date me. (she ain't nuttin but a hoochy mama- hoodrat, hoodrat hoochy mama). whatev. and then there is NKOTB, extreme, paula, debbie gibson and dream. i will love them forever (i'm forever your girl, late 80's/90's). EV-ER i tell you- and they aren't the only ones.
there were so many others i wanted to add to the list, but they weren't "workoutable" so i will just have to make myself another list. and then i was worried that it was a bit long (3.7 hours! gaaah!), but then a realized that when my workout ADD kicks in and i quit WAY ahead of schedule, this will be perfect. i won't be listening to the same songs over and over and i won't get bored of them.
so there ya go. a small window to my soul (because i'm the put-on-a-show kinda girl).

did i miss any?
p.s. check out dizzlefig's post that inspired me to share.

*not sure what i'm training for exactly, but whatev

A day of firsts...

2009-01-28T15:48:00.001-08:00

first snow and first snow angel! (couldn't get a decent picture because the nugget doesn't weight enough to make a decent enough impression!)

i also got a few things finished up... (none of these are color corrected- i apologize)

i drew this panda a while ago, but wasn't 100% convinced what i was going to do with him. i think i have a pretty good idea now, so once it gets finished up, i'll post. i sewed in the whites of his eyes, but they really just didn't look right, so i spent at least 2 hours ripping them out last nite being careful not to rip out the black stitches holding the black eye patches on. i was going to add in the mouth and nose detail with thread as well, but i think i like him how he is.

some hang tags for one of my FAVORITE sellers... BeanPickleSprout.

new invite package...

the red line on the left of the add-on pieces is actually ribbon. i did this one as a sample and not for a particular bride... yet! i used my invitation information just because it was available and i wasn't worried about the whole confidentiality thing.

i must now keep an eye on a little one that is doing wind-sprints in her walker from one end of the house to the other.

anyone have any good home remedies for a little girl that is going hoarse?

Carnival Time!

2009-01-26T00:00:00.000-08:00

It's that time again! Carnival time!
Let's see... what do I have in my bag o' goodies...

This time around, you'll receive a pack of 10 personalized note cards. Yep- you can have your name put on them, your sister's name, heck- your dog's name.

Feel free to choose from the cards listed as "Custom" or to choose any of the designs and have them personalized. Though they are not listed, all the images in the 2009 calendars can be adapted to a note card. The sky is the limit!

This would be perfect for a teacher's gift...

This giveaway is open to whomever would like to enter- domestic and international. I only ask that you leave 1 comment per person telling me what you would like to see in my shop- what do you think is missing?

Good Luck! Giveaway ends at 10pm tonite EST

It's like Where's Waldo

2009-01-23T19:30:00.000-08:00

So I know I've been MIA. I do know this and I'm sorry. But please know it is for good reason. Reason that is not appropriate to discuss in a public forum, but a very good reason if you happen to read minds and know the reasoning (disclaimer: Mr. Little, Little Miss, Mrs. Little and the pooches are all fine. My reasoning lies in immediate family, but not in our household directly- though our household is affected by the reasoning- make sense? I'm just trying to be sensitive here and I don't know if I'm succeeding. It's just a hard situation to explain without details- details that are not appropriate for a public forum, as I've said. Have I spun you in enough circles?)

Anyway- I've been working on custom jobs, creating mock-ups and overall just stalking. I usually don't do much in January or February because I'm wanting to figure out my path for the year. Come Monday, I'll be participating in the Bloggy Giveaways Blog and I'm also doing my part to help the recovery of Nie and her husband. Keep checking here to see my donations. Enter both and good luck!

The Valentine's Day Valentine's cards are up and the Calendars and Holiday Cardsare marked down.

I'll be back soon, I promise!

You and dirty got ties for different reasons...

2009-01-12T10:11:00.000-08:00

i'm having a dilemma (no, no... not dilemma like nelly and kelly BTW... but why did i think dilemma was spelled with an "n" in there?), but a real puzzler as to what I should do and should not do.

i like to think that i have the ability to obtain my goals- to make up my mind that i'm going to do something and then do it- self discipline they call it. Other times I get distracted by shiny pretty things and all self control is forgotten.

Now... after I've built this dilemma up to be much more than I'm sure most will think it is, I have to tell you that I wrestle with it. (this just in- I just read a blog post from suffix.abuse that has now thrown another ratchet into my dilemma.)

So- I've built the suspense up enough, huh?
Let's lay it all out on the table.

Dilemma Object 1: Stuff

Dilemma Object 2: Guilliotine Stack Paper Cutter

Dilemma Object 3: Gocco Printer

** I think I've already talked myself out of the Gocco. I can set up a conventional screen printing screen if I really feel like this is a path I should pursue. **

So that leaves us with #1 and #2. I'm debating on if I save all the money from this year's jobs to buy myself #2. Or do I continue on with my ways, spend the Paypal money that accumulates on a need-to-purchase basis... need-to-purchase being things that are just lovely and i covet.

I cannot decide. Call it a conundrum. A pickle. A bind. Whatever constricting synonym you want to use. I can't decide. I need help. Help me decide. Please. I listen to other people.

so until then

East Coast, I know you're shakin' right
Down South, I know you're bouncin' right
West Coast, I know you're walkin' right
(Cause you don't know what you mean to me)
Midwest, I see you swingin' right

25 Things...

2009-01-09T09:35:00.000-08:00

we're friends, right? you won't judge... right?

1. I do most things in pairs: I drink with 2 straws, eat M&Ms by like color or complimentary color in 2s or 4s, pretzels eaten in pairs... the list goes on. It's part of my charm.

2. I could never be a stay at home mom. I would have to be a work at home mom that drops her kid(s) at daycare. I would be worrying too much about what I'm not getting done instead of enjoying my kid(s).

3. I worry that the longer I wait to become self employed, the harder it will be to leave and not because I'm worried about succeeding, but because it will stress me out that I'm not making the equivalent of what I would be making working for someone else- even though all I want to do is be self employed.

4. Then I worry that T$ will feel that I do not pull my weight in the cash flow department, silently hate me for spending money, in turn depriving me of one of my true loves- Target.

5. I hope that Charlotte will call T$ "T$" instead of "Daddy".

6. I thoroughly enjoy space planning and have a plan for each room of my house. I will soon space-plan the house as if it were my studio/office and we lived somewhere else.

7. I would love to flip houses (due to #6 and the ability to knock down walls in my mind).

8. T$ said he almost didn't continue to date me because he thought I was too "ghetto"

9. I have the worst stage fright ever possible. I took voice lessons in college and didn't really sing like I could because I was terrified my voice coach was judging me.

10. I rarely mix my groups of friends. If we're having people over, we have one group at a time. I stress out that they won't like each other and no one will enjoy themselves.

11. I really want to learn to sew my own clothes

12. For the longest time I rarely participated in conversations because I couldn't get my words right. I would start talking and completely forget what I was saying and what I had just said. So I would listen, pipe in when necessary and that was it.

13. When I was younger, my mom said I wanted to be a doctor and a cheerleader. I can also vaguely remember wanting to be a semi driver as well because I wanted to honk the horn for little kids pulling the invisible chain as they passed by.

14. I subscribe to 196 blogs... and counting.

15. I'm obsessed with handwriting. Entire notebooks filled with handwriting makes me giddy.

16. I want to spend more time with my letterpress this year, but because I haven't had enough time to devote to adjusting it to get an even impression, I keep putting it off... and then I worry T$ will get mad that I bought it.

17. I've lately become obsessed with my Domino Deco File.

18. I like to think I'm very witty, though very few can really figure out what I'm saying. (For instance, a friend that was dating a reverend's son that was a coke dealer received a mixed CD entitled "Simon Camden took the Pepsi Challenge and lost")

19. I believe that almost all great actors got their start on Lifetime.

20. I have a slight OCD complex that makes me match things. For instance. I bought particular containers for all of Little Miss' clothes- Clear bin, purple top and pink handle. If they ever stop making these containers, I will buy all new containers that match each other because having 2 different containers will drive me crazy. Same goes for if they change the style of that container.

21. I used to keep my shoes in individual clear tupperware shoe boxes.

22. I have 47 first cousins on my dad's side. (What was the tally on second cousins??) He is 1 of 15. This gives us a total of 150 family members alone at weddings.

23. My wedding was the first time all those cousins (with the except of Jen) were in the same place at the same time.

24. When I do things like this or post on my blog, I pretend I'm writing for people I've never met and will never meet. I can't comprehend that people I know and talk to all the time would read things I post.

25. This took way too long to think up 25 things about myself... mostly because I was worried they wouldn't be interesting enough.

to Resolve or not...

2009-01-07T17:01:00.000-08:00

I'm horrible about being held to things I say when it doesn't really involve anyone else. Need me to show up to help you move furniture around? No problem. Need me to pick you up at 3am from the airport and then drop you at your great Aunt Trixie's house 45 minutes the other way? No problem. The end result benefits you. When the end result benefits me... I could really care less if I follow thru. I'm not lazy. Just... well, whatever.

So everyone makes these great resolutions right about now. They vow to do this, say this more often, not do this and then get super super skinny. So... will I do it this year? Sure, I always make goals for myself. Do I make New Year's Resolutions? Not really... but it never stops me from putting a few ideas down that I'd like to keep in mind.

Business-wise... the goals are important. They give me a timeline and they allow me to visualize where I'm going. Just like I made my monetary goal last year, I make milestone goals scattered thru out the year to keep me moving forward. So... here they are.

:: Spend wisely ::
This is actually two fold with the next goal. Everyone is spending less these days, I'm not an exception. I feel like I have all the necessary tools to run my business efficiently- anything else at this point would be an "extra bonus". I would love to find a paper cutter, seeing as how I outsource larger cut jobs right now, but if it doesn't turn up, I can still provide service to my clients that doesn't have disruption.

:: Maintain ::
In some ways I feel like having the expectation that Five Dot will grow (i.e. me put more money into marketing, advertising, etc to reach more clients) is a false hope. Referencing back to the first goal, spending is down everywhere and I do not expect to thrive in a poor economy. Don't get my wrong- if I take off I'm not pulling the reigns back. I just don't think it's wise to put money into something where I can only hope there will be a return. Maintaining what I have now will allow me to secure relationships and plan for the next year.

:: Internal Growth ::
This is the year of internal growth. Processes, research, network- all of those things and more. I want to push my wedding line a little bit more (seeing as how most designs are already done and becomes a matter of listing them in the shop.) I'll take this year to rework my website, build my catalog, build my "to contact" list for wholesale and pull my look book together. It's all do-able... I just need to build that time line.

:: Experiment ::
I want to experiment with different materials- fabric, felt, metals, etc. I think this year will be a good year to play. I already have a few ideas I'd like to pursue- things that I think will be received well. Many involve pattern work and attention to detail which will be a nice break from my work now. I've hit a bit of a wall with what I have now and breaking out of that box, I think, will help me build on my collection. This is the first year I've started to put together an inspiration board (I'll show it once everything's up and organized)

:: Continue to have fun ::
I'm having a great time building my brand and my company. I feel like I'm heading in a direction that I'm comfortable going and I feel like I'm finally asking the right questions and putting those answers to good use.

Personally...
These tend to be the same as everyone else, but I'll put 'em down on paper- er, blogland.

:: Spend Wisely ::
Time to glue that wallet shut. Don't get me wrong- we want for not (or whatever the saying is) and we're not eating saltines and peanut butter every nite (even though they're soooooo good). We live. We buy things we like. I buy things I like but don't need. This HAS to stop. I have plans for that money now... a new house with a studio to call my own. (and Hubz, if you're reading, please don't remind me of this post when I've been at Target for an hour and I'm still not back.)

:: Declutter ::
I got stuff and I like my stuff. I like my stuff with me. I have too much stuff. Someone else needs stuff. I'll give you my stuff. The past few weeks I've done a very good job of letting things go. We recently took advantage of some good deals on plastic bins and switched over all the old cardboard boxes to labeled plastic bins. But I must say, Hubz took the prize for oldest-stuff-kept-that-was-meaningless-to-everyone- involved: timesheets from the early 90's. Yeah, we shredded those.

:: Stick to my Plan to win Prizes ::
let's just say this goes along with everyone else's "... and end up super super skinny" pledges. 'nuff said.

:: Be Content ::
If none of this ends up panning out, I want to know that I at least had fun this year... which so far, is going very well.

(I know, posts with no pictures aren't really as fun, but I haven't done much creating. I spent my time watching all 19 episodes of My So-Called Life and flipping thru magazines.)

It's like riding a bike... right?

2008-12-25T19:21:00.000-08:00

you just REMEMBER how to blog? is that how it goes? i haven't had a real entry since the beginning of the month, so i need to get my footing. A LOT has gone on this month, but that also means that i remember very little of it. I'm off work until January 2nd (yes, we have to come in on a FRIDAY after a long holiday. why? no idea.) The Little's have 1 more Christmas to go tomorrow, one more party on Saturday and then we're smooth sailing into the new year. Yes, I realize I'm blogging on Christmas Day, but- in my defense... Hubs and the nugget are sound asleep on the couch while Cars is showing on one of the stations. I physically cannot watch Cars one more time without risking a mental breakdown... but that story's for another time. Nugget had a great time opening gifts this morning (and I'm even more excited that we didn't go overboard on her first Christmas) and all three of us spent the day lounging in our PJ's watching TV and playing with our new toys.

I got some really really good stuff this year (so far) and cannot WAIT to get pictures posted. (Think OOAK and multiple colors). I think of few of you just might be a bit jealous...

Look for a recap (after I literally go month to month thru my planner and my blog entries) of the year and an 09 forecast coming next week while I'm off and the nugget is at the sitters. I might even be able to post those "clean house" photos I've been hoping to post. I have a lot of ideas for next year, but I'm going into the year with the same mentality of this year. Grow steady, remember your priorities and work smart.

So Happy Holidays! I'll be back next week with some real fat to chew on. We'll see you on the flip side...

I'll be back soon

2008-12-22T12:53:00.000-08:00

I know I've been away for awhile now, but December took my by surprise...

I'll be back soon. Don't you worry.

And I'll have lots to share. I promise.

Allow me...

2008-12-08T00:00:00.000-08:00

to introduce you to the "Baby Mullet"

Everybody loves a mullet. Especially a baby mullet.

I woke up on Saturday to this:

Now, I know that this isn't that bad. But around here... it's White Death. I went to my show anyway... and ended up just dropping my stuff off and I'll find out this week if anything sold. Not my ideal situation, but it is what it is. I even managed to bite it down the school stairs, resulting in a bruised backside and a sore back. Awesome.

Nugget spent the day with my parents, so Hubz and I drove up to retrieve her and went see Santa (aka my Uncle Bill playing Santa in my hometown) before we headed home. I was thankful for the snow then because a local park (where I grew up playing soccer) has a drive-thru light show and the snow made it a bit more "believeable". No meltdowns on Santa's lap, but we came close! Thanks Santa and Mrs. Claus!

This week is much quieter. I have 3 custom orders to get out, I'm off work Thursday and Friday and seeing as how Hubz finished the manual labor on the loft, I can start cleaning it and arranging it for Nugget to use. I have friends coming over on the 16th, so it was extremely important Hubz finished his work up there. I told him he had until the 14th to complete or he had to move out, but couldn't go somewhere that required rent because I was going to need that money to pay someone to finish up :-) He's used to these strict deadlines and consequences, so he takes it with a grain of salt... but he also wouldn't put it past me to actually put him out for a few days. hehehe. I know Hubz and he needs a deadline and a consequence. But, like I said, we only really need to arrange the furniture, clean everything up and move everything into the loft to call it complete.

I'm just so happy to have my closet back.

I just realized that my DVR'd show ended and I've been watching the Home Shopping Network for the past half hour.

One down, one to go- now let's play catch up.

2008-12-05T17:46:00.000-08:00

This week has been a busy one between getting out my first wholesale order, meeting up with friends to ensure that we indeed still like each other and enjoy each other's company and getting ready for my first craft shows of the year. And then Britney's new album came out to top it all off. The printer is hummin' away, so I've got some QT to spend with my Mac... even though I might just have to eat my words on not cursing my printer. She's acting up and it's making my print time much much longer than normal. Alright, let's get to it.

My work holds a Bizarre Bazaar every year and if you've been around for awhile, I mentioned it last year about this time. Last year I managed to exceed my goal and I did it again this year! It was definitely slower, but I had a better selection and a broader range of pricing. I was really happy with how my set up turned out and with the reaction it got from everyone. The calendars were a hit (I sold out of wall calendars) and the Christmas cards went over really well with people, too. (Excuse the photos- I was using my little Nikon Coolpix to take some quick shots.)

Tomorrow morning I hit up the last craft fair I'll be doing this year. Yup, I did a whopping 2 craft shows and I'm tired. I know this time of year is the time to make good money at fairs/shows, but I don't want the stress and franticness that comes with it (I'm not a planner when it comes to these things. I second guess quantities, pricing, product, etc. and I always predict the wrong thing that I think will sell... therefore, it's always a crap shoot. I know that's true with everyone, but I don't like feeling unprepared.)

Once I finish up the craft show tomorrow, I have some custom work to finish up for some family and friends and then I just allow my Etsy shop to work for me. Being that it's our first Christmas with Charlotte, I don't want to spend my nites cutting cardstock and folding cards and then spending my weekends sitting behind a card table for the majority of the day. I'll leave that for when Five Dot because my sole source of income and the economy's can allow people to hand over their dolla dolla bills without second thought. Besides, I'd rather scope out the scene and put my time and effort into the ones that are right for me. Everything's been flowing at a very comfortable rate which has allowed me to take over the house only every so often.

In unrelated work news...

I participated in an ornament hosted by Modern Eve this month as well and I have to admit, it was pretty fun! Here are the ornaments I received from Katie- they're perfect for this year! Thanks Katie!! (P.S. check out her etsy shop. I wish I could pull off super cute head gear, but I'm not meant to be super cute like that for whatever STUPID reason.) I digress... here are the super cute ornaments hanging on our tree!

And I have to tell you how excited I am about my little gift to myself that FunnyErnie created for me. I had been looking for someone to do simple illustrations of my dogs- nothing fancy and intricate. Just something that captured them. And then I found Amy. Her style was perfect for it. Normally, I would have done something like this myself, but I'm more of a "draw-er" than an illustrator. I get fixated on details and then lose the whole point of what I'm doing. Amy gladly whipped up some concepts for me to look over and I'm really excited to frame the final product. Merry Christmas to me!

Here are the pooches for comparison

So now as I type and wait for 9 more calendars to print, hubs is in the front room cutting away- I swear that man can be talked in to anything as long as a movie and/or a good list of DVR'd shows are playing. There are many times (our wedding especially) when I thanked the Lord for television (yes, he hand-assembled all of our wedding invitations! He wove ribbon, used the tape gun and stuffed all 120. Yes. I said 120. And no, we're not famous or wildly popular... I just come from a very big family- 47 grandchildren on one side... ONE SIDE!) Check out his handy work!

P.S. In case you missed it, The Stationery Hustle blogged my calendars and Design Crush blogged my "Joy" cards. Thanks guys!

Don't be Tardy for the Party

2008-12-01T00:00:00.000-08:00

i have no idea where in my life i was before now. i have no idea what my last post was about (if about anything) and i have no idea what i promised before now (but i DO know i didn't promise to loan you money, babysit or tell you all the deep-dark secrets that i know.) so i'm just going to pick up where i think i left off.

*disclaimer* i cannot vouch for the order in which these events happen as i have been lucky to match my shoes each morning. our household was hit with the nasty cold running ramped thru the city and it took 2 of us OOC for a good solid 5 days. there is a good chance i may even go backwards in my happenings because that's really the best way my mind thinks.

let's start with black friday.
i hate it.
every bit of the 5 foot nothing me hates large crowds of elbows, forearms and big purses. angry, crabby shoppers that awoke WAY too early to save a few bucks make the experience even worse. i have considered teaching nugget the phrase "scuze me" so that she can ride in the stroller and scream it at the top of her lungs while her mother pushes her about pretending to be embarrassed and apologetic only to be secretly high-fiving her and promising her a pony on her tenth birthday. i would LOVE to teach her to just yell "move," but that might be taking it a bit far.
however.
we venture out every year to meet the hubs family for lunch and then to hit the mall to see what kind of deals there are to be had. only once did we get up before the birds to go to home depot to get a shop vac and a cordless drill. the cordless drill is a god-send and i want one in pink. the shop vac is somewhere in the house smelling of mildew and disgustingness.
this year the deal was in the books. some genius decided to pull all their bargain books, overstock and whatever else was collecting dust in their warehouse, price them under $10 and put it in one spot. (my company is doing this as well, but i don't know that we publish "popular" books... but i could be wrong). all in all, we spent almost $80 and got some great stuff, including this this little number that i've been eyeballing like the last brownie. we also scored a ginormous copy of the little engine that could (i would guess close to 3 feet tall) that retails for $85 for a cool $19.99. i picked up bill cosby's book and a few other fun ones for nugget to add to her collection. they had madonna's 3 bookset there, but she's been acting questionable lately and cannot justify shelling out $10 to a 50 year old woman desperately grasping at her youth by wearing leotards and sharing "spiritual" connections with married athletes.
there.
i said it.
we knocked out a few christmas gifts for the kids, found a few more things for the nugget and headed for home... only to get ready to head back out to my hometown (m-town!) to go to my aunt's house for a little post-shopping dinner and drinks. i handed nugget off, got me some wine and all was good. nugget was also one wind machine and 2 outfit changes short of a photoshoot with all the flashes going off. she's a ham and it warms my heart. wonder where she gets it from... somewhere in the nite there was a family member tally (i think we came up with 47 grandkids) and another nugget (not from this girl!) coming out to play around june.

that's it for now. i'll sprinkle posts of my whereabout for the past few weeks through out this week so that we can all get caught back up and on the same page. i'll just leave you with some baby feet. because everybody loves baby feet

P.S. anyone else watch Housewives of Atlanta on Bravo? i'm DYING to voice my *ahem* opinion on a few matters.

And the winner is...

2008-11-24T08:47:00.001-08:00

I've been a bit under the weather, so this post is a bit late... but... the winner of the christmas cards is...

CHRISTINA!!
yay!!

I will be emailing you shortly! And thanks SO MUCH to everyone that participated!

I'll have more when I'm feeling better.

Now, look out Chicken Noodle Soup

The Breakfast Bar...

2008-11-19T20:03:00.000-08:00

isn't this what breakfast bars are intended for, right? yummy paper and envelopes?

i think i underestimated myself and what i was putting out there. i think i'm going to be taking over the breakfast bar like this for the next few weeks... good thing we've never really even used it :-) big ups to hubz for building these cabinets to my specifications (he even lined up the waynes coating- or whatever it's called- lines) and making them look fantastic!

psssst...
here's the cabinets in all their glory... well, without their doors and hardware... but that whole wall he built- granite tile bar and all.

If I ever curse her...

2008-11-18T19:49:00.000-08:00

Please smack me. She's helping me with the pretty stuff you see below... and she's been so good to me. I hope she never leaves me.

Seeing as how our bedroom doubles as my office, my stuff tends to spread itself out wherever I can find room. I make-do now, but I long for the day when I can take over an entire room without the inconvenience of having to move my beloved piles in order to sleep.

We had our first "snowfall" yesterday. This is what the Live Forever's looked like when I got home from work. The white was so vibrant off the green it was almost blinding. They looked like Dip n Dots if you ask me. Maybe I'm just hungry. Ah, well. Whatever. I still like them.

It's a Carnival in November

2008-11-16T18:29:00.000-08:00

Yup. The EtsyGreetings Team is having a Blog Carnival... and I'm giving you a chance to win some goodies of mine.

I'm giving away one pack of Holiday cards of your choice. Yup. I just listed them this weekend and I'm giving you a chance to win one of the packs below

Just leave a comment here and on Friday I'll choose my winner. Please only enter once and this is open to everyone- international participants included. Members of the EtsyGreetings Team are welcome to enter as well! To head back to the EtsyGreetings blog to enter more giveaways, click the link in the first sentence or that snazzy button on the top right of the blog.

You think I would learn

2008-11-15T14:31:00.000-08:00

As most creative do, ideas swirl constantly in my mind. I try to get them out as soon as I can, but it's not always that easy with an 8 month old and a full time job. So, I usually end up throwing something together in Illustrator, only to never be satisfied with how my design transferred to the computer from my mind. Sometimes I just go with it and sometimes I don't. I now have an entire bin full of "shouldn't have gone with that" to put out at my next craft fair as a "discontinued bin". You think I would learn by now to go back to the way we did it in school.

Sketches.

Mock ups.

Lay down the design.

Mock up.

Fix problems.

Mock up.

Finished.

Make millions.

The last part may be a stretch, but lately I haven't been able to successfully transfer ideas to designs and I know what the problem is. I haven't mocked it up or sketched it out. I haven't put it to paper- I haven't looked at all the possibilities. I haven't seen it- its flaws, its successes, it's "okays". We all have ideas in our minds, but we can never know if they are feasible (for us and our resources, anyway) unless we work out their kinks.

For months I've been mulling over a project, how to get it work and how I want to pull it together. It never dawned on me until now to sketch it out and mock it up. *duh* I started to do it with another project and *shocking* it worked. It showed me areas of improvement, areas that didn't work and areas I really liked. I haven't been able to go back to this project- mainly because I thought of another medium that would work better than card stock and give it the extra push over edge to make it great.

So now, I find my sketch book again, put down the design, mock it up, work it out and put out something I'm proud of and you're proud to give out. I've obviously had success with items that I take my time with (my calendar that 2 years), so I need to pay attention to what works and go with that method. I've always said that I will not put something out there again that I wouldn't buy myself. I need to remember that. There are a lot of good ideas that are just sitting in folders on my computer waiting to come to life- but they're all missing something and I refuse to put them out there before they're ready. I'm almost there, but "almost" isn't good enough.

Now if you'll excuse me... I have some designs to work out.

Now that's what I call Supportive

2008-11-12T16:43:00.000-08:00

Little Mrs. :: I sold another calendar

Mr.Little :: Sweet! That's like 5, right?

Little Mrs. :: Something like that

Mr.Little :: You'll be able to quit your job and work from home pretty soon!

Little Mrs. :: Yeah... those 5 calendars really put me over the edge.

_____

Isn't he adorable? He dreams so big.

I told you!

2008-11-11T05:53:00.000-08:00

Get 'em while they're hot.

And I'd like to give a shout out to Mr. Little this fine day as it's our 2nd year anniversary. He was so kind to send me flowers yesterday (to try to throw me off) as his way of saying thanks for my nagging, whining and just all around pain-in-the-ass ways. He loves me so.

So, hubs... I'm pourin' one out for you, homie. You're great and I'd like to keep ya around.

now, drink chug-a-lug!

2 Items in!

2008-11-10T13:21:00.000-08:00

I finally got 2 new items in the shop. Perfect for the holidays as they are personalize-able (if that's even a word.)

and

and I'm just saying that you MIGHT be able to win this last set here on Tuesday. maybe. i'm just sayin'.

and i've got more where that came from.

Workin' like a dog

2008-11-09T17:04:00.000-08:00

This weekend was one of manual labor and a little design. I also got a photoshoot in there too. And it was with one of my favorite ladies.

Miss Matilda is a bit camera shy. She's a sweetheart, but your typical rescue dog... a little skiddish around strangers and very VERY attached to me.

I honestly have no idea what I did on Friday. Seriously. No clue.
Saturday, we shipped off the nugget and went to work.
This was my job.
This.

To this.

Add a little of this.

And end with this.

I only have one coat on right now and it needs another, but I can't wait. The walls are going to be the green in my logo

so to say it will be a vibrant room will be an understatement. I'm going to recover that rocking chair seat with something fun like heather bailey.

This is what hubs did.
This.

To this. (With my contribution!)

One more coat of white and we'll be able to start on the closet in the front. Once that's done, it will be time to move in the toys and let the nugget take over!

With 2 curious dogs, we only ended up with one white streak on the butt (Marvin), some white whiskers and some white AND pink on the pads (Matilda).

and this is what happens when you ask him to watch the nugget for awhile while you get some work done

And Matilda thought she hit the jackpot because not only was someone paying attention to her, but this person couldn't run away. Nugget just wanted to eat her ball.

2008 Wrapped Up

2008-11-07T13:16:00.001-08:00

This entire year has been a whirlwind and it's that time to start preparing for the next year. This is about the time I start getting my paperwork ready for taxes, take my inventory and start tallying. Last year's meeting with HR Block taught me a lot on how to prepare for this year. I think I did pretty darn good.

It's also time for me to set my goals for next year. I didn't really set goals-goals last year because I wasn't sure when I was going to be able to jump back in the saddle after having my little girl. I did tell Mr. HR Block that I was hoping to make a particular amount this year (after taxes and such) and I'm happy to announce that I met that goal- with only working 7 months out of the year.

Working a full time job, raising my little nugget and keeping designs and inventory fresh took a bit of work, but it's manageable. If you don't force the work or designs and let them flow naturally, it works with you and not against you. I think that some (note: some- not all) designers put pieces out there for the sake of having inventory. My first year I did that, it backfired on me and I vowed not to put out anything I didn't love. That was the reason my calendar took 2 years to complete and the reason that I have 3-4 concepts that I haven't released yet: i don't love them and I can't market and sell something I don't believe in. I'm so close, but I can't justify sacrificing the final product just to have "numbers" in my shop.

I edit very often and very meticulously. in theory, i COULD offer everything possible... and i probably already have it designed, but if I'm not "feeling" it, it doesn't go up. money also drives what gets put up. i know you have to spend money to make money, but I'm not at the point where I'm ready to go out and buy a lot of supplies and not be able to have multiple uses for them.

With all that said, I'm extremely proud of the buzz I managed to generate for my shop. I participated in giveaways, blog features and promoted wherever I could. I just put my product out there and let it work for me. Many say hearts and views don't matter- and they don't really... on the business end. But they do matter on the ego and motivation end. And i don't mean ego in the "I'm popular" sense. I mean ego in the sense that these people ENJOY your work. They see what you see in your work. They LIKE what you've dreamed up in your mind and they APPRECIATE what you do. So yes, hearts and views matter. They remind me that I'm doing okay. Not everyone is going to love what you have to offer, so knowing there are others that appreciate my work pushes me to create more. So those of you that have hearted me... know that I thank you for showing your appreciation for my hard work.

I have so many ideas dreamed up for this next year and I'm not going to lie... I'm a bit worried that I won't be able to make those dreams come true. Some are a bit ambitious for my schedule, but I'll still work hard and I'll still put my best foot forward, whatever design might be on that foot. I have textiles, thread, felt and mix media on the mind, but it's all hazy still. I would love a collaboration of sorts with someone, so if anyone reading has any ideas, I'd love to hear them.

I'm also going to be looking to adapt my Signature Series into somewhat of a true collection. I want to expand and look at the whole "desk" so to speak- think about what I use in my daily routine and see how I can incorporate those items into my designs. I may even redesign things a bit and see if I can introduce something tactile and interactive. These are the things I perceive as taking a bit of time, but I know that if I'm patient and true to the design... it will all work out.

I, honestly, haven't made my 2009 Goals yet. Maybe that's something I'll do tonite while I wait for the ball to drop. I have a few ideas rolling around right now, but I'm not ready to commit to my list. Once it's settled upon, I'll be sharing (which I'm sure everyone else will be, too!) I honestly, like to see what others come up with to see what might also inspire me for the new year. Last year I broke it down into months- by X month I wanted this done and that was a real motivation, so I might carry that theme out again. I'll also be starting my "35 by 35" list which could be pretty interesting given what a huge year I had this year in terms of events, accomplishments and experiences. (warning: some things I've accomplished will also be on that list because I need the motivation of boxes checked. Plain and simple.)

Either way I hope you all have a great new year in 2009 and I hope that I can keep your attention in the year to come! Below you will find some of my favorites from the year.

Tropical Tree Frog Costume GIVEAWAY!!!!

2008-11-03T13:15:00.000-08:00

holy crap. seriously? this woman is amazing!

Tropical Tree Frog Costume GIVEAWAY!!!!

Go and Get it...

2008-11-03T07:32:00.000-08:00

get some goodies!

and then check out little miss dorothy (shoes from PinkMarshmellow)

trick or treat was a success! we were able to hit two houses of friends AND make it home before 8:30. she hung in there like a trooper (taking a power nap while hitting a few of the houses) and our first halloween was a success!!!

Calendar Girls

2008-11-01T13:07:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to

Chantelle and Katelyn!

I'll get your calendars out to you this week!

and here's what I've been working on. Doesn't look like much, but if I can work out the kinks, I think it will be pretty nice!

Try not to cry

2008-10-29T11:23:00.000-07:00

from the Mindy Gledhill concert for NieNie

I've been working...

2008-10-28T10:06:00.000-07:00

I promise.

Really.

I should have a heaping amount of updates later this week or over the weekend.

Life's just getting in the way... and creative bursts of energy. They don't come around as often so I have to run with them before i forget them!

So...
Until later.

I know you're out there...

2008-10-27T00:00:00.000-07:00

so you wanna win a 2009 Wall Calendar?

I'll choose two lucky ducks to win.

Just leave a comment and you'll automatically be entered- one per person please. Please make sure there is a way for me to contact you via email, your blog or Etsy shop. If I do not have contact information for you, I will have to pick another winner. This is open to international winners as well! You do not have to be visiting from the Bloggy Carnival to win! If you are just stopping by, please enter!

This is apart of the big BloggyGiveaway Blog Carnival hosted here and runs until Friday, October 31st

Check out all I have to offer in my Etsy shop. New holiday items will be coming soon!

I hearby find you GUILTY!

2008-10-24T08:19:00.000-07:00

It has been decided that I am not allowed to go to the mall by myself. I have agreed to these terms and though I may not agree 100% with the reasoning behind these actions against me, for the greater good of my household and my bank account I must oblige.

Below you will find some of the evidence against me.

Exhibit A

Exhibit B

Exhibit C

Exhibit D

Case and point.

Why I cannot be a millionaire and buy my way out of this will haunt me forever.

Explain to me how someone is supposed to raise a daughter in this world and teach her that objects and material goods and THINGS are not important... when places are offering these amazing pieces of fabulousness? I

If this collection came in my size, I'd break my no matching outfits rules.

images courtesy of Janie&Jack ... click if you dare- you'll get sucked in.

Miss Artsy Fartsy...

2008-10-24T06:11:00.001-07:00

never disappoints

checkitout.

Miss Blog Buddy, Erika, wrote up a great little mentioning of Five Dot on her Artsy Fartsy Shopaholic blog today. I never really know what to say when someone does something like this- I'm so flattered and humbled to find someone that likes my work as much as my mom does. And word to the wise- subscribe to her blog... it's definitely a great read and she ends up showing some fantastic Etsy sellers- um, hello? She found me didn't she :-)

So, thank you Erika! I can't wait to snatch up an apron when she's back in business. I hope see's back in time for Christmas shopping! Check out her flickr here.

And love on this painting here.

I was in the middle of this.

2008-10-23T08:27:00.000-07:00

Writing almost this exact post.

More on it later... or read an earlier post that is similar here.

A Play date with some new friends.

2008-10-20T06:21:00.000-07:00

It was a VERY productive weekend for me. It was virtually kid-free (which also lead us to find out that Little Miss was NOT happy about being away that long), so both the hubz and I were able to focus on a few projects uninterrupted.

Friday: Operation Oz.
Well, it's almost finished. It doesn't look all that pretty. But it's almost finished. I never realized how zippy Singers were! Man, Betsy was flying! I didn't really have an problems following the pattern, but I had a little trouble controlling the pedal (apparently I'm a lead-foot), so the stitches aren't all that pretty. It's okay. It's my first attempt at anything by myself and it could be waaay worse. I had to rip the stitches out of two of the sections and should be able to get that sewn up this week for her debut this weekend at a Family Halloween Party out in the country.

Saturday: Operation Oz continued
I worked until about 1am on Saturday morning, got up around 9:30, ate the yummy french toast my hubs made and then got right back to it. After sewing a bit, I decided I was tired and lounged a bit before having to go pick up the Nugget.

Sunday: Punch it Margaret!
I finally changed into my scumming tshirt and pulled out the rubber ink. Margaret came out to play this weekend. I ran her (the lovely letterpress) on Sunday after a trip to the grocery. I had to do a lot of tinkering and a lot of readjusting, but I was able to get some ink on some paper. There is still a lot of tinkering and more adjusting to do, but it was good to get my hands dirty- er blue (the ink is still in my nails). I think I'm going to have some ornamental designs made into blocks so that I can get a few things rolling. I just wanted to get digging into the press, get my hands dirty and print. I wanted to USE my machine. It spent about an hour downstairs tightening and loosening bolts, making passes over the ink plate and the "L" locked up in the chase. It was fun. It was a nice and relaxing. Marv came down and laid on the floor next to me and only made a ruckus once (why do dogs eat their own poo? seriously!).

Monday: Wholesale
I'm super excited about the first possible wholesale account I have on the table. The glitch? I didn't have my wholesale policies or my line sheets or my catalog ready to go. Ugh. I managed to pull a quick line sheet with pricing together (which will be worked into a proper line sheet once I get the photos taken for my catalog and will no longer need to rely on my digital illustrations.) It's a daunting task to take on. Especially with a tight turn-around time!

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On a completely different note, Jenny the Artist 2 included a picture of our old bathroom in a lovely inspiration board. Last photo, 4th row. Oh Swannies...

Miss Betsy

2008-10-15T05:55:00.000-07:00

click the photo to see more information on her.

oh i can't wait.... good work hubby... good work.

What seemed like a long absence

2008-10-13T07:44:00.000-07:00

which i'm sure it really wasn't. i'm getting that overwhelmed feeling lately and i think it's because i'm feeling motivated at the same time.

a little somethin' somethin' came in the mail for me yesterday... i'll post it later. i'm super excited.

this weekend we hit the pumpkin patch. i'm just going to share some pictures.

my two favorites in shadow form

a wordier post later. :-)

Again...

2008-10-11T14:17:00.001-07:00

this is what happens when your husband gets bored. there are more photos on my flickr site, but this is the gist of it.
good news? he's installed all new insulation and is moving drywall in as we speak. i'll take a few photos later tonite and post. the secret to speedy working? tell him it's for the nugget. see, we're revamping that space into her play area. we've moved downstairs (for now) to the guest bedroom and we're very comfortable. seeing as how this is not our dream end-all-be-all home, we don't need the lavish master bedroom that we (read: i) plan to have (yes, i have the floorplan already sketched out and ready to go for when we build) in the next or next next house.
what i'm hoping to also come out of this is a new office space. right now i'm in two spots: the basement and the guest bedroom (yes, our bedroom). it works and i'm happy if that's how it ends up working out, but my hope is the new insulation and the new drywall will regulate the temperature up there so that it's not at it's highest or lowest degree (it's sweltering up there in the summer and freezing in the winter). we have a window unit to cool things off in the summer and really, it's not all that bad up there in winter, but i want to make sure we do this right. we have our walk-in closet up there (it's behind the dresser in the photo above), so in doing this, i think it will make it easier for me to get ready in the morning... i can take her upstairs to play while i pick out my wardrobe- i.e. jeans and shirt- for the day and not worry about her being alone downstairs.
after i see the space drywalled and "finished" (i use that term lightly because nothing is every finished around here), i'll be able to layout some floorplans... and of course i'll share them! i'm going to be using a lot of what we already have and anything that we do buy i'm going to make sure can be used in the future. we'll be moving a TV up there, the current "entertainment center" that is downstairs and i have a rug that we'll put up there so nugget can crawl around without worrying about eating a pound of dog hair (the dogs will be off-limits unless we're up there).
i'll be sharing the pieces that will be going up there soon. i'm also going to be putting some thought into the closet and how to make it more efficient. i need to assess what we have, what we need and how to go about pulling it all together.

They're here...

2008-10-11T11:54:00.000-07:00

and they look pretty darn good.

the 2009 Wall Calendar.

the 2009 Desk Calendar.

A huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders! I'm so happy to get these calendars listed- ahead of schedule to boot! I'm working on one more calendar to round out the year, but I'm not as concerned to get that one done because I just started it last week!

I have some fun things in the works for my wedding listings derived from this concept- GENIUS! I'm really excited about what I came up with, so I'm sure I'll be working extra hard to get this concept flushed out.

Check over here to see how my sewing is going! I started on Little Miss' halloween costume last nite, but ran out of pins, so looks like I"ll have to make a meijer run a little later so I can finish up!

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Done!

2008-10-09T19:09:00.000-07:00

I finished them a little while ago, but I'm just now getting around to the post. Please ignore the pedicure (or lack there of)... I haven't had much time to get to my toes.

Here's a few shots of the calendars that will be listed this weekend!

I know the shot of the desk calendar is horrid, but it's the best I could do.

This is what I was working on tonite. I've borrowed a sewing machine so that I can work on Charlotte's halloween costume. I'll post the progress... notice my high-tech weights used to hold the paper in place.

I couldn't bring myself to cut the pattern so I decided to just trace it. I don't know if this is a no-no in the sewing world, but I'm learning (feel free to give me a virtual slap on the wrist!). How do you use your patterns? Do you cut straight from or do you create a master pattern?

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Mark this date

2008-10-08T13:08:00.001-07:00

According to my Bloglines... today is the first day I have had NO NEW posts to any of the 170 blogs I read since I logged in this morning at 8:30. I read 15 that were posted overnite and it's been crickets ever since.

*chirp chirp*

oh yeah... calendars are going to be listed this weekend

Refreshed

2008-10-06T07:39:00.000-07:00

Friday nite was spent with many kindred spirits. We laughed. We cheered. Some cried. All rejoiced for one common theme.

The New Kids on the Block.

(video courtesy of coreyann via flickr)

I won't go on into detail about the absolute AMAZINGNESS of this concert because I'm sure you would be jealous (the links are to fellow NKOTB'ers that took video at the concert and have some great photos). if you go here i can show you where we sat: look at the top right at the tan banner- we were right by the lower left corner of that banner. sure not so close seats, but i could have cared less!
and i have to say that natasha bedingfield was an AWESOME choice for an opening act. i always think it's a testament to talent when you can sound just as great live (if not better) than you do on a CD... and she far exceeded any expectations i had for her. i've heard her once on a talk show, but that was nothing compared to live!

but enough of that. overall the weekend was great and i'm so happy i decided to go... my busy thursday, as posted here, went pretty smoothly. i didn't get a chance to do any printing of the calendar BUT, thanks to BeanPickleSprout, I'll be offering both a desk calendar and a wall calendar. I'm hoping to get to those tonite, if not cut down to photograph.

i've finished up with my sewing lessons and will moving on to the next project! i'm really excited about this because it will be my first "solo" project, so this could get interesting! i'm borrowing a friend's machine, so tonite- after printing i'll trace out the pattern (i can't bring myself to cut it!) and then probably tomorrow at lunch, i'll go get the fabric... probably.

If you're reading this...

2008-10-03T14:00:00.000-07:00

I'm hangin tough...

and hopefully getting pictures with the boys! Cross your fingers. Until then... I'll leave you with this.

Have a great weekend- I'll be back on Sunday or Monday with photos.

photo courtesy of nkotbmansion.com

My Day Today

2008-10-02T00:00:00.000-07:00

Getting ready to go out of town has always been... not stressful... just full. It might be hard to see, but click on it and you can see how I fill my day today. We will be leaving tomorrow morning to go visit my brother, his wife... and see NKOTB. Yes. You read correctly. New Kids on the Block. It was my first concert and I'll die a happy girl if it's my last. i digress...

Anyway, this is a typical routine for me to do before going anywhere for an extended amount of time. I read a tip somewhere that said to write down the entire contents of your bags when traveling (mostly pertaining to when flying) in case you lose your luggage AND for when you go to repack. Carry your list on your person at all times and you'll always know what's in there and what's not when you get home. This has saved me not only from forgetting items, but in packing as lightly as possible (though it may not seem so judging the Nugget's packing list). This was EXTREMELY helpful when the hubs and I traveled to NYC last year.

My plan is to plug these times into my phone so that I can keep myself on task... let's hope that works.

And... as you'll see... the hope is to get the calendars printed and ready to list when I get home.

Until then... I'll be hangin' tough with Joey, Jordan, Jon, Donnie and Danny.

Content

2008-10-01T07:59:00.000-07:00

with some toys and in her highchair. Makes mornings easier.

Who would have thought?

2008-09-29T19:59:00.000-07:00

I was sitting at my computer the other day listing my new table numbers and moving cards thinking that if you would have asked me last year at this time where I thought I would have been now, I never would have answered you like I am now. NEVER.

I'm selling to strangers. Yes. Strangers.
I'm sewing.
I'm looking into designing fabric (stupid step-and-repeat)
I'm letterpressing.

Up until now, I had been selling to friends, friends of friends, family or friends of family. Now, people I've never met (or maybe "met" in the forums or in blog world) are interested in my work. They like what I'm doing enough to pay me for it... and it's a great feeling. It's a great feeling to feel like I'm moving forward and I'm making progress- steadily and not clumsily. I feel like I have a firm grip on my growth and in some way I'm in good control of it... even if I'm really not. I have wholesale inquiries and friends and family finally coming to me asking for goodies. They "get" it now, I think. They see it- literally. All the freebies and handouts paid off... now they get a few extra business cards to hand out with each order. ;-)

The Creative 365 is really motivating me to do SOMETHING, no matter how small, to keep me moving. I'm very excited that I'm ready this year with my
calendar (a year in the making project... got stuck on July...), I have a good amount of goodies in my shop (and still more ideas to add to it) and I have the luxury of opening a second shop, TheLittleMrs, for my sewing goodies, if I ever get to that point.

I've never been one to really get too concerned over views or hears, but i have over 100 people that "heart" me (and I heart you for hearting me!) and according to majaba, I have over of 3000 views in my shop. I'm sure for some, that's chump change. For me, that's amazing. I never thought my work would reach that many sets of eyes, so I'm in complete humbleness (is that a word??).

I'm setting big goals for myself for next year. But, I'm prepare to alter my goals to make sure I stay grounded, keep time for my family and produce nothing but work that I am proud of. I'm finding myself having these ideas for designs, but then realizing that yes, I could do that, but it's not really what I WANT to do... so I might take a little time to work it out for myself, but not the time to photograph, list, describe, etc. because it's not what I'm excited about. I only want to sell things I'm excited about and not things I know or think will sell... and I've done a pretty good job so far of editing myself when it comes to those types of projects.

At the end of the year, I'll share my goals. They will have nothing to do with x amount of sales or x amount of hearts because those are things that are out of my control. sure it's healthy to do a forecast and set monetary goals, but in not hitting them, it should not make you feel as if you are a failure.

I'm extremely excited for the rest of this year to pan out (I'm a few dollars shy of my yearly profit goal) and plan for next year.

my motivation?

ask my two favorite shadows...

almost complete...

2008-09-29T19:12:00.000-07:00

The calendars are making great progress for listing in a few weeks. i have a few minor adjustments to make to the sizing, but all in all, i'm really happy with the turn out.

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This is what happens...

2008-09-29T12:12:00.000-07:00

... when your husband gets bored.

here we go again!
this used to be our master "suite" (i use that term lightly). we got rid of the king sized mattress and the box springs (and the make-shift bed) and the plan is to make this the playroom until we go to sell it... which by the looks of washington- won't be for another bazillion years. oy.

in his defense we have been talking about re-doing the loft just for giggles. it's made of MDF right now- and not very thick MDF at that, so we're going to bring in some bead board (or is it beat board- i never remember) and some drywall and make it use-able... and clean. we're also going to paint the floors because there are too many stains from the previous owner(s) to make refinishing it worth the effort. i think it will look nice!

i can't wait to take our time on this to make it right.

Cut Folded and Paired

2008-09-27T18:00:00.000-07:00

finally got to cutting down and folding all those designs! hopefully tomorrow i can photograph them ...

365

My 100th Post

2008-09-24T00:00:00.000-07:00

is my first 365.
These are the PJ pants I'm making to learn how to sew. I think come this Thursday, I just might be finished with lessons and looking to sew on my own! I've ordered two patterns that I'm so excited to get to work on which means plenty of 365 posts!

And then here's a sneak peek of some new additions I hope to be adding to the shop!

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I'm also looking for a few people willing to give up their normal shopping list and try something different. For over a year I have been using my grocery/coupon list when I go shopping and I've noticed it's saved me a ton of time (and money because I remember the coupons!) Just recently I've added on a meal planner to the grocery/coupon list in an attempt to plan out our meals, in turn planning out what foods I buy. We were in a horrible habit of waiting until hubs got home from work to decide what we wanted for dinner and we were eating at 7:30/8:00... way too late for this girl. So I gave this method a try and I'm curious to hear reactions from other users besides myself.

If you're willing to give up your normal grocery shopping/meal planning routine for a bit, leave a comment and I'll send you a PDF to print off. You'll be one of the lucky ones because if I decide to carry this in my shop, you have it at your disposal and never have to buy it ;-)

I have it set up so it can be saddle stitched, but that's not really necessary. On the left you have your grocery list with two columns: items you need and coupons you have. The problem I ran into is that I would clip all my coupons, load them up in my handy mini folder and I would get to the grocery and forget the coupon offer or need to double check how many of the item I needed to buy to take advantage of the coupon. And I clipped a lot of coupons, so I had to flip thru the whole stack just to find one. So I created my own shopping list that had the coupon column where I could write down the coupon offer next to the item I needed. Some times I would use it, other times the generic brand was less expensive or there was a better deal on another brand. As you can see from my photos, I would simply cross off that coupon and I usually pulled it from the stack right then and there so I wouldn't hand it to the cashier and have them look at me funny when they couldn't apply the coupon.
I then decided that I was going to give meal planning a try. So, again, as you can see, I wrote out what we were having each nite so that I could do a quick glance in case I saw something on sale that we could either substitute or eat with the meal. I must say it's helped us eat much earlier too- at least by 6:30!

In all honesty, if you're the least bit curious, please leave a comment and I'll shoot it your way (just make sure there is a way I can contact you via email). After a month or so, I'll follow up and see how you are liking the format, the ease, etc. and see if you have any tips, complaints or suggestions.

And the award goes to...

2008-09-22T07:34:00.000-07:00

me! yay! Miss Lavender Lily was so sweet to pass along these fun blog awards... (and if i had time i would redesign them, but i will restrain myself...)

check her out- the girl cracks me up and is definitely one of the blogs i read right away when i see she has a new post.
part of the rules of receiving the award(s???) is that i must pay it forward to one of my favorite blogs. well, in true spirit of myself, i can't pick one. so i'm going to pick 5- because that's what i do. :-)

1. PepperinaPress :: i love this blog in every shape and form. i always save it for last (if i can) because i enjoy it so much! most of her chatting is about her motherhood adventures, but it's delivered so well (and her little girl is HILARIOUS!). i like to think i have the same sort of wit about me as well, but either way- i still love her blog! (she has a second blog as well telling her adventures of her letterpress)

2. MelissaHead Yabberings :: this girl covers the gamut! and has a "nice" second blog as well

3. RedMarionette :: i love seeing what she comes up with next! her little critters are A-DOR-ABLE and can't wait to own one myself.

4. CJane :: I must admit I found Courtney's blog while following NieNie's recovery, but she has a fantastic way with words.

5. JC Handmade :: i love her progression of work and showing items as she's creating.

so though i have not contacted these blogs to let them know they've won, i hope they have a sort of alert system in place, like google alert, to let them know they were mentioned! and thanks to Miss Lavender for my nomination!

Creative 365

2008-09-19T07:24:00.000-07:00

i shyed away from this challenge mainly because i knew i just couldn't do it. i knew the time it would involve on my part wasn't there to expend. but.

i reminded myself that there isn't a prize at the end. there isn't recognition. all there is the satisfaction of completing a task and having some fantastic pieces to show for it. and that's enough for me. so i'm going for it.

starting monday... september 22, 2208 i'm going to start a creative 365. it might mean i finish october 4, 2009, but there's nothing wrong with that. i'm making my own rules to this game and my rules are that there must be 365 creative days. that's it. oh and i have to finish before december 31, 2009.

feel free to join me. i'll be posting my work on my flickr site and i'll create a group if there is enough interest. i most likely won't post everyday, but i'll definitely post what i'm working on- be it design work, sewing, drawing, photography. i'll also be posting work i'm really excited about here. otherwise, after normal postings, i'll just post a link back to my flickr as to what i've been up to and what i've been making in the form of a "day x" link after my post.

i thought about making it a craft 365 or a photo 365, but i knew in limiting myself into one genre i was setting myself up for failure, i have to keep it broad if i want it to work for me and if i want to get the most out of this exercise. my interests far exceed just design or photography. i have many pieces sitting around, waiting to be finished up and this will be the perfect opportunity.

monday is a short day. we're taking nugget to the brown county fair parade, a quick stroll thru the fair itself and then back home. it's going to be a loooong day. as for the weekend: the hubs has poker at our house tonite, UC v Miami football game (Go Frank!) and i might do some shopping with mom after she finishes up golf.

Money Diary

2008-09-19T00:00:00.000-07:00

When I was cleaning out the front room on Sunday I ran across my Money Ledger I used when I first got out of college, had moved back in with my parents after living in an apartment for a year and was trying to make my way down "to the big city" I wasnted to get serious about budgeting and saving money in hopes that I could start being more responsible.

I printed out all the pages- single sided because at the time I didn't have the patience to set up my document to print so i could saddle stitch it. then i double stick taped them to each other (i had a lot of time on my hands when i lived with my parents. with a 45 minute bus commute into the city each way, your social life becomes non-existent, so you find ways to entertain yourself) and duct taped the outside. love this thing. i will probably never have the heart to throw it away.

each month i would figure out my constants. then i would look to see how much i had left and i would move money around where i needed it. at the end of the month, i woudl tally up my total and look at the overall picture. once i moved out, i was able to write out my grocery lists (and you can see my "entertainment" section picked up a bit) and at one point i tried to keep track of prices at the grocery. i gave up on that.

though this method is EXTREMELY hard to keep up with when you have two people in the household, i still recommend you try something similar. In doing this, I was able to not only buy myself my pretty Mac laptop, but I was able to save enough money to pay cash for a down payment on our now house. And now, we're on the same path to buying our next house.

We still use a similar method to keep track of expenses- and this way could definitely work if you had one common ledger and each person recorded their purchases at the end of the day. In our house, the ledger would get buried in a day, so we rely on my excel sheets (well, I rely on the spreadsheets. I just tell the hubz how much he can spend this month). This was so helpful in seeing where my money was going, if I was happy with where I was spending my money and when I was spending too much in a month. Visualization.

If budgeting overwhelms you, start small. start by writing out your total monthly income. then, separate your bills out by when they are due- first half and second half. this is important. separate them out into: due 1-15 and 16-30/31 (change the dates if your pay schedule is different). by doing this, you are making sure you have enough money in BOTH halves of the month to pay bills. try this for a month and keep track (as best you can- i log onto our online banking at least 3 times a week to track both my purchases and my hubz and fill in if I happen to miss a purchase) of what you- yourself- spend. After I had done this for a few months, I saw ways we could cut some costs (changing some payments to direct debit to avoid processing fees, lowering our cell phone plan and removing the internet from my phone-which was used for work at the time, but was no longer needed and a few others that I'm sure were minor, but still kept some money in my pocket).

**If you're interested in my excel sheet, send me an email or convo me on Etsy and I can send over a copy. It changes monthly as the bills change, but it's extremely helpful for us to see what needs to be paid, how much is being saved and where our money needs to work for us that month.