enJOY it

an archived personal and craft blog from Elise Blaha Cripe.

  • wedding wednesday : i love paper pinwheels.

    Wedwed

    Ww1102

    Ep1 My interest was piqued when I saw this last week. And then there was this blog post by Max Wagner. That pinwheel collage over the fireplace (scroll down a ways)? OH ME, OH MY. There is not a fireplace in our reception venue, but I think a smattering of pinwheels in gray, white, cream and a few shades of orange would be just perfect hanging off our placecard / guestbook / gift tables. A little bit of color and a little bit of whimsy to brighten up the place. They would also be fun hanging off the table Paul and I are sitting at. To the left are my not to scale or even correct shape sketches.

    I'm pretty excited about these pinwheels. They are super easy, super inexpensive and really difficult to mess up. I think I will hook them all together with a combination of fishing line and hot glue and hang them off the table with ribbon.

  • holiday book info.

    A few emails have been coming in about the holiday books. YES, they are gone. THANK YOU! I had originally planning on making 24 to sell because I had 26 'TIS THE SEASON letterpress prints left over from last year. I had not intended on them selling out on the first day. If there is enough interest, I will start putting together more. They will be identical to the first batch but will have a digitally printed cover. The price will be the same ($27 USD) and they should be ready to ship out by the middle of next week. Please leave a comment or shoot me an email if you are interested in securing one. I'm in if you're in.

    ALSO – yesterday I passed the 1000 items sold mark on etsy. This was a big goal of mine and I am thrilled to have reached it. I would love to celebrate with customer appreciation giveaways next week so keep an eye out for those. As always, I am so grateful for you, Blogland, and your support of my crafty projects. Have a great evening. love, elise

  • really tasty chili.

    IMG_3506 Paul's been home for three days and our kitchen has seen more action than it did for the past two months. I find it really difficult to get motivated enough to cook for one and making stuff for two seems six times easier. For Paul's welcome home / our Halloween meal, we made chili. Here is our recipe :

    • 1 medium onion
    • 1 medium green bell pepper
    • 1 can of pinto beans
    • 1 can of black beans
    • 1 lb of skirt or sirloin steak
    • 2 14 oz cans of diced tomatoes
    • about 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
    • about 1/2 tablespoon oregano
    • about 1 teaspoon cumin
    • salt & pepper to taste

    Sautee chopped onion and diced bell pepper in olive oil over medium heat. Add dried spices and continue to sautee. After onion has become medium soft, add chopped meat and cook until meat is slightly browned.

    Into the same pot, add the cans of tomatoes and drained beans.

    Stir all ingredients and bring to simmer. After simmer, turn to low heat and cover.

    Let pot cook on low for about one hour and stir ingredient occasionally.

    Taste your chili! Does it need any more spices? Serve with cheese on top.

    **

    This recipe made enough for us to have dinner (Paul had heaping seconds) and then a small lunch the next day. It may be good to double the recipe for a larger family or to be sure to have more leftovers.

  • shop is updated.

    Nov2updatepost Click here to see what's in store.

  • project monday : orange & gray book.

    Promonnov2

    I am the guest designer over at Category Stories this month. The prompt was "bad behavior". I thought long and hard about it and came up with a lot of ideas that were very outside my normal crafting route. None of them felt right. So I decided to make something based on my "addiction" to orange and gray. You can see my full book on the Category Stories blog. If you participate in the challenge and upload your project to their flickr group, you will be entered to win a one of my holiday mixed paper books (if you buy one and then win, I'll refund your money).

    Happy Monday + keep an eye out for the shop update today at 3pm EST.

    *orange flower on the cover of my book is from Pixiepetals.

  • holiday gift tags.

    Gifttags IMG_3481These handmade holiday gift tags will be included in tomorrow's shop update. They will also be the "free gift with purchase" for any orders over $30 before shipping.

  • happy halloween!

    IMG_3503 These are like a fast-forward to the future : we have a four year old and she found the frosting cupboard. Because obviously our future house will have a frosting cupboard.

  • Halloween

  • holiday books.

    MixedbookHolidaycover
    IMG_3447

    I went with 25 pages + a letterpressed cover. There were lots of opinions (thank you!) but ultimately, I went with what seemed to be the majority and also what I personally wanted to use. I am going to be keeping a holiday album this season. But it won't start December 1st or end on the 25th. It will probably get rolling right after Thanksgiving (or when I get my first red cup at Starbucks) and end around New Years. I am going to be working off the pages but also adding my own photos and ephemera. A page each day of December is a lot of pressure for me. But a good sized book is a helpful guideline. Below are images of all the pages.

    Pg1to6 Pg7to12Pg13to18 Pg19to24 Pg25

    The books will go on sale this Monday (November 2nd) at 3pm EST. They are $27 and will come with two red mailing labels for embellishing. A bit more than normal, but they are the thickest I have made & include a letterpress cover and a few extra stamped details. I hope they'll be enjoyed this season.

    UPDATE : Books are available here.

    I'll be sharing my progress on my own book throughout the month of December & P.S. for expert December Album making check out what Ali Edwards is up to.

  • fall realization.

    IMG_3441 IMG_3433 IMG_3438 IMG_3442 IMG_3443
    The weather we have been having is quite mild, but it definitely LOOKS like fall around here. I'm loving it. Loving the season change and the new energy that comes with it.

    Paul comes home from his two month medical excursion late Friday night. Just in time to cook up chili and watch football on Halloween. I will be dressing up as myself. Only more excited. Paul will be dressing up as Jet Lagged.

    I talked to my mom for a bit last night and she said "Elise, I am impressed with how happy you seem." Which is code for, "Elise, Dad and I are so surprised you have not called us every night crying about how you were rattling around the apartment all alone." I laughed, because she's right. I feel very content – not just alone in the apartment, but out here on this coast. Paul and I have made a little nest here. And as much as I want to get back to California some day, I know that if we get matched at a hospital here we'll be fine. Happy even.

    It's such a relief to realize that.