enJOY it

kale & quinoa salad.

April 17, 2014
Kale AND quinoa? I am not sure that it gets more hipster food-wise than this, folks. But just to be sure, I threw in some chickpeas.

Paul and I went out to dinner here the other night and ordered a kale and quinoa salad. Normally, when I am eating at restaurants, I appreciate what’s happening on my plate but don’t spend a lot of time dissecting it. I want to enjoy the food, but I want to enjoy conversation that is not about the food a lot more (this, and the fact that I love to eat the exact same thing over and over again, is why I would make a miserable foodie).

This salad though was the exception. I found myself digging into it and trying to decipher all the various ingredients. Then I came home and built it myself the next night.

Here’s what you’ll need to make our at home variation (serves 8 or makes HUGE – like gigantic – portions for 4).

For the salad:
- 2 heads kale, rinsed and chopped into small pieces
- 1 can chickpeas beans, rinsed
- 1 cup quinoa, cooked according to instructions
- 1/2 medium red onion, finely chopped
- large handful of roasted cashews
- decent amount of crumbled feta (how much is up to you)
For the dressing:
- 1/3 C balsamic vinegar
- 1/4 C olive oil
- large clove (or two) of garlic, minced
- 2 t sugar
- 1/2 t dried basil
- salt and pepper to taste
Mix all the dressing ingredients and get that combined with the kale early (it helps distribute the flavor and “wilt” the kale a little bit). Then throw everything else together and toss well. We ate ours with some marinated tri-tip but the restaurant recommended it with shrimp too. Of course, you can eat this all veggie as well.
how to launch a podcast.

April 16, 2014
You guys, this is the post I wanted to read last fall but couldn't find. I didn't want extra details. I didn't want to know about why podcasting is good. I didn't want suggestions for how to resonate with my audience. I just wanted a step-by-step how to – preferably with a very short video tutorial. I've done by best to create that for YOU, reader who might be interested, and YOU, random person who just stumbled on this blog after a google search for "how to launch a podcast".

I am on a Mac and so I am sharing how things work on a Mac. BUT, if you are not on a Mac, your really just need to download iTunes and find a program that will let you record your episodes. Other than that, the steps are the same.

how to launch a podcast from elise blaha on Vimeo.

The above video walks you through it. It's BRIEF (less than five minutes) because I just want to give you and idea of the steps and what things look like. Obviously, if you are setting up your podcast for the first time it's going to take a bit longer than five minutes, but really, this is DO-ABLE and FAST.

And here is the numbered break down :
1. create a recording. I use garage band (which comes "free" on Apple computers) because it has a "podcast" feature. If you want to host guests, you can set up a call in Skype (also free to download) and let the garage band recording run as you are talking. There are many fancy programs that can be used to record a clearer call but I didn't download them. Eventually I will ELISE GETS CRAFTY a little more "high-tech" but my goal right now is to make it listen-able, not flawless.
2. export your recording to your iTunes program (this comes standard on your Mac computer or can be downloaded here).
3. create a square graphic for your podcast thumbnail (I did this in PSE and you can see it here).
4. set up a hosting account that will generate a RSS feed for your new show. (I use libsyn.com and currently pay $5/month.) Complete the process for naming your podcast and uploading your podcast graphic. This step is pretty self-explanatory, but they have a support team that can help you if you get stuck.
5. find the new "feed" for your podcast (it will look something like this) that is generated by your hosting account.
6. go to the iTunes store on your computer and under podcasts select "submit a podcast" on the right hand side.
7. paste your feed into the box and complete the steps. It might take a day or two for your podcast get approved and to appear on iTunes.
8. upload new episodes to your hosting account as frequently as you want (though you may pay more based on how much file space you are taking up).
YOU ARE NOW A PODCASTER.

Really, truly, it's simple. I think I struggled early on because I was getting VERY helpful suggestions (thank you, thank you if you emailed me!!) but they were coming out of order. Sitting down to create that first recording (episode 1) in garage band was REALLY helpful because then I had an actual audio file to "use" and practice with. There are 1,000 ways to do this (I know because I googled and read through them ALL) but this will work. 😉

I want to shout out to Jessica Kupferman's podcasting webinar. Listening to her break it down was the push I needed to really get started and figure out how all this worked. You can find out more about Jessica here and subscribe to her podcast here. Jessica, you don't know me, but thank you!!!

And speaking of podcasting, today on ELISE GETS CRAFTY I am chatting with the awesome stationery designer Katharine Watson about selling your handmade products wholesale. Click here to subscribe or stream the episode from your computer here.
thoughts on the MAKE29 project so far.

April 15, 2014

I am now one-sixth of the way through my MAKE29 crafting adventure. Two months down and ten to go.

Because transparency is good, I want to write more today about this project…where it came from, what I think about it presently and where I see it headed.

MAKE29 was conceptualized very quickly and originated from a seed of an idea I had while driving home from FedEx.

Last spring, before Ellerie was born, a good friend of mine asked if I would be willing to paint a flamingo just like the one I painted for myself in February. I said "sure!" and we agreed on a price. I was worried about trying to replicate it exactly but hilariously, the second one turned out better than the first.

Originally we planned for it to get transported up to Sacramento via car, but then that never worked out and Ellerie was born and everything other than our survival was put on hold for a few months.

Finally, in the fall, my friend emailed that I should just bring the painting to FedEx and have them pack and ship it for me. I loaded Ellerie into the car seat, drove to FedEx and carried Ellerie and the painting in. $35 and a few minutes later, the flamingo was carefully packed and headed to it's new owner.

I spent the whole drive home thinking about how INSANELY easy it had been to get a large canvas shipped. In the past, I had considered shipping big stuff a deal breaker, but now that I knew it was totally do-able the wheels started turning.

"Maybe I could do 10 flamingo paintings," I thought. "Open up a sign-up list, invoice via paypal then paint and ship one at a time."

Ten seemed like a good number (not too many to paint, but enough to make opening up the listing worth it) and I loved the idea of a closed and limited edition. From a business stand-point it's easy for me because I know what I need for inventory. I know what I have to invest up front. I know what I have to charge to make a decent profit. I know how much room I have to store product and packaging materials. I know about how much time it will take to make or order a set number.

I got home and started writing out lists of things I had made in the past that I would be interested in making again and potentially selling as limited editions. I scratched the random flamingo painting idea when I realized that this project had potential to be much larger. THIS would be the birthday project to end all birthday projects. THIS is how I would wrap up the last year of my 20s. 12 totally new products sounded challenging. Editions of 29 and 290 sounded catchy.

I had the plan nearly formed on paper before I started talking about it (to my parents and Paul). I had the logistics figured out and the details settled when I started discussing it via email and text message with business-savy friends.

Sidebar – your business model is too complicated if you cannot explain it in a text.

Everyone I spoke with had the same reaction – 290 of one thing is a lot, but even 29 of time intensive handmade items like I had planned is a lot.

And I totally agreed, but oh man, was I excited.

When I launched this project, it had been nearly two years since I had sold anything non "scrapbook" related and never in my career have I sold 150 of one single home decor item, much less 290. I fully expected that I would have stock throughout the year. I was prepared for that financially and made plans for how I would ship editions together, store ampersands in my garage, and display February-April's items in my booth at the Queen Bee Market in May.

When the magic prints sold out in two days I was overwhelmed and so excited.

When the ampersands sold out in 40 minutes I was overwhelmed and a bit panicked.

Please do not misunderstand, I am so glad that this project has been well-received and am so grateful for the support and excitement around it. Making stuff to sell (and then watching it sell quickly!) is an incredible rush and probably my favorite part of running my business (you may have noticed, whatever I am talking about at a given time is my "favorite" part – this is a dream job for me, and I never forget that). It's an honor that people want my design ideas in their homes! But my goal was never to create a demand through scarcity. In fact, I spent much more time coming up with ideas for what I would do if things didn't sell than I did thinking about what I would do if they sold too quickly.

So what were my goals at the beginning of this project?

First and foremost, I wanted to break out of my own business rut and really push myself creatively. I was WAY done with the mixed paper books before I stopped making them. I could tell I was headed that direction with my rubber stamps and I wanted to be sure I closed up shop before I reached the "if I ever see a stamp again I'll be sick" point. I did not have a real plan for the direction I wanted to take my shop so I figured this would be a good way to play with some new ideas.

Second, I wanted to work with some new marketing techniques. Launching a new concept means a lot of new stuff – new logo, new paper promotion, new web design. I really LOVE to play with web-design and am so excited about what I have been doing with my product pages (to me, they feel different and engaging – not necessarily what people are used to when online shopping). I love that MAKE29 was the push I needed to start my newsletter and film a video trailer (so fun!). And if you cannot tell, I am really enjoying styling my product photos this time around. A new business venture is a great opportunity to look at what you do and then figure out how to elevate it.

Third, I wanted to celebrate all of this time I have spent blogging. I have chronicled the good and the bad almost daily for my entire 20s. I have quite literally written my way to adulthood and found my passions as a business owner and human being in this space. There are nearly 3000 posts and millions of words in the archives which feels like an endless resource. I have enjoyed looking back on my own work to come up with new ideas for the present and future.

Fourth, I wanted a business model that I could control. Set numbers. Set margins. Set launch dates. Set packaging requirements. I am planner (have you picked up on that?) and this project is a like a gift to my insanely organized mind and work habits. I loved that I would have the stock ready to ship immediately and could focus exclusively on the next thing if and when it sold out. There would be no delayed shipments because I was waiting on a producer back up (this happened often on stamps). There would be no expensive re-orders. Just 29 or 290 and we move on.

Fifth, I wanted to experiment and learn. What are people interested in now? Do letterpress prints still sell? Do people want to cover their homes in ampersands like I do? Is there a market for quilting kits? How does really talking about the purpose behind a product and sharing more of the process influence sales? Can I make money from my photographs? What mediums fill me up creatively and are worthwhile? Where do I draw my creative energy? After this year, I would love to have answers to all of these questions so I can make better decisions for my business long-term. I'll have information that will help me make greater and larger investments and ideally reach more people with the product they want to own (no scarcity!).

So what is the plan right now?

It's to continue on the original path more or less. Based on how things have gone so far I have had to scrap a few ideas (29 just isn't going to cut it like I thought it might). I have already invested insane time and money into at least one edition of 29 that will launch in the fall. I have a few editions of 290 already ordered/made. I am considering opening up a few larger editions (of 1029? of 529? of 2900?) but right now that's making me a little nervous when I consider what it will take to coordinate, invest, create, package, deal with customer service and ship all those orders promptly. 290 is a manageable number for my one-woman show. Whatever happens, I will continue to send out my newsletter and post to the blog in advance of the listing so you know what is coming.

I am really enjoying this experience. For a million reasons, this life season I'm in is so inspiring (at some point I have to write about how becoming a mom has changed me creatively) and it's awesome to be able to embrace that. In 2010, I saw something online about developing a mission statement for your business. "I should do that!" I thought and so I uncapped my sharpie and wrote :

ELISEJOY creates charming home and paper goods and encourages everyone to develop a crafty, can-do attitude.

Four years, and many, many products and adventures later, this is absolutely still my mission. I work so hard to make my dream job work for me and I am incredibly grateful that you're here and following along (is anyone still reading this nutty long post?!). Thanks! And happy tax day! 😉
adventures in succulent propagating.

April 14, 2014

So this past weekend, my sister-in-law, Kristen, shared this tutorial from Needles + Leaves with me and I had to stop everything rightthatsecond and attempt it.

I had a "leggy" succulent that was starting to outgrow itself so I followed the tutorial and carefully plucked off the leaves.

And layed them with the tiny top rosettes on VERY dry cactus soil.

And then I cut the stems off my original plant.

If all goes according to plan in a few weeks I should have tiny sprouts on my original plant stems, my rosettes should begin to grow roots and each leaf should develop it's own little florette at the base. And then, just like the tutorial recommends, I should be able to re-plant all of those (probably in the backyard).

I have experimented with this before and not had too much success – BUT this sort of thing happens in my backyard with my non-maintained jade plant all the time (see above!). I wonder if I'll be able to duplicate the magic inside? I'll keep you posted…

ps… potted succulent thank you favors, a DIY wooden plant stand and my jade plant succulent wreath.
weekend links / 14.

April 12, 2014

As part of my word WHOLE this year, I want celebrate the work of others by sharing links to my friends, possible friends and complete strangers who are doing great things on the Internet. This is some of the rad stuff I recently saw online…

the 10 best episodes of How I Met Your Mother.

a short, but true story.

I knew flamingos would get their due. 😉

this Mexican street corn recipe looks amazing.

now this is a killer about page.

still crushing hard on pretty yarn.

awesome block printing tutorial from next week's podcast guest!

ordering these for all my new mom friends who need a little encouragement.

short & sweet interview with artist, Mia Christopher.

I'm hosting an instasale auction of rad thrifted items @elisejoyfound.

and one more reminder… Project Life Lessons (the rerun!) starts this Thursday!
around here.

April 11, 2014

around here we are listening to "happy " on repeat.

around here we are learning new tricks daily.

around here we are loving turning pages and "lift the flap" books.

around here we are drinking our coffee in Ellerie's room.

around here we are finishing up projects.

around here we are scheduling podcast interviews.

around here we are using any excuse to make a stamp.

around here we are very slowly getting through Paul's late shift rotation (this pretty much sums it up.)

around here we are working to remember that these really are the days.
i love april (black & white edition).

April 10, 2014

j.crew factory 5" chino shorts (in assorted colors and on super sale!), ban.do iPhone case, j.crew these are the days tee, tribal print make-up bag, society6 get in here rug, scrapbook and more badge buttons, orange & park san diego palms stationery.

I had a few black and white faves this month and I figured I may as well stick to the theme. That shirt is just the best. I had to pick it up and found the black to be more flattering than the white (it fits big though so no need to size up if you want it loose-ish.) I LIVE in three pairs of those shorts (brown, navy and gray) during the summers (or I will this summer while I am not pregnant and/or recovering from a c-section…sidenote, can we talk about how thrilled I am that this summer my body will belong to me?!). And those note cards are just TOO GOOD.

Happy mid-April.
three things I know to be true / small business related.

April 9, 2014
I'd love to introduce a new feature around here… "three things I know to be true." This is the tippy-top of the list of things I would share with a new small business owner (or in future posts, with new home-owner, mom, bride, newlywed, blogger, etc) who's looking for advice. Obviously, with everything, THIS IS WHAT WORKS FOR ME, but that's what blogging IS. It's sharing ONE experience and hopefully resonating with readers. It doesn't matter if you disagree with me; it matters that the wheels start turning.

So here we go, small business owners, this is what I know to be true.

A simple website you can easily update is worth more than a fancy design. I often see people pay a ton of money for a really cool website that looks great. But they don't know how to update it or the coding is so intense that they cannot update it. And because of this, it sits out of date, doesn't reflect their changing brand, has an incorrect pricelist, etc. If your business is one where you will need to make frequent changes to your site it's much better to use a blog or something really easy to customize. Or if you need to have the fancy website (which is totally okay!) be sure to build into your contract frequent updates from your web designer. Tell them that you'll be updating every two months (or whatever) and ask them what their turnaround will be on the changes. Don't waste money on something that looks awesome for three months but then doesn't represent what's going on your business. Somewhat related… if you're still in college – take an HTML class. You absolutely will not regret it.

If you're losing sleep over a freelance gig, it's not the right fit. I am not talking about the kind of work where you are so excited that you can't sleep. Or the rush that comes with pulling an all-nighter to get something awesome done for the deadline. I'm talking about the kind of work that doesn't sit quite right for whatever reason (maybe you're under-qualified, maybe you're being under-paid or taken advantage of, maybe it's feeling a little bit unethical or off-brand, maybe you feel like it doesn't represent your true voice) and so it's keeping you up worrying. There are very few things worth losing sleep over – a newborn baby and a hilarious conversation top that short list – and there is not enough money in the world to sacrifice sleep to stress.

RELATED : how can you prevent this? After a few mistakes, now when I get a new opportunity that I am not quite sure about, I take 24 hours to "sleep on it." If I toss and turn that night, it's not the right fit and I decline. If I sleep well, there is a good chance I can make it work.

Everyone starts at zero. It's taken me nine years of active creating and sharing online to get a "following." My reach is not "huge" but I have loyal readers (thank you!) who have stuck around for years and because I am constantly working on creating and sharing original content, I attract new readers daily. When I started, I had zero readers. It took me a very long time (by blogland standards) to grow to the size that I am now. Often I hear folks lamenting about how they can't do something because they don't have the audience. How do you think the people who have the audience got it? It's not magic. It's hard work, dedication and practice. It's writing and photographing every day, even when you don't feel like it. This stuff, takes YEARS not hours. There are no shortcuts to get to the finish line and if you're very lucky the finish line keeps moving forward.

This week on my podcast, ELISE GETS CRAFTY, I am talking with blogger, designer and scrapbooker, Ali Edwards, about the importance of taking creative field trips (though we get totally sidetracked and end up talking about scheduling creative time and pros and cons of the Internet too.) Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher or stream the episode here.

Other posts you might enjoy:
april : currently.

April 8, 2014

celebrating the first "big camera" photo of my family of three in 2014.

witnessing Ellerie learn to crawl!

thanking Apple for inventing FaceTime.

eating this salad (so excellent – but I recommend increasing the dressing!)

completing some eCourse content.

clearing out my office cupboards.

re-watching old Parks & Rec episodes and…

crying from laughing so hard at Ben's clamation video.

designing invites for a sweet friend's bachelorette party.

scheduling new podcast interviews.

taking Ellerie on all the errands.

feeling grateful that she is so willing to go-with-the-flow.

getting back into running (very, very slowly).

wearing my new ball cap in khaki.

needing to get to the library.

signing up for a pottery class! (it starts in June!)

loving these two twinsies.
sewing a top and other musings.

April 7, 2014
So, it's quite likely that a few of you are going to read this and think "WTF, Elise. How do you have time to sew a top?" And the answer to that is, "I am not sure that I do."

But something I have learned over the past months and years of making a career out of making stuff is that sometimes to clear the noise and refocus you have to totally shift gears. And last week, when my to-do list was filled with eCourses to write and podcasts to launch and email to catch up on, I did that. I took precious baby nap time and precious nanny time to sew up a white linen top.

WHY DID I DO THIS?

Because when something fills you up, it's a creative tool, not procrastination.

Because on Monday I took the baby to the fabric store and we touched all the fabrics looking for something that will be ideal for a MAKE29 project idea I am currently entertaining. I bought three yards of white linen to see if it would work for what I have planned (it doesn't).

Because three yards is a lot of white linen, I thought to myself, "Elise! Make a shirt! Your style board is filled with white shirts!" Overwhelmed at the idea of finding a new pattern, I got out my trusty Tova from Wiksten and went through it for the fourth time (here is time 1, time 2 and time 3 – sidenote! It's so funny/awkward to look back on baby Elise in those old posts. She has no idea how busy her life is going to get!).

Because this pattern is so insanely well written and each time I marvel over that. I also struggle with the collar every. single. time. (this time it took three tries to get it right). Whenever I sew something wearable I am reminded that handmade clothing is worth every single penny and then some. It's intense to try and get this stuff to look right, let alone create a pattern from scratch.

I put on my new top and my favorite old pants and I went outside to snap some photos. When I saw them on my computer I was reminded that this is totally my "look." I have learned over the past year that nuetrals – gray, tan, white, navy, chambray and olive/army green – are my absolute favorite. I have no reason ever to step out of this box because these are the clothes I reach for again. I don't want a closet full of crap that looks good "in theory" but I never wear. I want a closet full of go-tos. Neutrals are my sweet spot and I REALLY need to stop buying everything else.

And when I am feeling overwhelmed, I need to turn on old episodes of Parks and Rec and sew a shirt.

Other posts you might enjoy: