enJOY it

felted christmas garland.

December 4, 2013

I love it when a plan comes together.

This project is totally inspired by the Anthropologie felted bows garland. I LOVE how simple and fun it is and decided to make my own in traditional red and green.

I selected felt in five colors (I like the stuff with some wool content because the colors and texture is better) and bought 1/4 yard of each. Then I just cut my felt into strips that were about 3/4 inches wide (and 1/4 yard long). Freehanding is key here. No measuring allowed.

I used hemp rope for the base because I had it sitting in the garage. The finished garland is tied tight enough that you can't see what material is used, but something thicker than normal string might be easier to work with. And then I just knotted each piece of felt once until my garland was complete. (This is one of those projects that looks bad at first but comes together nicely.)

If you were going to hang this garland, you could totally leave an extra bit of string on the ends, but I want to use it as a centerpiece on my dining table, so I ran the felt all the way to the edge. To accomplish this, I tied one knot about four inches from the end and then folded the extra rope back and wrapped my knots around both pieces. It's secure and the left over string doesn't show.

Simple enough, but looks pretty cool right? I ended up using almost all of my felt and my garland is 82 inches long. Check back tomorrow for another (simple!) holiday project. I'm on a roll.
meet our 2013 christmas card.

December 3, 2013

This year, Minted reached out to me to see if I was interested in trying their holiday cards to send to family and friends and share here on the blog. I saw the words "foil-printing" in the email and was on board.

I selected the "cheers" card because it was simple, gorgeous and totally my style. I debated just having one photo on the front but after a mental search of my favorite photos from this year, I knew settling on one image would be impossible. So in true Elise fashion, I made up a grid in PSE of 20 images and uploaded that to Minted as a .jpg.

I love how the gold foil-printing turned out – especially on top of the grid.

On the backside, I had a few options to choose from (you can include one photo, many photos, no photo, lots of text, just a bit of text, patterns, solid colors, etc) and I decided to use just one photo and write a few sentences about our year. (Based on the single spaced, double-sided letters my family always gets, you'd be surprised that just a few sentences can usually sum it all up.)

That flamingo photo is just my favorite of little E.

I choose the speckle-tone envelopes (because colored envelopes are so excellent at holiday time) and decorated the backs with my CHEERS stamp designed for Studio Calico's Dec Daily kit and some washi tape from Freckled Fawn and Kelly Purkey for Simon Says Stamp.

The day after Thanksgiving these went out the door. I'm thrilled to have them crossed off my list.

please note : my custom holiday cards were provided by minted.com in exchange for me sharing here. Links throughout this post are affiliate which means if you purchase through them I receive a small commission. As always, words and opinions are my own.
our thanksgiving in photos.

December 2, 2013

Our holiday was simple and sweet.

Pre-kiddo Elise would have made lists and plans for when everything needed to be started. Pre-kiddo Elise would have needed to make the appetizers and the meal and the dessert. Pre-kiddo Elise would have decided in advance which vessel would hold which dish. Pre-kiddo Elise would have stressed out a bit over hosting Thanksgiving.

Post-kiddo Elise so enjoyed the day. Dishes were started at the right time. Help was greatly appreciated. Serving plates and bowls were determined and rinsed as needed. The baby was the ultimate in entertainment.

I’m learning. It was such a fun Thanksgiving and we are so grateful that family made the trip down to fill our home.

Through Friday 12/6 save $5 on all orders over $30 with code “THANKS”. Includes stamps, calendars and the get quilty eCourse. Shop here.
thank YOU & shop discount code.

November 29, 2013

Feeling joyful and grateful for an excellent year and an exciting holiday season ahead. Thank you for reading and supporting what I do here.

Please use code THANKS to save $5 off your purchase of $30 or more (before shipping) in the shop. Enter code in your cart before checkout on individual or combined purchases of calendars, stamps and the Get Quilty eCourse. Discount offer expires at 11:59pm PST on 12/6. The stamp shop will be closing for the holidays next Saturday so this is your last chance to shop stamps in 2013.
happy thanksgiving.

November 28, 2013

So excited to have my home filled with family this holiday. Wishing you a wonderful Thanksgiving – and if you're outside the US… happy Thursday.
mile a day challenge.

November 27, 2013
The past two years, I have committed to running one mile everyday from Thanksgiving to New Year's Eve. It's been one of my favorite exercise goals. I have found that sharing my progress on Instagram (by taking a photo of my running shoes and using the hashtag #mileaday) has kept me inspired and dedicated to the venture.

I have decided to embark on #mileaday again this year. The goal is to run just one mile and I'll be starting tomorrow on Thanksgiving morning. Some days Paul will join me. Some days Ellerie (in the stroller) will. Other days it will just be me and a podcast. It usually just takes me just about ten minutes and this year, scheduling it in to my days will be much harder than the actual run itself.

It's a short holiday season this year with just 34 run days. I'm looking forward to making this work and starting 2014 on the right foot (no pun intended) with an active habit already established.

Care to join me? You can read more about my inspirations and thoughts on this challenge in 2011 here and 2012 here. Use the #mileaday hashtag if you want to share your own progress or follow along.

Other posts you might enjoy:
the new office part one.

November 26, 2013
that BE BRAVE art can be found here.

Oh…man. My new office. It's nearly there. Nearly. Nearly. I'm going to need a few more days (currently waiting on stain to dry and trying to settle on where to hang stuff) to finish things up and take photos, but I wanted to share a little back story…

Once upon a time (March 2010) I quit my day job and decided to work full time from home. I had been running all sorts of ventures on the side, but now I was going to throw all of my energy into my blog and my shop and toss a few online workshops in the mix for fun. It worked and I made as much money working for myself as I once had working for others. I was so thrilled.

And so I kept at it. Each year I set more ambitious financial goals and got smarter about how to best manage my time and my expenses. The blog grew and I continued to work hard on my own products and content and I took on some big and small freelance projects.

In March 2013, pregnant with my first kiddo, we moved into our first house and I spent months decorating every room – slowly and deliberately building spaces that were functional and un-cluttered. While the other rooms got fancied-up, the office waited patiently. I wanted to have the baby and then re-evaluate what my job would look like after she arrived.

In June, she was born and my life was turned upside down. But once I caught my breath again (September-ish), I realized that I truly love my job. I am a better mama, wife and person when I am allowing myself to push and stretch professionally. I love writing and making and teaching. I love planning and pricing and photographing. I love dreaming big and executing quickly. I love to work. This creative business is a huge part of who I am.

After nearly four years, I needed a space that reflects that. Don't get me wrong, having good ideas and a solid work ethic is infinitely more important that having the "perfect" space. But I wanted to I kick things up a notch so that my time could be spent creating instead of cleaning, shifting my sewing machine to the floor, packing orders on top of piles and rearranging. When I am done, the office will say "MAKE STUFF" but also, "ENJOY YOUR TIME HERE." Before it said, "I'M DROWNING" and "WHERE DID YOU PUT THAT HOLE PUNCHER?"

I needed a clean and simple room with a layout that works with how my business is run. I needed a surface for my computer/printer (and Paul's) and a surface for my sewing machine. I needed closed storage for supplies and shipping materials. I needed open storage for books and fabric. I needed a long counter for creating and packaging product. I needed filing cabinets for the paperwork that is constantly coming in the door.

I needed a room that worked for me instead of a room where I worked. And after some stress and some lightbulb moments and one emergency phone call to an electrician, I've almost got it. I can't wait to wrap things up and share more here.

And if you're bored on this LONG three day work week…below are a few related posts from me :
our thanksgiving placecards.

November 25, 2013

Ellerie and I had our first mama-baby craft project adventure last week when we made Thanksgiving place cards. My plan was to have her stamp her little hand print eight times on various Project Life cards in Thankgiving colors (these are from the Sunshine and Midnight kits). I grabbed non-toxic craft paint in orange and a pack of baby wipes, covered a section of the dining table and rolled up her sleeve.

I figured I'd just paint her hand with a brush and we'd bang these out before she knew what was happening.

And then I touched the brush to her hand and she balled it into a fist around the bristles and I knew this wasn't going to quite as planned.

It was impossible to get her to open her hand – that paint was just too squishy and awesome. So instead I just pushed each card against her painted fist and we got what we got. I spent more time cleaning her hand than we spent "painting."

The paint took about 10 minutes to dry and then I added to each a gold letter sticker with the initial of each guest and wrote "Thanksgiving 2013" in pen on the bottom. Super simple and Ellerie's first art project. I am now considering duplicating this experiment with some canvases and more paint colors.

Too fun, this mama gig.
office photo wall.

November 22, 2013

While I am getting things re-organized, I want to share the statement photo wall that decorated my office for the past eight months. I filled this wall with Instagram photos as part of a project for the Big Picture Phone Photography class that ran this past summer.

I ordered a few copies of 75 different 4×4 photos from Persnickety Prints and adhered the photos to poster board and then stapled the posters up to the wall. It was like building a real life photo mosaic (and obviously, I'm obsessed with a good photo mosaic).

I loved having glimpses of our pre-kiddo life (there were MANY more plant photos in those days) up on my wall and it was fun while it lasted. But, like most statement walls, it was awesome until it was not and then I was ready for the next thing. In my case, the next thing is a tremendously huge clear out and a blank canvas. I can't wait to share where we're headed with the new office.

ps…here's a similar project from A Beautiful Mess that was my inspiration for building a photo wall.

pps…that wall calendar is by Stendig.
our sunday in photos + my new favorite t-shirt.

November 21, 2013

Weekend days are cherished around here. Mostly because they are rare. Residency for Paul means working three weekend days each month in addition to his normal 10 hour weekdays. This leaves us with just five full days of family time aka magic a month.

I took photos last Sunday to celebrate the small and special parts of our rare days together. So much good happens on the weekends. The coffee always tastes better on the weekends. There is time for pancakes – with strawberries! – on the weekends.

We run the errands that are too heavy for Ellerie and I to tackle on our own on the weekends. We go on a long walk before the sun sets on the weekends.

We FaceTime with our families in Sacramento on the weekends. We play on the floor on the weekends. We bake pizzas on the weekends.

The best part of taking photos all day is that by the evening I'm amazed at how much we actually accomplished (hanging out on the couch with the baby counts as a weekend accomplishment) in our short time together. There is always so much to be thankful for at the end of a long Sunday.

I am wearing a super comfy tee from Pickwick & Weller in these photos, but that's not special for the weekends. I've seriously cleared out my closet since Ellerie was born (the saga that is my closet clear out is another post for another day) and in the process have learned the value of owning a few things that you love and fit perfectly than tons of things that are almost right. As part of my clear out, I've been on the "perfect t-shirt hunt" and ordered The Hanna & The Margot in October. I loved both and so when P&W reached out about a potential partnership post, I was thrilled to say yes. They sent me the Ondine, which is long-sleeved and linen. I loved the cut and feel and wore it all day long Sunday. It was an instant favorite.

If you're interested in trying a tee from Pickwick & Weller, click this link to take a short style quiz. After the quiz you can enter your email address to receive a code for 25% off your $50 or more purchase. (There is no obligation to buy and shipping and returns are always free.) And just random tip – I found that if you're between sizes (like sometimes a small/sometimes a medium) it's better to order up.

This post was sponsored by Pickwick & Weller, a company I am a major fan of and purchase from myself. As always all words and opinions are my own. Learn more about P&W here.