10 Christmas Letter Writing Tips

Here's another list of tips that I found on www.ChristmasLetterTips.com with a few modifications by me....

Christmas letter writing should be fun, but many people worry so much about what they’re writing and how they’re writing it that they become paralyzed with fear. Relax! Here are 10 simple tips to help you write a great family Christmas letter.

1. Be yourself – For some reason, people often feel the need to include “big” words in their Christmas letter that they’d never use in real life. Stick to words you use when you’re speaking. It will help your readers “hear” you when they’re reading.

2. Don’t exaggerate – Some Christmas letter writers try to make every daily event sound as if it’s the discovery of the Holy Grail. Don’t embellish the truth. The events will speak for themselves.

3. Keep it short and focused – What were the best things that happened to you? The funniest events? Or the most important changes in your life? You don’t need to write about all 365 days of the year. Focus on the important ones, and try to keep your letter to one typed pages.

4. Avoid unnecessary adjectives – This is a follow-up to rules #1 and #2 above. Excessive use of adjectives that you’d never use in everyday conversation is a common pitfall for many Christmas letter writers. Avoid sentences such as, “My beautiful wife Jane and I took our wonderful kids to the fabulous city of New York and spent exciting hours visiting the incredible museums.” Keep the modifiers to a minimum.

5. Write for your audience – Do you send your Christmas letter just to close friends and family who already know the details of your everyday life? Or to casual acquaintances and business associates? Your letter should entertain the people who aren’t intimately familiar with your daily happenings without boring those who are.

6. Make it visually appealing – Your letter will be more interesting if you include photos, clip art, or other images. Photos will liven up any Christmas letter, plus, the more photos you have, the less text you need to write. :-)

7. Be creative – A Christmas letter doesn’t have to be a letter at all. Check out some of these creative Christmas letter ideas for fun ways to give your annual holiday update a fresh new look.

8. Add a personal note – A quick handwritten note at the bottom of each recipient’s Christmas letter will make the update feel more personal and less like an anonymous form letter.

9. Read it aloud – Read your letter aloud, or have someone else read it to you. Does it flow well? Is it interesting to listen to? If not, you might want to rewrite some sections.

10. Have fun! – Remember that Christmas letter writing is an opportunity to have fun and keep others up to date about what you and your family have been doing all year. It shouldn’t feel like a chore to write your letter – or to read it. If you don’t enjoy writing your letters, others won’t enjoy reading them.

So relax, have fun, and happy writing!

Annual Family-Update Holiday Letters

NEW this year...

I offer the option of having your holiday letter printed right on the cards! Choose to either add it to the back of the 5x7 card or turn any design into a fold-over card and use the entire inside for your letter, drawings and more. Just send me the typed up letter and I'll format it to fit the card. If you scan in your signatures, I can even pre-print those in the cards as well! To get started, pick out your favorite holiday card design on Paisley Prints Etc.

Creative Christmas Letter Ideas
from www.christmaslettertips.com

Who says a family Christmas letter has to be a letter? Here are some creative Christmas letter ideas to help you create a holiday update that everyone will enjoy reading.

1. Christmas Newsletter – If chronicling your entire year in one long letter seems too daunting, think of a few major events and write a short summary of each one to create a personal newsletter.

2. Multiple choice quiz or crossword puzzle – What did your son do in the school talent contest this year? How many colors did you look at before you decided to paint the kitchen walls a light blue? Keep your readers guessing by putting together a quiz or crossword puzzle that gives highlights from your year.

3. Christmas story – If you enjoy writing, create a story that weaves the events of your year into a Christmas-themed narrative.

4. Christmas Slideshow – If you have a digital camera and a CD burner, consider making a slideshow CD to include with your Christmas card instead of a letter. Simply select a favorite song or a Christmas carol and add photos for a fun way to share images of your year. Services such as Shutterfly make it easy to create your photo show, or use an online digital scrapbooking service such as Smilebox.

5. Photo Layout – If wordsmithing isn’t your strength, skip the Christmas letter all together and send family and friends a page of photos printed from your computer. Make the photos different shapes and sizes and use captions to tell about things that happened to your family throughout the year. --- Paisley Prints Etc. has several photo collage designs available!!

6. Top 10 list – What are the 10 most important things that happened to your family this year? How about the most humorous? Or most unbelievable? A top 10 list can be a fun and easy way to describe your family’s year. Think David Letterman and you’ll be on your way.

7. C-H-R-I-S-T-M-A-S spells Christmas – Eddy Arnold’s 1961 song that gives a meaning for each letter of the word “Christmas” is a great example of how to turn a single word into a story. What did those letters mean to your family this year? C is for a trip to California? H is for the new house you bought? Use the letters of a Christmas-related word or phrase to create a Christmas letter people will be sure to remember.

8. Guest Author – How would your five-year-old child describe the year? Try writing your letter from the perspective of your child, another family member, your new neighbors, a pet, or any other person that could give your letter a fresh new outlook.

Check back here in the coming week for "10 Christmas Letter Writing Tips"!

Paisley Prints Etc. on Facebook!!

What a crazy year it's been! One year ago this month I ended my 7-year stint of designing at Square One Design and started my own company, Paisley Prints Etc. It was because of this new adventure that I was urged by many to get myself on Facebook. I was told that it was a great networking tool. I had once proclaimed that "I would NEVER join Facebook." I had the impression that it was something that college kids looking for a date did, not 30 year people who have been married for 10 years. Well, I WAS WRONG! It HAS been a great networking tool, both professionally and personally.

Like so many on Facebook, I do find it bit addicting at times and fascinating to read random tidbits about the lives and thoughts of those I know. And just recently, I started finding that it's fun to follow business pages as well as friends. So, I have jumped even further onto the bandwagon that I once snubbed my nose to and started a Facebook page for Paisley Prints Etc! I think it will be a great way to give my "fans" company updates, run promos, get suggestions for new products, feedback on existing product, etc. If you want to become my "fan", and I hope you do, please click here. I'd love to hear your questions, suggestions and comments!

Hydrangea Wedding

Here are a few photos of a wedding invitation set that I did for a friend this past summer. The fresh fallen snow out my window today makes me already miss the flowers from my gardens!

Oh summer.... where did you go?

Poster-Style Invite

Here is a fun Groom's Dinner invitation that I recently designed and printed for a couple. The wedding is taking place in Colorado and the groom really wanted to play up the western theme. His only requests were that there be an image of a longhorn and that the dinner be specified as a BBQ.

Immediately, I thought of a western poster so I went with it! I had so much fun doing this project which required some research - finding samples of western posters for layout ideas and then finding the appropriate fonts. I think this design would be fun for a groom's or couple's wedding shower invitation or as a Save The Date, too. What do you think?

The Importance of Stationery

Everyone needs stationery. The warmth of a hand written note cannot be matched by email. And even though modern etiquette dictates a thank you email can be appropriate, I always appreciate it so much more when such a sentiment is written on stationery and received via the mailbox outside my home.

Getting an actual piece of mail is rare these days. Most of us are flooded with catalogs, bills and solicitous fliers. Somehow receiving a note on personalized stationery from a friend or family member conveys a type of care and thoughtfulness that is hard to find anywhere else.

I, too, am guilty of often taking the easy way out, which seems especially wrong since I design and sell personalized stationery. So, I must remind myself that it it these small gestures that have the power to create happy moments in other's lives - and, really, isn't that motivation enough?

So before you make a quick call, send a text or an email. Think about delivering your message in a different way. Think about sitting down, leaning in and hand writing a note on stationery. I think you'll feel that you've conveyed your message more effectively and that your recipient will feel just a little more special.

Pictured are a few of the designs that I offer for sale on my etsy shoppe. I think it's time for me to whip up a new batch for myself and buy some pretty stamps!

Top Sellers

I hit 150 sales today on my Etsy shoppe!

Of course, I have lots of sales made outside of the site also, but seeing it hit a landmark number still gets me excited. In celebration, I thought I'd share a few of my most popular items since I opened my virtual shoppe in October.

Top-left:

Recipe for Marriage Bridal Shower Invitations

(also available in an expanded version and Baby Shower theme)

Top-right:

Baseball Ticket Party Invitations

(also available in Football or Concert theme)

Bottom-left:

Monogram Collage Birth Announcement

(also available as Holiday Card design)

Bottom-right: Festive Berry Holiday Card

(also available as a Birth Announcement design)

I don't have Holiday Card designs listed on my etsy shoppe right now,

but I will start adding them a few designs at a time in September.

So, please check back soon!

Celebrate!

Above is a new party invitation that I created this week.

For more info or to order, visit my etsy shoppe: Paisley Prints Etc.

Have a great weekend!

Rainy Vacay

7 days of vacation. 

2 days of sun. 

bummer.

It's always sad to unpack after summer vacation, but it's especially sad when you can put the large supply of packed tank tops and shorts directly back into your drawers, while it's debatable if you should launder or just burn the one pair of jeans, sweater and socks that you had packed "just in case". All you have to do is look at our photos from throughout the 7 days to see that we were wearing the same thing in all of them. Ha!

Record low temps for the highs. Great. That's one record I didn't need to live to see... especially while on vacation.

Yes, we still had a ton of fun. It's always fun for my husband and I to hang out with my brother, his wife and their two kids. We will definitely be going back again next year, although I'm sad to say that we will be changing our week from July to late August next year. We just didn't think we wanted to squeeze the 6 of us into our 4-person cabin again next year and couldn't get a larger cabin during our usual week. 

It's a sad change - I'll miss our cabin neighbors who will all be going in July again next year and the traditions that we've started with them over the past 3 years. Who will we have a BBQ smoke-off competition with next year?! 

It is also a GREAT change though, too. I will not miss our lack of doors on the bedrooms (short curtains across doorways do not block the giggles and cries of small children for those of us who like to sleep in!!), or the fact that my sister-in-law had to sleep on the couch in the livingroom because the second bedroom was filled with her 4.5 y.o. on the bottom bunkbed, her hubby/my bro on the top bunk and her 1.5 y.o. in a Pack-N-Play which took up most of the walking space in the room. Our new cabin is a 3-bedroom with the bedrooms upstairs (with actual wood doors) and plenty of room to sprawl out on the main level. Hooray! I can't wait to go back!

Oh yeah, for those who read my pre-vacay blog post.... My hubby, Rich, won the BBQ smoke-off competition for Brisket this year! I'm a lucky woman with a guy who knows how to make good eats!

like a kid before Christmas...

The "kid" I'm referring to is myself. In less than 48 hours I will be up at the lake cabin that my husband and I annually rent with my brother, his wife and their two kids. Woo-Hoo!!! This will be our 3rd annual trip to Pelican Beach Resort in northern Minnesota, but for some reason it seems more like it's our 13th annual. It just feels like home -- a very small home -- and I now can't imagine a summer without the trip. Our "neighbors" at the cabin have been going to the resort for 27± consecutive summers and every other cabin in the resort have similar histories. After you go once, you get hooked. We did.

Why do we love this place so much? I'm not sure exactly. I think it's a combination of a lot of things: a beautiful, clear lake; a clean, sandy beach that you can walk out forever in before it goes above your waist; great cabin neighbors; great resort owners; great towns nearby with fun shoppes; and great company in our own cabin. It MUST be good for us to be thrilled with the idea that we are shoving six of us into one very small, humble cabin. Especially when you consider that two of the six are under the age of five! It's aaaaa... cozy. We have our request in for wanting a larger cabin, but until one becomes available during our same week, we'll keep stuffing ourselves in our small one.

For the past week, I've been making lists of everything that we need to pack - basically updating the list that we had from last year. Speed boat - check, Kayaks - check, cooler full of yummy beverages - check.... I guess that's all I really need for the week, right? Oh, I can't forget that we need to bring our BBQ smoker. This year will be the 2nd annual smoke-off competition between my husband and the neighbor from Kansas who is a semi-pro smoker. Last year my husband smoked the competition (sorry, couldn't resist) and won the taste-test for ribs. This year it will be brisket. We even have a trophy that is a garden gnome named, Rayski.

Another thing about the cabin that I hate and love at the same time is the inability to go online. **GASP!** I am so dependent on the internet, especially since I have a web-based business. It will be good to be unplugged though and I think we should all do it more often. That just leaves more time for hanging out in the boat and sipping on umbrella drinks!!!

Cheers!

Invitation to Grandma's Birthday Party

I was recently commissioned to create invitations for my grandmother's upcoming 80th birthday party. What I came up with is this double layered 5" x 7" card held together with a pink satin ribbon. I do not currently have this style available for purchase on my etsy shoppe, but would be more than happy to offer this design, or something similar, upon request.

I love this quote.

Every time that I see it,

I read it several times to make sure it sinks in.

To quote another smart cookie:

"Twenty years from now

you will be more disappointed

by the things that you didn't do

than by the ones you did do.

So throw off the bowlines.

Sail away from the safe harbor.

Catch the trade winds in your sails.

Explore. Dream. Discover.

~Mark Twain

These are truly words to live by.

I love numbered art…

No, I don't mean artist-signed and numbered, limited edition art - although I do love those too - I'm talking about actual numbers and letters being the artform. I don't think anyone has quite been able to define the decor style in my home. I received a catalog a few months ago from West Elm titled "Contemporary Country" and, although I cringe at the thought of saying my design style is "country", this was not your traditional wooden-heart laden country decor. West Elm sells primarily sleek and modern-styled home decor, but, in this particular catalog, they had mixed a lot of their modern pieces in with more rustic "character" pieces. Looking around my house, that's exactly what I've done - mix the contemporary with the rustic. I love things that look like they have a history behind them. Normally, I would say that I lean towards a Pottery Barn look, except where Pottery Barn has a lot of replica antiques, I like to go to flea markets and find the real deal. This is mostly because I want the authentic history factor, but also because, for me, it's always been a heck of a lot cheaper at the flea market than to buy from Pottery Barn! My mom passed her "thrifty" genes on to me I guess. =) 

Back to the numbers.... I've always been drawn to pieces that have some sort of lettering or numbering on them. I love anything adorned with fonts – from the tin "Good Eats" sign above my chemistry beaker spice rack in my kitchen; to stamped pottery; to my newly-started antique wind-up clock collection; to a framed vintage calendar from which one of my collection of 35+ license plates is hanging. I've even been guilty of having a preference for Frigidaire appliances simply because I like their logo! I know this last one drives my husband crazy, but I think he shares my attraction to typographic art. One thing that he does that drives me crazy though, is that he LOVES magnets with goofy quotes and pics and wants to plaster our fridge with them!! AAAAhh!! I'm constantly trying to arrange them in a neat orderly way that might make them look less tacky, but it's not working. Every once in a while a magnet mysteriously disappears. Shhhhh... don't tell.

so many colors!!

I recently decided to paint the guest room in my home. As is the case every time that I decide to pull out the house paint supplies, I first have the "dilemma" of choosing a color. Being a designer who works with colors all of the time, my husband thought (back with the first house) that choosing colors should be easy for me, right?? Wrong. He quickly learned that I'm ultra picky and obsess over finding the PERFECT color. I start talking "tint" and "shade" and he gives up even trying to help. Now living in our third "fixer-upper" house, I've had lots of practice, but it's still not easy. There are a few tools that I've discovered along the way, however, that have made the process a little less torturous.

First, I've acquired color fan decks from both Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams. Just go in and ask them for it. Both places gave one to me for free without a problem. This saves me from going to the paint store, collecting a hundred of those little paint chips and then having them get scattered throughout my house! Although I typically do buy one of these two brands, I could also take the chosen color chip from either fan decks to any paint store and they will custom color match to that chip. I've learned that if I stick with a quality (i.e. more expensive also) brand like Benjamin Moore, the coverage is so much better that it requires less coats of paint, which, most importantly, means less work for me! Plus, needing more cans of a cheaper paint (to put extra coats on) is not really much cheaper in the end anyways. 

The problem with the fan decks is that they have... oooooh... about 1,200 color options! And once I had it narrowed down to wanting to paint the guest room gray, that only narrowed my options down to about 100 slight color variations. ugh!

Another trick I've learned to help me choose paint colors is to use the Personal Color Viewer on the Benjamin Moore website. You can choose one of their stock photos of a room that looks similar to what you will be painting. Then you plug in the Benjamin Moore paint chip numbers that you are considering to see that color on the wall, ceiling, trim or wherever you designate the color to go in the picture you chose. Of course every computer screen shows colors differently, but it especially helps me decide if I like two colors together, if they have enough contrast between each other, if they'll make the room look too dark, etc. I used it this time to see how dark to go with the gray. I wanted it just dark enough to have a good contrast with white trim.

The paint was chosen (I went with "Mindful Gray" from Sherwin Williams), it's on the wall and it looks great! I still have to get the trim/moulding back up, but it's such a relief to have the color decision successfully made. So far, my track record is 19 rooms out of 19 (between 3 houses) painted without having to switch colors in mid-project. I hope I didn't just jinx myself.... I still have a couple rooms to go in my current house!

Feeling official...

The past 7 1/2 months, since my departure from a "real job" at a design firm, has been quite a journey. Between the launch of Paisley Prints Etc. (my online card shoppe) six months ago and the freelance design jobs that I've been blessed to get hired for, I've found myself busier than ever with design projects... and I'm loving it! It mentally wears me out sometimes, a sort of creative overload at times, but it's a good exhaustion. Although I'm not a runner, I'd compare it to how a runner feels physically exhausted after a long race, but how it's all worth it because of the sense of accomplishment the run gave them. Maybe that sounds weird or over-exaggerated, but it makes sense to me. 

A few things recently happened to help me feel like my venture of being self-employed is no longer just something that I'm trying out, rather it's starting to feel "official". When people ask me, "So, what do you do for a living," I feel that I can finally confidently say, "I am a freelance graphic designer with an online custom card and stationery shoppe." One of the things to happened is that I hit the mark of **100 sales** on my etsy shoppe! Yay! Another stepping stone is that, for the first time, I am having a 4"x5" color print advertisement published for Paisley Prints Etc. 

Here it is!

The ad is going to be printed in a 44-page program booklet for a fundraising Gala that one of my clients, HospiceCare in the Berkshires, is hosting in June. I was lucky enough to be asked to design their Gala invitations (photos to come soon, hopefully, for you to see them), promotional items, as well as, the Gala program. Running my ad is not only promotional for me, but it's also supporting a wonderful company and group of people. Most hospicecare duties are not fun, yet so incredibly necessary and valuable. 

The past 7 1/2 months have given me the opportunity to meet some amazing new people and to work on some really fun design projects. Thank you to all that have been part of my journey so far. I can't wait for what the future has in store for me! 

Birthday Week

Today is my birthday! I have been, however, celebrating it all week. In my house, we believe that one single day is not nearly enough time to celebrate the anniversary of one's birth. The tradition of celebrating birthday weeks actually started back when my husband, Rich, and I were dating. We hadn't been dating long when I tested him with the question "when is my birthday?". Ha. That's so mean. He actually wasn't far off when he guessed April 16th, which is exactly a week before my birthday. I think my birthday was coming up soon, so I told him, "Well, I guess we'll just have to start celebrating on the 16th until my actual birthday on the 23rd!" And, that's exactly what we did. What we learned from it, was that a week-long birthday is a lot of fun!! It's too hard to control just one day. You may have a rough day at work or the weather is yucky or you have something scheduled that you just can't get out of at night, etc. Birthday weeks give you 6 more days to make sure that your birthday was not "just another day"! I think it's vitally important to take time to celebrate and pamper yourself and to have others celebrate and pamper you as well. 

So, we both get a week of pampering each and we can decide when the week starts and ends (as long as our actual birth date falls in there somewhere). Rich likes to take the opportunity to get as many homemade cakes out of me as possible. His record so far has been 3!! For those of you who don't know him, he's a dietician who also happens to be a personal trainer and athlete-aholic. So, yes, he can definitely get away with eating 3 cakes, plus more, if he wanted and not gain an ounce! My favorite is getting special meals each night. He always does the cooking anyways, but for my week, the menu is catered to all of my favorite meals like grilled Salmon and a dish he makes with chicken, feta cheese, tomatoes and greek olives. This week, one of my birthday gifts was a waffle iron (which I SOOOOO wanted), so, one night for supper, we had waffles covered with strawberries and whip cream. Yum!

Moral of the story: I highly recommend birthday weeks!

P.S. The photo above (with me sitting on the table) was taken 29 years ago. I think this may have been my brother's birthday, whose birthday is only 3 weeks after mine, but I'm still sporting a birthday hat nonetheless. 

he loves me…

The other day, my husband surprised me by randomly bringing home fresh flowers. Of course he knows that my favorite is the Gerbera Daisy so that's what he got for me. 

I don't know if it was planned genius or dumb luck, but he discovered my new favorite vase - our coffee thermos! My crystal vases live in a box in the basement with the other frilly wedding gifts that we got 10 years ago. I would much rather repurpose something like a water pitcher or wine carafe as a vase, but had never considered the coffee thermos before. It has a fun urban shabby chic look to it and especially looks great with the graphic daisies. 

love it & love him!

A funny thing occurred to me today... that Easter hadn't happened yet. I often have these realizations about holidays because I'm always at least one holiday ahead for my design business. By Valentine's Day, I was already working on new designs for Easter and for the last couple of weeks have started thinking about invitations for graduations, first communions and confirmations. Last year, I started creating new Christmas card designs in July!! So, it is a constant challenge to remind myself to slow down; to live and plan for today; and to not rush through the holidays before they have even arrived! Here's to making today count!

Only two more days until the weekend! I hope you're planning something fun!

Fifty & Fabulous

My aunt, Pat, is turning 50 next month and came to me a few weeks ago requesting that I design a birthday party invitation for her. Her only requests were that I use a photo of her from when she was a little girl and to somehow tie in the fact that this year is also the Mattel Barbie doll's 50th birthday. Viola - here is what I came up with!

Happy Birthday Pat (& Barbie)!

To purchase this design on my Etsy shoppe, click here.

Spring Green…

Spring has Sprung at my house!

Now I can't wait until the flowers actually bloom!

Apparently, March is the official season of bridal showers and I'm hoping that it extends into April as well because it sure is good for business! With all the gloom of the economy lately, I find myself extremely lucky to be able to turn off the news and escape to my design world. There I can feed off the excitement of my customers who are all preparing for bridal showers, baby showers, birthday parties or announcing the birth of a baby or an engagement.... in other words, I get to work with a bunch of really happy people!

This quote makes me realize how long ago it has been since I was the one planning my wedding. My hubby and I will have been married for 10 years this August and have been together for a total of 14 years now. Being a month shy of 31, that makes it almost half of my lifetime that I've been with my husband!! I don't think it's a miracle - although I DO believe in miracles - but I do know that I am still completely smitten with my honey. (smiles)

Only two more days until the weekend! I hope you're planning something fun!

"I wanna do it again!"

At this time last week, I was getting ready to go up to Lutsen, Minnesota for a weekend away with my hubby, my brother and his wife. The guys were going skiing and we, the ladies, were headed to the spa! How I wish that I could go back in time and relive last weekend!!! Not only was the spa pampering amazing and much needed, but the condo that we rented was right on the shore of Lake Superior. The water was so calm in the morning and looked beautiful with sheets of ice slowly drifting.

In the picture above, my Sis-in-law has herself perched in front of the huge windows overlooking the lake to do a bit of knitting. She didn't get much done on the scarf though since the view was sort of impossible to look away from!

May you all have a "I wanna do it again" kind of experience this weekend! 

Where did this past week go?!?! I have the fortunate "problem" lately of being very busy with my design life, but wish I had more time to do things like update my blog. I'm not feeling the mid-week blahs this week.... I'd say it's more like mid-week panic that I'm not going to get everything done. This quote has always been a favorite - it actually makes me think of my hubby who is an adventure junkie. I'm the one running after him with my camera saying, "ok, but be careful!" That's just one of the ways that I think we compliment each other. He pushes my limits of adventure - in a good way - and I keep him alive. LOL!

Only 2 more days until the weekend!

Hump Day Quote

I have so many quotes that I love. Some are thought provoking, self evaluating and sometimes just darn funny! For those of you like me that get the mid-week blahs, I've decided to start posting weekly Hump Day Quotes. Only 2 more days until the weekend!

Who doesn't love to tailgate?!

I'm extremely jealous that one of my customers thought of this idea before me, but I'm glad that she did, 'cause I love it! On my etsy shoppe, I have an invitation design that looks like a ticket to a sporting event. I was thinking they could be used for kids' birthday parties or a Super Bowl party, but that's really where my creativity ended. My brilliant customer, Amanda, is hosting a wedding shower for her brother and his fiancé that has a Tailgate-theme to it. Not only does the idea of a tailgate-themed shower sound like a blast, but the fact that she ran across my invitation design is perfect. Love it!

It's Not Pink!

This is perfect for the girl like me, who cringes at the sight of the color pink, but wants to support Breast Cancer Research...

Pictured to the right is a canvas tote available for sale on Etsy.com by DraogreerEarthWorks. Priced at $28, $10 of the proceeds will be donated to Susan G. Komen for the Cure®. By purchasing this bag, you are: 1) saving the environment by using less plastic bags; 2) aiding breast cancer research; 3) supporting an Etsy artisan and - best of all - it's not pink! For more details and/or to purchase, click here.

Yes, I am one of those girls who cringes at pink, especially when it comes to clothes and accessories. I believe that anything that is Pink would look twice as good in Orange!! So, for me, this is a great, practical way to support a good cause... or 3.

A Colorful Palate...

To know me is to know how much I adore my Vizsla (hungarian pointer), "Olive." Olive was preceded by an english pointer, "Sage," who was also pampered and spoiled during her 7 years with us. My hubby and I have been married for 9.5 years, and, much to our parents' chagrin, our dogs have been our only kids so far. 

As any parents would, we put much thought into the names for our "kids." The names that we chose, Olive and Sage, reflect both my husband's and my careers - a food for him (the dietician) and a color for me (the designer). I'm hoping it's a while before we have to get another dog, because I'm drawing a blank for names that aren't awkward to yell out in back yard, "Come here, Eggplant!", "Fetch the ball, Mustard!" We might get some funny looks (more than usual that is) from the neighbors.

I lost track of Sage's breeder, but if anyone wants information about Vizslas (breed pictured here), I highly recommend our breeder Michel Berner of Mira Vizslas.

I received a forward the other day that had a list of things that we can learn from dogs. Here are just a few of my favorites:

• When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
• Take naps and stretch before rising.
• Run, Romp, and Play daily.
• Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
• When you are happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
• Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
• When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.

Life is definitely better with a dog at your side!

nevermind...

If you read my post on Tuesday, you'll understand my disgust. Ugh. The photo above was taken today.... enough said.

There's hope for Spring...

There seems to be little to give hope these days in Minnesota that winter will end and that Springtime will arrive, but I found a glimmer of hope today when I looked out at our gnome named McRayski. McRayski is our family's summer vacation mascot at Pelican Beach Resort near Nisswa, MN. Every year now for 3 years, my husband and I have rented a cabin there along with my brother, his wife and now 2 kids. We have started a barbecue smoking competition with our neighboring cabin-renters who are also there the same week every year. McRayski is the trophy and, last year, my hubby was the champion! McRayski stands proudly on our deck through rain, snow, more snow and scorching sun and will make his journey back to Pelican Lake with us this next July. He's been covered in snow for a VERY long time now. I think the last time I saw more than half of his body was back in December sometime... maybe longer. I long for the day that he's sitting on our picnic table up at the cabin, the temperature is WAY above freezing and I'm sipping on a cocktail while I watch my husband put his special rub on the meat about to go in the smoker! I leave you tonight with warm thoughts!

Opening my door...

"When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us." ~Alexander Graham Bell

In October of 2008, I had a door close. I was laid off from the design firm that I helped to create in 2001. The layoff didn't come as a great surprise, due to the economy, but that didn't help it to sting any less when it actually happened. Determined not to let Bell's quote become true for me, I immediately looked for a new adventure. That adventure turned into starting my own online Etsy shoppe selling custom card designs for special occasions. (www.PaisleyPrintsEtc.etsy.com)

For the first 9 years of my professional career, I provided design services for a mix of corporate and private accounts. Although all the glory was supposed to be from landing a big corporate account, it had always been the small private/family projects that I loved the most. Whether it was holiday cards, baby announcements or party invitations, I received much more personal satisfaction from those small run projects than I did from designing a brochure that would be mailed out to thousands of people. It had to do with the fact that I knew, in my own small way, that I was helping to make their special event just a bit more special.

Granted, my newfound career on etsy doesn't pay nearly as well as my last job (at least not yet), but I love it nonetheless. I am extremely fortunate to have a loving husband/best friend who cheers me on daily. His favorite words of encouragement are, "There's no designer finer!" (smiles). I "heart" him.

Part of my reason for starting this blog is let others inside my head for a moment (that's scary), but another part is to record, for myself, my journey on Etsy. Last week marked my 50th sale and 100th person to "heart" my shoppe! It's fun to know that over a hundred people have liked my products so well that they bookmarked the shoppe to stop back again later.

A long standing motto in my household has been that, Life is an adventure and it's up to us to make it a fun one! So, here's to new adventures. I'll try to keep you posted as to how it's going for me!