Sepia Smiles - now available at Anthropologie US

So, I have been going on about this 'secret project' for a while now and I can finally reveal what has been going on!

Back in June I was contacted by Anthropologie US via my Etsy Shop (thanks Etsy!) to create something along the lines of my message in a bottle kits for their holidays collection. Of course I was very glad to oblige and went on to custom design some products for them and posted them off. A month or so later they contacting saying that they would love to place orders for my New Years Resolution Kits. I was of course, delighted!
They have since also ordered the Valentines Message in a Bottle Kits I have designed for their Valentines Day capsule so they will also be available to buy soon.

My designs will be sold in 99 of their stores across America and Canada and also on their website too. I shall post a link to the items once they become available to purchase online. 

This really is a dream come true for me as I have always been a huge fan of Anthropologie and I am so thrilled that they chosen my items to stock in their amazing stores - I am so grateful for the opportunity and beyond excited - still!

I shall be blogging about the whole experience and how the heck I managed to pull it all off in the short space of time I had to do it all in. It's all thanks to my amazing family and friends and some excellent expert help too.

Just goes to show it pays not to give up on your dreams - ever!

Rx

ABOVE IMAGES
ANTHROPOLOGIE LOGO
ANTHROPOLOGIE ROCKEFELLER CENTRE STORE NYC -
IMAGES VIA ANNE BARAKAT

Interiors: Incredible Work Place - URBN Headquarters

Hello you! Sorry for lack of posts - again! I am still busy working on my 'secret project' but I will reveal all soon! Not only am I working on this exciting opportunity but I am also delighted to be busy with a lot of custom wedding orders too so I am a very happy bunny right now!

The above images are of the Philadelphia headquarters of URBN also known as Urban Outfitters and owners of Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain and BHLDN.

Have I ever told you what a huge fan I am of Anthropologie? Who isn't?
Anyways! ;)

Wouldn't this be an amazing place to work? I don't know about you but if I am in beautiful surroundings I feel a whole lot happier and more productive! The guys that work here must quite look forward to going to work every day. Love the way they have actual trees growing in there - extra oxygen to infuse those incredibly creative minds!

More on the secret project coming soon!

Rx

blog envy

do you ever read other blogs and just think to yourself - this person has - without a shadow of a doubt - an absolute, uninterrupted, never ending, clear as a bell direct line to the source of all creativity!! 

there are four blogs that i absolutely love and that i go to when i am in need of a bit of inspiration or as i am a very visual person - just to look at some nice pictures! 
the thing is sometimes i feel inspired and then other times i just think - how do they do it? how do they always seem to come up with such interesting awe inspiring posts day after day after day? where do they get these never before seen beautiful images and their constant stream of original content. 

to be fair my favorite blogs are some of the most successful design/creative blogs out there and clearly there is a reason why. and they do it full time which does help. but sometimes (only sometimes) i look at their blogs and then look at mine and think - oh dear. love, you really do have a long way to go.

i think that most 'creative types' get these thoughts from time to time. i think it's only natural to compare yourself to others.
i suppose there will always be someone 'bigger and better' than you. i guess the trick is to accept this and try not to let your own sense of style be influenced by other blogs - this is very easily done. it's a part of life that there will always be certain people that you wish you could be 'as good as' and it's healthy to have a bit of competitiveness and dare i say jealousy. oh no! i said the dreaded word. but let's be honest - that is all that it is.

do you ever suffer from any of the above? or is it just me?

now i am no expert on blogging and running a creative business but through my own trial and error i have stumbled along some tips of my own on staying true to your own style/uniqueness

• read other blogs and admire other peoples handiwork and be inspired but don't copy

i have seen other people do it and have even seen stuff of mine blatantly copied and listed on Etsy.
now i am one of those strange people that was flattered by this. but one thing i will say is that when you copy something it will never do as well as the original - it just won't. it's a universal law of life and you will just waste your precious time and energy doing so.
it's fine to take inspiration here and there and then create your own take on it. but to directly copy is just a little bit lame and you are way better than that!

• what is your style/brand/etc..

when working this out ask yourself the following -

what are your favourite colours?
whats your favorite era?
what subjects are you most interested in?
what is your passion?
what really inspires you?
what do you love to read about?

• who are you?

what defines you?
what sort of personality do you have?
how willing are you to share your thoughts with your readers?
do you have anything that people could really benefit from hearing about you and your life? what can they learn from you?
what are you skills/talents? is there any way you can share these with your readers by way of tutorials/articles/guides etc?.
i love reading about peoples day to day lives, their families and even what they wore that day. (i love those what i wore today posts) are you prepared to share a little bit more of yourself with your readers? they will love you more for it. we all like to know the person behind the product / brand. why do you think reality tv is so popular/ because people love people!

• don't be afraid to speak your mind!

okay, this is some advice that i need to take myself. do you ever write a post and think. no i better not post it. it's a bit controversial  depressing, daring, negative etc. just post it! as long as you are not feeding your readers with negative depressing  stuff all the time i think it's good to show that you are human every now and then. it's interesting to read about other peoples trials and tribulations, problems, gripes and irritations etc.

i read one such post on one of my favourite blogs (which i won't name) i originally thought that her blog was lovely. inspiring, beautiful etc.. but the blogger herself came across (to me anyway) as maybe a little too sickly sweet and almost too inhumanly perfect to be true. then she wrote a post about something that had happened to her about some nasty piece of work who had basically 'poured water' all over her bonfire. and it was one big long negative rant that seemed to go on for eternity. but it made me warm to her and see her as a human being.
she hasn't written any more posts like that since but as far as i know she hasn't removed it either which is brave. i think to share your dark moments every now and then will make your readers feel a connection to you that none of the most amazing pictures. tutorials etc.. ever would.

• try to stick to one or a couple of subjects

it's best to have a general subject that your blog is based on. mine is clearly weddings. 

it's not that i dream about weddings all day long - far from it. it's purely because it's the industry i am in. 

it's because i love paper goods

i love the aesthetic beauty in all things weddings.

and for me the main reason i went down the wedding stationery route was because of the money. i make more money from making wedding stationery - there is a market for it. it took me a while to work that one out but i am glad i did.

i also love interiors, my family and travelling. not that i do a lot of the latter - that's why i don't mention it a lot but it's something i am interested in. 

try not to veer onto too many different subjects. stick to one main subject and then talk about the other ones every now and then to add a bit of variety. people like cohesive blogs. a 'go to' blog when they need information or inspiration on a certain subject.

• have a theme/brand

i finally have found a branding style and 'theme' that suits me and my blog. it took me a while and if you look at older posts you will see that i have changed my branding and styling many times over.

this is normal don't worry if you do the same.it takes time to find out what suits you and what will stick. 

even the best bloggers change their branding every now and then. huge corporate's do it - but not all the time! once you have found your branding stick to it and don't be too easily led by other peoples amazing new logos and layouts - it can make you crazy. if you are happy with what you have created keep it for a while and let it grow on you.

if you have no idea how to create your own logo then get a designer to do it for you. you will be surprised at how affordable some of them are and it will free up time for you to do what you do best - writing your blog!

Rx

image credits - clockwise left to right
melissa mercia
salon simis - the gorgeous Natalie Portman
robert kaufman
melissa mercia

my shandy

i thought i would share this picture of my beloved dog daughter - Shandy. i adopted her from a friend when she was 6 months old - they had decided that a dog was not for them and asked if we would have her. she has been making me very happy ever since.
she is loving, loyal,cute,cuddly and full of fun. However she can be very rude to other dogs, and can have a bit of an attitude if myself and my husband don't come home till late - but she soon comes around and is very forgiving. She loves sitting at the table and looking at herself in the mirror too!

Rx

p.s Shandy does not help me with orders atall - she would love to but i am very strict about her having access to my studio and any orders! just in case you were wondering :)

still here

hello! how have you been? sorry i haven't been around too much of late but things have been a bit hectic around here. you know when you have so much going on and the goal you had of posting to your blog, etsy, facebook etc.. consistently ie. daily or 3 x weekly  suddenly seems like the most ridiculously unrealistic goal and in fact, an absolute impossibility. well as you all know this is what happens when life happens. things have been so hectic around here but the seas have calmed now so i will be back more regularly. thank you for all staying with me - not one of you has jumped ship. in the middle of lots of things happening i have managed to get lots some decorating done - yippee, and i will be posting details in due course. 

i love the above picture by catwalk that i found via etsy. the print is called 'adrift' i think it's the perfect image for this blog post - don't you?

Rx  

twelve by 2012

when i read this post from Danni from oh,hello friend i just had to participate. i don't normally get involved with challenges and swaps etc.. but as i have been meaning to get organised and get things done for ages so, i reasoned that by doing it this way (ie publicly) i may well get some things done for a change!

basically it is a challenge to get 12 things (or as Danni says 5 or 10 or whatever you feel you need - no pressure) done by 2012. i have a few things i have been meaning to accomplish and with time passing as quickly as it has been (have you noticed that?) i think by setting a goal it is going to make it a lot easier to achieve.

so, here is my list of goals to achieve by 2012

1. create more wedding invitation samples

2. list some covered notebooks in the shop

3. create a nice Halloween display for the house

4. paint the conservatory

5. get Christmas presents organised before December

6. make some more scrapbook pages for my mums album

7. strip and paint the bedroom

8. take down hideous folding door in kitchen

9. clean out kitchen cupboards 

10. blog at least 3 times a week

11. list a new item or renew an item every day in the shop

12. put everything back into the dining room dresser (it was painted yonks ago and i still haven't put everything back!!)

if you would like to participate then go over to Danni's blog for more details. i will be posting updates on my progress on the blog - that takes care of number 10!


+++if anyone else is joining in please let me know, i would love yo follow / encourage you!+++