paper's gotta brand new mag

I am so excited about this magazine! I just received my first issue {missed the premiere issue} ... I saw it around at the NSS and knew it would be different. It's just a fresher look at the industry today and seems to have more focus on small boutique owners {love their use of 'mom-preneur'} and small design companies.

And really, isn't that what we're after? Unique and exquisite products? You're not going to find them at the Louie Awards {don't get me started ... that's a whole other post!} or the previous conglomerate industry mags.

I especially enjoyed reading "To Blog or Not to Blog" ... For me, starting this blog was a hard decision {and a bit of a costly nightmare to design a seamless look with our website ... thank you imagehat studio}, mostly because I hadn't yet been drawn into blogosphere when we started talking about it. Eric had the idea, and as I researched more about blogging 'professionally' {as I have a personal blog, that's sole purpose is to keep family & friends up-to-date on the kids} and got addicted to bloglines and my favs while our site was being finished ... I decided it would be a refreshing addition to our website and the store.

It's much more work than I anticipated, and more addicting than I ever thought possible {am I a freak??} ... but also rewarding. It's a great spot to tell more about who I am and why I'm doing what I'm doing.

The thing I've really been struggling with {and have from the start} is how much personal to throw in with the 'professional.' I mean ... with 4 kids, 4 dogs, 2 horses I'm not without personal blogging material!

But anyway, the reason I enjoyed this article so much was the take-away ... Ez from Creature Comforts said it well, "Successful blogs make someone feel a personal connection with the writer, so if it's just to drive sales, it may not get many hits. Don't make it about the products, but what inspires them. It's easy to tell if a blog is forced, and it quickly becomes obvious over time."

Holly at decor8 summed it up best for me ... "And while it's great to talk about your business, don't make your work the entire focus of your blog."

And so my friends, while I promise not to over-indulge myself with potty training, pre-school starting, big-girl bed stories {well ... maybe big-girl bed stories}, I do look forward to sharing a bit of my personal adventures, design, and life inspirations with you. In fact, I've been holding back sharing photos and info on the addition we're working on ... I think I'll put together a post on that over the weekend. Thank you Stationery Trends for helping me out!

I really have enjoyed sharing with you over the last couple of months. And the response I've seen has been overwhelming to me. So a huge thank you to all of you that have been tuning in! God's blessings to you ...

i'm happy again

I snuck out of the office for a bit this morning for a little hair therapy. Then needed to head over to the Public Market to get some wine & cheese ordered for an after hours shopping party we have scheduled next week at bwp.

I was feeling a tad down on my way to the market, so as I passed Anthropologie I was lured in for some retail therapy. There is nothing about Anthropologie that displeases me. And today's visit didn't disappoint!

Is this mug not beautiful? And I was lol at this! I definitely have been known to suffer from 'inshopnia' {n. a disorder marked by making unnecessary online purchases in the wee hours due to insomnia}. Wanna know what a 'moose hoof' is? Sorry, at the risk of having my mom read this post ... you'll have to get yourself the book ... but I promise it's worth it!

I love our cute little neighborhood and was my cheery self by time I got back to the store. Happy Weekend!

granny's feedsack quilt

I love to hear the stories behind why a product is made.  And at May's NSS, I enjoyed hearing how BirdDog Press was inspired.

Their Impressive Imprintables &  Granny Couture Noteset designs come from feedsack quilts, pillow cases and dresses made by the owner's Granny, who lives in a cabin in South Carolina that is full of fabric.

These feedsacks are most remembered from the depression era when women needed to make due with very little.  Feedsack fabrics were actually from sacks of flour, sugar and animal feed.  Generations of resourceful women recycled the fabrics and used them for clothing, quilts, curtains and more.  Reduce, Reuse, Recycle is not a new concept.

BirdDog Press is committed to the environment with a highly impressive {green} resume that includes their inks, plates, cleaning supplies, papers and bags.  

Awesome design with a conscious?  I love it!

we wanted it, we got it

We have been teased for the last few months and I'd finally had enough!  This stuff was popping up everywhere!  I had to get my hands on it.  I kept emailing the company for information to no avail ... no one was interested in me, or listening to me.  :(

Step in new sales rep ... "oh, and I also carry Orla Kiely" ... um, what?  Thee Orla Kiely?  I'll take one of everything!  {and seriously, I did ...}

I swear at least one person a day, coming into the store has one of the bags.  I've seen the stationery everywhere ... uh-hem, but won't mention the stores.  And now we have it at bwp.  My fav is the debossed address book ... I could touch it all day long ... sigh.

And can someone help me out? Is it KEEly?  I think it's KIely ...

happeez

What's not to love about a product called Happeez?  I love these things! They were made to use on stainless steel refrigerators {no magnets allowed}.  With a non-adhesive, miracle material backing, you can stick them to any slick surface.  The fridge, mirror, glass, iMac!  I love it ... and ... it makes me happeez {sorry, couldn't resist!}. 

mama's got a brand new bag

Did I mention I also have a thing for diaper bags?  I won't tell you how many I own, but it would definitely rival my fleet of strollers.

I just found this one ... and ain't she grand?  I found her while stalking {from a non-stalking distance} Gavin Rossdale.  We thought he may have gone into a cute children's boutique down the street, Freckle Face.  You know, to pick up some goodies for the pending arrival.

Anyway, we were sad to learn he hadn't been there ... but so happy to visit Freckle Face's new location.  It's a pretty little boutique and perfect for a mom who can't part with the fact that her baby isn't quite a baby anymore.

Point?  I bought a stroller blanket too.  Trust me, my two {plus} year old, is not in need of a stroller blanket! But this one was calling out to me and I couldn't pass it by.

And when I tucked little Huntie into her crib tonight and covered her with this cozy blanket, I decided she will be a baby for as long as I want.  Why?  Because I said so!

i can't believe i forgot!!

I'm claiming temporary insanity! In the craziness of packing four kids, myself, camera gear, carry-on bags, diaper bag and genius stroller for our European vacation ... I completely forgot to give an update when our new Snow & Graham goodies went live. So sorry! And happy shopping!

more swag

I got to work this morning and remembered, I completely forgot about our lovely Linda & Harriett swag!  This calendar is yummy!!  I have this hanging on my wall above my computer, so it's in my peripheral vision most of the day and that makes me happy.  :)

nyss swag

One of the things I love at the Stationery Show is the swag.  The last couple of years, one of our favs has been a calendar put together by most of our favorite designers.

We visit each participating designers booth, and are handed a delicious calendar page that has us set til next year's show.  I thought it would be fun to start showing each new month ... this month {and June's} is from one of the very first letterpress lines I brought into the store {maybe 5ish years ago!} ... Two Piglets.  I love catching up with Jesse at the show ... and he got bonus points this year for noticing my haircut!  :)

greeting cards with spark!

I love these new cards from Spark Stationery!  Their Bittersweet Ink line ... so cheeky! And who doesn't love a wiener dog!?

This is our puppy pebbles ... renamed puddles ... who I fondly call "no puppy!"

gavin rossdale. gwen's hubby.

It's celebrity central here at bwp and this time I didn't miss it!! So I'm in my office and Eric comes back and tells us {real slow like} "Gavin. Rossdale. is in the store ... ?" {with a question mark}. We tear out into the store, but slow down just in time to play it cool. When we're not spotting him anywhere, we get all anxious asking where he went. He had already left, but was headed down the street. So yeah, we go outside and spot him walking down the street of our quaint, little, historical block. We cross to the other side of the block and hope to meet up with him as he circles back. Check-mate! Our plan worked and sweet Jesus, he's pretty! Gwen, you are one lucky lady!

{photo courtesy of gavinrossdale.com}

Okay, so back at the store we grill the associates that checked him out ... tell. us. everything! We got his receipt {and signature on his cc statement} and located the greeting cards he picked out. Great taste! He was even talked into taking advantage of our Stationer's Dozen promotion {buy 12 cards, get one free ... hey, even celebs like a deal!}.

Are you dying to know what he got, or am I the only freak? Just in case I'm not the only freak, this is what he got {designs shown above}: Kate Funk {bwp's very own designer}; SusyJack*; Night Owl Paper Goods; Fiddlesticks; Cecily Ink and a black ball-point pen.

Once again my friends ... your E! News of the day ... happy weekend!

a young lady's room

I've mentioned that I'm in the process of adding a new room to our house for my three little girls ... and that's left Taylor asking, "What about me?" She was seven when we moved into the house and I admit, she has pretty much outgrown her hot pink, zebra striped, moroccan themed room. Yes Taylor, let's redecorate! I had her start by picking out new bedding {gotta love PBteen} and together we decided on colors of paint; where to put each color; etc.; etc. I had some suggestions for her on how to have some fun with the colors and I really enjoyed 'designing' it with her. Since we were going to be gone for 2 weeks, it was a great time to have it painted ...

When we got home yesterday, we both ran up to her room to see the results ... beautiful! It fits her perfectly. She's just turned 13, not a super girly-girl, not overly stylish {yet!}, and seems to prefer a clean look. I'm so excited with the way it turned out.

The best part was that she seemed to really value, want, and trust my opinions. Maybe I'm a cool mom after all? {Don't tell her I said that ...}

I was late in my planning of all this, so didn't get to the window treatment part of her room {which explains the sort of barren look ... well, that and the fact that she's in the process of organizing everything as she puts it back in her room. which she was supposed to do as she was taking things out of her room, but instead threw out into the living room in a heap! okay, maybe I just lost my cool mom status with that ranting ...}

These are the fabrics we chose for window treatments. I can't wait to see it all come together!

{and um, yeah ... that's camp rock playing on her tv. hail to the jo bros.}

add spark to your favors

We featured these party favors as a design tip last year, and Brides.com just posted our idea using them as a wedding favor. It got me thinking ... wouldn't it be fun to have sparklers at a winter wedding?

au revoir

In an hours time, we'll be on our way back home. We had an awesome time, but everyone's ready to see our dogs, taylor's horse and sleep in our own beds. Although ... the girls current bedroom has been demolished {for the new addition} so they have a brand new bunk bed awaitin' on them ... in the baby's room! Not sure how that's going to work out for me ... fingers crossed until November when the new {larger} room is ready.

On our walk to dinner the other night, I spotted this paper store. It didn't look too outstanding to me and we didn't have time to get back to it when it was open, but I did quite enjoy seeing the Moleskine's in the window! And who doesn't love the word 'papeterie' ....

i'm in love ...

all over again with Elum! How awesome are their new products?!?