Phrase of the Day

"Forget the past. The future is now. My plan - just roll with it."

Do you have goals? I certainly do. In fact, I have several at the moment.

1. Be healthy
Plan: Weight Watchers

I've never been on a diet. I don't believe in diets because I love eating too much and to be constrained not to eat something.. well forget it, just kill me now. But I realize that whatever I've been doing has not been working and I need a change. This is my change. It's been 3 weeks and I've lost 4 pounds. I haven't really gone all fat free because I don't think that's the way to live either, but I have certainly decreased my portions significantly and have chosen to eat more low calorie foods. How do I feel? Eh. I find it hard not always feeling full but only satisfied, but then again it feels good not to have the 'itis.

2. Sell my stuff in person
Plan: Get involved.

If you don't know me, you would probably never guess that I'm very introverted and typically a shy gal. I don't jump up and down for joy when I get party invitations. I'm not a fan of hanging out at the bar to shoot the breeze. I'm just not very socially active. My perfect day is to wake up bright and early, have a nutritious breakfast that hopefully includes coffee/tea, fresh pancakes/french toast & eggs; followed by a few hours of crafting; an hour of excercise; time in front of the tube or engrossed in a book and a hearty dinner. By myself. You get the point. I digress. The reason I say you would never know that I have such a personality is because I'm a very different person once I get out of my comfort zone that is, my home. Once I'm out there, I can be very socialable and engaging. Weird right? Call it the Jekyll/Hyde Complex. So anyway, this year, I want to join one craft show at the least. I want to see how it's like to sell in person and to meet the buyers who support us.

3. Be a good wife
Plan: Don't get upset over the nitty gritty & Do things myself.

It doesn't matter how many years you've been in a relationship with someone. There are always new things to learn about your significant other that you never noticed before. Time changes and so do people. I know that we have a very solid marriage. Life is pretty good but on occasion we still argue about stupid things. And I know it's normal. But, I admit, sometimes it's my fault and not always necessary.

I am also very dependent on my husband. When I'm home, I'm pretty helpless. I make him do everything. Case in point. I've never ever thrown out the trash. The first time he was away, the trash got full and I waited for my sister to come over and asked her to throw it out. The second weekend he went away, I promised myself that I would finally throw out the trash! And I did it. He came home & noticed that the bag was not as nicely fitted into the garbage can as it normally should be and asked me about it. My response, "at least I threw out the trash!"

What are your goals and what's the plan?

Let the birds sing!

I think it all started with my wedding, no.. probably not maybe it was on a trip to Virginia last summer.. an antiquing trip to be exact - that I fell in love with birds. I got the birds from Michaels and the little plate from Handgrown Pottery. I don't know what it is but birds make me happy. I'm trying to start a collection. This is my makeup cabinet which sits in my living room on the way to the front door. I just recently bought it at Home Goods and love it where it is. I'm a get up in the morning and get going type of girl, so the less hassle the better. One day, I'll have a whole room devoted to my clothes and accessories, but until then, this little spot in my living room will do. Oh and if you're wondering what's inside the Tea bin - it's where I store all of my Essie Nail Polish.

Handmade Wedding Series on Etsy!

Have you heard about Etsy? When I first opened up shop on Etsy, no one really knew about it or what it was about. Now, you can hear about Etsy not only on Indie magazines but even on Martha Stewart and Rachael Ray. How awesome is that? Most people shop at Etsy for gifts, for themselves and mostly for fun; but did you know that you can even shop for all your wedding stuff on Etsy as well?

The lastest news on the Storque(Etsy's zine) is its plan to push it's Wedding Category. I think it's terrific news! Not only can you find the most unique and customized ring pillows, wedding rings, invitations, jewelry, bridal party gifts, card box and even wedding dress for your Big Day, it may quite often be more affordable than anything you'll find in the commercial arena. Yes, you can get both quality and affordability all in one marketplace. There are really some great stuff out there. As you all know, I DIYed most of my wedding. In retrospect, my wedding served as a guinea pig for the wedding items that soon emerged after I got married. My top items for weddings include my:

Custom Mini Scrapbooks perfect for Bridesmaids

& Custom Altered Tin Favors

Please do check out the Wedding Gift Guide! There is a plethora of great items out there! Also stay tuned for a whole category in the Storque featuring Wedding DIY including tips for planning your own.

Word of the Day - Busy

My husband was away this weekend watching baseball with a bunch of his buddies. Although I sorely missed him, I accomplished quite a bit in two days. First off, I dragged my good friend to a Home Show in Brooklyn that showcased 6-7 uber talented Etsy Sellers. Despite the heavy rain and cold weather, we made the trip and are so glad we did. Not only did I get to see the beautiful work in person, I also met a few great sellers too. Perhaps, one day I can be selling some of my work in person too. Hmm, that's a thought.

Oh and to show my support, I bought a shirt. If I had it my way, I would have bought from everyone but a thing called "budget" prevented me from doing so. The lovely Kim from kimmchi.etsy.com designed this.

My friend bought a shirt as well and a gorgeous necklace from joannetracydesigns.etsy.com. Her shop is very lovely and this is by far my favorite.

Anyway, I've been getting quite a bit of custom order inquiries lately. Not only do I have to keep my head on straight as an executive assistant by day, but I'm also multitasking between different custom orders at home now too. It's been challenging but most definitely fun.

Here's a project that I just finished. A client of mine is a photographer. He wanted me to customize a altered tin favor for him to give out to his own clients as his "Thank You." I thought that was very sweet of him and also a great idea too. His requirements: anything that matched Chocolate Brown. I added some sweet candy and tied it with a string and tag. Voila!

Here are the results.

Well it's Monday. Back to the daily grind and one more day until my husband comes home.