Shop Feature!

Janae over at Pink Dandy Chatter was kind enough to do a feature of my shop today. Go check it out...right now. Her blog is great, and she is such a sweetie! You should also check out her shop, where she sells handmade bath and beauty products.

Tomorrow is FINALLY Halloween! Is everyone doing something fun? My boyfriend and I are going to a local costume party and I'm dressing up as Wonder Woman...pictures to be posted soon ;)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Snowy Halloween?

Can it be? Is it seriously snowing already?!? Yes, indeed it is. I awoke this morning to snow flurries here in the Catskills. This is my second winter up here, but I'm not sure I'll ever get used to seeing snow before Halloween. It's just nuts!

Although it throws me off a bit to dust snow off my car this early, I must admit it was really pretty. It was such a serene view this morning to see the snow flurries and hear the birds chirping (those that haven't yet left for warmer weather). It stopped snowing a little while ago, but the mountains are still coated with a bit of powder. Now we have sunny skies and snowy mountains--gorgeous!

In honor of the first snow of the year, I'm going to share with you guys some of my favorite Etsy picks for scarves and hats. Time to bundle up!

Snowy White Hat and Scarf Set from Aunt Zarina's Shop

Milk Chocolate Crochet Hat and Scarf Set by Red Hen Studios

Hand-Knit Hat and Scarf Set by Klose Knit

Hat and Scarf Set in Rust Merino/Camel Blend by AnneChristine Designs

Gray Hood by Afra

Plum Hood Scarf by I am not a wallflower

2-in-1 Hat and Scarf by SalbyN

I am completely in love with all of these picks! It's a good thing I already promised a friend I would get my next hat and scarf from her, otherwise I would be faced with having to choose between these. On second thought, you can never have too many hats and scarves, right? Maybe I'll get another set...just for back-up, ya know?  ;)

Tomorrow I'll be at the Street fair in Hyde Park, which is happening again this weekend due to bad weather last Saturday. If you're in the area, stop by Surviving Sisters and say hello! We should have nice weather this time around, hopefully there won't be any snow!

Boo to Bad Weather

...And not the Halloween type of "boo", but the "ah phooie" type of "boo". The weather was iffy yesterday, with strong winds and the possibility of rain, so I decided not to make the trek to the Hyde Park Street Fair (it's almost a 2 hour drive each way).

I've been told they're doing the fair again next Saturday (10/23) since other vendors also decided not to go. So if anyone is in the area NEXT week, be sure to stop by ;)

Since I now had a free day on my hands, I decided to finally tackle two mini-projects that I've been wanting to do for the past two weeks:

Project 1: Install the curtains I've been eyeing for months
I originally saw these curtains at Walmart but they only had the sample. So I ordered them online and they finally arrived last week. I am totally in love with the design and the way that the light shines through them.

The only downside is that, for now, I have to keep our original blinds up as well because it gets frigid cold up here in the Catskills and sheer curtains don't really keep out drafts! Some day, when we have a bit of extra cash, I'll invest in those energy-saving curtains and figure out a way to hang them up with these sheer curtains. Does anyone have any tips on how to hang two sets of curtains on one curtain rod?

Project 2: Create a Halloween ornament tree
Last year, my boyfriend and I visited Salem, MA (for the third time...we love it there!) and came across a set of gorgeous, vintage inspired Halloween ornaments. AND they were 50% off!!! How could I possibly resist?!? Ever since we brought those puppies home, I've been wanting to create a spooky ornament tree to display them.

We had a pretty bad storm about two weeks ago, so I gathered some branches and let them dry for awhile. Then I spray-painted them black and did the same to an old plastic planter. After the paint dried, I filled the planter with florist foam, stuck the branches into the foam, and topped it with Spanish moss.

Voila! A spooky (yet adorable) Halloween ornament tree! So, although I'm bummed that I didn't get to go to the street fair, hopefully it'll happen again next week. And I finally had a chance to finish my curtains and my ornament tree!

Now I'll leave you with a picture of Sasha, because she was being so freakin' cute when I was taking pics of the curtains (and I'm obsessed with her haha).

Design Revamp

For the past two weeks, a friend of mine who is a graphic designer has been kind enough to help me in creating a new look for my company. Because I'm still kind of a newbie to this whole "small business" thing, I figured now is the time to lock down an image and a brand that I really love for my company.

We've gone back and forth a bit on some new designs and now I would like feedback from some of you guys as well. I'm one of those people that can't even decide what I want for dinner, let along make a decision on what my company's logo will look like haha. Yet I've somehow managed to narrow it down to three choices--two of which are variations of the same design.

The samples below are for a blog banner, but the overall design will ultimately be carried through in everything relating to my business (labels, business cards, Etsy banner, etc.).

The first design was created using this floral art that I had found on a vintage book I picked up at an auction. I've always loved these flowers and thought it would be so neat to include them in my company's logo design. While I do love the use of the art, I'm still not totally sold on the font treatment. But what do you guys think of this design in general? I'm also not sure how this would work as a label for my candles because the background may end up being too busy for a small (2-5/8" W  1" H) label.

Here is option 1 of the second design. I am completely in love with the sun/stars motif. I think it has a very '60s/Earth Mother kind of feel to it, which matches my personality so nicely. It also reflects the emphasis on nature in my candles. I think this design would make an awesome label for my candles because of that woodcut-type trim. Thoughts?

And here is the same one with white text...

And finally, here is the second variation of the same design as above. I think this color combination is okay  but I much prefer the green/gold used above. Also, this may sound strange, but all I can think of when I see these colors is "McDonalds" haha.

And now with white text...

So...thanks for taking a look and (hopefully) providing your feedback. It's really going to be helpful to see others' initial reactions because, after all, I want people to instantly love my stuff and I know that logo design is a huge part of that!

Street Fair This Weekend!

Tomorrow I'll be selling my candles at the Hyde Park Street Fair, over by the Surviving Sisters Boutique. There's going to be tons of crafts/vendors and even a DJ. I heard that there's also a farmer's market in Hyde Park on that same day, so this should be quite the shindig!

If you live in the area, be sure to stop by and say hello! There will also be a raffle for items donated by each vendor, with all proceeds going to the American Heart Association.

Hopefully this time I'll have a chance to go around and take some pictures of the other crafts to show you guys (but then again if I DON'T get a chance to take pics then that just means that lots of people are stopping by my booth, which is totally cool too haha).

Hyde Park Street Fair

4412 Albany Post Rd, Hyde Park, NY

10 am - 4 pm

Fall Colors

I had been meaning to post these images for about a week now but am only now getting the chance to actually sit down and do it. I took these photos to show you guys what my neighborhood looks like in autumn because I've just been so impressed with the gorgeous fall colors!

That body of water you see is a branch of the Delaware River. My apartment actually overlooks that little lake-type area and people go fishing there in the summer.

 

Here is a view of our backyard

 

Eeek...look at all those leaves just waiting to be raked! Yet another thing on our to-do list haha

 

That mini waterfall is actually part of a dam, but it still creates a nice, calming background noise of falling water.

I hope you all enjoyed this little tour into my area's autumn splendor. If you've posted any pics of your own fall colors, please let me know...I love seeing the seasons in different parts of the country (and the world)!

I'm a Winner!

A few days ago I received an e-mail from Jenna over at Momma Told Me, letting me know that I won her New England Coffee giveaway. If you haven't yet checked out Momma Told Me, you have to head over...she always has tons of awesome giveaways and her reviews are a pleasure to read. A fair warning to you though: entering her giveaways becomes addicting and you may find yourself obsessively checking for the new goodies she's offering on her site ;)

Yesterday I was delighted to find that my package had already arrived. I've been a fan of New England Coffee for several years now, so I was super excited about this prize!

I didn't get home until kind of late last night, so I had to wait until this morning to try out my coffee. So in honor of the Pumpkin Spice blend that I've been so psyched to try, I put together a nice breakfast with my favorite pumpkin dish and mug.

I paired my pumpkin coffee with a few slices of fresh, homemade chocolate zucchini bread from yesterdays farmers market.

Pumpkin, coffee, and chocolate = heaven.

Holiday Scents

I know some of you may be thinking it's a bit odd to start planning for the holidays when we haven't even hit Halloween yet. But hey, there's nothing wrong with planning ahead, right? I've been trying out some wintry scents to feature during the coming months and my two favorites so far are Holly Berry and Christmas Tree.

Holly Berry has such a distinct scent that brings me back to the days when I was still young enough to sit in my PJs with a cup of cocoa, awaiting Santa's arrival (wait...I still do that haha). I am definitely in love with this scent. I've been burning my test candle at the office all week and it puts a smile on my face the second I walk into the room.

My second favorite of the holiday scents is Christmas Tree. It smells exactly like a big ol' pine tree and makes me wish it were December already so that me and the fam could go on our search for the perfect tree.

I'll be posting these guys in my Etsy shop within the next week or so, after I've put together a nice holiday scene to feature them. Be on the lookout for these new scents as well as some new teacup candles!