Gift Wraps and Gifts

I think there's not much like a nicely-wrapped gift.

It's sort of my thing. 

I think the outside of a present is almost as important as what's inside. Certainly the presentation can make the recipient feel like you went to a bit of trouble...but, really, I'm almost incapable of wrapping a present without making a scene.

I thought I'd use today's post to give away a few of my "secrets", which, by the way, there's a couple of instant-gift-wraps available for purchasing in my shop, babyblackdog.Etsy.com just in case you're needing more than just "secrets"...

This was a gift for my Baby Boy. It's just fun paper, pretty ribbon and I hot-glued some plastic Cowboys and Indians to the top of the box. Just for fun.

This was a wedding gift for a sweet friend. I used brown kraft paper, satin ribbon, a Scrabble tile in their last name's initial, some bits and pieces of flowers and half of a Martha Stewart cardboard bird box. And lots of hot glue.

This isn't actually gift wrap but more of a gift-thought. I made this for a dear friend. Stamped each letter of her name on a muslin bag and put an item "beginning" with that letter in each bag. D was a tiny deck of cards. N was a teeny jotter notebook that I made. You get the idea. I glued each bag on a piece of cardstock and stacked them in a sturdy bow. Then I tied a pretty ribbon around the box, of course. It's one of my favorite accomplishments.

This was a happy birthday medallion that I made of paper, ribbon, oh, and a ballerina. This could be attached to the top of a gift, or, as was the case with this, pinned to the birthday girl's collar.

I have a well-stocked stash of letters, ballerinas, and etc., to use for gift-wrapping, so inspiration is never too far from me. Plus, I keep as many as I can in pretty, glass jars so I can see them, and, cause they look purty...

Those little things that catch your eye, or make you smile, or that you've just got a lot of, can be stored like this, too. And just add to the top of a pretty ribbon with some hot glue.

It's an easy way to be creative. Creative with a purpose. One of my favorite ways...

Oh yeah, have I mentioned that I have an etsy shop?! Babyblackdog.etsy.com

Just in case.

The Clearing

We have a huge front yard. It's nestled in the woods and we (in the past) refer to it as a "natural" area, meaning, basically that we don't bother with it. But really, we didn't even look at it and we certainly didn't spend time enjoying it.

Until recently.

We've (my Main Man and Me) been spending a lot of time in some of the lovelier areas of the South. Places where oak leaf hydrangeas (my favorite) are shrubs and things are neat and peaceful-feeling. We were inspired. So we decided to reclaim our front yard from the forest. We lawn-mowed and clipped and dug and hatchet-ed. We sweated and pulled thorns from our fingers and legs. We fought critters and creepy crawlers. Then we stepped back and liked what we saw.

However, a couple of weeks or so later, we began to notice weeds growing in the areas where we had so carefully cleaned! New weeds!

They stood there daringly, taunting us with their swift rise to the surface. They waved at us in the breezes. They had some nerve! Didn't they realize how hard we worked? I mean, you know, that one, brief period in our lives? Those FEW days that we toiled and cleaned and felt so proud? Then we remembered, oh yeah, there's this little thing called maintenance.

Shudder. I don't like that word. I'm no good at it. I want progress by leaps. And I wanna see it. Quickly.

But this morning, I took my trusty lawn mower and went over the fresh and unwanted weeds. I turned a few fallen twigs into mulch. I sweated. Again. I'm dirty. Again. But I did it.

Then I stepped back and looked at the yard and felt the same "aahh" as the first time we cleaned.

Our lives are like bush-hogging my front yard. Letting things go untended feels like the easy thing to do. We say, "I'm just me. This is my natural". And, when we do attempt a bit of tidying, things seem to get messy again so quickly. And we get discouraged. So we too often stop and just let things be. We don't spend too much time looking at that area of our lives and we sure aren't enjoying them.

But, just like us and our yard, when you decide that you've had enough of the "forest". When you decide that you want to be able to step back, look at an area of you or your life and say "aahh, I like it!", grab your lawn mower (you know I don't mean actual lawn mower, right? You get what I'm poetically saying here, right?) and get to it. Grab the shovel and dig those stubborn scrub oaks out from the roots. Put on your toughest gardening gloves and don't be afraid to prick your finger on a thorn. Then, step back and look at what you've done. Go drink a glass of iced tea (you're still with me and this analogy, right?) and enjoy the new view. But...

Don't stop there for good. Watch for the weeds that will spring up in that nice clean spot. Watch for that spider who likes that pretty flower you've planted. And when you see them begin to encroach on what you've cleared, go pull up that weed. Go knock down that spider web. One intruder at a time. And be prepared to do that until your yard is full of only the mature trees and shrubs that you want to be there. Only those of your choosing. 

Larry and I will have a lovely yard, probably soon. And you'll have a lovely life, probably soon. 

Go grab your shovel and be careful not to step in the dog poop.

Cause, if I can do this, you can, too...

A Tale of Baby Black Dog

My Etsy shop is new and I've yet to discover the intricacies of the selling site. But I've ALSO yet to discover everything Baby Black Dog is capable of...

Since we've got a few minutes to chat, I thought I'd tell the story of a certain custom order...

Once upon a time, Baby Black Dog was approached by a damsel in distress, as she had been looking and looking for a special gift to welcome someone to her workplace, I mean Kingdom, and nothing had captured the fair damsel's eye, as she had very fine taste... One day, she thought "Eureka!" and contacted Baby Black Dog, as the damsel was very bright and knew that Baby Black Dog was the best gift-maker in all the land. She said, "Brilliant Baby Black Dog, can you create one of your lovely journals and make a notebook to coordinate? This would help my friend stay organized and stylish all at the same time." So Baby Black Dog lovingly fashioned an office set

and the fair damsel and her friend rejoiced together over the joy they felt at their gift. Word spread throughout the Kingdom of the fine and creative work that Baby Black Dog could produce and orders came from around the globe for more of her wares, so much so, that Baby Black Dog had to hire additional staff to assist her, thereby helping not only Baby Black Dog and her family, but also the Kingdom around her with many dollars spent as well as providing the people of the Kingdom with gifts, supplies and inspiration for themselves and their friends. And they all lived happily and beautifully together... 

Or sumpin like that.

Life with Baby Black Dog can be like a dream AND I can create custom orders... 

Babyblackdog. Etsy.com

Let's Do This...

Basically, it all boils down to this one thing: It's what we DO with what we HAVE that makes the difference...

It's the 4 D's...

Diligence, Determination, Drive, Discipline

These are the keys to success in just about anything (I'm quoting my brilliant husband here)...

It's why world-class athletes are world-class. It's how we know the name of a particular designer and why we buy his or her wares (cough, cough, Kate Spade purses, cough). It's why some businesses suceed and some fail.

Do we want it bad enough? Are we willing to look or sound foolish for it? Will we believe in ourselves long enough to give it a chance?

Enough with status quo. Enough with ruts and burn-out. Let's dig in and discover what it is that we bring to the table. Then, let's dish it up like no one else can... 

Let's be set apart. Let's not shy away from the opportunity to be different. Or, to MAKE a difference!

And let's have the patience to be in it for as long as it takes. Sometimes, it's just a matter of giving up too soon.

And with that, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to work on my etsy shop...

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might; (Ecclesiastes 9:10 NKJV)

Baby Showers and Extra Words...

I'm just slowing down from a busy event season. Many parties and projects, gifts and occasions later, and still, all I can think of is events...

My Etsy shop babyblackdog.etsy.com is open and my friends and family have been so kind and encouraging. My creative juices are flowing for items to create and list. But...

I have so many words to spill! Thus, the events-thinking...

Today, I think I'll use up some of my extra words by talking about one of my past-event-successes...

I love baby showers. Nay, I love showers. And parties. I love the thinking and gathering and tweaking. I love discovering new ways with new products and old ways to use old products. Or sumpin like that. One of my favorite baby showers (p.s. I realize I use the word "favorite" quite a lot.) was a Pink, Gold (glittery gold, of course!) and Black & White Striped Baby Shower...

It was lovely. It was fun. And, because it was for a sweet mommy and baby, it was easy...

We used Cotton Candy Pink for starters, as that is my favorite shade of pink... We used it everywhere, as that is how it should be used... Our giant balloons were pink. The utensils were pink. It was the basis for our punch-we put a pinch in a clear baby bottle (I dipped the bottom in gold glitter. It was glamourous...), and poured regular lemonade over it and the whole drink turned pink. It was beautiful...

And we drank the lemonade through black & white striped paper straws. It was fun...

The stripes were plenteous. Cupcakes (Pink frosted, of course!) were served in striped baking cups. I put a grosgrain striped ribbon around the middle of each water bottle and finished it off with a pink monogram that had been stamped in gold glitter. The chocolate strawberries were dipped in gold sanding sugar. The napkins were striped.

The food fare consisted of tiny appetizers...finger sandwiches shaped like glamourous blooms, caprese tomatoes and shot-glass-sized cups of gazpacho. It was very adult yet very precious. Hmm. So precious, in fact, that I'm kinda feeling the need for another baby shower project. No, wait, I think that was indigestion.

But look, wasn't it beautiful?!

There. I feel better being a few words lighter. Thanks for being all ears...

Shops and New Tricks

So. Here I go. The best and the worst. The easiest and the hardest. What I love and what I no like...

I'm preparing to open my Etsy shop. My creating, for now, is put aside. I'm in business-mode. Photographing my items, writing descriptions, determining prices and shipping costs, working on advertising, gathering shipping materials, self-promoting. I'm feeling very uncomfortable in this capacity. Creativity is my comfort-zone. It comes naturally. But my brain literally goes foggy when I think in terms of numbers, budgets and costs...

I've known for a long time that I needed to get my "things" out there. So I've slipped on my green eye-shade and dusted off my adding machine (goodness, that's probably a really old reference!). I'm purchasing a postal scale and using a photography white-box. My house is overrun with supplies and journals and greeting cards and ribbons and mailing envelopes and boxes. I'm the creative team, marketing, shipping and customer service departments all in one. My toes are curled up at the strong feeling of discomfort (like when I watch Michael Scott on The Office!) and I get a bit nauseous with each new step, but going ahead I am...

Everyone is comfortable with doing what comes easy.  No one really likes to be pushed. And new tricks aren't always easy for old dogs. But, if we never try something different, or never push through "uncomfortable", we'll never know what lies on the other side of same-old same-old, and we might miss a great adventure. I'm learning to like adventures and new tricks.

Ill keep you posted...

Milestones

I've been thinking about milestones.

"An action or event marking a significant change or stage in development."

Sometimes happy. Sometimes not. But always significant.

I seem to be experiencing a lot of milestones the last several years. Upon first glance, they seem to be concerning my children... My sons' senior years of high school. Their subsequent heading off to college. My youngest son's graduating from college and moving 4 hours away. Their marriages. The births of my oldest son's sons. Mind-boggling.

But there's the more personal side of being an empty-nester. There's the fact that all I ever wanted to be was a mom, and, now what? There's the time I told my husband, "I can't believe all I have left is you". Not my proudest moment, but... There's the people who say "I can't wait till I have free time like you have!" and I want to scream at them "Free time is the last thing I ever wanted!", or sumpin like that... But then, there's this wonderful relationship I have with my husband, and how he's my very best friend. There's this time for creative ventures that I never experienced before. And there's this pull toward traveling that I NEVER had before-I was always afraid to travel. Worried about what I was leaving behind and scared of what I find when I got there...But now, there's the fact that the last time I left Santiago, Chile, I sat in the hotel lobby and cried like a baby because...

 There's a willingness to keep going, to change, to connect, to do, to go... even though I remember when my baby boy first left for college, I stayed in the bed for 3 days. I pitied myself because no one needed me. Again, not my proudest moment...

The milestones seem to be coming at record pace now. Some seem really hard! At any given moment in our lives, we could stop. We could say "I don't wanna go further. I'm good right here.", and those around us would completely understand. They'd probably do the same, if they were in our shoes, whatever those shoes may be. The thing is...the world would keep changing. The people we cared about would grow up. They'd move out of our house and grow families of their own. And we'd be sitting there, unchanged. Except for the fact that everything we loved was different. It sounds miserable.

Yet people do that all the time.

Larry and I have decided to go with change. On a daily basis. On an hourly basis when necessary. Because we've learned that we don't have to do it alone. The Creator of the Universe, the One who made us, is right there with us. Urging us on. Stopping to rest with us when we need to catch our breath. Ready to make the necessary repairs to "stuff" when we realize we've messed it up. Ready to help us with the next step, cause that's what life is all about...the next step.

And we can do that. One step at a time.

He knows us best. Even better than we know ourselves. He knew I'd feel lost with an empty house. He knew we'd have a hard time the first time we had to change our oldest GrandBoy's diaper. (It'd been so long since we'd changed a diaper of someone we loved so much. It took both college-educated GrandParents working together, sweating and stressed, but we did it! We may have put it on backwards at first, but we fixed it...) He knew we'd miss our friends as they moved (and continue to move!) away to begin different phases in their lives. We have this same story over and over for thousands of things that have happened in our lives. God knew and He got us through them. Successfully. He knew what was on the other side of that "challenge" and He knew how we'd flourish once there. Maybe I cried a bit, but then I'm pretty sure I laughed.

I call these milestones my "victories". They may not have all been pretty. They may not have all looked like I thought they should look. But standing on this-side of them, I think they look pretty wonderful.

There are many more milestones coming. I can see the tops of their heads. I can hear the footsteps. Sometimes I wanna say "whoa!" and stop. But I won't. I may go at a snail's pace every so often, but I'll still go.

And I'll get there. One step at a time.

And so will you.