Tag, you're it.

My gift tags arrived! Woohoo! And I'll have to say, I'm surprised at how well they turned out, considering they were printed at a random online cheapo print place. I ordered 20 of each design (6 designs in all) and the total, with shipping, was $25. Not bad. I think I may have to order some more, if I get some good feedback.

And here they are!







And these are the 6 designs for the tags.



I'd better get some sunny days this weekend so I can take a few decent photos. I've been trying to take these photos at night by dangling a lamp in my left hand while holding the camera in my right.

If you've wandered into my blog, I'd love to hear what you think about the tags. Should I go ahead and order more or wait to see if these 20 packs go at the show?

"No time! There's never any time!"

My title quotes Jessie Spano of "Saved by the Bell". If you saw the episode, you'll remember. I might need some caffeine pills if I plan to accomplish anything before the show.

So yeah, not a very productive weekend. I finished the pink and black boxed sets, just about. I didn't start any new cards. And I'm a little nervous because the next two weekends I'll be away from home. My mother told me to bring my crafts with me this weekend and she'll help me out. That means I have to get seriously organized so I know what to bring.

My key fob display came in. I think it's perfect! I'm going to start out pricing them at $5/piece, buy three get one free. But if they aren't selling, I'll drop it to $4. I kinda just want to get rid of them at this point.

Here's the display, don't mind the awful photo:


And a detail of some of the fobs:


As Jessie Spano also said, "I'm so excited! I'm so excited! I'm so...scared!" That sums it up.

Bald is Beautiful

No, I didn't pull a Britney. When dropping Rob off at work this morning, we spotted a bald eagle flying above his school. Apparently there's a pair of nesting bald eagles in Camden, NJ. Rob's told me that he's seen them from time to time, but he's also one to see a tree stump and think it's a bear. Wild imagination. Anyway, it was pretty neat to see!

A few new cards, made with American Crafts paper.







I'm awaiting the arrival of my buttons and gift tags. Gift tags will be in on Monday. Not sure about the buttons. I bought a display for my key fobs, and they look darn good. Turns out I have way over 100. It's so weird how I go through these craft phases. Hopefully I can unload some at the show.

Give a wink. Click my link.

I don't know what that title is supposed to mean. Got stuck on "Give a hoot. Don't pollute."

Just wanted to let you know that I updated my links. The other day I reorganized my bookmarks, which was a daunting task long overdue. There are so many blogs and message boards and websites that I visit everyday. Just wanted to share.

I actually have 4 separate folders for shopping links in my bookmarks. Crafts, Gifts, Home, and Misc. I might have to make a big shopping link list, but that could take a while. In the meantime, check out the ones (as Beyoncé would say) to the left, to the left.

No papercuts yet...

...and thank goodness, because I've been elbow deep in paper lately. I wanted to make some boxed sets for the show. Spent a fortune at the craft store, but I came out with enough paper to make hundreds upon hundreds of new cards.

This is my favorite. Paper design by Anna Griffin. I think I may have to keep some of these for myself.


This was my first boxed set that I made. But then I found out I had to get permission to use these papers, meaning I have to fax a form to the company per each item, and wait for them to mail a signed approval back to me. Kind of a hassle.


This is going to be another craft-a-thon weekend for me. Less than a month until the show!

Overload!

My brain is working overtime and I can't calm it down. All I can think about is crafting. What to make? How many to make? How to make it? I went from making boxed sets of cards, to thinking about making some handbound books, to sewing a felt flower, to considering turning that into a sachet. Okay, stop! One thing at a time.

Here's what I want to have at the craft show.

- 150 to 200 collage cards. I have about 120 now.
- 40 to 50 boxed sets of cards. I'm almost done with 20.
- 20 Appointment card sets. Only have about 5 now.
- 20 gift tag sets. Just ordered the printing today.
- 50 button sets. Just ordered buttons today.

And I'll probably bring the 100 key fobs I made last year that are just sitting in my closet.

So why do I feel that isn't going to be enough? It seems like a lot now that I think about it. I keep trying to think of new things I could make. Like IOU coupons. And little handmade notepads. But I might be going overboard. If I only sell 4 cards, I'll have a lot of crafts taking up space in my house.

Um, that was pretty much just me thinking outloud.

Duh, forgot to mention...

The reason why I plan to craft, craft, craft this weekend is because I was accepted as a vendor at the Art Star Craft Bazaar this June. It'll be my first show, and I'm a nervous wreck.

Enough about me...

I think I need to focus this blog a little bit more towards design/crafts, so it's not just me rambling on like a 14 year old girl on myspace. That doesn't mean I won't be talking about my home, or Rob, or weird things going on in my life, but I'll try to push it a little more towards something that might be relevant to others.

So, in that respect, let me show you some work! I know, I know, it's still all about me. But at least this is craft-related.

I had a project this week to make some baby shower invitations. I was given a rosy colored paper and told to build around that. No problem! Actually, I held the paper for about 20 seconds and already had an idea of what I wanted to do.

Here's the result:


I went to A.C.Moore looking for some brown grosgrain ribbon, and I found this. Perfect! I bought 9 spools and it still wasn't enough.


I was asked to make matching gift tags because they are asking people to bring their gifts unwrapped.


I have nothing on the schedule for this weekend other than craft, craft, craft. So hopefully I'll have some new things to show on Monday.

And away we go!

Our condo is officially on the market, as of yesterday. The sign is in our window. The lock box is on our doorknob. It's a very strange feeling. But after meeting with our realtor on Sunday night and taking a look at our neighborly competition, I feel much better! Ours was the nicest unit, although there was one that was comparable. But we've scrubbed and cleaned, and I think this place looks purty nice!

There are a few things we need to do, like get new flooring in one of the bathrooms, do some minor touch-up painting, and clean the outside hallway area where I accidentally spilled Café Mocha all over the siding. Tee hee. But I really think this place will sell! In fact, our realtor already contacted us saying someone emailed her about it! Woohoo!

Who knows what'll happen. November still seems so far away. But it's exciting to think about where I'll put my sofa (in front of the fireplace!) and what color I'll paint the bathroom (slate blue maybe?) and what kind of patio set to get (how about the free one in my parents' garage!)

You're all invited to our housewarming party in 2008!

Take the plunge???

We have until next Thursday at 4:15pm to decide whether or not we want to move. Yikes, that's a lot of pressure. I won't go into too much detail, but we found a beautiful townhouse, just 12 miles outside of the city. That's a 20-25 minute drive in to work, 30 in bad traffic. I get all excited just thinking about that.

We thought these places might be a little out of our price range, but thanks to my promotion, I'll be able to cover the mortgage difference easily. Phew. Our closing date is scheduled to be November 7th, which is still so far away. But that's kind of good since we haven't sold our house yet. That should give us plenty of time...I hope.

Here's what the Phase I townhomes look like. Ours will be a little bit different. Oh, and we're going to get an end unit. Woohoo for peace and quiet! (Let me just mention that we got a new neighbor downstairs and it hasn't been pleasant. He's a nice kid, but he doesn't realize that playing the guitar and keyboard at midnight on a work night isn't really acceptable in a condo.)




The townhouses are in Cinnaminson, NJ and are located right along the Delaware River. Here's where they'll be built. You can see the river back there. Everything looks kind of dead right now, but I can't wait to see it in the spring.




I think this is going to be a great community when it's completed. They are planning all the usual community things, like a pool, tennis courts, clubhouse, etc., as well as a promenade along the river and some little shops. There's also a brand new shopping center being built 2.5 miles away with a grocery store, Office Max, banks, etc.

I am so excited about having brand new, never used bathrooms. And a pantry! And a garage! And a gas fireplace! And two walk-in closets! Ahhhhhh. I wish I didn't have to wait until November!!!

Gala-riffic!

Last night was the Philadelphia Museum of Art's Winter Gala. It felt like prom night! After searching far and wide for a dress, I found the perfect one, fitting for the occasion. I had a hair appointment scheduled. Unfortunately it was a little late, so I ended up running around like a maniac, trying to get ready on time.

But all in all the event was a blast! We started the night off with our meal. Salmon, roast beef, asparagus, pasta salad, and potatoes, followed by some gourmet chocolate truffles. Mmmm. Then afterwards we took a little stroll through the few open galleries. After that, we decided to visit the Thomas Chimes: Adventures in 'Pataphysics exhibit that was open especially for the gala. It really was incredible. I especially loved his "white paintings". The rest of the evening consisted of meandering around the museum, taking advantage of the open bar (mostly with sodas!), watching people dance, and even dancing a little ourselves, although Rob's knee wasn't up to it. I would absolutely attend next year!

So, I'm sure you'd like to see a few photos.

Still goofy at a formal event:




Some shots of the museum:








My lovely dress that just so happened to be on major clearance:




And the happy couple:

I'm hyphenated.

On our 8 month anniversary (yesterday), I finally went to the DMV to change my name. I know, I'm a total slacker. Well, there were some obstacles along the way, like misplacing my birth certificate. But I am officially a hyphenated gal. I always thought that was kinda silly and just assumed I'd take the new name and discard my old one. But after thinking about it, it'll be less confusing if I keep both names. Because of my tendency to procrastinate, I figure I'll have my maiden name on a lot of my stuff for a while. This way, people won't think that pre-marriage Melissa is a different person than post-marriage Melissa.

I trust you all had a lovely Valentine's Day. Ours was low-key, just how we like it. My hubby was sweet enough to shower me with flowers (gerber daisies at work and roses at home), which I know is totally against his values. So props to him. Plus I got them on the 13th so I'd be surprised. Sweet. So V-day night was spent eating take-out and watching Jesus Camp.

We kept it low-key this year because as a V-day gift to each other, we bought tickets to the Philadelphia Museum of Art's Winter Gala. It's a black tie event, so Rob can get some use out of his tux, but I need to find a dress! After taking the day off to go to King of Prussia mall yesterday, I came up empty handed. Now I have two weeks to find the perfect dress/gown. No pressure though.

In work news, I'm a big wig now! Well, technically on March 1st. I got a promotion, which came with a hefty salary increase. They are so good to me. Now I'll be heading up my own department as the Director of Creative Services, which sounds fancy, right? I'm really excited about having some more responsibility. It's amazing how much things have changed since I started here in June of 2002.

In family news, we're headed to my parents' house this weekend for my father's 50th birthday. Woohoo! It'll just be me, Rob, my grandfather and my parents hanging out at home. My mom wanted to take him out to a nice dinner, but he doesn't want to have to dress up! Ha! So, happy birthday, Dad! You're the bestest!

Melissa, the Craftasaurus

Lately I've been putting more time into my crafts. I redesigned my craft site, twice. Here's how it currently looks.



I also created a new craft blog where I can show off some of the new things I've been creating. I'm going to try to spend some time every week making new cards. This is depleting my wallet a bit because I've made trips to the craft store for the past three weekends.

There are a few things going on in the upcoming weeks. On Tuesday, Roberto y yo will be eating out at Harú, an awesome Japanese restaurant in the city. It's restaurant week in Philly, which means $30 for a appetizer, entree and dessert. Suh-weet. Then Wednesday we are checking out the King Tut exhibit at the Franklin Institute. It's teacher's night, which means no $28 admission! Woohoo! Friday we need to pick up a futon because the following weekend Maria and Jamel will be visiting! YAY!!!! I'm so excited that they are coming out here! That means that Rob and I have some serious cleaning in our future. We need to make this place suitable for guests!

Okay, cutting this shorter than usual because I want to get some more craft time in tonight. But before I go, here are my recommendations for the week.

#1 - Basecamp, project management software: got it at work and it rocks
#2 - ReadyMade magazine: ordered a 2 year subscription for $15, great zine
#3 - Craft punches: so much better than the stupid circle cutters I've used for years

G'night!

Designs up the wazoo!

Well hello there! Just thought I'd share some of the goings on in mel-land right now.

First of all, I've been lurking around (and minorly participating in) a craft forum called The Switchboards. It's a place for crafty business ladies to gab and share secrets and find answers. So anyway, lately a few of these ladies have been asking for some minor design work. A 2"x2" ad. Making a change to their index page. Small stuff. So I started doing it, and it's been great! It's only a couple bucks here and there, but it adds up. And plus it's great networking. I've even worked for some trades. Right now I'm redesigning someone's business cards for some lotions and bath products. :-)

But I got a great one last weekend. A member posted that she needed some invitations asap, and was willing to part with any purse on her site, Margaret Nicole. After a few emails, I agreed to whip up 30 birthday invitations for her in exchange for this adorable bag:



She was such a delight to work with, and I can't wait to see my new bag! Oh, and here are a couple photos of the completed invitations.






Also, last week I finished up an invitation design for work. This really is my favorite thing to do, so I was glad I got the opportunity to work on a project I actually liked. Here they are:






And then today I received an email from a woman who I used to do an occassional newsletter for. She needs an ad "jazzed up". And I might be doing some Flash clean-up for an animation/design studio. And some record store in Florida asked if they could sell some of my notecards, but I haven't heard from them in almost a week, so I'm not counting on that one. Oh, and a woman contacted me via my website about doing her wedding invitations! The year is starting off on the right foot! Yeehaw!

On another note, my lovely Maria, who will be visiting in a few weeks, asked if I might want to send her some Valentine's cards to be shown at her company's gallery for First Friday in Phoenix. I need to play around this weekend, but I made this one last weekend after a major craft store splurge. I LOVE the little skulls with the red eyes!




So things are moving along. I've designed to revamp melissahead.com to focus on paper goods and custom work. I don't want to cloud it up with other crap. Although now I'm not sure what I'll do with the 175 key fobs I have lying around.

Walk the line.

Rob took me to Longwood Gardens as a holiday treat, since I had been begging to go since last Christmas. I remember going once when I was really little, and boy was my memory distorted. The entire time we were there, we were forced to shuffle along in a gigantic line, getting pushed past the gorgeousness of it all. It was worse than Disneyworld. I tried to take a few photos while I was there, but I felt rushed and crowded. Next time we go (if there is a next time), it'll be during the off season!

Anyway, here are a few of the photos I took while I was there. I wish I would have had more time, and batteries.

Catching up.

I haven't been blogging as much lately, but there were a few things that I wanted to share with you folks. First of all, I hope you had a wonderful holiday! I sure did. But pretty soon it's back to the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

Rob and I have kept pretty busy lately, and I have done a lot of fun things! From my post above, you'll see my trip to Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA. Despite the crowdedness of the evening, it was a good time.

My mom got a puppy! I was given the privilege of naming her. Since she is a Morkie (half Maltese, half Yorkie), naturally I named her Mindy. Mindy is the sissiest puppy ever, but she's so adorable, so I love her anyway.




A few weeks ago, Rob and I went to a Holiday Soiree that was put together by the "Young Friends" of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Basically, it was an excuse to dress up and mingle with other Yuppies in the area. We met some interesting people and had a good ole time sampling the free wine. They have a Winter Gala in February, which is a "black tie" event. Depending on our financial situation at the time, we may try to attend that as well.

Here we are all dolled up.



My "holiday" dress, which I happen to be wearing right now.




And of course, there's Christmas! I got my share of toys, including a vacuum (seriously, I wanted one!), a Palm TX and an iPod Shuffle. Our fourth iPod in the household. Now I feel like I can't buy a new video iPod in a few weeks like I had originally planned. We'll see about that. Here are some pictures from the day.

"Starbucks?! How did you know??"



Rob loves books. Even boring ones about the Spanish Civil War.



Check out my new sweet coat from Banana Republic. Who knew Rob had taste?!



Rob only likes toys that are edumacational. What a weirdo.




And lastly, just for fun. My boss's hubby threw her a surprise 80's themed 30th birthday party. Turns out her friends ruined the surprise, but we went along with it anyway. Rob recycled his Magnum PI costume from Halloween, but I didn't feel comfortable parading around my boss's house in my Robert Palmer girl outfit. So I made a new one. I went as Punky Brewster, and if I do say so myself, the outfit is fairly accurate. Except for the vest. I tried to find a pink one, but camouflage was all I could come up with at the last minute.




And I guess that's about it! It's New Year's Eve and we have 7:30 dinner reservations. Then it'll be board games and tv for the rest of the night. After the stress of the holidays, this sounds perfect to me! Peace out, homeboys and homegirls!

Tag, I'm it!

I've been tagged by a SillyMonkee, so now I must share with you my top 5 favorite Christmas, er, holiday songs. And don't worry (Jeope), I won't be tagging anyone else. But if the three people that peek in on this blog feel like sharing as well, go for it!

1. Maybe This Christmas - Ron Sexsmith | Tears me up right away.


2. Bizarre Christmas Incident - Ben Folds | Gross, yet hilarious.


3. Happy Christmas (War is Over) - The Polyphonic Spree | It's impossible to not smile while listening to this band


4. Christmas in Hollis - Run DMC | A holiday classic.


5. Christmas Wrappin - The Waitresses | I know, I know, but I can't help myself.

I'm a bit behind on my blogging. I have some pictures to share with you, but I haven't uploaded them yet. Don't let the anticipation get to you.

My Goofy Husband

Okay, so maybe I love creating new blogs. And maybe I'll run out of stuff to post on here after a week or two. But I had some spare Rob videos lying around and thought it'd be fun to have a place to put them.

Introducing, My Goofy Husband, the blog!

My Arizona Visit

It was nice of Philadelphia to welcome me back from warm, sunny Arizona with chilly down pours. We flew back yesterday morning. Our flight was scheduled to leave at 9:30am. After the drive and dropping off the rental car, we barely had enough time to get some starbucks before boarding. After being on the plane for ten minutes, they tell us there's an hour and a half "gate hold" which is preventing us from taking off. We had the option to get back off the plane, but Rob and I just sat around, watching the clock.

The flight was pretty awful. For the first time ever, I had to make sure there was an air sick bag nearby. Luckily I was okay, though I was worried there for a second. But we landed safe and sound. Phew. After all the travel, we walked into our home around 7:15pm or so. And even though I got a pretty good night's sleep, I'm exhausted today!

Anyway, Arizona was great. Maria and Jamel were such gracious hosts and we are so thankful for all that they did for us. Major thanks to Jamel for entertaining Rob while I got some "girl time."

Click here to see my photos from the trip.