GIDDYSPEAK spoken here

February 14 is a very big day for me. It is the day that my book is released. It is the day that I fly to London for the very first time.

As much as I look forward to these milestone events happening, I am really enjoying this glorious period of waiting and wondering which I have been referring to as "the engagement."

From my publisher CICO Books' Spring Catalogue

I can barely wrap my mind around any of this sometimes and so it's nice to have this magical time to ponder and plan. Whenever I begin to talk about these things, my voice begins pretty normal but then somehow raises into some kind of GIDDYSPEAK! {Clapping is also likely}














I will be taking this Girlie Trip with my oldest sister Betsy. It will be brief but sweet. We'll stay in LONDON with my good friend who is living there temporarily (unless of course I barricade myself in a CATH KIDSTON!) and I will get to meet all of the wonderful people at CICO Books! After a few days, Betsy and I will head to PARIS! (All CAPS indicates GIDDYSPEAK taking over).


















And just like a bride-to-be might pour over wedding magazines as thick as telephone books, I have been gazing dreamily at books (the one shown was recommended by the fabulous Shelly of Drooz Studio) and making notes on the comprehensive list of AMAZING tips and must-sees from curator of beauty Jessica of Such Pretty Things.

Blogging connects us to the MOST WONDERFUL people!!!

Thank you to everyone who responded to the book review offer. I'm hoping that my first copy (or three?) will arrive ANY DAY NOW!

Are you the type who gets giddy at times? I certainly am.

xo
elyse

tweet, receive, review!

Calling all craft bloggers:

My publisher CICO Books has a limited supply of my book (WEEEEEEEE!) that they are offering to craft bloggers to review.

Visit CICO Books on Twitter and tweet to them that you are interested.

Again, this offer is good while supplies last.

{Gosh, I can't wait to see my book!!! When a copy arrives in the mail, I just may swaddle it in a blankie and carry it around all day!}

xo
elyse

WDCP or wall-decor-commitment-phobia

My head is easily turned by pretty things and perhaps this is why I have a fear of commitment when it comes to pounding nails into walls. Especially walls that I myself have primed and painted, which is 99% of them and is a job I do not really enjoy. I'm reminded of this confirmed-wall-bachelorette status each time I purchase wall art and must decide where it will hang.

Some proof. Take note of the various things decorating this wall of the Girlie Office.

A few things are hung using painters tape, one bulletin board holds both a clock and a calendar, and just last night I hung a birdcage memory board by tying it to a light fixture.

The same fixture that is embellished with magnets. So to borrow a concept from comedian Jeff Foxworthy, if you do some of the following, you might just be wall-decor-commitment-phobic, too.

Do you hang art with removable hooks (left)? Do you frame fabric rather than cutting it?

Do you use tension rods? Adjustable bookcases?

Do you prop art on ledges rather than hang it?

Do you frame wallpaper rather than adhering it permanently?

Because if you do, you just might be WDCP (wall-decor-commitment-phobic) and I understand.

xo
elyse

happy new year

Why was the blogger's breakfast cold?

Because it was pretty.

Today is New Year's Day and wanting to kick things off in a healthy way, I began to cook some old fashioned oatmeal for breakfast.



To make it especially yummy I assembled a small buffet of mix-ins: raisins, golden raisins, brown sugar ... But when I cracked open a walnut, I discovered this perfect heart.

And like any good blogger worth my weight in glitter, I was compelled to capture the moment. Away went the plain dish and paper napkin as I scurried to stage the impromptu shoot.

So the oatmeal grew a bit mushy as I zoomed-in on my unexpected valentine.

But breakfast still turned out delightful as this moment reminded me not to save favorite dishes and flatware for "special" occasions but to use them any time.

I wish all of us a New Year filled with good health, love and happiness, creativity and wonder!

xo
elyse

orchestrating moments of bliss

Bliss is a beautiful word defined as "complete happiness" and so I tread lightly when using it because I don't want to diminish its power the way I do when casually dropping similarly strong terms like "awesome" or even "love" -- as in "I love that awesome dress!" I believe that bliss is fleeting, it's momentary -- but it can be created and experienced and that it's important to orchestrate moments of bliss when you can.



















This post was meant to be about muffins. How on days set aside to write or create I will often bake muffins or scramble eggs to have with hot coffee served in my favorite mug, all to set the stage for moments of complete happiness.

Today I have the morning and early afternoon reserved for writing a magazine tutorial. Having my work published is something that still dazzles me like a waking dream and I want to revel in even the smallest moments of the process. Muffin, coffee, writing, quiet. Sigh.















When I am working on new projects, coffee is switched out for flavored seltzer: fresh, lightly flavored and effervescent or "crispy" as I like to call it, and quiet is replaced with favorite music on repeat (my crafting go-to is the band Luna which is familiar-to-me, energizing but not at all distracting) as tidy rooms become gloriously disheveled messes and I dart from idea to idea. {Cleaning up afterwards is the "crash" -- what goes up, must come down!}

Short blissful experiences can happen in many ways. Sometimes for me it can be driving in the car on the way home from an errand after-dark while listening to more favorite music (The Lemonheads or The Strokes) with the windows down (this can be done in cold weather, too -- just crank up the heat), sharing a great big laugh with family and friends, being outdoors in the fall with the fire pit going, seeing a city lit-up at night, being near the ocean, smelling a nectarine, dancing, being silly with my boys, night-blogging with a glass of wine, and much more. Not so complicated or time-consuming but still wonderful. I will often pause to realize the moment and close my eyes, even for a second or two ... to be. in. it.

Okay, well the seltzer is poured so I'd better get working on my tutorial. Do you set-the stage to make activities enjoyable? Maybe you'll orchestrate some bliss for yourself today. {Hope so!}

xo
elyse

tinkered snow globe

Ever notice how the shiny over-sized twist-ties on heads of lettuce are the perfect shade of red? Perfect for wrapping around the lid of say, a canning jar that happens to have a small tree glued to its inside-center.

Which I then filled with salt, layered with sprinkles of glitter and added a few pearly beads to ...


















to create a tinkered version of a mason jar snow globe.

But wait! First I needed to try out a new trick I'd read about: mixing epsom salt with white wine until a mush is formed

which is then spread and patted-down on surfaces and allowed to dry to create a frosty effect

{which I am guessing is how this delightfully crusty vignette seen at Anthropologie came to be}.

Once "frost" has hardened, shake off any excess crystalized salt and display as desired.

Serving suggestions: Perhaps display on a cake pedestal alongside other salty-sweet projects like this one

and relax & enjoy!

xo
elyse

{Please note that these projects should not be eaten}

sequin revolution

Lately I find myself being drawn to sparkling, glittery things more than ever. I think it kicked-in to overdrive around Halloween, a time of year when I become {a bit} envious of today's little girls who have so many poufy princess costumes and sequin-everything (!) at their disposal. I might have tutu-envy or something.

As I fashion shiny skirts and tinseled boas for my clothespin dolls and hang twinkling lights to decorate, I think: Hey, I want some sparkle too!

Last year I was smitten with the ad above for Ann Taylor which showed a sequin skirted Demi Moore looking as if she were walking through a winter wonderland -- not quite ready to attend a fabulous party but perhaps on her way to one after running an errand or two. What a great idea: special clothing for everyday use. And this time sequins didn't look matronly -- sequins looked cool!

But I didn't want to spend much money on this sequins-around-town idea, especially if I didn't end up with the mojo to get bedazzled on say, a Tuesday afternoon.

Today while sauntering through TJ Maxx I spied this dress. At less than $30 it could be the perfect dare-I-say "foil" for my shiny-bright idea. The cashier asked if I bought it for a special occasion. Nope. I imagine wearing a bulky sweater or even a cardigan over the dress and pairing it with tights and boots.

Kathleen Kelly could get away with it, for sure ...

So, what do you think: Sequins at the supermarket? Taffeta at Target? Let's start a fancy-meets-workaday revolution.

Who's with me?!

xo
elyse

don't mess with the tinkering mojo

I'm supposed to be tidying-up and styling the Girlie Office for a photo shoot to promote my book but keep getting struck with tinkering mojo and making messes instead. {You can't refuse the mojo!}

I suppose that making messes and creating go hand in hand.

It all started when I was figuring out where to store some gathered acorn caps -- which turned into making a clothespin doll. And the thing about making clothespin dolls is that you can't make just one.

So, I made a few.

Then I made a few more.

Okay, then two more. I put away all of my supplies and then ...

felt like tinkering a bit more. Making things is so pleasurable!

Once the room was reassembled I began to think how it would be nice to have something on the blank wall. I searched around a bit online and offline but came up empty-handed and then somehow mysteriously ended up at Michaels where I purchased embroidery hoops and blank canvases (canvasi?).

I once saw the reverse of "canvasi" used as frames in a display at Anthropologie and decided to put my own spin on the idea so I painted the exposed pine, mounted decorative paper and attached two to a wide length of satin ribbon.

I also framed paper using the outer pieces of the embroidery hoops and attached the trio to the wall using masking tape (because I am way too fickle to commit to nails or screws).

Now, I just have to keep this room neat for a few more days until the photo shoot.

{FYI clothespin dolls, clothespins and even the decorative paper I use are included among the over 35 projects in Tinkered Treasures!}

xo
elyse