vacation

I decided to completely unplug while on vacation this year, and even include a day before and a few days after our actual trip to just relax and spend time with my family. We're leaving on Sunday morning for a 4-day family vacation, but I decided to "close shop" for 8 days altogether.

As I was posting my vacation notice on my website, putting my Etsy shop in "vacation mode", and setting up an auto-responder for my email, I felt like Mark Harmon in the opening scene of Summer School trying to get away from my computer before any more orders came in (my husband didn't get the reference, but I know someone will!)

A couple of weeks ago as we were planning this vacation I wasn't sure how many days I'd take off or if I'd be able to completely unplug, but as it's gotten closer I've started to really look forward to taking a break from work and hopefully coming back refreshed and energized and ready to make some decisions about the next steps for my business.

For now I actually have other things on my mind for once... bike rides, swimming, ice cream shops, boating, board games, a stack of magazines, a couple of books, and a glass of wine on the balcony after the kids are in bed.

{new!} In-Touch Clutch (tm)

How cute are these??? They're called the In-Touch Clutch (tm), and I just added them to my website in three different fabrics.
The idea is you fill it up with cards, stamps, and a pen, toss it in your purse before you head out the door, and then pull it out to catch up on your correspondence whenever you find yourself waiting (on the train, before an appointment, during your child's soccer practice...)I also think they'd make a super cute gift with some personalized stationery. I really hope these sell as well as I think they will. They're handmade by a woman named Jennifer who has an Etsy shop where she also sells wristlets and iPhone / iPod pouches... so clever!

{new!} fabric calling card cases

I'm so excited about these new handmade calling card cases I added to my shop today! I think they'll be a really nice addition for a set of calling cards purchased as a gift. Also, I've been wanting to add some non-personalized items to my shop, and I think these are the perfect item to start with.
Once again I'm amazed at what a difference an interesting background makes instead of just a plain white background. My tabletop lights are great for capturing details and accurately representing the fabric colors, but I love taking product photographs outdoors whenever possible.

new product photographs - personalized canvas prints

Amber's canvas print (from last week's giveaway) was ready to pick up from the printer today, so I took a quick picture (above) before shipping it to her, along with the one I ordered for my daughter (below).
I'd like to buy some much bigger lights for taking this type of product photograph, so I was pleasantly surprised with how well these turned out - much better than I expected using just the table-top lights from my light tent kit.