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I'm headed out for our long over-due family summer vacation down in Seagrove Beach, Florida. Till I get back September 7th, here is a sneak peek a lovely invitation for a Fall bride AND some *gorgeous* dahlias from my very own backyard to tide you over. See you in September!
My friend Jessica Bishop is not only an amazing and talented graphic designer, but she is also a rockstar stylist for Stella & Dot. If you aren't familiar with Stella & Dot jewelry - you should be! I love their designs and quality -- but I have to admit one of the best parts for me is their *amazing* brand packaging they send your piece in. I had a very hard time throwing the paper/box/tissue away, because it really is that good looking!
If you're local to Nashville, stop by StudioWed Nashville over in Edgehill Village (1200 Villa Place | Apt. 402 | Nashville, TN 37212) this Thursday evening to see the new Fall collection and say hello to the both of us! (nice, sweet, respectable, jewelry loving women welcome / creepy internet stalkers need not show up thank you...)
If you're not local, you can browse online here: http://www.stelladot.com/sites/budgetsavvybride/
I already have a half dozen ideas for Christmas gifts in mind for some of my friends...yes folks, my goal is to actually get started early this year...
If you do end up buying something you love, be sure to add 'Studio Wed' as the name of the party hostess so I can get credit for telling you how awesome this stuff is!
I'm really excited about sharing my experience at The Stationery Academy in the most authentic way. It ended up slightly long and slightly even more excited/emotional/honest and used the word 'amazing' too many times for some people than I had originally intended. But here goes...
Last week I spent an amazing 4 days on the beaches of Pensacola, not soaking up the sun, but instead laying out the foundation for a new and improved version of my business at The Stationery Academy.
Founded by Whitney English Kolb and Emily Ley, who are two amazing women with awesome brands in the marketplace, their purpose for the academy was to share tried and true stationery business strategies, so we can in turn build our own strong stationery brands. Lara Casey, was also on hand to share her branding expertise and is one person who always continues to inspire me to no end!
View from room 612
I sincerely believe that EVERYTHING happens for a reason and is part of a bigger plan, right down to all of the smart and talented attendees that made up the inaugural 'Class of 2011'. You would have thought we'd known each other for years from the hugs when we parted ways on the last day. Each day the entire room was FULL of ideas from such inspiring, creative women. From our workshop sessions, to the conversations at dinner, I walked away feeling that each of these women were so set to make amazing things happen for themselves. And I'm so, so, lucky to now call each one of them friends!
Credit: Meg Baisden Photography (www.megphoto.com)
Another piece of my heart now also resides with my four roommates, Courtney, Ashlee and Amber. We all randomly decided to be roommates and it turned out to be like a summer camp sleepover every single day. We laughed, we cried, we shared, we inspired each other and are now holding each other accountable for a lot of big things in our life as we parted ways. Amber and I are back-in-our-college-days sorority girls and we decided that this 'university' needed one was well…Phi Omega Nu Tau…I'm President and she's the Social Chair and well, that's another story we'll pick up another day...{insert lots of giggles here} ;)
Credit: Meg Baisden Photography (www.megphoto.com)
Some big takeaways and realizations were made at The Stationery Academy for my business:
Over the last couple of years as I've built up my business, I've produced some amazing work that makes my heart smile in the largest possible way. But then there are other times where I just sort of 'liked' what I was doing and was just happy enough with getting paid to do something I was good at.
I know now that I want my clients to come to me because they want a piece of the Amber Housley style, not just Amber's spin on your own personal style. Is that going to limit me in some ways? Maybe. My sweet, girly, Southern, smart, sorority girl lifestyle is not for everyone. Will I encounter amazing people who will appreciate and love everything I have to offer them and in turn I absolutely LOVE every piece I produce? You bet!
I left feeling so at peace with how everything is going in my life and for this business. Sure, there are lists and 'download' pages a mile long, but for once my priority and sight isn't on the finish line. Instead, I realized that if I put my heart and all my hard work into everything I'm working on now, that finish line is going to happen. I have no doubt in that now. It's an amazing feeling knowing that. And in turn, makes all these things I'm working on now, unbelievably fun! I'm going to enjoy this journey and soak up every twist and turn in the road and just see where it takes me.
We made a "crazy list" of some of our biggest dreams and goals. It's pretty thrilling to see them down on paper. So much so that I'm sharing some of them here. I can't wait to come back in 10 or so years and see how many of them I've accomplished!
Some of the 'crazy list'....
1. Work 4 days a week. I would love 1 day a week to have the stay-at-home Mom experience.
2. Build a company that I can pass down to my family.
3. Have my own lifestyle products sold in an amazing store like Anthropologie
4. Have my own lifestyle TV show (side note on this - I originally said "be a guest on a national TV show" and everyone in the room laughed, challenging me to instead to dream bigger and have my own TV show)
5. Be paid to speak at a conference
6. Exhibit at a tradeshow like NSS or a Gift fair
7. Building an amazing home studio that is featured in a magazine
8. Tour Europe, return to the Spanish city I studied abroad in college
9. Add a philanthropy piece to my business
10. Show my children and family that any dream is possible
Stationery Academy's adorable 'swag', enjoying some welcome cocktails with new friends.
At one point during the conference, Whitney turned to me and asked point blank, "what's your definition of success?" And I honestly couldn't answer on the spot. Even now, I don't think I can sum that up in one sentence. I think that if I've accomplished some of the crazy list, and have lived a life that is summed up in one of my favorite quotes, than I have reached success.
Here is that quote wrapped up in a pretty little package that I've designed. You can download and save it, print it, pin it, make it your computer desktop, whatever! Maybe it will inspire you to keep on making BIG things happen!
When Casey and Josh came to me to design their Nashville wedding invitations, they wanted something fun and colorful BUT in a very elegant tone. We definitely achieved that goal with their gorgeous Navy & Apple Green wedding invitation suite! The navy paisley added both a bit of whimsy and elegance for their October wedding.
Their Save the Date featured a photo from their engagement session with the always wonderful Jonathan Campbell Photography. The tea length style and bright apple green envelope definitely stood out in the guests' mailbox.
Here are a few peeks at the full invitation suite and their stunning wedding Nashville’s Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, followed by a reception at the Nashville City Club.
You can view more photos and details on Jonathon Campbell Photography blog here: http://blog.jonathoncampbell.com/2011/07/01/nashville-wedding-photographers-casey-josh/
My friend Rebecca recently reached out to me to design a custom invitation design for her friend Jessica's upcoming Baby Shower. Jessica is an artist and had made a replica of this amazing crib for her daughter's nursery, so it only seemed fitting that I design something fit for a princess!
This pink and purple invitation is printed front and back on a shimmery white cardstock. The first thing guests see when they pull out the invite is their "summon" to this elegant shower. Finishing off the invite is a coordinating envelope and custom guest label wrap. This suite is available in my Etsy shop now for $3.50 per set with a minimum order of 20. The best part is all you have to do is drop them in the mail when you receive them since I do all the addressing for you!
Here are a few detail images of this beautiful suite that could easily be customized for a princess birthday party invitation!
I also created this decoration inspiration board for some details that you could execute for your party. So many lovely things you can do with this theme! If you visit the inspiration board on my Pinterest page, you can see many more ideas and the source links for all of these images: http://pinterest.com/amberhousley/princess-party/
I get asked A LOT of the time, "how in the world do you do it all? How do you work, run a business and find time to bake pies???"....
Years ago, I would have loved to have planted down in front of the TV to veg out every free chance I'd get (hello Bachelor and reality TV!). But for now, when I have little windows of opportunity, I sieze them! Cooking is something that actually relaxes me, and I love it when I get the chance to whip something up. It gets me away from the computer, and I love the tactile experience of cutting things, mixing, stiring and of course, tasting! Throw in a good glass of wine into the mix and I'll really enjoy the whole "time out" from my normal every day.
However, baking on the other hand, is a little more tricky for me. They say you're either a cook (which allows for more creativity on throwing in a little of this or that) or a baker (which means you follow instructions to the tee), and I definitely lean toward the cook side. My oven is also extremely hot which makes any recipe something you have to watch constantly for the last 20 minutes. All of this together makes for a not so "relaxing" experience, but I push forward anyway! I like a good challenge in the kitchen.
In my baking reportoire, I *rule* (seriously, I do) in the apple pie department. This recipe has been my gold star in my baking book: Apple Pie by Grandma Ople. But I decided a few weeks ago it was time to try something new. Peaches have been featured in all my magazines lately, so I came home with a bag full of ripe peaches only to be balked at by my sweet (and sometimes finicky) hubby who doesn't like his "peaches warm..."
On to plan B: blueberries! I send hubby to the store to pick up 3 more cups of blueberries and he comes home with FIVE PINTS.
We ate a lot of blueberries that week...
I ended up using this recipe: Blueberry Pie and even though it didn't "set" as much as I'd like to and I would have gone a little more easy on the sugar and nutmeg suggested additions, hubby said after he licked his bowl clean, "THIS IS THE BEST DESSERT YOU HAVE EVER MADE. DON'T EVER CHANGE A THING."
I think I earned another gold star for this pie!
Fuzzy iPhone photo:
