Safari Crafts
Hello! I tapped into my crafty side tonight and made these cute little magnetic pictures with ribbon border for my sis-in-law. I love the elephant picture. This was after she got out of the pool…and she decided that she wanted to splash around a bit more before moving on. Sooo cute!! And the giraffes coats were so beautiful — they almost looked fake! You can click on the pictures to make them enlarge a little bit.
Any hoo…I wanted to check in and let you know what I was up to today. Oh! And I started to sort out all the beautiful beads I recently bought and I made a really pretty bracelet. I just realized that I didn’t tell you about my shopping spree at Jo Ann’s the other day…oh my…well I know what I’m writing about tomorrow! And I’ll post some pictures of the beads too tomorrow. You girls better be saving your money! Because the Evitt & Co. shopping experience is going to start soon!!! 
New Evitt & Co. logos!
I finally have the newly edited logos for my new company - Evitt & Co. What do you think? Ooooh! I’m so excited! Now I just have to order the labels that will be sewed on the bags and then we are in business!
Welcome to my new blog!
Welcome to my new blog!! I’m so excited about it because it’s my first major milestone on the web! What do you think? Leave me a comment and let me know your thoughts. After considering using TypePad I ended up deciding to use WordPress thanks to my very smart hubbie’s recommendations. A BIG thank you to Josh for helping me with setting it up, customizing it, and being my all-around tech guru!
Oh my! It’s been quite awhile since I last sent you an update on my adventures. I’m sure you have been saying “Bueller…Bueller……Bueller“ (LOVE that movie!) I seriously can’t believe how long it’s been since I last wrote you. What have I been doing???…..hmmm…let’s see…gosh…lots of stuff!! Well let’s start where I last left you…
The last time I updated you, dear friends, I was going to Paducah, KY. Unfortunately that was a bit disappointing. 
What does 5 hours of driving and $14.95 + tax get you? A coffee mug. Yeah. That’s it. I was really hoping to make a bunch of contacts for shops to resale my items and check out some great fabric stores. To be fair, it’s a beautiful old town and it has tons of potential for being a really great town. The problem was that many of the shops were closed — not closed for the day — closed as in forever. Lots of empty stores does not make for a fun shopping day. We still had a good day but it was sad that we wasted so much time and gas. I wish that little town much luck in revitalizing itself.
The following week (July 9-13) I spent a lot of time researching blog sites, features, pros and cons, and looking at sites I admire to get ideas. I also spent a lot of time setting up my new office. It used to be a spare bedroom — now it’s my dedicated office and sewing/crafts room! Yahooooo! 
I still have a few things to spruce up. Once I get the finishing touches done then I’ll post some pictures. Also we went to the Nashville Zoo for the Safari Swizzle with my sis-in-law and future bro-in-law. I love elephants….so much that I often cry when I see them. They are such magnificent animals. Also we saw the new giraffes. They were adorable and we had such a great time. I highly encourage everyone to check out the special events at your local zoo. The event we attended was only $25 per person — included all you could eat food and drink, great music, and they had special presentations with the animals. The next Nashville zoo event is Mardi Grassmere at Alligator Cove on August 23rd.
Last week I spent most of my time trying to figure out all the things I needed to do in order to rename my company (purchase new domain names, get logo edited, abandon trademark for previous business name, etc…). That was a daunting task. Sooo many things left to do and figure out (change business license, setup LLC?, get new bank account, order new checks…ugh…etc.) Also I spent a lot of time reading. My very sweet and good friend Faye gave me a Martha Stewart business book for my birthday and it’s really good. The only problem with reading it it lead me to spending a lot of time pontificating. That’s a good thing…and then not such good thing. It lead me into a whirling mix of emotions and ideas - and ultimately overwhelmed and confused. Josh had to get me out of my tail-spin and get me focused again. Thanks Josh! Also last week I met a very nice person from California named Lindsay Landis. She just moved to Nashville and just happens to live very close to me. So we met for a lunch at one of my favorite spots, Panera Bread, and had a delightful conversation and shared our knowledge. Lindsay owns Lindsay Designs – she designs very cute dog and cat accessories. Check it out! Also, she is a graphic designer and designed her own website. She is looking for part time work in that area so if you know anyone in need of those services please let me know and I’ll help introduce them.
This week has involved continuing to hack away at my ridiculous to do list to get my company setup. I’m still waiting for the new logo. I’ve been reading a lot and trying to finalize my vision for the company. My stack of books to read is getting out of control! I think I have 5 or 6 in the queue…um, yeah…can I get paid to read full-time? And then of course the big accomplishment is this new site! Yahooooo!
Well back to coal mine, as they say. I hope you like the new site. And don’t forget to post a comment. (I know you might have forgotten after reading this NOVEL!) I’m very excited to keep you posted on my adventures and projects.
Wishing you a wonderful day!
Have you Seen These Tourists?
Josh and I were Nashville tourists today with Sharonda and her family. What started as an innocent Discover Nashville tour resulted in us becoming Grey Line’s Most Wanted….we ditched the regular tour and went for the back-stage tour of the Ryman Auditorium. Apparently the bus driver didn’t like the fact that we ditched them so he started to look for us. He even asked Sharonda and her family if they could identify us (they pretended like they didn’t know us)! But we were no where to be found — we were probably back-stage at the time. Ooops! Oh well. It makes for a good story and we got a good laugh out of it! 
Afterwards we went to the Tin Roof for lunch where I proceeded to throw all diet cautions to the wind and *stuffed* myself with a shrimp po’ boy sandwich and a cold libation. I felt a little guilty…but gosh it was good!!
Afterwards I came home and watched Marie Antoinette. That is such *beautiful* movie! If you haven’t seen it yet I highly recommend it. Sofia Coppola did such a wonderful job making history fun and funky with all the music and a well-written script. And the scenery of Versailles and costume designs are just amazing! Although I don’t envy Marie’s ultimate demise I found myself being very envious of her lifestyle…she was a TRUE DIVA! I would have loved to be a member of her entourage when picking out fabric for my next gown and matching shoes!!!!
The evening ended with me taking a good, brisk walk in my neighborhood and then I cleaned up my long list of blog subscriptions and now I’m writing this little update. After all, I had to do something productive for the business today! Otherwise the boss lady would reprimand me!
Day #4 of freedom = Good Times!!!
Tomorrow we are off to Paducah,
Happy 4th of July!!
Today is day # 3 my business adventure, Evitt & Co. I am very happy on this Independence Day because it’s my first week of FREEDOM!!!! I am THOUROUGHLY enjoying myself and wake up each day with great joy in my heart.
Bliggity-Bloggity-Boo!!! I wish I could wave my magic wand and *poof!* my blog is up and running. I setup a trial version with TypePad on Monday and I quickly realized that I know very little about blogging other than I like to read them and I’m interested in writing my own. Today I was reading a crafter’s blog and I came across a link to Andy Wibbels. He is a consultant and blog guru that helps small businesses build strong blogs to enhance their business. Good stuff! He has a Top 5 Blogging Blunders list that pointed out some things I had not even considered. Also he wrote a book titled Blog Wild! so I am going to add that to my heap of things to read. I’m glad I came across his website before I continued with setting up my blog.
Soon we are off to the gym for day #3 of working out. Yay me! (Sorry, but I must cheer myself because I absolutely can’t stand working out!!) I’m quite sore from the last couple of days of working out and we played tennis last night (which was really fun!). I’ve been eating really well and made sure I bought plenty of healthy snacks when I went shopping yesterday. So my Get Healthy goal is going well so far.
And then we are off to go tail gating and watch the fireworks downtown with my sister-in-law and her boyfriend. I wish everyone a very happy and safe 4th of July!!
Cary Grant is not a good workout buddy
Recap of day #1:
* Had a good morning of brainstorming and taking in all the emotions of my first day of freedom.
* Investigated blog tool TypePad and set up a trial site. Need to work on that further this week.
* Got a mini-pedicure — FABULOUS!
* Ate a healthy lunch. Then went to the gym and got a good work out (ouch! a little sore today!)
* Worked on my MySpace page for a little too long….that site is evil!
* Made home-made pizza and watched The Closer with Josh. LOVE THAT SHOW!
Summary: Pretty good day!
Day #2:
* Got up early and went to the gym with Josh this morning. Had an *okay* work out…I think I was still asleep! But what did I expect?! I was working out with a couple of old ladies and they had an old Cary Grant movie playing. The other tv was on VH-1…muted…so I read the lyrics to music…not so motivating. Note to self: Get iPod Shuffle setup with motivating music. Otherwise will risk another workout half-asleep.
* Cooked a yummy breakfast for Josh and I and talked about my new business name options over coffee. I’m pretty sure I’m going with Evitt & Company. It’s a classic name I can grow into no matter what I decide to sell, and Josh and I like the idea of using the family name.
* Talked to my Dad and friend Angie in Wisconsin for FAR too long this morning…unfortunately that ate into my peak time of energy…but it was nice to catch up with them. Note to self: don’t talk on the phone until afternoon — need to conserve peak time for myself and business.
* Finally took a shower and then ate a salad for lunch. Watched some DIY Network craft shows I previously recorded and then watched Behind the Story - Rachael Ray. LOVE HER!
* Did some Domestic Diva chores. Soooo much more to do on that topic….Question: Did you know that if you fire your house cleaner and don’t hire another one your house doesn’t magically clean itself?….Huh….Who knew!? Get out Notes To Self book and jot that one down…
* Current status: move on to more Domestic Diva chores: go clean out refrigerator, make a shopping list, and go to the grocery store. A diva’s work is never done!!
* Tonights’s plans: make a healthy dinner and then go play tennis with Ashlee (sis-in-law) and Matt (future bro-in-law). And then hopefully escape early to go to the Willoughby Station pool party to hang with my favorite Divas! (crossing-fingers)
Pink sunrise
It’s the first day of my new adventure of being an entrepreneur and I awoke to a pink sunrise*! It was gorgeous….inspirational! I’d like to think it’s a good sign. It was one of those nature moments where you feel connected to the universe…not just some insignificant speck crawling around on the earth’s surface. Okay, I know I’m starting to sound hokey…but please continue with me and I’ll try not to turn the hokey dial up to 10…Anyway, normally at 5:11am I would be shuffling along at a snail’s pace as I walk the dog because I am not a morning person. But not this morning! I was trying to get outside as quickly as possible! It was such a beautiful morning – not hot and muggy like a typical southern morning – it was cool and crisp. The sunrise colors continued to evolve into a blush (and bashful!) color as the sun continued on its path to wake up this side of the world. As I walked along I couldn’t help but smile. I was so thankful to get up and experience that moment and breathe in life.
Later, as I was sitting on the deck, still smiling at the sky, I started to think of my Aunt Susan**. I often think of her if it’s early in the morning and I’m the only one awake - it’s odd, but usually I can almost feel her with me. Generally Susan was up at the crack of dawn making coffee and puttering around the house. Again, I’m not a morning person so I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why someone would get up so incredibly early…insanity!…it made no sense! But now I understand. As I sat there enjoying the morning I realized that the only voice I heard was my own. There were no distractions from other people talking, or the television, or just the sound of the bustle of busy life. I started to hear all the little ideas that were in my head. It’s like they are shy and like to speak in a meek voice – and if it’s too loud around me then I can’t hear them. For example, as I sat there enjoying the sunrise I began to think of how I wish I was on the beach…and then I began to think how a neat the phrase “pink sunrise” is…and then I thought that would be a PERFECT name for my little gift shop that I dream of owning on a beach one day…and so on and so forth. And that’s when I realized why Susan liked to get up so early. That was *her* time. No interruptions – just her thoughts, dreams, and new ideas.
So my aha! moment made me realize how important it is to find *Quietville* so I can hear my inner-voice speaking. I know this is where my peace, creativity, new ideas and instincts reside. And I know that in order for my business to be a success I must listen to my inner-voice. Now I just need to remember to bring a notebook so I can write all those little thoughts down before I forget them…So good morning world! And good morning to my first day of being an entrepreneur! And, of course, good morning to you! Be sure to find a quiet moment for yourself.
* I wish I had taken a picture of the sunrise but I was in such a rush to go outside that I didn’t think to grab my camera. But to help you enjoy the thought here is a link to a site that has some beautiful pink sunrise pictures. Enjoy!
** Susan was a very special person in my life and unfortunately passed away a few years ago. She was an incredible seamstress. Susan is the inspiration to my sewing/creative side that I am now fully embracing in my next career path. I wish she was here we could chase our dreams together.