a new year, a new chapter

a quote by an Unknown Author:

"Keep the smile,
Leave the tear,
Hold the laugh,
Leave the pain,
Think of joy,
Forget the fear,
Be joyous, because it's a new year!"

the new year is upon us and a new chapter in my life is about to begin. i'm filled with joy, excitement and great anticipation of how the story will unfold.  along with the boxes i'm packing up and moving to my new place, i have new hopes and dreams that come along with them.

so tonight when midnight strikes, i will raise my glass, toast the new year and all the new hopes and dreams we bring along with us.

holiday cheers

cheers to you and yours this Holiday Season and to a New Year of endless possibilities!

custom notecards

alex originally found me on Etsy and was drawn to the simplicity of my notecard designs.  she thought custom notecards would make great gifts for her co-workers, friends & family this holiday season.  for her co-workers, she thought it would be nice to include the logo of the organization they work for, 10x10.  here is how her notecard sets turned out. (as a little surprise, i included a set for alex.  it's only fair that she have her own custom notecards to send out as well.)

each set, like all my notecards, comes packaged with a simple elegant black ribbon.

alex works for an amazing organization called 10x10. it's a global movement for girls' education - a film and social action campaign. people working together to change girls' lives. at 10x10, they believe that educating girls breaks the cycle of poverty and changes the world.  to read and learn more about this organization, please visit 10x10act.org.

royal-tee

had to share a pic of this adorable simplewear custom request order i recently received. little brother onesie and big sister t-shirt set.

walking in a winter wonderland

fun stuff has been brewing over at Chlo+E.  they did several holiday drink tables this month, for baby2baby, splendid and danskin.  it was all about a winter wonderland theme.  and what better way to warm up then with hot chocolate and sweet treats!  here's a few pics of the different table spreads.  it's always fun being able to add a little bit of my design into the details of their table, with buffet/drink tags, plate liners and stickers.

*all photos courtesy of Chlo+E

Doesn't Chlo+E's table spreads make you want to have a party every day of the year?

counting my blessings

a quote by Barry Neil Kaufman:

"Gratitude is one of the sweet shortcuts of finding peace of mind and happiness inside.  No matter what is going on outside of us, there's always something we could be grateful for."

as i turn thirty-two today, i am filled with so much gratitude...

grateful for all my amazing friends and incredible family that remind me not just today, but everyday, how truly blessed i really am.

a few things that made today extra special...

silhouPETte

*image courtesy of silhouPETte

jessica, from SilhouPETte, creates these original and very special pieces of artwork of your pet's silhouette with a vintage feel.  you can read more about her story and process here.  if you or someone you know is a pet lover, you'll enjoy the time and attention she puts into each piece, leaving you with a silhouette image of your pet that you will cherish forever.

jessica contacted me about a packaging idea for her SilhouePETte jewelry line.  she pretty much knew what she wanted, the problem was she didn't quite know where to go and also didn't quite have the time to do the product research herself.  so here is where i come in.  :)  jessica wanted to imprint her logo onto little jewelry pouches and have it all fit into a little box.  although this method of printing was a first for me, i knew that i'd be able to help jessica achieve the look and feel she was after.  

after researching the product and printing methods, the final piece ended up being a soft beige drawstring pouch with her logo printed in gold foil.  each pouch will be packaged nicely in a brown kraft box, ready for gift giving.

make sure to check out silhouPETte.com to learn more about jessica and all the wonderful gifts & accessories she has to offer.  (great gift ideas for the holidays!)

time to slow down...

a quote by Soren Kierkegaard:

"Most people rush after pleasure so fast that they rush past it."

winter wonderland

my nephew is obsessed with penguins right now. not sure how or why, but for halloween he wanted to be a penguin and for his 5th birthday party, when my sister asked him what kind of party he wanted, he said, "PENGUINS!" so there you have it.  the inspiration to my latest invitation design...  a winter wonderland themed birthday party, complete with a little party penguin.

basic white envelopes are always fun to dress up with envelope icings and sticker seals!

black friday thru cyber monday SPECIALS

in a card notecard special on Etsy... buy one, get one FREE!

a $20 value for only $10!

these notecards make a great little gift for others as well as yourself. what better way to say thank you or a simple hello then with a handwritten note.

choose from 4 suggested sets or mix 'n match and pick any 2 designs from the following:

the rose collection

 - smells like roses

 - a rose is a rose

the convo collection

 - convo me

 - the original email

the royalty collection

 - your highness

 - fleur de lis

the thank you collection

 - thank you

 - thank you curls

FREE SHIPPING on all domestic simplewear Etsy orders from now until cyber monday!

visit simplewear.etsy.com from now until 11/28/11 and just use coupon code: FREESHIP11 during checkout.

enjoy & happy shopping!!!

with love & gratitude...

this is what i will be thankful for today and everyday throughout this holiday season...

thank you for the food before us,
the friends & family beside us,
and the love between us.

happy thanksgiving!

little lady invite goes 3-d

i recently merged 2 invitation ideas into 1. i took the idea of my ladybug invitation i did last year and my little lady invitation and created this sweet little lady 3-d invitation.  each invitation was embellished with a medium sized wooden painted ladybug.

it's a great compromise for those that don't want to spend too much on invitations, but still want that little touch of unique.

interested in a special order of these 3d little lady invitations?  email me for more info.

i heart onesies

i recently created a custom onesie design for my yoga instructor mary beth, aka MB.  (make sure to check out mb's website and blog.  she's just an all around awesome person and every week i look forward to her yoga class at the studio surya yoga.)  

this design is an ode to the i heart ny tees that are so well known.

this design inspired me to create 2 new designs for my simplewear Etsy shop...

"i heart mom" by simplewear on Etsy

"i heart dad" by simplewear on Etsy

it's all in the details!

happy 1st day of november!  hope everyone had a fun halloween weekend!

my friends and i did a fun group costume over the weekend.  it started with the idea of 2 girls as boxers and the guys as our trainers. at the last minute 1 of the trainers decided to be don king 'cause every good fight needs a good promoter!  :)  our costumes were a big hit with everyone that night.  even the security guy outside the bar got a great kick out of our costumes.  i always enjoy making halloween costumes my own and i feel like everything else in life, it's always the little details that matter the most.  so what were the details we put into our costumes?

take a look and see for yourself...

he wasn't just any kind of trainer...

he was a boxing trainer!

i wasn't just any boxer... i was "hit girl!"

with a pillow in his belly, gold chains around his neck, an american flag in one hand and "hit girl" by his side, everyone was shouting out don king's famous words, "only in america!" at us all night long.

i think this group costume was a TKO!

hopefully this fun costume idea inspires you for next year's halloween and don't forget, it's all in the details!

up, up, and away...

those that know me, or know my blog, know how important thank you notes are to me. both sending them and receiving them. whether you write a novel expressing your gratitude or simply write those two gracious words, THANK YOU, it's always wonderful to read.

there are always fun ways to send thank you notes.  a postcard style thank you is more casual and informal, but if it fits your theme and saves you time from writing a novel to each guest, then i say, why not? an added bonus, it saves you some money on postage too!

here is a thank you postcard i created for zac's mom to send out after his 1st birthday party. party theme was from the disney movie, Up, if you couldn't tell.

cash, check or charge?

happy to announce that "in a card" now accepts credit card payments! thanks to a nifty device and app, called square...

perfect timing, considering the holidays are just around the corner! guess it's time to start thinking of holiday cards and gift ideas... 

my #1 favorite gift idea?  NOTECARDS!  they are always nice to have around and way more personal than an email.  and who doesn't like receiving something else in their mailbox other than bills and junkmail?!?!

i'm sure you'll be able to find a design for everyone on your holiday list this year.

for the family next door...

"bold moves" by inacard on Etsy

for the newlywed...

"ampersand" by inacard on Etsy

for the working professional...

"on a personal note" by inacard on Etsy

for the simply chic girlfriend...

"in between" by inacard on Etsy

for the manfriend...

"just my type" by inacard on Etsy

for the kid (or the kid at heart)...

"color me first name" by inacard on Etsy

more designs available at the Etsy shop, so check it out when you get a chance. 

cheers and happy shoppping!