Pretty Pear Designs

Hello, Hello

Hello!  I feel like I owe my blog an apology ( again ).  I have strayed away and found a forum that has enabled me to share ti-bits of my life and what I do in a quick and very, very easy way.  I have not blogged because I have been busy tweeting away on twitter.  Yup, I love twitter which has made you ( my blog) sit on the back burner for a while.

However, with spring here and new things going on both professionally and personally I would like to be your friend again.  I have things to share and pictures to take.  I have been busy with lots of family stuff and feel as if I have spent this past never ending winter sitting in Dr.'s offices with various members of my family.  It was a long, long winter here in Wisconsin.  I had been working on new ideas and new items for my shop, but most of my focus has been on family. 

In regards to family, we are like many families out there dealing with the stress of these economic times.  We have successfully made it through 4 rounds of layoffs at my husbands work.  The stress of each round is huge and is always a huge wake up call of reality.  Still employed so that is good.  We have gone through medical issues and testing and finally diagnoses with my husband and daughter.  Both simultaneously, so it seemed like an additional never ending stress.  Very fortunate we have our answers and thank goodness nothing very serious with either one.  As wife and mom you hold it together for everyone and then at times have your quiet freak-out moments.  Very happy to be able to get outside again, enjoy the fresh air, go for walks with kids and dogs and bask in all that I am grateful for.

Now for Pretty Pear Designs, I have stepped back a bit and really tried to evaluate what I have been putting out there.  As you all know I love what I do and I love making fabric cards.  With the economy the way that is I realize that people are making cuts in their budgets and scaling back on items.  To adjust to that I wanted to add more variety of price points to my collections.  I have added smaller sets of note cards, variety pack of sizes, adorable gift tags and bookmarks.  My mind is always playing with different ideas and adds to my sleep deprivation.

I am so looking forward to doing the Elkhart Lake Farmer's Market again this summer.  It is just a wonderful place to spend your Saturday mornings.  I cannot wait to unveil all these new items there.

In the mean time please visit my newly designed website prettypeardesigns.com  and my Etsy shop prettypeardesigns.etsy.com  to see what is new.

Even though I am loving twitter I will try not to neglect this blog so much - fresh air, fresh designs, and a new beginning!

Raising Daughters

 

I love this picture.  I took it last year, thinking it just captured such an innocent moment of my girls.  I had just planted this garden and they had been running around and playing.  They were taking a break and eating an ice-pop on the rock.  Just sitting side by side enjoying the melting ice-pop, the wind, the outdoors and each other....ahh, lifee is good.

I love having daughters, they are silly and fun.  Girly yet tomboy, so sweet.  I spend a lot of time thinking about them and what is to come.  My poor husband, he has no idea what this house will be like in a few more years.  Moods flying, tempers flaring, doors slamming, all over a pair of jeans that just won't fit them the right way.  I know it is coming.  My girls are 27 months apart, just about the same age difference as my sister and me, so I know.

No matter what success I may achieve in life, nothing will trump how important it is to me to raise some fabulous women.  I think that as moms this not becoming harder to do, but something that will be a bit more challenging and in this very fast paced society, will actually take more time to do. 

My husband, is not a guy who embraces technology and likes to make a hard stand "my daughters will not be living on their cell phones"  I chuckle because, there are things that will just be inevitable, can't slow down technology and I do not even argue with him on that one because by the time they are teenagers for all we know they will ditch their life line of text-messaging and will just be able to beam themselves into their friends or yikes...boyfriends homes.  Hey if CNN can do it, the technology it is just around the corner.

I am still at the early stages of raising girls, they are only 3 and 5 years old.  But ask them what makes them beautiful and they say your heart.  One day I was driving in the car talking to my 5 year old.  I said "Emily, who will always be with you no matter what?", she said "you mommy".  It was a little bit hard for me to answer her on this because you don't want to freak them out in anyway, but I said "well, I will always love you and am there for you, but the one person who is ALWAYS with you is you".  She did not get it at first but I explained to her that you should always be your own friend, like yourself, because in good times and in bad the one constant is you (did not word it that complex for a 5 year old), but she understood and thinks about it.

There is so much that is going to be thrown at our kids, they will grow and control will loosen as their independence takes shape.  I know that it will be hard for me.  The best that I can hope for is to provide my girls with a sense of sound judgment, with enough of my faint voice in their heads as they get older to stop and think about what they are doing for 1 second.   I know it will not always work, it did not work for me all the time.  I marched to my own drummer and 17 is 17 years old, you are not always going to make the wisest of choices.

So, raising girls, what a treat.  From rainbows, to fairies, to mud-pies, through total drama of the smallest thing, to utter meltdowns, to raising a girl who becomes a women and says thank you mom.  It is what I have done to my mom, I got what she did for me and what she taught me and I am blessed to be able to pass that on....that is life!

BLOG , WAKE-UP BLOG!

 

My poor snoozing blog.  This darn cold winter has put you to sleep, and has left you unable to think of something fun and Witty to type about.  Why?

Honestly there is no good reason why this wonderful blog has been so neglected as of late.  I have been busy and that is good and that is bad.  Good busy with items listed in my shop, and a wonderful custom order.  Bad busy, with the winter crud that seems to play a vicious cycle in this house of mine.  I think that by the end of this winter there should be a reserved parking spot for me at the Doctor's office right next to the doctor's reserved spot - seriously!

I have been fortunate enough to have been featured in some wonderful blogs such as TheDowntownBoutique and some great sites like www.MomCentral.  and
http://www.derinaud.com/chicweddingstyle.html#stationery .  These have all been great sites that I was honored to be a part of.

If you have a moment please stop by my Etsy shop where I have a special offer going on right now!

Finally a little bit of Spring Fever

Because it has been a ridiculously cold winter here in Wisconsin, and because I just returned from a week vacation in Florida and it was cold down there too, I finally had a day that was draped in warmth and that feeling of Spring Fever in the air.  My family and I spent the day frolicking in the melting snow, enjoyed the blue skies and soaked up every ounce of warmth.

Of course the first hint of seeing grass and the potential for anything to grow makes me think of my gardens.  I cannot wait to start planting again! However, since it is only February 8t I am well aware that this is a giant tease, and that cold air will be here very soon, and a few more snow storms will be knocking on our door.

Since it is too soon to garden, it is not to soon to enjoy pretty floral fabrics and lovely stationery.  So, I felt like posting some pictures.  They make me happy and I hope it does the same for you.

 

 

 

 

 

Wacky Wednesday Questions

This week I am going to answer 2 questions - Hope you are having fun with this, please feel free to send a comment and let me know.

 

First question is from Itsy Bitsy Bracelets Itsy Bitsy Girly Things (Etsy shop) & thecutestshopsonline.blogspot.com

 

1. What is the craziest thing you have ever sold or bought?

Not sure if this is crazy, but I was so surprised by how well it sold.  Since I absolutely love all the fabrics that I use, I have a very hard time parting with it.  I keep all my scraps.  In my head I am always thinking that something could be made with them.  So two summers ago I thought I would play around with making rag balls, just for fun.  I made a handful of them and set them out for display at my booth at our local farmers market.  I was absolutely shocked how fast they sold - and they were not intended for sale, but people kept asking how much?  What surprised me the most, was that most people bought them for toys for their cats.

Having a hard time thinking of the craziest thing I have ever bought.  I had to buy Elk urine spray ( cringe as I type this), it is the scent of Elk urine that my husband uses when he goes Elk hunting, and I actually had to go into a store and buy it for me.  I prefer my Clinque Happy over that!

 

Second question is from SarahElinor.etsy.com

 

2. What's your favorite city in the US and why? And, do you have a least favorite city and why?

I would have to say that New York City is my favorite city in the United States.  I grew up  right outside of there and that is where so many of my childhood memories are from.  There is just nothing that compares to the energy and culture and diversity of New York.  Ever since I was a little a girl the Metropolitan Museum of Art has always been one of my most favorite places.  Once you spend time in New York it is hard to compare other cities to it - Although now that I live in the Midwest, I think Chicago is pretty cool too.

I do not think that I have a least favorite city.  I live in the country now and have spent much of my adult life in the mountains of Colorado.  I really appreciate the variety that so many different cities in this country have to offer.

New Studio Space

I could not be any happier right now.  I finally completed my much needed studio space.  I am so grateful for my husband and the his friends who helped him with "my project".  Let me tell you it is not an easy task trying to convince a man to tear down old barn wood from walls ( and I only won this in 1/2 of the basement).

I am quite pleased with how it turned out, and am in awe of all this new storage space that I have. Thanks to my resourceful husband all of the cabinetry and even the slat boards were FREE!  Thank you to all who wanted to get rid of the stuff and just needed my husband to lend a hand - it is wonderful!

I am also quite impressed with this old house farmhouse.  It is truly amazing to get a space like this in such an old basement.  One of the reasons why we bought this property was it had high ceilings throughout, even the basement.  Most old homes like this have small cramped spaces, that are damp and well just yucky, but this basement has always been dry and actually very pleasant.

So, here are my pictures.

 

The mudding (used to be all old barn wood)

 

Starting to prime

 

Starting to set up the cabinets

 

Beginning of setting up

 

Ribbon station

 

Trying to make the space "pretty"

 

More work areas

I am sure with time lots of tweaks will be made and it will not always look this neat & organized.  It is fun to look back where I started.  My first cards were made on the dinning room table, slowly I took over one closet in our office.  Space and organization are always a challenge, and I am so grateful for the opportunity and help in creating this space.

Next up - the old house or one of our barns!!!!!!!!

My first Giveaway!

Ok, got to start somewhere, and will probably learn more as I go, but I successfully did my first giveaway - yeah!  Fun to do and I loved hearing from everyone.  I will certainly do more in the future and have lots of great things to giveaway.

So with the help of my daughter who picked the name out of a parka hat ( since it is freezing here ) my first winner is...... Jyl of mommygossip.blogspot.com  please if you have a chance go check out her blog it is lots of fun!

 

One year Anniversary on Etsy - First Blog Giveaway

Today is my one year Anniversary on Etsy.  What a year it has been, full of lots of learning experiences and growth.

Trying to spice up my blog here (can you tell).  So, in honor of this 1st year on Etsy I will do a giveaway.  All you need to do is leave a comment and I will draw your name out of a hat on Saturday and post who wins and send you this lovely item.

 

I am giving away this cute mini fabric gift cards.  Set of 8 in the bundle.  These are great little cards to put on a gift or just stick it where ever you would like.  On the back if each card is a peel and stick tab.  No envelopes, no hassels.

 

 

Wacky Wednesday Questions

 

? 

Since I have been spending so much time online meeting lots of new people, so in my super coffe filled day today I decided that it would be fun to have a Wacky Wednesday Question ( name subject to change if it seems to be really lame).

What better way to get to know me more and have fun promoting other wonderful blogs and Etsy shops then have you ask me whatever is on your mind.  I thought as long as it was appropriate and fun I would do this every week.

Questions do not have to be stationery or business related, and unless it is completely inapproiate, I am open to answering them.

Got some great questions to start with so here I go.........

First question is from Bitter Sweet Design Studio bittersweetdesign.etsy.com

 

 1.  "Why stationery - have you always loved paper - or writing or both?"

My answer is surprising to me.  I have never really thought of myself as huge paper person.  I am not a collector of stationery, never scrapbooked.  However, as a kid I loved going into stationery stores and picking out the stationery that I would have to use all summer long at camp to write letters.  Letters to home and friends was the only form of communication for me for 8 weeks while I was at camp.  New stationery, pens, and crayons was always so exciting to me.  As an adult I lost that somewhere, but have found it again :)

Maybe it is the child in me that lead me to start my own line of stationery.  Also, as an adult and as a mother I had things I wanted to say and share with loved ones.  With a strong desire to create something, and loving all my fabrics, I made my first card.

Second question was the same from 2 different shops

Elevenish elevenish.etsy.com & elevenishshop.blogspot.com

Be Jeweled by Candi BeJeweledByCandi.etsy.com

     2.  How did I come up with my name?

Anytime I have requested any type of graphic work done the very first thing that has been designed into my logo are pears.  As you can tell by looking at all of my graphics, I have no pears anywhere.

So, why Pretty Pear Designs?  I wanted the word pretty because the one element of all my stationery that I wanted to be consistent was the feeling of pretty.  If even for a quick glance I wanted the first reaction to be  - oh that's pretty.  Pear - hear is the exciting truth behind that.  While trying to brainstorm one night with my husband beyond the word Pretty, I realized that if you mixed up the names in our family it spells out Pear.

Peter - husband, Emily - daughter, Amy - me, Rebecca - daughter    :)

I added the Designs because I wanted to give myself room for growth and creative developement.

 

Third question is from Monkey Baby Creations avidhunter3.etsy.com

3. You know the expression "I am still half asleep"?
Why do we not say " I am only half awake"? Most of the time when we say that, we are trying to wake up, not go to sleep right?

Ok here I go on this one....I think that we say "I am still half asleep" so that when we spontaneously drop our head in our bowl of cereal,start to drool a bit of our coffee, and make horrible typo's when chatting in Etsy forums we are secretly shouting out to the world that we desperately want to crawl back under the covers, pull our comfy blankets over our heads and return back to the dream where the one who crushed your heart in high school, returns begging for your forgiveness in a tropical resort, while serving you a refreshing margarita!

Hope I answered that correctly :)

 

Fourth questions was asked from a few of you so I will link to all your shops and blogs.

Robyn's Art  robynsart.etsy.com & robynsart.blogspot.com

Betty Mae Artistry bmae514.etsy.com  & bettymaeartistry.blogspot.com

Bright  brightshop.etsy.com & brightcaroline.blogspot.com

4. What is my style and inspiration?

Alright....Inspiration started with my mom.  After the birth of my first daughter, my mom would send me little gifts.  She would always say just a little something to make you feel pretty, because honestly feeling pretty was a very far removed feeling for me then.  I also made my very first card to her.  I found fabric that I had that I knew she would think was pretty and I wrote in the card my thanks and love that I had for her.

Also for inspiration I am constantly in awe of different fabrics.  The tactile quality of them but most all I am inspired by what makes my eyes happy.  When I see a fabric that I love I am itching to make a card with it. 

I am also inspired by the mistakes that I make.  So many times I am playing around and my intention is one thing, then something goes wrong and it sets off a chain of events in a whole other direction.

My style I think is tied into my inspiration.  I love flowers and gardens.  I love being outdoors, and I love soft colors ( although secretly boldness is starting to come out ).  I am more cottage chic then modern.  My favorite things have a history to it, so I am inspired by weathered and worn, country and elegant.

 

Fifth and last question is from is from Wirefox wirefox.etsy.com &  joltdelmorte.blogspot.com

5.What is your forecast for the economy after the inauguration and what effects might this have on etsy sales?

Big deep breath......My forecast for the economy after the inauguration is that for the most part I think things are going to stay the same or get worse for a while.  There maybe a slight boost because times they are a changing, but the excitement of the inauguration will pass ( sad to say).  I think that there is hope for the future, but I think in some regards our economic wounds are very deep and  it will take a long time to heal.

The effects on Etsy I think will not however change all that much from where we are at now.  I think that people will still be selling away and that is a good thing.  We need to be prudent with our $$$ but must also spend our $ to begin to get out of this.  Sort of a double edged sword that we have not figured out how to balance.  I know that for me I have adjusted to the slow down in the economy by very happily diversifying my work and creating at different price points. 

 

I did receive more questions and if I did not answer your question tonight, please stay tuned.  I will answer them.  I would love to know what you think of this type of post and if your all are interested in me continuing this.

It was fun!!!!

Want to see something new?

Before the New Year my mind was brewing, ideas were swirling around.  Every time I made a mistake on a card I would see something new to try. So, I am giving it a try.

I have been playing around in my head and been wanting to create a new line of stationery in addition to my fabric stationery.  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE making fabric cards.  It is different, unique and so enjoyable to do.  I am forever inspired by fabulous fabrics.  However, I have also been wanting to play around with some non fabric cards as well.  Something simple, and something fun.

So to add a little variety to my Etsy shop is have listed a few of my non-fabric cards.  Feel free to take a look and please I would love some feedback as well.

 

Insert of this notecards say Fabulous

 

Set of 8 cards comes in bundles tied with ribbon

   

The lost art of Love Letters

 

A little love all bundled up

 

Inside says Happy Valentine's Day