ahhh, the labor day weekend just another memory-but a wonderful one at that. It was a picture perfect weekend here in the northeast-cool nights warm days and endless blue skies with puffy white clouds. The lake was spectacular and nice way to say goodbye to summer and hello to fall. I finally got up on one water ski!!!! It has been over 15 years and while difficult, the sense of accomplishment was fantastic.
Now it's time to gear up for the holidays. I know this past year has been especially difficult on the finances and holiday cards may be a luxury. This year I have several options from which to choose-hoping to strike a balance between practical and elegant. I will have flat panel cards and some "special styles" where my vendors have offered some great pricing which I will pass on to you. A new way to print your photo and holiday message allows you to customize your card at a substantial savings! Anything I can do to help spread beauty into our every day lives!
xo
holidays???
Last year I offered some cool flat panel holiday cards to my photography clients. They were such a hit that this year I plan to include them in my fall holiday snap shot packages. Enjoy!
walk, walking and more walking
yes, it's true....I was somewhat of a slacker this summer. Too much time spent running from baseball to the lake.......too many fun times playing cards w/friends and kiddos......unfortunately I did not walk much. And the Avon Two-Day walk is coming soon........in five weeks to be exact..so I am walking and walking and walking to get my dawgs ready for 39 miles. Gulp. I know I can do it-but how will the feet handle it? Yikes!
Fundraising is going well, almost $1200 and need $1800 to qualify. It is such a worthwhile cause. Just today I was getting a "tune up" at the salon and was speaking to the aesthetician who found a lump in her breast, went to her doc who found two more and is now nervously in the waiting period to find out what will be next. She was so sweet.....we talked about the Avon Walk and, as I was checking out of the salon, she gave me a handful of money from the day's tips. It really moved me. I know what I am doing is small in comparison to what the brave women who have breast cancer do every day. At least I feel I am making a small contribution.
Fundraising is going well, almost $1200 and need $1800 to qualify. It is such a worthwhile cause. Just today I was getting a "tune up" at the salon and was speaking to the aesthetician who found a lump in her breast, went to her doc who found two more and is now nervously in the waiting period to find out what will be next. She was so sweet.....we talked about the Avon Walk and, as I was checking out of the salon, she gave me a handful of money from the day's tips. It really moved me. I know what I am doing is small in comparison to what the brave women who have breast cancer do every day. At least I feel I am making a small contribution.
magazine coverage
A while back I was interviewed for an article in our local magazine on "Designing Women". Laura Hussey did a lovely job conveying the attitude that I have toward business, and how shawns things came to be. I feel very lucky to be included in this bunch of extraordinary women!
whine, wine, wine.............
With the summer quickly ending, we begin to re-focus our attention to the wine-making process. For the most part, after the active fermentation is over, it is wait, wait, wait....and hope, hope, hope. Hope that we have made a good choice in timing, aging, oaking. We have a nice blend on the oak barrel now and will be switching it out and loading that barrel back up with syrah. In our first round, we made cab and zin, then ordered the chilean grapes cabernet, syrah and malbec. We plan to do some blending, but first will age separately to allow the grapes to manifest their true flavors independent of one another. It is very exciting to taste at this point because one can begin to see what is to come. While we wait, we are figuring out what grapes from California to buy. Doing so many varietals last Feb gave us our share of challenges, so I think we might focus soley on cabernet. It will allow us more latitude. It is exciting and will be a busy fall once the grapes come in.....but that smell of fermenting grapes is truly amazing!!!!
is it really almost over?
I can't believe we will be meeting the teachers this week for the new school year. Where did the summer go? It seems like yesterday the kids said goodbye to their teachers as they skipped to the bus one last time. Now, as I watch the kids gear up for fall sports, I long for the lazy days of summer that somehow did not seem to materialize this year!
Even though this summer seemed to fly by quicker than the rest, I am thankful for so many little gems that surfaced. One such gem was the retirement of the silver sparkler boat. Who knew you had to "winterize" the engine????? After finding out the engine was cracked, we decided the best route was to get a new boat. Chalk one up to experience. We certainly won't do that again. While a little painful in the pocket, the boat has sure been fun! The kids loved tubing with their buddies, jumping off the swim platform, and cruising at sunset. As ambivalent as I was about the boat, I enjoyed a not-so-elegant run at water skiing, feeling thankful that I did not break anything in the six times it took to actually rise out of the water. Note to self: Things sure don't lift out of the water like they used to!!!
I found another little gem in the conversations we had over cards and wine. Quiet evenings in the summer spent with friends and family discussing small, but not insignificant dreams, hopes and goals in life-this to me is the ultimate gem to uncover-deep conversations that do not mainifest in the day to day interactions, but when given time, can unfold like a beautiful rose when time seems so endless. I think this is what I will miss most about the summer ending.
For things at shawn, I am working to nurture my creative soul. I am touched by those of you asking for more-more new products, more creative ideas. I am very thankful to Laura Hussey for the beautiful piece she wrote about shawnsthings in this month's Wilton Magazine in "Designing Women". What a privilege it is to be included with such talented women. I look forward to the fall season with childish anticipation, as though I am waiting for Santa at Christmas time. I can't wait to see what presents I will open as my clients trust me to execute their visions. I look forward to the gift of the connections that will be made this year!
xo,
shawn
Even though this summer seemed to fly by quicker than the rest, I am thankful for so many little gems that surfaced. One such gem was the retirement of the silver sparkler boat. Who knew you had to "winterize" the engine????? After finding out the engine was cracked, we decided the best route was to get a new boat. Chalk one up to experience. We certainly won't do that again. While a little painful in the pocket, the boat has sure been fun! The kids loved tubing with their buddies, jumping off the swim platform, and cruising at sunset. As ambivalent as I was about the boat, I enjoyed a not-so-elegant run at water skiing, feeling thankful that I did not break anything in the six times it took to actually rise out of the water. Note to self: Things sure don't lift out of the water like they used to!!!
I found another little gem in the conversations we had over cards and wine. Quiet evenings in the summer spent with friends and family discussing small, but not insignificant dreams, hopes and goals in life-this to me is the ultimate gem to uncover-deep conversations that do not mainifest in the day to day interactions, but when given time, can unfold like a beautiful rose when time seems so endless. I think this is what I will miss most about the summer ending.
For things at shawn, I am working to nurture my creative soul. I am touched by those of you asking for more-more new products, more creative ideas. I am very thankful to Laura Hussey for the beautiful piece she wrote about shawnsthings in this month's Wilton Magazine in "Designing Women". What a privilege it is to be included with such talented women. I look forward to the fall season with childish anticipation, as though I am waiting for Santa at Christmas time. I can't wait to see what presents I will open as my clients trust me to execute their visions. I look forward to the gift of the connections that will be made this year!
xo,
shawn
summer
Is it here yet? I think so. The weekend was finally one of those beautiful, perfect weekends and we spent it at the lake. Was it relaxing? Not exactly. We thought the peeling ugly wall paper in the bathroom would be easy to take off. Overall, it was.......but then we went on to ugly bathroom wall paper number 2. Not so easy. Add to that priming, painting.......cleaning......phew! But now we can enjoy the lake a little more with two more things off our list! Hubby also built a dock. We did get time to relax and the kids practiced jumping off the swimming dock-they are getting so good at this and can do it for hours! Made a new cocktail-even though I missed our annual Wilton fourth of July contest, I still made the cocktail entry and-I think I will use it next year!!!! Tasty. Summer ball is in full swing and while it takes a little away from lake time, it is always enjoyable to spend a beautiful summer evening watching my son do something he has such a passion for!
I am working on some new things for the fall. Some workshops and Snap Shot sessions. New paper lines are arriving soon and I am excited with what the designers are doing this year! I am also actively looking for retailers to carry my stationery line. Look around in Wilton. Sea Beans has some shawns things and hopefully Wilton Stationers and Open House. If you are at a store and want to see my things there, ask them to contact me!!
Most of all, enjoy this summer. Time goes so quickly. For me the summer brings with it a huge span of time that feels overwhelming. While it allows me to think up plans, I think up too much and I do not execute. So this summer, if you can do just five things, what are they? Write 'em down, call up the peeps, make it happen!
xo
I am working on some new things for the fall. Some workshops and Snap Shot sessions. New paper lines are arriving soon and I am excited with what the designers are doing this year! I am also actively looking for retailers to carry my stationery line. Look around in Wilton. Sea Beans has some shawns things and hopefully Wilton Stationers and Open House. If you are at a store and want to see my things there, ask them to contact me!!
Most of all, enjoy this summer. Time goes so quickly. For me the summer brings with it a huge span of time that feels overwhelming. While it allows me to think up plans, I think up too much and I do not execute. So this summer, if you can do just five things, what are they? Write 'em down, call up the peeps, make it happen!
xo
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