Friday, October 28

holiday gifts and goodies under $25*

*with the exception of custom canvases, all gifts are $25 or less. how awesome is that?!

some people start shopping for holiday gifts in july, some people wait until dec 24th. whatever people you are, check out some of these goodies, that are sure to brighten anyone's (holi)day! the best part is, you get custom fun without breaking the bank!

i always say, let's bring back the written word! ok, i don't always say that, but maybe i'll start. because, everyone loves finding something fun amidst the junk mail, so why not stuff some stockings with some fun notecards? personalized. thank you. an assortment. your choice.
have kiddos? then, i'm sure grandma and grandpa would LOVE this personalized desk calendar full of pictures of the little ones. no kids? i'm betting the hubs would love gazing at you instead of staring at that spreadsheet!
if photos are too personal, but there's someone on your list who realllly needs a calendar, i've got ya covered.
how about a little art to fill some wall space? dream up an idea, and i'll put it to canvas. or, have a favorite saying framed for a wall. personally, the crosses are my favorite (prolly the NM roots talkin'). or, there's always the ever-popular hand cut name framed up to match a room or nursery. (rosita updated her site so you can see all the workshop's goods)
if you're looking for more stockin' stuffers, magnetic clothespins are super cute and perfect for hanging fun things in lockers, or on the fridge. (a picture of robert pattinson, por ejemplo...)
and, every girl's crazy for a little hair bling.
many of these items are sittin' on my shelf waiting for the perfect home, or we can do a custom order. to receive gifties in time for the holidays, you gotta place that order before december 15th.

gift wrapping (with gift tag) is available on all items for an additional $2.

in case you were wondering, there are less than 60 days until christmas! yikes!! oh, yeah - and order your holiday cards! (do i sound like your mother? eat your vegetables!)

Tuesday, October 25

outside the comfort zone

y'all, is there smoke coming out of my ears? cause this brain's had to do a lot of thinkin' recently. you see, i've been challenged creatively lately, and while the end product always makes me proud, the getting there can sometimes be quite the process.

here's the sitch - baby sister toots my horn for me alot. like alot, alot. mentions me on twitter. re-links my facebook updates. sends her buddies my way. the like. (THANKS! baby sister) so, when i received an email from her beau (EZ), i thought nothing of it. you know, maybe he wants some biz cards. or he's hosting a party for a friend. (pshaw - like boys host parties!)

uh, no. no basic designing here. when i opened that email, my jaw dropped open. dude wanted me to design his triathlon gear. all of it. shorts. tops. jackets. other tops. other shorts. say what now?

well, i thought, let's just put that away. then, i started hyperventilating. seriously. i mean i'd dabbled a little in t-shirt design. like, oh, telling the t-shirt company to center a logo on various sized shirts, and deliver them by x date, dabble. and, now he wants to be outfitted in rosita designs gear? i repeat, say what now???

after a good few days to process, and avoid the subject, i decided it was time to hunker down and get to work. well, lo and behold, it was pretty fun, and seeing the design come to life was really fulfilling! and, then seeing it worn for a race? ah.maz.ing!

here's what we sent off to the printer folks:
EZ wanted his gear to match his bike, so that meant red and black, so i started brainstorming ideas, and decided on a rounded square. then, as i manipulated the design, it started to feel to me like fish scales. which was perfect, since he's a past swimmer, and swimming is part of a triathlon.

he had his first race in the gear this weekend (the austin ironman - you go!), so let's have a little look-see at the gear in motion!
phew! i'm tired just looking at the pictures! great job, EZ! i hope you got a good long nap after that!
i also designed EZ a jersey and some shorts for baby sister. if they take a pic of those, i'll post about them too. while i don't think nike will be calling any time soon, it was fun being a "fashion designer" for the day!

i tell ya - custom rocks - the sky really is the limit!

Friday, October 21

a new bird in the nest

i guess it's baby shower week around here! this time it's all about middle sissy's shower my mama and i hosted while we were there. you know, most 2nd, 3rd, 4th children get the shaft when it comes to parties, pictures, clothes, time (especially if they are the same gender as the older sibbies.) so, we wanted to give baby brother a warm welcome, and give friends a chance to come snuggle with mr loveable. in the south, these are called 'sip and sees' and well, sitting around sipping mimosas while snuggling a newborn is my kinda shower!

as all parties must, we started with the invite. i wanted to mix it up and do something fun; not just a standard flat card. so i decided fabric bunting, and went to work finding cute fabric. man, cutting out little triangles is tedious work! but, they turned out so.dang.cute! can't forget matching labels for the envelope.
when i pick a theme, i see that sucker through to the end, so we whipped up fabric buntings for over the food table. thanks for sewing, middle sissy!
we welcomed guests with a glimpse at the guest of honor, and all his stats. (he's a big boy!)
to snack on, we served fruit with to-die-for dip (jar of marshmallow fluff and some cream cheese), quick breads, and yummy artichoke dip, which we labeled with silly names (and more fabric triangle cutting!)
to sip, we had a mimosa bar with a selection of juices, and we whipped up some baby shower punch (vanilla ice cream topped with sprite and oj)
after friends had their fill of the baby, we sent them off with snacks for later. they really were 'so tweet to fly by'!
i can't feature this shower without showing off this cute-as-can-be 'diaper-cycle' my mama put together. is it not sooo cute?? and, soccer bear (once baby sister's!) is ready to ride off into the sunset! i don't think i'll make a plain diaper cake again!
and, for good measure, a shot of the hostesses with mommy and baby of honor! he's doing what he did the entire party - snoozin' away!
i'm glad we were there to help out and host a fun party. and, middle sissy -- no excuses for not entertaining - i found all your party gear!

welcome to the world, baby brother - i miss you so much!

Tuesday, October 18

batter batter swing

i know i've already said it, but i love, love, love when a client orders the grande platter. when they don't want to stop with invites, but want to keep the party going with thank yous, banners, cupcake fun, signs. the whole she-bang. so, when this order came through, i was super excited. especially since i don't have many sports theme items in the ol' portfolio. and, man, what a party this looks like it was!

the order of course started with invites (she's my fave, because she can never choose, so ends up sending various designs to her peeps! love it!)
and, then, we added thank you notes

a fun banner
some cupcake toppers
menu cards (how fantastic is this table set up?!)
and, some favor tags (about to pop! so clever!)
such a cute party theme!

thanks to shelby forchtner for the use of her awesome pictures!

Wednesday, October 12

midwest memory making

so, you know murphy? and, his dang law? yea, we're very well-acquainted. he drops bombs on us regularly and this weekend was no exception! remember how i mentioned i was joining mr man in nebraska for the second half of this year's football trip? and, how we DIDN'T want baby brother to arrive in those two days? yea, well, he did.

an hour into my slumber (been in nebraska maybe 7 hours), middle sissy called to say she was off to the hospital. and, that some friends would come take care of sweet p. can you believe? that was supposed to be my job. so, i immediately worry what do i do? should i stay or should i go now? will mr man be ok if i leave? will my sis's fam make it work? of course, you know i had to go - i couldn't leave middle sissy stressin' about sweet p when she needed to focus on baby brother.

so, poor mr man had to attend the football festivities solo. i checked in with him repeatedly, so he'd feel like i was there with him, but i know it wasn't the same. the guilt i felt all day was almost stifling. i love that man, and to have to "choose" is one of my least fave things EVER. he's so supportive and awesome - i owe him something big, big, big.

well, after that fun story (it's all about the memories, right?!), let's see the fun stuth we've been doing while waiting for baby brother. can i say that for a 40-week pregger lady, my sister was a trooper! i'd be propped up in bed ordering people around, for sure! we've been to farmer's markets, the bridges of madison county, the sculpture park, and mr man got to finally see the farm. um, i've also been taking sweet p to  gymnastics - not sure who's getting a better workout there - chasing a sassy 2-year-old around is hard, y'all!

the farmer's market was full of corn, pumpkins, and yummy veggies.
i was way in love (!) with these hearts. maybe i'll get one this weekend. they were sooo cool.
then, we joined the farmer as he sold his veggies at a smaller farmer's market. excited to see the new sign in full use! yay!
i have to say, the bridges of madison county were a little bit of a disappointment. wah-wah. oh well - made for good picture taking.
it was love at first sight when i saw this at the sculpture garden. never met typography i didn't love. frame-worthy, for sure.
i always like going to the farm and seeing all the yummy garden veggies the farmer grows. and, then i wonder why the heck i'm dragging my feet - i mean, you literally plant it, and it grows. novel concept, huh?!
okra flowers first and then turns to okra
how cool is this pic? no, i didn't take all the color out - the vines were dying away, so the only color was in the pumpkins.
and, no farm would be complete without abandoned farm equipment. my love of turquoise drew me over.
but the best parts of my days here have been spending time with and spoiling sweet p
and, snuggling with this new cute-as-can-be baby brother
that is actually what making memories is all about!

what have y'all been up to?

Friday, October 7

that time of year

are you in denial that the holidays are about 2 months away? i know it's not even halloween, but once that rolls around, the holidays just keep comin' at us. so, i decided to put this together to get the idea juices flowing.

best part about custom? it can be whatever you want it to be. it can be small, large, do double duty to announce other exciting news, and the list goes on. here, see for yourself:

if you're lookin' for a flat card, all my designs are double-sided, which make them perfect for a short christmas letter.
or, maybe you want a folded card
but, maybe you have lots of pictures and want a TRI-fold
how about no pictures, and a save on postage with a postcard
you could announce your new baby's birth
or a sweet boy's birthday
and, when you're done with the family card, how 'bout one for the biz?
that enough to get those juices flowing? of course, the sky's the limit. whatever you can dream up, we can do it.

check out the site for more ideas later this week and have a super great weekend! i'm heading off for a 2-day trip with mr. man, and i know baby brother's going to arrive in that time, because that's just how murphy's law works in this family!

Tuesday, October 4

i wanna rock(tober)

ok, 'rock' might be stretchin' it a little and mr. man is sure to mock me, but i was tryin' to be rill witty!! i'm coming to you from the midwest, and i have to say october isn't bothering me that bad. you know why? because i'm spending half the month here, and we've been enjoying weather in the 80s! hallelujah - i WAS NOT ready to let my summer go, and lookie there, i got a whole 'nother month of it!

so, you may laugh at a few of the songs here - total oldies, but super good. my mama did us right and raised us on music, and these bring back the mems. you're lucky i didn't throw sugar shack on there - many a saturday morning sleep-in was ruined by that dang song. anysuch...tell me your latest faves - i've started the new fall tv season, so you know tons of those will be makin' the list (there maybe might be some on this one!)