I'm Susan — devout Francophile, mother of twins, writer, creative director, and aspiring author. I've been sharing my life here since 2010...thanks for reading!
Exciting news friends! This coming Sunday, November 17th, I’m hosting an event at the West Elm store in Philadelphia! I’ll be sharing my tips for designing a festive tablescape, along with a fun + easy DIY holiday project. Hint hint…expect GOLD (shocker, I know). Local friends + readers, I hope you can join the fun…I would love to see/meet you!
click here for more details and to RSVP, merci!
Last week I had the pleasure of attending Alt For Everyone, the online version of the hugely successful Alt Summit conference. I’ve had plans to attend in person for a few years, but cost, timing, and twins have kept me from making that a reality. As a busy WAHM now, Alt For Everyone is the perfect solution for me, as I can attend classes from home, and still experience the social aspect via online chat rooms and social media. You see the teacher live, as well as the slides that accompany the class, and you can chat with other students publicly or privately in the online forum. Twitter is always lit up afterwards, and it’s a great way to meet new bloggers, designers, and moms! I thoroughly enjoyed all of my classes, but my favorite was Photo Styling with the Brinsons…those two are so incredibly talented + inspiring. That class has me itching to do more styling, pronto. I hope to attend the next east coast conference in person (NYC 2014?)…will I see you there?!
(that’s the goody bag + box that arrived before classes started, so fun!)
Something very exciting happened over the holiday weekend-my business Nesting WON the Red Tricycle Award in the “Most Awesome Inspiring Nursery Ideas” category!! Over 230,000 votes were cast in many categories, highlighting the best in the baby/kids industry. It is such an honor to be nominated and chosen as winner by the public…it helps to validate my hard work over the years. For those of you new to my blog + business…you can read all about it here. Thank you to all of those who voted, and supported me over the years. I have a big thank you planned, so stay tuned via the nesting blog!
Hello friends! Let me preface this post by stating this is my first DIY post…EVER. Don’t get excited-it’s most likely to be the last, as I’m admittedly not much of a DIY-er. Nothing against those that are-I’m just usually not patient enough. This one was the result of frustration-what I had in my mind was not for sale (at least, I couldn’t find it). So, I took the project upon myself…16 feet of table, about $50 worth of fabric, and a heck of a lot of tape. I worked on it in my living room over a week’s time (mom of twins), and was so pleased with the result! So without further ado, the ever so complicated instructions…
step one: cover the top of table with white kraft paper
step two: select your fabrics (looks best with varying textures + styles)
step three: cut random widths of fabric…I trimmed the length last
step four: enlist furry friends + cute babies to keep you company
step five: tape strips along edge of table (I used clear packing tape)
step six: finish top edge with ribbon (I used a wide satin)
I simply must share this peek from Marie + Henry’s first birthday party…these custom sugar letters by Signe Sugar literally made me gasp! Sarah Donato is the artist behind these beautiful creations, which she surprised me with-they match the invitation font! I mean…wow. I kept the cake super simple in order to let these shine-they were the most perfect adornment! If you’re not familiar with her work, check out her shop + accompanying blog to learn more…eye candy galore!
image courtesy of Alison Conklin