The Awesometown Fiesta for MSN

1.31.13

I was so, so stoked when MSN asked me to style their dinner party at Alt! The new MSN for Windows 8 is fast, smart, and beautiful, so we wanted to be sure to make the party that way, too. Beyond all that, the brand has a really fun side, so I wanted the dinner to reflect that as well. And that’s how Awesometown was born.

I knew I wanted a big typographical installation to tie it all together, and I couldn’t get pinatas out of my head, so we went with it! The Awesometown pinatas hung overhead all night, and we let the fringe take over on the chairs and on the gold photo backdrop we made. I stuffed little canvas bags with all the necessities for a party — paper straws, swizzle sticks, flags that read “Awesome,” and photobooth props (obviously).

It was so fun to see people enjoying the fiesta, and I loved how colorful and over-the-top it was! I mean, if you’re in Awesometown, you’ve gotta go big or go home. Thanks MSN! xox

Business Cards // Gold Heart Giveaway

1.30.13

Update! Winners have been chosen and will be contacted individually! Thanks to all for playing along.

Have you ever worked on a project that was really important to you, and in the end been so happy with the result you can’t stop looking at it? Working on my business cards with Rachel from Lupa & Pepi kind of felt like that! It actually sort of felt similar to when we got our wedding photos back — I just kept flipping through them over and over.

We met Rachel last year at Alt and became buddies right away. She’s got a fantastic papergoods shop and an eye for awesome design, so Mr. Lovely and I were stoked when she agreed to design our business cards! (Roundhouse Designs also did her website, so you should see what they put together.) If you have a sec, you should read the story behind Lupa & Pepi, because it’s kind of adorable.

Rachel nailed it on the letterpress that I was looking for, and I want to hand these things out like candy! For Alt, I jazzed up the cards a little bit with a handmade sleeve. But the best part was a little leather and gold leaf heart clips that I made to go with the cards! By the end of the conference, I was seeing those little hearts on sweaters, in hair, and on bags. I loved that people loved them.

So you want one?! I’m giving away five of them — one each for the blog, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram. Here’s the deal:

To win one here, just leave a comment.
To win one on Facebook, make sure you like Lovely Indeed and write a note on the wall.
To win one on Twitter, follow and tweet at me.
To win one on Pinterest, follow me there, pin one of these photos, and tag me in it.
To win one on Instagram, first follow me, then Instagram a heart shape and tag me in it!

Easy peasy! Entries will close Sunday the 3rd at 6 p.m. PST and the winners will be announced on Monday. Have fun! xoxo

HP at Alt!

1.30.13

You guys know that HP is one of my awesome sponsors around here right now, and at Alt I had the chance to hang out with them! They took the work that I’ve been doing (along with a few other bloggers) on the HP ENVY TouchSmart, and featured it on an experience board, in one of the lounges at the conference. It was so bonkers to see my name up there with some of the bloggers that I love so much!

For my experience board, I shared photos and screenshots of all the programs I used to design a blog post that I have coming up! The programs that ended up being super-helpful for that were Paint and Fresh Paint (which is so awesome — it’s like fingerpainting on the touchscreen). I can’t wait to share the design I made, even though you get a little sneak peek of it on the experience board.

Stay tuned next week for the full design, and a little more about my favorite HP TouchScreen features! I’m devising a way to show you guys the touchscreen in action, and I think it’s going to be pretty cool! xoxo

I wrote this review while participating in a program on behalf of HP and received an ENVY 23 TouchSmart AiO and other products as a thank you for my participation. All opinions are mine.

DIY Message in a Bottle Necklace

1.29.13

You know that Parks and Rec episode where Leslie Knope is celebrating Galentine’s Day with all of her friends? And she writes 5,000 word essays for each of her friends about why they are so awesome? I love that episode. And this here little necklace is like my own version of a Leslie Knope Galentine’s Day gift.

I have so many wonderful girlfriends, and I love to celebrate them! So I thought it would be cool to give little necklaces with secret messages for each of my lovely girls. You could even make yourself one, with a sentiment that you’d like to keep close to your heart. Either way, I love this project. Here’s what you’ll need:

mini bottles with cork stoppers
screw eye
jump ring
24″ of chain
washi tape
white paper
pen
scissors
needle nose pliers

Start by screwing a screw eye into the cork. Next, use the pliers to open one link in the chain and connect both ends. Close the link securely around the two adjoining links.

Open a jump ring with the pliers and connect the screw eye to a link in the chain.

Put a small strip of washi tape on your white paper. Cut it into a small rectangle that will fit into the bottle when it’s rolled up. On the white side, write your message. Roll up the paper and insert it into the bottle.

Firmly insert the cork into the bottle and ensure that it won’t be easily pulled off.

Give these to someone you love! You can tell them what it says or put a little tag on it that lets them know. Happy making! xoxo

Lessons Learned: Alt Summit

1.28.13

Images by Justin Hackworth.

Boom. That happened. Mr. Lovely and I are back from Alt, exhausted from the learning/hustling/partying, and inspired by the new friends/wise words/endless possibilities. Looking back at my Alt experience last year, it’s kind of interesting how very different my time was there this year.

I’m still so grateful and humbled to have had the experience to speak on a panel. I couldn’t be more thankful for my pals who came and sat in the front row so I wouldn’t be nervous, and for the fact that you couldn’t see my hands shaking when I changed the slides. (Come on, you would be nervous too!) And hopefully in that blur of an hour, we helped even a few people figure some things out.

There are too many highlights to try to remember, so I’m going to break it down to a few lessons I learned this week. If you were there too, I’d love to hear yours. And if you weren’t, hopefully this will serve to inspire you as well. Because I feel kind of ready to take over the world.

1. Always introduce yourself. Even if you’re shy or nervous. Most people are really nice.

2. Twitter is a supertool. Don’t neglect it.

3. It’s okay to give away some of your secrets in a community like this one. (Just maybe not all of them.)

4. And speaking of the blogging community, it’s maybe one of the coolest bunch of people ever. The creativity was so intense you could almost reach out and touch it.

5. If you’re not hustling, someone else is.

6. It’s okay to miss out on some things. Sometimes you just need to recharge.

7. There is no such thing as being over-prepared.

8. In order to succeed, you have to know your definition of success. Think about exactly what it is that you want, and make a path to get there.

9. Do first. Blog second. Make sure that you’re living a full life in the real world, and the online life will benefit.

10. Never, ever pass up a photobooth.

xoxo

Image by Smilebooth.

Wise Words for a Saturday

1.26.13

We’ve got one more day of Alt Summit, but I thought I’d share some wisdom from the insanely talented Darcy Miller, Editorial Director of Martha Stewart Weddings. She’s literally called the Celebration Expert at Martha Stewart Headquarters, so this girl knows how to party. And here’s what she has to say.

I mean, it doesn’t get much simpler than that. Have a great weekend — we’ll be back next week with recaps galore, and some new DIYs for Valentine’s Day! xoxo

Do the Hustle

1.25.13

You guys! First of all, I just need to put it out there that our DIY and Pinterest Alt panel happened and we made it through alive! Seriously, we were all nervous like a bunch of dorks but we hitched up our britches and did the thing. Not gonna lie — I’m relieved that it’s done, so I can focus more fully on the rest of the conference. But it was awesome and I’d totally do it again.

And speaking of panels, I sat and listened to a couple of really great ones. And I think that the best thing I heard all day was from Jenny Komenda of Little Green Notebook, who I loved for just telling it like it is. (Sometimes we bloggers can get a little sugar-coated.)

When she said it, my brain went “Yes.” And it’s true in any discipline where no one is pushing you but yourself. If you don’t hustle, someone else will. All day yesterday I was looking around at the attendees, and you can see the people who are out there, doing the work to get the results. Sometimes it’s uncomfortable, sometimes it’s hard, but it always pays off to do the hustle. xoxo