SANTA, BABY.

merry christmas and happy holidays, dear readers!

just a short and sweet note of thanks for being such wonderful supporters of miss pickles press over this past year. we can't wait to see what 2010 brings – we have big plans in the works including a website makeover (i personally can't wait for this one) and some new paper offerings as well.

wishing each of you a happy and healthy holiday season, and a new year filled with more joy than your hearts can contain.

xoxo.

jen

p.s. that's none other than the famous miss pickles herself on santa's lap. wonder what she asked for in her stocking?

WHY PEOPLE HAVE KIDS.

i could start this entry by telling everyone how utterly shamed i am at not having posted in weeks on ye olde faithful blog because of the general craziness and business of the holiday season, but i'd like to use my sunday morning brainpower to post something much better and much lower on the lame-o scale.

this past weekend miss pickles press was a vendor (along with ashley blencoe photography) at the a-dor-able christmas in crabapple festival. ashley was offering her services taking photos with santa in our gallery space, and miss pickles press was offering customized holiday photo cards to capture those timeless santa photos. families lined up at the door and we didn't stop for four hours as the moms and dads and big and little brothers and sisters filed in family-by-family. there were definitely some comical classic moments; i think most everyone i know (myself included) has a picture somewhere in the attic or a dusty photo album of themselves just absolutely losing their marbles while sitting in santa's lap. tears falling, face red and puffy, mouths agape at the horror (the horror!) of sitting on this weird red velvet-cloaked man's lap with lots of white stuff (cotton candy?!) on his face. the black boots! the ample belly! the candy canes! it's all apparently horrific for some children.

and then there's the other end of the spectrum: the absolute spellbinding magic of sitting on santa's lap. the black boots! the ample belly! the candy canes! it's almost just too much for some children to process. they look at his face in wonderment and when asked what they want for christmas, can barely squeak out "kitty cat" or "tonka truck", much less the latest wii or nintendo DS game. it's such an innocent moment. a total suspension of belief. it's years before bills or taxes or relationships or rejection or mortgage payments. it's just ponies and drum sets and those little miss baby dolls that bat their eyelashes and wee their pants when you feed them. and who doesn't like all of that?

after viewing this celebrated santa routine child-by-child today, i saw the full gamut of emotion ranging from terror to astonishment to excited-beyond-belief. but there was one emotion that was consistent and palpable – it was the unadulterated joy on the parent's faces. while most eyes were on the kiddos having their moment with santa, i made a point to watch the faces on countless moms and dads, and it was nothing. but. joy. every time. joy, joy, joy. and pride. because look at her! look at him! that's my daughter! my son! they're mine! mine all mine. nom nom nom nom nom. and it occurred to me, among many other practical and expected reasons, that THIS is why people have kids. for moments like that. they somehow make all the tantrums and antics and effort to raise good people who will contribute to the world at large, well, worth it.

now that i've been married a little over a year to handsome hubs people are starting to ask the baby question. i've never been a baby-crazy person. i mean, i like kids well enough, and we definitely want kids. kids are great. but i'm not reading "what to expect when you aren't even expecting yet" or anything like that. i think kids will happen when the timing feels right, and i'm in no particular rush, although my recent 35th birthday might suggest otherwise. however, i do know with some certainty that when that time comes, i will no doubt be one of those parents that admires her child on santa's lap, even if she spits up all over her special christmas outfit that cost way too much or pulls santa's beard clean off his face.

A STITCH IN TIME.

when courtney of merriment events / little white book and janie of the bride's cafe approached miss pickles press about a cozy, home-grown "stitch in time" concept board come-to-life, i was thrilled to be included with so many ultra-talented folks in creating a totally unique and inspired shoot. the gorgeous images, shot by kellan studios on location at amber grove inn {in moseley, va} are so delightful and charming i couldn't resist posting them here. the always gracious emily of once wed was kind enough to share the feature today and i am so pleased with how everything turned out! big thanks to everyone who worked so many hours to make "a stitch in time" happen.

you can read more and see the delish eye candy here and here.

enjoy!

Vendor credits:

Styling by Courtney Spencer of Merriment Events and little white book

Flowers by Janie Medley of JM Flora and The Brides Café

Venue, Amber Grove Inn, Moseley Virginia

Photography by Kellan Studios

Paper + signs by Miss Pickles Press

Cross stitch by Chez Sucre Chez

Makeup by Erika Nixon of Makeup on Demand

Leather chairs by Moore and Giles Inc.

Headpiece by Lyndzee Ellsworth of EP Love Photography

Jill’s clothing provided by Need Supply Company

Yarn from The Yarn Lounge

PUNCHY PIN-UP!

i have a thing for pin-up girls. no, not that kind of thing, (not that there's anything wrong with that kind of thing)...but i just think they are so retro-tastic and gorgeous. i love the playful mix of naughty and nice, the dichotomy of "come hither" and "gosh darnit, i've torn my stockings again!".

imagine my total and complete delight when offbeat and funky bride-to-be tiphany approached miss pickles press about some vintage glamour-puss paper goods for her nuptials to jamie in santa barbara. well, hello! i mean, do you see her yellow chuck taylors? her perfectly frilly tea-length dress? (i love tea length.) she looks like a pin-up girl herself.

not only were the lovely couple such a pleasure to work with, but their sense of adventure and just general go-with-the-flow, creative outlook made designing some stand-out pieces a true joy. i especially loved the pin-up table numbers (a different gal for each table). we also created punchy menus, custom jam labels and seating cards, too. thought i'd post just a few of my favorites from their big day. enjoy!

ALL HAIL HALLOWEEN.

Hands down, Halloween is my most favorite holiday. Christmas? Yeah, it's pretty darn good. But HALLOWEEN! Oh, it has no rivals in the holiday world. I anticipate Halloween like a child - planning my costume WEEKS (sometimes months) ahead of time. It's huge fun for me to run here and there around town piecing together the perfect knock-'em-dead ensemble. There is something magical and freeing about dressing in costume, even if just for one night. Have you ever noticed Halloween parties are the most fun of the year? People are friendlier, goofier, funnier. Costumes allow people to let their guards down and be someone else for a while, and that's serious fun. After all, I'm not me, I'm a magnificent lion tamer and you've been a very naughty lion! (Whip it good.) I instictively think others who don't dress up are somehow missing the boat. Who says that just because you pay taxes and go to work every day means that you can't be a chesty nurse for one night?

I have memories of trick-or-treating with my brother when we were little. We would take a pillowcase off of our beds and hit the streets in search of the good houses. We avoided the ones that gave pencils or Sunmaid raisin packets and apples. I don't want yer stinkin' fruit. I want sugary, chocolatey, insulin-overloading, teeth-rotting CANDY. My brother and I would return home with half of a pillowcase full of deliciousness. We'd go to his room and stand in the middle of the room, and dump our respective booties out in the middle of the floor. We'd hover over our candy like pirates over a treasure chest. After grouping and organizing by brand and size, we'd enter into a very complicated barter system. For example, one Butterfinger would be worth two or three snack size M&Ms packs. Snicker bars were really high up. So were Reese's cups and Three Musketeers. The middle of the road were Smarties and Sweet Tarts and Jolly Rancher sticks. The bottom of the barrell were those peanut butter taffy things in the orange and black wax wrappers, and maybe Double Bubble. You could barely trade for anything with those, and it was a bold move to try and get something as good as a Milky Way with them.

After the bartering was done, (this could take hours) I would pour the contents of my winnings into a blue and white speckled melamine mixing bowl. I would stash said bowl under my bed and eat candy for at least a week. I seriously remember eating Halloween candy first thing in the morning - right out of bed. Delish. After about a week or so, the only remnants left would be the bottom-dwellers; candy that had worked it's way out of the wrapper, raisin packs or pennies. (Who gives pennies for Halloween? The same people who turn their porch lights off, that's who.)

Ah, the memories. I just can't let go, and suspect I never will, of the fun and festivity of Halloween. Long live. What are you dressing up as this year?

CATCHIN' UP.

oooohh, happy friday y'all. even if i have work to accomplish over the weekend (like most weekends) i still love the sweet feel of friday. it's like the big collective sigh at the end of a hard worked week.

it's been a sweet week for miss pickles press in blogville. first up: a cool little feature via kirei nest called locale lovelies. nicole ossola, the lovely author behind this fresh inspiration blog chooses her favorite designers to put together chic hostess baskets representing the cities they are from. when nicole asked me to put together a basket for georgia, i was so excited to share some of the greatest little treats and sweets from the south. you can also download free "georgia" printables here. enjoy!


the second little bit of pickle goodness came via style me pretty in the form of the charming wedding feature of jamie and bryan, who were married at claxton farm in beautiful asheville, NC, this summer. (i love asheville and am a mountain mama at heart.) you can see the feature here, here and here. the homegrown details are to die for – captured by quirky and always delightful our labor of love – and miss pickles press was so thrilled to be a part of the big day. it's so rewarding to see all the details (both big and small) come together.

images via our labor of love.

BIG NEWS!

greetings, love doves! i'm back from a week in the florida keys (good times, good times) where handsome hubs and i celebrated our one year wedding anniversary. what a trip: massive infusions of pina coladas, scooters, sunset sails and yummy seafood. just what the doctor ordered for an overworked, stressed-out small business owner. i feel energized and ready to rumble for fall 2009.

so let's kick things off with an exciting update, shall we? i have been sitting on some big news for awhile and am so thrilled to finally share the exciting developments going on at miss pickles press. we now have an official stationery gallery/client meeting space! YAY! the studio has never been an ideal option for client meetings because, frankly, it's more of a working space and there are always bits and pieces of paper goods, shipments and orders in progress everywhere. but we desperately needed a charming place to meet with clients, discuss projects, showcase recent work and offer assorted retail goodies from time to time.

enter perfect solution: my longtime friend and fellow creative lady, ashley blencoe of ashley blencoe photography, offered up half of her photography gallery space in the super cute little city of crabapple (near alpharetta/roswell/milton for those of you local to atlanta). so our businesses now live together in one sweet little cottage. it's been a brilliant solution for both of our businesses, as they ideally feed into each other as we share clients and some marketing efforts. (speaking of, have you checked out our holiday 2009 minishoots and holiday cards? total steal if i say so myself.)

the cottage is open by appointment only, and we also plan on hosting some fab client and vendor meet-and-greets in the very near future. if you'd like to schedule an appointment, just get in touch!