Taylor Made designs

:: Ratatouille ::

Yesterday we brought the kids to see Ratatouille. It was amazing. I'm not sure who liked it more, us or the kids :) Well, I know William really liked it. He had no problem following the plot + is still talking about it today. Davis is still a bit young for movies, but at least she sat in my lap most of the time. Of course half way through the movie she announced she wanted to use the potty. Funny thing is, she still wears diapers and the mere mention of the potty at home has her screaming and running hysterically away from me. So, on the off chance that she was not pulling my leg, I took her to the bathroom. Once inside the stall, she proved she really was a big pooper :( I swear people thought I was killing her the way she carried on. Well, I had to try, right?

These flowers were sent from some very sweet friends of mine. I just thought I'd post a photo of them since they are so beautiful. Again, from Winston Flowers. They do amazing arrangements. There is mint, bamboo shoots, Gerber daisies + roses, sitting in the prettiest glass vase.

Oh I made some more scones this week. Wende's recipe is amazing in that you can add any kind of fruit or spices and they still come out delicious. Seriously, they take all of 15 minutes to make. Have a great weekend everyone! I'll be announcing the winner to my drawing on Monday. Good luck!

:: thankful thursday ::

Gosh, if I could hire a bunch of you, I would! Thanks for the awesome feedback everyone :)  It's been great to hear what you have to say, hear what you see, and hear how you think!  You have confirmed a lot of issues that I saw with the site. This weekend I will be working on revisions. So really, big thanks to everyone for being so kind and generous with your time. If I could send you all something I would! The next best thing I can do? Leave me a comment before Friday, June 29th - 9:00am eastern standard time. You will be automatically entered to win a special "Taylor Made design" extravaganza! {sounds kewl, non?} I'll then have my "team" select a winner who will be announce on Monday!

Right now I've been busy working on a 12 page brochure, so that's been my #1 priority. Unfortunately, I just don't have the boundless energy I use to have, so until I feel 100% my evenings haven't been spent working, but rather with my feet up trying to find some relief from the edema that I'm still plagued with :( {seriously, you should see my little feet + ankles at the end of the day!} The good news, it's starting to go down and I'm hopeful that by next week half of it will be gone. You will not know how happy I will be!

I know, more ribbon photos :) But I thought you'd appreciate seeing it all bundled up and packaged. I just love the way the ribbon came out. Mary Ann left me a great comment, I think she's happy :) For those of you who wrote inquiring about placing a custom order, YES, I do take them :) Sorry for not responding to everyone in a timely manner, I'll try to write by the end of the week.

It's been hot + humid here but thankfully we have AC + it hasn't really bothered me. I hope wherever you are, you're staying cool!

:: fyi - drawing! ::

I forgot to mention this!

Anyone who leave me a feedback comment or email is automatically entered into a fabulous drawing of Taylor Made design goodies! I'll announce a winner at the end of the week!

Seriously, so far all your emails + comments are spot on. I've been going through my site to see how people are approaching the pages + to really see which pages are being visited. I've identified some problems and I agree that the homepage images really need to be clickable. It's great to get this kind of feedback + I'm really thankful to so many of you who are giving me your time. You rock!

:: Looking for Feedback ::

So, I am looking for some feedback on my TAG-it.biz site. Do you mind? {it doesn't involve a purchase!}
If you can let me know what you think I would so appreciate it.
:: when you go to the site, is it clear what I am selling?
:: do you think I should expand the homepage copy? (I'm thinking yes)
:: is it easy to navigate, get around?
:: Is it obvious that you need to click on the images to see the tag designs?
:: are the designs attractive?
:: do you wish I offered something different or something more?
:: is there something I should be doing that would excite you more?

This is my first on-line store and I know it is far from perfect. I had to get it up and running so I know there is room for improvement and the only way to do that is solicit some feedback on how the site operates.  I've been thinking I should add an "about us" page... which I'm working on. I also feel that I need to add more copy on the homepage, especially about the winetags. They are so unique in the marketplace. I don't know anyone who is selling an product like this so I want to make that an obvious. I welcome all comments, good + bad!

Well, today is a hot one! Summer has finally arrived. Davis is now in the habit of opening the refrigerator and trying to get stuff down. William never did this...and I find it so frustrating to come into the kitchen and find the door wide open! Yikes! We've been doing a lot of arts + crafts to keep busy. William wanted me to put his newest lego spaceship creation on my blog. He's very proud + so am I :)

:: Some Silkscreen Ribbon ::

Pretty huh? This is a ribbon order I finished last week for the funny + lovely, very mary design.  {she is quite the crafty one, you'll totally love her blog!}  I just love the simple and clean look of the black + white ribbon.  Thanks Mary Ann! Your package should be there this week.

Here's some ribbon I made for myself. I'll use this for packaging up big orders. Has anyone seen the new ORGANIZE magazine? I went to the local Borders Books near us, but it's only an express store so the magazine wasn't available :(  Hoping I can find it at one of the other bookstores near me. Can't wait to see how my ad looks, as well as read the articles. I have a feeling I'll be subscribing to this magazine for sure. For what I've seen so far, it's loaded with great tips. Being organized saves not only my sanity, but time + money!

Oh, this week Tangle + True are featuring Taylor Made designs as their blog of the week! So a very big thank you to Kelly + Missy for thinking my site would be of intererst to their readers. If you haven't checked out their blog, I think you'd find it a great resource.

And oh boy, did we hit payday this weekend with making these scones... I stopped by Susan's blog this weekend where she raved about Wende's {evidently} scone recipe. So I just had to try them. Can I say they are not only easy to make, but absolutely delicious! A huge hit. Today I picked up some dried orange cranberries + blueberries for a new batch of scones this week. Thank you so much Wende!

:: Sunny Saturday ::

The sun is out, and it's a beautiful day here on the East Coast!

For those of you interested, I have uploaded some TAG it wine + gift tags to my Etsy store. My TAG-it.biz online store is going through quality assurance to make sure it's running ok :) I'm still waiting on the "propagation" period to be over. {I had no idea it can take up to 72 hours for the internet to do it's thing!} By the end of the weekend, everything will be up and running. I'm sure there will be a few glitzes, as nothing is ever perfect in the beginning... but we'll fix things as they come up. I'm not expecting much... maybe a sale or two, but who knows...maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised :) 

Can I just say shipping is so tricky! Sorry, but I can't seem to get the postage down any further without me taking a loss. {personally, I hate paying a lot for postage} But after many trips to the post office {and driving the clerks crazy!}, I've had to come up with an "average" postal rate. I checked out what others charge {on Etsy} and I think my postage is better than most. The packaging I am using helps to protect the product + it's the best solution I've come up with right now.

Anyway, thanks for all your supportive comments + general warm wishes! I feel so lucky to know you all. To celebrate, next week I will announce a give-a-way, so stay tuned! Have a terrific weekend everyone. Enjoy!

:: working it ::

I'm busy finalizing my TAG it site. Gosh, it's a lot of work. Trying to keep it simple is no easy task. Here's a sample page and some wine tag designs. I might have mentioned that I've been doing a lot of custom wine tags for companies. I charge a flat design rate for the actual design and then the tags are 4 for $6.00. The response has been great. Thanks for all your nice comments on my ad and the wine tags! When you work by your lonesome, feedback from others is really welcomed! Though physically I still feel crappy, this project is making me happy, keeping me busy, and just fun to work on:)  What more can I ask for :)

:: TAG it ::

Here is the ad I created a month ago for my wine tags. What do you think? I created it pretty fast + furious... just hoping it communicates my products well :)  It should be appearing this week in ORGANIZE magazine. {which is on newstands June 26th} Big thanks to Whitney Johnson for thinking of me!

So along with those adorable gift tags I have been working on, I have a bunch of wine tags that I've designed. So far I have had a really great response to them. {been selling like hotcakes, yahoo!} They will be available in my stores. I think they are pretty unique in the marketplace right now. My goal is to have my stuff available at the end of this week in both my Etsy store and my online store.  What do you think? Something different? Something you'd use? Tomorrow I'll post some of the designs + the packaging of them.

U P D A T E :
If you visit, TAG-it.biz... it's not up and running yet!
{it will be by end of week}
I will put a temp page up so as not to confuse people...
so you know it's coming.
Thanks for all the great feedback!

:: yummy ::

Well, we had a terrific Father's Day yesterday. Neal was able to hit some golf balls with Will in the morning. The lobsters I ordered were tender, sweet, and just plain heaven. We also made Cajun barbecued shrimp. The kids, gourmet as always, dined on hot dogs, root beer and chips :) It wasn't too hot, so we were able to eat out on the porch. All and all, a really relaxing, peaceful day. Just what I needed :) It was weird not sharing the day with my entire family, and spending time with my dad, but he played golf with my brother and had dinner with the rest of the clan. Oh, I was able to take some decent photos of my tags so I'll be posting + selling soon :)

:: Happy Day ::

First, I just want to say a huge thank you. I am totally overwhelmed by all your good thoughts, prayers, and words for me and my family. Seriously. You all know how to make someone feel pretty good:)

My biopsy came back yesterday and the final diagnosis for what has been ailing me is this –
Idiopathic Nephrotic Syndrome – Minimal Change Disease.
It's a diagnosis given for the kidneys.

It is perhaps the most random diagnosis I could have ever received. When my doctor called me last week and said I needed to be admitted to the hospital for what appeared to be a kidney disorder, I thought, "What? Do you have the right person? How could this have happened?"

And you know what? They don't know.

The doctors believe they will never figure out what caused this. It's one of those totally random things that they think I developed from an infection/cold I might have gotten from the kids, a bee sting or bite from something while I was gardening, or an allergic reaction to some cold medicines, a supersensitivity reaction to a drug etc. Really – totally random.

It will take the summer plus for me to feel better... :) But I will recover and no long lasting damage has been made to my kidneys. They will be doing a cat scan in a week or two to make sure I don't have Hodgkin's disease... (which is unlikely) but other than that, I should be on the road to recovery :)

Currently, I have severe body edema, feel tired, and have no appetite. Basically, I feel like crap, but not crappy enough to be sick in bed doing nothing. And such is my personality, that I can't just sit about... I truly like to be busy, have a project, or to do something. So I am working away on my tags. Yup. My tags. Remember those? My store will be up by next week. Seriously :) I've actually sold quite a bit of them to stores and companies already... and I'm really happy with the response I've received. I hope you will like them too. Be on the look out in the next few days as I'll be posting more and showing my stuff :)

My kids + Neal are doing surprising well. Taking it all in stride. My parents + family have been awesome. The upside of being sick... oooh all the beautiful flowers :) Neal sent me the most beautiful flowers from Winston's. (those of you in the Boston area know, nothing can compare) And my parent's gave me the most beautiful tangerine roses. Plus, my garden is just popping away with peonies! On Saturday when I came home from the hospital, my mum brought a roasted chicken over (which feed us for days and then Neal made homemade soup from it). Then on Wed we had dinner at their house. It really makes a world of difference having such a good support system. For that I am truly lucky.

I did miss the kid's graduation from school:( But Neal was able to video tape it for me. Camp doesn't happen till July so right now the kids are having fun with play dough, colouring, painting, and make forts in the living room. We might take them to see the new Disney movie this weekend. I've ordered lobsters for Father's Day for Neal. So we'll just take it easy and enjoy the summer time together :)

Again, thank you all for your concern... though I haven't, and may never meet many of you face to face, I am overwhelmed by your thoughtfulness and kindness :)

:: Hi there!

I am typing from my sister's laptop in the hospital. Yup. I've been here since Tuesday. Fun huh? nope I'm not dying, but if I have to stay in the hospital one more day, I just might :)

If my labs improve that means the twenty pills I am taking are finally working and I can go home. Sorry to be cryptic, but honestly, they don't know what I have and won't till the biopsy results are back. (and that will take 7-10 days) I'm positive I'll be fine and on the road to good health once a diagnosis has been established. Just a tad frustrating :(

Hopefully, I'll be able to pop in on Saturday in to say hi to everyone. It's amazing how much you miss your routine when you don't follow it. Needless to say, those gosh darn tags are still sitting in my studio waiting to be uploaded to my store. Maybe next week I'll be able to get to them. Thanks to everyone for popping by + visiting me and to those of you who wrote to wonder if I was ok :) Happy Weekend!

:: funny monkeys ::

My monkeys have colds...so as you can well imagine, I have a cold. But something else is going on with me + a trip to the doctor's office last Friday hasn't really resolved anything. Hopefully this week my labs will come back and I'll know what's going on with me. Right now, I'm feeling pretty crummy. That explains the lack of posts.   

Above are a couple of MOO cards that Erin from House on the Hill sent me so I could check out the quality. {thanks erin!} I have to say they look really good. I'd like to order a batch of them for my dad for Father's Day. He plays a lot of golf. {that's a bit of an understatement... the man plays, at the minimum, 18 holes and sometimes 36 holes in a single day} He's always meeting new people on the course and I think it would be nice for him to be able to pass out a little "calling card" with his contact info on them. The front would be his two sweet grandchildren. {my two funny monkeys} So I need to get my act together + see if I can order a batch in time for Father's Day.

Speaking of monkeys... Shona from LaLa dex press sent me her "sparkle monkey" card that she designed and printed. Love it! Thanks Shona! Both kids have been fighting over it. "it's my monkey", "no, it's my monkey!", Davis went so far as to strap it into her stroller to commandeer it :) I'm going to find a little frame and frame it up for my studio. I love the metallic ink she used on the uncoated paper.

I've been pretty lax with the kids lately. One, I'm not feeling the best, and two, it's been raining off and on since last week so they've had to play inside a lot. Needless to say, it's been tough keeping them entertained. I try very hard not to let them watch TV during the day but this weekend I let them watch some shows... one of them was Timmy Turner on NickJr. It can be pretty cheeky + a lot of the jokes fly right over their heads... Well, not all of them. William is now going around the house asking:
"Do you think I'm sexy?"  pressing his lips together.
"No William, you're a little boy, little boys are not sexy."
"mmmm. so I am not sexy?" a little frown appears.
"That's right, you are not sexy."
"ok, so you don't think I'm sexy. But do you think Timmy Turner is sexy?"
"no I don't." trying not to act like this is any big deal.
"well, that's ok mum, because I don't even know what sexy means! What is sexy?"

Dear god! This is why I normally only let them watch pbs + noggin. You'd never hear Elmo ask, "do you think I'm sexy?" now would you!