12/31/13

have a safe and happy new year!

Hello there! I hope you are enjoying the last day of the 2013. Wishing you a fabulous 2014 full of love, laughter and happiness. Have a safe and wonderful new year celebration tonight.


12/14/13

diy glittered pine cones

Hello there! I hope you are having a nice Saturday. I have a yard full of pine cones and have been wanting to glitter some so I finally did today! It was pretty quick and easy. I used an iridescent glitter so the colors change depending upon the angle. I think they turned out lovely.
























SUPPLIES:
  • Pine Cones (various sizes)
  • Glitter
  • Spray Adhesive
  • Old Newspaper

HOW TO:
  • Collect pine cones in various sizes.
  • Clean them off and made sure there are no critters lurking about.
  • Spray with spray adhesive outside in order to get good ventilation and not stink up the whole house with the smell of spray adhesive.
  • Set up a piece of newspaper to do the glittering on. Sprinkle the glitter on the pine cones that have been sprayed with spray adhesive. You'll want to do this pretty quickly before the adhesive dries. I sprayed and then glittered mine one at a time. With the extra glitter that falls onto the paper, you can roll the pine cones in it for more coverage.  
  • Let the pine cones dry for 10-15 minutes.
  • Place in a shallow, decorative bowl for display.
Tomorrow we are going to get our Christmas tree so I'm thinking I might make these glittered pine cones into hanging ornaments with a little twine and glue!

12/11/13

instagram snapshot: holiday light love

Hello there. I hope your Wednesday is going along great. I love holiday lights and seeing all the decorations people put up this time of the year. It's so festive and charming and always makes me smile. We were at a holiday party this weekend and drove past a park that was decorated so beautiful, I just wanted to live in that perfect picture for the moment. Unfortunately, it was minus degrees and I was wearing a skirt so hanging out in that weather was a no go for me. I quickly snapped a picture as we drove by. I hope I will be able to go back one night and take some pictures because it was just so stunning.













In Japan, holiday lights are called illuminations and some places put them up in mid-November and don't take them down until March. There are some really stunning displays. I came across is one for the Country Farm Tokyo German Village. It's magical. I hope you enjoy it.

11/29/13

black friday sale at the spotted olive on etsy!

It's here! I'm happy to announce my Black Friday sale over at my Etsy shop! Now through Friday, December 6, 2013, you can save 15% on personalized DIY Printable or Printed Holiday Cards at The Spotted Olive™ on Etsy with coupon code: HOLIDAY15TAGS. Plus I'll include a set of DIY Printable holiday gift tags for FREE with your holiday card purchase! This offer available exclusively at The Spotted Olive™ on Etsy.



15% OFF AVAILABLE ON EXISTING DIY PRINTABLE OR PRINTED HOLIDAY CARD DESIGNS AT THE SPOTTED OLIVE ON ETSY WITH COUPON CODE  HOLIDAY15TAGS. THIS OFFER IS NOT AVAILABLE TOWARDS CUSTOM FEES OR ANY ADD-ON CHARGES. FREE GIFT TAGS DIY PRINTABLE FILE OF 6 TAGS WILL BE EMAILED AFTER PURCHASE OF DIY PRINTABLE OR PRINTED HOLIDAY CARDS TO THE EMAIL ADDRESS ASSOCIATED WITH YOUR ETSY ACCOUNT. OFFER EXPIRES 12/6/13. THIS OFFER CANNOT BE COMBINED WITH ANY OTHER OFFER. This sale is not APPLICABLE ON past purchases. YOU MUST USE COUPON CODE HOLIDAY15TAGS DURING CHECKOUT TO RECEIVE THE DISCOUNT. THIS OFFER IS ONLY AVAILABLE AT THE SPOTTED OLIVE™ SHOP ON ETSY. THIS OFFER & COUPON CODE WILL NOT WORK IN ANY OTHER ETSY SHOP OR AT ANY OTHER AFFILIATED SHOPS BY THE SPOTTED OLIVE™. Copyright © 2013 | THE SPOTTED OLIVE™ | All rights reserved.

11/14/13

book love

Hell there! I hope you are enjoying a lovely Thursday. I was recently cleaning off my desk and snapped a quick picture of the books that were on it. I love books not only for the information and entertainment they provide but as objects & decor. Books bring me inspiration in so many ways.



























What brings you inspiration?

11/12/13

bold gold holiday cards

Hello there! Christmas is right around the corner and I'm so excited to share some of my newest Holiday Card Designs featuring this season's trendy bold gold. My holiday card designs can be personalized with your text and photo. Available as DIY Printable files for printing on your own or as printed cards at The Spotted Olive on Etsy.













10/31/13

halloween throwback thursday!

Happy Halloween, darlings or should I say darklings?! Today I'm sharing a photo from a long time ago in a far away galaxy when I dressed as a lounge singer for Halloween. I had costume changes, a microphone (made from tin foil) and even a Mr. Blue Bird on my shoulder. Can you dig the cut-out in the dress? LOL! Enjoy this Halloween themed Throwback Thursday gem!



10/27/13

inspired by...

Hello & Happy Sunday! I hope you are enjoying a relaxing weekend. The other day I saw this fabulous pair of Kate Spade shoes on Facebook and fell in love with the colors. I decided to create a fun bachelorette party invitation in that gorgeous color palette. Tres chic, darling!

image source: Kate Spade




























































This chic design is now available at The Spotted Olive on Etsy as a DIY printable or printed invitations.

10/3/13

fall foliage and new nautical baby shower invitations now available in the shop!

Hello there! I hope you are enjoying a nice Thursday. I just got in from a nice little walk with the dogs. The leaves have started turning and the foliage looked so beautiful and vibrant.































I've also been busy working on some new designs for the Etsy shop. I recently posted these two nautical baby shower invitations. I really love the combination of navy & gold in the first design. The second invitation was designed to look like a rustic beach cottage sign. I think it turned out charming! What do you think?































Shop The Spotted Olive for modern, hip & trendy invitations, paper goods and design.

9/11/13

classic label birth announcements by the spotted olive on sale at minted!

Hello there & happy Wednesday! Minted is having a sale on baby + kids orders of $125+ with coupon code: BKFALL15 at checkout or 10% off orders of $75+ with coupon code: BKFALL10. Offer valid through September 16th.

Classic Label Birth Announcement Design by The Spotted Olive™ for Minted.

9/10/13

instagram snapshot: sparkly glitter wedding thank you postcards


Hello there & happy Tuesday! I hope your week has started off great. Here's a quick instagram snapshot of I took of the sparkly glitter wedding thank you postcards that I sent off to my Etsy customer the other day! They really turned out beautiful.





Professionally printed, full color, 2-sided 6" x 4" postcards on 16pt Matte C1S card stock with UV coating on the front for protection and durability.

9/8/13

it's gonna be a lovely day.

Hello there! Happy Sunday. I hope you are enjoying a nice weekend. I am off to get a long overdue haircut today. I spent some time yesterday putting together a style board of some hair style inspiration that I got off Pinterest. I'm thinking of going a little shorter like the first two images at the top. I love a fresh haircut. YAY!





















And any day that starts with a latte and dessert is gonna be a good one! Enjoy your Sunday. A fresh new weeks starts tomorrow.



9/6/13

9/5/13

instagram snapshots: new! will you be my bridesmaid cards

Hello there! I hope you are having a lovely day. I'm so excited about the printed "Will You Be My Bridesmaid?" cards that I just got in for the Etsy shop! They are sized at 5.5" x 4.25" (A2) cards printed on 110# ecru felt paper stock. I absolutely love the texture of these cards. Each card comes with a cream 80# basic envelope and are now available at The Spotted Olive on Etsy! Below are some quick instagram snapshots I took with my iPhone!





8/21/13

diecut holiday cards now available in the etsy shop!

Hello there! I hope you are having a nice Wednesday. I've been busy gearing up for the holiday season designing some new Christmas cards & holiday party invitations for the Etsy shop. I'm very excited to announce that I am adding a line of diecut holiday cards this year! Here's a sneak peak of the line with more designs on coming soon!













8/18/13

happy sunday!

Hello there and happy Sunday. I hope you have had a lovely weekend. Today I was inspired by a variety of beverage pins I saw on Pinterest and decided to make my own! I was really loving this Orange & Sage and Lemon & Lavender Vodka Tonic post over at Bakers Royale (beautiful photography, btw) and was thinking about making the tonic version sans the Vodka, but then I started seeing lemonade pins too. I decided to make my own lemonade hybrid version so I made Honey Lavender Lemonade! I even added a few blueberries to it! YUM!!! It turned out wonderful.




8/10/13

songs from my summertime playlist

Hello there! It's been a while since I've posted. Things have been crazy and I'm trying to get my Etsy shop off the ground with professionally printed cards & invitations. August is in full swing and I wanted to share some of my favorite songs from my summertime playlist! Cheers!

Emiliana Torrini | Unemployed in Summertime


Bitter Sweet | Salty Air


She & Him | In The Sun


The Bird & The Bee | Love Letter To Japan



XTC | Grass




Bat for Lashes | Horses of The Sun



Nouvelle Vague | Blister in the Sun


Gillian Hills | Zou Bisou Bisou



And from the movie 500 Days of Summer....

Hall & Oates | You Make My Dreams


7/21/13

it's national ice cream day!

Hello there! I hope you are having a wonderful weekend. Don't forget today is National Ice Cream Day! What are you doing to celebrate?

Here are some really cute videos to continue with the theme! They are actually South Korean commercials for an LG cell phone, but I think they are fun and adorable! Enjoy!!




7/12/13

happy weekend

Hello there! Friday is here again. Wishing you a lovely weekend!


7/4/13

happy independence day, america!

Hello there! Wishing you a fabulous 4th of July. Have fun and stay safe.


6/23/13

my submission for the good for you children's art challenge on minted

Hello and happy Sunday. I hope you are enjoying a beautiful weekend. Today I was inspired to create a sweet little submission for Minted's "Good For You" Children's Art Design Challenge. Below is the design I submitted. Once ratings are live, I'd love it if you would stop by and rate my design. Leave me a comment and let me know what you think!





6/22/13

happy weekend!

Hello there! I hope you are enjoying a lovely Summer weekend.


6/18/13

silver and gold

Hello there and happy Tuesday! I hope you are enjoying a beautiful Summer. I just got in samples from two recent print jobs and love how the invitations turned out. The invitation on the left is a bachelorette party invitation in silver and printed on 110# uncoated smooth paper. It's lovely and a very nice quality paper. The invitation on the right is a bridal shower invitation in gold and printed on 110# white felt paper. I absolutely love this paper. It has a beautiful texture and feel. Both invitations are available in my Etsy shop as printed invitations or diy printables.


6/13/13

heal colorado 2013

Hello there. It's another raging fire Summer here in Colorado. With multiple, highly destructive wildfires including the Black Forest fire which has already destroyed 360 homes, the Royal Gorge fire and the Big Meadows fire, this Summer has started out to be highly stressful.

If you would like to show your love and support to the people of Colorado, please feel free to  download this image that I created to use on your Facebook, Twitter or Google+ profile.



6/1/13

happy june!

Wow! It's already the first day of June. This year is really flying by. I hope you had a lovely day. Wishing you a fabulous month of June and a Summer filled with fun and relaxation.


5/28/13

new in the etsy shop!

Hello there and happy Tuesday! I hope you had a wonderful long weekend. I've been busy working on some new designs for the Etsy shop. This fun bachelorette party design features the words "Last Fling before the Ring Bachelorette Party" set in a fun retro modern typeface and filled with a vibrantly colored image of glitter. There's also a cute little graphic of a diamond ring also filled with a vibrantly colored image of glitter. Available in 10 dazzling color choices including hot pink, gold, aqua blue, orange, purple, green, yellow, silver, teal & pink. You can purchase this customized design as a DIY Printable and print as many copies as you need on your home printer, at a photo finisher or local printing company. If you prefer, I can have them professionally printed for you!


5/17/13

happy weekend!

Hello there and happy Friday! I hope you have a groovy weekend, baby!


5/14/13

kindness cards printable freebie

Hello and happy Tuesday, darlings! I've finally had the opportunity to get another set of kindness cards created. These cute little cards are a nice way to randomly spread kindness to your friends, family and strangers. A great way to perform random acts of kindness since everyone can always use a kind word. Just download this Kindness Cards Printable Freebie, print on card stock, cut out and leave in random places for others to find. Help spread kindness and make the world a better place.


DOWNLOAD FULL SIZE FILE


TERMS OF USE FOR PRINTABLE FREEBIES by The Spotted Olive™
All printable freebies are copyright by The Spotted Olive™ and are intended for non-profit personal use only. Our printable freebies are not to be used for any profitable or commercial purposes whatsoever. We would love it if you would send people to visit our blog (http://www.thespottedolive.blogspot.com) to download their own copy of our printable freebies, but please do not distribute or post the files to any other websites or blogs. By downloading our printable freebies, you agree to all of these terms and conditions of use. Thanks so much for your support.

5/12/13

happy mother's day

Wishing you a peaceful and relaxing Mother's Day!


4/27/13

instagram snapshots: etsy orders ready to ship out!

Hello there and happy Saturday! I'm so excited to be shipping out some printed invitation orders from The Spotted Olive™ on Etsy. I've been working on my packaging and am happy with how it turned out. I hope my customers love it. I always enjoy getting things in the mail especially when there is cute packaging or fun details so I wanted to make the packaging extra special for the customers that purchase printing from my shop. I took a few instagram snapshots to share with you. The bellybands and inside packaging are hand stamped by me. What do you think?




4/23/13

the spotted olive on etsy is pleased to announce professional printing services!

Hello there and happy Tuesday! I hope you are having a nice week so far. I am very happy to announce that The Spotted Olive™ on Etsy is now offering professional printing services in addition to  DIY printable files and instant downloads. Below is a close up of a printing job I just received for one of my recent orders. I'm thrilled with how it turned out. It is printed on a 110# white felt stock and I just love the texture and luxurious feel of this paper. This stock is one of the three standard paper options I am offering for printing. There are also upgraded paper options like 130# recycle, 19 pt. Savoy cotton and 110# ice pearl available for an additional fee.

























I have also been working on my packaging details for shipping out print orders to my customers and designed some fun little stickers and thank you cards!


I'm very excited to be offering printing services to my customers through my Etsy shop and look forward to a successful endeavor.

Thank you to all my customers and friends for all your support & encouragement.


It is so greatly appreciated!