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"I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul." by William E. Henley

Thursday, July 29, 2010

time to get organized


fabric flowers in progress
Originally uploaded by novadesigns by tess

oh dear...
It suddenly occurred to me that it's probably been about one year since I really cleaned my studio. I'm not talking about dusting off the bench but about wiping off everything, organizing drawers, finding those missing gemstones that are probably lurking in some crack on our old hard wood floors, doing inventory, maybe even rearrange the layout and finally get a more functional workspace...

Now where did I put that little drill press I bought?


It has only taken me about 2 years to turn my house into a complete mess. At first I took over one of the guest bedrooms and made it into my studio (thanks honey!). Then I realized that I didn't have enough space for my desk. Where are all the bubble mailers supposed to go?

So then I got the space outside the studio and David built me an awesome desk with a lot of storage.. Now you can't even see the desk for all the mailers, pens, business cards and misc items that (I swear!) the cats have dragged up there.

And now I am starting this new adventure with nova of love. And all of the sudden our dining table disappeared. I mean it's still there, if you look hard enough. The chairs around that big pile of fabrics, petals, ribbons, a sewing machine, flowers, scissors, hair clips and headbands is a dead giveaway...


So today I decided to roll up the sleeves and tackle this monster that is growing out of control. David and the kitties deserve to have a clean house. Cleaner at least.

I am going to deal with my studio first. I think if I rearrange a little bit... maybe that scroll saw that someone (read David) convinced me to buy and that have been collected dust ever since could move somewhere else (read David's studio HA HA) I would be able to squeeze in a little work table for nova of love. And I need boxes. Tons of boxes to store fabrics and stuff. Which reminds me that I need to go through that IKEA Expedit I have in there. That is one underutilized bookcase. I could probably fit everything that is still laying around in boxes if I just took the time to do it...

And I definitely need to find a spot for that christmas tree foot holder thingie that I keep tripping on. Maybe I can jam it into the wardrobe together with my massive suitcase and that inflatable 8ft pool we bought in a weak moment during a 100 degree summer.

I feel good about this. I think it's gonna look really nice and I think I will feel so much better. I don't like mess (stop laughing David, I am serious!) but I don't mind a little bit of clutter. Yes, there is a difference...

Wish me luck. Hopefully I'll be back with before and after pictures for you guys.
lots of love ~tess

Monday, July 26, 2010

wedding shoes


I think I've landed on these..

I like the way they look with the open toe and they're also low heeled with is a must for me and my poor feet. I wish I could have beautiful high heels but I wouldn't last more than 5 minutes in shoes like that. Besides I'm getting married in the backyard so a stiletto would only get stuck in the grass! I hope that these heels will be ok though...


I ordered them online and they should arrive any day now! I needed to get a pair of shoes before the 5th, which is when I'm getting dress shopping with my friend Harsha! I'm so excited and nervous. I've been slacking with my p90x and put on a few more pounds during vacation but I am gonna do my best to shed some before next week.


I will of course have to add some details to them. I'm thinking some pretty flower shoe clips to spruce things up. I love wedding shoes that shows unique quirky details :o)

What are you up to this lovely Monday?

love ~tess

Friday, July 23, 2010

Save the dates in progress


Save the dates in progress
Originally uploaded by novadesigns by tess

Yesterday David and I finally sat down and almost finished our save the dates. It was a lot more work than I initially had thought. But I guess whenever you have to make multiples time adds up quickly.

We wanted to do something ourselves and not buy or order ready made save the dates. We're both very crafty and wanted to add our personal touch to them. If I may say so myself I think we've succeeded!

We're doing one english and one swedish version. I'm not showing you a finished save the date just yet.. I want it to be a surprise for our guests and I know a lot of them read my blog (sneaky sneaky) so I will wait to post pictures until after we've sent them out :o) I think they are a lot of fun and I hope my guests thinks so too.

This weekend I'll spend some time in the studio with metal and fire. I hope to squeeze in some softer stuff as well. Yesterday after we had finished working on save the dates I started pulling some flowers together. I just love layering petals together and watch them take shape. It's hard cause I want to keep them all for myself ;o) But I would look like I am walking around with a whole flower shop on my head so I better share them with all of you..

You better heart my new shop so you can find it quickly for my grand opening August 20th.

http://www.novaoflove.etsy.com

I hope you'll all have a fantastic Friday and remember to put some sun block on this Saturday. I heard it's gonna be like 103 here in Philly.. *sigh* like the house wasn't hot enough, not to mention my studio... it's like working in a sauna sometimes...

anyways I'd better get going!
love ~tess