One of my fears with opening the Besotted Brand shop is that I have taken so long to open (the BB LLC was created three plus years ago), that what I offer will not seem original. I started my Etsy shop in 2006 and couldn’t get a trademark on my then name (named after my naughty Frenchie-Bella), so I had to switch branding and name. What seems like a decade later, I will  finally be opening the long awaited Besotted Brand.  Time truly does fly.  In the interim I was sidetracked by a fabulous internet opportunity that took all my free time (and all my not so free time).  I got hired in-house as a Brand Director for one of the most prestigious design company’s in the interior design industry (I so wanted to try my hand in the interior design world, I still love interior design but not as a career). I hosted multiple free on-line photo classes, all of which took time away from the impending launch of my beloved Besotted Brand (none of these things I have regretted mind you). I guess I just want everyone to know that these offerings are original. I was one of the first shops on Etsy to offer custom wood handled rubber stamps (if not the first one). I created gig inspired and typographical posters + custom stationery flats all with vintage inspired designs and the now very popular wrap label. You will get all that and more in the Besotted Brand emporium.  My aesthetic has not changed as much as it has become more refined and more true to myself, wherein with my former shop I tried to please the masses and had more color than I felt comfortable with, I will reign that in and keep to a palette that I find pleasing (and hope my clients do too). It has been a learning curve this re-brand and re-launch and I am actually rather pleased that I waited, because if I did it sooner I would not be able to give the shop the time + attention it would need to flourish. Things have changed and so have I. When I launched my Etsy shop I couldn’t take one decent photograph, I would beg my Fancy to shoot my products for me. So, yes that has really been worth the wait for me to learn how to take my own product shots and feel comfortable enough to actually showcase them. You know what?  Having written this open letter to you, I feel so much less stressed, go figure?  Sometimes it just takes getting out of ones own head (and way) to feel much better about taking the next step. Thank you.

P.S. This is a gel manicure, it lasts 2 weeks and dries immediately so I never smear scarlet polish over my snow white three pound dog G.G. (as I mentioned prior I take her with me everywhere).  I love it to pieces (the gel manicure that is and of course my little dog, but she’s my baby and not an it).

 

I almost fell out of my desk chair when I was emailed a link and there appeared Buster the baby English bulldog in a kiddie swing.  This fabulous photo is by the extraordinarily talented photographer Ron Schmidt, who’s fine art portraits of dogs are in a league of their own.  I am an expert on cute and this image has ranked in my top ten, it could hold its own along side any of Elliot Erwitt’s pup shots.  I am so happy to have been introduced to both Buster and Mr. Schmidt because I absolutely need yet another excuse to procrastinate. Happy Monday!

The description for the utterly charming Etsy shop Mrs. Pomeranz reads, “Mrs. Pomeranz is a small sewing company located in London…”. How can you not love a shop that sells 50’s inspired frocks and calls itself a sewing company?  It’s all too sweet.  I wish I owned one of these shirt dresses, it would be perfect for a photo shoot or for all those jaunts to Paris or the Italian Riviera that the Fancy and I often do, of course on the spur of the moment with our two pups in tow (yes, I am dreaming…of both the dress and the adventure, sigh).

Sunday had me at the Flea with my three pound dog, yes I am one of those women that carry their dog in their bag.  George likes the bag and I like her company, it’s a win-win situation. I like to go there and dig through old photo’s and see if any vendors are accidentally selling vintage cameras for a a fraction of what they are worth.  I bought my SX-70 there for $5 and the following weekend the vendor caught on and was selling one for $150, sigh, how quick these treasure hunters learn.  There was a vendor selling daguerrotypes and ambrotypes starting at $30, I wanted one or two (dozen), but figured that I really can’t justify frivolous spending right now. The vendor tolerated my opening almost every album to ogle, but I think he would really rather have had me and my dog be gone.  He said he sold on Etsy, but only the $500 and up ones in a tone of voice that basically could be interpreted as, ‘so if you can’t afford the $30 ones don’t even bother looking me up’. I left the Flea empty handed but not uninspired, I remembered this witty lady had mentioned My Daguerreotype Boyfriend, which of course I adored (she has such splendid taste that one) and then I read about this one (I am much too much of a lady to repeat the title), and then there’s this one.  It seems that dead hot guys are all the rage, go figure. Have you succumbed to this phenomena?  Do you know of more sites like these?  Inquiring minds want to know…

Nope, I never do tire of hunting down cute for Monday’s post.  This bunny, well, heck if it didn’t bring a little grin to your face I am not sure if I can be of any assistance.  I hope you all had a nice weekend, as usual I was trying to will Sunday to last a wee bit longer, no matter how hard I try I can’t seem to make the darn day last longer. I was putting my schedule together for the week and it looks like it shall be a busy one.  I have always been more of a pen and paper type of schedule maker but now that the projects are multiplying (read piling up) I feel I need to have something more computer based, something with a timer-slash-bullhorn mechanism that will go off and let me know it’s time to move on to the next task.  I am usually pretty organized and can juggle my time quite adeptly but with everything going on I need to keep each project on course and I tend to get lost in each task then want to flog myself later because I know that means my work day runneth over to a work night.  I so envy people that set there work hours and only work within that time frame, who are you magical people and how can I get you to rub some of your time mojo on moi? How do you keep your schedule? Paper, computer, memorization, personal assistant?  Do you have a secret to not just working yourself to death?  Do tell….Happy Monday!