Tag Archives: blogging

My First Blogiversary!

first blogiversary cupcake

Today is the day, friends! Two Purple Couches is one!

A year ago, I got up enough courage to create a post and hit “publish” for the first time. It was a big leap, to think that anyone would actually be interested in the little crafts I create, or what’s currently on my mantel. But I’m so glad I did it! This year has been so much fun and I’ve gotten to know so many amazing people.

So, to say thanks to all of you, I’m hosting a giveaway. And there will be multiple winners!

blogiversary giveaway first prize

Prizes: 5″x8″ washi Moleskine notebook / mini stuffed owl (handmade by me) / pair of AudreyLaine Collection earrings (I got two of the same pair at the Crafty Supermarket, one for me and one for you!)

blogiversary giveaway second prize

Prizes: 3.5″x5.5″ washi Moleskine notebook / mini stuffed owl (handmade by me)

Here’s how you enter:

– Please COMMENT on this post with the words “Happy Blogiversary”.

– For a BONUS entry, like Two Purple Couches on Facebook.

This giveaway will be up and running until 11:59 p.m. EST on Wednesday, May 15, 2013. I’ll announce the winners on Friday, May 17, 2013. Good luck! I can’t wait to see who the winners are 🙂

Share and Share Alike

Liebster award
Very Inspiring Blogger Award

I have to admit that I’m not really big into the giving and receiving of blog awards. Don’t get me wrong, I am beyond flattered that fellow bloggers feel my little corner of the internet is worthy of mention. So let me take this opportunity to say, Thank You, So Very Much! I truly appreciate everyone who takes a few minutes of their day to read my ramblings and comment on my crafts. As soon as I see a WordPress notification pop up on my phone, a smile instantly spreads across my face. And since I’ve received some very sweet shout-outs recently (many thanks in particular to Beth @ B&B Build a Life, Clare @ DawnDancers, 365 Days to Unstuck, and Thalita @ The Learner Observer), I think it’s time I return the love.

There are differing rules around the interwebs for how the Liebster and other award should be received and bestowed upon others. And I’m not really one for rules… So? I’m just going to do it my way. Naysayers can deal with it.

Fun Facts About Me:

– I am an only child.

– I am under 5′ tall (official height is 4-feet, 11 and 3/4-inches). My husband is just shy of 6′ tall. We’re a bit of an odd couple that way.

– Horses have been my favorite animal for as long as I can remember. I took lessons in grade school, and finally got to own my own in high school – a retired Thoroughbred racehorse named Cheerio.

– The Bichon Frise is my favorite dog. Our little MollyMoo is a Bichon-Shih Tzu mix, though there is absolutely nothing Shih-Tzu about her, in look or in behavior.

– My husband and I are high-school sweethearts. We met on a blind date; he was my first kiss and my first boyfriend. We got married on the 7-year anniversary of the day he asked me to be his girlfriend. We’ve been married for 6 years, so that makes 13 total years together (yikes!). And I’m not even 30 yet! (commence ridiculous “awwww”-ing)

– I have read all of Jane Austen’s novel at least twice. And the BBC mini-series version of Pride and Prejudice is my favorite. Um, Colin Firth, anyone?

11 Questions (I’m smashing together questions from the two individuals who nominated me for the Liebster Award)

  1. Read any good books lately? I’m late on the bandwagon, but read The Help last year and really enjoyed it. I received two copies of The Night Circus for Christmas, so I’m looking forward to cracking one of those open soon.
  2. What was your favourite toy growing up? My Little Ponies, hands-down!
  3. If you could live in any time period, which would it be and why? Even though it would probably end up being boring and suppressive, the time period of Jane Austen’s novels. Or Victorian England.
  4. How many pairs of shoes do you own? Probably at least 30. I haven’t done a tally in a while…
  5. What was the last super delicious thing you ate? Home-made: I made some killer blueberry waffles a few weeks ago; Restaurant-made: guacamole from Nada, an upscale Mexican restaurant in downtown Cincinnati.
  6. What’s your favourite song right now? Macklemore and Lewis’ “Thrift Shop Song.” I love super-talented people who can rap about “everyday” things and make it sound hella-tight. See also, “I’m on a Boat” by The Lonely Planet.
  7. Coffee or tea? coffee, specifically a latte and cappuccino.
  8. What are you most looking forward to this summer and why? HAVEN CONFERENCE IN ATLANTA!!!
  9. If you could only have 1 TV channel, what would it be and why? HGTV. I could take in home decor inspiration all. day. long.
  10. Martha Stewart – Genius or the Devil? Or both? Both.
  11. What is your favorite vacation spot? Maui, Hawaii! Or Disney World 🙂

My Nominees / Blogs I Think You Should Know About:

Bliss @ Home

The Thrifty Ginger

Victoria Elizabeth Barnes

Nuts & Bolts

A Curiously Chic Life

If you feel so inclined, you can answer my questions:

1. Are your nails currently painted? If so, what brand and color?

2. Are you a plain Vanilla or Salted-Caramel-and-Espresso-with-Hot-Fudge type of person?

3. If you were a flower, what would you be and why?

4. Dog person, cat person, or other?

5. Best high-school memory?

6. Favorite course you took in college?

7. What’s on your desk right now?

8. What do you love most about yourself?

Two Purple Couches Gets a Little Young House Lovin’!

This was part of (well, most of) my exciting plans for the weekend… MEETING JOHN AND SHERRY PETERSIK!!!!

While I haven’t been following Young House Love since Day 1, or even Day 880, I have been so inspired by them. Not just their incredible design style and home transformations, but their down-to-earth personalities, unique voices, and their profuse amount of tips on blogging itself. From creating professional-looking photos, to how they decide on post topics, to how they’ve turned blogging into a business, they played a huge role in inspiring me to start this blog, and making me believe that someone out there, besides my mom, might actually want to read it. (I think it’s high time I give a shout-out to my readers and followers! THANK YOU!!! You guys rock my socks!!!)

Sorry for the tangent. Back to the post topic: MEETING JOHN AND SHERRY PETERSIK!!!!

John & Sherry were part of a local book festival called Books by the Banks, that featured lots of books for sale (obviously), authors and panel discussions. John & Sherry were signing/chatting with fans, and also giving a talk (9 things they learned during the process of writing their book).

If you’re curious, that’s Robert & Cortney Novogratz in the foreground, signing their book, Home by Novogratz.

There they are! When we arrived, there were about 60-70 people in line in front of us.

Not going to lie, I felt like I was waiting for the Beatles to de-board the plane for their first North American tour. Ok, maybe I wasn’t crying for joy and screaming at the top of my lungs. But I was as giddy as a schoolboy.

My “giddy schoolboy” face; holding my advance copy, made available by awesome local bookstore Joseph Beth Booksellers.

I really wanted to bring along a ceramic animal for Sherry to sign (DORK! I know…), but we were running late on Saturday morning and I couldn’t make up my mind what to grab.

I’ll spare you a minute-by-minute recap of the butterfly-stomach-fluttering and heart-palpitation-ensuing drama that occurred. Suffice it to say that I nearly didn’t make the signing cutoff before John and Sherry were whisked away to give their talk, which could have resulted in a lost spot in line, and would have set Tom and me waaaayyyy back for our plans to meet friends and drive alllll the way north to Toledo to watch the UC Bearcats football team vs. Toledo that night. Well, sorry, that does kind of tell you the whole story. Anywho, I made it up to their table in time.

Their talk was really good. They started with a little bio of them (Sherry was a copywriter, too! Heck yea copywriters!) and then went through 9 things they learned while working on their home/the book. There were a lot of really good reminders, i.e. don’t feel like you have to do everything perfectly and all at once. This is an especially good reminder for me, because I always feel pressure to have our house more decorated than it is at this point (we haven’t been here a year yet). And it was very reassuring to hear these reminders from people I revere as “experts” and whose advice I would readily take to heart.

 

Really cool idea to steal in the future (if I ever publish a book, that is,): they asked fans to sign their copy of the book! How fun is that! Now they’ll have a memento from all of their book signings! John asked me to draw a picture of something, but I blanked and just wrote my name.

I’m so excited that I got the opportunity to meet them. I’ve been leafing through their book (I’m not an overnight reader; I prefer to savor each page), and I already have tons of new ideas. Maybe I’ll start a little mini-series of posts of YHL-inspired projects!

And, I cannot finish this post without giving HUGE thanks to my husband Tom, without whom none of this would have gone down as smoothly as it did. He allowed me to drag him to a book festival, act like a giddy schoolboy, and was even willing to hold our spot in line so I could sit in on their talk. Oh, and he let me stop at Starbucks before we left! Thanks Tom! You’re the best!