Happy Tuesday!

{saw this handsome guy at the car wash last week}

Viva Dia De Los Muertos!

{I love this print. :) If you've been in my bathroom, you've looked this lovely lady in the eye before.}

Cart-Worthy + Heart-Worthy: Kitty Toys Edition! {And a Discount Code}

{Oliver and Crash}

As you know, I have cats. Amazing cats. And because they're so amazing, I want them to have amazing toys and be stimulated so they can keep being amazing. Which is why, I have been looking for cat toys on Etsy. Here are some of my favorites!

{catnip caterpillar}

{catnip banana}

{set of 4 jingle bell balls}

{set of 3 catnip oreos}

{set of 4 non-catnip toys}

{set of 3 birds of a sweater cat toy}

{set of 3 crinkly catnip candies}

{set of 6 rainbow catnip monsters}

{set of 2 catnip macarons}

{catnip mouse - made from recycled socks!

**free shipping on a darn!socks mouse or three blind mice toy with discount code OLIVER**}

I am off to snap up some of these! let me know if you fund any other cute ones!

Love... Colorful Quotation Art!

{not all who wander print}

Have you heard of Sword.com?

Okay, so you know how everyone (all of us included) is obsessed with deal-a-day sites like Groupon, Living Social, and Buy With Me? Well, I have another one for you, but this one has a fun twist! Sword.com offers local and national deals that are over 50% off like the other sites. But UNLIKE the other sites, Sword has an affiliate program that enables you to cash in on your friends' purchases. 

Because they're a new company and don't have a lot of brand recognition yet, Sword has decided to use you (us!) as a conduit for advertising. So, when you share the site with other people, they become part of your "crew" and as they add friends and family, those new additions are also in your crew. And whenever anybody in your crew makes a purchase, it benefits you! 

Just like Groupon and the other sites, signing up is totally free and you're never under any obligation to make a purchase. You also don't have to share the site with anyone, you can keep it your own little secret if you want. :)

{one of the cheapest canvas prints deal I've seen!}

If you'd like to sign up, simply click here, and at the top of the page, you'll see a button that says REGISTER. After answering the basics (name, email, zip code), you will get your very own referral link and you can start creating your crew!

Sword just opened this week, so there are only a few deals so far, but each day they add more and so far, they look great! Like this custom chocolate one below - yum!

I Believe It's Cake! - Wedding Rehearsal Dinner Cake - And A Giveaway!

At Kyle and Lindsay's rehearsal dinner, we were treated to a beautiful (and delicious!) cake from I Believe It's Cake! Here are some pictures:

Kyle and Lindsay LOVE their Yorkie named Yoshi and wanted him to feature in their cake. IBI Cake! created an amazing little Yoshi on top of an airplane on top of a delicious red velvet cake. The banner says "Yoshi is fly like a G6." This cake was the hit of the party!

This lovely lady is Laurie, the brains behind IBI Cake, posing with her creation and Kyle and Lindsay.

Check out Laurie's facebook and blog for her amazing cakes, she is seriously so talented! It's also fun to see all the celebrities she's worked with: Mel B., Matt Barnes, and many more!

PLUS, she's having a giveaway on her blog right now! Like any baker worth her sugar, she knows a cake stand is the finishing touch that can make your presentation. And you can win this adorable cake stand to start your collection!

Just go here to enter!

New Etsy Treasury: Day of The Colorful Dead

As you may remember from last year, I LOVE Day of the Dead items! So, of course, I had to make a treasury to showcase all my current favorites.

{see it here!}

Love Today!

What a great sentiment - Love Today. Seriously, don't worry about tomorrow or yesterday or next week. At least, not for a few minutes. Just love today.

This is my new wake-up song. I randomly heard it a sushi restaurant last week, immediately downloaded it, and now it's my alarm song. Listen to it for a second and it will be yours, too! Hope you're all having happy days!

Table Name Cards for a Hawaii-Themed Wedding

My friends Kyle and Lindsay got married last Saturday on August 13, 2011. It was amazing and I cried... a lot. It was my first time planning a wedding and I am so proud of how it turned out. I'm going to share some pieces of it with you, especially those I'm proudest of. 

My friend Amy, who's an incredibly talented artist, drew all of the table name cards for the wedding. Each table was named after a location in Hawaii that was important to the couple. Amy took that idea and turned into a magical collection of art. 

{all 26 cards}

{LOVE shave ice!}

{yum!}

{everyone loved this one!}

{this was my table!}

These were such an amazing addition to the tables and we got tons of comments on them. Plus, using friends to supplement the big day is such a nice personal touch. 

Love... Wedding Boots!

{via ruffled}

*This will be me...one day.*

I'm Learning To Fly

my lovely blog friends, i am going on a trip this weekend. i don't actually know where. i have no reservations, no plans. i do have paper maps, a packed suitcase and a full tank of gas.

until monday night when i return, i will be unreachable - no phone, internet, computers, facebook, blogging, nothing! just me, my car and my music. which is scary and a little exciting all at once. 

i'm such a planner that going into this without an itinerary is also freaking me out. i have some ideas - maybe i'll go south towards oceanside, maybe i'll go west to arizona or utah, maybe i'll go north towards sequoia. 

i am so optimistic that this weekend spent with myself will be just what i need to feel centered, happy and whole. my hope is that i will find myself out there and that i will like that person. 

mr. tom petty really could be the soundtrack to so many moments in my life (and i'm sure in yours). but this song has been in my head for the past few days, especially the refrain below, and i know it will be the song playing as i pull out of my driveway and into the sunrise.

have a beautiful, happy weekend - i know i will! :)

"Well, some say life will beat you down

Break your heart, steal your crown

So I've started out for God knows where

I guess I'll know when I get there"

We Have A Winner!

Hello, my chickadees! I hope you all had a fabulous weekend - it was beautiful here in Southern California, so I tried to spend as much time outside as I could!

Without further ado, the winner of the Concrete Lace giveaway is... #28, Soy Pea! I will be emailing you in just a minute, you lucky winner, you!

Thanks to all who entered and a BIG thanks to Concrete Lace for the generous giveaway!

Love... Fun Summer Purses!

I am loving this fun purse from Cambria Cove! Wouldn't it look great at the farmer's market, the beach, the summer bonfires, on the seat next to me in the car? ;)

You can find it here.

Focus On... Concrete Lace! {And A Giveaway!}

{CLOSED}


Concrete Lace


I dig languages, especially German. In fact, it's on my arm. So, when I stumbled upon Concrete Lace, I was hooked. I want all of the German cards, plus some of the French, Greek, and Hebrew..wait, I want all of them! Read on for more information on this fantabulous company and the women behind it. Then, enter the giveaway!


Tell me some basic info about yourself.

I am Katie Daniels, owner of Concrete Lace paper goods. Printing became an important part of my life in the mid-90s because of a beloved printmaker friend, Joan Cobitz, whom I miss dearly. Concrete Lace would not be what it is today with the help and inspiration of my talented sister and best friend, Carla Kaiser, and the support of our gifted mother, Brenda Davis. I design, print & package all of the letterpress products myself; Carla creates hand-illustrated mandala Concrete Lace cards, and also has a few hand-illustrated coloring books. We are a really great team and have a LOT of fun together. 

{love and light card}

What kind of mediums do you use and why? 

We print all of our cards by hand, mostly on my 1934 Vandercook #4 Letterpress, but also on a Kelsey Excelsior Mercury letterpress, Gocco or Yudu.

{german love card}

What made you decide to sell on etsy?

It seemed like a great fit for what we had to offer...besides, Etsy is such a helpful and wonderful community to be a part of, which I am very proud to be a part of.

{atlanta summertime postcard}

Where do you get your inspiration? 
I love history, culture and tradition from all over the world. I enjoy learning new things, how things work, and I am very easily fascinated... Carla loves to read, and always has her nose in a new book, or is always researching the latest gadget or software. We both think that every step of process is as fun as the finished product, so we seem to stay pretty inspired each step of the way when we are creating. Not to mention that we inspire each other.

{german thank you card}

What is your favorite music to craft by? 
Funny you ask because it is a very important part of my craft. I make a conscious effort to only listen to local artists from Atlanta, GA when I am printing. I feel like no support is better than that of your community, so I try to buy a few new albums from the local record shop to put on shuffle each season, and run them into the ground while I work. It keeps me in touch with the amazing creativity that surrounds me in Atlanta. 

{french congratulations card}

When it's cold outside... 
I wear way too many layers.

{german congratulations card}

When I'm hungry... 
I will eat everything I find. 

{french thank you card}

When I need a boost... 
I just turn it up to eleven. 

{hebrew thank you card}

I wish I was/were... 
able to create more time.

{will you be my bridesmaid card set}

If I could give one gift to everyone I know, it would be... 
a bottle of Red Rooster hot sauce (not to be confused with sriracha).

{german birthday card}

If I could have coffee with anyone, it would be... 
paul reubens.

{shalom greeting card}

If you were an animal, what would you be? 
my dog zeke 

{greek congratulations card}

What's your favorite piece of your own? 
My german card series

{german card occasion set}

What are your favorite blogs/websites right now? 
Lately I have been focused on wedding blogs because of all of the wedding work I am doing for clients. This is such a great and busy time of year, thanks to all of the love in the air! 

{thank you for being a friend card}

You can find Concrete Lace on

the website,

on etsy,

on facebook,

and on twitter.

You can find Carla's self published hand-illustrated coloring books here.

{mandala coloring book}

*Concrete Lace has so generously offered to giveaway a German occasion card pack (my ABSOLUTE favorite!), plus one of Carla's mandala coloring books as a give-away.*

- To be eligible for entry, you must be a follower of my blog through google friend connect or through your preferred RSS reader. -

- Make sure you leave me a way to contact you if you win. -

- Please leave separate comments for each entry. - 
- This giveaway is only open to US residents. -

First entry (mandatory):

- Visit Concrete Lace, select your favorite item and tell me about it.

Extra entries (optional):

- Like Concrete Lace on Facebook.

- Follow Concrete Lace on Twitter.

- Sign up for the Kate and Oli mailing list.

- Follow me on Twitter, tweet about this giveaway and leave me the link.

- Add my button to your blog.

- Like Kate and Oli on Facebook.

- Blog about this giveaway and leave me the link. 

Fine print: Giveaway begins when it is posted and ends at 11:59pm pacific standard time May 14, 2011. A winner will be selected by a random number generator on May 16, 2011 and will be emailed promptly. This giveaway is open to US residents only, please!

33 Years

Today is my parents' 33rd wedding anniversary. Considering they were a mere 20 years old when they got married, this is a huge feat. Compounding that fact, they had only dated for 3 weeks when they eloped to Las Vegas and got married at City Hall. So, while they aren't role models, they are a success story. :)

In this picture, they had been married for less than a year. My mom was still fattening up my dad - who had previously subsisted on Breakfast Jacks and Oreos. My mom was still rocking the Dorothy Hamill cut - albeit in a growing-out sort of way. My favorite part of this picture is that they're in it together. So many of their early marriage pics are of one, taken by the other. Happy anniversary, Mom and Dad, here's to 33 more! :)

I Know You Used To Love Me, But That Was Yesterday

I love Jerrod Niemann. It's a recent development, but one I strongly feel will continue for a long time. Isn't this the catchiest darn song you ever heard? I love it and will be singing it all day. :)

We Have A Winner!

And the winner of the Sparrow Moon giveaway is.....

Marija!

I will be emailing you right away, Marija! Thank you to everyone who entered and a BIG thank you to Sparrow Moon!

Oh, Happy Day!

Two days ago, I found out I am eligible to graduate in June! Well, technically, I am eligible to graduate in November, but I finagled my way into the June ceremony so hurray! In honor of this *happy day*, I made a treasury, aptly named...Oh, Happy Day! Here it is:

*and don't forget! today is the last day to enter the Sparrow Moon Giveaway!*

Focus On... Alex Wijnen! {And A Discount Code!}

Alex Wijnen's shop is a happy place for me. I love the color, the lines, the FUN behind all of her work. Luckily, Alex is a super nice person and has offered a super nice deal for Kate and Oli readers! Read on to learn more!

Tell me some basic info about yourself. 

I'm a graphic designer working from home in Portland, Oregon, where I live with my hubby, two dogs and two cats. I grew up in northern Europe and when I was 17, my parents decided to move to the States. They dragged me along kicking and screaming (after all, what 17-year-old wants to leave their friends behind?!) but now I love being in the US and couldn't imagine living 

anywhere but in the beautiful Northwest. 

{my little joker}

What kind of mediums do you use and why? 

In my teens I preferred working in watercolor, but I've since moved into this new realm of combining black and white illustrations with digital finishing, adding color and texture to make my images come to life. As a graphic designer I use Photoshop every day so I guess it was just a natural progression to start using it in my art as well. 

{road trip}

What made you decide to sell on etsy?

It's a great way to have a web presence without having to invest a lot of money in a custom site. I hang out on Etsy quite a bit, not just tweaking my shop but also surfing the forums and finding new favorites. My house is filled with art I found on Etsy so I'm an avid buyer as well as seller.

{hard to swallow}

Where do you get your inspiration? 

I find inspiration both in nature and from my childhood memories. I've always loved to draw, and the natural world is just so beautiful, it's easy to be inspired. But lately I find myself wanting to use my art to tell a story so I go inside myself, back in time, and try to create little vignettes of 

fragments of my life. 

{unraveling}

What is your favorite music to craft by?

It actually varies quite a bit. Sometimes I find that classical music best fits my mood while at other times I love the sounds of house music and electronica. The last few weeks I've actually sought out a Dutch radio station that plays a mix of modern hits. I love hearing the hosts speak Dutch; I guess it relates to reaching back into my childhood (I grew up in the Netherlands, among other places). 

{all dressed up}

When it's cold outside... I love to cuddle up on the couch with a good book, a mug of tea and my dog. 

{rotary salvation}

When I'm hungry... I reach for whatever I can find in the cupboards. I don't like cooking and often joke that I'm on a bag diet (if it's in a bag, I'll eat it). 

{a classic modern marriage}

When I need a boost... I look to other artists and designers who inspire me. Or I look to my husband and the life we've built together; that always makes me feel quite lucky.

{crossroads}

I wish I was/were... skinnier! My bag diet is obviously not working. :) 

{taste of summer}

If I could give one gift to everyone I know, it would be... to accept themselves just as they are (wish I could give that gift to myself as well!) 

{winter night in portland}

If I could have coffee with anyone, it would be... my baby sister. She lives in the Netherlands and I dearly miss her. 

{dandelion fluff}

If you were an animal, what would you be?

I'd love to have some funny or unique answer to this but I'd probably just want to be a cat. Seeing ours curled up on a soft pillow under the window with sunlight streaming in always makes me feel slightly jealous. 

{crow season}

What's your favorite piece of your own? 

It often changes, depending on my mood or what I'm working on, but I think I'd have to say my overall favorite piece is Taking the Scenic Route. 

{taking the scenic route}

What are your favorite blogs/websites right now?

I follow quite a few blogs (including Design*Sponge, Poppytalk and SFGirlByBay) but right now I'm really drawn to Oh So Beautiful Paper. As a graphic deisgner, I've recently had more invitation projects come across my desk so I'm always inspired by the gorgeous designs showcased there. 

You can find Alex Wijnen on

her website, 

her blog, 

and on etsy!

Alex has offered a fantabulous deal just for Kate and Oli readers! Simply enter the coupon code "KATEANDOLI" and you'll get 20% off of your order! I bet you can find a lot of prints to snap up at that price!