Anthro Life : Working Creatively

One of the reasons that I stepped away from the blog this past fall was because life got busy. I took a part-time job working as a sales associate at Anthropologie in Hoboken, and the holiday shopping season was a bustling one! Fortunately, I have been able to stay on post-Christmas and yesterday marked three months with the company.

While I enjoy working as a sales associate — getting to know the product, helping create an inviting, beautiful store experience, and interacting with customers — what has truly been a joy and a surprise is getting to put my passion for calligraphy and hand-lettering to use. It all started with an early morning employee breakfast "party" for which I made pumpkin muffins and a matching sign. 

My managers and the regional visual manager were so impressed that they asked me to make holiday signage to help accent local store displays. I made those happily and eagerly, in many different versions. I'm not sure where they all ended up, but one was displayed in my store, in Hoboken — and it sure looked pretty surrounded by all of our gorgeous home wares!

I was then completely over the moon to later be asked to head to the Anthropologie on Fifth Avenue in New York City, to spend a morning lettering a large mirror with a cocktail menu for a vignette in the store's home section. My first time writing on a mirror, or glass for that matter, proved challenging, but it was worth all the time, energy and sore lower back (from hunching over and shifting around that heavy mirror!). It really was such a treat and an honor to have my work on display in a NYC store. And a few weeks later, while in the neighborhood, I was so proud to show G the mirror in person.

Last week, our Hoboken store hosted its very first shopping party and as soon as I found out I volunteered to create any necessary signage for the event. I was tasked with creating small, place card-size signs for the sips and snacks, as well as a larger sign to hang on the rack of "stylist picks." Luckily, I was able to work the party — for which I slipped on my new Anthropologie dress — and see my signs in action. If only I had a chance to taste that pear and ginger fizz refresher; it looked so good!

I'm looking forward to continuing to put my creative passions to work — literally! — and maybe even moving into a more creative role within the Anthroplogie family. Because work doesn't really feel like work when you are doing what you love.

Snow Day!

Winter Storm Jonas hit the northeast this past weekend, dumping two feet of snow on Jersey and NYC. I was scheduled to work Saturday and Sunday, but both shifts were cancelled due to the weather as well as a "travel ban" in Hoboken — and this California girl got to experience her first snow day! Truly, it was much like any other lazy Saturday: We stayed in, watched too much TV, cooked yummy food (G baked chocolate chip cookies!), I worked on my calligraphy, and we snuggled with the dogs. The hubs and I also got a lot of laughs watching our pups hobble around in their brightly colored booties, which they were not yet accustomed to, and explore the snow on our balcony. (Thank goodness for that balcony! We didn't have to venture outside while the blizzard was at its blustery peak.) The snowfall was mostly restricted to Saturday and, even though it is now Tuesday, there are still mounds of snow lining the streets and sidewalks as well as a pretty, white dusting on the neighborhood rooftops. Considering I've only been in falling snow twice before (during a college internship in Washington, D.C.), it was quite the sight to see. It was like a scene out of a movie, watching the snow slowly bury the cars on the street outside our apartment building and, the next day, watching neighbors dutifully shovel the sidewalk. We are most certainly not in California, anymore! The snow was coming down hard and fast and it was smart to stay inside, but a small part of me wishes we had ventured out into the storm, if only for a few minutes. But I'm sure we'll have another chance to play in the snow, make snow angels and build a snowman. Winter has only — finally — just arrived.

Opening Up Shop : wisp + whim calligraphy

Last week, I finally acted on a little dream of mine that I've had for years: opening an Etsy shop. 

Say hello to wisp + whim calligraphy!

Honestly, I didn't even really plan to do this last week. I'd had the name saved for a couple months but had been debating recently on whether Etsy was really the right platform for me and what I currently have to offer. (And, let's be really real, I was afraid of pulling the trigger, of putting myself out there and risking failure. Plus, there were those ever-present nagging feelings of not being good enough, especially when compared to other calligraphers whose work I admire.)

Maybe I was feeling a bit bold or simply curious, but last Tuesday I decided to just see how the process would work for setting up a listing. I made one listing and, in no time at all, four more. At that point, I handed over my bank account information and officially opened up shop. Click! It was so easy. Several hours later I had refined the look of the online store, added an "About" page and shop policies. While I still would prefer to have my own, dedicated website, you really can't beat Etsy's ease of use and low up-front cost. For someone like me who's just starting out, minimal risk and investment sounds good.

At this point, all the items listed are custom services: envelope addressing, calligraphed escort and place cards and event signage like hand-lettered chalkboard wedding signs, buffet and dessert table cards and other calligraphed paper signs. 

In addition to the services listed, I will happily accept custom orders! I'd love to take an idea and turn it into reality. Calligraphy really can go beyond just paper and ink; almost anything can be written on!

In the next few months, my goal is to add some ready-made, ready-to-ship products to the shop lineup as well. In the meantime, I'd love it if you'd check out my new online storefront and let me know what you think! 

Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't offer up my heartfelt love and thanks to the friends and family who have supported and encouraged me in my calligraphy journey, especially my sweet husband who is always trying to drown out those nagging feelings of self-doubt stirring within me, to (gently) push me to be my best self and pursue my wildest dreams.

P.S. As you may already know, I have a calligraphy-focused Instagram, but I now also have dedicated Facebook and Twitter profiles, too. Likes and follows much appreciated :)

All product images, except envelopes, 
courtesy a wisp + whim bride, captured by Simply Perfect Images

Eat, Drink & Be Creative : A Laura Hooper Calligraphy Workshop in NYC

I’m about 10 months into my calligraphy journey, and while I am not always as diligent as I should be about practicing every single day, and I tend to be more critical of my work than I should be (my husband says), I have completely fallen in love with the craft.

Thus far, I've learned the art of modern calligraphy by watching Skillshare classes, reading books/magazines/blogs on the subject, following other calligraphers on Instagram, and by practicing on my own, trying out different pens, nibs, inks and techniques.

Finally, this past Sunday, I had the pleasure of attending my very first in-person calligraphy workshop, a Laura Hooper Calligraphy Intermediate Workshop. If you know calligraphy, you know Laura Hooper and her beautiful, flourished, fancy-but-still-approachable scripts. When I saw that she was hosting beginner and intermediate classes in NYC, I jumped at the chance to learn from one of my calligraphy idols, and my sweet hubby thoroughly supported the investment.

Sunday afternoon’s workshop was held at The Lofts at Prince, in the hip and fashionable downtown neighborhood of SoHo. Myself and 23 other ladies attended the nearly three-hour class, during which we brushed up on our flourishing skills, learned about mixing inks and asked all the technical- and business-related questions we could come up with. Since we already knew the basics of calligraphy—how the nib works, how to form letters—the intermediate session was very unstructured. Less like a class and more like a free-flowing dialogue with a seasoned pro. (Watch Laura write my name!)

Truth be told, I was incredibly nervous leading up to the workshop. I was worried about getting there (I’m still a newbie when it comes to public transportation and navigating myself around NYC, but I successfully took the bus and then the subway from Jersey to SoHo) and I was worried that, once there, I’d be the worst in the class. That whole hypercritical thing. But I told myself to just relax and enjoy the experience, that I wasn’t going there to prove anything but simply to learn. 

Perhaps it was the cocktail I had at brunch or maybe just the welcoming, informal vibes coming from Laura and her sister/director of operations Alyssa, but once I arrived to the workshop all my nerves melted away and I had a wonderful time. It was a treat to hear tips and tricks from a talented, well-respected and successful calligrapher but it was also a joy to simply spend an afternoon with other women who love calligraphy as much as I do.

As for whether I was the worst person in the class, well, I couldn’t even see most of the other students’ work, so who knows how I compare. (It really isn’t important and, as I know well, comparison is the thief of joy!) But the kind woman sitting across from me during the workshop told me, unprompted, while we said our goodbyes, that my calligraphy is beautiful and that I “should do something with that.” 

My husband tells me the same thing all the time, but for some reason—right or wrong—a compliment from a perfect stranger always hits you in the heart as more true. I’m sure Virginia has no idea how much her words meant to me, but they were a highlight of what was a perfect day of learning and creating.

P.S. Sweets by Olivia provided the delicious dessert shooters for the workshop and Trees & Petals supplied all the gorgeous blooms that decorated the room!

Our First Anniversary : Let's Sail Away Together

Hello, world! We’ve made our big move to New Jersey and there’s so much to catch up on! The hubs was stolen away soon after we arrived, kidnapped to Rhode Island for the past nine days while I have been living in an empty apartment with nothing but one suitcase of clothes, an uncomfortable air mattress and two confused pups. No TV, no internet. Just my iPhone and skyrocketing data charges. Thankfully today our apartment finally got hooked up to the world wide web. But before I fill you in on everything that has happened since we packed up and left Florida, I want to share a few more stories from our St. Pete days… Starting with how G and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary!

Right after we got married and moved across the country, the hubby and I thought it would be wonderful to take a cruise for our one-year anniversary, since it is so easy to do so when you live in Florida. But we didn’t start planning or budgeting for such an excursion and before we knew it our first year was almost up! Having just returned from a long, expensive California trip in February and March and with our big Jersey move on the horizon, we decided it would be more practical to plan a low-key staycation. G took two days off work—Monday, May 18, our actual anniversary, as well as the following day—for us to celebrate.

On May 18, we started the day with a delicious at-home brunch. G made a chicken sausage and veggie frittata and we toasted to each other with mimosas in our hand-painted lavender wedding flutes. 

We then exchanged gifts. 

The traditional theme for a first wedding anniversary is paper, which I gave the hubs a heads-up on, just in case he wasn’t aware. (He wasn’t.) While we have two beautiful wedding albums (including this Shutterfly album), we didn’t have any of our wedding photos hanging on the walls in our home. Not even any in tabletop frames! So I printed out a bunch of my fave shots and placed them in three collage-style frames that have a beachy, rustic vibe—a perfect fit for the style of our wedding. For one of the frames I calligraphed part of the lyrics to our last dance song, Sara Bareilles’ “I Choose You.” I also finally put the frames from our wedding to good use, swapping out the Instagram sign and escort/favor table signage for photos of us.

I was nervous what G would think of my gift, since it was more of a gift for our home than just for him, but he loved all the frames. And when he unwrapped the one with the calligraphed lyrics, he exclaimed, “Whoa!” And then, a few seconds later after reading the words, timidly asked, “This is our wedding song, right?” Haha. Yes, honey. Our last dance song. Men.

G, on the other hand, did get me more personal presents, just for me: a luxe leather clutch to hold my pens and a chartreuse zippered leather journal (paper!) that says "winks & whims" for my calligraphy, a summery coral-and-turquoise necklace, and a beautiful lavender-scented candle, since one of our wedding colors and flowers was lavender. All so very thoughtful!

We relaxed together for a bit before getting ready for the evening, which started with a rooftop drink at The Canopy and then popping over to Annata to grab a charcuterie plate to-go and another glass of wine while we waited. Of course, the service there is always impeccable so one glass of wine at the bar turned into receiving a sample of another wine, an amuse bouche and, when they learned we were celebrating our anniversary, complimentary glasses of bubbly. 

We would have loved to stay at Annata longer but, alas, we had to guzzle and run to meet up with the night’s main event: a sunset sail on Tampa Bay.

I had never been sailing before, and neither had G, but being in the Coast Guard has kind of made him lose appreciation for the novelty of boating. Whenever I suggested a sailing cruise in San Diego he balked, saying “been there, done that.” Fortunately I was able to convince him to do it for our anniversary, and it didn’t hurt that I presented him with a killer deal with Simple Sailing on LivingSocial. While there was a possibility of having two other couples join us on the sail, we lucked out—we had the boat all to ourselves. Three cheers for celebrating on a quiet Monday!

The views from the boat were gorgeous and the sail was calm, peaceful and romantic, even though we did chat it up with Captain Scott quite a bit. During our three-hour cruise, we sipped bubbly, nibbled on our charcuterie, helped pull the lines to let the sail in and out, and snuggled on the bow, our feet dangling just above the water. A pod of dolphins even swam up next to us a few times to say hello, which was a truly special sight. We then watched the sun set, dipping below the St. Petersburg skyline, before turning back to shore. It was a magical evening.

(Gratuitous sailing and sunset photos ahead!)

After our sail, the hubs and I walked back to Beach Drive for a late dinner at one of our favorite St. Petersburg restaurants, Cassis American Brasserie. I had the herb-crusted grouper, G chose the sea scallops, and we shared a basket of fries because they are too good not to. We sat outside, enjoyed the almost-summer air and talked about our time on the water.

With (sadly) no room left for dessert, we headed home full and happy. But don’t worry, we had our fill of sweets on day two! Stay tuned… (and, as always, thanks for reading!)

Update: Here's the link to the Day 2 recap.