Sponsor Spotlight: Chaotic & Collected Stationery

I’m a pretty big fan of putting your own original stamp on everything — you know, that unique way of putting your own spin on things and showing off your creativity. It makes you stand out, and, well, Jess Downey is someone who definitely stands out…in the best ways possible!! She’s the creative force behind Chaotic & Collected Stationery, a shop full of cards, party decor and party kits. After planning her wedding, Downey found herself inspired to up her design game. Read on for the inside scoop on the history of her shop, her design tips and how to plan the perfect party! xoxo

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Official Web site: Chaotic & Collected Stationery
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Tell me about your shop. What’s the inspiration behind its launch?
Chaotic & Collected Stationery is an online shop featuring cute ‘lil paper goods — cards, drink stirrers, confetti, garland, party kits, creative gift bags and goody & favor bags. Every item in the shop is specially created and handmade by me. I’ve always been a crafty gal and after planning (and DIYing!) my wedding, I decided I wanted to start making and selling my creations. My first plan was to do wedding items, but the more I started to plan, the more I found myself thinking of so many fun stationery-type items. And so one day, while standing on a NYC subway platform with my husband, I decided to run with the stationery idea.

When did you become interested in stationery and design?
I’ve always been crafty and creative, but after doing so many things for my wedding (programs, invitation enclosures, drink stirrers, table cards, etc.), I really started to get into creating those types of items. And as I created more things, more ideas started to come to my mind.

What are you top 3 tips for design?
*Create/design things that really speak to you. My best items are those that I really enjoy making.
*Research and read articles. There are always new things popping up.
*Give yourself time to free create.

What ingredients make for the perfect party in your opinion?
Good food, awesome people and fun party decor.

What is your favorite piece in your shop and why?
My favorite piece — that’s really hard to answer. I think if I had to pick today, I would choose my fall colored leaves party kit. I love fall, and I think the kit represents everything I love about fall.

Found: The Perfect Velvet Pumpkins For Halloween!

For years now, I’ve said that we desperately need to up our Halloween Decoration Game, but sadly, my pleas have gone mostly ignored.

Well, wouldn’t these velvet pumpkins from Etsy shop Peachy Pumpkins look so cute on your mantle? Or even hanging out on a front stoop or porch? xoxo

Have a spooktacular weekend

Happy Halloween, friends! Did you have a spooktastic day? Any fun plans for the weekend? My Aunt Wendy found this picture from one of the many years I was a pumpkin for Halloween. I guess my red hair just made my costume choice a no-brainer. Make sure you enjoy plenty of sweet treats today (and eat a handful of candy corn for me!), and here are my favorite finds from the wonderful Web…

5 ways to save more money.

Pumpkin pie and gingersnap TOGETHER!!

Chic items to cozy up your home.

Adding this movie to my must-see list.

Women In Clothes looks fascinating, doesn’t it? (via One Sheepish Girl).

Fall perfection.

Women and witches of the early 1900s.

Congrats (hopefully!) to Justin and Jessica!

Must try this 15-minute rule for house cleaning.

Do good. Thanks for the reminder, Krysten!

OMG, it’s a candy corn milkshake.

What a clever bike rack! (via Swiss-miss)

A teacher spent two days as a student and was shocked by what she learned.

Which Halloween costume was most Googled in your state?

So excited for Taylor’s new album…what do you think of her new sound?

27 perks of being short.

Hahaha, book titles transformed into candy!

Fun fact: Turns out some of those Mad Men scenes are quite real.

Just another reason why I LOVE Buffy The Vampire Slayer!

12 easy way to spruce up your desk.

**Don’t forget to enter the Follow Your Arrow print giveaway — you’ve got until next Wednesday!!


And as always, feel free to connect with me on Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and now YouTube! See you there, friends! xoxo

Wise Words From Readers: On favorite Halloween costumes…

Speaking of Halloween, it was such a magical time when you were a kid, wasn’t it? It was the day of the year where you could be anything you wanted to be. A cowboy. A queen. A ghost. A Disney character. Needless to say, the possibilities were endless — as wide as our imagination, actually. Half the time, choosing a costume was more fun than going trick-or-treating. Even years later, there are those costumes that hold a special place in our hearts, and it didn’t take you very long to remember them, friends…

*We went trick-or-treating with our besties, and it was always AMAZING!! Some of our best times growing up. The best costume was homemade! My middle brother and I were tots and our mom made us home-sewn (with wigs) Raggedy Ann and Andy.

*I like the challenge of being creative with costumes. Each year, creative folks try to out-do themselves from the year before. Nothing like some creative competition with oneself. My favorite costume from when I was a kid was either when I was Cinderella, my own pumpkin coach included, or when my mother made me into a pizza! No one else I know was ever a pizza for Halloween, and that makes me proud of the creative person my mother is, and my willingness to be different during my early adolescents.

*I love Halloween because it’s a time where most people can be who they truly feel inside with no judgments. My dad worked for Union Carbide; they made Glad bags. Not much money, but we had a whole lot of fun. We would wear them as costumes!

*Pooling all our candy in mom’s big silver bowl. She kept in on top of the fridge and doled it out. Tootsie Pops were my favorite.

Growing up, I remember sporting a variety of costumes over the years. I’m pretty sure that my mom dressed me as a pumpkin for the first few years of my life. I’ve also been a devil and a clown, but my absolute favorite was when my older cousin Mona and I dressed up as matching dice. She was always like that older sister I looked up to, so I felt quite cool walking next to her! Oh, the lovely memories! Anyway, here’s next week’s question…

If you could eat dinner with any famous person, who would you choose and why?

Visit So About What I Said on Facebook and Twitter to share your smarts — and don’t forget to use hashtag #WiseWordsFromReaders. See you there, friends! 🙂


[Photos via We Heart It]

Etsy Love: Halloween tea towels

Just in time for one of my favorite holidays! How cool are these Halloween-themed tea towels from KitchStudios, the Buffalo, New York, towel and home decor shop? Dracula! Frankenstein! Bride of Frankenstein! Mummy! Oh, my! They sure put me in a spooktacular mood on this Tuesday morning, especially since I’ve got a date with the dentist! Yikes! xoxo

P.S. More Halloween goodies, including pumpkins, cookies, scary movies, zombie engagement and pet costumes! 🙂