Love Matters - Valentines Day 2013 Card Making Kit

Back from a lovely holiday, it's back to full swing here.  What better way to start the Year than with a Divine Card Making Kit dedicated to the world's most powerful emotion LOVE.

Introducing....

Love Matters

Valentines Day Card Making Kit

In this kit you create 3 large Cards and 4 Large Gift Tags.  All perfect to gift to special friends and family upon completion.  These cards are ideal to be gifted all year round by the way.

To purchase this kit click here
 

Holiday Break - Koko Vanilla Designs

Hi Everyone,
 
A quick note to let you know

that the Koko Vanilla Designs Team is on a short break

Any orders placed between Sunday 13th - Thursday 17th January will not be shipped until Friday 18th January

If you have placed an order before this date your order will be shipped first thing Monday.

We appreciate your support and look forward to returning refreshed and inspired

and ready to serve your creative needs even better in 2013

If you have any queries email will be checked daily.

Valentines Day

Yes I know we are just winding up Christmas, but to be organised for Valentine's Day just over a month away, for me it's time to think about creating some new designs for 2013.


Below is a little roundup of some previous Valentine Inspiration along with some product available on site, like the gorgeous heart trim available here.  The image from our packaging kit in the far right bottom corner which is available here, all sorts of great ephemera in there to make some cute gifting packing for Valentines Day or any other special occasion.  The I love you tags are now Sold out, but the large Jumbo Tag in a similar style is available here

 

As for this year I have begun working on the Valentines Day Card Kit for 2013.  Also have some custom orders to complete so it's a busy few days around here and to make it a little more hectic the kids are on holidays.

Lots of happy creating as well as spending time with my kids on holidays.  Trying to be present as I FOCUS on each task.

Hope you are enjoying some time out as well.  Back with more soon...

Happy 2013 and One Little Word

Here we are my absolute favourite time of year.  A brand spanking crystal clear new year to wipe the slate clean.  365 days to create all over again and start a new.  Hopefully by now you have done some sort of closing of 2012, perhaps a little physical decluttering of your space and have done some journalling to round up the year that has been and are ready to rock this new year.

My favourite question to family and friends over the last few days of socialising has been what do you want to create for the new year, what are your dreams, what do you want to achieve.  Well I may as well have been from another planet asking those questions.

Answers have ranged from, "No I don't write goals down, it's all in my head," or "I haven't really thought about it" or "What do you mean?" or the usual, " I don't believe in New Year Resolutions." etc etc.  You know the deal.  C'mon people what you think about you bring about.  If its only in your head, cluttered with everything else that is in there, then chances are that's where it will stay.  No need to be obsessed with it, just a little thought and dreaming and planning will do and perhaps put pen to paper and affirm to the Universe exactly what you want, so you are both on the same page.

I know if you are a regular reader of my blog you are familiar with my rants and by now hopefully I have influenced you to do this process every year.  So Welcome -  One Little Word 2013

Last year's word was Peace, and I have to say that I am in a more peaceful and calmer place than I was this time last year.  My circumstances haven't really altered all that much but my ability to adapt and not react has changed.  I have had my fair share of being anxious and stressed over the last few years, but all the energy I have put into really changing the way I think and the way I react and how I treat my body and what I tell myself have all been a really long, slow, learning curve of growth and I have to say it some pain over the years or resisting and fighting it.  Sometimes we don't like the lessons life is teaching us, but nonetheless it has to be dealt with.  The reward usually is you become stronger, wiser, and have more clarity about why you are here and how you are here to serve and affect others.  But you must be willing to face up and do the work. 

So this year I felt like I couldn't really settle on a word.  I was fussing about and I jumped from words like Yes, Truth, Action, Productive.  I have such big goals for this year that non of those words encompassed all that I really wanted the word to symbolise for me.  The word I ended up choosing was FOCUS.

I love this quote from Tony Robbins, one of my favourite motivational speakers:

"One reason so few of us achieve what we truly want is that we never direct our focus, we never concentrate our power.  Most people dabble their way through life, never deciding to master anything in particular."

Okay well that would be me.  This year for me needs to represent not so much about what I do but how I do it.  Nothing gets achieved or achieved properly with wishy washy effort.  Last year I started a couple of different projects and either discontinued or stopped alltogether.  One example was my vidoes.  I have had such great feedback about the you tube videos I did, but then stopped them.  Yes they are time consuming and yes they are a free offering to teach and don't directly create an income, however it is my way of connecting with you all and teaching what I feel cannot be done with pictures and words.  This year one of my goals is to create a video monthly.  In order to get this done I need to implement a few strategies, like choosing a day to create, video, upload, edit and then finally get it onto my social networking sites.  It takes at least a few hours.  It requires focus, discipline, knowledge and skill to get it done.  Without any of these components guess what it doesn't reach beyond being in my thoughts. 

These are the sorts of things I am talking about.  Seeing things through to completion, which means scheduling them in, saying no to other things that may get in the way of achieving those goals.  I have plenty of other examples but I won't list them all as we would be here all day.  I am sure you get the picture and probably have similar examples of your own.

I hope you take some time to think about what word you would like to highlight your year ahead.  If not take some time today and get to it.  I actually decided I am doing a mini album with my One Little Word this year to keep me accountable which means I will be journalling each month about what implementing this word has helped me to acheive.  I am using the Heidi Swapp Mini Memory Files as my base as you can see in the photo above.

Feel free to share this post if it inspires you.

Sale on now 35% off storewide ends December 31st 2012

Morning Everyone,

If you don't recieve my newsletters, or follow me on facebook or instagram then you wouldn't  know that yesterday I released a 35% off Storewide sale.  Details are below.... 

This is our final and biggest sale of 2012

Enjoy a whopping 35% off Storewide at Koko Vanilla Designs

Great time to stock up on items for One Little Word or Christmas Supplies for all those photos you took yesterday. 

Ends 31st December

Enter the Code word SILLYSEASON at checkout to recieve the discount automatically deducted off your total, everything in store, inluding already reduced items.

Not available with any other offers!

Enjoy Stress Free Shopping online!

______________________________________________

I hope you are enjoying the last few days of 2012.  I am resting up as I have had a really sore lower back the last few days, started on Christmas Eve out of nowhere and stopped me in my tracks.   I've taken it as a sign that I need to slow down and let others around me pitch in and help for a change rather than running around like a crazy women 24/7.  Not easy to slow down but I have no choice.  

Today I am feeling better and hoping to do a little light decluttering and work on some planning for the New Year as well as closing up 2012.  I love using Leonie Dawsons Increadible Life Worbook planner and this year she released a business version as well.  Love that its colourful and just gives you a great starting point to focus on and write down all you want to achieve for the 2013.  Its also great to look back at last years and what things I managed to achieve and of course where I need to improve.  I think my big takeaway for this year is that I really need to begin to implement and take action and not give in so easily.  The only way to do this is to set out the steps, clearly and concisely and take action no matter how small towards those goals every day!!

Really use these last few days of years end to focus on clearing space for a new path for 2013.  I think it's important to have some sort of ritual and I encourage you to do the same, doing whatever feels right for you.  Its also a great time to guide the kids if you have them to clear out their rooms of what they don't really love or won't use or wear.  Also to write down some goals of things they might want to do over the next month even just during the holidays if focusing on the year is too big a challenge.  It also produces some great ideas of how to use up some days in January when you are running low on ideas and patience.   Get them to pick one of their goals and help them make actionable steps towards achieving them too.

Anyway enough ranting for today hope you are inspired, happy Thursday to you all, enjoy this beautiful warm weather. xox

Merry Christmas

To all my blog readers, customers

Wishing you the most wonderful, joyful and blessed Holiday Season.  May the beautiful spirit of Chirstmas bring, peace, love, happiness and many great memories with family and friends.

We will be open as usual throughout the Christmas and New Year period for your shopping convenience, however we will be taking a short break mid January.  

Merry Christmas!!
 

It's been a while

Hey Everyone

Gosh where have I been??

The last few months have been an absolute whirlwind.  I had so many things I wanted to achieve by the end of this year, and now I have just surrendered to the fact that life has another agenda sometimes, and in a couple of weeks its a brand new year to try again.

I was completely all geared up to do my December Daily, front cover done, taking photos each day, but late november my uncle who I was very close too like a second Dad, had a stroke and spent three weeks in hospital only to pass away.  Although I was going through the motions to put an album together my heart just wasn't in it and it didn't feel right.  It's kinda hard to get excited about Christmas when someone close is suffering and there is nothing you can do to help them.

Sometimes life just doesn't go as planned and you just have to roll with it.

Amongst all of that I have my youngest daughter finishing Grade 6 so trying to be excited for her with all the end of year activities.

Last week I was thinking well forget December Daily, but today I have had a rethink.  Even though I may not have captured photos of every day in December I still have memories of what was done on each day I think I may just journal or add something other than photos to symbolise the month and document it.

My little take away from the last few weeks is to really treasure moments, people, friends, family, honour your dreams.  It was just yesterday that I had a session with a healer/mentor that said that I just keep getting in my own way of making things happen.  This wasn't news to me I know I am my own worst enemy. I guess I will be bringing into 2013 to become accountable, really accountable for everything I allow in my life and not allow.

Anyway I thought I would end this post with a couple of pics so that's its not all about me.  Some moments of December and some of my creations as well.

custom Christmas Cards for Principle and Vice at School

off to camp

december daily cover

 

my daughters on graduation night

 

Back with more soon