A Toast To Fifteen Hundred Posts!

Mack Sennet Girls Posing in Serpentine Confetti from All Posters

Lest it slip by unmentioned, yesterday was my fifteen hundredth post. (One thousand was almost two years ago!) I've heard it said that taking up blogging to make money is like learning ventriloquism in order to meet girls.

It might not work.

Lucky for me, blogging holds intrinsic rewards. It's a way to catalog my inspirations and share my creativity. It keeps me thinking and making connections. In some ways this humble little blog is like Virginia Wolf's room in her famous essay "A Room of One's Own". It belongs entirely to me and in this one little corner I have the freedom to share whatever I like.

It's a place for me to practice everything- to test out new recipes, rant and rave about a wonderful or terrible film I've just seen, share a do it yourself project or consider how to embody my life more fully.

Along the way, my writing has improved, I've met wonderful people and I've built a room of my own. As I look around at it, I can see that it reflects what is best in me. There is whimsy and fun, but there is a search for meaning too. As I look at it, I can see the trajectory of my thinking and what moves me. It's thrilling. My little room has it's shortcomings, and yet it is something of which I am immensely proud.

Thank you for being part of what keeps me thinking, writing and sharing. It makes it so much more fun to share my room with you.

Love,

Becky

Flamingo Love Birds get some Love from Wedding Paper Divas!

I was so excited to see my Flamingo Love Birds getting some love over on Wedding Paper Diva's blog! Their site is filled with gorgeous, affordable invites and I know many brides-to-be are spending a lot of time there. Thanks to Jessica for ordering a pair of these leggy birds for her wedding cake and telling her readers about my little shop! I hope this little pair are an unforgettably fun detail on your big day!

Congratulations & Aloha!

Becky

A Bucket List that's Already Been Done

A few weeks ago I received an email from Momma D. The subject line read "Bucket List". It included a list to check off and pass on to friends. It got me thinking that what makes a bucket list special are the specific details of an individual's experience.

Though you can plan a trip to the Grand Canyon, you can never plan the little things that will happen along the way that make the trip uniquely yours. The unexpected details make life's treasures. So I thought I'd make my personal Bucket List with a twist. Here are a few things I've already done that I never could have planned ahead of time. (Thank goodness!)

Dandelion Photo from Racey Tay

Becky's Been There Bucket List:


Learn how to knit, make one hideous scarf and give up. X

Take to the wide skies of New Mexico during the Balloon Fiesta. Watch the giant plumes of silk fabric billow and fluff with hot air against the perfectly crisp blue sky on an early October morning. Enjoy a champagne toast and practical joke as an uninitiated afterwards. X

Go to Rocky Horror Picture Show in black sequined hot pants. Don't let anyone know it's your first time. Sing along at the top of your lungs, even though you don't know any of the lyrics. X

Receive the perfect bottle of perfume as a gift. X

Sample Blood Sausage in the Austrian countryside in a vineyard dappled with softly fading daylight. Spread it on thick brown rye bread like pate. Sip on green wine from the vines surrounding you. Surprise yourself by liking it, despite the horror of your American cohorts. X

Hear a loon's eerie cry across a mirror smooth lake just as the sun rises. X

Fill your passport with stamps. X

Then get another and start again. X

Learn the harmony to the star spangled banner. Use it. X

Get gum in your hair. Let your mother slather butter on it and painstakingly comb it out. Thank her years later in a blog post. X

Go to the Louvre. Ignore the guidebooks. Look at only what interests you and leave when you are tired. X

Wander through a butterfly pavilion with little ones. Watch them marvel at tiny things which are exactly at their eye level. Scrunch down with them and look there too. X

Try poi. At least two bites. X

Never save champagne for a special occasion. X

Change the oil in your car yourself at least once. From then on, leave the hassle to the pros. X

Run a small business. X

Have a pedicure with a girlfriend every month or so. Catch up on gossip and trashy magazines. Get a bruise from the mean old massage chair and remember to leave it off next time. X

Attempt to make a preposterous French Dessert at home. Cheat a little. Serve with drama. X

Suck it in to get that vintage dress with the teeny tiny waist to zip. Don't stay in it too long and whatever you do, don't sit down. X

Walk along a grassy, windswept cliff with the ocean crashing on one side and a towering clifftop forest on the other. Stand beside your best friend as she pledges her life to a charming ginger headed hippie. Hear their vows to one another. See thier lives intertwining. Think about how love is the most difficult, refining fire in the world. Go ahead and cry. X

The Winner of Martha Stewart's Special Occasions is...

The winner of "Martha Stewart's Special Occasions" is Katy of the Country Blossom who said:

"One of my most memorable special occasions (as there have been many, thank the Lord from whom *all* blessings flow!)...would be my daughter's *tea party* birthday party a couple years ago. The weather was just lovely and we set up a table and chairs. Her friends all came, dressed in their most fancy attire, and they ate dainty snacks and lovely tea (juice). My sister and I were able to set the table and oh my, was that fun! Flowers and many fun, simple decorations made it just sparkle and I think everyone had a nice time!"

Sounds like it was a wonderful party Katy! Thanks so much for telling us about it. Your new book is in the mail and I hope it inspires even more special occasions for you and your family and friends!

If you missed out this time, don't fret, more giddy giveaways are on the horizon- I hope you'll join us for the next one!

Aloha- Becky

Becky Kazana is having One Fab Day!

I was delighted to see my Flapper Love Birds featured on the beautiful wedding blog One Fab Day and even more delighted when the editor bought a pair for her big day! And isn't the color palette a lovely one? I especially love the ombre flower arrangements from Martha.

What about you? Is your week off to a good start?

Martini, Tigerskin Rug, Tuxedo & Velvet Slippers: Too Much or Just Right?

Nerd Boyfriend just never quits being wonderful. How glamorous is this shot of David Niven? He has managed to sit on a tiger skin rug and not look even the least bit campy. Even in a tuxedo with a martini in hand. Well done sir. I'm not sure it could still be done in 2011. I'd almost move somewhere snowy to get a chance to build a fire and enjoy the view of my velvet clad feet propped up on an overstuffed plaid ottoman. Almost. Perhaps I'll just add The Pink Panther to my Netflix que instead.

John Updike on Loving the Now

Image from the New York Times, text From Friday's Writer's Almanac:

When he was 19, John Updike wrote to his parents: "We do not need men like Proust and Joyce; men like this are a luxury, an added fillip that an abundant culture can produce only after the more basic literary need has been filled. This age needs rather men like Shakespeare, or Milton, or Pope; men who are filled with the strength of their cultures and do not transcend the limits of their age, but, working within the times, bring what is peculiar to the moment to glory. We need great artists who are willing to accept restrictions, and who love their environments with such vitality that they can produce an epic out of the Protestant ethic. Whatever the many failings of my work, let it stand as a manifesto of my love for the time in which I was born."

One of my writing teachers once told us "The difference between great writing and sentimental writing is specificity." That is what I love about this quote- he is saying that in order to write really well, you have to pay close attention to the moment, the now. The things that are odd about that moment are what make it special and worthy of attention. It is details that bring vitality to writing (and all art, really).

Also, isn't it lovely to be so crazy about the time in which you were born that you can turn it into something beautiful for other people to enjoy too? That is certainly what Shakespeare did.

I've never read any of Mr. Updike's work, but it looks like it is time to pick one up. Have you ever read him? Favorites to suggest?

How do you spend your solitude?

The Last Wave of the Day from the wonderful photography shop Elgarboart

A friend recently posted a quote from William Temple on her Facebook page that read "Your religion is how you spend your solitude."

Those are powerful words. The things that we SAY are important to us are belied by what we actually DO, especially when alone with ourselves. There are so many things I want more time for in my daily life.

Appreciating nature

Cooking- especially as a way of connecting with the place I live

Writing

Reading

Time getting to know my wonderful husband better still. (It amazes me how parts of him can still be such a mystery to me after ten plus years together.)

Meditation

Focus

Notably absent from this list are the things I spend an inordinate amount of time actually doing:

Getting sucked down the rabbit hole of the internet

Watching Television or Movies

Shopping, both online and off

Crafting- I have more thinking to do on this, but I think it has to do with my urge to "rescue" things.

Taking on the concerns of others.

The time spent doing these things flies by- it's almost as if no time passes at all, because they are pleasurable and yet unsubstantial. The enjoyment they offer is fleeting while the things in the first list help to cultivate a life of the spirit. Those tasks are harder to get started on with all the distractions available to escape into, but what they offer is more worthwhile. The question is how to create new patterns for my solitude so that it matches up better with my ideals.

Have you developed any ways of combating the distractions and excuses? I could use some ideas. How are your resolutions going? How are you going to make 2011 a more thoughtful year of life? One that you are engaged and excited by? (And I'm not talking about diets either).

Digging Deeper into It's a Wonderful Life

Which movies do you watch over and over again come Christmas time?

Every year, Eric and I cuddle up withThe Charlie Brown Christmas Special and The Grinch, but A Christmas Story , Elf and Christmas Vacation are often in the line up too.

Then of course, there is that sacred cow of Christmas Films, It's a Wonderful Life . As a devotee of old movies in general, Jimmy Stewart in particular, and sappy, life affirming messages all around, you'd think this would be a favorite of mine.

And it is. But it isn't.

I watch this movie almost every single year and bawl my eyes out the whole time. But it's not the sort of crying I do when beauty catches at my heart and sends a recognition of the sweet, gorgeous brevity of life shivering through me. There is some of that, but it is overwhelmed by a deep grief for George Bailey and everything he has cheated himself out of.

George Bailey is a heartbreaking character. He has a life full of promise. He has dreams for himself. He wants so much to see the world. He wants to see what lies outside Bedford Falls. And he sacrifices those dreams again and again for other people. He believes that he is the only person holding it all together.

Now, I believe whole heartedly in helping others. But I object deeply to the idea that it can only be done through ruthless self sacrifice.

It's a very convincing lie. You can do it for awhile, but if you are giving from a place that is not rejuvenated (you are giving out of duty, expectations or with an eye to reward) then burn out awaits.

Just look at George before he meets the angel Clarence. He is a ghost of himself- sunken eyes, bitterness and guile swelling up in his heart. His anger and frustration explode out of him at whatever happens to be in his way- the school teacher on the phone, his oldest boy asking for help with Christmas related vocabulary, the oak tree he drunkenly crashes into.

This idea that everything will fall apart if not for "ME" holding it all together is seductive. We cherish this idea because it makes us feel important. But what if the things we are holding up need to fall apart so that something better can arise? Or what if someone else will take up the task with an enthusiasm and joy we could not bring to it?

In the end, this is one of the lessons that George learns. When he lets go, he discovers that his friends love him enough to come through and create a miracle for him and the Building and Loan.

Our lives can be filled with meaning when we realize our fullest potential and our joy flows out to enrich the lives of the people around us. Because if we can give from a place that is refilled by joy, love and compassion then we can do it endlessly and without bitterness or desire for reward. It's the difference between pouring from a puny bottle or pouring from a well that is eternally replenished at the source.

Bet you didn't realize all that was packed into one little movie, did you? What's in your Netflix Que this December?

The Secret to Living an Adventurous Life: Q & A with Becky Kazana

Agave Trailer by Red Tile Studio

Hi Becky!

I love Etsy and happened to stumble upon your fantastic shop today, which led me to your blog. It is hard to miss that you and your husband have done so much traveling. I was wondering if you had any advice about how to afford to travel both time and money-wise. If you have time, I would love to hear your financial travel tips.

Grad Student in Brooklyn

Aloha!

As far as travel tips, I'm not sure how much help I can offer. There is plenty of budget travel advice out there already- backpacking, hostels, last minute flights and on and on. However, the secret is really prioritizing. Eric and I have made travel, adventure and exploration a priority and keep our lives flexible so that we can take advantage of opportunities when they arise.

There are things we have given up in order to have adventures. We don't own a home because renting leaves us free to leave at a moment's notice. We don't own one single stick of furniture since renting furnished apartments leaves us less to deal with when it's time to pack up. We are far away from family and friends.

Movin On Card by Vitamini

BUT, because of these sacrifices we have been able to take advantage of jobs in far flung places, including Kenya, Uganda, China and Hawaii. When we first began traveling, I thought that eventually we would "come home" and settle down, and that the house, furniture, family would all fall into place. But the more we live this way, the more I realize that those things I thought I wanted just aren't that important to me now. And after living this way for a few years I also feel as if the opportunities will continue to present themselves if we keep searching for them without fear and anxiety.

If you ""Follow your Bliss"" then the path will rise up to meet you in ways you never expected.

Good luck and keep in touch.

Becky

Desert Camper by Leah Giberson

Which is your favorite feature on The Fab Miss B?

After a week away from the old blog (which you didn't even know about thanks to the joys of auto post!) I've been doing some thinking about which direction to take this ship. I'd love some input from you, sweet readers. What are your favorite features here on The Fab Miss B? What would you like to see more of? Less of? I'd be delighted if you'd elaborate on your vote in the comments. Thanks so much to each of you, who make it such a delight to share my thoughts each day. xo- Becky

Starting An Etsy Shop: Sellers Assisting Sellers Q&A with Becky Kazana

Here is a question I've been fielding a lot lately, and not just through Sellers Assisting Sellers either. I've been hearing variations on this question at parties and through Facebook. I'm guessing many of you are interested in the answer too.

"I am considering selling on Etsy. I am hesitant to start an account because I don't know how much time I will have to keep up my site. Can you give me any advice and information about how it works? I'd greatly appreciate it!"

Vintage Jack & Beanstalk Print from More Loose Ends

The first thing I would say is that the single best resource for learning how to sell on Etsy is Etsy itself! Since the site makes more money from successful sellers, they have a powerful incentive to see you succeed and they pour a lot of effort into helping new sellers turn into all stars. This is the first place to start.

That being said, it will take time and commitment to grow your shop. I discovered Etsy three years ago and instantly fell madly in love. I set up an account immediately and started listing items that week. It took months to nab that first sale and only after a great deal of trial and error, I've finally found a niche that works for me. Although it took me three years to get to where I am, I'm really proud of how far my humble little shop has come in that time.

It's easy to get sucked into searching for one magic bullet to start your creations flying out the door. Some people have had this experience, but I suspect it to be exaggerated. There is no magic bullet- It's more like magic beans that you have to plant and water and tend and then one day, you have a tiny shoot and before you know it, your little plant starts unfurling to the sun! You will need to master a combination of skills and be diligent in applying them, even when you can't tell if they are working or not. Obviously, this takes patience.

Happy Beans Painting by Luna De Selby

You will have to find your own combination of magic beans, but here are some of mine:

-Beautiful Photos: This cannot be overestimated. It takes time to learn how to do it well, so be patient with yourself. Here's a post I wrote on my journey to beautiful photographs.

-Re-listing Regularly: At the moment, I do this 4 to 5 times a day. I've noticed that my sales rise in proportion to the frequency of my listing, but I've also honed in on a special niche, so it's hard to say which is the key there.

-Lightweight Items: that are inexpensive to ship, even internationally. USPS is an amazing tool. If you take the time to understand the system, it gives you an enormous advantage. Sometimes I can ship my items for under $3.

-Product I can Duplicate Precisely: This means I don't have to re-photograph and re-write a new listing for every single item. Instead, I can click re-list or renew. If you run a vintage shop or one of a kind products, you can't do this. I urge you to include the photography and listing process in the final cost of your product. It is time consuming and you have to be paid for it.

-Charging for my time: This is difficult for me because I enjoy my work so much. What I've had to learn is that just because I like doing it doesn't mean it isn't valuable. Engineers don't feel guilty about their paychecks because they like solving mechanical problems. Remember that.

-Social Networking: Twitter, Facebook & Blogging have been effective for me, but they also come very naturally to me. I am an extrovert by nature and sharing things I'm interested in is lots of fun for me. This article is a great explanation of how social networking is changing online marketing.

Please do add questions and suggestions in the comments, I'd love to hear from you successful sellers out there, as well as newbies who are looking for support and encouragement.

Etsy has really changed my life in so many ways- it has given me an outlet for my work, a community of like-minded people, validation of my craft, an education on how to be a business person in the internet age and all of this has nourished my creative process and helped it to flourish. I wish the same for all of you.

Bunch of Beans Cards by Fisk & Fern

Fave Crafts Radio Interview

My friends at Fave Crafts kindly invited me to do an interview on their new Radio Program recently. Tiffany and I chatted about how travel has inspired my work, life in Hawaii and why artists and crafters should value their work. Listen to the whole episode here, or download it for free on I-tunes. My segment aired on 6/15 and begins around the 58 minute mark. Let me know what you thought!

Alphabet Party Cups

Don't you love the idea of alphabet cups? Perfect for parties, picnics and summer in general! (Kudos to the prop stylist too! They know what gets my heart a flutter!) Discovered via Oh Joy!

The Winner of $100 with CSN Stores is...

The lucky winner of The $100 CSN Stores Giveaway is the lovely and talented Rachel! She picked this chandelier as her favorite and said:

"It's a little more modern than I typically go for, but I just love the clean shape of it and the way the shades are grouped together."

Well Rachel, you're $100 closer to hanging that baby over your dining room table! Let us know what you end up chosing. Thanks for playing dear readers. There are more fun Giddy Giveaways coming up! Follow me on Facebook and Twitter so you'll never miss out on the freebie fun!

Free Father's Day E-Book Download

Hey! You there! Yes! YOU! You haven't forgotten that tomorrow is Father's Day, have you? Well, just in case, my friends at Fave Crafts have compiled an e-book of cool DIY Father's Day gift ideas and they've included my easy last minute homemade spice rub how to. Download it for free right over here.

Happy Father's Day to all the Daddies out there. We sure do love you.

Poll Away!

Well, good news! I'm going to be hosting a weekly poll with my friends over at the Crafting in Color, so you'll get to add your two cents every Saturday! This week, I'm asking about your favorite Spring Flowers. Cast a vote for your favorite right over here.

P.S) If you chose B, please see here Madame Smarty Pants.

Free DIY Mother's Day E-Book at Fave Crafts

Need more ideas for handmade Mother's day gifts? My friends at Fave Crafts for included my sachet tutorial in their Mother's Day Craft e-book! You can download it for free right here.

DIY Tin Can May Day Basket

I've never actually put flowers on a neighbor's doorstep for May day, but it's a wonderful tradition! This recycled tin can flower container is the perfect way to begin, don't you think? Found via One Pretty Thing.

Free DIY Easter E-Book at Fave Crafts

My friends at Fave Crafts have included my DIY Paper Egg Cup Project in their DIY Easter E-book. You can download it for free right over here. And don't be shy about rummaging around through my archives for more tutorials, just as long as you link back my way should you want to share them.

P.S) Doesn't this bunny look disgruntled? His irritation amuses me in this season of anthropomorphic pastel colored baby animals with unnaturally long eyelashes. I'd be pissed too.