All Us All the Time Stationery Sachets

Introducing our newest Stationery Sachet - "The Parisian", featuring our two latest greeting cards, "The Vintage Flower Cone" and "French Pillows". The Vintage Flower Cone stationery and note sheets are reproduced from my sister's recent watercolor of a fabric cone with irises. The color palette is very French country, with golden yellows, deep pinks, rich blues, and sage greens. Then beautiful irises beam from the top with their delicate pedals overflowing down the sides. My sister is known for her intricate detail work that is shown through the elaborate fabric patterns of the cone and then the delicate draping flower pedals. Also reproduced from one of her fabulous watercolor paintings is the French Pillows stationery. This stationery is again filled with the rich and vibrant colors of French country. Three pillows with alluring patterns nestled on top of each other with la poire or pear perched on top, which gives it that certain je ne sais quoi.

The sachet itself is a patchwork of floral and striped fabric hand sewn together with a ribbon tie creating an elegant three-pocket sachet. These charming stationery sachets filled with the enchanting Parisian greeting cards and note sheets will abet the revival of the lost art of letter writing. They will bring back the romanticism of letter writing and the intimacy of receiving a personal handwritten note with this whimsical stationery. Display them on your writing desk, or they can be folded and tied with a ribbon bow to be tucked away in your dresser drawer until you need to send a note of gratitude or a well wish to a dear friend. These stationery sachets can also add instant charm with a touch of Victorian and French Country to your home's guest room delighting your guests. If you are searching for a special gift for a friend, sister, mother, wife, teacher, caregiver, or bride-to-be, these adorable sachets will sure to be cherished. With the rich floral patterns and coordinating ribbon tie, the sachets do not even require gift-wrapping. Each sachet comes with 8 blank greeting cards, 8 note sheets, 8 envelopes and 2 gel pens. Greetings Cards are 4.25" x 5.5", note sheets are 5" x 6.5". Quantities are limited.

Summer Solstice

How will you be celebrating Summer Solstice this year? Dancing and singing under a star lit sky around a bonfire? Celebrating with a summer concert in the park or going to an outdoor amphitheater for Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream? Whatever your plans are, I just hope you do have plans to celebrate. It seems in today's society, celebrations of our ancient ancestors, like summer solstice, get lost through the ages. We still recognize our major holidays, but with our busy schedules and standard paid vacations, we tend to forget about celebrating the smaller nuances of life, such as the longest day of the year.

This year Summer Solstice falls on June 21st, the day summer officially begins. It is a time to reflect upon the passing of the first half of the year and to renew yourself for the second half to come. In earlier times, summer was viewed as a joyous time of the year. The snow had melted, temperatures warmed, and the earth was blooming. Food was easier to find, crops had already been planted, and some herbs were ready to be harvested for medicine and other uses. Even in ancient times they were able to determine that days began to shorten and this was the longest day or shortest night of the year.

Summer Solstice has been celebrated by many societies in the northern hemisphere. The ancient Celts, or Druids, celebrated Alban Heruin or "Light of the Shore". In ancient China, the summer solstice ceremony celebrated the earth, the feminine, and the yin forces. This complemented the winter solstice that celebrated the heavens, masculinity and yang forces. Ancient Gaul's midsummer celebration was called Feast of Epona, a mare goddess who embodied fertility, sovereignty and agriculture. Ancient Rome held the festival of Vestalia, to honor the Roman Goddess of the hearth, Vesta. A midsummer tree was set up and decorated in each village in ancient Sweden and villagers would dance around it. They also had a magical ritual where the women and girls would bathe in the local river to bring rain for the crops. Ancient Pagans celebrated with bonfires or fire festivals. Pairs of lovers would jump through flames, and it was believed that the crops would grow as high as the couples could jump. The fires were also thought to bring more energy to the sun so that it would remain potent throughout the growing season to yield a plentiful harvest. This was also the traditional month for weddings, between planting and harvesting of the crops. The Pagans believed the month of May was for the union of the Goddess and God, at Beltaine. It was believed to be unlucky to compete with the deities and many couples delayed their unions until June. After the conversion to Christianity in Europe, the feast day of St. John the Baptist was set on June 24th. The Native Americans also celebrated this time with ceremonies and created countless stone structures linked to the equinoxes and solstices.

If you don't have any plans to build a bonfire or there are no concerts or outdoor plays to be found, you could still plan a picnic in the park, dinner in your backyard, or a leisurely evening stroll around the neighborhood. Perhaps even just a glass of wine or cup of tea on your porch step, staring aimlessly into the horizon, reflecting on what has been and dreaming of what is to come. Happy Summer Solstice!

For more information on Summer Solstice and its history, here are some great links to check out:

http://www.schooloftheseasons.com/midsummer.html
http://www.netglimse.com/holidays/summer/summer_solstice_celebration.shtml
http://www.equinox-and-solstice.com/html/summer_solstice.html
http://www.religioustolerance.org/summer_solstice.htm
http://www.serve.com/shea/germusa/midsumm.htm
http://www.americanspiritnews.com/JJ95/Html/SummerSolstice.html
http://www.americanspiritnews.com/MJ96/SummerSolstice.html
http://www.circlesanctuary.org/pholidays/summersolstice.htm

WORLD'S GREATEST DAD

How lucky are we to be able to boast the blog with THE WORLD’S GREATEST DAD!!!


We love you!
Pam & Staci

Tee Up with Golf Gift Tags at All Us All the Time

Our father has always been a very avid golfer and for my sister and me, there has never been life before golf. Really, was there ever a time before golf? Well if so, how sad. Any hoo, now that summer is almost here, we decided it would be fun to put one of our favorite leisure time activities to felt. Yes, that’s right, to felt. The newest addition to our Wool Felt Gift Tag family is our Golf Gift Tags. These sporting wool felt golf gift tags come in a smashing color palette of greens, maroons, blues, and browns, and are embellished with hand-sewn details and a ribbon for hanging. You can insert tees, small ball markers, or a small note of golfing good luck. Another cute idea is to put small coupons in them for mulligans, gimmies, or even fold up a gift certificate for a free round of golf. Perfect for Father’s Day gifts. The golf gift tags also make great door prizes for any golfing group, especially if you include the golf coupons or certificates. FORE!!

To My Sister with Love

To My Sister with Love – An illustrated tribute to a very sweet and talented girl on her very special day.


To my sister who encouraged me to create without giving criticism or passing judgment.


To my sister who taught me never to be afraid to experiment.


To my sister who says those who say there is too much excess in the world, obviously don’t shop at the right Art Supply Store.


To my sister who has exposed me to the finer literary arts our culture has to offer.


To my sister who has shown me time and time again, I will always have a best friend.


HAPPY BIRTHDAY SIS!! LOVE YOU VERY MUCH!!

June Tip Page - Summer Parties and Fruit Pizza

We are now in the third month of our tip page. If this is the first entry you have read on our blog, here is a little history behind the infamous Tip Page. If you have already been through all that, please skip down to the third paragraph.

The idea of adding a tip page to our website actually popped up last summer when my sister and I were driving in the car. Not sure how the topic or idea came up and with the "Bright and Shiny Object" syndrome that plagues both my sister and I, tracing back those origins would be next to impossible. Of course the other ailment my sister and I are afflicted with is that no concept of reality thing and there really isn't 36 hours in the day or 8 days to the week. When we first talked about adding a tip page to our site, we originally envisioned our tip page having three sections. The first part would entail deeply thought provoking journal prompts with profoundly enlightening written examples that may or may not solve the ancient mysteries of mankind. These poetic prose would then be accompanied by elaborate intricate illustrated layouts of the likes of the Sistine Chapel. The second part would include unique and captivating recipes, decorating and gift basket ideas. Ideas to rival those of Martha Stewart, eloquently presented with each ingredient illustrated in fine detail. Finally, part three would entail a crafting section with awe-inspiring paper craft ideas and never-thought-of-before color scheme suggestions with of course an extremely ornate detailed illustrated layout of each and every step of the process including color wheels, charts, and Photoshop screen shots. There would be animated graphics throughout as our own composed music plays in the background. This will be followed by a feature film and soon-to-be released soundtrack.

Well no movie producer has contacted us yet, but we do feel we have a fun topic for our June Tip Page - Summer Parties! Tis the season to...grill! Yes, summer is one of the best times to entertain, especially since you can do it in your own backyard. Our summer party page gives a few tips and party theme ideas to help make your summer soirees sensational. Our party themes stem from Flower Power Party, Nautical Party, Potluck Party, to Garden Party. We list out a few decorating and menu ideas to get your creative party juices flowing. We hope these ideas help you with planning your summer soirée. Also be sure to visit our entertaining page to see our selection of fill-in invitations, place cards, and disposable party coasters and drink charms. Oh! One more thing, also on our tip page we have the recipe for one of my favorite summer time desserts, fruit pizza, which is perfect for all parties this summer. So check out our June Tip page for summer party tips and a sweet summer time treat, Fruit Pizza. Enjoy!