Jdesigns

My motto in life is "I can make that cheaper." I like to find things in the stores or online and make them for much less then the price to pay for it already completed. Being a crafty person this is an easy task for me. I realize not everyone is so crafty or has the time, so that is why I have come up with Jdesigns. It is a much cheaper way to get the designer looks that you crave.

As a creative person, one of my favorite outlets is making invitations! I feel like the invitation sets the mood for the party or special occasion. I am starting a new adventure for myself with Jdesigns. I am branching out and starting a stationery business! I am very excited about this new adventure in my life and am looking forward to helping people see the options stationery has to offer for thier parties and special occasions!

I started making stationery many years ago. I think my first real experience with it was for my sisters wedding, seven years ago! She was having a wedding on a budget, and really wanted programs for the ceremony. Not having the money to order her programs, I took it upon myself to play with a few options for her. She loved what I came up with! They were the perfect detail to her perfect day!

Ever since then I have offered my services to many of my friends and family, and have had a few people take me up on my offer. I also did my own wedding invitations, and other invitations for parties that I have thrown. Here are a few of my favorites so far. Enjoy!

These are the wedding invitations from my wedding three years ago!

The first one is a bridal shower invitation to a shower I threw for my sister-in-law. The second one is the save the date I designed for her, and the last three photos are the programs I made for her wedding also!

Thanks for stopping by and hopefully you will see more from me in the future!!

My Home Office Dream

Since I am tring to start my own business I have decided I need an office that I can function in. It has to be highly organized with plenty of work space, and of course a great design! A place where I can be all day and enjoy working in. My current working conditions just aren't cutting it! My desk is too small to work and the stool hurts my tush! I usually end up leaving my desk and sitting on the pool table to get the large work surface I need! So, I have started my search for some office inspiration!

Here is my current work space....what a mess huh!

My first thought is I need a large space to work. By this I mean almost like a counter top! I need enough room to have my computer at one end and another work space at the other. I have a great location in my rec room for a nice long work station. I have recently stumbled across and awesome system at Peir1 that can be customized just the way I like it...but the delema is it is WAY too expensive!

So the search continues...the next thing I found was this desk at Ikea:

I am thinking this table top type desk would be great for me. I would get two of them and put them together to get the multi functional surface I need. I could also slide shelfs and filing cabinets under the desk to give me the option of customizing it the way I would like it. But I could also just get the table top and set it on top of shelves to make it even more my style. I would use the green bins to put inside all of the cubbies on the shelf. I already have a similar shelf and bins in my livingroom, so I know they all work together great! ANd these bins give me lots of storage that looks great!

I would love to eventually make it an L shaped desk so I can have a long work space, and then a small space to work with clients. But that would require us to get rid of our pool table (which will be a struggle with my husband). But if my business really takes off like I am hoping, he wont really have much of a choice, unless he would rather me pay to rent an office (which will never happen). So I guess for now I will contiune to plan a long desk, to put in my corner by the pool table.

I LOVE these chairs! I wish I was in need of them right now because I would buy them now! They are definitely my style! And these orange leaf pillows would make a great finishing touch! They would be the perfect place for my clients to sit durring consultations!

Here are some more fun accessories that I would like to add to my office for storage:

I think these are all of my ideas so far. I am sure more will come to me as I really get to start designing my space!

I Love My New Kitchen!

Our kitchen has needed a lot of help for quit some time now. However, with the expense of renovating kitchens it has been put on the back burner. But, a few months ago we finally finished the kitchen! I love my new kitchen! It is everything I wanted it to be and in many ways more!

Our kitchen started out with peach wall paper, no cabinet space, no counter space, a peach sink, oak cabinets, and a portable dishwasher that broke the first time we used it. So needless to say, our kitchen has needed some major updates since we moved in! When we moved in we tried to do the minimum by removing the wall paper and adding some color to the walls, and trying to make the most of what we had for cabinet and counter space. At one point we had to put a utility cabinet in our kitchen just so we had room to put groceries. Unfortunately I can not find any of my pictures from when the kitchen was like this. But I do have pictures during the renovation and after! So here are some pictures of the renovation process:

In this picture we have already added cabinets to the kitchen. I painted our oak cabinets black and then ordered some additional cabinets and painted those black as well. We put in a dishwasher, added the cabinet on the end by the stove (which is where our portable dishwasher once was), and added new knobs to the cabinets. In the origional layout of the kitchen, the refrigerator was back in the corner next to where the dishwasher is. So the only countertop we had is what is still up in the corner by the sink...not much at all!

This is a picture of all the new added cabinets! It has given us plenty of storage and countertop space.

Here are some pictures now that the kitchen in finished! (well except for a few small things and maybe a lack of accessories, which I am still hunting for)

I am still missing some accessories, but I am having a hard time finding the lime green stuff I need. Also like the rugs in the living room and dining room, this rug is a hand me down and I am currently looking for one I like better but...

for the most part our kitchen is done! With the freshly refaced cabinets, travertine tile backsplash, new stainless steel appliances, solid surface countertop with integrated sink, and hardwood floors I am loving every part of it!

Mr. & Mrs Brandon Baisden

The wedding of Lisa and Brandon has been my first project for Jdesigns! I am very excited about the way everything turned out, and to finally get my name out there in the invitation world! Lisa was such a great bride to work with for my first client. I could not have asked for more! Enjoy!

Invitations! Lisa picked these print your invites at Michaels and I came up with the font design for her. Also shown is the reception card that I made. There was also a response card, but we sent ours in and I havent asked for an extra from Lisa yet!

Here is the ceremony program. It is a very simple design, but holds a lot of information!

Here is one of the two bags that were filled with menus for Lisa!

The Menu before I delivered them, and the second picture is the menu on the table at the reception. Guests at the reception loved them, they were taking them home for keep sakes!





















This is just a picture of the logo Lisa allowed me to put on the back of all of the programs and menus. These will hopefully bring me some of my first clients!















Here are the place cards all set up on the entrance table to the reception!














And a close up of the place cards :)

** Here are some more images of the wedding stationery**

Everything was a hit and I am so glad! Congrats to Lisa and Brandon for a beautiful wedding!