freshening

Spring is upon us people! The sun is shining and the birds are singing, and I've been on a whole redecorating kick! Recently he Mr and one of our friends created this necklace holder for my booth. I've just been smitten with it ever since and instead of storing it away, I decided to put it to good use! I put it on my make shift nightstand (a pile of suitcases) and I just love having everything right by my side. 

Inlike most people, I like to get ready in the morning in front of a small mirror I prop on my bed while I watch tv, cause that makes sense, right? Anywhos, it's nice having everything in arms reach! Thought I'd snap a few photos and share with you. I just love the little details. And I've actually added a few things since taking these photos, oops.

 

 

 

 

Have a lovely weekend friends! I have a long week of work ahead, so I'm going to enjoy the rest of this day with design, rest and completely delicious (and probably unhealthy) nachos with friends!

xo.

Melisa

shop update

I just finished up with a little shop update. Some of you were asking about these items when you saw photos of my booth, so I thought I'd list a few. You can purchase and view them in the shop! These Geo Rings are definitely some of my most favorite! I love a good statement piece! Hope you enjoy!

Y'all have been ever supportive as of late and as a thank you I made the code "SWEETREADER", you can use it at the checkout to receive 15% off your order. Can't beat that! 

I'm excited to have the day off and enjoy a good date day with the Mr. What do you have planned for the weekend?

xo.

Melisa

a word of encouragement - to myself

Do you ever go through situations and think, "a few years ago, there's no way I would've survived this", or " last year I would've never thought I'd be where I am today."? I do, like all the time. I think of how silly young me was and thought it would be fun to have a little creative writing lesson, and maybe (hopefully) provide a little encouragement or inspiration for you.

Dear 15 year old self, 

it's me (you) eight years from the future! Weirds right?? Yes, you say weirds now. I just wanted to say hi and let you in on a few tips. There's a lot of lessons up ahead that are soon to be learned. You're going to go through a wide variety of craziness, but overall, you turn out okay. In moments of weakness, trust that you are indeed stronger than you think. When you face difficult decisions, trust your instincts, and don't be easily swayed by others. Believe in yourself; start to dream bigger and wilder than you ever have before! When you fail, and yes, no matter how much you fight it, you will, get back up and try again; perseverance and endurance will become your best friends. Patience truly is a virtue and don't ever pray for it because God will hear it and you will find yourself in "waiting situations" a lot! But I suppose it's okay because He always follows through, so no worries. In moments of confusion, don't overthink it, you'll get stressed out and get migraines and make situations 100 times more complicated, just trust that God is in control and you don't always have to have a plan. No matter how dim your past or present may seem, your future is bright. Continue to value yourself, don't settle for anything less than the best and learn to love who you are. 

I know that's a lot to take in, but truth is, there isn't enough time or room to teach you all you need to know. The best part is, is that I don't have to. Even though it's hard, confusing and overwhelming, every situtation, every obstacle, every problem,,, it has a solution, it has an answer and it holds an opportunity for growth. You may not feel this way now, but one day you'll be proud of who you are, you'll feel less insecure, you'll be okay with standing out and won't constantly want to fit in, you'll have girls looking up to you and because of what you've faced, you'll be able to teach them and help them through similar situations. If there's one thing I want you to know; that one thing I wish I'd known from the start... it's that life is rarely what you plan, but for some reason it comes out so much better.

You and Elisha are still together (hooray!), you lose some friends, hold on to others and make new ones. You get to visit lots of fun places, learn more than you ever thought possible, learn to play an instrument (thanks to hundreds of hours in the practice room), you get a degree, you get your credentials,  you take lots of photos, get to hold lots of puppies (but unfortunately still not own one) and best of all, you're happy. Life isn't always peaches, but you are happy and content; it's really all you've ever wanted. I know there's moments I wish I could relive, people I miss and things I wish I hadn't taken for granted. Enjoy everyday.

xo.

Melisa

ps: the winners of the sponsor spot giveaway have been emailed! Thanks so much to all who participated!!

my first craft festival

I was extremely excited to participate in the Walk the Light Festival this year. I love love setting up my booth and being able to display my work. So much time and energy went into every little piece of this booth that I just had to photograph every bit of it; so forgive me for the amount of photos you're about to view. 

If you see something you like, you can shop Pie N' the Sky online here or if something isn't listed, then feel free to send me an email at Melisaholguin@gmail.com

Hope you're having a good week friends! Don't forget to sign up to win a free sponsor spot for April down below!

xo.

Melisa

Sponsorship and Giveaway

It's that lovely time again, when I get to invite you to become a Pie N' the Sky sponsor!! I always love this time because I get to make new friends and partner with such talented ladies! If you'd like more info on sponsorship rates and info, you can go here. If you'd like to make your purchase you can go here, or email me at Melisaholguin@gmail.com

GIVEAWAY // For fun, I'm giving away one Large sponsorship spot, for the month of April, to one lovely reader! All you have to do is follow via GFC and leave a comment! I will announce the winner on Wednesday the 28th! 

Thanks friends! Hope you enjoy the last of your weekend! I'll be back soon to share lots and lots of photos of the Walk the Light Festival!

xo.

Melisa

How to balance the creative with the daily

Have you ever felt like you were living two lives?? Like during the day you're worker, student, mom, etc... and then every other free moment you're crafter and blogger extraordinaire?? I know how difficult it can be at times to want to do one thing, but have to do another (ie work instead of sit at home blogging all the livelong day). It's tough being a blogger and a full time worker; it's even more difficult when you have other responsibilities as well. I'm no expert by any means, but I have found several things that have helped me through the years and things I'm having to resort back to now that I've started my full time job. I just thought I'd share these helpful tips with you, in case you may be struggling in this area.

1. You don't need to blog every single day. I know that this is difficult because I feel like I owe it to my readers to have something awesome to say, or to show pretty pictures or something else equally inspiring every day, but sometimes it's just not realistic. Sometimes the day simply has no free minutes and we have to remind ourselves that the blog world will go on. Your blog will be there the next day and the next and yes, your readers will be to. Maybe try not to make it a habit, but if you miss a few days here and there, the world will not implode.

2. Take photos of the little things. Sometimes we may feel like we can only post about our day if it's terribly exciting or there's an actual event, and so it's frustrating when we find ourselves only going to work and having a few hours at home... take photos of the little things throughout your day that make everything worth it; a yummy chai tea, a pretty sunrise, your new nailpolish, etc. Capturing these moments will not only allow you to share your day in a unique way, but also inspire you throughout the day.

3. Plan. We all know I love love to plan. Sometimes our lack of time comes from lack of planning. No one wants to live by a schedule, but it really is the most productive way to accomplish everything you need to. When I know I have a lot to do, I will grab a pen and paper and write out my to do's, then I'll list them in order of "Need to Get Done", then I list out my day by time and plug those things in accordingly. Sometimes things get left off and have to get done another day, but that's completely fine. Setting a schedule will help you utilize all the time you have and allow you to do the things you actually enjoy doing.

4. You make time for the things you care about. I love to craft and I love to blog, but I will never substitute time with family or friends to do either of those things. This was a promise I made myself in the very beginning. I never wanted to be so consumed with writing about my life that I wasn't enjoying the experience of those things. In the same regard, if blogging is your passion then you will cut out time for it, if that means you miss that episode of New Girl this week then so be it, or if it means you need to multitask and eat while you type, then do it! Whatever it takes.

5. Don't stretch yourself too thin. It's okay to say no. If you're like me, then you want to take on the world everyday, no matter what it means. I kind of strive on stressful situations (that's not terribly healthy) so I will usually say yes to everything asked of me. Also I'm a bit of a people pleaser, so that doesn't help. I think it's extremely important to make a list (surprise surprise) of your priorities, and list as many as you think is realistically possible to make important in your life. I'd say 4-5 is normal. My list goes like this: God, family/friends, work, ministry, personal time (craft, blog, etc). I'm not saying that's the best order and honestly sometimes it depends on the day, but those are the things of importance to me and things that I know I can have time for on a daily basis.  

I feel like there's so many more things to help us balance our time, but these are the ones that help me the most; it's not a recipe for the perfect well balanced life, but it is a start. Good luck and if you have any tips, share them below, I'd love to hear them!

xo.

Melisa

WEAR :: The Real Teal

details // top & skirts: forever21, belt: UO, shoes: target, watch: fossil

I feel like I've been going a mile a minute this week. I hate not having enough time to chat with you everyday (but really, I do). Since starting my job I've been trying to get better with balancing my time. I know I'll get better over time and am extremely thankful of your understanding^_^ Today I will be crafting crafting crafting, then off to a rehearsal dinner, then.... Hunger Games!! (And there was much rejoicing!) Hope you have a lovely day friends!

xo.

Melisa