25
Jun 2012

kiawah island love {guest post}

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Hello Dodeline Design readers! Happy Monday! I hope you all enjoyed your weekends. If you happened to stop by Sarah’s blog a little while back, you may remember me from this post about adventuring to Philadelphia, and today I’m back again for my second guest post. If we haven’t met yet, my name is Carly Totten, and I love writing and the wedding industry. What else do I love you ask? If it were possible, I would dip my life in chocolate and set up a tent on the beach on Kiawah Island and live there forever. Combining both would be wonderful. : )

Because Sarah happens to be on a beach getaway, I thought it only fitting to talk about Kiawah Island, which should just be renamed My Favorite Place in the World…Ever. Even though it’s only about 14 miles long, it sets my heart on fire and makes me feel alive in only the ways that time spent on Kiawah can. I’ve been lucky enough to travel to Kiawah many times each year for my entire life (23 years), and sometimes I wonder why I am so lucky. Let’s just note the fact that it’s a 13-hour car trek from Philly to Kiawah. Willingly traveling in a car for that long to visit an island is true love, y’all!

Kiawah’s formal name is actually Kiawah Island Golf Resort (not My Favorite Place in the World…Ever…yet    ; ). As you can obviously tell from its name, Kiawah is an athlete’s paradise with five public golf courses and two tennis centers. The golf and tennis are beyond awesome, which my dad will tell you on a long tangent; however, I love Kiawah for other reasons – reasons that don’t really have anything to do with either sport.

Like I mentioned earlier, I love Kiawah because it makes me feel alive, reinvigorated, and in.love.with.life. Below is a peek at my most recent trip to Kiawah (and what every summertime visit includes)…

Beach Days: Walking on the beach is usually how I begin every morning. Toes in the ocean = happiness. With that said, I did a lot of running during this trip (a whole other story entirely), but the beach still created an awesome atmosphere. The rest of my day is filled with boogie boarding – I’m very young at heart – and sometimes jumping twirling ballerina style in the waves. A good book and a lounge chair also add to a perfect afternoon.

Scenic Bike Rides: One of the first things my parents and I do when we arrive on Kiawah is rent bikes. I bike everywhere, no joke. I’m the one riding to the beach while balancing my bag, boogie board, and chair in a basket. It’s an art form. ; ) Not only does a bike make a great mode for beach transportation, it’s also the best way to explore the island. I love wandering, and I am happiest when I happen upon a long bridge or a road I have yet to explore while viewing some of the island’s wildlife (read: alligators). If you rent bikes, make sure to ride up to Freshfields Village (gorgeous marsh views) and, once there, hop over to Vincent’s Soda Fountain for a milkshake. Other favorites include Rhett’s Bluff (stop by the boat launch where you will be greeted by a gazebo that I am obsessed with on the dock and possibly a dolphin); Flyaway Drive; and Captain Sam’s Inlet, which is where Kiawah meets neighboring island, Seabrook, on the beach at the western most end of the island. Be sure to pick up an island map before you start your ride or become fast friends with Google Maps just in case!

Yummy Dinners: My favorite place to eat on the island happens to be where a pro golfer will earn the title of 2012 PGA Champion in August: Ryder Cup Bar, located in the Ocean Course Clubhouse. The food is delicious (try the Grilled Salmon Caesar Salad, Ryder Sliders, or Crispy Fried Shrimp), the views of the sunsets are unreal (time your visit!), and some of the staff have become like members of our family. Another one of our new favorite haunts is La Tella Pizzeria, a family owned and operated Italian restaurant located in nearby Freshfields Village. The portions, by the way, are in the dictionary under “massive,” so my parents and I decided to share the Chicken Parmesan and Ricotta Pizza (ah, so good!). I thought of Sarah’s paper loving heart while I was there because La Tella had a stamp designed which they use to brand all of their pizza boxes – creative packaging for the win!

Sunrises & Sunsets: I love mornings because I love beginnings more than endings. With that in mind, my goal while I was on Kiawah was to watch the sunrise one morning. I set my phone’s alarm, and I willingly got up and ready at 5:45 (insanity). I biked over to the beach, and the view of the sun rising over Turtle Point golf course was worth the ride alone. Then I got to the beach. Holy, sunrise! It was beautiful! Everyone stood still for a solid 20 minutes and stared at the sky…

…which is exactly what happens when the sun sets. Even though the sunset marks an ending, I am one of the people staring at the sky every night. The sunsets are mesmerizing and possible thanks to the fact that Kiawah runs west to east.

If you live in Charleston, take a day and visit Kiawah – go on a bike ride; walk on the beach; jump in the waves; and watch the sunset to complete your day. If you don’t happen to live close by, book a flight (Southwest offers many inexpensive options) or take a road trip and plan to do the same thing. I’ll meet you on the beach, and I hope you will have a serious love for My Favorite Place in the World…Ever even after only a day.

have you ever been to kiawah? where is your favorite vacation spot?

Enjoy your day! I will see you again soon.

Categories: Charleston, Food, guest post, lovely mondays, Places to See, pretty packaging, travel, Uncategorized Tags: , , ,
14
Dec 2011

Lovely Package Exchange: What I Sent

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I was so excited to participated in Oh Hello Friend‘s Lovely Package Exchange this year. What a fantastic idea! The concept is simple: send a gift to your exchange partner with an emphasis on packaging it in a really beautiful way.

As luck would have it, my partner wrote in her notes about herself that she loves PAPER & CRAFTING. So I thought, what better present then a lot of fun paper & a craft kit? I put together a DIY card making kit for her and had such fun with the packaging aspects too.

The kit included 20 blank cards with coordinating envelopes in the pretty blue boxes, Divine Twine, cute Kraft brown stickers, a roll of printed Washi tape, a variety of patterned papers, & velvet gray ribbon. The little odds and ends (ribbon and twine and tape) found a hope in the burlap bag and the cards themselves were in the blue boxes, while the paper was so pretty rolled up and tied neatly with Divine Twine.

Categories: cool products/vendors Tags:
03
Aug 2011

Pretty pretty party supplies!

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It’s probably a very bad thing that I stumbled across Shop Sweet Lulu on Twitter yesterday. Good for the pretty factor of my wedding, bad for the wallet lol!

Soo I’m kind of obsessed with popcorn. Ever since I was a kid, I would get a book, pop a bag of popcorn, and have me time. Wouldn’t this be a super cute way to have popcorn at the wedding?!?

And not only that, but I’m dying for these balloons.

I’m thinking yellow and French silk would be perfect for the reception!

Anyway, check it out if you haven’t been there before. It made me want to throw a million different parties.

Have a wonderful day!

Categories: cool products/vendors, decor, inspiration, wedding wednesday Tags: , , , ,
18
Jun 2011

Pretty Pinteresting!

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Moving on from the bummerness (there I go makin’ up words lol!) of last week – no more of that!

So here’s a happy thing to cheer me up & move into the weekend. A random assortment of prettiness from Pinterest. Enjoy my dears!

Source: None via Sarah on Pinterest

{Glad I had pinned that one, it reminded me I must have a Funfetti cake lol!!}

Source: etsy.com via Sarah on Pinterest

I really want that guy. A chalkboard globe – what a GREAT idea!

Happy happy weekend!

Categories: completely random, cool products/vendors, decor, wedding wednesday Tags: , , , , ,
10
Aug 2010

Presentation is Everything.

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If there is one thing I have learned as an art student in college and now an entrepreneur, it’s absolutely that presentation is everything.

In college, as an interior design student, you always have to do material boards and presentation boards of your concept, finish & furniture selections, and space planning at the end of the project. It didn’t matter how good your project and ideas were if your boards were not meticulously planned and executed.

I remember one project when I decided to do something a little different with my boards – trying to throw in a few artsy ideas I suppose – but it just didn’t work. In the middle of the presentation, one of the samples fell off. I cannot tell you how mortified I was, and despite the fact that my project was solid, the presentation absolutely affected the grade.

So what am I talking about? It’s the same thing with your handmade or art/craft based business. We have to convince people to make a conscious decision to go with you over cheaper, mass produced goods. Your product might be infinitely superior to something you’d see in Target, but if you present it poorly, then it will read that way.

I’m coming up on one year of being a member of the website Etsy, although I only started selling in November, and if there is one thing I have learned, it’s that the sellers who go the extra mile on their presentation are the ones who are the most successful.

One of my suppliers for my stationery line sends my cellophane so prettily packaged that every time I order it that I look forward to getting it in the mail. Think about it: Wal-Mart doesn’t even bag your purchases for you anymore; so there is huge opportunity for impact with just a little thought in the packaging.

Some sellers are probably more consistent with their packaging than I am, but my thought is that it is probably a little more fun for repeat customers to get a little bit different presentation when they order each time. For example, for the box above (which is actually a wholesale order), I used the kraft bags that my paper purchases come in and cut it up to wrap the box. Eco-friendly, budget friendly, and makes a nice presentation!

I mainly use some variation of twine, kraft paper, and white paper to create a pretty presentation for my products. I always make sure my business card is prominently displayed, and make sure that the card tells not just how to get in touch with you, but also what you do! I have opted to do a double sided card, so that all my contact information can be on one side, and the other side is more promotional in nature so it works well on packages as well.

So no matter what you do, try not to miss the branding opportunity and huge impact that can be made with simply tying an item with twine or wrapping it in inexpensive (or even reused!) paper.

Categories: business topics, thoughts, tipsy tuesday Tags: , , , , , , ,