London Bound: Any Tips?
I have so many things to share with you today. But first I must apologize as sadly I missed Etsy Take Five Tuesday this week but don't worry, I'll get back on track next week. :) I'm quite busy at the moment and this will continue no doubt until the Autumn as the decorating book I'm co-authoring is completely underway - as of this week! My job, outside of writing a portion of it, is to scout locations in the US and Europe, find a fab interiors photographer in both the US and Europe, and pull together all the homes that I have currently to see where they'll fit in the flat plan that I'm working off of. There is a lot involved but I'm ready for it -- it will be published by Chronicle Books. And you, dear readers, will have to listen to me talk about it as I go along but I promise -- because it's a decorating book, at least what I speak of will be related to this blog so you can go on this little book ride with me. Okay?
In fact, I have a lot of traveling to do as I will have meetings relating to this book (the first is in London next month) and I'll be accompanying the photographer on shoots and styling homes so I plan to bring you with me as I hop around -- my hope is that you will enjoy watching this project evolve before your eyes so that once the book is out you can then see the finished project and tell me what you think about it. I'll ask my publisher as I go along to see what I can share and what I can't as some things I am under contract to not disclose -- but what I can share I will. For sure.
I've not been assigned to such a large freelance project before but now as I embark on this journey I'm feeling quite good about it -- like this will be a great start for me as I enter this new world with hopes that this book will lead to another and another... I've always wanted decor8 to live off of the web as well as online - to be web-based and coffee table-based. :) And just so you know, because there are so many show offs in this world who annoy me with their "look at me!" attitudes, I promise not to become an egotistical bore. In fact, I want to always remember my roots -- where I came from as a girl who started from zero and your support and friendship is partly responsible for my book deal so if anyone out there is sitting around feeling a bit depressed about life -- like what is next for you, will you find your magic carpet and if you do, will you have the courage to jump on and ride -- I can tell you YES, yes, yes! I hate sounding like some self-help cheerleader but seriously, I once sat in a cubicle (not that this is bad, I liked my cubicle thank you!) and thought that perhaps I could someday do something creative and I thought about my life -- the direction it was taking -- and here I am today doing things that I enjoy. And look at how setting some goals and sticking to them can change a life, right?! Determination, talent and passion really are the keys to getting from step A to B and so on... so if you are good at something and sit in your chair thinking, "Yeah, some people have all the luck!" then maybe you should start thinking, "Yeah, some people have all the luck so why not me too, I'm talented!?". Seriously. Why should I or anyone else have the things that you want -- we all deserve to reach our goals.
Next month I will travel to London for my first picture meeting where I will review photos for the book and then this summer I'll be on the road with the photographer in both the US and parts of Europe. It will be nice to have a change of pace as I spend so much of my days online -- but I'll have plenty of time to blog still and I'm not going to neglect you -- I promise! If anything, I'll have some fun stories to share, some shops and travel notes to write, and all of the usual fare on decor8 that you can expect -- I'll keep it up not just now but for years to come.
This is the part where I could use some advice. I will be in London in May and want to mix a little pleasure with business because I've lived in Europe nearly 9 months and haven't done much traveling so now that the weather is nice I feel that it's time to go out and get some inspiration and enjoy some time shopping, eating and seeing some interesting exhibitions and shows. I'll be in London for a week starting on May 13 so if you know of anything that I should definitely see/do, I'd love to know. From hotels to exhibitions, craft shows to flea markets, all of it -- I'd love some advice. I've not been to London since 1999 so I'm a bit crusty and rusty when it comes to ideas on what to do there. And since I'm writing this book with another writer, Joanna and I will be hopping around on a shopping trip for the day and so if she doesn't get too annoyed by my camera then I'll be sure to share some of my favorite things with you upon my return.
Any London tips? What's absolutely, positively not-to-miss?
(images: caravan - a shop I am definitely hitting!!!)