Tif on TV!

First off I just wanted to mention that this is my 400th post. Yay for me! I've been blogging for 3 years now, my blogaversery was back on August 28 but it slipped by me with the craziness of last month. That is a lot of mindless chatter with a few thoughtful posts thrown in now and then.

So now for the second video I wanted to share. My good friend Tif Engler was recently featured on our local show Great Day St. Louis on KMOV. She is the professional organizer who has so patiently helped me to get my craft room organized on more than one occasion as I pictured here. Too bad I have to keep the door shut when she is visiting lately, even though she is the least judgemental person I know. I still feel some shame for letting my yarn habit get the best of me again.

She discusses useful organizational tools some of which are free in the video above. This is her second appearance on the show and she is so much more relaxed in front of the camera now. She used to work in TV but behind the scenes as a producer and I think it shows. She is actually getting married next week and she said that she was so preoccupied with it that she didn't have time to get herself nervous about the TV spot.

If you want to read more about her services you can check her out at Your Life Organized. She now has several employees helping her and she has organized her business like she does everything else in her life. I'm super proud of her and what she has done as a small business owner living life on her own terms.

She is organizing Estate Sales now and has a big one tomorrow in Foristell, MO. If you are in the area you can check it out here. It's going to be quite an event and if weather permits the bloolights are going to put in an appearance and play a few sets. They have played at tent sales in the past and do a good job at keeping the shoppers entertained and hanging around longer than they might have otherwise.

Wedding Planning From my Couch

My husband has had the same best friend since he was 4 years old. He grew up next door to Chris and Mike and his twin brother treated Chris like he was their triplet. He and Mike roomed together in college and when Chris moved back here 5 years ago they picked up their friendship as if they hadn't been apart for almost a decade, including starting the band Mike had always dreamed of. Chris brought his girlfriend Tif here to live and we have become good friends as well.



When I first met Tif I remember thinking that she was very sweet but that she was going to be too normal for me to get very close to her. My friends have always been a bit on the eccentric side and because of my own quirks it's important to me to know that other people have their own. Well, I totally misread Tif. Yes, she dresses relatively preppy, is very outdoorsy/athletic, and is a successful Professional Organizer (runs Your Life Organized in the St. Louis area.) All of these are about as opposite of me as you can get but underneath Tif has more than enough quirks to make it interesting. She has been a great inspiration to me in a lot of ways.

This summer Chris finally decided it was time to make it legal, after six years together and everyone close to them so sure that they were meant to be married. They are working with a very conservative budget and paying for much of the wedding themselves. They have downsized their expectations while still finding a water location in the area. There is going to be a lakeside wedding outdoors and the reception will be in the same location indoors. The boys will be playing their music at the reception.

I've been helping as much as I can from the couch since Tif is in the middle of her biggest season of the year at work and she has been struggling to get the planning started. I've enjoyed looking up photographers and narrowing the choices, looking at bridal shops and figuring out what other vendors we need to be booking. Her Mom is an artist and does booth designs so she will be in charge of the decorations but I'm hoping to help get the beach theme in place. Here is the website which she whipped up one afternoon for the wedding.

At the top of the page is the mood board I did for the wedding on Dessy Design a Wedding Styleboard Tool coordinated with the new Pantone Wedding system. I discovered the tool from Thyme2dream's blog. She is currently giving a $20 gift certificate to her Artfire shop to anyone who makes a mood board that uses one of her pieces. I found the hair comb which goes perfectly with Tif's theme and would look lovely in her long dark hair on the big day. As long as she likes it I plan on using the gift certificate to get it for her.

The dress if one that we found online that she really likes from David's Bridal. I found the picture of the cake which I think is so fun. She wants cupcakes which this has along with a small cake in the middle. The seashell decorations are the perfect beachy touch.

It has been really good for me to have something productive to work on during my sick leave. It looks like I'm going to have another week to be a horizontal wedding planner. The surgeon removed my staples on Monday and said things appeared to be healing properly. But they did not recommend that I go back to work next week. They want me to keep it elevated for another week to avoid swelling which could seriously slow down the healing process. I am going to play it by ear as we go forward.

Not so relaxing Labor Day

I'm feeling absolutely overwhelmed right now. I'm having my friend Tif, who is a professional organizer of Your Life Organized, come over this afternoon to help me get my world under control. My craft room is in complete disorder and I'm not prepared for the start of the Fall crafting season. I have some ideas and we've talked about how I can better structure my space. I would also like to make room for a twin bed in here for guests if needed. I have to keep telling myself that this is her job and that she's seen far worse than my messes. She's the least judgemental person I've ever known and she's so good at her job that I know I'm freaking out for nothing.

I'm including a few relaxing fishing pictures from the weekend at the farm with the kids. I'll talk more about our adventures later when I have a calmer head.

Win Your Life... Organized

Some of you may remember I blogged once about my good friend Tiffany, see here. She is the professional organizer extraordinaire of Your Life Organized, and has helped me in the past to organize my craft room and other projects. She is celebrating the month of January being the Get Organized month by having a contest. If you are in the St. Louis or Illinois areas you really should sign up. Here is a little more info about it:

In honor of Get Organized Month, Your Life Organized will select one room to win the New Year New Room Contest. The winner will receive free hands-on professional organizing services and a $100.00 gift card from The Container Store to be used in your new room.

Nominate yourself or another deserving person by completing the online application form below and submitting three photos of the room you want organized.

Deadline for nominations is January 31, 2009.

Winner will be chosen by the public and Your Life Organized on February 10, 2009.

Tif is the least judgemental person I've ever met and she won't bat an eye even when confronted with more yarn than one person could ever expect to knit in two lifetimes. If you have a spare room that you hide in shame or want to create a sanctuary for your craft I highly recommend that you entire the contest. How cool would it be to start the new year with a new room just for you.