Quotes – Emma's Fine Designs

A small business owner I follow on Instagram recently posed the question of how do you find a balance between work/passion and home? And it certainly gave me food for thought. Especially when work and home are very much in the same place these days.

In some aspects, I have a fairly good balance between the two, but I do neglect parts of my work/craft life.

I have three kids – 4, 2, and 1. So, as you can imagine, I already have my hands fairly full. We have a fairly good balance, in which, we enjoy time together throughout the day and they also enjoy having time to play with each other. During this time, I have a chance to get housework done or knit (not that I always get this opportunity – kids seem to know when you want to do something and need some peace to do it) There is never a dull moment here!

The main time for my work/craft is at night when my kids are in bed (and even that has some challenges – like when they think bed time means party time) Some nights I can dedicate to posting online. Some nights I can dedicate to knitting. And some, very rare nights, I can have a night to do nothing at all and just chill (self-care is extremely important to me – it is a reminder to breathe and recharge) There are also some nights where I do class prep for the next day. I have a part of the day allocated to “school”, which my kids love. I am preparing them for going to primary school.

Some times my online presence might be neglected, or so it appears that way. I will admit that there are times when I simply do not want to post anything but that does not mean I have not been doing anything. I spend the majority of my nights knitting/creating and working on starting up my business.

Currently, I am working on a few different projects. I am knitting pieces for Easter which I will use for our Annual Easter Egg Hunt. My mom’s birthday is the same day as Easter this year so I am working on a special card and gift for her. I am also fulfilling a couple of orders, as well as finalising my main product range.

Just like with anything in life, it is important to find a balance. But what is more important is that you find the perfect balance for you. You have to remember why you are doing it and what you are hoping to achieve. Be realistic and stay true to yourself. We can all have great aspirations but life is unpredictable and sometimes we cannot meet these. You have to be able to forgive yourself and keep pushing forward.

I know that when I started on this journey, I had a clear idea of what I wanted to achieve but I got swept up with social media and I lost myself. I felt the pressure of always having to have something up. From seeing other profiles that always had a new post every day and constantly had stories on their accounts to reading articles that stated these are things you had to do. I started to lose the joy I had for it. I had to take a step back and have a good heart to heart with myself. I continued to create (I could never lose my passion for that) but I limited my online pressence.

It is important to have an online pressence and I am working on what is best for me. Posting when I feel completely satisfied and it is right for me. I am setting up a buiness of knitted pieces that are handmade with love. I take my time and pour my heart and soul into each item I make. I love what I do and I want my social media to reflect that.

“When witches go riding and black cats are seen, the moon laughs and whispers ‘tis near Halloween”

Halloween is approaching and I honestly cannot wait. I love this holiday so much. It has always been a favourite of mine. My daughter also loves Halloween (yes, she’s 3 and loves every holiday but still, I am happy that she gets excited for it). She did, however, keep changing her mind on the costume she wanted. It is all sorted now, Jessie from Toy Story, and I am hoping she does not change her mind again. My son will be Woody from Toy Story. Super excited to see them both in their costumes. They are going to look so adorable.

These are the costumes I purchased for my children from Party City. These images come directly from their website: *https://www.partycity.ie/KeywordSearch.aspx?KWSearchText=toy+story+costume*
Woody costume includes Hat, Top, Pants and Neckerchief (which is attached to the top with velcro)
Jessie costume incudes Hat and Dress

Our home is now decorated for Halloween and I love it. It was such a joy hanging the decorations with my family. It is important to have these moments as a family, creating our own family traditions. We covered the trees outside with cobwebs and spiders. The door is decorated with a skeleton and a mummy and pumpkin sticker. Pumpkin lights twinkle above the fireplace. While the ghosts float across the window, which has also been decorated with spiders, a witch and an owl. The double doors in the living room have been decorated with 3D stickers of a witch and a skeleton. We have spooky balloons around the house too.

Quotes about Halloween

“Halloween is not only about putting on a costume, but it’s about finding the imagination and costume within ourselves” – Elvis Duran

“There is a child in everyone of us who is still a trick-or-treater looking for a brightly-lit front porch” – Robert Brault

“Halloween wraps fear in innocence, as though it were a slightly sour sweet. Let terror, then, be turned into a treat…” – Nicolas Gordon

“There is magic in the night when pumpkins glow by moonlight” – Unknown

“B is for broomsticks witches to fly, O is outrageous spooks that go by, O is for orange pumpkins so bright, these are the signs of a Halloween night”

“Just because I cannot see it, doesn’t mean I can’t believe it!” – Jack Skellington (Nightmare Before Christmas)

I love this quote and it is so true. Halloween brings about magic and mystery. It comes alive and it is extraordinary. So what if I cannot see something. To believe is powerful and imaginative. When believing in something you cannot see, you can envision it in your mind. Halloween is a night where you can really showcase what you envision a character would look in reality and how they would act. You get to bring a character to life for people to see. For one night, what you do not necessary see, can be seen and believed as real.

Decorations

“By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this was comes” – William Shakespeare