{For those of you thinking you were going to get a post on some great product or DIY project today, please forgive this brief indulgence…we’ll be back tomorrow with our regularly scheduled programming.}
For four days last week, I indulged in my ultimate personal (not to be confused with family) vacation.
For four days last week, I caught up with an old friend, met at least thirty new ones, and basked in the warm glow of humor, creativity, entrepreneurship, inspiration, artistry, and seriously great fashion.
For four days last week, I attended the Altitude Design Summit, a not-to-be-missed bringing-together of social media and design professionals to hear from some of the Greats, learn new skills (screen-printing, tabletop photography, Illustrator, oh my!) and forge new relationships that will last beyond Twitter.
For anyone interested in the content of the panels, you can find summaries and commentary all over the blogosphere. Since I know many of my readers are not bloggers or designers and The Mudroom is not what one would characterize as a personal blog, I won’t recount every life-changing detail. But I will tell you this…for me, the final keynote session of the conference, led by Swiss Miss Tina Roth Eisenberg, summed up my reason for starting this blog, and in some ways, my reason for being. During her address, she said many things that struck a chord for me (“don’t start a blog unless you’re passionate about the subject,” “nobody can tell you what’s best for you,” “enthusiasm and integrity are your biggest assets,” and so on), but it was when she was talking about her upbringing in Switzerland that she said the magic words:
“Life is too short not to surround yourself with beautiful things.”
And that, in 15 words or less, is exactly why I started writing this blog.
Life is too short.
We probably all have some experience with that phenomenon, and maybe someday I’ll write about mine. My life-is-too-short experience led my soul-searching husband to ask me three years ago “what is your passion…your reason for being?” to which I answered, my home and my family and my belief that everyone can live in a beautiful space that incorporates all the messiness of real life.
Some people may feel that’s trite. But the architects and artists and designers of the world — the ones that Switzerland celebrates on its bank notes — would tell you otherwise.
And I’m assuming you guys and gals out there who occasionally stop by my little Mudroom here might feel the same, and that’s why you keep coming back. So thank you…thanks for making my day every time one of you leaves a comment, or sends a nice e-mail my way to let me know that you look to surround yourself with beauty too.
Keep ’em coming, and I’ll do the same.
xo
Paige
P.S. – Thank you, thank you to the brilliant ladies of Kirtsy and the amazing sponsors for putting on this conference.
P.P.S. – That whole sponsorship thing really works. Haven’t stopped thinking about the Honda Accord Crosstour since our chaffeured lift to Lamb’s on Thursday night.
Photo credit: the super-sweet Grand America courtyard in Salt Lake City; photo taken by Paige Lewin
What a beautiful post. And a compelling mantra. It’s a joy to follow you and your passion.
GREAT post! You are such a fabulous writer. Glad you had a good time.
jealous. but rest assured, when the children move out and the dog runs away to join the circus, i’ll be consulting you about those “beautiful things”. right now i’m just surrounding myself with happy chaos.
xoxo
S – I think you’ve got the surround yourself thing totally under control. Happy chaos is a beautiful thing in my book.
T’was wonderful to meet you! 🙂 Good luck with all your pursuits. Please stay in touch. xo
Thanks, Chelsea! You as well…see you next year!
Awesome to rock the Alt party with you.
And weird to have spent the last 3 days in yoga pants. 🙂
Yoga pants sounds damn good compared to back-to-the-grind-pants.
Time spent with you was among my most memorable moments of the weekend. Laughing like children. Living like lovers. Rolling like thunder under the covers.
No wait, that wasn’t you.
I knew I should have linked you to “humor.”
I heart you. And I heart Christine for introducing us.
so with you on the life’s too short thing. and, probably, most everything else you have to say.
you were a bright spot for me in any room at alt. loved that. still smiling about that.
xoxo.
You are the sweetest. And your writing makes me sing. Come to Boston…we need you here!
Fabulous wrap up, I’m honored to be listed. Such wise words from Swiss-Miss! That was the weekend of Alt. So great meeting and eating with you!
words of wisdom, Paige. just what i needed to hear – will print this out and carry it with me and read it again and again.
love you!
Ooh ooh, I might steal this mantra too. Love it!
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