Getting to Know Me

Kindness and Gratitude and an Introduction

A couple points of parliamentary procedure this morning.  The first being a HUGE thank you to Linda over at My Crafty Home Life.  What a crazy surprise to see an influx of folks visiting from her blog -  hello to you and thanks for coming by! I was completely gobsmacked when I discovered last week that she included Chez V on her list of new blogs that she enjoys.  That act of kindness is quite a big harry deal for this lil’ country mouse of a blog.

me, the Monster, and mr. V

So for those of you just joining the broadcast, welcome to Chez V.  Which brings me to my second point, an introduction.  Hi there.  Hello, I am mrs. V.  What is this blog all about, you might ask?  Remember this and this when I was feeling the need to categorize myself? Well, for those that have been with me from the beginning, I have great news.  I can finally answer that in 5 words or less.  ME.  I have Jenny to thank for the realization.  This blog is not about interior design or entertaining or lifestyle or fashion or pop culture.  It is about all those things because it is about me just doing my thing.  And all those things, plus many more, interest me.  What you see here is very close to what you get from me in real life.  Me doing my thing looks a lot like spastic cooking, crazy dancing, pile making, detail obsessing, belly laughing, kid wrangling, flower getting, entertaining, and furniture moving/painting/upholstering.  Throw in any number of half finished projects, cover it all with a dusting of bright and shiny and that’s the regular around here.

I do hope you will continue to tune in to the craziness.  It’s not always pretty and it’s not always perfect but I promise that it is pretty much perfectly entertaining, most of the time.  Especially when I trip over my teetering pile of shoes and rip my pants or when I singe off my eyebrows trying to pull off bananas foster or when the top layer of my Christmas cake slides off because my frosting deflated, right as I am bringing it to the table.

You can also find me on Pinterest and Instagram at @chezviviv if you desire.

In other news, I am so excited about the open house next month.  I have exciting news to share that feeds right into my monogram madness and I have just curated a collection of amazing one-of-a-kind vintage costume, sterling silver and estate jewelry for the event.  I want to keep every single piece.  I will be busy snapping pictures of all the goodness to share here.

kisses, mrs. V

Getting To Know mrs. V

My Elevator Speech

I read something pretty impactful yesterday.  Shannon Darrough, writer and social media extraordinaire of the lovely blog I Love Your Crazy, shared some insight that she gleaned from Alt Summit last week.  Lots of great tips for someone new to blogging like myself.  And so hoping to build my readership from twelve and make my mark in the world I sat down with pen in hand and began to feverishly scribble notes in my moleskin.  Yes, Katie, I still carry one wherever I go. 

Yep.  Yep.  Yep.  Nodding to myself with each tip.  Until I got to the last one.  Number 25 stated:

‘Make sure your readers know who you are and

what you stand for in 5 words or less.’

What the what?  5 words or less?  Impossible. I can’t even say my name in five words or less.  Well…technically yes but EMILY NICKELL VANDERPUTTEN sounds like at least 10 words.  I am known for many things but brevity is not one of them.  At the first hint of a story, mr. V in his not-so-subtle way, will say to me, 'any way we can speed this up?'

Me and Pieti.  Photo Credit: Amy Elizabeth Photography

Hmmm, who am I and what do I stand for?  Rather good question isn’t it?  But 5 words or less!  I will take a stab.

Attempt #1:  behavioral leadership consultant OUTDATED

Attempt #2:  creative stay at home mom  LAME

Attempt #3:  expert creator of piles  TOO REVEALING

Attempt#4:  admirer of all things shiny  SHALLOW

Attempt #5:  stage 4 hoarder OVER-EXAGGERATED

Attempt #6:  superlatively dramatic storyteller  NOT DRAMATIC ENOUGH

Attempt #7:  brilliant cooker and plant killer  PIETI'S WORDS AND NOT TRUE

Attempt #8:  compulsive chaser of new experiences IDEALISTIC

Attempt #9:  obessive detailer and serial re-decorator TOO TRUE

Attempt#10:  ina garten wanna-be DELUSIONAL

Attempt #11:  effortlessly chic party planner NOT YET

Attempt #12:  exuberant liver of life NOT SPECIFIC

And there goes my attention span.  Can't.  Do.  It.  At least not yet.  I can't tell you, dear readers, who I am in 5 words or less.  I also can't talk without waving my arms like a total spaz.


More of who I am next week.  But it still won't be under 5 words.


In other news, DON'T FORGET to enter the giveaway!  Ya gotta click the button on the RH side to become a member of the blog, ya gotta leave a comment on yesterday's blog post ON THE BLOG not FB. Ya gotta dance.  Three easy things, people.


Here's a teaser of an upcoming party Chez V style!

kisses,  mrs. V