Today, I’m happy to report my hand-poured mason jar soy candles are in stock and ready to ship! The truck just delivered them and my studio is filled with such lovely pumpkin spice & apple aromas. All I need is a cozy sweater and Pumpkin Spiced Latte and I will be set, right?

Allow me to share you a journey of these sweet little candles…

Over a year and a half ago, I sat in the room at the very first Stationery Academy and shared some of the big dreams I had for myself to the group. They were things I hadn’t said aloud before, let alone put on paper.

It makes me smile to think of the powerful results that have come from this activity. I even encourage this same action – the naming of your biggest dreams and goals – to the new friends I meet at AH Inspired. I encourage them post them on their blog and put them out there into the universe. As they say… “if you can name it, you can claim it!”

So, that afternoon in Pensacola, I listed off some various things – some things I still have in my heart to want and work toward – but randomly, out of nowhere, I said,

“I want to make a candle. An “Amber Housley” candle. It will be cute and southern and homemade and come in a cute mason jar.”

Now developing a candle isn’t usually on someone’s big dreams list, but it was on mine. And finally this summer, I set about to make it happen.

Allow me to introduce you to the AH soy candle holiday collection that is: cute, southern, homemade and of course, packaged in a cute mason jar:

Here are some of the fabulous features of these candles.
These darling half-pint 8 ounce mason jar candles are replicas of good old fashioned canning jars with the words “mason” engraved in the glass.

- made from 100% soybean wax
- does not emit toxins while burning
- emits an incredibly small amount of soot
- biodegradable
- water-soluble
- burns cooler and slower
- renewable resource
- supports US farmers and our own economic growth

Burn time is 55-65 hours.
The maximum recommended burn time is 4 hours per burn.

 The holiday soy candle collection is available now in the Sweet Tea & Lemonade Pop-Up Shop. There is a set of each style that would make a wonderful gift this season! How cute would it be to package them up as a gift for a friend in in an antique wire basket with burlap and fall leaves or pinecones like I did for this picture?!

I can’t wait for you to enjoy these as much as I have enjoyed creating them!

Happy Friday everyone! Today I’m going to spending some quality time with my parents who are in town for their very first Tennessee Christmas! We have some gifts to pick up, packages to mail, and groceries to buy to get ready for my 5th Annual Cookie Party this Sunday. I look forward to sharing with you all the fabulous cookies and treats that 15 of my closest baking friends are bringing.

Today I also present to you our Housley Family Christmas Card 2011! We were soooo lucky to snag a mini-session spot this Fall with one of my bestest and sweetest friends Sara Rose, who also happens to be an amazing family photographer! Colin wants nothing to do with the camera these days. Usually when I pull it out he completely ignores me and wants nothing to do with it. Except for the iphone…when I have that he immediately wants to see the result! (such my little techy-toddler!). When I got our pictures back from Sara, I wanted to cry because they really captured so many sweet happy moments. You would have never thought Colin didn’t like the camera by the fun smiles and laughs she caught. I’m really looking forward to having a few canvases made with these photos to hang around the house.

To create the cards, I used some adorable downloadable graphics and patterns by Erin Bradley Designs. I went with the untraditional Christmas colors of greens, pinks, reds and browns two years in a row! The card above was sent to all of our friends & family out of state. I had an alternate version that said ‘Holiday Cheer & Warm Wishes!’ for all of our local TN friends.

It’s hard to believe that Christmas is just about a week away! I’m looking forward to spending some much needed R&R with the family this next week. After the holiday I’ll be jumping headfirst into so many exciting things that are coming in early 2012. I want to wish all of you friends a very happy holiday!

Last night’s unbelievable launch party can only be followed up by one hugely exciting piece of news…

So, SO EXCITED to be featured in my beloved Southern Living Magazine for its December 2011 issue! I styled and designed the table and decor and the super cute Christmas Brunch paper goods. Mary Alice Sublett of A Delightful Day contributed with planning and Hillary Yeager provided unbelievably gorgeous florals. My long-time scrapbooking industry friend, Jenni Bowlin, let us use her wonderful house for the shoot and also provided lots of vintage items from her personal collection as well as pieces from her scrapbooking lines. Such great team-work  and I’m thrilled with the outcome!

Still coming down from the high that was last night where I toasted the new Amber Housley brand with 50+ of my closest friends and family. So many people to thank for helping out and I can’t wait to feature them all in an upcoming post. Here’s a sneak peak at the night with a few shabby iPhone images. Fabulous photos by Kristyn Hogan to come with a full recap!

Feeling so happy and blessed for the people in my life! Going to rest up this weekend to start preparing for all the fun holidays that are ahead! Happy Weekend!