Hi ya’ll! So as many as you have probably noticed I haven’t been blogging much in the past year. I have still been adding recipes and DIY projects occasionally and I appear on KTLA to do lifestyle segments, but the posts obviously haven’t been as frequent and that was partly due to me just trying to wrap my head around life. Where I am today isn’t where I was five years, three years, or even a year ago and I needed to take the time to really figure out the direction I wanted to go and quite honestly find purpose again. I had originally started my company, Lilyshop because blogging made me happy. I use to love trying new recipes and writing tutorials and taking pictures and it made me happy to read the comments and see people genuinely excited to try out my creations. But over the years my life changed, my marriage ended, my needs changed, and my world became very complicated. The blogs that use to make me smile just made me exhausted. It was like reading a diary of a life that didn’t work out as planned and I didn’t want to keep reliving it over and over again. I stopped reading the comments. I stopped answering the emails. I just stopped caring. There have been a lot of terrible memories made over the past several years. A lot of tears, a lot of anger, but also a lot of good that came from the unexpected. I wasn’t happy before. I was trying to make myself happy by burying myself in my blog, but I wasn’t happy with my life and where I was or who I was with. I wasn’t happy with myself. But sometimes you need to hit the bottom to see what you’re really made of, to see who’s really your friend, and to see who’s really your family. After many quiet days of sitting at home, playing with my babies, traveling, healing, and trying to figure out life, I ultimately decided to get rid of the Lilyshop website. Lilyshop still remains my company, but it just didn’t feel right anymore. I thought about the idea of not doing any of it anymore, but that didn’t feel right either. Let’s face it, I can’t sing, I can’t dance, I am terrible with math, or anything that involves any type of athletic skill so crafting and baking really is my jam. I decided to rename the website jessiedaye.com and go a different direction. I am going to continue to post recipes and home decor ideas, but I will be doing less DIY projects as my priorities have changed a bit now.
I purchased a house in Los Feliz about two months ago because I have always like designing my own homes and I wanted something I could pour my heart into. I wanted a house that had good bones, but something that was in desperate need of purpose. This house is from 1927 and I imagine that at the time it was built the people who lived there absolutely loved it. In fact, I know they did. A little old lady named Ethel lived in this home and she took care of a gentleman named Mr. Longfellow. She loved her house and put a lot of life into it. Over the years she passed away and other people came in and out and ripped out floors and added contemporary IKEA cabinets and some unfortunate laminate flooring. The house ultimately was rented out for the last several years and what was pretty and perfect once is imperfect, complicated, and quite messy now. The house needs purpose and it’s absolutely perfect for me. I will be renovating this house myself and posting the pictures here on my website as well as making new YouTube videos on my new channel to show the progress. I am excited about this new project and this new journey and I hope you will be too. It’s been a while since I have been here blogging so let me reintroduce myself.
I am Jessie, mama to Lily and Olive, founder of Lilyshop Inc., and maker of all things creative. I love crafting, baking, cooking, and wearing sweatpants all the time. I go to Disneyland way too often. I am a total neat freak. I love confident people, strong women, and a guy with a soft heart. I like holding hands and I love hearing I love you. My babies are my life and I would do anything for them. If I could only eat one type of food every day it would be tacos. I am obsessed with gummy bears, coffee, and super comfy blankets. My favorite place I have ever visited is Italy. My second favorite is Japan. I love the feeling of traveling somewhere new. I love the rain. I love New York during winter. And I love that feeling of spending Christmas morning with people you love. My favorite show is I Love Lucy and I have every episode recorded so I can watch it all the time. I don’t like scary movies, mashed potatoes make me gag, pumpkin pie is pretty awful as well, and so are people who don’t say thank you when you hold open the door for them. I use to be a perfectionist and I had my life all perfectly planned out at one point, but sometimes what we plan isn’t what was intended for us so cheers to being perfectly imperfect, to not settling for just ok, to less stuff, more happiness, less planning, more living, taking chances, loving unconditionally, being vulnerable, and to always taking the high road, because the view is undoubtedly better. Welcome to my new website, jessiedaye.com.
24 comments
Heather Perren
Can’t wait to see all your new ideas on your new site! You continue to amaze and inspire me in every way! xoxo
Jessie Daye
Love you!
Jonathan gonen
Enjoyed reading this. Eloquent, honest and embracing the inevitable evolutions of the soul
Jessie Daye
Thank you so much.
Courtney Fernan
Oh I love this so much. From pain and heartache comes so much clarity. This new house looks amazing and I know you’ll create somethings so special. Congrats on the new site. The fact that I Love Lucy is your favorite show and Ethel once lived in your home is not lost on me.
Jessie Daye
Yes, you are so very right. Thank you so much! (And I was pretty excited about Ethel too xoxo)
Kelly
Beauty from ashes.❤ Wishing you the best and excited about your house!
Jessie Daye
Thank you! Haha, yes I will. I’m so glad you liked it! I transferred everything so it should be here : ) xo
Jessie Daye
Yes. Thank you so much. XO
Lauren Baker
Found you a few years back searching for some fun recipes! Think it was some yummy sprinkle chocolate shot recipe and loved your site and Instagram since! As a mother of two daughters I applaud you for being an incredible role model! In this crazy world we need more moms and women like you – Real!! I love your new site and thank you for sharing – your smile in contagious and wish you all the best. Keep the posts coming, can’t wait to see how the house turns out – please throw in some of those famous fun recipes too!! Best Wishes – Lauren
Jessie Daye
Aw you are so sweet! Love that you have two girls as well. Yes, there will still be plenty of happy recipes -and I’m excited to share again! Thank you for your honesty and for your kind words. It made me very happy to read this morning : ) Xx – Jessie
liana fricker
Glad to see you’ve got your spark back. Love you mucho!
Jessie Daye
: ) Haha can’t let you keep lapping me. Love you tough mama. XO
Brittany
I think… this is the best you I have ever known. This is by far the most confident, empowered, and inspired direction I’ve seen you go. Get it, girl!
-Love, your former college roomie, Brit
Jessie Daye
Thank you girlie! And BTW I still think of you every time I go to Cheesecake Factory. That salty pasta and sweet cheesecake you would get at the same time every time haha! Funny the memories that stick with you : ) Xx
Tracy Joy
I don’t know you, and this is the first I have been on this website. Actually I think this is the first time I have ever commented on a site! I think it takes courage to write what you did, not something I could probably do. I am also a mom and connected to what you wrote about what to do, re-inventing yourself and how to make what you do best, work in this world. Good luck, know there are many of us out there as well!
I am a terrible cook – but I’ll certainly give your recipes a try 🙂
Cheers,
Tracy Joy
Jessie Daye
Thank you so much for your sweet words! I am so happy to hear that other people can relate. It means a lot. And thank you for taking the time to comment and tell me. I feel honored to be your first comment haha!
Thank you again – Jessie Xx
Kasey Schoettler
So proud of you for following your dreams and turning life challenges into new adventures. You’ve always had great style and creativity and I know you are going to do amazing things in this next chapter of life. We just gutted and remodeled our 1952 plantation house on Kauai and it was a completely rewarding and totally exhausting experience. As our former college roomie said, “get it girl!!” (Your comment about Brit and cheesecake brought back so many hilirious memories too). Hi Brit & Liana! Miss you ladies and I think about you often! Love, Kasey
Jessie Daye
Thank you!Xx
Jessie Daye
Aw thank you so much for all the sweet words! So nice to see you on here!!! Would love to see your place in Hawaii! Sounds beautiful : ) Haha – we all had so much fun. Miss you and hope you are well. Xx
John
Hi Jessie, congrats on your wonderful home! I know just how wonderful it is because I used to live there! I stumbled on your blog looking for a vintage Thermador oven and the search picked up the infamous pink bathroom. I guess because of the Thermador wall heater. I can’t take credit for the laminate flooring, when we lived there the only place that had vinyl flooring was the small bath off the master bedroom. The IKEA kitchen was a budget necessity as the 50’s era kitchen that was there was beyond salvage. Like you I love vintage and normally would restore rather than replace The kitchen had been closed off from the sunroom with cabinets so I removed all that to restore the original 1927 flow. I’m happy to tell you more, the time we spent there was brief, but left an indelible mark on our lives. It makes me happy to know someone lives there who appreciates the original details as opposed to ripping it all out for whatever the current modern style is.
Best,
John
Jessie Daye
Oh my gosh! I can’t believe you lived there. Unbelievable! I apologize for not seeing this comment. I would love to talk to you and see if you have any pics from before! I adore the house and really want to bring it back. I’ll be reaching out to you. Than you so much for commenting!
Katie Cotten
“Perfectly imperfect”-so honestly said! Thank you for your beautiful transparency…I understand some of your journey, as my daughter was 1month old when her dad left us…sad & almost devastating, but “grew me up” in the best way, and made me braver & more appreciative & closer to God than ever before. Let me just say that life does begin again, as my wonderful best friend and I found each other & have been together with our two children for 28 years now. Hope. Never give up. Never surrender. ❤️God bless, sweety!
Jessie Daye
I love hearing stories like this! It is so hard to start over and I totally agree with you about being "braver" and more appreciative of everything. Thank you for sharing your story. I am so happy you found your one! Thank you so much for your words of encouragement. xoxo