Here is my latest incarnation, and so far my favorite for her rustic backyard (probably) wedding:
Love!
Friday, January 28, 2011
Inspiration
...boards. I love them. I love to look at them. I even love to make them. My friend Shannon is getting married (yay!) and I can't seem to stop making inspiration boards for her wedding. I know, I have issues.
Here is my latest incarnation, and so far my favorite for her rustic backyard (probably) wedding:
Love!
Here is my latest incarnation, and so far my favorite for her rustic backyard (probably) wedding:
Love!
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Baking, baking, baking...
For fun, I made some coconut marshmallows. They were deeelicious! Don't they look it!?
I used this recipe here, but I also added some coconut extract into the batter because, really, that's a necessity.
We also celebrated my awesome graphic designer friend Agnes' birthday this weekend. I wanted to make her some cake. She requested white cake with raspberry filling and white chocolate buttercream, so I obliged. I thought the results were quite pretty.
I took this opportunity to try out a new white cake recipe. I think the cake turned out well. I also tested a new frosting recipe. I actually recycled the printout of that one after I was done. Clearly, I wasn't such a fan.
I also made some cupcakes for good measure!
I'm testing out all these new cake and frosting recipes because I'm making a cake for someone I don't even know off of a referral, which is pretty exciting and so much fun! I want the cake to be the best it can be! I hope to have a photo of that here too at some point. But first, superbowl cupcakes! It's baking season, apparently. Wait...it's always baking season at my house!
I used this recipe here, but I also added some coconut extract into the batter because, really, that's a necessity.
We also celebrated my awesome graphic designer friend Agnes' birthday this weekend. I wanted to make her some cake. She requested white cake with raspberry filling and white chocolate buttercream, so I obliged. I thought the results were quite pretty.
I took this opportunity to try out a new white cake recipe. I think the cake turned out well. I also tested a new frosting recipe. I actually recycled the printout of that one after I was done. Clearly, I wasn't such a fan.
I also made some cupcakes for good measure!
I'm testing out all these new cake and frosting recipes because I'm making a cake for someone I don't even know off of a referral, which is pretty exciting and so much fun! I want the cake to be the best it can be! I hope to have a photo of that here too at some point. But first, superbowl cupcakes! It's baking season, apparently. Wait...it's always baking season at my house!
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Veils, Earrings, Bracelets and Belts. What more does a girl want!?
I got to play with my dress and jewelry the other night! Yay! Pretty and fun! I went back to Blue Sky Bridal (because they're the awesomest) to try on veils, and I brought my jewelry too so that I could get a picture of the whole look.
I tried on a long-ish veil, but it's just not me. Although, if I was going to do a long veil, it would be lace trimmed, like this one from here:
Blue Sky had a lovely lace trimmed/mantilla style veil - it will be amazing for some bride. But again, I'm just not a long veil kinda girl, beautiful lace or no.
I didn't mind the fingertip length veil, which is surprising as I thought I would have a rather unpleasant reaction to veils in general. But, although it might be a current trend/cliché, I'm in love with the bird cage veil. It's just me. I can't help it. It's just part of my genetic code. There's nothing more to be said. Love this from here.
I'll wear it for photos before and during the ceremony, and then likely take it off for the reception. I don't want it to come over my eyes - I want it to come down over my forehead slightly off-kilter so that it's just a little somethin' somethin' that says "Hi. I'm getting married."
And then there are the borrowed earrings. How gorgeous are these? Totally perfect.
Perhaps a little $8 milk glass bracelet for something old.
I haven't yet decided if I'm going to do a necklace. I tried on all manner of pearls and it just wasn't working for me. So it's either something sparkly, or nothing at all. I'm certainly amenable to either.
And the last decision was that my lovely, lovely lace trumpet dress (and don't worry - even if Chris read that, he won't know what that means) told me that it needs a sash/belty thing. A lovely 1-1/2 to 2 inch silk ribbon with some trim on the front or perhaps a vintage broach on the back bow (but not both - too much bling). Something like this from here:
You know, except that's not my dress, and I won't have the scary giant flower eating my head.
So many decisions made! So many more to go - like how to fancy up very very bleh shoes.
I tried on a long-ish veil, but it's just not me. Although, if I was going to do a long veil, it would be lace trimmed, like this one from here:
Blue Sky had a lovely lace trimmed/mantilla style veil - it will be amazing for some bride. But again, I'm just not a long veil kinda girl, beautiful lace or no.I didn't mind the fingertip length veil, which is surprising as I thought I would have a rather unpleasant reaction to veils in general. But, although it might be a current trend/cliché, I'm in love with the bird cage veil. It's just me. I can't help it. It's just part of my genetic code. There's nothing more to be said. Love this from here.
I'll wear it for photos before and during the ceremony, and then likely take it off for the reception. I don't want it to come over my eyes - I want it to come down over my forehead slightly off-kilter so that it's just a little somethin' somethin' that says "Hi. I'm getting married."
And then there are the borrowed earrings. How gorgeous are these? Totally perfect.
Perhaps a little $8 milk glass bracelet for something old.
I haven't yet decided if I'm going to do a necklace. I tried on all manner of pearls and it just wasn't working for me. So it's either something sparkly, or nothing at all. I'm certainly amenable to either.
And the last decision was that my lovely, lovely lace trumpet dress (and don't worry - even if Chris read that, he won't know what that means) told me that it needs a sash/belty thing. A lovely 1-1/2 to 2 inch silk ribbon with some trim on the front or perhaps a vintage broach on the back bow (but not both - too much bling). Something like this from here:
You know, except that's not my dress, and I won't have the scary giant flower eating my head.
So many decisions made! So many more to go - like how to fancy up very very bleh shoes.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Picture this...
Beautiful antique shutters like so:
(for sale here)
As a display for name tags attached to vintage skeleton keys, like so (well, except with names and table numbers instead of a save the date note, of course):
So lovely! I'm slightly concerned that it's a little too rustic for my theme and my venue however. The Alexis is very modern, but eclectic. But, the room has lovely exposed brick walls. Is a touch of rustic okay mixed into the modern decor? Thoughts?
(for sale here)As a display for name tags attached to vintage skeleton keys, like so (well, except with names and table numbers instead of a save the date note, of course):
So lovely! I'm slightly concerned that it's a little too rustic for my theme and my venue however. The Alexis is very modern, but eclectic. But, the room has lovely exposed brick walls. Is a touch of rustic okay mixed into the modern decor? Thoughts?
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
My favorite things
So, I like to bake. That has been well established. But I also like to dance. Good thing, because with all the baking, I'd be a lot bigger if I didn't. :) It also helps that I can't eat much of what I bake due to my lactose intolerance. I've recently been informed that I should go gluten free for a couple of weeks to see if that helps with my migraines. Those will be some cranky weeks. I love me some bread. Anyway...
The kids I help teach at D&G Dance Company in Columbia City had their recital last Saturday, and the instructor, Jeffie Lou, asked her adult class to dance as well. Her class has men, women, mothers, grandmothers, and teens, which is so much fun. Only some of the "regulars," as we're called, performed. One of the husbands video taped our performance.
It was great fun. I missed dance, and even performing, when it wasn't in my life for all those years during law school and a couple of years thereafter. I especially love dancing and performing it in a low-key setting such as this where it's really just for fun (well, and to burn off a few extra vegan cake calories). Of course, once I got off stage I had 26 kids waiting for help tying bandannas on their head. No rest for the weary, as they say!
The kids I help teach at D&G Dance Company in Columbia City had their recital last Saturday, and the instructor, Jeffie Lou, asked her adult class to dance as well. Her class has men, women, mothers, grandmothers, and teens, which is so much fun. Only some of the "regulars," as we're called, performed. One of the husbands video taped our performance.
It was great fun. I missed dance, and even performing, when it wasn't in my life for all those years during law school and a couple of years thereafter. I especially love dancing and performing it in a low-key setting such as this where it's really just for fun (well, and to burn off a few extra vegan cake calories). Of course, once I got off stage I had 26 kids waiting for help tying bandannas on their head. No rest for the weary, as they say!
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Kerissa likes snow
It snowed overnight on Tuesday. It was beautiful. It was also nearly gone by morning because of the rain.
However, it was some of the most sparkly snow I have *ever* seen.
I didn't even photoshop those sparkles in. I'm obviously not that talented with photo editing software.
Soooo pretty! Just wanted to share!
However, it was some of the most sparkly snow I have *ever* seen.
I didn't even photoshop those sparkles in. I'm obviously not that talented with photo editing software.
Soooo pretty! Just wanted to share!
Friday, January 14, 2011
Fluffy Letters Tutorial!
Well, I've survived Christmas, and I'm only slightly traumatized. If I ever start blogging about my family, you all would understand. I suppose I just have to mention "family" and many of you are already nodding your heads...or banging them against the wall. Just me? Ok, then.
So, I'm back to wedding crafting and I still think it's about the best thing I can do with my time. Surprised? Me neither.
I love monograms. I see them all over weddings nowadays. Like these from Martha:
And, of course, I love these fabric poms:
I wanted to combine these two loves into ruffley monograms. I managed to do so, although I'm not sure that I'm madly in love with the results. I wanted to be madly in love with the results, but these things happen.
These ruffled letters are certainly cute enough to make their way onto a dessert table or a guest book table, where they will happily show off their ruffleosity and announce that this is, indeed, Chris and Kerissa's wedding.
For this project you will need:
* Wooden letters (I purchased mine at Michael's. They were painted white, which helped because I knew I would be covering them in a cream colored fabric, so they would blend well. They are approx. six inches tall.)
* Fabric (I used inexpensive cotton)
* Hot glue/gun
* Circle Cutter (Optional)
* Scissors
Here are the letters pre-fluffiness:
I knew that the fabric ruffles had to be short enough that you would still be able to tell that it was a "K" at the end of the project. So, I took my circle cutter and cut out a one-inch circle out of paper to use as my template. You could certainly freehand this as the circles do not have to be perfect.
Then, I cut some inexpensive cotton into a zillion teensy circles.
Next, I put a dot of hot glue in the center of the circle like so (but hopefully with a hand that was more steady than mine when I took this blurry photo):
and stuck it to the letter.
Repeat 50-hundred times. :)
To give it the ruffled look, I stuck each circle up tight to the one before so that it would fold the edges of the other circle up in random spots.
Sometimes the cat helps. But she looks irritated when you explain to her that she cannot nestle in that fabric. See the look?
Here are my tips, also known as "what I would do differently next time":
(1) I ruffled the whole letter. This probably isn't necessary but I thought perhaps I would hang them, so I wanted ruffles all around. However, I think I liked the less cluttered look of the letter when only the front was ruffled, like this:
The fabric was able to hang over the side and look gently ruffled. But, then I ruffled the sides and it looked like this, which I wasn't as thrilled with:
(2) So, if you do want to ruffle the whole thing, I learned that it is best to start with the back and sides first. I ended up flipping the "C" over and using the back as the front (thank goodness it was a symmetrical letter!) and making the ruffles a tad less crowded on that side. As you can see, I had perfected my ability to use a little less fabric and make it a little less ruffly by the time I got to the "K."
(3) I also trimmed the edges of the ruffles in the center of the letter to make sure that the edges were still defined and the "K" was identifiable, instead of a ruffled blob. :)
I do love me some ruffles!
These are the smallest letters I've purchased, so some ginormous monograms are certain to follow.
So, I'm back to wedding crafting and I still think it's about the best thing I can do with my time. Surprised? Me neither.
I love monograms. I see them all over weddings nowadays. Like these from Martha:
And, of course, I love these fabric poms:
I wanted to combine these two loves into ruffley monograms. I managed to do so, although I'm not sure that I'm madly in love with the results. I wanted to be madly in love with the results, but these things happen.
These ruffled letters are certainly cute enough to make their way onto a dessert table or a guest book table, where they will happily show off their ruffleosity and announce that this is, indeed, Chris and Kerissa's wedding.
For this project you will need:
* Wooden letters (I purchased mine at Michael's. They were painted white, which helped because I knew I would be covering them in a cream colored fabric, so they would blend well. They are approx. six inches tall.)
* Fabric (I used inexpensive cotton)
* Hot glue/gun
* Circle Cutter (Optional)
* Scissors
Here are the letters pre-fluffiness:
I knew that the fabric ruffles had to be short enough that you would still be able to tell that it was a "K" at the end of the project. So, I took my circle cutter and cut out a one-inch circle out of paper to use as my template. You could certainly freehand this as the circles do not have to be perfect.
Then, I cut some inexpensive cotton into a zillion teensy circles.
Next, I put a dot of hot glue in the center of the circle like so (but hopefully with a hand that was more steady than mine when I took this blurry photo):
and stuck it to the letter.
Repeat 50-hundred times. :)
To give it the ruffled look, I stuck each circle up tight to the one before so that it would fold the edges of the other circle up in random spots.
Sometimes the cat helps. But she looks irritated when you explain to her that she cannot nestle in that fabric. See the look?
Here are my tips, also known as "what I would do differently next time":
(1) I ruffled the whole letter. This probably isn't necessary but I thought perhaps I would hang them, so I wanted ruffles all around. However, I think I liked the less cluttered look of the letter when only the front was ruffled, like this:
The fabric was able to hang over the side and look gently ruffled. But, then I ruffled the sides and it looked like this, which I wasn't as thrilled with:
(2) So, if you do want to ruffle the whole thing, I learned that it is best to start with the back and sides first. I ended up flipping the "C" over and using the back as the front (thank goodness it was a symmetrical letter!) and making the ruffles a tad less crowded on that side. As you can see, I had perfected my ability to use a little less fabric and make it a little less ruffly by the time I got to the "K."
(3) I also trimmed the edges of the ruffles in the center of the letter to make sure that the edges were still defined and the "K" was identifiable, instead of a ruffled blob. :)
I do love me some ruffles!
These are the smallest letters I've purchased, so some ginormous monograms are certain to follow.
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