Dining Room Makeover

I finally did it.  I hung some artwork, which means the dining room is officially finished (read more about the dining room here).  Picking out artwork and photos is a personal thing to me that takes time.  I'm happy with where I landed, but would be happy to add to the wall at some point.  As a wise woman once told me, "A good house is never done."

Dining Room: After

Dining Room: Before (2007)

 
I also hung two little pictures on the wall in the living room (thank you Instagram for making my pictures look cooler and FoxGram for printing them.  Once I get a hammer, I just can't help myself...

And, let's keep it real.  Here's a little behind-the-scenes action from these two shots.  I like to think I'm organized and I swear I am in my head...

Christmas Front Door

I did a little decorating tonight. After driving around almost the entire Des Moines metro area, I finally found a little (fresh) tree and some white lights for it. I planted the tree in a planter box I already had (this is what it looked like in the summer), which is conveniently located near an exterior outlet. I need to find a timer to put the lights on, but the only I ones I've found are $20, and I'm too cheap for that. The wreath is from about three years ago. I made it from crafty things at Michael's. The skeleton key door mat is from Target. I hope to get the rest of the front porch area decorated tomorrow. I love Christmas!

Fab Finds: Easy Holiday Decorating Ideas

Thanksgiving and Christmas are almost here!  I love the holidays - food, family, pretty decorations - it really doesn't get much better than that!  Here are some of my favorite easy holiday decorating ideas this year (and yes, I'll even be making a couple of them).

(source)

(source)

(source)

(source)

(source)

(source)

Cassie's Wedding: Part Two

It took a few hours for all five bridesmaids, mother-of-the-bride, and the bride to get ready at the hotel the morning of the wedding.  The hotel was kind enough to let us get ready in the bridal suite before the wedding.  After sipping on mimosas and nibbling on fruit all morning while we got ready, it was finally time to get Cassie in her beautiful gown and ride over to Black Bear Crossings on the Lake to take photos before the ceremony.

 

First look

It's very important that the bride stay hydrated.

We took a break from professional pics.

The personal attendants attending to the bride

Amber flew in from St. Louis and made it in time for photos.

The ceremony was perfect.  The weather was just like the rehearsal - high 80s with a light breeze.  Jake's cousin officiated; Cassie's mom's cousins sang; Jake tried to kiss Cassie a little too early (once the unity candle was lit).  You could feel the love, and everything was perfect.  Then, the wedding party loaded up in a party bus that took us to the reception.

The grand entrance for the new couple

Kyle and Erin were able to make it to the wedding, so we had a little Wayzata High School reunion.

I had worked on Cassie's Wedding Tree and presented her a prototype for her bridal shower, but I was even more pumped to have the final product ready for the reception.  I'm really happy with how it turned out, and I think everyone enjoyed it, too.

The Wedding Tree Instructions

The reception was lovely.  The food was amazing.  I had the steak, and ate every bite of it...and then Cassie's vegetables.  Like I said, the food was amazing.  Also, even though Josh had class until 3 that day, he still drove the five hours to make it to the reception.  It was wonderful to see him and have him share with me in Cassie and Jake's special evening.

First dance

Josh made it to the reception!

John and I were buddies walking down the aisle.  Heidi, one of the other bridesmaids, and I thought it would be funny to take a picture with John.  John is 6' 8" and Heidi and I are both about 5' 3" tall.  Another fun fact:  John also attended Wayzata High School with me and Cassie, but we didn't get to know one another until Jake introduced us in when he, Cassie and John were in undergraduate at St. Thomas.  I love how this world is so small!

So, that's the end of Cassie's wedding.  It was beautiful.  I loved seeing all her friends (most of whom I also knew) and family (who I love very much).  Dancing with Josh was also wonderful.  I'm so happy for Cassie and Jake and can't wait to share even more special moments with them for many more years to come.

Cassie's Wedding: Part One

It had been about a year in the making, but Cassie's wedding weekend has officially come and pass.  It was a beautiful day that I was honored to spend with her.  The festivities kicked off on Thursday when we met at the hotel, Best Western Plus in Bloomington, to decorate or the reception.  Then, we got gussied up and drove over to the location where the ceremony would be held, Black Bear Crossings on the Lake in St. Paul.  The weather was perfect - high 80s with a little breeze.  We walked through our roles for the ceremony, and then we were of to the rehearsal dinner at Dixies on Grand in St. Paul.  Also, this was the first time I'd had the opportunity to wear the dress I sewed earlier this summer, so I was happy to sport it!

So happy to celebrate her big day!

Cassie's parents walking her down the aisle

The happy couple at the rehearsal dinner

On the morning of the wedding, I surprised Cassie with a special gift.  A couple weeks back, I found an idea on pinterest where the bridesmaids would write a letter to the bride and present it to her on the morning of her wedding.  Well, I loved the idea, but I decided to take it a step further and invite her parents, grandparents, bridesmaids, personal attendants, and then, the most important person from her day, her future husband, to write her a letter.  I was really pleased with how it all turned out.  I purchased a purple 8"x8" scrapbook at Michael's and formatted all the letters in InDesign to fit inside the clear pages.  Each page included a letter and sometimes a photo or two from someone special to Cassie.  I tried to customize the fonts to correspond with the authors of the letters.  Guessing by the pile of tissues next to her when she was done reading the book, I think it was a hit.

Cassie's Wedding Week

It's Cassie's wedding week, and things are really coming together!  I have 50 wedding programs completely done.  They turned out exactly as I thought they would, and I'm really proud of them.  I should have them completed by tomorrow night.  Here's a little sneak peek.  They evolved a little bit from the original version I made.

Also, a big shout-out to my mom who has been helping me.  She's an excellent paper folder, glue applier, and corner cutter.  Thanks, mom, for all your help.  I couldn't have done this without you - you're the best!

I ordered the materials last week, and am really happy with the quality and price of everything.  The cardstock was buy one pack of 50 sheets, get one for $0.01 at Michael's.  The organza ribbon was from Paper Mart, and was the perfect purple (and the organza is great for bows - super pliable).  And the wood sticks were from Discount School Supply.  The ribbon and sticks arrived in record time:  the sticks arrived in less than 24 hours (without rush shipping), and the ribbon arrived in three days.  Thank heaven for that!

Cost breakdown:
$8.00 [200 sheets of cardstock]
$15.03 [500 wood sticks]
$31.02 [4 rolls of 1-1/2" x 50 yards of ribbon]
$10.00 [glue]
$64.05 TOTAL

I'm making 160 wedding programs, and I'll have lots of leftover wood sticks, ribbon (I may return two rolls since I over-ordered), and cardstock.  Who knows when I'll need them for another wedding? 

Mom's Closet

I was just doing some research on closet organizers online when I stumbled upon my mom's closet I designed last year when I did her bedroom for a holiday photo shoot.  It's always fun to see my projects in print or online, but even more so when they're for people I love. 

click here to go to the site

Also, in case you ever wanted to get a little crafty and make the shim wreath in the middle of this photo, click here.  It'll be the easiest project you've ever done (that still looks good), I promise.  Ok, I can't promise that.  But it was easy for me to make and I hope you're inspired to make it, too.

Before & After: Window Treatments

I've lived in my townhouse for almost five years.  About four years ago, when I installed the floors and painted the trim white in the living room, I took down all the white blinds.  Curtains were made for my large windows, however, I neglected the little window next to the TV.  The window is on the west side of the house, which makes watching TV when the sun is setting a little painful (since the sun is blaring in your eyes as you sit on the sofa).  I figured I'd get around to making something to put there someday...

Anyway, since mom has been camped out on my sofa for the past week, I figured it would be a nice guesture to not blind her every night when the sun sets.  So, I finished the curtains I started sewing about three years ago.  It took me less than an hour to complete this project, and the curtain rod was $5 from Target.  That's a deal.  Plus, no one on the sofa will be blinded when the sun sets.  It's a win-win for everyone, really.

Before & After: Window Treatments

Famous Hands

One of my friends just sent me a link to Pinterest.  It's a photo of my hand grouting a glass mosaic tile backsplash.  It's from a couple years back when I worked on a different magazine.  Funny how things appear out of nowhere.  I found the whole slideshow on how to tile a backsplash.  You should try it (if you haven't already).  If I can do it, you can do it!

It's actually really difficult to hold this pose. I was laying on top of the countertop, and I'm pretty sure I had hand cramps.

Almost Done

Today was a long day.  I didn't make it to the 5:15 workout at Anytime Fitness, but I did make it to the 6:15 Farrell's workout.  Work was hectic.  I made a lot of progress on the things I had to make for tomorrow and Thursday's shoot.  I'm pretty sure I should start wearing a mask when I spray paint.  The maintenance guys at work were kind enough to turn on the vent system for me.  I think it was because they couldn't stand the smell.

Where the magic happens...

Also, I had my personal trainer workout at Anytime tonight with Alejandro.  It was amazing!  I have no idea how I've made it this long without a personal trainer.  He pushed me to work out harder than I imagined I could.  He also made me realize I'm not as fit as I thought (hello, BMI).  I think I'm going to have to schedule weekly visits with Alejandro.

It's almost midnight, and I'm almost done with my projects for tomorrow's shoot.  One more coat of spray paint tonight, and probably another tomorrow morning, and it'll all be done!  Woo hoo!

Sew Away

When I was in second grade, my mom taught me how to sew.  The older I get, the more grateful I am for the skills she instilled in me and my sister.  From canning to gardening, laundry and cleaning, I don't know how she taught us how to do so much, but she did.  So, back to this weekend.  On Friday, I had a long day at work prepping for a shoot I have this week.  To de-stress, I decided I wanted to make a dress.  Last year, I picked up some fabric and a Simplicity pattern at JoAnn Fabric.  One year later, I did something with it.  I worked until 1:30 AM, but the dress turned out beautifully.  And the invisible zipper I put in was perfect.  When mom looked at the dress, she couldn't figure out how I put it on since she didn't see a zipper.  That's good news, my friends!

Another Front Porch Makeover

After I get done with a photo shoot, I'm always inspired to do something to love my home even more.  After sprucing up my mom's front porch, I felt inclined to make my own front porch look better.  Every year, I plant flowers.  But this year, I decided to take it a little further.

In an effort to enjoy my outdoor space more, I bought some outdoor furniture.  Every year, Josh and I say we're going to buy furniture when it goes on sale.  And for the past five years, we've forgotten to buy the furniture when it goes on sale.  So, I convinced him to let me buy some reasonably priced furniture.  Tonight, I was working late at Lowe's, and stopped by the outdoor furniture department while on my way to the checkout counter when I spotted the perfect furniture set.  I was hoping Josh would also love it, so I set it up outside before I even walked in the house.  Josh agrees with me that it's pretty fabulous.

The flowers are beautiful.  The furniture is perfect.  Now, all I need is a footrest, a new rug for the front door, and maybe a keg full of Crispin.

Before

Before

After with flowers

I love a planter full of flowers!

Beautiful planters!

...And my first garden!

New outdoor furniture

Enjoying a cool beverage on a hot night.

Sophie also enjoys sitting on the front porch.

Also, I can now officially cross off one thing off my 30 Before 30 list!  I planted my first garden with some plants from the farmers market and a few from Lowe's.  It consists of two tomato plants, one basil, one strawberry, one cilantro, one mint, and four broccoli plants.  I also threw in two flower plants on the front corners for color.  I'll add the tomato cages in a couple of weeks.  I can't wait to watch them grow over the next few months and eat the fruits of my labor...as I sit in my chair and enjoy a little bit of nature.

Orange Blossom Tomato

Cilantro

Strawberry

Basil

Mint

Broccoli

Rose Tomato