Signing Off!

My sweet mom is getting remarried this weekend in Myrtle Beach so I'm off for an entire week!
I'll leave you with some pictures I took at our recent trip to Santa Cruz.  It was my first time to Northern California and I was dying over the beautiful flowers and plants.  Can you say eye candy?

Balloon Invitation

I thought this was fitting not only because it's a darling idea, but because I've been working on a couple of birthday invitations lately...and it's Friday and what's better than balloons!  I recently discovered Brooke Reynolds blog "Inchmark".  She created the balloon invitations below and her blog is full of thoughtful and creative ideas.  It's one of my new favorites.
This particular invitation, along with confetti, was rolled up inside a helium filled balloon and then delivered to each individual.  Genius.

Baby Elena

I recently designed these announcements.  I can't get over how darling she is, check out that hair!

Vintage Jamie

I've been meaning to post about Vintage Jamie for awhile now.  I have a few of her pillows and simply adore them.  They're made of linen and cotton, and are about as cute and cuddly as can be.

want it, gotta have it.

I was at Anthro today and I spotted this jacket.  My birthday is coming up and I might just have to drop some hints about it.  Beige leather jacket, what's not to love?

Ciao!

I haven't had a real vacation in quite awhile.  I mean, we've taken lots of long weekends for friend's weddings (which is great and I'm happy to do it), but I'm craving some real vacay time.  Norm and I have started planning our honeymoon (!) and this is what I've been staring at all day.  I'm practically drooling over my keyboard here people.
Our trip will start in Positano, Italy, then we're off to Rome, Tuscany and Florence.
May can't come soon enough.
Any recommendations would be appreciated!

Well, I just noticed this- judging by my pictures, it looks like I'm looking forward to the food more than anything else!

I'm Back!

I took a little break from blogging as my summer has been incredibly busy.  My apologies for the silence, but I'm back and ready to share my inspiration and projects with you!

I recently hosted my good friend's bridal shower.  It was diy all the way from the favors and decoration to the yummy treats we served.

I made these fill-in-the-blank cards for everyone to fill out about Nicole.  I found this, among other ideas, at 100 Layer Cake.

We made personalized tags for the pink candy given as favors...

Handmade tissue flowers...I think these help brighten up any party.  Here are directions.  They were much bigger than I figured they'd be, use 8.5x11 if you want smaller flowers.

and the happy bride-to-be...

Sidewalk Lanes

This has been floating around blog-land, but I couldn't help myself.  If we could just get these in Chicago...

Homemade Ricotta

A friend sent me this recipe the other day from Mireille Guiliano of French Women Don't Get Fat.  I love really good ricotta (so much that Norm often catches me eating it straight out of the bowl with a spoon...oops!).  This looks surprisingly easy... definitely plan to make this one of these nights.
I'll let you know how it goes!

Yields 2-3 cups

8 cups regular milk
4 cups 2% milk
1 ½ teaspoon salt
4 ½ tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Bring the milk and salt to 160 degrees F using a heavy-duty saucepan over medium-high heat (I don’t use a thermometer anymore…it’s at the point before boiling where little bubbles form all around the edge of the saucepan). Lower heat, add fresh lemon juice, stir a few times until curds form (it will take a few minutes), and with slotted spoon pick up ricotta and transfer to colander. Drain it quickly (a few seconds) if you want a soft texture (you may like a lighter style to use for your Magical Breakfast from The French Women Don’t Get Fat Cookbook, or to eat as is with a drizzle of honey) or longer if you want a firmer cheese (for pasta topping, for example, or on bread), and discard the drained liquid.

You can eat as is or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate to chill. It will keep a few days, though in my house the 3 cups don’t last more than 48 hours if I am lucky! Kids love it, too, and with fresh fruit it makes an excellent breakfast or dessert. Have fun creating your endless options.

Holiday Cards on Minted

Hello Lovelies. As you know, I'm a big fan of Minted.com.  I was able to find the time to crank out a few designs for the Minted Holiday Card Challenge.  There are over 1300 designs entered in the competition which I think is the most they've ever had!  The quality of work that has been submitted is outstanding.  It's a great company and I always think it's fun to enter in their competitions.  I plan on making it a priority to enter more designs in the future!
Please feel free to vote for my designs at the icon to the right of this post!
Happy Friday everyone!!

Summer Days

hmmm...this is where I am today...

but this is where I'd like to be...

 

image courtesy of lizzynewm

She & Him

Last night my friends and I had a picnic in the park while She & Him played live.  It was a great Monday with good friends, good food and even better music.  And who doesn't love Zooey?...total girl crush.
Their website is super cute as well.

Imagination Poster by Postal Press

I've always loved this poster by Postal Press.  I think it would go perfectly in our home.

No More Headaches!

I FINALLY got reading glasses and I'm very excited about my new specs.  Hopefully this means no more coming home from work with headaches.
I'll see you guys on Monday as my glasses and I are out of town visiting my momma!  Hope everyone has a great long weekend!

DIY Printing- Thank You Notes

Check out this awesome DIY project from Once Wed.  I love this idea for a personalized bridesmaids gift.  Oh, and I just noticed the button seal on the second picture!  Love it!

Southern Style

There is something about the south that I really love.  It's the people, laid back culture, the landscape, weather and the food (let's not kid, I really love the food- I literally had grits twice on Saturday!).  I dream about someday having a colonial style house with a big porch, which I would no doubt sit on all day and drink iced tea while watching the beautiful scenery.  My top choices would be Charlotte, Savannah, Raleigh and of course, Lynchburg, VA where my momma is.

Happy Friday!

I hope everyone has a lovely weekend!  I'll leave you with these amazing invitations (not only the invitations, but the photography too!) from Zed & Bee.