Old Fashioned. New Fangled.

Why I will never be a housewife....

2009-06-09T16:34:00.000-07:00

Dinner of oven fried chicken and sweet potato fries turned into a sheet of half burnt/half soggy fries and chicken with some strange foul-smelling goo covering it. How did I manage to do that????

When I'm a Homeowner...

2009-06-03T18:21:00.000-07:00

Rare and Beautiful Treasures just put into pictures what's been going on in my head for a large wall in the kitchen:

So lovely and open. And done just as I was thinking; with unfinished wooden brackets and planks painted the color of the cabinets. This would be right by the sliding doors (one day to be french doors) leading out to the lanai....

Now, if we could just hear some news about the house. Oh, short sales. I'm trying to remember that God's timing is much more perfect than my own.

Trash or Treasure

2009-06-03T18:14:00.000-07:00

Centsational Girl is my personal super hero. She took on cheesy, tacky brass table, a battered set of candlesticks and frame, along with a tarnished mint julep cup and turned it into this gorgeous vignette next to her tub-- all with spray paint.

And,as further proof that I need mint julep cups filled with hydrangeas everywhere at my wedding, I give you this:

Gorgeous!!! And proves to me that I should buy those mint julep cups instead of renting because then I can re-use them in the house. Can you believe she picked this baby up for $2.00?

Screw Super 8-- I want a wedding video like this.

2009-05-31T19:32:00.000-07:00

Brian & Eileen's Wedding Music Video. from LOCKDOWN projects on Vimeo.

Morning suits, fascinators and large group air guitar. What's not to love?

Flower Power: The Inspiration Board

2009-05-10T19:33:00.000-07:00

I've been here, there and everywhere when it comes to flowers. At first, I wanted nothing but calla lilies. Then I went through a spell where I wanted no flowers whatsover. As in, zero-- not even a bridal bouquet. Realizing that some flowers would be nice, I thought about how I could DIY all the flowers... what was simple and would look great? Should I use silk or dried so I could make them way ahead of time? But, then my mom jumped in with the ability to find a great bargin and she's having a talk tomorrow with a florist who could do all our flowers-- centerpieces, bouquets, bouts, ceremony-- for less than $500. I'd probably spend that much with materials for the DIY trial and errors. So, I threw these pics together to give my mom a little idea of what's circling in my mind flower-wise. Here it is:

Unfortunately, a lot of these pics have been in my files for a while, so I've lost the original sources for most. Here are the ones that I remember: 1 and 2: Punam Bean (Nole and Andrew's Wedding) ; 5: Artfool; 6: Martha Stewart Summer '04; 8: Once Wed: Sarah and Adam's wedding; 11: Martha Stewart

Can I have a candlelight ceremony at 6:30 in June?

2009-04-29T17:24:00.000-07:00

I've always dreamed of having an over-abundance of candles at my wedding. I'm getting a handle on how to do this for the reception, but can I pull off a candlelight ceremony OUTSIDE in a garden at 6:30 in June?

(Damn, you daylight savings time! You take an hour of my sleep and now you steal my wedding dreams!)

I think that my obsession with a candlelight ceremony started with too many viewings of this:

Do you see all those awesome candles???? My parents had "Sunrise, Sunset" played at their wedding, Mr. Old Fashioned likes the look too... now, if I could only figure out how to make it dark before 8:30.

A glamorous sleep

2009-04-28T19:08:00.000-07:00

Audrey as Holly Gollightly in an oh-so-fashionable sleep. Click for source.

When I was younger, I begged my mom for a satin sleeping mask. As an avid watcher of Turner Classic Movies, I saw countless glamour gals of the 1940's slip the mask down over their eyes to catch some zzz's. I wanted to be one too! I wanted to fall asleep in my baby blue canopy bed with a matching baby blue satin sleeping mask. I wanted to be Doris Day in my sleep. I eventually got one... it was navy polyester and came from the travel section of Wal-Mart, but none the less, it was my ticket to styling cat naps.

Doris Day looks so refreshed! She got a good night's rest thanks to a sleeping mask! Click for source.

Uh, turns out I can't sleep with those darn things on to save my soul. They drive me nuts.

But, I still think they're totally awesome! So, maybe I'll make some for my out-of-town bags. I came across this sweet little tutorial over at Dear Martha (complete with a pattern!).

Embroidering each mask might be a little too time consuming, so I might skip that step, but if I find some cheap, awesome fabric, have some time on my hands this summer, and--oh yeah-- get a sewing machine-- then I might whip up these babies.

Okay, actually making these for all of the out-of-town bags is starting to sound a little crazy, but I want to have a grown-up slumber party with all my gals before the big day. A sleeping mask sounds like a super cute treat to give them that night! I could embroider their initials, a martini glass, shoes... any thing that would give it that little extra touch.

If I had to be somebody else....

2009-04-28T18:55:00.001-07:00

I'd be the mind behind Centsational Girl. Seriously, look what she did to this chair:

And, this isn't the only fabulous re-do that she's done. Check them out at her blog now. I'm in serious crafting envy.

When I'm a Homeowner...

2009-04-28T18:32:00.000-07:00

I love, love, love the look of beadboard. Also, I love white cabinets in bright, cheery kitchens that look like they belong in the 1930's. I'd like for my kitchen to look that way. Today, I was looking around The Lettered Cottage and found a post about the kitchen of Mrs. Lisa Porter (as in The Lisa Porter Collection) who totally refashioned her basic-grade builder blah island into this fabulous piece of art:
Look a little closer:
Yep, that's some beadboard.

Maybe one day I'll even use it as a backsplash

(source)

This is, straight up, my dream of all dreams kitchen....

(source)

But with a few minor tweaks.... I'd go with a farmhouse style sink and either butcher block or lighter marble/granite countertops, similar to this kitchen:

(source)

A girl can dream, can't she?

When I'm a Homeowner...

2009-04-10T12:35:00.000-07:00

This is a super cute idea to cover a cork board courtesy of Crafty Nest

Who said baby's breath was just a cheap filler flower?

2009-04-10T11:30:00.001-07:00

I'm starting to really fall in love with the idea of baby's breath as a major floral component for our wedding.

First up, is the centerpiece inspiration:
I love the height and light, airy feel of these. We won't use them on all the tables, but I think centerpieces with height add so much more to the look of the reception space. (PS: I wish that I could remember where I found this picture so that I could link back to the source, but it's been in my inspiration folder for a while with no notation of the origins. Email me if you know the source so that I can credit it!)

Next, I love this baby's breath garland from Once Wed. I have no idea where I'd use it, but the fact that you can make it for under $15 makes me want it!

3. Perhaps I'd even go with a baby's breath bouquet. Again, I don't know where these pics came from since they've been in my files for a while-- but email me if you know the source!

So, these last two aren't baby's breath at all, they're lily of the valley, and I think I might love them a little bit more than the baby's breath ones.
Even Elizabeth Hurley loves this idea (though her's is probably made out of super expensive, ultra lux, specially ordered flowers)

Garden Wedding Inspiration

2009-04-10T11:02:00.000-07:00

Old Fashioned and I are definitely going to do a wish bowl in lieu of a guest book. While snooping around Snippet and Ink earlier today, I found a gorgeous wedding that gave me an idea to make our wish bowl look even more awesome. They put a bit of moss in the bottom of the apothecary jars and I just love it! It seems to ground the whole vignette and pull in the garden theme.
Also, I loved the names of their signature drinks: The Crush (a mojito) and Lover's Brew (sangria) just might find there way into our summer wedding!

I'm Hatin'...

2009-04-10T10:59:00.000-07:00

I'm hatin' my little nike plus widget over there on the side that's mocking my lack of running lately. Maybe I should stop reading blogs and go for a run, or do laundry, or grade papers. Yeah, nix the run idea-- I just realized its midday in Florida... too hot.

Martha Loves Lace

2009-04-07T19:18:00.000-07:00

In the Spring '09 issue of Martha Stewart Weddings, I fell in love with their lace pictorial. So, I headed on over to Martha's website and found even MORE lovely lace.

First up, lace luminaries. These seem to be the easiest project on there. A few white lunch bags, some gold dollies (apparently that works better than the white ones), the xyron and you're good to go.
The next picture is a long the same lines but it has a little more polish to it. It sounds pretty easy too. Basically, you just find a lace pattern that you like, brush on some fabric stiffener, let dry and then cut out bits of the lace following the pattern. Then, wrap it around clear cylinders of various sizes and secure with hot glue. I wonder how colored lace would look around the cylinders. I'm worried that it might disrupt how elegant these end up looking-- but maybe it would be a great pop of color to the table scape.
Next, a little bit of lace that would be a nice welcome at the tables. I'm thinking of wrapping up mints in tissue paper squares, a little bit of lace trim and tying it up with twine. They would be adorable in a little crystal bowl sitting on the guest tables or maybe by the coffee bar or buffet. Maybe I would include a little sign that said something along the lines of "Mints: Freshen Up and Pucker Up." Martha used amaretto cookies in the pic below.
Lace and the Flower Girl: The ruffle corsage and the flower girl petticoat are SO adorable! The ruffle corsage could probably be made simpler than Martha did it... I'd probably hand stitch or ot glue it; it might not last as long as Martha's way, but it'd do for one night. And, even though I love the petticoat... that seems like a whole lot of work for a petticoat that'll probably have punch spilled all over it after an hour. Besides, flower girls always look cute no matter what.
However, I may be willing to try out the heat tranfer technique on these little shoe clips. My girls are picking out their own shoes, but I'd like to find a little something that will tie them all together. However, I'm not so sure that Martha has put all of the needed downloads on the site. I see the petals, but not the lace flower :( Maybe I'll try it with just the organza petals.

And, last but not least, you can tie in the lace with the invites. Here's cute envelopes made out of dollies. Martha, you never cease to amaze me.

Things you learn from Cathy Filian

2009-04-07T19:05:00.001-07:00

Reading Cathy's blog today I learned the following about flowers:

"To cauterize the hydrangeas, use pruning shears to cut the stems, on a 45-degree angle, to the appropriate length. Use a candle flame or a lighter to burn the stem ends. Alternatively, place the stem ends in boiling water for 10 seconds. Heating prevents sap from seeping into the water and causing bacteria growth."

I've never heard of cauterizing... wonder if you should do this to all flowers or just hydrangeas.

I believe a google search is in order.

Here's an article chock full of info on how to care for fresh flower arrangements.

Flowers In Her Hair: Re-using Vintage Costume Jewlery

2009-04-07T18:55:00.001-07:00

These flowers were made by the folks over at Craft Stylish and are the perfect thing to perk up a cardigan or a tank... but I'm thinking that the idea of re-tooling broken costume jewelry into the brooch is a genius idea that may end up in my hairpiece (and maybe my shoe clips too!)

Another thought: Change up the fabric from a jersey cotton to something more "formal" and this would be a nice, ever-lasting alternative to the mom/grandma corsages.

Flowers In Her Hair: Lace

2009-04-07T18:19:00.001-07:00

I ran across Missie Krissie's blog courtesy of One Pretty Thing and found a step by step guide to creating lace rosettes. Maybe this could be the base of the flower in my hair. I'm liking the little brown one in the middle of the pic above.
Basically the steps are super easy.
1. Place some hot glue at the end of the lace. This will end up being the center of the rosette.
2. Fold the end over.
3. Keep folding the lace over on its self and gathering it while gluing.

Sounds simple enough right?

I'm Lovin'...

2009-04-07T17:22:00.001-07:00

I think I want cupcakes at our wedding. It's Mark's favorite dessert and I don't shy away from them either. Plus they're adorable and they'd be even better with some adorable flags.
Maybe we should each have our own for the cake cutting:

The little beads add the cutest touch:
A la "Alice in Wonderland", which is fitting since it's my favorite story:
I found these cute penants already made on Vintage Glam:

Bells, Bells, Bells...

2009-04-07T17:14:00.000-07:00

A few days ago I read Poe's "The Bells" with my kids. My advanced students performed the poem in a choral reading, using their voices to imitate the sound of the bells. It was awesome. Sometimes, they're a creative bunch. But, the point of this post is really about wedding bells. I LOVE the sound of bells and have thought about trying to incorporate a gaggle of bells tingling and ringing into our ceremony or reception. Still not really sure how I'm going to pull it off--- hopefully I'll figure it out because I just found the most perfect way to display the bells!
(courtesy of Style Me Pretty via One Pretty Thing)

Now... If I could just find cheap bells.

Who knew I'd love dollies?

2009-03-26T19:21:00.000-07:00

I think I might have just found our centerpieces. Charming? Check. Vintage inspired? Check. Incorporate candles? Check. Can be re purposed after the wedding? Check. Budget friendly? That's one big CHECK. Thank you Once Wed for being geniuses.
Those saucers don't even look like they began life as terra cotta! I have no real clue what colors we'd use-- maybe a mix of all our colors; some black/ivory, some lavender/aubergine; some sage/lavender or aubergine. Think about sprigs of rosemary and lavender being placed around the candles (like where the daffidols are now). It'd also make a nice base for the hurricane holders. God, I love this idea. I want to go get supplies like RIGHT NOW!

When I'm a Homeowner...

2009-03-26T19:20:00.001-07:00

I want one of these. Period. End of Sentence.
Image is from Knack.

Asking the Bridesmaids

2009-03-26T19:00:00.000-07:00

Though most of my girls already know that they're my bridesmaids, I still have been on the look out for a way to ask them that was fun and cute.

I'm planning on making a simple necklace for them with charms that are stamped with words that I associate with them (like, "imagine" for my creative, former Savannah College of Art and Design roomie, Jenn). I've been brainstorming a few ideas on how to present the necklace to them. Since I plan to handwrite them a note about what they mean to me and incorporate a quote that features the word on their charm, I was thinking of wrapping the necklace around a flat card and including another flat card with the note.

But then, what do I do with these flat cards? How can I present it? Just putting it in an envelope all by its lonesome just didn't seem right. And then, today, the skies opened and angels sang when I saw this at enJOY it:

Yeah, that's two envelopes overlapped to make a "card". It rocks. It seems so simple and ingenious and I can't believe I hadn't thought of it before. Elise, the mind behind enJOY it, created a handful of inserts to go into the envelope slots like so:
I'm thinking that I'll put the flat with the necklace/quote on one side and the handwritten note on the other side. However, I've been inspired by Elise's idea to include cards on attire, expectations and her vow not to be crazy bride. That's a pretty sweet touch. And, she decorated the front so super cute:

Now, if only I could whip it together before I head to Atlanta tomorrow so I could hand deliver it. Alas, I think these suckers are going to have to go through the mail at a later date.

Great Gift Idea

2009-03-26T18:56:00.000-07:00

I stumbled across this post on terra cotta potted bread. Take a look at the pic below:

Isn't this adorable! I'm thinking an Easter treat for some of the gals I work with. Get the blow-by-blow over at The Coterie Blog.

When I'm a Homeowner...

2009-03-22T19:55:00.000-07:00

You know a few days couldn't have gone by without yet another When I'm a Homeowner post. So... here's the idea for today. A kitchen cabinet message center courtesy of Apartment Therapy:
I really want a message center in our kitchen. I've got a great board from IKEA (it's an oldie and no longer sold, and it may be a little TOO modern for what we're going for) but I definitely want to figure out how to add some chalkboard and cork board to the kitchen. Heck, I'd paint the whole kitchen in chalkboard paint, that's how much I love it.

Bridal Party Survival Kit

2009-03-22T19:40:00.000-07:00

I came across this one over on 100 Layer Cake and think it's SO adorable and super easy. I hope that my wedding is full of little things like this that are just such nice, little surprises. This is what I'm planning to put in the bag:
--Bandaids
--Shout Wipes
--Tylenol Packets
--Tic Tacs
--Lip Gloss/Balm
--A few safety pins and bobby pins

I Need a Sewing Machine

2009-03-22T19:17:00.000-07:00

I think I tell myself "I need a sewing machine" at least once a week. Here's just yet another reason why God needs to put a sewing machine in my hands:
Keykalou's Etsy shop features patterns for this and several other purses. This would be so perfect to whip up for bridesmaids gifts. The pattern's ten bucks and the supplies could be relatively inexpensive (especially if I go with an IKEA or clearance fabric).

Here's another pattern that would be smaller, but would be good for "richer" fabrics.

I'm itching for a sewing machine!!!

When I'm a Homeowner...

2009-03-17T13:53:00.000-07:00

I know there are a lot of these "When I'm a Homeowner..." post right after each other, but I'm just finding so many great ideas!

I've always dreamed of having a craft room/studio and found the MOST amazing Ikea hack for a great craft table and sewing desk. Check out the link for all the info. In the meantime, gaze at this gorgeousness:

When I'm a Homeowner...

2009-03-17T12:37:00.000-07:00

Okay-- I promise this is my last post with a project from Cathy Fillion (well for today at least!) But I couldn't resist adding this one to my list of "to-do" projects.

This looks like a simple, easy way to get some high impact art for your walls! I'm imagining it on a larger canvas in a breakfast nook perhaps, someplace that's bright and sunny (which won't be hard here in Florida!) and makes you want to go put your bare feet in the grass. Basically, you cut up self liners into the grass strips, place them on the canvas, mix up your preferred shade of green along with some glaze and sponge it on!
Let it dry and then peel the shelf liner strips up. Super easy!

When I'm a Homeowner...

2009-03-17T12:23:00.000-07:00

I have two IKEA lack tables that I use as nightstands right now. However, when Mr. Old Fashioned and I move in together, we're going to be using his bedroom furniture and mine is going to the guest room. I'd really like to use the lack tables as end tables in our formal living/dining area (if we end up with the house that has the formal area) but I need a way to dress them up, beyond a new coat of spray paint.

Lucky for me I found this great mod podge table at Cathy Fillion (yep, her again). Exactly what I'm looking for!

When I'm a Homeowner...

2009-03-17T12:17:00.000-07:00

When I'm a homeowner, I'd really love to make these great bean covered Styrofoam balls/candle holders. They'd be perfect for the first time we host Thanksgiving dinner! The step-by-step instructions were found on Cathy Filian's blog.

Handmade Gifts: Sake Set

2009-03-17T12:07:00.000-07:00

I was searching through the archives at Cathy Fillian's (the hostess of DIY Network's Creative Juices) and found this hand painted sake set. One of my bridesmaids has a very modern, Asain design style and I think this would be a great gift for her! Her birthday is tomorrow actually so I might need to whip this up before I go home to Atlanta in a few weeks.

Flowers In Her Hair: Oh My Deer

2009-03-17T08:30:00.000-07:00

I was browsing Oh My Deer's blog and came across a few more inspirational ideas for the flower in my hair. (Bonus for Oh My Deer: the artist is a Montessori teacher!) Up first is this flower which is actually a headband:
While I wouldn't want this on a headband, I love the cute opalescent button and antique lace in the center. The feathers are really what sells it for me!

Next, is a piece she made for a spring wedding:
I love the rhinestone button in the center, the layering of the petals and how light and dainty it appears!

For a non-flower take (clearly I'm not 100% sold on it needing to be a flower in my hair), there is this cute feather creation:
I like the cluster of beads at the bottom and the coloring of this piece; I'm just not sure where I would put it in an updo.

Also, I found this adorable headband that would be perfect for the dress I'm thinking of wearing for the rehearsal. (it's a black dress I already have. I bought it, gained 10 pounds and haven't been able to fit in the darn thing, so it's my motivation to get out and run) I love the little vintage details on the ribbon:
And here's how it looks on:
Plus, I just noticed that there's a lot of jeweled tones in this headband... right up my alley!

When I'm a Homeowner...

2009-03-15T18:37:00.001-07:00

I want to refurnish and reinvent older pieces instead of stocking my home with brand new, glossy furniture. So, I really want a piece from Chairloom. The whole business is centered around turning old, worn out chairs into gorgeous, fabulous chairs. Take a look below:

images are from Design*Sponge

The best part? In the unfinished section you can pick out the chair pre-transformation and have a hand in the design. Refurnishing starts around $350. I really should have learned how to upholster furniture at some point in my life.

Gifts for the Bridesmaids

2009-03-15T18:19:00.000-07:00

I came across the steps to make this covered button bracelet on CraftStylish and think it's such a great idea for a bridesmaid gift! The fabric could match the wedding colors or each fabric could represent the personality of the girls. I'd like to use one type of fabric on each of the girls bracelets and then create one for myself that has all the patterns on it, representing how each of these girls had an impact on my life. Maybe we could all wear them for the rehearsal dinner!

Depeche Mode+Wedding Photos=Coolness

2009-03-15T17:56:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Milkshake over at WeddingBee just posted this great photo slideshow that she made for a friend's wedding. I think it would be a great way to show off our pictures when we have our "happily ever after" party back at our home. It's so fun and lighthearted! Check the link to view the video for yourself.

Flowers In Her Hair-- Organza Flower

2009-03-13T21:07:00.000-07:00

I know that I want to wear a flower of some sort in my hair and I'd really like to make it myself (maybe). One problem, I like EVERY flower clip I see! Seriously, I can't find one that says "make me!" So, in an attempt to clarify which one of these beauties I want to practice making, I'm going to start a "Flowers In Her Hair" series detailing the flowers that are inspiring me. First up, organza flowers with step-by-step instructions courtesy of Reese Dixon (found via Elizabeth Anne Designs). Click the link to view the DIY tutorial. I love how sheer, light and vintage these flowers are! Also, I'm liking the dark purple/eggplant color since that's one of the colors we've been throwing around in our palette and I was thinking of eggplant shoes.... maybe I could have an ivory one for the ceremony and an eggplant one for the reception? Or stick to the ivory and give the bridesmaids an eggplant one to wear in their hair, as a brooch or maybe even on their shoes (of course those would have to be tiny, little organza flowers.)

The toss idea

2009-03-13T20:40:00.000-07:00

I really don't know if we're going to do any sort of toss; but just in case we do, I'm bookmarking this post from Mint Designs. Head over to their site to download the template.
I absolutely adore the packaging-- the cute label, the way the zig zag stitch seems to pull the whole thing together, the fact that everybody gets their own little, adorable bag. It sounds simple enough. Fill the glassine bag, double fold, line up your label, run it through the sewing machine, snip the string and viola! I don't know if we'd do birdseed since many of the venues we've looked at don't allow it, rice, sparklers or really anything else.
I think a little bag of rose petals or e-confetti would be cute too. If we end up not doing a toss, I'm definately going to have to find another way to use this cute packaging.

I'm Lovin'...

2009-03-13T20:14:00.000-07:00

I'm lovin' this t-shirt. It makes my English teacher heart smile. The pic is of Talley Sue, an editor from Martha Stewart magazine, taken on National Grammar Day. (side note: how great is the name Talley Sue... I think this woman may be my new hero.) She made homemade cupcakes and placed labeled with little parts of speech flags. God bless the Martha Stewart people and their super-cute, crafty selves. I wish I could bring in treats for my kiddos. We'd have a National Grammar Day party too. This shirt may become my new uniform though. I wonder if I can wear it when the kids take the FCAT Writes next year. (I'm just kidding FCAT people; please do not hunt me down and launch an investigation.)

When I'm a homeowner...

2009-03-13T20:09:00.001-07:00

When I'm a homeowner, I'm going to make these freaking AWESOME Anthropology-inspired end tables. Head on over to Design Sponge to get the step-by-step instructions. I'm imagining these as nightstands for our master bedroom. I'll probably paint them black. Now... if I could only find a way to make an awesome dresser for cheap I'd be set!

Printable Press

2009-03-12T17:34:00.000-07:00

I just came across Printable Press in my wedding invite search. The designs are great, so whimsical and lovely. Plus, there's a wide variety to suit every event/style. These are a few of my favorites that I'm thinking about ordering (and by few, I clearly mean several). There's such great elements that I like about each of these!

Peacock:
Love the color; Love that it's more square; Love the graphic of the peacock feathers.

Metropolitan:
LOVE the block/justified style; Love the fonts; Love that it's so visually interesting without any illustrations
Fern:
Love that it has that "midsummer" feel; Love the fonts the names are in
Gothic Forest:
Love the black and white; Love how simply gorgeous it is
Chains of Love:
Love the horizontal layout; love the simplistic ornateness (oxymoron)
Carriage Ride:
Love how gosh-darn cute it is! Love that it has that vintage/Victorian vibe
Bird in the Briar:
Love how the info is slightly off-center and pops out at you; love the intricate design

There's so many choices! The best part is that it's just $60 for the pdf file and then I can print them out myself.

I'm Hatin'...

2009-03-10T17:04:00.000-07:00

I'm hatin' shin splints. Ouch. And FCAT testing... work is super boring when you have to watch kids take a test for 160 minutes. Blah.

I'm Lovin'...

2009-03-08T19:37:00.000-07:00

I'm lovin' these lumiere candleholders from CB2 priced from around $4-$8 a piece. Awesome.
(pic is from Michelle and Oshine's wedding featured on Snippet and Ink).

Great Ceremony Readings: Captain Correlli's Mandolin

2009-03-08T19:08:00.000-07:00

Love is a temporary madness; it erupts like volcanoes and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your root was so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion. That is just being in love, which any fool can do. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident. Those that truly love have roots that grow towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossoms have fallen from their branches, they find that they are one tree and not two. ( excerpt from Captain Correlli's Mandolin)

Disney Weddings... and some bridesmaid stuff too.

2009-03-08T18:06:00.000-07:00

I live right down the road from Disney (literally, I can walk there) and right now We is playing "Disney Dream Weddings" which is a reality-doc with David Tutera about Disney weddings. I'll admit it... Mr. Old Fashioned and I looked into a Disney wedding (we were engaged at the Polynesian) until we saw the price tags.

But right now, I'm totally wishing that my fairy godmother would drop some cash in my bank account if for no other reason then I'd love to go to Franc's, Disney's wedding planning central. Named after the wedding planner character Franc from "Father of the Bride" with Steve Martin, Franc's looks like a fun day of wedding shopping fun! Why oh why, Disney, can you not make this an attraction? Seriously, imaginears, get on that. I'd like a ride a la the Haunted Mansion that takes us all through the Bank's house and their wedding planning journey. It'd justify a season pass.

In the meantime, I think maybe I'll check out Kristie Kelly's Disney princess inspired gowns and bridesmaid dresses. Right now, I'm loving this Belle inspired bridesmaid dress. It may make me re-think weather or not to have matching bridesmaid dresses. There's no price tag on this one...

But I found a similar version at Alfred Angelo for $200-$225. But that's more than I want my girls to have to spend, even though it really is a pretty dress.

This dress is also from Alfred Angelo and I love the look, even though there's no lace (which may not be a bad thing) What's better is that I love the price tag-- between $150 and $175.

Maybe I like this enough just to get it for me... that's my problem, every dress I find for my bridesmaid's ends with the thought "hum... maybe I'll get one for myself".

Welcome Back, Welcome Back, Welcome Back

2009-03-08T16:21:00.000-07:00

Last week Mr. Old Fashioned and I celebrated a pretty major milestone-- we've been engaged for a year now. Yep, a year. For most couples, a year-long engagement is pretty standard. Some manage to pull together a fabulous wedding in a matter of months. We, however, just couldn't get it together this year. The economy has a lot to do with it. My father lost his job just before we got engaged and has yet to find another. There just hasn't been enough money around to have even the most basic of weddings. This year has been full of false starts-- finding places we loved, hoping to get enough money together to put down a deposit and dealing with the frustration that the money just isn't there. For a while, it was just too hard for me to blog because nothing was happening on the wedding planning.

Instead of picking out china patterns and perfecting the vows, we got hard lessons and trials; our relationship has definitely been put to the test. It's often said that the first year of marriage is the hardest; in our case the first year of our engagement was definitely the hardest of our relationship.

But, it's a brand new year! And all the stress, worry, fights and tears have, in all honesty, brought us closer together and made our relationship stronger than ever. You know, since we met on eHarmony, it's sometimes easy to look at those commercials and think, "Man, it's so easy for them. They're all smiling and lovey... what's wrong with us?" But the truth that I've discovered over this past year is that relationships go through ups and downs. I used to think that those who were truly supposed to be together went through life without arguements, without conflict and as "in love" years later as the day they first said it. But how you are "in love" changes. The quote below really sums up what we've been through this year and the lessons that we've learned.

When you love someone, you do not love them all the time, in exactly the same way, from moment to moment. That is impossible. It is even a disservice to pretend it is possible. Yet that is what most of us demand. We have such little faith in the ebb and flow of life and of love and of relationships.

We leap forward at the flow of the tide and resist in terror its ebb, for we are afraid it will never return. We insist on permanence, on duration, on continuity. But the only continuity possible in life, as in love, is in growth, in fluidity and in freedom, as dancers are free, barely touching as they pass, but partners in creating the same pattern. ("Gifts from the Sea" by Anne Morrow Lindberg)

We were going through an ebb of the tide and, at first, both of us recoiled in fear, not knowing what to do with these feelings. But, we've made it through the change in tide, we've learned from it and now, in all honesty, it will make our wedding day (when we eventually get to the altar) that much more powerful for we've seen the "in good and bad times" and know that there is an ebb and flow to life and love.

The Wordle Wonder

2008-07-23T12:26:00.000-07:00

When I attended the Savannah College of Art and Design, I had to take a class on computer art. As a theatre major, I pretty much sucked since my class was full of graphic design majors. But I did rock at one project. In Adobe Illustrator, we had to create an image of a famous person using lines of text created from their own words. I created an awesome looking Oscar Wilde, each line carrying quotes from his plays. It was the best piece of art I ever created in college. A computer crash and several moves later, I have no evidence of my Picasso moment. But, none the less it spawned my love of art created from words (fancy that since I'm an English teacher that went to art school.)

So, you can imagine my joy when I stumbled across Wordle. Wordle creates lovely word clouds from the text that you type in (the image is what i created using the lyrics to The Beatles' "Let It Be").

Several people have used their vows to create a fabulous after-the-big-day memento (check out the galleries and you're sure to come across one or two examples. Also be sure to check out the FAQ's to pick up some tips on how to customize your design).

Take it to a print shop, blow it up and you could have an awesome piece of art and a visible reminder of the promises you made to each other on your wall. The design is free and if you shop around at local shops, you may be able to find a great deal on printing. If you make sure that the print fits into standard frame sizes you won't fall into the expensive trap of custom framing. If you feel like splurging a bit, you could always get it printed on canvas (ImageKind has great prices and automatically figures out the maximum size of your canvas based on the pixels of your uploaded image.)

I also thought that this would be a great parent and/or bridal party present. Type in words that describe the person and then-- voila!-- a personal poem without having to be much of a poet. Print it from your home computer, put it in a 5" x 7" frame and there you go!

Also, you could create one using words of gratitude and use it on the front of thank you cards or postcards (check out VistaPrints for some great prices). Heck, you could even use it to create a Save the Date design for the front of your STD postcards! (okay... you get the point; it's cool and could be used in a lot of different ways.)

Blue and Purple Justification!!!

2008-07-18T13:29:00.000-07:00

So I was scrolling through some photog's blogs when I came across this purple and blue gem. And, as a bonus over at Snippet and Ink, there is a lovely lavender board posted today.

Now, both of these are a little too "summery" for my winter wedding, but it's still nice to see the colors together!

I Do... donate to charity

2008-07-09T11:57:00.000-07:00

I've never really understood the point of wedding favors. Are 100 of my guest desperately writing to Santa every year for butterfly floating candles? No. They aren't. They'll take the candle and throw it away, leave it in their car for a year and then throw it away or, worse yet, leave it at the wedding because they just love it SO much.

That said, I do love the idea of a candy buffet, truffles, cookies... some little treat wrapped up in a pretty package for guest to take with them as they depart. Chances are they'll actually take it, eat it and enjoy it. Therefore, Mark and I are going to have a big basket of homemade cookies for people to take with them as they leave, but I really wanted to do a charitable favor as well. I know that this is sometimes a sore point for people (a donation in someone's name isn't really giving them anything.... blah, blah, blah....) but wouldn't the money I would spend on those butterfly floating candles be of more use in the hands of the One organization?

I came across the I Do Foundation the other day and love how they have seem to find a solution to my dilemma... granted its with gifts for us, not for our guest but the same principal still applies. The I Do Foundation partners with a variety of well-known stores (Target; Linens 'N Things; Home Depot) to give a percentage of profits from gifts bought off wedding registries to charity. Pretty cool huh? And in that spirit, I think that in addition to our cookies, Mark and I will make a donation in our guest names to the American Cancer Society. Mark's father battled cancer for over ten years before he passed away and my grandfather recently battled it as well.

I wonder if this is way, way, way wrong but I'm thinking of linking my registry page to my (or fellow teacher's whose work I really admire) request at DonorsChoose.org: I love, love, LOVE this organization. Teachers ask for classroom materials, donors choose which teachers they would like to help and voila... kids learn. (Even if I wasn't a teacher, I would think that that rocks.) Wouldn't it be cool if my kids got to get some awesome learning materials or a cool trip out of their teacher getting married???

The Little Lovebirds...

2008-07-08T14:52:00.000-07:00

I came across these cute little birds created by Lauren Alane on my local boards on the Knot and fell totally in love with how cute they are. Mark and I were kind of considering a lovebird theme and I think these would be the perfect cake toppers.

2008-07-02T05:32:00.000-07:00

So Mark and I went to a wedding about a week ago. The ceremony and reception were at the Columbia Restaurant in Ybor City. It was a beautiful wedding; what I loved most was how much the bride and groom's family chipped in. The brother of the bride officiated, the other brother ran the iPod sound system, the mothers decorated. I think the best weddings aren't when there's a dozen planners and vendors running around, but when your friends and family all work together to throw a truly awesome party.

One of the features of their ceremony that I really enjoyed was the sand ceremony. I'm sure we've all been to at least one wedding where there was a sand ceremony. While I enjoy the sentiment behind the idea, I feel about sand the way I feel about a unity candle. They're great in theory, but not for me. I think it's because, to me, it feels too expected. What I enjoyed about the sand ceremony at this wedding was their twist and incorporation of it in the processional. As each set of parents and grandparents reached the end of the aisle, they would add a layer of sand while the officiant read a note from the bride or groom about what they had learned from these people and how that would contribute to their marriage. After the vows, the bride and groom topped off the sand. I thought it was a lovely way to personalize a ceremony that has been seen 100 times before. And, that's what weddings should be about... finding personal meaning in tradition.

Beam Me Up Scotty: A Podcast Save the Date

2008-06-19T19:46:00.000-07:00

I was just browsing through some boards over on the Wedding Bee and came across someone's idea to do a podcast for their save the date with all the wedding info and the idea struck me as kind of cool. Now, not nearly enough of my guest are tech-savvy enough to actually figure out how to listen to the podcast and I doubt that I'm even tech-savvy enough to create one (and Mark definitely isn't) but it got me thinking about how much technology is really changing weddings.

Mark and I are going to a wedding tomorrow in which the STD was just a mass emailing; I don't know how I'd plan a wedding without browsing the net for venues and ideas. Heck, I have a wedding blog just to keep the people I love in the wedding planning loop. And, Mark and I just had a debate over weather or not to ask our guest to upload their pics from the wedding onto our flickr account. I say yes, he says no. Clearly the age difference rears it's head. I'm of the tech age and Mr. Flinstone still uses his feet to pedal.

But, if I didn't have all this technology, what kind of wedding would I have???? How would I know about "I Do" letters (thank you the Knot even though I refuse to do this.) How would I have contacted over 30 venues in less than a week? How could I have way too many songs to walk down the aisle to without iTunes? How would I stalk my fave photographers without their blogs????? And so, this wedding planning business has lead to this realization... I love you technology, even if I don't have an iPhone.

Um, duh... I wouldn't be getting married if it weren't for the internet and a little thing called eHarmony. Glad I remembered that one last.

The Logo/Monograms: Take Two

2008-06-19T19:27:00.000-07:00

So, I think I finally got the monograms to upload!!!! Shannon: 1; Technology: 5,678. Let me know what y'all think (and if you haven't checked it out lately, I've spent this week totally re-doing the planning notebook .)

Oh the inspiration is endless....

2008-06-18T13:17:00.000-07:00

So, still home sick... bad for my health, but good for wedding planning as all I have done for the past few days is cuddle into the corner of my couch and browse the web. Today, I discovered two fabulous sites:

A Practical Wedding is just a great blog. Love her writing style and overall attitude towards the wedding planning chaos. Her site led me to Snippet and Ink. Snippet and Ink's inspiration boards are phenomenal (really the whole site is great). Scrolling down the page, I caught the phrase "Classically Modern" and thought, "Self, that should be the 'theme' of your wedding since Mark is classic and you are modern." (clearly my thoughts to myself are deep... way deep.) Then I looked at the photos and thought, "Self, this might be better than the inspiration board you spent yesterday's sick day creating." Then I kept on browsing and found even MORE boards that are variations on a theme sort to speak. So, without further ado, here are better inspiration boards than my lame attempt:

Snippet and Ink's Inspiration Board 222: Classically Modern

Board 191: Elegant CharmBoard 189: Urban Rustic

I've combined all the titles to get this theme:

a classically-elegant, modern wedding full of urban-rustic charm.

Yeah, maybe I'll work on refining that a bit more.

Inspiration Board

2008-06-17T14:01:00.000-07:00

I just finished a rough sketch of my inspiration board. Blues, browns, creams and greens are appearing as the color palette and I'm loving it! Hopefully the image will actually appear. I'm still having problems loading the logos :(

The Logo Prototypes

2008-06-12T13:29:00.001-07:00

Well technology has gotten the better of me. I can't get the images to load. So, stay tuned for that... but, in the meantime, I've been really pondering why I even care about a monogram, a logo, the colors, or anything for that matter. Having gone to art school, I feel a lot of pressure to make everything I do unique and creative... most of the time I love it, but sometimes I think "Can't I just not worry about the overall aesthetic of my wedding?" And the answer is yes. You can. Millions of people get married everyday and do not agonize over the look of their wedding. Then again, I think it's those small, creative, interesting choices that make a wedding more individualized and special-- which is what I want my wedding to be. So I guess it's time to break out those color theory notes and start thinking about a color scheme.

2008-06-12T13:12:00.000-07:00

I'm home sick, but luckily my feeling crappy gives me the perfect opportunity to actually write another post bringing us to a grand total of.... 3!!!

I've been going back and forth about what sort of "vibe" I want this wedding to have. Mark and I are pretty laid-back, non-stuffy, extremely casual sort of people-- but yet we want our wedding to have a bit of pomp and circumstance to it. It's hard to find a comfortable place on the informal/formal line. I know that I want our wedding to be just that... our wedding, meaning that we do things that are reflective of us, our beliefs and our style. Now, if I could just figure out what our style exactly is.

Being sick has also given me some photoshop quality time. Illustrator and I tried to get along, I keep thinking that I'll get something cooler if I fiddle around in Illustrator, but instead I spend most of my time just trying to figure out what all the buttons are. I'm more familiar with photoshop, so I guess I'll stick with it for now. Anyways, I decided to create a few logos. I have no idea what I will use these logos for, but everyone on the knot seems to have a logo in their signature and by gosh, I want one too! So here are a some prototypes:

uh.... I'm having some problems getting them to post below what I write and not above. I'm just going to create a new post with all things prototype. (Yes, now I'll have 4 post! I feel like I should get some sort of award for actually writing post today.)

I'm a bad blogger

2008-06-04T20:26:00.000-07:00

So, if you set expectations pretty low then you don't really have to worry about not living up to them. Therefore, I can excuse my month and a half absence from the blog. Hey, at least I'm posting again-- maybe there is hope for me yet.

I've been focusing on non-wedding related life things for a while, but now I'm starting to get back in the planning mood. Here's an update of what I've done so far:

1. Picked up the dress. Yeah, that dress that was supposed to take 6 to 8 months to come in? It arrived in like 6-8 weeks actually. Luckily, I still love it, adore it and can fall asleep with a smile on my face knowing it is in my closet (where it will stay for a year and a half eagerly awaiting its debut.)

2. I've gone to see A LOT of sites. I think its at like 10 now. The places I love are hella expensive, the places that are cheap are blah. And the guest list keeps growing.... Mark and I are going to try to narrow it down to our top 3 over the next week, which means that I might actually post about it like in 2 months.

3. I saw "Sex and the City" with Mark. While I appreciate him biting the bullet and seeing it with me, its just not the same without my friends. I cried like a freaking idiot because I miss my friends. :( But, it's not all doom and gloom! Carrie has confirmed my decision to wear blue shoes with my dress. (Which I had thought of before the movie came out, but now I'll just be labeled a Carrie-wannabe but I guess people have called me worse before.)

The Very First Post

2008-04-17T11:46:00.000-07:00

In an attempt to become more technologically savvy and to document the wedding planning for all my friends and family that are far away, I've decided to start a blog. I don't hold much hope for this blog since there's at least a dozen journals stashed in my closet, all bought with the intention of journaling my experiences teaching, dating, in school (you get the point) and which all sit with words from a few valiant attempts and then nothing. But, maybe I won't give up hope just yet.... stay tuned to see how it all turns out.