DIY clothing!

How cool is this girl?

First, she makes basic tanks from target into pretty tops with lace and dye.

Next, she took a gross dress from the 80's and made it into a great summer top.

Luckily I have a sewing machine of my very own now.....and they seem so easy. I might dare try these!

Always Gracious

I just pulled this out of a magazine and had to share it! This is my new motto...yours too?

If you can't read it, it says:

"Be pretty is you can, witty if you must, but gracious if it kills you."

-attributed to Elsie de Wolfe

Why I love dresses!

"No matter how elegant, how timeless, a dress still billows in breezes and swishes in doorways, is always a little different with each wearing and on each person. We don’t dress up to be like someone else, we dress up to be ourselves. A dress makes us more aware of being alive (and not by pinching at the waist!). A dress is about savoring life, *our* lives. When we read a good story, we close our eyes and see the characters. The right dress can make us feel that way. We all deserve to be that sure of, and that happy with, who we are, wherever we are.
Dresses aren’t just for swooning over dark, brooding men or inheriting spooky mansions on windswept moors. They’re also for brunch on Sunday morning, going out with friends, or even going to work. They’re for slowing down and dressing up. They’re for elegance every day, for showing that the moment is special. Because every moment is part of our story."-Sunday Brunch

I found the one(s)!

Hope these work out...I just ordered them on sale! I've gone through almost 15 pairs trying to find the perfect pair for my wedding. Cross your fingers that these are them!

Lovely & Exciting Wedding Plans!

Planning on making candles from used jars and soy wax, via Peonies & Poloroids, and using wire to hang them from the bars of the tent.

Thank you Style Me Pretty, for the instructions for making custom sparkler packs for guests to wave as Mark and I exit the reception.

I'm thinking about using these inexpensive birdsnests to add a little personality to my centerpieces...I think what I will do is just order one and experiment with my aqua mason jars that I have now finished collecting and my bamboo compostable plates! I have a total of over 20 mason jars plus 3 large ones for the wedding party table. I'm hoping they will look like this (below). Plus I love the house numbers used as table numbers and the garland/flowers over the barn door (I wonder how expensive that is...)!Via Mint Design Blog.

Handmade veil by Kasia Fink. Very tempting to order for the reception (I'm getting a mantilla veil, similar to this, for the ceremony)!

Escort cards placed in lavendar. Via Snippet & Ink, photos by Meg Smith. There are so many ideas out there for escort cards, but they all seem to involve a lot more work than I feel like doing at the moment. This idea seems cute, fresh, and simple!

*Actually, I'm thinking I will use these for a little splash of color instead of the lavendar!

Polaroid guest book (curtesy of my brother Adam and sister-in-law Erin. Thanks guys!). I will be providing some funs hats, and maybe some mustaches so that guests have something fun to work with :)
I also plan on making a multitude of signs out of distressed wood to label all the different areas at the reception (cocktails, croquet, horseshoes, Polaroid guest book, etc). Hopefully Mark's dad will enjoy helping me with that! His dad has also recently taken up wood carving and is going to be making a personalized bride & groom for us :) Kinda like this!

From Bridal People.

How absolutely LOVELY are these icelandic poppies from brides.com?! Are these available in Minnesota?? Please say yes!

I'm so excited for all these details. Next up...deciding on either a custom design or one of the pre-made designs from Printable Press for our paper products. They do the designing and we do the printing (such a steal)!

Inspiring

Via Brown Button.

LOVE