Love is in the Air

There's been a distinct lack of project posts here lately. I promise I've been working on things, just not for me! I have been helping out with a lot of wedding related projects. I'll have to get some pics and post them soon, but it's been all go!

In the meantime, here's a run down.

Wedding 1:
Amanda is my sister (not to be confused with Amanda my friend mentioned in other posts). When she and Shawen were married 10 years ago, they had a lot going on in their lives and were struggling financially. They were married in their living room by a friend with only immediate family in attendance. We had donuts and coffee for the "reception!"

I have to say, this remains one of my favorite weddings. It was small, intimate and no fuss. It was all about the two of them getting married and sharing the day with the people they were closest to. Her husband remains like a brother to me and I couldn't have been any happier to see them get married.

Now, it's 10 years later and they have come such a long way. To celebrate their anniversary, they want to give themselves the wedding day they didn't have before. As much as I loved their wedding, I'm equally excited about this vow renewal! I won't go into the details of their lives, but you can take my word for it that they deserve this.

In the ceremony, I will be playing the role of Matron of Honor. Last night, I got my dress!

This little number came from David's Bridal. I'm thinking about wearing it with red shoes and making some little, red organza flowers to wear at the waist.

So, projects! Because of a debacle involving horrendous customer service (there will be a whole other post about that), my ever helpful friends and I had an emergency invitation making session. I'll also be making purses for the bridesmaids and putting together all of the bouquets.

Here's a couple ideas for flowers:

Wedding 2:
Sara and Brandon have known each other since they were kids and they really couldn't be any cuter together. We all worked at the same place previously, so while I knew them, I didn't know them well. It wasn't until we all happened to move the Chicago to work at the same place that I started to spend more time with them and now they've become two of my favorite people in the world! (I would be remiss if I didn't thank Kenney for bridging the gap.)

Sara is the consummate crafter (Brandon isn't shabby either) and has taken on many DIY projects to personalize their wedding. So far, I've helped with making bunting, linen table numbers and sandwich board signs. I'll be painting little wooden people for the cake toppers, which I'm super excited about!

I realize this is all a little flat without more pictures, so I'll work on getting more documentation this weekend.

Speaking of weekend, have an awesome Labor Day!

New Banners and Stuff!

Look at the new banner up there! A HUGE thank you to Dovile at Karamele for making my new banner package. She also made images for a business card and mini business card. Can't wait to get them printed!

Here's a peek at the mini cards...

Dovile was a joy to work with and I couldn't be any happier with the results. If you're in the market for some design work, shoot her a note!

Andy's Doctor Who Birthday

Andy's birthday was a few weeks ago and, with the help of some crafty friends, I organized a birthday party with Doctor Who themed items.

My good friend Amanda decorated his gift (a drill press) like the Tardis!

Andy with his Tardis

Thankfully, Andy was able to unwrap his drill press without destroying the Tardis. It's still sitting in the dining room until we find it a better home.

The next part of Andy's Doctor Who birthday, was the Dalek cupcakes!

Amanda pipes on a Dalek

Sara applies the... Dalek parts

Andy loved his Doctor Who birthday and a good time was had by all. Especially Dolly, who was quite tuckered out after the festivities!

Dresser Update

I'm making slow progress on the dresser. In fact, the kitty has been helping. See?

She did not like it when I had to wash her little feet.

Feeling Moody

It's time for the blog to go in the blender. I'm anxious to introduce a whole new look and feel! Some changes are already in place: New colors, separate pages for the about me page, the Etsy shop and my tutorials. Other changes are still in the works.

I just posted a request on Alchemy for someone to "rebrand" the blog and the shop. This is a relatively small rebranding effort, as it goes. My goal is to get a couple shiny new banners and coordinating business cards to make me seem more legit.

In an effort to communicate the look I'm going for, I put together this mood board.

Since I've been making purses, I've started thinking in fabrics, so that's where I went for inspiration. As I was putting this together, it spawned several new purse ideas. :-)

To make the mood board, I surfed Fabric.com and saved the ones that communicate the image I want. Because I have limited access to awesome photo editing programs, I resized and cropped the images in Paint, compiled them in PowerPoint, pasted a screenshot back into Paint and saved it as a jpeg. Good lord, I need PhotoShop.

Non sequitur alert! Someone nearby is eating something garlicky. Can't wait for lunchtime.

Grundy: Part Two

When last I posted, I was in fear that we'd be staying at the YMCA in Grundy, VA. Dear reader, you'll be relieved to know that we slept comfortably at a motel. You see, the information for the motel on Google Maps was lacking, and thus we were routed to the center of the town. Thankfully, we got the actual address on the way and made it there without incident.

I'm afraid I didn't get many pictures while we were there. It was difficult to take pics from the car while clutching for my dear life on the windy mountain roads. But here are a few...

a glittery rose

an SUV hearse

mountainy goodness

Of course, I didn't have my camera on me for the amazing view of the steam coming off the mountains after a torrential rain. Close your eyes and picture it. I'll wait...

All in all, it was a good trip. Aside from the funeral, that is. Grundy is a pretty little town full of character and I met tons of family I didn't know that I had. It was an interesting experience to feel so incredibly welcome by a group of "strangers." And it was a good opportunity to work through some personal baggage.

Somehow, we screwed up getting Chick Fil' A on the way back. I'm still kicking myself for that.

Grundy

Long lapse in posting, huh? I promise I have a good reason. Last week, we were unexpectedly called out of town due to a death in the family. Promptly upon returning, I contracted the kind of flu that makes you want to give up on life.

The funeral we attended was in Grundy, VA. Ever heard of it? I would be surprised if you have. You see, I'm descended from a long line of crazy mountain people. Grundy is an old coal mining town that is so far west into Virginia that it's almost in Kentucky. I haven't been to Grundy since I was a wee Mel P. Growing up with so many stories about the antics my family were up to "back in the day," I was anxious to see the place.

Prior to leaving, we booked our room at the motel. I was a little concerned when Google maps showed the location as being in the same spot as the YMCA.

For now, I will leave you with that teaser. I'll be back soon with a few Grundy pics and a post about The Hub's birthday party!