Whatever Weekend – Whimsical Weddings

Okay, so that’s a lot of alliteration in the title.

Really, though, a friend of mine is planning a wedding, and it has me all nostalgic!

Tom and I have been married nearly 5 and a half years now.

Photo by Tom Thompson

Our wedding was outdoors, with simple fall decorations (lots of plum and green,) and a laid back, picnic-style atmosphere, with a pie bar instead of wedding cake.

Photo by Tom Thompson

Mmmm pie.

It also makes me nostalgic for our friend Tiinia’s wedding. She and her husband, Kevin, were married on the haunt grounds where the work on Friday the 13th. Costumes were encouraged, and the style was a delightful combo of horror and glamorous vintage.

My friend, Tessa, is planning a simple, elegant ceremony, and an Alice in Wonderland themed reception. I’m so excited to help her with decorations for the reception! I’ve loved Alice since I was a little girl, and the possibilities are practically endless.

So, I’ve been working on some inspiration boards on Polyvore.com, a site where you can create your own boards for fashion, beauty, or just for fun.

Here’s some inspiration for her bridal and ceremony style:

Then there’s the reception:

We’ll be thrifting for tea cups, saucers, and pots, clocks, rabbits, and mushrooms, next week.

If you’re planning a wedding, here are some things to keep in mind:

1. Keep a check list, and focus on marking one thing off at a time. Here’s a great list that helps you finish each to-do in time: The Knot Wedding Checklist.

2. Create a budget. Once you’ve decided what kind of venue you want (indoor or outdoor, formal or relaxed, etc.,) the kind of food you want to serve, and your wedding style, start working on your budget. If you don’t have all the money you need right now, open a savings account that you can add to each pay period to pay for upcoming costs. Use The Knot Wedding Budget along with your checklist.

3. Ask for help. Ask reliable friends and family to help with tasks you know they can manage. If you have a crafty friend, ask them to help with decorations. If you have an aunt who loves to bake, have her make edible favors, or even the wedding cake if she’s that awesome. Delegate responsibilities to your groomsmen and bridesmaids, like tailoring and dry cleaning, and the bachelor/bachelorette parties. You might feel the need to have your hand in everything to make sure it’s perfect, but it will be worth your sanity (and your beauty sleep!) to accept others’ help.

4. Enjoy your engagement. Make it a point to date during your engagement. Take time away from planning (turn off your electronics if you need to,) and just spend time with your significant other. The engagement flies by, so treasure every second!

Married? What was your wedding like? Any inspiration photos? Any advice you’d like to give brides to be?

Share the Love,

Chelsea

A Gatsby Summer

I’ve taken a break from making treasuries for a while, partially because of time restraints, and partly because I couldn’t come up with any interesting themes for a collection. I have to confess, I haven’t read “The Great Gatsby,” but it’s on my long list of books. With Baz Lurhmann’s version out in film this summer, though, people are going wild for the the roaring twenties, a decade that’s been one of my favorites since I was about 12 years old.

So, here’s my nod to the 1920’s, with hints at Gatsby, and plenty of glamour.

Be sure to “favorite” and share anything that tickles your fancy!

Share the Love,

Chelsea

Friday’s Favorites – Summer Lovin’

So, I don’t know about you, but we haven’t had much of a spring here in North Texas. We’ve had one big storm (which brought devastating tornadoes to towns around us – you can donate to the disaster relief through Red Cross here,) and a few days in the 70’s, but mostly we’ve gotten sunshine and highs in the upper 80’s and low 90’s. That’s the beginning of summer, if you ask me.

In celebration of our early summer, this Friday’s Favorites list is full of sunbeams and bohemian loveliness.

This beautiful leg chain is a natural evolution of this year’s body chain trend!

This sparkling honeysuckle scented soap by our friend Cassie at Clover Hollow is subtly glittery, and made from the finest ingredients.

Turn the back yard into a movie theater with lots of pillows, cushions, and fairy lights.

Tiny yellow gingham print, puff sleeves, dainty trim, and collar make our vintage empire maxi dress a spring and summer dream!

This golden sunstone and chalcedony necklace by Bespangled Jewelry lets you bring the beach with you wherever you go this summer.

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Chelsea

Jewelry SALE & Reader’s Special!

In celebration of summer, when the weather’s hot and the fashion’s cool, we’re having a sale on select jewelry up to 50% OFF!

15% OFF Minty Fresh Ring, $6.80

Sale ends midnight (central time) on June 30th.

Plus, we have an extra special treat for our blog readers:

Use coupon code “toocool12” at checkout, and receive 10% OFF* of your purchase!

Happy summer, and thanks from the bottom of our hearts for reading our blog.

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Chelsea

*10% OFF coupon code applies to regularly price items and already discounted items.

Expires midnight (central time) July 31st, 2012.*

Fresh & Clean

I didn’t realize how much I missed making Etsy treasuries until I finished this one at about midnight. 🙂

Click on the image to check out these beautiful items and the shops where they belong.

 

Make It Monday – Top 3 Craft Projects

Now that I’ve finished the first 3 of my “top 3” picks, it’s time to move on to the next 3! The whole purpose of this is to break down the massive list of craft and DIY projects I’ve accumulated into make-able chunks of 3. Once I complete 3 of the projects, I’ll move on to the next chunk. The idea is to try to complete all of them within one or two months to keep things moving.

So, without further adeu, I present my next 3 assignments:

The ingenious "Cooling Necklace"

This is, without a doubt, one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen. This is so simple and super appropo, considering we’ve had temps over 100 farenheit for the past two weeks!

Incredibly easy shift dress by Martha

I have a shift dress similar to the one in this tutorial, and I love it! It’s so breezy and comfortable, but the one I have is richly dyed with an intense purple, and needs to be hand washed. Let’s face it, if I can’t throw it in the washer, I don’t wear it much. I’m a low-maintenance gal.

A valance or pelmet for each of our humongous, utilitarian windows.

This project hinges on whether or not I can find a fabric that matches our extremely eclectic living area, and whether or not it’s affordable enough to make two of these monsters. The apartment we live in used to be office space, so think giant office windows. Yeah.

Anyway, I can’t wait to get started on these projects! I’m going to have to make a trip to the thrift store for a skirt to use for the dress, and possibly the hosiery for the necklace, and if I’m lucky, fabric for the valances.

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Chelsea

 

Whatever Weekend – Feeding The Addiction

Ok, I confess, I’m addicted …

to dollar stores.

I don’t have a hard time not shopping at large retailers like Target, Walmart, or big-name clothing stores, but dollar stores? They’re my weak spot. So, coming from a gal who likes to thrift and make things rather than buy them, but obviously has issues when it comes to $1 tags, you can imagine how elated I was when a friend recommended dollarstorecrafts.com!

To be honest, I do try to buy things from the ol’ DS to use for supplies for craft projects, like the Wizard Of Oz trunk or treat decorations, or the halloween wreath I made. It’s nice to finally get some inspiration, though, for those things that I want to buy but can’t justify with a purpose. My friend (and other friends, if they like!) will be crafting it up on the cheap in the very near future, and I can’t wait.

In reference to another obsession of mine, Tom and I visited the Log Cabin Village in Fort Worth, followed by a very hot lunch at the Botanic Gardens down the street. The obsession here is inexpensive and entertaining dates. One of our first dates together involved the Wendy’s dollar menu, a park, and touring the outside of my old elementary school. We’ve been on a roll ever since!

Outside the log cabin where my grandfather was born! It made an extra special date to share some family history with my hubby.We both love it when art and function meet. This butterfly chair was amazing, and luckily there was a kind stranger nearby who offered to take our pic.

Tuesday’s Treasure – Arabian Nights

I love this treasury, and we’re lucky enough to be featured in it!

1001 Nights by abbeh

 

So exotic! This is the perfect treasury for summer – hot nights, breezy outfits, bright colors. Click the link to check out the featured items.

 

Hope all of you in school are studying up for finals and enjoying getting ready for summer!

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Chelsea

Thoughtful Thursday – My Feet Hurt

Ok. I have nothing thoughtful to share with you today, because the heat of the sun and the pounding of my feet have erased my memory. BUT the Tri C is starting to look pretty fantastic thanks to our hard work today – a dead tree removed and a new one in its place, weeded sidewalks, trimmed bushes, groundcover cut back from the sidewalk, and roses and mossrose ready to plant tomorrow! I’ll post pics when we’re done.

Mod magnolia floral in rainbow sherbet colors - yum!

Meanwhile, you should check out our new listings on eBay! Mom and I have decided to list both our vintage finds and our handmade items on her eBay account in addition to listing on etsy. Take a look at my first auction, a vintage pantsuit, and look for two vintage dresses scheduled to begin tonight: http://shop.ebay.com/designingmoon/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=25

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Chelsea

Summer Days and Giveaways

This weekend I’ll be working on jewelry … for our first giveaway! Starting Monday, August 9, we will be hosting our first product giveaway contest. Check back with us on Monday for the official rules, how to enter and how to win. Please take our poll this weekend and tell us what you would like to see given away. Take a look at our shop for ideas: http://buymelove.etsy.com.

On a more personal note, we made another sale today! Looks like things are starting to pick back up again now that summer is coming to an end. Also, it rained tonight, which caused the temp to drop about 15 to 20 degrees – a seriously needed break from the 110 degree heat!

Share the Love!

Chelsea