Yikes, I've been pretty mia lately huh. So sorry! The last month or so has been chock-full of engagement party planning. Well now it's all over. All of that planning and then in a flash its all behind. I have never been to a party that went so quickly, but then again I have never been the center of attention of a party of this scale. The weather was perfect. And everything came together just beautifully. We had blast! Here are some pictures of the fun details...

Party sign and orange balloons at the entrance gate-

Champagne punch that my sister made.
{gotta have the umbrellas! Which I had forgotten about and ended up opening at 1am the night before...talk about last minute...}

The favors
{I designed and printed the labels}

A photo line with pics of Andrew & I and our immediate families
{everyone loved looking at the photos!}My friend helped me create the centerpieces- she worked at a flower shop when we were younger- she really helped make my vision come to life. She spent all day putting these together- I couldn't have done it without her!

The centerpieces {and poms hanging from the tent in the background}

Some more pretty flowers-

The utensils that I wrapped with pretty polkadot ribbon-

The tent all set up in the backyard-

Soon enough I'll be ready to start my new adventure- planning a wedding!
{wish me luck!}

I'm thinking of making two of these adorable blooms to clip to a pair of my wedges- spice them up a little bit! Maybe for the e-party?
See how here.

They are very similar to the clips from Anthropologie- only those are 18 bucks a pop...

I finally finished punching strips of white paper with that pretty lattice paper punch and attaching them to lots of jars (24 in total!). The worst part was getting the labels off of the jars. The easiest way I found was to soak the jars in a sink full of hot water and dish detergent for about a half hour. Most labels should then peel off pretty easily but some will leave behind some sticky residue. Scrubbing with a sponge will help sometimes, but for those really stubborn spots I used Goo Gone and that pretty much worked.

I also made a few little hanging lights to scatter around out of some tiny jars I had. I love candles but they worry me sometimes. I'm fine with votives on tables, but didn't want hanging candles that could possible get knocked down, especially with some little kiddies around. So I found these little LED battery operated votives that have a pretty realistic looking flame..they even flicker slightly. I've made six of them so far...but may decide to make a few more...

Hope everyone is having a lovely weekend (despite the horrible rain here in new york....lately i've felt like i live in seattle! it's rained for weeks and weeks!)
XOXOX

Remember these stamps that I used for my invites? Well apparently they have inspired some creative bloggers to design some really fun freebies to download and print...

Some patterned designs to use on whatever you can think up (wrapping paper? scrapbooking? stationary?). And below are some oversized gift tags. (image from Paper Crave. Download these designs here)

Last night I had some of my fabulous friends over to help me make some fun decorations for the e-party. We ate some yummy food!

And made many many tissue paper poms--- decided to start hanging them in the kitchen...

And then realized that there wasn't enough room there so we had put two ropes up to hang all of them on-- aren't they so pretty?! like a sunset! But I must admit, it was a little freaky waking up in the morning and looking up to see this:

I just love this shot- my friend B in a field of poms!Thank you to everyone for all of your help :)

Isn't this multi-stranded pearl necklace incredible? So sweet, elegant and eclectic. The best part is that this bride made it herself. And included directions on how to design and create your own. I could see so many options for this- all depending on colors, sizes and shapes of beads. Check it out over on Style Me Pretty (my absolute favorite blog for eye candy that makes my heart beat fast!).

(all photos are from Style Me Pretty)

I've seen many versions of garland, banners, pretty things to hang around the blog-o-sphere & diy universe, but this gorg chandelier garland is something I've never seen-- it seems super easy (but a tad tedious) and cheap-o to make. I could see it dangling in like a curtain in front of a window or sweeping across a mirror. The metallic is lovely, but I'm sure you could use any scraps of paper (or fabric!) laying around in different colors & textures.

Check out how to make it here at mydiyweddingday ...yes, i understand this is a wedding blog...they are all just so pretty i can't help myself!...many have TONS of diy projects that can be un-wedding related too!)

When I was in 7th grade a japanese paper-cutter came to my art class. He would take requests and speedily cut it out of plain white paper, all in what seemed like one cut of his fancy shears. I was so amazed by it and still have the butterfly he cut for me. I think that's what started my love & fascination for paper cuts and delicate designs that look like them- laser cut fabric, certain types of lace, and even delicate doilies.
This explains why I am completely smitten over these amaaaaazing paper cuts by MadeByJulene. You can tell that so much heart is put into them- talk about unbelievable detail!
Maybe one day I'll make a paper cut of my own (besides snowflakes :)

(all images are from MadeByJulene)

I've been a busy bee lately--

making stickers...collecting jars...punching paper...

making these (49 more to go!)...

stringing these...

designing, printing, cutting, stuffing these...

Phew!

Happy Friday! I'm thrillllllled to have another three day weekend and am going to enjoy my day off today gyming, crafting & cleaning.
Here are some gorgeous yellow flowers {I've had in one of my desktop folders for a while now}. I especially love the second one down!

My mom is throwing Andrew & I a little engagement party this summer and so I've been designing the invites, wrap-around labels & little stickers to seal the envelopes. I'm SO happy with the final result. Even though it's silly, I wanted to find stamps that would look great with the overall design theme I'm going for...a little detail that I'm sure most people won't even notice! I was going to get them done on a site like zazzle.com or stamps.com where you can design your own stamp...But when I found that the post office was now selling these lovely king & queen "love" stamps, I thought they were just perfect- they have a great design, theme of love, AND the same shade of yellow and grey that are in the invites! Perfect!

I came across a gorgeous dress on Banana Republic's website...I was really drawn to the colorful neckline and on closer inspection I noticed that this was not actually a part of the dress, but rather a bib-necklace, a type of jewely that seems to have become quite popular lately. The stunning necklace...

And another one from BR....I really love the all white...

Any time there's a trend in full-force you can definitely expect to see knock-off versions for a fraction of the price. The above necklaces from BR are over $100 each, where as these fine beauties are less than $20, some even less that $10, from where else, but the knock-off queen Forever 21.... I'm totally smitten with this all white lace one..if I happen to come across it in person I think I'll gobble it up...unless of course it looks much cheaper in person, which sometimes happens...

Love this multi-color gemstone one...would look gorg with a plain white or black dress...

This one is so regal-- deep jewel tones that are just stunning...

It may be a little old-fashioned, but a few family members have been asking us if we have a registry yet. I didn't think I would need one until it got closer to the wedding, not realizing that some people do like to purchase engagement gifts. We haven't decided where to register yet, but may decide on an all-encompassing registry such as wishpot.com. That way we can add items from many stores, even etsy as well as a honeymoon fund!
So we've been glancing around a little to search out some items that we may not purchase for ourselves, but would be something special that we would have forever. The finer things in life. I'm not a 24K gold encrusted china or crystal vase kind of girl, but am digging these "casual" china pieces from lenox.

Yes, I know, these have birds on them, which I do love, but I think what I really love about these is the bright robins egg blue/red/white combo with a gorgeous hand painted feel. They are way above any price I would pay for dinnerwear, but they are "china" and I just might have to add them to the registry!

I am totally in love with this pitcher!Lenox has a really great assortment of designs...when I've heard lenox before, I've always thought 'plain' and 'ivory' for some reason, but I love the lovely greys of this butterfly meadow assortment....

And this very modern dandelion design...

Maybe I'll find a modern take on the 'crystal' vase next!

While doing a little spring cleaning of my bookmark folder on my browser I came across a site I had saved a while ago called House of 3. One of the things about this site that I loved is that you can purchase lots of trendy vector art files to use in your graphic designs...for very reasonable prices. They also have vector brushes & frames, as well as other cool items for purchase...so take a look!

Martha Stewart's website is featuring a lot of fun diy's for Mother's Day, but of course they can be applied to any other day of the year as well! Here's are some of my favorites...
Candy-filled vases. I've also seen a lot of cut up lemons & sliced limes in vases as well...Button-filled vases...I love this idea!

A really pretty way to give earrings as a gift- pierce them through a fresh leaf...

DIY decal vases...

Tea-cup candles! I love the mis-matched look of these...

Can we talk about how gorgeous these shoes are?
I'll take the yellow please.
Too bad they don't have a strap across, I don't do well with pumps.
::sigh::
find them here.

I've been looking at a lot of flower images lately (well i AM engaged!) and really love the color combination and multitude of different styles that can be achieved. I'm drawn to everything from the modern to lush, simplistic to over the top. But I think these are my favorite so far, and they all seem to have one thing in common- lots of color!
I never realized how expensive flowers can be. ONE stem can range anywhere from $1 to $25 and up depending on the flower! Too bad I'm really drawn to orchids...

I came across the Fat Quarter Shop through one of my daily blog reads or another and fell in love with a lot of the sweet fabrics. They have a great selection of fabric in a variety of prints, but mostly the colorful bold kind...which is my favorite :)

Last weekend I traveled up to New Paltz, New York...a sassy little town nestled about an hour and a half north of NYC. I had visited New Paltz back when I was looking at colleges six (!!!) years ago. This time I traveled up to visit a friend who grew up there & she showed us around her gorgeous town.

We traveled a few minutes away from her childhood home to take scenic pictures of Mohonk Mountain....
(click on all of the images to make them larger)...the next day we traveled to the mountain where we went hiking, nature walking & rock scrambling!

The rock scramble was called The Labryinth & I had no idea what to expect when we started. We didn't realize what we had gotten ourselves into! It was filled with ladders, caves to crawl through, crevices to squeeze in between and lots and lots of boulders & rocks to scramble. It reminded me of an intense obstacle course! It was amazing and we were all so proud of ourselves when we made it to the top. It was truly thrilling! After looking at the pictures we took, we realized that the sign before we entered The Labryinth said is was very dangerous & should be attempted by those in excellent physical condition! Wow I'm happy we made it through :)An aerial view of part of the Rock Scramble...

About three-fourths of the way up the mountain there's a gorgeous plantation of houses that form a mountain resort. I just loved the intricate gating surrounding one of the gardens...

A view from the tippy tippy top of the mountain in the Skyview Tower...
Here you can see the mountin houses and in the distance you can see five states from the top of the tower...incredible.

We had such a fun & relaxing time...a great getaway from the concrete jungle!

I know it's a huge trend right now, but I just can't get enough of hair fascinators! They are slowly leaking down to the more mainstream shops such as Forever 21 and H&M, but one of the first spots I noticed them was on Etsy.
I made one to wear on my birthday last month & have been meaning to create more to put in my shop. So tonight I finally created few....check them out in my shop as they're listed!
I think the fuchsia one is my favorite!

It's a super rainy day here in new york and even though it's friday I think I'll be staying in, putting on some cozy pj's and perhaps watch some movies.
With the rain comes lots of umbrellas! And while walking down the streets of Manhattan, those who don't have an umbrella eventually will get poked with one- so they're needed for more than one reason!
I love these bubble umbrellas and have always wanted one. I've only seen the plain clear ones, never such cute ones as these- I may just need to buy myself one...

I love this MoMa umbrella too! Although it's a little pricey for an umbrella, I love how even when it's rainy out, it's clear & sunny skies overhead :)

These handcrafted vases are just so beautiful. I love clean modern lines, geometric shapes and white vessels. I especially love simplistic cut-outs like those in the gorgeous shapes of j. mendicino. Her pottery is just lovely. Check out her website to view her items and a link to her etsy shop.
Here are some of my favorites...

I love me some organization! My mind feels clearer and calmer when there is a place for everything and everything is in it's place! Try as I might, I just can never keep up. Maybe some of these gorgeous products from See Jane Work will help. If you've never check out the site then go look at it. now. There are some really unique and beautiful organization products- sort of reminds me of the Container Store meets Paper Presentation.

These are a few of my faves...

Take a look at these gorgeous flowers....believe it or not, they're not real!

they're actually made out of clay! DK Designs specializes in handcrafted clay floral designs made of CLAYCRAFT by DECO Soft Clay which is paper light and just gorgeous.

The designer of DK Designs is Diane Philips, learned how to make these gorgeous flowers by studying at the Deco Clay Craft Academy in Hawaii...how cool is that?

Diane sells her designs, including hairpins, bouquets, cake toppers and more! on her etsy site DK Designs....and you can see more of her work at her website www.dkdesignshawaii.com.
LOVE LOVE LOVE!

Love these accessories from Anthropologie!
I've been spending a lot of time on their site for some reason...it always makes me so happy.
I really love asymmetrical jewelry and these earrings are just too cute....Anyone who knows me knows that I love wedges and hardly ever wear heels. Wedges are just so much comfortable.
Wedges + Vintage Inspired + Light Peachy Pink = I want!

I'm not a huge handbag girl but I love this slightly metallic one with brown trim....

You know how if word gets out that you love a particular type of animal, then every gift that you get is of that animal? That was me with butterflies when I was younger. Everyone showered me with so many friggin butterfly gifts that I slowly grew to hate them. But now I'm in love again and am especially in love with the necklace...it's just so girly!

This amazing lamp reminds me of both Alice in Wonderland and Beauty and the Beast. Anything that reminds me of the Disney movies of my childhood has my heart right away :)

i think i'm going to delete my twitter.
i tried. and tried. and tried to get into it.


didn't happen.
i think i'll stick to facebook.

How gorgeous are these hanging chandeliers from anthropologie? too bad they are waaayyy over my decor budget. a girl can dream though right?

saturday night i went out to dinner with some friends for my birthday. it's so great to have everyone sitting together making great conversations with yummy food. it's so unnecessary, but since they are the great friends that they are, they brought me some super fantastic presents! they all know me too well, as you'll see right now...

darling owl cards from kristen...
the cutest items from paperchase from ricky...he must know it's one of my fav lunch-time window shopping sites....binder, mousepad and notecards...

buyana gave me this fun printed bag from a designer Becky OH! who is very selective in the fabric for her bags, using one of a kind hand screenprinted fabric or buying small swatches of fabric. this is my new spring bag (if the weather would only cooperate!)...gotta love the big button...

the most amazing wristlet ever from my pal andrea!

lovely flowers that smell delicious...

b/c i can never get enough owls, romanie got me this adorable little dish and owl box..so sweet!

whoa...so many great presents that are just perfect! thanks everyone :)

cupcakes! that blue icing is just perfect.
and can we talk about how pretty that butterfly cake is? it makes me so happy!

both are from martha stewart (of course, where else would they be from?!)

on today's to-do list:
-gym- lately i've only been going on the weekend. not good.
-clean the entire apartment- it is so messy i can't take it any more
-birthday festivities in the city!

happy weekend :)

After complimenting my co-worker on her super cool feather headband she told me that she got the feather piece from a trim supply store across the street from my company. i decided to take a little walk there during my lunch break and was so thrilled at the variety of gorgeous feather pads they had at really reasonable prices. I decided to buy a bunch, some for me of course and some for the craft fair i'm doing in may! All I need now are to buy some headbands and I'm all set!

For now, I made myself a peacock one to wear to my birthday dinner tomorrow night :)

I added a little crystal button on the edge. Sorry for the scratchy picture- I was too lazy to get out my camera and so I took the photo with my laptop camera :)