My pensive pup - I wonder what he is thinking about?

contemplating the world's problems?

global warming?

world peace?

nah, just hoping for a treat.

and what a treat he is.

Pretty Portland

Spent a weekend getting away from it all in beautiful Portland, ME. 

Lobster, Oysters, we enjoyed all the friends of the sea,

with local beer to wash it all down.  So good.

Ferry boat, bike ride, and cobbled stones.

Ended with the lovely Portland Head Light on Cape Elizabeth.

Butterflies for Baby P!

One of my sweetest, dearest, and most cherished friends in the entire world (& Matron of Honor!) is welcoming her first bundle of joy in July.  We showered the lovely Momma to Be and her growing bump with a butterfly themed shower.  Baby P's nursery colors will be pink, navy and gray so we kept that in mind when planning the shower.  The decorations serve a dual purpose and will be cherished pieces incorporated in little one's nursery.  We all love her so much already and can't wait to meet her!

We created the butterfly garland by using a butterfly paper punch, LOTS of paper and a sewing machine.  To start a gallery wall for the nursery, we purchased multiple white picture frames and filled them with Ashlee's maternity pictures and her favorite nursery print. The bunting was made from navy, pink and grey felt fabric. 

I dressed up the front door by taking left over butterfly garland and pink polka dot streamers and wrapping it around an existing burlap wreath. 

 Shower food favorites: Chicken Salad and Veggie Pizza! 

Cake pops were one of the shower favors, and they were delish! 

 For favors, mini champagne (sparkling cider for a non-alcoholic option!) bottles with a sweet note attached: "We won't all be together on Baby P's day, but we'll celebrate her arrival in our own special way! So drink a toast and rejoice when her Birthday is here, And keep her family in your thoughts throughout the coming year!"  I can't wait to pop this mini bottle and celebrate Baby P's arrival! 

For a fun twist on Shower games, I put together "Guess the Bump" - photoshopping Ashlee's face on some celebrity baby bumps.  It was a hit!  Can you "guess the bump"?  :)

Macarons

  Dreaming of these little beauties on this rainy February day. Their bright colors and vibrant flavors remind me of springtime and I can't wait for warmer days.  If you ever have the chance to pop in a Laduree bakery for a few macarons, you won't be disappointed.  I snagged this small box of jewels on a layover in Paris. The French accents of the bakers made them even more delicious - or maybe it was just in my imagination :)

Crush on Catbird

Aren't they just the prettiest little things?  These delicate and dainty rings from Catbird NYC have been on my radar for a while now.  The Brooklyn based jewelry shop's signature rings come in gold, rose gold or silver.  With every letter of the alphabet, ampersands, hearts and stars, it's too hard to pick just one. I hope to add one(or more!) of these swoon-worthy, stackable gold rings to my collection.

images from HonestlyWTF

Bridesmaids Who Brunch

          One of the great things about getting married is having the opportunity to share the joy of your wedding celebration with your friends.  I knew I wanted to ask my closest friends to be in my wedding party in a special way.  The biggest problem I had was figuring out which way to ask! From ring pops, to cards, to personalized t-shirts, there are a million different ways to ask your friends to be a part of your big day.

I am frugal by nature, I blame credit my mother.  So, much I would love to give each of my ladies a handcrafted teak-wood box filled with swavarski crystal jewelry, personalized champagne bottles and live butterflies, I don't currently wipe my rear with dollar bills. 
Over the top = out of the question.

 
Note: ***frugal does not mean frumpy. There is a way to make a gift special without breaking the bank. 
 

Then came the burning question I apply to every potential gift I give: funny or sweet? The more I dug around for funny ideas, the raunchier it got.  Y'all, just search "funny bridesmaid gifts" on Etsy.  Personally, a card that includes the words: pee, bitch or ugly is not what I meant by funny, nor did it seem to fit the occasion.  
Funny ≠ filthy

I was inspired by these gold polka dot mugs and then stumbled across this adorable painted mug.
   

I loved the gold polka dots AND the funny quote mugs, so I decided to blend the two, and also add their first initial.  I hand painted white mugs with gold polka dots, their initial on one side, and a funny quote on the other.  Each girl had a different quote that was either an inside joke or something that fit them. 
It was a perfect blend of funny, sweet and personalized.  I also printed off two cards tied with ribbon that went inside of the mug.  One card had a collage of inspiration images including flowers, dresses, shoes, jewelry, and my color ideas.  The other card contained a sweet message and all of the details of the big day.

I decided to pull the mug inspiration into my birthday celebration as well, and put together a mug decorating activity at my birthday brunch.  Before the guests arrived, I (strategically) asked my girls to come over and "help me" set up.

After squeals and hugs, we all grabbed our mugs and enjoyed a nice brunch and coffee together.  The theme blended nicely into my birthday brunch too!  All of my guests enjoyed the mug craft and had a keepsake to take home with them.  Below you'll find pictures of the final DIY project, as well as some fun shots from my birthday brunch party/photo-booth!

 I made a photo-booth backdrop with craft paper, gold glitter painted polka dots, and some leftover circle garland I had from a previous party.  Mix in a few props and a couple of mimosas and this is what you end up with! I have a GREAT blackmail photo of my fiance helping me "test" the camera distance for the booth earlier in the morning...but I will be sweet and spare him (this time).