Wedding Inspiration

Ever since I got engaged all my married friends have commented how jealous they are that I get to plan a wedding in the "Pinterest age." And I must admit, they are completely right. Here are some pins that have got me inspired for my special day. ; )

In other wedding news, we haven't made many plans yet. We both love the idea of a destination wedding (maybe Key West, so it would be in driving distance for most of our guests) but the idea seems daunting. Any advice from readers out there who have been there and done that? 

Credits

Lighting: 1, 2, 3, 4

Color Palettes (clockwise from right): 1, 2, 3, 4

Centerpieces (clockwise from right): 1, 2, 3, 4

Dresses (clockwise from right): 1, 2, 3, 4

Honor Roll Work

If "gift wrapping" had been a required course in college, I would have barely squeaked by. I'd have been that kid in the back of the classroom who barely showed up to class and hardly tried at all. Well, this semester, a cute boy showed up for school by the name of Peter Pinterest (just humor me and play along with this metaphor) who also happened to be an excellent tutor in the studies of "present making". Suddenly, my passion for the subject was finally born! Who would have known that with a little help, some time, and a whole lot of tape you could turn such bad gift wrapping skills into honor roll quality work?

If you're having trouble finding inspiration for your gift wrapping this season, hop on over to Pinterest, type in "holiday wrapping," and get your creative juices flowing!

Polaroid Magnet

For as much as I love browsing through blog posts of DIY projects, you’d think I’d be a talented crafter myself. Eh, not so much. A lot of DIY projects aren’t terribly practical (but, yea, they’re pretty to admire!) and add to that the fact that mine usually fall apart within a couple weeks, and you can see why I’m not always gung-ho to do them. But after surprisingly getting an itch to tackle a little project on Sunday I browsed through my best DIY resource (Ez’s collection over at Creature Comforts) and decided to go with these Polaroid Magnets.

They were as practical as I could get and with only a few, simple steps involved, I thought it would be hard for me to screw up. And since Nick and I really don't have many photos up around the house, it was great to have the opportunity to feature those we love and the photos I've been snapping over the past few months that I also love.

The steps are pretty easy but let me know if you have any questions! Oh! And the Polaroid template can be found over at the original location of the DIY project, here.

The Details

I’ve always enjoyed Cupcakes and Cashmere’s “Five Things” series. If you’re not familiar with it, Emily features five details of her life that happen to bring her a little extra joy in her day. Many bloggers do variations on this post but for me, it all boils down to the same concept; taking the time to appreciate life’s details. Here are a few details that are currently bringing me a little extra joy in life:

1. Trying out new exotic fruits

2. A weekend treat

3. My new favorite Starbucks drink

4. Trying to be a lady and paint my nails consistently

5. Flowers for the house

Comforts in Color

Have you ever thought much about where your fashion inspiration comes from? Is it a particular trend that you want to try out? Or an overall look that you aim for? Or perhaps silhouettes or patterns inspire you? For me, its always been about color combinations. Thoughts of navy blue and burnt orange or olive green and and light blue send me running to the closet with ideas. One of my favorite resources for finding new and exciting color combinations are the "Inspiration Daily" posts by Ez over at Creature Comforts. Ez's posts are filled with beautiful photos and images of all the treats you can find in this little Internet world of ours.

I was recently browsing through her old posts when this picture popped out at me (see the original on her site here). I can't say that I've ever paired blue and khaki together but finding this image made me want to immediately. The combination is so clean and bright and I loved the effect it had in "fashion form."

 

 

What do YOU get inspired by when it comes to fashion? Let me know in your comments, please!

Simple Beauty

I took this picture a couple months ago.

I took it on a usual workday morning composed of rushing around to make coffee, eat some Greek yogurt, and get together my lunch. Something out of the blue inspired me to gather our kitchen island flowers and photograph them on our glass covered banquette. It turned out to be a beautiful photograph and I've been meaning to make a little "series" out of it ever since. The pictures are very simply composed and any photographer could take these with ease, but something about it speaks to me. With time on my side this weekend, I bought a few flowers from Publix today and filled out my "Flowers Series." Here are a few of my favorites:

Madeleine Peyroux

While listening to Norah Jones, Pandora suggested this artist to me and I immediately fell in love. She sounds just like Billie Holiday with a little more updated tunes.

With vintage fashion photography throughout, I thought this video was perfect. Enjoy!

Life's Short Stories: Photography

My interest in photography isn’t a product of a life-long passion for the art form. Neither was it born from a need to share some profound perspective on the world. It was simply because I want to make sure I remember.

Make sure I remember the big moments, like the first time Nick and I saw the Grand Canyon and the time my family and I wine-tasted our way through Napa. Remember the every-day moments; laughing with friends over Sunday brunch or planning Taco-Nights with our neighbors. And especially the moments we don’t take the time to remember – how cute Kota looks sunbathing the afternoon away or how perfectly gratifying my morning yogurt and coffee is every. single. day.

One of the moments I love that photography helps me to remember is about a bush.

I pass this particular bush whenever I walk with Kota in the morning. At first glance, it’s really… just a bush. Not even particularly bushy or anything – kind of sparse even. But in passing it day after day,  I began to notice the subtle pinks and purples that trim the leaves. These pops of color against a backdrop of sages and greens created a beautiful image that was even further enhanced by the pictures I made sure to take of it.

Now every morning, I take a few moments to appreciate the beauty of this simple bush and relish in the fact that even if I move away or stop taking my morning walks, from these photos, I can take the moment to appreciate the memory of it too.