Party All The Time!

Throwing parties are one of the funniest/most stressful part of being a future bride.  It takes equal parts intense planning and a total “go with the flow” mindset. So needless to say, I had to do a lot of meditating last week.  Here’s a quick walk through engagement party #2 Orange County.

Fresh flowers were a must.   My favorite DIY floral arrangements include Peonies, lisianthus, hydrangea, hanging amaranthus, and tons of greenery.  Oh and I also spray painted some Starbucks bottles for vases.

 

I like to add a little quote to remind everyone why they came.

Then there was our LOVE table.

I simply love brunch, so our engagement party was filled with eggs, pancakes, fruit, veggie meat, and all types of confections.  I made some cookies that I will feature in a future post.

No brunch is complete without mini pancakes and fresh berries.

Selfie cookies were a must.  Such a great company!

Just me and my Mommy!  Also, note the floral wall.  This was my favorite project of the event.

Two of my 7 bridesmaids were able to make it out.  In these days and times we live all across the globe and it’s good to see each other when we can.

See what they gave me?  Oh it’s nothing, just a basket FULL of cuteness!!!

There were selfies galore, this was one of my favorites!

Stevie did some singing, there’s no way he can be within 20 feet of a piano and not take full advantage.

The party was a day before my Grandma turned 89.  Yup, this lady is 89, Black don’t crack.  I believe that’s what they say.

Even Erin and Kevin were surprised.

These women have all known me since before I was even myself.  They have been spectacular guides and wonderful examples.

 

We welcome the new additions to our family with open arms.  We were so glad Pastor White, my soon to be Father-in-law made it out.  There’s my flower wall again…it made another appearance.  Embrace it!!!

Overall, the day was a success.  Aaron and I thank all of you that made it out and those of you who were there in spirit.  XOXOXO

 

Make it Your Own!

 
I’m all about the details and in preparing for this engagement party pink water color is a standout theme. This was a pretty easy craft with a super adorable outcome.   

  
First I headed out to Michael’s and grabbed some $1 wooden sporks.  Easy! 

  

Then I just grabbed my handy flat brush and some pink winter color and went to work. I started at the tip of the handle and painted a tough stroke toward the prongs of the fork. I made sure the paint didn’t end in a perfectly square line. The jagged edges add some character. 

 
Let them dry and it’s time to party! 

  

DIY Invites

In my almost daily wedding journey I’ve ben lamenting over all of the events I have-yes have-to plan and all of the expensive invites we will be buying.  I mean this is engagement party 2, there are bridal showers and teas to come.  Well, then I figured out how to print my little invite creations on some pretty heavy stock paper in my little ol’ printer.

First I grabbed my water color paper, I choose this because I knew I’d be painting it later and I loved the texture.  Then I slid it into the feeding tray, one sheet at a time, in the back of my printer instead of the normal tray.  This is the key to printing on the good stuff.  Next, I got my favorite flat water color brush and some pink pigment and painted the top of the invites.  Some of my personal info has been removed from the cards.  I love you guys but I get nervous LOL.  

 

Next use a paper cutter to cut out the invites…make sure you cut inside the black outlines.  Nobody wants to see that!

 

Then I cut out another rectangle slightly larger than the invite and spray glued them together.  Finally, I grabbed a gold pigment marker and colored the edge.

This is the final product!!! I hope this can help and inspire someone!!!

Repurposed

Most of us ladies have to wear many, many, many hats. We work hard, support our loved ones, cook (sometimes), and dum dum dum clean!  So, today as I’m loading a very wet batch of towels into my dryer I realized the worst possible thing happened-I’m dramatic-I ran out of dryer sheets. Oh no!!! Then I remembered a little trick.

A balled up sheet of aluminum foil will keep you beloved clothes static free. This is a super affordable option and also helps you avoid all those nasty chemicals in dryer sheets. Try it next time you’re in need. It’s always better than that , I don’t have what I need, melt down.