wedding project [eight]: gilded place card holders

I'm in still in catch up mode so please bear with me as I feature the remaining details from our wedding. 

The collection of gilded animal place card holders on our head table was the smallest element of our wedding decor and one of my favourite details. I wanted the head table to feature a few unique details and decided that gold would be the perfect accent to our palette of coral + neutrals. I love the look of the bold chevron on the traditional white and gold tablescape. 

The gold chargers were a great addition but they needed something to tie them in. Enter: gilded animals. 

I purchased a tube of safari animals from Michaels and spray painted them gold. To hold the place cards, Ben sawed a small indent with an old steak knife. The plastic was quite hard to saw into and the cards didn't sit quite right. To keep them in place I added a drop of glue from my hot glue gun to affix the place card which worked quite well. Since the glue chipped off easily they can be used again. TIP: If I were to make these again I would saw the notches into the figurines prior to spraying them as the pain chipped off a bit. 

These are way too fun; I can't wait for the opportunity to use them again. Two of my bridesmaids have theirs in their homes and they look awesome just sitting on a shelf or dresser.

Top photo by Adrian Photography.

Time Capsules

I have always loved the idea of time capsules. Storing newspapers, favourite items, and letters away to be discovered by your future self or – even beter – a future family member gives me goose bumps just thinking about it. Quite often pigeonholed as an analogue girl in a digital world, preserving tangible things versus MP3’s, PDF’s, and digital photographs is right up my alley.

When I stumbled upon Time Capsules my heart skipped a beat.

Created by a team of creative geniuses, Time Capsules are the perfect way of marking a significant time in life: a birth, a wedding, or a graduation to name a few. I also love the capability of a Capsule to capture the every-day pieces of life. For approximately $55.00 Canadian, you’ll receive the plastic time capsule, a manual, stickers, wrapping paper, notebook, and other embellishments to use as you wish. You also receive a seal to enclose everything in the capsule and write the current date and the date in the future after which it can be opened. So cool.

I am currently engrossed in documenting our story through Project Life* and appreciate all methods of memory keeping. This is officially on my wish list. Visit the website for product and ordering information and their Pinterest page to get ideas for assembling your own. 

*In case you’re interested, I’ll be posting about Project Life next week.

(Images courtesy of Time Capsules). 

Mile a Day Challenge: January 2013

This goal needed its own post. 

Anyone following my Instagram needs a "thank you" for their encouragement (and understanding as I flooded their feeds with running shoes). 

One month after my last #mileaday I struggle with the motivation, confidence, and time to throw my shoes on every day and run; however, in January I proved to myself that it’s possible.  In January I became a runner.  That’s a pretty awesome statement to make.

I was inspired to challenge myself by Elise  (she has a very informative section of her blog devoted to running).  My sister, the marathon running extraordinaire, also inspired me, who kicked me in the butt to start running. That’s the key: just start. (Thanks, J).

Thoughts on Mile a Day...

Pros

• I got outdoors with Bauer almost every day - even the cold ones
• I enjoyed (almost) every run
• I ran more than a mile quite regularly because I wanted to
•  I experimented with running on an indoor track/ treadmill/ and snowy sidewalks to keep it interesting and less stale (I bore easily)
• I accomplished my first health and fitness goal of the year
•  I was in a cardio slump so I lost some weight
• Some days my runs energized me 
• I slept well and went to bed earlier (if you know me you understand how significant this bullet is)

Cons

• Scheduling: working 40 + hours a week at my 9-5, meal planning and cleaning at home, and travelling between Kamloops and Vancouver several times made it difficult to fit runs in some days
•  Some days my runs absolutely drained my energy
• It was difficult to fit extra curricular activities (i.e. blogging) in

As you see, the pros outweigh the cons. At times I loved to hate this challenge but in the end I loved it. I plan on incorporating another month or two of “Mile A Day” in 2013’s fitness goals and I’d love you to join me if you’re interested.

Cheers to Jen + Kelsie, my Kamloops pals who also completed Mile a Day in January. (I can’t wait to run outside without the snow).

Do you have any fitness goals/ ambitions/ resolutions that you’re working on, currently? Are you a runner?