shades of relaxation: pink edition

If I were to plan the perfect afternoon, it would be filled with sunshine, a good book, something to sip on, and a cozy chair to relax in. Although this recipe-for-relaxation can be applied in any season, these days I'm enjoying all things girly and basking in the sweet smelling glow of late Spring (at least this happens when the sun decides to grace us with her presence). I will be dreaming about these rosey indulgences as I sit at my desk watching the rain clouds roll in this morning.

Relaxation: it's in the details...

- I love fresh cut flowers. Short story: they make me happy. Especially peonies which are in their prime right now (this bunch was captured by the talented Elizabeth Messina).

- Emily (of Cupcakes and Cashmere fame) has written a book chock-full of thoughtful tips and beautiful photography (read about it here). I've added it to my list of things to gift. Don't you think it would pair well with a bubbly cocktail, say, The Capricorn?

- Candles are a staple in our house and exist in almost every room. I enjoy gifting Voluspa candles as they make some of my very favourites and the packaging is pretty. This one comes in a lovely glass jar.

- Truth be told, sometimes a girl just needs to curl up for a cat nap. An eye mask (a la Holly Golightly) and a cozy throw make the perfect companions for an afternoon snooze.

What is your favourite way to relax? 

(peony photograph courtesy of Kiss the Groom, book Amazon, candle Indigo, eye mask Soft Mur Murr, blanket Indigo, and cocktail Martha Stewart; collage created via Polyvore). 

Build Your Own Fruit Salad Bar

Well, June is here which means it's officially get together season. Excitedly, I have penciled in showers, birthdays, grad celebrations, and girl's nights over the coming weeks and look forward to the treats and drinks that will no doubt accompany them.

Always hunting for new and creative ideas for what to bring and what to serve, I stumbled upon this guest post on Rockstar Diaries written by Anna Liesemeyer. The concept is brilliantly simple and altogether marvelous for bikini- health-conscious lady friends.

If this is something you might fancy, pop on over to Rockstar Diaries (and while you're there, feel free to swoon over Naomi and Josh's incredibly adorable babies).

Memory Bank

I am absolutely smitten with the idea of a memory bank. Designed to store special mementos like ticket stubs, to do lists, and love notes, these adorable little piggies collect life's memories instead of pocket pennies. I'm tempted to order one to store the special keepsakes from our first year of marriage.

Do you keep things like ticket stubs or notes in a journal, scrapbook, or shoebox?



(Memory Bank available through Speechless Studios; found through swissmiss & A Cup of Joe).

String Art

If you follow me on Instagram (username: cstarevents), you may have noticed a hint I dropped about an upcoming string art wedding project. My lovely friend & kindred spirit Jennifer created a beautiful l-o-v-e sign for me and gave me all of the tricks she learned while creating it. As it turns out, Martha shares our affinity for board, nail, and string. I think this is a darling way to display escort cards for a smaller wedding, don't you?

Visit Martha Stewart Weddings for the how to and list of materials.



(Images courtesy of Martha Stewart Weddings).

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns), Mindy Kaling

After last month's tearjerker, I needed a book to make me smile. This book made me smile, laugh, and - on occasion - snort. I love Mindy Kaling and her smart, spit-fire humour; her book surpassed my expectations. I'm recommending this book to all of my girlfriends as it's a great summer read and the perfect companion to your lawn chair.

Have you read it? What did you think? Also, have you seen the preview for her new sitcom (Joanna Goddard posted about it here)? Suffice it to say I'm excited.

wedding project [two]: the boutonnières

The second wedding DIY project is completed in full: hurray!

progress:

details:

Originally inspired by this boutonnière, I played around with size, shape, and assembly logistics, eventually coming up with similar yet smaller version. As an added bonus, this project was easier and more cost-effective than I had imagined.

The pièce de résistance was the black and white guinea hen feather. Once I sourced a package of these beauties from Pegasus 22's etsy shop the remaining elements fell into place. The stems of the faux pink berries (from Michael's craft store) were originally green; however, I didn't like how they looked with the pink, black, white, and grey, so I painted over them with a brown Sharpie paint pen. A bit of extra florist wire was used to secure the bottoms, the ribbon was then affixed with hot glue gun.

Although it remains to be seen how easy these will be to pin to the suit jackets, they're quite pretty to look at.

up next:

I've acquired a bit more canvas for the table runners (thanks to my future mother-in-law, Lin, for running across the boarder on a craft mission) and once the remaining fabric and lace have been purchased the table runners will be a completed project.

Also, the vases are almost complete (I have several more to add to my collection and paint); more photos and details to come.

Finally, I returned to Kamloops last weekend with several amazing window panes (complete with original glass). These beauties are resting in my office, waiting to be sanded, windex-ed, and prepped for our guest list.

1, 2... Go!

Sunday Sweetness

Typically, the unplanned moments make the best photos.



(Photography by Chudleigh Weddings via Snippet and Ink).

The Lumineers, Ho Hey

Hurray. The weekend is here! The last seven days was a blur: I celebrated a birthday, enjoyed the company of some amazing friends and a couple of crazy dogs in wine country BC, completed a wedding project, started a couple of new projects, caught up with an old friend, and - at one point - slept for 27 hours straight. Needless to say, I'm well rested and full of love and happiness. When my sweet friend Angie sent me the link to this music video this morning, it was the icing on the birthday cake.

Thanks for an amazing week, friends. Enjoy your weekend!

Wish List: Anthro Edition

Let me preface this post by stating that if I could register at Anthropologie I would. I have a seemingly endless wish list that is typically made up of adorable pieces from their house & home section (& clothing & accessories & so on & so forth).

Here are the eight items at the top of my list:

1. Taste-Test Recipe Book
2. Symbology Trivet
3. If You Wash, I'll Dry Dishtowel
4. Celestial Coaster Set (seafoam)
5. Potted Butter Dish
6. Home At 7, Dinner At 8: 100 Satisfying Suppers On The Table In An Hour Or Less
7. Latte Bowls (seafoam)
8. Crossed Spoons Plate Stand

We're in the process of giving our tiny kitchen a freshening up and our accent colour is seafoam. I also want to incorporate a few pops of red so I'm clearly gravitating to this palette. I'm not one for "matchy-matchy" and our taste is quite random eclectic so this collection would fit in perfectly. 

Does your house have a wish list?

(images courtesy of Anthropologie). 

May long, let's go!

Alas - the long weekend is here! While Bauer and I hit the road for wine country to meet friends (& Ben!) we'll be jamming out to one awesome playlist. May long weekend is the inaugural barbequing/ camping/ road tripping/ beaching weekend of the year so I thought I'd share my favourite tunes in the event your weekend soundtrack needs a couple new tracks.

Enjoy!

1. Never Go Back - Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
2. On Top of the World - Imagine Dragons
3. Trojans - Atlas Genius
4. Eyes Wide Open - Gotye
5. Old Pine - Ben Howard 
6. Weighty Ghost - Wintersleep
7. The Funeral - Band of Horses
8. Colours - Grouplove
9. Bloodbuzz Ohio - The National 
10. Shake Me Down - Cage the Elephant
11. Back Down South - Kings of Leon
12. Truth - Alexander
13. Young Blood - The Naked and Famous
14. The Lion's Roar - First Aid Kit 
15. Primadonna - Marina and The Diamonds
16. Stare Into the Sun - Graffiti6 
17. Helena Beat - Foster the People
18. 40 Day Dream - Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros
19. Oceans & Streams - The Black Keys
20. Shuffle - Bombay Bicycle Club

It's Always Something, Gilda Radner

This book left me with so much more than its (thrifted) $1.99 price tag may suggest.

I was introduced to Gilda Radner's work at a young age and immediately admired the cast of characters she introduced to SNL as an inaugural cast member (if you're not already familiar with these clips do yourself a favour and find them).

Gilda's story - told in her own, honest, words - is heartbreaking but altogether inspiring. I found myself savouring each chapter. On one hand, I didn't want to reach the end of the book because I knew the outcome of Gilda's courageous fight with ovarian cancer; on the other hand, I felt the book was like a great conversation shared with a friend that takes you into the early hours of the morning. Even though you know it inevitably has to wrap up, you'd love nothing more than the chance to keep talking.

{have a great book to suggest or one you'd love to discuss? drop me a line, I'd love to chat. also, check out the new book club portion of the blog & weigh in with your feedback and favourites.} 

reception questions

Although I'm fond of everything to do with this wedding, the blank notebooks that the couple left on each table immediately caught my attention.  Booklets containing prompting questions such as "what's your funniest memory of us?" and "what should we name our children?" were left at each table for guests to respond in and pass around.  A simple project to assemble with results I'm sure they will cherish for years to come (not to mention a great icebreaker for guests to get to know each other).




(photos by Ruettgers Photography, booklets designed by Laura Brown {the bride's sister}, wedding feature on Style Me Pretty).