protect, defend and love til'....

marie and court are a beautiful couple who both defend and protect as peace officers. so i loved their choice of colors.... navy and silver. clean and crisp and classy was the feel. a small clear crystal was placed on a swirl to add a bit of glam.

(i have such a soft spot in my heart for all those who defend us...shout out to my brother davey and my uncle bino!)

custom leaf silhouette...love it!

today i found another fabulous example of extraordinary from ordinary. jenny leefowler at etsy does these creative and lovely custom portrait silhouettes. check them out:

http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=15192923

what a great wedding gift! get the bride and groom done and have it mounted on a museum board.

happy wednesday everyone!

i am especially excited to have the midweek hump over with, cause "mr. l" comes back soon from visiting our son in australia! whoo hoo!

kristin & dimitri

kristin and dimitri are getting married memorial day weekend! they are such a beautiful couple and are celebrating with a greek orthodox wedding. since kristin was a small child she always loved purple. so of course needed to bring it into her wedding. here is their design.

congratulations meghan and brian

march 7th i had the honor of attending the mcbride wedding, and what a wedding it was! every detail exquisite, rich and full of love and joy. (thank you marsha & meghan for the joy of designing the printed work for this stunning wedding)
when you see all the pics i am sure you will agree....

it is worth your time to check out the beautiful photography, of joe photo who perfectly caught the celebration:
http://www.joephoto.com/BrianMeghan/

(great work joe...it makes me excited to see my own daughters wedding photos by the talented sissel byington and eric hernandez) :)

the fabulous kathy wright and co. were the event designers.

http://www.kathywrightandco.com/index.html

(my favorite was the chocolate garden)

i'm craving cake...

okay, i have to admit i have a weakness for wedding cake. when i saw this fabulous bakery i had to feature them today.

http://vanillabakeshop.com/index.html

going green today

copywritten'"three strands"

thought i would take today to show my favorite green wedding invite.

i enjoy featuring something 'tactile' in invitations. on this invite we celebrated the theme of "a cord of three strands are not easily broken," Ecclesiastes 4:12. a hemp cord wrapped the invite and the response card 'three times'.

happy st. p day!

on a budget? creative fun...

jon and heather save the date

one of the couples i am working with is jon and heather. They are a beautiful couple getting married on the beach in santa barbara. they asked for a romantic, beachy feel, with Burgundy and black. so, this is what i came up with. i loved the photograph. thanks to kim fox at kimfoxphotography.com.

a great weekend...

what a wonderful weekend....

friday... i got to spend the night with 6 dear friends celebrating sweet Krissy's big 5-0 at Sandy's beautiful beach house. laughing...enjoy good wine...walking...healing and celebrating together. (sigh)

saturday... we were blessed to attend the most beautifully designed wedding event. (more details later) i loved doing the printed work for this stunning event. congratulations brian and meghan! (gorgeous couple)

the wedding event coordinator that did the wedding is one of those designer extraordinaries that fully inspire. i love finding these event designers that inspire me. so, until i get photos from the mcbride wedding, i will inspire you all with the work of 'salt harbor designs' i recently discovered their work and thought i would share with you with this inspiration board.

guest book idea i love...

loved this vintage typewriter that was used by wedding guests, in lieu of a traditional guestbook. the couple hung the pages in their home. this definitely falls into the extraordinary from ordinary file. thank you snippet and ink for this inspiration.

Napa Wine Picnic

my dear friend kim will be celebrating her 50th birthday. consistent with her giving nature, she has chosen to make this birthday about "Celebrating a Lifetime of Friendships" I love her thought and theme. she wanted a casual yet tasteful invite to invite her friends to celebrate. i was excited to design this fun invite for her.

good stuff found here...

i am always exploring for great places to purchase unique items that can make weddings or homes a more beautiful experience.

farmhouse wares is such a place. i am featuring this inspiration board of their items. each item made me smile.

check out their site:

http://www.farmhousewares.com/

"tea for two before the i do..."

the brides grandmother collected tea cups from all over the world, which helped to direct the theme and honor the legacy of the family.

the fold out of the "Tea Bag" reveals an actual tea for the invitee to enjoy.

this design was for a tea wedding shower for the beautiful bride-to-be jackie.
i wanted to make the invite whimsical, vintage and romantic.

sigh.....

happy valentines day....

i am inspired by red today.

i celebrate love today.

the love of my 25 year valentine "mr. l"

the love of friends and family

and...."The One" who has shown us all the meaning of true love.

olives oh my!

(click photos to enlarge)

a worthy photographer i would like to feature today is, aaron delesie. thanks to style me pretty i got a good gasp of wow today!


check out the rest of the details:


http://www.delesieblog.com/day-and-max/

who says you have to print on paper

just had to share this...a save-the-date that is silk screened on a vintage hankie. (the guests can bring it to the ceremony to shed a sentimental tear or two) love it. it set the vintage feel for the wedding.

a guests guide to the ceremony...

programs, just another detail that makes the guest feel welcomed and informed of the goings on of the ceremony. each one with a unique flavor that shows the style of the couple.

shower the baby

i just finished this fun baby shower invite

for a client who asked for something clean and classy.

love is the color

valentines is in the air....

i love the original red and white ideas.

show your id please....

a couples logo makes the wedding uniquely their own. i have used couples logos in everything from lighting to water bottles.

ring that inspires

inner message

A few years ago a Korean singer wrote a song about the sunburn mark that he found on his finger after he broke up with his girlfriend and removed a ring he had been wearing for a long time. This is the story that inspired Jungyun Yoon to make ‘Inner message’, a ring with hidden letters on the inside. Inner message is a ring that leaves an impression on the finger.
Imagine that your boyfriend giving you a ring that on the surface seems plain, but later when you take the ring off; it says, “Marry me.” Or imagine that even though you take off the ring to clean your hands you are still wearing an impression of the words, ’always’
http://www.yoonjungyun.com/

love this.

save the dates

the beautiful meghan wanted a more 'gothic' look to her wedding (red and black) this is what she and her fiance decided on.

k&b's save the date cards

this wedding season has been so enjoyable, working with great families and fun couples
here are some save-the-date card ideas i am designing right now.

annie and curtis are a beautiful couple i am working with right now. annie sent this stunning photo to use in their date saver cards. here are some options i am working on for them.

it is really pure joy for me to be able to design for my beautiful niece Kristin and her fiance Dimitri. i love this fresh idea that they came up with, so fun!

not just any wedding shoes...

my daughter often inspires me to think beyond the ordinary, as she did with wedding shoes. gone are the days of the generic white 'wedding' shoes...yep, i love this. the brides shoes are now part of the unveiling, along with the garter. no rules, just a reflection of the inner joy of the day. (check out kendall's fabulous "betsy johnson's" in the upper right corner)

thinking outside the stick

never settle for the ordinary! gone are the numbers on a stick, really, why do what is expected? take your theme and think outside the 'stick', if your theme is organic then write your numbers on rocks. if your theme is a woodsy garden, then, use a little nest and twigs. if you have a digital camera, go around your area and take pictures of house numbers and print them out. numbers or names on wine bottles serve a duel purpose. my daughter and her groom named their tables after their favorite surf spots in our area. i always love hearing your ideas!

the "new" something blue...

the new soft blue/silver tones with black vintage accents are my new favorite.

i like to recommend to my clients to find an inspiration and build on it.

it could be something simple as a flower or a vintage postcard.

thanks to "ritzybee" for the inspiration board