missing the boy...

my 'baby' is in new zealand on a surf trip with 2 of his good buddies. i miss him, and i think it is time for him to come home. (just kidding taylor) but, my missing him did inspire me ,to post my favorite picture of my son and i, from sissel byington photography.

fanning the flames of love...

thought i would share my most current request....for a fan tag. they asked me to be creative, and left the wording and design to me. (which is fun for any designer) so, here is what i came up with. printed on kraft cardstock and the amethyst hemp cord kept the organic feel of the napa wedding.

legacy, lace and love

"legacy of lace" (photos by sissel byington and erik hernandez)

the older i get, the more i value the richness of the love in my family. i think my daughter has also caught on to how important a legacy is. kendall displayed her 'legacy of love' on her wedding day, with a beautiful symbol on her wedding dress.

kendall asked her grandmother pat, (married 56 years) for a piece of lace from her wedding dress. then, she asked both her future mother in law, betty, and myself for a piece of lace from our wedding dresses. she then furthered the idea by asking her aunt laurie to sew each piece on a layer of her beautiful" jenny packham" gown. not many people knew about this gentle symbol, but kendall did, and she proudly carried her symbols of strong marriages to start her 'strong marriage' to brandon.

meghan and mino napa wedding

a while back, i shared my graphic mock up of the napa wedding i was creating for meghan and mino.

well, here is the finished product. the wax seal was custom, created in copper, and attached on a hemp cord to the linen rich cardstock. my other favorite part is the cork paper that it is layered on. we used a vintage feel postcard response, and enclosed the invitation in a self mailing amethyst pocketfold. (my current favorite invite...!)

soft and romantic

there is something so romantic about a soft hair adornment.
i have found many inspirational moments on 'myra callan's happy place: http://twigsandhoney.com/flash.html
perfect for any bride or bridal party attendant. sigh.

navy blue and apple green

annie and curtis are a beautiful couple, with a fun creative eye. this invitation combined their signature wedding colors of navy and apple green, with a co-ordinating paisley pattern. couples like annie and curtis are another reason i love my job.

photo credit: taylor leopold

stamp of approval...

part of my joy in designing, is completing 'the look'. new custom stamps make any invite tell a story even before you open the envelope.

programs, placecards and menu's oh my....

that has been my focus lately...thanks to my dear assembly line gals! (shout out to kim, laurie and krissy) it's kinda like a sewing bee for the sewing impaired. love it...

congratulations to ashley and damian on their wedding this weekend! such a beautiful family so enjoyed working with them.

business cards...

these cards were designed for ashley, a very talented make-up/ hair artisan, as a thank you for doing the make-up on kendall's wedding day. i like the square size and shape. these were printed on vintage water color paper. so very french vintage and romantic.

remembering this weekend

three things from this weekend...

first...a perfect celebration of life,
my heart goes out to the entire fruhling family, for the passing of jan, a woman full of God's grace and love.
"during her final battle with cancer, jan agreed with paul, "for me to live is Christ, to die is gain" Philippians 1:21

second.... a perfect celebration of a marriage,
kristin and dimitri had a perfect day to celebrate. a perfect, a truly perfect couple. what a blessing to take part in this day. (loved the greek dancing dimitri!) they are off to greece and paris...then medical school in george town! such an adventure in store! congratulations.

Third...a perfect celebration of service,

this Memorial Day i am remembering those who served our country and gave their lives to defend ours. thank you.

heather and jon

jon and heather are a beautiful couple getting married on the beach in santa barbara. i thought i would share the ideas they have narrowed down to. jon loves to surf and heather has a romantic approach. i think both of their styles were captured. the design on top is what the couple decided on.

girlie birthday fun!

my friends daughter is celebrating her 10th birthday in style. with a 'girls spa time'. i gave her a couple of choices. her request was magenta pink and baby blue. these were placed in a pocketfold/purse. so cute and so many rhinestones to make it worthy of being 10! happy birthday ava! (ava ended up choosing the top design)

more details...cigars and stuff

cigars are always a good addition to any celebration.
the gentlemen (and some ladies) enjoyed the couples custom/personalized cigar labels.
most guests thought they were real labels. (these were fun to design)

k&b wedding details

we were so blessed to have talented family members offer to shoot kendall and brandon's wedding. i thought i would share a few now that eric hernandez shot. beautiful job!
and just wait till you see sissel byington's approach! stunning....(coming soon!)
thanks eric and sissel for so much love in photos.
www.LOOKphotography.com
www.sisselbyingtonphotography.com
flower arrangements and bouquets by aly at: thevinesleaf.com
flower cones by loving friends

danielle and mark~the process of designing a custom invitation

the final product assembled in a pocketfold

more ideas and variations....

options and ideas for the bride and groom to choose

i thought it would be good to show the process of a custom wedding invitation. each one has it's own organic process. i love the process...it blesses me with new relationships, and deepens already established ones.

this design:

danielle and my daughter are friends from high school, so this was a fun one to do.

1st step: to meet the couple and listen to their ideas and inspirations.

(mark and danielle wanted to incorporated their theme of "love makes life a paradise" and a clean look)

2nd step: taking the ideas and giving them numerous options and design paths to take.

3rd step: creating a mock up sample for approval

4th: refine design, print and assemble

thank you, danielle and mark it's been a pleasure

love kendall's unique headpiece

i love my daughters beautiful style. her choice of a headpiece for her wedding gives you a feel for what i am talking about. this unique creation was the work of the talented designer/sculptor Beth McGowan. her crowns are all hand made in Madrid, Spain. These designs are created as heirlooms to be passed down through generations.Each piece is cast in sterling silver from designs based on antique lace.
http://lascoronas.com/
beth has featured kendall on her site...check out the rest of her beautiful work:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=80205&id=31339743132&saved#/pages/Las-Coronas-of-Mary-Beth-McGowan/31339743132

photo credit: erik hernandez, look photography
black and white photo of the couple on beth's site courtesy of sisselbyington photography

Napa Wedding Style-meghan & emiliano

some days you really enjoy your work...this is one of those days.

after my computer "died", and men in little white coats took it away to perform a transplant, i felt a bit lost without the creative joy of my computer. not to mention the pressure of work needing to be done. so thank you to the most WONDERFUL computer guys Scott and Tony! (your skills are beautiful!) today i have my computer back and running! wha hoo!

but, back to why i love my work...it is due to the beautiful creative freedom that meghan and emilano gave me in designing their wedding invitations. they are getting married in napa, (sigh!) love napa! so, here is a sneak peak into the design they are going with. the colors are amethyst/natural kraft and fushia.

they are environmentally friendly couple so, to keep paper to a minimum we are doing a self mailer and a postcard response card.

huddleston wedding

the huddleston family has been so much fun to work with. the bride wanted a fresh yet elegant approach to her invitation. i gave her a new approach to the 'damask' artwork that is popular. the couples colors of amethyst and green gave the invitation a unique feel. congratulations ashley and damian!

wedding jones...

who wouldn't love having your own soda for your special day? great ideas for out of town gift bags. check it out:http://www.myjones.com/

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.