Bridesmaid gifts

I know I'm totally jumping all over the place with wedding detail updates, but because I've got all the photos ready from the bridesmaid gifts I gave to my gals, we'll start there!

When it came to bridesmaid gifts, I wanted to focus on getting them things that weren't specific to that day; something they could use or wear again. There are some really cute "bridesmaid-specific" gifts out there, but, I mean, how often are you going to wear that "Maid of Honor" tank top after the big day? So in my quest to gift the girls, I kept it at things they could use the day of our wedding, but also afterwards.

I debated whether to get each of the girls clutches that they could carry that day. Then I thought how rarely I use a clutch these days, so I thought a personalized tote might be a little more practical. The Wedding Chicks shop has dozens of really adorable, customizable tote bag options, and around the beginning of the year, they had a huge 50% off sale covering everything in their shop... so I scored these cute, colorful bunting totes for a great price!

Inside the tote I included all the other little gifts, like some fantastic foldable flats that they could change into later that night for dancing. I'd had the idea to gift everyone foldable flats sometime last year, and kept my eye out for deals. Over the winter I came across a Living Social deal for these Fit in Clouds flats, buy one get one free. I couldn't turn down that deal, so I purchased a few. I had to ask each of the girls their shoe size to ensure I got the right size for everyone, but I think so much time had passed between when I asked and the wedding that they probably forgot about it! I also bought a pair for myself, which I happily switched into before the dancing began that night!

The next gift I got each girl was this cute, rose gold "bow" necklace. I found them on Etsy, and even bought one for myself because I thought they were so cute! Inside each little box, I included a note that said "Thanks for helping me tie the knot!" 

Finally, I made each of the girls customized Cabochon earrings that matched the color of their dresses. I bought the Cabochon (flower) beads and glued them to metal earring posts and added rubber backs to each, then poked them through these kraft paper tags stamped with each of their initials. I couldn't believe my luck that I managed to find such close matches to the color of each girl's dress! I love these earrings and, yes, even made a couple pairs for myself (are you seeing the trend, here?).

 The girls wore the necklaces and the earrings on our wedding day and they all looked so cute!

(We're missing my sister-in-law in this pic, but it's the only one I have so far of almost everyone!)

My bridesmaids were absolutely fantastic that day. They brought snacks and mimosas to the salon that morning, kept me calm and laughing before the ceremony and even did some emergency calling when we had some flower snafus. I couldn't have asked for a better (or more gorgeous, am I right?) crew! :)

What's the best bridesmaid gift you've ever received/seen? I love anything that can be used later!

Your Weekly Pins

Another Friday, another week of pins! Here's what caught my eye on Pinterest this week...


HOMEY

[Is honeycomb the new chevron? I've been all over this design concept in home interiors lately. These DIY honeycomb shelves are pretty kickin', even without the cute trinkets adorning them!]


[Speaking of cool DIY concepts, how neat is this dresser-turned-vanity? A very unique way to turn an old piece of furniture into something special.]



[The entire home tour for this couple is so charming, but I fell head over heels for their little girls' room. So sweet at every angle!]


[I love this loft office space. From the open space to the gorgeous glass-paned walls, and especially those super-rad pulley overhead lamps. I couldn't definitely see myself working in a space like this!]


I CAN HAZ STYLE?

[I love this outfit - it's dressed up but laid back. That skirt is fantastic, and the fiery-red blazer makes a huge statement without being too overwhelming.]


[There's something to be said about the simple, white cotton dress. This one is farmgirl classic, refined and so pretty.]



I'MA MAKE THAT

[Here's a great tutorial on creating gorgeous ombre vases from natural dye and biodegradable paper cups. Love this dip-dye look!]



[I mean, you don't really need a tutorial for slapping a bungee cord on a slab of wood to make a pretty rad sunglasses holder like the one above, but this is a simple look I really like. So much nicer than stashing your shades in a little box!]


RACHY LIKEY

[Me friend Emily is known to bring over a small, vintage-print glass to sip wine out of when coming for a visit. I think it's so cute, and I could totally see her happily sipping out of one of these fun, vintage sour cream glasses the next time we have a wine-soaked evening by the fire pit.]



[I'm kind of wild over the styling of this table. The mismatched chairs are pretty neat to start, but I adore the cute cacti in pastel and neon pots. And, because I am so over the decorating-with-winebottles trend, I think it's fun and slightly more kicked back to use beer bottles as vases for poppy flowers!]


[This is one of the most ingenius ways to store fabric I've ever seen. Simply file them like folders in a filing cabinet! A fast way to see your entire stockpile of fun fabrics.]


[Squirrel chair! Because, why not?]


OTHER PEOPLE'S WEDDINGS
My wedding might be over, but I just can't stop pinning the lovelies! So I created a new board that I can fill with all sorts of pretty, fun ways to style weddings of my imaginary friends who are getting married.

[This invitation suite had me locked in instantly. I love the colors, the carnival theme, the design, the custom stamp..... everything. So adorable!]


[I thought this dinner menu printed on the actual napkin was such a unique idea - and so pretty on an old fashioned tea towel!]


[This save the date label is such a cute way to drum up excitement even before opening the actual envelope!]




There are plenty more where these came! To see everything I pin all week long, follow me on Pinterest.

Go with the Flow - Our First Floor Renovation

Okay, gang, this one has been in the works for a while. Our biggest home renovation to date. One that began waaaaayyy back in early March and wasn't completely finished (honestly, it still isn't), until a week or so before the wedding.

This one's a doozy.

If you remember, back in March I first shared about the removal of the wall between our living room and the "French" room (thus doing away with the French room altogether), and also our decision to open up the walls by our stairway to the bedroom upstairs, which sits between our living room and kitchen. Here's what it looked like back then:

Our contracter, JME Services, took over from here, reworking the electrical, removing the large post from the middle of the now large living/dining area, adding drywall, covering up ductwork, and doing patchwork. They also installed the stair spindles, bannister and the two huge pieces of rough-cut wood we used for the posts at the bottom of the stairs. They certainly had their work cut out for them.

For weeks, our house was in shambles. Our furniture all pushed together and covered by sheets and plastic, a thin layer of drywall dust over everything, pieces of wood in our living room, waiting to be used.... we were getting so tired of living in the mess as the house was being renovated, but we knew it would all be worth it in the end.

By the way, I just have to share a video that our contractor's assistant made of our little ham, Mr. Pancakes. P-Cakes and Lieu Lieu enjoyed the visits from their new friends who would work on the house while we were at work. And Mr. Pancakes especially loved getting into mischief while they were there.... namely, rolling around in all the drywall dust. Check out this hilarious video one of the workers made of Mr. Pancakes. It makes me laugh so hard.

Anyway, I'll just get right into it and share the before and after photos with you. The transformation is seriously incredible. Any photo captioned with "Way Before" is from the day we moved in. Any photo captioned with "Before" has been taken within the last year. Enjoy!

And here are your afters (sorry for the pic overload)!

From the living room

You can see the whole first floor (essentially) from the former "French" room!

From the front door

Seeing from the kitchen into the front area is my favorite part about this renovation!

From the former French room

From the far side of the living room

Again, from the kitchen

Night and day, AMIRITE?

We are so in love with the new, flowing floorplan. Our house seems twice as big with the two walls removed! We can actually have multiple people over without being cramped and confined to tiny spaces. We absolutely love the reno, as do Mr. Pancakes (who refused to move from "his spot" throughout the photo shoot... go figure) and Lieu Lieu. Lieu Lieu, especially, loves the stairs. She likes to sit a few steps up and look down on what's happening below. It's her one moment to be taller than everything else in the house.

Because we cut into so much of the kitchen wall, we have to completely reconfigure what we are going to do with that empty space.

Right now we've got a floor cabinet that we plan to mount this weekend, and above that we plan to hang three open shelves. We're finally getting some open shelving! I'm really excited about what we'll do with it.

We still have some touching up to do - like staining the wooden air return that we had to insert into the floor in the middle of the living/dining area, and refinishing the stairs themselves (the used to be covered with carpet, but Eric pulled it up during the renovation. The stairs are in good shape, but at a little paint splattered and need some refinishing and restoration before we're satisfied with them).

We've been living with the finished open floor plan for over a month now, and I still can't believe how in love with it I am. It's hard to think back to the time when we had a huge wall between our living and dining area - and I can't believe how we got along not being able to see the living room from the kitchen! Our home is brighter, seems bigger, and just feels a lot more homey and "us." 

We hope you like it too! Let us know in the comments below!

Your Weekly Pins

Now that wedding planning is o-v-e-r, over... my free time has been cleared up for very important things like.... Pinterest. So we're finally back with a new edition! Here's what caught my attention on Pinterest this week...

HOMEY

[These padded log stools could not be any easier (or cheaper!) to make. Perfect summertime seating for a barbecue!]


[So, yes, the wall in this room may be a little bold, but I'm more than slightly obsessed with it. the bright, happy colors... the great honeycomb design.... it would be a lot of work, but what a "wow" factor!]


[Have you ever noticed in catalogs or home design magazine that the beds are rarely ever made? But instead they're "haphazardly" layered with all these different colors and textures and more sheets and blankets than any normal human could ever fit on one bed? I want to be able to pull this look off. Half because I love the mixture of pattern and color, and half because I can get away without making the bed and it still would look good. Win win!]


[If I had a stark, plain-white room, I would brighten things up a bit with this super-bold patterned rug. I absolutely love it and its slightly bohemian vibe.]

[What a sweet, simple little bathroom in a small attic-type space. I love the beadboard walls and ceiling, and just the simplicity of it all.]



I WANT TO EAT THAT.

[One of my "this-is-not-necessary-but-I-want-it-anyway" wedding gifts was a KitchenAid ice cream maker attachment. I can't wait to bust that thing out to make all sorts of tasty cold concoctions (Jeni's cookbook, I'm looking at you...). The first one I make will probably be this Rhubarb Crisp ice cream. We've got rhubarb growing out the wazoo in our background, and it's begging to be turned into something delicious.]



[I totally buy into any cookie recipe whose name takes longer to say than the time it takes to wolf one down. So these Brown-butter salted-caramel Snickerdoodles caught my attention right away. Think about it: Brown butter - who doesn't love that? Salted caramel - well that makes any recipe better in my book. And a good ol' cinnamony Snickerdoodle? Why yes, please! All three of these combined are sure to make one boss baked good.]


[Once you've gorged yourself on half a dozen of the cookies above, you may be yearning for something a little on the healthier side. So whip up a batch of this Crunchy Cashew Thai Quinoa salad with Ginger-Peanut dressing. Doesn't the name just brighten your day? This would be the perfect side dish to a summer cookout with friends... or good just plopped into a bowl on its own!]


[Also a great dish to bring to a summer cookout? This Spicy Beer Queso with Chorizo and Black Beans. I'm sure I could eat a whole bowl of this all by myself.... with a spoon.]



I CAN HAZ STYLE?

[What a quick, simple and cute way to dress up a plain-old t-shirt! Add a fun-patterned pocket and, voila! A whole, fresh new look!]


[I love this pretty dress. It would be cute at the office or for a wedding guest! The bow detail up top is a great, structured touch.]



[Another great dress for summer! Pretty pastel colors and a shape that would flatter anyone, you could wear this dress anywhere, too!]



ADORABLES

[Oh hai, little dude (or dudette)! What'cha doin' in that big ol' basket, huh?]

There are plenty more where these came from! To see everything I pin all week long, follow me on Pinterest.