Sunday, February 27, 2011

Going wedding crazy - 500 days: day 13

Making twine wrapped balls from memory is a little harder than I imagined!! I tried one ball, by wrapping the twine around a balloon, gluing it and then painting the twine white. BIG MISTAKE! Once I popped the balloon, all the paint that dried to it stuck to the twine and now just looks like a mess! So I tried it another way. First I painted the twine and then rubbed glue all over the pieces and wrapped the balloon. That seemed to work a little better, although a LOT more messy. I'm still not getting the same effect that I can imagine in my head. So, upon talking it over with Adrian, we both decided it would be best to try a white cottony yarn or thick string, dye it the colours we want and THEN use the gluing mixture to adhere it to the balloon. I'm excited to try it with dye and yarn, I think it will work a whole lot better than the last two methods. At least now I know what NOT to do, as far as these decorations are concerned.

When I attempted the first twine ball, I mixed far too much of the glue mixture and had a whole bowl of it left over. I have been saving cans, jars and containers for a few weeks, so we can use them as decorative containers for the coffee/tea bar and the dessert bar items. So, with the left over glue I decided to get a head start on my plans for the containers. I sorted through all my scrapbook papers and pulled out the ones that I thought would incorporate nicely into our wedding decor theme. I cut various sizes and pieces, as well as pieces of tissue paper. I covered the entire surface of each container with pretty pieces of paper, until I achieved the look I was going for. OMG do they ever look cute!! The twine balls may not have turned out the way I wanted, but these containers sure did! I then tied some ribbons around the tops and once I get my menu all sorted out we will make little labels for each one, saying what each holds. This project was SOOO much fun for me =) Yay for gluing!

I also attempted another tissue paper pom ... this one actually turned out relatively like what I had pictured, but still not as round as I had hoped. So, I keep trying.

I guess you could say that last night I went a little wedding crazy!! But I'm really happy that I attempted the twine balls, weeding out the do-not's of twine balls =)

Hopefully next post I can upload some photos of what I've made so far =)

Thanks for reading =)

xxoxoxoxoxox

Saturday, February 26, 2011

500 days: day 12

So, I've missed a few days of wedding preparations!! I'm pretty behind on my calendar of things to get done. But that's okay, I won't start actually worrying until, you know, it gets closer to the actual day. I think I may have taken on too big of a challenge by wanting to make all my own decorations, food, etc and planning everything myself. Oh the joys of a limited budget!! I'm just thankful that I have lots of extra time and most things I want to make can be made from supplies from the dollar store. I LOVE THE DOLLAR STORE!!

I really want to be able to make most, if not all, decorations from dollar store supplies. It would really really take some stress off the budget. And I hope, that by writing about my budget adventures, I will inspire other brides who have the same budget stress that I'm facing =)

Whenever I come across a decoration idea, I like to try it out and make a 'proto-type', so I have something to look back at as a reference. So far I've tried making some tissue paper poms, but I keep ripping the tissue paper or I don't add enough layers.. so I keep trying!!

Today I'm thinking of attempting a new project. Adrian found some twine in the closet, and I remember seeing a tutorial once on how to make twine hanging balls, using twine, balloons, paint and glue. So I'm going to try making a few, from memory, and see how they turn out. **I just had to run to the dollar store because upon an extensive search, we realized there were no balloons.**

The twine is in the gluing stage. Have to wait for it to dry completely before I can paint it. I'm excited!! It looks like it really might work.

It will probably take over night to dry, so I will post the finished product tomorrow!!

Thanks for reading.

xxoxoxoxox

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Last night's dinner

I really enjoy cooking dinner. Like I've said in the past, I enjoy cooking, even though I'm not the greatest cook by any means. I can't make rice to save my life, I either burn it or I under-cook it. I always leave that up to Adrian .. he makes a good rice ;) But I'm good at other things ... like making dishes that use up all the random ingredients and left overs that are scattered throughout my kitchen. One dish I'm particularly proud of is a shepherd's pie that I first made months ago, using ground pork. This time I used ground beef and it was just as amazing =)





I really love making this meal, as you can throw pretty much anything in it, and it will always taste awesome! (And by 'pretty much anything',I mean veggies, macaroni noodles, spices ... not peanut butter or chocolate chips :P). I also love this dish because it's SOOO easy to make. I'm sure everyone has their own way of making a dish like this, but here's how I made this one.

You'll Need:

-one package of ground meat (I used extra lean beef)
-about 6 medium sized potatoes
-any veggies you feel like tossing in (I used: onion, green pepper, red pepper, celery, peas, carrots, black olives, banana peppers and some left over homemade french fries I made the night before ... chopped up into small bits)
-any seasoning you like to use (I used: taco seasoning, salt, pepper, basil, garlic powder)
-gravy or any sauce you want to add as a topping (I used cheese soup)
-butter or milk for whipping the potatoes (I loooove to use butter and cream cheese - soooo good!!!)

What You Do:

-preheat oven to about 350F
-Peel and cut your potatoes into mash-able sizes. Then add them to a pot of cold water with a little salt. (Whenever I make boiled potatoes I always add peas and onions ..it's like a weird obsession I have!). Bring to boil.
-At the same time as you add your potatoes to the stove, toss your meat into a frying pan and get it going.
-Cut up your veggies. I prefer to use frozen veggies so I do this step first so they get some time to thaw first.
-When the meat is beginning to brown but still a little red, I add the veggies. I don't know how other people do it, but I like my veggies to be soft. When all the red is gone from the meat, I add the spices.
-Once the meat is cooked and the potatoes are boiled, remove meat from heat and drain potatoes. You'll want to let everything cool for a few minutes - I'd say about 5-10 minutes ... or however long it takes to preheat your oven.
-Whip the potatoes in a bowl, using your choice of milk, butter, cheese etc.
-Get your baking dish and pour the meat mixture into the bottom - I like to use a small square one so the pie is more hearty!
-spread the whipped potatoes on to the top of the meat
-bake in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until the potato topping is baked to your desire.
-Wait a few minutes before serving or everyone will have burned mouths!!
-add your gravy or sauce
-ENJOY IT! Make sure you say MMMMMMMM after every bite, totally makes it taste better ;)



I'd love to know what you all do differently when you make shepherd's pie!!

A special thanks to my wonderful fiancé who took the photos, even though all he wanted to do was eat the subject ;)

Thanks for reading =)

xxoxxoxoxoxoxox

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

500 Days: day 8

I just spent the past two hours working on our wedding budget. Ugh, it's so hard to plan a budget when you don't have any money to budget with!! I'm already a month behind on my monthly savings plan ... but crossing my fingers that we will be able to double next months savings, to make up for it. I started out with a "potential" budget of $3,000 (as per my savings plan). I came out at the end with a total of $3,110. Yikes!! If I'm already OVER budget and I haven't even purchased anything or made any commitments, we are in serious trouble... or are we? I mean, there's still lots of time to save, but it's still stressful to think about. And, as I plan on making mostly everything myself (decorations, bouquets, etc) I should be able to cut costs in a few areas.

We already know where we'd potentially like to get married and it's a place that we could have both the ceremony and reception at... and THAT would be a huge budget saver!! I could cut a big chuck off, because it's also pretty cheap. But I'm keeping my options open, as we have only seen the area full of snow. So we are waiting for spring when we can view its full potential! I have high hopes for this place, so let's keep our fingers crossed!

When I got finished with the budget I started on the dinner menu. What another pain in my arse. I would love to just have the whole thing catered and not have to worry about any of it. I gave up after a few minutes of writing down my ideas, because I was getting too ahead of myself. I know that I want to have as many summer-y time food items as possible, but there are just so many options that I can't contain it to just a few selections!! I'm thankful for Adrian's grandpa, who offered to help with the food ... he's a great cook, so I'm excited to have his help!!

I have lots of big plans for all the decorations I want to make. That's the part I'm mot looking forward too =)

Well .. that and dress shopping with Gina. I can't wait to go try on pretty dresses!!!

Thanks for reading =)

xxoxoxoxx

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Starting a new blog!

No wedding project for today as Adrian and I were busy re-arranging our house. We are also getting ready to start a new blog together. So exciting!! I just finished the first tutorial which will be posted tomorrow. You can check the blog out here I wrote an introduction to the blog last night as the first post =)

We moved my craft "room" out to the office area in the living room. However, it's still just one wall, like in the bedroom. But I get to be closer to Adrian, so that's nice =)

Thanks for reading!! And don't forget to check out our blog!!

xxoxxoxoxox

Friday, February 18, 2011

500 days: day 4

I had some great plans for the day 4 project. But that was until I went to sit and came down too hard on my right side and now I'm trapped on the couch. It hurts too much to move =(

But, all is not lost, I still have lots I can talk about!

I have been searching and searching the interwebs for inspiration for my wedding. When I started thinking about it, like 2 minutes after we got **"engaged" I wanted my colour theme to be black and white with fuchsia pink accents. However, I've since settled on a more lighter colour pallet, more pastel and vintage-y, rather than glam-ish art deco. I really love the idea of a vintage garden party where the guests are drinking tea from cute flowery tea cups and playing croquet and bocce ball. I've already enlisted help from Adrian's mom and grandparents. Their current task is to find as many of those cute flowery tea cups as possible (for as cheap as possible)!! I figure I have to start now if I'm going to find enough for at least one per guest.

I haven't added much to my "wedding shelf" lately. Just another chuck of fabric I found amongst my piles.

**engagement story here

Well that's all for me tonight =)

Thanks for reading!

xxooxxoo

Thursday, February 17, 2011

cha-cha-chaaanges

I redecorated my blog!! I was feeling kinda blah about my old, out-dated colours. I feel much better now =)

Unfortunately I was so busy fussing with my blog design that I didn't get around to my wedding project of the day. But that's okay, because most of it was supposed to consist of conversing with my bestie about things that Adrian doesn't want to talk about, but she went out of town instead! So day 3 of the countdown was a bust .. oh well, there's still 527 days left!

Thanks for reading =)

xxoxoxoxoxxooo

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Something finished, something started,,, 500 days - day 2

I finally got this custom order finished! I'm so happy with the final products!



I love them!

Today is day 2 of the countdown to our wedding. 528 days! (But I'm probably only going to blog for about 500 of those days ;))

I'm soooo excited that my best friend Gina is going to be my maid of honour AND my most favourite far-away friend, Jess, is going to be my brides maid. I have started a wedding blog, when I remember the web address I will post a link here!! Hehehe.

ANYWAY!

So today's project of the countdown was the guest list. I really want to finalize our list by the middle of March, because I have OCD and I'm obsessed with being organized.

Halle sniffed the pens and tried to eat one, and when I asked her who she wanted to invite she said "mmmmwwweeeeooowwwwwoommeeoooww" (which means: heeeaaadbaaandd). Yes, my kitten <3's headband. Ohh, cute kitten distractions!

I added 3 pages of guest list to my wedding binder and made sure I scheduled a date to be finished the list. And then my stomach was ready for dinner so finished for another day, I was.



And here's a cute picture of Halle from our Kamloops days, because you're all probably dying to see what my cute kitten looks like ;)



Thanks for reading!

xxxxxxoooxoxxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Wedding prep and custom orders - 500 Days: 1

I've decided to start blogging about our adventures down the wedding planning road. There is exactly 529 days until we take the plunge, so to speak. I'm going to try and blog every day about what planning I've done, but I'm sure there will be some days that I don't get around to it! There is a lot to do and because I'm going to be making pretty much everything (except my dress), I figure I should probably start soon! I've cleaned out a small section of shelf in the linen closet, which is where I will be storing all my wedding goodies, so nothing gets lost or destroyed. Here is what it looks like so far:



So far the shelf contains my wedding binder, some fabric I will find some use for, a baggie with some small paper flowers and the start to our invites, and our first box of wedding decorations ... for the car! Guess you could say it's our first wedding "gift" as Adrian's grandma bought it for us.

I recently got my first custom order from a friend on Facebook! She requested some "teachery" type magnets (because she's a teacher) that matched her office decor colours of red and white. I was excited to start this project as I've only made very few magnets before and they've only been flowers. I love challenging tasks like this, to see how far I can stretch my creativity!! I came up with a few ideas. I'm pretty proud of what I've come up with so far.



This apple is sooo cute! I'm so happy it turned out so good.... even though I knew it would ;)



I'm toying around with the flag w/ numbers, I think it will look pretty neat once it's finished. Just not too sure if it's going to be too big. I made the pencil out of felt. Adrian says it doesn't look like a pencil because it's not yellow. But it's just to get an idea if I'm on the right track for my customer. I still think it looks cool, even though it's not yellow =)

Anyway, it looks like it's going to be a beautiful day so I think I'm going to try and get out and enjoy it!

Thanks for reading =) (And check back every day as I plan my way to wedded bliss!)

xxxoxoxxxoooxxxx

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Rough Waters

We have hit a very hard patch lately. The job hunts have not been going well... and blah blah blah. I'm not going to get into all my troubles but I will say that it's resulted in some depressing times.

We've decided on some things that will greatly change our lifestyles, including getting rid of our tv. I need to spend some more time working on my accessories and getting exercise. I think it will be good for the both of us =)

I listed some new items on Etsy today. I have been playing around with other types of handmade crafty things. I've still got the pink and navy blue wedding bouquet on the go ... on the slow go! But I have also started a new paper flower wedding bouquet... OMG it's super cute! I've also made some fridge magnets which I've listed.





I love making paper flowers =)

I also looooooove making fabric flowers and bows ;)






Well... that's really all I had to say.

Check my Etsy here for all my other great listings =)

Thanks for reading!

xoxxoxoxoxoxoxxxxoo

Sunday, February 6, 2011

sick days

So lately I've been under a LOT of stress. This stress caused me to get sick. I put everything on hold and sat on the couch for a week, drinking green tea and sneezing and sniffling. I'm feeling much better now, thank goodness. Although there's still some lingering stress, needing to find jobs so we can pay rent, bills... stuff like that. But part of me is thankful that no one called this past week about a job, as I would have been too sick to go to work anyway! I've also been able to get through this week thanks to my amazing fiancée, who tended to my every whiny demand. He's so great <3. I found something new that I love when I'm sick. Sinus massages. Especially right between the eyes... it feels like heaven when everything around your eyes feels tight and sore. So wonderful!

Anyway, I'm back now. Have a few handmade things to finish up so I can post them on Etsy... I've made a few non-hair accessories... like some cute flower fridge magnets. I'm looking for ways to use up some of my random bits and pieces so I can make room for more hair accessory stuff. Still working on that bridal bouquet ... it's turning out to be quite a challenge!! It's probably going to take me longer than I thought to finish. Started work on a REALLY cute brown and cream felt hair bow ... but then my sewing machine threw a hissy fit and the stitches went all askew. Then I gave up when the needle randomly fell out of the machine. I think I will have another go at it today... I've got another idea for the bow now.

It's snowing today. Yesterday was so beautiful and sunny and warm ... it was such a good day to go out after being inside for a week. Now it's dark and cold again =(

Haven't made much progress with the wedding plans... but that will come with time. I'm working on the guest list right now, my limit of guests is 100 people ... that's all we will be able to afford with our budget!! Planning a wedding is so exciting... I wish I could do it for a living!

Well that's all for me =)

Thanks for reading.

xxoooxxxooox