Lisa and Marty's Bridal Shower…By Me

This past weekend and days leading up to it derailed all other projects on my list….it was my sister's bridal shower.  Being the crafty human being that I am, I wanted to have a heavy hand in the design and creation of this special day for my one and only sister.

You saw the invitation that set the tone:

Sticking to our champagne theme, circles were a huge part of the design, along with the wedding colors coral and sea foam.  In designing this shower, I learned something very pivotal that will stick with me for every project moving forward.  Are you ready?….Keep things simple.  Yeah, as much as you may want to go gang busters with a bunch of different things, your vision will be easier to understand and execute if it is streamlined to only a few things.  We had one game, simple centerpieces, a few banners that directed the guests, signage, three colors, and four fonts that I stuck to.   That's it.  Take a look:

Guests were greeted when they entered Tazza Italian Ristorante by a champagne bar.
The circle garland signage was easy to make too…circle cutter to cut circles, printed letters cut out and hot glued pretty twine to it.  Easy peasy.

3 different juices with complimenting fruit garnishes.

I created the labels that were tied to each of the juice carafes.

Gifts were brought unwrapped per the bride's request.  Who wants to waste time opening up gifts!  Save a tree!

Centerpieces were wine decanters to tie in the bubbly theme, and flowers were provided by the amazing Viviana of Petal Play Design.

Favors were a mini bottle of champagne with this cute baggy containing a lip balm and bath salts from Sweet Pea Floral in Ann Arbor, MI.

Guests were asked to sign a very large champagne bottle that mom painted dark gray. 

Something to open on their 1st anniversary!

I made these cute cards for our one and only game.

And mom put pics of the bride and groom in these glass hanging bubbles.

And together we had the game "What Age?" where guests had to guess the ages of the bride and groom in each picture. It was a total hit!

Another hit…the macaroons by Artesa Bakery!

Needless to say, the couple was very happy with the turnout of the day as were all of the guests. The food was amazing, the game was a hoot and I don't think anyone felt tortured by spending a Sunday afternoon at a bridal shower celebrating Lisa and Marty.

#happybigsis

Christmas in Spring

Happy belated Easter!  I hope the weekend found you basking in the sun, enjoying good food and company.

With spring and the Easter holiday, life is starting to freshen up a bit, sprout something new and remind us of the brighter days ahead.  Delivering Kristen and Mark's painting was also like a "bud of new life" for me.    Finishing this painting kind of felt like winter after awhile.  It kept going on and on, and I couldn't believe how much time it was taking.  But then the delivery came.  Seeing the excited look on Kristen's face gave this painting and the process a whole new meaning.

I met Kristen and Mark over at Andrew's Garden to do the reveal.  What a reminder of spring!  The store was filled with color and sweet smells.

It doesn't hurt that I like to make receiving a painting feel like Christmas a little bit.

I love that all mouths are agape.

I'm looking forward to seeing Tonya's reaction photos from another angle.

This is my favorite.  Spring has sprung.  There is such amazement here.

So happy.

Being back at Andrew's Garden, delivering a painting that started with a love for flowers and my work made me want to start pulling at the buckets and putting together something new.  Onto a new season,  another painting and having my windows open regularly.

Here's some inspiration for you.  Who wants to customize their own painting with these beauties...

Big thanks to Andrew's Garden for all their help in making this painting possible.  Their support is unimaginable.
And, a gynormous thank you to Kristen and Mark for bringing my art to life in a way I had not yet experienced.  I'm forever grateful.

FORM Recap and Painting Reveal

Inhale and exhale.  FORM has come and gone.  Inhale and exhale.  Kristen's painting is finished.  Inhale and exhale.  What's next?  Oh there are always more things lined up.

First off, let's recap FORM: ART + floral 2014 held at Room 1520.  Wow!  What an evening!  We had an amazing turnout and lots of funds raised for Snow City Arts.  We couldn't be prouder and more humbled by our team that made the whole event come together.  Big thanks to all of our sponsors:

Room 1520

Elysia Root Cakes

Pure Kitchen Catering

Speedpro Imaging

Kio Kreations

Jennifer Kathryn Photography

Art of Imagination

Classic Party Rentals

The florists really pulled out all the stops on their creations this year, but it was all thanks to some amazing artwork selected by our curators, Marcela Andrade and Jeremy Kreusch.

More pics to come from Jennifer Kathryn Photography, but for now, here are a few amateur setup shots.

Flowers Flowers

Life Made Pretty

Kio Kreations

Fab Flora

Wild Orchid

Number two item up for release….Kristen and Mark's painting.  I finally finished it this weekend, and I could not be prouder of it.  Topping out at 79.25 hours (longest to date), I think this is the custom painting they were looking to have created.

Saturday is the delivery date for this perty piece  We are all meeting at Andrew's Garden for the reveal, and you bet I'll be documenting it!  Can't wait to share!

Onto my next projects….another painting, a bridal shower, a monogram sticker project, and some prints going up on the Etsy page!  Gotta get to work!!!

Buy Your Tickets to FORM!

There has been lots of planning and preparation leading up to this year's FORM event, and I couldn't be happier with how everything has come together.

It's time for you to purchase your ticket to tomorrow's big event!!!  All donations benefit Snow City Arts…which you should also check out.  Get your tickets now right HERE!!!

Mirror Mirror on the Wall

As you know, I gave in to slowing down on my current painting, rather than college cramming.  I put in some additional time at the Wheaton Wedding Walk this weekend to keep things moving along.  There's really not much left!

One of the projects that occupied some time this week was a special table seating chart for the Bride's Choice event going on tonight from 6pm-9pm at Room 1520.  If you'd still like to get tickets, they are available here.  Clementine Custom Events asked if I would help them out with their display, and I was all too eager to showoff my skills.  Below is a mirror I wrote on with wash-off-able marker.  It's tricky to take a picture of a mirror!

Stop by and see how this Frenchie display fits into Clementine's Parisian inspiration!