Day 20

What a wonderful day!

I spent the whole day with my wonderful dad today!! 

He and I used to have days like this all the time. I was his faithful errand companion growing up. I just loved and took every opportunity I could to spend time with him. I can remember running errands with him or being on little daddy/daughter dates with him, when I was younger, and getting this knot in my stomach. A good knot. A knot of excitement, love, acceptance, value. I can remember it welling up inside of me until I couldn't hold it in any longer and it would erupt in a little fit of giggles. Today was one of those days. 

We started at 11 this morning. I had to finish up some church work, so he met me at Solid Rock. Then we ran over to Walgreens to refill a couple of prescriptions, before heading downtown in search of my veil. We stopped in a little bridal boutique and had some luck. I found one that would do, but it wasn't exactly what I had been envisioning. But there was another bridal boutique just one block down, so we headed there next.

I was really impressed by this boutique! They were so eager to help me and dressed me up in veil after veil! I eventually found two veils. I liked part of one and part of the other. My perfect veil, the one of my dreams, was going to be a combination of these two veils.

 [side note: I've been praying through this whole wedding planning process that God would go before me and be putting things into place. I also prayed that when I realized that I had dropped the ball and had forgotten to do something, that God would have already been working it out, so it would all just fall into place once I realized. I'm so glad and humbled that the God who created the universe cares about my wedding and me and has been answering that prayer over and over again.]

As it turns out, the designer of the two veils that I loved and wanted to combine, was in that day. I was told that she never meets face to face with customers, but for some reason she agreed to meet and talk with me. She said that it was no problem at all to do what I wanted and she would have something for me to try on this coming week!! 

Praise God from Whom all blessings flow! 

My dad was so sweet and patient through the whole veil process. He even held mirrors up for me so I could see the back of my head. I had kind of assumed that he would have liked me to wear more of a traditional, long veil, but he loved me in the birdcage veil and was very supportive. He even helped me pick out a little flower hair clip! It has little lace petals in it that will match my dress splendidly!

After all that hard work we needed some lunch! We stopped by some food carts and enjoyed some delicious Portland food. 

Me: Thai (of course!) Him: Big steak burrito.

Next stop was Urban Outfitters. It turns out that Urban is one of the few places with yellow high heels these days! I would have never imagined that it could be so hard to find some cute yellow heels! Last week, as I left the cafeteria, I saw a girl wearing yellow, suede heels. I chased her down and asked when and where she had gotten her shoes. She gave me all the details and I thanked her for being the one to find my wedding shoes (there have been several girls trying to find yellow shoes for me)! 

Urban was out of the shoe, but they ordered me some from the website with almost free shipping (would have been completely free, but I needed two day shipping). We ended up ordering me two sizes, just to make sure my bases were covered if one was too big or too small. 

Then we went to Shane Company to get Peter's wedding ring. Peter and I went in and picked out a ring a couple weeks ago, but I wanted to buy it and everything by myself. It felt really good to get that all taken care of. It's kind of silly, but I'm really excited for Peter to have a ring too. I just LOVE my ring! I know he won't feel quite the same way about his ring, as I do about mine. How could he? His doesn't have any diamonds! (Which is a good thing. He is a man and doesn't know to care about those. They would really have been wasted on him.) But, I hope he will like it or at least like what it means, as much as I like mine. 

At 6 o'clock, my dad and I headed to the Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve for the annual Tweet of Dreams auction. My dad is one of the JBWP board members and was emceeing the auction. I had so much fun being his date! They were able to raise a ton of money to update some of the exhibits in the nature center. The night was a great success! 

If you've never been to Jackson Bottom Wetlands, you should definitely plan a trip out there! It is so fun and so beautiful! I always thought I would get married on the big observation deck overlooking the pond and a gorgeous sunset backdrop. Unfortunately, the deck only holds about 100 people. That was never going to work!

You may have been wondering where my mom was during this wedding-y day... My lucky mom was down in Corvallis visiting my brother for OSU's Moms' Weekend. One of the gals at the bridal boutique asked why my mom wasn't there to help me find my veil. I happily told her that she was visiting my brother! I am so glad that they got to spend the weekend together! 

  And it was really fun to have that special day with my daddy. I know we won't always be able to do that. 

Oh! I almost forgot! At one point this afternoon, my dad and I went into First Baptist, where Peter and I are getting married. I needed to drop of the craft for tonight's gathering. The church was quiet and empty. My dad told me to follow him. I followed him up the side of the sanctuary and through a row of pews, until we found ourselves at the end of the aisle that we will walk down together in just twenty short days. "Let's practice!" He said. 

So we did. It was such a special experience to try it out and get the feel for it together. Just the two of us. 

20 days until the wedding

love,

m.

Day 24

Oh, hello there! Remember me? 

I'm the silly girl that thought she would be able to upload a new blog post everyday between now and her wedding. So much for that!

But, I'm here now! Hooray!

Between day 29 and today, not much wedding stuff has happened. I still haven't found my veil. Ugh. I'm going to find one by Saturday. I'm determined. My mom will be visiting my brother at college this weekend, so I asked my dad if he would go veil shopping with me. I think he is pretty excited. 

Another thing that is only half way finished is the order for the pies. I've talked to the baker a few times and have given them my order. At this point, we are just haggling a bit. I'm buying about 100 pies! I think they ought to be able to work something out for me price wise. If not, that's totally fine too. 

It would just be nice. 

{source}

Another wedding to-do, is the playlist for the band. They have a whole list of songs that they know. What I really need to do is figure out which of the songs Peter and I don't want played at our wedding. Feel free to leave a comment with any cheesy wedding songs that you think our wedding should be free from.  :)

I think that is it for tonight. 

Talk to you all soon!

24 days

love,

m.

Day 29

 You probably guessed by the title of this post...

There are only 29 days until the wedding! 

I'm going to try my darndest to post everyday until the wedding. I hope to capture moments and thoughts in here so I can look back after the crazy has ended and remember all of the fun things that went on. I'm finding that I've been getting a bit hazy and space-y as I struggle to juggle my teacher education program and wedding planning. If I can't even remember people's names (people I've known for years) anymore, than I certainly can't expect to remember all of the fun little planning and prepping details. Right?

Things to remember:

1.   Last Saturday Terry Rathkey threw me a lovely shower. This was the one she (not me!) deemed the "Old Lady Shower." This was the shower for all of Peter's mom's friends. It was a fun and beautiful shower. I felt so loved by all of those women as they showered me with prayer, advice, hugs, and also presents. It was really moving to feel so supported by women of God whom I had just meet minutes before. What a huge blessing.  

          Here are a few pictures of the decorations 

(I'll add more pictures once I get them from my mom's camera):

(Soon to be filled)

Terry had our wedding invitation displayed out on the
table as well as one of our engagement pictures.

My little vegan, gluten-free cupcake. It was so yummy!

(Did you notice all the food label cards are hand embossed? Not a detail was overlooked by Miss Terry!)

2.    Last night, Kathy threw me a darling bridal shower! (My last one, with the exception of the lingerie party.) She adoringly titled that shower the "misfits'" shower. A wonderful mix of women from my dad's school, my practicum school, my old church, and my small group. It was an odd little bunch, but a very fun and special bunch.

We ate yummy dairy-free, gluten-free treats and played the funniest shower game! All the ladies were given a piece of paper with a cut out picture of my head at the top. They then had to rifle through a stack of wedding magazines and create a wedding ensemble that they thought I would like. The outcome was so creative and so funny!

Abby and Kylie working on their wedding ensemble.

The winning wedding ensemble was made up of a darling, anthro-esque wedding dress, a diamond ring that was about 11 carats big (if not more!), as well as a diamond encrusted necklace and set of earings. These ladies sure know what I like!

After a little devotional and prayer time, we opened some presents!

Here I am, super stoked over my Capri Blue- Volcano candle. 

And here I am simply adoring my new apron. This is the first one I've gotten as a soon-to-be wife, but I think this makes number five in my collection. I just love aprons! 

(I rarely do laundry or anything really without one on.)

Things to do:

1. I really need to order the pies for the reception.

2.  I really, really need to find my birdcage veil.

3.  I really, really, really need to study for my Hebrews- Rev. exam tonight. 

4.  I need to craft something! I haven't done a project since last Friday and I am itching! I will have to wait until tomorrow night though, when I will have a little free time again.

29 days

Happy crafting!

Love,

m.

Resurfacing

I am resurfacing.

Entering back into the world and reality. 

School and responsibility.

It's easier to do after a fun, filled weekend like this last one!

Here's what I was up to Friday night:

Peter and I went to my folks' house for our weekly dinner. I love this night. We eat my mom's yummy food, watch something funny, and I usually sew or craft something wedding-y with my mom. This night was not much different than normal, except that my sweet brother came home from Corvallis for the weekend!! Hooray!

 My mom was so thrilled to have "all of her children" back in her house, that she decided to spoil us with delicious Zab Thai take out.  After dinner, I got to crafting! It was so fun to listen to my dad, brother and Peter laughing in the other room, while my mom and I cut fabric in the dining room.

My first project was a set of coasters for Britta's birthday. 

Quilting away on my little coasters!

Here's one that's been pressed, cut, and quilted. The large border of fabric eventually got trimmed down, and then hand stitched to form the binding. Thank goodness for my mom. She is an awesome hand stitcher!  I couldn't see a single stitch! 

Here's the finished product! I thought they were pretty darn cute. 

My next project was a pot holder made for my sweet friend Hannah. 

Hannah is one of my bridesmaids, and I am one of her's! She is getting married 22 days after Peter and I. Saturday night, she had a lingerie shower. We were instructed to bring a lingerie gift and something for the kitchen. 

So... I made a pot holder to go with the anthro panties I got her.

My plan was to make two, but I rediscovered my pot holder-sized attention span during this project.

I first discovered this anomaly during my days as a knitter. I started scarf after scarf, but I never finished one! Right about the time that my scarf reached a perfect square, I'd start to get the itch. The "I think I'm bored of this yarn" itch. So I'd cast off and stick another pot holder in my knitting bag.  

After I finished this pot holder, I was ready to be done for the night.

I used a green/blue color palette to match Hannah's future kitchen. The block pattern that I followed is called a "wonky log cabin." A new, improved take on the traditional "log cabin" pattern. 

I love this pattern for two reasons:

1. I love the word "wonky". I just really like it. 

2. I love what makes it wonky. The lines are all crooked and uneven. It adds so much interest and moves your eye all around the block. 

Hannah really liked her pot holder and Britta loved her coasters. I had so much fun making them!

Look out friends! Be expecting cutesy, quilted coasters for your next birthday!

32 days!!

Happy crafting!

m.

Pinwheels!

Hello there! 

This has been a busy week for me! Lots of stuff going on with my classes. I have final projects fast approaching which means final exams aren't too far off either. Ahh! On the bright-side, that also means that the wedding will be here soon too! 

Speaking of wedding... I need to let you in on my current (wedding) craft! 

Pinwheels!

{insert adoring sigh here}

So- there is this black curtain drape that hangs in our reception ballroom. It is meant to hide and drown out some of the caterer hullabaloo. It is a perfectly fine black, velvet curtain, the only trouble is that it is black and it is velvet**. Those two things just don't fit my wedding.

What's a girl left to do but make pinwheels to hang in lovely, little, random rows to distract the eye from the black and velvet by wooing it with adorableness and femininity? 

I saw the idea at Paper Zone a while back and lucky for me they had little instruction sheets on how to make them! I, of course, had to adapt their tutorial a bit to fit my own perfectionist needs. I created a little system/process that not only speeds up my production time, but also ensures that all of my pleats come out even!

I have about 40 or so made right now. I have a couple bags of them at my folks house, about 12 pinwheels sitting in the floor in Peter's living room, and 10 or so in my own living room. Actually, there may even be a few more over at the Buchstaber's house! Britta and Lucy offered to help me in my pinwheel efforts and took home a big stack of paper a few weeks ago. 

I'm hoping to have a hundred or so done in time for the wedding. 

I'm planning to post a little pinwheel tutorial at some point. I'll provide more details about the paper and other supplies then. 

36 days!!

Happy crafting!

m.

**Secret shame: I wore black, velvet pants for the majority of my elementary school career. I was so picky about how things felt. My poor mama couldn't have gotten me in a pair of jeans even if she'd offered me a million dollars. Had I started planning this wedding when I was 10 years old, I'm sure the black, velvet curtain would have been a huge hit with me! 

it all started with a little amy butler...

My mom is a quilter. 

That word tends to elicit visions of white hair, grandma glasses, terrible textiles, and dated patterns.

Allow me to clarify. My mom is what they call a modern quilter. 

What does that mean? 

No white hair, no glasses chained to the neck, and NO TERRIBLE TEXTILES!

Modern quilters use modern fabrics and modern designs. My mom works with the most gorgeous of gorgeous fabrics, and has turned me into a bit of a textile snob myself. I have found myself head over heels for Amy Butler, Anna Maria Horner, Heather Bailey, Tanya Whelen, and the like.

Well, my wonderfully modern mom took on a pretty big project for the wedding. She decided to help me out, by taking care of all of the favors for the wedding party and the important gals in my life that I wanted to honor at the bridesmaids' dinner.

It all started with a little Amy Butler...

Soul Blossoms

Each gathered clutch was stuffed with tissues, Godiva chocolates, hand sanitizer, Bath & Body Works minty lip gloss, nail file, and mints. A little wedding day survival kit. 

Aren't they just darling?? 

I could not have been more pleased with how they turned out. The gals at the dinner just adored them as well! Good work, mom! Thank you!

To see a more comprehensive write-up for the gathered clutch process, check out my mom's blog here!

39 days until the wedding.

Happy crafting!

m.

Whew!

Whew! It has been a busy busy couple of days! 

I spent Friday in class, worked that afternoon, then to church to work on the Sunday school craft, slipped in a run before Peter and I went to my parent's house for dinner. After dinner I got to crafting and creating. I had a few little projects to finish for the bridesmaids' dinner.

First thing: flower arrangements

Simple, but pretty. 

I used quart sized mason jars, filled each with 2 dozen white tulips, and tied a fabric sash around the mouth of each jar.

Each jar was tied with a different fabric. 

No matchy matchy!

I decided to do a dry run of the table scape on my parent's dining room table.

I placed 12 votive candles in pint size mason jars and spread those around the table too! I also added some white tulle which I laid flat down the center and some yellow tulle that I twisted into a rope. I then weaved the twisted rope around the flowers and pulled it here and there to loosen it and "poof" it.

Then it was on to the name place cards:

I chose a natural brown paper from Paper Zone, found a tag template using Google Images, and printed it out on the paper. Then I cut, cut, cut!  I also shrunk the image a bit and printed it on to some white paper to use as a rough guide for the second layer on the tag.

Next, I pulled out my silver sharpie, which I adore!!

I wrote the name of each dinner attendee on a white piece and glued it to a brown tag. Then I punched a whole at the top of the tag. I strung some left over fabric salvage through the whole of each tag to get...

this!

Here's a close up:

The lighting makes it kind of hard to see the name in this picture, but you get the idea.

That was Friday, here is Saturday:

I spent a few hours out in Troutdale to take the ORELA (Oregon Educators Licensure Assessments).

This test is what Oregon uses to determine whether or not they will give someone a teaching license. Kind of a big deal for a girl going to school to be a teacher! 

When that was said and done, I rushed to Hillsboro to help my mom prep the event room.

The finished product:

Do you see the little clutch bag in the above picture?

Those were our favors for the bridesmaids and gals that came to the dinner. 

My mom is amazing and made over 20! I will tell you all about them in my next post.

Thanks, Mom for all of your help!

(Thanks, Dad for funding our little event!)

40 days until the wedding!

Happy crafting!

m

Welcome!

Good afternoon and welcome to my blog! 

For my first official blog post, I think it is appropriate to tell you all a little bit more about myself. 

I am engaged to an amazing man named Peter. 

He is so good to me. 

Thoughtful and Patient. 

Romantic and fun. 

Responsible and adventurous. 

Hard working and supportive. 

I am so excited to be his wife!

This is my fabulous family: 

My incredibly wonderful and talented brother, Michael

and

My loving and supportive parents, Steve and Joan 

(who are both also incredibly wonderful and talented)

Here's a better picture of my mom and I. 

Isn't she so pretty?

Before I leave you, I want to show you my current craft!

These are the invitations that I made for the bridesmaids' luncheon dinner, that my mom is throwing this weekend. I will spend tomorrow afternoon helping her design the flower arrangements and get everything prepped and ready for the dinner.

Happy crafting!

love,

m