5.26.2012

Off the Beaten Aisle . . . 1

This is my first installation of Off the Beaten Aisle. If you didn't read my last post, its my weekly accumulation of wedding inspiration, and various rants and stresses ooh's and ah's.


This week I was feeling very DIY. Even though my fiance says no to the skil saw I want, I have many projects in mind and will one day get one. He thinks I'm gonna cut off my hand because I'm extremely accident prone. Doesn't everyone hit their head on the wall while putting on sandals?


Back to the DIY . . . 


I was trying to figure out centerpieces for my tables and I discovered that neither Jason or I are particularly fond of flowers. We don't hate them, but we don't love them either. They are expensive and they serve no purpose other than being pretty.


We have a problem with that because we are practical people living on a budget, and we are moderately minimalistic. Instead of stressing, it got us thinking of what we do like and looking at tons of photos. Here is what we discovered.


We like beer.
We like rustic wood.
We like burlap. (I LOVE burlap, so that means he likes it, too.)
We like convenience.
We like to repurpose and recycle.


All of those things come together to create the most awesome, DIY, rustic, fun, unique centerpieces ever. I'm not gonna give it away because there will be plenty pre-wedding project photos and many post-wedding photos, but here is our inspo. Enjoy.






Have fun figuring out what creations are stirring in my mind, and I can't wait to see you for my next week's installment of Off the Beaten Aisle!

5.19.2012

Wedding Inspo...

I am engaged and planning my wedding. One of my best friend's is engaged and planning her wedding. This is the best thing, ever. 


Jason thinks I'm crazy. My friend and I keep each other's sanity.


She is an amazing young woman who has endured so much in her life, most of what I have. Her wedding is going to be absolutely beautiful, and budget friendly :)


She is going to have a rustic, vintage rockabilly wedding. (Boy, am I excited for the hair-dos!)


As a gift to her I have decided to make her wedding veil. I know exactly what she wants, and it is going to look absolutely beautiful! It is going to be a birdcage veil, with bright orange poppies! 


Here is my inspiration: 


I am in love with the butterflies flowing over the side, and I'm going to try to replicate it with various-sized satin and tulle orange poppies. 


Here is a semi-front and semi-back view. This would pin perfectly for the way she is going to have her hair! I guess I should post a picture of how she wants her hair to be.


Her hair is short and blonde with brown and it will just look lovely in this style! I can't wait til her wedding day :) September 1st, come faster!!!


I am thinking of doing some themed blogging, hopefully to get myself at it everyday. Saturday is going to be called Off the Beaten Aisle. I'll share ideas, inspiration and some cute diy and stress-inducing moments along the way to my best friends wedding and my own. Get ready for the weekend!!

5.09.2012

Hop back on.

I feel as if I have been falling off the blogging wagon. I'm hopping back on, full-force. 


Life has been pretty hectic recently, my new puppy is a big handful, bigger than I expected him to be. He is super energized, especially at bed time. 


I recently received a promotion at work and many additional responsibilities, its not that I can't handle it, but I do the work of like four people. I've started eating better, but working out is still a little difficult with my little mister running around. Jason and I have completely different work schedules. My FAFSA was chosen to be audited so I have to get a ridiculous amount of paperwork. Also, my filing status was chosen to be audited at my college, so I have to get paperwork for that. And... (I know right) I have to petition for my financial aid to be reinstated because of surgeries and credit issues out of my control, so even more paper work for that. Said credit issues out of my control also placed a hold on my account, which means $$ out of my pocket or petitioning for a credit reimbursement. 


Okay, end of stressful paragraph. Needless to say, I've been a tiny bit preoccupied


I was perusing my Day Zero List and realized I only have a little more than a year and a half, and I still have a large amount of incomplete tasks. 88 tasks left. 88!! I am going to make a plan, an organized plan, to do at least 1 a month. If I don't complete them all, I will have at the very least completed 20 new things.


Organization makes me think of my previous blog post and the detrimental state of my home. I haven't got a chance to create my weekly menu plan. Well, I have gotten a chance, but I would rather sit down and do nothing more. Time to get motivated!!!! 


I also organized the closet in my spare bedroom today. Man, it was like a troll vomited bad. Realistically, it probably wasn't that bad, but I am a very neat person and any clutter drives me insane! It was just a jumble of things that didn't really have a home. So I gave everything a home! It now houses Jason and my golfing equipment, a large plastic tote for our Christmas decorations, a plastic tote for keeping our wedding odd and ends safe (like the groomsmen ties), all of our books since our bookcase broke and we have no money for a new one that isn't crappy. It also houses our fireproof, waterproof safe. I recommend everyone have one for super expensive things and super important documents, like SS cards and birth certificate originals. Nothing is as good as piece of mind. Except, maybe a piece of cake...


I am going to challenge myself, once again because I failed miserably last time, to create my menu plan. Also, to complete something on my DZL and make myself a cleaning schedule. My house is craving a good deep clean.


Stay joyous!