Monday, October 20, 2008

pretty things: holly stalder

while killing time online a few weeks ago,

i stumbled upon a fabulous, fellow esty shop owner:

Holly Stalder - she's an independent designer here on the West Coast and she makes such pretty things, here are some of my favorites.

hopefully, soon this will be mine....


wouldn't this make a great holiday dress?

and i'm a huge fan of anything eyelet...
 look at this cute shrug i found at her website 

oh and this... antique lace shrug

it's all so feminine and beautiful, i wish i could go on a shopping spree,
 but for now, i'll start with the tank and work up from there! =)






Thursday, October 16, 2008

Thank you!

i just wanted to take a second to shout out to all of you new clients - y'all know who you are =)
i've had many orders in the JDV etsy shop this past week for my petite eternite necklace, no doubt i owe the thanks to Myra Callan for the publicity... but i wanted to welcome all you new readers who have stopped by to take a look at what Joie de Vie is all about... thanks for the interest, and i hope to have the opportunity to work with you sometime soon!

Blair

oh how brilliant...


i found this while sitting waiting during my jury duty day....
and this is when i start thinking, man i WISH i thought of this! i showed it to the hubs tonight and he took a confused look at what i was flashing in front of his face... then he lit up ...
(well maybe that was the computer screen)
and he said "i need one of these for you, where do i sign you up"
enough said

check it out: the little pink card

ps. but you better believe that i'll be making one for the hubs since i'm such a DIYer =)

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

my civic duty

well... more like county than anything... dear readers, i write to you from a bench on the 11th floor of the Orange County Central Courthouse where i'm sitting and playing the waiting game for jury duty.

i guess this day can kinda be counted as a blessing in disguise, the gov't has made serving a little more friendly and productive by allowing us to use complimentary WiFi while we wait... this way we can be amused, happier, and perhaps even get work done!

so i just thought i'd write this post to let you know that you can expect to see more frequent posts from me - since i'll try to use this day to get caught up on blog posts.

-Blair

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Dear Myra :

what can i say other than, you and your Twigs & Honey are just too sweet! i've been meaning to post this since you featured JDV Accessories on your blog... what can i say other than thank you!

and the only way i could think to thank you is to showcase your talent, and how it helped personalize my recent wedding. so, the story goes something like this....




a few months back i stumbled upon Twigs & Honey just as many others did... via Weddingbee, Brooklyn Bride PI & P2, and then Style Me Pretty too...


each time i bumped into Myra's wedding/work online, i became more and more inspired not only in planning my wedding, but finding something to call my very own from all of her many wonderful designs. well... one night i happened to be stalking her blog (as i usually did in the wee hours of the night, like an insomniac bride-to-be) and there they were... these perfectly elegant handmade phalaenopsis orchids (pictured below). it was downhill from there, i had planned on wearing real orchids in my hair in honor of my mom's bridal bouquet flowers, but was afraid they wouldn't make it through a Southern California, August wedding.  so Myra's were an even better option since i'd be able to wear them again and again after the wedding! once we got the order placed and wedding time approached, this pretty little shipment arrived on my door step and finally i had some Twigs & Honey orchids to call my own!



Myra definitely puts a lot of care and thought into her work and even into the packaging, it came wrapped real cute and complete with a "how to" note for my new orchids! everything she does has an obvious personal touch to it.

at fist sight - the orchids in my hair matched my hubby's boutonniere (looking back now, i wish i would've had Myra make that too because it broke before we even made it to the ceremony)


the above two photos were shot by family & a bridesmaid at our wedding, i would show you our pro pics, but we don't have them back yet... so in the mean-time you can see how the orchids added to the whole ensemble - matching his bout, the scattered orchids in my bouquet, and paid homage to my mom's wedding bouquet.

now i'll leave you with a unique and super cute piece Myra's made recently and seen showing off the JDV Jewelry Petite Eternite Necklace (which can be found in my etsy shop)... sorry for the shameless plug!

thanks again Myra and keep doing what you do best!

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

{shop update}: Sand dollar earrings


these are another go-to item for me
you can usually find me wearing these earrings or the madame earrings ever day.
this style has been around a few months now, just with all the craziness of the wedding & readjusting to not having a wedding to consume my time - it's taken awhile.
the sand dollars are made of gold overlay and have the imprint of the shell's design on them.
these earrings really are perfect to wear casually or for a dressier affair!

also, keep a look out for the sister necklace making it's way into my shop soon...

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

EAD Library Link Love


just wanted to thank that gals over at 
in their new Vendor Library.

if you visit the above link to EAD and view the "shops" you will find a link to JDV!
you can also use their library to search for wedding vendors which are all accessible online.
readers have the option to leave feedback/comments about their experiences with these vendors to help future brides' research.

thanks for the exposure EAD!