i didn't forget about you all!

how on earth has it taken me so very long to sit myself down for a blog update...?  i guess it just reflects on the level of "busy"ness since the start of the year {which i'm very thankful for}!


so without further ado here's a photo update of what i've been up to business-wise since i've been gone

:: ::  a close friend's lingerie shower  :: ::

the invite

the bride & us bridesmaids with one of my custom banners

custom signage & glittered clothes pins

custom napkin ring wraps

:: ::  the wedding pantry february window display featuring my printables  :: ::

cupcake flags: part of my first printables line in my JoiedeViePaperie etsy shop

glittered coffee filter pom = a labor of love

look at these fabulous glittered clothespins {sigh} oh and one of my new printable banners

and a coordinated wedding sash to go along with the paper goods i created

:: ::  a very pretty Chanel inspired baby shower  :: ::

custom frame and vinyl text to look like the Chanel No. 5 logo

 love that the mommy Kacee Geoffroy will use this as decor in the nursery!

one of my favorite Coco Chanel quotes

coordinated "notes to Peyton" that were clipped to the Eiffel Tower with glittered clothespins 

{noticing a trend here with the clothespins?}

signage for the fragrance station, yes i said fragrance station... 

...what better for a Chanel themed shower?!

and since doing that shower, i've gotten so much positive feedback from clients wanting to put their spin on the Chanel shower, so i've started creating a "Chanel inspired" printables line for my paperie shop!

also thanks to popular demand, i'm creating these cute decorative frames for other mommies to be!

this one is for a new baby that'll be on her way soon and has a pink, white & grey nursery

{can we say hot new color pallet for little girls right now?!}

we realized that "sweet ava jayne" can be sung to the tune of "sweet caroline"... oh oh oh!

yeah, this baby now has a theme song =)

 i've also been working with another one of my {repeat offenders} i mean, favorite clients, thanks Linds!

on this cute black, white, and lime green shower invite for her soon to be sis in law

we also did cute lingerie shower/bachelorette invites, but i'll have to photograph those for you, and i'm currently designing a whole bunch of fun goodies for the showers & bachelorette party!

and on that note, i've gotta get back to work... if you're bummed about me not updating my blog very often, hop on over to my facebook page to see what's going on day to day!

:: ::  photo credits  :: ::

my friend's shower images - andrea gene photography

the wedding pantry images - marcella treybig photography

chanel shower - alice hu photography

Bella Collina event invites

wow! 

i just got home just a bit ago from a gorgeous event at Bella Collina Town and Golf in San Clemente, it was hosted by one of my favorite people, Mary Lallande, of Jay's Catering, and sponsored by many other wonderful vendors!  in my last post i gave a little peek at some top secret invites i had been working on, well those were for tonight's event... they really had an awesome turn out, the Bella Collina dining room was filled with event professionals ranging from event planners, to musicians and entertainers, photographers, and even some other local wedding venue professionals.

recently i commissioned a photog friend of mine Marcella Treybig Photography to shoot my growing paper goods collection.. and luckily i had just finished the Bella Collina invites in time to have them captured on film.  and if you've followed my blog any length of time, or even have just looked at my photos, you know that was a good thing since i really don't have a clue how to use anything other than a point and shoot camera. =) {yay me!}

anywho, here's how they turned out....

the outer envelope... i have to say, calligraphy always makes invites feel that much more personalized

then i collaborated with the calligrapher to create a digital image of her calligraphy for the return address, which i then had printed on the back of the envelope flap - unifying the typestyles 

{this is a great idea budget-wise, a digital calligraphy file can make the 

same statement as hand written for items that need to be reproduced}

here's the whole suite:

we used stardream opal inner envelopes, which we lined with this GORGEOUS gold metallic Fiori Italian liner, the main invite incorporated custom calligraphy elements mixed with an all caps font and digitally printed on a textured cardstock {again digital printing is a very budget friendly option}.  

then we mounted the invite card on a bronze stardream backing. 

{and in case you haven't seen stardream before, it has a wonderful shimmery, opalescent sheen to it}

and we included a two sided smaller insert to list the participating event sponsors and on the backside, the card introduced the guest speaker for the evening... which was Thea Lignos-Hargrove. 

{the editor of Your Wedding Day Magazine}

and just because i LOOOVE that liner so much, here's one more shot of it =)

you may be thinking... these aren't wedding invites? well, if so you're right, but for me the objective was to create these event invites in the fashion i would for any of my wedding clients, so if you happen to love this style/design, please let me know and i'd be happy to provide you with an estimate for a comparable design suite!

a big shout out and thank you to Katrina of Calligraphy Katrina for lending her talent and time to collaborate on this project, and if you are looking for a talented calligrapher - you will love her work!

{sneak peek} exciting upcoming project

i just have to show off these gorgeous liners from a project i finished up last night... the paper is none other that this gorgeous italian paper by Rossi 1931

i can't tell you what these are for other than to say they're for an upcoming event! 

sorry for the crummy phone photo...

i am so honored to have the opportunity to participate in this event, and i am so stoked to know that my work is going to be placed in the hands of some of my wedding industry heros and some other big shots in the industry... what a HUGE blessing for me!

i promise to post the finished product once i can share them, without ruining anything... man, i'm terrible with staying hush, hush about things.  and yes i always ruin surprises i plan for my hubby, he always knows because excitement just kills me =) 

{recipes} coconut cupcakes w/ lime buttercream frosting

a few months back we got a subscription of cooking light and i found this recipe for

coconut cupcakes w/ a lime buttercream frosting. . .  yummmm!

so i figured for my hubs' birthday i figured i'd attempt these - but rather than making full sized cupcakes i opted for mini - cupcakes {which is coming back to haunt me} .... the ones that are still lingering i think i need to thrown out now... but lets not talk about that!

i took the liberty of garnishing them with a little lime zest 

{sorry that's my restaurant background talking} =)

we couldn't get over this card he got for his bday... how awesome is that?  not awesome that it came from none other than his student loan lender... boo! but i though it'd look cute with his cupcakes {since i forgot to get candles}... bad wifey

 

wanna try these yourself?  find the recipe here

{things i dig} GeeZees custom canvas

i have been just dying to get caught up on blogging just so i could share this:

i have a crush on my new geezees canvas! 

below is the wedding photo i chose from our photog {memoriesbymichael.com} then i used photoshop to add the lyrics from our first dance song - Dave Matthews - "steady as we go" and our wedding date... then i sent it to stephanie and then the magic began!

and here's what came to us in the mail.... 

maybe i'm partial, but i think our canvas just rocks! =)

stephanie, the force behind geezees, was phenominal to work with! she's a fellow etsy wedding team member, but i found out about her business because i was the winner/recipient of a contest over at weddingbee.  even though this was a complimentary canvas,  her attention and communication throughout the process was fantastic!  since it was "freebee" she could've totally taken longer on my order, but she treated it as if it was just as much a priority as any of her paid orders!  being a fellow online vendor - that speaks volumes about her customer service... and i think when it comes to online business, customer service is so extremely important in making or breaking your online presence.  sometime it can be very difficult to build a following of loyal fans who will believe in you enough to refer you... and i most certainly would send anyone reading this her way! 

i can only hope that i will have a reason to visit her again for future canvas art projects! i know our canvas turned out beautifully and it will be a treasured piece of art in our home for years to come!

please check her out either on etsy, her website, or her blog!

{things i dig} pretty pretty on etsy: elizandaxel

lookie lookie what'll be mine in a few weeks - i found the etsy shop elizandaxel when a treasury they were featured in today popped up and i saw this....

the flora tee

since i'm notorious for living in a white, black or basic plain colored top, jeans, and flip flops... this will provide a pretty and feminine alternative to my basic "uniform" =)  when i snatched one earlier today i couldn't decide if i wanted black or white... but i think i'm leaning toward the white?? 

here's a full length shot - front and back of the shirt - love the dress form too!

oh how i wish i had all the time and creative talent in the world to make pretty tops like this to wear on a daily basis! hmmm.... 

{things i dig} Cupcake Social on etsy

i've been wanting to make some muffins or cupcakes lately...

... now theses goodies from Cupcake Social really make me want to!

pastel green tulip cupcake liners

and for a 13year old girls bday party! - animal print liners - CUTE!

sophisticated liners for an uptown fete

little red riding hood liners...

and wouldn't these be so cute for 4th of july cupcakes?

the shop also offers uber cute flags and pin-wheel topper for your cupcakes

- i'm really diggin' these pirate flags - yo ho, yo ho... well, you know how it goes!

{things i dig} looksy what i found...

Beach Grass Cottage's Etsy Shop - Beach Decor For Shore Lovers!

it's no secret i love the beach, all things nautical and i dig sandollars and finger starfish most of all!  look at these super fabulous mirrors i found in her shop, if only i could afford one .... sigh!

finger starfish mirror

shell mirrror

{things i dig} tinahdee on etsy

just found this fab fellow etsian on the front page of etsy this afternoon!  and look how darn cute these are!

they're stacking rings made from steel - with a cute copper disk that each stacked together spells out "love" - she say's you can also choose any other 4 letter word.... i'd stick to ones like - "hugs", "kiss", etc.... not the real 4 letter ones!

check out tinah's work and tell her i sent you!

b

things i love.... Newsprint Gift Boxes

just saw these last night, while looking for clever ways to pack up my jewelry orders... and i found these... they are super cute, ephemera style kraft boxes!  love them! i could even do this with my current boxes with some of my rubber stamps....hmmm... or if i get real lazy, i could cave and buy these! =)

newsprint gift boxes

and holy gift wrap... they have every wrapping option under the sun in this newsprint... oh joy!

{i spy} LovMely

ok... super stoked, i just stumbled upon Mel's shop while browsing my local etsy designers in the orange county area. now i'm pretty low key fashion-wise ( think t-shirt, jeans, and flip flops) but i always love having something small on that is loud, colorful, or showy... and most of the time it's a piece of my jewelry...

but now i've found LovMely on Etsy, and her acessories are awesome! some of them are far more dramatic than what i can swing, but everything she makes is beautiful... for example:

the Jenna Headband - no way i could swing it, but i think it'd be great for the right lady!

i can wait, below i have these 3 beauties on their way to me as my bday present to myself!

Sarah Peacock Headband

Guinea Headband

Golden Peacock Headband

go check out her shop and tell her i sent you!


b

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....

vintage-y black tank

wouldn't this make a great holiday dress?

gold tunic dress

and i'm a huge fan of anything eyelet...

 look at this cute shrug i found at her website 

hollystalder.com

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! =)