Not your grandma's doilies...

Just wanted to share a couple of DIY's I am working on with my sis-in-law for her wedding coming this October. Both projects include one of my favorite ruffly little friends, the doily.

{luminaries}

We decided it would be cute to place some paper luminaries on the steps of Sarah & Adam's ceremony location, but we kicked 'em up a knotch by doing a combination of red and natural colored bags to incorporate the autumnal color scheme we have going on. We also placed a doily inside to add some more interest...

We found the luminary bags online at LumaBase.com. Here's a link to the red ones. Warning - Obvious statement ahead: It is probably best to use battery operated tea lights unless you are using flame resistant bags. Wedding day fires are frowned upon. Consider yourself advised.

{table runner}

I got the idea for this next project from Ashley Ann Photography. She has a sweet little blog that features not only her beautiful photography but some super creative DIY's as well. Here's the adorbable table runner she made for her dining room table:

PS, don't you just love Ashley's kitchen? So country-cute. Anyway, here's a link to the DIY how-to. The runner I am making is for the head table at the reception, which is 24 feet long. So far, I have 14 doilies. I need more doilies, people. The 14 I do have came from an antique store in Uniontown, WA. I'll post some pics when I start construction.

Any more fun doily decor ideas out there? I have one more in mind that I'm going to toy around with this weekend... should be cute, might be tragic. I'll let you know either way!

Photo Credit (top to bottom)

Sis.In.Law

Ashley Ann Photography

Custom Jewelry by Kendra Scott

I am a frequent reader of The Glam Girls Guide To Sports Blog by Angie Meyer. It's like a Vogue'd up version of Sports Illustrated and has quickly become my favorite source of current happenings in the wide world of sports. When you're the kinda girl who refers to uniforms as "outfits" and you're married to sports fanatic/freak with a capital F, Angie's words are an important part of your everyday reading.

Anyway, Angie recently pointed out that there seems to be a serious shortage of cute, non-chincy team jewelry. So true. Pretty sure the  last time I walked into my university bookstore, the only crimson and gray jewelry I found was made of sculpting clay (Fimo anyone??) or cheapo plastic. Well, enough is enough - Angie has found the key to the cute-team-jewelry highway...

Kendra Scott Jewelry. They offer a stunning line of bracelets, earrings, necklaces and rings and there is even a section dedicated to all of you lovely brides. But the feature I love most about their website is the color bar where you can pick from 11 different earring designs, silver or gold metal, and 20 different gem colors to create your own custom piece - SO fun! Stylish sports fans and brides-who-crave-jewelry-that-matches-their-wedding-theme, rejoice!

Here's a peek at one of the color bar DIY designs...

And I am drooling over this gorgeous aqua bib necklace from her Bridal Collection. You must check out the Kendra Scott site to see the rest... you'll be dropping your honey *subtle* gift hints in no time!

Photo Credit:

Bonanzle.com

Strapless dresses - friend or foe?

Oh, the strapless dress. Quite possibly one of the most flattering necklines out there. They make broad shoulders look delicate and create some serious shape for those of us who are a little less endowed, shall we say. But what is the one pesky little thing that can turn any strapless dress from fab to, well, flab? Just that. The dreaded armpit flab.

Yep, I said it.

The thing is, even the most svelte of frames can fall victim to this enemy of the underarm. All figures look different in different cuts so often times it is more an issue of garment fit than body tone.

But, if you are hoping to tighten up this tricky little region for your walk down the aisle, may I introduce you to my friend, and personal booty kicker, Ms. Sarah. Sarah is a personal trainer AND bride to be! When I told her about my personal battle with the flab, she assured me that with a little persistence and a couple lifting weights, this would be an issue no more. Check out her blog post dedicated to the pits here. She has lots of great work out and nutrition tips, so check her out. And since posts aren't nearly as pretty without a picture, here are a few of my fave strapless numbers for the season...

sarah seven

melissa sweet

vera wang

Photo Credit (top to bottom)

SarahSeven.com
PriscillaOfBoston.com
VeraWangOnWeddings.com