Something Borrowed, Something Blue

I’ve been absent from the blog, but I’ve had good reason.  Since I last posted, so much has happened…

I had a birthday and got a surprise visit from friends to celebrate.  My love passed the California Bar Exam.  My best friend got married.  And I am now an aunt for the second time.  Minus turning another year older, all great things.

For my birthday, we took an overnight trip to Paso Robles to visit the wineries.  Although I am not a huge wine buff and there are not all that many I like, it was a fun time.

(See: L’Aventure Winery, Justin Winery, Robert Hall Winery, and Laraneta Winery)

My love passed the California Bar Exam and I got to be there when he was sworn is as a California attorney.  I’m so very proud of him.

I played co-hostess at my best friend’s bridal shower.  In all my years, it is the first bridal shower that I have been to.  If you are ever in the Milwaukee area, Swig has some delicious food.  I highly recommend the the Barbeque Beef Sandwich and the Turkey & Apple Club.  Yum!

(See: Swig)

I got to spend some quality time with my niece Riley.  I love spending time with her when I can, since it isn’t very often living 2000 miles apart.  3 years old and about to become a big sister for the very first time!

Then there was a Bachelorette party that I had the privilege of planning.  It was a fun time and I hope I succeeded in making it a special ‘last night out’ for the bride.  A separate blog post to come with all the projects I made for the party.

(See: Intercontinental Hotel Milwaukee and Kenadee’s)

And then the main event…

My best friend got married.  Stephanie and Charlie were married in a beautiful ceremony at a private estate and I am so happy that I could be there as they embarked on this new journey together.

 

(See: Welke’s House of Roses and Clara French Ceramique)

Last but certainly not least…

My new niece Jordynn was born on Tuesday July 1st, 2010 and now I am an aunt for the second time.  I can’t wait to see her in person since she waited until 2 days after I left Wisconsin to make her appearance.  Riley is going to make a great big sister!

Soon to come…

Bachelorette party projects (sneak peak here).  Diaper cake (sneak peak here).  And TONS of cards (sneak peaks here and here)!

Photo Credit: All photos in this post were taken by me.

Crushin’ On Color: Blue

I’m so in love with this shade of blue, not to mention how lovely it looks with bright yellow.  Simply yummy.

Credit: Adam Trujillo Photo, Gimme Some Sugar, and Rock ‘n Roll Bride

What Happens When More Birthdays Pop Up?

Looking back at my blog posts, getting ready to post my most recent cards, I realized that I had completely forgotten to post a single card that I made in the month of March. And it is mid-April already! Yikes! Well, here are the cards…

This birthday card for my Aunt Rose may be the fastest card I have ever made. I think I was able to make it in less than an hour (which is very fast for me). It helped that I already had an idea sketched out, so I was ready to go. I really like how it turned out too.

My very least favorite kind of card to make are sympathy cards. Besides the obvious reasons of not being a joyous occasion to celebrate, it’s also hard to find the right colors, right words, and an acceptable design that I can make with cut paper. Not an easy task. And I have, unfortunately, made too many of these cards lately. I made this card for my boyfriend to send to his grandfather upon his grandmother’s recent passing.

UPDATE: For sale on Etsy here.

Back to happier times…more birthdays. Below are 2 more cards that I am pretty proud of how they turned out, using a few ideas that I had saved up in my sketchbook for awhile. The “Popped Up Again” card was made for Megan, a long-time friend from high school (those little popcorn kernels were fun to make, believe it or not). And the “Strut Your Stuff” card was made for my childhood babysitter, Dana.

At the end of March, my niece Riley turned 3!!! I can’t believe she is growing up so fast. I made her this “Cutie Pie” card to accompany the enormous box of presents (see: here and here) I sent in the mail to her, because she IS a cutie pie. I like making cards for her because she is a little budding artist herself, and she appreciates my cards even at 3 years old. I hear she carried around the Valentine’s Day card I made her last month for days and days showing it to people. Isn’t that sweet?

And to show that Riley IS in fact a little budding artist, here is some of her work. The first was made in December of 2009. She gave it to me while I was home visiting for Christmas. Riley made the others in March of this year. I received them in the mail one day. What a great surprise to get in the mail! It made my day! I absolutely love children’s artwork…especially my niece’s.