To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yeild.

I saw an amazing movie this weeked, called One Week (with the ever sexy Joshua Jackson). It was very inspirational and eye opening. Not that I didn't know and think these things before, but it's just one of those movies that remind you what to live for. It reminds you why you are on this gorgeous earth, and it just gives you that subtle push to go out and LIVE. There is a quote from the movie that is basically the way that people should live their lives by:

"When you get those rare moments of clarity, those flashes when the universe makes sense, you try desperately to hold on to them. They are the life boats for the darker times, when the vastness of it all, the incomprehensible nature of life is completely illusive. So the question becomes, or should have been all a long... What would you do if you knew you only had one day, or one week, or one month to live. What life boat would you grab on to? What secret would you tell? What band would you see? What person would you declare your love to? What wish would you fulfil? What exotic locale would you fly to for coffee? What book would you write?"

A truly remarkable Canadian movie, with gorgeous Canadian scenery.

My HOT B-Pics Shoes!!!

Just bought these friggin hot shoes today for my boudoir pictures (and special occassions)! They are by Guess, they are called Chief (and wow they are the BOSS of shoes). I got them from Endless.com for $109.95 (on the Guess website they are $135)! Free overnight/return shipping! I can't wait until my mommy can send them to me (I live in Canada, and they only ship to the states). YAY!

Halloween Movie Marathon!

This year we're having a super awesome Halloween marathon at home while we hand out candy to the kids in the neighborhood. This is just a good list of movies I like to watch around this time of year:

• It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
• Hocus Pocus
• The Nightmare Before Christmas
• Casper
• The Addams Family
• Halloween Town
• Harry Potter (all of them)
• Practical Magic
• The Haunting
• Dawn of the Dead
• Shaun of the Dead
• Donnie Darko
• Beetlejuice
• Sleepy Hollow
• The Witches of Eastwick
• The Covenent
• Urban Legend
• Candyman
• Psycho
• Scream
• Scary Movie
• The Fog
• Halloween
• Devil's Rejects
• House of 1,000 corpses
• The Omen
• The Blaire Witch Project
• Dracula
• Phantom of the Opera
• House on Haunted Hill
• Texas Chainsaw Massacre
• Final Destination (all)
• The Shining
• Corpse Bride
• The Crow
• The Craft
• Ghost Busters
• 13 Ghosts
• Haunting in Connecticut
• The Uninvited
• The Unborn
• SAW (all)

Please feel free to let me know what I missed!! Have a happy and safe Halloween!

♥ To Write Love On Her Arms ♥

"To Write Love on Her Arms is a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide. TWLOHA exists to encourage, inform, inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.

To Write Love On Her Arms Day is a day where anyone can write the words love on their arms, to support those who are fighting against depression and those who are trying to stop cutting.

Please help and write love on your arms, doesn't matter if you are a girl or a boy, the more people who write love on their arms and upload pictures, the more support and awareness twloha will spread.

Its quite simple to help out, as twloha is a non profit organization, so the simple words of "LOVE" on your arms, can already benefit and raise awareness, as your friends will ask why do you have love written on your arms, and you would tell them its twloha day, and how writing love on your arms is actually helping a cause."

To read more, please visit their Facebook page.

Such Pretty Little Things ♥

If you can't tell by now, I am absolutely obsessed (and quite good at it if I do say so myself) with finding adorable Etsy shops! Tonight, the spot light is on a very talented fellow Canadian named Jaymie (I love how she spells her name)!

I had a quick email interview with Jaymie and she had this to say "I am located in Calgary, AB. My background is in visual communications and I work as an art director full-time for an online/digital agency in town. My free time has been fully dedicated to weddings for a few years now, starting with my own wedding which was last year. I made my jewelry and hair accessories for my wedding and then everything just snowballed from there. I opened my etsy shop, Lottie-Da Designs, early this year and am loving every minute of it. I am inspired by 'glamorous vintage' - everything sparkly and elegant. I try to create items that are a little different than mainstream. The best part of Lottie-Da Designs is hearing back from the delighted brides who wore my piece on their big day!"

This is the gorgeous piece I will be getting for my big day, as I am what they call a tiara-phobic.

Lace Feather Bridal Headband Hair Accessory - Ivory

Some of her other lovely pieces:

Rhinestone Ribbon Bridal Headband - Anya

Rhinestone Bridal Ribbon Headband - Eva

Chantilly Pearl and Crystal Bridal Earrings (matching necklace sold separately)

To view more of her amazing work, please visit her Esty shop: Lottie-Da!

Pandemic? I call BULL SHIT.

Canada spent $300 Million on getting the H1N1 influenza A virus vaccination. They say that it has moved into the second pandemic phase. Personally I'm not into vaccinations at all for my own personal reasons and moral woes, so I will not be getting the vaccine. NO THANKS. I have this whole theory about how this is just a conspiracy, but I will leave that for another day. How about you, will you be getting the shot?

Read more about it here:
Canada enters 2nd wave of H1N1

DIY Photobooth!

I love the idea behind the photobooth's at weddings, but I dislike the price tag that comes along with them. Some rental units can cost an average of $1,000 and up! Why would I want to spend $1,000 on a photobooth alone?!

DO IT YOURSELF! It can save you hundreds! If this is something that sounds of interest to you, I dug up a couple of websites that might help you in your quest for a fun item at you wedding, that won't break the bank. Most of them have suggestions on which softwear to use, what kind of set up you'll need in terms of a camera (you can go polaroid or DSLR), ideas for props, etc.

Life With Leo - Do It Yourself Photobooth

DIY Photobooth Using MacBook & Ikea Curtains

Instructables - DIY Photobooth

Breeze Systems - DSLR Remote Softwear

The Wedding Lens - Photobooth at the Wedding Reception

The Things We Think But Do Not Say - How to Make a Photobooth

Happy DIY-ing!

Tag! I'm It!!

Thank you so much to my lovely pal Pamela @ Westside Wedding for choosing me as one of her recipients of the The Kreativ Bloggers Award. So awesome to know someone reads what you have to say ;) Thanks again girl ♥!



To continue in the spirit and tradition of the award, I am going to write 7-10 (I pick 7...lol) facts about me and then pass the award on to seven other "Kreativ" bloggers!

1. I have a first degree black belt in Shorin Ryu karate. I started when I was 5 and got my black belt when I was 16. I took a little bit of a break in between, but I still love it with all of my heart.
   
2. I can't help but always think that no body likes me. It's just my defense mechanism that I have had since I was as little as I can remember. If no one likes me, I just don't care and if I don't care I can't get hurt. It took me a long long time to learn that my fiancee isn't going anywhere.
3. I eat every item of food on my plate one at a time. I can not mix the foods, nor can they be touching one another. It grosses me out, and I refuse to eat a random pea if it has touched my mashed potatoes (just an example).
4. I love smartfood popcorn, and every other kind of popcorn.
5. I have hypoglycemia, I hate it.
6. I love having a blog, even if no one were to read it. There is nothing that I enjoy more in the world that writing and singing.
   
7. When I have a down in the dumps kind of week, month, year, whatever I always watch Dawson's Creek from start to finish. Every season and every episode. <3

Now I pass the torch to 7 others.

1. Lost in White Chiffon
2. A Texan in Oz
3. My Dream Ring
4. Bride Sophisticate
5. The Nearlyweds
6. Pink Design Events
7. Kandee the Make-Up Artist
   

I look forward to reading all of your posts and beautiful inspiration, ladies! Don't forget to pass on the LOVE...

Tag... now you're it!

So Uniquely in L-♥-V-E!

I stumbled across the amazing work of Tessa Kim on Etsy the other day, and I was just amazed!! She has some of the most beautiful work that is affordable for the frugal and chic bride.

Tessa Kim birdcage veils and hair accessories is based out of southern California. All of the collections are completely handmade with the highest quality materials yet still priced very responsibly. The inspiration for the lines are a mix of vintage glam with a modern twist, many items contain vintage accent pieces and are each unique. The line contains birdcage veils, tulle veils, feather fascinators, flower fascinators, vintage lace necklaces, dress sashes, corsages, boutonnieres, and much more to come.

Here is the piece that I'm eying for my B-Pics session. The Black Mini Birdcage Veil! $24!!!!!!

Birdcage Veil with Magnolia fascinator set- the Delilah - $64

Peacock and Sequins Fascinator - $49

Feather Flower Fascinator - $34 (single flower)

This has to be one of my favorite items in her shop, it's just stunning!

Assorted Feather Headband with pearl button - $49

For more gorgeous and exquisite statement pieces, please visit the Tessa Kim Etsy Shop. Happy buying!

Oh My ♥ Luscious Lovelies ♥ by Bleu Garter

I never ever though I wanted a garter.... until now. I used to think, how silly why buy a garter to toss away? Why spend the money. Let me tell you, this is NOT something I will be tossing! I will keep this and hopefully pass it on to a future daughter for her wedding day.

Handcrafted in California from fine silks and antique laces, you can pick one of the several gorgeous styles of garters by Bleu. You can also make your very own custom garter! Choose the design, fabric, and colors... add embellishments such as bows, embroidery, or jewelry... make your garter a keepsake.

This is the one I will be getting. The fabulous Versailles from the Paris 1928 collection.


Some of her other stunning garters and collections include:

Paris 1928

Marseille



Strasbourg



Moulin Rouge

Hot Tamale



Sweetart



Head over to Bleu Garters to order your delicious garter, or to see what they can do for you as a custom order! <3

The Girls!

Here is what my girls will be wearing!! How exciting!

This is my Maid Of Honor's dress.

Calvin Klein Satin Dress - $148


This is what the bridesmaid will be wearing.

JS Boutique Ruched Chiffon Dress with Beaded Neck - $180 ( I got it on sale for $70!!!)


I love them! I hope they really like them too!

Our First "Just the Two of Us" Holiday!!

This is our first holiday on our own that we "hosted" (just for ourselves though lol). It was so good!!! I made everything except the asparagus (which Josh made on the BBQ...MMM) . I made the turkey, stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, and apple pie. YUMMY! Everything was so good, we were pleasantly surprised, not because we can't cook, but it was all timed right and just came out the best! Here are my recipe's that I used.

Turkey

• 1 (12 pound) whole turkey
• 6 tablespoons butter, divided
• 4 cups warm water
• 3 tablespoons chicken bouillon
• 2 tablespoons dried parsley
• 2 tablespoons dried minced onion
• 2 tablespoons seasoning salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Rinse and wash turkey. Discard the giblets, or add to pan if they are anyone's favorites.
2. Place turkey in a Dutch oven or roasting pan. Separate the skin over the breast to make little pockets. Put 3 tablespoons of the butter on both sides between the skin and breast meat. This makes for very juicy breast meat.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the water with the bouillon. Sprinkle in the parsley and minced onion. Pour over the top of the turkey. Sprinkle seasoning salt over the turkey.
4. Cover with foil, and bake in the preheated oven 3 1/2 to 4 hours, until the internal temperature of the turkey reaches 180 degrees F (80 degrees C). For the last 45 minutes or so, remove the foil so the turkey will brown nicely.

Asparagus

• 2 lb Asparagus
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 tsp (1 mL) each salt & pepper

Directions

1. Snap woody ends off asparagus. Place remaining stalks in shallow dish. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper; shake dish to coat asparagus.
2. Place asparagus on greased grill over medium-high heat; close lid and grill, turning occasionally, until tender-crisp, about 6 minutes. (Make-ahead: Let asparagus cool for 10 minutes; cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours. Serve at room temperature.)

Apple Pie

• 2-1/4 cups flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 cup shortening
• 5 to 7 Tbsp. ice cold water
• 6 cups thinly sliced peeled tart apples (about 4 large apples)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1 Tbsp. lemon juice (optional)

Directions

1. PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Mix flour and salt in large bowl. Cut in shortening using a pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
2. ADD water, 1 Tbsp. at a time, mixing lightly with fork until flour mixture is evenly moistened and clings together when pressed into a ball. Divide dough in half; shape each half into 1/2-inch-thick round. Wrap each dough round in plastic wrap; refrigerate 15 min.
3. MEANWHILE, toss apples with sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon juice in large bowl; set aside. Place 1 dough round between two large sheets of plastic wrap; roll out dough with rolling pin to flatten slightly, working from center of dough to the edge. Turn over; continue rolling until dough round is about 2 inches larger than diameter of inverted 9-inch pie plate.
4. PEEL off top piece of plastic wrap; invert dough into pie plate. Peel off remaining piece of plastic wrap; press dough evenly onto bottom and up side of pie plate, being careful not to stretch the dough. Trim any dough hanging over edge of pie plate with sharp knife or kitchen shears; reserve trimmings.
5. FILL with apple mixture; set aside. Roll out remaining dough as directed; place over filling. Trim top crust about 1/2 inch beyond edge of pie plate. Fold edge of top crust under edge of bottom crust; pinch edges together to form a ridge. Flute edge (see Tip). Cut several slits near center of pie to allow steam to escape.
6. BAKE 45 to 50 min. or until juices form bubbles that burst slowly. Cool.

Hot Watters Dress!

This could be a nice Reception Dress or Rehearsal Dinner dress!! It's gorgeous!! The price range is $500-$1000 (because that narrows it down a lot). Could be for a very chic bride or one who is not afraid to wear a shorter dress! LOVE ♥ LOVE it!!

Watters Brides 4047B


Click here for some other ideas for other gorgeous dresses as found by my fellow hostess on PW (MountainBride):

Monograms

Oh how I love monograms!! I just figured I would post mine, perhaps to give others some inspiration!

Here is my beautiful Monogram made by Nicole from Pink Design Events!! Check out her website for STD, Invites, Monograms, etc.

These are the ones that I DIY-ed on Publisher. I think they came out pretty good, considering I have never done anything like this.


I think everyone should have a monogram made for business, weddings, etc. Even if you don't know where you are going to use it at first, I'm sure everyone can find a use for it. We put it on our little Spanish Books that we DIYed (will post when I have pictures). You can try to make your own if you feel creative enough, it's really quite simple!

Click here for directions on how to make your own monogram from Project Wedding.

Kate Spade Home Sale @ Rue La La

In case you don't know what Rue La La is... it's a website that sells designer stuff for SUPER cheap when they have their "boutiques" open. You have to be a member to enjoy the prices (which are only by invite), so here is an invitation! Click here! Enjoy everything from Tommy Bahama Home, Kate Spade Home, to Ralph Lauren and Dolce & Gabanna (next week)!!!

I just bought my friend her wedding gift, this lovely Kate Spade 4 piece "Belle Boulevard" Flutes. Original price - $140, I got it for $89!!!

Enagement Pictures

Here are our first set of E-Pics. Thank you to Stellar Imaging Event & Wedding Photography for our session in Bower Ponds (Red Deer, AB).

My dress on REAL brides!!!

When I first fell in love with my dress, I could not for the life of me find pictures of any bride or bride-to be (even just trying it on) with it. I was so bummed because something that looked good on a model may very well not look that great on me. I just wanted to share this for any future Sottero & Midgley JSM 1103 brides out there who are looking for more pictures of the love of their life... the most gorgeous dress they will ever wear.

I ♥ (as I imagine every other bride or bride to be does) seeing pictures of a real bride (as opposed to the models) in *THE* dress! My dress is a Sottero & Midgley JSM1103 in light gold/champagne!

Here is a fellow PW-er (jlmcmunn) in her JSM 1103 also in the same color as me. She looks absolutely stunning, and I would be so lucky to look as lovely and gorgeous as she does on her wedding day!


One of my PW (Project Wedding... best wedding related site of LIFE) girls FOUND me some pictures of a gorgeous bride in the same dress, but in diamond white!!!!
Here she is on Matthew Yorke's Blog!!!

Here are some other real brides that have been featured on the Sottero & Midgley website:

Megan, Midgley Bride

Sasha, Midgley Bride

Lauren, Midgley Bride

The Meaning Behind Wedding Colors

I love finding websites that tell you what your choices mean! I found this website that shows a little bit of insight on the colors that you might have chosen for your wedding colors (or even just your favorite color in general). The Perfect Palette!

Our colors:

AQUA
Aqua Palettes}: Fun-loving, fresh and vibrant. A favorite of beach brides, especially tropical ones. But aqua shows up in plenty of other places, too. It's a favorite paired with chocolate brown for brides who want a fun and modern palette, and aqua and hot pink are also make a pretty palette. Here lately we're even seeing aqua paired with red which makes for a lovely duo.


PLUM
{Plum Palettes}: Purple has strong, historical associations with royalty, especially in sacred contexts. But thanks to the fashion world, purple's taken on a whole new life, and becomes challenging and mysterious, glamorous, and ever-so-slightly chic. Especially when paired with other complex hues like charcoal or even gray. Perfect for Winter & Fall weddings.


SILVER

{Silver Palettes}: Silver is upscale and elegant - its a color that speaks to modernity and all things antique. It makes a beautiful compliment to Winter weddings & it's metallic quality really makes it special.