an engagement video by theorie

Check out this super sweet video theorie put together for us. We love it!

will you be my bridesmaid?

I hope you say "Yes!" because I crafted a hand-made card for you, so you'd better!

I am a serious fan of "the little things in life". Making sweet treats for loved ones, writing a thank you note, sewing something special, and definitely sending something awesome in the mail to someone. Check out the cards I created & sent to my dear friends and family to ask them to be a part of our wedding...

Thanks to Jana, Heather, Chelsea, Stacey, Brie & Ali for graciously accepting! xo

Materials used:

-Crumpled tissue paper of cut florals
-Sinamay leaves
-Black irridescent beads
-needle & thread
-glue gun
-black cardstock
-custom printed inner notes

Woah. Where did you go January?

It is officially the 5 month mark today. I didn't even realize until Paul asked me what the date was today. Sure, I had a mini panick attack- I guess I'm still reeling from that because I just spelled panic with a 'k'- but I'm ok now...

Save the dates should be coming in any day now from OvernightPrints.com. They do all sorts of postcards there. We got ours printed on an offsett printer as opposed to a digital laser print. I guess I was really going for an old school vibe and wanted to pay homage to all the hours of sweat, tears and ink stained fingernails from Lithography classes I once took (it's an archaic form of printing, where the image is put onto limestone, then transferred onto paper, rolled through a press and basically, from the repulsion of oil and water, your image magically appears onto paper- awesome.)

I designed my vintage inspired postcard using a great black and white, out of focus image from our engagement shoot with theorie. To top off the whole nostalgic feeling I scanned in an image of my grandparents on their wedding day from 1951 at The Tavern on the Green in Central Park, New York. It's the coolest image and I don't know how they had the capacity do that kind of "cut and paste" design work back then, but they did. I used the edge of their photo border to go around our image and I think it worked well! What do you think?

mmmm...f o o d.

Growing up in a multi-cultural family, I learned quickly that family indeed revolves around good food. Yes, food is essential to life but it's also the catalyst for bringing everyone together...and not just on the obvious holiday with the whole huge spread/feast thing, but every night for dinner. My mom is a true, native Italian, New Yorker woman as is my grandmother. There was no such thing as Prego when I was a kid. When you cook, you go all out, you get creative, you combine tradition with whatever's in the pantry and you gather around the table and well... you "Mangia!"

Of course when the idea of Giuseppe Catering came up, my mom was sold. I don't know if it's because he and my grandfather shared the same first name, or if his Italian charm won her over but he is our caterer and I am A-Ok with that! If his Cafe menu is any indication of what the wedding meal will taste like then my guests are in for a treat. Guiseppe uses nothing but the best local and organic products and I know my wedding will be in the hands of a culinary master. Did I mention he uses one queer eye and one straight eye when catering an event? Yes, my wedding will be utterly fabulous!

I have this 'theorie'...

"Hey, you misspelled theory." Actually reader, I did not. theorie is Amy & Maurice Wright; San Diego photography extraordinaires.

I knew that looking for a wedding photographer would be a daunting task. There are so many great ones out there, especially in San Diego and I've had the pleasure of working with a handful of them throughout the years on photo shoots & fashion shows all over this amazing little city. You can't compare talents when it comes to a photographer. Sure there's skill and a whole lot of technical things that I can't quite wrap my brain around (I can barely work my Nikon D40, though I sure do love it) but then there's style and above all else, there's passion. It's a love for what you're doing that makes your work stand out. It's so hard to be original these days when everything, especially in the wedding industry, has already been done. But then there's the re-hashing of things and twisting it just enough to take an already existing idea and make it original again somehow that sets true artists apart from just 'artists'.

Amy and Maurice are fun-spirited, soulful artists that both Paul and I enjoyed working with. Our engagement shoot took us from beach to city with some interesting parking lot wardrobe changes in between. :) We love the images and moments they captured on our engagement shoot and can't wait for them to be there on the big day, doing what they do best!

I heart. . .

The first time I visited MCASD in La Jolla was on a field trip (I was not 7 years old, nor was I on a yellow school bus). I was actually about 20 years old and it was for one of my Art major courses at San Diego State. I of course was blown away by some of these amazing local artists, photographers, sculptors, conceptual innovators! It was so refreshing to be amongst modern art and get away from Art History 101 for awhile ( I still love you, Seurat). But mostly, I was so in awe of the architectural design of this building that it really made me appreciate not only the art inside but this magnificent shell around it! You know the saying, 'location, location, location...' there is not a better view than the one from the west glass walls on the 2nd floor... it's La Jolla Coves at it's finest! Such an expansive view of Cuvier Park, the seals, a bit of downtown city La Jolla and well, the Pacific.

I guess you could say I had my little heart set on that little museum from the moment I stepped foot in it. I booked the Museum for June 26, 2010, the day of our 9 year anniversary and I couldn't be happier. I love how when I first took Paul there he just said...'this is it'. A lovely blend of his favorite thing and mine; the ocean and art. I can't wait to continue the planning process with Eric Reichman, the helpful MCASD Event Coordinator, then perhaps have lunch at The Museum Cafe, one of Giuseppe Ciuffa's masterpiece dining spots right there on the site...mmmm, please try their Ultimate Grilled Cheese. Seriously. Run, don't walk.

Planning an Engagement Party!

It's been a wild summer... so here I am, a handful of out of state weddings, bridal showers, baby showers and bachelorettes later, finally posting something about the big day!

My mom and I decided it'd be nice to throw an engagement party...hey, you only do this once so you'd better make it fun! She suggested a cocktail party with a few close friends and family, some good music and a delicious spread. How does one say no to that? Of course my first reaction was: invites! I love all things paper-related and can browse a stationery store for much longer than is really neccessary. Please let me tell you about my new-found discoverey at paper-source.com and the Paper Source store at The Forum in Carlsbad... too good to be true. They have all you need, especially if you're a D.I.Y. kind of gal like myself. They carry specialty fine paper, paper with prints, ribbon, custom rubber stamps, all pieces needed for an invitation suite and accessories in every color under the sun. I got the long, black, open-end envelopes to put my invite in, which I designed and got printed, cut up a yard of their beautiful silk ribbon dyed from old chinese silk parachutes and put it all on a black cardstock flat card for a nice border. I think they came out well! I love the splash of that dark teal ribbon as a little pull tab when you first open the envelope...I told you I was obsessed with this paper stuff! At least most things from The Paper Source are produced with 30% post-consumer waste and are visibly stamped with the "PS Green Choices" symbol.

My dahlia-like design on the invite was inspired from some green button mums I had that week in my living room...another thing I am obsessed with, botany! So basiaclly I'm the crazy paper/plant lady.