Oops I'm in Love

I did it!

2010-09-22T11:30:00.002-04:00

I relaunched my new Photography Website!!! To read more about it, check out my post at Imaginale.

And here is the website: Imaginale Design

I'm moving!

2010-09-20T02:10:00.002-04:00

I just limped towards my laptop and I'm pretty sure the bottoms of my feet are SWOLLEN.

Jose and I met some people through his tennis tournament who invited us to play sand volleyball tonight. I had dance practice which ended late, but we headed out to the game anyway because it had only been about 30 minutes. I liked the idea of playing barefoot... until it started feeling like I was playing on a nail filer!!

I was already wearing band aids from dance cuts, and now I could feel the sand just grating against the arch of my foot. On top of that, I REALLY like playing volleyball and I was throwing my body left and right. Usually when I work out really intensely I won't feel the soreness/exhaustion until the next day. Ummm, so much for that! I feel like my arms can't even type and definitely feel the pain now!

I have some exciting news but will have to share it tomorrow because I'm going to bed! However, I wanted to let those who read this blog to prepare for the move. Yep! I'm going to transition my wedding posts on to my Imaginale Design Blog so that I don't neglect this blog. I'm not deleting this blog -- heck, I wish I could type it on my photography one and have it publish here too! What I'm basically doing is no longer publishing the NEW posts here and instead on Imaginale Design. So make sure you subscribe to Imaginale Design because there will be lots of stuff going on there :) I've got lots STILL to share about the wedding, so get ready for the move! Don't worry... I'll post reminders on here, but wanted to give you the head's up once I'm finished transferring all the posts.

I Got Your Spanish Goodies

2010-09-10T02:43:00.003-04:00

Remember the post when I mentioned bringing you some Spanish souvenirs? If not, go read it, then come back ;)

I have finally completed my Spain photos and picked my favorites that could (in my opinion) look fun as prints for your home!

However, you'll have to cast your vote in my photography blog: Imaginale. You'll be able to watch the video there AND I'll pick a random comment to win a free print!!

So take a look at the video and cast your vote!!

The Hair Story - Conclusion

2010-09-03T18:51:00.010-04:00

Aaalright. I last left y'all with the story of how bad my hair trial went with the salon in Houston. I called a friend from high school, venting my frustrations, and discussing how simple this hair style could be.

This same friend, let's name her Loreal (cause she has beautiful hair, haha), is the one who taught me how to MAKE the extensions. After sending her photos of the trial, she called and left the following voicemail: "Oh nooooo. Alejandra this is NOT what you described to me at all. Look at those curls! Are they even curls? She definitely didn't get it. You know what? If you want, you can come over and we can try creating the look you're going for. Then we can take photos and you can show her the process and I'm SURE she can re-create the look with instructions."

Haha. Can you imagine showing up to a stylist with "How To" instructions. I'm sure she'd love that!

Anyway, I thought that was REALLY, really generous of Loreal to offer. I couldn't believe it. I was incredibly grateful that she would take the time to do this for me.

Excitedly, we bought the appropriate extensions, went back to her place and sewed them according to my head measurements. Another thing to note: I had just washed my hair that morning and blowdried it, so it was really flowy. Already I could tell the difference in the curls! They were bouncy, silky, and loose. She used a lot of hair spray (still), but it wasn't weighing my hair down too much since it was so clean. After simply putting on the extensions (3 tracks), and curling my hair, we got excited like little girls at HOW beautiful the curls looked in comparison to my trial!

Look!!

As you can see on my mini-diagram what a DIFFERENCE my cleaner hair made -- and blowdrying it. Note the length difference between my natural hair and the extension. Although I was going to cut it, it's MUCH better to have the ability to cut to YOUR desired length, rather than have no layers to work with.

Check out the front:

Talk about drastic improvement! Once we curled my hair and saw how much it would shrink, we knew how much to cut off. Like I said before, I didn't want to look drastically different SO, I cut the extension to the length my NATURAL hair is -- before it's curled. Obviously you lose a lot of length when you curl, so I wanted to make up for that. Also, it obviously adds even more volume.

But want to hear something even crazier? You might be thinking to herself "WOW, those extensions obviously added length, but look at the VOLUME!" Guess what? If you go back to my last post with the bad hair trial -- I had some extensions there too! The only difference is that they were the shorter extensions. So why didn't they add VOLUME? Because my hair was too oily, FLAT, and hadn't been blowdried! I'm telling you this to emphasize what a difference it makes when you blowdry your hair. Granted, the Houston salon lady had only put in like 2 small tracks so we could "get an idea." Here's a really old picture of me with similar volume and my hair MUCH shorter:

or something with even MORE volume...

Hahaha. You get the point!

So we pinned it back, added the flower and it looked like this:

The side

But now the problem is... you can see that we didn't put ENOUGH hair spray because within a matter of minutes, the curls started to fall:

That's not even a curl anymore... it's like... semi-waves? Don't get me wrong, this was DEFINITELY moving the in right direction and I learned the following:

Blowdry my hair FO SHO!
I need to find an alternative to volume because I LOSE a good portion of it when my hair is pulled back (on the top section).
Make the curls tighter because they WILL start to come lose
Add more hairspray

However, I was SO excited about it that I asked if she would be interested in coming to my wedding and doing my hair. I KNEW this was a big risk for me to take, and I also knew this could put a lot of pressure on her. I told her to think about it, and that I would be fine with whatever she decided. Loreal took a few days to think about it, then fortunately agreed!

I was so excited because I had someone I trusted, and I didn't have to worry about having to spend so much more money on really expensive hair trials. We decided to do a second trial with Loreal to correct the loss of curls, and get closer to that "wedding day" hair. Ironically, she actually suggested that I don't wash my hair the day of the trial because that might have been why my curls didn't hold. And guess what? The second trial ended up being a hot mess because my natural hair oils once again weighed my hair down and was even WORSE at holding curls.

Panic mode. I had to leave for Houston in 2 days, and we had yet to have a hair trial that was "THE ONE." We schedule a last minute 3rd trial... and she ends up getting a stomach virus :( Ahh!! I HAVE to leave that Sunday to Houston for a meeting with my DJ. I don't hear back from my friend, and then it's Monday and I'm trying not to push it. I don't want to take advantage of her amazing help, but... my wedding is this coming SUNDAY. I wait for Monday to see if she'll call me and -- nothing. I finally call her on Tuesday and reach her voicemail. She ends up texting me, in a matter of minutes letting me know that some conflicts would not allow her to be there on Sunday.

Um. What?

I was really upset, disappointed, and stressed. I couldn't be that mad at her because of HOW much she helped me, but I felt so let down only days before my wedding. Anyway, I HAVE to come up with a back up plan. There is no time to sulk or blame anyone -- it's time to take action. I was in the car with Jasmine (my sis in law) when I was receiving the bad news via text, and turned to her and asked: "Is anyone in your family decent at hair styling?"

I knew what I wanted for my hair and I knew I could do it, but I absolutely needed help. Thank God for Jose's Aunt Jane and cousin Sacora!! They were SO nervous about the potential of doing my wedding hair because of the stress. I reassured them that *I* would be guiding them throughout the whole process and no matter HOW crazy or good my hair looked, it would not be their fault.

Bam! We pulled out the hairspray, my AMAZING curler (y'all this sucker is $75 but it's my secret to tossled curls), tons of bobby pins, and extensions. Since my curler doesn't have a clamp, it takes some time getting used to wrapping hair around the base of the curler and holding the hair. You have to wear a glove too! Otherwise you will burn your hand like crazy. Trust me.

So here we were, our first hair trial -- days before the wedding. I turned to Aunt Jane and said "Okay Aunt Jane -- your responsibility is to spray the curls, tease the roots, and add the extensions." So this was our flow: I divided my hair into sections, Sacora did the curling, and Aunt Jane sprayed them down and added the extensions with my guidance. Once my whole hair was done, we got to the tough part -- styling it.

I explained how I wanted the side that was pulled back to almost look braided. Basically, I didn't want to just grab the left side and pull the hair back to the side and pin it. Aunt Jane BLEW me AWAY with her sudden creativity! I simply showed her from what I managed to reach on the side of my hair and she took over. It came out PERFECT!

Aunt Jane turned to me and said: "You need to tell me the TRUTH. Do you REALLY love it? Because I need you to love this on your wedding day. If this isn't what you want, you shouldn't keep it." I responded "Trust me -- I REALLY do love it. I promise I would not keep it if I didn't like it. I couldn't do that to myself on my wedding for the sake of being polite!" Haha. But let me say, we teased my hair SOOO much to get volume for the top section.

Here they are in action on the wedding day:

Sacora curling

Aunt Jane teasing :)

NOTE: My hair is NOT that short -- we actually pinned the bottom UP so that as we did each section, we loosely kept the curls bunched together to retain their curl.

We put on my veil, added my earrings and I looked at the mirror. Wow. I realized how God literally took care of me. A situation that could have been so stressful ended up being taken care of by my new family. Aunt Jane and Sacora would have NEVER imagined they would be doing my wedding hair. Heck, I didn't think -I- would be doing it!! But ultimately, God proved that all it takes is trust. To trust that he will take care of you, no matter how far you're pushed.

The Hair Story ... is coming

2010-09-03T02:43:00.004-04:00

(Raya Carlisle Photography)

It's a three hour difference from Arizona to Atlanta, where a lot of my friends live, so I had to post this "I PROMISE IT'S COMING" post.

I said I was finishing the hair story, and I am, but I got home pretty late after bible study tonight and had to start working on an inspiration board for a last minute photoshoot. AND after working for only an hour -- it was suddenly almost midnight! I didn't realize how late it was and I have to wake up early for a photoshoot tomorrow.

I had planned to type up the post tonight so you could have it in the morning, but -- well, I need to sleep and you KNOW I can't type the "finale" in just 30 minutes :( Curses for talking too much!

If I end the shoot early tomorrow, I will type it when I get home! Either way, keep your eyes peeled and make sure you've read part 1 and 2. Noches!

p.s. Has anyone heard of the show The Colony on The Discovery Channel? Jose watched an episode on his laptop while I was working on my inspiration board and that show is C-R-A-Z-Y. Not to mention I can NOT handle watching people throw up, so you can imagine how I jumped out of my seat when they started showing that. Thieves, rotten pigs, pepper spray, robberies, milk poured on eyes... and my husband is loving it. Seriously. He had to stop himself from watching a second episode. Anyway! Just some random thoughts to see if anyone out there shares his feelings or mine. Haha :)

I'm Such a Girl

2010-09-01T00:38:00.005-04:00

Ok, clearly I am at a point in my life where there are lots of people having babies. I mean, people that I know. However, that was not the case at ALL until my bestfriend just delivered her baby today.

I got all emotional like I was the one who was pregnant! Kristen Lewis and I have been bestfriends since middle school. Back when we used to write notes and my name was spelled "Alahundra." Hahaha. Story of my life with my name :) For some reason we both just clicked and -- wait -- for SOME reason? No, let's not play. Let me count the reasons:

-Kristen and I are both loud.
-Obnoxiously loud in high school.
-We liked to laugh. Kristen taught me to laugh at MYSELF.
-This included many accidents (on both sides) where laughter came first, followed by "Are you okay?!"
-We worked at the same restaurant and went to the same high school = ridiculous memories.
-There was typically never something we weren't willing to try. That includes skipping school for lunch to get free, DELICIOUS, fajita nachos from my Aunt's job downtown.
-Putting on the MOST ridiculous performance during our improv class (cheerleaders with asthma) that was applauded by our friends but incredibly scorned by our teacher.
-If we were in trouble individually, that's okay. But in trouble TOGETHER? Forget about it! That would just be more trouble.

When Kristen found out she was pregnant, her and Billy each chose one person to tell. They would tell the rest of their family & friends once they went to the doctor and had everything checked and confirmed. I remember missing her phone call and listening to her voicemail. I thought there was something different in her tone and when I called back the first thing out of my mouth was "You're pregnant?!" She was!!! I was so honored to be that person to receive the call.

It blows my mind that the same girl who drew on the seats of the school bus with me (remember the turtle lady?!), peed between the portables because we could NOT hold it and her car wasn't working (only to later find out she hadn't fully shifted it into park! :), convinced me to audition for Arts Magnet by playing improv games with me, shared the MOST intense secrets that one day on the DART train, snuck out to the roof of my house so we could tan only to be embarrassed to see construction men working two houses down whistling at us -- is now a mother to a boy who will probably do ten times as much ridiculous things in his childhood.

She's a mom. Wow. When I saw the first photo of her holding Kent, I realized I was no longer an onlooker of friends with babies. Today my bestfriend, the face I've been SO familiar with in my childhood, is holding a child of her own.

No, I'm not pregnant. Just emotional. Happy Birthday Kent :)

Kiki & I on her wedding in 2006

Inspiring Monday

2010-08-30T12:59:00.006-04:00

Photography, fashion, and design inspire me. What inspires you?

(ffffound)

I'll be finishing the Hair Story this week :)

The Hair Story - Part II

2010-08-26T11:36:00.006-04:00

So where were we?

Oh yes. Extensions. Again, it can have a bad connotation, but why should it? It's all in HOW you use it. I heard something along the lines of : On your wedding you should look like a BETTER version of your everyday self, but not UNLIKE yourself. The idea is that you don't suddenly transform yourself that it's almost unrecognizable, but that you also don't treat it like any other day of the week.

My bestfriend, ironically, ALSO went for a Spanish look on her wedding (4 years ago!), and she wore a simple, low bun. Actually, my Godmother styled her hair :) Well, she DOES have thick hair, but it wasn't long enough to make the bun look FULL. You know, those luscious hair buns? So my Godmother added some extensions to increase the volume of the bun and viola! The perfect touch.

So! Back to me screwing up. I managed to make a hair appointment in Houston, and I wanted to have the extensions for the hair trial. She told me to wash my hair the day before our trial so it wouldn't be so silky clean the day of. I stayed up that night till almost 1 a.m. sewing those extensions! I had to wake up early and I just LOOKED so tired. I threw on a dress, and looking still half-asleep I left for the appointment that was 45 minutes away. By the way, I was staying at my cousin's house in Houston once I left Atlanta for Texas the month of my wedding.

My hair decides to feel extra greasy today, even though I had washed it the day before. I think because I kept running my hands through it when I was stressing over the extensions that the oils in my hand made it more.. matte-y. Meaning, it didn't feel flowy and just.. drabby. Am I making up words?! Blogger keeps underlining them in red! Anyway, I was NOT feeling my hair and KNEW this was going to affect the styling.

I show the stylist the photos, describe the looks, but also emphasize that I am VERY open to ideas. I want her to be inspired and use her skills to do what she does best. The first thing she does is start curling my hair. I notice that she doesn't even change my hair part. I start to shift in my chair when I see the curls slide out of the curler and they look so tight. Ugh. When she gets to the last layer, I speak up. She informs me that the curls will start to become loose as time passes because they lose shape, so it's better that they're slightly tighter. Slightly? Um.. okay. Also, the curls aren't that bouncy because my hair is heavier from the natural hair oils + product. So much for the romantic curls :(

Once the curling is done, she begins the styling. I interrupt and ask about the extensions. And guess what? Guess w-h-a-t. Dummy here picked extensions that were the actual LENGTH of my hair! Meaning, I wouldn't have layers .. I would just have a LOT of hair at the same length. I needed to get them a few inches longer so that some curls could be longer than others. Y'all, I REALLY thought I had picked some long extensions (12 inches!!). But I didn't realize how long my hair had gotten and how SHORT it becomes when you curl it. Clearly 12 inches isn't long enough. Who would have known. So make note of that ladies. Hold the hair to your ear and see how long it drops.

Blah. She tells me that on the wedding I can just buy longer ones from them ($20 per/track) or bring them myself and that it "should work out." I don't know about y'all, but I DON'T want to see my wedding hair on my wedding day. I want to see it BEFORE because that might not be my wedding hair if it doesn't turn out well!

Finally, she starts pinning things so my hair can cascade down my shoulder, except -- the curls are so tight, it's not really "cascading." It's just sitting there. POP. That's the sound I heard in my head when my bubble busted. Plus, my part is STILL on the same spot when I came in, and she didn't do anything special when she pulled it back.

Biggest mistake brides make: Do NOT go home and complain about your hair style if you have not said a WORD to your stylist. Your stylist needs to know if she can make any changes because she can't read your mind. She could probably read my body language...

And my body language was saying "Weeelll.. I was picturing something a little different." I explain to her what I was hoping for, and she re-does the side section. It came out pretty. Very pretty. I would be alright wearing this to a bridal shower. But NOT my wedding. I asked her to take a photo and I'm sorry it came out blurry!

The front

You see my arrow? I'm pointing to the curl that looks like it's been brushed. Notice how at the VERY top of my head, it's like my hair appears to be slicked down. (BTW - I made this one B/W so that the blur wouldn't look as strong).

The side

The curls were just... all wrong...

The other side

Now this is the part I asked her to make it more 'intricate.' I REALLY did like it, but because I didn't like the hair as a whole -- it didn't work for me.

At this point, I had already asked to make changes, and even after the changes I wasn't satisfied, so my answer was clear = Not my stylist. If that's how she curls hair, it's not like I can say "Can you change the way you curl hair...?"

What I learned from this session:

My hair needs to be washed relatively close to the trial because hair products weigh my hair DOWN. It gets oily easily. This is not the case for everyone, so this is why brides -- you MUST have a hair trial if that is important to you!!!
The tight curls REALLY shortened my hair length = buy longer extensions
It is better to walk away from a trial you didn't like then cross your fingers it will work on your wedding day
I MUST, must, MUST blow dry my hair with as much volume as possible before the trial.

Stick around for the FINAL part that includes photos of the SECOND trial with a friend and how we eventually got .... this

*photo by Raya Carlisle

The Hair Story - Part I

2010-08-23T01:00:00.008-04:00

Guess what I got in the mail on Friday?! My wedding photos! I want to take y'all back to some of the stories I wasn't able to share at the time due to the chaos that is... wedding planning.

We begin with: The Hair Story

How on earth did I manage to do my own hair with the help of Jose's relatives for the wedding? I have to tell you what pushed me there in the first place. And I'm completely putting it out there.

Before even getting engaged, we all knew who was going to do my hair: My Godmother. Since the age that I had hair, which was probably around 2 years old since I didn't seem to GROW any as a baby(!), my Godmother was my hairdresser. She is also my mom's bestfriend and hairdresser. I suffered through horrible "let-me-try-this-cut" experiments, stylish cuts, and I was able to perfectly rotate a round brush on one hand and hold a blow-dryer in the other by 6th grade. Yeah, it was serious business.

Then just a few months after my engagement, we found out my Godmother got cancer. Unfortunately it just became worse and worse as time passed. She is still alive (thank God), but around Christmas time she let me know that I needed a back-up plan.

I didn't know how to feel. Upset? Frustrated? Guilty?! Stressed -- that was a clear one. At that point I let go of my Godmother as a hairstylist and just focused on desiring her attendance at my wedding. Then of course that led to: Who is going to do my hair?!

Ironically, she actually suggested that she teach me the style and that I could do it myself on the day-of. I thought she was crazy! Would I seriously want to stress myself out by becoming responsible of my wedding day hair?!

Fast forward to March. Time was ticking and I was only 3 months from the wedding AND on top of that, I didn't live in Houston so I had no knowledge of good stylists. I knew I was going to have to spend money on a hair trial (possibly more than one if need be!), and make sure they were available on my wedding.

Wedding Hair + New Dresser = Hard to Trust. I was not excited. I searched Project Wedding and found 3 salons that got EXCELLENT reviews. The trials were pricey, so I set up an appointment with one. I took these set of photos as inspiration:

I wanted volume for sure...

source

My hair pulled to the side, softly, cascading down my shoulders..

source

And the curls to be romantic and loose. I wanted to look Spanish and sexy, but not like a pageant girl either.

source

I brought this picture to say "I don't want these curls!"

source

I selected an up-do as a back-up and wanted to share it with y'all because it's so pretty:

source

Lovely, huh?! I didn't think it should be too hard. However, my biggest concern was my actual hair. I knew that curling it would shorten the length, and on top of that, my hair is fine.

Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to the wonderful world of: hair extensions.

*shudder* Is that weird?! That feels kinda.. fake. It is fake. And yes, I wasn't a fan of the idea.... at first. Until Ren showed me the ones she bought and made. She explained how much cheaper it was to buy the human hair at a beauty supply store (yes, I said HUMAN hair!! crazyyy!), buy the clips, and sew the clips onto the hair yourself. Let me show you...

When you buy it at the beauty store, it comes in a looooooong set. You cut it into sections depending on how many pieces you want to add to your hair like so:

source

See the clips? The sections can be short or long, and all you have to do is part your hair on the layer you're adding the section of hair, TEASE the roots, add hair spray, and attach the clips:

source

The girl above is using a really LONG strand near the crown of her head.

Down here you can see the actual extension already attached to the roots and being curled.

source

This is why you MUST buy human hair -- you can curl it, straighten it, and wash it. And always keep it UNDER the top layers because you don't want the clips to start poking out of your head. The photo of the blonde girl's hair looks cheap from this perspective, but once the top layer of your natural hair comes over it, it blends beautifully.

Luckily for me, I wasn't adding many and I was curling it. I only needed about 3-4 sections of it to add volume. I decided to go for it. But was it that easy people? Of course not. Not only did I buy the wrong length the first time, but my trial did not go as I had hoped.

That's for Part II. Yes, that includes pictures of the trial. Y'all didn't think I'd post the whole novel now, right?! I need some sleep! Night :)

p.s. does human hair extensions freak you out?! I'm just curious as to where they get the hair... On second thought -- maybe I don't.

Jeggings baby

2010-08-19T20:44:00.014-04:00

So I mentioned that Jose's parents were coming into town this past week and today, sadly, they left.

In just these past few days we have: gone swimming, deboned a chicken (Err.. Mama Nels did most, but I paid attention), traveled down the Apache trail IN THE CRAZY rain, ate ice cream that contained some cactus plant, went to farmer's market, drank veggie juice that tasted like "The Earth" (i.e. dirt) from the market, watched lots of TV, ate LOTS of homemade salsa, made Jose's dad taste tofu (and might consider dis-owning me as part of the family since Mama Nels is going to try it out in Russellville now), AND... discovered Jeggings.

Have you heard of such things?

Jeggings are LEGGINGS styled to look like denim jeans. I had seen them at Dillards one time and put them down after I saw they were $30. I figured I might as well get REAL jeans for that price. Then last week I saw my salsa instructor wearing them, and since I've been wearing leggings a lot here (FORGET about jeans in the desert!), I was really craving some.

As we're spending quality time watching TV (didn't you know that's the best way to bond?), Jose's mom asks me if I've "heard of those things called jeggings?" I tell her how I've been wanting some and she proceeds to say: "Well, they just showed a commercial that Wal-Mart has them for 6 bucks."

Wait. 6 bucks?! Okay, I'm a huge fan of Ross, but I have to admit I don't ever look at clothes when I'm at Walmart. But... SIX DOLLARS... I had to investigate. Plus, can you REALLY mess up leggings?!

Fast forward to us driving to the Apache trail when Mama Nels announces: "Hey! I need to go by Walmart." My eyes light up because I immediately remember the jeggings. However, we decide to first go through the 3-hour Apache trail that ends up being SIX hours due to a sudden MONSOON attack. But you know my big mouth STILL brings up Walmart when we're on the highway. Ridiculous! The rain is literally lunging itself at the cars, making it hard to see, but y'all don't know how sweet Jose's mom is. She says "Oh yeah! Walmart -how do I get there?" and I re-route us to Walmart on the gps, while Jose's dad says "Um... we don't need to go to Walmart right now in this weather." Mama Nels waves her hand and says "Naaaah, we're fine" -- she is also the one driving so she gets more say :)

Where was Jose in all of this? ASLEEP! YES!! Cause you know if he was awake he'd convince his mom that this was not a good idea. I silently prayed that the rain would calm down near our exit, and it DID! Since it was still pouring, they decided to drop Jose and I off while they waited in the car. We went to pick up what we actually needed for that night's dinner and I stopped Jose right as we walked by the clothes. "Don't hate me, but I HAVE to see these jeggings your mom was talking about." Jose rolls his eyes and because he loves me agrees to let me try some on quickly. Unfortunately I had my bathing suit under, so the bulging knots on the side of my bottoms was not giving me the best image.

Turns out they are actually FIVE dollars. I go ahead and buy them and guys.. I LOVE THEM!!! On the rack they don't look that cute, but it's completely different ON. The weird thing is that I can't pull off skinny jeans (make my legs look even skinnier), but I THINK these look good on me. You can lie to me :P

I am such a bargain hunter that I had to show you my outfit for today.

The jeggings with my highlighter yellow nail polish (also bought at Walmart). Disclaimer: I'm not saying my nail polish is cute... that's an experiment lol.

No fancy photos. Just my iphone. This was so hard to take without distorting my legs using the camera phone. Jose's not home so it's just me!

My Ross shirt that I got for $12!! Love the back!!

My Lola Red belt from Goodwill for $3

The awkward cell phone photo of my outfit ;)

And that's my $20 outfit!

Pathetic. I was so excited about these jeggings I made a whole post about it, haha. Remember to wear these like leggings and not skinny jeans. Leggings are similar to panty hose -- they hug your curves and you probably want to wear the waist band ON your waist (and not hips like skinny jeans). Otherwise you might have curves in unwanted places.

Feel free to share any amazing finds you've had :) Happy Friday!!

We Were Flying

2010-08-18T01:24:00.003-04:00

It rained. Rained, rained, rained. Our second city in Spain, and the weather wasn't letting up. We opened up the tourist booklet the hotel gave us and scanned some of the options. Surfing? If the water wasn't FREEZING. Kayaking? Phone number is out of service. And then we saw it. I had been skydiving before, but this... this was different. Jose smirked -"Well, we finally found something you haven't done... what do you think?" It was a little pricey, but ... when would we EVER get the chance to fly in Spain?!

"We stood so tall, we caught a plane
By the wing and held it safe
Until we found it a place to land"

I'm finally finished editing this, and an exhilarating emotion runs through me every time I watch the video. Mainly because it takes me back to Spain, the wedding (still!), and being able to do all of this with Jose. I feel so lucky... so blessed to be able to experience things like this. Yes, paragliding does make you feel incredible, but "Oh, for love we become larger than life size.. great in the eyes of someone... larger than life size we become" -- A Fine Frenzy.

Have you ever or would you consider doing something like this?!

Chicken, Inspiration, and Dandelions

2010-08-13T12:17:00.004-04:00

So guess what I'll be learning soon? How to de-bone a chicken!! YIKES. Jose's mom and dad are coming in Saturday night and visiting until next Thursday. Our first visiting family! :) One of the activities she insisted on is teaching me how to de-bone a whole chicken, haha. I feel bad that they're coming on one of the worst months (in terms of heat). They're really great about wanting to just relax and hang out, but I also want to plan some fun things. We're thinking we might make the drive up to Sedona. Can you believe the temperatures drop by 15-20 degrees in Sedona and Flagstaff?!

(I love taking photos of dandelions!)

Anyway! I've been working some long hours on my photography website which I hope to be done with in the next week. I wanted to share elements that inspired me and will give you some idea of what I want my website to feel like:

This video -- those lovely creamy tones... LOVE the style!

One element I knew I wanted was a hand-drawn piece.. something fun.

And FONTS! OH! Don't get me started. This is SO important and can add that flair to a website. Obviously it depends on what look you're going for. Something quirky and curvy? Or skinny fashion? Or a heart-stopping, curvy, flowy, script that is mighty pricey! Yeah, I was tortured with that last one, especially because the price was just not in my reach.

I struggled with drafts and TONS of ideas with Jose.. but when I saw this site .. it finally clicked.

----
Question: And by the way, I REALLY appreciate the feedback! Does music bother you on a website? I LOVE great music, but sometimes it can get old quickly. I think music can really add to your website-experience, but can also ... annoy you. What are your thoughts about music on websites? Specifically photography websites. Should I make sure I update it often? Or should I just scrap it?

Happy Friday!

Spanish goodies for you!

2010-08-10T12:51:00.013-04:00

I could slap myself for the amount of photos I took in Spain. Ahhhhh -- I sit in front of my laptop, going through hundreds, deciding which to keep, which to post online, and which to edit. But I guess I shouldn't complain because at least I have photos to play with. I'm dying to start photographing again and my patience is really being tested here. My desire is overwhelming, but I have to trust God that he has plans and I need to just... breathe.

So that's me. In the bullring stands. In Madrid. How awesome?!?! A friend of ours, Borja, is from Spain and we visited his family in Madrid. Before going to the bull fight, his mom gave me that fan. Love it :) But here's another awesome thing...

I want to give YOU some Spanish souvenirs!! Since it's clearly not possible to buy everyone something from Spain, what I can DEFINITELY give you... is an artistic photograph. Something to hang in your home, from Spain, made with my love, for free. I love decorating a wall with different sized frames and photos like so:

MORE examples!

Clearly, you don't have to use mine, but in case you needed something different that wasn't a photo of a random stranger... I thought this might be fun :)

My question is: What kind of picture would you prefer most- the artistic one, or the Spanish one? I ask this because some of the artistic ones do not necessarily scream Spain, BUT make great photography prints and vice versa.

Let me show you an example of artistic versus Spanish-y versus both. Keep in mind these are my actual photos (that you can have :) inserted into STRANGER'S homes via photoshop (haha).

Artistic
(to me, it says Spain AND Latin America, but to some it might just be artistic :P)

source

Spanish
(b/c of location.. it's my city shot of Barcelona)

source

Spanish + Artistic

source

These are just some examples of what I have. Clearly combining artistic and Spanish is the MOST ideal, however, those are very rare because people have individual interpretations of what they consider "Spanish"-y.

SO pick: Gimme artistic, gimme Spanish, gimme either! ;)

Recipe -- Salmon Success!

2010-08-09T01:58:00.012-04:00

I have to say that I am not the biggest salmon fan. Sometimes I get the courage to order it when it sounds really good on a menu (Flying Biscuit -- scrambled eggs + salmon) -- but am quickly disheartened when it tastes like... fish.

This recipe is for people who want to try out a "different" kind of seafood recipe and something EASY. Unfortunately not cheap... so either save it for a special occasion or get it on sale. Whatever floats your boat!

(source)

I actually took a photo of it with my iphone and had to scrap it because you can see how even a professional can't make this look very pretty. Look, blueberry sauce looks like black tar on camera... so enjoy the better photo and know that it tastes 10 times better ;)

What you need:

* 1 tablespoon olive oil plus additional for brushing
* 3/4 cup sliced shallots (but we used minced onion)
* 1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
* 1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt plus additional for seasoning
* 1/4 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme plus additional for seasoning (didn't use "fresh" thyme :)
* 1/8 teaspoon ground allspice plus additional for seasoning
* 1 cup fresh blueberries
* 1/4 cup water
* 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
* 4 7-ounce salmon steaks or fillets with skin (each about 3/4 inch thick) (only used 2 fillets)

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in large skillet over medium heat (note: we used large sauce pan). Add shallots/onions; sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt, 1/4 teaspoon thyme, and 1/8 teaspoon allspice. Stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add blueberries, 1/4 cup water, and vinegar. Stir to blend. Mash berries with potato masher or back of fork and cook until sauce thickens, stirring often, 3 to 4 minutes. Season with freshly ground black pepper. Remove from heat.

Add some olive oil to your skillet and warm to medium-high heat. Brush salmon on both sides with oil; sprinkle with coarse salt, thyme, allspice, and black pepper (pretty much just season both sides of fillets. Ours were thick so it's not exactly "sprinkling" haha).

Cook salmon until just opaque in center, 4 to 5 minutes per side. Transfer to plates. Spoon sauce over salmon and serve immediately.

Let me just say this did not have that fishy taste and once you have your ingredients, it is EASY to make. Yummmm. It was soo good. Kisses to my chef for picking this one :)

We saved about 4 more recipes from Epicurious. So far so good. My favorite thing about the website is that they have an app for your iphone so it downloads all the ingredients you need as a grocery list! They even divide it by "produce, meat, spices, etc." We'll see how the others go!

Behind Closed (Salsa) Doors

2010-08-06T15:36:00.009-04:00

I could show you the practice video where we run through the full routine, with minor hiccups, and us wearing our actual costumes. But what fun would that be when I could show you the one where my partner and I mess up our ending? Although the ending is far from graceful, I actually prefer the practice video with our instructor every now and then yelling "1, 2, 3.. 5, 6, 7!!" And honestly, I think I danced much more comfortably in this practice than when we had our costumes on and we looked a little more "uptight."

Things to know about me (and witness on video): I wear socks with my salsa shoes. (**EDIT: when I practice!! haha.. I can only imagine the look I would get if I left my socks on during a performance!)

Look, I have no shame about this! I don't own salsa-sneakers (which are more like shoes rather than open toe sandals), so I always practice in my heels. Even if I owned the sneakers, I would still wear my heels because you work your calves out and the heel makes you dance better (in my opinion). Unfortunately, my lovely heels like to rub my skin off, no matter how MANY callouses I may build! That's probably because I have cheap salsa shoes, but that's not the point. Wearing socks makes the shoes much more comfortable, I'll have blood-free feet, and they're great for topic of conversation during practice. Granted, when I moved to Phoenix and started with a new dance studio here, I didn't wear my socks at first. I'm not THAT shameless! But after the first practice, I quickly regretted not wearing my socks. Plus, the people were really cool and I felt comfortable enough with my silly habit.

Before hitting play -- you must know why I'm posting this. I learned and practice this choreography for probably 15 weeks. The week before the performance my partner CANCELED because it turned out he was going to be out of town. This was going to be my last Atlanta salsa performance to invite my friends to (whom many never saw me perform ANY salsa until my wedding). I went to the performance to cheer on my team mates anyway, and guess who was there? MY PARTNER!! Mhm. I could have kicked him with my salsa-sock-dancing feet where it hurts. Instead, I behaved and enjoyed the night with friends and cheered on the group when they performed. Turns out he was nervous about performing since he missed the last few weeks.. but I wish he had not waited till the week of to tell me.

So here is the video (sorry about the low quality!). While my partner for this performance is a GREAT dancer, he let me down the last few weeks. On this video? Literally! lol. We got through the entire routine until the end where he forgot the "drop" and well... you'll see. But overall, I LOVE the music for the intro!! I loved taking classes with Salsambo, and can't wait to grow here in Phoenix at Tropical Vibes.

Before I forget! In case you don't know me.. I'm the one in the middle with the baby-blue shorts & white long sleeve shirt. OH-- and the one wearing the WHITE SOCKS. ;)

Happy Friday!! I have some freebies for y'all coming up! Also, I made the pre-wedding video, but I haven't received my wedding photos yet and since I'm supposed to get them by this weekend it won't be long till' you see them!

We're Out of Milk.. again?!

2010-08-05T19:17:00.005-04:00

(My jamon iberico, queso, & pan baguette in Spain)

I knew things would change when we got married. And I especially knew our grocery bill would change. But I didn't realize HOW MUCH! We go through a gallon of milk every week, we probably go to the grocery store twice a week, and somehow I feel like we're always missing something (a veggie, a fruit, or... MILK!).

So I need some opinions... or advice. Here's the thing: I buy organic produce. Mainly, I buy organic milk and chicken. The milk isn't really a problem, but the chicken is definitely expensive. They don't typically sell organic "skinless, boneless, chicken tenders" in bulk. Also, instead of beef, we usually buy ground turkey which is leaner and not as expensive. I'm not a fan of fish, but I bought a blackened catfish at a market yesterday and it was DELICIOUS! So now I'm considering fish for more protein options.

Anyway, what I really want to know is: How often do YOU go grocery shopping? What do you typically run out of the most? I know this changes for every individual/couple according to their preferences (Jose is a cereal killer = milk is like water at our place ;). But I'd like to get an idea of what the "average" is -- whether you buy for one or two.

Do you always eat some type of meat for dinner? Or do you turn to other options for protein? Any tips on saving at the grocery store?

I even considered us getting a Costco account, but we don't even have kids! So I'm not sure if we would take advantage of the benefits in "bulk" purchases. But the way we run out of milk, cereal, bread, and chicken is making me have second thoughts.

Maybe we're just skinny cows. What do you think?! :)

Living Room Decor on a Budget

2010-07-30T12:53:00.011-04:00

Okay, I don't know if it's the fact that he's married to me... or something in the Arizona air, but I am featuring yet another decor piece created by Jose. Yes!

Also, I want to give you some tips on finding some unique furniture pieces on none other than: Craigslist!

During our 'decor' shopping the first few weeks in Arizona, I mentioned to Jose that we needed to find a lamp shade for the light fixture in the dining room area. The standard one in our condo looked like this:

Ugly, right? I mean, it looked uglier when it was hanging down from the ceiling (which Jose ended up hitting his head on about 5 times).

Unfortunately, I never realized a freakin' light fixture could be so expensive! While I'd love to create an accent piece, I'm not willing to spend over $50 on a light fixture in the dining room. Maybe the living room. Well, while we were at World Market, we found these cute bamboo parasols for... ten bucks!

(from World Market website)

This is where the Arizona air hits Jose and he says "what if we used THIS for our light fixture?" And, you know, after that fruit basket idea, I was actually considering his suggestions now. While I had my hesitations, I LOVED the thought of the parasol hanging upside down to serve as a light fixture. How would this work?! You know... ten bucks... it's worth the try!

First, Jose took off the ugly fixture, which left a metal pole hanging down with exposed bulbs. Jose chopped all but 4 inches of the wooden handle on the parasol. He then took a left over metal bracket from our IKEA furniture and used it to connect the parasol to the metal pole. Like this:

And this was the result!

Don't mind the missing chair from our dining room table -- I currently don't have an office chair, so I'm stealing one of those in the mean time :)

SO, how can you find some cool accent pieces if you're decorating? Well, it's all about the WORDS you use when you search. This goes for Craigslist, Ebay, Etsy, or any other place you look online. Let me show you.

I'm a huge fan of vintage furniture, with that kind of chic look (though currently I'm leaning more on the modern look). Let's take this inspirational photo from vnbonsai.com:

UGH, I love this so much. So feminine... if I was living by myself I'd be all over this! Anyway, some of you are familiar with Craigslist "furniture searches" (or Etsy even!) know that if you simply search "vintage" you come up with SOOO many things. You really have to sit there and filter through hundreds of finds. "Vintage" is so vaguely used that you end up with old, garage sale items that people classify as "vintage."

The word that instantly came to mind with this furniture for me was: French.

Guess what items I found on Craigslist when I searched ONLY "French" under furniture? THESE beauties!

Accent chair -- hello! $150

Bedside table $60

Dresser $250

Desk $295

Bookshelf $120 (Imagine painting it a solid red?)

And last.... Okay, some of you may think I'm crazy and just can't understand my vision. That's okay. For those of you who get it, I'll let you come over and sit on this beauty:

Aaaah!! Okay, we haven't "bought" this... yet. But I'm in love!! To me it's the perfect accent chair for our living room. It's a reasonable price (well, the one in my HEAD that I have to convince the seller is reasonable... ;) and it looks comfy!! Jose said it has to pass the "comfort" test in person. Lord, I hope this chair is super comfortable.

Anyway, while these prices were between $50-$200 -- they are absolutely reasonable in comparison to furniture store prices. My advice is to pick an inspirational photo (like the one I posted), and draw ideas from that. I'm no interior design expert, but there are people online who are that I can get visions from. After you have your "vision" search words like: french, feminine, ruffle, shabby, chic, modern, etc. You will find uglies, but that's because people are just trying to sell stuff.

Last, remember you can PAINT!! Pay attention to the -design- of the piece -- it's curves and accents. If you find a coffee table with a really unique shape, or beautifully carved legs, but it's a tacky wood color -- paint it! This is where consignment stores can be your best friend. Warning: be picky! It's easy to fill your place with junk. Ask yourself if it's a piece people will notice AND does it match the style of your furniture. Be in love with it :)

Happy Friday!

p.s. I'm trying out bigger font because I started noticing how small my default "normal" font is... See? Don't I look small?

French Toast

2010-07-26T02:54:00.006-04:00

I found out there was a farmer's market -- the kind where real farmers show up -- every Wednesdays and Sundays around where I live. Excited about this, I drove down Wednesday afternoon to check it out. After stopping by some booths, picking up chicken and fruits, I smelled a heavenly aroma -- bread.

Oh my word.

This man had cinnamon rolls on steroids!! Then he showed me the cinnamon loaf with pecans. Now, I'm not a huge pecan lover, but Jose loves sweet breads (ok, ANY bread) and pecan pie. Then, like he actually has to convince me to buy any, the bread man says (as I pick up and smell the cinnamon-pecan loaf) "Yeah, these make GREAT french toast!"

Genius!! I set down the beast of a watermelon I'm holding, pay him, and get home asap to... hide the bread. Now, before you start thinking I'm a horrible wife, I'm not hiding it so I can keep the starchy, buttery glory to myself. In fact, I plan on surprising him with breakfast the next day!

I'm ridiculous about "gifts." I love giving them, and I LOVE surprises. So the whole night, I was reading up about french toast because I HAD to make it right. I couldn't ruin that beautiful loaf with my clumsy cooking skills. Every now and then, Jose would walk by while I was reading the recipe online and I would yell "Don't look at my screen please!!" Or he'd open the pantry door and I'd say "STOP!!" The loaf was wrapped in plastic, but let's just say our pantry STILL smells like cinnamon. That stuff is crack!

(Picture I snapped during my wedding tasting: french toast, soaked in french vanilla ice cream the night before!!)

Anyway, I decide to prep the milk-egg mixture the night before. BUT, I also read that stale bread makes the best french toast (absorbs the mixture better apparently). This means I need to pre-slice my bread and leave it out during the night. So I prop Jose's laptop on the kitchen counter as I'm prepping everything AND meticulously making him stay in the living room. If you don't remember, we're in a condo so this is just a large room (living + dining + kitchen).

Right as I'm finishing things up, I find this video revealing great tips about french toast. However, what I DON'T remember is that when I used Jose's laptop earlier that day -- I had the volume on FULL blast for my workout video. Before I get the chance to even hit pause, a woman's voice BLARES out of the speakers "Cooking FRENCH TOAST IS"--- I hit the pause button and immediately look over at Jose on the couch with the desire that he SOMEHOW did NOT just hear that after spending the entire day keeping everything secret!!!

He busts out laughing.

Ugh. I could have dumped the egg mixture on his Mac. But then I wouldn't be able to watch my workout videos.

And want to hear something else that's funny? We didn't have VANILLA. So Jose suggested I put vanilla YOGURT in the mix. This is the same guy who brought me banana nut bread when I had a stomach virus because it was "practically a banana."

I have to admit it's those pieces of him that I love so much. They're so ridiculous sometimes that they just make me laugh. Okay, AFTER the fact. Cause I was not laughing at that stupid video. I'm talking FULL volume people. The NEIGHBORS KNEW I WAS MAKING FRENCH TOAST!

The french toasts? They turned out great. Vanilla yogurt and all.

Love Boat

2010-07-20T14:46:00.007-04:00

Got word that my wedding photos should be done next week! Woo hoo! I'm juggling trying to finish my Spain photos and putting together the wedding-prep videos I took with Jose's point & shoot.

In the mean time, I came across this engagement shoot and thought it was absolutely BEAUTIFUL.

Doesn't it have that "Notebook" feel to it?! I have admired Sheena Jibson's work for some time, and I just HAD to share these with y'all. What I love MOST about this shoot (aside from the gorgeous photos), is Sheena's ability to get creative on this ONE spot. She took so many angles and came up with so many poses which is truly a challenge as a photographer.

It's hard enough on land to really help couples become intimate with each other in front of your lens without the awkward part and she...

clearly....

had no...

trouble :)

Hope you enjoyed! :)

Maybe it's Spain

2010-07-15T20:29:00.007-04:00

I can't tell if I feel this way because it's naturally what happens at a certain age, or if Spain tucked itself into my pocket and materialized itself via my taste. My taste of clothes that is.

Lately I've just been wanting to wear soft, light colored flannels, rolled up shorts (cargo, jean, or corduroys), and just... really comfortable, yet slightly sophisticated and feminine clothes. I'm not a fan of formality, but I'm not really interested in my fitted t-shirts anymore.

Since we are in no mode to spend money on clothes (cause our furniture is eating it up!!) = I have to get creative with what I already have. SO, I took a bright (but not neon bright!) red top, some tweed/brown colored, formal capris -- rolled them up, and added a thin, brown belt (which I got from Spain!), to define my waist, and pulled my hair back in a bun but not without adding LOTS of volume around the crown.

I'm no fashion expert as we can recall ;) BUT, I'm starting to really like combining "business" with feminine casual.

I'm also starting to pay attention on ways to dress "my shape." Yes, I'm petite, but I can really make my curves disappear with certain t-shirts, or suddenly look stumpy with certain dresses because I'm pretty short. I found a really great article (go read it!!) that breaks down body shapes and ways to accent your best attributes with the right clothing. Though watch out for the scandalous body photo on the first page but just scroll down to the good stuff.

So what's your style?! Learn anything? Any recommendations?

Ciao!

p.s. You like my moving boxes in the background? ;) Haven't finished my office quite yet...

I went with bangs!

2010-07-09T17:47:00.005-04:00

Don't you just love when you've done something for someone and they squeal with excitement? See, I'm weird in a way that sometimes I do and sometimes I'm slightly silent.

Example A) Getting my bangs cut!

I was so nervous! Mainly because I didn't want to look like a 3rd grader. Granted, I just turned 25 and I will never grow old of people thinking I'm 18 because if that equation continues... then that means I'll get to look 25 when I'm 35 -- holla!

Having just moved to Phoenix, I searched Yelp and found The Root hair salon. They got some AMAZING reviews and the price was very affordable -- $45 for wash, cut, AND blow dry. Considering they were the best reviewed, I made the appointment.

Results

When she snipped away my hair and revealed the new bangs, I was... speechless. It was so new to me that I couldn't grip an emotion. I also did this when the fabulous Ren did my make up trial. I felt so bad because both of them asked "So what do you think?" and I was like ".. I.. I really like it" but my speechlessness betrayed me to appear "hesitant." Yeah, okay, I WAS a little hesitant about the bangs... but that's because I haven't had these since grade school. Though I've had the swoopy-bangs if that makes sense.

My point is that sometimes I'm overwhelmed with the change and can't just squeal with excitement right away, but I know what it's like to be on the other side too. I love doing someone's hair and having them gush "I LOVE this!" -- Who doesn't?! But it helps me realize that even the same person (me) can react differently yet STILL love the results. I went home and straightened my hair a little more to give it a modern look (rather than it being slightly curled under = too young). Then I started to really love it and get excited.

Here's the full length

If you're considering bangs, get ready for MAINTENANCE!! Cause these suckers don't do well when they're not controlled :) We're getting "humid" weather this month, so we'll see how much I love them then... ha.

DIY Fruit Basket

2010-07-08T20:57:00.005-04:00

I shouldn't necessarily call this "DIY" because you don't actually do anything. But since it's not meant to hold fruit per say, I figured throwing DIY in there isn't completely false ;)

Anyway, I want to share with y'all Jose's little Martha Stewart moment.

This here..

... turned out to be one of my favorite pieces in our kitchen. While shopping in Pier 1, Jose pointed out these wooden boxes with fruits and vegetables painted on them. Of course, being the platano addict that I am, my eyes lit up at the plantain box. If I had painting skills, I would be inspired by this to paint more wooden boxes -- but that, my friends, I am not.

He suggested making it a fruit basket and I knew God made this man for me!! Haha, jk. Anyway, all you do is add a beautiful decor napkin (mine is from Anthropologie because it's about the only thing we can afford there!), and voila!

You've got yourself a colorful, Spanish, vintage fruit holder. So clearly my wedding theme is more of a "Alejandra's Life" theme. I can't help it... my love of Spanish design + vintage runs deep! (and NO those plantains were not planned for the shoot! I promise. I really am an addict ;)

Like it?

It's coming

2010-07-06T03:36:00.003-04:00

Get ready!! I'm slowly (and finally) getting back to blogging!

I'm sorry for the delay, but my days have been everything BUT consistent. Every day Jose and I are shopping for some kind of house furnishing. I have HUNDREDS and HUNDREDS of Spain photos to go through, not to mention videos I took before the wedding of Jose's family and I crafting the week before the big day. We are still surrounded by boxes, but at least half of that amount has been tackled this past week.

I want to share tons with you!! I can finally show you the hair trial photos and eventually the wedding photos. I'm still waiting on my photographer to get me the full set of photos.

Just bear with me while I make my way through these transitions and know that it's going to take time because there's a LOT of catching up I have to do!

Hope you enjoy this snippet of Barcelona of people dancing in the street I took. What a bold woman, eh? Strap on some orange shoes and I'm sure you are ready to dance on ANY floor. Speaking of dancing, I'm going to see a salsa studio Wednesday night and I'm SO nervous because they dance a different style of salsa from the one I dance ("on 2" versus "on 1"). I feel like my first day of school! Don't know anyone, I'm nervous of the new style, and don't know if I'll get it. Aaaahh! Wish me luck!!

Melting

2010-06-28T04:58:00.004-04:00

Another quick update to let you know that I have not yet melted in Phoenix, Arizona. NO, Texas (or Atlanta for that matter) did NOT prepare me for this heat. Yeah, yeah, it's "dry heat" but guess what? It's STILL 114 degrees!! And the refrigerator moving man told me this is "only the beginning."

The beginning? What does the end look like? Apparently like our condo when we first moved in -- HOT.

We were not told by the leasing manager that we had to call the electricity before we moved in, in order to have A/C in the unit. Oh yes... that means what you think it means. Our first night was spent without A/C. In Arizona. In the summer. At this point, not having our mattress yet didn't matter. Sleeping on the floor would have been divine compared to not having A/C. But thankfully it only took one day to be installed and the A/C was up and running the next morning!

Since arriving in Phoenix 3 days ago, we have only been shopping. Woooooo. That has been OVERWHELMING! We have been to IKEA 3 times (still not done), Walmart, World Market, Pier 1 imports, grocery store, Home Depot, 3 thrift/antique stores, and Bed Bath & Beyond (3 times and more tomorrow). I've also managed to get into someone ELSE'S car at the Walmart parking lot, until Jose yelled from the trunk he was going to load "this isn't our car!!" To which I yelled back "of course this is our car! How else would I have unlocked it?!" Then I saw this club bar locked on the steering wheel and my eyes got huge after realizing that he's right: "This ISN'T our car!" I jumped out, locked the door, and darted to the other side of the parking lot quickly, and very confused. I just hope that person didn't leave their door unlocked and I just locked them out of their car! Hahaha. How does that happen?!

(Me in Spain reviewing a picture I had taken -- by Gloria)

(OH! Pay attention to the girl behind me -- her pants. I will discuss this fashion trend in Spain. I'm talking about MC HAMMER PANTS!! Whaat?! More on that later ;)

Anyway, I'm exhausted and it's 2 a.m. I have some videos to show you of the week before the wedding when I was staying with Jose's family at a hotel. It looked like Hobby Lobby and Michaels threw up in the living room. I'll keep y'all posted!! I just need some time for this stuff to settle here too :)

p.s. Jose came up with a great idea for a fruit holder from Pier 1. Yes, Jose! I'll take some pictures and post it to share!

I Am MARRIED!!

2010-06-06T10:11:00.004-04:00

PHEW. Can you believe it?! A year of planning and then that moment finally gets here. The good news is.. Im still in SPAIN!! The reason I am writing is because we are staying with a friend´s Aunt here in Madrid and right now the family is watching tennis with Jose. We leave tomorrow for Sevilla. The bad news is that I won´t really get to all the details until the end of June when we get back to the States.

Geez.. the immensity of that day was overwhelming. But, as you can FINALLY see, I DID make my brooch bouquet and you can see my Spanish dress. Also, I ditched the birdcage and went with a mantilla. It was a decision made closer to the wedding day, but the birdcage was kind of awkward on me.

(By Raya Carlisle -- our photographer :):) :)

Do you like my hair?!? Remember my last post?? Well, I decided to do my hair myself! But clearly that´s crazy, right? I knew I couldn´t do it ALL by myself, but I needed to try. The night I found out about the girl canceling, I guided Jose´s Aunt and cousin to do a hair trial with me. I needed help curling the back, and LOTS of teasing, with some bumpits and stuff thrown in there (haha), we made it WORK!! They were pretty nervous, because I mean.. DUH, you are asked to do someone´s WEDDING HAIR just days before the event (AND you are not a hair stylist), who wouldn´t freak out? If it turned out badly during our ¨trial¨then I would have just gone with a stylist, but I LOVED it. I´ll try to get some detail shots of the back because it´s more than just volume and curls.

If there are any brides out there that haven´t gotten married yet, let me tell you that the MOST stressful moment was before the rehearsal. In short, I should have expected this but I simply didn´t. My phone would not STOP ringing and my entire family didn´t have the freaking directions to the VENUE!! Then one of them gets lost and of course calls me. Someone else wants me to text them the address (HELLO?! What are the invitations for?!) and my phone just continued to ring away, elevating my stress. SO, if you know that this very well could be your family - PLEASE -- designate an INFORMATION person!!! Make one person solely responsible of these calls. They should have the address, directions, access to an i-phone (yup, the stoneagers here still don´t have one :P), and you should let all of your family know BEFORE your rehearsal that they can ONLY call them. And that designated person can call you if need be.

But thank God... that was the only big stresser. The actual wedding day was incredible. I am going to write several posts breaking down the moments to give you a better idea once I´m back from Spain. In the mean time, I´m having a crazy time here! We went HANG GLIDING in the coast of San Sebastian!!! We walk a LOT, which is good because we eat bread almost ALL of the time. And patatas bravas - diced potatoes with ketchup & mayo -- YES, please! Gotta love that cholesterol! haha. I also bought my first vintage camera!! Err, well, I bought two. I also bought a vintage kodak ad from Spain. I KNOW. But you guys, I am going to furnish my FIRST place!! You know I´m going to go crazy there with all my obsession with decor.

Time to go! Gonna eat some straciatella now! Ok. That´s Italian gelatto, but they have them everywhere here and well... Italy is much closer now. So that counts right?! ;)

p.s. We performed a salsa version to Dirty Dancing´s ¨Time of Your Life¨ at the wedding -- and yes, there was a video which I will post!!

In case you're wondering

2010-05-18T23:49:00.002-04:00

What a person who is about to get married in 5 days is doing...

Trying my absolute best to not stress/freak out. I got to Houston a few days ago and it has been work, work, work! I'm so lucky to have Jose's family. They've been working so hard so we can finish everything by tomorrow night and leave the last few days for relaxation. So far we have:

Made tissue paper flowers

Wrapped mason jars

Burned candles

Spray painted frames

Spent too much money to prepare for Spain (REI -- took my whole paycheck!!)

FINISHED MY BROOCH BOUQUET!! (love it!)

And... got screwed on my hair.

Oh yeah. Get this. When I went to Houston to get my first wedding hair trial -- I was excited. I mean, come on -- you are going to get your hair to look like your wedding day hair. I researched projectwedding.com and picked the most reviewed bridal salon who actually got 5 stars. You know, I was feeling confident considering I'm not a fan of resorting to new hair places.

Before my appointment, I needed to do some stuff that required a person who was knowledgeable about hair. My friend put me in contact with this girl that I went to school with and this girl helped me out SO much. Sorry, I know this is relatively "vague" but I'm trying to respect people's privacy and also keep secrets about the wedding ;)

Moving on! I get to Houston, and bounce my way into the house-turned-to-salon room. My stylist? She's sweet and spunky. I hand her a document with tons of photos with the hair style I'm going for. I even include 2 pictures of styles THEY did, but tell her what I don't like. She ends up picking one of the ones they did, and starts to recreate it. I was really disappointed because she didn't look at me and say "Hmmm, okay... so I see what 'look' you're going for... so let's try this and maybe this."

Imagine hiring a photographer who pumps you up about a photoshoot and you imagine you're going to look awesome because they're supposed to be really good. You get to your shoot and your photographer says "Okay, so stand here and start posing." Umm.. awkward? But what if she/he told you instead "Run your hands through your hair, and then toss them up in the air and pretend you just had the BEST dessert of your LIFE."

That's inspiration. You're being guided. My experience just felt like vanilla wafers. It turned out pretty, but wedding pretty? Mm... no. But, was I being ridiculous? Perhaps, I have this idealistic idea in my head of what someone feels after getting their hair done for their wedding -- but I'm not exactly experienced in this department, ya know? Have you ever come out of a salon after an AMAZING haircut and feel like you are just looking GOOD?

THAT is what I wanted to feel.

I go home, feeling torn. I can't exactly pay for another hair trial, but it's not like I have anything else to compare it to.

I end up e-mailing the girl in Dallas who helped me and ask for her honest opinion. She doesn't like it. Fortunately she offers to go over the style with me and try out a trial with her. She even offers to take pictures that I can show the Houston stylist of what we created so the stylist can re-create it. We set up a time, and DO IT! I love it! We still needed a few changes, but I was so excited to work with someone so creative.

I invite her to my wedding and just blurt out "want to do my hair?!" She, also excited, says "really?? seriously??" And I say "why not? You are obviously good and we already got it pretty much figured out..." So she tells me she'll confirm in a few days. Time passes and she agrees. Days go by and we set up a second trial. The second trial does not work out so we set up ONE more trial before the wedding. She got a stomach virus that day so we of course had to cancel. The bad news? I was leaving for Houston that NEXT MORNING!

I don't hear from her and decide to call her today to see what's up. I'm assuming the virus has calmed down by now. I get her voicemail and leave a message. She replies with a text, and to summarize them for you in just a few words: I can't do your hair.

5 days before my wedding...

So, my friends. Tonight, I said "Forget it, I can figure this out." I just deleted the last sentence. I'll tell you after the wedding what happens :) !! Or if you're here Sunday, you can ask me ;) At this point we are so close, I'm not going to have a melt down because of an unreliable person. But I suppose I wouldn't feel this way if I didn't have a back up plan that worked out...

P.s. We have to pay for internet at the hotel so I may not be able to write before the wedding!! This might be my last words on my blog as Ms. Amador. But I want to remember these last few days. I feel anxious, excited, stressed, and SO SO grateful. I am just blown away by the amount of work and love my friends & family have contributed. Thank you guys for reading, for supporting me, for your encouragement, and your advice. THANK YOU!!! I can't believe it... this Sunday is the day we've been waiting for!!!

Penis

2010-05-10T01:44:00.004-04:00

That's right. I didn't misspell pencil. I said penis. I have never seen SO MANY IN MY LIFE until this past Saturday night (EDIT: fake ones!! hahaha). My bachelorette party.

Started at 1 p.m. and ended at 1 a.m. It was HILARIOUS. Especially because the "wildest" part occurred in the DAY when my family was around! My mom was hysterically competitive trying to get the ring around the manhood (see picture below). I wish I had videos of the whole thing, but I only have pictures. I haven't uploaded mine yet, but get a look at this mess:

In case you can't see clearly, those aren't FLOWERS. Yes, they are little penises crowning my head as a veil. I'm also holding a penis straw. Pencil. Painting. Popsicle. Sorry, I had to say something else.

I have some action shots of this game. You should have seen my mom. She would stick her butt out every time she threw it.

Thank you to my amazing maids of honor Maggie & Kristen, and my cousin Melissa for hosting it at her house, and to my WONDERFUL WONDERFUL friends who came out. You have to see the rest of these to understand how much fun it was. And I didn't even mention the DARES I completed that night! Stay tuned :)

Tomorrow (Monday) I have a hair plan. Greece meets Spain. YEAH BABY!!! I'm so excited. I still have to tell you the story --but how about when I'm NOT writing at 1 in the morning?! Night!

So far...

2010-05-07T01:40:00.003-04:00

She scrunched her nose and said "really??" with clear disappointment in her tone. My heart sank. I love my cake toppers. I told you about them before -- you know, those cute little wooden figurines, customized with so many cute details. "They're just... little and too playful." My Aunt shrugged and threw her arms up in a slight defense "BUT this is not my wedding and of course I have other ideas of what a wedding looks like. I guess I pictured something more elegant."

And you know, that has been the extent of negative opinions so far. I do consider myself lucky that my family for the most part has respected my "quirky" flair in wedding planning. Though my insecurities still creep up because I have a huge problem with wanting to please everyone. Um, yeah. Learn quick: that CANNOT happen in a wedding. Pick something large, for example: food. Will a majority of your guests love it? Great! Let the rest go and do what YOU love.

You guys!! I'm so exhausted right now. I got back from Houston a few hours ago and have so much to update you on!

I had a mini bridezilla moment. Okay. It wasn't really bridezilla-ish, but it was the first time I confronted a vendor about something I didn't like and didn't back down. Weddings are funny that way. You're supposed to juggle making it "your" day while still being conscious of others involved and pleasing different parties (but again, to a certain extent).

The hair -- ahhh!! I had my first hair trial and that is a post on it's own. I also contracted a cake vendor, so whatever happens, you guys are having cake. YES, it will be tres leches (cue the confetti and hoorays).

I can't believe it's coming up so soon!!!! I'm excited and exhausted and nervous. I guess I should go to bed now. Any suggestions for dark circles under your eyes? I get them really easily when I don't sleep well and I doubt I'll be able to sleep the night before so I want to do something that will alleviate that. Yeah, make up can cover it up -- but is there any mask or "thing" I can do to make them feel refreshed that morning?? Help!!

Happy Surprises

2010-05-03T00:52:00.006-04:00

via fogke

We decided! We are going to apply for the Uptown Condo! So as long as the application process goes smoothly and everything works out... we will be trying out the city life!!

Also, remember I mentioned that I got an amazing gift from a group of my girlfriends? I hadn't shared that with you... so I figured now would be good :)

I was presented with THIS beautiful bag

But you have to pay attention to this detail

Practically my centerpiece fabric design! And it's in teal! AND red tissue paper

What detail! And when I pulled out the gift, there was a purple bag with the words "Epiphanie." Out loud, but quietly, I said "that sounds so familiar..." I unzipped the bag and found T H I S

NO FREAKING WAY!!! That's actually exactly what I said too!

Remember me shamelessly writing about these?! And HERE too?! This is basically a camera bag designed by a girl who was tired of having to come up with creative ways to put her camera in her purse. When you own an SLR, it is very annoying to carry with you -- so she designed a camera bag PURSE! So to Jenna, Kira, Ellen, Katherine, and Virginia -- thank you SO SO SO much for my gift. I was not expecting this at all and I'm already using it! I LOVE IT! Though I have to admit that Jose is taking family surveys to convince me to not take it to Spain. He said the red would draw too much attention and I will get robbed.

=\

BOO thieves. I argue we shouldn't even wear backpacks because that is practically yelling "tourist!" Right?

Decisions Decisions

2010-04-27T21:56:00.002-04:00

Guess what? I got the videos up!

BUT, before you watch them, you need to know this. We narrowed down our choices to 2 options -- one is an urban condo and the other is a quirky-home-like townhouse. Two completely different styles, right? Both are 2 bedrooms with 2 full baths but the townhouse includes a loft (small one).

Uptown Location: I combined 2 videos, one of a furnished unit and the other of the unit we would be renting (empty). I combined it because when we saw a furnished version I realized HOW big it actually was. It seemed sooo much smaller when we first saw an unfurnished one. Be mindful that the furnished one is NOT a model home and someone's actual condo.

Townhouse: This video is pretty straightforward. I tour the house and sorry for the last minute run up the stairs (lol). I wanted to take one last look at the loft space.

My thoughts after you watch...

Uptown

Townhouse

Uptown Location PROS: Centrally located, light rail RIGHT in front of building, huge patio with beautiful view, modern structure, very safe neighborhood, heated salt water pool (whaaat?!), fitness center, sauna, 15 seater movie theater, in front of historic neighborhood.

CONS: Mainly older people (late 30's/early 40's) who live there, smaller square footage, 2nd bedroom very small to have office & bed, very small closet in MBdrm, hardly any counterspace in MBdrm bathroom, underground parking

Townhouse PROS: Quirky, very cute, very spacious, HUGE bathroom suite in master bedroom, in nice neighborhood, quiet, large kitchen, high ceilings, not overwhelmingly large, includes loft, 2 car garage + storage.

CONS: Location -- we would have to drive everywhere, small pool, no fitness center or other amenities, horrible commute to Phoenix (though Jose is working in Tempe), suburbia vs urban = closer to families.
----

Sooo.... yeah. The biggest difference is the location and space. Do we sacrifice a couple hundred feet of square footage to be in the center of Phoenix right by the light rail with luxury amenities & a beautiful view, or take a super cute townhouse in a more suburbia neighborhood where we would have to drive to our entertainment and most everything?

The commute to Jose's work from both places is only 4 minutes in difference, the price is the same, so the only differences are the two I mentioned earlier. What kind of lifestyle do we want to choose for our first year?

I love both but for different reasons and there's a lot to consider for our first year (furnishing, location, utilities, amenities, etc.). We have our thoughts, but since this is long enough -- why don't you tell me yours? I'd love to hear your perspective or things to consider!!!

p.s. I'm sorry if the Uptown video is a little dizzying lol -- I was a bit rushed because we needed to go.

Leaving

2010-04-23T14:28:00.006-04:00

via otleuser

I suppose since I'm not "excited" to be leaving, that's a good thing, right? I think I just recycled well over 300 pages, full of 2 years of notes, doodles, and questions. Somehow, four little burgundy, foil-wrapped, dark chocolates stared back at me inside of my pen container. I forgot about you guys. My little "sugar" stash. And now, I'm rushing to finish the last details of our office's website before I depart. My last day.

And in one month from today exactly -- I will be married.

I mean, how much symbolism can one day have? I'd like to say my "last office job" in my life because I have wrapped my legs around, literally clinging, my dream of going full time into photography once I step into Arizona. But what if God has other plans before that? Or during that? There is definitely the idea that I will be doing other things along with photography until I'm well established. Though I don't think it will be in an office.

While I'd like to devour the 3 remaining dark chocolates at this moment, I have papers to shred, hair to pull out of my head, and yellow heels that have to march across the parking lot to my little dented car in preparation for today.

Regardless, I have a wedding dress, an officiant, a venue, food, and a photographer. Oh yes. And the groom. So my hair may be a little crazy and the cake may or may not be a surprise -- but in one month, I'm getting married dagnabbit. Is that how you say that word?! Cause clearly I can't speak English well. Ask my fiance. He'll just tell you to have me say precision. Pruh-zi-shion. Sounds about right to me! When will he learn that I'm having his kids one day and guess who they will most likely sound like? Hmph.;)

Ring Pillow

2010-04-22T10:36:00.005-04:00

I'm back from Arizona!! And guess what? Jose and I managed to narrow down our choices to TWO places! However, they couldn't be anymore different.

I created a video of both places because I would LOVE to hear your opinion. Granted, some of you may or may not know me, but it's always good to hear different perspectives.

You will just not believe how opposite these places are to each other, haha. But I suppose if you know me, it kind of makes sense.

While I get the videos put together, I wanted to feature a really cool way to create a ring pillow! I'm in the process of figuring out what I'm going to do w/my own ring pillow (or whether to just BUY at this point!), but wanted to share one of my ideas with you:

via 100 Layer Cake

Create a ring pillow out of a vintage handkerchief!

You can find TONS of vintage handkerchiefs on ebay for cheap, such as these:

Although it's quite easy, Martha provides a DIY :) You can buy the already made pillow from IKEA for cheap and just hand stitch the hankie over it (via Ruffled). Sounds like a plan to me, don't you think?!

Friday Links

2010-04-16T12:25:00.005-04:00

This was taken in Arizona... where I'm heading to this weekend!

via Stephanie Fay

I can explain this. This absence... my behavior. In SIX days, it will be ONE M.O.N.T.H until I get married!

Married.

Like.. I wake up, get my hair done, and walk down the isle to commit to my fiance for the rest of my life. And dance. Lots of dancing. And pictures too :) Though I still haven't decided on a hair stylist (craaaap!!).

So you can see that I've been running around like a mad woman. Mainly getting ready to visit Arizona tomorrow, so the wedding planning itself has been frolicking in la-la land, ready to slap me when I realize what I've neglected.

To forgive me, I'm leaving you with my favorite links from the web that I'm pretty sure you will like too. Then you will forgive me, and I will tell you all about Arizona when I get back. Hopefully with an awesome tan. Or sunburn. You know, the order doesn't matter.

Mmmmmexican Sangria anyone?

My friend Meghan featured my Etsy site! Which now has the Art That Helps work up! 20 of us collaborated to create some art for YOU, where 100% of the proceed will go to Haiti. Promise Tangeman tells you all about it.

This girl's grandfather died, but she is honoring him by creating the CUTEST dresses and tops out of the clothes he left behind! I'm telling you -- PURCHASE worthy creations.

Wouldn't mind seeing this on my bedside table

Some inspiration for my upcoming move. You can bring NY to your home... even in the dessert ;)

I can see myself attempting to make this bedside cabinet

Oh my word. Libraries.

Dummy. I definitely thought the before was the after.

Drag queens meet Easter? Or just really creative people...

What a CUTE (and free!) stationary set.

Goodness, I love red.

LOL. These colorful piggies crack me up. Via ffffound.

He just wants to be a single lady.

If I was starting from scratch (meaning JUST recently engaged), I would be ALL over this wedding inspiration.

I got this AMAZING robe for my bridal shower (which was ridiculously awesome), and now I'm obsessing over this Etsy seller. Particularly her dresses.

Happy Friday everyone! Wish me luck finding our home this weekend (eep!!). And BTW -- I have to say that I got one of the most incredible gifts from my friends this week!! I can't do it justice by one line -- it needs its own post. That will be up next week. Ciao!

Bridesmaid's gift

2010-04-12T16:37:00.005-04:00

Jose and I are going to Phoenix this weekend!! We'll finally get to look at the places we've been considering moving into in person. Unfortunately, some of these places that we may end up loving could become unavailable in May so we have to have a back up plan or someone that is willing to hold the space for a -small- deposit fee.

Anyway, I found this seller on Etsy (GraceysBags) who makes the CUTEST clutches! Granted, they aren't the cheapest things, but I'm assuming because the fabric is sooo beautiful. They would make great bridesmaid's gifts!

How perfect?! In my colors!

Too bad I'm horrible at downsizing to a small clutch. Are you a big purse girl? Or could you actually maintain a clutch for a week?

Throw stuff?

2010-04-09T14:41:00.005-04:00

Question for y'all...

I have no idea what to do for our exit. Meaning, I don't have 'thingies' for people to chunk at us. It's not a big deal, just haven't really thought about it.

There's the idea of throwing butterflies cut out of music sheets:

Or strips of paper

via The Knot

Not allowed to do this one at our venue, so nix that:

via The Knot

Stick to the original:

I've also heard of making mini-lavender packets. That's kind of cute.

There's also marbles you can throw:

I'm kidding.

;)

Any ideas? Happy Friday!

Like a Proud Mama

2010-04-08T10:42:00.008-04:00

via Borissov

I am SO proud, I needed to blog about this mission.

So like I had said before here and here, I asked my friends to be part of my bridal party by making them secret agents (who were suspects of Project Maravilla -- my venue). They received special packages in the mail informing them about their new role and asking if they would accept it. However, not only are they agents, but they are in TEAMS. The groom's men: BOOM! Thunderpants, and the bridesmaids: Femme Fatale. Every month, they receive a mission that would force them to work together since they are all in different states and many don't know each other. What's so great about this is that it creates comradeship and competition! Come wedding day, one of these teams will declare victory... and right now... FEMME FATALE is claiming it!!

This was this month's past mission:
-----------------
Agents,
During my conversations with Future A, she told me many things about my future husband. As you all know, I am 24 now, but Future A informed me that she had granted a special ability to the members of Femme Fatale that will allow each of them to have insight into my husband’s future. She informed me that some visions will be realistic, but some may be far-fetched, but that all will come true at some point in our life. How exciting! But I am dependent on you to reveal these things to me so please channel your inner psychic and work together to collect all of your visions into one coherent document and send them back to me ASAP.

Ellen: 30’s
Kristen: 40’s
Margarita: 50’s
Jasmine: 60’s
Meghan: 70’s

via jbvikingo

Your mission is to sum up what is going on in Jose and Alejandra’s life during the 10 years you are assigned attached with 3-5 images to accompany your story (can be from online). You can make us as adventurous as you’d like, and feel free to be imaginative.

For example: “Jane” is assigned “20’s.” She may write:

“During their 20’s, Alejandra and Jose had a lot going on. Not only was it the time of their lives that they met, but they also were married. Upon going to Spain for their honeymoon, Jose discovered his passion for bullfighting. After convincing Alejandra that she could pursue her photography in the beautiful land of España, they found a quaint little house near San Sebastian and moved in! Although it was difficult for Jose to make it to the scene, fans grew to love his work and he became known as “El Gringo Bailarin,” changing the world of bullfighting into bull dancing. After receiving extensive dance training from Alejandra, Jose became fluent in styles: salsa, merengue, bachata, tango, and square dancing.

via walker1812

In the mean time, Alejandra began training with a world acclaimed tango instructor, competing in conferences, and quickly becoming one of the premiere tango dancers. She held workshops, training people in the art of dance and photography – two of her passions. People began to know her as “Tacones de Fuego” (i.e. Heels of Fire) for her sharp and fierce movements on the dance floor. In their late 20’s, Jose and Alejandra performed together, with plans to return to the U.S. on their 30th birthday and the possibility of bringing the new art form to Phoenix, Arizona.”

Jane would then attach googled images of a bull, tango dancer, Spain, etc. This can be realistic or completely made up. We encourage creativity (and Photoshop if you like). It is up to you agents.
A

via DirgeForAJoker

So today I celebrate Femme Fatale (as noted by the images :) for winning their mission. If you're lucky, you'll get to read their stories!! I'm considering posting them individually. Believe me, they are ridiculous, hilarious, and sweet.

Groom's cake

2010-04-07T11:01:00.006-04:00

After having so much trouble with our wedding cake trial, our only back up plan is to use our caterer. I mean, what else can I do? That bakery I went to is not an option. I can't taste these Houston cakes from Atlanta...

BUT, I did taste the tres leches from my caterer (Cordua), and they have THE best tres leches cake in Houston! So what am I worried about? It's not cheap. Fortunately, our guest list has dropped by 25 guests since it's an out of town wedding and that means LESS plates to pay for! This would put us just fine with the wedding cake, except now we have to consider having a "mini" cocktail hour because of the photography!!

Call it stubbornness or tradition, but I don't want to see Jose before the ceremony. I know that so many photographers tell their clients that it doesn't take anything away from you walking down the aisle, but in my heart -- I can't come to terms with that. I'm not saying that seeing your groom before you walk down the aisle makes that less special. But for *me* personally, I want to wait. However, this completely screws me over for photography because we have to -rush- through pictures after the ceremony so our guests aren't waiting longer than 45 minutes.

Realistically, as a photographer, I know that is HARDLY any time for pictures with your family AND your groom. My photographer is really non-pressuring about me seeing Jose -- she said she'll work it out either way. She even said she'd be willing to do pictures AFTER the wedding of the two of us since the wedding is over at 3:30 p.m. -- perfect lighting outside. The problem is that I'll be dancing during the wedding and may end up looking sweaty & tired after it's over. But maybe not?

Past brides? Did you find yourself sweaty and tired after your wedding? Maybe if I got my make-up retouched a little ... I could be fine?

Soooo, if I want to buy my photographer some time after the ceremony, then Jose and I need to add some cocktails = more $!! Maybe I can just get some french bread & different jams... haha. I mean, hello, it is brunch after all! And who doesn't love bread? Actually, we are having plantain chips with different chimichurri sauces, so we might bring those out with the fruit display and only have to buy one appetizer. That's enough to munch on, right? Fruit, plantain chips, and a meat appetizer? Thoughts?

Last -- Groom's cake. We still want to have a little something for Jose despite our own troubles with the wedding cake. Originally, when money was a fairytale and we were oblivious to actual costs, we wanted a MILK fountain surrounded by chocolate chip cookies! How cool would that have been?! A photographer had told us she did that for her wedding (Julie Wilhite). Then reality kicked in, and our new options are:

Get this... a rice krispies treat cake!!

I'm not obsessed with these, but Jose really loves them. Plus, he convinced his mom to make them so it won't be a disastrous investment. If you are up for the challenge, I got the scoop on Cake Central.

I found this Norwegian cake made of stacked, almond wreths (sp?) on Kiss the Groom:

And for our back up plan (which is my favorite), have a small assortment of pies:

via Martha Stewart Weddings

Because, you know, not everyone likes tres-leches cake (WHAT?!). I understand, I am also a chocolate lover...

SO! Tell me.. what do you think about the mini cocktail? Satisfied? And what do you think about pictures after the wedding? The great thing is we would have freedom to go anywhere outside our venue and spend as much time as we need (reasonably).

La Colcha

2010-04-05T12:36:00.005-04:00

For a while now, I had been craving fajita meat -- but specifically, the kind they sell at Hispanic meat markets that prepare the seasoning for you. My mom made these often when I was in high school, and still does when I visit.

After church yesterday, Jose and I decided to venture and find a local market to make them for dinner that night. I made a quick phone call to my brother to look one up online (since we were on the road and NO people, we are still technologically in the stone age without a smart phone that leads us to making sibling calls in the middle of the day for internet requests) and we found one with some good reviews! I bought a pound of meat, avocado, limes, cilantro, flower tortillas, jarritos, plantains, and a tub of homemade salsa.

This is how my mom makes them and I prepared it the same way: Dice tomatoes and onions in a bowl (green for me!), add lime juice and sprinkle some salt and top with cilantro (extra for Jose). Cook the meat, heat tortillas on skillet, and in the mean time I also was preparing some fried (sweet) plantains. Make a meat taco with your tortillas and fajita meat, scoop the tomato mix on top, add some chopped lettuce & sliced avocado, drizzle homemade salsa, and something my mom and I always do --- drizzle some more of the lime juice from the tomato/onion mixture into your taco.

via Houston Press

YUM!!

I'm telling you. Google a local Hispanic market, ask for "fajita preparada" (that means prepared fajita meat). One pound in Spanish is "una libra." When they prepare it for you, it is SO easy to cook! Literally, throw on the grill or skillet and cook. You just have to "dress it up" with the condiments to make it uh-mazing.

Then this happened:

Jose spent the night last night. Our a/c hasn't really been set to our Spring weather, so it has been quite warm at night. Jose gets hot very easily so he ends up getting up a lot in the middle of the night to drink water and cool off. At some point, I wake up and say "just take the thicker blanket off and sleep with the sheets only."

However, I woke up and said this in SPANISH to him. To which of course he responds "What?" and somehow in my dazed, sleepy state, I realize I said this in Spanish, and stumble through my English translation. Hahaha -- woooow. I don't know why I woke up and said it in Spanish first, but I must say -- those fajitas took me way back to being home that I wasn't even talking English now.

So try it. You might wake up in the middle of the night saying something to the effect of "el sudor debe de ser por casi tragarte dos tazas de salsa!"

What does it have to do with weddings? Well, this week I am posting something on marrying Hispanics and would love your opinion/thoughts on it :)

p.s. Did you try translating that? ;) Jose, if you're reading this -- don't cheat! Put your translation in the comments (or your best attempt at making one up ;)

Funny Friday

2010-04-02T13:57:00.005-04:00

Good Friday! And good it is :)

Have you heard of the website Awkward Family Photos? OMGoodness. I couldn't stop laughing. I picked out some favorites for you to enjoy your Friday afternoon.

quote: "Nobody forbid these two to marry, but they decided to poison themselves anyway."

quote: "This family just wants to know what the hell you’re looking at."

quote: "Gym, tan, winner."

I mean... REALLY?!

quote: Sisterhood of the traveling perms "You go straight, you’re out of the sisterhood. No exceptions."

Oh my..

get it grams!

Seriously, the hands...

I honestly don't have any words for this one. Speechless & tons of laughing..

This last one is actually from I Heart Faces when they had a week designated to "Hilarious Outtakes" and this cracked me up SO much!

I hope that gave you some laughs to end your week with :)

Part II: Asking My Bridal Party for their Hand

2010-03-31T10:05:00.006-04:00

Eep! I'm sorry it took me a few days to post. I am literally living in a mess because I am selling all of my stuff and will be leaving Atlanta in 3 weeks! Pack, pack, packing. Lately I've had to do some research on hair salons in Houston (where I'm getting married), so I didn't have time to post. Any recommendations?

Back to my bridal party project. After creating their criminal profiles, I knew I couldn't just send them in white envelopes. I wanted to REALLY freak them out. So I searched ebay for "top secret" envelopes, and lo and behold! I found a pack of 12! So I purchased them and loved them when I got them:

Then I thought, I can't just stick their criminal profile without a letter of explanation. And here folks, with Jose's collaboration, is the letter they received:

It read:

Agent ______,

You have been contacted because you possess a unique set of skills, which cannot be matched by any of your colleagues. We have reason to believe that an organization known as BOOM! Thunder Pants (alias: The Groom’s Men) has embarked on a mission to gather the nation’s most wanted criminals on May 23, 2010 in the city of Houston, TX. Dubbed ‘Project Maravilla,’ it appears that if allowed to succeed, BOOM! Thunder Pants will obtain a device capable of eliminating all adversaries. Thereby, claiming victory.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it –

Utilize your abilities to intercept BOOM! Thunder Pants' movements and prevent them from successfully achieving their mission. You will not be alone. You will be provided a team of experts, who share skills complimentary to yours. Together, you will be known as Femme Fatale (alias: The Bridesmaids). While your skills are unparalleled, your skills alone will not be enough to put a stop to BOOM! Thunder Pants. It is crucial that you understand and utilize the skills of your teammates if you hope to be successful. Details will be forthcoming on the movements of BOOM! Thunder Pants and the rules of engagement concerning each mission. Be cautious not to compromise your identity or the identity of your teammates. If compromised, we will be forced to deny all knowledge of your existence and ‘Project Maravilla.’ It may be useful, however, to acquire the identities and talents of the members of BOOM! Thunder Pants. Such information may assist in the success of your mission.

To accept your mission, use the initials of your full name to create a passphrase. Type this on your Facebook status on the day of December 17th, no later than midnight. Keep in mind, once you embark on this journey, there is no going back and you will only be relieved of duty at the completion of your mission – success or failure. Upon your acknowledgment, you will be provided with more detailed information on your team and your mission. We have chosen you because we have faith in your abilities. We know you won’t let us down. Good luck and God Speed.

– Agents Vidal

Destroy after reading…

--------

Hahah. The best part is that they had no idea WHO was a part of the bridal party and they would have to work together to figure out their opposing team. Our goal (Jose & I) was to have our bridal party work together, get to know each other before the wedding, and have a sense of "comradeship" instead of meeting each other for the first time the day of the wedding and feeling awkward. The girls received note that BOOM! Thunderpants wanted to claim victory and the guys received the same letter, but that Femme Fatale was working against them. What was (and still is) SO funny is that 2 of the agents are MARRIED. And they are by far the most competitive and some of the best players on their respective team. They push their own team to complete the missions because they live with each other and know when one is in the lead.

I typed them up in photoshop to look like a typewriter font and packaged them:

Then I took my save the dates

and claimed them as "evidence" that this "Project Maravilla" was happening on May 23rd.

Crazy, huh?! Jose and I were anxiously waiting for them to receive it in the mail. I was so excited!

For Part III, I am going to share some of the missions our agents were instructed to complete. Hope you enjoyed it so far ;) If you're interested in sharing, feel free to contact me and I can send you the hi-res images! I'd love to hear what your thoughts are and if any brides are doing something different as well.

p.s. Jasmine (my fiance's sister) received one of these and her mom told me she almost threw it out because she thought it was "junk mail." Haha. What would you have done if you received a package that said "Top Secret" and addressed to Agent __Your Last Name__?

Asking my bridal party for their hand: PART I

2010-03-26T11:05:00.009-04:00

Sooo, you know, being the detailed planner that I am, I wanted to do something special in asking my bridal party for "their hand" (i.e. to be part of my bridal party).

Before I go any further, for people who think "what the heck? I didn't know that was such a big deal" -- take a deep breath. This was my desire and nothing that is expected from anybody. You can simply ask your friends face-to-face. I just happen to like doing ridiculous stuff like that. That's me :)

Ideas I heard about online:

-Message in fortune cookies
-Make a puzzle that reveals the question (I liked this one)
-Make a mini-scrapbook (noooo thanks!)
-Make a card

I heard this one on wedding bee and thought it was hilarious:

"I bought my bridesmaids a headband, attached a note that said "will you head down the aisle with me?" and included a personal note about how honored I'd be if they accepted and how much they mean to me.

I also asked them to take a picture with the headband on and email it to me to "accept" my invitation. I then put them on my wedding website for the bridal party.

My original thought was to say "will you help me keep my head on straight?" :)"

--------------------------

Anyway, you can see how you can take it simple, or you can really get creative with it. I wanted to get creative with it, BUT involve the guys too. That means nothing girly.

One day on a photographer's website, she posted pictures of this "top secret" package she received from one of her clients. It basically asked her to "document" their wedding "undercover." They were playing off of the idea that photographers want to go "unnoticed" to capture little details. GENIUS!

I took it a step further. But that will be saved for part II (or three? ;). Before I reveal the rest of my idea, I'll tell you where I started. I knew I wanted them to be joined in forces: guys against girls. BOOM! Thunderpants vs. Femme Fatale. This was war. My first step was to send them a secret package in the mail WITH a criminal file OF themselves. I found a template on DeviantArt and, dear readers, these are your suspects:

The brother..

The groom's close friend & fraternity "big brother"

Groom's sister and my partner in crime :)

The groom's close friend & life advisor ;)

College friend and aid in hooking Jose & Alejandra up

Cousin and one of my maids of honor

Bestfriend and other maid of honor

Close friend and college roommate

Groom's close friend

Groom's cousin, best man, and childhood bestfriend

Obviously, I created the content for the girls and Jose for the boys. If you are REALLY interested in getting this template (and have photoshop), just e-mail me. I can't find the Deviant Art link and don't want to spend 30 minutes looking for it if it's unnecessary.

Stay tuned for part II!! :)

DIY Boutonnieres

2010-03-23T12:19:00.008-04:00

Last week I showed y'all what Jose and the groom's men are wearing. Today I will show you how Jasmine and I made the boutonnieres!

Materials

All of our materials were found at Michaels:
1) Accent flower
2) String of decorated blue beads
3) Pack of metallic blue leaves
4)Pack of feathers (with aqua & red -- no luck with teal feathers!)

Not in picture but still need:
-Silver wire
-Teal/blue ribbon (2 styles)
-1 pack of see-through leaves (found in scrapbooking section)

First, you cut about 5 inches of your wire:

And loop it around 3 beads to make them stand upright (remember to loop around each individual bead)

Like so

That will be used as an "accent."

Hot glue one end of your teal ribbon...

then wrap it around your accent flower & beads-stick, about 2 times.

After that, arrange your leaf and feathers, coordinating to your colors. I dabbed some hot glue on the feathers to stick to the leaves. I recommend finding different elements to make your colors pop (leaves, feathers, fabric cut leaves, buttons, etc.).

Then take a LITTLE bit more of your solid, teal ribbon and wrap it around your feather/leaf set and accent set:

Then finish it off with a little bit of a textured or patterned ribbon (in same color):

And these are my boutonnieres!

I chose that accent flower because a lot of my wedding has "ruffles" for that Spanish element. Plus, it will stand nicely against the gray suits and the beads just make it a little quirky. I love the leaves because they look somewhat delicate. What do you think??

Fun Finds

2010-03-22T17:28:00.004-04:00

This is completely random and not really wedding related, but I had to share it with y'all.

PetitPlat, or Stéphanie Kilgast, is an Etsy seller from Paris that makes FOOD accessories! Not only does she make the cutest mini food, but she also makes miniature displays as well.

Check it out:

Yummmmm... I love croissants!

My DIY boutonniere post should be up tomorrow!

p.s. For any photogs out there, Epiphanie bags is giving away a CANON 5D MARK II!!! You can read all the details here. Hmm... my birthday is in June... this bag is definitely on the list!!

Not Bride-zilla

2010-03-19T14:18:00.004-04:00

I was going to post my DIY boutonnieres post, but I left the pictures on my laptop and not my hard drive (that I carry with me).

So although I'm not at "rock bottom" right now (God forbid I get there) with this wedding -- I had a strong connection with APW's recent post. Mainly that your wedding, when you are about 2 months out, starts to become less "fantasy" and more "reality." There's the ugly work of confirming dates, tons of e-mails, and trying to figure out: HOW on earth one is going to find a home in Phoenix in the next 5 weeks, SELL furniture, MOVE out of Atlanta (with at least ONE suitcase ready for Spain), drive to Texas, scramble to find a hair dresser in the unknown land of Houston, finish wedding details (and MAYBE have a bridal shower w/Texas peeps), have said wedding, leave for Spain immediately the next day for almost 4 weeks, come back to Houston, SLEEP for a day, then drive to Phoenix and magically have a place to live.

Oh wait. That doesn't happen magically.

Like I said -- I have not hit rock bottom, but I am scared pantless I might. I connected with APW's post because being such a DIY, artsy, and craftsy person -- I'm taking on a lot. Again, that was my decision, but with both my maid's of honor being in Texas, sometimes I just want someone to force me to stop and take the reins for a second. That's the beauty of a wedding planner, I imagine she is calling you every other week to ask if your "to do" list is checked off. But right now, I'm the one asking myself if things are checked off and it gets so overwhelming.

My advice? There are friends who want to help you and are more than willing to help you. I know this because my amazing friends have asked me. The problem is there's so much to do and the offer to help is so "vague" that most brides just take the responsibility on themselves or crumble behind closed doors ... or both.

Make a list of monthly tasks and assign people to it

I made a list for my bridesmaid's of things I needed to do (such as making one person responsible of hotel research, one responsible of the bridesmaid's dresses, etc.). Your friends need delegation!

Highlight priorities and address them FIRST

I highlighted "get dress fitted" and made sure it was placed in the month of January because that task clearly needed lots of timing.

How to Help Your Fellow Bride

And for those of you that are friends of a bride -- give her your schedule! If you really want to help, don't just say "call me if you need me." E-mail her and say "is there anything specific you need to do this month that I can help you with? Mon-Wed, and Saturday's (or whatever days) are best for me."

We don't want to be bride-zillas -- but sometimes we try so hard to put a "game face" on (as APW stated), that we end up stressing ourselves out more. So, if I start panicking mid April when I'm supposed to be packed, wrapping my job up, and completing Atlanta/wedding responsibilities -- remind me that it's worth it and that it's supposed to happen! That the stress is okay, because wedding planning is hard work and not cherry-blossom-tooty-fruity stuff you might read on other blogs. And maybe... bring some Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ben & Jerry's while secretly snatching my "to do" list from me.

K? Thanks. XoXo.

***EDIT: Or have a girls' night, ask all your questions, and get them solved by your girlfriends. I had such a great night with the girls tonight and they had the best solutions/advice for my questions/concerns!! Just a quick THANK YOU to my girls!

Where I'm going...

2010-03-18T14:37:00.002-04:00

Guess what this is?

A wedding. In Arizona. ARIZONA. This is where I'm living in a few months.

I just can't wait. :)

Making Groom's Men Look Pretty

2010-03-16T10:00:00.005-04:00

You know who is limited in the wedding? The groom!

Either you spend tons of money on a suit AND make your groom's men spend equally as much (not cool), or you rent a tux. As a person who has never been involved with renting of tuxes before, I had no idea HOW limiting it is!!

Seriously.

Okay, so there isn't just one place to rent a tux, but when you have a bridal party spread across the states, you can only pick ONE place that has thousands of stores: Men's Warehouse. Plus, they let you return to any of their stores, which is a huge benefit to our out-of-state wedding. Now, I am not here to put them down, but talk about limited selections. Their selection of rentals were available in these colors: black, chocolate brown, white, ivory, and gray. And for gray, there is only ONE style of suit.

Jose and I decided to do gray tuxes on his bridal party (that being one of my accent colors to red & teal), paired with teal accessories (tie, pocket hankie, etc.). We went into Men's Warehouse yesterday to finally decide on what these guys will be wearing.

At first I wasn't feeling the gray tux too much. It wasn't bad at all, but I just wasn't excited about it. Granted, Jose was modeling a size too big around his body AND sleeves that were too short. Haha. Picture that ;) He wasn't wearing the shirt, the pants, the tie, and vest -- so it was hard to really picture it. After he tried a suit jacket closer to his size (though it was a different color), it became much easier. THEN we had to pick the colors for the shirt and vest.

The vests. Aaaaugh. The only gray vest that matched the jacket well was soo tacky. Jose agreed and we looked at each other troubled. We knew we needed to pick something. We came across these tuscany vests that had the coolest patterns:

I looooved the texture and design on them, but my joy was quickly shot down when the silver vest did not match the gray tux material. Jose and I decided we needed more time to think about it and started to leave.

Before we reached the door I started thinking out loud: "Y'all don't have to wear a gray vest, right?" Jose munched on my words then asked "Well, what color could we wear?" And I thought about the red the woman had suggested -- matching the bridesmaid's. I knew they had the tuscany vest in red.

We turned around and grabbed the vest swatches we had left on the woman's desk. After finding the red, we held it against the gray suit. Hmmm -- not bad. I looked at Jose's face. Okay, he wasn't feeling it. "What do you think?" Jose: "Don't you think it's kind of... gloomy?" Maybe he said dark, but you get the idea. I could see what he meant, and yes, it made it more "formal" feeling, but at least we had an option now! Then he said "what about a white vest?" So we started exploring that, went and grabbed a teal tie, put the ensemble together and thought "Nice!!" It looked much more bright, day time, and modern. The white vest didn't blend with the white shirt because it had that awesome pattern

Excited that we were both so pleased with it, we decided: Let's do it. OH! And to the brides out there: it is highly recommended that men should NOT WEAR WHITE if the bride's dress is IVORY. Thank God we overheard the woman say this to another couple before us because she hadn't asked me about my dress and we were ready to select the white. We exchanged the white vest for ivory and decided it still looked good. Ironically it gave it that vintage look (but kept it modern with the teal tie).

And this is what it looks like!

With my fiance's photoshop skills, he put the ensemble together from Men's Warehouse's website. So my advice is: DON'T GIVE UP. Even though you may be limited in renting a tux sit down and just throw ideas out there. The woman who helped us was really sweet, but she wasn't pushing us for ideas. The more you collaborate and brainstorm, the more creative you'll get and you'll end up putting something together without having to be a fashion expert. At first, we gave up too easily and became frustrated instead of looking at what options we DID have and how we could make those work. Have a few colors you're willing to consider, and try them out! One is bound to work :)

I'm a fan!! What do you think?

Inspiration

2010-03-15T16:50:00.005-04:00

Is this not one of the most incredible wedding photos you've ever seen?! They're not models. This photographer (Tracy Turpen) literally had the idea and made it happen...

via Crash Taylor

One day.... I can't wait to get things going in Arizona and just go full force into photography..

Recovering

2010-03-13T12:57:00.007-05:00

Sorry for my lack of posting -- I am finally recovering from an incredibly, horrible stomach virus I got Thursday morning. You can see my interpretation on my photoblog here.

I've been doing a LOT of sleeping like this guy:

via A Cup of Jo

Except, if you look closely, this pillow is designed by James McAdam with an embroidery that leaves a sweet little message on your cheeks while you sleep. Haha. I have definitely woken up with pillow marks before.

I'll be posting my invites (finally sent thanks to my friends) and the boutonnieres that Jasmine and I had made a few weeks ago hopefully this week! AND I'm going to start my packing this month. WOW -- time is flying!!

p.s. doesn't this mac and cheese sound yummy? I have some eating to catch up on... but sometimes my eyes get too excited and I need to transition back into this kind of food!

Update on Make Up

2010-03-10T11:16:00.004-05:00

I wanted to give you all an update on the make up session I had Monday. Though I knew I definitely wanted to try the pink/plum smokey look, I was very open to trying a different color as well. Ren and I decided to try 1 look on one eye and a different one on the other.

What was the "different' one? .... A gold-smokey look!!

Because my skin tones carry a more rose, pink, and peach hue -- we found that my eye lid color looked too much like my skin color when trying the plums/pinks out. As a result, the plum contour (meaning the darker color where the crease of my eye is), ended up being really contrasting and almost too dark. However, Ren ended up bumping up the intensity of the eyelid color so it would stand out from my skin pigment, and it started to look really good.

How did the golden eye look? Imagine something like this:

Not as intense as Ms. Lewis:

But my lashes and eye liner were definitely prominent:

Ironically, though I'm not hardly "golden" right now (HELLO Atlanta, could we have some sun on the weekend when I'm not out of town?!) -- the golden tone looked good on me! By May 23rd, I should have some summer glow (though I WILL be careful not to over do it or Ren will kill me :).

What's even better is that the "shimmer" on the gold didn't look glittery. It was more... icy? Then Ren added some highlights to the top of my cheeks (like Lauren's pic up there ^), and instead of blush we used a bronzer. I have a round face and this really gave my face a nice, slim, angled look.

I was really happy with the overall look because it made my eyes bright and alive, yet I didn't feel like I was wearing costume makeup. Unfortunately due to the winter, my skin is really dry and the concealer made me feel like it stood out even more. I'm trying to drink as much water as possible because I hate dry skin. To make matters worst, I tend to shine REALLY easily (I realized this on Monday) in my forehead and cheeks, so it's a predicament of soaking up the shine, but not drying out my skin =\

Currently I use Aveeno Clear Complexion Daily Moisturizer. I looooove it, so I can't figure out if it's my face wash, lack of water (though I almost only drink water everyday), the weather, or ...? Any recommendations on gentle face washes? I'm trying Jan Marini but I have a sad feeling it's too strong on my face and could make the dryness worst.

And last... I leave with you with a tutorial of how to get this look! When I tried to find pictures, I saw that this look works great on many different skin tones. I enjoyed this tutorial and it's very similar to my bridal look. A big difference is the lid color she uses is more "coppery" and mine is a lighter, golden color.

Your thoughts? And what face wash do you use?

Make up & Random rambles

2010-03-08T11:11:00.009-05:00

This weekend (and make-up talk): I'm SO freakin' sore!! Haha. It will make sense in a second.

The wedding shower was definitely a success! Everyone was so friendly and the woman in charge of decorating, Carol, reads my blog and picked up on SO many details. She had vintage handkerchiefs, birdcages (one was 99 years old!), brooches, red petals, a hat box with a very cute vintage hat, and a money tree decorated with feathers and jewelry pieces!! Let's just say I felt the LOVE.

It was really funny because Jose's dad's family (who is from Mexico) came down to the shower too and a majority of them only speak Spanish, and some of them started talking in Spanish to Jose and they thought I had no clue what was going on. Then Jose turned to me and I translated, and when I told them "thank you for coming" in Spanish, I could see their eyes light up, in a sort of "Wait! She actually said that.. in Spanish.. correctly!" However, I had met a lot of them a year ago and they knew I spoke Spanish. I loved chatting with them because they remind me so much of my own family.

Prior to the shower, we hung out with the family and were able to relax. That is... until Saturday night. Jasmine (Jose's sister) owns P90X. Okay, I have heard a lot of things about this and was really curious to try it out. She invited us to do it with her, and since we had nothing else to do -- we thought "sure!" The session was "legs and back" and we cleared some room in the small entertainment room at the front of the house. Half-way through I was boosted with energy and could feel my muscles ache. At one point I felt like my calves were chunks of silicone rubbing against my bone. We ended it with the Ab Ripper and woooo -- definitely did some ripping!! There was a point where one of us was doing something silly and we started to laugh, followed immediately by "OWWW, stop making me laugh!! (more laughter then more wincing)."

However, I didn't expect to be in SO MUCH PAIN LAST NIGHT! I always knew that you don't feel the actual soreness until the 2nd day. TRUE! We did it Saturday night, but I could already feel it last night driving back from Alabama. Getting out of the car was painful, going up the stairs was painful, and last night when I was rolling over, I would wake up from the sore pain. What an incredible program! His sister let us have that CD since she had an extra. Her dad does the p90x too and their parents had a great time poking fun :) Jose is really excited about doing chest work and I think he is really going to see some results because he has so much potential! I'll keep you posted on how that works out!

MAKE UP! Tonight I have my first make up trial. My make-up artist is a really great friend and an amazing make-up artist! I feel soo incredibly lucky to have her as my make-up artist, especially considering how popular she is in the make-up blog world. Even my friend from Dallas knew her via youtube! Apparently people on the street (here in Atlanta) stop her and recognize her, haha. If you want to check out her work, she has some REALLY great tutorials that she'll walk you through at Make-up By Ren Ren.

I wanted to share some looks that I have found online (no sources because I had them saved -- sorry!), including looks that Ren has done on another bride AND herself. Here was my thought process:

I've always been a fan of the smokey-eyes look:

Definitely giving it a "Spanish" look:

And I thought "Hey, the groom's men are wearing gray so maybe incorporate THAT color?!" Because I obviously won't incorporate red (not even the lipstick -- Jose hates red lipstick) -- and teal would be difficult too. So... maybe gray!? Here is Ren sporting it:

Then I saw the tutorial she did on this bride and like how much more "day-time" it looks:

If you look at my make-up, I have TONS of pinks, plums, and burgundy. I love pink. But I still want it to look smokey, yet be appropriate for the DAY. Ya know?

And then I saw these and fell in love. I think we're on to something!!

I am LOVING the combination of plum, with perhaps a bit of gray/silver, and rich lashes!

I sent these looks to Ren and I'm really excited to see what we can come up with tonight. What do you think? :)

Something Special

2010-03-05T01:02:00.001-05:00

So tonight I announced it on my photoblog, but I will not link you there because I am going to be sharing it with you HERE. However, this post is very special to me because it will come from the words of my fiance.

And with that, blog world, here is my fiance. Be nice!:

Growing up, my parents made it very clear what was right and what was wrong:

"No jumping on the bed!"

"Always say 'Please' and 'Thank You'."

"Don't raise your voice with me, mister!"

"You can't have cookies if you don't finish your peas."

Right and wrong, good and evil - we learned these things growing up. And even if we don't learn them, we know them. We know them somewhere deep inside of who we are (notwithstanding certain shades of gray). That's so empowering, isn't it? We know what the right/wrong thing to do is and by knowing, we have the power to decide accordingly. Knowledge gives us the ability to make clear choices.

That's what I love about right and wrong. It makes decision making clean cut. You are either all right or all wrong like a true/false test - there's no partial credit. There's no subjectivity and no opinion. It is or isn't and you get to choose.

"But what about right and right?!" A good friend of mine offered that to me during our occasional lunches. "What if one decision is just as right as the other decision. What if there is no wrong decision?" So let me throw a little context around this: For those of you who have been keeping up with Ale, you no doubt have seen that she and I have had a huge decision to confront in recent days. I'm graduating! and with graduation comes change, specifically a new job. Over the past few months, that job has been narrowed from all over the US to one of two cities: Phoenix, AZ or Austin, TX. So you're probably thinking, "Well of course, Austin...that's the obvious choice." And you would be right probably 80% of the time, unless either you are a masochist for desert heat or have a passionate love for biomedical devices.

So now the dilemma: 80% of the people would choose Austin over Phoenix; 20% would choose Phoenix. But what do you get when you combine an 80%-er to a 20%-er? You get a really hard decision. Put rather bluntly, Ale wasn't sold on the whole Phoenix gig - she was very open to the idea, but far from sold. So what's a man to do? Take the job of your dreams and all of the consequences or tend to her desires and risk a lifetime of regret. I don't know if any guys are out there reading this, but let me give you a hint: Neither! At a crossroad like this, force is just as regrettable as passiveness. The only solution is communication (and prayer). And so I started down of logical path of rationale and consideration, searching for the right answer. Now back to our story.

No, no, no! No such thing as right and right. It's either black or white...and okay maybe I'll give some things a shade of gray, but there's definitely not right and right. One decision has to be better than the other! Okay, the offers are the same, but something else has to push it over the top. What about (1) Dream job (2) Cool arts scene (3) Weather (4) Family (5) Overall happiness (6) God's will ?! C'mon something has to push one over the other, right. It has to!

"No, one doesn't have to be right and one doesn't have to be wrong. They absolutely can both be right! Why's that so hard to believe?" Well, it's because we know how to handle right vs. wrong, but right vs. right strips away logic and reason. Knowledge no longer leads to clear cut decision, but rather leads to lists and charts of pros and cons which all have their pros and cons. Right vs. right is inherently a fuzzy arena and is undoubtedly driven by emotion and feeling. And on top of that, the results are ambiguous. At least in right and wrong, there are generally positive and negative consequences. But how do we decide which combination of positives is the best deal. So how can we possibly know right from right?

My same wise friend also told me this (paraphrased): "Sometimes God gives you two decisions, whose consequences are muddled and unknown, and he looks at you, crosses his arms and says 'Alright Jose, you're a big boy - so pull up your pants and make a decision'." And the best part about those moments is that we can rest assured knowing that whatever choice we make in that moment, it will absolutely not ruin God's plan in our lives! And even more, when we are faced with these kinds of choices - God also gives us peace as affirmation that we made a choice that he can work with and that he will work in.

So with all that said - what you guys have really been waiting for is the verdict, right? Well, here it is:

God has provided and blessed us in such a way, that we have determined that our future home will be in the glorious state of Arizona!!! So did I use my masterful logic and rationale to come to that decision and convince Ale that it was right? No. In fact, logic had very little to do with it. Like I said, deciphering right from right is less about logic and more about emotion. So no, there aren't piles of pros that outweighed Austin's cons. In fact, the two are still very close. But our hearts have led us to Phoenix and God has given us his approval. A hard pill to swallow, but once you do - a very liberating thought that we aren't powerful enough to ruin God's plan.

Thanks to all of you who have been praying and encouraging us through this time. You have been invaluable to making this decision easier. Also, thank you to my beautiful (soon to be) wife, who shines even more beautifully in moments like this. I love you all! Now that you come with us this far, follow us to Phoenix!!!

- Jose

--------------------------------

And he argues with me that he's not a good writer. WRONG! Thank you love (and thank you for celebrating with church's fried chicken knowing that it's more for me than you ;). This weekend is my first official wedding shower! I will get to meet some lovely ladies from Jose's church that love him like a grandson. Now they'll get to meet the girl they've been hearing all about. Wish me luck! Don't want to come back with "what not to do when meeting people from your partner's childhood" ;) Happy Weekend!

Where do we go from here?

2010-03-01T12:48:00.006-05:00

Today we will know. Today Jose (my fiance) will know the final offers from 2 companies that want to hire him. What does this mean? Well, this will determine WHERE we will live! I'm ready to know!!

So here are the two options: Phoenix, Arizona or Austin, Texas

What's in Phoenix? Jose's dream job. He's an electrical engineer that wants to focus on the medical field. The company in Phoenix is one of the few companies that actually combines engineering with the medical arena. Then why is he bothering with Austin? Well, the company there, though not medical, is still a really great company. Also, I'm very biased because Austin clearly has the best arts scene, my family lives in Texas, and I just love Austin in general!

He sent me this, with the statement "That's pretty close, right?"

click to make bigger

And yeah, Phoenix has ridiculously hot summers -- but it's a dry heat and not humid like Texas. And they have the BEST winters (60-70 degrees!).

He has received offers from both companies and each have their own benefits. You can imagine how good Austin's offer must be if they are head-to-head with Jose's dream company. I'm torn because I want Jose to be very happy with his decision, but my bias for Austin sometimes betrays me and slips out of my mouth into excitement that ultimately leaves pressure-residue. Either way, there is flexibility in my future, so it's important that Jose chooses the company that makes him happiest.

Sooo... once we decide, I am going to start looking for photographers in the area I can second shoot with as soon as we get back from Spain! I'm nervous to make a "final" decision, but also very anxious to know where we'll be living in less than 3 months -- *gulp*.

Any thoughts on these cities?

3 Years & 3 Months

2010-02-24T23:47:00.006-05:00

So two days ago was Jose and I's 3 year anniversary. But you know what is really cool? On our 3 year anniversary, it was exactly 3 months until our wedding! Isn't that crazy?!

We decided to "gift" each other our wedding bands for our anniversary and boy, I can't even begin to tell you what an experience that was!

SO, as most couples, Jose and I set ourselves a budget for our bands. Unfortunately, we soon realized that $150 for a men's band was laughable. We bumped it up to $250 and that was STILL a struggle. I mean, yes, we could find a nice simple band -- but there's a difference between the girl's band and the guy's band. The guy has nothing else for his finger, so he better really like his band because he'll be wearing it for the rest of his life. And while I mentioned the idea of "upgrading" later on -- Jose is not the "upgrading" type. Once he picks his ring, that's what he's sticking to. At least that's what he says now ;)

I realized that Jose didn't want a simple band, but this was very hard to find with $250. The budget for my band was $350, and since my engagement ring has such a unique band, I actually didn't mind getting a relatively simple band to match mine.

Here's my ring:

Most jewelers were telling me to get a "curved" band and I thought that was a good idea. Until... Here's where the story starts.

Our friends Tom & Meghan had mentioned that they had bought their bands at America's Mart. America's Mart is -- um, INCREDIBLE. Oh sorry, that's not a good explanation. They're basically a mart with 6 floors where businesses of all kinds (jewelry, linens, gifts, fashion, furniture, etc) have set up their stores to sell at wholesale to other vendors that have their business open to the public (i.e. they mark up the price to sell to us). You can only go in by invite and thanks to Tom & Meghan, we were able to get in!

Yesterday we set up a time to meet with one of the jewelers there and a really nice lady greeted us inside. We first looked at Jose's bands and he found a ring that he really liked. It was over our budget for his band, but not by much. Then it was my turn and I told her I was open to trying both the curved and straight rings. She put a ring on my finger that looked like this:

I loved it! Unfortunately, the coloring was a little different. The band was a lot lighter than my ring because my engagement ring has more prongs = you see more metal. This band I just showed you is called the "floating diamond" band because they look like floating diamonds. I almost wanted this style of ring for my engagement band!

I bit my lip and felt so torn. When I'd slip another ring that "matched" perfectly, it made the contrast from the other band stand out even more. The lady was so sweet and really loved how the floating diamond band looked on me as much as I liked it. AND the price was exactly on budget! Normally it would retail at $600! Though I didn't want to regret my decision later...

The nice lady ends up telling me that she could re-size my ring in 2 hours. I felt like this was "the one" but I still had this hesitant feeling. Jose wants to keep looking around and since this was the first store, I decide I should come back to it. So we tell her we'll come back and we start looking at other stores.

Next store = older man in his 50's? with gelled hair and a diamond earring like he is trying to look 20. When Jose describes the sleek look of the ring he just saw the guy says "Oh, we can add that to any ring here." Then when he mentions some other type of design, the guy says that AGAIN "yeah, we can add that to any ring -- just pick one you like." THEN he pulls out a catalog and it is very obvious the man has just lost Jose's business.

I don't blame him. It felt shady. So Jose thanks them abruptly, turns around, grabs my hand, and marches out. We start judging stores by what they look like. Jose points to one of them and I notice they have a little stand with sweaters to which I wrinkle my brows and say "Um, we are not going to look at wedding bands in a store that also sells sweaters." Come on people! What kind of marketing is that?!

We walk into one that looks pretty nice and hello-mr-talker. This man was the EPITOME of a sales man. He looked and sounded VERY reputable, but the problem is that he wouldn't let Jose say a WORD!! UGH. I wanted to yell "shut up for a second!" If your products are so good, why are you trying so hard to inform us about how your jewelers are trained for "20 years" and you only acquire "the best quality" ??!

And then -- I saw this ring (men's band). It was beautiful. So different, so intricate, and -- suuuuch a good price! Jose ended up really liking it too (especially the price). But I couldn't shake this feeling off. I really disliked this guy and I couldn't help but question the quality.

Also, since these stores sell to bigger businesses (like Scott Kay), they don't have a 'maintenance' program. With Jose and I moving out of Atlanta, we'll be stuck going to other jewelers to get our rings cleaned. And if something happens to our bands such as getting dented, or for whatever reason broken, we're pretty much screwed.

We leave mr-talker and keep walking around. It's getting a bit draining at this point and I can't stop thinking about the "floating diamond" band. Maybe it is the one after all?

The next store is quite the pleasant experience. The sales lady is nice, patient, and not over-bearing. FINALLY! We end up finding two REALLY nice rings that Jose loooves. One of them has this "leaf" pattern similar to this:

However, the leaves don't look as detailed -- they are more shiny. I tell Jose that I think they are too "blingy" and I thought it was so funny because he wouldn't put that ring down! I was a bit surprised, but hey -- let the man have his ring. We go ahead and move on to me and I try to describe the "floating diamond" ring. This one? No. How about this one? Hmmm, no. This one? That's okay. Let's try this one: Not really. I don't find any I honestly want. We decide to think about it way more and take her business card. After walking out, we sit on the bench and look at each other. This is kind of tough.

We go to one more store.

It looks really elegant from the outside and our spirits feel lighter as we walk in. The sales lady greets us as we walk in and my first thought is "aw man, she's going to be one of those fake-overly-happy people." She offers us beverages: water, tea, coffee. I end up having tea with HAZELNUT milk (YUM!) because apparently the owners and on-site jeweler are Turkish! LOVE tea with milk and the fact that they offered it. I'm starting to like this place already.

THEN, she asks if she can steam my ring so when I compare it to the bands, they have a similar shine. I am impressed. These people are no joke. Of course, I let her and sip on my delicious tea. My eyes grow wide and I point to the glass: "JOSE! Look!"

It's a leaf-like wedding band, WITHOUT the bling, and with a beautiful white-gold color! The woman comes back with my ring and pulls out the band for Jose. Ohhhhh, he's in love. I smile, remembering the same confident feeling of "YES! THIS feels right" when I put on my wedding dress for the first time. People -- he doesn't try on any other rings! He stares at the mirror with the ring on, hands held up by his face. He has to think so he fumbles out "let's go look at the women's band." Haha.

I tell her about my "floating diamond" band and I spot one right away. She pulls it out. !!!!!!. Not only does this one actually MATCH my band, but it's slightly smaller and has the most beautiful, delicate look to it. The three of us at the same time say "wow." The band was meant to be.

Fast forward to Jose asking 30 questions (to which I tell the sales lady "He's doing this because he's really interested), she guesses he's an engineer -HA!, and finally Jose says "These are the ones." OH! And guess what else we find out?! They offer a LIFE TIME WARRANTY! YES!!!! If anything dents, breaks, or diamond falls out, they will replace it with a NEW one! The jeweler at the store actually hand-custom makes all of the rings on display. Jose has to ask a lot of questions because his ring ends up being over budget by a little over 100. Though we discuss the fact that the amount over budget ends up paying itself out by having FREE cleaning and lifetime warranty!

Right as we are sealing the deal (via words on confirmation), the jeweler walks in and the saleslady calls him over. She explains that I want the floating diamond ring but that I need it smaller. Earlier she had mentioned that you can't reduce the size of those rings because if you cut out the gold, bend it, and weld it together -- diamonds will pop out. Granted, we have a lifetime warranty so we would get them back, but she warned me that a jeweler should never tell me they'll "resize" the ring for me (that particular one).

Long story short (oh wait, it's too late for that ;) -- the jeweler REFUSES to resize the ring. He says I will come back in 1 month, crying that the diamonds have fallen out, and "no, no no, that is a headache for me!" I'm shocked and the saleslady looks frustrated at him. He finally says "the only thing I can do is make that ring IN your size. That would be $650." PFFT. Yeah, right, that's not happening. Disappointed, Jose doesn't even want to purchase his ring anymore. :( :( Man! It was going so good.

Though, I have to admit I appreciated his honesty. Brutal as it was, did I REALLY want to invest in such a problematic ring? Yes, I would have a lifetime warranty and have every right to march in there every month for him to fix it (and NOT care about his headache) -- but what about when I'm not in Atlanta? We look at other rings, and they don't compare. Though I have to tell myself over and over "LET GO of the floating diamond" -- it is NOT meant to be.

[Enter God's plan]

The jeweler marches back over to us and says "Here, try this ring on." I look at it and it is a BEAUTY. There is so much detailing, and little diamonds around it. It is like a leaf engraved, antique-like, diamond band. SORT of like this:

SO much detailing! Apparently he made it TOO small to be a sample ring = VERY hard to sell. He then tells me it's PLATINUM. I can't help but roll my eyes and start slipping this ring off. Why would he tease me like that? Have me try on a platinum ring knowing that's out of our budget! As I'm fiddling with it, I ask "Okay, well, how much would THAT be?" And since I don't want to cross blog/wedding-etiquette rules, I won't say the number -- but I WILL say that not only was he selling it to me HALF the retail price, but it was BARELY over my budget!

I didn't understand -- why so low? The saleslady, who is taken aback by how low the jeweler is willing to sell it to me, says that because that ring was so small, it would cost him MORE to make it bigger for a customer, than to actually find someone with a small finger like mine and sell it for that price. He screwed up by making it that small to begin with. Making it bigger for a customer would mean he would have to add MORE platinum + more labor = less likely to sell because it would end up being even more expensive. To be blunt - it was the perfect accident at the perfect time (i.e. God's plan). When I looked at the ring, it was so classic and elegant looking by itself that my first thought was "I can inherit this to my daughter one day." And I knew it was the one. We bought our rings.

I just can't believe it!! What a blessing to have been referred to this place by our friends and for God to step in and make this happen. And if you have read this far... thank you for being so involved with the wedding. This whole experience has evolved into something more amazing than I have ever imagined. The comments, advice, friendships, and support. AHH- so amazing! Thank you!!!

Be My Love

2010-02-21T21:38:00.007-05:00

Surprise!

I haven't posted this on Facebook yet, but I wanted to share with you all... our wedding website!

Be My Love

If you don't personally know me, you'll get to hear about how Jose & I met, our pictures, and our wonderful wedding party :) And because I really liked today's photo for my 100 Days Challenge :)... a twirl to match my mood!

p.s. Try not to make fun of my stick figure drawings too much ;) My soon-to-be-sis wasn't around for help!

Blah blah blah

2010-02-19T11:53:00.004-05:00

Let's get real here.

Jose and I are doing pre-marital counseling. I highly recommend it to every couple. Well, he said something that felt like a taboo-coca-cola was just being opened -- fizzing it's truthful glory into the living room of this married couple. My thirst was quenched and I couldn't love my fiance any more at that second.

"Love brings out the worst in each other."

Oh my gosh, did you hear that? Mhm, they must have problems.

Um. NO. Let's step away from this very well known concept: He/She "should" bring out the best in you. While I am not here to rebuke that, I am here to tell you that YES -- love DOES bring out the worst in each other and guess what?! IT'S OKAY.

Why? Let me re-phrase what Jose said. When you are past the "honeymoon" stage of a relationship, you start to open doors to your emotions, flaws, and EVERYTHING you like to hide behind your friends in order to be polite. Yeah, you know -- the judgment. Let's not play coy. But past that line of politeness, guess what your partner sees? You. The beautiful you, the one-I-fell-in-love-with you, and the ugly you. The raw, this-is-who-I-am, you.

And when the arguments get nasty, we are overwhelmed with "Is this meant to be?" because you can't possibly be a "healthy" couple if you just fought the way you did. Of course this differs with the intensity, how often, and whether there is any improvement -- but that's another boat I'm not floating on today. There are couples who are graced with lighter fights, while there are others who fight as passionately as they love.

It's okay. You are letting someone get to know you so personally that you can't hide behind politeness and patience. See, that's the problem. We tend to be even harsher, meaner, and less patient with the ones we love most. WHY?! I mean, geez -- that just doesn't make sense. But it DOES. You love that person SO much that you want them to know exactly why that hurt you, why this pushes your buttons, and the whole how-dare-you-if-you-love-me-would-you-say/do-that. It boils down to one word: expectations.

You can imagine throwing in "wedding planning" and suddenly couples are finding the actual marriage part is setting in way before you say "I do." Cause guess what that "I do" also means? I do take who YOU are but know that it is not up to ME to change you. So when you are presented with the pretty and the ugly of your partner, it is now YOUR choice to accept and not expect. And this doesn't mean you can't desire for your partner to spend more quality time with you, to be less stubborn, to not get sassy easily, to care about their health, or to stop biting their cuticles.

As Andy Stanley put it: you can be the cheerleader or the referee in your relationship. And there lies the challenge -- to be the cheerleader even if you don't see results. To not think "well, I was cheering up until she/he is obviously not making any effort." It's not up to you.

Actually, that is what I admitted I wanted to develop in the pre-marital counseling. To put all of my desires into God, and to continually ask Him for the change I desire to see -- especially in myself! This way I am not cynical or display my "disappointment" in man (i.e. my partner) when my desires aren't met (which ALWAYS puts strain on your relationship!).

I hope this reaches people who struggle with allowing their partner or themselves to be good enough. Remember: You can only control two things: your attitude and your activity.

And speaking of, I'm working on applying that to the wedding. As APW put it best: "Because yes. We all know what happens when your invites are boring. People don't come to your wedding.

Oh wait. Clarification: assh*les don't come to your wedding. Which actually means... you win."

Happy Friday :) You are GREAT! You have every ability to be!

I could cry

2010-02-18T14:45:00.005-05:00

These are so beautiful I could cry. I don't care if you are not a 'fancy dress' type of girl -- but goodness.... these could make any girl feel magical...

And in another world... I would change into this one for a "Salsa" wedding performance...

By Marina Danivola Via Behance

Man oh man. Which is your favorite?

Spanish Garden Party Save the Date Photoshop Tutorial

2010-02-17T12:14:00.012-05:00

Here it is! The long awaited Save-the-Date tutorial! It will be divided into two parts. We'll begin with the first today and second tomorrow.

Before we begin, I need to say a few things. Any brides who are honestly considering this, don't let this be a burden!!! The whole point of this is to work on a budget and NOT stress about Save-the-Dates. Even if you're NOT a bride, photoshop is incredibly intimidating and let me tell you a secret: I first learned photoshop by following a tutorial. YES people, I do it part-time professionally and I only learned it a year ago by following a tutorial. I was SO scared of photoshop that following a tutorial helped me to get "my feet in the water" by actually having an end goal. Obviously since that first tutorial I have done a lot of research, reading, and educating myself to be where I am today. If you're a beginner, give yourself at least 45 minutes for this first part of the tutorial. If you're experienced or advanced, you can probably scroll through this and get the first part done in 5-10 minutes.

You can use this SAME tutorial or use it as an inspiration for your own invite to a wedding, baby shower, or birthday party. Or just to make pretty stuff! I'm going to share some photoshop tips.

First tip: USE YOUR RESOURCES! You can use FREE photoshop brushes the way you can use free fonts. The place I go to for my brushes is Deviant Art. Remember that a majority of these brushes are for NON-commercial work (meaning you can't sell or make money from the product that you used these brushes with). BUT if you do want to make $, you can contact the individual artists and get a license.

Step 1)
Download the following brushes & font:
Swirls by IvyPhotography
Birds by Falln-brushes
Lace by ashzstock
Font for names (cursive)
Font for date (western look)

A HUGE thank you to these DeviantArt artists for creating these materials to help us designers & brides out!

So have you downloaded your brushes? Remember to click "Extract All Files" after they are downloaded. After you extract them, double click the brush-icon and it will open automatically in photoshop. Except your fonts! If you don't know how to install a new font you downloaded, here is a tutorial.

TIME FOR PHOTOSHOP!!!

Since I took screenshots of this, my suggestion is to CLICK ON THE IMAGE to see a bigger view of my computer screen. Then click back to read the instructions.

Step 2)
Create a new document by going to File > New. On the "preset" drop down box, select photo.

After selecting photo, under the size drop-down box, select Landscape 4x6 > OK

Your nice white canvas should pop up, but before we get started on designing it, go to Image > Rotate Canvas > 90 (degrees) CW (or skip the rotate canvas by selecting Portrait 4x6 in the beginning :)

-- The reason I am making this as a photo canvas is so that you have the option to save your final invite as a JPG (i.e. photo) and get it printed as a postcard or even at CVS as a photo!

Step 3)
Design! Select your color by going to the little colored boxes on your far bottom left. You can see how mine are already red & teal but typically your photoshop default is black & white. Click on the image to read the # on the color-box to see the exact shade of red I used.

Next you are going to create a NEW layer by simply going to the VERY bottom right hand side of your screen where you see tiny icons in the shape of a trash can, a square, a file folder, etc. Click on the square that has a little square inside of it.

For photoshop beginners: In everything that you do, you always want to "draw" or "design" on a NEW layer. This allows you to erase specific parts of your image. For example: if you opened up a photo in photoshop, created a NEW layer, and drew a silly mustache on the face of the guy in the photo but you accidentally made it in white. You can erase JUST the mustache that you drew on your NEW layer and re-draw it. BUT, if you would have drawn the mustache on the PHOTO (without creating a new layer), then when you tried to erase it, you would erase THE PHOTO too! Make sense? Think back on middle school and lamination sheets. Yup, the old school way of doing math & grammar when the teacher would use her red lamination marker on the projector sheets. THOSE are layers.

Ok... back to the design.

Now we have our color and layer. Select your brush icon on your far left toolbar (refer to image). Then go to your brush selection by clicking on the tab labeled "brushes" on your right. This will pop out a list of brushes you currently have. Select your lace brush (mine was number 2413). Shift the size of your brush by moving the slider at the bottom of the brush box until it is at 1269 OR you can just type in that number in the box.

Next you will copy (or duplicate) that layer by dragging your layer to the layer icon at the bottom (remember to hold it down and drag).

Now you can rename your layers by clicking on the WORDS of your layer (Layer 1). This should allow you to rename your layer similar to renaming photos on your desktop. I called them "bottom lace" and "top lace." Your top lace should be on top of the bottom lace -- so don't mind my ordering in the picture.

Then rotate your lace using the arrow button (located on very TOP of your toolbar on your left) so that the top one has the edges waving up and the bottom one facing down.

After you have rotated the top lace, click the little checkmark button on the top besides the tab that says "workspace" (refer to image).

To look like this:

Now make a new layer, click on your brush tool again, and select the bird brush (mine is numbered 215) at size 243 px. Stamp the bird on the 4th lace piece at the top like so:

Step 4)
Time for the font! Click on your colored box again (on the far left bottom), and a box should pop up. If you want the same teal I used, the number is 4da7a0. Then select your Mesquite STD font and type the city + state of your wedding. Then in a separate text box, type the date numerically.

I used size size 30 (smaller) for the location, and 48 pt for the date.

You can see on the next image how I have 2 text boxes: one for the date and one for the location. Double click one of the text layers (but make sure you double click the right side) and a box should pop up like so:

This is where I'm going to make your text look good! First, check the box "Inner Shadow" and make the following changes under this category (make sure the "inner shadow" box is HIGHLIGHTED so you're working on it): change blend mode to multiply, opacity at 75%, angle = 120, distance = 8, choke = 0, and size = 8. Refer to image:

Last, check your outer glow box and make the following changes: blend mode = screen, opacity = 75%, size = 8, and range = 50. Like so:

Now hit OK! Repeat with your other text.

Let's make the location font the same width as the date.

Select the arrow on your far TOP left of your toolbar (make sure your LOCATION text layer is selected!). After you click on the arrow, a box should appear around your text. Reduce the size by using your mouse and squeezing the letters together. You can even make it a little taller, but make sure the width is the same as your date! Then click the arrow at the very TOP of your screen (towards the right like you did for the lace) and it will save your re-sizing.

So now you should have THIS!

We'll cover the rest tomorrow or Friday. If you have any questions -- ask away in the comments! Especially for photoshop beginners -- I know this can be a bit nerve wracking. Don't let it be. Play around with brushes, try searching for more brushes on DeviantArt, and play around. Let this tutorial teach you how to save it as a JPEG (photo) so you can get them printed for cheap and to get you experimenting with photoshop & available brushes.

Hope this helps someone! :)

Groom's Goodies & Random Thoughts

2010-02-16T11:33:00.006-05:00

Maaaan, I love really great fabrics. I think this groom really nailed the whole "barn-Americana-retro" look.

By the way, during lunch I will finish working on the Save-the-Date tutorial. I have 1/3 of the draft typed out and can hopefully have it done by later today.

I don't want to open a can of worms (and I may hear a can opening right now...), but I keep chewing on the idea of the lack of diversity in the wedding blog world. I talked to my fiance about it yesterday and told him how an interracial couple was featured on A Practical Wedding and that there was a HUGE response of "finally!" or "yay!"

Now mind you, I am not here to discuss the "race" aspect (yet) -- but more of the business aspect. You know what gets you featured on the "big" wedding blogs? Your photography. You can have amazing little details, DIY, gorgeous dress, etc. -- but if your photography stinks, it will not represent your wedding well. Same with simple weddings -- you can have VERY little but gorgeously captured details -- and BAM! You are on. Obviously, the more unique (and more personalized details) -- the more likely you'll get featured. But that photography needs to be on point!

Speaking directly about the lack of African American/mixed couples featured on wedding blogs -- is it because there is less interest placed in photography? Because the bride can only do so much -- the photographer is the one "submitting" to these wedding blogs. Or are they submitting but not being published? I completely understand the disappointment because you can't necessarily "relate" to everything. I'm Latina and I'm not exactly represented either, BUT I have a "design" and "photography" mentality, so I relate more on the design rather than the personal aspect. Even then though, it's overwhelming because everything is so "perfect" and "ruffled" and "soft" and aaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh.

I wish I could hear everyone's opinion and thoughts -- but I have a feeling it might be too sensitive? What do you think? Cause seriously.... consider the photography business that is pretty much "directing/driving" the wedding blog world/business.

Cuddle Class?!

2010-02-15T10:10:00.003-05:00

Had to share this... you can now fly... CUDDLE CLASS! This cracks me up. I mean, it's corny but really cute. Unfortunately Jose would definitely end up elbowing me at some point seeing as how we have a whole foot of height difference. I will admit that I LOVE when I don't have any passengers next to me and I have a super early flight -- I pull up the arm rests up, spread out, and just pass out.

BoingBoing via Cup of Jo

The Day of Love

2010-02-13T23:25:00.006-05:00

It's almost midnight, so it's not entirely presumptuous to wish you a Happy Valentine's Day :) If you don't have someone to share this day with you, then take a friend out for lunch or spoil YOURSELF for the day! If you do have someone -- don't take them for granted.

So anyway, while I was working on my 100 Day Project, I ended up snapping this picture of my fiance:

Now, honestly, I have no idea what he was laughing at. The even funnier thing is that I'm almost 95% sure he made HIMSELF laugh. Oh no friends, I am not THAT funny. I'm very similar to him in that I laugh very hard at my own jokes. Like I tell Jose "if no one else is enjoying them, I might as well!"

We went to shop for our wedding bands today and GOODNESS the men's bands are more expensive than we thought. We also (finally) registered at Bed Bath & Beyond. I felt like a 4 year old with her parents. My feet were tired, I was hungry, and I lost interest in all items at the store once the 2 hour mark hit. I was ready to go! And the worst part is that we were not prepared for this whole registry thing. We picked out our fine china and kitchen items, but that's pretty much it. We don't know WHERE we're going to be living yet so it's not like we can pick out bedroom stuff. Fortunately Jose cares about decor like I do so it makes sense to find out what our home/apartment will look like first, pick a color scheme, then decide on the stuff to fill our house with. Granted, we love to cook (and eat!) so we knew we needed the essentials for the kitchen.

Since we need to send out the invitations soon and can't really register for much, do you think it is inappropriate to write "Due to relocation, we are also accepting gift cards from Bed Bath & Beyond, Target, and ___ (wal-mart?)" Is that a big no no? Cause I mean, seriously -- I would have LOVED to give one of my wedding friends a gift card. Sometimes you can't afford a $60 toilet paper dispenser BUT two of their friends could each get them a $30 gift card and the couple can get that item on their own! Plus, I'm already having to drive to Texas with my stuff...

Honestly, I don't really expect gifts from too many guests since they're having to travel and our family is already pitching in to help us with the wedding. I think a gift card is a nice alternative for a less expensive gift.

What do you think? Do you have any recommendations for stores I should suggest?

DIY Brooch Bouquet

2010-02-10T23:41:00.012-05:00

DIY BROOCH BOUQUET!!

This post has moved HERE :) Seriously. You don't want to miss it.

Aaaand the exciting RESULTS (i.e. w-e-d-d-i-n-g photos)!! Those are here!

Just a few teasers. Now get over there and make one!

Custom Printed Fabric

2010-02-08T13:08:00.009-05:00

I forgot where I came across Spoonflower, but what is so cool about them is that you can actually SUBMIT a design and they print it on fabric!!

These are designs some people submitted:

Speaking of fabric, one of the components to my centerpiece is a fabric square in the center. In order to save money, I am using a white tablecloth, but adding splashes of color via napkins (red) and center piece fabric (teal). My inspiration came from Nadia's wedding featured on OnceWed:

Notice how under all of the gorgeous floral arrangements is a square fabric?

This goes to show that you can still save money using a white tablecloth, but make it come alive by using centerpiece fabrics. Nadia purchased these at Anthropologie and sold them to me after the wedding :) However, since yellow is such a dominant color of that fabric, I am using them for my guestbook table and purchasing these for my reception tables:

If you are a bride looking to do something similar, I highly recommend Amy Butler! That woman has it going on. If I was good at sewing & upholstery, I would be hooked on her fabric. There are so many people that have done gorgeous pillows, sofas, aprons, and tons of other things with her fabric. Check her out.

I decided to go with this teal and the design "acanthus" because I love the floral image and the shades of teal. Unfortunately there are no places in Atlanta that sell THIS particular design! I am stuck having to order online and hopefully that will not be too much of a headache.

And this is why Amy wins...

Talk about amazing design.

Stay tuned! I'll be posting the Save-the-Date tutorial soon. Just gotta get all my screen shot images set up ;)

OH! And guess what? My fiance's family came in town this past weekend and I do believe we figured out how to make the infamous brooch bouquet ! Or at least one way of doing it :) I'll post pictures of that too!

Featured on Oh So Beautiful Paper!

2010-02-05T11:47:00.003-05:00

I was sipping on strawberry milk this morning when I checked my e-mail and got this message from Nole:

Hi Alejandra,

Thanks so much for your submission! Keep an eye out for a post tomorrow (Friday) morning!

Best,

--Nole

What?!?! I was kind of shaking with excitement and scrambled to type "oh so beautiful...." on my url tab until the familiar link popped up. Click. Ahhh!!!! How exciting!!

A couple of days ago I decided to take some photos of my save the date. I planned on creating a post with a tutorial on exactly how I made my save the dates. Since I saved so much money and made the design really easily, I wanted to spread the word more. Back in October, I did my typical visit to Oh So Beautiful Paper and came across Avie's "Papel Picado" invitations. I was floored. That is EXACTLY the "style" I want. Latin, but a hint of retro, yet still vintage.

I opened up photoshop and one thing led to another. An hour later I had my Save the Date designed! If you own photoshop, you can recreate my SAME design! I used brushes for the birds AND the lace, so I will give you links of where I found these for free. The font was free too!

The envelopes were more "labor" intensive. They involve stamps, embossing powder, and a heating gun from Paper Source -- but so worth it! I have to credit my fiance Jose for the handwriting. Isn't he good?! I, on the other hand, don't have pretty handwriting whatsoever :) Sometimes I get lucky and make swirly ends when I'm trying to make it look "elegant" but turns out looking like my 3rd grade cursive. Plus, my fiance "practices" and I am a "just do it girl" which results into errors, scribbles, and just a bad idea overall.

Anyway, I'm so thankful for Nole's feature. Hopefully after my tutorial, brides on a budget can learn some photoshop tricks to design their own Save-the-Dates. Or try the embossing trick for their envelopes which completely transforms your design. If you have any q's or want to share ideas, feel free to e-mail me at alejandra@imaginaledesign.com -- I'd love to help!

And if you haven't already, read the post here and leave some love! Can't wait to share some helpful tips with y'all later!

Boutonniere in my colors!

2010-02-04T13:15:00.004-05:00

Oh my goodness .... just had to share this one! In my colors!!! By the same RubyFeather I featured before.

Lovely. Less flowers and more beaded twigs like this one:

Hmm.. now I'm getting somewhere. Except I don't know what my chances are of the final product looking like this. We shall see this weekend!

Lingering Smell...

2010-02-04T10:58:00.003-05:00

Image via calloohcallay

I came across this idea from Kiss the Groom and had to re-post it (isn't that perfume bottle divine?!?):

"before my wedding a good friend of mine suggested this sweet scent idea….search for a new fragrance, something you’ve never worn before….you must LOVE the scent….now put it away, hide it from yourself…and don’t even mention it to your groom…on the morning of your wedding day put on your new fragrance….of course you’ll feel special & lovely & happy….but the real gift comes later, because every time you wear your special perfume you’ll be reminded of your wedding day….and so will your husband….you’ll always have a sweet special married scent, which simply makes good sense….xoxo"

Seeing how much I love making connections & calling up memories with scents, this really struck a cord with me. Hmm... maybe I should stop wearing my new "Imagine" by Lollia and save it for the big day. Haha. Too late -- I spray that thing on me like a rejuvenating second shower almost every day. What perfume do you wear? And I'm honestly curious -- I'm not just throwing this question out there -- do a lot of girls save "certain" perfumes for special occasions?

Proof takes the cake

2010-02-02T16:02:00.006-05:00

And this, ladies & gents, is proof that one CAN have a beautiful (simple), white wedding cake -- adorned with some beautiful flowers. AND -- magic photography.

via Jessica Claire

Because you can't deny that the photography just made you drool a little bit more than the actual cake... :)

Crafty weekend

2010-02-01T15:41:00.007-05:00

I am so excited about this coming weekend! My fiance's sister (Jasmine) and mom (Nelly Nells :) are coming to visit me for some wedding DIY!

The biggest project we are taking on is making the men's boutonniere's. Something do-able, but unique... maybe like this...

found here

Which is your favorite?

Friday Links!

2010-01-29T16:13:00.005-05:00

via deardiana

How cute is this topper??

What an insanely creative Save-the-Date my fiance's sister Jasmine shared with me.

The other side of the moon

A submarine that merges into your water to make your tea!! How cute! Via Cup of Jo

Haha -- "May the 4th be with you" birthday party.

What a whimsical garland tutorial

Ack! I need to get away from more (gorgeous) fabric flower tutorials because I WILL do them!!

I want to go here so bad and take my camera with me!

Pretty cool gift for him - don't you think?

So the fiance and I are trying this place out tonight. Last week I was craving dessert and we had the MOST AMAZING cake at Cafe Intermezzo. It was a warm, banana and chocolate chip cake with a creamy fudge frosting -- you can see it here. The bread was so moist it kind of reminded me of banana pancakes -- but with chocolate chips! DIVINE! What is the best dessert you ever had?

Promised good to me

2010-01-27T13:35:00.005-05:00

02-09-09. Ugh. Expired.

Raspberry vinaigrette, sundried tomato basil .... I can't believe I forgot. I forgot to bring my salad dressing, and now I'm resorted to "borrowing" some dressing from our office fridge. Believe me, I didn't need much (my main course being left over pizza) so I didn't feel too guilty. It didn't matter -- they were all expired!

I open up my little plastic ---errr-- Jose's plastic container (he lends them to me and I have collected about 4 in my house he's not too happy about) and see my slightly mushy salad.

He already put the dressing.

Jose and I had dinner at his house last night with some salad. We love our salads. We buy walnuts, croutons, tomato, onion (for him -- I hate it), and even cranberries. Plus, it justifies our buffalo-chicken pizza. He let me have the left overs for my lunch the next day, claiming he doesn't really like the pizza that much anyway and we split the left over salad into 2 mini containers.

I ended up forgetting my "lunch" at his house and this morning a delivery man shows up who oddly resembles my fiance. I get a phone call to come outside and I am greeted by a 6'2 hunk of a man with two plastic containers. One holding some pizza and the other holding some salad. There was also a GPS on top because I had also forgotten to take that back with me.

This man, whose eyes resemble those of a smiling Asian, tries to charge me ten dollars, but we both know he could never take my money. Plus, the meal itself was less than 10 bucks! I kiss this man and run upstairs to finish getting ready.

02-09-09. Ugh. Expired. I shut the fridge door, hopeless. I consider eating it without dressing, but I've never been able to eat salad like that... naked. I shake the container, open it, and decide to look at the salad as though an idea may formulate upon seeing our glorious-green-creation.

He already put the dressing.

There was no love note inside the plastic container, no surprise dessert, nor a hidden photo of us in my lunch bag. He just put dressing on my lunch salad.

That alone made me swell up with gratefulness (kind of like the blueberry boy in Willy Wonka). It's really quite retarded, but this gratitude is hard to explain easily. I won't go into details, but growing up without a father figure makes little acts of "I got you covered" feel so incredible. Especially from the man I'll be spending my life with.

"The Lord has promised good to me.
His word my hope secures.
He will my shield and portion be,
As long as life endures."

The Lord has promised good to me -- and I see it. Sometimes even in a salad. So thank you love. I may be better at pointing out what you don't do, and for that I'm sorry. I'm also sorry that I picked out this photo and you may dislike it -- but sometimes you win some and sometimes ya lose some :) Thank you my delivery man. For delivering to my heart more than a pizza and mushy salad :) Getting to marry you is such a blessing...

Groovin' and movin'

2010-01-26T14:56:00.003-05:00

Now THAT would be entertaining! If all of my bridal party lived in the same city... juuuust kidding guys! I wouldn't do that to you ;)

Though I have to say they did REALLY well for a group choreography. Those are so hard to pull off! Have you ever been to a wedding with a choreography like this? I remember the first wedding I photographed as the main shooter I wanted to join the dancing SO bad because they played such good songs!

Bowtie Ring bearer?

2010-01-25T12:30:00.004-05:00

I mentioned before that I think I want my ring bearer to wear a bow tie. After seeing this little cutie -- well, there is NO QUESTION!!

Via TheBelleandTheBeau

Freaking Etsy. You can find just about your whole wedding there...

Cake Story

2010-01-24T19:55:00.008-05:00

The long awaited for cake story. It's not incredible nor dramatic -- just plain bad experience.

As you may have remembered my second trip to Houston last month, we went to re-visit our bakery. Re-visit. Not visit for the first time. We had seen them back in May for our first trip to Houston and enjoyed their 3-leches cake. I wanted a simple white cake with this design that Jasmine made for me inspired by a cake I had seen online:

I figured they could handle a *relatively* simple design on a white cake. Honestly, I was NOT going to be spending more than $200 on a cake. I respect that it may be incredibly important to other brides, but I just can't justify $3.50+ a slice. Unfortunately, there are times in your life that you "get what you pay for." But I'm getting ahead of myself.

SO! I spoke with someone from the bakery and told them I was in town. I asked if I could e-mail the design of the cake to him and if they could make a small sample for me. Cause, you know, I'm trying to save money but I don't want "surprises" at the wedding ;) Fortunately he agreed and was incredibly professional on the phone!

We (my brother, Jose, and I) show up at the bakery the next day and I am feeling excited. I finally get to see something that I will be seeing at the wedding! Potentially. He serves my brother and I some coffee and he brings out a sample of the 3 leches cake to remind us of our last experience. It was just as delicious as the last and I am very pleased. He then gives us a chocolate slice of cake which had been in the fridge too long = gross. Then he walks back to the kitchen to.... bring out the cake!!!

Calm down, you'll get pictures. You know I won't leave you hanging like this!! ;)

The first thing I notice when he brings the sample cake out is the icing color -- beautiful! I love the shade of blue they chose. Then he sets it down in front of us and... well, I don't say anything. It's not ugly, but it has a tone of "sloppiness" to it. AND then I notice it's lopsided! YEAH, the freaking bread is... lopsided? It isn't noticeable until it's sitting right in front of you. The guy asks "what do you think?" And, this makes me laugh, we pause and Jose turns to him: "What do you think?" I love my man!

The guy says: "Well, first of all, the design (referring to the swirls) are not done correctly. They should have made the side branches first THEN laid the base on top so it doesn't look so piece-y."

Mind you, I hadn't really noticed that so while he is talking I think "Oh wow.. that's right."

He continues: "Obviously, there is a slant here (referring to the top of the cake), and I also think the icing was put on sloppy. I'm embarrassed to say that they had our intern work on this and I'm not sure why."

Ironically, I'm starting to feel worst about the cake after all of what he says. I guess it's worst than my first glance.... and I'm starting to second question the professionalism of the bakery (not the guy). At this point I'm not really sure what to say because I don't think it's "awful" but it's clearly lacking. However, it TASTES good and..... it's CHEAP! That's what I really want -- a cake that tastes good and is not over $200. I'm not that particular about the design, but I don't like the sound of "I don't know why they had our intern working on it." Don't you think that's bad?

I mean -- think about it. You are meeting with POTENTIAL clients -- they have not handed any money over. You want to *win* them over, and even though your professionalism is great, it will all go down the drain when you fail to impress them on the first trial with your product! How am I supposed to feel confident that you will do a relatively good job (i.e. NOT slanted cake) for my wedding? It gets better.

It always gets better.

He knows we're hesitant and so he says "You know, we can remake this and I can take a picture of it and send it to you. We'll put the actual design." HA! I JUST realized that they hadn't put the design I sent them on the sample!! DURH! They made up their own design and just used the one I e-mailed him as an "inspiration." Whaaaaaat? So what kind of design am I going to have on my wedding? A second rendition? And how dumb am I that I didn't even realize the design on the cake was not the one I e-mailed them? Again, it didn't look THAT bad, so I just... didn't notice.

Finally, I say "well, I would much rather see the second trial in person. I don't feel comfortable with relying on a picture and then agreeing to hire you based on a photo." He asks when we're leaving and I respond "tomorrow." He surprises me and says "can you come tomorrow morning? We'll have a second sample for you then WITH your design." I perk up and say "really?! Ok! That would be great!"

NEXT DAY

I'm excited again. I find out he's not there that day so we're just waiting on the cashier lady to bring the cake out to us. Jose sees our cake in the kitchen and tells me "they haven't put the design yet. Now is the real test. Will they hurry up and make a sloppy design because we're here already? Or will they keep us waiting, but work more slowly on the design." I'll let you guess what they did.

They bring the cake out and the lady says "You can eat it here or take it home." She sets it on the table.....

I will let the pictures speak for themselves

You can click on them to make it bigger. LOOK AT THAT MESS.

Did they just trace the design and MISSED it?!

Speechless. I asked for a to go box and just took it back with us to Dallas. Don't judge me, but it was my grandma's birthday and we told her we got her a birthday cake.

There was no way we could hire someone who made THAT for our "trial." If the intern made the first trial, his vision impaired cousin must have made the 2nd trial!! I mean, seriously??

So what now? I still can't pay over $200 for the cake. I really... I just don't care THAT much about it. Ugh. I just want a decent cake!! Our caterer is da bomb -- people are going to love the food! And if the only thing people remember about my wedding is that my cake was not "up to par" -- I must have done something wrong. But I still need SOMETHING.

Enter Plan B.

My fiance's mother --- she is fabulous. She is the worry-free individual of this wedding and I love it! She asked "Okay -- you like how the cake TASTES right?" Me: "Yes" Her: "Would you be willing to consider them at ALL?" Me: "Pfft! No.. I mean, only if they made me a SIMPLE white cake and charged me like $100."

Wait a minute.

Simple white cake....

Alejandra, you're creative aren't you?! GET IT TOGETHER! That's all you need! (That's me talking to myself, not my fiance's mother haha). If we get this cake for super cheap AND it tastes good, can't I just get some CUUUTE cake topper, add some flowers, and BAM! I'm done!

YES!!!!!!!!!!!! AND, guess what? I found an Etsy seller who makes personalized cake toppers without charging an arm and a leg!!! She will incorporate details of your attire (veil, dress material, color, face features, etc.) and will even put your names on the base! All for $35!!!

Via GraceFallen

How cute are they?!

And that is my "screw the cake" story. I am just going to get a freaking white cake that TASTES good, add a personal touch to it with a few red garden flowers for more "decor" -- and that's it. A total that should come out to be about $150 and everyone is happy. Except for my cousin Carlos who is not a fan of whip-cream icing. And sorry to my guests who don't like whip-cream icing, but it's my favorite! You're welcome to bring your own!!

At least that's plan B. If this doesn't work out -- I'll update you on Plan C. There is none yet, but let's hope I don't have to get to that point....

So what are your thoughts on the topper?! And what did you think of the trial/sample?! Rejoice in the mess with me!! :) :) :)

For that Diva Flowergirl

2010-01-22T17:29:00.006-05:00

There's a new diva in this wedding, and her name is Alyssa. Alyssa Valdez. She is my flower girl! (My little cousin Isabella will be joining her... but she is a wee-bit little thing :)

However, this girl is up to par with fashion, which means she wants to sport a cute hair piece for the wedding! And you know how much I love hair pieces (and her) -- so I dedicated this post to you cutie!! I miss you!

This is not just for kids/flower girls... remember that a best way to create a unique outfit (and save money) is to pick a solid colored dress/skirt, with a ruffled top, and then you can really add that UMPH with a hair piece. Don't spend hundreds on the outfit! Splurge a little on the hair piece/accessories. That will be more memorable (unless you just find THAT deal for THAT top/dress/skirt -- then ok you win ;)

But guess what? ALL of these are under $25 YEP! We are all on a budget, right? So let's begin...

This has a cute whimsical look to it... and I like the clusters

$9.00

via IntotheLookingGlass

I love the texture on these and the brightness of the blue. Not quite "teal," but close (and cute) enough!

$14.95

Via PbbFlowers

Now bear with me on this next one. Imagine it WITHOUT the feathers (the white vine is on the wall). The 3 clustered flowers would look SO good with an up do. Think: messy curls pinned up with some falling strands. Romantic!

$18.00

Via Starzselection

Can never go wrong with peacock feathers (splash of teal!)
$19.00

Via LiveinStyle

Huge hair flower... but how cute does it look on her?!?

$13.95

Via Pinkpeppermintdesign

This one is a STEAL! I am starting to really get into the whole bohemian headbands. I have seen some really OVER priced ones on Etsy.. but this seller has SO many cute ones at such reasonable prices! Seriously... take advantage of it!

$17.00

Via SheaBay

I really, really love these. They have that anthropologie feel don't they? Imagine 2 in red and one in that same teal with that same center stone... :)

$24.00

Via Rosebudlips

And last... what do you think about this idea. WHAT IF I attached a little bit of veil fabric to her hair piece to represent a tiny-teeny-mini-birdcage veil?! This is the best example I could find:

via VelvetOwl

Now remember, the hair piece wouldn't necessarily be in white and it's NOT going over her face.... it's just a "hint" of it. Don't freak out, she won't look like a bride. I dunno, it's kind of crazy but I just think it would be SO stinkin' cute to see the flower girl walking down with something like that.

Am I crazy? Wait, let me rephrase that. Is that a crazy thought? I want to hear your thoughts!! Even if you think that's a dumb idea. I'm just curious :)

I'll be posting the wedding cake story later or this weekend!

Any designer friends?

2010-01-21T17:22:00.004-05:00

Seriously... I will love you forever. Any friends here in the ATL that can sew? Wanna take a stab at a dress like this?

via TimelessVixenVintage

I kid, I kid. Kinda.

p.s. have you seen the trailer yet?! AHHHHH!! Give me 3-4 years... I'll be having my own then! ;)

Expecting the Unexpected

2010-01-21T15:24:00.001-05:00

My best friend/maid of honor is having a baby!!!!! And in celebration to this, you MUST watch this trailer! I cannot wait to see this...

Congrats Billy & Kristen Lewis!

Kisses

2010-01-20T16:44:00.003-05:00

Kisses on the forehead make me smile :)

Actually, this whole session was eye candy!

Cause I love pretty pictures

2010-01-15T17:07:00.006-05:00

via One Love Photo

I have some fun stuff to post for the upcoming weeks!!

1) My horrible wedding cake experience

2) MY SAVE THE DATES! I know not many of my friends have photoshop, but in case anyone out there does -- I'm actually going to tell you EXACTLY how I made mine! This way, if you have photoshop... you can experiment with what I did and make your own invites (for babyshowers, parties, birthdays, weddings, etc.).

3) Groom goodies

4) CONVINCE my fiance to be a guest blogger (yeaaaa!!! ;)

But in the mean time... take a break with some of these links!

+ There are 2 looks I am "collecting" for a surprise (you will find out eventually). This one and this one.. now, to find the clothes at a thrift store or make a modern twist with my own..

+ DIY snowglobes!! via Creative Odds n' Ends

+On second thought, screw the cake and let's bring these!

+What are your thoughts on splits? I just don't look very good in them, but others pull it off... do you?

+You're not going to believe this... after much consideration, I am HONESTLY going to attempt making one of these. And YES, you will be updated on my progress. I already have some "beginning the ridiculous project" pictures!

+Speaking of DIY -- how about a simple bow? What if I attached a clip and made my ring bearer's bow tie like this?

+Then I could use the fabric I am obsessed with!!

+Now this is a gorgeous alternative to wedding hair pieces. Stunning!

+Interesting read... what if you didn't love your wedding? Would you admit it?

+Or "You'll seeeee" via A Practical Wedding

+Ok, this was WAY more fun than I expected. This Freud like character asks you 4 q's, jots his notes, and reveals your "type." Apparently I am "architype" which was a font I did not like and don't think reflects me. But it was still fun -- I laughed at the "discipline" question. What is your type? Via How About Orange

Going on a date tonight with Jose! We're going ice skating at Centennial Park. I'm pretty bad at it, so I hope I don't come back with too many bruises on my butt :)

O la la dresses

2010-01-14T11:10:00.005-05:00

I had to post this dress -- it is considered a "bridesmaid" dress.

I'm not going to lie -- it is a pretty amazing, rocking dress. But seriously? Could you imagine women's faces when a bridesmaid walks down the aisle rocking that dress? They think "well the bride MUST have something that will floor us!"

However, the same designer made these, and I think these are GORGEOUS without backstaging the bride (me!).

This Etsy seller has very beautiful, long dresses. I just don't know if all of my girls would look good in long dresses.... but they need to start finding their dress soon!!

Have any of you ever owned a wrap dress? The one that has like 30 different styles you can wear it in. I was always hesitant to see if they REALLY were that easy to create. Because if they are, I think my bridesmaids should consider this:

By Nata Jane

for only $125 !! Don't you love the bottom row black one on the far left? Exposes your shoulders in such a feminine way, yet wraps around your neck for a more formal/elegant look.

GROOMSMEN -- you are next!!

...that's gong to be hard...

The 5 Love Languages Series: Part II

2010-01-13T19:47:00.003-05:00

[[ This is a series of summaries and personal "confessions" and opinions on "The Five Love Languages" by Gary Chapman ]]

Keeping the Love Tank Full

"If we can agree that the word love permeates human society, both historically and in the present, we must also agree that it is a most confusing word. We use it in a thousand ways. [...] If all that is not confusing enough, we also use the word to explain behavior. 'I did it because I love her.' [...] The wife of an alcoholic picks up the pieces after her husband's latest episode. She calls it love, but the psychologist calls it codependency."

Again, Dr. Chapman goes into childhood and how the language of love starts there...

"I liked the metaphor the first time I heard it: 'Inside every child is an 'emotional tank' waiting to be filled with love. When a child really feels loved, he will develop normally but when the love tank is empty, the child will misbehave. Much of the misbehavior of children is motivated by the cravings of an empty 'love tank.'"

I think this applies to many of us, even if we are no longer children:

"Their misbehavior was a misguided search for the love they did not feel."

"The emotional need for love, however, is not simply a childhood phenomenon. That need follows us into adulthood and into marriage. The 'in love' experience temporarily meets that need, but it is inevitably a 'quick fix' and, as we shall learn later, has a limited and predictable life span. After we come down from the high of 'in love' obsession, the emotional need for love resurfaces because it is fundamental to our nature. It is at the center of our emotional desires. We needed love before we 'fell in love,' and we will need it as long as we live."

---

Do you think this is the root of affairs? Granted, there's the involvement of sexual lust -- but do you think women have more *emotional* affairs? The males I have asked about love languages have revealed the following 2: physical touch & words of affirmation. However, I have yet to find a woman who's primary love language is physical touch. Not saying they don't exist -- I just haven't met her.

I found that in college while in a long distance relationship (not with Jose), my biggest temptation was an emotional one. I had a great relationship, so it didn't make sense to me to sometimes have those struggles. It isn't until now, knowing my love language, I see how my love tank was not "feeling" full -- or at least, selfishly, I thought it wasn't. I am a romantic at heart, and when I was not so wise, I weakened at romantic pursuits. For example.... France.

I was at a cafe with a girl friend on my 2nd to last day in France after having worked there the whole summer. This Amsterdam native guy pulls up in his supped up not-really-sports-car-but-looks-like-one car. He is an attractive guy who my friend is obviously checking out. I noticed, but I wasn't "checking out." In fact, I was avoiding that because I could already sense his attraction. Our waitress chats with us and finds out we speak Spanish because we were there in France to teach Spanish. Somehow the message travels to Amsterdam boy, who asks if he could join our table. Conversation starts, my friend keeps giving me the "TALK TO HIM" look and I dart her back a "I HAVE BOYFRIEND" look.

Anyway, at the end of him asking me my birthday and other random questions (that are unfortunately cute...), we have to leave. He walks us to the chateau, and we say our goodbyes. Except, it didn't turn out to be a goodbye. The next day, my last day at work, I am walking the kids from our camp to the pool. On the way back, we pass the cafe (which is en route), and the waitress from the other night is throwing her hands in the air "ALLO!!" She catches my gaze and waves me over madly. I ask one of the counselors to take my place and walk slow so I can run over to her and get back in time. When I get to her, she hands me an envelope and smiles. Confused, I take it, thank her, and run back to the group.

Yeah, go ahead. I'm sure you can guess. It was a card from Amsterdam boy. The worst part? There were puppies on the cover because he remembered me mentioning how much I like photos of puppies, and he wrote me a message in French. Ha. Yes, I worked in France but I don't speak French. My counselor friend does and translated it for me. I'll spare you the details but it was obviously romantic and ugggggggggggggggggggh -- overwhelming! Yup, it ends even better. All the counselors decide we should go out that night (which we got in big trouble for with the director), and little did I know... one of the counselors thought it would be soo funny to invite Amsterdam boy. We went to a club that played tons of techno music, with an air that was full of energy. Everyone danced and everyone had a good time, but I realized how glad I was that I met him my last day and not my first.

My point in my story is that this temptation came on strongly. I mean, it sounds like a movie! Meeting at a cafe, leaving a French note, dancing, blah blah blah. You can see the amount of detail I put into my wedding, so having received that romantic attention through these little details was incredibly weakening. Those actions flirted with my love language -- but it wasn't "love." Which often, many people confuse infatuation with love.

But this opened my eyes to men who are tempted by sexual/physical elements everyday. I mean, I was in a great relationship and those 2 days were killing me. Those tempted by sexual lust have a LOT to battle day by day. I am a strong believer that a man of Christ will turn his face away from those temptations to honor his God and wife/fiance/girlfriend. I find that now, in order to avoid the emotional temptation, I avoid the situation altogether. It gets so easy to justify... to say, "well, I'm not doing anything wrong -- it's a conversation!" But it's more than a conversation. If there is ever a physical attraction, and even more attractive conversation, that is opening a door. I know this sounds very conservative, but we are saturated with temptation -- we HAVE to shield our hearts and eyes if we want to be faithful to our husbands and wives. After all, marriage is "till' death do us part" -- right?

Mind you, this does not mean avoid a great conversation with an attractive person. You can't avoid pretty people for the rest of your life. But we are also not stupid and know when we feel an attraction sexually and emotionally. That's when you cut it. I actually heard a story from this book about a guy who was addicted to porn. He gave it up, went to counseling, found God, and met his wife. Then he found himself looking forward to the Sunday newspaper to grab the department store catalogs. He would flip to the lingerie section, which wasn't Victoria's Secret -- but there were women in bras. It's not pornography, but guess what? It's the SAME sin -- lust. Inviting those thoughts, whether images of sex or pursuits by someone who is not your partner, will not, I repeat, not allow you to develop a faithful relationship with not only your partner, but God.

Temptation is a completely different animal that can be discussed in many, many posts. And if you don't believe in God, that's fine. However, I can't imagine understanding a selfless love without believing in God. And from the bottom of my heart, I can't imagine a healthy marriage (remember, I said healthy) without selfless love.

"Falling in Love" is next.

So what do YOU think about temptation? Do you think removing yourself from these situations is crazy conservative, or appropriate? On a different note, what are your thoughts on the idea that "misbehavior, withdrawal, harsh words, and critical spirit occur because of [an] empty tank?"

Veil Help!

2010-01-12T15:56:00.007-05:00

Remember I was thinking about this for my veil? (Keep in mind, I plan on adding a flower similar to this)

Well now she came out with this one and I think I am in love!! It's a little more expensive, but that's because it's not just the fabric. This would change my plans of putting a flower in my hair since the veil has the embroidered flowers. However, I feel more attracted to the volume of this veil...

What do you think?!?! Please vote!! The 1st or 2nd?!

Who doesn't love free?

2010-01-12T15:02:00.003-05:00

Guess what? There is a whole WEEK of giveaways happening at BonBon Rose Girls!

image via CiaoChessa

This print is one of them! I love it... reminds me of my mom's home country, Honduras. I imagine a very narrow road under these clothes, and maybe even a fruit vendor with delicious mango and chile seasoning just taunting my mouth for a taste. YUM. However, this image was taken in Italy! *sigh* I can't wait to go to Europe with my camera....

Now go win some goodies!! Because this button alone should make you get up and get your birthday on!