Grooming the Groom

Some guys are into skincare, some could care less. My husband would fall into the "could care less" category. He washes his face with whatever soap is in the shower (or my facewash if it's within arm's reach), shaves his face with the cheapest shaving foam he can find at CVS, and definitely doesn't think to put on suncreen when he's outside.

Side-note to TR: Love you!!! You know this is all true! xoxo

On the flip-side, there are some guys that pay attention to what they use on their face. My friend Ashley and her husband Chris are pictured below, and Chris appreciates a well-developed men's skincare line of products (just look at that clear skin!).

{Source: Author's personal collection}

Chris "swears by" the Anthony skincare line, which conveniently offers a "Here Comes the Groomed Kit"! This $50 gift would be perfect for a bride to give her groom, or for the groom to give his groomsmen.




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Thanks, Chris, for the tip!

Snag Some Jewelry on Sale!

It's the holidays and so many things are on sale right now... What a perfect time to buy bridal or bridesmaid jewelry! Here are just a few things on sale right this second:


Ann Taylor Loft ($6 standard shipping on all orders!)




Multi-stone Stretch Bracelet ~ $29.99
Short Grey Pearl Cubic Zirconia Keeper Necklace ~ $29.99
Silvertone Pearl Chandelier Earring ~ $19.99


Banana Republic



Oversized Chunky Faux-pearl Necklace ~ $24.99
Faceted Glass Ring ~ $29.99


New York & Company



Pear-shaped Pendant Necklace ~ $9.97
Crystal Flower Earrings ~ $9.97

Recycled Gift Tag Letters

I know it's only the end of October... OMG it's the end of OCTOBER!!! That means Christmas is less than 2 months away!!!

I love Christmas so much because I love the act of giving gifts. Maybe my motives are a little selfish, but nothing feels better than giving someone you love something they would never have bought for themselves or something that is so amazingly cool that they think you are the most thoughtful/awesome/wonderful person ever. :)

If you love giving gifts as much as I do, there's a good chance you also love presenting your gifts in a creative way. I present (purposeful pun!) to you: recycled gift monograms!!!

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These letters are cut out of old Christmas cards ~ genius! Another great idea by Martha Stewart and her staff.

I feel awful throwing away Christmas cards. Someone put all of that effort into picking a card that reflected their personality and message they wanted to send, writing a message in said card, addressing the envelope, paying for postage and sending the card on its way to my mailbox. I am guilty of hoarding old Christmas cards and now I've found an excellent way to reuse them! I can't wait to wrap some gifts!

[I also have every single wedding card anyone ever gave TR & me for our showers & wedding... I shall reuse these, too!]

Some of my Favorite LOCAL Etsy things...

I thought it would be nice to show some love to the super-talented Indy artists who sell their goods on Etsy! We have some incredibly talented artists nearby ~ and I love supporting local artists!! I made this nice collage to showcase their work:



{Clockwise from top-left: "see beth blush" felt brooch (can also use as a hair clip) from Accessoire; "Heather Bailey Mums" fabric covered magnet board from SteelDreamingDesigns; "Story Book" gift tags (set of 6) from Viva Variety; "Lots O Dots" round handmade stickers and seals from Keepsake Couture; Monogrammed note cards from Fresh Coffee; "you and i" cards from City Bird Designs}

I would totally be caught wearing the sweet pink felt hair flower (possibly even as a brooch, but we'll see...) ~ wedding day or any other day! Check out Accessoire's shop for more colors & designs.

I love the magnet board ~ you could give this as a gift, OR buy a few and hang them at your reception or ceremony. You could use them as "Reserved" seating signs or to post pictures of you and your fiance (or loved ones who couldn't be at the wedding). SteelDreamingDesigns' shop has other fabrics to choose from to coordinate with your wedding colors.

The storybook gift tags are so cute! Obviously, these would dress up your bridesmaid/mother/father/groom gifts, AND ensure the gifts get to the right person. :) Viva Variety's shop also has other paper goods and trinkets for sale, so be sure to stop by!

I can think of a bajillion ways to use the collection of round stickers: seals for thank-you-card envelopes... fancy-ing up clear candle holders or vases... labeling favors... I could go on, but I won't! Keepsake Couture sells a variety of chic notebooks & paper goods; perfect for a paper-lover like me!

The monogrammed note cards by Fresh Coffee are so adorable ~ I would love to have a stash of these on hand to send out little notes to my friends & family. I love snail mail! Fresh Coffee also has a bunch of lovely paper goods for sale, including wedding invitations!

Finally, (my favorite!) I must congratulate CityBird Designs on their fantastic "you and i" cards. Fill-in-the-blank/check-box cards are so fun! I can think of so many friends who I haven't seen in a while ~ I would love to send each of them one of these cards to invite them to coffee or a girl's night. I'm going to have to check in with this shop more often because everything is just so cute!

Happy Shopping!

Favor or Gift: Cupcake Jars!

I was perusing Manolo for the Brides blog today and saw this post about cupcake favors/gifts. I scrolled further down in the post and saw this picture of the cutest little jars filled with cupcake goodness:



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The above cupcake jars are made by Fat Daddy's Bake Shop, but it appears they are no longer selling these in their Etsy shop anymore.

HOWEVER.

There's nothing stopping you from making them yourself!

DIYBride's blog (she's so crafty!) posts a "tute" for how to make these little cuties:

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I looked around online and found these 1/2 pint wide-mouth canning jars (similar to those used in the tutorial) for $4.49 (for 4 jars) on Goodman's website.

These little dessert jars would be great to give as gifts for moms, bridesmaids, out-of-towners, etc. Wrap ribbon in your wedding colors around the lid, print a circular label for the top, and there you go!

Real Wedding: Ashley & Chris

As promised, here are some detail pictures of Ashley & Chris' reception decor... You'll have to forgive me because I only took pictures of the seating card display and the results of the candy bar buffet (not the candy bar itself), and my camera takes pretty awful pictures with the flash on (I think someone should buy me a new camera for Christmas!). But I think you'll get the idea and see how great everything looked!

Here is the seating card display:

There were 3 glass vases filled with clear glass stones at the bottom. Branches were arranged in each vase, and the seating cards were hung from the branches (in alphabetical order, as best as I could!).

Since each vase arrangement held a certain group of placecards according to the guest's last name, Ashley created signs to tell guests where to look for their placecard.

Ashley & Chris' guestbook was a custom-made album with their engagement pictures inside. This was such a great idea and the guests loved seeing their professional pics!

Here is a picture of my husband holding our candy bar favor... Pink and green were the couple's wedding colors, and the candy bar was filled with around 10 different pink & green candies! [Doesn't TR's tie match their candy perfectly?!]

And here's a picture of the newlyweds!!

Gift: Bath Teas!

How great is this? Bath teas! Boh Bon Soap Company has created three types of bath teas: In Bloom (botanical), Pep Up (mint; shown below) & With a Twist (citrus). I think these would make excellent additions to an Out of Town bag or as part of your gift to your bridesmaids. There are 4 tea bags per take-out box (cute & handy packaging!), and the cost for each take-out box is only $4! What a steal!



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