Exciting News!!

I'm still in the crazy ( I can't believe this is happening) and madly in love with my fiance mode!  Ahhh!!!
I'm so excited to be sharing this moment here with you now!  Let me tell you how it all happened.  Joe has been going to his parents house for the past few weeks to work on my Christmas gift.  He was making this beautiful white washed chest in which to present me with the ring that he designed for me.  I was stunned and surprised to say the least!  The opening of the chest was very dramatic as it happened on Christmas day at around 11pm. The light was shining down on the opened ring alongside a lovely landscape of lovely moss, air & succulent plants.  Joe recited a poem that he had written before he asked me if I would marry him.  By then of course I was crying, laughing, in shock, and just exploding with joyful emotion as I replied with a YES, yes, yes!! It's been a lot of excitement to take in as I also turned the big 30 the day after on the 26th!  I couldn't think of a better way to spend my special day by spreading the good news to my family and friends and now to all my blog friends!  AAhhhh... I going to bask in these good feelings for a bit longer.  So please excuse my absence in the meantime :)

Happy Holidays!

Wishing you and your family a warm and joyful Christmas!  

Cheers,

~Liz & Joe

   Design Download: Summit Avenue Design

DIY: "Lace" Ribbon

I look forward to wrapping my gifts tonight, especially getting to use some of this lace ribbon to complete some special gifts!  Although this does take some time to complete (I did mine while vegging in front of the tv) it's totally re useable and because  the color choice is not very holiday specific,  it would be great to use for a birthday, house warming, or hostess gift too!  I'm loving the results and I hope you get a chance to paint a spool or two yourself :)  Happy wrapping!

Holiday Home

 

When I take a moment to think about this holiday season I feel blessed with an abundance like no other this year.  Blessed to have my family (close by), a sound body and mind, love that continues to grow, confidence, peace of mind, and a steadfast passion to create- all on the brink of my 30th birthday (no less).  And a large part of this happiness comes from this little creative outlet of a blog and all the great people I've been so fortunate to meet along the way!  Your comments truly inspire me and help to motivate me to keep going and growing.  Thank you for all your encouraging thoughts and good cheer.
I can't wait to keep pouring my thoughts and ideas and share them with you here!  Here are a few snippets of what my home currently looks like this year.  Check out another amazing holiday home from my friend Theresa from inspirationCooperative.  Theresa said by sharing photos of your home, it's almost as if we (bloggers) are spending the holidays together!  I couldn't agree more with you Theresa!

Handmade Holiday: Vanilla Extract

A perfectly simple gift for those who love to express themselves in the form of baked goods.  Joe and I whipped up a small batch of these bottles for a few of our family members (sshhh.. don't tell).  They are already turning a yummy carmel color but they won't reach full potency until the end of next month, hey something that our family will HAVE to wait to use!  Feel free to get creative and create your own label or download one of mine here.  Anyway you make it, this is sure to be a gift that will continue to give all year long :)

Home for the Holidays: Photo Session

 

Over the weekend Joe and I spent Saturday afternoon capturing my friend Jill and her family in their beautiful home.  Jill works as a photo stylist, so I was even more excited to see how she had decorated this year for the holidays.  We had so much fun photographing her and the family decorating the tree, drinking lots of coffee and just spending the afternoon together.  The hard part for me was picking out my favorites to share with you today.  Happy Holidays!

Happy Friday!

Happy Friday to you today!  Did this week fly by or what?  My guess is the weeks are going to continue to fly by until the holiday hits so I best put on my running shoes and make a mad dash to get my gift buying underway this weekend!  I have some fun DIY gifts and some handmade holiday decor to share with you next week, so please come on back soon!  Today I leave with a great wallpaper download to add to your desktop by designer/illustrator Lisa Rupp from That's Happy.  I have this one as my wallpaper on my work computer to help make my day a little brighter!  Have a lovely weekend :)

Crafty Girl: Gift Guide

 1) Cross Stitch iphone case     3) Crafter's Guide to Taking Great Photos     5) 2012 Skinny Calendar
 2) MyFonts gift certificate       4) Sewing Classes from The Needle Shop    6) Amy Butler Patterns

Book Review: Amy Butler Midwest Modern

 

Photographs by David Butler

Happy Monday to everyone today!!  Today I'm happy to share a book review of one of my most creative inspirational people..Amy Butler.  She is and continues to be a creative force in the fabric design, pattern, and craft world.  Constantly expanding her hard and soft lines to include everything from plates, rugs, wallpaper, bedding, patterns, and a line of stationary (just to name a few).  I received this book Midwest Modern from my brother a few years ago for Christmas and I still reference it to help me whenever I am stuck in a creative rut or just need a fresh new perspective on things.  It's more of a lifestyle book and I think that's why I keep this book within arms reach on the bookshelf at home.  My favorite section of the book is getting a tour of her interiors where she displays a lot of her fabrics and patterns as a kind of rotating gallery of products while getting a glimpse of her studio space on the lower level of her home.  How fun to be able to divide your home into a completely separate work and live space!  A girl can dream, right?!  I hope to make room for this dream someday down the road at our next place.  But for now I'm glad to have a book where I can seek new creative ideas in design, home interiors, prints, fabrics, and home/work life. 

DIY Advent Calendar

Enjoy this little DIY I put together for you to countdown the 25 days of Christmas! I got this idea when I found out that these plastic sleeves were going to be thrown out at work.  I thought they would be the perfect size for a project like an advent calendar.  And since I don't have a mantel, I pinned these to the garland going up the stairs instead.  They just add a nice pop of holiday color to the staircase, I think. Have fun making one for yourself!  Let me know how yours turns out :)

Save the Date Engagement Session

Joe and I finished editing our last engagement session last night.  We followed the soon to be newlyweds Zain and Jim around the Old Town and Lincoln Park neighborhoods in Chicago to capture their fun and over the moon (for each other) spirit.  The couple wanted to use their engagement session as their save the dates, so we helped them to spell it out for there guests in a fun and creative way.  I can't wait to see how the bride to be puts all these together into a slide show for family and friends.  The toughest part will be for sure picking out the best ones :)  Congrats to Zain and Jim and thanks for letting Joe and I capture these love awesome moments!

Coach House Pictures