My Favorite Accessory

It was almost one year ago today that I received my favorite accessory.

Derek popped the questions the day before Thanksgiving while we were visiting family in the Bay Area. We met in San Francisco so the city will always hold a special place in our hearts. He proposed overlooking the city after we shared a bottle of wine at the wine bar where we had our first date. It could not have been more perfect!

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I had absolutely no part in picking my ring. Derek did it all himself and spent months looking for the perfect one. And he did! The ring is vintage from the 1920's and has extra significance because some of the accent diamonds were replaced with diamonds from his grandmother's engagement ring.

It's hard to believe that a year has already flown by. Something tells me it will be hard for this Thanksgiving to live up to last years!

Minted Holiday Card Collection

I'm totally in love with Minted's Holiday Card selection. These chic designs are totally perfect for sending to family and friends. I just can't seem to choose my favorites out of all the designs they offer (there are seriously so many good ones!).

My favorite part of the site is the number of wonderful designers they have contributing to this site. These are some of the most refreshing designs on the internet!Oh and you don't have to stop at Holiday cards, they have an incredible selection of invites, kids cards and some beautiful greeting card options.

Check out just a few of the favorites that I have picked out :)

Happy Holiday Card, Be Merry, May Your Days Be Merry, Happy Everything, Family Card

Flights of Fancy {feathers as wedding inspiration}

My fiance, Mark, and I have a long-running joke about me walking down the aisle carrying a live white peacock instead of a bouquet. I'll take the flowers, please and thank you. The last thing I need is a frantic animal in my arms during our wedding. Needless to say, I have a strong and deep love of all things feathered, which I've inherited primarily from my mother, who is about as obsessed as they come. Feathers are popping up all over the place in wedding decor, bridal attire, accessories, even invitations. Here are a few of my favorite iterations:

Surely, I wouldn't look this glamorous carrying a bird.

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Feathers as decorative details...

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Feathers in your hair...

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How will you be incorporating your feathered friends?

P.S. If you've seen my Pinterest, you know I have much, much more feather inspiration, so just wait for shoes and dress posts!

Floral Inspiration {Succulents and Artichokes}

Our wedding is about 2 months away!  Yay!As the wedding is getting closer, the focus is mainly on all the little details. This past week we met with our amazing florist, Jan Dekker for a trial.  She put together an example of our centerpieces.  It was so great to see what she put together! She really understood my "vision" for the flowers and although I had some minor changes and feedback, I was ecstatic and thought they looked beautiful!

I would highly recommend to any bride meeting your florist for a trial of the flower arrangements if you can. It totally put me at ease!

Here are some of the inspiration photos I used when first meeting with Jan to design the centerpieces and bouquets:

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The overall look I want for the flowers is romantic but not over the top.  We also love the addition of the little succulents and artichokes! One thing I love about incorporating the succulents is that they are something that can be taken out of each centerpiece and planted. I don't have much of a green thumb but am hoping I can save a few for our home.

Next item on our detail to-do list is all the paper! Programs, place cards and miscellaneous signs. We fell in love with our vendor who did our invitations so we plan on going there in the next few weeks.

Until next week!

-Jess

Follow my wedding inspiration board on Pinterest!

Tweet me @jessdawnd 

Read my past posts here and here

This. Is. It.

I can't believe it's finally here. In 2 days, I will be marrying the man of my dreams and my best friend. It's hard to believe that after only 21 years of my life, I was fortunate enough to meet this incredible person. The last 6 years with Kyle have flown by, and I know the next 80 will go by in the blip of a second.

Style Me Pretty, photo by Studio Impressions

This week has been so overwhelmed by to-do lists, errands, and craft project that it's admittedly been difficult to take a few minutes to step back and relish in this incredible moment. I am grateful for these few minutes to reflect on what the past 27 years have meant, and the significance of those 30 minutes this Saturday where Kyle and I will pledge our love and fidelity to each other for eternity.

Snippet & Ink, photo by One Love Photo

Here's a confession... I've never told anyone. A friend took this photo back when I was 19 and I've stared at it ever since dreaming of my wedding day. Yes, I was wearing a tarp.

And now it's here. I can't wait to finally have my man and my moment. And a wedding dress that isn't a tarp.

See you all on the other side!

XOXO, Kalista

Setting the Mood {with Food}

Hi E&Iers! I'm back after an amazing long weekend in Southern California at fellow blogger Taya's wedding (aka my future sister in law!). It was such a great weekend filled with laughs, dancing, friends, family, new friends and new family, in a gorgeous setting...it was everything a great wedding should be. I could go on and on, but I'll let Taya tell you herself when she gets back from her honeymoon. :-)

Onto my topic of the week - food! You might remember my post, here, on finding a caterer who would work with us in making everything affordable, while still including the elements we really wanted - quality, local food, family style dinner, etc. Well, we finally found them and it was worth the wait! My favorite thing about the caterers we found was that the owner, and lead lady of this husband-and-wife-owned catering company, really listened to what we wanted and figured out where to cut corners and where it made sense to splurge a little.

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I am so relieved to have our catering booked! I believe food can really help set the mood of the day - the cuisine is just one more place to infuse your style as a couple. Loving how these weddings used food to help set the vibe of their wedding day.

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My advice to fellow brides out there is that if you are not finding what you're looking for and you are getting a lot of 'nos' to what you believe is a reasonable request, keep looking and don't give up! Ask lots of questions and reach out to new vendors until you find someone who is ready to have a conversation and work with you. I think it's also good to know what things you absolutely know you want and what things you would be okay not having. For me, I knew I wanted family style dinner, but I was okay giving up the filet mignon.

If you are getting married in the Gorge and looking for a caterer, check out Boda's Kitchen. Ask for Sirota Johnston, the owner and boss laday. She's awesome.

{E&I Bride} Courtney

Our readers really are the best. I mean come on, look at what one of our long time readers is putting together for her big wedding day! Good news is that she will be here each week blogging her journey to I Do! Introducing Courtney, our newest 2013 bride. She is tying the knot at the gorgeous Spanish Oaks Ranch on June 22,2013. Check out her Pinterest board for more inspiration from her bing day.

These two will be celebrating their 10 year anniversary 2 months before they tie the knot. How sweet is that?

Leave our girl some love and make sure to join us every Tuesday for her posts!

the {bridesmaid} proposal

I wanted to ask my bridesmaids to be a part of our wedding in a very special way.  That was something I thought of for a very long time.  I didn't want to just ask them verbally or give them a simple card, I wanted something more, something special that they would remember.  Of course I scoured Etsy for different ideas, but nothing seemed just right.  I found a variety of ideas on how to word the question.  But how to ask?

Source (from top left):Trimmings Shop, The Inspired Note, PaperEtiquette,Caffeine Colour

Bubbly, to me, always signifies celebration and is exactly what I like to drink with my girls.

Source (from top left): Daily Cup of Couture, Classy & Style, Zoie loves, Classy in the City, Everything Fab, Global Good Group, The Glitter Guide, Riches for Rags    

So, I decided to make the bubbly the way to ask them to be a part of the wedding!  I found different ideas of how to include champagne or wine in an invitation.

Source (from left): maddiegdesigns, Southern Fried Paper, Letter Love Designs, Pepper Lindsey & Co.

As a do-it-yourself girl {and bride}, I wanted to design the tags myself rather than outsourcing the project.  I'm new to photoshop & illustrator, but it was fun learning when you have a thoughtful gift in mind.  I had to go with my go-to pattern {polka dots} and my main wedding color {yellow}.

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They turned out great & I couldn't have been happier!  Best of all, it really screamed me!  cheers.

Let There Be Light!

And lots of it! For our wedding we plan on keeping our decor very simple with lots of hanging lights playing of the natural beauty of our venue.

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 I really love the idea of also combing some lights with colorful streamers and ribbons.

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Since our venue is on the edge of a national park,we cannot have any open flames. Unfortunately means no candles, so we will have to get creative with other ways to add light.

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How did you get creative with your wedding lighting?

Adorn your Fete {Stylish Engagement Party Details}

In July, my mother threw us a beautiful engagement party. Every detail was perfect, and she and I had so much fun together creating personalized, detailed touches. Engagement parties are a fun time to begin thinking about all of the little details that will take over (your every waking moment for...) the next twelve months or so. In the weeks leading up to our party, I scoured Pinterest and Etsy for fun ideas. Here are a few of my favorites:

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And here are a few favorites from my own engagement party, last July:

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We had a blast making this fun banner. My mom is a ninja with scissors, let me tell you!

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These little flags look beautiful, but the petit fours were so delicious that they disappeared in about a minute. They were fun to make though--toothpicks, silver permanent marker, and scrapbooking paper. Easy! I will definitely recreate these in the future.

Have you had an engagement party yet? Did you incorporate any fun little details? I would love to hear about them!