I know what I think: RAD.  Well I still have some work to do, so . . . ALMOST RAD.  Everything used to be white, except for the cabinets which were that hideous fake wood – with the jadeite and milk glass and pink plates, it was way too cutesy in here.  So I painted it all a deep navy and added a white border to the drawers for fun and bought those awesome vintage pulls on ebay.  I need longer screws for the drawer pulls, but I’ll get them up sooner or later (after brightening them to more of a gold finish).  I also made that valance and did some fancy stuff to the bamboo shade, but I’ll tell you about that later.  Oh and check out our fancy new marble counter top . . .

. . . which used to be a coffee table.  *high five*  I was trying really hard for white marble, but when this appeared on Craigslist in the perfect size, after weeks and weeks of searching, we jumped.  And now I feel so fancy working on cool marble.  It’s just sitting on our original workspace – one of those tall, stupid kitchen tables that I painted green – but it’s way bigger and way fancier. I have to repaint the table legs of course – that green looks dumb now – but overall, I think we can all agree, Keith and I are now very FANCY.

Also, we just watched an episode of The Borgias, and someone used an acorn squash to mock someone else’s flaccid penis, and dudes, now that squash on the counter looks GROSS.

!!!  Can you get over this?  I. CAN. NOT.  This is the coolest thing ever.  Heather, who pens Home Modern, collected and sprayed toy horses for each of her wedding guests – and gives you a step-by-step here.  For sure, that’s a lot of horses and can get a little pricey – if you’ve got a lot of guests, I highly recommend ordering these wholesale if you can.  But even one large horse at each table would be so seriously cool.  I love this project so much, I want to hug this girl so bad.  And there are lots of other really awesome projects on her blog – you should go check it out.  She’s talking about making a Moroccan wedding blanket and I’m dying to see what she comes up with.  Hopefully she’s not like me, and announces she’s working on something and then never finds the time to finish it.  Ehem.

[Images by James Moes]

I’m using silk tulle, like, A LOT.  Plus those other awesome things pictured.  I’m dying to get started – I think it’s gonna be gooood.  Imagine sculpted, beaded bodices over yards of draped tulle . . . aw yeah. We ’bout to make you jump.

Guess what I have today?  Wedding pictures!  Remember Lisa’s J.Crew gown that she brought in to have fancied up a bit?  She wanted to add lace from her mom’s wedding gown and some straps and a new waistband and flowers . . . we took a simple, off-the-rack dress and made it the perfect look for her.  And isn’t she the sweetest in it?

And okay, this is going to sound really sappy, but when I look at the pictures of these two, I see a family.  I admit I totally got teary-eyed when she sent them to me.  And of course I know Lisa and her husband and how incredibly sweet they are, but you can just tell how happy they make the people around them.  Coupla cutie pies.  Oh and you have to see these:

Those amazing candle holders that they gave away as favors?  Yeah, Lisa made them.  All of them.  One for each of their guests. What?! She’s an art teacher and fired them in the kiln at school.  Can you believe it?  And they’re gorgeous.  Well done, darlin’.  And congratulations to you both! XO

[Images by Mark Campbell]

This is the Candytuft veil from the Fall 2011 accessories collection.  Marcella chose it to wear with the Ava gown from J.Crew – stunning combination, right?

I love how the simplicity of the look – no feathers, no beading, no lace – is what makes it so bold and feminine.  Just gorgeous.  Marcella ordered the taffeta from J.Crew to ensure a perfect match with her ivory gown, and I used the softest, springiest silk tulle for the veil.  The full-length veil is detachable, so the headband will be a striking and easy-to-wear accessory at the reception as well.  Marcella promised to share pictures with us, but we have to wait until summer (the wedding is in June).  And I will seriously have a hard time waiting – she is going to look GORGEOUS.

If you would like a custom accessory for your wedding (and dudes, the sky is the limit!), please do not ever hesitate to contact me.  I love all my brides and definitely want to hear your ideas!

[Bottom image via J.Crew]

That’s kind of cute, right?  And this . . .

I still have some work to do on that.  And I bought the materials to do most of the other stuff, but I have no idea when I’ll get around to it.  There is still so much left to be done.  I just made a mental list and started feeling sick, so we’ll leave it at that. This is supposed to be a fun side project, and I need to chill out about it.  Anyway, I also worked the tips of my fingers raw sewing up a veil for a custom client, and it was totally worth it.  More on that soon.  And now that the weekend is over, I have to go do my jerk face taxes.

As you can see, I added some Photoshopped touches that really class up the joint.  Hello, TASSELS.  Anyway, I’ve already gone and bought a lot of those things and am confident the apartment will now “flow” all over the dang place.  And yes, I’m wrapping the legs of those chairs in gold thread.  Just try and stop me!

I hate that I don’t have a Carrera marble countertop.  I hate that the fabric I bought yesterday for the seat cushions doesn’t look right.  I hate that I want to go back to Joann to buy more pillow forms.  I hate it there.  And it’s snowing.  I hate that I don’t know how to decorate our kitchen.  I hate that Keith isn’t here to tell me to shut up and go back to bed.  I hate that you probably hate me now for being such a complainy jerk.

UPDATE: I figured it out.  Never mind!

[Image Source: Spool Chair by Keisuke Fujiwara]

The Trellis.  I don’t blame you.  It’s one of my favorites.  It was the first dress I made for Spring ’12 and the entire time I was so excited I could barely stand myself.  And of course I danced around in it, and it was divine and the organza and taffeta rustled like a dang dream.

It’s got that same awesome elastic trim I used in the Hyacinth, so it holds onto you while you move, and I’ve used it throughout the skirt as well to create a lattice pattern.  Here, check out the details up close:

It’s the cutest, and I don’t mind saying so.  And if you want to see it really up close, like, in person, check out the trunk show next month at Unbridaled in Austin, TX.  It’s the only trunk show I have scheduled for the immediate future and it is also the first opportunity for anyone to shop the collections outside of Chicago.  That’s pretty huge, right?  All of this other stuff will be there too . . .

[Photographer: Billy Rood, Model: Danielle Maddox, Hair/Makeup: Bridal Beauty Chicago (top images only)]

Painted Persian Rug Tutorial

Materials

• Flat, seagrass rug (I have no idea how other rugs would perform) – ours was purchased at Pier 1 a million years ago.
• Wax pencil
• Ruler
• Paint (I used acrylic craft paints as well as latex wall paint)
• Paint brushes, foam sponges

Instructions

Start by marking the center of your rug with the wax pencil and begin planning out your design.  Geometric patterns are common in rugs and easier to keep symmetrical than curvy flourishes.  The paint will cover the pencil markings, so don’t worry about mistakes.  I started with the center of my design, focusing on the main shapes, and worked out from there, adding the smaller elements later.   When happy with the basic design, begin to paint each section – again, I started at the center and moved outward.  A foam brush works well for large areas and you don’t need a ton of paint.  Just lightly dab and work it over the surface.  Edging really makes the design pop and doesn’t need to be perfect – the softer the lines, the more they will resemble the pile of a wool rug.  Simply take a small brush and outline each painted section with a contrasting color.  The larger your design elements are, the easier they will be to outline.  Stand up and run around the house when finished.  You are a freaking genius.

I highly doubt this will need any sort of protective coat – the paint seems like enough – but I would be thrilled if mine got a worn look over time.  Oh and this is really cool:

No seepage.  *high five*