My Heirloom Wedding Bouquet

I had this post planned from the moment we started this blog but finally got around to finishing it this week. When I got married I didn't consider wearing my mom's dress...I just tore it apart. With her permission of course!

My grandmother made my mom's wedding dress. And there's a rumor that some of the buttons were "stolen" from my aunt's dress, which my grandmother had also made. 

In an effort to include heirloom items in my wedding, my mom decided to let me use a sleeve/cuff from her dress to make the decorative holder for my bridal bouquet.

Here's the finished, beautiful product! It made my bouquet just that much more special.

(PS we purchased all the flowers for the wedding from Costco for a steal!)

 

 

Our wedding was photographed by A and A Photography. LOVE them!

Thanks Mom, for letting me "borrow" part of your dress for my special day.

~Karli

Karli's Kitchen Makeover: Part Three

This post will round out the series about how we made over our 1980's dark, dated kitchen. (Read Part One and Part Two)

We did this all on a budget, but I still think it looks really great. We didn't move any walls or change the location of any appliances. Basically we left the footprint the same, but updated everything.

Part Two left off with the new countertops and subway tile backsplash installed. This post shows all the finishing touches that make me really fall in love with the space.



The space is so bright and clean looking now. The runner is from Ballard. It's indoor/outdoor, which is perfect for a kitchen space. We can wipe up spills with water or take it outside to hose off if it were to get that dirty.




That light from Ballard is genius. There was a pot light there. This new light has a pot light adapter for installation that took me 2 minutes. The shades come in different colors. Mom sewed that little valance for me from an extra curatin I bought from Z Gallerie to match the sliding door. 

 


The green accents in the kitchen really play off the green walls in the adjacent dining room.

 


We swapped out the fridge the previous owner had just purchased. Lowe's basically took that fridge back and gave us full credit, which we applied to this counter-depth side by side. I felt it was important that the fridge not stick out into the space (which was already a bit narrow).




We moved the table off to the side for easy access to the back door.




All the little touches are what make me so happy. This pear lived in my grandmother's kitchen and was filled with sugar. I never met her, but I think I got some of her cooking/baking genes.

 


The pulls on the drawers took a lot of mental effort (long story). So happy with how they turned out.




I like having something "alive" in most of our rooms. This little "money tree" plant came from IKEA. The cool glass milk bottle came from TJ Maxx Home Goods.

 


I think I mentioned this in the last post, but we had the wood taken out of these upper cabinet doors and I picked a seeded glass insert. We keep all our white dishes, servings bowls and special "good luck" mason jar (used at our wedding) in here.  




A view of the entire room as we live with it daily. What a happy space!

 


And because you know I love side by side comparisions, here you go.



This room took priority when we first moved in. I spend so much time in the kitchen between cooking dinner nearly every night (yes I really do that) and making special treats. We also love to entertain and people ALWAYS congregate in the kitchen. I wanted the space to reflect us: inviting, comforting, bright, cheerful. I think it accomplishes that. So we consider it finished...for now. 

~Karli  

DIY Bridal Hair Flower with a Special Family Heirloom

"If you're going to San Francisco, be sure to wear some flowers in your hair." ~The Mamas and the Papas, 1967

When I got engaged, I knew I wanted to incorporate many of the family heirlooms I'm blessed to now possess. One of the pieces was this beautiful brooch I inherited from my great grandmother Pearl. I'd worn it as a brooch several times, but it felt so special and perfect for a wedding!

As I browsed wedding magazines and sites like TheKnot.com and MarthaStewart.com I was drawn to large, delicate flowers placed in hair. Brent has always told me I'm a little bit of a hippie, so this comes as no surprise. The clincher was when I tried on wedding dresses and this beauty was put in my hair just for fun.

I fell in love with it, but didn't want to pay $190 for something I felt like I could make.

So I put the two items together...the brooch and the idea for a DIY hair flower. The template I used is no longer posted on Martha's website, but you can simply create a template of a large flower.

 

Buy fabric that coordinates with your dress and start cutting! I mixed mine up with some very fine organza and some silk shantung because I wanted a variety of textures. I probably cut out about 20 of the flowers and then stitched them together. I then sewed three small hair clips on to the back.

My great grandmother's brooch was the crowning jewel in the center.

Here's the finished product in my hair on my wedding day.

My wedding photos were taken by A and A Photography. Visit their site and blog!

~Karli