Mad for Plaid!

I don't know if it's the chilly weather or fall colored leaves or the thought of soft flannel...I am obsessed with everything plaid at the moment!

watch // scarf  // skinnies // jacket // skirt

I am even dreaming up a holiday table using plaid...

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Can you believe it is almost that time again?!

Insta - Lately

Happy Friday! 

Here's what I have been up to this week via instagram:

Working on wedding projects. Above is a photo of the cake/sweets stands in progress. This is an easy DIY I found here. I found platters/plates, candle sticks, stands, and wines glasses at Goodwill all for about $1 each. All you have to do is glue the bottom/stand to the plate with industrial strength glue. I used DAP All-Purpose Adhesive Sealant (used for fish tanks). After the glue dried (I let it dry for 24 hours), I spray painted them gold so they all had a uniform look. You don't have to do this step if you are using pretty china as the plate. I will show you the finished result when I share my wedding photos!

Enjoying the leaves and cool sweater weather while it lasts. I know that Ohio winter (brrrr...) is just around the corner...

Also enjoying fall candles all around the house. I have a mini one (Autumn from Bath & Body Works) on my desk and I haven't had to light it yet. It is so fragrant!

During one of my many trips to Goodwill for wedding projects, I found these awesome vases! I am seriously contemplating spray painting the amber one gold...

We had a light dusting of snow this week! People freaked out a little bit... It melted by noon.

We had our final consultation at our reception venue here in Columbus (The Ivory Room). I just love the beautiful white chandeliers all over the ceiling. The views of the downtown skyline are spectacular! 

Added a cute little 'love' pillow to my office chair. I can not wait until we/I start decorating and organizing the house after the wedding. It is time!

Follow along with my instagram feed here!

That's it for now! Happy weekend loves!

Tasty Tuesday // Favorite Fall Recipes

One of my favorite things I look forward to when the leaves start changing and the weather starts to get chilly is cooking a nice, big pot of...well...CHILI! I have a pretty simple recipe I make for normal chili, but a few years ago my mom introduced me to a BBQ chicken chili recipe that is so easy, healthy and addicting!

This is what my mom calls "praying to the can Gods". Meaning, this recipe calls for mostly canned ingredients that are ready to be mixed together in a big pot.

BBQ Chicken Chili

Ingredients:

2 - 12.5oz cans of white chicken meat (drained)

1 - 15oz can of black beans (drained)

1 - 10oz can of diced tomatoes* (drained)

*I like to use Rotel's diced tomatoes and green chillies for a little more heat

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 - 18oz bottle of Sweet Baby Ray's Original or Sweet & Spicy flavor BBQ sauce

Chili powder to taste

Directions:

Brown chopped onions in large pot on medium heat

Add chicken and slowly break apart with fork

Add all canned ingredients

Pour in BBQ sauce and stir

Let chili come to a slight boil, then reduce to low heat

Let the pot simmer for about an hour or serve immediately

Add chili powder to taste

Serve with warm cornbread! So yummy! 

{Image via Slim-Shoppin.com} 

Of course, I can't get enough Pumpkin recipes in the fall...Pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin soup, pumpkin cookies, Pumpkin Spice Lattes (#PSL)... Bill and I are addicted to Eddy's low-fat Pumpkin Patch ice cream with caramel syrup! It is our go-to dessert at the moment!

I tried to make some homemade pumpkin and butternut squash soup last week after being inspired by this recipe I pinned on Pinterest. I ended up caramelizing the onions and apples before adding the rest of the ingredients, but I added too many apples. Instead of cubed pumpkin, I used pumpkin filling from the can. Instead of cubed butternut squash, I used some butternut squash soup that was homemade from Bill's mom. The process was a lot quicker that way! The result was so good, but next time I will use less apple :)

{Image via The Curvy Carrot}

Another ingredient that reminds me of fall is sweet potatoes. I just tried a baked sweet potato for the first time last week and I am in love! All I top them with is a few dollops of non-fat Greek yogurt and a little bit of fresh cracked pepper...So delish!

Last night I tried to make this recipe for baked sweet potato chips with vinegar and sea salt. They look SO good in the photo, but mine turned out a little soggy... My problem was that I was mixing recipes on line and tossed them in EVOO before popping them in the oven. I also did not let them bake long enough to get crispy brown. I am going to try again tonight to see if I can make them just like this photo...

{image via Undressed Skeleton}

For more savory fall meals and snacks, check out my "Closet Foodie" Pinterest board.

Happy Tuesday Loves!

Monday Motivation...

That's right... I'm back in action with a little motivation for this chilly, fall Monday. It comes at a time in my life when I need motivation and positive thoughts BIG TIME. 

I had my first real "Bridal Breakdown" yesterday and I'm still trying to get my head back in the game. I have been cool, calm and collected for so long and now that we've got a little less than 3 weeks to go, my to-do list is not dwindling as fast as I would have liked. On top of that, this seating arrangement stuff is killing me...Last minute guest additions and people that we STILL have to follow up with to find out if they are coming or not. It's enough to make a type A, control freak, planner, bride-zilla to go CRAY CRAY! 

When my dad asked me to count the guest list in front of him because he didn't trust my math I lost it! Big croco-dilly tears and reverted back to my high school days when he would just look at me in disappointment and I would bust out in tears... he didn't mean any disrespect and quickly realized how upset and stressed I was and apologized. It just was the straw that broke the camels back. The tears kept coming for a good hour and I had to leave to try to catch my cool again. I just drove for a while and tried to breathe. I went to Jo Ann's to get some more ribbon for a project and I'm sure everyone there thought I was high or sick or something. My eyes were still swollen and red, make up worn off. 

I took the rest of the day off. That's right, I took Sunday off of work, off of wedding planning and projects, off of house chores, off of worrying and list making, etc. I just sat on the couch with Bill and 'watched football' (insert played on my phone and zoned out). Bill asked what he could do to help and I gave him the task of putting tags on our ceremony exit horns. It was the sweetest thing to watch him tie pink twine around the gold sparkly horns while watching football. My heart felt at ease. I knew everything would be OK. 

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Sometimes we just need to take a breather and know that things will work out on their own. I need to realize that people are willing to help, so I need to give up some control. I need to take some time to myself and relax before I go crazy. 

I found this free download yesterday from Design Love Fest designed by Lauren Essl. I immediately downloaded and made it my new desk top.

Sometimes, us control freaks think we can do everything ourselves. However, we quickly realize that we are only one person with 2 hands and 1 brain. Once I asked for help, I actually felt so much better. I am going to keep this on my desk top as a reminder that it is OK to ask for help. 

Happy Monday Loves!

Wedding Wednesday // Our Invites

Hello blogettes! It has been a while again, I know. And I give you the same excuse every time...I'm CRAZY busy at the moment. However, I think that my priorities have shifted over the past several months and that could be the reason I have not taken the time to blog as of recent. Which is not to say that I do not miss it. Blogging to me is such a great creative outlet and a time for me to reflect on the events and simple pleasures of my life. It is my "ME" time and I so desperately need it on a regular basis. I am hoping that after all the wedding hoop-la is finished (one month to go as of today!), I will be back to my regular "me" time. 

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I did want to pop in and give you a glimpse of our invites that went out last month. I was so pleased with them, but I would be lying if I didn't say I put a lot of work into them. I had a vision of what I wanted and I was able to have that vision come to life with a little mixture of professional printing and a little DIY blood, sweat and tears...

I knew I wanted...no, needed black and white striped lined envelopes after seeing this post from one of my favorite blogs. It seemed easy enough, so I went ahead and purchased this envelope liner template pack from Paper Source. I found a black and white stripe pattern that I downloaded from this etsy shop, which Bill's dad printed from a lazer printer on nice, heavier stock paper. 

I had a little over 200 envelopes to line (including the reply enelopes) and it took me several weeks to finish, but I was happy with the result. It just gives them something extra and ties the colors together. 

The design concept was inspired by this invite I came across on minted.com. I loved the simplicity of the bold, black calligraphy font on the ivory stock. I wanted our invites to have a classic, yet elegant feel. I purchased the Carolyna Pro Black font and I'm so glad I did! I am using it for all of the signage and paper products for the wedding to tie the look together. I am planning on printing all the programs, signage and thank you notes at each place setting myself. That reminds me, I better get started! 

We had the invites designed and printed at Peabody Papers here in Grandview, OH. They were wonderful to work with! The process was so much easier than expected. And the turn around time was quick! We decided to add a graphic map on the Details card at the last minute to help visualize the locations of the wedding, reception and hotel for out of town guests. 

The main colors for the wedding will be black, gold and ivory. The florals are soft pinks and a few black magic roses with some seeded eucalyptus thrown in for a seasonal flair. I wanted to include some of the pink color in the invites to soften it a bit. I found these 'blossom' colored envelopes, which were on sale at the time, from Paper Source. The color was a perfect match for the black and white striped liners. 

The mom of a friend of mine addressed all of our envelopes with her beautiful calligraphy script. I found some pretty pink floral stamps from zazzle.com that complimented the pink envelopes perfectly. I bought my mom and dad a custom return address stamp for their anniversary; which just so happened to be the perfect timing to stamp the wedding invites...funny, right?! 

I added some black/white striped and gold/white striped washi tape on the enclosure to add a little more 'pop'. 

And there you have it! So glad to have these out! We have most of our RSVPs back. Now time to figure out table seating arrangements, which from what I've heard should be a barrel of fun!

Happy Wedding Wednesday!