Shreddin' it is one thing...

But this is a whole 'nother beast.





I will be in a lot of pain tomorrow. But I'm determined to banish my little muffin top by this summer. And have super-hot arms for the wedding.

Anyone else tried the latest DVDs from Jillian?

Just... watch this. Please.

BOOMBOX from Ely Kim on Vimeo.

100 Days, 100 Songs, 100 Locations, 100 Dances.

This guy has mad style. And kick-@$$ moves. And he's a genius.



No, really. He goes to Yale.


Thanks, hubby-to-be :)

Shutterbug Luv

I recently added a blogroll of my favorite photographers' blogs. Check out the list... you'll definitely be inspired. And if there's a photographer I should be following, leave me a comment and let me know! I don't want to miss out on any yummy eye candy :)

Here's a recent shot by one of my major photog crushes, Nate Kaiser of The Image is Found....

Check out their blog, The Blog is Found.

Enjoy! :)

Mr. Mason Jar

I feel like I talk about myself a lot on this blog. I mean, it is my blog, so maybe that's to be expected.

Still.

Maybe you'd like to hear a little bit about that guy I'm marrying.

I saw this on Amy's blog a couple days ago, and it looked like fun. So here goes.

1. He's sitting in front of the TV, what is on the screen? Depends who else is in the room. If it's just him, he's watching SportsCenter. He's currently all giddy about the upcoming NFL Draft. If it's both of us, we're watching one of our favorite shows: Mad Men, 30 Rock, the Office, How I Met Your Mother, House, Fringe, Worst Week, Flight of the Conchords... wow that makes it sound like we watch a lot of TV.

2. You're out to eat; what kind of dressing does he get on his salad? Some kind of vinaigrette (that is the hardest word to spell, seriously.)

3. What's one food he doesn't like? He's not very picky. But certain vegetables really get to him. Like celery, carrots (when they're cooked), and cucumbers (which is fine with me because I love them and I'm happy to steal them from his salads)

4. You go out to eat and have a drink. What does he order? Water, Diet Coke, or both. Or if it's a nice place he'll order a beer, usually some kind of Hefeweizen.

5. Where did he go to high school? Same place I did! Capo Valley Christian. He was the valedictorian in our graduating class of 60 (no, that's not a typo) people.

6. What size shoe does he wear? 13. And he has almost as many pairs as I do.

7. If he was to collect anything, what would it be? art. concert posters.

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich? Turkey, cheese, lettuce, pepperoncinis, bell peppers, and mustard.

9. What would he eat every day if he could? Mexican food, easily. Pizza and sushi are right up there, too.

10. What is his favorite cereal? Trader Joe's Vanilla Almond clusters. Or Special K Red Berries. (Have you ever noticed how there's no such thing as a "manly" cereal? They all sound so girly... oh wait! I forgot about Cap'n Crunch. That's sort of manly, right? It's another one of his favorites.)

11. What would he never wear? light-wash denim. Ed Hardy anything.

12. What is his favorite sports team? As UCSD alums, we're both big Chargers fans. And we like the USC Trojans.

13. What is something you do that he wishes you wouldn't do? Work on weekends? But we really need to save money, so he doesn't complain.

14. What is his heritage? His little sister swears they are all full-blooded Hungarian. But I'm pretty sure there's some other stuff mixed in there too.

15. You bake him a cake for his birthday; what kind of cake? Carrot cake (which is so weird considering his general dislike of carrots), or something really chocolaty.

16. Did he play sports in high school? Captain of the varsity football, soccer, and volleyball teams.

17. What could he spend hours doing? Simultaneously watching TV and "internetting" (checking his Google Reader, looking at dogs on Petfinder, browsing Craigslist).

18. What is one unique talent he has? Ha. Multi-tasking. He's also a self-proclaimed "internet curator" (click here to visit his Tumblr) and a really good photographer (click here to see his Flickr).

As promised.

Our Save-the-Dates!

It feels so good to check this project off the list. It took a lot of work, making these from scratch...but it was SO worth it. Here's a play-by-play...


I bought the lace trim from Jo-Ann's. It was 50% off... SCORE! I got 10 yards for $10.

I didn't like the the edging on the lace, and I wanted to make sure it would lay flat on the cardboard, so I spent about 30 minutes (slowly, carefully) cutting it off.

Yup, it's just plain cardboard! Curt's dad has this really nice table saw so it was super easy to cut. I checked with the post office before we started this whole project, and they said as long as we cut the rectangles in standard postcard-size dimensions (4" x 6"), we could mail them without envelopes! And the stamps for postcards are only 27 cents each! Talk about serious savings! The cardboard was a little too thick to comply with the maximum dimensions so we flattened each postcard by hand.

If you've visited our website, you've probably noticed how the heading on the main page has a piece of corrugated cardboard as the background. We really wanted to mimic the website with these Save-the-Dates, so we peeled the top layer off in a couple of sections to reveal the texture underneath. A simple touch that made a big difference!


The next step was to poke holes along the bottom of each postcard... I did the first few by hand with one of those kebab skewer things... but then we realized we could just stack them and use a hand drill. Frankly, I'm not so good with power tools, so my FMIL took over for me :)

The ribbon is also from Jo-Ann's, only 50 cents for a spool! We bought four spools, which was perfect. The labels are from Staples, I think it was about $13 for a pack. Curt designed the logo using a font called "Quicksand," which you can download here. If you're wondering, that funny looking thing on the left is a gingko leaf. We just picked it because it was a nice little touch, but then Curt pointed out that it's a subtle allusion to gingko biloba, which is supposed to help you remember things... like, for example, our wedding date (not that anyone's going to catch that reference, but hey...)

I cut the lace trim into 6" pieces, and we used glue sticks to attach the lace to the cardboard.



I love how they look when they're stacked together!

In order for these to be accepted by the post office, everything has to lie as flat as possible, so we decided to tie the ribbon in a simple knot rather than a bow. But I think it looks very cute and modern that way!

Action Shot!

My BFF/MOH came over today to help me finish these. We're obviously very proud of our handiwork.... apparently our photography skills could use some improvement though...

Here's the finished product! We just have to slap the address labels and postage stamps on the back, and we can get these in the mail. What do y'all think?

Has anyone else taken a completely DIY approach to their StheDs? Anyone planning on it?

Sneak Peek

Here's a tiny little glimpse at our very-DIY Save the Dates.



The full reveal, plus a step-by-step tutorial, is coming later today. I'm usually not a very crafty person but I'm excited about these!

Hello, Lovely.

Umm, did you SEE these little arrangements on Style Me Pretty today?

captured by the talented folks at tm photography

I'm such a sucker for bright blooms + milk glass.

Here's the rest of the incredibly lovely wedding, if you're so inclined.

Dear Craig,

Thank you for your list.


Your list helped us find Al the Succulent Guy.


Al the Succulent Guy gave us a great deal on these:






So we can make these:

all terrarium pics via Green Wedding Shoes, one of my new favorite blogs!

We love terrariums. And succulents. And cool guys named Al. And clever guys named Craig.

It's real now, holmes.

We're out there on the great big world wide interweb.


After many hours of hard work, we are all done with our wedding website! And maybe we're a little biased, but we LOVE it.

Most of our guests don’t even know about the website yet, because we haven’t quite sent the save-the-dates, which will give them the link to the website.

But lucky you! You get a sneak peak!

Go check it out and please tell me what you think! We’d love to have feedback!

www.curtandjessica.com

P.S. Even if you're not one of our wedding guests, you are totally more than welcome to leave us a note in the "RSVP" section. We'd love it!

Advice, Please!

Apparently I'm in a very flowery mood today.

But I really need y'all's (yes, it's a word) advice on what to do about my bouquet.

I SERIOUSLY can’t decide.

via Saipua

I love the look of a white bridal bouquet. It’s fresh, romantic, and timeless. And it really allows you to play with different structures and textures.

via The Knot

White flowers also look stunning against various types of greenery, little berries, and whatever else you want to throw into the mix.

via The Knot

You can even do something really simple, with only one kind of flower, and it still looks amazing. I love a giant bouquet of peonies (what bride doesn’t?) but unfortunately they’re almost impossible to get in October. Ranunculus, however, is almost as lovely and is actually a viable option in the fall:

BUT.

I also love this:

via The Knot

and this:

via The Knot

and especially this, the most drool-inducing bouquet ever:

Wish I could remember where I found this little work of art. I’ve had it saved forever.

So… I need your help. Here are some things to consider before you place your vote :)

1. Curt’s Aunt has her floral wholesale license, so we’ll be going to L.A.’s flower distict and rounding up all of the flowers the day before and/or the morning of the wedding. That means we’ll be limited to what’s available. But the place is HUGE, and all the florists within a 100 mile radius go there for their flowers, so I really don’t think we’ll have much of a problem finding what we’re looking for.

2. You probably remember my purple shoes.

…And the bridesmaids dresses, which are each a different style, but all in this color:

My dress is Ivory and tea-length. The guys will be wearing gray suits, white shirts, and plum-colored patterned pocket squares (I think). So, the question is… would a purple bouquet be too much purple? Should my shoes be the only pop of color in my whole bridal look? Is a white bouquet just going to blend into my ivory dress and ridiculously pale skin? Ok, that’s three questions, not one. Sorry.

3. Ideally, the bridesmaids’ bouquets will look something like this:

via The Knot

This little bunch of spider mums is just darling! I love the texture, and these will really pop against the dark plum of the bridesmaid dresses. I got the idea from Jessica at Tying the Knot, who incorporated Spider Mums into her bouquet. Click here for the original post.

4. Oh, and you might want to take another look at Marvimon, my venue.

Even after all this thinking out loud, and looking at pictures, I still can’t decide. I really love both but I still don’t know which is better for the overall “look.”

What should I do???

I'm SO making these.

Ingredients: Tin Cans, Moss, and Kite String.

Cost: About $12 for 8 of the little beauties.

GENIUS.



via Once Wed (pretty much my favorite source for... umm...everything. can you tell?)

Admittedly, I'm not a huge fan of daffodils, and they don't really go with the color scheme. So we'll probably use succulents. But I'd also like to have a few with some height, and succulents are generally short and stumpy. Maybe we could splurge on a couple of orchids? Or go super-cheap and just stick some twigs in there? Suggestions, anyone?

Aww, Y'all are makin' me blush :)

First, a huge, heartfelt thanks to Jenn at With This Ring for the Blog Luv Award!


And secondly, I've been tagged by Veiled Vows (just discovered this blog and I LOVE it)!


I'm tagging/sending the Blog Luv Award to these blogs:


1. Green Wedding Shoes

2. M and M Wedding

3. Project: bride! (another Marvimon bride! yay!)

4. Vera Vogue on Parade

5. Amy's Story Corner

6. Tying the Knot

7. Wedding Peephole

8. Auburn & Ivory

9. An Atlanta Bride

10. Relentless Bride


Wanna spread the luv? If I sent you the Blog Luv award:

1. Put the logo on your blog or post.
2. Nominate at least 10 blogs which show GREAT ATTITUDE and/or GRATITUDE

3. Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.

4. Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.

5. Share the love and link to this post and to the person from whom you received the award.


Aaaand, if you're feelin' extra frisky, go ahead and include 10 random facts about yourself.


Here are mine:

1. I can't stand having unpainted toenails.

2. I follow quite a few interior design blogs and daydream about having enough money to fill my house with mid-century furniture, ridiculously large artwork, and Johnathan Adler knick-knacks.

3. I've never had dandruff, but sometimes I use Head & Shoulders just because it feels so refreshing and it makes my hair really shiny! (weird, I know...)

4. My dad, to this day, still calls me "Munchkin."

5. I think it's quite possible that Curt and I are *almost* as excited about getting a dog as we are about getting married.

6. I can't resist anything that combines bread, cinnamon, and sugar and comes fresh out of the oven. Cinnamon rolls, Cinnamon toast, and Churros....mmmmmm.

7. I took voice lessons for almost 10 years and even studied opera for a while!

8. I look terrible in almost every shade of yellow.

9. In college, I managed one of the coffee shops on campus. I have mad barista skills!

10. My Maw-Maw is more Southern than Paula Deen, and probably uses more butter in her cooking.