My new office!

My husband and I had a romantic dinner planned for Valentine's Day this year. First we thought about going out to dinner, then decided to stay in, cook lamb and open a bottle of really good wine. Well, the day came and we went to Ikea that morning just to look. If you know my husband or I, you know just "looking" means "buying". We had been talking about redecorating my office for awhile, but kept putting off the project. Until Valentine's Day. We left Ikea with a car full of office furniture, swung by Miller Paint for a gallon of Devine Foam, and got home to start our project. It took all day and our romantic plans wound up consisting of eating pizza on the couch while the first coat was drying while watching the NBA dunk contest in our underwear (we HAD to take off our painting clothes so we didn't get anything on the white couch!) It was such a fun day though and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Plus, look at my office! I'm still working on getting things organized but for the most part, it's perfect. I have been amazingly productive in my new space and I'm so happy to have such a gorgeous place to work now. Many thanks to my husband for all his hard work!

Right wall, before (I'm such a mess...)

Left wall, before


Color options (we chose the left– I LOVE it!)

There I am! Don't mind the ugly painter's socks :)


More attractive painting clothes :)

My cute husband painting away!


Hanging shelves

Right wall, after!

Left wall, after!

Happy Halloween!

I had to post a few of my favorite jack-o-lantern photos. This is the first year I didn't get a pumpkin and carve it but I'm living vicariously through the people who were creative enough to do these! Have a fun and safe Halloween everyone!

Sorta like the one I did in college (below)-- I should've added the beer cans!



Last, but not least!

Happy Birthday, John!

Happy Birthday to my loving husband!! Isn't he so cute?!

3 years ago today...

John asked me to be his wife :) It was the most amazing proposal that I still remember as if it were yesterday. After a wonderful dinner at Salty's on the Columbia River, John blindfolded me and took me on a drive. We parked somewhere, and he led me out of the car and into a building. The familiar smell hit me right away and I knew where we were. He took off my blindfold and I found myself standing in the middle of Miss Harrington's classroom at All Saints School, where we had first met as children. I burst into tears at the sight... Candles and rose petals everywhere! It was so beautiful and simply amazing. He sat me down in one of the little kids chairs and played "Wonderful Tonight" on the guitar. After that he pulled me to my feet, declared his love, and got down on one knee and asked me to be his wife. It was such an amazing moment that I will never, ever forget!!

In Miss Harrington's classroom after I said yes :)
(Photo taken by our best friend Taki who set up and cleaned everything for us)

Back at our apartment taking lots of pictures of ourselves and my ring!

I also have to mention that this special day in our lives falls on a very sad day in history. Let us all take a moment today to remember those who lost their lives or loved ones seven years ago today. We will never forget 9/11/01.

2 years ago today...

I married the love of my life! It's insane to believe that we have been married for 2 years now. TWO YEARS! It's amazing how time flies when you're having fun :) To all of our friends and family who were involved in our special day, we love you guys. You are such important people to us, and I will always cherish our wedding day and your involvement in it.

Johnny, I love you so much and am so incredibly happy I married you :) Thank you for all that you do for me! Here's to many many many more years!

Honeysuckle Photography

Super-cool vintage lace onesie!

Even though I'm not pregnant or planning on being pregnant anytime soon, I love looking at baby clothes. Most of the time I'm thinking of my friends who have babies or are going to have babies, but sometimes I'm thinking of myself and a future kiddo :) However, when I saw this post on Cool Mom Picks about Etsy seller Lou and Lee's vintage lace onesie, I almost fell out of my chair. This would be THE PERFECT gift for my friend D who is due with her baby girl in early September. She loves funky things and I knew this would be so perfect for her baby! I don't know when I'll give it to her, maybe after the baby arrives? Her shower is next weekend but my friend Stacey and I are giving her this awesome baby wrap/sling called the Moby Wrap (in orange, of course). So maybe I'll save this awesome onesie for another time, we'll see. Oh and if you're worried about D reading this and spoiling surprises, don't worry, I've already spilled the beans. I showed her the Etsy post and she asked me how to get her hands on one, and I had to say "Um, well, uh, just don't buy it, ok?!" I'm so bad at keeping fun things like this secret!

Photo courtesy Etsy seller louandlee

Wordle

I just saw this post at Heaven's Eye Photography blog about Wordle, a website that generates “word clouds” from text that you provide. I entered my blog URL and it came back with the words below... Pretty cool! I'm not surprised that the biggest word (and most commonly used on my blog) is love, or that the word crying is a close second!

Paul Potts

If you know me, you know that I'm a crier. When I see things that move me (in a good or bad way), I tear up. A couple weeks ago, I posted a link to a slideshow of a couple on their engagement shoot (when the guy actually proposed during the shoot!), and of course, I cried. Last night I watched re-runs of The Bachelorette with Trista and Ryan, and I cried. Well I re-discovered this video of Paul Potts auditioning for Britain's Got Talent, and what do you know... The tears were flowin'! It's just amazing how everyone expected this guy to suck, and he's just incredible. And he totally won the entire competition. Stuff like this just makes my day :)

Sweetest thing ever

I stumbled upon a photographer's blog today who posted a story and pictures from an engagement photo shoot... But not your ordinary engagement session-- the guy actually proposed during the shoot! I don't even know these people, but it seriously brought tears to my eyes. It's so amazing being able to see how much two people love each other, and have it all caught on camera. I just had to share the link because I can't stop watching the slideshow of the proposal. I hope this brightens your day like it did mine!!

http://jessicaclaire.net/index.cfm?postID=321

Postcard for Avenue Five Jewelry

Here's a fun postcard I designed for an upcoming trunk show at Avenue Five Jewelry. I love working on invites for the women at Avenue Five because they love using their logo in fun ways. This time it can be found in the center of the flower! Stay tuned for more fun stuff :)

Rockstar Headshots!

A few weeks ago, I got to tool around the Pearl with two of my favorite people, Maggie and Josh from Honeysuckle Photography. They photographed my and John's wedding, and did the most amazing job. So when Josh emailed me and said "We need to get you some rockstar headshots!" I thought it would be such an awesome opportunity because these guys are SO good! They met at my work and we just walked around while they snapped some photos of me that I could use for my blog. I felt a little awkward having my picture taken by myself, so most of the shots I'm laughing or smiling right before I burst into giggles... Why am I so weird?! Anyway, somehow they managed to get some good shots out of me, so here are some of my favorites (and a special pic dedicated to my husband!) Thanks to Maggie and Josh for being so wonderful!

avenue five women's series

i realize all of my postings have been about my wedding invitations and baby announcements, so here's something a little different! i have been working as a freelance designer for avenue five jewelry for two years now, and love the work they have for me. i've designed gift certificates, business cards, and invitations to their events. the most recent project was a flyer for their 2008 women's series, bi-monthly seminars to provide women with information and tools necessary to add balance to your life, enhance self-confidence, and improve health and well-being. when i think wellness, i think about yoga and green tea... weird, maybe, but inspiring! i looked over a box of my favorite yogi tea and wanted to design something along the same lines, a mendhi-like background with rich but simple colors. i already had this background from a previous project and thought it worked perfectly. here's what i came up with!

personal side note...

for those of you who don't know, my husband john has been in school the past year working for his paramedic certification. he has gone through weeks of long classes, clinical rotations, other workshops, and a very intense and draining internship. he took the written part of the national exam on monday, and found out this morning that he PASSED! he was worried sick about it because it was the hardest test of his life, but everyone who knows john knew that he would pass. he is so smart and has worked SO hard for this, so how could he not do well?! he has sacrificed a lot and i'm just so excited for him! he takes the final part of the exam, the practical hands-on test, on saturday. we all know he will pass that, too. i just wanted to share the news because i am so proud and happy for my dear husband! what a way to start off the new year!!

happy new year!

i can't believe 2008 is upon us already. for all you brides getting married in '08, you know what this means-- you are getting married THIS year!! i'm looking forward to working with the amazing couples i have met already and can't wait to post some of the great designs i've been working on with my brides and grooms. if you are getting married this summer, or know of anyone who is still looking for invitations, call me! i have lots of availability to design for weddings this year.

i hope 2008 brings nothing but the best for all of you!

xoxo linz

ugly christmas sweater parties!

we went to the first (of three!) sweater parties last night. it was so much fun! my good friend deidra from high school and her husband were the hosts. they had a few activities planned and really did such a good job planning the party. john and i had on tacky sweatshirts, but most of their guests went all out! we're talking long plaid skirts, thick cords, sweater vests, and of course, the "mom" jeans! it was such a fun night and we're so thankful to have such good friends.

ugly sweaters!

john, the christmas tree!

me and my friend's baby. isn't he the cutest?!

check out some amazing wedding vendors!

i added a new sidebar with links to a few amazing vendors i've gotten to know. my husband and i hired honeysuckle photography for our wedding, and we couldn't imagine having better photos! maggie and josh (owners) were incredible to work with on our wedding day, and truly captured our love on camera. i was so lucky to work with them again this past summer when my best friend hired them for her wedding! her pictures are amazing-- check out "katie and spencer" under the slideshows at honey-photo.com. my wedding pictures aren't online anymore, but i'd be happy to email you a few of my favorites if you want to see!

we also booked shawn from event team northwest as our wedding dj, but lucky for us he was WAY more than just the average dj! he was our wedding director, and ran the whole reception. he helped things move along so smoothly, and kept our guests excited and entertained the entire night. there was never a dull moment thanks to him! he was organized and on top of every detail, something i very much appreciated!

the third vendor listed from our wedding is focal point digital media. those guys were fantastic! dan and ryan did such an incredible job of filming our wedding, and we watch our dvd all the time. i know a lot of people don't figure videographers into their wedding budget, but i'm here to tell you that you need to! we were very lucky to have amazing photographs as well, but there is something about a video that is just as important. being able to see our families and friends in action, and hearing our grandparent's voices and watching our bridal party give amazing toasts... all those things we hold so dear and love to experience over and over again. check them out and add them to your budget-- you will be so glad you did!

xoxo linz