in the world of pinterest

Wedding planning in the world of Pinterest can be both helpful and extremely daunting. On one hand you have the Internet at your fingertips and can pin away to your hearts desire. On the other hand, for indecisive people like me it can be a nightmare.

When I first started this process, you could say that I had in my mind an idea of what I wanted. My mom and I always joke around when people ask what the "theme" of your wedding is and I can't help but giggle. Maybe in the world of weddings this makes sense but to me trying to settle on three or four words to describe my wedding would be next to impossible. This results in us coming up with "light, airy, pink, soft, natural, organic....." and on and on. You get the picture.

I never seemed to have a problem along the way with deciding what would and wouldn't go along with our wedding theme and have actually used Pinterest to my advantage.Before I would meet up with a vendor I would save 5-6 photos onto my phone of my favorite things I have pinned. This really helped me to zero in on exactly what I had envisioned and in turn helped the vendors see that vision.

Below I have included some of my top "pins" for wedding inspiration. You can find the rest here!

one hundred dollar leggings

If I would have looked at the title of this post, I think I would have near fainted at the thought of spending $100 of my own money on a pair of leggings. Not, of course, that I would hesitate to spend that kind of money on a nice pair of jeans. I have, and would again.

However, I have met my match and wanted to pass on the most amazing pair of leggings you will ever set your eyes on. I was so excited when I saw that Lily Pulitzer was having a flash sale a couple of weeks ago...I tend to usually score some great deals during flash sales (purses, wallet, tops, etc). When Sarah posted about her Lily favorites I was more than intrigued looking at her pick of the Lily travel pant.

{ image via }

A little back story....cropped pant styles have never worked for me because of my body type (with an athletic build I found they were either too tight in the legs, too loose in the rear, or bunched in really awkward places). I have tried time and time again at J Crew, Banana Republic, Ann Taylor to love and embrace the style and it flopped every time.

Not. These. Pants. I took a risk and purchased both the black and the navy pair to replace a work pair of pants that got ruined last year from the salt. At $30 a pop, originally $98 it was too good to resist. I have already worn these pants twice in the past week and absolutely love them. They are technically leggings but with a long blouse and boots or flats they look just like tailored work pants. And they are so gosh darn comfortable and thick, making them perfect for these Midwest winters!

Long story short, these are back full price on the site but if you do come across a sale, GET THEM. They are worth every penny. Gotta love a hundred dollar pair of leggings....you get what you pay for!

Sorry for the radio silence lately, between wedding planning and work picking up things have been a little hectic around here.

Happy Friday!
xo

our weekend

Can you believe that there are only 31 days until Christmas?? Where has the time gone? Lately I have felt the Christmas spirit more so this year than I have in years past and I am trying so hard to hold back on putting up those Christmas decorations until after Thanksgiving. I caved in my office and put them up early because it was freezing outside and I decided I was in the mood. I'm ready for twinkle lights, glittery things, and a Christmas tree!

This weekend was a little less lazy than last weekend, but we still didn't do that much. Saturday I made the most delicious soup with a recipe adapted from one of my favorite blogs Marshalls Abroad.

photo via

The spicy chorizo vegetable soup just hit the spot and I strongly suggest you make it. The recipe is fairly simple and I was so exciting by all the delicious vegetables it had in it. We have been eating lots of heavy and greasy foods lately so the broth and veggies were a welcome change.

Below is the recipe I used, with the adaptions that I made to the recipe.

Spicy Chorizo Vegetable Soup
{serves 4-6}

1 quart organic chicken stock
1 yellow onion, chopped
4 bell peppers, chopped
1 bunch of celery, chopped
2 zucchini, chopped
2 cans diced tomatoes + juice
1 can cannellini / white beans, rinsed
red wine {about 1/2 cup} (I used a Cabernet and just drank the rest :-) the flavor was so good) 
4-5 cooked spicy chorizo, defrosted & chopped (I used spicy breakfast sausage, it worked perfect!)
EVOO
2 C heavy cream
1 TBS oregano (I used fresh, dried will work as well)
1 teaspoon basil (ditto, above)
dash of red chili powder
salt & pepper for taste

In a large stock pot, on medium heat, drizzle enough olive oil to cover the bottom and saute the onion and sausage until the onions soften and become translucent. Add in all of the veggies and add another glug of olive oil with them. Stir and saute for about 15 minutes or until the veggies become tender. The juices from the sausage, olive oil and evaporating water from the veggies may come to a boil. Stir to allow all of the vegetables to cook evenly. The spice and flavors from the sausage will marry to the vegetables.

Add the tomatoes (the entire can including juice), rinsed beans, wine, chicken stock and spices. Bring to a boil. Simmer for at least half an hour, though the longer the better. We cooked ours for about 2 hours total. Add in the cream once simmering.

Served up to friends with generous helpings of my favorite cornbread.


The Best Cornbread (Southern Style)
{serves 4-6}

2 (8 ounce) boxes Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 (8 ounce) can creamed corn
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 eggs
2/3 cup milk

Mix up the cornbread in a large bowl as directed on package. Add in creamed corn and shredded cheese. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes until golden brown (we had this in the oven longer than this because the center was not setting. Just do the toothpick test and pull out of the oven when it comes clean!)


On another note, I nearly got ALL of my Christmas shopping done online yesterday afternoon. It's sad almost that I do the majority of my shopping online and don't bother to head to the stores anymore. This time of the year drives me crazy and if I can avoid the crazy crowds and grumpy people, I will do it! I am hoping to get out on Black Friday (my one exception) just to see the spectacle.

Happy Monday! A few things that are currently on my "cold weather wishlist":

 Personalized Gold Bar Necklace

How cute are these little necklaces? I stumbled on this Etsy shop through another site and fell in love with how delicate and simple they are. If you had kids, it would be so cute to have one with each child's name on it. OR, for us wedding-minded people they would be the perfect bridesmaid gift! At $45 for a personalized item, you can't beat the price.

 Steve Madden Nyrvana Boots

I have been obsessing over these boots for quite some time. They sell out pretty quickly, but I did manage to find them on Steve Madden's actual site in three colors. I love them all but I think the black ones are amazing. Here's to hoping these will go on sale so I can snatch them up!

 Floral Fit and Flare Dress

Piperlime just released a new collection of holiday dresses, skirts and accessories and I have to say, I love them all. This particular dress caught my eye because of the pretty floral print and I am tempted to get it for any festivities we will be going to on our holiday NYC trip. Gotta love a good clack and white dress and its under $100!

ASOS Striped Blanket Cape

I feel like every season I have something new that I obsess over: this years new obsession is the cape. I have seen them everywhere at every price point, and I finally found one that I love that I bought this weekend (similar here). I love the stripe detail and fringe on this one and would definitely consider it for our long winter ahead {yuck}.

solutions to the teeny tiny bathroom

We have a tiny bathroom....with emphasis on the word "tiny". It's one of those bathrooms where you can touch both walls when you stretch out your arms. It is, in my opinion, one of the major drawbacks in the apartment and no amount of decorating will solve the size issue.

However, I have been brainstorming on little ways to spruce up the bathroom so it at least looks pretty. I have already purchased three fern prints that I absolutely love that will be framed in 8x10 frames that I got on clearance at Target. I am planning to hang two of them over/next to the toilet.

Our main issue and the downfall of all small bathrooms is storage. I am still brainstorming floating shelves or some type of shelving unit that would allow a space for my makeup and other personal items. For the time being, most of my things will reside in the linen closet!

Here are some things on my "wishlist" some of them feasible in the space and some not. So many possibilities!

Towel Hook- Anthropologie

Bathroom Cabinet- Overstock

Trellis Shower Curtain- Pottery Barn

Sconces- Pottery Barn

Letter Hooks- Anthropologie

a house tour to die for

I stumbled on this house tour while skimming through blog posts and saw that another blogger had posted this. I thought it was too beautiful not to share!

I have dreamed of owning some type of beach home since I was a little girl. It may have been because I grew up near a lake and enjoyed those long days on the water. I can also imagine sipping coffee on a big porch facing the water and how relaxing/amazing that would be.

While a beach house is not in the places anytime soon {wedding!} I always enjoy these serene spaces and all their beauty. This one is no exception. I will be taking notes on this one as I think a lot of this clean design could be adaptable in a cost friendly way!

In the meantime...enjoy! xo

View the full tour on Domain Home here


Happy weekend! 

party dresses

We are headed to Connecticut/New York City the day after Christmas to stay with John's parents for a week. I love our trips to the East Coast and am so excited that we have had the opportunity to make it happen again this year. While we won't be doing the whole Times Square for New Years gig , we will be spending a few days/evenings in New York following up to the big event running errands, meeting up with friends and hopefully eating at some tasty restaurants. These are all perfect excuses for me to go out and buy a new party dress!

I have loved ASOS as a company for a while and have always been impressed with the fashion forward and relatively inexpensive items that they have on their site. They are a "go-to" for party dresses and offer a wide variety of fun dresses for special occasions.

Below are a few of my favorites from ASOS that I have my eye on:

one. two. three. four. five. six

Happy party dress season!

etsy art finds

I'm in the process of updating and decorating the little apartment space that John and I will share once we get married. Over the past two years of dating, I have fallen in love with the quirky rounded door arches, beautiful brick fireplace, and gorgeous wood floors and am starting to look past the things I HATE. Namely the massive amounts of dust produced by old apartment buildings (yuck), the large white radiator that takes up half the bathroom space, and the rusty appliances that come with the rental.

In learning to look past the negatives, I am looking into ways to spruce it up and truly make it feel like "ours". I have added pillows and baskets here and there, and have printed out photos of both us and our families. This is a start, and let me tell you I think its come a long way :-)

My next project to tackle is the artwork both on the walls and leaning up against them waiting to be hung. I want each one to have its space, that that takes quite a bit of thought. John's mom has been generous enough to provide him/us with some beautiful pieces, and I hope to find the right place to display these said beauties. While many of the rooms will be taken care of, we still have a few holes (no pun intended!) where I am looking to add some artwork.

The following are some of my favorite art pieces and shops on one of my favorite go-to shopping sites: Etsy!

 K Sarah Designs

I have ordered these and they are in transit. I only ordered three in the series, and hope to put them in a rustic style frame similar to what they have done above. I love the "earthy" feel and think they would go perfect in a bathroom! We are currently looking for some "over the toilet" artwork. Charming, I know.

 Sweet Peony Press

This shop is a sweet as it sounds. The have beautiful calligraphy prints like the one above and the quote rings true to John and I's relationship. I would love to put this one in the kitchen as a daily reminder that no matter where life takes us, we will always have one another (sappy).

 Paris Chic Boutique

Another site with beautiful calligraphy prints as well as charming other home goodies. I love the look of the print in a skinny gold frame and think I will be attacking this one as a potential DIY in the future.

 Elizabeth Mayville

Our art collection wouldn't be complete without some type of landscape. We have currently decorated the place in a lot of traditional elements and earth tones, so this print would fit right in. Plus I love landscapes and the soothing look of this one would be perfect for our living room gallery wall.

LoveTheNelsons

I love this little shop for its unique and interesting quotes it uses on its prints. This is one of my all time favorite quotes and I could see it find its home anywhere in our house.

The Art of Michelle

I have been eye balling this flower pot series for months now as the perfect little 4 picture series for our kitchen. It is sweet and simple, yet is slightly more modern than my tastes usually lean. I love the colors and the patterns, and think these little beauties would be perfect in any kitchen, bedroom, or any space that needs a little livening up.

Happy Etsy shopping!