Hiking in High Heels

2011-04-08T20:52:00.000-07:00

Brian celebrated his 32nd birthday a few weeks ago. To celebrate, I booked us a surprise trip to Washington, DC to see his best friend Donnie and his wife Alison. We don't have very many pictures, but we have tons of great memories with this fabulous couple.

The first night we were in town we went to fantastic restaurant called Brasserie Beck. These are the "tasting" glasses the boys received. They got a kick out of the mini beer mugs.

Me and Alison

They really think they're funny!

We went to the National Mall to see the beautiful cherry blossoms blooming. While we were there we saw some of the famous sites!

The view of the back yard of the White House from the rooftop patio at the Washington W Hotel.

Happy Birthday to my wonderful hubby!!!!!!! I'm looking forward to celebrating many more birthdays with you! I love you!

Napa Valley

2011-04-05T20:52:00.000-07:00

We took a wonderful trip to San Francisco and Napa Valley in March. We went with our dear friends Brent and Holly and Lindsey and her boyfriend Brad. We stayed at our favorite San Francisco hotel, the Clift on the first night then headed inland for two nights in Napa for some relaxation and declicious wine, of course!

In the giant chair in the lobby of my favorite hotel, the Clift in San Francisco.

In the limo.....clearly Brian was a willing participant:) He's probably going to wish he hadn't been picking his nose.

Darioush...our favorite Napa winery. We discovered Darioush on our first trip to Napa several years ago and had to make a repeat visit. It's Iranian, it's beautiful, and they have a great tasting experience.

Bell winery........ahhhhh.

Having a little fun.

The vineyards are so pretty. They were just preparing the vines for spring.

Things may have gotten a little silly by the last winery of the day;)

Opus One......we LOVE their wine....it's FANTASTIC!!!

This, however, is how we felt about the attitude of the winery employees.

Brent and Holly on the Sterling gondola.

Lindsey and Holly in the limo. Champagne is needed between wineries, right?!?

I loved this door at Rombauer. Rombauer had the most beautiful gardens and picnic areas around the winery.

One of many beautiful flowers at Rombauer.

At the end of the trip we returned to San Francisco and were able to witness this fabulous street dance in China Town.

On those beautiful, warm California beaches.

It was a fabulous trip with fabulous friends!

Vote for Me!!!!

2011-02-12T10:37:00.000-08:00

I made the top ten on Seven Thirty Three's Knock it Off Contest....come on over and vote for me, PLEASE!!

Thanks,

Team Pride

2011-02-06T17:30:00.000-08:00

It's halftime and my team isn't doing so good. We could use a little help! I'm doing my part, how cute is my team spirit? Visit Dressing Heidi Sage and learn how my Bebe made this adorable little jacket:)

I need some big cheers or I'm not going to be able to sleep tonight!!

Love,
Turtle &

Birthday Recap

2011-02-02T19:59:00.000-08:00

We celebrated my birthday on Saturday and it was awesome! I went to the Ritz-Carlton Spa during the day and had the BEST spa experience I've ever had in Dallas! I highly recommend it! Then we met up with a few friends and hung out on a patio since it was so fabulous and warm (which NEVER happens when you have a winter birthday)! After the patio Brian and I went home and got ready and had a fabulous dinner at Fearing's. Brian had invited out some friends to celebrate and we met up with them at the Rattlesnake Bar at the Ritz. All-in-all my birthday was fantastic! I got lots of great loot and a special date with my hubby!

Me with Holly

Holly, Me, Celeste

Me with Taylor. Taylor was one of the groomsmen in our wedding and he thought it would be hilarious to show up to my birthday wearing the seersucker suit and shirt that he had to wear for the wedding! I thought it was great, but his girlfriend didn't think it was as funny since she had to take him to meet up with her friends afterward in seersucker in January!

The girls....Lindsey, Holly, Me Celeste, Ivonne

Lindsey didn't approve of the angle in the first pic so she repositioned, little did she know I'd post it anyway:)

Me with Stephanie and Lauren...........somehow Brian and I never managed to get a picture together :(

I got lots of great goodies! Brian's parents sent me travel books for all of my summer European destinations and a gift card.

Brian got this beautiful roses, even though he had already gotten me a couple of gifts. I think the girls in his office convinced him that he needed to show up with flowers even though he had already gotten gifts. I didn't mind:)

The shoes that I got for my birthday outfit. I love them!

I got these shoes with birthday money from my parents. They were so cute that I had to buy them even though it will be a while before I can wear them. I love the sea green color!

And my boss got me this great little Kate Spade beach bag. She knows I love all things Kate Spade and she picked it up for me at a sample sale in NYC a few weeks ago. It was a very nice surprise!

All in all, it was a fantastic birthday. It was the longest celebration ever, as we went to the Mavs game on Tuesday and then semi-celebrated all the way to Saturday night!

Birthday Dress Re-Do

2011-01-23T21:02:00.000-08:00

It's been two months and I haven't had time to post ANYTHING!!! Don't worry, I'm still here. Lately I've been spending a lot of time working on design projects for school and creating cute little things for Dressing Heidi Sage.

On my birthday I usually like to make a cute little dress to wear out and celebrate. Unfortunately school has restricted my time so much I decided I had no choice but to buy some off the rack. Gasp!!!!! Well, as many of you know there are NO clothes in stores in January. Retailers and designers know that nobody shops in January because they're recovering from Christmas so there is very little new merchandise hitting the floors. This means that there are never any party dresses for my birthday, which is how I got started making my birthday dress every year in the first place. This year since I knew I wasn't starting from scratch I decided to shop early. I shopped online after Christmas and New Years when all the holiday dresses were marked down. That's right, I like a good sale;)

I found this cute Tracy Reese dress on sale at Dillard's. I'm usually a good judge of online purchasing based on my experiences with fashion and my knowledge of fabrics. This looked cute in the close-ups, I liked the fiber content, I liked the vintage look, and I liked the chiffon edge but I wasn't sure if I was going to like the little appliques on the chest.

The dress looked a little different when I received it than I expected. The neckline was higher (clearly it had been opened for the photoshoot) and the chiffon edging was out of control long around the neck and arms (also clearly altered for the photoshoot). The dress, however, fit cute and it was different than the usual cocktail attire that you can find during the winter months. I liked velvet because it made it feel wintery and I liked the vintage vibe that the dress was giving off.

The decorative appliques weren't doing it for me however. They looked cheap in comparison to the dress fabric and they didn't seem significant enough for the lovely velvet. I did, however, like some of the beads and stones on the appliques so I very carefully took them apart and saved all of the beads.

I know this makes me look and sound like a crazy person, but I liked the elements so I wanted to reuse them rather than just trashing them.

The first thing I did was open the neckline so it looked like the photoshoot picture. Then I trimmed the chiffon trim around the arms and neckline. It was starting to look more like the original picture but it still wasn't exactly what I wanted.

So I made some flowers and I used the beads that came on the dress as the flower centers.

This is much better than those wimpy appliques!

Then I sewed the flowers on the dress! I know I'll have to remove them for dry cleaning so I made them separate units and simply tacked them onto the dress. I also switched the flowers to the opposite side as the original dress because I like to carry my purse on my right shoulder and I don't want to mess up my flowers.

The pretty posies!

To complete my vintage, wintery look I found these great pantyhose at ModCloth.

And I found these fabulous shoes at Kate Spade. I love Kate Spade merchandise and I LOVE the Kate Spade store in North Park even more. It's the happiest store in the whole mall. You can't walk by or go in without smiling! I was very patient and waited the shoes out until the second markdown. Actually, I was going to buy them online but was a little bummed about the price, even though Brian said it wasn't a big deal. The next day I decided I would go see them at the mall in person to make sure I really loved them. I went to the Kate Spade store and I loved them, but they didn't have my size:( That night I went back home and got on the website because I knew that they had my size online and they had dropped the price $70 in one day! AWESOME! I will get them on Tuesday, my actual birthday! I'm so excited!

Brian and I will be celebrating my birthday on Saturday night, so I'll be wearing my cute new outfit! I only wonder if my sister will think a sleeveless, crimson velvet dress is season appropriate?

Happy birthday to me,

Mommy's Little Helper!

2010-11-22T19:33:00.000-08:00

I have been doing lots of sewing, which is why I haven't been blogging much. When I sew, Turtle likes to "help". This is just a sneak peek of the "helpful" things that Turtle has been doing for me;) Don't be jealous, I know you want a helper that's this cute!

It's clear that Turtle doesn't get enough attention so it's only natural that as soon as I get my fabric laid out for cutting he would lay down and go to sleep.

This is the "mommy stop working" face. It almost convinced me but then I remembered that I had a deadline.

When all else fails it's necessary to tear up a box from Bebe in order to get attention! That's right, I like to do bad things!

Cleaning up after the "help",

Montreal

2010-11-06T17:00:00.000-07:00

I went to Montreal for the ITAA Conference. ITAA is a professional organization for fashion design and merchandising educators, students, and professionals. I was attending the conference because I submitted a design for a juried fashion show and my piece was accepted. While I was in Montreal I attended some conference sessions and managed to do some sightseeing. The city is beautiful and I had a great time, but I would never survive a Canadian winter.

The view from my room.

Outside of the opening reception ballroom.

I liked the light poles in the places-des-artes right by my hotel.

Basilica de Notre Dame

Some might call it gaudy.

It was pretty fantastic!

Old Montreal looks like a little Paris.

The best crepes ever!!!

I pretty much managed to see the entire city. I'm suffering now, however, as surfaces like this led to bruised feet. The city was a little difficult to figure out at first as everything is in French but I managed to figure it out on foot as well as on the subway and bus. I have a very good sense of direction but was having trouble with my map the first day until I figured out that they don't make their maps with North pointing up. You have to find the tiny arrow on the map to indicate with direction is North, which is usually pointing toward one of the corners of the map.

My dress on the runway, I missed the front view. On a side note, those are NOT the shoes that I would have paired with the dress but I didn't get a vote.

I went on a progressive dinner one evening where we visited three different restaurants for different courses and drinks. Here I'm drinking a beer from a local microbrewery.

My appetizer, it was yummy!

The drinks are starting to set in as we start posing with everything.

The highlight of the trip was the keynote address by Ralph Rucci. Ralph Rucci is the greatest American fashion designer. He is the only American designer asked to show his clothes at the haute couture shows in Paris since Mainbocher. That's pretty awesome! I was really impressed with the transparency he showed when talking about his design process and the honesty with which he answered questions. He was very well spoken, very charming, and he smelled delicious! He had the best cologne, I'm going to have to go on the hunt for that scent for Brian.

My colleague and I with Ralph Rucci. My picture turned out fuzzy, but she has a good one on her camera that I'll have to steal from her.

Halloween 2010

2010-10-31T19:19:00.000-07:00

I love Halloween! I love dressing up and hanging out with everyone and seeing their costumes. Unfortunately I only have a few pictures. I was very tired during the Halloween party last night as I had to get up at 4am EST to make my flight back to Dallas. I was a bunny and Brian was J.R. Ewing and we didn't manage to get a single picture together :(

Me as a bunny

Brian as J.R. Ewing. Check out that awesome feather hatband.

Kidd Rock and one of the Ghostbusters

Copa Cabana Boy and the chick from the Fifth Element. Love these two and their costumes!

Kidd Rock and I cheesin'!

I hope everyone had a fun and fabulous Halloween! I'm a little sad we didn't have any trick-or-treaters. We don't exactly live in a neighborhood with kids, but I was hoping we would get a few.

Happy Halloween,

Headed Out

2010-10-26T13:10:00.000-07:00

Bright and early in the morning I'm headed to Montreal. I'm very excited, as I've never been to Montreal but I am starting to wonder why I EVER thought that I would want to take a 6:30am flight! I'm dreading going to sleep as I type this because I know how early the alarm will go off. I am, however, looking forward to wearing boots and sweaters that have seen no attention yet this fall due to warm temperatures. I hope to have lots of great pics from Montreal and Halloween to share next week.

Feeling touristy,

Saturday Class

2010-10-16T10:05:00.000-07:00

I'm about to head to City Craft in Dallas to teach a class on how to make the mummy t-shirt. Check out our new blog Dressing Heidi Sage for a step-by-step tutorial on how to make this cute shirt for the little cutie in your life. You can also find us on Facebook.

Happy Halloween,

How Many College Degrees Does it Take to Change a Car Battery?!?!

2010-10-10T16:04:00.000-07:00

Since my new car is scheduled to arrive on October 18 it's only natural that today, 8 days before its arrival, my car battery would die and I would have to buy a new one. I shouldn't even be shocked, it seems about right. This is not the funny part of the story, however, the funny part is Brian and I trying to change the battery ourselves!!!

While changing a car battery seems like a simple enough task it's kind of daunting if you've never done it yourself. We started with the idea that we would jumpstart my car and drive it over to the shop a few blocks away. We popped the hood on my car, located the battery, got out the jumper cables, popped the hood on Brian's car, and CRAP!! Where is the battery?!?! I realize that this seems ridiculous but we could not find the battery, dang German cars and their fancy motors. Everything under the hood is covered by a fancy plate-thing and we could figure out how to get underneath it to where the battery would logically be.

Without his battery we were left with the dilemma of changing the battery ourselves, which is truly hilarious because combined we have ZERO knowledge of the interworkings of a car. So we headed to Auto Zone used the book in the battery section to pick out the right battery, I picked out some tools, and we paid and headed home. When we got home we googled instructions for how to change a battery on a Jeep Liberty and got some pretty good instructions. Once we started taking out the old battery we realized that I bought the Standard measurement wrenches and we needed Metric measurement wrenches. Since when does anything American involve the metric system? So I headed back to Auto Zone for the metric tools and the necessary socket and rachet.

When I got back home we took out the fuse as directed in the instructions, it should be noted that my first fuse removal operation did not go well. I had to buy a new one because I broke it during the removal. Then Brian removed the old battery and installed the new one while I read him directions from my iPhone while wearing huge safety goggles for fear that the battery acid would spew all over me. Safety first, right? Then I headed back to Auto Zone to get my money back from the old battery and buy a new fuse. And, Voila, a new battery. It only took us 2 hours and 3 trips to Auto Zone. And the online tutorial said it could be done in 15-30 minutes:)

Reflecting on the things that I DIDN'T learn in college,

Check it Out!

2010-10-04T20:14:00.000-07:00

This is a write-up about the event that I have been planning at work. We will finished installing today and the show will open on Wednesday, October 6 and on October 14 we will have a reception from 5:30-7:30pm. Come check it out!

Spotlight on UNT Fashion

Here is my piece that is in the show. It's a new piece that I just finished. It's worsted wool ponte knit with fine silver enameled embellishments. I cut out the silver pieces, drilled holes in them, hammered them, enamelled them, and then sewed them on using glass beads and colored thread.

I hope to see you there,

So E-X-C-I-T-E-D!!!!

2010-09-26T17:49:00.000-07:00

Several weeks ago Brian and I ordered my new car. On Friday we got an email from the dealership and they said it will arrive in Dallas between October 15-20. This will definitely make my long commute so much better! Just a little preview so you recognize me on the street;)

Waiting Anxiously,

Work in Progress

2010-09-15T15:44:00.000-07:00

I have to finish this garment for critique by next Wednesday, so finished pics will be coming soon!

My New Hiding Spot

2010-09-13T15:30:00.000-07:00

How cute am I? These new pillows have been a great hiding spot for me and my bones. I'm pretty sure Mom and Dad don't mind, but they do seem to move my stash pretty regularly;)

Wedding Season 2010 is FINALLY Over!!!!

2010-08-31T17:39:00.000-07:00

On April 24 we were married, since then we have attended the weddings of 5 other couples. Our final wedding of Wedding Season 2010 was in beautiful Santa Catalina Island, California. We started our trip by stopping in LA to see my dear friend Alexandra. We really miss her and think she should move back to Dallas:) We stayed at the W in Westwood, it was awesome.

The Backyard at the W, and yes, those are berries in my champagne. I saw someone with berry champagne and I asked for some and they let me know that the table with the berries were VIP investors but they decided to let me have some anyway:)

Approaching Catalina Island on the 25 mile ferry ride.

Brian on our golf cart ride around the island, it's the preferred method of transportation since there is a 15 year waiting list to bring a car onto the island.

The view from the top.

The boys....Brent, Brian, Charlie, Ben Lance, Dan, Jeris

The required self-portrait with one of my besties;)

The girls....Azadeh, Holly, Me, Paige, Nicole, Daniele

Brian and I

Brent not enjoying the prom pose.

Charlie and Azadeh, our wonderful neighbors in Dallas

Nicole, Holly, Paige, Me

Brian and Charlie doing a little dance to get the party started.

Proof that Brent actually dances.

Brian being Brian.....yes, those are our dinner napkin rings:)

Gearing up for wedding season 2011, it starts January 1 with Fallin's wedding!

Headed to Montreal

2010-08-27T09:00:00.001-07:00

I entered a fashion design competition with our fashion design professional organization. I wasn't truly expecting to get into the juried competition and actually thought I hadn't been selected until this week because everyone else had already received their yes or no. Then this week I received the information about submitting my information for the conference catalogue. Well, if you make it into the competition you have to go to the conference. So, I'm headed to Montreal in October:)

This is the garment that I enetered. It was a group project where everyone was given the same fabric (white warsa linen) and a basic shirtdress pattern. We had to alter the pattern, use a shared source of inspiration (the photography of Yann Arthus-Bertrand), and not use more than 10% of another fabric. The idea was to record our findings in the end but not everyone was able to find time to finish their garment.

my inspiration image

Master Bedroom Re-Do

2010-08-17T14:32:00.000-07:00

The master bedroom is finally finished. I already showed you the dresser re-do and now I have pictures of the rest. I was going to show before and after pictures of the room, but I can't find the before pictures. To be honest, that doesn't even surprise me;) So now for the after pictures.

The new bedding. We found the coverlet when we bought the bed and then it took a lot of work to find the shams. I don't like things to be too matchy-matchy meaning I don't buy bedding or furniture in sets or collections. I finally found a combination of colors and textures that I like and Brian can live with:) It took multiple purchases and returns to find the right combo.

The new metal bedside table and the new lamp.

Some accessories on the newly refinished dresser.

The newly refinished dresser.

The wall of windows. I love this wall but it made the room very difficult to photograph.

The chair where Turtle likes to sleep with some of our wedding and engagement pictures on the wall.

A wide-view of the bed wall.

A little closer.

Detail....yes, I made a pillow with Turtle's silhouette on it:)

Enjoy,

One Good Lookin' Model

2010-08-16T16:40:00.001-07:00

Brian and I have been in conflict over buying a new camera since we broke ours on the honeymoon. I wanted a big camera with artistic capabilities and the ability to take good detail shots and Brian wanted a compact camera that I could carry around in my purse when we go places. We finally compromised and made a purchase. I like it more than I expected and Brian is happy because he can still make me carry it around in my purse on social outings. Brian and I decided to test out our new camera on one HANDSOME guy, I think the pictures came out pretty good. These are unedited, but our little man is REALLY handsome, so he doesn't need editing. Not that I would be biased:)

My favorite picture. Those eyes are so sweet, and so deceiving:)

My mad face :-/

"Mom, I'm so tired. Can we please stop for nap time?"

Enjoy,

The HOTTEST week of the year in Texas!!!!

2010-08-11T08:32:00.001-07:00

What does one do on the hottest week of the year in Texas? First, lets define hot: temperatures reaching at least 102, 103, 104 degrees fahrenheit everyday and don't forget the humidity and heat index. Yes, it was magical (sense the sarcasm). Usually people try to do indoor activities as it's even too hot for the pool. But not me. I refinished our dresser, in the garage, with a teeny, tiny fan for ventilation. It was HOTTTTTTT and I sweat my booty off! But, I'm very happy with the results:)

Why so much protection? I'm allergic to dust, and sanding makes all kinds of dust, and I didn't want my face to be covered in a rash. I know you're thinking that this is a very sexy look for me:)

The dresser before. It was a very lovely shade of burnt orange, which made it look very dated.

A close-up of the lovely orange. Notice that there is no hardware, just slots under the drawers that work as pulls, another dating detail. The slots are not visible, so I think I'll add some modern hardware.

Ahhh....sanding. Gloves are needed to prevent the tickling vibrations of the sander that make me crazy...and, of course, rash prevention from the dust;) I know, TMI, but I still got a rash on my hands from this lovely project.

Sanded drawers already look better.

Dresser stained black before the polyurethane.

The finished product, with hardware, in our room. I'm still not putting any accessories on top, just yet, to let the polyurethane finish curing. But I think you can see the improvement:)

Our new nightstands have come in, the lamps should be here this week, and we have half of our pillow shams. Hopefully, next week I'll be able to show before and afters of the master bedroom.

Wedding 4 of 5

2010-08-09T06:56:00.000-07:00

Since we married on April 24 we have attended 4 weddings. We still have one more in two weeks on Catalina Island, which I'm very excited about. But here's a small recap from this weekend's wedding in Lubbock. Our friends Lance and Nicole got married and we had a great time. The weekend started with a fabulous rehearsal dinner at the Texas Tech Stadium Club. This is a facility that overlooks the football field and since the bride, groom, and most of the wedding party are Red Raiders, it was the perfect venue. I must also note that the groom's mom is a party planner, and did a fabulous job with the event. The next night we attended the wedding and the bride looked beautiful and then we headed to everyone's favorite part of the evening, the party......some may call it a reception:) I don't have any pictures of Brian because he was doing his best to pay back the groom for misbehaving at our wedding:)

Let's just say that at our wedding the groom (Lance) took the microphone from the DJ, did some rapping, and dropped the "F" bomb. His performance was, however, slightly overshadowed by a certain usher deciding to take his shirt and belt off on the dance floor:) Now, back to the wedding.

Holly and I with the groom, Lance.

Me and the lovely Holly.

Holly and I dancing.

People that know me always assume that I make EVERYTHING that I wear. I seriously don't. But on this occasion I did make my earrings and my skirt:)

Counting down to wedding 5,

Pretty Little Things

2010-07-30T10:58:00.000-07:00

I am not a car person, at all. The only car I've ever truly wanted is a Jeep Wrangler. My dad said I was not a good enough driver to have a car with no top so he bought me a Jeep Liberty. I have happily driven that car for quite some time with no complaints. Seeing as how I'm not a car person it's never been a big deal. It's a good car, I got it new, and I've never had any problems with it outside of one minor repair and another incident where the check engine light came on and I took it to the dealership only to find out that the check engine light comes on if you don't close the gas cap:)

I hate to admit it, but I have the car bug. I think it's mostly because Brian got a new car about six or eight months ago and I've been driving mine FOREVER, but I gave up a new car for grad school. The only problem with that besides not having unlimited resources to buy a new car is that every car that I want is completely ridiculous and not at all practical. I realize that I need be a grown-up and think in practical terms because I drive 400-500 miles a week. I know, it's ridiculous but being practical isn't very fun. If gas mileage, a really long communte, the environment, and price didn't matter, I would definitely drive something like one of these pretty little things. Subtle, I know, but it would never go out of style.

I know that when the time comes for me to get a new car I'll have to be practical, but one can dream;)

Ahhhh,

Cutie Patootie Bulletin Board Tutorial

2010-07-30T09:22:00.000-07:00

It turns out that most of my friends are not actually ready to be crafty. Only one of my girlfriends actually brought a craft to craft and wine night and the others decided to just chat and drink wine. My friend Jill made some really cute shadow memory boxes for her daughter's room and I made these cute bulletin boards for my sewing area. These will be perfect for hanging inspirational pictures as well as pattern pieces while I'm working on projects. It will sure beat digging through my trash pile looking for the tiny pattern pieces that always seem to get misplaced:)

Materials:
-Embroidery Hoops
-Cork Board
-Cute Fabric
-Felt
-Exacto Knife
-Scissors
-Hot Glue Gun

Laying out the hoops at the store, trying to find the perfect combination.

Now on to making the boards. Lay out the cork and use your exacto knife to cut a circle that fits inside of your hoop. Cut one piece of cork for each embroidery hoop.

The assembly. For each bulletin board you will need two squares of fabric and one square of felt larger than the hoop. FYI...I prefer felt to quilt batting for this step because it gives the finished board a flatter look.

Start by laying the inside circle of your embroidery hoop down.

Lay one square of fabric face down on top of the hoop.

Lay the cork circle on top of the fabric and press it into the hole. Make sure it goes in flat without and buckling or bubbling. If needed, trim the cork so that it lays flat in the hoop.

Lay the felt on top of the cork circle.

Lay the other square of fabric on top of the felt face up.

Place the outside of the embroidery hoop over the last layer of fabric. This may take some finessing and will require you to loosen the embroidery hoop by turning the screw.

Turn the embroidery hoop over and hold down the inside of the hoop with one hand while pulling the fabric around the edges. You do this to make the fabric lay flat with no wrinkles and tension of pulling the fabrics tights makes the bulletin boards work correctly. After the fabric looks nice and is pulled tight set it in place by tightening the screw on the embroidery hoop.

Trim the edges of the fabric close to the hoop. Just make sure you leave enough fabric to wrap to the back to be glued down.

All of the boards with the edges trimmed. All that needs to be done is hot gluing the raw edges on the back side.

One board with the edges glued to the back side.

The Final Product!!! So simple and cute! These would make great gifts, my sister has already placed an order:)

Enjoy,

Crafts & Vino

2010-07-26T11:58:00.000-07:00

For many years I have been the lone crafter/artist/project person in my group. As I get older, though, I have found that my girlfriends are starting to want to learn to do crafty things. This is so exciting for me! After some discussion with the girls I decided to host a Craft & Wine night. The girls will bring over their projects and their favorite vino and we'll drink, chat, and craft:) I can't wait to see what the girls are working on and just get together and hang out. I know most of my readers don't live nearby, but if you do, and would like to join us, just let me know and I'll privately tell you where I live. I'm sure you understand about that privacy thing:)

Feelin' Crafty,

It's Here!!!

2010-07-20T20:25:00.000-07:00

Yay! Our new bed arrived today and the nice delivery men carried it up to the third floor of our townhouse and put it together. It looks fabulous! Last night we took apart the old bed and moved everything to the garage until the donation service comes to pick it up. We decided to go ahead and sleep on the new mattress since it had already arrived. So we put the mattress on the floor and got out the sheet set that we had purchased only to find out that we had actually picked up a duvet cover from the same collection.....ugh. So we layed out a flat sheet on top of the mattress pad and used a second flat sheet and slept on our new mattress. It was AWESOME....it's HUGE....and oh so COMFORTABLE. I think we made a good choice with the Omni Hotel mattress, I highly recommend it;) Looking forward to sleeping on our complete bed with actual king-size clean sheets(oh how I love the first night of sleeping in clean sheets).

Looking forward to bedtime,

Eagerly awaiting our new Arrival!

2010-06-28T06:36:00.000-07:00

Brian and I have been talking about getting a new bed since his queen size bed is straight from the late 70s/early 80s and my double bed is entirely too small for two large people to sleep in. And yes, I realize that we are not large in the overweight sense but we've both got a lot of long limbs to deal with and I'm tired of waking up with an elbow or a knee in my back and I'm certain Brian has a long list of complaints about my sleeping habits too (and Courtney, there's no need to chime in here). Needless to say, we're not cuddly sleepers, we need our own space and we want a king size bed.

Unfortunately, the process of buying furniture is VERY long for us, since we don't agree on style. I like ulra-feminine and he likes hyper-masculine. Well, we finally decided on a bed that we both like and we bought it yesterday. It should arrive on July 20. Then we decided that we both really like the mattresses at the Omni hotel so we bought one of those too. That was the easiest purchase ever, we didn't even have to go to the store. We've both slept on the Omni bed and we both like it, so we bought it online. Hallelujiah for online shopping!

Our new bed:

I love the mid-century modern styling.

We bought the coverlet pictured but in this color.

Now we need nightstands, lamps, and some sort of coordinating bed linens and shams. We have a wood dresser that I'm going to refinish later this summer and I hung some new picture frames for wedding pics but I haven't ordered those wedding pics yet, oops! And yes, that means that we have picture frames hanging in our bedroom with the original, cheesy picture people in them;) Hopefully by the end of July I will be able to post some pictures of our completed bedroom. I'm so excited!

Looking forward to my OWN bed-space,

Inspiration

2010-06-24T09:24:00.000-07:00

While we were in St Lucia I found inspiration in the sea and in photography. We had been snorkeling with a great guide who pointed out various fish, plants, and sea creatures to us. I have always been amazed by sea plants and little freaked out by a staring fish in the face. But I wanted to see if I could find out more information and maybe see some good pictures of the things we had seen on our adventure. I went to the hotel library and I found a FABULOUS underwater photography book (the book is out of print but I bought one on eBay) by Leni Riefenstahl. Not only is her book, Wonders Under Water fantastic, but her story is pretty inspiring too. Leni was a ballet dancer, actor, movie director, documentary maker, human activist, and in later life, a photographer. In her eighties she decided she wanted to take pictures of sea life. She lied about her age in order to get scuba certified (as there are no scuba guidelines for people in their eighties) and spent the rest of her eighties and nineties traveling to fabulous tropical destinations photographing underwater life. She lived to be 101 years old, traveling until her death. Her photograhs are so beautiful and inspiring that I wanted to share.

Leni, looking fabulous and still traveling, seven months before she died at the age of 101. What an AMAZING story and FABULOUS work!

Feeling inspired,

My New Baby

2010-06-22T11:23:00.000-07:00

When I was a senior in high school and Christmas was approaching I very brattily told my mother that "I hoped they didn't buy me a sewing machine for Christmas". The look on her face told me that I could, in fact, expect a sewing machine as my big gift for Christmas. It turns out, it was one of the best gifts that they could have ever given me aside from the car that I still drive and the tonsillectomy/septoplasty/sinus surgery that they chipped in for last year.

Well, it's been almost 10 years since they bought me that first machine and at the end of the spring semester, it finally died. My little Elna lived a long, full life considering I made Courtney's, Riya's, and my wedding dresses, four years worth of design school garments (that's a LOT of garments), my Miss Texas USA wardrobe, countless cocktail dresses for me, and lots of little baby clothes on that machine. It still ran but when I took it to the shop for repairs they told me that it was the worst sounding machine that they had heard in years. So I prepared to make the BIG purchase. I knew when the time came for a new machine I would get a Viking. Last summer I bought myself a Viking serger and it has been fabulous, so I wanted a Viking sewing machine too. But I wanted one of the really nice ones. So I took my semester's worth of scholarship reimbursement and I bought this......

the Viking Sapphire 835. Did I mention that it's awesome?

Being in school puts me very behind on outside projects so I have been trying to catch up this summer. One of my catch up projects was my mom's birthday present. She wanted a cute apron, so I went and bought the fabric in January, for her February birthday, and I finally made the apron at the end of May. I know, it's terrible but the apron is really cute, so hopefully it was worth the wait. I found the fabric at a cute store in Inwood Village called City Craft. They have great designer cotton prints, for those of you interested in sewing.

If you'll look in the back of the picture you will see the only help I can afford to have in my sweatshop, but I usually spend a lot of time trying to keep him from sewing. For some reason, he loves pressing the pedal on the sewing machine sending the needle moving unexpectedly.

feeling crafty,

glamour

2010-06-21T09:36:00.000-07:00

In an ideal world we would still dress with the glamour of the 50s.

All designs by legendary American couturier Arnold Scaasi.

Just a thought,

Hello, Lovers

2010-06-10T09:40:00.000-07:00

I love fashion and I always have. I also like nice things but due to the fact that I've gone back to school full-time I've given up almost all shopping. It's very sad. Fortunately, Brian is a sweetheart and buys me things when I need them and when he needs help.

As newlyweds we had a TON of thank you notes to write. We are a fifty-fifty kind of couple and agreed to split the thank you notes based on whose guest invite list they were from. As the day approached to write the notes, however, Brian was not feeling like doing much writing, so he offered me a bribe and it worked.

He started by offering me a pair of Valentino shoes that I've been eyeing every time we go to the mall in exchange for writing all the thank you notes, but I declined. He was confused, and wanted to know what it would take to make me write all the notes. I responded that I wanted something better, something I've been harboring desire for for much longer than the Valentino's, I wanted a pair of Christian Louboutin high heels. He thought about the investment that he would have to make and after several days he agreed. Of course by this time I had written my notes and done plenty of complaining about how long it took.

I finished the notes on Thursday night and Friday I went to lunch and then shopping with my girlfriend Holly. I found these beauties and I LOVE them. Thank you Brian!

my new favorite shoes

they make me VERY tall, even taller than Brian

Feelin' stylish (and tall),

Pictures from Paradise

2010-05-28T11:40:00.000-07:00

ahhhhhhhhh..........total relaxation

St. Lucia was amazing. It was hard to come home to Dallas after getting used to the sounds of the rainforest and the sea putting us to sleep each night. Of course there was no sleeping in since we had an open-air room and the sun came up early. We had an amazing time. We went snorkeling, sailing, hiking, made two trips to the AMAZING spa, and countless trips to the fantastic beaches.

A few days into the trip the screen on the camera broke and since its a compact camera, there is no viewfinder. What I'm saying is that we aimlessly snapped away hoping to get some decent pictures, and fortunately it worked out:)

Interesting St. Lucia tidbits:
1. the sun rises at 5:45am
2. Pirates of the Carribbean was filmed in St Lucia and the pirate ship is seen daily sailing around the island
3. as soon as the sun goes down the tree frogs start chirping and chirp until about 3am
4. At 5am the black birds begin chirping their catchy little double chirp. When you listen closely they actually begin to sound like the voice inflection of the infamous call of a not so famous celebrity, FlavorFlav.
5. St Lucia operates on IST (Island Standard Time) and we did too. Our resort was all about getting away so our room had no TV, no clock, no telephone, no Wifi, and it was awesome. If you needed a wake-up call a person, a real live person, knocked on your door.
6. Our resort housed two hotels. Our hotel, Anse Chastanet, was awesome. The other hotel, Jade Mountain, was the most spectacular hotel I've ever seen. But at $2000/night we decided not to stay there:) Jade Mountain was where the most recent Bachelor finale was filmed. TV and photographs do not do it justice, it is so much more breathtaking in person.
7. Gros Piton, which we climbed, is the second highest point in St Lucia, and it is much higher than it looks. Also, when you get about halfway up you enter into a very lush category of rainforest which receives about 2500mm of rainfall annually, that's 98 inches people.

one of the views from the room, our other view was the Caribbean

one of the many beautiful rainbows we saw

Brian at the botanical garden

a beautiful tree I loved, that is apparently very poisonous....that figures

the musician from our jazzy sunset cruise....he looked an awful lot like Captain Ron

Brian and I on the jazzy sunset cruise with a rainbow in front of the Pitons

Jade Mountain is SPECTACULAR

on the rooftop deck while we were waiting to eat dinner at Jade Mountain

The halfway point of the Gros Piton hike

We were inside of a cloud at the top of Gros Piton. It's hard to tell here, but it was really amazing.

Relaxing at one of the two beaches at our resort

cheesy photo:)

the price for great views and beach access is stairs........

stairs......

and, yes, more stairs.......303 of them, to be exact, but who's counting?

the best part of coming home was snuggling with this handsome man:)

missing paradise,

Just Another Day in Paradise

2010-05-15T08:30:00.000-07:00

This morning we left on a 6:30am flight for our honeymoon to St Lucia. While we are there I fully intend to enjoy cocktails on the beach, enjoy the view from the room, and hike the pitons (those big green mountains). When we return I will post lot of pictures of our trip to paradise.

Happy Honeymooning,

It's happened....I've finally lost my mind.

2010-05-10T18:29:00.000-07:00

I knew it would happen some day, but I wasn't expecting it in my 20s. I thought I would lose my mind much later in life.

Let me set the scene. On Saturday I attended ArtWear. ArtWear is the UNT senior fashion design undergraduate fashion show. It's a professionally produced fashion show with models, a runway, the whole shabang. It was even emceed by UNT's very own Shirin Askari from Project Runway.

Since it was a fashionable event, naturally, I wanted to dress up and be cute. So I decided to wear the really cute silk Kate Spade shirtdress that my mom bought me for the bridal luncheon. Every time I've worn this dress it's been a big hit, as it was on Saturday. And then it happened, as I was watching the show, I started to get REALLY hungry. For those of you who know me well, there's a limited amount of time to get food or I get really cranky. The show wrapped up, I said my goodbyes, and I decided to grab some fast food on my drive back home.

the dress

Since I was alone I decided to indulge in one of my weaknesses, Chicken Express. We don't have Chicken E in Dallas, I only get it in Denton, and I always enjoy the indulgence. As I was in the line at the drive-thru waiting to place my order I started panicking about how I was going to eat greasy Chicken E with gravy, fried okra, and a roll in my silk Kate Spade dress. My initial solution to this problem was that I would leave Denton and as soon as I got out of town (where it was dark) I would take the dress off and drive home in my bra and panties while I ate my fried chicken. That's right, that was my first thought. This is when I knew I had lost it....this semester had fried my brain and I was going insane. Who eats in their underwear, that's disgusting. Since I had thoroughly grossed myself out I decided to weigh my other options. Skipping on the Chicken E was not an option. I WOULD be eating fried chicken (remember, I was really hungry).

Since I realized that that the bra solution probably wasn't the best idea I started considering layering lots of napkins to protect my dress, but then that didn't seem like it would work either. Finally, it came to me......my emergency raincoat. I have had a raincoat in the back of my jeep for years, you know, for emergencies. I have never once used that raincoat, until Saturday night. It was the perfect emergency solution to protect my dress so I could enjoy my Chicken E without worry:)

This is the first time where my own problem-solving skills have actually frightened me. It's a good thing we're headed to St. Lucia on Saturday so I can relax and recover from my insanity. Today I turned in my last project of the semester and am on the road to psychological recovery.

Matt Montalvo Photography

2010-05-01T08:02:00.000-07:00

Our wedding photographer was Matt Montalvo. He photographed Donnie and Alison's wedding last May and did a fabulous job. When we decided to get married in Austin we knew we'd also hire Matt. He and his wife, Cori, came out and did a wonderful job capturing our big day. Check out his website, he has some great stuff. You can also see more of us if you'd like. Choose proofing---chelsea and brian---password: buda. The bridal password is: gloria.

Enjoy,

Wedding Tidbits

2010-04-29T15:45:00.000-07:00

I already updated this post, as I found more pics:)

I can't believe that I haven't blogged in an entire month, but I've been a little busy with school and the WEDDING. I have a few photos that friends took and a link to the photographers web page. Enjoy!

the dress----the single hardest thing I've ever made (photo by Matt Montalvo)

my bouquet

the kiss

the cake

close up of the dress

San Michele

The lemonade stand complete with fresh baked pink and green cookies thanks to mom. This was my favorite extra touch to the wedding, it was adorable.

The centerpiece trees which my mom and I made and my Aunt Joy attached fresh flowers to the day of the wedding. I wish we had pictures of the tree painting, it was insanely messy. We were both pink from head to toe:)

our first dance

Jasen (my cousin-in-law) played the cello for the ceremony

dinner seating

the bar at sunset

Heidi Sage in her ruffled flower girl dress made by Bebe and her sequined shoes

Clinton beating Courtney with the ring bearer pillow. Oddly, that's what he did for much of the ceremony. Of course that was when he wasn't throwing rocks in the fountain or laying down in the rocks and using the pillow for nap time:)

San Michele

me with my mom

Photobooth cuteness. I just got the CD in the mail today with ALL the pictures from the photobooth. I can't wait to post some of those;)

My rose shoes. I had them dyed two shades of pink.

me with the beautiful Olivia (she took these pictures)

Courtney, Me, and Mom at the bridal tea

The bridal tea was at the beautiful Driskill Hotel in downtown Austin. The tea was very exciting. Originally, I thought that my friends, the Voigts, were not going to be able to come to the wedding. I'd been trying to come to terms with this as they have kids in school, they live in Kentucky, and Mike just had knee surgery. I was trying to be a grown-up about it but I had shed some tears over the situation and talking to Natalie Davidson about Julianne was just making me more upset. Anyway, Natalie had told me that she was bringing her mom as her plus one to all of the wedding events, but when we got to the bridal tea she actually had Sheryl Voigts as her plus one. It was so special. I even did the ugly cry. It's a good thing she came to the tea first and I didn't spot her as I was walking down the aisle:) She brought me a sweet letter from Julianne. Natalie, email me some pics with you and Sheryl please.

The girls at the bridal tea

For more pictures visit Matt Montalvo's website and select proofing---brian and chelsea---password: buda. View the album and the 200 premium edited photos for the best shots. The bridal photo password is: gloria.

love,

Happy Birthday to YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-03-22T16:49:00.000-07:00

Today, the man that I love turned 31. I am so glad that in 33 days he will be my husband. Happy Birthday, Brian!!!!!!!!!!!

Olive You,

100,000

2010-03-07T07:36:00.000-08:00

Lady Lib and I have spent a lot of time together over the years. Last week we hit a milestone when she rolled over to 100,000 miles. I put almost every mile on her, I think my mom put the first 10 or 12 miles on her driving her off the lot in Clifton back to Meridian. And there have been a few occasions where I've traded cars with my parents or Brian, but you get the point. These days I'm adding about 100 miles a day with my treachorous commute and next week we're making the long trek to from Dallas to Iraan.

Through all of the miles and roadtrips she's had very few problems. There has only been one major trip to the shop (aside from the two wrecks she's been involved in, which were not her fault, of course) and then there was that time I took her in because her check engine light came on and then the dealership called to tell me that the check engine light comes on if you don't screw the gas cap on:)

Hoping for several thousand more miles,

Snow Day

2010-02-16T19:32:00.000-08:00

Ahhh......a snow day. It would have been better if I had not spent my first of two snow days driving to Denton and back. UNT did not cancel classes on Thursday morning, despite the snow, and I teach an 8am class so I made the long drive, taught my class, and then they canceled classes for the remainder of the day.

After I got back to Dallas, Turtle and I enjoyed playing in the snow and even had a snowball fight with the neighbors. Unfortunately, Brian didn't get to play in the snow with us because he was traveling for work and wasn't able to get back to Dallas as planned. As for Turtle, his favorite part of the snow, was eating the readily available supply of fresh snow cones.

Turtle enjoying natural, fresh snowcones

A good look at the record 12" of snow that we received......craziness!!!!

beautiful, snow-covered trees....that's a first for Texas

Turtle exploring the landscape, trying to stay warm in the jacket that his Bebe made him

I still can't get over the depth of the snow

A good view of the city streets

I love snowy trees, so pretty

Sadly, the snow has melted, it's still freezing, and big puddles of water are the only remaining sign of our beautiful snow day.

Now that it's snowed, we're ready for SPRING!!!!

Is he a cat or a dog?

2010-01-17T08:05:00.000-08:00

When Brian bought Turtle for me I thought he was a dog, but now I'm beginning to think he acts more like a cat. He has started climbing on the back of the furniture. The other day I found him curled up on the back cushion of Brian's chair taking a nap.

On other Turtle news, he's still doing a good job of staying in trouble. At the beginning of December I caught Turtle eating some buttons off of the patio furniture. I took one button out of his mouth but noticed that there were five buttons missing. I didn't think too much about it at the time. Several weeks later when Turtle and I stayed at my parents' house he vomited in his crate and my mom called me over to look at what it was. He had vomited three buttons and a dryer sheet, that's right, he ate a dryer sheet whole and it came up whole. I was, however, glad that he vomited the buttons but he was still concerned as we were one button short. I found the final button last week when Turtle vomited it up, over a month after he ate them. He's such a mess:)

Enjoy,

Christmas....Several Weeks Late.....Oops!

2010-01-08T09:33:00.000-08:00

Christmas was busy, but I have a few pictures that I want to share from the fabulous holiday season. They're a little random because they're all the leftover pictures that don't fit into any category. Enjoy:)

Clinton and Heidi on the way to the children's museum in San Antonio

Clinton opening one of his many Christmas presents

Turtle wearing the coat that Bebe made for him. It has his full name, Handsome George Turtle Bell III monogrammed on it:) I think he looks like a showdog.

Brian and I on the partybus on the way to his work party in Laguna Beach

Eric, Gita, and I on the partybus

the snow that we got in Dallas just before Christmas

Holly and I went to see the light reveal at Neiman Marcus downtown

Neiman's lights

Merry Christmas,

Dressing Heidi Sage

2010-01-08T09:27:00.001-08:00

Check out my design blog to see the new things I made for adorable Heidi Sage.

Ringing in the New Year

2010-01-08T08:51:00.000-08:00

For New Year's Brian and I celebrated with four other couples on a little ski vacation to Ruidoso. One of our friends has an awesome house in Ruidoso where we stayed. Brian had never skiied before but he learned to ski in the exact same place where I learned to ski. We had a great time skiing and hanging out in the cabin. We had a New Year's party for the 10 of us at the cabin but unfortunately I was so tired I didn't make it until midnight. I know, it's really sad, I'm too young to be falling asleep before the New Year but skiing makes me tired:)

Holly and I on the plane on the way to Ruidoso

Brian on the plane;)

Brian and I in the parking lot on our last ski day

Holly and I at the burger stand

Me at the top of Apache Bowl

Part of the group headed to Apache Bowl

What a beautiful view, I love the mountains...I just wish I was a fan of the cold:)

The boys comparing their bellies after we overate for about the fifth meal in a row. We definitely ate good while we were there, good thing skiing is a good workout.

Dan the Man with the ladies....and yes, he is wearing Holly's fur hat and a fur coat

The deer just outside the living room window. I snuck around to the porch and took this picture.

Brian and I building a SnowWoman and drinking mimosas on New Year's Day

Brian and I at the lookout on our last trip down the mountain, goodbye Ruidoso

We had a fabulous time!!! Thanks to Brent and his family for loaning us cars and letting us stay in their beautiful cabin.

Happy New Year,

Where has the month gone?

2009-12-17T09:27:00.000-08:00

It is December 17 and this is the first time I have blogged all month. I have been SOOOOOOOOOOOO busy with school that I have done little else. I finished the semester Monday night and have been enjoying having lunch with friends, finishing Christmas projects, and addressing holiday cards the last two days. As soon as I get finished making presents, I'll post pics of Heidi's cute outfits and the latest dress that I made.

Merry Christmas,

Remembering the Seedig Family

2009-11-25T19:06:00.000-08:00

Last Thanksgiving as Brian and I were driving home from West Texas we witnessed a terrible car accident. When we pulled up there was a man on fire running out of a truck and yelling that his brother was in the truck. The man was Tyler Seedig, a high school senior, and his brother was fourteen year old Tanner. As the events unfolded I stood on the side of the road for over an hour talking on the phone to Lori, the boys' mother, unable to tell her that her youngest son had died in the terrible accident. Brian and the other people who stopped were tending to Tyler until the paramedics arrived and he was airlifted to Parkland in Dallas. Tyler and Tanner's mother called us the next day to thank us for our help and asked if we would meet them. We visited Lori at the hospital several times but I never had the courage to go in and visit Tyler. Tyler was in the Parkland burn unit from November until April. The day he left the hospital his mother called to share the good news. Then in May, we received an invitation to Tyler's high school graduation. By the grace of God Tyler was able to walk across the stage on his own.

Today was the first time that I've driven the long route back to West Texas, and I was nervous about how I'd feel when I saw the accident scene that swirled with smoke and panic last Thanksgiving. I remember a lot about that day last year: it was dark, cold, cloudy, and there was a fine mist. When we left the scene of the accident we smelled of smoke, we were wet, and we rode in silence. There is nothing that can describe seeing someone on fire and watching another person burning to death and not being able to help. As we approached Sweetwater today I started to feel a little sick to my stomach. The weather today was much different than a year ago, it was warm and sunny. When we approached the scene of the accident the grass had grown back and the only evidence of the horrific events was the small wooden cross beside the interstate. As you celebrate Thanksgiving with your families please say a prayer for the Seedig's who will spend their first holiday season without their precious Tanner.

Tanner Seedig.....a tribute to Tanner

Tyler Seedig

Tyler and his mother, Lori, at high school graduation.....the graduation story

Marisa and Rafa's Wedding

2009-11-12T08:32:00.000-08:00

Brian and I went to the most incredible wedding last weekend in Fort Lauderdale. Actually, we're really sad we have to follow this wedding because it tops my list as the most fun wedding I've ever been to followed by Donnie and Alison's wedding. Everyone stayed at the resort right on the beach and the wedding took place on the rooftop overlooking the beach. Then the reception followed on the first floor of the hotel at an outside tented pavillion right next to the beach. Rafa is Venezuelan so we had the traditional Latin "crazy hour" complete with samba dancers. The wedding was incredible and there were guests from all over the world there. I know there were guests from Venezuela, Colombia, and Italy not to mention people from Texas and Missouri (the bride's home state). I think the final count was that 87% of the guests came from outside of Florida. It was awesome, I think you'll be able to see the fun in the pictures:) Brian was part of the wedding party so he had responsibilities all afternoon but he took care of me by sending me to the spa for the afternoon, which is always a plus. However, after all the dancing at the reception I already needed another pedicure:)

our lunch view from the hotel restuarant

the room balcony view

the view from the wedding ceremony site

Brian and I in our "crazy hour" gear

the samba dancers

the bride and groom dancing with the samba dancers

what a party

The groom's family made incredible homemade costumes for the bride, groom, and bridesmaids. Lauren and her husband Matt wearing her beautiful homemade mask.

Save-the-Dates

2009-11-12T08:05:00.000-08:00

I finally finished my save-the-dates. I would like to say that I've sent them all, but that would be a lie. I have sent most of them, but I still have about 20 to go and Brian and I are doing that this weekend. The remaining save-the-dates are addresses that I need, and most of the missing addresses belong to Brian's people:) Anyway, here's a peek of what I made. This was done, of course, with the help of some wonderful people. Mom, Courtney, and Clinton were such great helpers. We had a little assembly line going at Courtney's house. I printed all the cards and gathered the materials. Then Mom cut and glued in envelope liners, I stamped the flower and stem and sprinkled the embossing powder, Courtney used the heat gun to make the embossed pattern raise, and Clinton "hupped" me stamp. Thanks ladies and little gentleman for your help, I'm really happy with how they turned out. Now it's time to start the invitations, who wants to help? Any volunteers?

the whole save-the-date suite

the cute envelope liners

the card

the cute stamps I bought from zazzle

Enjoy,

Total Cuteness

2009-11-09T07:48:00.000-08:00

I have been looking for the perfect flowergirl dress for my adorable niece and while I was on the hunt today I found the most adorable charitable clothing line. Granted, this is not what I'm looking for for my wedding but I loved it and I thought I would share it with you. It's a little pricey, but for each organic dress that is bought they will donate one of their dresses to a child in need. If you have a minute check out the adorable Whitten Grey Organic. Their designs are simple, but if you look closely many of them have great hand detailing work plus their products are organic and they donate a dress to a child in need for each dress purchased.

just a little sampling of the cuteness:)

Wishing I was small enough to wear these clothes,

Sneak Peek

2009-11-05T09:00:00.000-08:00

check out my design blog and see what I've been up too

feeling creative,

Halloween 2009

2009-11-02T08:44:00.000-08:00

*updated*

I realize that most of the people who read my blog no longer dress up for Halloween anymore, but rather dress up their children. And yes, I realize that I am an adult, but I love playing dress up:) This year for Halloween my girlfriends and I decided to dress up as Dallas icons, the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. I would not normally wear such a skimpy Halloween costume, but there is safety and courage in numbers.

The night before Halloween we had a get together to alter our costumes. To be honest, that was just as much fun as Halloween night because we pranced around in our costumes at the house and did a high kick line. Well, I attempted a high kick, the other girls had more success than me (after all I was a high jumper, not a high kicker).

The whole squad, almost: Ramsey, Kathy, Holly, Me, Kellyn, Ivonne, Shannon, Lindsey (not pictured)

Brian (as The Most Interesting Man in the World, from the Dos Equis commercial) and Me

Me, Blaine, Nicole, Holly

Holly and Me

Brian and Taylor (also as The Most Interesting Man in the World) chatting up the good-looking ladies, just like in the commercials

The Most Interesting Men in the World

I love homemade costumes! We saw tons of Lady Gagas, a great Octomom who carried a pursed stuffed with 8 bay dolls, balloon boy, the weird brother from The Hangover wearing a baby bjorn with a baby doll. Two of our friends even got creative and made their costumes.

In honor of October, Tim gave out free mammograms. I think he decided his costume was creepy after he made it so he added the mustache for humor:)

Bill doing the Robot

Ryan with the Octomom.....love the bag o'babies. Can't you see her actually doing this? I was so excited to find this on facebook. I didn't realize that anyone in our group had gotten her picture.

Just Another Reason to HATE Alterations!

2009-11-01T19:57:00.000-08:00

Anyone that knows me well knows that one of my pet peeves is people asking me to alter clothing for them, especially when they think I'm going to do it for free:) Anyway, for Halloween some girlfriends and I did a group costume and I offered my services for alterations. I invited the girls over and we ate dinner and worked on our costumes with a mini sewing lesson. The girls moved their buttons and I fixed their belts. Unfortunately, when you're gabbing with your girlfriends and trying to set grommets into belts with a hammer, sometimes you miss. When you miss the peg used to set the grommets and you hit your finger, this is what happens. Ouch!

Costume pics coming soon,

Engagment Pics

2009-10-19T08:55:00.000-07:00

I got our engagment pics back, all of them, and they are FABULOUS!!!! Thanks to our fabulous photographer and friend, Laurie, who did an amazing job. She also made us a slideshow and as soon as I figure out how to get it on the blog I will post it also. I only have a minute but I'll post a couple of pictures that I love. If you are impatient and feel the need to see more pictures immediately you can find us on Laurie's blog and on her website by clicking on galleries and then clicking on our names. Happy Viewing:)

Short-Changed

2009-10-13T16:31:00.000-07:00

Look at this face, but don't be fooled, he's not as innocent as he seems.

Turtle is a funny little dog and he constantly amazes me with his shenanigans. I heard that dogs are very much like two year olds, and I am starting to believe it based on Turtle's behavior. He's curious, social, into everything high or low, and has little concern about passing gas in public:) On Friday Brian set his wallet down but he made one fatal mistake, it was within Turtle's reach. Like a two year old, he works quickly and is very sneaky. I finally spotted Turtle with the wallet only to discover that he has pulled everything out and was doing his best to chew it up. I took everything away from him and gave the wallet to Brian kind of laughing because Brian knows better than to set his things in Turtle's path. As Brian was examining the remains of his wallet (that's right, it was chewed badly and needed to be replaced) he noticed that Turtle chewed a hole in his debit card (which no longer works) and that he had torn up his cash. Brian couldn't remember how much cash he had but he started sorting it out to see if any of the pieces went together. We found the right half of three $20 bills and a $5 bill. That's right, Turtle ate $65 dollars, or $32.50 if you consider that he left the right half of the bills for us to find. Well, needless to say, the money did not agree with his stomach and he has been especially stinky the last couple of days. You would think that this would be the end, but it isn't. I told Brian to take the remainder of his $65 to bank and ask what he could do with the remains. They told him to send it in to the treasury department and they would send him his money back. Just as Brian's thinking he's going to get his $65 back something interesting happens. This morning when I got up to get Turtle out of his crate I noticed him licking at something. This is usually not good, it usually means he's thrown up and he's trying to clean it before I see it, and that's exactly what happened. When I started to clean up the vomit I saw a bunch of slimy money. I dumped it into the sink and washed it off to find half of a one dollar bill and five $20 bill halves. I washed them off and let them dry so Brian could add them to his collection to send to the treasury department. The funny thing is that some of the 20s match the previous ones but some don't. From the looks of it Turtle ate well over $100. Talk about a dog with expensive taste and an owner who feels short-changed.

This fabulous picture of my cutie was taken by Laurie Ruth, please feel free to check out her website, she's very talented.

Blog Award

2009-10-12T14:52:00.000-07:00

I got this survey from my friend Julia and I thought I'd pass along the fun to find out more about my other friends;) Have fun!

These are the blogs that I select to complete the survey:
Walking Humbly
Brunette Brigade
The Self's
The Kadish Family
Olive Relish
The Gray Family

Rules
1. You Can Only Use One Word!
2. Pass this along to 6 of your favorite bloggers
3. Alert them that you have given them this award!
4. Have Fun!

The Survey~
1. Where is your cell phone? bag
2. Your hair? Blonde
3. Your mother? Loving
4. Your father? Strong
5. Your favorite food? sweets
6. Your dream last night? Nothing
7. Your favorite drink? Tea
8. Your dream/goal? Professor
9. What room are you in? Computer
10. Your hobby? Sewing
11. Your fear? Failure
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Professor
13. Where were you last night? Home
14. Something that you aren’t? Lonely
15. Muffins? Blueberry
16. Wish list item? Graduation
17. Where did you grow up? Texas
18. Last thing you did? Metals
19. What are you wearing? Sweater
20. Your TV? ????
21. Your pets? dog
22. Friends? loving
23. Your life? busy
24. Your mood? good
25. Missing someone? sister
26. Vehicle? Jeep
27. Something you’re not wearing? jeans
28. Your favorite store? Nordstrom
29. Your favorite color? pink
30. When was the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? Friday
32. Your best friend? Mom
33. One place that I go to over and over? school
34. One person who emails me regularly? Courtney
35. Favorite place to eat? Bolsa

Just Lovely

2009-10-07T14:56:00.000-07:00

On a beautiful Saturday afternoon Brian and I were trying to decide where to eat lunch. I suggested Hook, Line, and Sinker because I wanted fried fish and Brian doesn't like that place so I always suggest it when I am forced to make a food decision:) I like it because we can sit outside and people watch in Uptown which is always exciting. As we were sitting outside people watching we kept seeing these two very suspicious looking men walking around on opposite sides of the street. Finally the guy on our side of the street went to the other side of the street and started talking that that guy. Then he returned to our side of the street and both men continued walking and pacing up and down the block. Brian and I were discussing how odd this was especially since one of the men was carrying a walkie-talkie. We were debating if there were working a drug deal or doing some other illegal activity. Just about that time from over my shoulder this is what Brian saw........

Yep, that's Brian's car getting towed from the parking lot of the restaurant where we were eating. To be fair, these pictures were taken as they returned the car. We didn't realize it was Brian's car until after they had already driven by us while we were eating on the patio. Apparently, the suspicious looking men worked for the tow company and didn't realize that we were eating in the restaurant. Brian's car was returned unharmed and free of charge. The overweight suspicious man (who was wearing a shirt with a giant $100 bill printed on it) apologized for any inconvenience and really wanted to make it up to us so he gave us his card for his other business (he's a certified massage therapist) and offered us each a massage at his studio called Nocturnal Pleasures. Thanks, but no thanks Nocturnal Pleasures sounds like the kind of massage parlor where you might get arrested on prositution charges.

Fort Worth Weekend

2009-10-04T14:37:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we spent the weekend in Fort Worth and went to a wedding reception for one of Brian's friends. Fort Worth is special for Brian as he lived there right after college and many of his friends are TCU alumni.

A view of the Omni from the 3rd floor pool.

Brian, Rafa (the groom), Brent, and Bedford Bill

Shannon, Holly, Me
Holly and Me

Holly and Me

For some reason Brian thought it would be a good idea to fish hook me at dinner?!

Attempt #2 at a picture together;)
In the true spirit of Fort Worth, Bedford Bill wore his napkin as a bandana at dinner.

Sneak Peek!

2009-10-01T16:26:00.000-07:00

Brian and I took engagement pics on Tuesday night. My friend Holly's little sister is a great photographer and she took our pics for us. She sent me a few teaser pics so I thought I'd share them with you. You can check out Laurie's work on her website.

Turtle Update

2009-09-30T14:19:00.000-07:00

Turtle is getting so big and he's still as cute as ever but he's looking less and less like a puppy. We went to vet last week and he now weighs 15 pounds but when he hangs out with other dogs (especially ones that are larger than him) he seems to think he's weighing in at about 125:) He is really chill and calm when we're at the house alone but when there are other people or dogs around he is super social. We went to the lake yesterday for a birthday party and there were 6 dogs there. He never slept or sat down, I think it was more exhausting for me than for him. It's 4pm right now and he's been napping since about 9am. After our last visit with Courtney and Clinton, Turtle slept all day for two days:)

Turtle got stuck in one of his toys:) He had no problem wearing it around after that.

Turtle in action. I was trying to take a picture and he lunged at the camera.

Sleepy baby...pretty much what he looks like today.

Taylor Swift is Awesome!!!

2009-09-27T13:33:00.000-07:00

As much as I love Taylor Swift, I have to admit, I was a little worried about her performance because she always seems so nervous on awards shows. She was awesome---her singing, performance, and showmanship were top notch. It was the best concert I've ever been to. I met up with some friends after the concert and they made fun of me for saying that, but it was fantastic (I have Kellyn to back me up). Gloriana and Kellie Pickler opened and Kellie Pickler was wearing the most fabulous Louboutin's. I dream of being able to afford these shoes but I almost fainted when I saw their $2700 price tag.

These shoes are so fabulous and were beautifully sparkly from the stage.

As for Taylor, she was fabulous. Thanks to Brian for getting me such good tickets, we were just to the side of the stage. I don't have many pictures because it was too dark for good pictures. On a side note, I've been to the the American Airlines Center to watch the Mavericks, the Stars, and an MMA fight and I have never seen it so loud or so electric as it was on Friday night. I am also glad to say that I was not the oldest person there but I did get carded when I tried to buy a margarita. The couple sitting in front of us had teenage grandkids and they were there on their own. The teenage girls behind us cried almost the whole show, it was a little surreal:)

Kellyn and I at the concert

Tonight's the Night!!!!!

2009-09-25T08:29:00.000-07:00

Tonight is the Taylor Swift concert and I'm so excited. Yes, I realize that I'm 26 and most of the people there will be significantly younger than me, but I can't wait. When Brian bought me the tickets several months ago the only stipulation was that he would not go to the concert. So Kellyn is going with me, which should be really fun. She's a Taylor Swift fan too and has been brushing up on her new CD this week during her commute:)

I Heart the Dallas Fire Department

2009-09-13T09:37:00.000-07:00

This weekend has been rainy!!! It rained all day yesterday and it's still raining as I type this. Yesterday was the perfect day for watching football at the house. We all decided to get together at our friends' new place. Our friends Paige and Jeris just got married in August and moved into a high-rise on the 16th floor. We spent the at their place watching football all day yesterday. When we got ready to leave last night it was about 10:30. Our group, all 8 of us, left the apartment and headed down to the elevator. We got on the elevator, everyone was laughing and having a good time, and we headed to the ground floor. We left floor 16 smoothly and then there was a big jolt and the number was stuck on 10. We were punching buttons but the elevator wasn't budging. There was a group of us so it was pretty funny. We all got our cell phones out, and nobody had service. So we called for help on the call box in the elevator. In the mean time we were laughing and hanging out in the elevator when someone starting yelling at us from the 10th floor, that's when we found out that the elevator was stuck exactly in the middle of the 10th and 11th floors. After about 20 minutes help arrived, yay! They got there, talked to us, and then it took them about 10 minutes to get the doors pried open. The doors opened and there appeared about 10 Dallas firefighters. One of the firefighters hopped in the elevator with us and the put a ladder in and we climbed up the upper floor. The eight of us were in there for about 30 minutes and it was getting hot and sweaty. Once we got out we decided to take the stairs the rest of the way down. When we got to the first floor we were standing out in front of the building and the firefighters were loading up on the firetrucks. That's right, I said firetrucks, there were two full firetrucks with lights blazing in front of the apartment building. The firefighters (who were brave enough to take the elevator back down) were already loaded, they gave us a honk and went on their merry way. We were really glad to be rescued by Dallas' finest! All in all, it was pretty funny;)

Help, Please!!!!

2009-09-08T17:33:00.000-07:00

I am working on a graduate research project and I need help. I'm trying to gather information about why people buy certain garments and what is important to them about garments. I hope if you have a few minutes you can take the time to fill out my survey. From the results I will employ the methods of slow design to design and make a garment for my final project. Part of the survey is multiple choice and part is open-ended. If you can help I would greatly appreciate your time. You can copy and paste the questions into a word document or you can email me and I'll send you the survey in word format. My email is crc_chelsearose@yahoo.com

Name:
Age:
Occupation:
City:
State:

1. What is your favorite garment? How often do you wear your favorite garment?

2. What type of garment(s) are you willing to pay more money for? Why?

3. How often do you buy new garments?
a. every week
b. every month
c. every six months
d. once a year

4. Do you buy new garments because you want them or need them?
a. I want new garments.
b. I mostly want new garments, but I need them to some degree.
c. I need new garments.
d. I mostly need new garments, but I want them to some degree.

5. Would you rather have one high quality, multifunctional garment or several lower-quality garments that are less multifunctional?

6. How often do you get rid of garments in your closet?
a. every month
b. every six months
c. once a year
d. every couple of years

7. What do you do with garments that you discard?
a. give them to charity
b. throw them away
c. sale them to a resale shop
d. give them to a friend

8. Are you concerned with wearing garments that are made from eco-friendly materials? If so, what are your concerns?

9. Would you be willing to pay more for a garment that will last a number of seasons and is created using traditional techniques and local materials? Why or why not?

10. Think about your top 5 favorite garments in your wardrobe. List them below and explain why you love them.

11. Are you loyal to a particular brand?
a. yes
b. no

12. If you are loyal to a particular brand, why do you continue to go back to that brand?
a. price point
b. good quality
c. consistent style
d. fit

13. If money were no object, would your style be consistent with that it is now? What do you think would be different?

14. Are you concerned with how garments must be cared for? Do you prefer to wash at home or dry clean?
a. wash at home
b. dry clean

15. Does the need for dry-cleaning keep you from buying a garment?
a. Yes, I do not want to dry clean garments.
b. No, I am willing to dry clean garments.
c. Sometimes, but I am willing to dry clean certain garments.

Check Out My Work

2009-08-26T14:11:00.001-07:00

I'm in the process of putting together an online portfolio of my work. I haven't finished downloading pictures of my work, but I'm getting there. If you get a chance check out my work on Chelsea Rose Designs then check back later as I continue to add more work and show the progress of my current projects. You'll also see a link to my etsy shop. There is a link but I have yet to get things in my shop, but I'm working on it:)

Enjoy,

A Math Problem

2009-08-16T20:04:00.000-07:00

A math problem.....what is the sum of the following?

+

+

+

+

=
a little garment I made for Summer II

Tomorrow will be the last day of Summer II. I am turning in a garment that in Brian's words is "very fashion forward"(his nice way of saying it's not his fave). It's definitely not something you would wear out everyday. It is something that is suitable for a runway show, I personally think it looks better when you're moving because the top is very flowy. Here's a few pictures of how I got to the final product.

This is a process involving applying lots of layers to create the finished fabric.

layer 1

a close-up of the finished fabric

the finished garment (please excuse how I look----it's been a long couple of days finishing this garment)

Happy to be finished,

My Little Helper

2009-08-10T07:07:00.000-07:00

Turtle is such a funny little dog. He will play with an empty water much longer than any toy and he loves to be chased. He also enjoys helping me with my potted plants. This morning while I was drinking my tea and checking email I opened the patio door so Turtle could hang out on the balcony. When I looked out the window, this is what I found. There's not much damage he can do as it's been hard to keep potted plants alive with such extreme heat this summer. It made me laugh:)

Turtle goes to Tennessee

2009-08-08T07:18:00.000-07:00

When I went to visit Clinton after his surgery Turtle flew with me. He was a great little traveler and I think he had a great time at Courtney's playing with Gracie and running from Clinton. Turtle still sleeps in his crate at night so I had it set up in the room where I was sleeping but Clinton took every chance he could to be the puppy. He would throw all of Turtle's stuff outside of the crate jump in and close the door. It was pretty funny. You also have to love that the kid always wants to wear his boots....even with shorts.

Pink & Green

2009-08-05T08:54:00.000-07:00

If you know me very well then it will be no surprise that I chose PINK and GREEN for my wedding colors. After all, pink and green are my two favorite colors. I have been picking things out for the look that I want and it's been very fun deciding on the projects that Mom and Courtney get to help me with. I also went to Stanley Korshak and tried on wedding dresses and decided on the fit that I want. We can't discuss that too much here because Brian reads my blog. You'll just have to wait to see the dream dress I'll be making. Here are some points of inspiration for our big day.

I love manzanita!!! Brian thinks it looks a little Dr. Seuss but I think it makes beautiful centerpieces. I'm going to assemble my trees and paint them and then have the florist put the flowers and moss on the centerpieces.

I also want some low centerpieces. I love the idea of the moss directly on the table. I don't want mason jars as my candle holders, however. When Courtney got married mom and Jeanette collected wine glasses at every garage sale and junk shop around and Courtney used them as candle holders at her reception. Since then every girl on the Creech side of the family has used those glasses at their wedding. I can't be the one to break the chain so I would like to use the wine glasses instead of the jars in an arrangment similar to this. And I would replace the orchids with the flowers I'm using.

I love green hypericum berries mixed with pink blooms. I want bouquets with various shades of pink roses and ranunculus.

Happy Planning,

April 24

2009-07-26T08:36:00.001-07:00

Our big day is going to be April 24. We are getting married in Buda (just south of downtown Austin)at Le San Michele. It's the perfect place for the garden wedding I've always wanted.

Puppy Life is Hard

2009-07-23T06:31:00.000-07:00

Turtle is such a sweet puppy. Like any puppy he likes to play but he fits the breed standard of being very comical, low-key, and laid back. He is working on potty training and doing very well. He is also learning what he can chew and what he can't chew. I know he is cutting some back teeth because he was chewing my finger and shoved it all the way to the back gummy section for some relief. He also loves to nap right at my feet when I am working. Here are some pictures of Turtle in action this week.

Can I chew her shoes while she's wearing them?

I love hanging out in Brian's coffee table...and it's so comfy to sleep half on the table and half on the floor. What can I say, puppy life is tough!

Answering Questions

2009-07-23T06:18:00.000-07:00

To answer a few of the questions from your very sweet comments. Yes, I will be making my dress. I went to Stanley Korshak the other day to try on a dress that I had seen online. Online I really like the skirt of the dress but not the top. When I got there I actually liked the top better than expected but the dress didn't have much WOW! factor, and that's what I'm looking for. I did, however, try on a different fit of dress that was much better for my body type, and then there was a WOW! factor. The consultant was really sweet and they will be getting in another dress by that same designer with a fit that's similar to the dress I liked with a modified fit. So on August 3rd I'm going to go try on that dress. Once I find the fit that is best for me I can start designing my dress. I already know it's completely different that where I thought I was going to start.

We don't have a wedding date or venue yet. We are spending the weekend scouting out some locations that we like. I really want an outdoor wedding so we're on the search. When I find out more details, I'll let you know. Thanks for all of your sweet comments.

I'm Engaged!

2009-07-18T07:02:00.001-07:00

Okay, maybe I should say we're engaged. Brian proposed last night and I said yes. Brian is a terrible liar so I knew he was going to do it last night. But he did surprise me by having all of my friends and his friends at Hotel ZaZa when we went there for a celebratory cocktail. It was so nice to have our friends to celebrate with. Unfortunately, in Brian's nervousness and excitement he forgot to put the battery in the camera after he charged it, oops. So all I have to show you is a picture of the ring.

How cute am I?

2009-07-15T07:31:00.000-07:00

Brian bought me the cutest puppy. Brian has been wanting a dog but his dream dog is a great dane. Great danes are great but they're not really made for city life unless you have a nice big yard. So I convinced Brian that he really wanted the dog that I wanted, a french bulldog. We started talking about the possibility of getting a dog in April and finally decided that between the two of us we'd be able to take care of this cutie. On Monday we went and met three puppies and we really liked two of the puppies, one was a boy and one was a girl. The girl was the runt and we were afraid that she might have some problems so we decided on the little boy. He was delivered last night and is so sweet. I only got about three hours of sleep last night because he was so excited about being somewhere new. Of course now he wants to sleep right at my feet....little stinker. My mission today is to get him to potty outside and keep him up as much as possible.

Here's the cutie: Brian named him Turtle

Make It Match

2009-07-08T18:03:00.000-07:00

I love summer and pool parties and swimsuits but I hate that swimsuits are so expensive for so little fabric. I usually understand the cost of garments based on the amount of work in them or the fiber content, but swimsuits don't make sense. They're not that time intesive to make, they have almost no fabric and they cost anywhere from $50-$100+.

Anyway, as you know, I've had to cut back on things like shopping in order to go back to school, which meant no new swimsuit for summer:( Well, as luck (or the economy) would have it I went into the Gap and their swimsuits were on sale. I found a cute top but there was no matching bottom except for an XL which wasn't going to work for me.

cute top, no matching bottom

Even though there were no matching bottoms in my size I did find a neutral color bottom in my size and I thought that I could work with that....especially since the swimsuit was only $8.99/piece. (I'm sorry about the sideways pictures, I can't edit right now because I need new photo software).

cute top, neutral bottom

I am a big believer in making fashion choices that look intentional, so I felt like I needed to make my two unmatching swimsuit pieces look like they were a set. I took my suit and headed to Michael's to get some new beads to tie the two pieces together.

bargain beads

bead combo

After getting the beads I headed home and took the old beads off of the swimsuit and started laying out the new beads until I found an arrangement that I liked, then I just sewed them on, and I had a brand new suit.

new top

new bottom

new suit...an original...for the bargain price of $25

Fourth of July Weekend

2009-07-08T17:49:00.000-07:00

Aside from the heat, we had a really fun 4th of July weekend. On Thursday we went to Lake Ray Roberts and went out on the boat with a friend and did a little tubing and waterskiing. In case you haven't done those things since childhood, like me let me remind you....it makes you very sore and there's the realization that you have muscles that are sore that you didn't even know existed. That night we went to a lakeside concert that we listened to from our floaties in the lake. Then on Friday helped our friend get ready for the 4th of July party. On Saturday we went to the party, hung out in the pool, and watched some fireworks.

Brian and I at the 4th of July pool party

A little tubing action (which lead to extreme soreness)

Computer Fun

2009-07-08T17:41:00.001-07:00

I love technology but when it's not working, it's SOOOOOOO frustrating. I thought I had a virus on my computer so I look it in to get it looked at and they couldn't figure out what the problem was. After charing me $200 they did a diagnostic test and told me that my hard drive was out. So then I had to pick out a new hard drive and then pay some more money to have all of my files removed from my old hard drive since I hadn't backed it up (oops!). So I finally got my computer back, reloaded all of my programs and the the internet wouldn't work. So I took it back in and they got the internet running but they took my photo program off of my computer. So I reloaded the program again this morning only to have the internet stop working again. When I removed the program the internet started working again....craziness. Anyway, I'm up and running again with a crazy mess of photo files with 3,600 photos all being dumped into one folder. Anyway, if anyone has any suggestions about a good photo organization program or system let me know, it would be really helpful.

The Weekend

2009-06-23T11:34:00.000-07:00

This last weekend was my friend Kellyn's birthday. We spent some time at the pool and at karaoke. In an effort to make sure that other people had a nice time at karaoke, I didn't sing:)

Kellyn and I poolside

Me, Kellyn, and Natalie at karaoke

Dallas Storms

2009-06-15T16:04:00.000-07:00

Wednesday night Brian and I were playing tennis when the tornado sirens starting ringing. There was a siren in the park, so it was REALLY loud. So we packed up our bags and headed to Brian's house to take cover. It rained and rained and rained. Then the next morning it rained and rained and rained. It looked a little something like this with really high winds.

On Thursday at 9am the electricity went out and was out for about 36 hours...ugh. So I called Brian at work and he told me to come to his office so I could get some work done so I headed that direction. Of course with no electricity it's hard to get out of the electric gate. I was out in the sheeting rain with my umbrella blowing wildly tring to operate the crank that you use when the power is out. Every time you turn the crank the gate moves about an inch. It's a very slow process....so needless to say I was soaked. I got to Brian's office and walked downstairs to the cafe with him and then by the time we got back up to the 7th floor I was starting to dry off and Brian looked at me and said "what is that huge spot on your shirt"? I was wearing a white shirt and I had a huge brown stain from trying to crank the gate...nice. So I went down the street to the West Village to get a replacement shirt since I needed to go somewhere but got a really cute dress instead. I always love an excuse to shop:)

the dress as shown on the Ann Taylor Loft website

Vacation...and Excuses for not Blogging

2009-06-09T09:49:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged in quite a while...things have been crazy. The end of the school year is always busy plus I needed to prepare my classroom for the teacher that will taking my job next year. I quit my job and have already started back to school full-time. The week between school ending and class beginning Brian and I took a little trip to San Diego. It was fabulous. We did a little of everything. We have a little trouble relaxing on vacation because we always want to see everything. But we did take a few hours a couple of afternoons to lay and play on the beach.

The San Diego Skyline

Everywhere in San Diego had beautiful flowers....this was a flower I liked at the zoo

Me posing with the pretty pink flowers at the zoo...I know it's crazy that this is how wonderful the zoo is landscaped

Brian with some of the elephants

Giraffes

Brian with a bear...if you look closely you may recognize this area from the bear scene in Anchorman

A Panda....he was very sneaky and hard to photograph

A Koala...I loved the koalas, they were so cute even though they were sleeping and apparently sleep about 20 hours a day

One of the beautiful buildings in Balboa Park...the dome is completely mosaiced. We saw the building and I took this picture from the zoo sky tram and then I drug Brian over to the park so I could see the building up close. It was worth it to see all of the beautiful buildings in Balboa Park

An upclose view of the domed building from the previous picture

At the Padres vs. Phillies game. Brian loves baseball and when we visit cities with baseball teams we must go to game:) The stadium was awesome, we ate clam chowder and even got good, local beer in the stadium. It beats traditional stadium food anyday, even though I'm always a sucker for the stadium hotdog.

Riding bikes around Coronado Island

The beautiful Hotel del Coronado

Self-portrait on the beach

Chillin' on the beach

Total relaxation

Touring the USS Midway (an aircraft carrier turned museum)

Posing with an old plane in the onboard hangar

A very small part of the USS Midway

Mustache Mayhem 2009

2009-05-11T20:20:00.000-07:00

After Brian bought his townhome last year his friend Charlie bought a townhome two doors down. As a way to make their mark on the neighborhood and have a reason to invite their friends over they decided to throw a mustache party. Last May was the inaugural mustache party and the tradition continued this year with Mustache Mayhem 2009. Now, you may be asking yourself, what is mustache mayhem and why would any adult willingly take part in something like this?

Well, Mustache Mayhem is a party where you must sport a mustache (real or fake). The party starts at Brian and Charlie's townhomes and everybody hangs out and eats and then at 5:30 everyone puts their name and a $10 bill in a hat for a drawing. Each person draws one name and is responsible for dressing the person whose name they draw in the outfit that they must wear for the rest of the night on a $10 budget. Let's just say it's not a fashion contest. After names are drawn everyone walks the two blocks to the Goodwill store and the torture begins. From Goodwill clothes are changed and then it's time for a night on the town. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves:)

Whose is real and whose is fake? Harl, Bill, Brian, Brent

Brian and I in are newly selected outfits----nice!

Holly (who I dressed straight off the lingerie rack) and I

Stephanie, Holly, Me, Shannon

I opted to wear my mustache on my finger and show it off at strategic moments:)

Brian with a group of people we met that night who really wanted to be with our group

Mustaches make us deep thinkers.....Ryan and Brian

Holly and Brent (aka Sean John Playa)

Bill....gotta love the little girl's bike helmet

Donnie and Alison's Wedding

2009-05-03T15:28:00.001-07:00

This weekend Brian and I went to Austin for Donnie and Alison's wedding. Brian and Donnie have been best friends since the summer after they graduated high school and always get giddy like little girls when they get to hang out (Donnie and Alison now live in Washington DC). The wedding was really beautiful and the reception was so much fun. The reception was at the Oasis in Austin which has great views of the lake and a really fun atmosphere.

Brian and I at the church

Brian helping Donnie get ready before the wedding

Brian and Donnie have always had a deal about "performing" a recorder solo at one another's weddings. When Brian turned 30, in March, Donnie sent him a recorder......so Brian got his chance to perform at the wedding. Of course the performance took place after the wedding during picture time, but Brian was able to muster up his best jazz recorder performance. It was a proud moment:)

The boys enjoying Brian's jazz recorder performance

The boys were checking to make sure our skirts met "dress-code" (Holly, Shannon, Me)

The boys---Dan, Bill, Taylor, Brian, and Brent

Alison is Czech so there were some Czech traditions that took place during the reception. One was the wedding grand march (which was led by a man who's been leading them for more than 30 years at Shiner weddings) The pictures are the exact perspective of where Brian and I were during the grand march. The camera was around my wrist as Brian and I were touching hands like London Bridge as everyone walked underneath and through and then back around the room. It was really fun and interesting.....so much so that Brian wants to be Czech just for the tradition.

Holly and I having a "photoshoot" with the incredible view and sunset.

By the end of the night, the flower had become a picture prop;)

Brian and I at sunset at the reception

Flower Power

2009-04-29T20:47:00.000-07:00

A while back I posted about how I was going to start making things from the fabric I already had at home and not buy anything new. Well, that hasn't gone very well because I've made so many baby clothes that I had to go buy new things. This week I finally got back on track with projects that are made from fabrics that I had previously collected. I made this yellow dress and then made the rather large flower with some techniques that I'm using as an experiment for the work that I will be doing this summer at school. I'm wearing the dress to a wedding this weekend so I'll post pictures of me wearing the dress after the weekend.

Dressing Up

2009-04-21T17:16:00.000-07:00

My friend Holly and I went to a birthday party on Saturday and decided to dress up for the occassion. We both like to dress up and we don't get to do it very much so we put on our party dresses and had a great time at dinner and cocktails:)

Me, Daniel(the birthday boy), and Holly

Heidi's New Clothes

2009-04-14T17:33:00.000-07:00

I made Heidi some new things for my visit to Tennessee this past weekend, and since it seems people are most interested in the things that I make, I thought I'd post some pics:)

If you know of anyone looking for custom-made gifts like the ones here and the clothes I made for Annabelle let me know at crc_chelsearose@yahoo.com. I'm about to be a poor student again soon (in June I start a Master of Fine Arts in Fashion Design) and I would be interested in making some extra $$$.

Front

Back

Front

Back

Details

Onesie Dress

Front

Back

Front

Details

Onesies

Hairbows and some Power Bows (my favorite)

It's been a while since I've posted, so there are three more new posts following this one:)

My favorite part of Heidi's Room

2009-04-14T17:29:00.000-07:00

My favorite part of Heidi's new room are these cute letters I made with her name.

Cute Kiddos

2009-04-14T17:24:00.001-07:00

A couple of pictures of the cuties that I went to visit for Easter. Clinton and Heidi were really adorable and Courtney was fun too;)

Easter Treats

2009-04-14T17:13:00.000-07:00

I love to bake and I love sugar cookies, so for Easter I took the chance to make some egg-shaped cookies. I thought they turned out pretty cute.

Easter Egg Cookies

Some of my Favorites

Urgent Prayer Request

2009-04-03T08:07:00.001-07:00

***there are now two babies---Whitley Faith and Wyatt Jared. Just received a text asking for prayers for Whitley. I'm not sure of the details.

I just received a call from my friend Jared, who is married to one of my best friends and favorite people ever, Teri. Teri is pregnant with twins and has had a very difficult pregnancy. At 17 weeks her water broke and she went on bedrest. At 24 weeks she went on hospital bedrest. Today, at 28 weeks 1 day, she is going into labor. The doctors did not want to prevent labor after 28 weeks because they felt the risk of infection (due to the nature of the pregnancy) outweighed the risk of delivering early. Please pray for Teri, Jared and the babies (Whitley and Wyatt) as they go through this uncertain time. Feel free to leave Teri and Jared some love on their blog.

FORE

2009-04-02T18:41:00.000-07:00

On Saturday we finally had Brian's 30th birthday party. I organized a Bar Golf pub crawl. For those of you unfamiliar with Bar Golf it is a game where you dress up in your best golf clothes and visit your favorite bars with score cards and you see who wins (i.e. drinks the most). I, of course, did not win the game which is probably a good thing but I did have a really good time.

Nicole and Jeris

Wills and Marisa

Jordan and Lance

Celeste and Brian

Celeste and Me

Brandi and Ben

Me, Ben, Brandi, and Brian

Riya, Brian, Me, and Alexandra

Taylor and Me

Taylor

Brian and Danny

The Bachelorette and the Birthday Boy

Nicole, Celeste, and Me

Me, Wills, Marisa, Brian

Beautiful Blooms

2009-04-02T18:28:00.000-07:00

Brian bought me a membership to the Dallas Arboretum because it is one of my favorite places in the city. On Sunday we were feeling a little sluggish so we headed out to the Arboretum to get some fresh air and walk around. We got to see the fairytale house displays and all of the beautiful blooming flowers.

Freedom at Last

2009-04-01T08:21:00.000-07:00

You may have read on Courtney's blog, back in November, about Brian and I coming up on horrible, fiery car accident on our way back from Thanksgiving. We were driving from Lubbock to Dallas and came across the car just outside Sweetwater. When we stopped there was a young man running from the truck on fire and screaming that his brother was inside. Sadly, Tanner, 14, perished in the accident. Tyler, 18, has been in the hospital in Dallas since November 28, 2008. There was little hope that he would get to keep his hands due to the severity of the burns. However, through his determination and the power of prayer, Tyler has made a pretty miraculous recovery. Both of his hands were saved and he underwent many skin grafts to repair the damage from the accident and he's even walking again. Today he gets to leave the hospital for the first time since November and go home. He can't go home to Midland, as he still has months of outpatient physical therapy ahead of him, but he can go stay with his dad in Weatherford. His dad works here in Dallas so Tyler will come in with him and spend the day at the outpatient physical therapy clinic five days a week. The goal is for Tyler to be able to walk across the stage for his high school graduation at the end of May.

This was a pretty horrifying incident to have seen happen. I, however, have been amazed at the outpouring of love and support that Tyler and his family have received. The outcome of Tyler's health has been nothing short of a miracle that was fueled by the power of prayer and the family's unwavering faith. Although I only met Tyler at the scene of the accident I have been fortunate enough to meet his incredible family. I have no doubts that Tyler's strength and determination paired with the love and support of his family will lead him to great things.

Tyler Seedig

Heidi Sage Williams

2009-03-26T16:22:00.000-07:00

Here is Heidi Sage's first picture. What a cutie-patootie (not that I would be biased). Courtney thinks she looks a lot like Clinton looked when he was born. Mom and baby are both doing well.

Heidi Sage Williams March 26, 2009
7 lbs 5 oz 20 1/2" long

Baby Williams Is HERE!!!!

2009-03-26T14:13:00.000-07:00

Heidi Sage Williams was born this afternoon. She weighed in at 7 pounds 5 ounces and is 20 1/2 inches long. She was born on a very special day, as it is MaMa Peggy's 75th birthday today. We are all very excited and anxiously awaiting pictures of the newest addition to the family. Clinton met Heidi this afternoon and is still trying to figure out what he thinks about her. As soon as I get some pictures, I'll post them.

Congratulations Rodney and Courtney on the arrival of Heidi.

I guess this means that I can start making hairbows now:)

The BIG 3-0

2009-03-22T18:56:00.000-07:00

Today Brian turned 30. We're not having his birthday party until next weekend (after I'm off of pain meds and can have a couple of cocktails) but the two of us still did a little celebrating this weekend. On Friday we hung out with some friends who wanted to start celebrating early. We saw several of our Dallas "celebrities" including Michael Irvin and Big Al from KISS FM. On Saturday we had a quiet day, did a little shopping and then went to dinner at Cafe Pacific in Highland Park Village. It was excellent, if you like seafood. Today we skipped church and went to breakfast, opened presents, and then to the mall to exchange the gifts that I bought that didn't work out. I gave him some clothes and made him a book about 30 reasons that I love him. Tonight we cooked some buffalo filets and ate birthday cake. I made a chocolate cake filled with cookies and cream ice cream covered with chocolate ganache and oreo sprinkles. It was pretty delicious. Happy Birthday Brian! I love you!

Flowers and Presents

Dinner at Cafe Pacific

Sunday Night Patio Dinner

Getting the Cake Ready

Ice Cream Cake is Yummy!

Turning One is Fun!

2009-03-22T18:43:00.000-07:00

My friend Jill's baby, Annabelle, turned one on Saturday. I went to her party and was surrounded by boocoos of bouncing babies. They were all adorable and we had a great time. A few pics from the day.

Girly Stuff is Fun to Make

2009-03-19T16:44:00.001-07:00

My friend Jill's daughter, Annabelle, is turning 1 on Saturday. I decided I was wanted to make Annabelle a tutu and a matching onesie.

I made the onesie and the tutu and then things got a little out of control. Partly because I've been moving a little slow and partly because it was fun. The onesie came in a package of five so I decorated the other ones too.

A for Annabelle

Cute Flower Iron-Ons

A Fun Bow Tie

Then I got a little carried away making hair bows---some small plus a couple of power bows. It was my first bow-making experience, but by the end they were Deb Creech quality bows;)

Skinny Nose and Top Golf

2009-03-19T16:27:00.001-07:00

Yesteray I got the stints taken out of my nose. Yeah! My nose is skinny again, woo hoo. It's still a little swollen, but it's nothing compared to the round pig-nose I had with the stints. It's amazing how large the stints are. When they're in they are completely inside your nose but you can see the end of them when you look up the nostril. When they pull them out they're 2 1/2 inches long (no exageration) and bigger around than a pencil. Needless to say, my nose is skinny again and I can breathe through my nose for the first time (that I can remember).

I'm feeling much better but my throat is still really sore, so I'm still on the hydrocodone. As long as I have my occasional dose of hydrocodone I can pretty much do whatever I want (although I get tired faster). Last night we went to Top Golf so the boys could play. Top Golf is like the driving range but so much better. Every ball has a computer chip in it and you aim at different holes scattered throughout the driving range. You get points based on how close you get to the flag. It keeps score kind of like bowling. It was fun even though I couldn't play.

My Lifesaver, Liquid Hydrocodone and My Skinny Nose (sans stints)

Brent hitting

Brian hitting my dinner (yes, it's a piece of my hotdog that I didn't eat)

Saturday

2009-03-14T21:30:00.000-07:00

Brian was hosting his best friend's bachelor party today, so mom and I had the day to ourselves. We took it easy this morning and got my pain medication adjusted so that I don't have to take as much and I don't fall asleep talking to people mid-sentence. My friend Jill and her adorable baby Annabelle came by to say hi and visit. After they left I decided I was ready for an outting, so mom took me to CVS for some more gauze to change my bandages and then to Sonic for a slushie. Since I was still feeling good we decided to do some shopping so we headed to the mall (swollen nose and all). I did have someone stop and ask if I'd had my nose done. I smiled and kindly responded that I'd had sinus surgery. It was kind of funny because apparently she'd had hers done a long time ago and she wanted to talk about it and now she needs the sinus surgery. It just so happens that we even have the same doctor. Mom and I each found a couple of cute shirts and then headed home for a delicious dinner of macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes. People kept telling me that I would lose weight from this surgery----whatever. All I have done is eat carbs and drink sugary drinks. I know I haven't lost a single pound and I'm pretty sure I may have gained a few:)

Sweet Annabelle (who turns 1 on Saturday)

Post Surgery

2009-03-13T11:24:00.000-07:00

I had my surgery yesterday morning. It was pushed back an hour because they scheduled a child's surgery after I scheduled mine and the child always gets the first surgery slot due to lack of understanding about no food and drink. Apparently they didn't know that I'm also really cranky without food:)

I had a tonsillectomy, septoplasty, and had my sinus cavities cleaned out. Everything went smoothly and I popped right out of the anthestethic (just like I always do). I talked to my doctor and went from recovery to my semi-private room very quickly. I had some slushie and pudding at the surgery center and then stopped at Sonic for a grilled cheese on the way home. People kept telling me I would lose weight, but I don't think it's going to happen because I certainly have not had trouble eating.

I took a picture of myself to post---but it was too scary, so I quickly deleted it from the camera. I'm feeling pretty good but my nose and the palate of my mouth are very sore and my eyes are really watery. My throat is not as sore as I expected. Pre-surgery I heard terrible things about the tonillectomy pain but several people that I know that have had really bad tonsillitus said the tonsillectomy wasn't as bad as their last case of tonsillitus. That is exactly how I feel. I have a sore throat but it is nothing compared to my December tonsillitus where I missed 4 days of work. Anway, on Wendesday I go to have the stints removed from my nose---so hopefully I'll start looking normal again soon.

My mom and Brian have been excellent caretakers. Thanks guys, I love you. My mom has been helping me keep my meds straight and cooking for me. Although this morning I did get up and make muffins this morning. But that pretty much took it out of me so I've had to take several naps since then. Brian has been running our errands and making sure we have the things we need. I'm a very lucky girl to have two such wonderful people taking care of me.

Girls' Night

2009-03-11T06:00:00.001-07:00

Last night I met up with a couple of girlfriends and had dinner at Patrizio in Highland Park Village. It's a cute little Italian place with a great patio and good prices---unfortunately the sprinkles kept us from dining outside. We still had a good time inside. I wanted to see a few of my friends before tomorrow since I will be out of commission for a few days. Tonight my mom is coming and in the morning I am having my surgery. It is day surgery, but apparently I won't be doing much for the first few days. I'm having a tonsillectomy (I know, it's a childhood surgery), a septoplasty (so I can breathe through my nose), and having my sinuses cleaned out (so that Brian can survive another allergy season with me:)). Anyway, I'm sure I'll be having a lot of free time over the next week so I'll be checking in on all my blogger buddies. Have a great rest of the week!

Kellyn, Riya, Holly, and Me

My New Green Dress

2009-03-09T18:54:00.000-07:00

I've been in a sewing mood and have decided to only do sewing projects with things I already have at the house. I have a collection of fabric at home and I am trying to come up with things to make from all of those things before I buy any more fabric. I started with this green dress.

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