Seattle recap

Mother Nature took it upon herself to ensure that we had the most delightful weather during our Seattle visit. We missed the heat wave entirely, and the short cold front that swept through immediately after that, and relished in the uncommonly warm and mild summer weather that caught everyone by surprise.

The photos above show some of the highlights from our trip: a short hike at Deception Pass, the beautiful array of flowers and produce at Pike Place Market, a fun ride on the ultra-cool escalator in the Seattle Public Library (I've never seen a library like this!), artsy views at the Olympic Sculpture Garden, and the most beautiful sunset on Puget Sound.


Of course, I had to throw in one extra photo taken at Trophy Cupcakes. By chance, I had stumbled onto a slideshow of favorite cupcakes on the Martha Stewart web site and made a mental note to pop in if we happened to be in the area during our vacation. (Ok, maybe it was a bit more than a "mental note" since I immediately mapped out the location on Google maps and memorized the most direct route to the shop from our hotel.) There were lots of cupcakes to choose from, but I had to go with the one that was featured on the Martha Stewart show, right? I ordered up one Valrhona chocolate cupcake with a bittersweet chocolate/graham cracker crust and topped with toasted marshmallow...after one bite, I was smitten.

There's definitely a lot to love about Seattle, and we can't wait for a return visit.

My favorite duo

I blame Starbucks. And my husband. More specifically, I blame my husband for introducing me to the Orange Mocha Frappuccino at Starbucks...the same Orange Mocha Frappuccino that was on the menu for only a limited time and hasn't been available for almost a year now. I'm not a big Frappuccino drinker, but after one sip of that orangey-chocolatey goodness, I was hooked.

So I've been on the hunt for anything and everything using the wonderful flavor combination of orange and chocolate. Even on our recent jaunt to Seattle, I popped into a shop called the "Chocolate Box" and immediately spotted an adorable orange creme-filled dark chocolate truffle in the display case. I hesitated for a second before sinking my teeth into the grinning ladybug, but the tinge of guilt I felt quickly melted away as the flavors exploded in my mouth. Yum.

More to come on our fun getaway to Seattle!

Tossed salad & scrambled eggs...

Just a "mini" vacation this time to get revived and rejuvenated for the busy summer wedding season coming up! Be back soon!

My first wedding

This month, my husband and I are celebrating our first anniversary. Time didn't just fly by over the past twelve months...it zoomed by at supersonic speed. The details of our special day are still fresh in our minds and we feel so very fortunate to have such wonderful memories to reminisce about.

But instead of gushing about the past year of wedded bliss, I'm opting to share memories of my first wedding, nearly 20 years ago...for my Barbie and Ken dolls.

The summer wedding took place in Los Angeles, California. The bride wore a hand-beaded white satin gown with detachable train and the groom wore a classic black tux and crisp white ruffled shirt. As a young girl, I was WAY into Barbie dolls. I would spend countless hours dressing them up and playing house with them. One summer, my aunt in California made beautiful clothing for my dolls and somewhere along the way, it was decided that she would sew a custom wedding gown and tuxedo for Barbie and Ken and we would host a beautiful wedding for them during our family vacation to L.A.

I remember visiting Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm and Magic Mountain that summer, but the highlight of the trip for me was definitely the BIG WEDDING. Here, in all their wedding glory, are the bride and groom:


We had an eclectic group of guests attending the wedding. From left to right: a Japanese field worker, an Amish woman, a corn husk mouse/maiden, a young George Washington, a Native American girl, and Barbie's maid of honor.


The reception entertainment included me doing magic tricks for my family:


And, the first invitation I ever created:


My, how weddings have changed in 20 years!

Fairy dust

Does anyone remember Holly Hobbie? After a quick five-minute search on Google, I was surprised to learn that:

1) there are over 800 Holly Hobbie items listed on eBay
2) Holly Hobbie was created by an artist whose name was Holly Hobbie
3) thanks to a makeover in 2006, Holly Hobbie lives on in DVDs, clothing, party goods, etc.

So, why this sudden interest in a doll that's over 40 years old? I guess I'm just feeling a little nostalgic because it's Mother's Day.

When I was a wee little one, I had a wee little pillow with a wee little pocket for the wee little teeth that my father so eagerly yanked out of my mouth with long pieces of dental floss. I thought my tooth pillow was the prettiest pillow in the world with its delicate lace trim and soft pastel image of Holly Hobbie sitting just above the pocket. But as nice as the pillow was, it always paled in comparison to the items left behind by the tooth fairy.

The tooth fairy that visited me, was like no other. I know this for a fact because I discussed this with my friends. My tooth fairy left me silver dollars wrapped in purple cellophane and personal, handwritten notes sprinkled with glitter. One year, I lost a tooth on the eve of my birthday and awoke to find a beautifully wrapped present on the desk in the corner of my room. I could never figure out how the tooth fairy knew that it was my birthday.

It wasn't until many years later that I found the roll of purple cellophane hidden in the corner of the hall closet and many more years later that I compared the handwriting on the tooth fairy's notes to the handwriting on my mother's shopping lists.

How could I have been so naive? My mother...and the tooth fairy...had obviously been in cahoots.

Thank you, Mom. Thank you, Tooth Fairy. I love you both. Happy Mother's Day...

Tulips...good for the soul

Roses = I like
Peonies = I really like
Tulips = I love

My husband bought me potted tulips yesterday and they're proving to be delightfully distracting as I try to plow through all the work that needs to be completed this month. I'm convinced that my brain is firing an extra boost of endorphins every time I look at them. I'm not very good at remembering to take a few minutes each day for meditation and reflection. Today is different, though.

I remember visiting a girlfriend up in Seattle years ago for the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. We drove up north through the farmlands, came around a bend in the road, and then... a blanket of color as far as the eye could see. It was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever seen.

So now I can look across my desk at my gorgeous tulips, past my mountain of paperwork, and just breathe.

I spy...again

Back in December of last year, I blogged about the Parasol Events Wedding Giveaway presented by The Honolulu Advertiser. The vendor line-up was stellar and I know lots of couples who were crossing their fingers, hoping to be selected.

In January, I had the pleasure of meeting the winning couple, Primrose and Alex, through a chance run-in with Laura Lewis with Parasol Events. Primrose and Alex decided to go the DIY (do-it-yourself) route with their invitations, but ended up purchasing some beautiful washi paper from me (pictured above) to give their wedding stationery the perfect touch of color.

As I was perusing some local wedding sites yesterday morning, I wandered over to the site of cakelava, the fabulously creative cake design company owned by Rick and Sasha Reichart. I spotted the wedding cake above and immediately knew where the design inspiration came from (or, at least I THINK I know). How COOL is it that they translated the washi paper pattern into this beautiful cake? I'm duly impressed, as I always am, with their artistry.

I spy...

It's Monday morning, the start of a new (aka extremely busy) week, and I don't know what to blog about. For inspiration, I quickly browse through some of my favorite bookmarked web sites.

Nothing.

I think about what I did over the weekend and wonder if anyone would be interested in hearing about my exciting errands or the restaurants I visited.

Nope.

I read the morning paper and wonder if there's any current event that I'd like to share my opinions on.

Nada.

And then...I start checking out some web sites of my industry colleagues to see what's new.

Bingo!

I spy an invitation I designed on the Video 21 Productions blog for a client who JUST got married this past Saturday. I'm simply amazed that the awesome videography team from Video 21 can get through an entire day of shooting and editing and still have enough energy to post ceremony highlights on YouTube...and blog about it! Their beautiful footage never disappoints and now you can view double the coverage on their main web site and their fantastic blog.


Another "I spy" moment....and quite a coincidence, really. The wedding coordinator extraordinaire for the couple who wed on Saturday also has an image with one of my invitations on the splash page of her web site.


I can't say enough about Shawnee Hammer of L'Elegance Bridal Consultants. She's one of those people that exude warmth and friendliness from the moment you meet her, and she pairs that beautifully with polished professionalism. As a fellow vendor, I've developed such a great working relationship with her, but I know that her clients feel exactly the same way!

I'll smell you later

Confession: I love to visit my friend's bathroom.

Without fail, stepping into her guest bathroom always lifts my spirits. It's not the wall of family photos that greets you just outside the door, and it's not the whimsical little paper umbrellas that hang from the ceiling. It's the amazing soap bar that sits next to her sink.

You know how the Bath and Body Works shops line up their tester bottles of moisturizers all in a row for you to sniff your heart out? Swap out moisturizers for hand soaps and that's my friend's bathroom. I admit that my bathroom visits are extra long because I can never decide which of the dozen(?) soaps I'd like to try. There's only one thing that keeps me from being overcome with bathroom envy...and that's my own bathroom.

About nine months ago, my life changed when I discovered the Archipelago Botanicals Pomegranate Collection. It was love at first smell when I picked up the dry oil body spray at Chemistry Bath and Body at Pearlridge Uptown. Then this past Christmas, my you-can't-top-this-bathroom-friend gifted me with a 32 oz. bottle of the Pomegranate Body Wash. I need to repeat that this bottle is 32 ounces. It's going to last me all year...and I couldn't be happier! After years of experimenting and building up my collection of Bath and Body Works soaps and shower gels, my bathroom has unexpectedly become a one-scent wonder. Who would've guessed??