Mila's Daydreams

How adorably sweet & clever are these images? Mila's mommy found a new maternity leave hobby in imagining her dreams and capturing them in these creative ways. Check out the rest of her creations here. These are my favorites. :)

Dawn Ng: Paper Artist

I stumbled upon Dawn Ng's work on the Handmade Evolution blog. The first 2 are my favorite installations. Check out the rest of her portfolio here.

Ali Mini Crossbody Bag

Um...cute!

[via Neimann Marcus - click photo for link]

As the husband always likes to say...

[Two for Joy via Paper Crave]

Dora-Themed Birthday Party

I usually like to avoid the generic cartoon-themed party decorations you can find at the party store. They're just not as...pretty. I came across Sweet Beaker's birthday party invitation (oy...I forgot where.) It had a twist on a Dora-themed party. The first thought that entered my mind was, now this is the way to do it! I like how she just used the characters' outlines and had a nice color palette (which, by the way, is one my favorites!)

Reminiscing...

This was taken on our honeymoon in Maui in June 2006. We were about to embark on a sunset sail excursion. The weather was amazing there, and there were so many rainbows! Ah...to be back in the Hawaiian sun and 7lbs lighter again. I can only wish...

Etsy Find: Save the Dates

Beautiful & unique Save the Date card by Cameo Paper + Stationery.

Currently working on...

I'm currently working on designing a wedding invitation for Sue + Mike. (I designed their Save the Dates a few months ago.) They asked for an elegant and sophisticated invitation with swirly type and a floral motif. As I try to cater to their desires, I'll be posting some of the designs that didn't make the cut. (I didn't want to post all of their info before the actual invites were sent out, so I swapped in some fictitious information.)

Currently Searching For...New Shower Curtains

Since we won't be remodeling our master bathroom anytime time soon, something needs to be done to spice it up. I'm tired of the neutral brown palette I have going on. It's starting to look drab to me. I need some C O L O R (any bit of color) in there. Hmm...I would like to venture out of the neutral zone, but it can't be too girly. Let's see what I can find online... [click on images for links]

[Crate & Barrel]

[CB2]
[Bed Bath & Beyond]
The C&B ones might be a bit too much color. The CB2 and BB&B curtains have potential. The minimalist gray branches might be a little too minimal. I'll have to buy some yellow towels or something. Eh...too much work. The citrus yellow one from BB&B is my favorite out of these so far. I'm gonna have to see them in person. Maybe they're still too...white? I haven't seen any on Etsy or West Elm. Do you know of any other places with nice shower curtains? Please help!

And away we go...

The hubs, doggie, and I are going to MI for the weekend. We're renting a house with a few other couples. It should be fun w/ 13 adults, 1 child, 3 babies, and 4 dogs. What are you guys doing this weekend? Enjoy your weekend however you spend it!

Polaroids are Back?

I just heard Polaroid is back in the instant camera market with a new design and smaller photo format. Introducing the Polaroid 300 Instant Camera. What's even better, they're reissuing the film for the original cameras!
I must say though...the new design looks awfully similar to the Fuji Instax mini that was out last year. Doesn't it look like they just took the Fuji Instax name off and added the Polaroid logo? Sheesh people. Haven't you heard of originality??

A lovely imitation...

Remember those lovely Stuart Weitzman wedges Jennifer Anniston was wearing last summer? Well, if you don't want to spend mucho $$$ for them, here's the perfect imitation by Rampage. Hmm...the wedge might be a tad lower too. Nice!

Etsy Finds: Throw Pillows

I'm looking for some new pillow covers to spruce up my living room. Specifically, a teal or aqua colored one. It's been pretty hard searching for a cover in the exact shade I'm looking for and in a pattern I like. But here are some cute pillow covers I found in my search... (I'm really liking the patterns from the Milk & Cookies Etsy shop!)

Melissa Wilson Home
Junah Bird Designs
milk & cookies

A Whimsical Summer Wedding

I first spotted this wedding on Hostess with the Mostess last week. The second photo with the flower arrangements really caught my attention. The bright, cheery colors are what did it for me. I never would've thought of pairing these colors together, but they really work well here! The flowers are beautiful, and I love all the details that went into this wedding. Read more about this summer bicycle inspired wedding at My Bride Story for details on how this vision became reality.

Dessert: Almond-Cherry Clafouti

A clafouti is a French dessert that's said to be "a cross between a pancake and a custard." I think I would describe the texture to be more like a Chinese egg tart...if you've ever had one. Or like a more solid version of a creme brulee. I've never heard of a clafouti before a couple weeks ago! Sarah had mentioned she was thinking of making one with all the cherries we picked. I found my recipe for an Almond-Cherry Clafouti on Epicurious. The recipe is just my type of recipe...EASY with a lot of simple ingredients. Click here for the recipe.

I made a few minor modifications to the recipe. Per one of the reviews, I used a plastic straw to pit the cherries. The straw kept bending, but it got the job done. I didn't have a 10" glass pie dish, so I just used the 8x8" glass casserole dish I already had, and I cut the sugar by half to 1 tbsp + 1/4 cup. I think I should invest in a sifter. Sifting through a colander was slow, and I should've used a sifter for the powdered sugar. It just doesn't look as pretty sprinkled on. Oops! In the end, I thought it worked out pretty well. The husband said he LOVED it. That's good enough for me! =)

Ground up a 1/2 cup of almonds in a food processor.


Transfer to small saucepan; add milk and bring to simmer. Remove from heat; let steep 30 minutes. Pour through fine strainer, pressing on solids to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard solids in strainer. [I kept a little bit of the ground almonds for the mixture for some added texture.]


Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter glass dish and sprinkle with 1 tbsp sugar. Scatter cherries evenly over bottom of dish.


Using electric mixer, beat eggs, almond extract, salt, and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in medium bowl until well blended. Add strained almond milk and beat to blend. Sift flour into egg mixture and beat until smooth.


Pour mixture over cherries. Bake until set and knife inserted into center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool completely.


Lightly dust clafouti with powdered sugar and serve.

Currently Admiring...

1) The simple Ginny dress with the studded belt.
2) The versatile Caden leather cork wedge...perfect for summer strolling.
3) The elegant silk chiffon Taryn gown...be stunning at a party.
4) The chic Grecian Moon Dress...look fabulous at a wedding.