Coconut Shell Earrings

I love when people give gifts or souvenirs that mean something and are selected because the recipient will greatly admire them. My friend Samantha brought me back these earrings from a recent excursion that are made from coconut shells and then dyed with natural materials. She was worried I wouldn't be a fan of the yellow color but I love how organic they look.

Proposing to my Bridesmaids

This week I proposed bridesmaid-hood to three of my favorite ladies. I sent my sister and maid of honor a bouquet of daisies on Valentines Day and then started working on other ways of asking the most important women in my life to stand with me when I marry Adam.

One of my favorite things is the names of nail polish colors and I found wedding-inspired colors that just so happened to have a diamond on the bottle. Rachel received a color called "Wedding Crasher," Jackie got a color called "Save the Date" and Jenny was given a color called "Aisle Be There." I put the nail polish bottles in gift bags and attached light up colored rings to the handles of the bags. The rings were a bigger hit than I ever expected them to be and each girl accepted my proposal!

Inspiration

I was introduced to this video at the start of 2013 and have probably contributed about 56 views to the massive amount that this adorable video featuring the "Kid President" has gained on YouTube. He is a genius and I am fairly positive he is in that select list of people that it is impossible for anyone to hate. Also in this list is Adam, although he claims that an IT member at Gonzaga isn't his biggest fan.

I have taken to watching this video when I need a little inspiration, motivation, and even self-understanding. Check it out! It's just lovely.

Treasure Chests

One of my favorite stories about Camille will always be when she showed me all her prized possessions that she keeps in a shoe box. She was only four or five but you would have thought the mood bracelets, some bracelets I had made for her and costume jewelry were all family heirlooms she had coveted for years. The best part was when she asked, "Do you want to see my treasures?"

Who would say no to that?

Before I got engaged I was in ceramics throwing pots on the wheel and this little tiny pot presented itself. I knew that I would need something to hold my ring in a few weeks so I carved in a heart. I usually sign my pots with SJ and a heart but on this one I added my future last initial. Yes, I did this before I was even engaged. Details...

This is my treasure chest.

What Will Be Your Word?

I just re-watched Eat, Pray, Love and was drawn to the idea once again of having a word that describes you, your life, your views on the world, etc. I asked Adam what he thought his word would be and he siad, "fortuitous" because as he put it, "He feels pretty lucky lately." Nice touch fiance.

Last summer my mom gave Brytten, herself, and I a bracelet with the word "Aisling" stamped on it. She wanted something that would describe us all and settled on dream and then looked it up in different languages and discovered that aisling is dream in Gaelic. This is probably my word for the three of us and now that I am embarking on the next great love of my life I am on the hunt for my word.

Light as a Feather

I am bringing back my favorite kind of post: a feature on $5 earrings from World Market. This latest jewelry purchase was an easy decision and they are so delicate.  I love that all at the same time they look like a leaf, a feather, and a swan. And the enchanted feather duster from Beauty and the Beast.

Remembering

I was going through old photos to work on a project for my bridesmaids and I found this. This photo will always be one of my faves not only because of the hilarity of it but because of the wonderful two-legged and four-legged creatures in it!