Bridal Shower Fun

It just occurred to me that I haven't done a recap from my cousin's bridal shower yet... OOPS!

Well, let's set the stage.  My mom called me on Friday and said that they didn't have power.  A wind storm had gone through and taken some trees down.  I didn't really ask many questions, and figured that they would have the power on by that night... WRONG!

We had to make a couple of stops before we got to my parents' house so it was night by the time we got there.  J missed the exit because the sign had been chopped in half by the wind, and the whole area, which consists of a fairly large shopping area, was COMPLETELY dark.  Uh oh...

We got to my parents' house around 11 pm and decided we would just go to bed and hope that the power came back on over night - well it didn't.  I woke up at 5:30 am on Saturday, really starting to worry about the fact that I didn't know if the hotel had power.  J got up and went to the only grocery store in the area that had power, got some breakfast food that didn't require cooking, and got one of the last bags of ice in the city.  He also stopped by the hotel and they did not have power.  They asked us to call at 7:00 am when the manager arrived, and he would have more information for us.

So, we called at 7 am and it was busy.  I called about 10 more times before I figured out that they are probably on an internet based phone, which means no power = no phone.  J, my dad and I hopped in the car and drove over.  I talked with the manager and he said they would make it work!  They could get us all of the major food, they were ordering coffee from a local coffee shop, and that he would find something that could replace the toast that they wouldn't be able to make.  He also said they would put candles on the table for extra light, and provide extra pitchers of ice water.

Luckily my cousin had power, so I went to her house to get ready.  My mom and aunt put the centerpieces together and we met at the hotel to decorate and get ready...

Centerpieces, courtesy of my mom and aunt

Centerpieces, courtesy of my mom and aunt

The towel cake that I made

I thought donuts were more appropriate for a brunch shower

The table cloths were wrinkled (no iron) and it was pretty dark in the room because we kept having to close the curtains further to keep the sun's heat out, but the food was great, and I'm so glad we were able to make it work!  We played Bridal Scatgories which was a free print out that I found here and Name that Spice, even though it wasn't a "kitchen" shower per say.  Then it was time for the bride to open her gifts!

My other creation - Pinterest inspired, of course  :)

A few quick shots before we were all covered with sweat all went back home, and the bridal shower was a success!!

The bride between the Maid of Honor and a high school friend

Mother of the Bride, Grandmother of the Bride & Bride

Future Mother in Law and Grandmother in Law

Cousins - the funny picture (always a must have)

The bride with her aunts

Hannah and me!

I can't wait for her wedding... it's going to be such a fun day!  Only a couple more weeks until her bachelorette party, sure to be a great time as well!!!

DIY Towel Cake

My cousin's bridal shower was on Saturday (recap sometime next week) and one of the gifts that also served as a decoration was the towel cake that my mom and I made.  My friend made me the cutest towel cake for my bridal shower...

I don't feel like mine is as amazing as hers, but overall I'm pretty happy with how it came out!

Here are the step-by-step instructions...

You'll need:

A cardboard cake round (mine is 14") or other cardboard base

A dowel rod

Ribbon - I used three different kinds, 1 wired and the other two not

Safety Pins - optional

Decorative push pins - I used the ones with pearls

2 bath towels

3 hand towels

4 wash cloths (I used 2 wash cloths and a hand towel)

___________________________________________________

Start by laying your bath towels out and folding them into thirds.  The width has to be the same.

I put safety pins on these towels, but it's optional.  I only used them on the bath towels.

Next, roll your bath towels, making sure you have a good amount of space in the middle so you can get it on the dowel.  I just used my finger and didn't wrap it too tightly.

You will have wrinkles that come up as you roll... just tuck those into the roll as you go.  I promise, it doesn't have to be perfect, even though you'll feel like it does!  The most important thing to be sure about is that you are keeping your rolls level.

When you are done rolling, you will have a right side and a wrong side.  The wrong side is the one with the edge of the towel showing... that's the side you want down.

Wrong side...

Right Side!

Once you are done rolling, you'll want to pin the towel.  In my opinion, it's always better to put too many pins in to start.  You can always take them out as you go... it's better to be sure the towel is not going to come unrolled as you are working with it.  Here's how I placed mine.

Once it's pinned, place put the dowel in.  I did not attach the dowel to the base.

My second layer was three hand towels.  As you can see, one of them is different... that is because that's what my cousin registered for!  I just put the one with the J on the inside of the roll where no one will see it.

I folded these into thirds as well.  Folding them in half made them taller than the bottom layer, which just didn't look right.

I did the same rolling with these, without using the safety pins.  I also pinned them the same way with the straight pins.

When I got to my last layer, I got too focused and forgot to take a picture of the before.  I used the other "J" towel and two wash cloths... the wash cloths were folded in half and the J towel was folded to match.  I put the J towel on the inside again.  Same rolling, same pinning... this one was a little harder to pin because I really had to stretch the last wash cloth to get it all the way around the top layer.

You'll obviously have to put the second and top layer on the dowel from the top.  It's easiest to use your fingers to ensure you have a clear path for the dowel before you try to put the towels on.  Be careful not to push the center of your towels out... you'll have to re-roll them.

back - all seams/pins line up

Front

I happened to have this white ribbon that I found in my box of wedding stuff, so I used it as my base ribbon.  You can start with a color

The next thing I did was to make the ribbon for the top.  This could have been the last step, but I love my Bowdabra and couldn't wait to use it!!!

I used wired ribbon and made a cute bow for the cake topper

View from above the cake

I also used the same ribbon to make cascading curls, which is also what I used to attach the bow to the top.

Before I curled the ribbon

Then I attached my two other ribbons.  This is where I took pins out and put them back in to make everything lay right.  I also folded my top ribbon edges over before I pinned them to give it a finished look.

Last thing I did was to curl the long strands and VOILA... A CAKE!

SO, what do you think?

Don't forget to stop by tomorrow for a red, white and blue Wedding Wednesday!!!

ANOTHER vacation!!!

We've been back at work for a week and now it's time for another vacation.  This one is a little more of a "stay-cation" than last week was... no flying... just a quick drive up to my parents' house.  Here's what's on the agenda for the coming week...

Friday afternoon - I have to run to Sam's and get some flowers for my cousin's shower and then J and I will go up to my mom and dad's house

Saturday - Hannah's Bridal Shower!!!  My cousin is also coming in from New York so I'm sure we will be in the pool with a beer (or two or three) for the afternoon after the shower.

Sunday - Grandma and Grandpa's burial and then the afternoon at my aunt and uncle's house with the fam.

Monday - ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!!  We are going to do our "After I Do" photos on Monday morning... exactly one year after our wedding day... some may call this procrastination... I call it sentimental.

Tuesday-Saturday - fun at the lake, a 4th of July celebration and time with the family.  I sure hope they can shoot off fireworks... there's been a burn ban because we have had so little rain, but it just wouldn't be the 4th without them!

Sunday - a baby shower for my cousin, with a Very Hungry Caterpillar theme (SO CUTE!!)

All I can say is, I LOVE SUMMER!!!

Even though next week will be busy, I'll be showing you my latest creations (along with instructions) that will be making an appearance at the bridal shower on Saturday and the baby shower on Sunday!!

What do you have going on for the 4th of July?

Wedding Wednesday

Only a few days away from my cousin's shower!  I'm working on the list of stuff I have to get finished up the night before the shower (when I actually arrive in Ft. Wayne)... one of things is to go buy the flowers for the vases.  The other, is to build one of these!!!

via

Mine is going to look a little different, but you get the idea!!  This is what we are doing in the place a cake... with a brunch shower, I felt like this was much more fitting!

You can check out all of my Wedding Wednesday pins on my Wedding Wednesday Pinterest Board!

Happy Hump Day!!!

Wedding Wednesday

About a year ago, on Memorial Day Weekend, I had the most amazing weekend with friends and family as I had my bachelorette party in Chicago and another bridal shower, hosted by two of my aunts, in the same city as our family lake house, where I've spent a very significant part of my life.

The trip to Chicago started off rocky, and getting bumped off our flight meant that the Cubs tickets that J got us went to waste (so sad that I still haven't made it to Wrigley).  When we finally got there, things started looking up!  We ate a lot, we drank some :) and we went all around the city.  We even took some time to get an education on our weekend of fun by going to the Museum of Science and Industry.

The Bride-to-Be has to be dressed up

Waiting to get into Garret's to get some popcorn

Science & Industry Museum

Howl at the Moon

After a fun couple of nights, we took the train from Chicago to South Bend and then rented a car to take us to my bridal shower.  My only Aunt on my dad's side, Sandi and my Godmother/Aunt on my mom's side, Debbie put the shower on for me.  Aunt Sandi makes me taco salad every year for my Birthday so when she offered to do the same for my shower, I could not pass it up!  We had the shower in her church and it was lots of fun!  We played games and ate GREAT food and had a great time!

Cake Table

Great decorations

The whole group

Best Flower Girl ever!!

What a great weekend... I can't believe that was a year ago!!!

I need your help!!!!

OK, so I'm working on a color pallet for my cousin's bridal shower and I need some help choosing.  I have three options that have all been inspired by some pallets she saw on www.colourlovers.com or in pictures.

Here are the options, and there is a voting box on the top of the right side bar... please help me choose!!!

Option 1

Option 2

Option 3

Wedding Wednesday

About 13 months ago (yeah, sorry... I missed the 12 month mark), my awesome Maid of Honor threw my first bridal shower and it was everything I could have asked for.  My mom came down from Indiana and one of my friends who I hadn't seen in a few years, made the trip from Houston to Dallas.

We were at the most amazing winery that quickly became one of my most favorite places to visit and relax at the end of a long week.  It's the same place where J and I bottled wine for the (week before the) wedding, and it's a place that we will probably go every time we are back in the area visiting.

That friend of mine from Houston also brought her fancy camera and gave me some amazing memories of an amazing day...

Me and the MOH

Me and my Houston friend

Two awesome glasses... the one on the right was hand painted by
a lady at the winery who fell in love with my MOH and me
when we were in there a few days before deciding what wine we should serve

Me and Mom

So, here's to the memories of the months leading up to the best day of my life... we should all drink some wine to celebrate  :-D