Update!

So much going on...I'm in Birmingham, Alabama right now, getting ready for Katie's big day on Saturday. I'm not giving anything away before the wedding, but here are a few little pics from Katie's shower that my youngest sister Kerry and I threw a few weeks ago in Perdido Key, Florida. All decorations chosen for their ease of packing on a plane. We had such a good time showering her with gorgeous lingerie, and I loved getting to spend time with all the girls that have been such a great part of her life. Our little gift for everyone at the party was pretty fun if I do say so myself--pretty coral and pink lace undies so that everyone left with something new and fabulous! We finished up the evening at the infamous Florabama (a once-in-a-lifetime event, never to be repeated). I love the picture with my sisters--this is how I always feel when I'm with them, even if we're not tearin' it up on the dance floor.

And in the meantime, we did put an offer down on the house and have put ours on the market. It's going to have to sell fast for us to get the other, so please, please, please let one of the three open houses taking place while we're out of town produce someone to love our little abode. I almost feel like I'm selling one of my children--it was my first baby so this is hard, but exciting too. I'm ready for a new adventure!

And speaking of new adventures, a baby was born today! Welcome to the world Wolfie. I love you already and can't wait to get home and snuzzle your little burrito wrapped body. Oh what good times we have ahead! Congrats to my dear friends.

Real Weddings: Melissa + Kevin

Melissa and Kevin's bright and sunny wedding from last June...filled with tulips, party dresses, paper lanterns, and petal cones. (And if I don't say it, he'll be very mean to me, so yes...thank you to my award winning delivery person for making it all possible...it wouldn't have happened without you!)

Wedding at the University of Washington, reception held at Pravda Studios.

Tweet Tweet!

Busy getting ready to head to Birmingham for my sister's wedding next week, and realizing how hard it is to work on a wedding from a distance--you brides amaze me! Katie has an awesome color palette--dusty turquoise and bright red, and will have antique birdcages and little birds in the gorgeous garden of the Cate's House.

We've been trying to figure out what to do with the branches above the buffet table--orchid strands were considered, but they seem a little formal and elegant for a southern sweet tea afternoon wedding. Then...I saw these darling little bird cutouts from Once Wed's weekly DIY feature that features lalaLaurie. She always does the cutest stuff! (Here for directions on the birds, including the template).

Chocolate Pavlova

I've always loved ballet and the image of the classic Russian ballerina. I danced for years and still dabble in classes sometimes. My crazy brain seems to need the occasional opportunity for that all-consuming concentration that an hour and a half in the dance studio demands. It clears my head of all of the junk, stress, and distractions that seem to accumulate.

I think my love for ballet began back in fourth grade when I read Anna Pavlova's biography. While my friends were obsessing over Mary Lou Retton, I was transfixed and mesmerized by the legendary Russian dancer from the early 1900's. You know that dinner party question..."who would you have dinner with if you could invite anyone in history, living or dead?". Anna would definitely be on my guest list even today.

So...it's probably no surprise that one of my very favorite desserts is the Pavlova. (Yes, of course it's named after her). This past Valentine's Day I was assigned dessert for our potluck dinner with friends, and found something even better...a chocolate Pavlova. It received rave reviews for the crispy outside, chewy dense meringue center, luscious ganache, and fluffy topping of whipped cream and fresh raspberries. Hungry yet?

The recipe is here, and I'll add in one little word of warning. On Valentine's, a few of us tried to cut the meringue into serving sizes, and had a helluva time. I don't think it was entirely due to the yummy Gloria Ferrer we had consumed either. I was lucky to be spending Valentine's with five other people I'm totally crazy about instead of just one, because we ended up putting the Pavlova in the middle of the table and descending upon it like messy, cozy vultures, silverware be damned. If you see this as a problem or if you are making this for a first date, you could easily just make 4-6 individual meringue shells from the same recipe. Personally, it was extra fun to be goey and chocolatey with friends and I'll be keeping the recipe as is.

Springtime in Seattle

I know I promised a real wedding, yummy food, and attention paid to the blog. But it's only Tuesday, and the weather is even better than predicted.

Also, I spent the morning wandering through a potential new house. Help!!! I'm so conflicted...we live in a 100 year old gorgeous cottage that is exactly how I want it. We have the most amazingly kind and generous neighbors. Over the last eight years, we've poured ourselves into remodeling, painting, gardening, more painting, finding authentic old matching moldings and doors, gutting the kitchen and building the one I dreamed of with wood counters and a farmhouse sink...and I've been busy planning the rockin' blowout I was going to throw for it this summer for it's centennial. BUT...what if we could cut about 10 hours+ of driving a week from our combined commutes? What if we didn't have 14 years of paying for private school ahead of us because we lived where the public schools are awesome? What if the new house had a huge yard? What if it also needed tons of work for the long term, but was entirely livable and fabulously quirky already? WHAT WOULD YOU DO????

So no more blogging today. I'm off to go read design blogs to get ideas of what I would do with the bizarre family room that so isn't me, and to lay in the sun until inspiration or a decision or at least hunger strikes. Help if you can. Please.

Weather report from Kurt Riedi

A very short week in review

It's been a busy week--a few meetings with clients, putting together a new class that I'm teaching, preparing for a gorgeous deep lapiz and mango wedding this weekend, and full planning mode for that Alabama wedding. (I can't wait Katie and Grant!) Not much reading time, but I did notice that:

Sweet Paul loves passionfruit (though probably not as much as I do. It is my VERY favorite food on earth. #1! If you are San Francisco, go immediately to Tartine for their Passionfruit Bavarian. Life changing I tell ya)

J.Crew released a new bridesmaid dress style. Gorgeous.

Kathryn has been taking her Snippet & Ink readers on a tour of the US. My favorite boards so far are this pale sagey desert board and the rustic bluegrass wedding.

I'm off to put finishing touches on the flowers for today! Next week I promise to get a real wedding up (I've got several I just need to pull pictures for), and find something yummy for you to bake. Have a great weekend!

Martha & Charles

Today is Martha Stewart's spring WEDDING special, so set your Tivo's and DVRs accordingly. She has some really great guests lined up and some great topics...Vera Wang, Frederic Fekkai, an eyelash guru (I can't wait to hear about this...if it looks easy, I'm going for it when I have to walk down the aisle as a bridesmaid in a few weeks), what guests should wear...

And, "Charles Darwin" garden roses with heuchera leaves and soft green ladies mantle.

The real reason you probably come here

A bride's bouquet with soft pink peonies and stephanotis with topaz crystal centers. Bridesmaids bouquets inlude lisianthus, gooseneck, and fiddleheads.

Flower sculpture

Eloise Corr Danch's beautiful paper flower sculptures are currently gracing the windows of Macy's in NYC at Herald Square. The display includes elaborate floral "hats" and garlands of thousands of paper flowers. They are magical!

Via decor8 and Eloise Corr Danch

Spring 2010

A few favorites from the 2010 lines that are starting to come out. (I'm still waiting for Spring 2009 to arrive myself).

Oscar de la Renta...usually my very fave dress designer, but not necessarily so with the new collection. I really do love the giant "quilled" blooms on this one though.

Carolina Herrera...always so ladylike. The black lace is a little reminiscent of a Spanish mantilla, and the other? That dress is it's own ticker tape parade. So gorgeous!

I just can't get enough...

anemones this year.

I can't help but think...

that it would be fun to feel like I was the center of a blooming rose! And this silk and wool scarf from Radici would just about do it. (They also offer a lovely creamy ivory version that would be a beautiful winter wedding neck warmer).


Via Peonies and Polaroids.

Be The Change

Spring eco-fashion for you and your home from BTC Elements...

Windows

Beautiful windows have been springing up all over Seattle...and after today's snowstorm, it seems they might be the only spring we're going to get! Pardon the pathetic photography--worse than usual because snapped with my phone.

From my very favorite store in Seattle...Watson Kennedy Fine Living at First and Madison.

Bee hives under construction today at Anthropologie in University Village. Each little honey comb was made of scored cardboard with a yellow tissue paper backing. And most of them aren't even up in the window yet. I've always thought it would be so fun to be their display coordinator there, but maybe not...

And the always gorgeous Tiffany's...

I'm sad I didn't get a shot of the sweetest little tiny window of a little boutique in Ballard today. A single birch branch with little white doves and brown kraft paper flowers. I might recreate if for my dining room next week...