A Wedding Color Story

Photo Credit: Erica Loeks Photography

I got married kind of a long time ago.  But I still love poring over photos of weddings, especially photos of my own wedding.  One of my favorite parts of planning my wedding was choosing a color scheme.  I had a lot of different ideas floating around in my head ranging everywhere from all white to all black to everything in between.  Then one night I had a full vision: bright green and royal blue.  A week or so after my vision, Emerald green was named Pantone's color of the year.

Because I was going with such bold colors, I knew that the reception could get tricky.  How do you use  the colors without overusing the colors.  Here's where I think it's crucial to work with a wedding planner.  Wedding planners have seen it all, and they have a great knack for reigning in the crazy.  I had a fabulous wedding planner, Stephanie Johnson of Park Place Planning, who helped me see my vision without overdoing it.  I cried a lot on my wedding day, but I have to say that walking into the reception ballroom took my breath away.  It was months worth of effort and agonizing over every single decision.  When I walked into that room I saw my very vision come to life.  It was one of my favorite moments of my wedding day.

Photo: My Own
Flowers: La Petite Fleur

There were two areas of wedding planning where I really wanted to see my vision shine through: the flowers and the linens.  I am lucky enough to be friends with an amazingly talented florist, Carra Otten of La Petite Fleur.  The flowers were actually easy because I went into a meeting with Carra, told her my color scheme, told her I like sequins and shiny things, and asked her to work her magic.

Photo Credit: Erica Loeks Photography
Flowers: La Petite Fleur

The flowers were nothing short of perfection.

Having nice linens at your wedding is worth it.  It ties everything together.  I went back and forth on where I should spend my money and where I should add color.  I have one major tip for spending money on linens.  I wasn't going to do chair covers at first.  I talked to multiple people who work in the wedding industry and the answer was emphatically and unanimously the same: chair covers are a must. They can get expensive, but weddings are expensive.  And nothing can ruin all of your hard work in decorating than a gold and teal chair clashing with your pink and white color scheme.  For the love of Pete, people, use chair covers.  Or don't, whatever, it's your wedding.

I went with chair covers, and I never looked back.  In the end I chose a kelly green tablecloth for all of the round tables, white chair covers with royal blue sashes, and royal blue napkins.  Then for the head table, I decided on an all white look.  White cloths, white chair covers, and white sashes.  I think it turned out sensational.

I know this look is not everyone's cup of tea.  It's definitely bold, but that was what I wanted.  I loved the brightness and the clean lines and thought it was the perfect mix of preppy and modern.  Speaking of modern, when I was at the linen rental showroom shopping for linens, I stumbled upon these clear, acrylic candelabras that I could not live without.  We used three of them on the head table and they literally made my entire night.  Every time I see photos of them I talk about buying one for my home.

Photo Credit: Erica Loeks Photography

If you want to plan a colorful wedding, I say go bold or go home.  I also say hire a wedding planner because nothing is worse than decor that is ugly because someone took the expression go bold or go home literally.

I leave you with one last image of how color can really beautify a wedding.

Photo Credit: Erica Loeks Photography

The Ghost of Booth

I was looking at photos from my recent trip to Washington D.C. and I came across this photo which freaked me out!  My mom and I toured Ford's Theater while we were in D.C.  I was extremely excited about this tour as I had never been to Ford's before and had just finished reading the book Killing Lincoln.

With everything fresh in my mind from reading the book, the tour was kind of amazing.  Inside the actual theater, the box seat is set up to look exactly how it did on the night that Lincoln visited and was killed by John Wilkes Booth.  It was from this box seat that Booth shot President Lincoln and then jumped over the balcony to the stage.  

How freaky is this photo?  It looks like I captured the ghost of John Wilkes Booth.

The Luxury of Sky Clubs

One of the absolute worst parts of traveling is airport food.  When I'm excited and stressed about getting to the airport for a trip, the last thing I'm thinking about is food.  I often get all checked-in for a flight and realize that I'm starving.  Then I spend $15 for a bagel and diet coke only to realize when I get to my flight gate that they forgot to give me cream cheese.  I end up eating a dry bagel that tastes like it was made four days prior.

One of my bestest gal pals' mother works for Delta.  Every now and again I have been able to get passes for Delta's luxurious Sky Club and it has been such a treat.  Delta's Sky Club is somewhat pricey for a year membership, $700 for a joint one-year pass.  I don't travel near enough to justify the cost of a year membership.  They do, however, offer day passes at $50/per pass.  I'm not sure that I would get a day pass for a domestic flight, but if I was traveling international, $50 is worth it. 

For me, the best part about the Sky Club is being able to carve out your own little space while waiting for your flight.  The Club has a lot of tables, small couches, and other seating that is quiet, somewhat private, and most importantly close to an electronic outlet to charge your phone, kindle, ipad, etc.  This is KEY at an airport.  I will sit four gates away from where my flight is taking off just to get a seat close to an outlet. 

The second best part about the Sky Club is the unlimited and free access to food and beverages.  When Mike and I went on our honeymoon last fall, we had to be at the airport at 4:30 A.M.  TERRIBLE!  We had Sky Club passes and an hour to wait before our flight.  We were able to nab breakfast, some snacks for the flight, and Diet Coke.  There is no shame in a Diet Coke at 5:00 A.M.

As you can see from the picture, I was able to get a bagel (with cream cheese), a mini muffin and a small scone.  I also grabbed a couple of pieces of fruit and had 2 (okay, maybe 3) glasses of the good stuff.  The Club also offered many types of cereal, yogurt, granola, hot breakfast sandwiches, and other pastries.  It got our morning off to the best start and made us feel relaxed and prepared for our flight. 

It used to be that you could serve your own drinks, but now you have to ask a server behind the bar to pour you something.  I really preferred the self-serve soda machines.  Back in the day, (i.e. a few years ago) you could actually pour yourself an ice cold beer and get good and liquored up for FREE.  I think you could also just grab mini bottles of alcohol and wine.  I may have heard a story about a group of guys filling up Nalgene bottles of Heineken before a flight to Las Vegas all while wearing leisure suits and large sunglasses.  Boys!

All in all, the Sky Club makes flying feel like it did in the golden age.  Fancy and customer-oriented are things you no longer find in the flying experience, but it's nice to indulge in them every now and again.  

Winter Pucker

I am really hating dry, winter skin right now.  My legs, arms, nails, fingers, lips and hair feels brittle and rough.  I've mostly been noticing it in my lips and nail beds.  I have a dream product that I swear by to alleviate dry skin.  Allow me to introduce Smith's Rosebud Salve.  Does anyone use this gem?

A little back story on dry lips.  When I was a kid, I hated using chap stick and so my lips would become horribly dry and cracked.  My mom would often wait until I had fallen asleep and then carefully rub Vaseline or Carmex on my lips.  I would wake up so upset because I hated the smell and the feeling of Vaseline/Carmex.  I'm not sure why I hated smooth lips. 

When I got into high school, I would get really embarrassed when my lips would be so dry and cracked, so I started carrying around Lip Smackers wherever I went.  Seriously, I thought Lip Smackers were chap stick.  My favorite flavor was pink lemonade.  Once I realized that Lip Smackers did very little to heal chapped lips, I started using the Bath and Body Works chap stick.  It was probably only marginally better, but it felt good and smelled even better.

I'm not sure when, but at some point I read an article about Anne Hathaway's favorite beauty products and she mentioned Smith's Rosebud Salve for amazingly smooth lips.  I decided to try it out.  My life changed.

I always carry at least two tins of the salve on my person at ALL TIMES.  Why two, you ask?  Well, there have been times when one of the tins has been taken out at work and left there or in the opposite taken out at home and left there and if I keep at least two in my bag, then I'm always guaranteed to have one when I'm out and about. 

This stuff is the best.  If my lips are feeling the slightest bit chapped, I put a little of this on and within minutes everything is smooth and hydrated for hours.  During the driest parts of the year, I re-apply maybe once every few hours.  It always leaves my lips feeling soft and well-cared for.  It also smells faintly flowery and gives a little pinkish tint to your lips.  Nothing overpowering, just a little subtle something.

As if that wasn't enough, the salve can be applied to any area of your body affected by dry skin.  I've found that it works especially well on dry cuticle beds, hang nails and paper cuts.  When my nails are at their best, it is because I have been applying this salve to my nail beds once or twice a day.  Sometimes, if I'm in a dry-hand jam (does that sound dirty to anyone?), and don't have any lotion (okay, yes, it sounds dirty), I apply this to the affected area and it works okay.  Not as good as lotion, though.  The tin also says that it works for diaper rash.

One major downside is that if you are outside in the heat, the salve will melt in the tins and become a gooey mess.  This is why I also love the little tube for the summer.  No muss, no fuss.  Although, I don't like the quality of the salve in the tube as much as in the tins.  In the tube, you tend to get too much on your lips at one time.

Have I sold you on my favorite winter savior?

Sparkle, Sparkle

I would be totally remiss to start posting things about the wedding without first talking about the most awesomest bachelorette party that my girlfriends threw for me.  The night started out on a high note.  The girls surprised me with tarot card readings!

The tarot card reader was pretty awesome and so far has predicted some things right (Congrats Kara on winning your school board election!)  I love tarot card readings.  I think they are a good tool to clear your head and get you thinking about things.  I actually do my own tarot card readings sometimes just to bring back clarity to murkier situations.  So, this was such a fun and unexpected thing for the girls to put together. 

After my tarot card reading, there was lots of fun drinks and game playing. 

First was the Bridallini Bar, with different prosecco mixers.    My favorite was the Raspberry, but I also loved the Blackberry.  The little one in front was actually ground cherries and not ground tomatoes. 

We started a spirited game of homemade Headbanz.  Have you guys played that game?  So fun.  This one was specially made, so it was all famous couples. 

My couple was Mike and Molly and I did manage to guess it.  There was also a Blind Soda Taste Test between Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi.  No question should be asked here, I nailed it.  I could tell the difference based on taste alone and I'm pretty sure that I could also tell the difference between DC and Diet Pepsi based on the sound of the carbonation as you pour the drink.  The girls also decorated a shirt for me to wear on the wedding day during my hair and makeup session.  It was such a cute idea and I did, in fact, wear the shirt with pride.

After the fun games, we moved to dinner.  The party was held at Ginger Hop in Northeast Minneapolis.  Love, love, love.  I have eaten at almost every thai restaurant in the TC area and this is one of the better ones.  Everything was perfect.  Look how adorable the table was set!

After dinner, we had even more fun with cupcakes from Cupcake.  These were the perfect treat and we were lucky to have some leftover for the hotel room after we left the dance clubs.  Nothing tastes quite as good as a cupcake at 2:00 A.M.  We also did a gift opening and my favorite gift of the evening was a can of Spotted Dick. 

Here's a picture of all the ladies. 

Okay, so once dinner was over, we headed to a few hotspots in NE Mpls.  It was such a fun and lovely evening filled with laughing, dancing and bubbly.  It was the best way to celebrate with all of my favorite girls. 

The next morning, we all woke up and went over to the Nicollet Island Inn for a delicious 5-course tasting brunch.  Holy Hannah, deliciousness does not begin to cover it.  For each course, you could choose between a few options.  Here was what I had:

Course one: muffin and mimosa

Course two: Eggs Benedict

Course three: lobster bruschetta (my favorite)

Course four: salmon and brussel sprouts

Course five: warm apple crisp

The meal was so good and so filling that I didn't eat for the rest of the day.  Which is something for me because I am hungry a lot.  If you ever get a chance to do the five course brunch at Nicollet Island Inn, do it!  It's an indulgent experience, but very fun and the food is top notch.

The weekend was perfect and I was sad that it had to come to an end.  Thanks to my girlfriends for putting on a spectacular party.  Love you girls.



Almost Famous

The other day, my dear, sweet Michael was anonymously featured in an opinion column in the St. Paul newspaper.  Here's the link:

http://www.twincities.com/soucheray/ci_21517539/joe-soucheray-i-dont-hate-bicyclists-i-want?IADID=Search-www.twincities.com-www.twincities.com

Mike and I have similar views on bicyclists.  Anyhow, at the end of the column there's a funny story about a golfer (that would be Mike) calling the newspaper writer a !@#$%^& idiot because he was riding his scooter around town.  Oh Lord, we laughed when we read this.

This is not, however, the first time that Mike has insulted a local St. Paul celebrity.  One time, he called Garrison Keillor a douchebag right to his face.

I love him. 

Storm Warning

The other night some major storms rolled through the city and from what I can tell, most people slept through them.  There were so many trees down in the city that I live in that several roads were closed until the debris could be cleared.  How do we sleep through that?

The picture above shows our neighbors large tree that topped over.  Part of it was on their car, but, luckily, it didn't do any real damage.  I was really bummed about this tree because every spring it gives off the most beautiful white flowers. 

The other thing that happened is our neighbors that I have previously RAD'd ended up with a tree branch through their windshield.  See...

Is it bad that I had mixed feelings of sadness and smugness?  I was sort of like, well, maybe if you parked in  your driveway this wouldn't have happened to you!

I was just really glad that we had no home or car damage.  That was a relief.  We were out of power in our home in the morning, which made getting ready for work an interesting challenge.  It started off with a candlelit shower and ended with me braiding up my still sopping wet hair into something that looked semi-decent for work.  I always think it's funny when the power goes out and you keep trying to do things that require power and are confused when they don't work.  For instance, I kept turning on lights and my first thought when the lights didn't come on was "The light bulb burned out!"  It was a great start to the morning.

When in Vegas, Do as Parisians Do

When I go to Vegas, I believe that the best hotel to stay at is the Paris hotel. It's that gleaming beauty in the background of the above photo, complete with a replica of the Eiffel Tower. There are several reasons why I love the hotel. First and foremost, it's centrally located, so you can walk almost anywhere on the main strip. This is a big thing as cab rides to go one block can take a long time and cost around $20 plus a tip. This adds up. Plus, it's nice not to be at the mercy of a cabbie.

The next reason that I love the Paris hotel are the rooms. They aren't the flashiest rooms around, but they are very spacious and there's a lot of closet space. Plus, the bathroom is HUGE! I know this picture doesn't really show the size of it, but the shower was huge, the sink vanity was huge and they had an overly large tub. I used the tub every day that I was there. There's nothing I love more than a huge tub to soak in.

Then there's the casino. Too many casinos are all dark doom and gloom, but the Paris casino is light and airy. It's supposed to be reminiscent of Parisian streets during the day. Every time I walk into the casino area, I feel like I can hear the birds chirping and feel the sun shining. It makes me want to gamble!

Another awesome reason to stay at the Paris hotel (or at the very least visit it next time you are in Vegas) is the food. The Paris hotel has the best buffet. The thing is massive, so you need to bring your appetite. We ate there twice, once for "dinner" and once for breakfast. The breakfast buffet was the best, there was an omelet station, croissants and other pastries, french toast, fresh fruit, tons of meats, crepes. The dinner buffet is also loaded with goodies like pasta, crepes, salads and soups, chicken, seafood dishes and bread.

One hint for the buffet is to go a little bit before it opens for dinner. Technically you will only have to pay the "lunch" price, but if you wait at your table until dinner time rolls around, you will be able to partake in the all-you-can-eat crab legs, shrimp and prime rib for the lunch price. They also have a pretty good deal for all-you-can-drink wine and beer.

The Paris hotel also has a crepe stand.

Here's a ham and cheese and classic Nutella crepe. We only ate here once and looking at this picture, I'm wondering why? For other options, they have a bistro called Mon Ami Gabi, which has sidewalk seating overlooking the Bellagio hotel, so you can watch the dancing fountains while eating, they have a new place called The Sugar Factory and a fancy-pants restaurant called The Eiffel Tower Restaurant where you have to take an elevator to get to the restaurant and it also overlooks the dancing fountains. Tres chic!

The number one reason to stay at the Paris hotel, though, is that it's right across the street from the famed Bellagio, so it's an easy walk to get to my two favorite Vegas attractions: the dancing fountains and The "O" Show (Cirque du Soleil). I could watch the fountains for hours at a time.

A few years back, my friend Ro and I went out to Vegas and stayed at the Paris. When we checked-in, I politely asked the concierge if we could get a room overlooking the Bellagio? She said that it cost something like $50 extra a night. We decided against it. She gave us our room keys and sent us on our way. When we got to our room, I gallantly swiped my key and walked inside...SOMEONE ELSE'S HOTEL ROOM!!! Yes, the television was on, the bathroom was filled with empty booze bottles and dirty ashtrays and there were open suitcases on the unmade beds. I was horrified. Luckily there was no one actually in the room. Ro and I went back down to the lobby and I found the same concierge and explained what happened. She didn't seem that concerned about it, but asked me to wait a moment while she talked to her manager. When she came back, she said nothing, just handed us our room keys. When we went to our second room, we were delighted to find ourselves upgraded to a room overlooking the Bellagio. There was one night where we watched the fountains for three hours straight right from our room. Magical!

So, if you are ever finding yourself booking a Vegas vacation, consider the Paris. It's a little bit more expensive, but I think it's worth it in the end. Definitely don't forget about their buffet. I'm drooling right now thinking about their buffet!

Iced Tea Melee

I stole an old woman's iced tea the other day. And I don't feel guilty. Here is my story.

One cold and chilly fall morning a few weeks ago, I went to Dunn Brothers for my morning iced tea. It was still September and I wasn't willing to give up my summer time drink despite the chill to the air. I get in line and order one large black iced tea.

After ordering, I move to the "Piccup Line" and wait for my order. There are two old ladies hogging the counter, so I was standing behind them to the side. After a couple of minutes a barista comes up with one large black iced tea and puts it on the end of the counter closest to me.

Here's my thought process: 1. On a cold day in a coffee shop, I must be the only idiot ordering an iced drink, 2. The drink sat there for more than 5 seconds without anyone else going to pick it up and 3. Iced tea isn't really an old lady drink. So, I swooped in and grabbed the iced tea.

As I started unwrapping the straw, I felt old bitty evil eyes poring into my side. I turned to see the old ladies glaring at me. I stop what I'm doing, look them into the eye and genuinely say "I'm so sorry, did one of you also order an iced tea?" Silence. I think the bitties were trying to shame me. Bitches, please. It's downtown at 8:00 on a workday morning. I feel no shame for diving at my morning caffeination. Maybe if they felt the same sense of urgency about being awake, they'd be enjoying an iced tea by now.

One of the old ladies mockingly said to me "I did order an iced tea, but maybe you were here first." Awesome Minnesota passive aggression. They clearly knew that they were here before me. So, I did the kind thing and slid the iced tea cup towards her and said "I'm sorry, why don't you take this one and we'll just get a new straw."

So, now I've apologized twice to her and offered her the iced tea. Old lady wasn't going to give up in trying to shame spiral me. She had to take one last dig and said "Maybe you need it, you look like you're in a real hurry."

That was it. I grabbed the iced tea and said "I am in a hurry", poked the straw into the top and took that first sweet sip all while making direct eye contact with the ladies. Then I left. I totally went downtown on her ass.

Popcorn and Zen

The picture above really has nothing at all to do with this story, only that it's kind of zenful. Minus the power lines.

Anyhow, I am a clarisentient. I am extraordinarily tuned into emotions. Emotional people get to me because I absorb what they are feeling and in turn feel it as well. When someone is stressed out or sad or mad, I have a hard time being around them because it upsets my chi.

I'm talking about this today because I have been having a hard time at work lately. The short story is that a year ago I started a new assignment and it requires me to be in a different building around a whole new set of people. It was just today that I realized why it bothers me so much, it's because the energy of these people is so terrible, that it knocks me down. Things in this place are always harried, there are too many cooks in the kitchen and everyone is scheming to figure out how they can get their way. It's a terrible environment and I can't leave the emotions at the door. I carry them with me and bring them home, which makes some days unbearable.

Anyhow, thinking about this reminded me of a funny story about my bizarre struggle for inner balance.

In college, one of my greatest friends and I lived in the same apartment building but at opposite ends of a U-shaped hallway. My friend, Kara, is really good at manipulating energies. She can melt stress away simply by changing the lighting of a room.

Well, one night, she was stressed, like frenzied stressed. She had called me to come over and when I walked into her apartment, I told her that she was stressed and the whole apartment was stressed. So, we began her destressing by lighting at least 15 candles all around her room to create a calm environment.

Then she said "I need some popcorn" and left the room to put a bag in the microwave.

When she came back, we were chatting and I told her that I didn't think the calming environment was helping because she was still frantic. As she was starting to tell me all that she was feeling, I interrupted her and said "Something's wrong with the microwave."

I don't know why I knew it. I don't know if it was a feeling in the air or a smell or what, but I knew that something was wrong. Kara had gone out into the kitchen to see the popcorn bag on fire. The microwave was still running and Kara pushed the button to open the door. A huge plume of smoke came out of the microwave. This is when my adrenaline kicked in. I immediately began flapping my arms trying to billow down the smoke. I had grabbed a kitchen towel and was using that to push the smoke away from the fire detector. I had also managed to open two windows, blow out all 15 candles and hide them (we weren't allowed to have candles in our apartment) and run out the door yelling "FIRE". I had taken all of that frenzied energy and put it to use in an emergency.

I made it all the way into my apartment and announced to my roommates to put their shoes on because there was a fire alarm. Then the alarms actually started ringing. I had put my own shoes on and ran out the door, down three flights of stairs and safely away from the building. I finally stopped to notice that no one was really following me. There were only a few people who had made it out of the building and the alarms were no longer ringing. I had to stop and take a few deep breaths in an attempt to gain my composure.

Why was I stressed? I wasn't stressed before seeing my friend, I hadn't made the popcorn, it wasn't my apartment and there was no actual fire. But I couldn't shake it. I held onto the stress of that moment for a good two days. When I got back into the building and back to my friend's apartment, she was like "You were moving so fast, it was incredible."

That's what stress does to me, makes me a whirlwind of frenetic energy. I hate it.

Could You Resist...

...this cuteness. This was when Ramsey first met Kirby. And in typical Ramsey fashion, he just had to be up in Kirby's business every minute. I'm not sure how Kirby felt about it, but hopefully one day they will be best buds.

I haven't been posting as much lately, which is not by pure choice. Work has been so insane. And then there's that little puppy. That little angel who wakes up at 5:00 A.M. and doesn't stop moving until 9:00 P.M. He brings so much joy and so much annoyance at the same time.

Puppy training is going great, but it's a constant job and it's taken a lot out of me. I'm hoping that next week I can bring a lot more material to the Internet world. A lot more material that no one will read.

Vacations are Awesome

While I was away I came up with a litany of amazing blog ideas. Everything from RAD's to Me On's to Book Reviews to just general random postings. Unfortunately, I cannot spend my days blogging away, so they are going to have to come out slowly but surely.

All in all, my vacation took me to Washington D.C. and Charleston, South Carolina and it was fabulous. Hot, sticky and fabulous. I saw a lot, ate a lot and generally frolicked in merriment all day long. Here is one such picture of me frolicking:
It's hard to tell from the picture, but I'm posing in front of a submarine. I love submarines. And seamen.

Now it's back to the grind and only 1 more week of August left. Sadness.

Listen With Me...

Is anyone else listening to the new Mika album that came out on Tuesday? Love. Love. Love.

My current favorite is Good Gone Girl, which I'm listening to right now and wishing I was dancing, but I'm not because I'm at work. Although I'm alone in my office, so maybe a few shimmies wouldn't hurt.

Feb's Eve Goal: Become A ...

"People ask the question...what's a RocknRolla? And I tell 'em - it's not about drugs, drums, and hospital drips, oh no. There's more there than that, my friend. We all like a bit of the good life - some the money, some the drugs, other the sex game, the glamour, or the fame. But a RocknRolla, oh, he's different. Why? Because a real RocknRolla wants the fucking lot."

-Archie

This February people better watch out because this movie will become like my new bible. I will consult the movie to make all of my life decisions. Why will I do this? Because this move is A-MAZ-ING!! (And if you were hearing my voice just now singing the word Amazing in an operatic tone then you know me very well. Kudos and gold stars for you!)

It's amazing for many reasons, but here's the top three:

1. The dance scene - if you see it you will know what I'm talking about.

2. The chase scene - ditto, and bravo to Guy Ritchie for making me laugh harder than any comedy movie has ever made me laugh (and btw, this is not a comedy movie).

3. Mark Strong - he plays Archie and I want to have his babies. Lots of little badass, rocknrolla babies.

Feb's Eve will be all about a new outlook on life. This movie is my new outlook, except less violent and with much more awkward dancing.