Cruise

Warning, this is long.

Did you know that we got married?  Well, we also went on a honeymoon.  And yes, this all took place 8 months ago, and I am just now writing about it.  Better late than never, right?

Our honeymoon was a Royal Caribbean cruise.   We figured a cruise would give us the best opportunity to see as many places as possible.  Plus, we live in Florida.  So, it’s just a short drive and we’re at sea!This is the cool little shopping area on the cruise, and me awkwardly standing in the center…It was fun to stop into a different bar on the ship each night.  This was a historic/gothic type bar that we hung at the first night.The first port we stopped at was in Labadee, Haiti.When we first arrived we explored some trails in the woods…It really is such a beautiful place.  Look at that water…We also found some very interesting trees…For the rest of the day we hung at the beach, then went snorkeling.  It was amazing to see all of the different coral that made up the reefs and of course all of the fish.Did I mention that each night we had a 3 course meal!  And, FYI you can order more than one meal!  We ate wayyy too much food on this trip.Our next stop was Falmouth, Jamaica.The port we stopped at was adorable, but also very small. It was suggested that we set up an excursion at this port. It was also suggested that we don’t venture out into the local towns on our own.  So, we took their word for it, and booked a horseback riding excursion.In the photo above we are en route to horse back riding on a bus full of other cruisers.  Let me tell you, it was terrifying.  Not only do they drive on the other side of the road, but they drive like maniacs.  But, we did make it in record time to ride some horses.This excursion was at a cute little ranch in the middle of nowhere, with a bunch of hilarious horse handlers running the show.The horses were beautiful, but of course I felt bad for them.  We rode a bunch of trails in the woods, and we also got to ride in the ocean.I almost fell off my horse like 3 times and truly thought I was going to be trampled by the horses behind me, BUT it was so much fun!We also saw a couple shows on the ship.  One was an ice show and the other was a magic show, both were great. Next stop was Grand Cayman.  Now, this was probably the most beautiful stop on our trip. Look at that beach and the water!We rented some snorkeling gear and went snorkeling right off the beach.  Seriously though, that water….And, there were wild chickens and roosters everywhere.  Another win for Grand Cayman.  After snorkeling, we had lunch at a cute little place on the water.  We had some nachos and conch fritters, everything was delicious.This was at our favorite bar on the ship, it was nautical themed. Our last stop was Cozumel, Mexico.We decided to just walk the streets and do some shopping and eating here.  Along our way we saw a lot of these guys…Everywhere we looked there were iguanas, some were huge.

We had a couple drinks at Fat Tuesdays….And Justin got into a gun fight…He’s always such a thug.  Can’t take him anywhere.

Then, we had lunch at Jimmy Buffets Margaritaville.It was right on the water and the staff were so fun. They danced and made a nice balloon animal for Justin…We had so much fun and plan to go on another cruise… hopefully soon!

 

I’m so fancy

You already knowwww.  I’m really not that fancy, but here is the fanciest I get…

Let’s re-cap my wedding dress shopping experiences and how I narrowed it down to this guy (or gal I suppose)…

I did some dress shopping in FL and NY.  I started in FL, where I went shopping with my friend Krissi.  Here is one dress from that trip…

I am ecstatic that I did not get this dress, because looking at it now I think blah.

Now, I am not a selfie in the dressing room kinda girl, but this did happen…

I had to send a photo to my sister for advice.  I always need her advice when it comes to things like this.

At this point in my search, I was thinking about getting a more casual bohemian style dress and this guy was at Dillard’s on clearance for $53.  Score! This dress did come home with me, because it was $53! Although it did not become my wedding dress. Boo.

Next shopping trip took place in good old NY with my mom and sister.  For this trip I was pretty determined, because it was only 6 months from the wedding and I needed a dress ASAP. We went to a couple different dress shops.  Here is the first dress I tried on…

I don’t even have to tell you why this was not my dress.  Do I?

Next…

The lady who was helping us out in this store picked this one out.  It was an immediate no for me.  Not me at all.

I was actually a pretty big fan of the option above.  I love the lace and the sleeves.  As you can see it was a little large, so I was holding the dress behind my back.  In the end I wasn’t feeling it so we moved on to the next shop, which just so happened to be David’s Bridal.

I didn’t think I would find anything at David’s just because it is such a commercial bridal shop, well I was wrong.

And we have a winner. It’s a Galina, style 7WG3381 if you’re super interested.  I loved it as soon as I put it on.  Wanna see more?

Okay fine!

I love that it’s not your everyday lace, it’s more of a leafy pattern.

I liked it even more with a sash, so that happened too.

Since we’re already on the topic of my wedding apparel, I’ll just tell you about my shoes and jewelry as well.

I went with super simple beaded sandals that I found on Amazon for $20.  Like I said I am fancy, people.  They did the job and I still wear them, so I was pretty pleased.

As for my jewelry, I was a pretty big fan of some of the chunky pearl necklaces I had seen on Pinterest.  Like this…

Or this…

So I stalked Etsy and found a shop called Eienblue where I came across this necklace…

It was only $42, plus the shipping was super fast and the necklace is great quality.  Go check out her shop.

Now, here are some more photos from the day of the wedding…

 

I am very happy with my pick.  Overall, I was comfortable and the dress went well with the vintage theme of the wedding. Success!

For The Guys

Since I covered what we got the girls for thank you gifts, I figured it’s only right to share what the guys got.  First up…

What’s in the box?

Oh you know… a tie.  We picked out these bad boys because they are what the guys wore for the wedding.  We figured we would foot the bill for them and make it part of their gift.

Next, Justin found these monogrammed wallets…

I think these were a great choice and I hope the guys loved them!

They also each got a golf multi tool, because you know all men need one of those!

And the whole shebang…

Justin picked out all of these things on his own, so no references on where they came from.  Sorry friends.  I did however get to wrap them up!

Look familar?  I wanted them to match the bridesmaids a bit, but different still.  Make sense?

Boom!  Wedding party gifts done!

For the Girls

Were you wondering what I got my bridesmaids?  Thought so.  Since I love and appreciate my friends and sister so very much I wanted to get them some things that tickle their fancies.

So what do you do when you need some badass gift ideas?  Etsy.  I know it’s an addiction, but there is so much greatness to be found on etsy.

First up I was thinking some sort of bag/purse would be a contender.  Here are the few that I narrowed it down to…

These are from a shop called JuneberryStitches.  Those colorful floral fabrics used to create the names combined with the simple burlap bag and you can call me a fan.

While still browsing in JuneberryStitches shop I came across these…

Now those are my jam and I thought my sister would dig them too.

Lastly, I stumbled upon these…

I found these in a shop called GeauxMelange.  I loved the little leaf on these and of course the embroidered name.

Finally I decided I wanted to purchase from JuneberryStitches.  I ended up getting a couple of the bags with the doilies for my sister and I. I thought my other two friends wouldn’t be as excited about the doily bag as us so I picked out a couple of this style for them…

Here are the colors I went with…

I am so happy with them!  And as you can see I got one extra, that would be for me!  Couldn’t resist.  This seller did an amazing job, she was so quick responding to my questions and shipping, and the bags are great quality to boot.  Go buy one!

Next I knew I wanted to get some piece of jewelry for each of them.  I really enjoyed these…

Found em’ in a shop called tyrahandmadejewelry.  I honestly would have gotten them, but one of my friends had purchased something similar for her bridesmaids, and my sister just so happened to be in that wedding.  So I nixed these and decided to go with an Alex and Ani bracelet instead…

I went with these for my friends and this one for my sister…

I knew she would love it.

While browsing at anthropologie one day I came across these…

Thought they would be a cool gift that the girls could use to hold jewelry or little odds and ends.

Lastly, they all got a little monogrammed notebook.

Here is the whole shebang…

I did end up getting my sister one last thing…

This adorable little tea cup.  It is an antique I found in a shop in Daytona Beach.  I love that it looks like it could have been bought at anthropologie, but it is 80 years old.  I only got one for my sister because I didn’t think it would be my other friends cup of tea(pun intended).

So here are Jessica’s goodies…

I hope they loved them as much as I do.

I also figured I would share how I wrapped them up while I am at it…

Yup, those are little chalkboard tags.  More to come on things for the guys tomorrow.

 

 

 

Bridal Showering

Remember how I went home a while back?  Welllll my mom and sister threw me a bridal shower.  Thought I would share all the details.

Here is what I got to see when I walked in!  Love the table settings oh-so-much.

Jess decorated everything according to my style and I would say she did a pretty bang up job because I loved every detail.

She got all of the vases from a seller on etsy and they were filled with none other than wildflowers.

The favors were bracelets and also an etsy find.

This Mr & Mrs sign was yet another etsy score.

Jess even made a little ice tea and lemonade station.  As you can see the cups are mason jars with paper straws.

Once I was done taking in all of the awesome decorations we ate some food.

Then we played a couple games.

One was bridal bingo which was played while I opened gifts.

I got some pretty amazing gifts, above is an engraved frame.

How about this sick little “M” book that my mom got from anthropologie.

Jess got me this pillow complete with my new last name.

Also got these cute bird bowls from my mom.

Lots of kitchen thangs.

A label maker which was one of the first things added to my registry, love me some labeling.

Justin’s mom, Sandy, got me this amazing basket of candles that came with a poem.  Here is what it said…

A basket of candles that come in a pair
in all different colors, for you two to share.
The white ones burn first;
they are wrapped in white lace
to celebrate your first married night
in your new chosen place.
The green pair is taller, and also much thinner;
burn with the first company you have over for dinner.
The dark blue candles are for after your first fight;
use them to burn while making up all night.
Pink candles set the mood and pave the way
for your first married Valentine’s Day.
Now, when your first year of marriage is through,
the cream anniversary pair, will light for you two.
Red candles aflame, both your futures are bright;
celebrate promotions you’ve worked toward with all of your might.
By this time we hope, maybe, just maybe
you can light the purple ones, on the birth of your baby.
And just when you thought you’d put these away,
take the light blue ones out for your fifth anniversary day.
Now just one more pair left – for the big “two five” –
the anniversary pair that will keep your love alive.
Congratulations (Bride and Groom)
on the start of your forever.
May the two of you always be happy together.
And burn these candles just the way we said,
but please don’t forget: blow them out before bed!

The basket had every pair of candles mentioned in the poem and also some cute candle holders.  I may have teared up when reading it.

I got this awesome basket full of antique goodies from my friend Christina…

She basically stalked me when I went to her moms antique shop, and picked up everything I liked from way back in September.  Sneaky little Christina.

After gifts, it was time for cake.

Is that not the most amazing bridal shower cake you have ever seen? And yes those are photos of my parents and Justin’s parents on their wedding days way back when.

Oh yes, they let me cut this beautiful cake.

I had such a great time and I truly loved seeing all of my family and friends.

Big Jim(my dad) even showed up for a little while.

I may be a little biased, but this was the best bridal shower I have ever attended.

 

 

So Fresh and So Clean Clean

Thanks Outkast, for creating that song that is.  Because our house now feels so fresh and so clean clean.  Why you ask?  Well that would be because we got new carpet installed!

We currently have carpeting in both of the front rooms in our house aka the office and the use to be dining room(now second living room) and both guest rooms.  They have all seen better days, but the front two rooms seem to have taken more abuse.  The culprit of the abuse would be the previous owners cat.  I know grrross.  This change was something that probably should have happened a while ago.  We rarely even spend time in these two rooms, but when you sit on the floor or get close to the floor you get a nice cat urine smell.  I know it’s one of my fav smells too, but I had to part with it.

Before we started ripping carpet up, we thought it might be best to head over to Lowes and check out some options.  After talking with the flooring associate we decided to go with a Stainmaster carpet.

We narrowed it down to one of these three.  My vote was for the top choice and we actually took a sample piece home to place in the room and let it simmer with us.  Well it simmered and we thought it might be a bit too dark, so we ended up going with the one in the middle.

We knew it would be about a week before the installation could be done, but Justin had had enough of the cat pee carpet and decided to tear it up.  We also figured this way we could get the concrete below nice and clean before the installation happened.  Otherwise, we would be running around trying to clean while the installers wait on us. So, Justin went to town pulling up the old carpet….

Take a look at that right corner.  Pretty grotie right?

The carpet and pad were held down by some glue and tack strips.  You can usually leave the tack strip in place and reuse them with the new carpet, but we decided ours needed to come up.

See that corner that looks damp?  Ya, apparently that is just stained with urine.  I’ll vomit now.

Once the carpet was up, he worked on the padding underneath.  Most of it came right up, but a few spots took a little extra effort.

Char man supervised of course…

He looks just as thrilled as I am sure you are at this post.  Interesting stuff.

Once the carpet and padding were gone fo’ good there was still a faint urine smell.  Ugh!! Yuck.  We did what we normally do and googled our hearts out till Justin found that hydrogen peroxide might do the trick.  Once the floor was scrubbed with hydrogen peroxide, bleach and vinegar you could STILL smell it!  So our last resort was to seal the floor with an oil based sealant.  Justin picked some up at Lowe’s and rolled it on the floor in all the corners.  After two coats the smell is finally gone.  Thank goodness.  I apparently didn’t get any shots of this sealing action, but it pretty much looked like he was rolling white paint onto the concrete floor.  Also exciting stuff.

Since the smell was gone for good, we just had to wait for the installers to come so we could enjoy our new carpet, what what!  We would have considered doing the installation ourselves, but Lowe’s offered free installation if we were purchasing stainmaster carpeting and what-do-you-know that’s just what we had ordered.  We figured leave the job to the professionals since it’s free, amiright?

The installer was a one man show and he was quick!  He came and went in an instant and was super nice to boot.

Look at that fresh carpeting, I wish you could feel it under your feet!  So nice and comfy.  We decided to go with a tucking method next to the tile.  This way we didn’t have any seam covering, like the metal or wood ones that you see in some homes.

I can’t even tell you how happy I am that we did not go with the darker color.  This carpet is pretty dark itself and I think I would have hated our original choice.  Dodged a bullet there!

It looks very different in a lot of these photos due to the lighting situation(it’s not the best room for photos.)  The photo above is probably the best representation of the true color.

When we put our furniture back we decided to go with a different arrangement.  We felt a little cramped with our previous set up, this somehow makes it feel more open.

You may have also noticed that the art that used to be above our living room couch is now hanging out here.  I thought it popped a bit more on the green walls, it use to blend so much with the walls in the living room…

See how much the frame blended right into the paint color?  I think it’s much happier out here…

I think we are a far cry from what we started with…

Don’t you?

 

 

Renninger’s

I recently went to Renninger’s Antique Center with Justin’s mom, Sandy.  Sandy had heard this place was great for finding antiques so we had to check it out.  It’s located in Mt. Dora, FL, so it was a bit of a trek for us, but well worth it.  Just look at this aerial view…

I rented a helicopter just to get this shot, I’m big time now.  JK I googled Renninger’s and stole this photo.  Anywho, this place goes on and on.  They have row after row of indoor and outdoor booths.

Let me show you some of the things we found.

Here is one of the outdoor booths.  As you can see it’s stacked floor to ceiling, so it was a true scavenger hunt.

I thought these antique cigar boxes were pretty cool.  I could imagine using one for extra storage on a desk.

I fell for this wine barrel being used as a table, it even had corks under the glass.

And how about this antique thread box?  Wanted to take this home, but for $275 I wasn’t really feeling it.

This lamp was pretty sweet with the shade being made completely of branches.  Not very practical as a shade, but still very cool.

We also saw a couple of these antique fans that I was really digging.

And I love me some sailboats, I really have a thing for nautical accessories lately.  I would love to have something like this in one of our many niches in our home.

Sandy and I both loved this dough bowl, we thought it looked very pretty holding all of this holiday decor.

Here is another lamp that caught my eye, it also leans on the nautical side.

This desk was also beautiful and in great condition.

This pedal car was pretty sweet and I really wanted the butcher block it sat on!  Look at that chunk of wood!

This guy was calling my name.  This shop had all sorts of handmade furniture.  They used a mixture of industrial parts combined with rustic barn wood and the combination of those two things produce some pretty fabulous furniture.  I fell in love with every piece in this shop.

This antique set of drawers would be perfect in an art studio, all of those little drawers would be amazing for storage.

And here are a million milk bottles!

How about some antique ceramics?  Oh yes, they had those as well.

Don’t worry I’ll be back to let you know what I got on this trip.  I’m thinking Renninger’s will most likely see me again in the future.

Who Doesn’t Like a Good Pillow

Last I showed you our bedroom was looking like this…

We had purchased some new bedding that we fell for at Target and just to keep you all posted it is super comfy and working out great, it’s even char man approved.

How cute is he?  Anyway, this bed was much in need of some pillows to beef it up a bit.  So, I got to hang out with my sewing machine for a little bit.  I decided to just cover the old pillows that were on this bed previously…

I’m talking about those three blue guys on the bed.  Here’s what I did…

I started by taking some scissor and slicing those old covers that I had previously made right off(yes I am recovering previously covered pillows, no waste here).  Once I had my old pillows ready to be recovered I needed to decide on what fabric I wanted to use.  I thought that I definitely needed to go with a lighter color since the bedding is pretty dark.  I thought white would be nice and I just so happened to already own the perfect fabric for the job.

It’s the white fabric that I used on the cornice in our room…

Once I had decided on the fabric I cut it about an inch wider than the pillow’s length on each of the four sides.  I had to cut four squares, one front and one back piece for each pillow…

Look at those snazzy squares.  From there I sewed three sides of the fabric together back side of the fabric facing outward…

For the last side that was left open, I sewed a small portion of this side shut. I sewed inward from the corners leaving a small gap open in the center. This probably makes no sense, hopefully this picture will help…

See how the top and the bottom are sewed about an inch and a half inward?  Then I flipped it inside out.

I had to make sure I pushed the corners out completely, they got stuck slightly because it is a thicker fabric.

From there I just shoved the pillow inside.

Once the pillow was inside I flipped the extra fabric around the hole inside as well.   Then I just needed to sew that sucker up.  I made sure the folds were even and I used the sewing machine to sew the last side shut.

See what I mean?

Then I just did that all over again for the second pillow.  And now I have this…

It was still a little too plain for me, so I picked up this guy at the Dillard’s clearance center for $2.  Yes, $2!

Perfect combination of gray and white right?  I am pleased with this pillow, makes me love our new bedding!

I think I will eventually buy a couple shams or possibly make them, but for now our gray pillow cases will do.  So here is our bedroom now.

Driftwood

So, I stumbled upon this amazingly awesome little shop in Jax Beach called Driftwood.  Let me tell you, I was blown away by this place.  If I were to open my own shop it would be very similar to this one!  Words can’t do this place justice, let me show you…

Here is the view you’ll get when you walk in and then here is the other side of the store…

I mean come on with that brick wall!!!  And the antiques they have are beautiful.

I need this dresser/cabinet in my life, please!  This is the most beautiful antique dresser around, it is basically the bees knees in my book.  Not to mention that it was also displaying some pretty killer antiques as well, I could have stayed in this corner for days.  And how about this guy?…

So pretty, I love antique dressers with the small key holes on each drawer.

This antique wash stand also caught my eye.  All of their antique furniture pieces are really decently priced, especially considering they are all in great shape.

I loved these bar stools. I think they are so modern, but still a simple design, just my taste.

And seriously, check out this antique dough bowl, it was huge and beautiful.

I also wanted to take home every one of these scarves!

They also had some really great dog stuff, which I found immediately.  This book almost came home with me, I was so tempted.

Stories about adored dogs, enough said.

The back area of the store is lined with tall book cases which display art and jewelry, enough to keep my eyes busy for a while.

Here is another great antique cabinet and I love the tiered stand sitting on it.

Even their bathroom was amazing.  I want that rolling cart!

So, basically I found my new favorite shop ever… Driftwood!  Let’s take one more look…

Ahhh, so dreamy.  If you live in Jax it is a shame if you don’t go check them out! Not only is their shop beautiful, but the owners are so sweet! They are located at 415 Pablo Avenue, Suite 110, Jacksonville Beach, Florida 32250.  Support your local shops people! Thanks for reading!

Feel that Air Flow

Since it hasn’t been the usually scorching 90 degrees here in Florida lately, we have been leaving our windows and doors open more often to let some fresh air in.  It is wonderful.  The back porch is completely screened, so we are able to just prop the back doors open and not worry about critters getting in or our little critters(Charlie Bean and Zack Man) getting out, it’s perfect.  However the front door did not have a screen.  Booooo!  Notice how I said DID not?  Well now it DOES! Woo hoo for more air flow!  Here is our door pre screen…

Hi cute little blue door, I love you!

In order to add a new screen door there were a few things that had to be done first.  It seemed that the door Justin purchased wasn’t quite fitting correctly.  He had to add some wood to frame out the door a bit and make it so our new screen door would fit and sit flush with our house. This was not an east task though, Justin’s dad came by to help him out. If we can’t figure something out we usually rely on Kent to make it work! Thanks Kent!

See the new wood that he added?  He also added a piece of 2 x 4 under the bottom lip of the door so there wasn’t such a large gap between the door and the ground.  Since our home is stucco Justin needed to texturize that piece so it doesn’t look so smooth and stand out against the texture in the existing frame.

See what I mean?  Oh and check out those adorable feet and nose! Char man is such a good helper.   Here’s a closer look at the texture on the 2x 4…

We also caulked all of the small creases and crevices, I sure do love caulk.  Once everything was dry it was time for some paint.   I just grabbed a quart of white outdoor paint and went to town.  Here are my finished results…

Here’s  quick before and after…

Can you see the difference?  The white trim should look a whole lot whiter, but I think the only noticable spot from the photos is one little black spot in the top left side above the window.  In person this trim is bright white and looks much cleaner than it did before, so score for me.  The other couple differences you can see are obviously the missing wreath, booooo!  We can’t hang the wreath with the screen door up because it may tear the screen and aint nobody got time for that!  Also in this before and after you can see the added 2 x 4 that is now painted white, I think it gives the bottom of the door a more finished look.   Here is a closer look at the actual door that we added…

We are lovin this screen door, it is so nice because we are able to leave it open and feel all the air flow!

When I was out, Justin sent me this picture after he installed the door…

It’s not a very clear picture, but it’s Zack enjoying the breeze.  And here they are in the back patio…

These dogs are lovin life.  Anyway back to the door.   We love it and we can change out the screen for a glass insert for the warmer months when we are running the AC and then I can put my wreath back up!

Do you leave your windows and doors open?  Are your dogs as spoiled as mine?  Probably not.  Thanks for reading!