Wind In the Willows Themed Baby Shower

I wasn't the hostess this time, but I did provide some simple flowers and decor for my friend Shaun's Wind in the Willows baby shower.  She's expecting her first baby this summer, and I can't wait to meet little Abigail!   

So, I'm one of those weirdos who has no idea what Wind in the Willows is about.  After a quick google image search, I found out it stars a toad and a badger and other woodland creatures.  And there's a canoe in it. So I decorated accordingly with little woodland touches and lots of wildflowers.

I'd been eyeing this froggy vase for awhile, and this party was the perfect excuse to buy it.

How gorgeous is that pink beronia?  Like hundreds of tiny fuchsia lanterns.

I found some cute garden statuary to use as decorative accents.  I fell in love with them, but sadly, they didn't survive my latest decluttering session and were all sold at my garage sale.  Honestly, what was I to do with all those mushrooms and hedgehogs?  (I did keep the frog.)

I made a cute paper canoe garland using an origami tutorial that I just can't seem to track down right now.   Sorry!  I'll add it here if I find it.  The little oars are made of bamboo skewers, too.  

My friend Aime created a cute onesie stamping station.  How genius is that toilet paper roll heart stamp?  

I added to the project by making some foam shape stamps.  I happened to have a bag of mini corks in my stash, so I glued on some pre-cut foam flowers.  I even cut out my own shapes (stars, water drops, triangles, etc.) out of a sheet of foam and the stamps turned out great!  It's my favorite way to decorate fabric now.  I'll post a more detailed DIY on that later.

A sweet and simple shower for a beautiful mommy. Congrats, Shaun!!!

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Rue Magazine wedding shoot

I was overjoyed to take part in Rue Magazine's first ever weddings and entertainment issue.  Four of our ombre peony hair flowers were used to make a perfect little crown for the bride.  I can't take credit for anything else in the shoot- that was all the genius of the vendors listed below!  But I can and will say our little hair flowers were the cherry on the sundae, for sure :)

The ombre peony hair flowers can be clustered on the head (the more the merrier) or used to accent long wavy tresses.  I loved how they switched up the bride's hair halfway through, giving a totally different look for the reception.

What a gorgeous shoot.  I'm still on a travel high from our trip to the destination wedding spot, Sayulita Mexico.  The vibrant, subtly tropical flowers and decor in this shoot would have been perfect for a Mexico bride.  Read the full scoop on Inspired by This!

Production: Be Inspired PR
Venue: Hotel Shangri-La
Photography: Caroline Tran
Concept/Event Design/Styling & Coordination: Gather Events
Floral Design: The Vine’s Leaf
Catering: Contemporary Catering
Wine: One Hope Weddings
Rentals: Found Vintage Rentals
Rugs & Pillows: Lulu & Georgia
Paper Goods: Wiley Valentine
Hair: Kacee Geoffroy
Makeup: Artistry by Danika
Wedding Dress: Kirstie Kelly
Bridesmaid Dress: Jenny Yoo
Hair Accessories: Petal and Thorn
Vintage Engagement Ring: Trumpet & Horn

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Sayulita 2013

Wow.  I LOVE this little town, with it's cobblestone streets, fruit carts, friendly locals, and perfect longboarding waves.  And sunsets, iguanas, sparkly sand and warm water.  I could go on and on, but I'll just show you (warning, photobomb)...

Here is our Penthouse bungalow, where we ended up spending most of the trip (since Sisi still sleeps at least 13 hours a day.) 

 We cooked almost every meal at the bungalow.  Here's fresh mahi mahi, plantains and guacamole.  

Boiled lobsters!

We went to the beach 2 or 3 times a day.  

A local fisherman took us out on his boat spur of the moment.  It was awesome! Until I got horribly seasick, my body went numb, and my fists clenched in some strange muscle spasm.  What the heck???  Some mixture of motion sickness and dehydration maybe?

 The quaint, colorful village, filled with hippie surfer expats, tourists and local folks who loved patting Sisi on the head (Sayulitans revere children!) 

Iguanas everywhere!  This guy was at least 4 feet long.

Can't forget to mention the main reason we came to Sayulita, our surf camp at Lunazul! Our teacher Kalle Carranza is an former pro-surfer with such a kind heart and love for teaching. We were honored to learn from the best.

Our other teacher, Papas.

Goodnight Sayulita!  We miss you already. We'll be back someday.

Note: A big concern before coming was safety.  Lots of well-meaning friends and family advised us not to go to Mexico.  I totally get it, and respect those cautious travelers.  But Mexico is a big, diverse country, and there are lots of very safe spots to travel.  And sure, lots of very unsafe spots to avoid, too.  I can only speak for Sayulita, but I felt extremely safe there.  A few days in, and we felt like we knew half the village.  It's a super tight-knit, laid back beach community.  Our surf instructors also had our backs, and I knew they would take care of us.

For a mellow, convenient family trip, I HIGHLY recommend Sayulita.  Everything was loads easier than Costa Rica- the plane trip was shorter, the weather milder, and Sayulita is a teeny tiny town, so everything is just a few minutes' walk away.

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Packing for Mexico!

Hola!  I'm feeling pretty refreshed, tan, and super sore from our trip to Sayulita Mexico.  One week with no makeup, no hair products, no jewelry, no bra :) It was so lovely. Our bungalow was a 2 minute walk from the beach and we surfed/swam at least 2 or 3 times a day, so we lived in our bathing suits.  I probably could have packed half as much as I did, but I am proud of the fact that we managed just 1 small suitcase and a few backpacks between the three of us.  I'm getting the hang of packing, finally!


For me:

• lots of breezy sundresses
• couple board shorts and tanks 
• three bathing suits (I'm glad I swapped out the one piece for a bikini at the last minute.  I didn't see a single soul wearing a one-piece in Mexico!  Even the grannies were rocking the two pieces.) 
•  a sun hat *
•  one pair of flip flops 
• my one and only pair of sneakers (never used them!)  
• Kindle packed with e-books about North Korean politics and decluttering/minimal living (my obsessions of the moment.) 
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

For sisi:

• rompers and sundresses
• bathing suits
• some toys and books (it's only a 2 hour plane ride, so just a few hot wheels cars, crayons, stickers, and duplo legos)
• extra shoes and hair bows (can't leave home without a hair accessory :)

Toiletries:

• Me and Sisi shared the essentials (bug spray, kids' sunscreen, baby shampoo/body wash, aloe vera and coconut oil). 
• I left my sonicare toothbrush at home, and opted to bring an old school toothbrush and floss. I liked it so much, that I decided to put my sonicare in storage when I got home!

Baby Gear:

• Ergo backpack (amazed that she still fits in it at over 36 pounds!)
• diapers and plastic bags for the poopy ones
• wipes
• silicone bib
• a few glass baby food jars, spoons, and a metal bento box for eating on the go.  

Paleo Snackage:

• Sardines
• coconut milk
• Tanka Bars
• Caveman Cookies
• Sea Snax
• raisins
• nuts
• lara bars 
• my rad paleo chocolate chip cookies
• our favorite spices so we wouldn't have to buy them there to cook simple meals. 

Misc:

• Contigo water bottles (we just can't live without them!)
• copies of our passports
• Sisi's favorite ducky blanket (and a spare one, just in case something tragic happened :)

*Why do I insist on bringing sun hats on my beach vacations?  I have this romantic notion that I'll lounge around luxuriously in a wide-brimmed hat.  I've never ever worn it.  Next time, it stays home.

** The best thing about packing light is how ridiculously easy it is to unpack.  Took me 20 minutes and 1 load of laundry.  I have a strange habit of unpacking IMMEDIATELY when we return, no matter how late it is or how jet-lagged I feel.  Anyone else who can't sleep with a suitcase full of dirty clothes??

I can't wait to share more pics from our trip!  Stay tuned!

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