Happy New Year
How is the New Year starting out for everyone? Mine is full of fresh starts and surprises… so stay tuned for some projects and some new directions!
Here my mom and I dressed up for the New Year’s Eve celebration:
And a gorgeous new ring:
Happy New Year everyone!
Engagement Pictures
It has been a few months now since we got engaged and we still haven’t taken engagement pictures. We didn’t set an exact date and we didn’t throw the party since it was winter, so we decided to put it off for a while. But, now that we are finally having the party we thought it was about time to make the official announcement. We plan to have a few shots done professionally, but that will still wait a bit longer. We set up our tripod and camera timer the other night and had fun snapping a bunch of shots. We thought we would show off the one we picked to go in the local paper:
Now our announcement is also official to all of you out there in blog world as well!
Here’s the whole little fam:
Antique Treasures
My grandmother just sent me a box of antique jewelry and doodads! I was so excited last night to rummage through all of the sentimental pieces. I’m not sure what I am going to do with all of it, but I have some creative ideas going. Here is a peak at the goods:
The island covered in all the treasures.
I really loved this little tray. My grandma said it was very old. I thought it might look cute in the bathroom when we get in refinished.
A gorgeous cameo and some really pretty crystals.
Another cameo and a very old pin and rings.
Two old jewelry boxes and a sweet locket.
This box was special because my uncle made all of these turqoise and jade rings and pieces. His sign is a paw print and is engraved on the back of each piece.
Exciting huh? I will let you all know what I do with some of the pieces… I can feel the creative juices flowing…
Our Backyard
Our yard is a mess. The landlord kept it full of leaves, twigs, branches, logs, compost piles and even garbage. We are tearing all of this up. Slowly but surely we are cleaning up the mess we inherited, and making a pretty, and useful yard. So, over the weekend we plugged away at the daunting yard. We have, of course, started by picking up and disposing of his garbage and old broken items. The other items such as old pots, tools , and yard items were collected and stored neatly away in the already packed shed. Here was where the real fun began. We had already started to rake and remove the massive amounts of leaves from the back yard, but so much more remained.
This weekend is when we started working on a fire pit. This way, once this chore is finished, we can move onto the chore of burning the branches and debris that remain. Tony dug a very nice, large, circular hole, and we started with placing the first ring of bricks. We then layered the bottom with rock (the landlord also had much random rock to be picked up from the middle of the yard!). The pit is unfinished, but looking gorgeous already! Here are some pictures:
Here is some of the mess left in our yard.
Here is a bit more of the mess. We are removing all of the compost, which is those lumps, and the twiggy looking trees are going to be moved from the clump he planted them in.
Here's the start of the fire pit. This project is going to be a fun one for the summer!
All Dressed Up
Last weekend was the annual Red Ribbon Dinner and Great Art Auction. The dinner is a fund-raiser for HIV/AIDS. The company I work for puts the dinner on every year, and it is a huge deal, so, of course, Tony and I got to go this year! Here is the outfit I put together. Fun for cocktails and partying, but also professional:
The dress I picked- wish I could wear this everyday!
The ring to match the belt on the dress.
Not the best picture of us, but you get to see the outfits! 🙂
We just had fun being dressed up and out on the town for a night. We even bid on some art, but got outbid in the last minute. Aw.
A Toast
After we finished telling all of our family and friends of the engagement yesterday, we went to Tony’s parents’ house to show them the ring. They had champagne and two very cute champagne glasses waiting for us! We toasted, talked and celebrated…
I am so excited to be welcomed into this family! Thank you so much to my parents-in-law-to-be!
P.S. We do not know much about the champagn glasses. They say David Douglas on the bottom, but I could not find any info on them. The black area is ribbed and feels almost like an old record. There is also a piece in the bottom that turns and says On/Off. We have no clue!
Fat Rock!
Yes, its true! I’m engaged! Tony proposed to me last night. It was so unexpected, and so sweet. We do not yet have an exact date, but are considering late August in 2010. I told myself not to get too excited, and to hold off on the planning, but that really isn’t going to happen. I have already been writing down ideas and scouring the blog world. We are considering a black and white color scheme, with either dark teal or red accents. I would also love to do a vintage touch (doesn’t that sound like us!?). I, of course, will continue to blog on our home and decor ideas and projects, but there might be some random wedding ideas here too! Fill me in on any ideas! Here is a picture of the ring.
Its a vintage square diamond turned on an angle. Pictures don't do it justice- its gorgeous!
Make Mine Eclectic 