Look at these from the village, (awesome font shop and producers of the infamous “for like ever” poster)…
I didn’t get it at first, thinking each button would say obama, but no they are a set!
To read more about the project and to purchase, go to their site: vllg.com
Sooooo satisfying to cross a project off my endless pre-wedding list. I swear that it grows in the night while I’m sleeping.
I took the real DIY route, skipped the letterpress, and went into a gocco-ing frenzy yesterday. These coasters are just the first project.
TAH-DAH!
The coasters themselves weren’t the best paper stock for gocco… a wee bit too porous so the ink ended up looking a little bleedy. But I think they will be just fine. Yes, 250 coasters later, they will be perfect. I’m thinking of maybe putting one on each plate to dress up the initial table setting. And then the extras will be strewn about the bar area.
I kind of like Keep Calm‘s new alphabet totes… I think they’d be fun for bm gift totes… yes? or for any other gift or non-gift appropriate occasion. I have such a one track mind these days.
except there are OUT of a crucial letter for me. Investigating re-stocking date via email now…
Also, I like cats.
Really. This jam is insanely delicious. We have 3 fig trees in our yard that produce an absurd amount of figs, which mostly go to support the extremely healthy avian population in our neighborhood. And I have to admit, the first few years I lived here, I let most of them go to the birds. I tried lots of recipes, I did. But I couldn’t find one that I loved enough to be my standard end of summer canning project.
And then a few years ago I did. I found a version of this recipe somewhere on the Internets, not a normal recipe site, just through google. And I made the necessary adjustments to make it as delicious as possible. It’s sweet from the figs, floral from the lavender, rich from the pinenuts, and sort of deep from the port. It is amazing with a nutty aged cheese and glass of red wine, but also perfect on toast with butter on a bright fall Saturday morning.
Fig & Lavender Jam with pinenuts and port
(as always, these quantities are a little loose… I’m not so good with the measurements)
1 very large bowl of washed, roughly chopped figs (2-3 lbs)
~3 cups sugar
zest of 1 lemon
6T lemon juice
2 T finely chopped ginger (i use fresh, but i suppose you could use preserved too, it would just be sweeter)
1/8 – 1/4 c (depending on how flowery you want it to taste) tied in muslin or cheesecloth. i buy these little muslin bags from health food stores that they sell in the bulk herb section, but I’ve used cheesecloth before too, just make sure none of the little flowers can escape and if you use cheesecloth, be aware of strings that get lost in the jam.
1/4 c LIGHTLY toasted pinenuts (you can eyeball this, I just like to make sure that there are enough in there so you always get one when you take a scoop)
1 GENEROUS pour of port (this really makes the jam so try not to leave it out. And pick a decent quality port that you wouldn’t mind drinking yourself, I think).
Chop all figs roughly. Put them in a large, broad, heavy saucepan with the sugar, lemon zest and juice, ginger and lavender. Bring them slowly to a boil and then boil quite fast for 20 – 40 minutes. Towards the end of the cooking, I pour in the port. I like to wait until close to the end so all the alcohol doesn’t burn off, you know? Just go by feel here.
I like to let the jam go until the figs start to break apart, but not so long as it starts to smell like burning candy. That is bad. If your lavender bag is sort of precariously tied, I might wait until the sugar melts and the mixture gets a little soupy to add it This way the lavender doesn’t have to endure so many turns with the spoon.
Once you’ve determined that the jam is done, take it off the heat, discard the lavender bag, and stir in the pinenuts. and Voila! You can obviously can it at this point, while the jam is piping hot, or just ladle it into big glass jars and keep it in the fridge.
where it’s only 104 degrees. And we have 4 wedding-related appointments.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, hair and makeup trial. I can’t think of anything more hideous than wearing a full face of makeup in 104 degree weather, but the life of a soon-to-be bride is not always glamorous. We work hard, don’t we?
Kay so here’s the thing. I don’t wear makeup and also I am muy low maintenance when it comes to hair. Like, I get it cut every 4 to 8 months depending on how lazy I am. And that’s it. Soooo. um, does anyone have any good links to super natural-looking makeup I can bring with me? I am frightfully ill-prepared for this part of the wedding.
Here’s what I’m thinking:
Now I don’t look anything like Mischa Barton, mind you. But I think her makeup is kind of pretty here. I mostly know what i’m doing with my hair… weaing it long, down, and curled loosely. SOMEWHERE in wedding blog land I saw a photo of the girl who plays Blair on gossip girl with a perfect example of the kind of hair I’m going for… except my hair is strawberry blond, and hers is not. but the style was right. and now i’ve lost it. shooooot.
they are doing such a good job right now with their photoshoot stylings…
Long, simple dress with a vintagey brooch… really pretty.
More pretty details from Laura and Jason’s heartfelt, do-it-together, it takes a village wedding.
The always beautiful ring bowl from paloma’s nest (courtesy of moi, of course).
And some misc. pretty shots from the celebration. I love the one of the Bride & Groom at dusk with their dog, after the rain has stopped.
More photos coming…
(photo credit: Vanessa, my dad, and me)
Looking through the r.wood studio site last night motivated me to finally post some pretty details of laura and jason’s colorful Georgia wedding. Finally.
Shots include: millinery supplies from our bridesmaid hair pieces; details of Laura’s handmade chuppah, the groomsmen carrying the chuppah in and the bridesmaids again, which i know i’ve already posted but it ties the colors in so nicely! Plus teeny vintage medicinal jars with zinnias and marigolds grown on the farm.
More to come…
photo credits to friends Olivia and Vanessa.
Look at this completely beautious dress made from, ready?, a vintage embroidered sheet. This deserves a “wtf!” don’t you think!?
My friend Olivia (friend and member of Laura’s Georgia bride tribe as well as one of the brains behind Farm255) sent this over as bridal inspiration last evening. WOW.
This is some unreal DIY. The bride’s friend Rebecca found an inspiring antique sheet and, with the help of friends, crafted her wedding dress from it’s length. I love the textures and history in vintage textiles. And how amazing are those handmade flowers decorating the neckline of her dress?
r. wood studios, a beautiful ceramics studio in Athens, Georgia, is to thank for sharing this bit of loveliness with the wide world of internets. You can read the story and see more pictures here.
My friendy Laura, whose beautiful wedding I have yet to post photos of as promised, sent this photo of their new piglets this morning.
10 piglets all lined up next to 450 lb mamma. I do need a farm. In a seriously bad way. Especially after touring Jora’s amazing home (complete with raised beds and 9 chickens) on simple lovely yesterday.
Soooo make that a mid-century styled home with farm-like tendencies. And probably no pigs, though they are very cute.
