November + Wedding Love List

Since we decided on neutrals and metallics as our wedding colors a few months back... I can't seem to shake them. I am LOVING all things black, white, gray, ivory, beige, and oh my god do I love anything that shimmers.
 
Let's just say if sparkle was a color, it would be my favorite. German Glass Glitter has completely stolen my heart and I want it EVERYWHERE! (which is a good thing because if you've ever worked with glitter, you know that it's going to get all over the place)

Pottery Barn Kids

I promised Jay that I would not decorate for Christmas until after Thanksgiving. Marriage is all about compromise, after all. I have literally been listening to Christmas music (on the not-so-sly) since June 24th - Half-Christmas Eve- so we know that it's my favorite holiday, but Jay's favorite is Thanksgiving... so I'm not allowed to skip it... or call it Christmas practice...

I have to admit, my favorite stores are helping me manage my need to decorate by making fall things all kinds of sparkly and cozy... and I'm actually kind of in love with the idea of being able to decorate my house to the nines... twice.

Made by me :) all supplies via Michael's - I've used these glittery letters from Michael's
on quite a few of our wedding crafts as well as around our house.

Finally, my faves this month... I'm completely head over freaking heels for all of these things!! The birch straws, mercury glass votive cups, and antler candle holders will even be pulling double-duty... making our house festive when not in use at either the wedding or the rehearsal dinner :) Don't be surprised if more of these goodies wind up making their way onto the guest list... because I'm obsessed with them

Sources

JandPaper - Thanksgiving Chalkboard Prints

Pottery Barn - Pillows, Blankets, Place Card Holders

Crate & Barrel - Garland, Wreath, Turkey Towel

Jones Design Co. - Thankful Tree Tags (Free Printables)

Dear Lilly - Give Thanks Pillow

Target - Gray Rug, Crisscross Rug

Birch Tree Straws

Marshall's - Antler Pillar Candle Holders

(available online at One Kings Lane - but more $$ than I paid)

West Elm - Mercury Glass Votive Cups, Pie Dish

Jo-Ann - Cinnamon Pine Cones

Acorns (from my parents' yard)

Fall Faves

 

I am that girl.

So in the spirit of Fall, I've decided to post a few of my favorite things that will be infused into our decor this year to make it feel  more homey in our house. Why, yes, yes I am decorating a house that is still 1/2 under construction. Crazier things have happened.

one - two/two - three - four - five - six

 I have to readily admit that although these pumpkins from Pottery Barn are freaking awesome, I found the exact same ones for $4.99 at T.J. Maxx. So if you love them but they're still just a tad to much (even though they're 20% off right now) than I suggest hitting your local Homegoods/TJ Maxx/Marshall's for a sweet knock off at a fraction of the price.

As far a wardrobe for fall is concerned, I'm totally loving the chunky open sweaters like this one at American Eagle and this one at Gap. I'm also completely obsessed with Victoria's Secret sweatshirts. As soon as the temperature dips below 70 degrees, you can bet your ass, I'm rocking one of these.

one - two - three - four

I also have to admit that I'm already thinking about decorating for Christmas (yea, I'm as guilty as Macy's and Kohl's when it comes to that shit... I may have started listening to Christmas music about the same time I posted the 1/2 Christmas entry in June) but I promised Jay that I will not do it until after Thanksgiving. I have been told that marriage is all about compromise so that will be our first one as a married couple. Of course, he'll really get a break this year since we're getting married the day after Thanksgiving so Christmas decorations will be delayed til the following weekend.

Pumpkin Spice Parfait

Happy First Day of October!!! 

let's get festive, shall we?

This is seriously, the FASTEST, easiest dessert you can possibly make. No baking (which is great, especially given the current state of our oven, I don't even want to talk about it) and can be made with less than 10 ingredients, and less than a half hour to make (including going to the grocery store because you're out of milk) which is super awesome for a dessert.

 Pumpkin Spice Parfaits

1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon Allspice

1/4 teaspoon Ginger

1 can Puree Pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)

2 Butterscotch pudding (2 packs)

1 container Cool Whip (or the generic brand that was on sale)

1 Entenmann's Pumpkin Loaf  Cake (you could make your own, if you were feeling ambitious, but this was BOGO and it's so effing good)

3 cups of Milk

First whip up a batch of the pudding. I made a double batch* of these babies which gave me 16 large servings. If I had the little cocktail cups that I usually use, it probably would have given me 20-24 cups.

(*I grew up in a house with 3 brothers and 2 sisters... I automatically double a recipe... sometimes triple)

Beat in the spices then fold in the pumpkin puree and the whipped cream.

 Slice the pumpkin bread into cubes.

Layer the bread and the mousse into cup or bowls.

The first layer in the cups should be the cake. The top layer should be mousse. 

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Galvanized Tray

Garnish them with whipped cream (oops - or not) and something festive (like washi tape flags on paper straws).

I'm going to make these again for Thanksgiving and then I will probably sprinkle candied pecans on top, but for today, I'm leaving them plain because my little sis just got braces and she sent me a special request via text for a "soft" dessert so that she could eat it.

Wedding Practice

Google always comes in handy when trying to be crafty and clever at the same time. I simply googled "rehearsal dinner invitation wording" and this popped up in one of the first results. So cute, whimsical and fun for the pre-wedding day!

I was having trouble narrowing my ideas for the wedding decor, (which is evident on my pinterest) especially since we changed directions so completely from our original outdoor-rustic plan. Just when I was feeling down that my love of chalkboards, plaid, and beat up old wood were going to be sidelined, I remembered the Rehearsal Dinner.

The team over at One Fab Day really struck my Inspiration nerve with their beautifully perfect Christmas Wedding set up.  I almost died when my eyes fell upon this gorgeous set up of plaid and wild flowers.

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This is exactly what I've been dreaming about... Only in honor of my lovely groom, I will be incorporating more red roses into the mix and adjusting the decor to suit.

 

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