wedding of the year

sarah got married this weekend! if you know me at all, you know that i have very strong opinions about weddings. i very much dislike a number of cliche wedding stand-by's including tealights on mirrors, flowers in colors that don't occur in nature, and long black bridesmaid dresses with bright colored sashes. ugh.
i'd be surprised, however, if anyone could come closer to many of my personal wedding preferences than the new mrs. sarah huffstetler. her wedding was insanely beautiful. i cried, i danced, i ate a ton of pumpkin spice doughnuts. it was fantastic. more pictures to come, but here's a little preview!

let's get it on

meet sarah. we've been friends since my sophomore year of college and she's getting married (!!) this weekend! lacey and i both feel that the two essentials for brides are: 1. a kitchen aid mixer and 2. sexy undies. lucky for sarah, she scored a mixer at her first shower (jealous) so lacey and i threw her a fun lingerie shower last weekend to take care of the second necessity. basically, it was awesome...

we thought a suggestive banner would be fun decor. then the mailman came to the door while we were decorating and asked "is this the kind of party i think it is?" it was awkward. either way, our tissue paper flowers were cool. 

goodies for game winners in the fireplace.

what's a party without champagne?

the champagne got to sit on these awesome coasters - complete with flirting tips and kiss prints. thank you, mighty dollar. 

lacey's sexy little mint chocolate cupcakes with her homemade icing and my homemade flags. yum.

these babies cost over a dollar each at dean and deluca. it cost less than $10 to make twice this amount in my kitchen. and they tasted just as delicious. 

too bad we'd just eaten our weight in sushi before this spread. there were a lot of leftovers.

ah, lovely.

i prefer parties with favors. we sent guests home with a let's get it on mix cd and mini takeout boxes full of hershey kisses. yes, please. 

sarah, i love you! congratulations!

small town life

one of my favorite friday traditions is taking a quick walk from my office down the block to ellie's coffee shop for some form of breakfast treat. their coffee isn't anything too awesome, but their baked goods are another story, and i like celebrating the start of the weekend with a giant freshly-made muffin full of fat and calories.
this morning as i set out, i couldn't help but appreciate sweet little concord. often, i wish i lived in a bigger city. one that's a little more bustling, has a starbucks on every corner, has a larger pool of cute boys to date, better restaurants and cooler cultural opportunities. maybe one day i'll have that, but fall in concord is glorious and there are definitely some benefits to small-town life. today the air was so crisp, the leaves were changing, a sweet little old lady was outside sweeping the sidewalk in front of her shop, a vintage classic car drove down main street as i walked, i passed a lawyer friend on his way to the courthouse, the owner at ellie's knows my name and i don't even have to ask for soy milk in my latte because she remembers - don't you wish you lived here?

however, despite my picturesque experience this morning - it's race weekend. you don't want to live here. trust me.

images: 1.cabarruscountyhomesavailable.com 2.eureka-reservations.com

optimism

it's been a mildly sucky two weeks and i've spent a decent amount of time feeling sorry for myself. after some reflection this evening, however, i've concluded that there are always a few things about which to be happy. so here are some...

1. fall decorations - it's finally fall - despite this mini heat wave, and my house is full of fall goodness. owls, orange berries, pumpkin candles and bare branches make me so happy.
2. an unexpected thank-you note from my boss that told me i was an "integral part of the organization" and that he appreciated me. always nice to hear.
3. $3.99 blue fin pinot noir from trader joe's, a glass of which i'm enjoying in bed while writing this entry. can't beat it.
4. my new, insanely hot, totally unnecessary peep-toe satin jeweled-bow pumps. they were originally $159. i snagged them for $20. i need somewhere to wear them stat.

5. liam. even though he ate my brand new headband and ran my new jcrew stockings within two days this weekend, he always makes me smile and it's so nice to have someone to come home to.
6. a much lower monthly power bill. thank you, cooler temps.

despite the circumstances, it's pretty much always better to dwell on the positive, no? happiness is in the details. what little things are you happy about this week?

images: 1.allfor-you.tumblr 2.zappos

london pop-up

i love kate spade. other than my eye glasses and my super-sweet green glasses case, i haven't managed to own anything from her because i can't really justify paying $300 and up for one pair of shoes or a bag, but i love her style just the same. i also am newly in love with the design in their london pop-up shop, open now through november 10th in henrietta garden. the sketches are below, and i just love the way everything came together. in particular, i love the books in the fireplace and the barely-blue color of the walls. so pretty!

read more about it and see way more lovely photos here!