Grey wedding fashion

Credits: Studio Foto

Scott has always had a thing for grey suits and this was the one thing he ‘insisted’ upon for our wedding day - that he wanted to wear a grey three-piece suit and have his groomsmen in grey suits aswell. This was fine by me as i’m not too keen on black suits for weddings anyway and we certainly aren’t tux kind of people! 

Then when looking at all the different bridesmaid dresses out there I realized that I wanted my gorgeous girls in something a little bit different from the boring pink or burgundy dresses on sale everywhere - my first thought was LBDs but I have changed my mind… so in comes the LGD (little grey dress of course!).

 My maids all have very different skin tones and hair colours and body shapes so a fairly neutral colour like grey will suit everyone and I just fell in love with the gorgeous Melissa Sweet dresses. 

For the flower-girls I will be sticking to white but having grey sashes to tie in with the older girls. 

And of course I won’t be getting married without a pair of laboutins on my feet - and these silver/grey ones fit the bill entirely- so glamourous its no wonder they are called ‘Hollywood’!

xxx

DIY Touches

Credits: Meg Baisden Photography, Suthi Picotte, Kawartha Photography

I made up this board to showcase some of the DIY touches that I will be adding to our wedding (when it finally gets here!). Our budget might be low, but our creativity is certainly high and with my imagination (and hubby-to-be’s practicality) we hope to pull it off… it’s not like we don’t have enough time to plan either :-p

Most of our wedding will have a DIY touch incorporated in some way - from our invitations which we are hand-designing ourselves to our food, cake, flowers and favours. 

All of our flowers will be hand-done, incorporating a mixture of pure white and colourful arrangements in glass vases, jars and other miscellaneous holders. We’ve already got our friends and family collecting empty jam jars and vases for us to use!

DIY food touches will include lots of home-made cakes, cupcakes, pies and biscuits, mini personalized jars of honey and jam for our guests to take away and lots of donated items for our buffet! Along with all of our stationary we will be designing and printing our own labels for favours, water bottles and my personal favourite - our personalised matchboxes. Admittedly they aren’t an original idea but we will be having those printed on one side with our names and date of wedding and on the other the definition of marriage and the quote ‘the perfect match’. 

xxx

Wedding Flowers

Credits: Sedona Bride

When we first started looking at planning our wedding my original plan was to go with all white flowers but after a lot of thinking, and digging through the internet and bloggers archives I realized that I just couldn't visualize our wedding being white! 

I crave colour all of the time - my favourites are the bright ones - Red, Orange, Turquoise... And although I could put together lots of weddings that featured solely white colours I soon realized that those boards that I was diligently putting together weren't our wedding, they just weren't 'Us'. So i've scrapped that plan and now have settled on having a rather un-schemed colour scheme (if there is such a thing!) 

We are going to have a mixture of bright, fun, summery colours in arrangements that are loose and handmade. Like most of our wedding we will be DIY-ing the flowers so they will be in simple arrangements, loosely displayed in various glass vases, mason jars, jam jars and other eclectic holders.

Scott likes the idea of putting some flowers in metal buckets or baskets, which I think would look great (just as long as they were done 'right'). Even for my bouquet (which I am going to go for solely white and creamy flowers) will be loose, hand-tied and probably filled with peonies, roses and greenery.

The ideal look for our wedding flowers would be 'wild and rustic' but with a touch of care that shows how much work has gone into making them look gorgeous!

xxx

Feature on stylemepretty.com!

Credits: Jeff & Julia Woods, Jose Villa

How amazingly happy did it make me to log into my computer today, open up Stylemepretty.com (my favourite wedding blog) only to see that one of my own inspiration boards had been featured! 

Abby (the blog creator) had this to say about my work:

"Alexandria has the greatest sense of style, full of whimsy and charm, and really takes the time to articulate her vision. I've loved reading her blog and always look forward to what she's going to do next. Definitely worth a trip over to the Style Circle to read what this Style Guru is saying!"

Talk about praise! And not to blow my own trumpet here (but) I am pretty proud of the stuff that I put together and get so much enjoyment out of it all - the new Style Circle has certainly changed the way I put things together - it makes everything so much easier than copying and pasting into paint and there are so many beautiful images to choose from! 

Congratulations Abby on creating such a great resource for brides-to-be, and everyone else out there who loves a little inspiration!

xxx 

Bird and Owl themed baby shower

Credits: country living (2), ohdeedoh (2), Our baby shower (2), etsy (2), Country living (2), martha Stewart (2)

As you know from previous posts Scott and I have been thinking about adding a few bird-themed details to our wedding - little things like including birds in our stationary and having bird cake-toppers. Whilst on the web I came across loads of lovely ideas that could be used for a baby shower as well and what better theme could we have for our very own little 'Robin'?

The soft colours of Tiffany Blue, light yellow and pale pink are also the sorts of colours we will be going for in our nursery too - hopefully we will be able to reuse some of our baby shower decorations in there and vice-versa!

The Lemon souffle looks so yummy and served in mini white ramekins, decorated with lemon peel it looks almost too good to eat - as do the little bluebird cupcakes!

The cake is great fun - i love the colours, the whimsicality of the design and the cute little owls on top - its just too sweet! The nappy cake is a traditional baby shower decoration, but this one has mixed it up a bit and ties in perfectly with the theme as its decorated with birdhouses and mini birds - so cute!

Now i've just got to hope that my girlie mates see this and decide to go with a bird theme for our baby shower :-p

xxx

Nursery Inspiration Board

Credits: Vintage modern nursery (2), Pottery barn (2), I-do Australia (2), google images (4)

As you all know me and Scott are expecting our first baby on January 6th (not long now!) and so I have been thinking lots about how to decorate our little one's nursery.

Im loving the idea of having a modern and fun take on a woodland/bird theme - with tree and bird murals on the wall and lots of cute accessories like the gorgeous owl cushion. By mixing it up a bit with the fun polka dot pattern it will be a more modern version of the theme. This sort of nursery will be quite long lasting too - we won't have to redecorate for quite a few years because its a versatile scheme.

Scott and I are expecting baby to be a girl (although it isn't 100%) so have been looking at a turquoise, white and pale pink colour scheme but this idea could easily be adapted to suit a little boy as well - just with a tweak of the colours :-)

xxx

Homemade Summer Wedding

More Information: image by Martha Stewart weddings, image by martha Stewart weddings

How much am I still loving Style Me Pretty's Style Circle?

This board is another of my attempts at recreating the feel that Scott and I want for our wedding day.

The inspiration for this board came from the amazing Martha Stewart cake (which I have posted on the blog before) and the colours and fun whimsy it provides. Our wedding, if everything goes according to plan and budget (!) will be filled with lots of little homemade touches - particularly where the stationary and decoration of our venue is concerned.

I have fallen in love with the idea of having paper lanterns and tissue paper pom-poms hanging through the trees, interspersed with hanging glass jars holding flickering candles as the sun sets *swoon*

The handmade guestbook is a fun and original idea, a bit more interesting than the average guest book and a lot more fun!

And of course the blackboard at the bottom sums it all up 'Live, Laugh, Love' - it's what every day and every wedding should be about!

xxx

Recipe Three - Chicken and Apple

Chicken and Apple Puree

1 cooked and chopped boneless chicken breast

2 cooked and chopped dessert apples or 6 heaped tablespoons of apple sauce (no added sugar)

Puree the two ingredients together, adding a small amount of unsweetened apple juice if the consistency is too thick.

This recipe is great for a day when you and daddy are eating chicken - you can make baby's food at the same time :-) 

xxx

Woodland Accessories

I'm loving these woodland inspired pieces from australian company www.kidsgiftlist.com/au.

The height chart is a fun and interactive piece of room decor and the squirrels... well you gotta love the squirrels! 

xxx

Budget Art

Woop! I won my Ebay bid on three plain white artists canvases. I'm hoping to create something like the picture above with them :-) I'll probably leave the base white or paint it cream (rather than blue) and will be making the owls/birds and other animals out of patterned scrap paper. Hopefully they will turn out okay and fingers crossed they will make the perfect addition to the baby's room. I was originally planning to paste the birds and animals straight onto the wall but figured it would be more practical to put them onto canvas - much easier to change later on!

xxx

Family Tree

How cute is this family tree painting? 

I think we will definitely be bringing this idea into play when decorating our nursery. I won't be using these colours as we are planning to stick to a neutral base with brighter accents (there won't be any pink or blue!) but the idea of having all of our little one's family included in their room decoration is such a lovely one. And of course the tree fits perfectly in with our loose woodland/animal theme. 

xxx

Our nursery furniture :-)

Well we are pretty much settled on our nursery furniture now (just gotta go buy it!). We really like the Leksvik range from Ikea, and it helps because its a great value budget buy AND is still solid wood. The cot itself is £75 and there are a few different cot mattresses to go with it, although we are going to decide on which one to get in person (better to have a good feel don't you think?!). 

What i really like about it is the fact that it has adjustable height mattress base (so will be suitable as a cot until baby is a year old) and then one side is removable so it can also be a cute toddler bed. Not bad for the price! 

There is a matching chest of drawers that we are going to be getting too - we'll probably use it as a baby changing unit whilst the baby is young and then as clothes storage as they get older. It helps that Ikea has a normal single bed and a children's bed available in the same wood finish - so when it comes to buying their first 'big bed' we can match it up with the existing furniture.

Now just got to get a day off to visit Ikea... no doubt i'll find more little bits to get whilst we are in there! 

xxx 

Yummy Sweet potatoes :-)

Lately my pregnancy craving has been for sweet potatoes and so I thought i'd post up my favourite way to have them.

Sweet potatoes are really healthy - they are rich in complex carbohydrates, fiber, beta carotene and lots of A, B6 and C vitamins. Which is good for me because they taste really yummy when baked :-) 

When Scott and I cook sweet potatoes we do it really simply - just scrub the potatoes, prick them with a fork and bake them in the oven for about forty minutes. After they are softer we cut them in half and stick them on the grill with a topping of caramelized onions and cheese. These are so tasty and really filling too. 

Great for when you're feeling peckish and also nice as an accompaniment with grilled chicken or fish. I think that I'll be eating LOADS of these once the baby is here and I need the extra energy for breastfeeding. 

The other plus side is that once baby starts weaning i'll be able to cook sweet potato for them aswell - just bake until extra soft, remove the skin and puree with a tiny dab of butter (you can guess who will be eating up their leftovers!)

xxx

Recipe Two - Apple and Pear

Apple and pear puree (optional cinnamon)

This puree recipe is taken from Annabel Karmel's 'Top 100 baby purees' and is an ideal first food because it is easy to digest and unlikely to cause any allergies. The cinnamon is an optional addition - some parents like to leave out extra spices until their baby is a little older. 

For this recipe you need:

2 dessert apples (try Pink Lady or Royal Gala)

2 ripe pears (try Conference or Chinese sweet pears)

4 tbsp pure apple juice or water

generous pinch of ground cinnamon (optional)

Put the peeled and chopped fruit into a saucepan with the apple juice or water (and the cinnamon if using). Cover and simmer over a low heat for 6-8 minutes until tender before blending to a smooth puree. 

Cute Baby Toys

WOW WOW WOW!

How adorable are these handmade toys and mobiles from the Etsy Seller KLTWorks?

Im loving anything bird/wildlife themed at the moment and think that these are just gorgeous and such good, colourful fun! 

These are going on my wishlist :-)

xxx

Nursery - paper animals

More nursery inspiration I found whilst browsing chicmotherandbaby.com/au - these cute collages of animals are so cute and would be so easy to recreate yourself on a budget. I personally would put the paper images directly onto the wall - however if you wanted a room that could be changed easier then it would still look great if the images were painted/pasted onto canvases. You can pick up plain canvases pretty cheaply online and in big stores such as TK Maxx or Etc... 

xxx

Nursery - Birds

As usual I have been scouring the web for inspiring ideas for our little one's nursery, and, thankfully, haven't been disappointed by today's finds. Went through some nursery pictures on 'Rate my Space' (ratemyspace.com) and found this absolutely adorable and completely Diy-friendly nursery. 

The nursery had a loose bird/woodland theme and this had been achieved in the colours aswell as all of the cute little details. 

The birds themselves were cut out of scrap-booking paper found on craft websites and in their local stationers and were glued onto the wall before being varnished over - i think they are a really nice idea, particularly as they are a neutral and long-lasting design so the parents won't need to remove them any time soon. Of course you can get lots of murals and stickers online but I like these better because of their individuality and fun... not to mention how budget friendly they are! 

xxx

Weaning

Many parents delay the start of weaning until their baby is at least six months old - however this tends to be because of the fact that the processed jars of food tend to be aged at 6+ months. Most doctors, health advisors and nutritionists agree that a baby is able to be weaned from the age of four months. 

During the first year of a baby's life most of the nutrition that they receive will be gained from their breast or formula milk intake - so as long as they are still receiving the right amounts of milk the baby loses no nutrition from being weaned at four months than they would later on. According to Annabel Karmel, a leading child nutritionist, it isn't a good idea to delay introducing solids any later than six months as a baby needs to learn to chew and swallow food. Also chewing encourages the development of muscles that are essential for speech. 

From four months the types of foods that are suitable for a baby are:

baby rice mixed with breast or formula milk, avocado, bananas, cooked apple and pear, parsnip, potato, carrot, squash and sweet potato. 

Image: babyccinoblog.com

xxx

Recipe One

Ok so all the equipment you need to produce your own nutritional baby purees is a hand blender (or a normal blender although this is harder to clean) and some plastic ice cube trays. 

Making your own baby food is not only a hundred times healthier for them but is also one of the most effective ways of saving money - particularly if you use ingredients that you are also using for your own dinners. 

All you really need to do is blend the vegetables or cooked meat that you are using into a smooth puree, mixing with a little bit of the cooking water if you need to thin it out. You can then pour this puree into an ice cube tray and put it in the freezer. Once its frozen you can empty the cubes into a plastic freezer bag (labelled with the date) and this way you can reuse the ice cube trays too. Cooking in bulk and freezing in batches couldn't be easier - all you need to do is defrost your puree in the microwave or on the hob when its to be used. 

First vegetable puree - carrots

Steam or boil (in a small amount of water) 350g/12oz of carrots that have been peeled or chopped. 

Drain and puree with some of the cooking liquid until very smooth. 

This makes 8 portions and is ideal for freezing.

Baby Food

Unfortunately these days people are eating more and more heavily processed food - sales of microwave ready meals are on average twenty percent higher than sales of fresh produce and meals seem to revolve around spending as little time in the kitchen/eating as possible. 

This has also led to a rise in the use of processed jars of baby food that you see in the shops nowadays, and which most mothers use for their babies. Many of these baby food companies, including the big names such as Hipp Organics and Heinz replace real food products with water and thickening agents in their baby food - of course this food is then going to be nutritionally inferior to products made with fresh food. So according to testing by the CSPI the baby foods are nutritionally defunct, and not only that but they cost a lot more than similar regular foods that aren't marketed at parents.

For me this is a really important thing to understand - I don't like putting junk food into my body and i'm certainly not planning on putting junk food into our baby either! So when it comes to weaning Scott and I are planning to make all of our baby's food ourselves - this way we know exactly what the baby is eating and that the food doesn't have added fillers and sugar. 

It isn't actually particularly time consuming to make your own babyfood - particularly today when most people have a blender (or hand blender) and you can easily produce a big batch of food and freeze it ready to be used throughout the month. 

Because of the importance of this to me i'll be adding a new regular post - each week i'll be putting up a little bit of nutritional information or advice on baby feeding and a quick, easy and nutritional recipe for baby food. 

Hope you like it 

xxx

ps: have a look at the link for more information about the different findings concerning baby foods and their nutritional (and purse friendly) values: 

http://www.cspinet.org/reports/cheat1.html

Nursery Inspiration

How cute is this nursery? I love the tree on the wall and the cute leaves cut out of scrap-booking paper. This is the sort of design that we want to incorporate into the nursery for our little one. We will be going for a wildlife theme mixed with neutral colours for the base and brighter accessories. I'm going fabric hunting this week for some lovely patterned fabrics to turn into bunting and cushion covers. 

Scott and I were talking about painting a tree design onto the wall and turning it into a 'family tree' by attaching pictures of the baby's family and painting their names onto it.

xxx