I've booked my weekend -

Saturday - Friends' winter wedding!

Sunday - Renegade Craft Fair!

I am excited to attend my friends' wedding and see how they put together their winter theme, it should be spactacular!  The bride is a crafty little thing and he is a music loving dance machine!  Tell me how much you love this: at her bridal shower she had everyone make an ornament for a Christmas tree she's displaying at their reception!  I've also caught wind that their introductions will be Michael Jackson themed!  Awesome?  I think so!

To extend my fun-filled weekend I am so excited for The Renegade Handmade Craft Fair on Sunday.  Renegade Handmade is a local shop in Chicago that sells only handmade products - talk about supporting small business!  They started the fair in 2003 and now have over 150 artists on site this year!  This is my kind of thing!  I am ecstatic to be attending!  One day I hope to be one of their vendors! 

The fair makes it possible to complete your Christmas shopping list!  

Renegade Craft says "those looking to shop handmade and support small business this holiday season will surely find something for everyone – from jewelry and clothing, to ceramics and stationery, with everything from bath products, housewares, posters, comics and plush objects in between – at this large-scale, free-to-attend art, craft and design extravaganza!!"

Happy Holiday Shopping Everyone! Next year come to Chicago!

Licensed to Wed

This past weekend was filled with a lot of wedding accomplishments!

Not only did my older brother propose, but Nolan and I went to our Cook County building to received our marriage license! Another check on the never ending checklist!

Yes that is right, September 26th will be our wedding celebration but we'll actually be married at the end of August in Chicago. We decided this was best for a few reasons, Nolan's job takes him away for weeks at a time and we didn't know if we'd have sufficient time to get our license and official in California before the wedding, it was cheaper here ($40 vs. $70), his parents, sister and my mom all had civil ceremonies and it just felt appropriate for us too, and we're trying to avoid more hassle while we're in Nevada, as we're only there together for less than a week prior to the wedding!

We will always consider 9/26 our wedding date, as it was chosen first and the Cook County marriage is just a formality. We'll celebrate our anniversary on that September day as well.


But, we are pretty excited for our civil ceremony too. We found out last month that we could hold our civil ceremony in the Chicago Cultural Center on certain Saturdays. When we paid for our license, we made an appointment to be wed there. It is a gorgeous, historic building with elaborate tile and glass work! The old Cook County Library is adorned with author's names and quotes on the walls, much like the Library of Congress if you've ever been there in DC. The building is also home to a Louis Comfort Tiffany art glass dome. The Tiffany dome spans 38 feet in diameter, that is more than 1,000 square feet of Tiffany designed glass. It contains approximately 30,000 pieces of glass in 243 sections within an ornate cast iron frame. The body of the dome has a “fish scale” pattern. The center, called the oculus, shows the signs of the zodiac. The interior stained glass dome originally was protected by an exterior translucent glass dome, which allowed much-needed natural light into what was then the library’s general delivery room. The lower portion of the room is covered with white marble and glistening mosaics, also designed by Tiffany.























We invited Nolan's sister and cousin to come celebrate with us along with my little brother. It should be a fun family affair! I can't wait!

My Brother... a fiance!

Well I couldn't be more happy to have been included in my brother's proposal weekend! He asked his girlfriend to marry him!

Way atop the John Hancock they had brunch on Friday morning and something was in the air, he sat beside her and asked her to be his wife. SHE SAID YES, and so it's on. I will gain another sister, my first sisterly addition will be Nolan's sister!

I couldn't be happier for them. We spent the weekend eating, drinking and watching the Cubs beat the Cardinals! A fantastic weekend if I do say so myself!

Congrats Adam and Alicia!

The OVARD wedding

I had the pleasure to be in and witness the wonderful wedding of great friends. Rachel is a childhood friend (that I earlier went to her shower, I posted before) and Jordan is her knight in shinning armor! He is so wonderful to her and I couldn't ask for more for my wonderful friend. I wish them all the best!!!!! Cheers to a life full of happiness, love, laughter, and some awesome kids!

Love,
Future Auntie Camille!

Getting in the the Wedding MOOOOOD!

For Memorial Day weekend I was back home in good ol' Reno, Nevada. I can't believe it's almost been a full year. I already have 3 more visits planned this year, so I know it won't go that long again until I see those great mountains and fantastic friends.

I had a blast for the few days I was home, I didn't get to see everyone I planned on visiting but alas, I was home!

My main mission while home was to produce a fun wedding shower for my dear friend Rachel S. We've know each other for as long as I've known how to walk! I will be standing beside her at the end of June while she takes the plunge into matrimony as she will be doing for me in September. So to celebrate her upcoming wedding her sister, mom and I planned a festive Saturday afternoon with friends, gifts, food, and fondue! It was a fun day. Rachel seemed to enjoy herself with all her good girlfriends around yapping about the future. She was all smiles (with a rum and coke in hand, of course!!!!)

Some of the most fun things about the wedding planning is some of the traditional events, like a shower with family and friends, I can't wait to have mine. Rachel's was so much fun (even though I was hung over!), playing games and celebrating Rachel's future. Congrats to her and Jordan, may they have an unbelievable life ahead of them!

Hopefully I will get some more photos of this day to post, (Rachel's mom needs to email them to me!)

Coming Post: Another Chicago "HOW TO"

Last weekend I ran several errands that included groceries at the farmer's market (the best one I've ever been to, the crepe I had might have skewed the results), a bridesmaid dress alteration, returning a dress to Banana Republic, and a lovely trip to Joann's for some material for DIY projects I have lined up for the wedding!

I took some photos for my soon-to-be sister-in-law's curiosity and will post them in the next couple days! Ric I am always thinking of you!!! Pictures involve the Chicago transit system (my livelihood depends on this lovely metropolitan staple), the farmer's market, and fun things I saw along my route!

But to peak your interest in my wedding planning land I have been reading several blogs to keep me motivated and on the right track in building a ceremony and reception that is truly and uniquely Nolan and me! We keep, scratch that, I keep thinking of new RAD ways to entertain and awe the crowd when it comes to our event. I must say that Nolan has done a great job of keeping me grounded (popping my bubble) on more than one occasion! This in the end, has and will save us some moola! Something I am (more so in the future than now) grateful for.

To read the most recent post that has done a great job of putting things into perspective please read this post by The Offbeat Bride. She keeps you thinking of that balance we all strive for in life and in event planning, while some of the comments reiterate her truthful depiction of achieving balance of attaining those oh's and awe's everyone wants at their wedding and keeping it about what's important, your marriage and sharing it with those who matter the most to you!

I did it!

I tried on the wedding dress again. It was the ONE! I knew when I slipped it over my head and around my hips. I found the wedding dress. It was a surreal moment, but I was so ecstatic about finding such a monumental object of my future. Measured and money down, it's mine in 6 months!
I bought a wedding dress.