Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Ms. Sloth nominated Ms. Stripes’ Brooch Bouquet DIY as her post for the helpful series, because she used it to make her own brooch bouquet. Ms. Sloth says, “I’d seen a lot of other tutorials, but Stripes’ was the simplest.”
~~~
Again- for Sloth. And any other lovelies out there who wanna continue their extreme arm toning regime on their wedding day. You’re hardcore. Enjoy the tutorial kids!
PREP:
I already had a fairly sizable collection of brooches from my awesome adopted grandma, and the rest I found in thrift stores, on eBay, and even borrowed one from the awesome Mrs. Nachos!
Gather/Edit your brooches. I used around 50! Read more…
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
I was up early Sunday to go to the Flower Mart and I tried to write this recap pre-coffee. No bueno.
Amazingly, just a few sips down, and at my favorite DTLA coffee shop too (where dog love and amazing walks of shame abound), I finally felt ready to share our fantastic readings. Amazing what coffee and a little *silent* people mocking can do to jump start the imagination.
Let’s get back to it, shall we?
Stephanie introduced each reader/reading and then they stood up and read from their spot in the circle. Now we were surrounded by love, joy, laughter, and words, delicious words. Told you. Big nerds.
Carla (my high school friend, LA roomie, and wedding day hairstylist extraordinaire) stood up and read I Like You, by Sandol Stoddard Warburg. All four minutes of it! Total rock star.
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Our opening prayer sung, we found ourselves standing awkwardly far apart amidst our friends and loved ones. The good baby juju hung heavy in the air and our officiant, Stephanie, continued:
Tabitha and Cynthia were at my wedding and blessed my commitment and love to my husband. They were both there in spirit when my daughter was born, and I swear Cynthia was so excited, it was like she just had a baby. Cynthia has a love for babies.
I have had the privilege of knowing Tabitha since 2001, when we met in San Francisco. Of course our paths would cross, we were both in the fashion industry, and adored anything creative. Sometimes we were like little girls playing dress up. Literally. Once for a project of mine during graduate school, I dressed Tabitha up and took Polaroids of her. We were giggling with tears running down our faces all day. In moments like that, I knew that Tabitha would be a dear friend for life.
It is also a moment that reminds me of why Cynthia and Tabitha are together. I have known Cynthia since the beginning of their relationship, and I know that they share in that fun, loving, child-like manner. You can see their playfulness and loving intention. This is what a marriage is.
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Let’s get to it already: the (veggie) meat, the grit, the heart of the day. Yes, I’m talking about our ceremony. It was my favorite part of the day and by far the most magical outpouring of love I’ve ever felt. They (who?!) say a picture is worth a thousand words, and I certainly hope so, because I have trouble coming up with any that accurately capture, contain, or recreate the magic. But I’ll do my best.
Our first few guests to arrive caught us off guard, and it was just a little awkward—you know, *shy wave, yup, this is me in my bride clothes, okay, I’m just gonna mosey on over to the “bridal chamber” and hide from you guys now type of awkward. And exciting. Our guests were showing up for our wedding which was mere moments away from really happening. It was totally surreal.
We stayed sequestered in the bridal chamber (really, the storage room for our excessive decor) with Team Awesome and family. We indiscriminately slapped bow ties on a whole bunch of people. We realized our pink flamingos hadn’t been used, and my nephews went on a last minute mission to find them a home (thanks guys!). We nervously called for beer, but I’ll be honest, a shot would have been just about perfect.
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Chugga chugga! I haven’t fallen off the recap train just yet…
Following a rough week last week, I thought it only appropriate to pick up our recaps with a post dedicated to the lovely ladies who surrounded us (with LOVE) on our wedding day. They’re rock stars.
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
I am a shopping machine. If it’s pink, sparkly, extremely short, or otherwise inappropriate and located in Los Angeles, I’ve bought it. It’s a little fun. A little hellish. And a lot exhausting.
But oh well. Who cares right? Let’s look at pretty pictures okay? You know, those pictures. The (lowers voice) detail shots. Yup. The kind I ranted, raved, and ridiculed.
It’s funny, because in the end it was all true.
The detail shots are definitely not the most important pictures, but your wedding day DOES go by far too quickly, and it IS fun to look back and see what your rings were up to while you were getting pretty!
You’ve already seen our smug mugs, but how about a closer look at some of our bridal accessories?
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
It’s moving week here in Stripe world. Sigh. As I sit on my couch writing this post I’m surrounded by half-finished STDs and an ever increasing sea of boxes that make my heart race. And not in a good way. And then there’s the wedding crap.
Have you ever looked around at the fast accumulating wedding crap that’s taking over your house/apartment/life and wondered, ‘what the hell am I gonna do with this stuff after the wedding?’
In attempting to have a green (ish) wedding I like to think about where this stuff is going after our wedding and not just rejoice in my initial discovery. Read more…
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Hey hey hey! Hope you all had a wonderful weekend! It was pretty busy around here…I worked way too late on Friday night. I styled a fun photo shoot for the always fabulous Mrs. Meatball (and hubby) on Saturday.
And I did absolutely nothing on Sunday. Well, I did dishes and found new blogs. I showered well after 3PM. I made the most delicious mushroom sauce EVER, courtesy of that genius Julia Child.
And today I start a pilot. So I figure I’d better give up the goods now, because it could get a little crazy around here for the next few weeks. Oh! And the goods are good. Like bridal portrait good…
So I’ll just shut it, drink my coffee and show you, mkay?
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Our wedding morning turned out to be lovely, but I’m not gonna lie, there were definitely a few loose ends to tie up while we were getting pretty.
Luckily we had just the friends & family to blow, sew, tow and tie up those ends for us. And they did so with bakers twine, love, champagne, grace and a lot of laughs:
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
All right lovelies, thank you for your patience. It’s officially official pro-pics recap time!
Our wedding day dawned grey and misty (not to worry, it turned blue and beautiful) and we lay in bed for a few minutes marveling over the fact that this day was finally here. Then we got up, threw on our grubs and headed to get coffee. I will admit that for the first time ever I ordered that giant size Starbucks (Venti?!) because I just really needed it, ya know? I think I ate oatmeal too. Maybe. Then because our rentals hadn’t arrived on Friday, we headed over to our venue to meet rock star bridesmaids Lil’ Stripe and Nami, and check that everything was right with our wedding world. It was. The rentals had arrived and the girls had totally taken charge of hanging lights and cranes in the trees. *Huge sigh of relief.*
Confident that it all was going to work out beautifully, we headed back to our house to commence getting ready:
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Whoa. I can’t believe another week has gone by so quickly!
And I don’t know about you guys, but Tuesday’s recap made me want to escape to a light & beautiful crafty world where craptastic wedding vendors don’t exist.
A world strung with mini-pennant flags in pale delicious golden colors. I’ve actually gotten quite a few inquiries about where to buy the (bright) mini-pennant flags I used in our STD’s photo shoot, so I figured I’d show you guys how to make them today. A quick and easy DIY for your Oscar Party and/or wedding.
It’s super easy! The perfect mindless American Idol watching activity (if you do such things!). Ready?
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Hope you all had a lovely long weekend! Let’s carry on with these recaps shall we? But be warned: This post makes me want to go to my happy place, and if you’re still planning, it might scare you a little bit. So feel free to join me in said happy place if need be, just see above picture for reference. And hang in there, we’re almost to the good stuff now…
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Long time no speak. In fact, it’s been sooo long that I figured a holiday (Valentine’s Day is a holiday in wedding blog land, right?!) was an appropriately auspicious day to pop back in around here and get this recap party started!
Now some of you newbees (hi! hey! welcome!) are probably scratching your head and wondering who the hell this Stripey character is, and I don’t blame you one bit! I mean I wrote my last post here over three months ago! Whoops! Time flies when you’re an old married lady… Read more…
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
Sure, it may have taken me a few months post-wedding, but I finally made myself sit down and write this post so I could share the last (and my favorite!) installment of our invitation saga: The Heart. It’s been a while though, so I understand if you need a quick refresher! Go check out the skin, bones, and guts of our glorious invites and then come right back, mkay?
I’m a big fan of printmaking and I specifically chose to create a lino print because it’s easy and cheap to do at home. I’m really happy with the way they turned out, and I absolutely love that we were able to include an original piece of artwork with our invitations.
Ms. Stripes, Los AngelesAge and Occupation: 29, Costume Designer/StylistFiancee's Age and Occupation: 29, ChefEngagement Date: June 23, 2009Wedding Date: September 2010Venue: Heritage Square MuseumAbout Me: I’m a type A creative with a messy streak, a loud mouth, and an uncanny knack for combining clashing patterns. I can usually be found with my nose in a book, my feet (or at least my toes) on the ground, my head in the clouds, and my arm around the prettiest girl you ever saw- aka
Fiancee Stripes. Together we’re planning a FUN vintage/modern French carnival wedding extravaganza and rockin’ dance party on a dime. (Say that three times fast!) Good coffee, long lists, Uniball pens, and my iPhone keep me sane, and making art, making trouble, and making out keep me happy! I love urban adventures, bike rides that end with afternoon drinks, breakfast for dinner, beautiful light, photography, travel, my furry family, and of course, my beautiful fiancee! I’m super excited to be here and can’t wait to share all our adventures as we craft a joyful, budget-friendly, design-savvy and all-around AWESOME wedding!
All-Inclusion Invitation Suites
