Don’t you love it when you are so inspired to do something that you have to do it RIGHT NOW?

Several weeks ago I saw these 1930s floral-pattern and metallic shoes on Pinterest (from the Thought Patterns blog):

Beautiful!  I immediately bookmarked this image, on Pinterest, and in my mind.  I knew there was a way to make/refashion similar shoes.  I had a starting base:

Very old, maybe 1920s or ’30s Mary Janes.  You can see me wearing them here.  I had been thinking about getting them professionally repainted/dyed a darker color for fall but had been putting it off for no particular reason.  (OMG, I just realized, looking at this photo, the perforations form a heart in the center!)

So I’ve been trying to figure out how I was going to get the roses on here.  Paint them?  (HA!)  Waterslide decals?  (Probably not suited to leather.)  Decoupage with Victorian clip art?  (Might be messy.)  I have a whole bunch of Victorian stickers on my stationery drawer that I haven’t used.  While decorating a package today (for a certain little fairy friend), I realized that the stickers were printed on thin, clear plastic.  Eep! Just the ticket.

I went to work straight away.  No, I don’t know how durable this is and what will happen when I actually wear them out and about.  But I didn’t care, I was having too much fun.

And they are not perfect, there is a wrinkle here and there but I think they look pretty good.  I’m going to wait a while to see if the stickers start to peel off; if so, I might put on a coat of satin clear acrylic paint over them.

To finish these off I painted the trim a pretty, faded gold (“Champagne Gold” metallic acrylic paint from DecorArt).  These are now the prettiest shoes I own!  OK, so where to wear them?

I’ve been a bit frazzled lately.  Last week I started to feel a summer cold coming on (the worst!) I realized that I needed to rest.   You know, I’ve been trying to do wedding stuff + shop stuff (although that hasn’t really been happening since the wedding stuff – will have to be corrected soon) and then just all the other stuff that goes on in life.   I was constantly waivering between “Wweeeeeeeeeeeee!” and “Aaaackk!”  So now, to remedy that, I’m taking some Pantothenic acid (Vitamin B5, good for the nerves), cut out the caffeine (green tea, not the chocolate – can’t stop that!) and forcing myself to go to bed at a “normal” (normal for me) time which is difficult since I’m like a child in that I really don’t want to go to sleep.  Ever.

And this morning?  Mostly I’m “weeeee!,” with a tiny bit “aack.”  Better.  I’m having a moment of calm, dears, so let’s take advantage of it.  Wedding Update!

You already knew we were on the fast track and had tentatively planned a wedding for autumn.  While trying to figure out the logistics (the most fun or the worst part of any planning depending on your personality – guess where I fall?) I started to feel wigged out by the stress of it;  I wanted to enjoy my short engagement and all the planning wasn’t helping; so we decided to elope.  Just us.  It was great.  I was still going to make my dress, still going to have wonderful pictures of the event.

For a long time I would say, “When I get married, I want to elope.”  My parents knew this.  And when I told them about our engagement they told me, “You’re adults, do what you want.  Go elope, it’s fine with us.”  “Really??”  “Yes.”  (I think my parents were just happy I was actually getting married and not going to turn into an old spinster [Clarification: I personally do not have a problem with old spinsters].)

So, that’s what I told them – “Scrap the wedding plans, we are just going to elope.”  Gave them the date, in August.  (Why wait when you’re just going to run off?)  Well, guess what?  Mom and Dad were not happy about it.  At all.  (Make a mental note here: When eloping, do not tell parents.)

ANYHOW, we are still going to to have a summer wedding only now the parents are coming to the ceremony!   At first I resisted the idea.  What happened to my utterly romantic vision of two people running away together?  What about my reluctance to become weepy and sentimental in front of an audience? But my parents were truly disappointed and I couldn’t very well run away knowing they felt excluded from our special day.   So, I’m over that and am now glad our (out of town) parents are involved.   (Not sure if anyone else would be coming.  We need to keep it small.)  And we still plan to celebrate party-style with our friends and family in the fall so that will be fun!  How many people get a summer wedding and an autumn reception?

So, again, I’ve been frazzled lately.  But at this point most things are taken care of and I’m feeling really excited about things.  On my to do list: I still need to get my wedding band sized, alter my fiance’s vest.  Make the boutonnieres. (Yes, I’m making those now, for all three men.)   Maybe a bouquet for me, I’ve got some ideas for that.  And my dress.  The dress!

Yes, I know, this dress just screams “BRIDE.”  Ok not really, but it’s working out.  I thought at first I would go more 1930s tea-length.  Then I thought about a full-length, early 1950s style.  But what I really wanted was something  pretty but relatively easy.  This pattern, from 1948, did not jump out at me at first but I think the silhouette looks pretty good on my figure and it’s not too complicated.  Plus I’m customizing it so it won’t end up looking like an everyday sundress.

Fabric: I’ve had this soft white lace for years now – I originally bought it to make my Maid of Honor dress for my friend Natalie’s big, formal wedding.  When it was decided that we were going to buy dresses, I knew that I’d find a use for this lace someday. This lace has turned out to be quite perfect for the dress.  It’s nice but not overly fancy.  Light, not too heavy.  The lace is for the lace overdress; the lining will be a separate dress. This way I can change the lining dress underneath (I hope to be able to wear this dress again and not put it away in storage.)

My wedding colors went from muted early fall tones (iris, hydrangea, ivory and mustard) to more light and happy summer hues (pinks and yellows and white – maybe blue too).  I may use this petal pink batiste and nude gauze (above) for the lining.  I can”t guarantee I’ll use either of these since I’ve changed my mind 3 times already!  But it would be pretty, yes?  And as far as decorating the dress, I’m still trying to figure out that part – vintage flowers, a velvet ribbon belt, vintage foil-back buttons….just some more ideas I’m playing around with.

I hope that was a satisfying update!  I don’t want to give away too many details – I think it will be more fun this way when I show you the wedding pictures eventually.  (Which I will, of course!)

Thank you for letting me share with you all and have a lovely weekend!

I think I’ve ruled out one thing: a gluten problem. I’m not 100% sure (more on that later), but I’ve been sneaking in some regular flour — though I definitely cannot eat whole wheat — into my diet to see what happens. So far I’m okay…

So, then what do I make? Cupcakes!

I had this craving, you know the kind where it’s late and you throw a coat over your pajamas and run to the market? (Ok, really, I didn’t wear my pajamas to the store! Just saying.) Anyway, I had a craving for something tart and sweet and raspberry. I got some organic frozen raspberries and white cake mix. Add egg whites, non-fat Greek yogurt (Thanks for the inspiration, Elizabeth!), a wee bit of walnut oil (for the omegas) and lots of rose water, pour into some darling (and slightly miniature) cupcake liners and there you go….something sweet, tart and raspberry. Oh, and delicious!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful new year so far! Thank you for the holiday wishes too.br /br /I must say I’ve enjoyed taking a little break from the computer (in some respects – I’ve pretty much had to work through the holidays). I wanted to say hello to all of you lest you think I’ve fallen off the planet or, perhaps more fittingly, down the rabbit hole.

As with most new toys my new camera has been on many outings with me and snapped many random things. (Isn’t that what most new cameras do?) I’ve complained about my camera plenty of times on this blog, haven’t I? Well, I can’t really do that anymore! (Thanks sweetie.)

The first photo is sunset southbound over the Grapevine. (A.k.a. “The 5″ freeway.) I always appreciate a beautiful sunset or sunrise on a trip, it seems to foretell good things ahead. And I especially love the distinct bug splat on the windshield – that’s what you get with 10 megapixels.

One of the first photos I took was of this macaroon below from Boule. Their rose macaroons are my favorite and I love how they manage to add a sprinkle of edible pixie dust on all of them. Sparkles really make things more special.

We spent Christmas in the Bay Area and that Friday my boyfriend and I went to the newly renovated California Academy of Sciences. I thought this roof garden was kind of neat – I guess it acts as a natural air conditioner among other things.

Overall it was a bit disappointing. Since I grew up in the Bay Area, a trip to the Academy was a once or twice a year experience and, well, it just isn’t the same. It’s all so very modern and lacks a lot of the old, early 20th century charm.

Taking down the Christmas tree was always a little sad but this year it felt different; It was more of a ritual of hope and new beginnings. I look forward to things to come and spending a little time in blogland with you!