Vintage Delight Shopping Social {So Cal Event}

On November 16 in Industry Ca, we are bringing you 

Vintage Delight Shopping Social

"Get all dolled-up in your best vintage finery, and stop in for a lovely afternoon at Etablir Shop. Come browse vintage clothing and jewelry from Chariot Marie and Mel Scouts, as well as hand-made adornments from Love Sparkle Pretty. Also featuring ice cream from Miniscoops, a glam girl photo booth, hundreds of dollars in giveaways, music, and MORE!"

See more details and GET YOUR $6 TICKETS HERE!

Photography Credit: Kristen Booth 

{IG Auction} A Winter-Inspired Children's Crown for a Good Cause

From November 4th-8th, Pamela from MacDonald's Playland will be hosting an auction on Instagram to help raise money for children and women affected by homelessness and domestic violence through their charity, Project Lead Kindly. You can follow along with the auction at @AuctionLeadKindly on IG here to place your bids. TODAY IS THE LAST DAY!!

To help raise money for PLK, I've created a one of a kind children's floral crown created with peach, ivory and sage green hues with a bit of gold detail. The crown is attached to 2 ivory shear ribbons for an adjustable fit for ages 3-10. This pretty piece is also lined with soft felt fabric for a comfortable wear paired with a little one's favorite outfit. The starting bid is just $10 so follow us on IG at @LoveSparklePretty and @AuctionLeadKindly to stay up to date on the auction. Place your bid on the crown HERE-Remember, today is the LAST DAY!

Speaking of charities, there is another that is dear to me, Operation Smile. While I was going to school to become a nurse, I remember learning about different congenital defects that can happen within developing fetuses-one of them being the cleft lip and cleft palate. There are several difficulties and infections that can occur with someone who is born with this, including difficulty eating and speaking, ear disease, dental problems and more. Since I was in school then, I was able to help out with this charity just by renting some of my textbooks from Campus Book Rentals (you know how expensive it is to buy textbooks these days). They donate to Operation Smile with each book rented!

For over 30 years, Operation Smile has been performing safe surgeries for those in developing countries suffering from cleft lip and cleft palate. What's even more amazing is that those performing the surgeries and providing healthcare for these underprivileged children are all volunteers! So beautiful! You can read more about this cause right here.

Below are just a couple of children that have been positively impacted and treated by Operation Smile.

Lucas, a sweet 5 year old boy from Brazil got a new start and was able to attend school once again after being bullied for his cleft lip. Read more about his story here.

Precious little Chisomo from Malawi, suffered from malnutrition due to his cleft lip and cleft palate but was finally able to get his surgery done after regaining health. Read more of Chisomo's story here.


What are some of your favorite charities and causes to support?

**A portion of this post his been sponsored but all of the opinions and statements are my own. I truly believe in both of these causes.**

An Interview with a Photographer and How I Started Love Sparkle Pretty

A couple months ago after visiting the Creative Live studio for a marketing class, I was contacted by sweet photographer and filmmaker, Sarah Shotts from Arkansas. I was so happy that she reached out to me about doing a little interview and becoming a Preferred Vendor on her website. Honestly, it's amazing how the internet can connect people in positive ways!

Below is just a peek of the interview. Read more about my story, what inspires me, what I love most about what I do and more right here.

How did you get started making floral crowns & bridal accessories? 

Back in 2009, my husband and I got engaged and once I started planning the wedding, I realized that I craved a creative outlet. From doing all of the floral design with my centerpieces, bouquets, corsages, etc. to creating coordinating flower hair clips for all of my bridesmaids as well as my veil, I fell in love with all of the different pieces you can create to bring a wedding together.

Once my husband and I got married in 2010, I kept creating flower clips for friends and family as a hobby and first opened up my Etsy shop with floral hair clips. During this time I was also attending school full time to become a nurse. Once I got accepted into nursing school, I had to completely leave my craft room to focus on my studies as well as our brand new little baby.
After several months, I realized that I intensely missed my creative outlet. After much prayer and support from my husband, I decided to leave nursing school to pursue my first passion and reopened my Etsy shop.

I started working with photographers which allowed me to expand and cultivate my design ideas. From these photo shoots, I was able to start re-branding and learning the path that I wanted Love Sparkle Pretty to take.

I found my niche in designing pieces that make romance dance in photos and bring special moments together. I love sending these pieces to others around the world that will adorn them on days they will never forget.

Hop on over to Sarah's blog, A Love Letter to Adventure to see the rest of the interview here.

Handsome Little Bouts {New to the Shop}

Handsome little boutonnieres have made their debut in the shop! After a long while of not creating boutonnieres anymore (you can see a couple of my past bout orders here and here), I decided I needed to bring some back. Since I have several floral crowns for brides, I decided to create matching adornments for the groom and groomsmen to wear as well so each of these are inspired by a floral crown in the shop.

Meet Stay Golden. He is inspired by the Ivory and Gold Crown in the shop. Created with soft velvet leaves, a bit of lace, dainty babys breath and gold berries, he's the perfect neutral bout with a bit of shine. Get Stay Golden in the shop here.

 Meet the Leigh Boutonniere who is inspired by none other than the popular Leigh Floral Crown. This bout is created with a blush pink garden rose, a pretty little delphinium with buds, a bit of greenery and carefully wrapped in a soft ivory cotton ribbon. Get the Leigh bout right here.

Last but certainly not least, meet the Charlotte Boutonniere inspired by the ethereal Charlotte Floral Crown. This piece is created with white garden roses with a small bud as well, dried babys breath, realistic greenery and wrapped in natural jute twine. See more of this bout here.

Since these boutonnieres can also be worn by groomsmen, we have a discount on orders of 5 or more boutonnieres so send an email to lovesparklepretty[at]aol.com to start creating your order!

{Personal} 16 Week Bump + A Handmade Pretty Kimono

These past few weeks have been full of more energy than I even know what to do with. For example, the other night, I was awake until 11pm making bow ties for a friend's baby just because and when I finally made myself go to bed, I woke up at 3am thinking about baby stuff-what kind of crib we should get, the colors to paint the walls, baby shower details (which by the way isn't until February), etc. I had to drink some chamomile tea and read the bible to make myself go back to bed somewhere around 4:30am. Have any "good nights rest" tips??

The nesting is getting absurd too. Sanitizing every single cubbard and washing shower curtains??? I'm only 16 weeks along!!! What am I turning into? 

Can't complain though, at least I feel good.

By the way, see this amazing kimono I am wearing? It is handmade by the sweetest girl, Lexi of The Lovely Sewjourner. She's been sewing for a while now making these pretty pieces for friends and family and finally opened her Etsy shop back up!! She has over 50 fabrics to choose from so you know you can get the perfect print(s) for your wardrobe!!

Here's to another productive week!

Any pregnancy stories that you'd like to share that I can read if I wake up again at 3am? Oh please, oh please?!! ;)

{Photo Shoot-FBF} My First Collaboration + How to Get Photographers to Photograph Your Product

 A couple years ago when I made the decision to leave nursing school to pursue my passion of creativity and design, I had to learn new skills and what it would take to run a small business. Amongst experimenting with sewing and making different accessories, I started creating new pieces from single flower clips to floral crowns for styled photo shoots. I handcrafted these pieces specifically for shoots without the intent of actually selling them because at the time, I didn't think anyone would actually buy crowns (thankfully I was wrong).

After I had made my first crown for a shoot with a local photographer, I was approached via email by Jennifer, a part-time model in Canada. She was working with Sarah Sovereign on an upcoming shoot and wanted me to create a floral crown for their vision. This was my first collaboration outside of CA and outside of the states. I wasn't sure how these things worked but it was the start of my networking skills and I dove right in.

I remember feeling like a little sponge a few years ago (I still am) trying to learn everything I can and since I craved beautiful photos of my pieces (a cell phone just doesn't cut it all the time), I found ways to collaborate with talented photographers.

I've been asked by a few business owners how to go about getting photographers to take photos of product. I know it can be a bit nerve wrecking at first but if they aren't asking you, you ask them! Find photographers whom you really admire their work, fit your brand aesthetic and would genuinely photograph your product (I wouldn't ask a wedding photographer to photograph handmade pillows if that's what you do). Ask them if they have any styled shoots or would be interested in shooting your pieces. The worse they can say is no and you move on but if they say yes, send them your product, include a return label if requested (most photogs will graciously mail it back to you) and once they have sent you the photos, remember to share them and give them credit! It's a 2 way street. They get their name spread and you get yours. Plus, if you made a great connection, you can work together again in the future.

Here is one of the first shoots I collaborated on and since it reminds me of Fall, it seemed like a good time to share. Thank you again Sarah Sovereign for your pretty photos and thank you Jenn for reaching out to me!!

See more of this photo shoot here.

Photographer: Sarah Sovereign

Floral Crown: Love Sparkle Pretty

Model: Jennifer

DON'T FORGET!! The Fall Sale in the shop ends on Saturday! Get 30% off your order using the code, "HELLOFALL" at checkout.