An ivory bridal hairpiece

I have just about finished a bridal hairpiece that was custom ordered through my {Love Sparkle Pretty} account on etsy. The bride is from Washington state and will be getting married July 9th but has her hair trial for her wedding on June 21st so it is imperative that I get it to her by then :) She has opted out of wearing a veil so she just wanted a little bit of birdcage veil attached to an ivory flower no more than 3.5" in length. Last night, I stayed up until about 1am working on her hairpiece and I think it came out beautifully!! Here is the progress so far:

My next creation is an ivory flower that will actually be attached to a bride's wedding dress on July 9th in New York! :)

Just a note to myself...

New projects & the opening of my new etsy shop!

It's FINALLY over!!! The Spring 2011 semester is done with! :)

In celebration, I opened up my etsy shop...I still don't have a lot of listings up just yet {still working on it} & I will be starting 2 new projects by the next couple of weeks!

Yesterday, I went to Starbucks to study for a bit before my last final of the day & a woman that was behind me in line asked if I had made the flower I was wearing in my hair. Once, I told her that I did, she told me that she loved it and politely aked if I would make her hairpiece for her wedding in Feb. 2012! I was so excited and shocked at the same time! We exchanged numbers and I will be working on it shortly.

It will be a halo of small ivory flowers with pinks and yellows mixed throughout. :) I can't wait because my vision of it is quite amazing I must say! Pictures of progress will be coming soon!

Another project will be for a little girl named Destiny :) I will be making her a little ruffled skirt she can feel really girly wearing!! {It's gonna be so CUTE!} Next week sometime I am planning to go to the LA fabric district and as soon as I get back with lots of different fabrics, I will be starting her skirt for her. Pictures of progress will be coming soon as well!

P.S. visit my etsy shop {although still under construction}

Love Sparkle Pretty Etsy Shop

{NOTE: if you are ordering from the high desert, shipping is free}

Baby shower gift idea!

Tomorrow, I have a friends baby shower to attend to and instead of just buying a bag & throwing some tissue paper in it like most people do {convenience}, I decided I wanted to put the new mommy-to-be's baby gifts in something that she could reuse for baby toys, clothes, books or whatever else she could think of! So, I bought this cute basket at Michael's and started filling it up! She loves the color lime green so I bought ribbon to go around the basket as well as around other gifts inside to match.

Since her baby theme is jungle/monkeys, I bought little baby outfits with cute zoo animals and monkeys from Carters :D

I also made a little tag to hang in the basket {because I love tags}.

So, instead of the usual gift bag, or even wrapping presents, there are other alternatives to give gifts and this is just one other idea to keep in mind. It's also fun to put together! :)

Oh BOY!

On {June 1, 2011} My husband & I found out we are having a baby boy! It was so amazing seeing him move around, kick, jump, & touch his face & nose! "You've got a jumper!" said the ultrasound sound technician. We were all just laughing in the room as we watched our baby freely move inside of me. The technician told us that our baby keeps flashing her & she can tell us what we are having if we wanted to know & at that moment I KNEW it was a boy! I told my husband, "she sees a little weiner!" The technician laughed and said, "yes, you are having a boy!" :D

It's still a surprise to many people because all I kept hearing was, "You're gonna have a girl!" Lo & behold, it's definitely a boy! This picture says it all {if you can see the little arrow pointing}:& one day later down the road, he's gonna be the "big brother" :)

As soon as we found out, I went out and bought two super cute outfits and baby blue clothes hangers to hang his tiny little clothes on. I also bought the wooden ABC blocks in the photos and painted them to put in the nursery! Soon, I will be making those leaves for the painted tree that will be on the wall by the crib like I explained in a previous post & going crazy with projects out of my ears! Well, that's the newest news for now. Have a beautiful day!

Newest projects coming right around the corner!

After a post about our big news, it's only appropriate to follow up with my next newest projects & of course it all has to do with BABY :)

In about one more month, my husband & I will be finding out the sex of our "little jelly belly" as we have temporarily named him/her. We are so ecstatic to FINALLY know & I have already thought about how I want to decorate the nursery room (which my thoughtful husband already cleared out completely). So depending on whether it's a boy or girl, the theme, colors, paint, & little details are already set!

The biggest project in the room will be focused on the tree! On the wall where the baby's crib will go, I want to paint a big tree (just the trunk & bare branches). Everything else on the tree? Well, that's where the big projects comes in because it will take some time for me to do...if it's a boy, I am going to make several fabric leaves made from about 5 different patterns (all matching the color scheme in the room).

Sorta like these leaves on the wreath:

or these fabric leaves (I will be sewing all the way around the leaves though, not just using glue):

I will be making A LOT so it will be time consuming, yes, but well worth it when I'm done--& when I am, I will be sticking them to the branches to fill the tree and make it full & happy :)

If it is a girl, my task will be a bit harder, not only will I be making leaves for the tree, but I will also be making flowers as well to cover the branches in--& the flowers will be very detailed (shouldn't be too surprising coming from me)

So flowers like:

Martha Stewart

Diane Knott Annekata

Since I will be making the flowers, they will come out different than the images above because I want them to be unique but at least you have an idea about what I mean :)

So, we can see how much more time consuming it will be if we have a girl but I love making flowers anyway and it just adds a lot more femininity & while I make the time the create them, I can just think about the baby :)

Also on the tree will be a birdhouse night light which my stepdad James, will be making and painting to go above the crib. Similar to this kinda:

From one of the bottom branches, I am going to make a bunting banner (from fabric as well, with other materials). It will have the baby's name on it and one end will look like it's tied to a tree branch, & the other will look like a little birdie is holding it in it's mouth (the bird will be painted)

Banners sorta like these (different themes, patterns and colors depending on our babys gender)

Tutu Crafts Etsy Shop

Victorian Station Etsy Shop

Anyway, that's my next BIG project so far which will be started as soon as we hear the news about what we are having. So, posts about my progress will soon arrive as well as the other projects I will later be taking on in the nursery {with the help of my wonderful husband of course! :) }

Have a beautiful tuesday everyone!

Those 2 Lines=Life Changing News

Well, we all know it's been a while since I have posted & although I gave fair warning a couple months back, I can't help but feel like this break has been too long! I once said that I will be preoccupied and too busy to post these past couple of months due to schooling, work, & volunteering & even though that still holds true, it wasn't just my crazy schedule that held me back--On the morning of March 30th at around 8:15 am, I found out some news that would change mine & my husband's life forever...I saw a positive & then another positive on the two white sticks I peed on that morning...We are having a baby :D

So, needless to say, I have had a lot on my mind these past couple months on top of my already over worked mind. At first it was a lot of questioning about finishing nursing school, how we are going to afford taking care of a baby, and whether or not we are ready to become parents. Then, after realizing that going to nursing school actually worked itself out for the best, finding out that our finances are pretty well taken care of, and becoming parents is the most exciting thing that has ever happend to us--other than getting married--excitement and anxiousness has overwhelmed us and the questioning has turned into baby names, how we are going to decorate the nursery, the different memories we are eager to encounter with our new loved one, and what he/she will look like.

It's funny how the Lord's plans overshadow our own even though we may try really hard to make things go our way. In the end, it doesn't matter how many times we see ourselves in the future living according to what we have in mind for our life, chances are, we will be on a different path and not exactly living how we pictured ourselves at one point. For me, I know it's even better than what I imagined it ever could be :)

Today, I am 12 weeks and 1 day

Our baby is about the size of a roma tomato.