truth time... again.

okay, so declaration number 2 - made public.

Get my Bootie a MOV'IN!

see... my spirit says, i can run...

my ass says, no you can't.

my mind says... yeah i'm not quite sure yet heather... could be no, could be... maybe???

but dang it, my heart says... hell yes you can!... now get off that pretty new couch of yours and make it happen before i call you a whambulance lady!

i really want to... but what am i willing to give up in my daily life to make it happen... isn't THAT the real question?? pathetic really that i'm still having these personal dialogs with myself at the ripe age of.... ( we're getting off track here ) never mind. i hope that's normal, ya know, the whole actually debating about simple things like exercise vs' dying of sitting on your butt! ... or at least not creepy. okay, fine... fair enough, i'll settle for just simply not that creepy. then i can just focus on running and not self esteem issues too! LOL

well, now that that's settled... just to clarify ( again to myself - made public ), i'll be commenting on your blogs much more in 2011 and also becoming a runner. yep... i'm feeling good about said goals and hope to achieve them... quickly!

yeah... shoot, being more patient could be on my growing list too! hehe...

( here's a little sneeky peeky of the last year in crafty goodness! )

XO, Heather

ruby, ruby, ruby, Ruby...

aaaak! it's here!!!
and yes... THAT really is theme music!!!

haha, Heather

Gainesville Wedding Expo!

It's that time of year, when all the brides who are planning their weddings come to The Performing Arts Center to find the most incredible wedding vendors! I know you are dying to know when, and how you can win door prizes from over 40 vendors... plus... win a $2500 planning package from MasterPiece Weddings!



So here are the deets:

Sunday, January 9, 2011 12:00 – 5:00 PM



Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts



Tickets are: $10.00 Advance; $12.00 At Door



You have a Once in a Lifetime Chance to Plan Your Dream Wedding in One Day, under one roof, at the beautiful Curtis M. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts. Experience a Gainesville Tradition at an Extraordinary Venue!



Consult with Over Forty of Our Area’s Finest Wedding Professionals, Enjoy Delicious Samples, Register for Prizes and experience a fun-filled Runway Fashion Show presented exclusively by Jay’s Bridal. Relax and Be Entertained in the comfort of an 1,800 seat Theater.



This is The Bridal Event that’s as Exciting as the Venue.



Save $2.00. Pre-Register And Purchase Tickets and for more information, please visit Gainesville Wedding Expo.

let's just call a spade... a spade.

it's that time again when we all start thinking about what & how we're going improve in the next year... and that got me thinking... i definately have much to improve on and not all of it revolves around my sewing machine!! so, my first declaration ( if you will ) is that...

i am one big o'l fat spade! it's true... and here's the reason why...

i lOVE comments!! i pretty much daydream about having like a million each time i post something, now i can pretend i don't care and that know one's approval matters to me... but for most days... it totally does! true. LOL

----> l i s t e n <----

i realize this isn't going to come as an "earth shaken" shocker to most of you all... but what might, ( pathetically so ) is my admittance that...

I ALMOST NEVER LEAVE THEM!

embarrassing... yeah???... how friggin lame am i??? i love them and want them, yet never ( rarely ) leave them!

so, my proposal ( to myself - made public ) is that i will commit to leaving a comment if i read your blog! now, i can't make unreasonable promises that they will be clever, witty, or that they just actually won't be completely boring comments, really... but YOU guys inspire me and i DO read a ton of blogs... and i'm wanting to send big blog-love out next year, so that's it... i'm a spade trying ( in 2011 ) to become a heart!

i look more than forward to following you next year and proving it!! ;)
XO, Heather

ps...
hope you all had a fabulous Christmas! i got a new couch... and i cussing love it!

hehe... merry christmas my friends!!

have a fabulous holiday with your families and stay safe!!
xo, Heather & her boys!

Merry Christmas Eve!!!

I hope you have something spectacular planned for Christmas! I think Christmas Eve has become by favorite holiday. I know it sounds silly, because really it should be Christmas, and it used to be. I mean the hub-bub, and waking up early cuz Santa came!Santa came! And the jumping on the bed to wake everyone in the house up at 6AM and my parent stumbling to make coffee just to stick toothpicks in their eyes while my sister and I hustle and bustled to tear everything open faster than my parents could stir cream into their coffee.... that part will always hold a special place in my heart.

Me and my sister dancing circa 1983ish

BUT....

Christmas Eve.

Now that is holiday that I am loving.

And here is why.

Bad Picture we took while everyone was eating and mid conversation

Friends and family gather at our house for the Feast of the Seven Fishes. This is my 17th year enjoying this tradition. We've added some new recipes and made it our own, but the Itailian Feast of the Seven Fishes is so much fun to prepare. We always set the menu earlier in the month, and John and I prep and cook and plan this amazing meal to share with our friends and family.

There's no stress, no hustle and bustle. Just a meal, some prayer, some wine (there's always wine), fun conversations over new recipes and old.

And then at midnight we go to church, sing, and then at the end, wish each other a Merry Christmas. And go to bed remembering what The Holidays are all about.



I think it's the tradition of it all, something I can pass down to Gabriel, and something he can carry on to his family.



And I love it!

If you are curious as to what the Seven Fishes is all about here goes:

The long tradition of eating seafood on Christmas Eve dates from the medieval Roman Catholic tradition of abstinence—in this case, refraining from the consumption of meat or milk products—on Fridays and specific holy days. As no meat or butter could be used, observant Catholics would instead eat fish, typically fried in oil.





There are many hypotheses for what the number "7" relates to, one being the number of Sacraments in the Roman Catholic Church. Another theory is that seven is a number representing perfection: the traditional Biblical number for divinity is three, and for Earth is four, and the combination of these numbers, seven, represents God on Earth, or Jesus Christ.



Or the Seven Deadly Sins, the seven days of the week... or just cuz someone long ago thought 7 was a good round number.



Either way-



Merry Christmas!

merry christmas.... Flickr!

Merry Christmas Flickr! You’re constantly inspiring me to make the most fabulous crafts!! And it doesn’t hurt that you have also introduced me to some of my most favorite people! What o’ what would I ever do without you in my day?? Haha…

( just click on the photo’s to see more of these artist and their works! )



























Have a wonderful holiday my friends!! Wendy from thw Fabric Quarter has a little something for you too!!

The Fabric Quarter: Here's a little holiday online savings coupon: Save 15% now through December 29th with your order of $25 or more. Coupon Code: GIFT152010

XO, Heather

 We had such a great time planning and working with Joanne on her beautfully romantical and personal wedding!!



Her and her hubby are both doctors and are so busy, so in-between patients and taking care of them, we planned this perfectly personal story on the beach with her family flown in from The Phillipines and Jay's super Southern buy yet New York Style, was a perfect blend to bring everyone to Florida, and hang out on the beach for the weekend.

Thank you to:



Venue and Catering - Ponte Vedra Inn and Club

Photography - Jimmy Ho

Officiant: Chad Reed

Florals Decor and Rentals: The Unforgettable Event

Band: Last to Leave

Wedding Planner: MasterPiece Weddings

Top 50!!!

I was so thrilled to recieve an email from Andrea Contreras at Project Management Training letting me know that our blog, our super fun, widdle blog was named one of the Top 50 Wedding Planning Blogs! Of all of the blogs in all of the world, we were named #2!!! How cool beans is that!



Here is what PMT had to say:



2. Masterpiece Weddings This ace wedding blog is the cream of the crop and the perfect starting place for those who aren’t sure what their wedding style should be.





What makes it the coolest of the cool beans is that we were named with some fab company, the likes of the Awesomely Awesome Susan of The Premier Wedding Guide and Lisa of E-Events and In My Shoes!



Thank you so much to PMT for recongizing us, and listing us amongst such incredible company!

Purple coat and leather shorts – Casaco púrpura e calções de napa

The last couple of days have been too busy to sew, there’s no time… I still can spare a few minutes in the morning to take a few pictures though. I made the purple coat last year but never got to reviewing the pattern (it’s from the September 2008 BurdaStyle magazine, model 101)… I will try to review it later if I can find the time. The pleather shorts were also made by me, the review can be found here.
I wish all my friends and readers a Happy Christmas!!

Nos últimos dias não tenho tido tempo para nada, muito menos costurar… Mesmo assim ainda tiro uns minutos de manhã, quando posso, para fotografar a roupa que levo vestida. Fiz o casaco púrpura no ano passado, mas não cheguei a publicá-lo no meu blogue de costura. O molde é da revista de Setembro de 2008, modelo 101 e quando tiver um tempinho publico os detalhes. Os calções de napa também foram feitos por mim e os detalhes podem ser encontrados aqui.
Aproveito já para desejar Feliz Natal a todos os meus amigos e leitores!

Perfect Gift

Are you looking for the perfect gift? The gift for the person that has everything?

Well, have I got the perfect idea for you! What about the gift of the yummiest kind?

The gift of Kake Truffles is not only delicious, but now you can buy a gift certificate and your gift can be picked up or shipped at anytime!

Your gift receiver can not only choose the flavors but when they want or need them! It's perfect!

Perfectly Delicious!

Perfectly Timed!

Perfectly Perfect!

To order your Truffles or Gift Certificate, email Erika at erika@kbkakes.com, or check them out at http://www.kbkakes.com/

Gift Certificates can be emailed, so for you last minute shoppers (you know who you are) can still order them, you still have time! Go... email Erika now!

(MasterPiece Weddings was not compensated in anyway for this post - however would like to add that compensation by Truffles would be greatly appreciated)

----> L I S T E N <----- I lOVE crafts!

i really do! i can't help myself... when i see a good one, i get completely stressed out until i can do it! my friend, miss Mo, put me over the edge the other week with her clever craft that hid a storage door! i thought to myself..., "i can do that and i know just what nasty electrical panel i can do that with!" so, i popped over to Art Media and bought the canvas stretching bar thingies you use, then i grabbed my Big Strong Sexy Man-Toy and his staple gun... then wha-lah! ugly home electrical panel... GONE! i'm pretty sure, i'll be seeing many more of these hanging around my home after the week i've spent shopping online for home dec & japanese fabric treasures! :)

i also had been INCH'IN to make a Kindle cover for about 9 months and never could allow for some { just for me } sewing time, until... we decided to get our oldest one for Christmas this year. Then i knew... i had to protect my investment! haha...

i lOVED the look of the kindle "pocket style" cover and finding a pocket cover tut on line will be easy for ya to do { if ya wanta make one! } i just used my kindle as a template... which is easy-peasy too!

now... listen... i know i could have made this a much more simpler craft, but i can't roll like that with so many good tutorials out there! so, i used miss Ashley's string quilt block tut to make (4) blocks then added a little Kona Essex to one side. once the front of the kindle cover was sewn... the rest of the project is just FAST! now, i just have to make my son's!

I have also been trying to put together my Bloggers' Block-a-palooza fabrics! i know many of you have more questions regarding this virtual project and i promise to have more answers for ya! but, for now you can always do what i'm doing which is color planing... i've been wanting an aqua & yellow based quilt for sometime now... so i'm pretty sure this is the way i'll be heading!

plus... then i can work in my (Target) Liberty of London dress fabric somewhere!! yummies!!! i've been holding on to this one for awhile!

then... ( while pulling fabrics ) i realized i haven't made a simple patchwork quilt in such a long time! so, i pulled fabric for one... i'll be adding in some grey solids ( i know shocking ), but i'm diggin the boyish charm of these prints together!

ps... my new hexie pillow is seriously moving forward! with the help of lazy nights and Deschutes Brewery, i may have this puppy sewn up quite quickly! ;)

well... i'm off! so many projects left to do and so little attention span to get them all done! ha! hope your all having great success getting your's finished!! ;)

XO, Heather

All Paco’s patterns – Tudo moldes do Paco

Today’s outfit was entirely made by me: the Celine inspired jacket (sewing details here, pattern available here) and the cowl neck tunic/dress (sewing details here, tutorial here and pattern available here).
Sorry for the frowning face; I got up a little sick today. It would have been nice to stay in bed and rest some more but instead I had to get dressed in a hurry and go to work…

O conjunto de hoje foi totalmente feito por mim: o casaco inspirado em Celine (detalhes da costura aqui, molde disponível aqui) e a túnica vestido com gola drapeada (detalhes da costura aqui, tutorial aqui e molde disponível aqui).
Desculpem a má cara, acordei um pouco adoentada hoje. Teria sido bom ter ficado na cama a descansar um bocado mais, mas em vez disso tive de me vestir à pressa para vir trabalhar…

You never know....

You'll never know who you'll meet. Or when.



You see, I was invited to a birthday party for a dear friend, and I sat down next to a guy that I thought looked as if I could make good conversation with.



Super nice guy, he and his family and friends immediately had me laughing, and the conversation was easy.



I asked him what he did. He said that he was an Event Planner.



I thought, pstcha... whatever. Sure you are. Everyone is an event planner. Whatever.



So then I asked him what type of events he planned, he mentioned some large corporate events, for fashion clients, and large marketing firms.



Okay, sure you do... maybe... maybe you plan something sort of cool like that.



Then he sees me tweeting... he asks me about Twitter... and my blog. And I ask him more about what he does.



Then he casually, and I mean oh so casually, mentioned he'll be on Martha Stewart Radio on Wednesday.



Casually.



No Biggie.



So, I introduce him to my friend Jen, and now Mark Addison and I are BFF's. And I think he's super cool, and I'll cling glasses with him anytime of day.



Have you met, my friend, the Event Planner in New York, Mark Addison? Mark, meet my blog friends, friends, meet Mark.

who's ready to party???

By now, many of you are busy making the final push towards the holidays. But what are your crafty plans as we enter 2011? Well, clear your plate, because we have a great quilt-along planned that will begin in January!

18 quilt bloggers have collaborated to bring you the first-ever Bloggers' Block-a-palooza. We'll jump from blog to blog making 2 quilt blocks per week, wrapping up with a custom setting and layout design to help complete your quilt. I am so excited to be one of the participating bloggers.

We're calling this quilt-along "Waiting for Spring" because we'll be using the brand new Sunkissed line by Sweetwater for Moda, and the bright colors and botanical prints should help you (or at least those of you in the Northern hemisphere!) push through the cold winter months and have a fresh new quilt ready for the Spring.

More details will be available soon, but in the meantime feel free to grab our button below and spread the word.

Grab our button!




<div align="center"><a href="http://www.quiltdad.com/p/bloggers-block-palooza-quilt-along.html" title="Quilt Dad" target="_blank"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5281/5237752145_4765c7a390_o.jpg" alt="Quilt Dad" style="border:none;" /></a></div>

how fab is this!! i can't wait to make each one... i sooOOooo lOVE a good party!
xo, Heather