Feature on The Bride Suite

Because of my theater background, I have a real soft spot for vintage designs.  They are my favorite to work on and design because of the research that goes into it!  I love looking at vintage images and recreating them into modern designs.

This photoshoot at Noor in Pasadena, Ca brought together the very popular 1950's/Mad Men style with modern elegance.  I think they did an amazing job of combining the two elements to create beautiful images!

Check out our feature on The Bride Suite: http://exquisiteweddingsmagazine.com/2012/10/11/design-inspiration-mad-men/

Bias Cut Dreams

Its no surprise that I'm in love with bias cut dresses.  The way they hug curves and show off a woman's body is unmatched in today's fashion.  

When I made the shoes below, I immediately felt like they would look beautiful with a silk bias cut dress like the ones above.  While I don't have such a dress in my possession nor do I have a place to wear such a dress, I'll dream of the possibilities....

These beautiful pumps are being sent off to California for a photoshoot, but they are still available for sale!  Leave me a message if you are interested.

And she Nailed It!

Between the Olympics starting up this weekend and a Nautical themed birthday party, I knew I have the perfect opportunity to create some really fun red, white, and blue nail art!

I started with a clear base coat and two layers of white (which I've had for ages and just recently uncovered!).  I let them dry for only about ten minutes because I was too excited to get to the fun part! 

I made a little 'pool' of red polish on an old magazine and used the end of a mechanical pencil (hey, it was close!) to create my polka dots.  I did the same with a blue to create an 'accent' nail to finish off the look.

Finish it with a clear top coat, throw on some seersucker, pearls, and red boat shoes and I was ready for a fun Nautical themed Birthday Pool Party.  As a bonus, I get to rock fun USA themed nails for the rest of the week!

Are you a fan of the new nail art trend?  Do you have any favorite styles you want to share with me??

Leave a comment below and let me know!

GIY Party: The Food

Miss the first two installments of the GIY Party?  

See them here:

The Set Up

The Glittery Gals

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To me, a party is not a party until there is food involved!  Since I was hosting the party right after work, I knew I needed to get a lot of it set up the evening before.  With the help of my lovely roommate,  we re-arranged furniture, set up the work table, and created some adorable flower arrangements.  This left only the food to worry about after a long day of work.

I wanted to have a fun summery drink to offer the guests when they arrived so we had the makings for Bellinis.

The recipe was quite simple:

2 parts champagne (I used a Rose because I love the pink color)

1 part grenadine

1 part peach schnapps

For a non alcoholic option, some of the girls opted for grenadine and sprite so they still had a pretty, sparkly treat to sip on.

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Since everyone works at their own pace, I wanted a menu of food that could be enjoyed over several hours.  While waiting for their shoes to dry, they can chat, eat, and be merry!  By serving a combination of store bought and home-made items, I kept the pre-party stress to a minimum and was able to serve a yummy combination.

Ever since my roommate made this 'California Pizza' for me, I've been hooked!  Its easy, fresh, and oh so delicious.  Start by putting a pre-made pizza crust in the oven at around 350 for 5-10 minutes, enough to warm it up and get it a little bit crispy.  While its in the oven, mash an avocado, cut up red bell pepper, wash a big hand full of spinach, and cut small yellow tomatoes in halves.  Once the crust is done, spread the avocado and sprinkle with lemon pepper.  Next, lay down the spinach and add the peppers and tomatoes on top.  Finish with shredded parmesan.

I love how colorful and light this pizza is!  Its also a great veggie option for those non-meat lovers.

I couldn't host a party without making my all time favorite appetizer, bacon wrapped dates stuffed with goat cheese.  By putting them together the night before, I only had to put them in the oven for 30 minutes and they were ready to be devoured.

To make these decadent bites, I cut a slit in the side of dates (which I got from the grocery store with the dried fruits) and stuffed them with goat cheese.  They are wrapped with a half of a piece of regular cut bacon and can be secured with a tooth pick if you'd like (though I didn't and they worked great).  Bake them on a cookie sheet at 375 for about 30 minute, turning every 10 minutes.  I try to keep an eye on them so they get some nice color but not burn, its a fine line.

My store bought spinach artichoke dip was dressed up in a new bowl and served with thin cut baguette.

 I still have a lot to say about the dessert provided by Cake Ball Love and served at the party, but I'm so obsessed with them, its going to require a separate post!!

GIY Party: The Glittery Gals

What is a party without amazing ladies to join you?  Each of the four gals that joined the party that evening were very different and created four very different pairs of shoes!  Since each person brings their own shoes with them to the party, its always fun to see the diversity in colors and styles.  As long as they shoes are fabric based, the sky is the limit!!

For some people, this whole project can be a little bit intimidating.  At the beginning of each Party, I take time to go through the instructions and answer as many questions as possible before you get started.  Once the glitter and glue are flying, I'm happy to help out with design tips, color suggestions, and keeping an eye on things to make sure everyone is on the right track.  

First up is Brooke.

She is a lovely gal who worked and lived with me this summer in San Diego.  When she walked out of her room carrying the shoes she intended on glittering, I couldn't help but let out a little squeal.  The zebra pattern on the body of the shoes was accented by a red leather heel and ruffle on the toe.

Because she had the red accents already present on her shoes, I encouraged her to mix in a little bit of red glitter into her black mix to pick the accent color up even more.  She did a beautiful (and speedy!) job and I know she'll be noticed wearing these newly sparkly beauties.

You can read (in her beautiful prose) about her experience at the party HERE!

 Next is Liz.

Liz not only has great taste in shoes (I LOVE the hot pink wedges she brought to glitter) but she's also one half of the incredible photography duo at Siegel Thurston Photography.  She was pulling double duty at the party running around taking all of the beautiful photos you see here as well as creating some adorable shoes.

The criss cross straps were covered in a fun fuchsia with a hit of orange.  When it came time to do the ankle straps, she decided to pump up the orange for some interest.  These shoes are right on trend for this summer with the bright bold color and I'm sure Liz looks positively adorable in them!

Third we've got Sara.

I've mentioned Sara often as she is the mastermind behind many of the styled photo shoots that include Discotoes, the design of my website, and the Summer Networking event.  You can follow her at the Urban Style Wedding Facebook page.  She brought some sweet teal satin flats, perfect for her to wear as she runs around town planning events and shoots.

Even once she was done, Sara was photographing and tweeting the evening!  I can't help but think she's created her own twist on the ruby slipper. 

Finally, here's Malori!

Malori, is both smart (she's starting her PhD in Oregon this Fall!) and stylish.  She brought a pair of well loved Tom's shoes that needed a new life.  In the end, she called them "Zombie Toms" because they came back to life!!

(yes...you will get a little glitter on you...some more than others)

What I love most about her shoes is the bold color combination that she chose.  She picked out the orange first and then made a custom silvery-blue-charcoal mix to finish.  Since the Toms have interesting seams incorporated into the design, she used those sections to divide up her colors.  These are not for everyone, but Malori will definitely rock them!

I had to include this tryptic because it just made me laugh...who knew shoe glittering require so much animation!

So!  Thats all of the fabulous shoes that were made at the first GIY party this summer! 

Do you have a favorite pair?

Are your wheels turning with the shoes that you would pick out to glitter?  

Do you want to host a party?

Leave a comment below and let me know!!

Blog Feature: The Perfect Wedding Guide

I've been taking a few weeks of vacation before I head back to Cincinnati for another season of theater work but I wanted to share another feature I ran across today!

The Perfect Wedding Guide Head Over Heels Blog has featured an adorable Willy Wonka Photoshoot by Siegel Thurston Photography that Discotoes was a part of.  If you look closely, you'll see one of my favorite (and most colorful) pairs of shoes yet!

Enjoy!

GIY Party: The Set Up

I've got so many amazing photos from Siegel Thurston Photography that I'll be doing a few posts about the GIY party.  

First up: the set up...

When the guests entered the home, they were greeted with a fizzy peach cocktail!  For a 21 and up girls night out, they were the perfect summer treat.  We mixed four parts Champagne, one part Peach Schnapps, and a splash of Grenadine.  An alternate version can easily be made for any non alcohol drinkers with Sprite, Peach Juice, and Grenadine in the same amounts.

A few days before the event, I made a rainbow of tissue paper flowers that were strung across the mantle.  The flowers were a highly effective but very inexpensive way to add a lot of whimsey to the formerly simple living room turned Glitter Gallery.

I had a few pairs of glitter and rhinestone Discotoes displayed in the room for some easy inspiration.

Even the materials add to the atmosphere!  I love the natural wood paint brushes all stacked in a glass...of course I'm a sucker for art supplies so that may have something to do with it.  And of course, when you're working with glue, you always want to remember to keep those brushes clean.

There were over 35 glittery jars to choose from, definitely something for every shoe and every taste!  Its a bit like being a kid in a candy store with all of the fun options.

Of course, whats a party without yummy food!  I'll be doing a separate write up (with recipes of course!) to share all of the goodies we ate that night.

I got the table cloth, napkins, and the adorable flower boxes from a recent trip to Target.  I wanted a fun girlie theme for the night without breaking the bank so color was the name of the game.  I purchased the flowers from a local flower stand and arranged them myself.  It took me about 20 minutes total for both arrangements since they were small and I love how they turned out!  The fuchsia gerber daisies and yellow bachelors buttons were just so darn adorable and I added some greenery from my yard to add color and texture.

I was able to set up everything the evening before (with the help of my wonderful roommate!) so the day of the party was quite stress free.  I came home from a full day of work, did a little bit of food prep, and the party was ready to start.  

If you would like to host a party of your own, I am happy to give you a check list of things to remember and a full list of what I'll provide for the party.  By no means do you HAVE to decorate and put a party together like I did, but its so fun and easy, you'll be happy you did!!

Next up: The Glittery Gals and their Glittery Shoes