New Logos!

I recently completed the following three custom logos and look forward to sharing more soon! 

Please hop over to facebook and view a gallery of logos + designs.

Do you need a logo or design?   Click here to submit a project request form and together, we can brainstorm the perfect image just for you!

 

Custom Painting: Emma Leigh

For those who may not have seen seen photos posted at dm designs on facebook, I wanted to share a recent custom nursery painting project that I must admit, I am incredibly pleased with.  This project was commissioned and given as a baby shower gift ~ the goal was to incorporate the baby's first and middle name while matching the adorable nursery bedding!  

The bedding...

My paintings... 

Ta-Da! The nursery...

  

This was such a fun project to work on, and I am so pleased the client (and parents) loved the paintings!!!  

I am always up for new challenges, so please feel free to submit a project request form if you have an idea in mind.  Shipping is available upon request.  Please note: depending on the request, please allow at least 4 weeks for completion and shipment.

Color Inspirations: Romantic Wedding

The following Color Inspiration Board is particularly special to me because these are all main images pulled from my wedding brainstorming ideas.  I am by no means a black & white nor single-color kind of gal, so it's important that the colors I select represent the sweet, calm, and whimsical feeling I'm looking for.  Enjoy!

1.  sandals  2.  etsy shower invite  3. bouquet photo  4. pendant necklace
  5. dandelion invite  6.  mason jar invites  7.  cork name card  
8. glasses  9. dress  10. cucumber-watercress sandwich

- DISCOVER MORE COLOR INSPIRATION BOARDS -

click click

 

What To Do.... with Shrimp!

Another round of WEDNESDAY'S WHAT TO DO...

I am obsessed with shrimp, and could probably eat it with every meal.  So, I figured why not highlight a few unique shrimp recipes!  My usual go-to is some form of shrimp pasta... so here, I tried to find OTHER types of recipes. Unfortunately I have not tried them yet, but I will definitely will soon! Enjoy, and please let me know if you try any of these!

1 ) GREEN GODDESS DIPPING

Recipe & Photo via Southern Living

 2 ) WITH CANTALOUPE & FRESH HERB

Recipe & Photo via William Sonoma

3 ) THAI PINEAPPLE FRIED RICE

Recipe & Photo via Closet Cooking

4 ) SHRIMP PASTA SALAD

Recipe & Photo via My Recipes

 5 ) SWEET & SPICY HONEY GRILLED SHRIMP

Recipe & Photo from Our Best Bites

6 ) QUESADILLA

Recipe & Photo via Chaos in the Kitchen

7 ) MINI SHRIMP CAKES

Recipe & Photo via Food Is Luv

8 ) NACHOS

Recipe & Photo via Closet Cooking

9 ) TEMPURA TACOS

Recipe & Photo via My Fiance Likes It, So It Must Be Good

10 ) SHRIMP & CUCUMBER GAZPACHO

Recipe & Photo via My Recipes

I'D LOVE TO KNOW OF ANY DELICIOUS SHRIMP RECIPES YOU MAY HAVE!
HAPPY WEDNESDAY.

Two New Awards (Thank You)!

It's always a wonderful feeling to know that folks out there are actually reading what I'm saying and seeing the work I'm doing here.  Although I just started blogging in October, I can definitely feel a sense of growth and am proud of how much my blog has developed.  Feeling a connection to other creative people (without even knowing them) is pretty amazing. I've recently been gifted two awards from lovely fellow bloggers! THANK YOU ladies!!  

Mel, The Crafty Scientist, was so kind to pass along this Kreativ Blogger Award!

The rules of this award are that I have to share 10 things about myself and then pass along this award to 10 other bloggers.

Little Random Facts (about me) ...

1. I just got engaged (to the wonderful Andrew Ruppert) on April 24th :) YAY
2. I'm on Day 143 of my 365 Days of Photos Project
3. My family had two all-white German Sheperds (Phoenix & Shadow)
4. I don't like OJ with pulp
5. I love Bikram (hot) Yoga
6. Fat Freddy's Drop is one of my all-time favorite groups (check them out!)
7. I'm Italian
8. I have a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design & in December will have receive my Master of Art in Art Education
9. My childhood vacation spot was visiting my grandparents down in the Florida Keys!
10. I've never traveled outside of the US :( .... yet. 

Kreativ Blogger Awardees (I'm passing this along to) ...

1. Tatertots & Jello
2. My Creative Pathway
3. Yes, Teacher!
4. Project Nursery
5. Bradford Carson Music
6. I Love Doodle
7. The Idea Room
8. How About Orange
9. Eat. Drink. Pretty.
10. 202 Designs

Caroline from C.W. Frosting  awarded me this fun little Versatile Blogger Award!

The rules are the same as the award above, so please see my random facts above (I don't think I can list 20 at the moment, lol). 

Versatile Blogger Awardees (I'm passing this along to) ...

1. Unruly Things
2. My Creative Pathway 
3. A Cup of Jo
4. Young House Love
5. Savvy Classic
6. seesaw.
7. Pinecone Camp
8. Creature Comforts
9. Abby Try Again
10. Finders Keepers

Thanks again Mel & Caroline for these awards!  I hope everyone will check out these crafty ladies and please, go browse the sites of the awardees! 

YAY! My Photo is in the TOP 5

I received some very exciting news today... My "Love" photo made it on this week's Official Top 20 Chart!

And, even better, I hopped over to take a peak, and discovered my photo is in the #5 spot! 

With nearly 10,000 users on the 365 website, I certainly consider this a high honor!

Thanks everyone!!!

 click here to view all top 20 photos.

What To Do... Corks!

Sooo..... Andrew & I are still in the very early wedding brainstorming stage, but we're hoping to have it at a vineyard. I saw great little name card holders made from corks, so we started asking around.... and, having a bartender friend helps a bit. Saturday night after a brief conversation we were handed a trashbag. Last night we counted them.... 254 woah ~ holy cork! :)

So, this was my 365-project photo for the day:

"Calling All Corks"  05.17.11  Day 137 / 365 Photo Project

The comments I received from everyone led me to wonder about all the creative things people have used corks for. 

And here's a fun little pinterest board I made full of all things corky. 

Enjoy ~ click below!

Color Inspirations: Modern Chic

1. etsy beach photo 2. etsy clutch 3. reading room 4. octopus ribbon tape chair
5. etsy bowl 6. red clock 7. striped cardigan 8. fabric swatch
9. suitcase chair 10. chocolate toadstools

- DISCOVER MORE COLOR INSPIRATION BOARDS -

click click

The Future Mrs. Ruppert!

 Some may have noticed my "blogging" took a bit of a pause.... mainly because I GOT ENGAGED!  So I've been very busy enjoying!  I've also spent a lot of time brainstorming and trying to get a grasp on "big-picture" wedding organization so I can hopefully make planning less overwhelming. I want to "do" and "make" as much as possible to help reduce costs and add unique elements of who Andrew and I are as individuals and who were are as a couple.  I know this is going to require a lot of my time, but it will all be worth it!  We're thinking of a fall 2012 wedding, which hopefully gives us plenty of time to make our day just the way we imagine.  I will definitely be sharing little ideas here and there along the process, but most likely won't post "finals" of anything until after the big day! I don't want to spoil my surprises!

I honestly had no clue where to start, but signed up for TheKnot.com and was instantly impressed by how much information they have!! But, my advice to anyone who wants to sign up - WAIT until at least a week after the proposal to log-in. Yes, it's very helpful, but if you're anything like me, seeing the wedding to-do checklist of 200+ items can put a bit of worry on your mind. 

I also stumbled upon russel+hazel's long list of helpful checklists and templates.
Even if you prefer to make your own (google docs are my best friend & are perfect for keeping my California parents in-the-loop), these can certainly help serve as guides. 

Real Simple also has great ideas, inspirations, and suggestions. 

We plan to get married in Charlottesville and this blog has an incredible list of vendors:

http://www.charlottesvilleweddingblog.com/venues-vendors/ 

I'm also currently loving Invitation Crush's Wedding Invitation Ideas lookbook!

By far though, my favorite tool so far has been PINTEREST!!

If you haven't heard of it yet... this is an amazing website that allows you to create inspiration boards.  If you see an image anywhere on the internet, you can easily "pin" it directly to one of your boards.  It automatically saves the source link, and easily allows other people the chance to "repin" "like" "comment" or "follow you." How wonderful!!!  I don't know if I've been living under a rock, but I just discovered this a few weeks before Andrew proposed, and now, it is a lifesaver for organizing my wedding inspiration photos, crafts to-do, and even recipes to try. Go check it out! You'll thank me :)