Stylish & Trendy bag for my Nikon

I'm notorious for taking my Nikon camera everywhere. As an event planner and mother who finds it hard not to capture every moment of her kids lives...its a necessity!

It's no secret I L-O-V-E my Nikon and would be lost without it.  But I don't give it the respect it deserves.  You'll find it shoved in my bag without a case to protect it.  It's only a matter of time before my car keys scratch it or dirt infiltrates the lens. 

Luckily for me I found Jo Totes!  This company has a beautiful collection of bags designed to hold your camera but are trendy and pretty enough to use every day.

This is the bag I've fallen for. Her name is Missy - she's a modern camera bag with a retro twist and I WANT HER BAD!

Would you ever guess this was a camera bag?  This is so stylish and trendy and perfect for lugging my Nikon and other personal items everyday - I'm just disappointed she's out of stock.  =(

Check out the entire collection at http://www.jototes.com/.  There are so many to choose from and the colors are so pretty and vibrant.

I'll just have to stalk the site to see when "Missy" is back in stock!!!

I heart Rizza!

~Buying a Nikon doesn't make you a photographer.  It makes you a Nikon owner.  ~Author Unknown

It's true! I own a Nikon, but I am not a photophrapher.  My collection of photos range from "what the hell is that" to "Wow I took that?" and those were purely accidental.

I recently met someone with natural born talent and an ability to capture more than a beautiful subject, someone who tells a story through her photos and makes you a part of it.  Her photos  mesmerize, captivate and consume you. And she's lovely to work with to boot!

{Now enters real talent}

For my last wedding event in November, I had the pleasure of working with Rizza from Rizza Riz Photography.  We work on opposite coasts, she on the West and I on the East and under normal circumstances probably would've never crossed paths.

Can I just say "I heart Rizza"....

That girl knows how to work a lens. 

Rizza's photo's are breathtaking!!!

(although she is at a slight advantage -
her subjects are all so beautiful

it would be kinda hard to mess it up)

Check out her website and see for yourself.   

http://www.rizzariz.com/

Rizza - you must move to New York City!!!



Sweet Redemption

Remember when I was so excited because I had just ordered the Cake Pops book by Bakerella? 

Then I got the book and I was so enthusiastic about making them for my little one's Halloween Party!

Do you remember how they turned out?
Well allow me to refresh your memory here.

Yeah I know - don't say it.

{I've been nursing a bruised ego ever since}

Well I finally got the courage to make them again.  This time I bought a Duncan Hines cake mix

(You know I wasn't making a cake from scratch)

Not perfect, but a vast improvement. 

My teenage son loved them, but that wasn't really reassuring.  That boy will eat sugar straight out of the box!

The guests from the office baby shower seemed to really enjoy them - so there is hope for me!

Sweet Redemption indeed!



Take that Party City!!! - (Part 2)

In my original post I had given myself one week to pull together a baby shower at work.

Well Mother Nature stepped in to give me an additional week by blasting the Northeast with a couple of blizzards forcing me to reschedule the shower not once, but twice.  Some people would breathe a sigh of relief having been given back additional time to plan an event.  Yeah...some how I'm not one of those people.

Nope - planning is for people who can't handle stress.  I work best under pressure.

{insert eye roll here}

You read right through that BS didn't you - clearly I procrastinated!

Whatever - originally I had a week which I thought was nuts.  Then, I gave myself 3 days. What a retard!


I'd be in a mess of trouble if I didn't have the tools that I needed on hand to make it happen!  Here is a  peek of my office baby shower.

I'm extremely fortunate to have wonderful friends at work who put up with me and are willing to share their talents in order to make the event extra special!  Thanks to my dear friend Audra for making the delicious and beautiful whale cake the night before - xo

Congrats to the "Mama to be" & we wish you a healthy, happy non-procrastinating baby!!!

Take that Party City!!! (Part 1)

 A colleague of mine is expecting her first baby in early February - so you know what that means!  I'm planning a baby shower for her at work and that makes me feel very warm and fuzzy inside for a few reasons. 

The first reason being obvious - I love planning parties.  The second reason is that if someone else decorated I would be too busy picking apart the decor thinking "I could've done it better' instead of enjoying the party. 

Sounds conceited I know - but I've been to enough baby showers where the host made sure you knew you were at a baby shower by decorating with banners, plastic table cloths, napkins, plates from Party City that read "It's a Girl or It's a Boy in pink or blue!

Come on people get creative! Kick that old school habit out the window and give reasons for people to go Ooh and Ahh over you, NOT the guest of honor!  (just kidding, sorta)

In any event - I like thinking out of the box and not going the traditional route.  

Bridal Showers do not have to be in white! 

Baby Showers do not have to be Pink or Blue!  

Bachelorette Parties DO NOT HAVE TO BE AT CHIPPENDALES!  Chuh - eeezzy!

Wow - feels great to vent!  With that - I'm off to planning an office baby shower and I've given myself only one week to do it since I chose the date to host it. 

WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH ME?

(Don't answer that!)

 PS. Will post pictures after event.

Theme inspired by mommy-to-be "Bubble Sea" crib bedding!

To Paradise and Back (to reality)

I was away - did you miss me?

Did you even notice? 

=)

 Well I went on vacation and enjoyed a taste of paradise 

A little island called Antigua!

We stayed here...

Listened to this...

Laughed at this...

Because its similar to this...

(that would be me)

I drank lots of this...

 wound up like this...

turned into this...

recovered like this...

Came back to this!

But I'm very happy to be back home with my family just in time for the holiday madness!

Finding Wedding Inspiration is easy with Etsy Apps

FabA good part of my night is spent searching, collecting, and organizing ideas for parties and weddings that I can use as a source of inspiration for events that I style.  

Can you imagine my excitement when I discovered there is an Etsy App to help me do this for Weddings? 

This Etsy App can be found on HelperOfTheBride.  It's quite a lovely application that allows you to scroll through various Etsy shops that sell wedding items.  You can narrow your searches by category eg. Cake Toppers, Favor.  

You can even search with a price range.  

Hover your mouse over an image and read a description of the item, or even click the image to go directly to the Etsy shop to purchase. 

Swoon!!!

With apps like this to ease your search capabilities - how can you not be a fan of Etsy?

I guess this is why my friends affectionately call me JeannEtsy (pronounced Juh-net-see).  

Could be worse! LOL