Mars

A cameo from my handsome husband for the month of March. A little way of honoring our anniversary coming up. My sweet lumbersexual man ready for an outing at la cabane à sucre, pocket knife, iphone, and cozy knits. 

Here are some of his favorites: 

Merino wool Watch cap from Mercantile

This jacket

An Antler sweater

(because he's jealous of the one I knit for our daughter)

An old Banana Republic shirt I bought him 

A pocket knife 

Redwing Heritage boots (he should buy, if you ask me) 

Cuisine

Even though our kitchen reno has been done for over a year now.. I still can't bring myself to taking actual photos of it. Like, real nice after photos. I realized that I have taken a lot of little snippets here and there. I seem to be obsessed with photographing my beverages -- something my husband might understand, I stole a couple of those instagrams from him. Maybe I'll gather the courage sometime? 

2013

 Well, well.. as the year is coming to a close, it's hard not to look back and kind of sort out what happened, how you felt, what you accomplished, or did not, how you feel about it, etc. 

 2013 has been ONE HECK OF A HUGE YEAR FOR ME in terms of personal life events. I got married in March. And yes, as cliché as it sounds, it was the happiest day of my life. I still get all teary every time I look back at photographs or hear "our song". And honestly, I hope it stays that way for ever. Those emotions are still so raw and real. 

 I have also been very lucky in terms of work this year. I have started working with Éditions Les Malins and it's been a very fun process to get more into book cover illustrations. Work in general has come pretty steadily and I am sooo grateful for it. I know I am not the best at self-promoting and PR so having faithful clients and also just incoming work means a lot to me. 

 We took on a kitchen reno this summer (seriously the kitchen is basically done, I need to take decent pictures and share! We are so happy with how it looks and feels now!!) We knew we wanted our house to accommodate a family and be just overall more efficient and pretty.. but I did not know I was going to get pregnant the minute we started those renovations. I know people keep saying that no matter how long you wait for something to happen or how hard you want it... it will always happen the moment you stop expecting it.. Well, it proved to be true once again! 

 We are so happy about it and I have sort of held back from talking about this pregnancy for a long while now. I know I'm a jinx paranoid but.. at some point I just didn't know how to bring it up without making a cheesy big announcement out of it. I feel like I have been pregnant for so long now, we are really starting to be a little more ready and anxious to meet our little girl! I am already in my third trimester, and we are looking forward to her arrival in February. Like, a lot.   

 So basically things are all good. I have loved this year. And I'm really giddy for 2014 too. I will slow down work a bit after the holidays, basically finish what is already on the works. I'll take a break from February to May and see how we all feel at that point and where it leads us. I will probably still feel like sharing some things here during those months... 

 In the meantime, meet our little thing.... She does not have a name yet. And that picture is already pretty old. But it's the clearest image we have of her so it's still very precious. :) 

L'été

 I really have some mixed feelings going on with summer.. I know, most people just luurve summer. It's warm, you get to eat outside and enjoy the terraces, and festivals and stuff. I'll admit I do love some things about this season... It's my birthday in July, and I do love to swim, and I love fresh berries and veggies, and to eat al-fresco. But..but I feel like it can become complain-season. We find it too warm, we complain when it's raining, when it's too cold, then the allergies roll in and it just plain sucks. So.. yeah I'm kind of dreaming about autumn already. It's really my favorite season each year, and I just can't wait. The weather has been pretty perfect these last days and I am trying to enjoy summer while it's still around. 

 I also find it harder to balance work and play during the summer too... Especially this year. We took on the kitchen reno at the end of June, and honestly, that was a much bigger bite to chew then we thought. Things are finally starting to get back to normal. Last week, we got our counter tops and sink installed... (like hell-yeah-hallelujah after nearly 50 days of washing the dishes in the bathroom) It's hard to feel efficient when your life feels so disorganized at times. I feel bad about blogging less.. but truth is, I was just not inspired. It's like this summer dragged on and on, and also flew by like crazy... Like I said, mixed feelings!! 

 We did take a mini vacation to Hampton Beach last week. And it was exactly what we needed. We got away, got a change of pace : Constance woke up at 6am everyday there, I blame the ocean air. Still, walking a dog on a board walk by the sea is not a bad thing at all, even at 6am. I even out-lawed it and snuck her on the beach when it was really early. She had the best time ever and I'm glad I did it. While we loved our stay (even our swims, at 58F the water was pretty icy but still felt amazing) I don't know if I'd return to Hampton Beach per se. We did not click with the Jersey Shore vibe (as in the program, not the place) and things were pricy and very tourist-trap-y. We drove around and really loved Rye, NH.. and North Hampton, NH, maybe those places are better options? Anybody ever stayed in New Hampshire outside of Hampton Beach? 

 I don't have any pics of our vaca to share since we took this weekend to really disconnect with the Internet and our Iphones and social media and all. It feels great to just put it away and LIVE. Maybe one day I'll buy a camera and take actual pictures, I used to love it, you know, back in the days with my Nikon and some film! 

 So yeah.. back to almost normal, we will put the final touches around here and I can't wait to share our new kitchen. It's looking better and better as we get closer to being finally done. 

Mother's Day

I recently worked on a Mother's Day card with Minibulles!

Click on the link for the printable full size card :)

And don't forget to call / hug / kiss / treat your Mommy on Sunday!  

Photos : Flowers from the Wedding

 I wanted to have a little post about the flowers, since they were a big deal for me. I love, love, love flowers. Getting to pick them and working with the crazy talented Anaïs from Les Petites Excuses was seriously one of my favorite things about the whole wedding planning process. 

 She listened to me and made sure I got exactly what I envisioned... while coming up with ideas to replace what was not in season in March (like peonies..or Dusty Miller) and also bringing her own touch and making every thing just so lovely. 

 I don't know if you remember the palette I had planned for the flowers.. but we managed to be pretty close! My bouquet was all white, off white and blush, since I wanted it to be very similar to my dress. It was mostly ranonculus and double carnations. Those two flowers were a discovery for me, and I fell in love, hard. (so did pretty much all the women at the wedding, I think!) I also had some rosemary, sage and lilac buds for fragrance. It was a real dream...

 The flower girls had bright fuchsia, magenta and peach. We went for small roses and hyacinths since those are all fairly inexpensive. We even got some extra baby's breath for people who wanted some in their hair. It was a nice subtle addition. :) 

 For the restaurant, we went with as-affordable-and-as-simple-as-possible. One big fluff of hydrangea a bunch of baby's breath's per table. We collected some tomato cans for the vases. Super cheap, and maximum rustic look. It came out really pretty, in my opinion ;)

Once again, thanks to Emilie Iggiotti, our amazing photographer. Those pictures are perfection. 

Photos : Wedding Party

 I've been wanting to share some photos from the wedding.. but it's hard. I don't want to share everything since I want to keep some parts of that day private with the people that were there. 

 What I do feel like sharing, is how some of the little details I obsessed with turned out. Things I mentioned here in those posts... I felt like such a bridezilla at times, being so critical, or so an&l about some tiny details, the color of this, the color of that, the shape of this. But the truth is.. everything was so beautiful on the Day. Everything came together so magically. I don't regret any obsessing. I would not have wanted it any other way.

 People around me know this, my nieces are pretty special to me. I grew so so found and close of them, they were my two flower girls, and we were all thrilled about it. The elder was also out ring bearer and she took her job ever so seriously.. it was pretty darling. A close friend was my only bride's maid. She helped me a lot all throughout the wedding planning process, and also spent most of that weekend with me, getting ready and helping out. (even though 7 months along in her pregnancy ;))

The girls wore those amazing Noémiah head pieces. I'm pretty sure they felt like royalty. 

We got the dresses from J.Crew and the shoes at Joe Fresh. I made those flower brooches. 

 I am so happy with how our tiny "wedding party" looked. We wanted to keep it as minimal as possible. Flower girl, ring-bearer, bride's maid, groom's man, which were also our witnesses. They looked so beautiful and handsome.. subdued and wintery. And those flowers.. man, Anaïs really out-did herself. 

It was such a perfect day. So many emotions.. I'm so glad I have those amazing photos to cherish. Thanks tones to Emilie who did a stellar job. 

Flowers from Les Petites Excuses, headpieces from Noémiah. 

Mariage...

We are really exited to get the pictures from Emilie soon, but lets be patient. Here is some instagram sneak peeks. I've borrowed pics of the restaurant from Melanie, and the flowers from Anaïs 's instagram feeds. (oops - and the photo of the two of us is from Edith!) 

Hélène Lajoie-Trudel

Calendar : January

I hope you all had a very very merry Christmas. I did, it was pretty lovely. Lots of fun and amazing gifts. So spoiled. :) 

xo

Click on the image for full size desktop. If these files don't work well for you just comment, and I'll try and make it up.

Mercredis Wedding OCD : Flower Girls..Progress!

 Yeah... Moving forward! Dresses for the girls are purchased, and received! Turns out, it was sold out in dust pink. We should have pulled the trigger faster! Don't be fooled by the look of joy on those silly faces, they were NOT happy to have charcoal dresses. WHAT!? No pink!? Eeeeeew. 

 At least there is sparkly shoes to make up for it.. I'll make some flowers out of fabric for the top of the shoes too. Cannot wait to see what Noemiah makes for their tiny precious pretty hair! 

I know. We are not Wednesday. Yet again... Totally loosing grip on that whole regular post thing. 

October

Homemade dirty chai -  awesome impulsive purchase- Brave look alike niece, Aude - Autumn flowers, wedding inspirations - full moons and Martha pumpkins. 

 I've been lucky enough to have a lot on my plate work-wise lately. The last two weeks, and next two weeks, are sort of a blur of juggling long time and new clients, as well as very different types of assignments. But it's all good, and I feel super fortunate. 

 I have not posted here in a while, but plan on making it up!! You have a few insights in this October collage about wedding thingies. I will be sharing more save the dates' work pictures soon. Also, stay tuned for a guest post on this week's Mardi Manger from no one else then Le Boyfriend. :) I am quite exited for that, since Guillaume will be sharing his name's sake cookie recipe. (More on that.. )

 Otherwise.... What else to say, except, October is the best month of the year. Hands down. I love every day of it, every year. It comes and goes much too fast! But now we get to count down to Christmas, which is not bad at all either! 

xox

Mercredis* Wedding OCD : Flower Girls

* I am very aware that we are Thursday today... The whole thing with the day off on Monday... Seriously confusing me. Now if we can all get past it, I'd like to ramble about cute mini dresses.

 I have to admit, one of the highlights of this whole we're getting married thing, for me, is getting to have my two nieces as flower girls. I'd be lying if I said I don't look forward to playing dress up with them, fixing their hair, making DIY accessories for them to wear, and all.... The thing is, my whole childhood I dreamt of being a flower girl. (My parents being in the classical music field, I did bring flowers to soloist at the end of the concert, many many a times... But it is just not as cool not the same thing, really.) My aunt got married when I was 12 years old, and that is the only wedding I ever attended to! So... major excitement for me here.

 So... Guillaume's sister and I have been pinning and pinning cute tiny dresses... And last Sunday, we sat in front of the laptop with both girls, to ask them what they thought. This was seriously one of the cutest moment, just, ever. There was UNANIMITY over that frilly J.Crew dust pink number. And the girl's eyes were wide open and bright over the fanshmyness possibilities. They kept pointing at the bridal gowns and being like ... "Oh!.. maybe this one?" In terms of shoes one preferred the mary-jane with the flower, the other the sparkly ones (I'm on the sparkle wagon too)... I suggested we make the flowers ourselves and glue it on a grey sparkly shoe... GASP, shock of happiness.. that is possible!?!?

 It was seriously a lot of fun to get their input. I do want them to feel pretty in their little kit. That J.Crew dress is on sale, in this particular color, so we're heading to Burlington VT this weekend to go snatch them up. We're also going to try some things ourselves!! They do have cute suits, and the bridal line is not too $$. (Just so white....sigh, that is a subject for a whole other post...)

 I originally was pretty stoked about having them wear black thights with silver ballet flats, but it looked... too contrasty? To ballet-jazzy? I think nude - beige cotton tights will look girly and definitely more classy. I like that sparkly collar thing too.. I am thinking of DIYing it. Maybe not for both girls. How about those tassles? Looking good too, right!? I will also commission my friend Noemiah for some hipster baby headbands. Soooo looking forward to it actually! 

A bit of News

I think this tacky-chic image kind of speaks for itself, now does it? ;)

 Needless to say, we're pretty exited about this. And really looking forward to that party with our friends and family. There is obviously a lot of planning involved, even if we are doing something pretty small. I'm definitly going to need to share palette ideas, Save The Date designs, decoration ideas, and, and, and, and.... Just keep breathing. 

:D

August

 I don't know what to say about you, August. I love you and I hate you. I love that the heat feels more tranquil, and even though every body starts complaining that summer is almost over... I always know you will be warm. Really warm. This is the time when all the produce is fresh and we can finally really eat local. Though there is always autumn thoughts looming in our minds, and I keep wishing it will get colder and colder soon. We notice with you the day light leaving more and more early each day. You always have me miserable with allergies, it makes me curse you. I feel like you are the quiet, humble month of summer, and for that I still love you. 

Back

 And... We're back. This was an amazing week.. Finding ourselves disconnected from... Well pretty much everything (who lives without internet connection now days!?) felt very good. We knew we could have had wifi at the island's McDonalds.. but really, that was just out of the plan. The weather was cloudy for most of the week, which had me bummed out a bit at first, but it did not actually rain. We have been able to swim-swim-swim in the ocean without worrying too much about sunburns, or sun-excaustion. Just making small plans for each day, one day at the time, was very relaxing. Spending quality time with my family is always so much fun, and makes me realize how lucky I am. :) We ate SO MUCH seafood. The price is really reasonable, and the produce also was cheap and so good. (Hello fresh ripe peaches!?) 

 The long drive is so, so worth it. We decided to cut the drive back in two, and stayed in Cape May NJ on sunday. Cape May is beautiful. It always strikes me. When I was 5, 7, 25.. now. And even though it was a super fun afternoon and night; the waves were very strong (even bigger - taller then the ones in Chincoteague, that can still flip a grown man upside down!), we swam for almost 2 hours straight, then enjoyed a restaurant me and my parents loved from our vacations 20 or so years ago (The Lobster House, on the marina - was hectic but worth it!)... We realized just how much we love our small beach town. It's so much more quiet... There is just less people. And the vacationers are more laid back, they really all seam to be tuned to the same relax beat. Cape May kept making us think... Jersey, in a negative connotation way. (not in the awesome lush nature beautiful state kind of way.) So yes, it's still worth it to go all the way south to our tranquil - less urban getaway. The refuge is so... untouched. And it feels much better to the soul.

 I feel there is so many things I could say about this awesome vacation... Swimming in the crushing waves and feeling all salty, seeing groups of dolphins having fun in the waves too in the distance . Feeling like rockstars on the beach with our new Hudson Bay Company towels, cooking live blue crab! Tasting Virginia wines, enjoying out favorite beach food at Woody's Eatery, scratching mosquito bites... I could go on and on. I still have some more photos, taken on roll (!!) That I'll get, and share, later this week. I'm thinking that maybe next year I'll have to work on a vacation city guide, to show my appreciation to this area. Until then... 

I'll be by the beach, if you need me.

The things I cherish the most about beach vacations: 

+ Family time, 

+ Collecting many more freckles,

+ Catching up on a good book(s),

+ The week goes by with mostly leggings and sun dresses over bathing suits,

+ You kind of don't need to wash your hair, ever,

+ The incredible amount of sea food and white wine,

+ Still finding tiny grains of sand in your house weeks later.

I'll be spending the week in Chincoteague, VA, one of my favorite places on earth. 

Take care, and I'll see you next week!