Consignment Shop Adventures

I was so tempted to keep this place a secret for my own personal treasure hunting but have decided to share the wealth. Betsy and Cornelia's in McLean is hands down THE best consignment shop out there. The staff is super friendly and willing to help out in any way and they will even pick out things that would look good on you for you to try on. Betsy used to work with my uncle and is a-maz-ing! She has great style and is just a trip! She reminds me of Betsy Johnson. After weeks of wanting to check the place out I decided to stop by on my way home after work. Not until Betsy recognized me did I make the connection and realized that I had known her for 20 years!

One of the many perks to this shop, aside from the constant new arrivals, is the fact that things more than two months old are 50% (Yes FIFTY) off! and Jewelry more than two months old is 30% off!

On my first trip I walked away with a black sweater from Banana Republic for $8 and a pair of Gap skinny jeans for $10. When I was checking out I noticed this beautiful globe near the register on a pedestal and thought it would be the perfect gift for Dan's upcoming birthday. The countries were all made out of gemstones. Nothing could be more perfect for combining two of his biggest passions: geography and geology! It was also marked "May" and this was in July so it was half price! So I walked away with this globe that cost a couple hundred dollars retail for less than $70. Steal of the century? Perhaps.

Banana Republic Sweater

So soft and versatile

Gorgeous globe

Close-up of the gemstones

My new favorite Gap skinny jeans that I wore for some engagement photos!

The next time I went was with my aunt and cousin. We scored some good items including baby blue ankle pants (Mossimo brand) for $6 and the pride and joy of that trip was a pair of metallic Prada loafers for $20! They were $70 marked down to $35 down to $20. Betsy gave us an extra discount. She said she'd rather have repeat customers who spread the word and give us a discount than worry about the price of every item. Well Betsy, I am trying to spread the world, girl!

Yes I need to iron these...baby blue Mossimo pants

Cute and comfy

Prada Loafers

You just feel fancy wearing these!

Yesterday I went and brought my mom and aunt Toby and we scored big time again. Mom walked away with a gorgeous black and white dress and black blazer (which I will need to borrow). Toby got my cousin, Amanda, a Longchamp bag for $40 and an adorable Life is Good t-shirt. And I walked away with a pair of Michael Kors wedges for $30 (Originally marked $34) and a pair of Seven For All Mankind jeans for $8!

Three Longchamp Bags: blue, red, and purple $40/bag

Seven Jeans and Michael Kors Wedges

Love the height

As much as I'd love to be able to keep this gem of a store all to myself, that would just be selfish and you all would be missing out on these designer deals at discounted prices. So make your way over to Betsy and Cornelia's and find your own treasures!

Betsy and Cornelia's

1355 Chain Bridge Road 

McLean, VA 22101 

Happy Shopping!

Love,

Engagement Photo Craft Dog Sign

I wanted to incorporate our dog, Maggie, into our engagement photos and do it in a really cute way. After looking on Pinterest I saw that some people had signs for their dogs to wear and I decided, again, to make one rather than buy one. Where's the fun in buying a finished product when you can make one yourself?

*Again, shout-out and thanks to Toby for being a big help and getting these supplies!*

Supplies:

-Chalkboard Butterfly with rope attached
-White Glittery Letters
-Glue Gun

I used an already made shape with a rope attached because they had it at Michael's but initially I was planning on painting a heart shaped wooden cut-out and drilling holes on the top to add a rope. But this worked out even better because I used a ruler and chalk to draw lines for where the letters would go and then erased the chalk during clean up! The letters were sticky but I felt that gluing them on was a better idea since you never know with dogs and nature! I wouldn't have wanted them falling off mid-shoot.

Finished!

Maggie with her sign!

Doggy sign with the banner I made (see previous post on the blog for info)

A shot Amanda snapped during our photo shoot

The spots where we took our photos were so gorgeous! I had 3  "costume changes" (as I like to call them) and they all seemed to work well with Dan's outfit and all of the scenery! Here's a sneak peek:

Loved this door and wall

Me getting glammed up!

Can't wait to see how our photos turn out!

Love,

Save The Date Banner

For our engagement photo shoot I thought it would be fun to have some props for us to use. One of my favorite ideas is holding a banner that has the numerical date of the wedding. It is a simple idea that is perfect for a Save-The-Date. People can hang it on their fridge next to their calendars and easily remember the day. Plus it's adorable!  I looked and found some great inspiration on Pinterest and found some very cute products on Etsy but decided for timing and crafty purposes I would make my own. I like the rustic look so I opted for a burlap banner. All of the supplies came from my favorite store, you guessed it, Michael's. *Thanks to Toby for picking up the items I needed!*

Supplies:
-Burlap Banner (or burlap cut into pennants)
-Twine
-Numbers
-Heart cutouts
-Heart Stamp
-Red ink for stamp
-Glue gun

Supplies

The first thing I did was glue the twine to the back of the burlap pennants in a straight line a few centimeters below the top. Then I flipped that over and started gluing the numbers on to each pennant. I thought it was cute to do two numbers per pennant. To separate the numbers I added a pennant that I put a red stamped heart on. I put a cut-out white heart that read "Together" and "Forever" to be the first and last pennant on either side of the numbers.

Glued twine to the back of the pennants

Finished product

Happy Crafting!

DIY: Liquor Bottle Bouquet

My not so baby brother turned 21 this month and I knew exactly what to get him this year! I made him a bouquet of liquor bottles because what 21 year old doesn't want alcohol?

The great thing about making one of these is that you can use so many different kinds of liquor and you can add a lot of things to make it more personal. I went to the liquor store and grabbed a variety of airplane bottles because he just turned 21 so he shouldn't know what kind he likes yet, right? ;) Having a variety is a good way to make it eye-appealing and different. It could also be cute to make one with all the same bottles to look more uniform.

Supplies:
-Liquor bottles
-Stems/plastic flowers
-Vase
-Glue Gun
-Styrofoam base

Additional supplies that could be used:
-Money
-Candy
-Gift cards

The first thing I did was cut the Styrofoam base so that it fit into the bottom of the base. I cut it down but made sure it was tall enough so the stems would be secured. Next, I cut the stems of some of the plastic flowers and glued the back of the liquor bottles to the stem. It is a good idea to glue them a little lower on the stem so they aren't too heavy on the very top. I secured them with twist ties to keep them in place while the glue dried.

After putting the stems in the vase, I added some flowers and loose leaves to make it look more like a plant. and voilà! Happy 21st Birthday William!

It could be really cute to add some of the person's favorite candy or roll dollar bills into flower shapes. I don't think this is going to be my last bouquet!

Love,