and the winner is...

Congratulations to Ashley Noelle! I used a random number generator and came up with the number 9. Please get in touch with me at littlebirdiestudio@comcast.net and we can discuss the details. Thanks to all of you for entering, and for your kind comments. Stay tuned because I will be doing another invitation giveaway in August!

wedding invitation giveaway!

Getting married? I LOVE creating wedding invitations. It is an amazing creative challenge to help a couple bring their ideas for their wedding to life. Today, I am giving away a custom wedding invitation design package. I will work with you to create your dream wedding invitation. It will include designs for the invitation, the envelope, an rsvp card and envelope, directions and any other information that you would like included.

I will work with a printer (including letterpress, if you desire) to create the finished product. You will be responsible for the printing and paper costs (we will work with your budget to determine the best method of printing).

To enter, leave a comment on this post and become a follower of the blog. One winner will be drawn at random this Friday at 12 p.m.

yellow wedding inspiration

1. Poms from Party Poms

2. Earrings from Stone Link Designs

3. Favor box from Martha Stewart Weddings

4. Bouquet photo from Allen King Photography

5. Lemon display idea from Project Wedding 

6. Sweet daisy cake from Martha Stewart Weddings

7. Wedding dress from Ann Taylor

8. Yellow martinis from Project Wedding

Happy Monday. Here is some pretty yellow inspiration to brighten your day. Tomorrow I will be announcing a big wedding giveaway. Stay tuned!

etsy headquarters...what!?!?

My super-talented friend, Robyn of Revel Design alerted me to the post on Apartment Therapy showing Etsy's headquarters. As Robyn said, "Talk about a San Francisco treat. This sounds like a made up place". I couldn't have said it better.

logo design

As a designer, I love seeing the process behind finished artwork so I thought I would share the background on a recent project. I just finished a logo design for Gambale Consulting Partners. They specialize in development, marketing, and commercialization of new clinical solutions for the biotech, medical device, and pharmaceutical fields.

Here is the first round of logos that I presented. I created symbols that would suggest the medical/biotech field and used different typographic treatments for the name of the company. I start in black and white because the client can more easily focus on the design and not be distracted by choosing colors.

Once a logo was chosen, I moved on to a color exploration. My client wanted greens and blues and I also played with some gray and orange. At this stage, I also solved for how the tagline could work with the logo.

This was the final result.

sewing fever

I've been looking for fabric to inspire the redesign of my girls' room. When my kids were born, I never went through the setting up the nursery process. With my first we were about to move and with my second, well, let's just say it has taken me a long, long time to decide which direction to go. I think I have finally found my inspiration in the Cosmo Cricket Early Bird line. I love the muted colors and the retro feel. Hopefully the girls will too!

Of course redoing a bedroom isn't enough to keep me busy (ha!) so I am also joining in with the Oliver + S Ice Cream Social hosted by Badskirt. They are doing a two-week sew-along using Oliver + S's Ice Cream Dress pattern. Sounds like fun...

small living

Tumbleweed Tiny House Company, Whidbey

Tumbleweed Tiny House Company, B-53

Tumbleweed Tiny House Company, Harbinger

My husband and I love small houses. Our first house was a 756 sq. foot, one-bedroom cottage. Our bedroom was loft style and had a ships ladder for stairs. We had a beautiful view of a bay from our bedroom window. When we had our first baby, the house and the steep stairs were no longer practical. But, we still miss that small way of life.

These adorable houses were designed by Tumbleweed Tiny House Company. They have a wide selection of tiny homes that can be moved with a trailer and small homes that are meant to stay in one spot. My favorite is the B-53 which can be built with 3 bedrooms. Someday...

quick and easy, but oh so cute, baby gift

Our neighbors' daughter had a baby girl yesterday so my daughter and I wanted to make her something. We ran out to JoAnn Fabrics and picked up some Gerber onsies and some adorable iron-on transfers. The transfers had words under the drawings but I wasn't thrilled with the fonts, so I cut them off and just went with the cute illustrations.

Within 15 minutes we had made these three adorable outfits. Perfect for the crazy heat wave we are experiencing in the Northeast.

Then we made this...

Out of this world chocolate chip ice cream.

1 c. whole milk

3/4 c. granulated sugar

2 c. heavy cream

1-2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 c semi-sweet chocolate chips

Using a whisk, mix whole milk and granulated sugar together for 1 minute or until sugar is melted. Add cream and vanilla to taste. Poor into an electric ice cream maker (we have a Cuisinart). Turn on ice cream maker and allow to mix for 25 minutes. Add chocolate chips and allow to mix for 3-5 more minutes or until the mixture looks ready.

ENJOY!

happy 4th of july

Looking forward to the simple things this weekend:

going to the farmer's market

taking the kids to the pool

working in the garden

seeing a small town parade

watching fire works

eating ice cream

doing a road race

taking a walk

just being

happy 4th!