SWEET SHOPPE BRIDAL SHOWER

This bridal shower taken and submitted by Illinois' Ashley Hamm Photography brings together many of my favorite things: nail polish, sparkle and sweets! I love the cupcake dress and the shimmery gold table covering. I'm sure Sandy was one happy bride-to-be!

BACK TO SCHOOL WITH A PHOTO SHOOT

Sorry for the unannounced silence around here! I was on vacation for about 3 weeks. We went to NY to visit family and then on a family cruise to celebrate my parents 50th anniversary. It was so fun and honestly, it felt great to be disconnected for a while. We literally just got back yesterday and now we need to get in school preparation mode. My kids here in Colorado start Monday the 22nd, so this adorable shoot from mom photographer Maria Fasih in Virginia seemed so timely. Her twins recently turned five and will be starting kindergarten this fall. Such a bittersweet time for parents. It's a big milestone and a little touch of reality that your kids are growing up. However you choose to do it, make sure to capture these times - they come and go very quickly! You can check out more of Maria's photography by following her on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter and/or Instagram.

BLACK GOLD AND WHITE GEOMETRIC BABY SHOWER

Black and gold shapes transformed this otherwise simple baby shower into an elegant celebration for this mom-to-be. Designer and planner Jen Leslie of Seattle's Jen Leslie Events explained, "I came up with the idea of creating my own tablecloth by cutting out gold and black triangles. I didn't have a specific pattern in mind, just knew I wanted it to look geometric, so I placed them where I thought they looked good. I wanted to ensure there were a few 'baby' elements to my design so that it reflected the occasion we were celebrating. I painted wood blocks with gold paint in alternating patterns. These will be really cute in the baby's room...Overall it was such a fun night catching up with friends and celebrating the mom-to-be." And a special thank you to Kelly Lemon Photography for submitting the photos.

Photographer:   Kelly Lemon Photography//Calligrapher:Francis & Co.//Event Planner: Jen Leslie Events//

Submitted via Two Bright Lights

OUR HARRY POTTER PARTY: QUIDDITCH GAME

My husband gave me a hard time about getting this game set up for the party - he thought I was going a bit overboard - but it ended up literally costing less than $20 to make and took no longer than 30 minutes to set up. It ended up being a favorite activity at the party so it was totally worth it!

How we made our Quidditch game:

We compromised a bit. Instead of putting hoops at both ends of our field, we only put hoops in the middle of our backyard. We were afraid that if we put hoops near the fence, balls would constantly be going into our neighbors' yards, so we concentrated the game in the middle.

My husband purchased 3 long pieces of pine wood from Lowe's at $1 each. He shaved points at the end of each one to make it easier to get them into the ground. I purchased kid size (smaller than the usual size) hula hoops ($1 each) at Dollar Tree. My husband then drilled the hoops into each wood stake. We enforced it a bit with some clear packing tape. You can't really tell from this photo, but the middle one was higher/taller than the other two hoops.

Additionally, each girl got a broom to play with. I purchased $1 dowels from Hobby Lobby. I collected sticks from our neighborhood and hot glued them onto each dowel. I finished them off with a piece of ribbon I had.

We used a foam ball we found at Walmart as the "quaffle" and we happen to have a yellow golf ball that we used as the "snitch."

To play we used Flax & Twine's set of rules for the game here.

The girls really enjoyed it--even getting a bit competitive!

Make sure to check out the other posts about our Harry Potter party here, here and here.

A WEDDING ACCENTED WITH PINK

Accents of pink, gold shimmer and chandeliers against the rustic wood venue set the stage for this couple's wedding day. The ruffle cake and photo booth are two of my favorite elements. The decor is perfect even for a bridal or baby girl shower. Thanks so much to California's XSIGHT Photography for submitting the photos.

Photographer:   XSIGHT Productions//Reception Venue: Wilson Vineyards//

Submitted via Two Bright Lights