Top Ten? Best of? How bout be thankful I’m still posting

Can you believe that 2010 is over? It’s the end of a decade, literally – tres bizarre. 2010 was a big year for me – I learned how to make this blog not a piece of trash (see first five to ten posts re: August). That meant learning how to edit photos properly using programs like Gimp and Picnik, compose video content and put videos together using Adobe, MovieMaker and Animoto and of course, write a catchy jingle, complete with harmonies (thank rue thank rue thank rue Christopher Peter Duthie).

MmmmmChristopher!

This little bloggy blog has also been a motivation to start writing, keep writing and be (reasonably) excited to write. I don’t care if you care or not, obviously you do because are still reading this, but what I will say is I encourage you to try new things, like I did when I started this blog. It doesn’t matter if you are good or not, what matters is trying something that challenges you. Maybe if you get really, really good, you can con one of your friends to help you write a jingle and also be FAMOUS in Calgary Metro.

Because what are you waiting for – what are you afraid? Really – if I am willing to sell myself out as the silly goose that I portray myself to be in this blog, how much of a risk are you actually taking? Don’t be a baby, baby.

So there is no top ten list for 2010. Because I can’t stand trends, yulch, and so it would be more like a top ten list of stuff I would NEVER do but I don’t want to post that because I know a lot of people getting married next year and I don’t want to poop on all their ideas because I can’t stand them *YELLOW FILTERS!!!!*

Never one to disappoint, maybe here is a top ten list of things I have thought and learned about today.

10. Packing

9. Santa

8. Christmas

7. Lunch, especially parm frits

6. Spin class

5. Prezzies for the Cpt

4. The internet

3. A craft involving Christmas lights and a shadow box

2. Social good

1.. Social media fundraising

Share the photo lurve

So like, ten million years ago (in August) I wrote some posts about fun ways to encourage guests to share photos are your wedding. There was one post about using the Polaroid Project to upload photos into polaroid form. There was another post about using Hipstamatic to capture some more tender moments of your day.

I have been playing around with lots of different phone apps, as camera phones become more and more high resolution and better quality, people start using them more often to document their lives.

This week, I downloaded a new Android app called Retro Camera, an app that is just that, a retro camera.

What I like? All the functions – it comes with five cameras, and three (maybe four) of them have both the colour and black & white functions.

What I don’t like? I don’t think the older guests at the wedding would quite understand how to use it, simply because the shutter has a sporadic delay. Isn’t that always the case? You click to take the picture and then it delays for a weird amount of time and then you look at the front (for whatever reason humans naturally do that is beyond me) and then it takes a pictures of the left side of your face.

Here are some examples of the types of photos it takes. As you can see, lots of different variety and some fun features. I am just not sure that encouraging my guests to use a camera app to capture my day is the best idea. Thoughts?

Lazy Post: $30 holiday outfit

I know – when did I stop posting about my wedding? Please. Everything stops for Christmas and if you aren’t like me, well it’s no wonder Santa doesn’t bring you any good gifts. Once again, I pinky swear to get back on my wedding high horse in January.

In the meantime, I’d thought I’d celebrate this with you. It’s not impossible to find an entire holiday outfit for $30. And I’m not talking about sprucing up an older dress with a new scarf.

I would have loved to show you a photo of what this outfit look like on, but The Cpt gave me quite the scowl when I put it on. He does not like the outfit so I had no one to take a photo of me. Please forward all hate mail to him.

Here are a few tips to finding these little gems. These are not new tricks, but let me remind you of them.

• Go to malls and stores that are quieter. The stores may not receive all the same variety of stock, but it will be much less picked over so you are more likely to find something you like that’s in your size.
• Always check the sale rack first. Do not fall in love with something that’s full price.
• Look for accessories that will spruce up a simple style.

 

Forgive me, Santa.

That's right - I've been a bit of a Scrouge this December. Not in the sense that I am not all about the season and the spirit and the giving and the loving. But, as you may recall, I did not let The Cpt bring a Christmas Tree into our house this year. It was a one-girl clean up job last year and I didn't like that, not one bit. I took a stand - no trees. I did pick up some sticks with pine needles because I like the smell but so far, they have generated no smell what so ever.

I drove home yesterday a little later than normal, maybe 530 or closer to 6. It was dark by then and I cut threw a residential area. I couldn't help but notice how there are so many houses with lights up and decorations in the windows this year. We have lights up on our balcony (with a timer! which I highly recommend) and we have a single, crappy window sticker that no one can see. But other than our stockings, I have not put up any decorations.

I look back at that now, and I think it's heartbreaking. What was my problem?! I was not raised to be LAZY about sharing the Christmas spirit - RobBob always breaks out the Christmas trunk around December 1st and puts out the garlands and the lights and the ribbons and bows and my dad has a massive Santa ornament collection (which both my Gramma and I agree, the eyes of those Santa's follow you around the room) which is on display, over taking an entire antique buffet.

I am disapointed in my attitude. I felt like just because I was going home to Victoria for Christmas and The Cpt would be working, that he wouldn't care about Christmas fuss. Isn't that the time when you need the most Christmas cheer? When you are all alone on Christmas Eve? *sniff*

Don't worry. I rallied myself. I did two crafts. I took some pics and then I made a video using a new website Kathie at the Bridal Group of Companies showed me, called Animoto. I am not sure I love Animoto yet, but I bought a year's subscription. I think I can fine tune it to something I like. I know I don't like their music collection but oh well.

Forgive me, Santa.

Alix's List of Some Things to Craft for Christmas Gifts!

We went to a Christmas party this weekend and a conversation was up-struck about le blog and le crafting. Sometimes people ask me where I get my ideas for crafting and uh, it's pretty straight forward. I rip them off other people (except of course, all my precious coffee fitler crafts). Please - inspiration is everywhere. Once

I fixed my eyes to look at how things are made, it became so simple. Everytime I see anything I like, I think about:
1. How I could make it
2. How/if I could make it better
3. How I could make it to my style and taste

Christmas is a great time to let your mind be inspired and creative. You can save a LOT of money by snooping around online, finding something you think you could make, creating it and gifting it. It comes with a MUCH larger sense of achievement and pride, and giving a gift you made is actually 10 thousand times better than you can imagine. Like when my future brother in law gave me this little gem last Christmas.

Maybe you too, are struggling on what to give to others this Christmas. Or yourself, I guess. Here is a little list of things I have come across that I think are awfully neat AND that you could probably make yourself.

5. A candleholder made of birch. Please. Crate&Barrell sells it for a WHOOPING $75. Um, okay or you could just go for a walk in the forest 20 minutes north of Calgary and pick up some thick branches off the ground and hollow them out yourself. You could make yourself an entire set. Shocking, really.

4. Tin can wine rack. Although for some reason I can't seem to find them for sale on the interweb today, I will tell you I have seen wine racks simliar to this and/or the exact same as this going for over $100. Or you could make a chilli, save the cans and make your own. At least you can match it with your place. My advice tho? Put those fuzzy stickers on the bottom, the ones you put on the bottom of your couch. You don't want your shelves all scratched up. Here is a link with a link that has some directions to follow.

3. $100 for this. For a chalkboard shaped like a whale. There are so many ways to do this easier and cheaper, it hurts my eyes. You could walk five steps to Chapters and buy a square chalkboard decal for $30 and cut out a shape of a whale. Or a fish. Or a dinosaure. Or a red panda. Doesn't matter. Even more DIY? Walk another five steps to Home Depot, pick up a can of chalkboard paint for $5 and paint whatever you want, an entire WALL so kids can make their own shapes. $100?!?!?

2. Not really all that pricey but on principal, you can't buy this. Skoobawrap takes a piece of fabric (admittedly thick fabric), glues some velcro the corners and asks for between $15 - $20. If you want one of these, please. Contact me and I will do it for FREE (materials not included).

1. A cardboard box bird house. Go cut a hole your cereal box and don't cry when you realize that cardboard goes soggy in the rain and all the robyn red breasts in your neighborhood will have a hard time flying for a few days while they try and shake all the paste weighing down their wings. In this, a great crafting lesson: Cute doesn't always cut it.

Christmas is Taking Over

What else is new. It's hard to plan a wedding when it's Christmas. I don't care about getting married anymore. I want Santa. And everything that comes with him including bells, music, smells, cookies, bows, glitter, stalkings, candy canes, movies, rhymes and especially - Santa's bag.

Even all the wedding blogs are just talking about Christmas. I guess it's the same as all the other holidays - at Halloween, it's about spooky weddings, at Valentine's Day, it's about smoopy weddings, at Easter, it's about... Jesus weddings. Or maybe bunny weddings. Resurection weddings? Anywho, all events and occassions are influenced by the season.

In a broader sense, there's your very traditional Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter categories. That is how you describe your wedding to strangers. Waiters, the mail man, the barrista at McDonalds. Then you can break it down by month. Jan, Feb, March you get it. This is how you describe your wedding to people like your father's co-workers, your dog walker, anyone who might actually come in contact with you during the month of your wedding. Then you narrow it down to the date, September 16, for those people who will probably be invited. Your fiance's accountant or I dunno.

Here is an example of me during the different seasons...

You hope that just mentioning when the wedding will take place kind of fills the wedding conversation. Summer wedding = probably outdoors, maybe tented, warm and bright colours, ect. Unless you are doing something way out of the ordinary ("We're getting married next July, but in Australia so it'll be a July winter wedding - fun, right?!") this should basically sum up your wedding talk with the majority of the people described above.

You will get the odd person who really wants to know. About your dress, and your colours, and your table setting, and your meal. Humour them - there is an excellent chance that they are asking because they want to share their story with you. No matter what type of bride you are now, you are going to want to tell your stories and share your memories. Whatever you do - be gracious and listen. There will come a time when you're that married old fart who wants to vicariously re-live the glory days of your wedding through young, fresh faced brides to be :)

What was the point of this article? There was none - it's Christmas and it's hard to focus.

Risky Business: Some thoughts on guerilla weddings in Calgary

Lately, a lot of people in the Cpt's greater circle of friends have been getting engaged. Love it. Love love. But now we have five weddings - so far - next summer.
Makes you wonder, though, how to keep things fresh. Not your relationship - your wedding. All weddings are unique, as I've said before, because the people getting married and the love and the relationship are unique. Blah blah blah. But how do you make the party unique?

I've always wondered what it would be like to have a guerilla wedding. For those you of who don't live on the edge, a guerilla wedding is a wedding held wherever you want, whenever you want. You just have no permit so you have to pray that no one kicks you out. I think they sound fun - I like the excitment of it!! Your guests receive an aloof invitation with minimal information in it - just a time and a place... maybe a "shhhh" theme to the stationary. It's a mystery!

Guerilla weddings also save a lot of money. You have no venue so you forfit your need for any chairs, decorations, insurance, parking, lighting, tipping, flowers. You tell your guests to dress in whatever - their Sunday best, their Star Wars costume, their favourite jeans, you roll in, get married and roll out. Then just have the reception at a resturant! I think it sounds fun!

Captain Skeptical - does not.

Here is a list of places in Calgary that I think are worth considering for a guerilla wedding. Please - add your suggestions below!

Obvious Places *yawn*
1. The Scotiabank Saddledome - home of the Fwames. Everyone buys their tickets to the game, you all meet an hour before in a particular part of the building (rght infront of the BBQ Stand) and voila! It's done! Enjoy the game and every can meet up after every period for more crack beer. Perfect for the especially bored/lazy groom.

2. Top of the Calgary Tower - I know, barf right? So obvious but admittedly a neat place. Everyone buys their tickets to get up there and you get married on top of the city. Don't go to the resturant - the servers will catch on too quick. Head to the observation deck and pick your favourite view. Great for photos up there!

3. Scotsmans Hill - you might as well wait for Stampede to do this one. This is the best location to view the fireworks, as it sits right at the top of the Grandstand. Be wary tho - parking around the neighborhoods of Inglewood and Ramsey is helter skelter during the 'Pede so your guests will have to take transit. You can send bus tickets with their invites. Go green!

Off the Beaten Track - some lesser known but more importantly, unique places.
1. Memorial Park Library - this is one of the city's original sandstone buildings in the heart of downtown, which is on the east side of the newly re-done Memorial Park. It has a romantic feel to it, similiar to the Lougheed House. No longer just for crack heads and drifters, this park has had a big face lift and looks fantastic now. Well groomed, well maintained, lots of parking, the Hop'n Brew is right down the street and so is 4th Street for a casual reception.

2. A.C. Leighton Museum - you may temporarily BORROW my favourite place in the world. For meow and only because it's for your wedding. This was our first choice to get married, it's the stunning home of Alberta artist A.C. Leighton that now serves as a museum and artist retreat. Features the stunning rolling foothills, I'm obsessed with it. However, due to the fact that it's a privately owned foundation (proabably) they most likely would have said no to our wedding and also the price to tent 150 - 200 guests is a kick in the face as it is, no less transfering all that stuff to De Winton. The tent, the heaters, the flooring, the generators, the tables, the chairs, the linens, the food. FML. If you're smart you'll go check it out - and donate.

3. Sunnyside Acres - or any other garden centre for that matter. Everyone huddle up in the green house during the winter or have your guests take strolls through the gardens in the summer. Gorgeous! Everyone gets a daisy or a mint plant as a wedding favour. The smell, the sunlight *sigh* so hippy dippy. It is a retail space so don't wear your Vera Wang wedding gown. I wonder if they would boot you out? And I wonder why more garden centres don't offer weddings...?? It's so obvious to me.

4. The Garry Theatre in Inglewood, now it's the Ironwood. - again, a resturant with serving staff. Servers hate things that don't generate tips, so watch out. But this is an old, beautiful space with a lot of spirit. And also, there's free entertainment afterwards. No need for a DJ - think about it...!

Risque Business - places to get kicked out of just for the sake of getting kicked out
1. Chintz & Co - because who wouldn't want to be married in the midst of all the splendors of the unknown world!!!! It smells great in there, plenty of seating (be careful sitting on the prop beds tho) and you don't have to register - at all. You can walk around and pick out your gifts with your guests!! Play it off as quality time together. And also - they're a little snooty snoot there but just remember when you go in - they work there. You're getting MARRIED there.

2. The Bow - becaues it's not even built yet. But you could lay claim to the fame of holding the first function there. It would be dusty but I bet all the construction workers would cheer their hearts out for you!

3. A bridge (Centre Street Bridge, Calgary Zoo Bridge) - because nothing brings the cop faster than people standing on the side of a bridge. Although, wouldn't that be neat?? Having the groomsman hold up "STOP Love in Progress" signs and stopping traffic and walking into the middle of the bridge for a quickie ceremony - 123 I do - I do! Smooch!! And all the cars honk as you kiss and awww. What a scene - great for YouTube.

4. Any other official wedding venue - because they know a wedding when they see one. But if you have your eye on that church and your officiant is willing to risk it, do it! Back off, societal norms, love is in the AIR!

Thoughts on fun guerilla wedding ideas? Don't be shy!

It’s harder than I thought

Aside from MCSC, this week I got my entrepreneurial on and started my own Etsy shop. Coffee Filter Weddings is officially open for business! It was harder than I thought it would be – not that much harder but harder than I thought.

First I had to really look at my crafts, which are precious to me and I love them, and decide if I wanted to put my hard work out there, for the world to judge in a fiscal sense. I had to look at my little projects in a different light – who wants these besides me? Because I definitely want them so if no one else does, more pour moi. You are putting a piece of yourself on sale. It’s hard.

Then you have to look at your crafts and decide which ones you want to sell – which ones are both appealing and relatively easy to make. What is possible to make well and quickly, what is going to be the least expensive to make? Which crafts require specific supplies that are not readily available i.e. not found at Safeway or the Dollar Store.

So you have separated the crafts that apparently, you have decided society will see as having “value” from your new pile of “reject” crafts, and you put the “reject” crafts somewhere where they can’t see what you’re doing, you have to put a dollar figure on your hard work. UGH that is awful. Due diligence calls for you to to look at what else is being sold on Etsy which is similar - well ya, that paper crap is similar but mine are made with LOVE and especially the ones with the blooms The Cpt has helped me fold and that love has value and I think is tangible, even if you don’t agree, so therefore mine should be priced 150% of what that paper crap is. But then logic pulls the wool off your eyes.

You look at all the comparables on Etsy and holy smokes – some are ridiculously over priced (like $150 for a paper flower bouqet, wtf??) and some are ridiculously under priced ($1 per tissue paper pompom, which, by the way, are clearly NOT handmade but because it is a “crafting supplies” it gets to be listed on Etsy). So I am no fool – if I want to sell these puppies, I have to price them reasonably enough to be considered for purchase but at the same time, I am not going to give away the farm.

I am not all that concerned about this little Etsy shop, I will keep my lil’ eyes on it. I almost put it up there just to see – what happens. Y’know? Sometimes you just have to throw caution to the wind and wait and see what the universe brings you. Do I expect to be a full time crafter by this time next year? No.

 

 

Also – please don’t order things to support me. Pass them along to your friends and family who are getting married. Or if you really want one – because the lanterns could turn into full chandeliers, y’know. But it does take a lot of time to make these thing.

It’s been a week?!

Holy mother of pearl. I called home yesterday and my Gramma answered. She was working on a tricky puzzle but in spite of focussing on a thousand tiny puzzle pieces, she mentioned “I noticed you haven’t posted anything new lately…” of course I knew exactly what she was talking about.GRAMMA! I’m back to blogging.

It has been a big week for me – I have started a new full time job. I have given up “freelancing” a.k.a. being incredibly particular about projects or jobs I consider and have taken a full time position at the Missing Children Society of Canada, which I am incredibly proud and honoured to be a part of. It is a unique feeling to know that you are contributing to change on such a high, national level and I feel great to be the new Development Associate.

Anyways, that doesn’t account for laziness however I will say that I have been slightly pre-occupied. But I will say that I have most definitely decided to scale back the blogging, most likely to post 2 – 3 times a week as opposed to 6. I have a little less time on my hands.

To get back in your good books, here is a collage of when The Cpt and I went tree cutting this past weekend with friends.