custom birthday cake topper from forever wedding crafts

i love baking and cake decorating, especially for family birthdays, so i'm always on the look out for fun ways to decorate our cakes.

for my birthday party this past weekend, i made a hummingbird cake.  i went with a gold decorating theme and covered the cake in gold sanding sugar and sprinkled edible gold stars around the top and bottom edges.  instead of piping writing on the top of the cake, i decorated it with a gold birthday cake topper from forever wedding crafts of american sign letters.

all of the cake toppers from forever wedding crafts are made to order.  you select your size and color and they are custom made for you.

i went with a simple "happy birthday" made out of acrylic.  the cake topper was easy to insert into the cake, and held up all day long.  i especially liked the fact that i was able to simply wash the cake topper off after the party to be able to save it and use it again!

love, laurie

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*please note: this is a sponsored post, however, the content of this post is based solely on my own personal opinion and experience.

our 2017 christmas cards

it's christmas card season!  ryan and i absolutely love sending holiday cards each year.  we especially love photo cards since they are such a nice way to share little snapshots of our past year with our family and friends.

we're thrilled to be teaming up with shutterfly this year for our holiday cards!  we have been huge shutterfly fans for years, in fact our whole family loves shutterfly.  they truly have it all, and the quality of their products can't be beat.  (did you know that ryan and i even made our wedding guest book and wedding photo album on shutterfly?)  over the years, we've made several photo albums, countless photo calendars, photo ornaments, address labels, and of course many photo greeting cards too.

shutterfly truly is a one-stop shop for your holiday card needs because they make whole the process so easy!

there are hundreds of beautiful designs from which to choose.  once you pick your favorite card design, you can personalize it by choosing your color, trim, paper type, and format.  my favorite part of the process is adding in my photos and arranging them on the card.  after you select the quantity of cards that you need, you can also customize your envelopes and address labels to match!

for this year's card, we chose the 5x7 size of the gleaming gift design in gold with the rounded edge trim on pearl shimmer cardstock.  we love how this card allowed us to display several of our favorite photos from the past year.

we love how shutterfly makes personalizing christmas cards a super simple few-step process.  after just a few clicks, you have made gorgeous looking cards, and before you know it they arrive on your doorstep ready to send out to everyone on your list.  we're grateful for shutterfly's easy system, especially with our super hectic schedules!

one of the things that drew us to this design was the "christmas wishes" message on the front.  it had a special little meaning for us because we knew we wanted to feature some photos from our trip to disney this past spring.  when we were at the magic kingdom, we saw the wishes show at cinderella's castle, and it turns out our timing was perfect because the wishes show was discontinued just a few weeks later.

we addressed, stamped, and stuffed our envelopes, and our cards are in transit to their destinations as we speak!

we are so happy with the way our cards turned out this year and can't wait for our family and friends to see them when our cards arrive in their mailboxes!

love, laurie

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past christmas cards: 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011


thanks, @shutterfly!

#myshutterfly / #partner / #sponsored

simple cake decorating with stencils

i'm always on the look out for fun new creative ideas.  so, when stencil revolution reached out to me about trying their stencils, i was on board right away.  what you can do creatively with stencils is endless!

since i love baking and cake decorating, my mind immediately went to the idea of using a stencil to decorate the top of a cake.  ryan and i love to decorate cakes elaborately with hand-piped designs and fondant.  however, the reality is that sometimes you need to decorate a cake in a pinch and you simply don't have the time to spend hours decorating in the kitchen.  stencils are the perfect solution!

over the weekend i made a simple one-tiered cinnamon walnut cake and i covered it in basic vanilla buttercream.  all i did was place a stencil on top and dust ground cinnamon over the stencil.  i gently lifted the stencil off the cake and the result was a cute image that only took me seconds to make.  so easy!  for this cake, i chose to dust the stencil with ground cinnamon to play off the cinnamon-walnut flavor of my cake.  however, you could also use cocoa powder or powered sugar too.

stencil revolution offers so many different stencil patterns.  my favorites are the bicycle, compass, world map, and nyc skyline.  their company is based out of florida and their community of expert artists offers the very best in laser-cut stencils.

one of my favorite things about these stencils is that they are reusable!  they are very durable and can be washed easily.  as soon as i was done decorating my cake, my bicycle stencil washed off easily with soap and water.

i can't wait to use my compass, world map, and nyc skyline stencils on my next projects!  in addition to using them on cakes, i look forward to decorating gift bags, wrapping paper, and t-shirts with them with some paint!

love, laurie

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*please note: this is a sponsored post, however, the content of this post is based solely on my own personal opinion and experience.

product review: rug pad usa

ryan and i are all about healthy living.  for us, a healthy lifestyle doesn't just mean eating well and exercising regularly.  it also means surrounding ourselves with healthy and ethically sustainable items in our home.  so, we like to take a good look at what things are made of before we bring them into our living space.  (we also like to make sure that things are safe for leko too!)

i've mentioned before that we live in an old 1930s house which still has most of its original parts, including the original hardwood floors.  in a few areas of our home, we have area rugs to define spaces and to soften up the wooden floors.  however, all of our rugs always seem to end up slipping and sliding out of place because we live with an energetic five-year old kitten who loves to zoom around the house at top speed, skidding out on our rugs as he is chasing a toy, a shadow, us, etc.

so, it was perfect when rug pad usa reached out to us about rug pads.  bringing a rug pad into our home from rug pad usa was a natural fit for us because rug pad usa specializes in eco-friendly rug pads.  their products are more eco-friendly than traditional pvc and plastic padding products on the market which are often ridden with chemicals that can be toxic to you and your pets (and harmful to your floors too).  we love that rug pad usa offers sustainable alternatives to traditional rug pads with great grip and quality (and they are manufactured in georgia).

after sending rug pad usa the dimensions of our rug and a description of our floors, they helped us chose a rug pad that was best for us.  we ended up with the superior lock 1/4 inch which provides the perfect solution for rugs that slip and slide on surfaces in high-traffic areas.  the checkered natural rubber backing design of the superior lock allows for exceptional grip, while the recycled needle-punched felt provides a comfortable cushion.

as soon as our rug pad arrived in the mail, we put it to the test.  (really, i should say that leko put it to the test!)  we love how thin this rug pad is and how it adds such a nice cushion.  it passes the leko test and stays in place too!  it's so nice to know that we have something under our rug that is safe for us, leko, and our floors.

love, laurie

*please note: this is a sponsored post, however, the content of this post is based solely on my own personal opinion and experience.

our 2016 christmas cards

december is here and the holiday season is upon us!  i can hardly believe that christmas is right around the corner.  ryan and i absolutely love sending holiday cards each year.  we especially love photo cards since they are such a nice way to share little snapshots of the past year with our family and friends.

we are thrilled to be teaming up again with tiny prints this year for our holiday cards because we love their products and because they are a one-stop shop for all of our holiday card needs.  tiny prints makes it so easy to customize cards.  all we had to do was pick our favorite design, add our photos, and add our personal message along with our names.  it only takes a matter of a few minutes from start to finish, which is perfect for our busy schedules.

we really love cards that allow us to display multiple pictures from the past year.  after looking through hundreds of holiday card options, we decided on one of the gate fold designs which are new for 2016!

we picked this card which is called "living in love" in the flint color and the pearl white shimmer finish.  it was the perfect card for us because we were able to display photos on all sides!

to accompany our holiday cards, we chose envelopes to match in the "snowflake dust" design and we embellished our envelopes with snowflake envelope liners.  to complete the look, we created personalized holiday postage photo stamps.  we chose the "merry trails" stamps in marigold.

as much as i love sending cards, it is so time consuming to write out all of the addresses by hand.

thankfully, tiny prints helps out and does the work for you by offering free recipient addressing on custom envelopes!  they printed our return address on the back of the envelopes and printed all of our recipients' addresses on the front of the envelopes.  talk about a life saver, goodbye hand cramps!

when our cards arrived in the mail, all i had to do was stuff and send them.  easy peasy!

we are beyond thrilled with the way our cards turned out this year and we can't wait for our family and friends to receive them in the mail!

love, laurie

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past christmas cards: 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011

dip healthy this fall with chobani meze dips

fall is here, and that means it's prime time for after-school treats, on-the-go snacks, football tailgates, and more.  for me, the dance season has started back up again, and i'm always looking for snacks between dance classes, the gym, yoga, errands, work, etc.

when you're reaching for snacks or looking for something to put out for guests, it's easy to fall into a rut with the same old "chips and dip" plate.  in our house we're all about finding healthy substitutions, so we're teaming up with chobani today to offer some simple ways to dip healthier when it comes to snack time and party time this fall.

we were thrilled when chobani introduced their savory meze dips this summer.  we just love that they feature real veggies, herbs, and spices blended with creamy chobani greek yogurt.  what's more is that they are made with only natural, non-GMO ingredients which makes us feel good about enjoying them!

chobani's savory meze dips come in four flavors (roasted red pepper, three pepper salsa, chili lime, and smoked onion & parmesan) and we've tried all of them.  ryan and i agree that the smoked onion & parmesan is our favorite.

go ahead and change up the classic "chips and dip" plate and dip healthy this fall.  substitute a meze dip for a traditional dip, and get dipping with some healthy alternatives to chips, pretzels, and crackers.  here are some ideas to get you started . . .

happy dipping!

love, laurie

here comes the sun!

this weekend was glorious!  the sun was out and shining brightly all weekend long.  it felt like we skipped over spring and fast-forwarded right to summer!  i was in heaven.

we took full advantage of the beautiful weather and spent a majority of the weekend outside with walks along the river, bike rides, outdoor dining, and driving with the windows down and the sunroof open.  after what seemed like a long winter, it was good for my soul!

warmer weather and sunny skies means it's sunglasses season!  to celebrate sunglasses season, we're thrilled to be teaming up again with our friends at firmoo.  i'm a huge firmoo fan.  i have several pairs of glasses from firmoo, but up to now i have never tried firmoo's sunglasses.  this weekend's gorgeous weather was the perfect opportunity to take my new firmoo sunglasses for a spin!

firmoo offers both prescription and non-prescription sunglasses.  since i've somehow made it to my 30s and have never owned a pair of aviators, i was excited to try these aviators in gold/green.

one of my favorite things about these sunglasses is how light weight they are, i can hardly feel them on my face!  i also love that each pair of firmoo glasses/sunglasses comes with a hard storage case, a soft storage bag, a microfiber cleaning cloth, and a repair screw driver.  super convenient!

if you are in need of a new pair of sunglasses for the spring/summer, our friends at firmoo are offering the first 10 readers a complete pair of eyeglasses for free now through may 12th!

first time buyers can claim their free glasses here using the code LOVELAURIE2 (shipping and handling fees are extra).

can we just take a moment to appreciate how awesome ryan did taking these photos?!  

he did such a good job, it was awesome!

love, laurie

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*please note: this post is in partnership with firmoo, however, the content of this post is based solely on my own personal opinion and experience.

four eyes

i have worn glasses since i was in elementary school.  typically, i wear contacts throughout the day and glasses in the morning and at night.  it's crazy how expensive glasses can be, and i hate spending a lot of money on a new pair of glasses when i know that i only wear them for a short period of time each day.

i've been a fan of firmoo.com for several years now, and i wear their glasses every day.  in fact, i even have a few pairs.  firmoo offers prescription eye glasses, prescription sun glasses, and non-prescription designer frames at a fraction of the cost of other retailers.

firmoo recently offered me a new pair of glasses, and i was excited to try a different pair of frames.  i chose style FRM8821 in tortoise.  i like how simple they are (and i'm always a fan of tortoise frames).  what i love most about these frames is how light weight they are . . . i hardly can even feel them on my face!

i couldn't believe how fast my glasses shipped.  i had them even earlier then i expected.  i loved being able to pick out my frames online without ever leaving the house.

my glasses came in a hard storage case with a microfiber cleaning cloth, a soft storage bag, and even a repair screw driver too!

if you are in need of a new pair of glasses, be sure to check out firmoo.  right now they are offering 15% off for new customers!

love, laurie

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*please note: this is a sponsored post, however, the content of this post is based solely on my own personal opinion and experience.

our 2015 christmas cards

now that thanksgiving is over and december is here, i can hardly believe that christmas is right around the corner!

we just love sending and receiving holiday cards each year, especially photo cards.  it's such a nice way to share little snapshots of the past year with family and friends.

we were thrilled to be able to team up with tiny prints again this year for our christmas cards.  tiny prints makes it so easy to customize our cards.  all we had to do was add our names and our photos.  it only took a few minutes from start to finish, which is perfect if you have busy schedules like us.  

we made so many great memories this past year and we wanted to find a holiday card where we could display multiple pictures.  (after all, it's way too hard to pick just one photo to use!)  after looking through all of the options, we picked this card in the pearl white shimmer finish.  it was the perfect card for us because we were able to display photos on both the front and back!

we chose gold envelopes to match the gold bands on the front of the card, and we embellished our gold envelopes with gold chevron envelope liners.  we also ordered matching address labels which were the perfect compliment to complete the look.

we all know that we have better things to do than to stand in line at the post office during the holiday season.  so, tiny prints even will address, stamp, and mail out your cards for you if you are short on time.  talk about a life saver!

we absolutely love the way our cards turned out this year and we can't wait for our family and friends to receive them in the mail!

love, laurie

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past christmas cards: 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011

prints from alexa z design

i have been following alexa and her adorable family via her blog for several years.  alexa is a talented self-taught graphic designer who creates hand lettered and illustrated prints, greeting cards, postcards, calendars, and more which she sells via her shop.

i was thrilled when alexa sent me two of her prints to enjoy.  each print was packaged in a cello sleeve with cardboard and shipped in a flat, sturdy mailer.  they are so bright and colorful and really cheer me up whenever i see them.

i chose to frame the 5x7 "go the extra mile, it's never crowded" print and put it on my desk in my office right next to my computer.  i love the simplicity of it, and it looks great with the other simple white elements on my desk.  the saying is such a great motivational reminder every time i look at it!

instead of framing the 8x10 "have courage and be kind" print, i chose to display it with a small binder clip.  i kept the cardboard backing behind the print for support and hung the binder clip on a small nail on the wall in my office.  i especially love this print because it is a quote from cinderella, and i have had the chance to play the role of cinderella twice.  whenever i see this print it is a nice reminder of both times i portrayed cinderella on stage.  i hung it right by the door to my office, right above the light switch, so that i see it whenever i come and go.  it's such a nice reminder of how to live life.

if you are looking for whimsical prints to decorate your home and/or your office space, be sure to check out alexa's shop.

you can also follow along with alexa here: blog / instagram / twitter / facebook

love, laurie

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*please note: this is a sponsored post in collaboration with alexa z design.  however, the content of this post is based solely on my own personal opinion and experience.