frenchie friday: model dogs

seems i've completely fallen off the grid.  i have some VERY good excuses . . . but only one of them really matters. 

 i survived the ash's bachelorette party. 

 this took days of mental and physical preparation on the front end and the obvious recuperation week on the backside. {sprinkle in a lil springsteen at fenway and pro bono partying planning in darien and you can thank me for checking in at all}

you're welcome.

now i just can't resist sharing this blast from my past.  was delighted to stumble across this e-mail in my junkmail when i regained post-bachey consciousness.

Hi Sarah,

I believe that I photographed George some time ago for Dogz Togz. I came across your posting regarding the horribles parade. I am researching the history of the parade and came across your listing. I loved your editorial take on the event so I thought you might enjoy some of the photographs I am putting into a book.

I hope that all else is well.

Rick

http://www.notrickashley.com/#/client/template.xml?aaa=portfolio/28016

Rick Ashley
19 Preston Beach Road
Marblehead, MA 01945
rick@notrickashley.com
www.notrickashley.com

rick had the absolute terror pleasure of shooting my sweet pups many moons ago for a high-end internet dog boutique.  {you heard me.  and yes, all the other bitches were jealous but looloo did not let it go to her head. that's just not how we roll.  obvs.}

 

i loved checking out rick's website.  the pics of the buildings in marblehead are amazebalz.  i didn't realize just how effed up quirky the architecture in this town was until i viewed it through rick's lense.  truly enlightening.  especially love this capture of the jeremiah lee mansion, which served as my view for four years at our previous address {aka george and loo's first home}.  totes looks fake.

anyhoot, let's not ignore the fact that he has compiled a real live book about the horribles parade. holla!

 but let's face it, rick can publish all the books & take all the amazing images he wants, but i'm pretty sure he reached the pinnacle of his career about 6 years ago.  

when this happened.  

O.M. F. G.

thank you, rick, for the stroll down memory lane and the reminder that george and loo do seem to have gotten quite plump. {reference fat frenchie friday}

and also raising the question: why was their modeling career so short-lived?

seriously tho, i'm excited for all of your future projects and can't wait to display the horribles parade book on my coffee table.  hopefully george won't tear it into one million pieces . . . but he probably will.  maybe your next book could be pics of all the things george has destroyed?

wedding wednesday: mermaid of honor

anyone who reads lil hoot with any regularity is aware that i'm fully immersed in my mermaid of honor duties.  i am having such big fun helping the ash plan her big day, and i see my role just as what it's called, an honor.

here are some deets {with a teeny bit of hoot vernacular added} as told to classic bride for their lovely feature. {big thanks, SD!}

my cousin, ashly, is my favorite person on the planet.  {sorry horseface} when she got engaged to her amazebalz fiancee Scott, I was beyond happy and since I am a party planner, I had already started planning the wedding and shower in my head months prior {obvs}.   I knew I wanted to enlist the help of industry faves, White Loft Studio, chocolate creative design and Petal Floral Design {also Ashly's wedding vendors - yay!}

I wanted the shower to personify Ashly - laid back, beautiful, and above all, fun!  My mom was happy to co-host with me and offer her coastal connecticut home as the venue.  She has a mermaid statue perched on her sea wall which was one of the inspirations for the event.  Ashly has always loved the beach {so much so she resides on Nantucket!} so I wanted to incorporate seaside and beachy elements without being trite.  She also isn't your typical bride and was not comfortable with the traditional shower concept so we set out to create a "cocktail hour shower" announcing "one less lovely fish in the sea".  

The invites, painstakingly created by my lovely and talented friend Lucinda Wesson of chocolate creative design, set the tone for the celebratory occasion perfectly.  Lucinda illustrated a darling mermaid holding a cocktail which was then printed with gold foil on the invites, complimenting the pink, coral and aqua color scheme.  The RSVP was to go to the "mermaid of honor".  Envelopes were lined with an aqua and gold glittered scallop pattern.  fave. invites. evah.

The scallop pattern, bubbles and mermaids were to be found everywhere from the pattern of my mom's stone patio to the cocktail napkins.  Lucinda created a custom stamp for the napkins with the mermaid from the invite and the don ho lyrics  'tiny bubbles in the wine, make me happy, make me feel fine".  

The sweets were originally to be set up on the sea wall but the weather didn't cooperate. {womp}

 Instead we set up the dessert table inside with subtle seaside elements.

The gurgling cod was used for the floral centerpiece, which was composed of coral charm peonies and other gorgeous blooms, also a gift to the bride to be.  

i twisted sugar on top's arm to work her magic during her maternity leave and i cannot imagine the shower without these beauties.  thank you, sugar! {you can go back to milking nicky bobby now}

Vintage jadeite shell and cake stands to display pink champagne and mint macarons, the gold-dusted seashell and starfish cookies, very homemade cupcakes, and a delicate scalloped cake with a peony fondant topper also graced the table.

i just adore this cake.

Sequined linens gave a shimmery seaside effect on both the bar and and sweets table.

Guests were served pink champagne in aqua and blush champagne flutes with gold and pink pom pom swizzle sticks . . .  

and a gold 'holla' sign was the focal point of the bar.  

This was also a perfect "prop" for the stunning bride-to-be!

There were multiple surprises in store for Ashly.  Her best friend from DC flew in for the event - Heidi of course captured the reaction of the elated bride perfectly.  Which brings me to my next surprise- Heidi of White Loft Studio, herself!  Ashly is thrilled to have her shoot her October wedding on Nantucket so her presence at the shower made her so happy, and even happier when we saw the pictures!  Heidi also delivered the gorgeous florals from Ashly's wedding florist, Petal Floral Design.

followed by more hugs . . .

and lots more pink bubbles . . .

obvs.

My 3 and half year old twin daughters are so excited to be flower girls and couldn't wait to make an appearance in their champagne tutus and bubble cardigans!  They also got a sneak peek at what their flower crowns for the wedding will look like {Becca from Petal Floral Design created a special one for the mermaid on the sea wall}

Cast iron mermaid bottle openers served as favors with a pablo picasso quote - 

'love is the greatest refreshment of all' 

These were hung from the chandelier above the bar.  

The bridesmaids had fun awkwardly posing with the bride and the pink mermaids sign!

Guests were also sent home with small bundles of glitter and other goodies to throw in the sea at a full moon {shower was 2 days before full moon} as part of a "mermaid love spell".

{my only regret was that someone forgot to cast a spell on me to ward off my frizzy hair and post-shower hangover . . .}

Looking forward to collaborating with all of these amazing vendors in October for the main event, and feeling so lucky that we get to have so much fun along the way. holla!

event styling - Lil hoot

photography - white loft studio

invitation/paper goods/styling - chocolate creative design

flowers- petal floral design

macarons -c. crowell confections

cookies - sugar on top

holla sign - oh dier

mermaids sign-  by the seashore decor
linens- La Tavola

fondant peony - sugar and stripes co.

what i didn't share with classic bride was that the cocktail hour shower was held the evening before my gramp's memorial service, so that far-away family members could be present for both events.  it was a bittersweet weekend but ashly's impending nuptials lifted everyone's spirits immensely and we truly celebrated life and love all weekend long.  a true party with heart, indeed.

ashly & scott - we are all so very happy for you two . . . keep the bubbles coming!

wedding wednesday: something bleu

the ash had her first fitting today and "the one" was even better than we remembered when we chose her in february.  

stunning, really.

like. . . i almost cannot even deal. 

i can't share pics of her just yet {except for the 25 of you i already texted} but she's worth the wait!

i also caught a glimpse of the wedding shoes.  i had helped pick them out {obvs} at my fave online wedding boutique, BHLDN. 

ladies and gents, meet the feather trimmed d'Orsays by something bleu . . .

totes have beach wedding written all over them.  ha.  the ash obvs do not care. 

 i already knew they were gorge but what i didn't know was that they have these precious blue crystals embedded in the soles.  {hence the name?}

image via sandra

how. presh.

ack-cited

so i haven't done a wedding post in quite some time. . . {ahem, or any post for that matter}  

i've been a busy bee and summer is going by too fast, per ushe.

the ash's big day is fast approaching and i could not fathom being more excited for anything.  i think i need to pre-order my anti-depressants now for when this shindig is over. {or hey horse-face, please book our second honeymoon!}

i am beyond excited to head to my fave place on the planet this weekend to do a walk-thru of the ash's wedding venue: the jetties!

longwood events has taken over the sea shanty and named it nantucket beach club.

ash and the hands are the guinea pigs . . .

and not afraid.

 at all. . .

 i hope this gal is standing there with the tray of wine when i do the walk-thru this weekend. . . or let's just go ahead and make that a tray of firefly & waters.  holla!

 can't think of a more perf place for the ash & hands to tie the knot.  they LOVE love the beach and this is quintessential beach nantucket.

also on the agenda - din at the straight wharf, where the rehearsal din will be held.

worship STW.  need to try and not be OOC so i don't vomit on the jetties.  i digress.

my fave blogger julie of shelter has been filling us in on what she packs for ack.  {she's there now and we will literally be ships passing tomorrow.  womp}

 jules has phenom style {obvs} so i adore these posts.  

i was inspired to create a board of what i want to magically appear in my bag because i despise packing.

happy happy summer weekend - enjoy it wherever you are. . . 

frenchie friday: party hat

it's time to put our party hats on . . .

image via sweet paul

even tho the weather doesn't look like it's going to cooperate tomorrow, we will still wear our {figurative} party hats and celebrate the ash!

i hope the hat matches my sassy pants.

holla!

cannot wait.

have a glorious weekend!

champers debate

so i'm a busy bee with final touches for the ash's cocktail hour-shower this weekend.

cannot wait to share the deets {as i have some A-team members collaborating with me on this one.}

slight hiccup when j-nice {my mom/ co-hostess} decided to put the kibosh on my veuve rose order.

what. a.  

. . . delightful person she is.  forreals. 

mom, you may have a point that not everyone needs to sip 'the good stuff' but you took it a bit too far with your  'i don't know who you think you are . . .' comment.

i mean- yikes - it's not like i ordered 18 cases of pierre-jouet {which would have totes matched our color scheme} and BTW: the ash is only getting hitched once . . . 

anyhoot, we settled for chandon.  

and lots of it.

p.s. ashy, you and i are obvs drinking pink veuve.  i think we should even share with j-nice.  love both you, sissies.  xo

tibi time

feeling fortunate that i stumbled upon the tibi sample sale this past weekend.

adorbs.

love this color.

i worship this printed dress.  have a vision of wearing this at ash's rehearsal.  the color combo i want is sold out. . . so not sure if she'll ever be mine but time will tell.

the good news is that this beauty shipped this morning.  the plan is to wear it to the ball.  i don't love it quite as much as last year's dress . . .

but it was on ridic sale so i couldn't resist.  

do you love-love or not so much?

desperate tuesday

i have a gazillion things to do while the wee ones are at school but this rainy weather inspired me to curl up with george and loo and do a bit of work from home . . . while watching desperate.

i'm well aware that i am one of the last peeps on the planet that watch this show and i'm not afraid to admit that i am totes sad to 'kiss them goodbye'.  {but i'm in great company- love you kate and ash}

i know it's a long shot but do you still watch? are you a bree, lynette, susan or gabi?

i worship them all, mainly gabi.  but i'd have to say i'm more of a susan  . . . mostly because she always falls.  obvs.

happy rainy tuesday!

wedding wednesday: shower worship

so i'm currently a busy bee working on some big fun for the ash's shower in early june.

nothing inspires me more than this girl scout photo shoot by beau & arrow events.  

the ash is no girl scout {obvs} but the gorgeous look & feel & absolute whimsey of the event is what i aspire to achieve.   seems that everything the fabulous ladies at beau & arrow design is in line with my dream aesthetic {ahem, as i find myself repinning almost ALL of their pins.}  these ladies rock!  {oh and apparently they have a soft spot for frenchies, too.  WOR-SHIP.}

okay, i simply cannot gush enough -see for yourself.

someone please call 911. i'm DY-ing over this dessert table!

and be sure to head to their blog for every last glorious detail.

vendor LOVE:
event design + coordination: Beau & Arrow Events // photography: Katie Neal Photo // venue: Olivenhain Meeting House // florals: Blush Botanicals // paper goods: Posh Paperie // cake + cupcakes: Hey! There Cupcake // hair & make up:10.11 Make up // rentals: Moss Vintage Rentals // cookies: VG Donuts & Bakery // lollipops: Custom Candy Creations // chiavari chairs: Allie’s Party Rentals // linens: Wildflower Linens