Saturday 31 January 2015

Adventure in your backyard






Being over four months pregnant, I've been gravitating towards my comfiest peices. Long flowy skirts (preferably without an elastic band), loose tees and oversized cardigans have been my recepe for ultimate comfrot these days. Luckily I have a few of these items which still fit (looks like I will have to start shopping for clothes to fit my belly!)
Gavin and I spent some time in his own home town, I love hearing his stories of growing up and the adventures he had there before. It's nice to share these memories and get to create our own adventures in the same spot! As it is the end of January, the lakes are now frozen and the ice huts are up. We took this opportunity to go exploring the frozen lake on this beautiful day. Soon we will have a third adventurer to join us on these expeditions...I can't wait!


     Skirt & Cardigan :Forever21 // Hat and shirt: Urban Outfitters

Wednesday 28 January 2015

Brithday Wishlist

It's that time of year again...in a couple of weeks I will be another year older. I try not to cringe at the thought of growing older as much as I have in the past...besides, no matter how much we hate it, it doesn't change anything, we still grow older. A good way to distract oneself from negative thoughts around our birthday is to treat yourself, or make a list for the love ones around you who (no matter how much you object) want to treat you with something special. I have a few items I've been eyeing for some time:





1: A subtle beaded/crystal crown { here's one }
2: Gladiator sandals { fringe sandals }
3: More crystals to add to my collection { ebay has a good selection }
4: The most amazing dress I've ever seen in my life... { FP Maja Raja Maxi }
5: Some succulents { Terrariums }
6: Crystal necklace { this pretty one }
7: Flash tattoos...I'm ready for summer! { Lots here }


Wednesday 21 January 2015

Bell Sleeves


Let me introduce you to my new obsession: bell sleeves. There's something I'm finding so irrestistable about them (maybe it's because they remind me of summer?) But I can never resits a dress with these lovely sleeves. This dress from Sheinside is definitely no exception, I fell completely in love with it at first sight, and have recieved countless compliments when I wore it. It's definitely an eye-catching piece and one I will be wearing constantly this spring/summer.
This wall is one of my favorites...The art is beautiful and I always smile to myself when I see it. When I was younger I remember my cousin telling me how she and her mom had painted it, and I would always be furious because I knew she was lying, and we laugh about it now. Change is exciting and everything, but sometimes the memories the familiar holds is nice too ^.^


     Dress :Sheinside


Monday 19 January 2015

Boyfriend Sweater

 
I've been feeling pretty restless lately, as I usually do around this time of year. I've been keeping busy the usual ways, writting, crafting, planning ahead...but I am craving a new adventure. But for now I'm sticking to the usual trails and lake views...which I can't complain about, they are still as breath-taking as ever.
I've been wearing my new favorite sweater from Sheinside non-stop on my usual trecks through the woods, and my cozy days in. I love how I can throw it over almost anything, a dress, some jeans or leggings, and it always looks great. It will definitely be my go-to sweater from now on!

     Sweater :Sheinside

Tuesday 13 January 2015

Into the Sunset




I recently recieved these goodies from OASAP , which I could not be more thrilled about. THIS furry black cardigan is my absolute favorite. Not only is it warm and comfortable, it goes with almost everything in my closet. I've been wearing it non-stop on my winter walks, feeling a little like a black bear, and a little like a high society woman. THIS dress is really great also...it has some of my favorite details (floral print, peter pan collar), but it also has an adjustable dreaw string and the material itself is incredibly comfortable. The weather is somehow becoming warmer in the late afternoon, and so I'm finding it the best time to go outside...this way I get to see a beautiful sunset between the trees, casting its orange glow on the scene before it.

     Dress : OASAP // Coat:OASAP

Saturday 10 January 2015

Best Day Ever

I've been meaning to do this post for a while and am finally getting around to it! Those of you who follow me on social media have probably seen that I've recently gotten married! I want to share the details of this special day with you all. I'm the sort of person who has never been attatched to anyone or any place, someone who second (and third and so on) guessed all of my decisions...however, the easiest decision I've ever made was to spend the rest of my life with Gavin. From the moment I met him I knew he was different and I've since been the happiest I've ever been. Now, choosing to say yes to marriage was the easy part...the hard part comes with planning a wedding (especially in secret). When we first begain to plan, we decided it would be a June wedding, outdoors in Ottawa, with a guest list of literally four people. One thing we knew forsure was we didn't want a big wedding with alot of people...we wanted to keep it intimate with people who are a part of our daily lives and bring a positive atmosphere. We had a location picked and began to plan, it was when we told our parents that things began to change. First of all, the guest list got bigger, we realized we at least wanted immediate family there to share this day with us...from there plans were being made left and right by everyone, and before we knew it we were getting married 6 months earlier than we planned. A winter wedding was never the plan, but all in all, it was exactly the day we wanted.
Now for the wedding details. As we did not want a huge wedding, we wanted to keep the cost minimal and had alot od DIY projects within the wedding, with the help of some amazing people. For example, I had made my own flower crown:
I dried the flowers from a bouquet Gavin had given me some time before. I used wire and fake vines, and a random assortment of sparkly knick knacks to finish it off. I was really happy with the result.
  
My dress was probably the least expensive item in the wedding (other than the things which were homemade). I bought it for 35$ from Oasap and used a sparkly liner and sewed it inside the lace, and added some to the open back area as well for a sheer sparkle.
I aslo added the antler broach on the belt as well.

My bouquet was homemade as well, Gavin's aunt did an incredible job in matching it to the crown, and added some loose vines which I love so much.
My shoes were these simple gold flats from Urban Outfitters.
As for Gavin, the only things that were new were his suit jacket from Forever21 and tie. His Cardigan and shoes he'd already owned from Urban Oufitters. 
His broach was handmade by his aunt as well, and he was just the handsomest of grooms! I'm so lucky!
The ceremony was held in my childhood church, again not something I'd ever pictured (I'd always dreamt of an outdoor wedding), but it was really nice in the end and felt very special. Our wedding party was very small and had alot of very small people (my nieces Rayne and Harlow and Gavin's nephew and niece Noah and Brianna were the darlings of the day, and we are so happy they got to be there). The ceremony was incredibly intimate, which was exactly what we wanted, and we feel so blessed to have had our perfect day to celebrate spending the rest of our lives together. Exchanging our vows was the most significant part of the whole day, and I will remember it for as long as I live.
 
Vows:

Gavin To Stephanie

Love can't be planned, Love can't be scheduled
Love can't be fake or forced;
It can be broken, but rarely fixed...
Love just is-
And I knew when I first saw you that I loved you.
When I sleep at night, I close my eyes and naturally I see darkness;
but when I am with you and I touch your skin, your energy illuminates my thoughts.
I start to see worlds and galaxies; universes more beautiful than I could ever imagine.
When I am with you I literally see beauty in darkness.
Love doesn't have a set time line. Some people spend years together not sure of who the other is.
When I first met you I couldn't believe how quickly I loved you. A lot of moments happened that some say happened too quickly and at tims I may have been nervous about it too. But looking back my only regret is that they didn't happen sooner. On this day I make a promise to you. I promise to love you with every ounce of my soul. I promise to work towards earning your love that inspires me everyday. I promise to be patient and communicate with you. I promise to make our time together an adventure and find ways to make you fall in love with life every single day. I make these promises with one simple request. That you lie, cheat and steal. That you lie next to me every night for the rest of our days. That you steal my sorrows as you already so easily do; and that you cheat death for I can't bear the thought of a world without you. I'd like to end  this with a quote because all of the good things have already been said: "The moment I heard my first love story I began seeking you, not realizing the search was useless. Lovers don't meet somewhere along the way, they're in one anothers soul from the very begining." 

Stephanie To Gavin

Since I met you, my life has been full of charm and adventure,
fire and sweetness--there is no one like you and no love like ours.
The only thing I'm certain of in this world is that forever with you could never be long enough, 
and yet I could have loved you but one day and have lived a full life.
And so I promise forever to encourage your dreams,
for they are the sparkle in your eye that I hope you never lose.
I promise to nurture your soul,
 in hopes to keep your honesty and humble spirit always a part of you.
I promise to help shoulder any and all challenges we might face, 
for there is nothing that we cannot accomplish together.
I promise you my love and understanding at all times,
because you deserve all that is good in this world...
and I would do anything to keep this life shiny and bright, if only for you.
I promise you my patience and respect,
to bring light into your life when you feel there is none.
To live happily by your side in a fog of surreal enchantment as we have been.
I promise to remind you everyday what you are to me:
love of my life, my sould mate, my equal in all things.
This is my sacred vow to you.

We had two seperate locations for the wedding photos. One was under a beautiful waterfall in (one) of my hometowns, and the other was a forest hidden behind the college where we met. We didn't have an official wedding photographer, which was fun because it was a combination of Gavin's friend chelsea, my mom dad and me taking the photos throughout the day. It was really great.
We ended the day in a greek/italian restaurant which my dad put together...it was really lovely, the food was great, there was a live piano player and later we got to cut our gorgeous cake and share our first dance. You know, all that typical wedding stuff ;)
All in all, it was truly wonderful, and I'm happy to have this to look back on every year to re-live my favorite life experience. 
It just goes to show that you don't need alot of money to make a wedding happen...all you need is the love of two people and the people around them who make life great!