OUR WEDDING: DIY PAPERGOODS

August 7, 2017

With Danny being a fine art screenprinter, it was only natural that he printed our wedding invites. Danny is also a very talented graphic designer - double win. We first thought that we would only be screen printing the invites, but then it turned into menus, place cards, seating charts, and more. Designing (I got to play art director) and printing everything for our wedding was really fun and rewarding, but a lot of work. And we did it... twice.

Since we decided to have a small, intimate wedding in Big Sur and then a larger party in Los Angeles, we had two different visions for our designs. I was so excited to see what we would come up with and to be his right-hand-lady in the process!

For the Big Sur invite, we went for a forest-y, landscape theme to get our guests excited for the adventure ahead. For the party, we re-mixed/re-purposed an existing design from the 1960s. This design was originally used on the cover of a piano song book of the Kink's "Dandy", which we also had Danny's grandma perform at our wedding with her own lyrics written just for us.

The photos here show this invite in particular being printed. I was lucky enough that Danny could print them on a day that I wasn't in the office, so I was able to photograph him work.

I guess you could say green was our wedding color. I had originally wanted a shimmery copper, but we decided that green would be more versatile and less exhausting throughout the series of pieces. Danny mixes all of his inks from scratch to ensure the perfect color, which is a very tedious process. This was probably the longest part of the day besides waiting for them to dry.

It was so cool to see our creation come to life on paper and see my then future-husband in his zone working on a personal project! We really felt like this special, DIY touch really set the tone for our entire wedding. I couldn't have asked for anything more beautiful.

Danny is LA's best screen printer. I know that sounds biased because I am now married to him, but he really is. His superior organization, clean workflow, and ultra-tight registration make him stand out from the rest. Thank you, Danny. I love you.

Photography by Even Keel Imagery & myself.

M I N I M O O N // FALL CITY, WA

July 10, 2017

Minimoon?
Yes, it's the vacation before the big enchilada, aka The Honeymoon, aka in our terms: HANIMOON.

Danny & I must have had a brain lapse and decided on having two weddings. So, to make up for our insanity: we took two honeymoons. The day after our official nuptials, we jet-setted up north to a small area of Washington known as Fall City.

Why here, you ask?
For my birthday a few years back, we took a PNW tour starting in Vancouver, BC down to Portland, Oregon. While driving through Washington taking our Twin Peaks fanatics tour, we stayed in Fall City near Snoqualmie. This area is lush, filled with hiking trails, and is somewhat mysterious (we see the appeal, David Lynch). I recommend everyone visit, if not stay, here at least once. You'll want to go back (as we did)!

Our first night we stayed at The Fall City Roadhouse. Yes, it's the actual Roadhouse from Twin Peaks, but it's not a bar or music venue. The Roadhouse is a small, sweet, cozy and very comfortable home-like-hotel with a fantastic restaurant, and it has the nostalgic road sounds that you hear as the flatbed trucks filled with tree trunks drive by (it really happens there). Did I mention the food is really good? Their Goat Cheese & Garden scramble is my favorite breakfast to-date and they make a killer Bloody Mary (it's as big as your head!). Stay here. Eat here. You won't be disappointed - and take some "Ugly Biscuits" back home for the family.

The next day, we did a little exploring and site-seeing over at Snoqualmie Falls. You might recognize this place. Hint: Insert Twin Peaks theme song. This is a must see in the area! The impressive falls are so loud and beautiful at all times of the year with various view points and trails to check out. Caution: you might get a little wet in the winter months if you stand too close! Sitting to the left of the falls is the Salish Hotel (aka The Great Northern). Although the interior is nothing like the interior from the show, you'll want to stop inside for a drink and/or a bite at The Attic. Danny and I love this place - so much so that we ate here three times during our short trip. Pro Tip: Put your name in and wait for one of the tables against the windows looking over the falls. And, you MUST order the ribs and a cherry pie! You can thank me later.

On the roads between the Fall City and Snoqualmie, we stopped at some cute road-side vendors, where we picked up some fresh local cherries, and (since I had to leave my beautiful wedding bouquet behind) Danny bought me some new flowers for our room.

That evening, we checked into the highly-anticipated TreeHouse Point bed & breakfast. This place is amazing, and even better IRL. Tucked away off the main road sits six individual, unique and private tree houses. Luck would have it they had two nights available in their Bonbibi tree house right when we wanted to go. Bird, their chef, takes the time to know your food preferences and makes a killer breakfast while Damon, the manager, meets and greets all the guests. We made friends with one of our neighbors and bonded over beers while wading in their private river. Later, we grabbed drinks and bites at Fall City's kitschy, overly-decorated, knick-knack-heavy dive bar, The Last Frontier (they make pretty decent salads and jalapeño poppers). We ended up spending a lot of our time with them. It was awesome.

When outside the TreeHouse (and not eating at the Attic), we got in some good hiking. This area has so many great trails for all levels. We, of course, rose to the challenge and hiked Rattlesnake Ridge, which was totally worth it for the view. I mean, come on, look at that. The hike took a few hours but there were plenty of cute dogs and chipmunks to gawk at. On our last day, right before we took off back to Los Angeles, we hiked Twin Falls early in the morning before the crowds showed up. An adventure pass is required for this hike, but can be bought on-site at a kiosk. Highly recommend.

We love you, Washington. We'll be back (again).

Where to Stay...

Fall City Roadhouse
TreeHouse Point
The Salish Lodge

Where to eat...

Fall City Roadhouse
The Attic at Salish
The Last Frontier Saloon

What to see...

Snoqualmie Falls
Rattlesnake Ridge
Twin Falls
Twedes Cafe (The RR in Twin Peaks - I recommend just to look, not to eat.)

MY BACHELORETTE // IDYLLWILD, CALIFORNIA

May 17, 2017

This past weekend, eight of my best girlfriends (including my good friend, Kirstin, who came all the way from Chicago!) and I headed northeast from LA to Idyllwild for my Bachelorette - aka Cinco de Andi - aka Andi almost-Askar. I never gave much thought to my bachelorette or had expectations, but this weekend proved to be more than I could have dreamt it would be.

We rented a Geodesic Dome atop a cliff with 2 hot tubs, fire-pits, trails, and a 360° view of Idyllwild. The weather was in the high 70s, clear-ish skies, and luckily, my gorgeous friend, Miriam Brummel (also our engagement/future wedding photographer) came packing and captured the weekend! Putting on the ridiculous shirt and sash was such a surreal moment and it hit me that I was really getting married soon!

We bbq'd, jacuzzied, and popped one-too-many bottles of champagne. It was glorious. The girls even surprised me with a new purse from my favorite store, Madewell, monogrammed with my future initials.

Unfortunately, the dome had issues that were unrepairable, but wow, did it work in our favor. We got moved to the raddest lodge, and the party re-started. Since I don't love being the center of attention, we all dressed in white and took the town by storm. We never got a full group photo but I guess that means we were having too much fun.

Weather predicted snow on Sunday (which is nuts for May) but we had no idea that we would wake up to a winter wonderland! It felt like Christmas! It was truly unbelievable.