As it’s currently quite cold and rainy here, I thought all of us could use a burst of sunshine! Sarina from Sarina Love Photography sent over this adorable backyard bridal shower. It’s full of whimsical details and DIY goodness. I love the pops of color throughout the event, and having crafts in place of games? Fantastic!

Thank you for sharing Sarina!

A few weeks ago, I gave a tutorial on ABCD Design that seemed to be a hit with all who read it. I figured since many of you don’t make it over to ABCD on a regular basis that perhaps I should teach you how to arrange flowers in a glass container here on EADL!

First, it helps to have the right tools for flower arranging. A Swiss Army knife, a set of stem cutters, and some clear floral tape will …

We have the CUTEST shower inspiration shoot for you guys on this cold Monday morning. It was styled by Stephanie Frazier Grimm of Couture Parties. She chose Paradise Public Park in Newport, RI as the venue – the grounds hold a restored and relocated 1810 windmill.

All photography credited to Vanessa Tierney.

This is, by far, one of the coolest showers I have seen in a long time. Styled by Frilly Milly Events, shot by ICG Photography and found via Opulent Couturier, it’s a “LumberJack and Jill” couples shower. It has all the earmarks of a great party:  a good theme, an opportunity to dress up, substantial food and a funky photobooth. My favorite details are the Smores cupcakes and plaid stationery.

This time of year there’s lots of opportunities for hosting parties, from football games to Halloween and Thanksgiving.  And decorating for them doesn’t have to cost you a bundle – all you need is a little creativity and planning.

Here are some tips and ideas for your next get-together.

One of the easiest tips is to pick a color scheme and use it in everything you can.  Like the photo above, or the one below, color can be a powerful unifying theme.

Another easy way to …

I’ve been a bit closed-mouthed about our recent real estate endeavors.  You see, I was all gung-ho to share this little journey with the interwebs, and then… well, then we hit a few snags.

And then the snags got snaggier.

So I started to get superstitious and zipped the ol’ lips in case some sort of ironic cyberspace goblin was intent on wrecking havoc in our little world.

Fast forward 2.5 months later:  Our grueling renegotiations were a success and our mortgage loan …

With fall swiftly approaching, we’re back in nesting mode around here. We’ve been living among piles of clothes, boxes, tools and drywall dust for the duration of our first six months of home ownership and while we’ve made a lot of progress, the summer largely halted any major renovation projects. We have a lot of rooms that are painted, but a lot of doors still waiting to be rehung, a room still wanting for flooring, a kitchen still desperately in …

You spoke. I listened.

Kind of.

The overwhelming response to my last post was to go with teal for my bedroom walls, so I started scouting for the perfect shade of blue-green. The trouble was that I couldn’t decide if I should lean towards a bluer teal or greener teal, and all of the swatches I examined just seemed so bright. I was afraid I would feel like I was living under the sea or, at the very least, near the Mediterranean …

Pick Paint for Bedroom by somewhereinmiddleamerica on Polyvore.com

One of the projects I hoped to accomplish while my husband was deployed was to finish decorating our bedroom, which including painting the walls and buying curtains, a rug and nightstands. So far I’ve only purchased nightstands. I have about month to go before J returns home, so I need to start making some decisions. The most crucial decision, though, is paint. That will determine what color window treatment and floor covering I …

I don’t know about you, but I spend most of Springtime fretting about when the weather is going to teeter over 70 degrees. It must be my Swedish heritage, because I fare much better in frigid Winter weather. When the ladies of EAD asked me to share the items that get me through Summer, several comfortable, body cooling-items came to mind…

Image via Athleta

The Organic Cotton Senorita Dress from Athleta. They come in the most delicious, organic colors. The dress comes …