Stunning.

Beans in the City - Walking in the Wind

2012-01-26T10:33:00.004-05:00

The beginning of this week was super super windy. Taking Beans for a walk was certainly an adventure. High winds and a 9 lb dog make for an interesting walk. I'm pretty sure we looked a little something like this... Often my hair days and her ear days are similar.

Life As a Mrs. - The Whirlwind

2012-01-25T10:49:00.006-05:00

Today is a the first post in a series that I am going to be running every Wednesday called, "Life As a Mrs." I was inspired to start this because well - there are some things they just don't tell you when you make that leap from starry eyed engaged girl to a full on Mrs. Those fun things you get to figure out on your own...

The first six months of marriage have been a whirlwind. We got married in August; honeymooned for 2 weeks; had a homeless period of 2 days where we couch surfed at our parent's places and packed the moving truck; then we moved to the big city. Now, Chicago is not the biggest city in the world - but when you're moving there from Mid-Michigan it has those days where it feels like a foreign country. Anyway - we got to spend a happy day as a married couple in our new home surrounded by boxes. The very next day Hunky started his new job.

So there we were - a 5 month old puppy, 6 million boxes and myself. At this point Hunky was still living in the city with us, but he was gone from super early in the morning til well after 7 at night. There are no photos from our early time here because it was a huge unorganized mess. It was very difficult as I felt that unpacking 1 box just made 5 more appear. Bottom line - it was simply depressing.

I knew that things would eventually slow down. But wow - sitting there surrounded by all those boxes was just a lot.

So - with the coaching of Hunky I took it one box at a time. Going through each box allowed me to reevaluate everything we brought from our single lives and everything we were given for the wedding. There was the return pile, the questionable pile and the donate pile.

It took about a month to reach the last box. What a happy day that was. At that point the donate pile completely took over our dining room and there were a few things in that questionable pile that may or may not have been snuck into the donate pile...

Here we are - almost 6 months later nearly settled into our new place. Knowing me I'll probably declare the home finished a week before we move out!

Tickle Me Tuesday Craft Room Edition

2012-01-24T12:03:00.002-05:00

I am obsessed with Pinterest...
I am also obsessed with the space in which I craft and the ideas that I have for said space in the future. Currently I'm happy at my kitchen table - but would I love to borrow from some of these spaces!

Source: bhg.com via Anna K on Pinterest

Source: flickr.com via Anna K on Pinterest

Albee Print Giveaway Ending 1/29/12 and Reader Discount

2012-01-23T08:00:00.009-05:00

Now through 1/29 you have the fantastic opportunity to win this great looking 8x10 print from Etsy shop Albee! **And receive a fabulous discount!!**

I stumbled upon Albee in my quest for fabulous artwork for our bedroom. I ordered 3 prints and was so impressed I contacted Alex, the shop owner, to see if I could shout praises from the rooftops by doing a giveaway. Lucky for you all, the answer was yes!

Seriously - Alex is talented! American Greetings, Gartner Greetings, Designer Greetings, MGA Entertainment and Disney Consumer Products are among customers. A style that is bold, bright, eye catching and simply lovely!

The happy little space in our bedroom!

Alex takes inspiration from the city of LA.
"... old signs, old lighting fixtures, building friezes, bus stop posters, packaging, buildings, Japanese calligraphy, a walk around my neighborhood. I love trips to art museums and galleries. I don't visit them for very long because the creative energy overwhelms me. Whew! I just can't pinpoint one place or thing for inspiration."

Johnathan Swift Quote
Demosthenes Quote
Orville Wright Quote - Sold Out

I always wonder how artists who produce such a wide variety of fabulous work keep track of said inspiration - you know for those days where a happy little lift or inspiration kick is needed. Or how do they keep from becoming overwhelmed on those days when the mind is running on full speed?
"I maintain a computer file of hand lettering designs. I collect printed ephemera (patterns, color combos, decorative accessories) for my reference book/sketchbook. Blogs and image searches are helpful and useful. I have to beware of the consequences of internet searches. Once I start checking blogs, websites, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, emails, all those essential none essentials my brain begins to runs too fast. I freeze mentally and physically. Getting away from the computer to exercise or read relaxes me. They're effective activities for reigniting the creative fire."

Now - here's how you can make that fabulous Marilyn quote your own.

To Win You Must Follow this blog!
Example Post: I follow this blog under the name Stunning.

Visit & Favorite the Albee Etsy Shop!
Example Post: I marked Albee as my favorite under the name Stunning Anna K. Designs.

Finally - a way to receive a discount on a new print & an entry!

Purchase a print from Albee and receive 25% off with code stunning25jan12!
(BTW: This makes a print $4.50...)
Example Post: I used the code and here is my order ID - #####

** This giveaway will begin 1.23.12 at 8 am Central and will end on 1.29.12 at 9 pm Central. Limit 3 entries per person. Winner will be announced on 1.29.12. **

Relaxing Weeekend

2012-01-21T12:38:00.002-05:00

Here's hoping that you get to relax as much as Miss Mocha Bean this weekend! Hunky and I are off to take a crepe making class in a bit and spending the rest of this snowy weekend enjoying a rare Saturday off.

Stay tuned for something wonderful on Monday!

Twilight Breaking Dawn Part I

2012-01-13T08:00:00.004-05:00

In an attempt to try and meet some new friends in Chicago back in November I joined Hunky's Uncle, cousin and family friend for a preview event for the movie Twilight Breaking Dawn Part 1. I probably should have put more thought into what I wanted to get out of this event because it was, in fact, a room full of screaming teenagers. I guess the words "preview event" got my hopes up... :) Overall it was an interested afternoon and I have to admit the teenage girl inside of me had a blast!

The event was held at the House of Blues - there were movie posters everywhere.

Hunky's Uncle, Cousin and Family Friend who I hung out with for most of the afternoon. These girls rocked the trivia challenge.

Christina Perri played two of her popular songs. That girl is incredibly talented - what a voice!

Hunky stopped by and joined us on his way back from work - He's such a Twi-Hard... ha ha ha... Just kidding - this poor guy didn't really even know what was going on.

A few of the cast showed up for a Q & A session. I've seriously never heard more interesting/random questions in my life - Pretty sure that kids were just raising their hands to say whatever popped into their heads...

Ashley Green was the only one I knew before the event - she has such great hair!

The event was pretty neat but I think after an afternoon of watching the previews over and over again between the musical act and the Q and A session I'll just wait for the movie to make it to TV... :D

Beans Opens a Gift

2012-01-12T08:00:00.003-05:00

During the fall my mom sent Beans a little gift and since the wedding she has been a fantastic little gift opener. We took a few photos of our happy little pup opening her new bone...

Isn't she the cutest little thing you've ever seen!?

Have a great day!

The Bar Cart

2012-01-11T08:00:00.000-05:00

Head on over to the Pink & Blue Blog to read a fantastic article about Bar Carts. It really seems like this is an under appreciated way to display bar ware. If Hunky and I weren't so clumsy I would totally go for this - until then our bar ware will live in a high up cupboard... :D

Happy 2012 From The Newlyweds!

2012-01-10T10:39:00.009-05:00

The First Official Hunky & Stunning Christmas Card!

Hello All! I know this is a little late in the get go - but - HAPPY 2012 and Holiday Season to all of you!!!

As you know this past year has brought HUGE changes for Hunky & Me - we essitially went from careless college kids to adults. Ok so maybe we weren't totally careless becoming a CPA and finishing two thesis projects AND maybe I wouldn't totally consider us adults at this point. BUT we are constantly evolving, adjusting and all in all loving this crazy new life.

Hunky & me as graduates

The fantastic Miss Mocha Bean came into our lives in June of 2011. Having a puppy is so much work - but there are many rewarding moments that I don't mind cleaning up a mess or two... She's been a great training tool for future little ones.

Little Miss Beans

Before we hopped into real life completely. We took a little Honeymoon to to beautiful island of Kauai, Hawaii. If you EVER get the opportunity to go - you simply must. Such a beautiful place and even when it was rainy it was gorgeous. You can relax or do completely extreme things - laying on the beach or open air helicopter tours. (Bet you can't guess which Hunky picked and which I picked...)

Yes - the sunset looked like this every night..!

The day after we got back from our Honeymoon we packed everything we owned into a moving truck and drove to the Windy City.

On the road again!

We arrived on a Sunday and Hunky started work on Monday. Amongst all the boxes I spent a week attempting to start making our big empty condo a home. Let me tell you - this is still a work in progress. What they don't tell you before you're married is how difficult it is to agree on furniture...

Home Sweet Home!

I work as a Visual Merchandiser and in sales at a store on Michigan Ave. Which is equally fun, stressful, and challenging. Hunky travels most of the time - so our weekends together have become pretty sacred. Life is pretty exciting in the city and I'm loving every moment of it. Now that we are out of the holiday season and I am no longer working crazy hours I'm happily trying to develop a blog schedule. Thanks for sticking around while I adjusted to this wonderful new life!

Have a great day!

The Best of DIY Wreaths

2011-12-16T08:00:00.008-05:00

Perhaps you'll find yourself with a few extra moments this weekend and you'll try to put your own twist on these fantastic tutorials...

i'm a huge fan of square wreathes tutorial by domestic in the city

technically a spring wreath - could be super cute in winter hues c/o Avie Designs

book page wreath tutorial by living with lindsay

gum drop wreath tutorial c/o a pretty cool life

A little Monday inspiration...

2011-12-12T08:00:00.007-05:00

Here's a little dose of happy to start off your week! These fabulous prints are courtesy of Etsy shop Albee.

Weekend Craft Novel Roses

2011-12-10T08:00:00.000-05:00

Our friend Elissa over at Lila & Lub posted a great tutorial on how to make roses out of the pages of a novel.

Just in case you get the crafting bug this weekend...

Nico and Lala

2011-12-08T08:00:00.010-05:00

I am going to start off by apologizing for my recent lack of posts. As it turns out, working in visual merchandising during the holiday season means that all I do is work... Hopefully after the season winds down I'll get back into the swing of things!

For me this is the year of bright bold colors. There's something so happy about jewel tones I've had so much fun working them into our new nest. I have also always been a sucker for anything monogrammed.When I stumbled upon this fabulous little set of salt and pepper shakers in US Weekly I headed on over to the Nico & Lala website where I proceeded to fall in love with many of their other products.

Here are some of my other favorite picks from Nico & Lola:
( Did I mention that they do party invites and stationary..?)

What did you fall in love with?

Coming Up Roses

2011-11-14T20:09:00.008-05:00

This week what I'm loving for Tickle Me Tuesday is everything roses. I received a couple of yards of Amy Butler Tumble Rose fabric and was inspired to make a fabulous little a-line dress...

stunningannak

NestPrettyThingsShop

annethelonious

bedbuggs

ing00te

zaisy

Head on over to Yes, Teacher and join the party!

Fall in Chicago Means Tons of Rain...

2011-11-08T12:01:00.007-05:00

And why not make the best of it?

These SLUGS Fleece Rain Boot Liners by WithTheRain are brilliant and will keep your feet warm in these cold Fall rains! I see my next investment here...

This print titled Rainy Day Bliss:Under the Umbrella by KatieLloydPhoto is adorable. I just wish the wind here didn't destroy so many of my umbrellas. I've gone from super cute ones that end up in the garbage to the $3 gray umbrellas from Ikea... :)

holeinmypocket has got the angle of the typical Chicago rain just about right... Now only if the little person with the umbrella had hair that was wildly whipping about.

I always love a good theme and this necklace is perfect for a rainy day - created by Katheyl

This post is linked up to Tickle Me Tuesday over at Yes, Teacher!

Selena Gomez in Forever21

2011-11-07T19:58:00.004-05:00

As a fashionista on a budget I totally appreciated this post on The Vogue Diaries today featuring Selena Gomez wearing a Forever21 dress on the Red Carpet.

The girl looks fabulous and I think this was a great choice. What are your thoughts? Is it okay for Forever21 to show up on the Red Carpet?

On another much overdue note - Hunky and I are loving Chicago and I recently received an promotion - I'm officially a Visual Merchandiser! (Many early hours hence my absence from the blogging world!)

Our Rehearsal Dinner

2011-10-01T10:05:00.000-04:00

The days leading up to the wedding were full of last moment details, surprise mishaps, and lots of gifts that were sent to the house! We tried to do as much as we could ahead of time hoping to spend the week prior to the wedding at one of our families lake homes - yeah right... That would have worked in a perfect world, but in our world the last week was pretty much chaos. And I wouldn't change it for the world...

Mocha, "the gift hound," and I opening a few gifts before the festivities kicked off hoping to get ahead on the thank-yous. Something I would totally recommend!

Our rehearsal was planned for 5:45 and was to last for an hour, we then planned a dinner at a local golf course to being at 7:30.

The bridesmaids and I anxiously waiting for our practice run down the aisle!

The groomsmen gearing up for the trial run as well!

My lovely maid-of-honor and little sister.

Some of our super supportive friends and family who we couldn't have gotten to the alter without!

Phil & Rachel kicked of the procession. Rachel is Hunky's oldest sister and Phil is an old roommate and great friend.

Followed by John and Bethany. Bethany is Hunky's older sister and John is a wonderful friend from high school.

Nate and Laura were up next. Laura is Hunky's youngest sister and Nate is a super fun friend from college that Hunky's caused much mischief with.

Chris & Christie making their way up for the practice run. Christie is my very best friend from college and Chris has been Hunky's roommate for all of college.

The best man and maid-of-honor were all smiles! Louis and John have been best friends forever and Taylor is my amazing little sister.

Hunky and his best man have trying to figure something out? I love how serious they look in this photo!

My parents both walked me up the aisle - good thing we practiced this, it's a bit difficult to walk with someone on either side of you!

Here's where the lenghty instructions began - we still don't know if we did everything that we were instructed too!

We were both pretty jittery at this point - so much excitement and anticipation for the big day!

Welcoming everyone to the rehearsal dinner and thanking them for all they've done for us over our 7+ years of dating.

Our hosts for the wedding ceremony who were also our gift bearers getting ready for prime rib, delicious mashed potatoes and asparagus.

We then opened up the floor for stories, well wishes and memories after dinner. This was a really nice time, we sure did laugh a lot! Here Hunky's older brother Mark and sister Rachel share a silly story about growing up with Hunky... :)

Everyone enjoying a yummy dinner and fabulous conversation.

The best man reading opening his gift and reading a thank-you. Even though he's just entering law school he looks pretty darn lawyer like in this photo.

All of the girls who stayed at the house the night before the wedding. It was so much fun to have a huge sleepover!

After we solved our biggest dilemma of the wedding, our place card holders never arrived, it was pretty much smooth sailing into the rehearsal dinner! We simply learned that we need to be prepared in life and able to get creative with our setbacks. Thank goodness I love to collect colorful papers, we were able to just print up little color coded table tents the night before the rehearsal dinner. My grandmother was a huge help and stayed helping us fold each one, she saw the project through to the middle of the night!

Wedding Sneak Peak

2011-09-26T14:47:00.001-04:00

To say that our wedding day was the most perfect day ever would be an understatement in my mind. Here are a couple sneak peak photos of the big day.

Or don't have an Etsy wedding...

2011-09-07T16:29:00.002-04:00

Oh hey, guys! Guess who! Yes, still Kristin. I hope you guys love me as much as I love you!

Because I showed you some beautiful wedding-related items from Etsy last week, I thought I'd show you some ugly wedding-related items from Etsy this week.

Get ready.

This is the item that inspired this post. It's a garter from a shop that actually has a lot of cute stuff, but this one makes me want to throw up. There are also other brands of beer, if you'd prefer.

Next are these terrible shoe sticker things. Now, I've seen the shoe sticker thing done in a not-horrible way also, but this one just looks so bad! And the "Lucky me" on the guy's shoes reads as sarcastic to me, even though it's obviously not supposed to.

This next one just takes the cake, in my opinion. It is a black clutch with a navy blue flower. Really? Does anyone have these two colors together as their wedding colors? Because if so, I'm sorry. For them and their guests.

Happy Labor Day!

2011-09-05T20:35:00.001-04:00

Hi everyone, it's Kristin again!

In honor of Labor Day and the fact that I have a blog about hating everyone, let's talk about crappy jobs!

My first job was as a page at a public library during high school. While I enjoyed being around books a lot, that job really stunk because there was no music! Libraries really are quiet places, even with hoodrat teenagers using the computer lab for Myspace. (Yes, Myspace was still popular back then.)

I also hated it because they had this weird rule that you had to work exactly 20 hours a week. You could never get more, which especially stunk during the summer when I had plenty of extra time, but you also couldn't get less! So if you needed to take a weekend off, good luck! The only redeeming factor here was that we all got paid time off, so that helped us get to the 20 hours we had to have, but sometimes it just wasn't enough!

The worst part about the library, though, was the clientele. Because it was a public library, it was, you know, open to the public. We had some of the bummiest, creepiest people there, and of course the creepiest people are the ones who spent the most time there. It was a struggle.

What about you guys? Have you had terrible jobs? Do you have a terrible job now? Or are there just a few annoying aspects to your job? Also, did you have to work on Labor Day? Because I did!

My summer internship experience

2011-09-02T19:18:00.000-04:00

Hi again! It's still Kristin. Anna is enjoying her fabulous Hawaii honeymoon!

Anna wanted me to guest blog about my amazing experience at Kentucky Bride Magazine, where I worked this summer!

I was the summer intern at Kentucky Bride, which is in the wonderful city of Lexington, Ky.

Here I am with the summer issue!

As an intern, I did a lot of little things. I input data into spreadsheets, I called local businesses to set up photo shoots, I removed backgrounds from images (a lot of them). I edited "Real Kentucky Wedding Stories" and emailed vendors to ask for product samples.

But do you know what else I did? Wrote a real article! About the best honeymoon spots in the United States!

And that's all just in the summer issue!

I have two articles in the upcoming fall issue also!

My summer at Kentucky Bride was fantastic. I got a lot of great experience and, in addition to all the great people at the magazine itself, I also got to meet two other really great people, Natalie and Cay, who let me stay in their house two nights a week all summer!

Have you lovely people had wonderful (or not-so-wonderful) internship experiences?

What I Wore Wednesday

2011-08-31T21:18:00.001-04:00

Hi all, Kristin again! I bought a new skirt and I'm just so so so in love with it that I decided to take a page out of Anna's book and show you what I wore with it today.

The skirt is actually a skirt for little girls. We sell it at Old Navy right now and it was on sale for $8! The shirt is from Forever 21 (about five years ago) and the vest is from Gap.

And it's a mirror shot, how cool am I?!?!

My eye makeup was as loud as my outfit; I used purple, yellow and blue eyeshadow!

And I accessorized with these great purple zebra hoops!

Yay for bright colors!

Have a very Etsy wedding!

2011-08-29T18:44:00.001-04:00

Well, hello there! I'm Kristin, author of I Hate Everyone and friend of the lovely Anna. Since she's currently enjoying her fabulous honeymoon, I will be filling in for her here for TWO WEEKS. Excited? I am!

In honor of Anna's wedding (which was gorgeous, by the way, and you'll get to see pictures soon enough) and because I'm bursting with inspiration since interning at Kentucky Bride magazine this summer, I'm going to share some awesome Etsy finds for your wedding.

I've been in love with this bouquet for a little longer than is healthy. It comes from the Etsy store of AutumnArt. She makes the best bouquets and boutonnieres and I just love her.

I love a good cake stand and my boo and I plan to have a fun assortment of dessert at our future hypothetical wedding. I therefore LOVE this and all the other colorful cake and cupcake stands in afabulousfete's Etsy shop.

This adorable awesomeness comes from sERINascustomshop. I think these wooden letters would make a perfect alternative guest book! They're 24 inches tall and big enough for everyone to sign!

There you have it! Some of my favorite Etsy wedding finds!

PS- you can check out a sneak peek of Anna and Hunky's wedding on the photographer's blog!

What I Wore Wednesday

2011-08-24T08:00:00.005-04:00

Here's to the last official week of my Michigan Summer! We've been bouncing back and forth between summer and fall (eek!) weather this past week, so I took the opportunity to break out one of my favorite little black sundresses when the weather decided to be nice again on Monday.

Mocha Bean looking Stunning in her orange collar - she just loves to give kisses.

Awkward, "Hey Mom just push the button on top..." photo... ha ha

I love this Forever 21 dress so much I also bought it in purple - so comfy and versatile.
The headband is a Claire's find.

p.s. I'll be a Mrs. in 3 Days!

5 More Days

2011-08-22T08:00:00.003-04:00

Today is the 5 day mark. 5 days until Hunky and I get married! I feel like next Saturday the huge stress of planning this event for the past 9 months will be magically lifted away and it will be, of course, the best day EVER. Then the stress of planning will be replaced by the stress of moving as soon as we get back from our honeymoon in about 2 weeks. I am really looking forward to about 2 weeks of minimal stress, lots of time with my new Hubby, family, friends, and sun!

Today we are going to pick up a marriage license to make this love of ours official...