Last September, a dear friend of mine got married. It was a perfectly fantastic ceremony and reception. I would expect nothing less from Danni, who is an incredibly talented graphic designer and also has the most adorable blog and etsy site. I feel so blessed to be able to call her friend and to have been a guest at her wedding. Congratulations Danni and Nick. We love you both!

You may be wondering why it has take me several months to post these pictures. Well, after sending a disk of images to Danni, she mentioned that we should try to get them published on a wedding blog. So patiently I waited though I desperately wanted to share her wedding with you all! This morning, I woke up to find my images on ohhellofriendblog.com/ (Danni's blog) as well as designspongeonline.com. I couldn't be more thrilled! This is the first time my images have been published anywhere other than my own blog and some brochures at Church. I couldn't be more excited to have my work featured on one of my favorite design blogs that I have been following for years!

Check the posts out by clicking on the above photos or click here and here to find out more information about the venders and details and also to leave some love! I will be posting parts II and III in the next few days with photos of the ceremony and the invitations. So get ready for some loveliness to come!

The details were SPLENDID! Everywhere I looked was vintage eye candy! Before the ceremony, there was a picnic style reception. We all lounged on quilts and opened our picnic basket to share with new friends. Lace streamers floated on a warm breeze as they hung from tree branches. Glass jars and vases filled with wild flowers were scattered throughout. And little mementos, such as Nick's old drivers license and mini personalized wedding buttons, played peek-a-boo amongst other vintage treasures. It was an early autumn wedding dream that took place at sunset! Here are some of the details that made me swoon!

Don't get me wrong. I'm not against showing your sweetie how much they mean to you on a special day each year. I love chocolate and flowers and little candy hearts. I just think it's been a bit too commercialized and overdone. I love natural and sweetly romantic love. Nothing forced or too extravagant. Just a simple date night. With gifts :)

This year, Bluejay had some meetings all day so I volunteered to plan our Valentine's date. A few years ago, Bluejay spent the summer in India and ever since has had a never ending craving for Indian food! Good thing we are both big fans of that yumminess. We have often driven past Namaste Cafe in Uptown and I kept thinking, that place is so cute and that we should go there sometime. This was that time! We walked hand in hand through the bright lights of the city and shared some Lamb Mamacha and the Hot and Tangy Land with Potatoes. Scrumptious! My favorite part was finishing of the meal with Coconut Chai.

We took some fun Valentine's photos with heart shaped bokeh.

When we got home there was a single white rose and red rose petals on the floor of our apartment and a "coupon" to pick out a locket together on etsy.com. I got Bluejay a LA Dodgers hat because Ca is our home away form home and he looks so gosh darn adorable in a baseball hat! On our way home we stopped at Redbox to grab a couple movies (The Social Network and Buried- still so very stressed by that one!), so we spent the rest of the night in our PJs, snuggling on the couch, and holding hands. The best Valentine's date!