Fancy Shmancy: A Tuesday Collection of Favorite Things 11.16.10

1. I remember the days when I was in middle school and wanted more than anything to be an in-line skater. Normally, when I go to the roller rink I pick the roller blades, but after catching an eye-full of these teal roller skates, I am re-thinking roller blades...these are too amazing. Too bad I am not very tough, otherwise I could be in roller derby and have a proper excuse for these babies.

2. I know I featured MADEBYHANK on last week's fancy shmancy, but the other day, I found this amazing messenger bag. I am thinking this would be perfect for a laptop bag for work. 

3. Seriously, this Cutensils cutlery set from ModCloth is too cute for words. I am about this [ ] close to buying this for myself as a Christmas present...

4.  Oh my word. I love this sweet little illustrated owl calendar by Gingiber on Etsy.

5. I have been thinking about getting some brown Oxford's and I found these little cuties on Ruche. I am not much of a heal person, but I like how this heal is thick and stable. Good for an 8 hour day. 

I am actually thinking about sending this blog post to my husband...

Inspiration for Your Nest: Jordan & Landon

Younghouselove is seriously one of my FAVORITE blogs. Every now and then, they feature a "house crashing" blog where they show off someone's sweet n' swanky nest. I just drooled over Jordan & Landon's of landonjacob.com house crash featured back in early October.

I am loving the neutral colors and the pops of color everywhere. Also, I love that they used a lot of inexpensive items from places like IKEA and mixed and matched with eclectic finds. Just look at that old crate magazine holder by the ottoman in the picture above. OoooOo so cozy. 

Monday here was rainy and some people were a little too grumpy...but there are high hopes for Tuesday!

Let's Make This Always A Forever

Today, I am celebrating six wonderful months with my husband and high school sweetheart. We fell in love six years ago, got married one week after our college graduation, and I have loved every minute of life with Jonathon ("Beau" as I like to call him). I am so excited and honored to be able to be a family with him, make our own traditions, grow together, one day bring youngin's into this world, and live life together hand in hand.

In the spirit of our half-year anniversary, I thought I would reminisce on some dear memories.


How We Got Engaged:
Every Christmas, Jonathon and I made it a tradition to go along with his family to visit Fort Mill. We then would gather with Mrs. Wallace's side of the family and celebrate the holidays together. This was something that I really really looked forward to every year and it held a special place in my heart to celebrate Christmas with Jon's family. 

The Friday we arrived at Mrs. Wallace's parents house, Jonathon and I decided to spend some down-time watching a movie. After the movie was finished, around 10:00pm, Jonathon asked me if I would be willing to open up one of my Christmas presents. Me, being the type of person that loves to wait for a good surprise immediately replied, "Aw, Jon...can't I just open up all the presents at once tomorrow with your family?" Jon responded, "Come on Savannah, the gift I want you to open has a lot of explanation behind it and it wouldn't make sense to the whole family...come on." Jonathon took my hand and led me outside to the jeep where he pulled out a perfectly wrapped square box. At no point during this time did I even suspect Jonathon's proposal. 

Jonathon took me to a quiet bench in the back yard and began to explain to me that he wanted to start a new tradition: he wanted us to buy each other special ornaments each year for Christmas so that one day, when we had our own Christmas tree, it could be filled with special ornaments that represent special moments in our lives. 

I smiled and teared up at the thought of starting such a special tradition with Jonathon. I then opened the small present to find that it contained a beautiful metal star ornament. It was hinged, so I opened it and saw that it held a small, carefully scrolled piece of paper with a beautiful red bow tied around it. Jonathon then explained that he would like to leave a special note in the ornament each year...I was so touched by Jonathon's thoughtfulness. I rolled out the letter and I read the delicate words written in calligraphy by Jonathon that said:

"Will you marry me, love?"

A wave of dizziness and pure bliss immediately took over as I looked over at Jon and noticed that in his hands, he held a perfectly beautiful ring in an ivory handkerchief from his Great Grandma. All I could do was put my hands over my face and cry. Jonathon got down on one knee and began to cry himself as he asked me to marry him. Of course, I said yes...all we could do for the next twenty minutes after that, was sit on the bench holding each other and crying in joy for that long anticipated moment.  

I so love and respect this wonderful man of God and am so honored to be his wife. Here is to six months and sixty more years to come...

Just to end on a musical note, this is the song my brother and sister covered during our ceremony by Slow Club. They absolutely nailed it and it was gorgeous. 

101 Reasons to Buy Handmade

I found this amazing list called, "101 Reasons to Buy Handmade" on Poppytalk's blog. The handmade culture is just beautiful. I love seeing people use their talents and skills to make unique items. Every time I have ever bought or received a handmade item, it always felt like it carried more heart and thoughtfulness. Also, supporting crafters in their art is an honor and great feeling that I hope to continue to do for years and years to come! So, before I make a call to action, check out the following link:

And now, I am sure most of you have already done this...and if not, here is your opportunity! Buyhandmade.org has put together a handmade pledge:

Take the handmade pledge and support the craft culture! Give your loved ones a little somethin' extra special for Christmas this year. *wink*

Three cheers for handmade! Hip-Hip HOORAY! Hip-Hip HOORAY! Hip-Hip HOORAY! You can also go ahead and add on three more cheers because it is FRIDAY! 

If you have a handmade shop that you would like to share, comment and link up to your site!