Outdoor summer movies

Do y'all have somewhere near you that shows outdoor summer movies? We do, and I love them! The Koka Booth Ampitheatre in Cary, NC is such a beautiful space. The grounds are very well kept up, and it's right by a lake, so there's a cool breeze on even the hottest nights (a huge relief in the Carolina heat!). They show recently released movies on most Thursdays in the summer for just $3 a ticket! John and I went to see The Social Network on Thursday.







One of my favorite parts? They let you bring in food and coolers, but they also have a neat row of independent vendors selling treats if you don't feel like packing it in. We brought cobb salad from home, effectively checking off two items on my summer to do list in one go.





Locals, check out the rest of the summer's movie schedule here!

BHG winners!

Thank you to all who entered last week's Better Homes & Gardens giveaway! I chose the five winners randomly, and here they are:



Ladies, please send your mailing addresses to peachandpearl at ymail dot com and I will have your subscriptions out to you. Thanks!

Happy Memorial Day!

I hope you are celebrating with loved ones somewhere sunny, and remembering the sacrifices made for us all. If you have a moment, check out this delightful photo shoot by shot by Laura Ivanova and designed by Scheme Events, via Style Me Pretty.

BHG giveaway reminder + recipes

Just a quick reminder that the giveaway for five Better Homes & Gardens subscriptions ends today! Head over to the original post to enter.

To tide you over in the meantime, I thought I'd share a few of the delicious-looking recipes I found on their site the other day. Can't wait to try!


Lemon-Basil Pasta


Red Beans and Rice Burgers


Avocado Basil Pasta


Chickpea Salad with Grilled Pita

Yes, I love pasta. And basil.

Seersucker bikinis

I probably do not need another swimsuit (especially since I currently live disconcertingly far from the seashore), but these two blue and white seersucker numbers caught my eye. Isn't that bow adorable?! What do you think -- would it be too overwhelming in person, or just right?

Top suit from Aerie (top, $20, bottom, $15 -- also in red and white). Bottom suit from amourouse on Etsy ($55, made to order).

Pedestal sink bathroom

I love this bathroom! The beaded board on the walls, the beautiful flooring, the medicine cabinets, the light fixture (which you can pick up here), and most especially the pedestal sink. I know some people prefer cabinets for their storage, but in my opinion, nothing can beat the charm of a pedestal. Plus, when you have a delightful wire basket (like mine!) to store extra towels, who needs cabinet storage? :)

Image by Emily Gilbert from RUE Magazine's fifth issue. If you haven't checked it out yet, I would highly recommend! I particularly liked the story this photo came from, "Farmstead Restoration." It starts on page 84!

P.S. On Saturday, I painted the first room in our apartment! Just primer so far, but color is soon to follow. Longer update soon!

Apartment garden: baby plants

Time for a garden update! When last you saw our apartment garden, we had seedlings in the shower and empty pots outside. I'm happy to say that everyone has now transitioned outside, and is enjoying the North Carolina sun!

Not all of the seedlings made it, however. Basil, jalapeno, dahlia, and poblano were grown from seed and doing great.









Lettuce and cilantro were sown outside and are also doing great.





We caved and bought already-started plants at Lowes for bell pepper and mint, but I don't regret it! We've used mint in many dishes already, and we figure buying the bell pepper gives us a better chance at a real harvest (compensating in part for the fact that it doesn't get as much sun as it would like on our balcony).





If you have a garden, how is it doing? Harvested anything yet?

Maine Squeeze: We play!

As promised, a few more details from the reception!

We had croquet, ladder golf, and cornhole set out for guests to play with, and play with them guests did! My family is pretty much obsessed with croquet, so this did not surprise me.









Guests also took advantage of the "photo swing," a last-minute project I wrote about here.







The lawn blankets were used, too -- in fact, I'm 99% sure at least one guest took a short nap during the reception.





The favor/guest book combo was all Kate's idea. She cut circles out of navy blue cardstock and handstamped each one with a guest's name. We set up a table at the reception, laid out all the cards, then placed a pot on each. The pots were the favor -- they were filled with seedlings and little bags of dirt. Once a guest removed his or her favor, he or she used the pre-name-stamped circle to write a note for the guest book. Brilliant!









Let's see... next I think I'll talk about general decor, and then it's on to toasts, cake, and the sunset cruise!

All photos by the super talented and lovely Jenna Cole and Meredith of & Unlimited.

Previously:
We arrive
We prepare
We raise the tent
We rehearse and play wiffle ball
We jump off the wharf
We eat lobster
We wake up very early, and the gents get dressed
The girls get ready
They make their vows
Lemonade and cookies
We eat

Better Homes & Gardens site redesign + giveaway!

You all know I am a big fan of Better Homes & Gardens. Fun fact: I have continuously subscribed to BHG since 1999, which might make me their youngest subscriber ever. There was one point maybe 4-5 years ago when I was seriously considering not renewing my subscription, but then the current Editor in Chief, Gayle, arrived, and things began to turn around. They're pretty much on fire now, as evidenced by my two recent posts on their awesomeness (here + here).



I know many of my readers are BHG fans, as well, so I wanted to share that their complete site redesign launched today! I got a sneak peek earlier this week, and it looks beautiful. The biggest improvement, in my opinion, is the larger images across all departments, which I'm sure y'all will love, as well.





Cupcakes! Bedroom makeovers! They all look so bright and beautiful now. Go take a look around and see for yourself!

And to celebrate, BHG has given me five 1-year subscriptions to give away to my readers! To enter, just leave a comment on this post before Friday, May 27, and I'll randomly select five winners. Good luck!

National Stationery Show

Hello, friends! I am so sorry for the radio silence of late! I was in Connecticut this past weekend celebrating my sister's graduation from college, and then took the train into New York City yesterday to tour the National Stationery Show! I saw tons of pretty paper and met so many kind and talented designers. I wanted to share a little something here to tide you over until regular posts return!



I loved Rifle Paper Co's numerous new products, including a 2012 calendar similar to this citrus fruit print.





Printerette was another favorite -- their cards were so cute! Plus, they're based in St. Paul, like one of my sisters, so we had an instant connection. Jam cards here, confetti invite here.





Very snappy stuff from Fig. 2 Design Studio. It was her first year at the show, and her blog posts leading up to it really show how much work goes into exhibiting! I also loved her cards, though those haven't debuted on her site.



Lastly, I was thrilled to stop by Linda & Harriet -- always a favorite of mine. They debuted the coolest oversize watercolor calendar for 2012. Considering I just bought this birthday calendar for my Mom for Mother's Day, I was a fan.

More soon!

Festive brunch ideas

'Tis the season for showers of all sorts, don't you think? Rain showers, of course, but also bridal and baby. Right now, I'm loving late breakfast gatherings. (And for the record, when my time comes, something that looks just like this would be pretty perfect. Or an afternoon tea. Ahem.)

As I see it, the key to carrying a breakfast off to fabulous effect is to make everything miniature, and to package it individually. To whit:









LOVE these little bites via The White Library (photography by Lauren Blair, styling by Frilly Milly Events). The milk bottles are actually Starbucks individual frappucino bottles (the kind you buy at the grocery store) ran through the dishwasher! The plastic cups used for the fruit and French toast are genius, too -- they look great, but couldn't have been very expensive.



Individual muffin tin quiches!



Individual pancakes with name tags via Design*Sponge (photo by Our Labor of Love, styling by Ashley Meaders)



Individual donuts and coffee via Going to the Chapel tumblr



Homemade biscuits with flavored butters (recipes at Southern Living)



To wash it all down, mini lemonade with striped straws! (Photo by Nicole Hill Gerulat, styling by ACME Party Box)



To keep guests occupied, a custom crossword a la Martha.

What do you think -- do you love breakfast, or would you prefer another type of food at a party in your honor? Desserts? Tea? Appetizers? Let me know!