beauty

uhmm, yeah. i'm pretty sure i'm gonna have to get this necklace.

'We love the New Millennium' Formal

the formal is always epic and this year was no different!

my paper heart

aw, 'Paper Heart' is super sweet. it's a story/documentary about a girl who has turned into a love sceptic. she interviews lots of people about their opinions on the matter. it's fun to hear the different things people have to say about love and what it means to them.

it made me feel lucky to have benji and our love we share for eachother. i guess when you have love, it's easy to forget that not everyone does.

"Look him in the eyes -- When you meet the love of your life, you'll know from the eyes."

oh christmas tree, of all the trees most lovely

in the spirit of the season i thought i would share with you all a few darling christmas trees.

H

a huge fan of red, i am not. i will say it works very well on this tree though. a monochromatic color scheme always gives a nice pop. i am featuring quite a few table top trees. i must have been subconciously aware of my teeny tiny living quarters while i was searching for these.

the ornaments are sewn and the original stand has been removed and replaced with a white vase. it's an adorable tree and i love the stand! thanks martha.

this wall mounted tree is such a great idea for anyone living in a tiny apartment with little to no room to spare for a christmas tree (like myself). it's also a great idea for those like me, who love to collect little trinkets and treasures. it really gives them a special place and purpose.

my favorite of them all. house beautiful is responsible for this lovely little tree. i have somehow attained a vast array of purple and pink ornaments and i haven't really known exactly what to do with them until now. this tree makes me feel like purple and pink can be pulled off with class.

i'm really digging the aqua and pink combo on this tree.

i found this tree in martha stewart's Blueprint magazine which is sadly, (gasp) no longer in print as of now.

i am absolutely in love with the girliest of colors at the moment. pale pink is so victorian, vintage, and is just simply pretty.

inspired

i never get sick of a clawfoot tub. this was featured on one of the designsponge sneak peeks.

pretty wall courtesy of decor8 - photography by buttons magee

OMG

all that comes to mind when i look at these amazing photos of this bachelorette party is, "why...why didn't I think of that?!"

Bash Eco Events and Yes, Please Designs put together this "Where the Wild Things Are" inspired soiree. they got all dressed up in headdresses and danced the night away around a campfire in the Joshua Tree Desert.

fashionistas

check out what those stylish Swedes are wearing on a daily basis at StockholmStreetStyle

tis the season

like the taste of egg nog, but get sicked out at the thought of drinking yucky eggs? that makes two of us. i found this today during my shopping trip and luckily, Silk has done it again. they've managed to make milk AND egg nog that taste better than the real thing. i drink their milk and now i will drink their nog. thanks silk.

an epiphany of sorts.

"i don't wanna be someone who quotes others. i wanna BE quoted."

-ashley martin williams

good to know...

10 Hairstyles That Are Always in Style - In Style

cusack

considering my healthy obsession with john cusack for all these years, i was more than excited to see him mentioned on rotten tomatoes today. i realized though despite my efforts, that i have missed many of his famed roles. i guess i've gotta hit up netflix and catch up on a few of them. i disagree however with this article on a couple. my top 3 would be: Say Anything, Better Off Dead, and High Fidelity. i am very shocked that Better of Dead was stumbling behind in tenth place. come on. lane myer is hard to beat.

"Not that I condone fascism, or any -ism for that matter. -Ism's in my opinion are not good. A person should not believe in an -ism, he should believe in himself. I quote John Lennon, "I do not believe in the Beatles, I just believe in me." Good point there. After all, he was the walrus. I could be the walrus. I'd still have to bum rides off people."

Ferris Bueller's Day Off-1986

love love love

who knew scarlett johansson had such an indie voice....obsessed! not to mention, who knew she was married to ryan reynolds? not me, until this week!



regardless, pete + scarlett = perfection.

you call it unnecessary, i call it a necessity.

i love to get my daily dose of fashion inspiration from lookbooks. i love to see the raw, individual tastes of real people from all over. magazines are of course great resources too, but sometimes the looks are too polished.

i heart you

we heart it is an incredible invention. it's a website dedicated to all the people like myself who see millions of inspirational photos online that until now would be forgotten because we sadly have had no place to keep them all. photos are categorized for easy access like decor... design...fashion...and so on. i love looking at everyone's hearts!

you can find me at daisiesrpretty. (surprise, surprise i know!)

adventureland

it's incredible how much three months spent in a new place far, far away from home will open your eyes to the world. i've met people from all corners of the earth and walks of life. most are wanderers, some are students and others are here for money. no matter what their motive is, each and every one offers a glimpse into another way of life. there is so much to be learned and experienced!
i've always looked at traveling as something i would like to do, but something i didn't have the means to do until now. seasonal jobs, like the one i'm working, are available literally all over the world. if you can scrounge up money for a plane ticket your pretty much set.

my advice to everyone is go, see, conquer, do it. travel, travel, travel.

i do

by far my favorite project of all! benji and i scavenged thrift stores, antique malls and yes, the local recyling center for months for these vintage bottles. i have a slight obsession with eclectic vintage bottles and decided they would make great centerpieces. for added height they were stacked on vintage books also scavenged. (condensed readers digests have the best designs.) peacock feathers, twigs and assorted flowers were added. in the background the favor table is barely visible. on top is an iron outdoor planter i borrowed from a neighbor and spray painted in off white to hold them. benji and i gathered assorted hot teas and put them in small card-board take-out boxes with little tags attached that read, "steep, drink, and be merry! ashley & benji may 30th 2009"

i got these amazing frames from ikea. the only color option was black so i spray painted them and got our engagement photos enlarged in black and white. they were great over the fireplace and bar.

our cake was made by a family friend. twigs are from hobby lobby...birds are from a seller on ebay. blue love birds on top were donated by friends.

we made tissue pom-poms inspired by martha stewart to hang over the bar area. (target has the best seletion of tissue paper!) fabric purchased from hobby lobby in coordinating colors was sewn into a huge table cloth by my helpful mother-in-law.

lanterns in various shades of greens and blues were purchased from luna bazaar and hung over the dancefloor. four strands of white christmas lights i found on amazon were strung from the center to the four corners of the room.

i think i can humbly say that our wedding ended up exceeding all of our expectations. the weather was perfect from the temperature to the cloudless blue sky. the music, decorations, friends, family and food were spectacular! i don't think the dance floor was empty once. it was such a good time and i'm so sad it's over, but so happy to be married! planning the wedding and being able to pull it off sucessfully and see the wonderful results has definitely inspired me to not let this be the last. i would love to be able to design weddings as a part of my future endeavors.
because of our lack of funds and our bubbling creativity our wedding was a real do-it-yourselfer. our invitations and programs were designed by my oh so talented hubby and illustrator, benji williams. unfortunately i don't have access to a picture of either now, but i will add them asap. i lended myself to the decorating. a little bit kitschy and a lot eclectic...hope you like it!

there's a wild thing in me

wow...i hope this movie is as good as i'm expecting it to be. gah, i love the arcade fire by the way. karen o from the yeah yeah yeah's is in charge of the music for the movie. ah...can't wait.

i dig this girl

zooey deschanel

i wish

if only i had i known that sarah seven existed a few months back when i was looking for a wedding dress...i would have bought the white as snow dress in a heartbeat. it's darling. and extremely affordable.

my next venture...

i ran across a fabulous idea for a serving tray at craftynest. her blog is full of amazing inspirations for new projects! (looks like i wasn't the only one with the canvas tote idea) as soon as possible i'm definitely gonna hit up some thrift stores to find a cupboard door and some fancy drawer pulls. i will update soon hopefully with the results. click here for more info on the serving tray.

oh happy day

i sold my first item from my etsy store today! yay! bye, bye little birdie tote...

big blue sky

so.... it's about two months until I'm surrounded by all of this beauty in Alaska. ..the untamed land...big mountains, rivers, wild animals, blue skies...
the westest is the bestest.

rain and horses

i saw the most amazing family of horses today when i was driving. i had to stop despite the rain to take a few pictures.

my new friend etsy

i have been bursting at the seams lately with creativity. after a year or two of having absolutely no desire to pick up a paintbrush or pencil, it looks like the slump i've been in is finally over. i am really happy about this! so anyway... since the things that i make always end up lying around without a proper home i have decided to make my very own store on etsy. it's going to be sort of pitiful for a while until i get it stocked. i have a link on the right side of the page over there -----> so just click and browse away!

wedding decor

for the reception I wanted to use vintage bottles in different shapes, colors and sizes on the tables as centerpieces. these are a couple of the lovely little creations we came up with. i just love these so much they make me smile. i'm sooo thrilled to see how everything turns out.

a favorite place

i just love this restaurant so much, i feel obliged to share it with someone. if you're ever in athens definitely drop by. the atmosphere and decor are absolutely fabulous. and the food? oh, just delectable. the chef puts together the most amazing combinations. i suggest the prix fixe.