]]> http://www.bradyandkendra.com/?feed=rss2&p=504 0 http://www.bradyandkendra.com/?p=483&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=hello-june http://www.bradyandkendra.com/?p=483#comments Sun, 02 Jun 2013 20:17:11 +0000 kendra http://www.bradyandkendra.com/?p=483 Okay, so by now you realize that I’m not very good at blogging. I’m finding that I prefer doing things than writing about things I’ve done; however, I’m going to work to become better. Since we haven’t updated in a … Continue reading →]]>

Okay, so by now you realize that I’m not very good at blogging. I’m finding that I prefer doing things than writing about things I’ve done; however, I’m going to work to become better.

 In January, I made a list of things I wanted to do in 2013 – they were my new years resolutions. So here is what I’m still wanting to accomplish.

One of my favorite thing to do is come up with ideas (thank you pinterest) for beautiful & elaborate decorations for parties we’ll never have. Last week; however, Brady and I hosted a Black, White, and Metallic party which utilized my love of shinny, silver things.

A few weeks before the party, I found a DIY mercury glass tutorial and wanted to use it for something party related. We were recently given lots of older mason jars and decided making a few into silver vases would be perfect. It took me a while to track down some Kyrlon Looking Glass Spray Paint, but found some with help from my sister. 

I wish I was a better blogger. As a visual person I always prefer blogs that let the pictures tell the story, but as I was editing my B&W Party pictures this weekend I realized I didn’t take pictures of people (which makes for a very shallow story). I only took pictures of objects. None of my sweet friends from Atlanta. None of Brady and Ross cooking grilled cheese in the kitchen. None of me or my sister. 

Last Saturday, Brady and I hosted a Black, White, and Metallic party. Our menu consisted of roasted tomato soup and three types of gourmet grilled cheese which we quartered so everyone could sample. The first was a take on the classic french croque-monsieur with ham and gruyere cheese. We made our second grilled cheese with Brie and apples. Our third was a Mozzarella and goat cheese sandwich with avocado, spinach, and pesto. Dinner was rounded out with chocolate cupcakes with marshmallow frosting.

Everyone really looked fantastic wearing blacks, whites, silvers, and golds. (The picture of Brady is from the next morning when I realized I didn’t get any pictures in front of our huge chevron print.)

Today has been a fairly lazy Saturday, but here’s what we’ve been doing today.

TODAY
i love the smell of
clean laundry.

i love the sound of
psych marathon.

i love the taste of
la croix, berry flavored sparkling water.

i love the sight of
cute little bunnies in our yard.

i love the feel of
planning & packing for london! (i didn’t like the current flight plans so i redesigned it.)

Growing up in south-central Pennsylvania, my family was greatly influenced by the Pennsylvania-Dutch culture.  Especially when it came to food.  My favorite meal that my mom made us growing up was chicken and waffles, made PA-Dutch style.  I still have her make it for me for my birthday or other special occasions. Surprisingly enough, it wasn’t until the other week that I finally asked my mom how she prepared the meal.  But now that I know how to do it, you can bet that I’m going to be gaining a few more pounds.

Waffles

1 ¾ Cups Flour

1 Tablespoon Baking Power

½ Teaspoon Salt

3 Eggs

½ Cup Butter

1 ½ Cups Milk

Whisk together the dry ingredients in large bowl.  In separate bowl, blend eggs, butter and milk. Make well in dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Whisk together and bake on waffle iron.

Fried Chicken

6-8 Pieces of Chicken

1 Qt. Chicken Broth

Flour

Garlic Powder

Salt

Other Spices if desired

Place chicken in a pot and pour in chicken broth. Add water until chicken is completely covered. Boil until chicken is fully cooked then strain out water.  Start with 3-4 Cups of flour and place in plastic zip lock.  Add salt and garlic to taste.  I also added rosemary. Place a few pieces of chicken in the bag and shake until completely covered. Repeat until all pieces are covered.  Fry in pan until skin is crispy.

Chicken Gravy

2 Cups of Chicken broth

1 Cup Water

1 Tablespoon Corn Starch

I piece of boiled Chicken

Mix together broth, water and starch and bring to boil while stirring constantly until gravy thickens.  Pull the piece of chicken apart and add before serving.

Kendra and I really enjoy eating outside but we were having some trouble finding a patio table that we liked in our price range. Most of the ones that caught our eyes cost more than $400.  My favorite was the Chelsea by CB2. I really liked the design but the price was ridiculous.  So what did I decide to do? Build it myself.

The original table has a metal frame with wooden slats but I decided to build the whole thing from wood. It took a little time and elbow grease but the end product came out really well.

Materials:

4x     1.5″ x 1.5″ x 27.5″ (Legs)

2x     1.5″ x 1.5″ x 36″ (Ends)

2x     2″ x .75″ x 59″ (Sides)

3x     1.5″ x .75″ x 59″ (Supports)

16x   3″ x .75″ x 36″ (Slats)

2″ Screws

3/4″ Screws

Wood Putty

Sand Paper

Paint

Wood Stain

Clear Sealant

The first step is to screw the legs and sides together.  I originally tried to over-complicate the process by connecting the pieces with doweling pins.  After failing to get the wood glue and pins to set sturdy, I just decided to use screws.  When drilling the guide holes, make sure you can get deep enough to allow for the screws to indent slightly in the wood.  You’ll fill these in later with wood putty so don’t worry about the gaps.

I did end up using the doweling pins to attach the slat suports to the sides.  I was able to use clamps to hold the pieces together while the wood glue set. These ended up being pretty sturdy.

Once the sides dried, I screwed the sides to the ends. Align the sides with the insides of the legs and along the bottoms of the side.  You also add another support board in the center.

At this point, it was time to sand down the whole frame and putty all holes and seams.  While waiting on this to dry, I went ahead and sanded the slats and applied the stain. Once the putty dried, I sanded those areas again to make the seams smooth.  Then I painted the frame.

After applying several coats of paint and stain, it was time to screw on the slats.  I used an extra board as a straight edge to keep the slats in line. Unfortunately, the board I used was a little bowed so my slats didn’t end up being perfect. It still came out well, however. I put several layers of deck sealant on the table once it was put together.

Since building the table, we’ve spent a whole lot of time on the back deck.  I’m pretty sure we’ve already used this table more than the dining table I built in the winter.

Brady & I got married October 23, 2011 at Front Porch Farms in Charlotte, Tennessee. It was a small, outdoor wedding overlooking the autumn landscape.

Going into the planning, we knew the most important aspects of our wedding were the design and the atmosphere.  We wanted the wedding to be laid back and fun without the stuffiness and formality that is sometimes associated with weddings.  We also had to be budget conscious since we had limited funds.  When you have a certain look in mind, it’s difficult to know where to cut but we made it work.

As a graphic designer, I was very conscious of all the little details and thoroughly enjoyed the craftiness of the DIY projects. Our design decisions and color choices (Seafoam, Gray, Kraft Brown, Silver and White) were made with the intent of achieving an intimate, elegant environment. I designed everything from the invitations and program to the reception details including signs for the food and the sparklers.

I loved creating our own invitations. We wanted to keep them simple, focusing the details in the kraft paper bellyband that was punched with a scrapbooking punch to give it a little extra style. My sister was a big help with a punching and assembling of the invites. Since most of the guests were coming from out of town, I also included a map of Nashville including noteworthy restaurants and attractions hand picked by Brady and me that they might want to visit during their weekend in town.

My favorite DIY project was fabric hearts. We cut out hearts out of cloth and sewed them together with polyfill in the center and put them candy sticks (thanks mom!).  These were used on all the tables as centerpieces along with the succulents plants. These were favorites of the guests as well as many took them home as souvenirs.

Another noteworthy aspect of the wedding was the homebrew.  Brady and his best man, Ross, brewed three separate batches of beer. The Maple Pumpkin Ale and the Vanilla Chai Saison were both seasonal picks for the fall.  The Wild Card Wit was a previously beer that Brady really liked and wanted it available as well.

We spent a lot of time on our music selection. Before the ceremony we played Band of Horses and Bon Iver to set the mellow and cutesie romantic atmosphere. We began the ceremony with the bridesmaids walking down the aisle to One Minute by The Album Leaf and I walked down an instrumental version of Sigur Ros’ Hoppípolla. At the end of the ceremony, we started Sparkplug Minuet by Mark Mothersbaugh as the preacher was wrapping up and made the “you may now kiss your bride” announcement. My father daughter dance was to Emilee Mover and Brady and his mom danced to Bon Iver.

Photography: Shots by Cheyenne / Venue: Front Porch Farms / Hair & Make-up: Amy Lynn Larwig / Florist: Catherine Wilson / Officiant: Ralph Griggs / Catering: Mrs. J’s / Cake: B. Jackson’s Bakery / DJ: Aaron Domingo

Psych is one of me and Kendra’s favorite TV shows to watch together.  Scratch that.  It is definitely our favorite show.  We’ve seen all of the first 5 seasons at least 5 times each. We also find ourselves quoting episodes all the time in our daily conversations.

Needless to say, any time off is torture.  That’s why we like to celebrate when Psych returns for a new season or from mid-season hiatus. This year we threw a party with banners, quotes on the chalkboard wall, cupcakes and Snyder’s of Hanover. Oh, and there was also a pineapple. (You know that’s right.)