A Pop of Color with Wayfair

front-porch-pop-of-color-wayfair-red-yellow-sunflower

When we see sunflowers, we think about Tuscany. When we think about Tuscany, we think happy thoughts. When we think happy thoughts, we want to celebrate it with a glass of vino. When we have a glass of vino, we want a pretty space to sip it in. When we need a pretty space to sip it in, Wayfair comes to the rescue with their #PopOfColor campaign.

Jessica’s favorite place to sip wine in the summer is her front porch, so she chose to add a much-needed pop of color and sunflowers to her front entry space. It looked pretty sad and dull before the pop of vibrant red and yellow splashed the rustic space.

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Now thanks to Wayfair, it’s an inviting space to welcome guests, watch the kids play, sit and read a book {let’s get serious – she will be reading O Magazine} and sip water {or vino}.

sunflower-red-table-front-porch-yellow-pillow-wayfair

sunflower-red-table-front-porch-yellow-pillow-wayfair

The new, bright green Hello Doormat is hard to miss, plus it’s direct and to-the-point. Hello, friends!

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The red Franklin Butler Accent Table caught Jessica’s eye immediately. She has always had a weakness for red, and lately a fondness for the mountain modern look. The table is indoor/outdoor, so when the warm summer months are over, the table will make its way inside.

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She couldn’t resist a touch of glam with the Global Views Nugget Bud Vase because, well, everyone needs a touch of metallic glam.

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The rocking chair is from Jessica’s in-laws. Though a DIY paint job was in the original plan for a big pop of yellow color on the porch, a yellow pillow does the job in less than 1/4 the time, and makes for a much happier husband. With so many yellow pillows to choose from at Wayfair, all you have to do is pick your yellow. 1. Sunbrella Vibrant Yellow. 2. Forget the Tuscany vibe for a minute, this African giraffe pillow makes us smile. 3. Blazing Needle gets the yellow just right.

Here’s the official before and after shot.

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If you are anything like us, once a #PopOfColor happens in one space, it tends to have a domino effect into other areas of the home. Look out Wayfair, our homes are neutral in color and in need of a serious POP. In the meantime, we’ll enjoy the front porch.

 j. sorelle received a gift card to purchase a #PopOfColor for this post, however we love Wayfair, even if they didn’t send us any form of payment, and all opinions are ours, we promise.

DIY Sunflower Bouquet for Easter Centerpiece

sunflower eggs_jsorelle

Martha Stewart’s team sent out an newsletter e-mail with information about an Egg Decorating competition, and although they probably had thousands upon thousands of applicants, part of me thought, ‘why not just attempt a semi-creative egg and see how it turns out, and maybe I can enter?’ Well, it turned out to be a fun project for the kids and I on a cold day, and I like the way it turned out.

I know sunflowers do not typically go hand-in-hand with Easter, but the texture with the ground espresso {oh, and the amazing smell} and the bright yellow color lured me in. Maybe you can follow some of the same steps below and use eggs to create Tulips for your Easter table? If you do, pretty please send me photos.

You’ll Need:
sunflowers
hard, white eggs {they are not plastic, but more plaster and do not open}
hot glue gun
a screwdriver {to screw or drill a hole into the bottom of the egg}
green acrylic paint
scissors
ground coffee or espresso beans {they add the sunflower texture}

How To:

egg sunflower 6steps_

1. Find a sunflower you can part with, and remove it from the stem {I was able to just pull mine off}, and remove all the greenery under the leaves.
2. Cut a circle in the center of the flower – I guessed at the size, and when it was too small, I cut it to make it larger.
3. Slide the flower over the egg and put a little tu-tu {otherwise known as sunflower leaves tu-tu} on it. If it fits snugly, fantastic, and if not, add some hot glue to keep it in place.
3.5. {not pictured} Use a screwdriver or nail and hammer to put a small hole in the bottom side of one egg. I did this, with not much muscle strength.
4. Pull all the leaves back and hold them with your hand. Add a generous, but not too heavy, amount of Modge-Podge.
5. Gently rub the Modge-Podge covered egg in espresso or ground coffee beans.
6. Insert a toothpick in the hole, and paint green acrylic paint on the bottom of the egg. Then place in cardboard or styrofoam to let it dry.

Once it’s dry, add the egg flower back to the stem {mine had little stems to keep them in place}.

You will have an egg-stra special centerpiece for your Easter party!!

diy egg sunflower centerpiece_jsorelle

DIY egg sunflower_jsorelle

diy egg sunflower_jsorelle

{images via j. sorelle}

Country Wedding with Sunflowers, part 2

Rustic. Yellow. Elegance. Barn. Romance. These words describe the inspiration for our dream wedding reception.

We took one look at Crooked Willow Farms and knew that it was made for our reception. The big, red barn is tucked in the midst of mountains, farmland and a white, picket fence – a perfect setting for our Colorado wedding celebration.

I have always dreamed of a vibrant yellow wedding with sunflowers. Ever since Drew and I were surrounded by the sunflower fields of Tuscany, Italy, I knew we wanted to be surrounded by the same sunshine and happiness on our wedding day.

We had a lot of country touches at our reception. Guests were greeted with horses and a hayride. Wine barrels served as cocktail tables. Horse shoes were the good luck charms for our guests that hung on a rustic, wood door on display for escort cards. And, our entire wedding party changed into cowboy boots for the reception.

I’m all about details. So, we made sure the DIY projects throughout the wedding reception were one-of-a-kind.

Custom cut and hand painted antique wood signage (made in our garage), were scattered throughout the reception area, pointing guests to reception, cocktails and restrooms, but also reminding them to “dance” and “eat, drink & be married”.

Our table numbers were made with burlap fabric, wood numbers and rustic photo frames.

We created custom sunflower seed packets for place cards. Women received sunflower seeds to ‘plant, love, grow’ in the garden, and men received edible sunflower seeds to ‘crack, chew, enjoy’. They went perfectly with our sunflower theme and gave guests a sweet reminder of our wedding day. 

Kids received sunflower chocolate suckers for their sweet place card.

Drew and I danced to our high school song, ‘Making Memories of Us’ by Keith Urban. I remember listening to that song at only 16 years old and imagining our first dance together on our wedding day, dancing to that song. It was an emotional moment for me – I couldn’t believe my dream of marrying Drew was finally a reality.

From my emotional walk down the aisle with my dad toward man of my dreams, to our first kiss as a married couple, to my gorgeous, handmade bouquet to match my dress, to an unforgettable wedding party entrance, to emotional and hilarious speeches, to amazing sunflower balls and arrangements, to dancing under a beautifully draped tent and rustic chandelier, to a sparkler send-off… our wedding day was everything that I had dreamed of and more – a day that I will never forget.

VENDOR LOVE

Dress: Amsale Bijou from Felice Bridal Salon

Shoes: Jimmy Choo ‘Isabel’, Nordstrom

Bridesmaid Dresses: Jenny Yoo from Bella Bridesmaid

Groom/Groomsmen Attire Rental: Al’s Formalwear

Planner: Jessica, Tre Sorelle, trejsorelle@gmail.com

Paper Products {Invites/Programs/Menus/Escort Cards/Sunflower Seed Packets}: Fleur de Lis, a paperie

Ceremony: Holy Ghost Catholic Church

Reception: Crooked Willow Farms

Bridal and Bridesmaids Jewelry: Kathryn Giarratano Jewelry

Photographer: Jenna Walker Photography

Guest Book & Escort Door photos: Cori Cook Floral Design

Videographer: Creative Mountain Images {CMI} videography

Caterer: Epicurean Catering

Cake: Intricate Icings Cake Design

Tent: Event Rents

Linens: Kimi Hansen, Après Party and Tent Rental

Floral: Cori Cook Floral Design

Décor/ Lighting: Rodd Metcalf, LMD Productions

MakeUp: Aldo Celeste, Flirt Salon

Hair: Kristina Porreco, 303.313.9791, A New Image Salon

DJ: Jeff  ‘Maestro’ Hughes {violinist} and DJ Q

Cocktails Entertainment: Derek Evilsizor

Transportation: Fox Limo

Horse hayride for guests and wedding party: Gary, Kodiak Ranch

Country Wedding with Sunflowers, part 1

After a little over a year, I am so excited to finally post my own wedding on Tutto Bella! I hope you enjoy 🙂

I met the man of my dreams when I was only 15. Exactly six years after he asked me to be his girlfriend, he asked me to be his wife.

We tied the knot on September 3, 2011 in front of 220 of our closest friends and family at Holy Ghost Catholic Church in downtown Denver.

 Lanterns lined the aisle in one of Denver’s most beautiful and oldest churches.

I was so in love with our programs. Stephanie from HuberArt on Etsy sketched the church where we were getting married, and Tutto Bella’s own, Jenna, owner of Fleur de Lis, a paperie, created this one-of-a-kind program. It was perfectly classic and timeless.

For my ‘something blue’, my mom had a rosary custom made in sapphire, my birthstone. It was so beautiful, and I loved how Cori attached it to my bouquet.

My nephew, Jameson, pulled my niece, Gabriella, down the aisle in a rustic wood wagon with a sign on the back saying, “here comes the bride”. They captured everyone’s attention with their sweet and innocent smiles before my dad and I walked down.

DIY burlap bags were handed out to each guest after leaving the church. Inside each bag contained “The Perfect Mix” of butterscotch trail mix (our favorite!), “Happy Trails” direction cards to the reception venue and custom photo water bottle labels.

I was at a total loss for words when I saw my bouquet for the first time. It was exactly how I envisioned it and more. The intricate detail that Cori put into creating it for me was absolutely amazing! Thank you, Cori, for making the bouquet of my dreams!

{stay tuned for jodi + drew part 2 tomorrow!}

VENDOR LOVE

Dress: Amsale Bijou from Felice Bridal Salon

Shoes: Jimmy Choo ‘Isabel’, Nordstrom

Bridesmaid Dresses: Jenny Yoo from Bella Bridesmaid

Groom/Groomsmen Attire Rental: Al’s Formalwear

Planner: Jessica, Tre Sorelle, trejsorelle@gmail.com

Paper Products {Invites/Programs/Menu}: Fleur de Lis, a paperie

Ceremony: Holy Ghost Catholic Church

Reception: Crooked Willow Farms

Bridal and Bridesmaids Jewelry: Kathryn Giarratano Jewelry

Photographer: Jenna Walker Photography

Videographer: Creative Mountain Images {CMI} videography

Caterer: Epicurean Catering

Cake: Intricate Icings Cake Design

Tent: Event Rents

Linens: Kimi Hansen, Après Party and Tent Rental

Floral: Cori Cook Floral Design

Décor/ Lighting: Rodd Metcalf, LMD Productions

Make-up: Aldo Celeste, Flirt Salon

Hair: Kristina Porreco, 303.313.9791, A New Image Salon

DJ: Jeff ‘Maestro’ Hughes {violinist} and DJ Q

Cocktails Entertainment: Derek Evilsizor

Transportation: Fox Limo

Horse hayride for guests and wedding party: Gary, Kodiak Ranch

you are my sunshine

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine
You make me happy when skies are gray
You’ll never know dear, how much I love you
Please don’t take my sunshine away

My mom and I sing this to my kids all the time. My daughter particularly loves it ~ her eyes light up when she hears it, and when the song is over she always asks for more.

It’s a meaningful song to me, so I brought it to life with my inspiration board today. Hope it brings a little sunshine to your winter day…and I think it’s a sweet spin on Valentine’s Day for your loved one {make your Valentine feel like he/she is the sunshine of your life}.

I’ll leave you with a cupcake recipe that looks like it tastes as refreshing, yummy and sweet as sunshine. It makes me wish summer was here.

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes by Half Baked, The Cake Blog

images via:
Zappos Hunter Original High Gloss Rain Boot | Sugarboo Designs You Are My Sunshine Art Print |  Country Living Yellow Painted Bedroom | Yellow Centerpiece with Chevron Runner from Oh So Beautiful Paper | You Are My Sunshine Sign by Etsy seller Go Jump in the Lake | Flower Necklace by etsy seller RachelleD | Yellow and White Sailor Tote Bag found at Damsel in Dior and sold by Etsy seller Bayan HippoJonathan Adler Grapefruit Pop Candle |  You are my Sunshine Cake found at P is for Party | Pinterest Hello Sunshine pillow | Mulberry Fashion Ad from Damsel in Dior | Half Baked, The Cake Blog | Sunflower Soiree Party by The Party Dress | Invitation by Fleur de Lis, a paperie