Let's face it: sometimes it's just easier to buy the finished item than actually making it. There is still a solid amount of pleasure creating something from scratch and showing it off as your piece, so don't stop doing that. But home trends change quickly and the cost of purchasing materials for a project that you may never make again is just not worth it.

organize: pictures and memories

Scrapbooking used to be life for me. I would spend entire spring or holiday breaks pulling together pictures of sorority events and hunting down the perfect matching scrapbook paper and stickers. I spent hours coming up with new page layouts and fitting as many pictures as possible on one page.

wedding: 30 before April 30 - 7 years later

Today is our seventh wedding anniversary and it has me thinking about the day we gathered all of our friends and family for one big event that would celebrate us. I sat down this weekend to look through some of our planning and thought about the couples that are now going through the same thing -- creating a memorable day that is personalized for the fun couple you are and will always be!

Today, on the seventh anniversary of our wedding day, I'm sharing with you the top 4 "30 before April 30" DIY wedding projects from 2011!

1: Bridal Shower Seed Packet Favors: for my small bridal shower of 120 people (no joke), I needed something fun and inexpensive. I'm sure I was inspired by this project somewhere and used a The Wedding Chicks template to personalize.

home: snowpeak retreat kitchen makeover

It’s been nearly a year since we purchased a great little place in Truckee, California and we were so excited to start on projects that would give it new life (see my design inspiration here). We use it as a vacation house to get away from the city, and started using it for rental income last year before the holidays. To get it ready, we put a lot of sweat equity into the space.

home: hanging vintage oars

Getting Snowpeak Retreat together was easy since we purchased the furniture in the sale, and we actually kept most of it while the stuff we didn't easily sold or donated. When we purchased the unit, it didn't feel like it was a retreat in the woods (remember the large print of the Golden Gate bridge over the fireplace?). The goal: turn this into the modern mountain retreat we couldn't wait to leave the city for.

Immediately after closing on Snowpeak Retreat, I was on the hunt for fun and affordable ways to decorate. The monthly Alameda Point Antiques Faire  is my favorite go-to for inspiration and I quickly found these vintage oars and scored them for $25!

read: nonfiction favorites for 2018

Reading is such a luxury when you're short on time, but when you pick up a good book, you wonder why you even stopped in the first place! If you're anything like me, you need something that will keep the pages turning. I've always been a big popular fiction reader but recently focused on nonfiction, biographies, stories that make us appreciate life a little more and learn something along the way.

Here are my four favorite and highly recommended recent nonfiction reads:*

• Rosemary: The Hidden Kennedy Daughter written by Kate Clifford Larson. I can never get enough Kennedy history, and this book focuses on the story of the Kennedy sister that turned an entire family into her biggest advocates. (NOTE: I'm watching American Series: The Kennedys on CNN right now and it's everything a nerd like me wants from a good American story.)
• When Breath Becomes Air written by Paul Kalanithi. I picked this up before boarding a flight from Cabo San Lucas. The writer finished this book before his death and a courageous fight with (fucking) cancer. A beautiful story = tissues. 
• Promise me, Dad written by Joe Biden. Politics aside, I'm a fan of the former Vice President and Senator. Not only is he a fellow Syracuse University alumni, but he is also a tremendous softy. This book does a fantastic job of balancing his son's heartbreaking story and his role in the Obama Administration. Tissues, you need tissues. 
• The Year of Less written by Cait Flanders. Finally, a read that didn't require a box of tissues. I'm a good purger, keep my shopping to a minimum. But Cait will inspire your soul to prioritize life over things.

Let me know if you end up reading any of these books and what you think! Do you have any good nonfiction suggestions for us to try?

Is fiction more your thing or you don't fancy carrying around a box of tissues? I shared this post of my favorite titles and series last year. 

craft: easy DIY fabric coasters and trivet

Purging. I've talked about it before, and I'm always looking for a new project that can create something useful with the overflow of materials in my craft room. I even have loads of Pinterest pins just waiting to accomplish exactly these goals!