Better Late Than Never

More headband bling!

cindydyer — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 17:01:58 +0000

I crafted these headbands for some of the gals to wear in my wedding. The first and third flowers are “Kanzashi” folded fabric flowers, and are really fun and easy to make. Kanzaski are hair ornaments used in traditional Japanese hairstyles. I learned how to make them from the book, Kanzashi In Bloom, by Diane Gilleland, but there tutorials online as well. There are different shapes and some are easier to make than others (but if you’re really interested in learning how to make them, buy the book. The videos online aren’t the highest quality, in my opinion). Below are just a few:

http://www.mookychick.co.uk/diy_ethic/kanzashi_tutorial.php

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66WfByAacF8&feature=related

Wedding finery

cindydyer — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 16:40:09 +0000

Once again, a deeply grateful thank you to my sister-in-law Nancy for sewing my beautiful dress for the wedding. She also crafted a beautiful satin swing jacket and brought it with her that weekend—but since I asked her to oversize it because I wouldn’t be able to try it on in advance, she did so—only problem is, it was an oversized style to begin with. I was swimming in it, but luckily I had a backup plan—this beautiful crinkled shimmery duster from a little shop in Alexandria. I finally got around to getting these shots of the dress and jacket (thanks to my friend Karen for posing for me). It was a bit too hard to wear it and photograph it at the same time. I have to admit it was the first dress I had worn since I was a bridesmaid in my little sister’s wedding over 12 years ago! Pantyhose had even become a foreign concept by this time. See how cool my headband goes with the jacket? Bling! Bling! (Thanks to my mother-in-law Sybil for the headband photograph).

Wedding craft featured on website

cindydyer — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 18:19:09 +0000

I’ve been featured on www.manolobrides.com! Check out the posting here:

http://manolobrides.com/2010/06/14/some-seriously-sweet-wedding-diy-inspiration/

Gimme that night fever, night fever…We know how to show it…

cindydyer — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 17:32:28 +0000

Here I am,
Prayin’ for this moment to last,
Livin’ on the music so fine,
Borne on the wind,
Makin’ it mine.

Brenda teaches my dad some boogie moves to “Night Fever,” while his many admirers cheer him on (left to right: Karen B., Deanna, Lauren, Ann, Roni and Glenda.

Photo © Brian Loflin

Happy feet

cindydyer — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 04:20:07 +0000

Photo 1: Me dancing with my brother-in-law, Brantley

Photo 2: Mom’s brother Charles, his daughter (and my cousin) Deanna, and Mom

Photo 3: DJ Tim Cedillo

Photo 4: Kelley & Brantley

Photo 5: Lauren & Chris

Photo 6: Tim dances with Debbie, while Macie drags Brennan onto the dance floor

Photo 7-8: Macie & Brennan dancing in the yard

Photo 9: We are family, I got all my sis-tahs and me—Lauren, me, Kelley & Debbie

Photo 10: Tom, Judy, Lauren, me

Photo 11: Paula & Ken

Photo 12: Alyce & Bill

Conga, conversation and canoodling

cindydyer — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 01:19:38 +0000

Photo 1: Dance floor Conga line with Roni, Ann, Tom and Brenda

Photo 2: Tired pups Pete and Nancy (she was probably tired from all that wedding dress/jacket sewing!)

Photo 3: Ken, Paula and Sherri engrossed in conversation

Photo 4: Glenda, Lauren and Chris

Photo 5: Sybil and my Dad

Photo 6-8: Tom and Brenda, swayin’ to the music

© Cindy Dyer

Eatin’ and drinkin’ and minglin’ and two-steppin’

cindydyer — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 00:27:34 +0000

Photo 1: Glenda and Debbie

Photo 2: Pam and Emily

Photo 3: “The Vineyard” table—left: Nancy and Norma; right: Roni and Pete

Photo 4: “The Woodland Garden” table—left: Paula and Brian; right: Ken

Photo 5: Dad made his way around the tables, mingling and telling tales. Left: Dad and Kathy; right: Bill, Sherri and Brenda

Photo 6: “The Seaside Garden” table—left: Judy and Carmen; right: Fred and Karen W.

Photo 7 & 8: Two-steppin’ cowgirls, from left: Alyce, Debbie, Carmen, Kelley, Deanne, Lauren and Macie

© Cindy Dyer

Candid camera shots by Cindy

cindydyer — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 22:12:51 +0000

Michael just showed me 297 photos that were shot with his camera during the reception. Most of these were shot by me (unless I’m in them, of course). I had forgotten that I did have a camera in my hand at some point (of course). So, this means lots of fun candids to come…stay tuned!

Photo 1: “The Cottage Garden” table—from left, Kathy & Kevin, Maid-of-Honor (and decorator extraordinaire) Karen B., and Michael. I didn’t eat much (look how much is left on my plate!), but it sure looks good right about now…love me some Macaroni Grill balsamic chicken!

Photo 2: Michael with our fabulous DJ, Tim

Photo 3: “The Meadow” table—from left, Kathy and Tom (Best Man). Right, back to front: Brenda (Tom’s wife), Sherri, and Bill

Here comes the better-late-than-never bride…

cindydyer — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 05:03:11 +0000

© Paula Danko

Candid camera shots by Paula

cindydyer — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 04:50:21 +0000

Top photo, from left: nephew Brennan, Uncle Charles, cousin Deanna, niece Macie, Carmen and my sister Debbie. Back, far right: Brother-in-law Brantley and my sister Kelley

Middle photo: the Woodland Garden table

Bottom photo: far left, Brian (photographer); front: Larry and wife Sylvia (my best friend in junior high). I hadn’t seen her since high school!

© Paula Danko

Candid camera shots by Norma

cindydyer — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 04:27:49 +0000

Photo 1: Karen and Judy enjoy a drink after the ceremony while watching the photography sessions. Also pictured, far left: Pam; center: Ken and Paula, Larry and Sylvia; far right: Lynda and Brad, brother-in-law Bill

Photo 2: Kathy and Kevin at Friday night’s TexMex Fest

Photo 3:From the sidelines, Pete and Kathy watch the karaoke participants at Friday night’s TexMex Fest

© Norma Wark

Craft project: Bird nest necklace

cindydyer — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 18:16:37 +0000

I made these bird nest pendants for the gals in my wedding. They were made just like the cooper wire ones I made for Michael and his groomsmen here. My friend Kathy models one I made for her in the photo below.

Silver wire and dyed freshwater pearls were woven to form a bird’s nest. Special thanks to blogger Cathe Holden for posting her great tutorial on how to make these sweet little bird nests.

Once I make the loops to hang them on chains, I’ll be distributing them to all the gals in the wedding party—Karen B, Debbie, Kelley, Lauren, Deanna, Nancy, Carmen, Norma, Karen W and Macie. Unfortunately, I didn’t have them finished to give to them out that weekend. Hence our wedding theme—”better late than never!”

Many more photos to come!

Kathy & Kevin

cindydyer — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 23:31:31 +0000

Kathy and Kevin are Mom & Dad’s neighbors and now our very much treasured friends! I photographed their eldest son’s wedding in Key West last June. You can view those photos (as well as our other Key West photos) in the links below:

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2009/06/04/weekend-in-key-west/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2009/06/11/much-more-of-the-muchemores/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2009/06/25/muchemore-redux/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2009/06/26/chantell-and-austin-on-the-pier/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2009/06/28/yes-another-wedding-photo/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2009/06/05/what-20-bucks-will-get-ya-in-key-west/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2009/06/11/amazing-tree-in-downtown-key-west/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2009/06/05/here-lizard-lizard-lizard/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2009/06/28/the-key-west-butterfly-and-nature-conservatory/

http://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2009/06/28/a-few-more-butterflies/

Janie & Mike

cindydyer — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:20:55 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

Vested!

cindydyer — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 04:01:29 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

The Talbert family

cindydyer — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 03:45:19 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

Lauren & Landen

cindydyer — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 03:30:31 +0000

Lauren

cindydyer — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 03:15:29 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

Macie

cindydyer — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 23:14:13 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

Macie’s wildflowers

cindydyer — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 19:08:08 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

The Saunders family

cindydyer — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 18:57:25 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

Macie

cindydyer — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 18:46:39 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

Macie & Brennan

cindydyer — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 17:21:29 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

Rings

cindydyer — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:59:59 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

Brennan

cindydyer — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:58:19 +0000

© Cindy Dyer

Sybil & Dick—Michael’s parents

cindydyer — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 05:07:49 +0000

Michael’s parents drove from Sarasota to join in the weekend celebration!

Cover Girl Ann

cindydyer — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 17:00:23 +0000

Michael’s younger sister Ann was in town this week for training for her job as an engineer (she previously designed brakes for business class planes and is now in a supervisory position). She added a day on to visit us and we spent the afternoon exploring the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum/Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center near Washington Dulles International Airport. If you like the Air and Space Museum on the Mall, you’ll love this center—it’s spectacular! Steven Ferencz Udvar-Hazy, owner of ILFC, the largest owner of aircraft in the U.S., is responsible for a $65 million grant to the Smithsonian Institution. This grant allowed for the building of the Udvar-Hazy Center annex, which houses more than 120 aircraft and 140 space-exploration exhibits.

Later in the evening I photographed Michael and Ann together for our wedding album (since there weren’t any photos of them together at the event), and cajoled Ann into posing for a quick “cover girl” session afterward. And it was quick—we got our session done in less than 20 minutes—and that’s a record for me for a portrait session like this. She was excited because she was able to take 4×6 prints home to surprise her husband. I made the prints on my little Epson PictureMate printer that I picked up for just $25 at Ritz when they were closing last spring. That little printer is fast and although prints are a bit more than getting them done at Costco, you can’t beat the convenience of printing images you just shot 15 minutes earlier and at almost midnight, too!

Michael and baby sister Ann

cindydyer — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:17:10 +0000

Your parents must be so proud…

cindydyer — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:06:27 +0000

Ann discovered that she and Michael share a family trait! How about Nancy, Kathy and Roni? Are they as talented as these two are?!

Kathy & Sherri

cindydyer — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 02:35:20 +0000

Michael’s sister, Kathy, and Sherri came down over from Houston to celebrate with us. It was Kathy’s birthday the day of the wedding (Oct. 24), so now I’ll definitely remember her birthday. I celebrated my birthday that previous Tuesday on the 20th of October.

© Brian Loflin

Michael with his parents

cindydyer — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 02:23:28 +0000

© Brian Loflin

John + Barbara + Cindy + Michael

cindydyer — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 02:09:58 +0000

John (our wonderful minister), his wife Barbara (cake-baker extraordinaire) with Michael and me after the ceremony

First dance

cindydyer — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 00:48:46 +0000

Happy hugs

cindydyer — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 00:04:07 +0000

© Brian Loflin

At the Vineyard Table…

cindydyer — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 04:20:41 +0000

Norma (far left), Roni and Pete at the Vineyard Table

© Sybil Schwehr

Nancy & Pete

cindydyer — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 04:11:57 +0000

© Sybil Schwehr

Hobby halo

cindydyer — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 04:00:12 +0000

Photo © Sybil Schwehr

Hitched!

cindydyer — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 03:39:53 +0000

© Brian Loflin

Oh, the places you’ll go!

cindydyer — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 03:31:02 +0000

One of my favorite highlights of the ceremony was when my father read “Oh, the places you’ll go,” by Dr. Seuss. Thanks to Sybil for getting this nice shot of him during the reading. Photo © Sybil Schwehr

Oh, the places you’ll go! by Dr. Seuss

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!
You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You’re on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the couple who’ll decide where to go.
You’ll look up and down streets. Look ‘em over with care.
About some you will say, “We don’t choose to go there.”
With your heads full of brains and your shoes full of feet,
you’re too smart to go down, any not-so-good street.
And you may not find any
you’ll want to go down.
In that case, of course,
you’ll head straight out of town.
It’s opener there
in the wide open air,
Out there things can happen
and frequently do
to people as brainy
and footsy as you.
And when things start to happen,
don’t worry. Don’t stew.
Just go right along.
You’ll start happening too.
OH! THE PLACES YOU’LL GO!
You’ll be on your way up!
You’ll be seeing great sights!
You’ll join the high fliers
who soar to great heights!
You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have all the speed.
You’ll pass the whole gang, and you’ll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly you’ll be best of the best.
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.
Except when you don’t.
Because sometimes, you won’t.
You’ll get mixed up of course,
as you already know.
You’ll get mixed up
with so many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step.
Step with great care and great tact
and remember that Life’s a Great Balancing Act.
Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.
And will you succeed?
Yes! You will indeed!
(98 and ¾ percent guaranteed.)
KIDS, YOU’LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!
So, be your name Buxbaum or Dowrie or Bass
or Mordecai Ali Van Allen O’Shea,
you’re off to great places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So…get on your way!

Craft Project: Boutonniere

cindydyer — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 20:47:34 +0000

Above: Michael models the boutonniere I made for him to wear at the wedding. The groomsmen wore them as well.

Craft notes:
Seafoam blue velvet ribbon hot glued onto brown grosgrain ribbon (all from Michael’s)

Velvet craft leaves applied at top of ribbons (from a great embellishments online store): http://www.vintagevogue.com/onlinestore/item6846.htm

Copper wire and dyed freshwater pearls woven to form a bird’s nest and hot-glued on top of leaves (special thanks to blogger Cathe Holden for posting her great tutorial on how to make these sweet little bird nests: http://justsomethingimade.blogspot.com/2009/03/little-wire-bird-nests.html

Fiddlehead fern-shaped swirl created out of thin gauge copper wire and tiny seafoam blue seed beeds, then hot-glued into place around the bird nest.

I made bird nests out of silver wire with seafoam blue pearls for the ladies in the wedding party. I didn’t have the loops made for the chains in time to distribute at the wedding—but you all will be getting them soon; I promise!

Toast!

cindydyer — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 15:56:12 +0000

Debbie & Kelley…

cindydyer — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 15:34:37 +0000

…my two beautiful sisters!

Shake your groove thang, yeah yeah

cindydyer — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 05:44:10 +0000

Karen

cindydyer — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 05:09:47 +0000

Craft Project: Headband bling

cindydyer — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 03:32:50 +0000

I made a bunch of headbands for the gals to wear—and most were put to good use! Karen is modeling a skinny Dollar Store headband that I covered with a velvet ribbon, velvet leaves, two metallic paper scrapbook flowers, a rhinestone button for the center, and a dragonfly button accent.

Well-behaved women never make history

cindydyer — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 03:08:12 +0000

I’ll bet a dollar Carmen started it!

Meet the Parents

cindydyer — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 02:10:12 +0000

Karen, Matron of Honor

cindydyer — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 15:56:16 +0000

Very special thanks to Karen for her unlimited and resourceful creative help with the wedding—from the logo to the favor bag stamping to the chair sash bling bling stars to all the table design and prep work and the countless trips to Michael’s Crafts for supplies to the planning and sketching and seeing things to fruition and all that sage advice, too—couldn’t have done it without you, KareBear!

Before the wedding…

cindydyer — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:25:10 +0000

From far left: Pete (at the table), Brennan, Brantley, Michael and Macie

Candle lighting team

cindydyer — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:20:59 +0000

Pete, Carmen and Nancy lighting the floating candles during the reception

Norma & Karen

cindydyer — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 13:53:44 +0000

Karen W.

cindydyer — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 00:18:04 +0000

Carmen

cindydyer — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 22:58:44 +0000

Carmen models the velvet & bejeweled headband I made for her to wear.

Angelic Norma

cindydyer — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 22:52:31 +0000

Mom & Macie

cindydyer — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:32:28 +0000

Mom & Macie at the Friday night Tex-Mex Get-Aquainted Karaoke Fest

Brennan & Macie

cindydyer — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:17:05 +0000

Macie & Brennan

cindydyer — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:14:11 +0000

Bill, Kelley & Lauren

cindydyer — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:11:02 +0000

Tom & Karen

cindydyer — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 01:02:12 +0000

Love the shawl, Karen! (I didn’t do too shabby on combining the fabrics, did I?)

Such lovely ladies…

cindydyer — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:48:16 +0000

I must commend “the girls” on their dresses—letting you pick out what you wanted to wear (but from the brown/beige/blue palette) really made for a great photo—each of you stands out as an individual. What a beautiful group of ladies! Thank you for being part of our ceremony. I am so blessed with wonderful sisters and friends!

The Schwehr family

cindydyer — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:34:13 +0000

The Schwehrs & the Dyers

cindydyer — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:00:43 +0000

Hup 2-3-4

cindydyer — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:51:26 +0000

Michael & Tom before the wedding

cindydyer — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:45:41 +0000

Handsome bunch ‘o guys

cindydyer — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:40:02 +0000

From left: Michael, best man Tom, brother-in-laws Bill and Pete