NUMBER 225

oh look! i'm back! i've been busy working with sweet sarah over at georgia peaches on a bloggie facelift. if you love animals and all things southern, you should check out her blog. she's such a sweet soul who loves her furbabies - which was (and still is) the base for her blog design. sarah wanted to honor her sweet dixie dog, who recently went to heaven, by featuring her in the header image. her previous blog design used this cutesy frame and dixie's picture, and she wanted to keep that theme going. we worked together to develop a cleaner design that felt light and airy with accents of peach and pink. see how it all turned out:
 

NUMBER 224

i promise i'm still alive! with springtime here in full force, andrew and i have been spending all of our spare time working in the yard (grass seeding and flower planting). when i'm not a sweaty mess, i've been doing LOTS of design work! i couldn't be happier about the influx of work and support for laura wyatt designs! even though i'm primarily doing web design, i still do a little bit of invitation and print work. here’s a recent graduation invitation i made for a william & mary graduation party:

i hope everyone is having a great week (and month). i promise to get back on the blog train once life slows down a bit!

NUMBER 223

ermagersh! i just wrapped up the cutest design for just bri – you might remember her from the charlotte social. bri is a fellow charlottean and as cute as she can be! it’s been such a pleasure working with her again, and i was so thrilled to design something so fun and fresh – just like her! see how it all came together…

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NUMBER 222

today, i'm linking up with sweet jaime for what i'm loving wednesday – something i haven’t done in a while, but it’s nice to revisit old friends, right?

1  |  do i carry a laptop everyday? no. do i need an excuse to buy a super cute laptop bag? perhaps. currently eyeballing this cutie from better life bags – you may have heard of her from kate @ the small things blog. at $75 for a custom sized bag, you really can’t go wrong!

2  |  i've been daydreaming of the day that my girlfriends would make the trek down to visit me in charlotte and see our new home. i'm loving the look of this light and airy guest bedroom. add a few southern living mags, some fresh flowers, they’ll be happy call this place home for an extended stay! (source)

3  |  if you walked into old navy today, you’d find at least 8-10 items that look like they hopped off right the overpriced racks at jcrew. i snagged some incredible look-a-likes over the weekend, including this pair of adorable paisley printed shorts, this gingham shirt (got it in black gingham, only in stores, i guess), and this comfy tee. debating hitting the store again this week to snag these sweet gingham shorts.

4  |  i spend an absurd amount of time being jealous of andrew’s long eyelashes. it’s just not fair – he doesn’t need lashes that long and thick – I DO! i've been very leery of the large price tags, so i hadn’t tried a growth serum on my eyelashes yet. BUT i saw where this loreal kit is on sale for less than $7, so i snagged it and am excited about giving it a try. if it ends up working (even the slightest bit) you can bet i'll share the love and do a review. i may/may not have already taken my “before” pics!

PS – don’t forget to enter my giveaway for a shopping credit at ADAIR! the giveaway ends this friday!

NUMBER 221

so remember that time i was a fashion blogger? yeah, me either. today, i am one of "those girls". the ones who laugh ever so casually while giving that shy upward glance (because that's totally natural and not staged at all). the ones who sweet talk their husbands/boyfriends/so into having a rather large photo session in the back yard. the ones who give away dresses and gift cards to awesome boutiques. yes! that's me today!

sweet sydney over at adair (a charlotte-based online boutique) recently reached out to me and asked that i style their gorgeous "heat is on" maxi. a red dress is a little bit of a challenge – especially for a gal like me. red is such a BOLD color - often worn by women who want to make a statement, who want the spotlight. i, on the other hand, am perfectly comfortable OUT of the spotlight… but that’s another story for another day.

it actually ended up being really fun to make this bold statement dress a little more “me”. i added a chambray shirt to make it a bit more casual and cool weather friendly. i threw on my booties to keep in trendy, but in all honesty, when i wear this dress again, i’ll most likely be in flippy flops or my favorite tory sandals.


dress: c/o adair | shirt: old navy | belt: forever 21
bracelets: david yurman,john hardy | earrings: silpada  | booties: steve madden
not bad, right? today, we’re giving away a $30 credit so you can shop online at adair too! to win, you must follow our life in the queen city through google friend connect, bloglovin, or feedburner. additional entries can be earned below:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

NUMBER 220

the design business is GOOD, y’all! over the past week, i've had so much fun working with precious kerri from a sweet georgia peach on her new bog design. kerri wanted a design that was clean and sparkly, and this is right up her alley! i'm so thrilled at how it turned out:

NUMBER 219

i love a good deal! over the weekend i ran across a dead ringer look-a-like for an item i'd been eyeballing at j.crew factory. check it out:

i've been on the hunt for a utility jacket as soon as i saw cute emily sporting hers last fall. i waited too long to pull the trigger at j.crew, and they sold out. now, i'm glad i waited! i spotted the copycat at jpc and snatched that baby up! fyi, the look-a-like version isn't quite that green in real life. so go get it girl!

NUMBER 218

today, i'm linking up with sweet whitney over at the observant turtle for her international badge day link up! this week, she's invited bloggers to share their sorority experiences and celebrate greek life!

i knew, way before i started college in the fall of 2003, that i wanted to be in a sorority. one of my older cousins, who i still look up to so very much, joined a sorority in college, and that was all the info i needed to decide that i was going to be in one too. i can still remember my last pref party, late and in the freezing cold - how narrowing it down to 1 choice had been so easy. i had no idea then how much that easy decision would impact the rest of my life. my pledge sisters would eventually become my bridesmaids and my leadership roles would shape me into the woman i am today.

i cannot say enough wonderful things about my experience in zeta tau alpha. i met some of the most important people in my life by joining the greek community at virginia tech. even 6 years after graduation, our tight-knit group has celebrated highest highs and mourned lowest lows together. i wouldn't trade my 4 years at virginia tech for anything, and being in a sorority with these amazing women MADE my college experience.

anti-greek hipsters can make comments like "joining a sorority is just paying for your friends". if i paid for my friends, it's the best investment i've ever made.

for your enjoyment: some vintage snapshots and my ever changing hairstyles.

NUMBER 217

this weekend, we got to experience our first snow in charlotte (we missed the first “big” one this winter). it was a big wet snow that didn’t stick, but it definitely got me in the mood for a yummy soup and crusty bread. i’m no gourmet chef, so i stuck with something simple – a canned tomato soup, doctored up to taste like one of my favorites: tomato basil bisque.

laura’s fake tomato basil bisque

2 cans of tomato soup
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 large garlic clove (i like to grate mine, so it dissolves nicely)
2 tablespoons of fresh chopped basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
.5 teaspoon fresh black pepper
.5 cup milk
splash of heavy cream (just because it was in the fridge)
parmesan cheese (optional)

i added the first 7 ingredients and let it simmer for a while – to let the flavors meld. then towards the end, i added my cream!
*note: my measurements are not precise. honestly, i just eyeballed it and seasoned to taste.

enjoy with a heel of crusty bread or the mandatory grilled cheese that has to go with tomato soup.

NUMBER 216

over the past week i've had the pleasure of working with sweet sweet christina from carolina charm on a new blog facelift. i know christina in real life and can’t say enough good things about her! she’s just great, y’all!! she wanted something fresh and clean – “lots of white space” – and nothing too frou-frou or girly. i think the new design we put together is so timeless and gorgeous! i hope she loves it as much as i do!