A Woodland-Themed Baby Shower

This past weekend, we had the pleasure of toasting our friends' baby with a woodland-themed baby shower! I wish I had taken about 1,000 more pictures, but I guess I was having too much fun! Here's a peek at some of what we did:

Our friends are opening Winchester Brew Works later this year, and worked overtime to get it into shape to host the party. It has a gorgeous indoor pergola and a beautiful National Park art-inspired mural. It was such a perfect space for a big co-ed baby shower!

My co-conspirator Bonnie outdid herself in every way, including baking these adorable mushroom-inspired cupcakes.

I was in charge of the S'Mores Bar, featuring Wondermade marshmallows and a crate with sterno balanced among storebought rocks.

We also had a Trail Mix Bar with little baggies so our guests could make their own trail mix! It was such a hit, and I was seriously hitting my trail mix on the ride home the next day.

Shots of my two s'mores, with a Fireball-flavored marshmallow and a stout beer-flavored marshmallow.

We played a few great games that worked well for the co-ed crew, including:

• A celebrity baby name game
• A baby animal name game
• BINGO for the gifts (this was the BEST idea to get people engaged in the gift-opening portion of the day)

and my all-time favorite, the Wishes for Baby. I designed the cards this time, painting a mama bear and cub and then designing it in Photoshop with my favorite Wes Anderson font, Futura.

The happy parents to be!

We also had an awesome onesie-decorating station that featured paint, fabric, stencils and more.

My onesie!

It was a fun day, and we can't wait to meet this little one. For previous baby shower inspiration, here's a shower Wine Club threw for our littlest lady and a tea party baby shower.

Fashion Review: Grammy's 2016 Red Carpet

Wow, guys. The Grammy's Red Carpet was such an abysmally boring affair (with a couple predictable exceptions) that I almost didn't write a post at all. I can sum the looks up thusly: Panties as Fashion, Black with Cutouts, No Effort At All.

But what fun is that? There's still thoughts to share and fun to be had.

Best Dressed

The Grammy's are about fantastical rock and roll, glam fashion and it appears only Lady Gaga got the memo. She stepped out in a pitch-perfect Marc Jacobs coat and platforms that set the tone for the David Bowie tribute she would give later. I am not a fan of seeing everyone's panties as clothing (more on that later), but otherwise, I thought this was right on.

Of the many (MANY) ladies wearing extremely simple black gowns, I thought Demi Lovato's was best. Her make-up is very clean and pretty, the necklace adds some sexy interest and the slit isn't showing me her damn panties like everyone else. The shoes are snoozeville, though, and the overall look has an Addams Family vibe.

This is the singer Kehlani, who I don't know of at all, but I appreciated the easy glamour of her red Juan Carlos Obando gown. I think it could have used a touch more accessorizing, but it was lovely just the same.

This Givenchy wasn't a mind-blowing jam, but it's cute enough and she looks svelte, honey! Am I the only person who is sorta not loving a middle part on her? I feel like it makes her look like a goofy kid, but maybe I'm crazy.

 Selena Gomez is working really hard to amp up the sexy in hopes we'll all forget about Wizards of Waverly Place and the Biebs, and this Calvin Klein comes admirably close to being great. The bodice fit isn't amazing, however.

Tori Kelley here is the next inductee in the Resting Bitch Face Hall of Fame. At least her first venture onto a red carpet wasn't a total disaster. It's not really notable, either, but in a night of blahs, I appreciated a color and an interesting shape. This dress is by Gauri and Nainika (yeah, I dunno either).

Honorable mention to Bonnie Raitt for being herself and yet still finding a way to add some interest with a super cool sparkly biker jacket. 

Best/Worst

Taylor necessitated the introduction of a never-used category here: The Best/Worst. This is when a rare occurrence leads you to be both the Best and Worst Dressed at the same time. The bob is everything. The make-up is everything. I like the daring colors, and the shoe choice and despite myself, I even like the rainbow-jeweled choker. 

But. 

She is wearing a very formal bathing suit and cover-up by Atelier Versace and the idea that you would ascend the stairs to retrieve the biggest music award in the land with everyone peeking at your inner thighs in hi-def is just too much for me to abide. I WILL NOT ABIDE IT, TAYLOR.

Chrissy Teigen also somehow managed to be the Best and the Worst. I gather she was going for Gwyneth Paltrow Pregnant Angel, and the cape part really is quite lovely. But the seams on that dress are BONKERS. Who on Earth would subject a pregnant lady to such terrible lines cutting across her whole swollen body? Only an enemy.

Meh

Anna Kendrick looks perfectly fine in this Emanuel Ungaro dress I can only assume she ordered from Rent the Runway. It's fine. It would look smokin' on a normal person at a New Year's Eve party. But for the Grammy's, on a big star? It has me yawning. Her eye make-up is pitch perfect, though (see what I did there????).

Ariana Grande very pitifully could not walk in her very been-there-done-that Romona Keveza red gown, so much so that by the time she reached the microphone, she was out of breath and flubbing her joke. I also need someone to explain how, after so many years, her hair is still ratchet enough that she can only wear the same extension high pony. It's surreal at this point. Is she going to be wearing it in her 50s? 

 Carrie was having an off night, bless her. Her duet with Sam Hunt was one of the most boring 400 minutes of television I can recall (oh it wasn't that long? It felt that long!). The bodice of this Nicolas Jebran dress seems designed to make her boobs look nonexistent and her hair looks like it was styled by the Fox News team. She's so stunningly and naturally beautiful that it always bums me out when she makes this little missteps.

Meghan Trainor basically dressed like she's attending her 40th high school reunion, and the hair color doesn't seem to suit her personality at all. This Michael Costello gown would be perfection on like, Frances McDormand, but seems very mature for her.

Worst Dressed

I don't believe women should feel like they have to dress conventionally pretty, but I did think Tove Lo almost overdid it here in terms of appearing incredibly unapproachable. Her red eye make-up + septum piercing + scary gaze are all a bit much when combined.

I mean, kudos for being yourself Courtney Barnett, but this shirt doesn't even fit. I don't mind if you dress down for the Grammy's. I do mind when it's something I literally wouldn't wear to do gardening because it looks that shlubby and uncomfortable. If Bonnie Raitt can don a sparkly biker jacket, you can at least iron your shirt.

Ciara apparently has no goodies left to hide. Her Alexander Vaulthier leaves little to the imagination and the bit of dress that's left behind just isn't that interesting. This comes off as trying too hard.

What? I don't even know what's happening here, except that Janelle Monae looks like a bellhop in a Tim Burton-themed hotel. (Which is now a place I want to go.)

The Muppet murders just will not stop! This awards season is bringing about a bevy of fuzzy and furry and feathery Muppet-y gowns and I am so far unconvinced this is a trend I like. 

 The Internet tells me this ruffled canary is named Cam and is a country singer. Her Georges Chakra gown is the exact wrong shade of yellow to be sophisticated and the ruffles + hair are overwhelming.

Andra Day had a big night, performing beautifully with Ellie Goulding. She also managed to walk the red carpet in a sexy Vampire Tammy Faye Bakker stars in Sunset Boulevard outfit, something you just don't see enough of these days.

So Long Lighthouses! Hello Green Walls!

O Captain, my captain, our fearful trip is done. This room has weathered several weeks of scraping, scrubbing and anguish to be transformed from its former lighthouse-themed incarnation. Praise be! It's hard for me to believe I even lived with a room so completely out of my character for a full year, but it only makes the makeover that much sweeter. Travel with me through the past four weeks, will you?

On New Year's Day, I trekked into the guest room, draped the bed with a dropcloth, and armed myself with a scraping knife, a paper tiger, and sprayable wallpaper remover. Some folks wouldn't dream of tackling vinyl border without a steamer, but I like to live on the edge (of reason).

After about four hours, I had something like this. The scraping completely WRECKED the navy paint job, because it was glossy paint on a textured wall and plenty came off with the wallpaper. I didn't mind; the navy wasn't the worst, but I needed something lighter and brighter.

It also spread these tiny bits of backing paper EVERYWHERE. The good news: they were easily vacuumed up.

After probably a cumulative 16 hours over 3 weeks, I finally had the room scraped clean! It sounds like true torture in theory, but in actuality, it's not so bad once it's over. Pro Tip: Have FRIENDS episodes on in the background. Joey's "How You Doin?" will somehow get you through.

Once the torture of scraping and scrubbing and vacuuming had passed, we wrestled with what shade to go with. We actually loved all three of these, but each one would set a very different tone. Ultimately, what pushed me toward Behr's Lima Green (far right) was the fact the rest of the house is so muted and I felt like I needed to venture out of my neutrals comfort zone. I ended up getting the Behr Marquee, which is the top of the line, in hopes it would mean I needed fewer coats. Ultimately, we needed 1 coat, 2 coats of "cutting in" and some touch-ups, and 1 gallon was the perfect amount.

My favorite tool for cutting in: the Wooster Shortcut brush with a flexy, flippy, rubbery handle. I love it, and it's especially great for painting trims.

Here's the room after one coat. I love the color in natural light; I'll admit in lamplight it feels warmer than I might have preferred, but it's growing on me.

Here's what we have for now: Guest Room 2.0. Much more ahead for this room, including:

• Silhouette wall
• DIY upholstered headboard using a headboard I bought at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore for $15. 
• Maybe new lamps?

Fashion Review: SAG Awards

If it's not obvious, this week has been a bear, so forgive me for posting this so long after the SAG awards show actually aired. But is it ever too late to talk celebrity fashion? I think not.

The SAG awards always seem like an opportunity for celebs to really test their limits. In past years, many ingenues have blown it by wearing their prettiest gown of the season to the SAGs and then having a major misstep at the Oscars. Others have used the occasion to wear something slinkier or sexier, and still others decide to go all in on the cuckoo. Let us review!

BEST DRESSED

I'm a sucker for a black lace dress and Rachel McAdams' gown by Elie Saab was no exception. She can be really hit-and-miss on the red carpet, but I thought this was elegant and yet relaxed. I especially liked her styling, with the wavy hair and simple make-up. It's a little dressy for SAGs, but she isn't nominated for an Oscar, so you do you, girl.

EDIT: SHE IS NOMINATED. LOL, my bad. Way to bounce back from that dreadful True Detective season!

What a foxy mama Helen Mirren is! Her sexy silver Jenny Packham dress was classy while simultaneously smoldering, and I can only wish to look this great maybe once in my life.

January Jones channeled Betty Draper and Grace Kelly in this breathtaking draped Schiaparelli gown. It has a beautiful vintage quality and she looks so happy to be wearing it, like she's challenging the New York Times to repeat that she has Resting Bitch Face.

Julianna Margulies is also one of those people who is always either my best or worst and rarely in-between, so I loved that she was solidly in my Best category in this elegantly beaded, modern white Antonio Berardi sheath. Her make-up is also so bright and pretty.

I rather liked this sultry ode to a Grecian goddess dress by Atelier Versace, but my husband thought Brie Larson looked all "twisty." LOL. I don't love the rope knots cinching on the side, but I thought she looked quite elegant and comfortable, and I like the powder blue.

Kate Winslet loves nothing more than a simple cut with little embellishment, and sometimes that makes me a little sad, but I thought this green Armani was just perfection. The neckline is interesting, the fit is on point and her jewels were great complementary pieces.

The moment the camera landed on Queen Latifah in the audience, I yelped, "SHE LOOKS GREAT!" We all know it's never easy for the curvier girls to land dresses with intrigue, but her sparkly geometric-pattern beaded gown was full of it. And it's by Project Runway alum Michael Costello! 

I have loved seeing how Kiernan Shipka (a.ka. Mad Men's Sally Draper) has evolved into such a stylish ingenue. She always makes interesting, elegant and au courant choices and I love how she manages to look youthful and girlish in this floral Erdem gown. I want to see this look at proms across the nation!

You have to respect someone who knows exactly what she should be wearing every time she leaves the house. Sofia Vergara is just such a person, but she usually plays it a little safer than this, so I have to give big ups to this Jessica Rabbit-worthy hot hot hot pink Vera Wang. I feel like waiters were probably dropping trays and crashing into each other doing double-takes over this gown.

I'm On the Fence

I'm fairly positive I do not like Alicia Vikander's Louis Vuitton gown. And then I look at it again, and I think it has this glorious 80s-meets-30s vibe and the colors weirdly remind me of early Cubist paintings and it starts to feel like it works. It's undeniable she looks sexy, and the SAG awards are a time to play a bit. So maybe I just talked myself into loving it?

On the one hand, it's Julianne Moore and she's a style MVP. On the other hand, this Givenchy definitely looks like sequined seaweed and the bandeau shape of the bodice makes her look stocky, and she is NOT stocky.

WORST DRESSED

I love love love sweet Ellie Kemper, but she is attracted to some truly bonkers patterned gowns. The first word that came to me when I eyed this fit-for-Palm Springs-pool-towel pattern was "mitochondria." This Peter Pilotti gown looks like a very graphic petri dish. I would very much like to hire her a better stylist, who can focus her predilection for kooky into better choices.

Gaby Hoffman seems bound and determined to wear horribly fitted gowns, much to my consternation. This Rachel Comey just looks uncomfortable. I am also sorry to see the cut of 1990s' formal shoes return to her feet. We should all thank our lucky stars every day that those shoes went out of style, and we shouldn't give them an inch back into our lives, lest they take a mile.

I'm not sure where I would wear an office-appropriate jumpsuit haphazardly covered in honeycombs, but probably not to the SAG awards. You're killing me, Kristen Wiig. She's such a steady companion in my Worst-Dressed list that I almost feel I should just hold a spot for her at all times.

I probably would have loved Gucci's Xanadu-perfect flutter dress on the runway, but in practice on Nicole Kidman it just looks like a discarded Legally Blonde costume. Kudos to her gorgeous hair, though.

Someone call the Jim Henson Workshop, because I think there has been a Muppet Murder. Sarah Paulson stepped out in what is obviously the pelts of Grover and Animal, and she doesn't even seem that remorseful.

God Bless Lori Petty for having the cajones to wear the JNCO-meets-S&M Barbie outfit I've been waiting to skewer all my life. I almost love it for being so unloveable. And she looks so delighted! She was giving finger guns up and down the red carpet, like some kind of post-modern Annie Oakley. I'd like more of this wackadoodle, please.