CK Brides • How to Word your Invites

Hey cuties - yeah I’m talking to you. That beautiful lady with the sparkling bling bling on your finger. Congrats! You’re marrying your person and it’s magical. I’m here for you every step of the way to help make that day all the more special.

This is the first post in a series of resources for you when it comes to design, invites, paper and signage.

Here’s a fun little infographic for you that breaks down the suggested wording based on your own wedding and who’s involved. Just remember, these are only suggestions for you and you can really choose whichever sounds and resonates with you and your partner.

XOXO,

CK

The January Journal • A place I dream of

There are a lot of places I dream of going, and a lot I’d love to go back to- I’d say on my bucket list currently it’s Austin, Texas + Savannah, Georgia + Nashville, Tennessee. Some would be surprised to know I’ve never been up north - the farthest I have made it is DC and a layover in Philly. Take me to Maine to watch them fish lobsters out of the port any day! Let me walk the beach on Rhode Island. Plop me in the middle of Time Square- okay maybe not Time Square per say, maybe a cool underground thrift / vintage shop in Chelsy or Soho sounds more like me. A speak easy recently attended by Leo DiCaprio would also do the trick. I’d also be cool with going out west to see Cali and Portland.

But I’d say the one I’ve found myself day dreaming about recently is New Orleans. And here’s a long list of reasons why. Firstly, all growing up my Gma used to talk about how much she loved visiting. I also believe she lived there for a stint as a child. She has also taken cooking lessons there since being married to my Grandad. The smell of gumbo fills her house when the weather starts to chill. She keeps a Cafè du Monde mug in her cupboard that I gravitate towards for after lunch coffee with dessert. I imagine a time when she sat at that coffeeshop sipping coffee and eating beignets and getting powdered sugar all over her in a very endearing way. I know you can picture it too.

The closest I’ve come to this was a N’Orleans style restaurant in Hillsborough. We went on a Saturday roadtrip date once and shared a French press and had beignets. That was just the taste I needed to wet my appetite for being truly, physically, tangibly there. I can picture the liveliness of the streets filling with musicians and dancers, and people who aren’t even dancers or musicians singing and dancing along because it’s infectious! I want to see the architecture that’s still left standing from Katrina. I want to see the Deco buildings and see the fashion and eat the food and drink the drinks. I want to take a boat cruise! But mostly, I want to sit at that café, following in her footsteps and have coffee and eat messy, fluffy doughy clouds of sugar and sketch strangers who walk by. That sounds really nice right about now.

The January Journal • 2022 Moodboard

I am a BIG BELIEVER in manifesting what you want and then allowing the universe to bring it to you. I must admit, I am a convert. I used to think it wasn’t real or it was lame or cheesy and now I’m like- I will sing and dance and jump up and down on one foot and spin around in circles with my vision board if it means more things come true. I’ve personally experienced several of the things on my board coming to fruition and now I’m all aboard! So, I’ve been making both digital and physical vision / mood boards for the last two years now and I highly recommend doing both! Without further adieu, here is my 2022 moodboard (or at least what would fit in this template I made). I’d love to see yours! I’d also love to know if anything comes true for you.

Another note while I have you- just want to say, the reason why these work is not because you make them and then do nothing. No. That’s not it. Not the answer. If you physically make one and put it somewhere you can see it everyday, you start subconsciously (and consciously) moving in the direction of those dreams and goals and making decisions in alignment ✨ and before you know it- BAM! you’re leveling up and seeing these beauties come to life! So, I’m going to live the life I want and deserve and dream about- and you should to!

xoxo,

CK

The January Journal • things to do more of

These prompts will in no way be in order and who’s to really even say all of them will get done? But I’m starting here and I’m starting and again- I’m here to remind you that’s ALL that matters!

things in my life I want to do more of: as a reflection from last year, these are some things that genuinely brought me joy.

journaling + blogging (obvi)

saving money

working out

training Georgia

morning / evening skincare

becoming good at something new

teaching others my craft

singing and playing my instruments

running

day trips or weekend trips

creating anything

solo dates

tennis

archery

bingo

pool

watching football / learning more about the game, my team and my players

nightly reading in bed with hot tea

hiking + outdoor adventures

card games

belly laughs

clean eating

staying organized

weekly cleaning

interior design / house projects

vintage thrifting and reselling / rehoming

unplugged days and weeks

old movie nights

getting a fresh set of nails

getting all dressed up for me


Looking forward to doing more of these activities in 2022 and making time for the things I love!

ciao for now,

CK

7 for 7 • trying new things

Here I am -almost a year into the 7 for 7 challenge and while I can’t say every week was accounted for- I’m impressed with the intentionality it has brought into my life.

I read that the most important thing when starting a new habit is not perfection, but the drive to keep it going ; to pick it back up, dust it off, and start again. So here we are! Trying to continue the journey and trying new things.

Here’s my list of 7 new things I’d like to try this week-

Tennis

update: bought a racket and have been playing with Whitney and my dad.

New Tricks with Georgia

Georgia has been learning all sorts of new tricks. Our favorite is “Hold” which is also referred to as “Sit Pretty” and it’s the cutest trick she has! She also has learned to catch tennis balls in her mouth in the air! Smart girl!

Fall Cocktail Recipe

Lavender Blackberry Bourbon Smash! Made it the other night and loved it!

Journal Prompts

I’ve started morning journaling with prompts every day and it definitely grounds me and helps me better set my expectations for the day.

Meditating

Running

I had JUST taken a liking to running more when I hurt my ankle- Georgia has been training on being better at running with me.

New Healthy Recipe

One Year • My Wellness Journey

This has been a really hard one to sit down to write. First, I want to say- this is not a “weightloss story”. This is not a “before and after” post about how I lost 12394848 lbs and how YOU CAN DO IT TOO IF YOU JUST BELIEVE. This is my story about how last year I made a commitment to myself to show up for myself on all fronts: mind, body and soul. For a people pleaser and for someone who’s used to putting everyone’s needs first- this was no easy feat. This was a total transformation of the mind. I can honestly say, I’m not the same version of myself I was when I started it. To be frank- I was allowing my life to run me and granted we were all a little haywire around this time last year. But I knew there were certain things in my life that I wanted to accomplish and I knew the road I was on was not going to get me there.

It started with simple every day walks - walking to the bridge and back - that was my goal. Then walking to coffee on my “off days”. I slowly started to include a better diet and a more “mindful” approach to the way I was living.

Once I started putting energy back into myself it made it easy to make other choices in the same nature: eating well, hydrating, and wanting to take the next steps in my life. I was showing up well for myself first so I could show up better for others.

What started as a simple addition to the daily routine transformed my life and my way of thinking. Now when I look through this lens on life- I see opportunities to grow, instead of chances to fail. When I look in the mirror- I see the strength my body has that was found bit by bit- and my outward physique is an representation of my inward strength and dedication to myself.

7 for 7 • being gentle

Sometimes I set an intention for the week, and sometimes the intention picks me. This week has been all about learning to be gentle and embracing my nurturing side.

I think a major part of being gentle (aside from your approach towards others) is being gentle with yourself. Pushing yourself to do things but also Giving yourself grace and room to breathe. I’ve noticed that helps me show up as a better me and be gentler towards the people in my life.

Monday
I started the week nurturing myself- going to a new coffee shop, feeling amazing in a summer outfit, and getting ahead on work for the week has really made a huge difference

I nurtured my soul with BINGO at Longleaf - so enjoyed the amazing patio / summer evening, craft tiki cocktail and the sheer hope of winning.

Tuesday
 Nurturing / Fostering work relationships - trying to be intentional and loving and going above and beyond to make sure everyone is being taken care of. I’ve learned this from my short stint in the hospitality industry.

I also nurtured my high school girl soul- things came full circle for us as we got to enjoy talking about the women we are all becoming and how we still embrace the little spark in all of us we had back then. It’s amazing to see how we’ve all nurtured that girl into amazing women!

Wednesday
I nursed a hangover LMAO!! But I still made sure things were taken care of - my dog, me and my 3 hour nap, picking up items for an upcoming collab from the printer, getting groceries and even dropping off a gift to a friend in need.

Thursday
Today was about helping family. My mom had a small outpatient procedure and I was able to help her and help my dad take care of her. It felt nice to know they could rely on me and to go above and beyond for my parents and have them appreciate my help. I also FINALLY got back to the gym- nurturing my body felt incredible! Post weights: I hit the sauna and the shower and left the locker room feeling invigorated. I followed it up by a small sunset walk with Georgia, an amazing salad and some tidying + cleaning (there’s a difference I swear) of my space.

Friday
Tomorrow I will make an effort to love especially on people I don’t know. A weekly to-do I started a few months back has been to do a kind thing for a stranger at least once a week and I love getting creative on what I do each week. I will finish up my lingering to do list for work to the best of my abilities and find something fun to do for myself Friday night.

Saturday
A whole secret adventure planned

update: adventure was had. soul was fed.

Sunday
I spent the day nurturing my community, my business and new customers at my booth!

7 for 7 • setting boundaries

Ooof- this one is a doozie! We are all familiar with boundaries - whether we listen to them or not - we know the concept. What we sometimes (me, it’s me but I’m learning!) don’t know is how to make them and how to uphold them even when faced with adversity. It’s challenging to set boundaries in our work, personal lives and even for ourselves - but that’s exactly why we do it. Because boundaries aren’t for anyone else - but YOU! It’s all about your own self preservation and growth. It’s YOUR life - and you control who’s in it and who’s not. Who’s energy you allow and who you choose to block - in order to be your best self.

I have struggled with this - being the people pleaser I am - because I thought being a good daughter, neighbor, friend, girlfriend and even employee or designer - meant bending to others in order to allow them a positive experience from me. But I found that I was showing up inauthentically, trying to act one way but feeling another. Now - it’s not easy to love others selflessly or go out of your way to love others in need - but that’s a whole other ball game. I’m talking: when others ask something of you or approach you - how do you respond? Lately I’ve tried to correct this behavior. Instead of automatically saying “yes!” I ask myself “does this serve the narrative of the type of woman I want to be and want to be known as?” And if yes, then I say yes.

So this week I’m filtering every experience through that kaleidoscope so I can show up more confidently as a woman I feel strongly represents me.

here are a few personal boundaries I’ve set for myself as I’ve discovered more of what I need to be successful:

#1 In the mornings, I have “me time” until 11 am - no work calls just self work 😉

#2 in the evenings, I try to get in bed by 11 pm (the automatic white noise Alexa alarm helps) do my night time skin / bed routine no matter how tired I am. It always calms my spirit before bed.

#3 Making time for exercise every day. Exercise has significantly reduced my anxiety by leaps and bounds. I’m able to show up to work and life as a more calm, stable version of myself - no matter what life throws at me - because I am able to regulate my stress with exercise. I firmly believe that! Eating well and making sure I’m taking vitamins and staying hydrated also help!

#4 No alcohol during the week - I try my very best to maintain this rule so I can stay focused on my personal, health and work goals! Instead replacing with Kombucha or sparkling water to help curb the craving.

7 for 7 • allowing space

This week’s theme is about allowing things the space: space to grow, decluttering old thoughts, ways and physical spaces in order to make way for new, positive things to come.

To be very blatantly honest - I used to hate change. I used to try to run from it at all costs. I attribute this to my sentimentality and my love for experiences. What I didn’t realize - is things always change - and if you’re proactive - you can allow them to change for you for the better. There will ALWAYS be road blocks - it’s not what we face it’s how we face it and how we deal with them that allows us to grow.

So this week- I’m allowing space- for the new and the beautiful things to come (she says sitting beside her bedside table full of her plants 🌱 🪴) .

Here are some key ways I will be incorporating this theme and being mindful of my space:

Cleaning out my closet / storage

donating items to thrift store and allowing just 1 thing to come home with me as a reward

decluttering my mind - brain dumping thoughts emotions and to-dos into my journal

upleveling CKCreations with a mindfulness Mastermind with Katelyn from Gift Muse: we will be incorporating this method once a month to insure we are both experiencing growth / and making the most of our services / time and potential. - particularly excited for this day because I desperately need to organize CK systems to make way for a part-time worker!

taking space / time for myself to rest with humans (and dogs) that truly feed my soul. (Hint: they all live in the small town of Wendell.)

Allowing space by taking it slow. Exploring and nurturing. Hitting reset. Enjoying the very present. Enjoying live music and the littlest of things like my feet on the pavement and the breeze on my face.

if you join me this week - let me know! Leave me a comment or shoot me a DM. I’d love to know how you’re connecting back to yourself and taking space.

XOXO,

CK