My new site!

I just realized that the link I post leading you over to my new blog wasn't working! eck!

Here it is:

katiedykema.blogspot.com

I hope to see you there!

http://katiedykema.blogspot.com/

Finals!

Finals Time :)

I'll be back in a week.

I've Moved!

This summer is flying by! Catch up with me at my new blog; Kt did

I will be posting wedding photos & all of the details surrounding our big day over the next couple of weeks!

See you there!

My bucket list, sort of.

Before we get to the bucket list,
I love sales. I rarely buy anything not on sake or at a discounted price(many of you know this from shopping with me). Lately to get my retail fix, I "virtual shop" aka I go online and fill my shopping bag with anything I like. At the end I simply leave the site and go back to work. This seems to work though because I get my retail fix without spending money and I can do it as often as I need to! (you should try it). The other day I was able to fill my bag with 4dresses, a pair of heels, a pair of ballet flats, a pair of leather flip flops, 3 sweaters and socks all for $950.00. This was all from J.Crew and everything typically ran double to triple the price I got it for. I may just go back and actually purchase a few of the dresses. With so many weddings, showers and events this summer it would be nice to not wear the same outfit to all of it(and you really can't beat a $50 dress from j.crew)


My bucket list:

* Live in another country for a while

*learn a foreign language and speak is fairly fluently (no spanish though)

* Start a non profit organization

* Travel to Africa

*Visit every continent (I'm ok without China...)

*Work with animals

* Be the Daniel Burnham of Detroit

*Visit every state in the U.S.

* Create an influential building or structure

*Have children

*swim with dolfins

*Hike the appalachian trial end to end in one go

*Hike patagonia

*Visit Alaska before it's gone (and we are too)

This is just the beginning of it

I'm off to visit Tap plastics and spend way too much money on materials for my models. Hopefully they will get one more project into Spring Show for me.

By the way; Spring show is May 21. You should come, it's a pretty big deal.

Love

Everyone knows how much I love J.Crew. Seasons are typically a hit or a miss an this season it is a definite HIT.

Seriously, I will gladly accept J.Crew gift cards for wedding gifts. I mean we really don't have room for many kitchen gadgets or furniture but I can easily replace the wardrobe in my closet! (no joke... the majority of my clothes now have holes in them. I have sewn up three holes in my jeans so I can keep on wearing them.....)

I will also gladly tag along on any shopping sprees......

What a week

The Ugly:

Till Midnight, our reception location, closed. We found out on Saturday, two days before they closed their doors

We only have two more weeks of classes. EKKK. I have about four weeks of work to fit into the next two weeks. (wish me luck)

The Good:

We are now booked at Boatwerks Restaurant for our reception. I am actually happier so far with this turn of events. The statement," God doesn't close a door without opening a window somewhere else" couldn't ring more true.

We only have two more weeks of classes! ( haha this is good AND bad!)

We started looking at honeymoon location possibilities. :)

I got a napkin made and will be shipping off my fabric tomorrow. A wonderful women at West Ottawa (The home ec/ interior design teacher) offered to make them all for me. Such a relief!

Daniel cut out all of our envelope liners today AND glued them to the envelopes! I love him :)

Now I just need to create that list of things to order so we can start ordering things!

I need to get my dress sized! and find a veil! and find shoes for the girls! and get Daniel's outfit squared away.

It seems like the list never ends... Unfortunately it will have to wait two weeks until I have a few spare moments to breath.

Have a good end of April/ Beginning of May!

I have been in a rut lately. A creative rut... I think a room filled with balloons would do the trick to snap me out of it. :)

I found a few images of our cookie bar idea! Seriously, the idea has been whispered around the blog world more recently but with all the talk of candy bars no one seems to notice.

This was the first idea Dan and I had in the planning process. (after the no shoes, beach front soiree with s'mores, that is). I haven't mentioned it much before because I didn't want anyone taking my idea (and still dont!). I get that whole secrecy from undergrad (it sucks). Anytime I would present an idea that I was crazy excited about it would get taken by just about everyone and appear on every single design board the next week. Boo. So yea, I don't share ideas as much as I should. But anywho here is a big one: (we already have a few of the glass jars purchased but seeing this makes me wonder if I should find a few smaller ones...)

My plan:

Cookies from our childhoods.

And Milk! (seriously, who doesn't love milk and cookies!)

Cookies:

*Monster

*Whoopie pies

* Molasses

*Peanut butter

*Chocolate chip

*Snickerdoodle

Milk:

*Horizon organic chocolate milk (the best choc. milk ever + chocolate milk is a little inside thing for Dan and I which makes it that much better)

* skim regular

*vanilla soy (yummy as well!)

image inspiration

Just some of the pictures I have been saving lately.

Love the hand painted wooden sign. I want one of these at the end of the driveway. (Dad? :) )

The following images are from a wedding of an employee of Purl Soho (a fabric store in NY). I am already creating our fabric for our cake table at the reception and refreshment table at the ceremony.

Each table has a different pattern napkin in the weddings colors of orange and green. This fabric corresponded to the seating card for each guest.

Up close shot of the napkins. also, notice the glass magnet with the initial. These were used to distinguish what food the guest had requested. We have been asked to do this by Till Midnight as well and I plan on making these as well. I am going to use three different background colors (green, navy, and a polka dot) that will correspond to the guests food choice.

These are the seating cards that were made to correspond to the napkin at the guests table. I am going to do something with this idea in mind.

As most know, I love ribbon. I would love to have navy, white, and green grosgrain ribbon hanging from the tree next to where all of us will stand during the ceremony.

Flip flops were offered at the reception for guests. As much as I love the idea I feel it is a tad bit overdone.

Babys breath in galvanized (not black, as pictures here) tubs could flank Dan and I. We aren't going to have any sort of arch so this would help delineate where we stand.

I love the flower petals pre-lining the edge of the isle way. I think it would help create an isle way considering we aren't going to be using a runner.

Luminaries lighting up the path. I think these would be really pretty both lining the driveway to the ceremony as well as the sidewalk leading into the reception. They were made using white lunch bags and a decorative paper punch for along the top.

Bathroom bins from the MacBeth collection. I love these small tins, we don't have much counter space in the restrooms so this size would be perfect.

And finally our invites. This is the back of the invite (notice the Eames stamps? Love them!)

And here is the front! The picture was taken at the Grand (old theatre) in Grand haven right across from where Dan and I met at Porto bellos!

Dress for sale!

Tell your friends!

I am selling a beautiful ivory Watters gown. I am asking $900.00 OBO. This dress retailed for over $2,000.00. The gown was purchased at a sample sale and has not been worn.

http://www.oncewed.com/find.cfm?listingID=2091&name=Watters_7006b

Noomas

Going home always makes me think about Mars Hill, the church I went to during the later part of high school and when I was home from college. I loved it. The pastor created these short films dealing with all kinds of issues. The films brought the issues down to a more human/ relatable scale. All of the films are available for purchase on the nooma.com website or you can access them through the marshill website.

Here is a passage for one;

Rich

"There’s a popular bumper sticker that reads “God Bless America,” but hasn’t America already been blessed? It’s easy for us to fall into a mindset of viewing “our” world as “the” world, because it’s all we generally see. We’re constantly bombarded with images of the latest styles and models of everything, and it can easily leave us feeling like what we have isn’t enough because we see people that have even more than us. But how does what we have compare to what most people in the world have? Maybe what we have is enough; maybe it’s more than enough. Maybe God has blessed us with everything we have so we can bless and give to others."

Interesting fact; Experts say that in order to provide water, basic health, and nutrition for everyone in the world that the estimate would be around 20 million dollars. That is the same amount Americans spend on ice cream every year.

Thought provoking, isn't it?

I'm leaving, on a jet plane...

Dan and I are just about to head to the airport. Our flight leaves around 5am but the last Bart leaves at one (and doesn't start up again until 4:30) so we will be sleeping there. I am grateful to see family but disappointed about the circumstances.

Dan heads out to Louisiana Thursday. It will be a long weekend without him but I am glad he gets to go and see his family.

I am so grateful to all of you who have kept my family and I in your prayers.

Love,
katie ( & Daniel)

I am exhausted. This has been one of the longest days of my life so far. Prayers gladly accepted & appreciated, for me and my family.

Love,
Kate

4 months!

4 months from today, at this time, I will be MARRIED to my best friend and love of my life :) I can't wait.

:)







Now to finish everything up! The list is long....

Things I have gotten down so far over break

- Nothing.........



ok, so i sleep a little (ok, a lot) oh and I did make it over to the fabric store today! That was a nice little change. Tomorrow I am going to start on all of my homework and hopefully get some sewing done!

Oh, I did make puppy chow and brownies. (aka now I REALLY need to go work out!)

Spring break

A list of things I would like to be able to do over spring break:
- work out
- tan(or atleast lay by the pool)
- read my book for class
- read a book not related to class
- sew the ring pillow and gifts for the three little ones in the wedding
- get daniels outfit bought
- find myself or make myself a veil
- register!
- create a list of everything we still need to order for the wedding
- list my dress on craigslist and once wed
- find a day of coordinator who won't make us go broke

I really don't think a week is enough time.
On another note, I would totally forget all of this if I could travel someplace warm.(boo for Daniel leaving a day before I could leave, I just may come down be myself!)

Miss you all! I promise I will return the phone calls and emails as soon as this week is over :)

Ugh... My stomach aches are becoming more frequent again. I know exactly what is causing them too; stress, too much coffee, and a lack of exercise. I want to fix all of that so badly but unfortunately my type a personality won't let me not stress, I need something to keep me going during these 12 hour daily stints in the studio, and I just stress out more about trying to figure out a time to exersice. I'm going to give myself an ulcer.

My second studio project is wrapping up. It is due next tuesday, ekk. I have a paper on a book we have been reading due this Thursday. I have a project for my other design class due next Thursday and a test in architectural history this Friday and we are getting assigned another book next week. This one has to be read and written about in a week.
This is definitly a program where you have to love architecture and really want to succeed. Good thing I can put a check next to both of those things.

Some of you have been asking what I want to do with architecture when I am done with the program. The answer;
I want to develop modular, affordable (and high end versions) housing units focusing on great space planning and materiality. ( this means shipping containers as structures, small space living with all the luxuries.).
I want to blend my love of color, pattern, and texture with the structural side. I love interior design (not decorating.) but I have wanted to do architecture since 7th grade. It was in my first shop class and we had to draft up a plan for a small portable tic-tac-toe game that we would then have to make. I loved the process of it, it was calming and I was good at it haha

A few random facts about me in relation to architecture:
- I hated playing with dolls and barbies. If friends wanted to play barbies or dolls when I was little I would create the house or redo their dollhouse.
- because of the comment above, I played with legos and got blocks as gifts.
- when I played legos the one thing I built frequently was hotels
- I don't remember this but it has been told to me that when I was little I was playing with my duplox blocks and my parents asked me what I was making and I relied "big buildings"
-I initially looked at architecture for my undergrad degree but changed to interior design when I was told it would be impossible to swim division 1 and do architecture. I now understand that what they told me was completely true
- I took an interior design and product design class in high school. I loved them both but loved the interior architecture side of design the most, this directed my decision towards interior architecture after hearing the above comment.
- I have wanted to design restaurants since high school. I worked in quite a few part time throughout high school and college and loved understanding how they worked and what could have been designed better.

Well I'm off to finish these cad drawings for tomorrow and start on that paper!

I hope you found my random facts interesting :)

Rip swarley... He only made it two days but they were quite fun.

Bryan got here safe and we have already been walking him hard. Today he is off doing a San francisco film tour while I am at class. Afterwards all of us are going to head to china town and then to north beach/little Italy.

I wish I could go somewhere for spring break but dan and my spring break are different weeks. Boo.

Off to get as much work done as possible in the next 6 hours.

just an update.

I have started to replace sleep with caffine. Not good.

We got new fish! And a frog, named swarley. He is sweet and provides great distraction. We also got four bloodfin tetra's, four zebra tetras, and bottom feeder who has some darker stripes, and two little red guys. Dan thinks if we have a lot of them, I can't get attached to only one. I think he fears another "Moe" episode. what he doesn't remember is that Moe started out with a group of fish and then killed them all.... yep, this was the fish I cried over when he died. He was cool though, really.

I presented our project for my studio class today. It was the preliminary presentation but I'm pretty sure my nerves thought it was the final. We ended up rocking it out and did an amazing job. We even got pulled aside by the director of the Masters of Architecture program at the end to tell us how good our presentation was. You can't even understand how amazing that is. That guy is tough (but in a good way).

I got my dress from j.crew today. I love it! It has pockets! It also has buttons down the back (real ones, not those fake crap ones.) and a very pretty neckline :) I am posting my other one up for sale tomorrow. If anyone needs/ wants a designer dress for cheap, let me know!

Well I have to now go and work on my 651 project (the Academy of Sciences in San Francisco by Renzo Piano) and download autocad and fusion for my computer(so I can get work done at home this weekend)

My brother flys out here Thursday for his spring break/ birthday! I am excited to have someone come visit us and I can't wait to show him the city and be a tourist. We are going on a movie tour on Friday, Alcatraz on Saturday and the Cal Academy of Science on Sunday. It should be an action packed weekend but I can't wait.


Have a great weekend & happy fat Tuesday!

the downfall.

Today I witnessed a sight that truly disgusted me. A mother, her two children (approximately 6yrs old, both of them) and their grandmother got the light rail. I got up so the two little kids could sit down. The mom was trying to get situated and find a spot to put her gigantic two person stroller and the grandmother was just, chilling. (no really, you couldn't describe it any other way.) The little boy started to run down the aisle of the light rail and then turned around to run back. Just as he did this the light rail started moving again. The force pulled the boy and made him crash into his sister. His sister in turn crashed her head on the arm rest from impact and immediately started screaming and crying. The mother went over to comfort the little girl (and scold the boy). As this was happening the huge stroller started rolling forward towards the chilling grandmother. The guy across the aisle grabbed it to stop it so it wouldn't hit the grandmother. One would think (as I did) that this was really nice. Not the grandmother. She started screaming at the guy telling him that she had it and that when he stopped it it almost "sliced her finger off". Remember, this is the same women who, as all of the madness with her daughter and grand children was unfolding, just chilled. She continued to yell at the guy for what seemed like 5 minutes. He tried to explain to her that he had been trying to help and hadn't waned it to hit her but she wanted nothing to do with his explanation.


I could not believe it. No wonder the good Samaritan act has been overturned. It saddened me to realize (and view first hand) what the world has come to. I looked at the women and told her she needed to relax and chill out and then got off the train. (while mumbling and thinking to myself how horrible people can be).


Well I am off to the studio once again to work. I hope everyone enjoys the nice weather out here (or the new snow, in michigan).

I am trying to keep up with this as best I can but you will all have to bear with me during classes.

I tried going over to the Cal academy of sciences today to do some sketching and research but by the time I got there (1 hour after opening, it didn't seem too late at the time) they were already at capacity and no longer selling day tickets of memberships! I am going to try again tomorrow morning..

Today i have to head into studio once again to finish up a section cut of the Centre Pompidou that is due Tuesday. My goal is to have it finished by 6pm tonight. After that i have to head to Folsom street to get some pictures of a building we are supposed to sketch by tuesday. It has been raining daily for the past week so I am just going to have to take pictures and sketch from those. No way am I standing on the street in a downpour trying to sketch! (that would surly add up to a horrible "are you on drugs?" looking sketch)

Last night (valentines day) was actually a great night :) I hate valentines day, i think it is a corporate created holiday to support nothing but monthly sales quotas. (but I won't get too much into that). I stayed at studio until about 9:45 and then heading over to meet Dan and work. He got out about 10:45pm and we decided to take a walk to find a pizza place we had heard a lot about. As a side note, pizza in San Francisco is a touchy subject with dan and I, since we have been here, almost 8 months now, we have yet to find a good pizza place! Everything out here has really fancy pizza. don't get me wrong, it is fairly good, but it isn't pizza. So we got to the place and each got 2 slices of pizza. It was sooooo good! I got a slice of standard cheese and a pesto veggi. Both were good but the cheese one. Dan loved his garlic clam. The right amount of sauce to cheese to crust ratio :) We walked back through little italy and stopped for desert at this little authentic italian bakery. We both got a cannoli and it was amazing! I have a feeling we will be back there again! It ended up being a completely Dan & Katie night. It was just refreshing to be able to have so much fun and be so relaxed and stress free (even for only an hour) with all of the ridiculously priced roses, balloons, and flowers surrounding us.

:) I hope everyone had a great "holiday" and was equally as happy no matter what you did

I'm off to studio, again!