Merry Christmas Photo Shoot

...I love you...

...The Brothers and I...

...good times, with good friends...

...love this one...

...my good friend Kaitlin and I...

...No more pictures...please....haha

The Christmas Tree from Matt Mahoney on Vimeo.

~*Merry Christmas Everyone from Amy Bird Tweets!*~

Matt, his brothers, my good friend Kaitlin, and our good friend Charlie all had a fun photo shoot in the Valley Forge Park this past weekend. I really love how these pictures turned out!

I hope everyone has a fantastic holiday season and now we can all look forward to a new year. :)

All of these pictures were taken by the talented Charlie Layton!

Please check out his work here.

The video was done by my amazing boyfriend Matt Mahoney.

Please check out his blog here.

Thank you so much to everyone who reads my blog, I hope you enjoy it! Looking forward to 2011!

DIY - Christmas Ornaments

I have always wanted to make my own ornaments, so this year my boyfriend and I tried to make our own ornaments and found that it was cheap, easy and fun. We also think they turned out just the way we had hoped. Everything was purchased at Michael's craft store. Here is what you need:

1). Plastic or Glass clear ornaments (The ones we purchased were plastic but look very nice and were only $0.69 each)

2). One bag of sand (whatever color you want to go with the theme of your tree, the bag we purchased was only $2.99)

3). Fake Christmas tree branches (You can cut a small piece from a wreath or other decor to get the effect that we did) I also added some holly berries to mine and my boyfriend added a small pine cone.

In total this project only cost us $4.37 and the ornaments look awesome and expensive!

I highly recommend making some of your own ornaments because it's inexpensive, fun, and you can tailor them to fit your tree's theme. We have a silver/white theme and wanted to keep our ornaments simple and elegant.

Drum roll please......The winner of the Once Upon A Peony Giveaway from last week is......Danielle Kelly!! Merry Christmas Danielle! Your gifts should arrive soon! CONGRATS Danielle! :)

A big thank you to everyone else to left a comment and followed my blog and Once Upon A Peony on Facebook.

DIY - Christmas Wreaths

This weekend I decided I wanted to make my own wreath that I can use year after year. Last year I got a real wreath and it didn't last that long. I went to Michael's and they really had great prices most of the items were half off! This is a simple project that anyone can do! I went with an all silver wreath because our tree is all white and silver. There are many different color schemes you can choose from and it was really fun to make.

Don't go overboard when selecting things to decorate the wreath with, just match up a few similar things and mix and match. Of course I had to buy the silver birds, and I really liked the glittery apples and present. Before inserting things into the wreath be sure to lay things on the wreath to test out where you want to place them.

Here are the items I bought for the wreath:

1. Wreath $1.99
2. Silver Birds $0.60
3. Silver Leaves $0.60
4. Silver Present $0.30
5. Pearl Flowers $0.60
6. Silver Holly $0.30
7. Silver Apple & Drum set $0.30

TOTAL: $4.69

This wreath does not look like it's $5.00! I highly suggest making your own wreath, it makes it more rewarding to come home from work to see your festive wreath that YOU created. :) It will also most likely be cheaper than buying a store bought wreath.

Next DIY project this week: My boyfriend and I will be making our own ornaments. Stay tuned.....

Christmas is only 13 days away! Is everyone done their shopping yet?

P.S. Be sure to enter my giveaway that ends this Thursday! You could win lovely jewelry and hair pins from Once Upon A Peony's Etsy shop! Click here NOW to enter!

Friday Giveaway from Once Upon A Peony!

I caught up with one of my favorite Etsy shops Once Upon A Peony! Marissa, the owner and creator, actually lives close by to me and we remembered that we knew each other in High School after catching up! It is such a small world! We did graduate with over 1,000 students though. Yikes! Now she makes these cute jewelry pieces on Etsy as her creative outlet. I recently bought a pair of her Madelyn Earrings in the Mermaid color you can see me posing with them here on her shop! I loved the pop of color that they added to my outfits!

Please read my brief interview with the owner of Once Upon A Peony, the lovely Marissa! After you are done reading please do a few things to be eligible to win the adorable trio of Gingerbread Man earrings, Rapunzel hair pins, and Serendipity Rose ring! I wish I could win this! haha

HOW TO WIN:

1. Follow my blog with Google Friend Connect or "Like Amy Bird Tweets on Facebook.
2. "Like Once Upon A Peony on Facebook.
3. Leave a comment saying why you should win. :)

The winner will be announced on Thursday December 16th. Good Luck! :)

Q: How long have you been selling on Etsy?

A: I opened my Etsy store in March of 2010.

Q: What made you want to use flowers in most of your designs?

A: My grandparents had this picture of a little girl picking flowers hanging up in their house. My grandmother loved flowers, especially roses, and they always had some around their home. When my grandmother passed away, I started to think of flowers as her way of saying hello to me, so they are kind of my little tribute to her.

Q: What else do you do besides create pieces for your Etsy shop?

A: When I'm not working on my shop, I love to spend time with my family. My husband and I have twin girls who will be two this month, so we love to take them to fun places once a week, like the park or the movies. I also help out in my family's deli when they need an extra hand.

Q: What are some of your other favorite Etsy shops?

A: I absolutely love Lonkoosh. Her pieces are so amazing to me - she takes vintage pieces and creates something new and gorgeous with them.. I wish I had the patience and creativity that she has! I also love CulpablyCute's butterfly necklaces, and JudyStalus has some gorgeous flower pictures.

Q: Do you wear your own pieces?

A: I am always wearing something that I made.. Right now I'm wearing a lot of my rose gold geometry necklaces, which will be available in my shop soon :)

Q: What else do you do for fun?

A: Aside from just hanging out with my daughters, I love going on dates with my husband, trying new restaurants is our favorite thing, even though we don't have much time for it anymore. I also love to travel - I think Brazil is the most beautiful place in the world.

Check out her shop if you want to purchase any of the items you see here. She has so much more be sure to go and support! :)

Thanks! Have a great weekend everyone.

Angelina Jolie Vogue Cover Shoot

For once it is really nice to see Angelina all dolled up and looking so feminine for this December 2010 Vogue Cover shoot! This Carolina Herrera fuchsia satin dress really suits her well and compliments her skin tone. I really love the soft make up and light pink lip shade she adorns for the cover. Her skin looks porcelain, fragile and flawless, I know it's all in a days work of the cover editors, however, she is 35 and looking fantastic!

My favorite look is by far the Yves Saint Laurent satin tuxedo jacket, banded shorts, and patent leather sandals with rhinestone heels! I'm a sucker for black and white photos, they are so classic! The location for this photo shoot looks like it was at an old mansion which makes her look so regal in her photos, which she already is. Miss Jolie is such a unique person and is such an intriguing individual. I definitely have a girl crush on her and wish I could be as bad ass as she is.

*All Photos are from JustJared.com

John Wind - Maximal Art Trunk Show

{Gothic Chic Watch Bracelet}

{Modern Vintage Jewelry by John Wind}

{Mr. John Wind...The Creator}

{Beautiful Chunky Charm Bracelets}

{Charms, Charms, Charms!}

{Each piece is so unique and definitely make a statement}

The John Wind Maximal Art Trunk Show was held this past weekend on Saturday November 27th at the Joan Shepp boutique in Philadelphia on Walnut Street in Center City. Joan Shepp is one of Philadelphia's most prestigious boutiques. Joan Shepp was actually one of John Wind's first American customers!

John Wind studied at the Slade School of Art in London and on weekends he would go on hunts for vintage pieces to add to his collection. He also loves Victorian jewelry as well because he feels it creates emotion through the story that Victorian pieces can tell. John started Maximal Art in 1985 and it has grown over the years, however, modern vintage has always been his style.

John's Jewelry has been featured in many magazines such as Philadelphia Magazine, Philadelphia Style Magazine, Oprah's Gift Guide, Brides Magazine, In Style Magazine and many others! His collection has continued to grow over the years because his work are timeless pieces that will never go out of style.

I really love the mix of different vintage pins, brooches, and charms he uses when creating bracelets and necklaces. It makes for a very unique style and one of a kind pieces. This trunk show was definitely about charms but they were all so beautiful it made it hard to pick just one to take home! If you want something that really sparkles and stands out to wear for New Year's Eve or at your next holiday party, shop the John Wind Maximal Art Online Store today!

Like John Wind on Facebook & Follow him on Twitter to stay up to date on the latest news!

If you are from the Philly area be sure to stop over to Joan Shepp on 16th and Walnut to look at the John Wind Charms! There are over 100 charms in the shop right now and they make perfect Christmas gifts!