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Jess

A BLAIRSVILLE BIRTHDAY

Back in February I had the pleasure of photographing a friend’s thirtieth birthday up in Blairsville, GA.  This friend, Maggie, is a very talented calligrapher, stylist, curator, host…the list goes on!  Knowing these skills I knew it was going to be GOOD.

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As I predicted it was dreamy! We pulled up to a beautiful two-story cabin that overlooked Lake Nottely with a mountain view. The dinner featured hand-lettered menus, enamelware, foraged greenery, plaid (!!!), cutest mini wood and gold flatware and many more of Maggie’s touches. Lets let the photos do the talking –

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The birthday lady!

I asked her what made her pick this spot and she said with certainty it was the raw wood table!  I’m sure the view also had something to do with it but I agree, it is a really good table for hosting such an epic evening!

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She mixed her own chairs with chairs from the cabin for a fun mixed-matched seating arrangement.

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OYSTERS!

Did I mention she has a knack for presentation?!

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After this party I was so obsessed with oysters. Remember my recap post from Oysterfest? We went because I enjoyed eating them so much this day!

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Working her magic on finishing touches.

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It was pretty when the sun was shining bright but every hour it got a little darker it kept getting better and better!

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I wish I could photograph these type of events all the time!  Seriously a dream.

Stayed for the meal, party and after party!  Thanks for letting me take a part in your special day and bomb party Maggie!

 

SCOTT’S ANTIQUE MARKET

While the guys were off camping and hiking over the weekend a few ladies and I tossed around ideas of what to do and Scott’s Antique Market market came up.  I had never been but heard lots of good feedback.  But also stuff like “beware of replications!”  So I looked around the internet and found mixed reviews but since you never really know till you see for yourself, we went for it.

When we pulled up I thought “ok, looks like and old Walmart turned into an expo center, this outta be interesting..” but walking down the first couple rows I knew it was going to be good!

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It was a good thing most of the stuff was inside because it was very cold and windy! There were some outside booths set up which is actually where I did all my buying, but the majority of browsing is inside the center.

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These hand-painted audubons were from the 1800s. This hippie at heart will always love retro mushroom things!

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Dressed comfy and warm in a Madewell sweater, Nordstrom top, InFlow Style leggings, Chucks, Neva Opet necklace and Madewell tote.

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The above old grain sacks from France would make the prettiest pillow cases. Sara and I both gravitated towards the stripes. These particular ones were pricey but after walking around for a bit we found another vendor that had more reasonable prices.

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Ok, so there were some mass produced, not so real deal pieces, but they were actually pretty great. The hanging baskets would make awesome fern planters.

These are dough bowls, unsure of the time period, but growing up my mom had one on our dining room table and I thought it was so cool.

If you’re in the market for rugs Scotts is the place to go!  So many vendors selling Persian and Turkish varieties. I found a couple I liked a lot but wanted to have Dustin’s opinion as well as wait till our couch arrives and we find accent chairs.

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Lots of booths with specific categories but also a bunch with various antique knickknacks. It’s also known for it’s great selection of estate jewelry. Heard lots of brides to be shopping here.

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There was a plant dealer that sold the neatest arrangements of cacti and succulents. Took a lot of restraint not to buy the above planter!  Ash bought this huge aloe plant from the guys that had a flower that was about 4′ tall, really unique.

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Another item that took talking myself out of buying. The last thing our house needs is another set of antlers. Though I really liked these better than our bare ones, the plaque adds a bit of classiness.

Things I haven’t stopped thinking about: grain sack pillowcase, a white/black mud cloth blanket, that cactus and an old wooden crate used to transport Johnnie Walker Red Label.

Things I went home with: A fold-up picnic table from a legit German Beer garden.  Guy bought them from a town that bordered Germany and Belgium.  This was a dream score! Such a cool story behind it and $175 for a table and two benches that can seat 8 maybe, 10 people. We were wanting an outdoor table and this fell into our laps! Also left with two vintage crates. Not as cool as the Johnnie Walker one but stacked they make for a rad plant stand.

We hit up a lot of stuff but there’s definitely booths we didn’t see and also a whole other building. Next time it’d be good to do one building one day and come back (your ticket is good all weekend) to conquer the other. I can only walk around so many hours plus we had to break for lunch (and beers!)  After coming home and telling Dustin about it he’s wanting to go, so a round two is definitely in order!

In a nutshell:
2nd weekend of the month, Fri/Sat/Sun
$5 entrance fee with free parking
Two buildings, North and South, bus on site for a free ride
1 ticket purchase gets you in all weekend

Tomorrow my little brother ties the knot! Crazy to think all three of us will be hitched. Weather’s looking good-Dustin and I both are in the wedding-should be a fun and lovey dovey time!

Enjoy your weekend!!

BARTACO’S SECRET TACO

Don’t know if I’ve mentioned this but the taco food group (totally a thing!) is my favorite type of food. Same with Dustin! Basically the reason we went to Mexico for our honeymoon- only slightly kidding!

But for real, I take tacos seriously and have my spots here in Atlanta that I go to often. Semi-new to the rotation is Bartaco. I’ve been to the Westside location a few times and on Sunday we went to check out the one in Inman Park.

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Did you know they have a secret-off the menu-rotating taco? I didn’t till I started seeing it pop-up on Instagram! Dustin and I were curious to try the current one, which I’ll keep hush* so you can have a taco surprise as well, so we went to check it out.  We were impressed!  Unique and tasty. *Ahhh I want to describe it so bad!

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Another perk is their cocktails.  Crazy good!  Not only are the concoctions unique but they use fresh pressed fruit which you can definitely taste. What an upgrade from the pre-mixed versions!

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Dustin sipping on the not-so-regular-regular-marguarita. Fresh juice makes all the difference for real y’all!

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I seriously can’t think of a side that compares to Bartaco’s corn.  This is not an ad, I genuinely feel that strongly about it.  I’d compare it to pure gold, spicy cheesy gold!

(Reading this aloud to Dustin he said “sounds pretty accurate!”)

The red cocktail is the “Sanguina” – I highly recommend this hibiscus-infused + blood orange + lime + agave beverage!

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Enjoying the “Port Chester Reviver” which is gin + cucumber + mint + mango nectar + lime juice. Since I’ve already said the corn is gold I can’t say it again so we’ll call this- liquid Summer!

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New jewelry and new tattoo!

Bracelets are from Giles and Brother and ring is from Young Blood Boutique by the Brooklyn designer, YAH YAH.

Tattoo was done by a Lauren of Melting Sun Apparel who’s recently started doing stick and pokes out of her house.  I love how it turned out to be like wearing jewelry.

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Two of these are not on the menuuuuu and those two may be the secrets!

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Any guesses yet??

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Awesome thing #203: The patio is a dream! Open air with various table settings, some short with the most adorable stools and a big ole fireplace to warm up at on chilly nights.

Wearing an Anthro jumpsuit, Madewell sweater, Stetson hat, Nine West boots, vintage Saks  bag and TOMS shades.

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We both loved how the environment reminded us of our honeymoon in Mexico.  There was a restaurant we ate at several times called Ziggy’s that had these same basket lights. Good vibes!

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Dawwww, my guy :)

What a night. Nothing beats sitting next to a fire, in your favorite city with your better half, sipping drinks and planning life plans WHILE EATING TACOS!

Thanks for having us Bartaco!

Next post: Recap of Scott’s Antique Market

BAR MAKEOVER

Dustin came up with the brilliant idea to transform our hosier cabinet into a bar and before he could even tell me the full thought I was taking out the stored bowls and knickknacks and moving over the booze.  SO PUMPED ON THIS! It really took our dining room up a notch.

Bitters on point but need to restock our alcohol. Dwindled down :P

Bought this ornament at West Elm for mine and Dustin’s first Christmas and never put it away because I love it so much. And now that it’s got this sweet flare from Floral Asheville, it’s pretty much never getting put away!

I realize a bunch of the photos look the same but I could not pick my favorites and these are even the narrowed down ones! The lighting was too good this morning.

Tomorrow I’m hitting up Scott’s Antique Market for the first time. Bringing some ladies and my camera. Hoping to find a few treasures. Keeping an eye out for brass candlestick holders, sugar molds and anything mid-century. Blog post to follow our adventure!

WEST ELM POP-UP RECAP

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The event was a sweet success! The weather was beautiful which led to great foot traffic around Atlantic Station, some familiar faces stopped by and the whoopie pies were DELICIOUS!  I hung out from 1-4 chatting with the makers and running around snapping photos (and lets be honest, checking out all the awesome new Spring/Summer inventory, swoon!)

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Kept it casual in a Madewell top, Joes Jeans denim, Free People slip-ons, Neva Opet necklace and Warby Parker glasses.

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The maker’s booths were set up directly in front as you walked in so shoppers couldn’t miss the goods! If they weren’t initially aware of the sale, they got immediately curious and walked up to browse. Had a nice traffic flow going on.

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WHOOPIE PIES! These things were huge! And so yum. I got the peanut butter and tried a bite of Dustin’s oatmeal. Mae’s Bakery knocked it out of the park!

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The maker’s enjoyed having West Elm goodies at their disposal to add some (literal) life to their displays!

Kyle was ready to stamp anything your heart desired on his products. Here he was putting “Inman Park” on a key chain for a customer who’s friend just moved from the city.

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Hey girl hey!

Behind Rachel is the permanent local section so any given day you walk into the store there are products from Atlanta’s finest!  Additionally, West Elm just launched a whole section for locals products, check it out here.

So happy with how the event turned out! Thanks to West Elm for entrusting my taste in local artists and giving me the chance to curate my first lil market!