this week's clicks.

get your week off to a colorful start...
SWOON.

Flora and Fauna via Wedding Chicks

• At Wedding Chicks, rustic elegance in Maine.
• From EAD, an elegant white and gold wedding.
• Love this roundup of dreamy bohemian spaces.
• I'm making this gem my new mantra for summer.

SMILE.

• June desktops: Flipsnack, Dawn Nicole, Smashing.
• Modern Mrs. Darcy's summer reading guide has arrived!
• From Refinery 29, what's coming to Netflix this month.
• Quick, go congratulate Micah on her brand new book!

FLASHBACK.

• 2015: strawberry ice style picks, gorgeous floral arches, and Deception at Sable Hill.
• 2014: favorite summer brights, inspiration for a cerulean and pink ballroom wedding, the weirdest search terms people Googled to get to BTA in 2014 and my June favorites.
• 2013: summer reminiscing with the Sunday Social ladies and shared the weird Google search terms that brought people to the blog in 2013.
• 2012: inspiration for a mint and blue wedding.  
• 2011: a wedding planning meltdown and my decision to DIY instead.  

2016 blog loves.

Three years ago, Ginger from Literally Inspired asked us to share our "blog-mances" - the blogs we were absolutely, head over heels, gotta-read-every-post obsessed with. I still love rounding up the impressive blogs that cover a range of of my favorite topics - art, lifestyle, home decor, cooking, DIY, reading - and that I think you should add to your reading list ASAP! This month, the topic for The Circle link-up hosted by Kiki from In Its Time was "Blogger Valentines," so it's the perfect time to share an updated list of blogs I've fallen for.  Here are five blogs I'm loving right now...

You Are My Fave

You Are My Fave - Melanie's blog is dedicated to diy projects, decorating and party ideas, gift guides, and other fun, quirky, and colorful finds. I fell in love with her blog thanks to her creative "in a box" series, like these TV shows in a box.

Oh Happy Day - If it involves parties, DIY, neon, interior design, larger-than-life photo props and backgrounds, or balloons, Jordan and the other creators behind Oh Happy Day have found ways to make it new and fun. My favorite feature is the weekly round-up of clever party ideas from around the web.

Camille Styles - Reading this lifestyle blog is like reading a fabulously glossy magazine about a well-lived life. The team features recipes, beauty tutorials, and wellness tips, along with sneak peeks at amazing parties, and pulls off sponsored posts in a way that isn't cloying.

Still Being Molly - Molly posts about her life as a mom, her love of essential oils, tips on how to manage money, real-girl fashion and wardrobe picks that support good causes.

Allons-y Kimberly - Kimberly seems to be on a bit of a hiatus right now, but I hope she comes back soon! Her lifestyle blog was one of my inspirations to share more of my geeky side (I love her "Weekly Wonders" posts) and join in the #5FandomFriday fun.

Previously featured blog loves I'm still freaking out over:  Corilynn, Southern Curls and Pearls, Nine-Thirty to Five, Putting Me Together, Un-Fancy, A Cup of Jo, Oh Joy!, Sacramento Street, Oana Befort, Sarah's Scribbles, The Everygirl, Fabulous K, Note to Self, Yes and Yes, My Life as a Teacup, The Perpetual Page-Turner, The Life of Bon, Bright Bazaar, Clean and Scentsible, Trash Is For Tossers, Everyday Occasions, City Farmhouse, A Thoughtful Place, {Ella Claire}, The Lettered Cottage, Earnest Home Co.,  6th Street Design School, The Vintage Housewife, Tidy Mom, A Farmgirl's Dabbles, The Gracious Pantry, SkinnyTaste, How Sweet It Is, Shutterbean, The Recipe Critic, Dinner, A Love Story

Which blogs always put a smile on your face?  Do you have any recommendations this month?

please take my 2016 reader survey!

I can't believe that I've been blogging on Beyond the Aisle for five years now. What started as my wedding planning blog has become a place for me to share my love of practical fashion,  document my travels, round up ideas for bringing a spirit of celebration to everyday life, and geek out about my favorite TV shows, movies, and books. 

As I think about the direction I want the blog to take in 2016, one thing I know for sure is that I don't want to stop now, but that the content of the blog is going to gradually shift in focus - where weddings used to be front and center in my heart and on the blog, that phase of my life is now a fond memory. 

As Beyond the Aisle has become a lifestyle blog, I think about you, my readers, what your own lifestyles entail, and how I might be able to help you live those lives colorfully. I love those moments when I check my e-mail and see that you're checking out a book or seeing a movie I've recommended, see one of your beautiful faces on my Instagram feed, or when I read your blogs and realize that I've found a kindred spirit who loves the same things I do. To help facilitate those moments in 2016, I’ve created my first Beyond the Aisle Reader Survey. This survey is 100% anonymous, is only ten questions long, and will help me create content that will keep you coming back to Beyond the Aisle. Will you please take a few minutes to help me get to know you better? All you have to do is fill out the Typeform below and hit submit. In a month, I'll review and compile the results and start working on an action plan to make BTA better than ever, and relevant to our real lives right now.

   

Powered by Typeform

who to follow on instagram - january 2016

Let's get right to it, shall we?

monikahibbs | shannonkirsten

monikahibbs - This Vancouver blogger and stylist has one of the most beautifully-curated Instagram feeds around, full of bright whites, soft pinks and the occasional flash of gold. Monika and her husband recently welcomed their second child, so there are also lots of cute little baby snaps.

shannonkirsten - Florida-based illustrator Shannon Kirsten shares her inspiration, illustrations and surface designs. Fans of Rifle Paper Company and Anthropologie, check out her work.

 

eastandblog | apartment_34

eastandblog - Blogger Nadine shares her cute dog, slices of life, and pretty shapshots of Philly.

apartment_34 - Erin Hiemstra, author of the titular blog, shares her signature "joy in the details" - home decor, food and cocktails, travel and more.

brahmino | livvylandblog

livvylandblog - Fashion blogger Olivia Watson shares perfectly inspiring OOTD posts and flat lays that are actually fun to look at.

brahmino - Photographer Simone Bramante specializes in breathtaking landscapes that highlight the beauty of nature - ocean vistas, soaring forests, and cityscapes full of inspiration for dreamers.

Previously recommended: abeachcottage, agirlastyle, anacvitanovic, annariflebond, blaireadiebee, brightbazaar, carmenmariez, cozystylishchic, elsiecake, frassyaudrey, fresh_exchange, glitterguide, heatherbullard, housesevenblog, humansofny, hungryeditor, jane_lilly, justinchung, justinslens , kattanita, kirstenalana, kissmyspatula, labellemel31, lifeonvirginiastreet, lizlovegrowswild, mattcrump, missmustardseed, moodygirlinstyle, nellahelsinki, ohjoystudio, oliviaraejames, quiteheatherly, rachelroams, roomsforrent, sugarandcloth, snippetandink, stylishpetite, takinyerphoto, taylorsterling, thelandmarkproject, thepinkdiary, thisisglamorous, thislittlestreet, tifforelie, tinyatlasquarterly, trentonmichael,  waitingonmartha, witanddelight_

Are you on Instagram?  I'd love to follow you!

Leave your username in a comment to this post -

(you can follow me here). 

clicks of note: we're home...

get your week off to a colorful start.

LISTEN.

• One of the great mysteries of the music world to me is that Matt Nathanson isn't a household name yet. "All We Are" came up on my Pandora and I realized I'd forgotten what a lovely song it is. I'm linking up with Musical Mondays at My So-Called Chaos.

SWOON.

• Jennifer Blair photographed this perfect beach wedding.
• DIY marbelized ribbon from Oh Happy Day - so pretty!
• Style Me Pretty features an elegant Rhode Island wedding.
• SW shows off a simple, lovely Memphis restaurant wedding.

SMILE.

• Digging a painted geometric welcome mat from The Crafted Life.
• Lovely Indeed's new series is so clever... art and style combined.
• Thrifty Decor Chick shares ways to fit storage all over the house.
• Vogue presents a history of the coolest French It Girl hairstyles.

FLASHBACK.

• Last year I shared a Sunday Social all about the 5's, joined the Literary Junkies link-up, rounded up beautiful bridesmaids in white, let Mr. Q take over the blog for a day, and recapped my April in entertainment.
• Two years ago I recapped my entertainment favorites from April and my spring in Instagram photos.
• Three years ago I shared my big goals for the future and wardrobe inspiration featuring Pantone's 2012 Color of the Year, Tangerine Tango.

year in review: most popular posts of 2014

We've come to the last few days of 2014, and it's time to reflect.  Google Analytics, Blogger, and Pinterest are handy tools to use to see what posts were popular this year and where visitors to Beyond the Aisle were coming from.

Here's a peek at my stats from 2014:
Visitors - 16,991 (up over 1,000 from last year!)
Unique Visitors - 15,351 (up over 3,000 from last year!)
Pageviews - 23,260 (up over 2,000 from last year!)

Visitors from these countries visited Beyond the Aisle in 2014:
1. United States
2. Canada
3. United Kingdom
4. Australia
5. Germany
6. France
7. South Africa 
8. Philippines
9. Brazil
10. Mexico

These cities are home to Beyond the Aisle readers:
1. Charlottesville
2. New York
3. Chicago (up from #7 last year!)
4. London
5. Washington
6. Baltimore
7. Hialeah
8. Toronto
9. Los Angeles
10. Houston

Most popular posts:

10. Sunday Social: Beauty Edition - I really miss the Sunday Social link-ups - the questions often got me thinking.  While beauty doesn't seem like a really in-depth topic, I think we all know that women are actually very interested in each other's routines.

9. Patriotic Washi Tape Decor for Independence Day - let's be honest, this was the easiest DIY ever!  I still wanted to share my little burst of creativity with the blog world for one of my favorite holidays, and I'm glad people liked it!  My candleholders and vases made a few appearances on Pinterest as well - easy crafts for the win.

8. My May Favorites - Another now-defunct link-up, but I'm still posting my favorites each month - and I still love everything I've posted in these!  A bit of sad news for 2015, though, is that my favorite jewelry company, Lia Sophia, is going out of business.

7. Light It Up Blue for Autism Awareness - We did a big Light It Up Blue week at school and I enjoyed bringing that over to the blog.

6. eShakti Dress Review - One of my favorite posts of the year because Mr. Q helped me with all of the photos and we had fun.  It also brought one of my real-life friends to the blog through eShakti!

5. Winter Style: Classy in Cranberry - You're going to be seeing a lot of burgundy and maroon shades this year since Marsala was chosen as Pantone's Color of the Year for 2015.

4. Inspiration for a Dreamy Mint and Baby's Breath Spring Wedding - Dream wedding round-ups are still one of my favorite things to do here on the blog.

3. Series: My Favorite 2014 Golden Globes Looks, My Favorite 2014 Golden Globes Hair and Makeup, Oscars Style: My Favorite Hair, Makeup, and Accessories - Clearly, you all are award show junkies just like I am!

2. The Boy Behind the Blog: Mr. Q's Turn to Post! - His answers were short, sweet, and to the point.  AND YOU OBVIOUSLY LOVED IT.

1. Rock and Roll 50th Birthday Party Ideas - My best work friend worked so hard on her husband's birthday party and Mr. Q and I were happy to help out by lending our photography and DIY skills.  I'm still really proud of my chalkboard project and it has become popular on Pinterest as well!

current blog loves

Every now and again here at Beyond the Aisle, I feel inspired to round up my "blog-mances" - a variety of awesome blogs that cover all of my favorite subjects - art, lifestyle, home decor, cooking, DIY, reading - and that I think you should add to your reading list ASAP!  Here are five blogs I'm loving this December...

Oana Befort

Oana Befort - Oana is a talented illustrator whose blog includes design freebies like pretty desktop wallpapers and printable holiday gift tags, along with her ongoing project to take photos of her (adorable) children every week for a year, lovely photos of life in Bucharest, Romania, and the occasional inspiration post.

Yes and Yes

Yes and Yes - Sarah Von is a world traveler who lives life on purpose, and I think that she has one of the most unique voices on the web.  It's like she scours the four corners of the Internet for the most unusual, but interesting content aimed toward a primarily young female audience.  The "Mornings In" series shows how women around the world greet the day and Mini Travel Guides give readers the inside scoop on destinations that are off the beaten path.  Her True Story features (like this interview with a professional ballerina), which cover all sorts of controversial, interesting, and quirky choices and lifestyles, are probably my favorite, but I also love the Network of Nice and Web Time Wasters.  Sarah has an app coming out in January - I really hope it will be available for Android because it looks awesome!

House of Earnest

House of Earnest - Erin Souder's lifestyle blog encompasses home decor, DIY (how pretty is this pillow inspired by Moroccan wedding blankets?), recipes, and party inspiration.  She also shares behind-the-scenes peeks as she runs her own business, Grandiflora.  My favorite feature is her Friday Favorites series- the posts always include something modern and stylish that will catch my eye!

Trash is for Tossers

Trash is for Tossers - I discovered this blog one day when I saw that several of my Facebook friends had shared a link to an article called something like, "She hasn't made any trash in two years.  Here's what her life is like."  Total clickbait, but I was really intrigued.  I spent the rest of that evening reading every single post on Lauren Singer's blog.  Her goal is to live a sustainable, Zero Waste life, and she chronicles that journey on TIFT.  Her posts include zero-waste alternatives to everyday items, supplies and recipes for cleaning and skincare, spotlights on companies that take a waste-free approach to producing their goods, and strategies for traveling waste-free.  I am so inspired by how Lauren lives in a way that truly reflects her values, and her blog has made me more likely to stop and think before buying plastic.  She's even launching her own company!

The Perpetual Page-Turner

The Perpetual Page-Turner - a haven for YA and adult book nerds, I discovered Jamie's blog through her post on being married to a non-reader.  Her reviews have a conversational tone and she often reflects on how the books she's reading relate to her own life.  I really enjoy her monthly round-up posts, which go beyond books to include recent obsessions, favorite blog posts from around the web, and great music.

Previously featured blog loves I'm still freaking out over:  Corilynn, Southern Curls and Pearls, Nine-Thirty to Five, A Cup of Jo, Oh Joy!, Dandee, The Fresh Exchange, Sacramento Street, Geninne's Art Blog, The Everygirl, Fabulous K, Note to Self, My Life as a Teacup, Bright Bazaar, Clean and Scentsible, Everyday Occasions, City Farmhouse, A Thoughtful Place, {Ella Claire},The Lettered Cottage,  The Vintage Housewife, Tidy Mom, A Farmgirl's Dabbles, The Gracious Pantry, SkinnyTaste, How Sweet It Is, Shutterbean, The Recipe Critic, Dinner, A Love Story

Which blogs always put a smile on your face?  Do you have any recommendations this month?

the final sunday social: on blogging.

Today is Neely and Ashley's last Sunday Social, so I couldn't resist putting my own spin on their questions.  I can't wait to see what kind of link-up they come up with next!

1. How did you come up with your blog name?
It got to the point where I wasn't a bride-to-be or a recent newlywed anymore, and I wanted a name that reflected the biggest thing I want women planning weddings to know - there is life after the wedding, and there's a lot more to celebrate.  Beyond the Aisle is about celebrating every day and learning to love life by adding as much color and style as possible.

2. What is your favorite thing about blogging?
I've been blogging in some form since I was in high school and I love how I can look back and see how my voice has changed as a writer.  I was very sarcastic when I was younger, and now I'm more serious and try to encourage my readers.

3. What is one thing you have discovered because of blogging and now can’t live without?
Instagram, for sure.  I remember seeing cool, retro-looking square photos on Bleubird's blog and I couldn't believe how easy it was to get the same look.

4. Facebook or Twitter? Why?
Facebook; most of my friends from high school and family members haven't gotten on the Twitter boat yet, and I love being able to see longer posts and photo albums.  Basically I use Facebook to stalk other people's babies.  In a non-creepy way.

5. If one celeb read your blog, who would you want it to be?
Zooey Deschanel.

6. What is something you want people to know about your blog?

When it looks like I'm slacking off on the blog, that's when I'm putting my heart into my family, my home, and my teaching.  I don't let myself feel guilty about not posting because if I'm not living my life I'm not going to have anything to post about!

oh hey friday: my 5 recent blog loves.

Every season here at Beyond the Aisle, I like to share a handful of my "blog-mances" with my readers - charming blogs that cover all of my favorite subjects - lifestyle, fashion, cooking, organization - and that I think you should add to your reading list ASAP!

Nine-Thirty To Five

Nine-Thirty to Five - Sure, I love the fashion blogs that feature Chanel this and Coach that, tulle skirts with sweatshirts, and other creative takes on what fashion actually is, but what I really want to read are fashion blogs that show me outfits I can actually replicate on an everyday basis.  As cute as those tulle skirts might be, I can't wear them in the hallways of my school.  Paloma and Karen deliver with real-life, work-appropriate outfits that include budget-friendly options (think The Limited, LOFT, J. Crew Factory, and Forever21).  I'm constantly going, "Oh my gosh, I have a leopard print top/striped dress/green pencil skirt/whatever, but I've never thought of wearing it like that!"  I really love that these ladies aren't afraid to repeat items to show how they can be worn in different ways.

{Ella Claire}

{Ella Claire} - Kristen shares her lovingly decorated home, fun craft ideas like her signature vintage-inspired fall signs, and yummy seasonal recipes - the freezable breakfast bites are truly a thing of genius, people!  She's also one of the hostesses of the Inspiration Exchange link-up, which is always worth checking out.

The Lettered Cottage

The Lettered Cottage - Layla and Kevin's blog is very well known due to their DIY skills and work with HGTV.  Their modern take on cottage style is right up my alley - the little reading nook/guest room in their old house is still so inspiring to me.  My favorite features on the blog are Pick My Presto, in which Layla uses her mad Photoshop skills to show people the potential in rooms they want to makeover, and their Blog Threads project, which uses the proceeds from cool t-shirts to help families fund adoptions.

Dinner, A Love Story

Dinner, A Love Story - Reading Jenny Rosenstrach's blog is like having a conversation with your cool older sister who's got her act together.  There are so many tried-and-true recipes on this site, like the 10 fall favorites Jenny posted this week.  The what to cook tonight page is genius.

Previously featured blog loves I'm still loving:  Corilynn, Southern Curls and Pearls, A Cup of Jo, Oh Joy!, Dandee, The Fresh Exchange, Sacramento Street, Geninne's Art Blog, The Everygirl, Fabulous K, Note to Self, My Life as a Teacup, Bright Bazaar, Clean and Scentsible, Everyday Occasions, City Farmhouse, Home Stories A to Z, Teal and Lime, A Thoughtful Place, The Vintage Housewife, Tidy Mom, A Farmgirl's Dabbles, The Gracious Pantry, SkinnyTaste, How Sweet It Is, Shutterbean, The Recipe Critic.

Which blogs always put a smile on your face?  Do you have any recommendations this month?