It feels like fall today...

A big storm came through last night and brought fall with it. Tonight's low is 46; tomorrow's is 44. It'll be perfect weather for a historic Ole Miss-Bama football game in Oxford. Too bad we'll be listening to it on the radio at home because we don't have cable...On the other hand, maybe we don't want to watch. It could be painful. :)

Breezy fall weather calls for more road trip photos with Joan and Sid. They did love their motorhome photos....

Ahh, fall. I love you.

My beautiful grandmother Joan.

Sid and the motorhome.

Joan and the motorhome.

My grandmother Joan and mother Julie. Not sure who the little girl with big glasses is. 

Happy weekend, everyone!

BroTies branding

BroTies business cards.

So proud of these!

Gerald & Joan logo for BroTies. Image taken by Aubrey Hord for BroTies.

Gerald & Joan logo and kraft paper bands for BroTies. Image taken by Aubrey Hord for BroTies.

Gerald & Joan logo for BroTies. Image taken by Aubrey Hord for BroTies.

For the past few months, I've been working with the very talented Aubrey Hord of BroTies to create a handcrafted vintage look and feel for the BroTies brand. You can see my original post about the logos here.

The end results make me so incredibly proud.

The rustic logo incorporates vintage-inspired handwritten fonts and arrows. Black and white business cards seemed boring and unoriginal, so a custom vintage chalkboard design served as the background for her business cards. To continue with the vintage vibe, kraft paper bands were used to create her custom packaging. As you can see, Aubrey has also placed the logo on her kraft show booth and vintage mannequin to continue the rustic-vintage vibe.

It was so fun to work with this super talented Tennessee-based business. Please be sure to check out her handcrafted bow ties. They are so lovely!

I also need to give one last shout-out to Jessica Hord for first connecting me with her talented sister-in-law. In October 2012, this job put me on the fast-track to self-employment and living my Gerald & Joan Preservation and Design dream. Aubrey's vintage mannequin featuring my design (shown above) brings the entire experience full-circle. I can't even begin to describe how happy this project has made me. It's my vintage-inspired design dream realized. I will always be grateful to Jessica and Aubrey. You guys are the best!

Joan and Sid's adventures

Joan only spent a decade as Sid's wife, but they dated from the time my mom was seven years old. Twenty years is such a short time. I've already spent 11 years with Jonathan. Talk about perspective. 

While they were both living, they loved each other madly, and throughout their courtship and marriage, they experienced many adventures together (here's another recent adventure post). A great deal of them involved Sid's beloved Chevrolet truck, the motorhome, his motorcycle and their speedboat. Until they purchased the motorhome, they used a camper that sat on top of the truck. They were also involved in a boating club, and they won a trophy for their efforts in the late '70s. They also had matching boating jackets. My grandmother kept the trophy and the jackets. They are now in the care of my mother. Last weekend, we hung a photo of their boat in my mother's study. It's important to keep these memories alive, don't you think? They remind us to have fun and live life to the fullest.

Sid's Chevy.

Big fish! Hey Mom, look what's under the truck...

Joan, Sid, the original camper and the motorcycle.

Joan wearing her boating jacket and holding a camera.

Awesome '70s pants, palm trees and putt-putt golf. 

More 1970s nature photos

I can't get enough of these 1970s photos from my grandparents' various camping trips. They are just too pretty and make me dream of fall road trips...

If you were planning a road trip this fall, where would you go?