April 9, 2012

Ohhhhh, Laredo...

Top o' the mornin' to ya, friends! I hope you all had a joyous 3-day Easter weekend with friends, family and beautiful weather! We really need to do something about incorporating more of these 3 day weekends into our schedule, dontcha think?

What kind of weekend wrap-up would this be without me showing you pictures of our weekend spent, once again, out of town?! (Sidenote: this weekend will be broken up into 2 different posts. 500+ photos in one post would really piss you off, now wouldn't it?)

While most of you were baking up a storm, dying eggs and planning out your Easter morning attire, we actually had a pretty non-typical Easter.

A little explanation of what went down this weekend...
***
So a good family friend of ours referred us to this incredible custom bookmaker from Mexico, Carlos. He does an awesome job, charges like a fourth the price of what you could get made here in Texas and you can totally customize your boots to have whatever your little heart desires on them.

Amazing, right?
(Beau has 2 pair so I can honestly vouch for his work...)

There's only one catch...

You have to go down to the border to get them made.
...and when I say "border", I mean "the Mexican border".

I tell no lies...
Yes. That's a cop you're looking' at right thurr and a hotel surrounded by barbed wire. 
The Mexican border is just to the right...ohhhh about 200 yards away...

Ok wait. There's  one other catch...

Carlos speaks not one ounce of English and, therefore, you must bring a translator. 
(AKA: Beau's brown friend, Irvin. And for the record, he calls himself "brown" so I can too.)

So we drive down to the family ranch the night before. We wake up bright and early the next morning, drive for 2 hours and meet Carlos at, actually, a pretty decent hotel called La Posada. (Did I mention it's the closest hotel to the Mexican border?)

It's literally an in and out kinda deal. Do not waste any time.

Don't walk around outside the hotel property. 
Don't give anyone weird looks. 
Girls, don't even wear your wedding ring. 
Go in, get your boots made, pay the man. Leave. 
(With a  few margaritas at the bar and a pit stop at the pool, of course.)

How it works:

1. Bring almost every boot you own to use for inspiration
Beau's custom boots are the red/black UH ones and his dad's are the brown/tan ones with the TX emblem.

2. Google the hell out of custom boot ideas and when all else fails, refer to Carlos' book for ideas.

3. Draw a pretty picture of what you want.
Pink, paisley & personalized. Did you expect any less?
So my art skills are lacking...you get the point.

4. Get in good with Carlos and politely ask him to take a photo with you. :)
(Thanks, C!)

5. Stand on a manilla folder to be measured up.
So professional, right? 

6. Have brown kid translate the exact shade of pink you're wanting so Carlos can make his final notes.
 "No. Not hot pink, Carlos, lipstick pink...there IS a difference."
(See. This is where the brown kid comes in...)

7. Sit back and watch everyone else pick out their boots...

8. Booze heavily and hope to GOD Carlos understands exactly what you're wanting...
He's single, ladies! ;)




Finally, you wait 3-4 months before they come in the mail 
and then you sport the heck outta those puppies every chance you get!
***
Anxious doesn't even BEGIN to describe it!!
The fact that these pretty little gems are made out of elephant skin (sorry, I'm not sorry, PETA), have my initials on them aaaand no one else on the face of the Earth will have anything even remotely close to them...can I just say...feels pretty damn cool?

Good.

'Cuz it is pretty damn cool, if you ask me.
***
So while we all know Laredo isn't the safest of places, I must say, 
it really does have a lot of beautiful things to offer...I mean, it is in Texas...








See? Beautiful things, right?!
***
To be continued...

32 comments:

  1. Haha who is single me or Irvin? the way you wrote it looks like it can go either way. Love your boots I am sure they will come out just as you drew them.

    Hubby

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  2. lol yes you are single BBFT. Obviously.

    I'm DYING about how often you said brown man in this post. If I didn't know you and Beau I would be saying hillshit like 50x over. "You tell that David he's a real..."

    SO excited for you and your boots I know how much they mean to you!! and the countdown until we are together again has started..

    ps-what MATERIAL is Beau's shirt made out of? pleather?

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  3. This is so cool! I bought a pair this weekend, but they don't look nearly as awesome as yours are going to! If only I lived in Texas...

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  4. Umm, I need this Carlos! Dying for some custom TCU boots, but not at Ft Worth prices... Love the pink

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  5. Oh my goodness that is SOO awesome! Love the heart & monogram!!

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  6. This SOSWEET that your hubs commented on your post!!

    And your boots are cute! I, too, hoep they come out exactly as you drew them :)

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  7. I'm so in love with your custom boots, what a GREAT idea :) Can't wait to see the finish product!

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  8. Your boots are going to be awesome!!

    I can't stop singing "Oh Laredo, don't let her go
    Just take by the heart
    And let the wheels turn slow"

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  9. Your idea for boots is so pretty! I would love to do this! Can't wait to see what the finished boots will look like! :)

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  10. My friend does the same thing for his custom boots! Wonder if it's the same guy? Can't wait to see more pics. And that is so funny how you gave him that single shout out!

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  11. I love the idea of customized boots! I have to admit though, I don't own any boots at all. How sad is that?! I gotta get with the Houston program!

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  12. I felt nervous FOR you while reading this whole post! I felt at any time the hotel was going to get raided and you were going to be telling us a story of how you ended up in a Mexican jail. You're one brave girl! But I'm sure those boots will be totally worth it!

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  13. Can't wait to see your boots!! Cn you give us Carols's info?!? I want some!

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  14. Oh my gosh, this is SO neat!! LOVE! Can NOT wait to see them!!

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  15. SO freaking cool!! I would totally go to the border for those sexy boots!! They are going to look so awesome! :)

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  16. Ummmm, hello... love the boot drawing, so freaking cute! I can't wait to see a finished product, and am super jealous. These will make the $$$ boots you didn't buy so much more worth it!

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  17. LOVE everything about this post...especially the manilla folder and the photo op of you and Carlos - CLASSIC! I bet the boots will turn out BEAUTIFUL!:)

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  18. that is so awesome!! cant wait to see!!!

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  19. I would KILL to have custom made boots!! Ahh love!

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  20. i can't wait to see how your boots turn out, the design is sooo cute!

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  21. i can't wait to see how your boots turn out, the design is sooo cute!

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  22. That is so awesome! A bit scary, but still so cool. I love your design! Can't wait to see how they turn out!

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  23. Seriously this is the coolest thing ever and I am 10 kinds of jealous! I need custom made, one-of-a-kind boots asap! I cannot wait to see the finished product.

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  24. OMG. Beau's comment. HUBBY!! what a sweetie!

    mexican border! holy moly! exciting!! I watch Border patrol all the time where they catch dem folks tryin to get in! SUPER intense and you and beau are officially legit.

    the rules...haha! im scared reading them! weird looks not allowed!

    this is flippin AWESOME! When i went to texas in september litereally shalyn was like YOU NEED BOOTS! so we went to a store in austin and i wanted like 10 pairs. WHO KNEW nice boots were 800+ dolla! Holla for a dolla honey boo boo child. I need cowboy boots and i need yours! the design is FANTASTIC! you be so flyyyy

    youre such a little photographer stephy :-) gorgeous photos! and beaus pink shorts are to die for! seriously love

    wish i could meet u guys! oh wait..... :-D

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  25. Ummmm I'm going to need a pair. Stat! Totally jealous of your custom boots and I can't wait to see them when they are done! And who are you btw? Sketching boot drawings???? I wouldn't even know where to begin.

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  26. OMG! I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THEM! The drawing is pretty amazing if you ask me! :)

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  27. I want more boots! And pink ones!! That's freaking amazing I better not tell my fiancé or between the 2 of us we will have more boots than we know what to do with. What a cool story! I am so anxious for you! Oh how did Beau know this guy was legit go begin with? You pay before you get them? That would make me nervous. Ha brown friend! You make me laugh :)

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  28. So jealous of your new boots! They are going to be gorgeous! How do you get in contact with said "Carlos"? :)

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  29. I think this is the coolest thing ever. seriously, personalized boots? That are totally authentic?

    question though. Is it safe to be that close to the border?!?

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  30. Can't wait to see them! Also, your photography is beautiful! Loving these pics!

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  31. JEALOUS times TEN!! I want some Carlos boots!!!!! :( haha so cute! I can not wait to see yours!!!

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  32. Omg! Those are way too cute! Sister, your drawing skills are impressive to me. :)
    What an adventure! And Beau's brown friend is RATHER handsome, I must say :)
    Seriously considering getting some fabulously personalized boots made by Mr. Carlos when I get home to Texas.

    Megan

    sassymagnoliablossom.blogspot.com

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