Lauren and Ben's Wedding May 14, 2010

Congratulations Lauren and Ben!

I had the extreme pleasure of coordinating Lauren and Ben's wedding at the Hollywood School House in Woodinville a couple of weeks ago. They are the cutest couple, they wanted a simple, clean wedding using white and sage. I did the flowers, which of course I love doing! Here some photos, compliments of our friend's over at Studio 6 Photography who did an amazing job as always. And I have to give Erin credit for the amazing job she did on the candy bar!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bachelorette parties!

Tired of standing aside while the guys flaunted their wild last night escapades, the gals are joining in the fun with bachelorette parties often just as raucous as their male counterpoints. But donning a dime store tiara while a lubed up dancer named Duke invades the bride’s personal space isn’t required if that’s not her thing. So just what does a bachelorette bash entail? Read on to find out…

What is a Bachelorette Party?

A bachelorette party is really whatever your group makes of it. Since this is an informal event, the etiquette surrounding it is pretty flexible. The only requirements are that the bride enjoys some QT with her best pals.

When Is It?

The party can take place any time during the bride’s engagement but often occurs within the final weeks or months (keeping with the tradition of it being a final sendoff). Steer clear of the last weekend before the wedding, however, as things tend to get pretty hectic for the bride towards the end. With bridesmaids often spread all over the country, the main determinant in scheduling the event is the time when everyone can get together. The maid-of-honor usually gets the ball rolling – coordinating availability with all the ‘maids and other attendees then setting a date that works with everyone’s schedules.

Who Hosts?

The maid-of-honor and bridesmaids usually do the honors, but really anyone who feels the urge can plan a party for the bride-to-be (some brides even have multiple bashes). One person can plan the entire event, or a group can collaborate together (all the bridesmaids, or the happy hour crew). Usually, the host or hosts will tally costs and ask for a donation from all those attending – other than the bride of course. The host(s) should keep all budgets in mind before planning a big blowout gala and make sure all attendees are on board before sending the bill. No one should have to go into debt over this. And to show your appreciation, include some fun bachelorette party favors as an incentive.

Who’s Invited?

Bachelorette party guests are generally the bridesmaids and any other of the bride’s best pals. Unlike shower guests – who must receive a wedding invite – there’s no hard rule that says bachelorette party attendees must also be wedding guests. Inviting coworkers, neighbors, or other casual acquaintances for a fun evening out is perfectly acceptable, as long as you’re up front about the bride’s limited wedding guest list first. For logistical and planning purposes, try to keep the party small – no more than 20 and ideally less than ten.

Where Is It?

The party can literally be anywhere. Choice of location usually follows from the style of party you want to throw. Bars, clubs, restaurants (or a combination of all three - pub crawl anyone?) make the obvious locations for a wild send off. Other options include resorts, spas, beaches, or outdoor activity locations like parks, trails, rivers, or lakes.


What Happens?

Bachelorette parties can involve pretty much any activity the bride would enjoy. The most obvious choice is dragging the bride from bar to bar while calling attention to her in any fun, yet lighthearted, way (think homemade veils and t-shits, phallic paraphernalia, treasure hunts….). But again, that’s not the only way to celebrate. Dinner parties, spa retreats, outdoor excursions, an evening at the show or play – they all make great options depending on the bride’s preference. Unlike the bridal shower, the bachelorette party is not a gift giving event, but you can present the bride with gag gifts or gifts deemed too racy for the shower, like lingerie. All that really needs to happen is fun, laughter, and some serious female bonding. And of course – you may want to embarrass her just a bit along the way.

Bachelorette Party Ideas:

OK – so your bachelorette is not the table dancing, inflatable phallus type of girl. Relax – there are plenty of other ways to send your gal off in style. Here are some g-rated bachelorette party alternatives:

Adventure Bachelorette – go hiking, rafting, horseback riding, camping – really any outdoor activity she enjoys.

Spa Party – gather the girls for some serious pamperingFondue Party – or any style of intimate dinner party (fondue just seems to make things more fun!)

Beach Weekend – enjoy some sun, sand, and plenty of tropical beverages.

Casino Night – all bets are on! Set up game tables, break out the decks, and test your luck with a roll of the dice. A casino night is also a good bet for a co-ed bash.

Wine Tasting – hit up Napa Valley (or the nearest winery) for a day – or weekend – filled with good wine, good conversation, and good friends.

Retail Therapy - gather the crew for a day of boutique shopping. Make it more festive and rent a limo to chauffeur you as you pop in and out of the bride’s favorite stores, and be sure to stock it with champagne.

Psychic Reading - Weddings are all about the future, so help the bride prepare for hers by hiring a fortune teller, astrologer or palm reader.

I found this great post at Elegala

I love labels!

Personalization is the key goal for many brides and grooms planning weddings today. Monograms have become a widely popular theme for wedding decor in items from invitations to wedding cakes. Custom labels can be ordered for your occasion and implemented easily into your wedding design. You can use your labels on favor packaging, wine bottles, cd cases, coasters, name cards and much more.



Be creative with your custom labels for other uses as well. In the image pictured below, a bride used a personalized label on a hand-made cone filled with rose petals and handing one to each person sitting on the center aisle. When the bride and groom walked down the aisle after saying their "I dos" the guests tossed the petals on them as they walked by.



Featured Stamps: myweddinglabels.com
Photo by: Bradley Hanson Photography, Seattle

It sparkles!

There is nothing more elegant than sparkle for an evening wedding, ok let me rephrase that, sparkle done properly. Romance is illuminated by light, crystal, diamonds and gems which is why these elements are an excellent theme design for your evening wedding. Paired with any color, rhinestones, diamonds and crystals set the mood for your romantic wedding design. We've gathered some examples of how you can use rhinestone and crystal accents as the backdrop for your decor.

First pay close attention to the detailing of your table centerpieces. By using reflection in the form of mirrors or glass, pair crystal or cut glass candleholders with silver or gold accents to reflect light at each table. Featured above, is an example from Plum Party. A pack of two retails for $36.

Rhinestones can also be featured in your cake and table setting. The cake featured to the right, comes from Creme de la Creme in Seattle, WA. Crystal accents adorn the base of the cake. The rhinestone motif is also carried out in the frosting of the cake itself - and its all fully edible. Rhinestone ribbons in packs of 50 are also available for various decorative accents at Target. Target also carries rhinestone cake toppers in any letter or number.

The rhinestone and jeweled motif also transfers beautifully to bridal style and accessories. Featured below are examples of small accent pieces that adorn bridal gowns. (Left: BCBG gown available at Nordstrom; Top Right: Alfred Angelo) Also note the rhinestone cuff detailing the bridal bouquet.


Beautiful accessories for the bride are also available in many retail outlets that are adorned with tasteful touches of rhinestones. Choose accessories like lipstick cases, chandelier earrings, cuff bracelets, shoes, and clutches to accent your jeweled theme.

Even the wedding favors or bridal party gifts can reflection the overall theme. For instance, the beautiful and classic key chain from Swarovski makes an excellent gift.

As with any theme for your wedding, the important thing to remember is that even the smallest details should be addressed. A successful design is executed when everything from the invitations to the decor to the accessories carries out the same theme. Not only does it bring continuity to your design, but it actually makes it easier to shop and create the decor because you'll have a clear focus on what you are purchasing.

Smart Bride

I am always on the look out for a bargain, and I am all for buying used wedding dresses! It's earth friendly, wallet friendly, and please anything worn less than 12 hours is new in my book. So I came across a great site to buy and sell your used wedding dresses! Smart Bride, listing is FREE, yes you got it FREE, looking and contacting sellers is FREE. So if your looking for a used wedding dress or trying to sell your "old" one check this site out! www.smartbride.net

Wedding Favors Under a Buck

You have scrimped, saved, and spent, now you need cheap favors, here are some ideas.

1. Scratch Tickets
Price: $1 each
How to use them: Place each scratch ticket in a clear sleeve with a brand new penny. Put a little note inside telling your guests you hope they are as lucky in love as you have been.
Where to get them: At your local grocery or convenience store

2. Mini Vellum Envelopes
Price: $8.75 for a pack of 25 (that's $.35 each!)
How to use them: Fill each individual envelope with a family recipe, verse, poem, fortune, or other meaningful words. Or go another route and just fill them with candy such as my least favorite: Jordan Almonds, a traditional candy for good luck.
Where to get them: Type pictured is available at Beau-Coup.com

3. Embossed Favor Bags
Price: $.50 each
How to use them: We suggest going green with these adorable pouches. Place some seeds inside to grow herbs, flowers, or vegetables and include instructions for your guests on where and how to grow their new plant.
Where to get them: Available at Beau-coup.com

4. Tea For Two Teabags
Price: $.85
How to use them: Everything can be customized these days including these adorable teabags. Order personalized tea bags with sweet phrases like "Love is Brewing," "The Perfect Blend" and "Tearific Couple." And be sure to also print your names and wedding date on the bag.
Where to get them: Available at Beau-Coup.com

5. Personalized Matchbooks
Price: $.26 each
How to use them: Show your guests that you and your new spouse are a "perfect match" with personalized matchbooks. These matchbooks come in several colors and motifs and can be combined with a small candle as a charming wedding favor.
Where to get them: Weddingchannel.com

Move over, Bridezilla…wedding planning is for grooms, too!

Today as I surfed the net I was introduced to Groomasaurus, a wonderfully entertaining wedding blog that threatens, “Move over, Bridezilla…wedding planning is for grooms, too!”

I love that Jeff, the husband-to-be behind Groomasaurus, was deeply involved in planning his and his fiance’s wedding, The way he explains it is this:

"Groomasaurus Gal and I have decided to share the experience of planning a wedding together. We figured if we can do this without driving each other nuts, than our relationship can survive pretty much anything. And since I’m the talker in the relationship, I decided to document our wacky, unconventional journey toward the figurative altar".

Pretty thoughtful words for a dinosaur. But Groomasaurus is hardly saccharine sweet. His posts are brutally honest and wickedly funny, while still managing to provide sound advice to men and women alike.

I think Groomasaurus is an especially useful blog for brides. Jeff’s male perspective can help to keep us grounded. It grants us a vacation from obsessing over details like floral displays and chair covers, and reminds us that the men in our life have feelings about marriage, too. It clears the lacy, buttercream fog from our eyes and shows us weddings in an important, objective light. Definitely, definitely take a look.

DIY Monogrammed Napkins from a Vintage Sheet

A simple lino-block print on recycled sheet pieces can make some pretty, personal napkins.

Lee Meredith

Ripping the sheet makes nice-looking frayed edges.

Lee Meredith

You could carve a rubber stamp instead of a lino-block if you prefer.

Lee Meredith

A simple lino-block print on recycled sheet pieces can make some pretty, personal napkins.

This project is cheap, diy, as well as vintage and personal, it doesn't get much better than that!

You'll need:

• A vintage bedsheet (thin and worn is good)
• Scissors
• Linoleum block for carving (sold at art stores)
• Carving tool
• Screen-printing or fabric ink
• Palette knife (or a butter knife or spoon will work)
• Lino-block printing roller
• Piece of glass, plexiglass, or a cereal box for rolling ink

You could also carve a rubber stamp instead of a lino-block, and use a fabric-friendly stamp pad instead of screen-printing ink, which would be easier and less messy.

When picking out a sheet, keep in mind that if the pattern is too busy, the monogram will be hard to see. And choose your fabric ink color to work best with the sheet (so if the sheet is mostly dark, use an opaque white or pastel ink color).

Make a short snip in the sheet to get it started.

First, you need to cut/tear your sheets into napkin squares. Most old sheets will tear excellently, making a straight edge, which will neatly fray and require no hem or stitching at all. Test to see if it will rip well by making a snip in one side, the size you want your napkin to be, then ripping at the cut. If it does not tear easily, then use your scissors to cut across the sheet.

Hopefully, your sheet will rip neatly and look something like this.

If it does rip well, then tear it all the way across, so you have one long strip. Then, make snips evenly across one side of the strip—I did this by folding it in half, then in half again, and again, then snipping through all the layers on the two sides of the folded piece.

Snipping through all the layers at once will guarantee equal-sized napkins.

Rip at each snip, giving you napkin squares (or rectangles). Repeat those steps for as many napkins as you want.

Don't worry—you will have a big mess of thread after all that ripping!

Now you need to clean up that thready pile of fabric. Go through each square and pull off all the hanging threads. Keep pulling threads off until there are none coming out, which will leave you with neatly frayed edges! Then you can iron them if you want to.

I love how frayed sheet edges look.

If you had to cut your sheet with scissors because it wouldn't rip, you can try to pull threads out to make the frayed edges, or you could choose to sew a hem or sew a zigzag stitch around the edges.

Next will be the printing, which means you can set aside the fabric and get carving! I won't get into a full-on lino-carving tutorial here because there are plenty of those around the Web (like howtolinoprint.com, lino-print-tutorial.blogspot.com, and my favorite, Jezze's printing fabric part 1, part 2, and part 3). Start by figuring out your design and getting it onto the block, reversed (like the mirror image). There are many ways to do this—you can design it on the computer, flip it, print it out, cover the back side of the image with pencil, then trace it onto the lino block. Or print it out not-reversed, trace over it hard with pencil, turn it upside down on the block, and trace the back of it.

If it's a simple design, just draw it onto the block.

Then carve it out. Always be sure to point the carving tool away from your hand!

First, cut around all the edges, then cut the space between.

Carving it out is a simple process, but go slowly and patiently!

If you are using an unmounted piece of linoleum, like mine, then you can cut it with scissors around the design. This means less carving and fewer parts of the block that may get ink where you don't want any.

If you cut around your image, there will be less chance of unwanted ink on your napkins.

Use your knife (or spoon) to plop some ink onto your rolling surface and roll it out—glass, plexiglass, or a mirror is best, but glossy cardboard like a cereal box will work in a pinch.

I use a piece of plexiglass from a cheap picture frame.

Roll some ink evenly onto your carved block and start stamping it onto your napkins. It's a good idea to test it first on a piece of scrap fabric to make sure it looks good. Press it evenly onto the fabric with your hands, or use an extra roller (or a rolling pin or glass bottle) to press it down.

I use a spare roller to evenly press the block onto the fabric.

Lift the block straight up carefully, and there you go!

My layer of ink was a bit thick on this print, making the edges a little messy.

Let the napkins dry, heat-set the print according to the instructions on the ink, and you've got some monogrammed napkins for your wedding (or just for fun)!

I love the changing pattern on the sheet I used!

Thank You Notes

There is nothing more appreciated than a lovely handwritten thank-you note, seriously. Not enough people give thank you notes, they can be beautiful, simple, elaborate and detailed, or short and sweet. Regardless of the style they should be sent, and they are also a great opportunity to share a favorite wedding photo.

Lightphoria Photography

When should I write it?
Contrary to popular belief, the happy couple does not have a year’s grace period. All thank you notes should be written within three months of the receipt of the gift. Ideally, a response should be written on the day you receive a wedding gift. If that’s not possible, set a daily goal. It’s a lot easier to write three or four notes a day than to have to write a hundred notes in a month after the wedding!

What stationery should I use?
First of all, stationery is the key word here: No fill-in-the-blank cards, no phone calls, no emails and no generic post on your website!

Who needs a note?

• Anyone who gives you an engagement, shower or wedding gift, even if you have thanked them in person. Individual notes should be written to people who contributed to a group gift.
• Anyone who gives a gift of money: cash, checks, contributions to savings accounts and donations to charities. Mentioning the amount is optional, but it does let the person know the correct amount was received. You should mention what you plan to do with the money.
• Your attendants. A warm personal note attached to your gifts to your attendants will let them know how much you appreciate their efforts and support on your behalf.
• Anyone who hosted a party or shower for you. Ideally these notes should be written within two days of the event. Each host or hostess should be thanked individually with a note and a thank you gift.
• People who house or entertain your wedding guests. A note and a small gift should be sent to anyone who houses or entertains out-of-town wedding guests.
• People who do kindnesses for you. The neighbor who accepts delivery of your gifts when you are at work; the cousin who supervises the parking at the reception – anyone who assists you before, during or after your wedding.
• Suppliers and vendors. Anyone who exceeds your expectations will appreciate a courteous note of thanks.
• Your parents or whoever is hosting your wedding.

Do’s and Don’ts of Thank You Notes

1. Do personalize your notes and make reference to the person as well as the gift.
2. Do remember that a gift should be acknowledged with the same courtesy and generous spirit in which it was given.
3. Do be enthusiastic, but don’t gush. Avoid saying a gift is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen unless you really mean it.
4. Don’t send form letters or cards with printed messages and just your signature; don’t use email or post a generic thank you on your wedding web site in lieu of a personal note.
5. Do promptly acknowledge the receipt of shipped gifts by sending a note right away or calling and following up with a written note in a day or two.
6. Don’t mention that you plan to return a gift or that you are dissatisfied in any way.
7. Don’t tailor your note to the perceived value of the gift; no one should receive a perfunctory note.
8. Do refer to the way you will use a gift of money. Mentioning the amount is optional.
9. Don’t use being late as an excuse not to write. Even if you are still sending notes after your first anniversary, keep writing!