more dresses with sleeves!

anyone who has been a regular reader of my blog will know I am seriously struggling to find a modern, cute, stylish dress with sleeves. Loving this one though!

from pronovias

Chloe and Shea: a Derby-Garden wedding

Introducing Chloe and Shea.

Chloe was a wonderful bride to work with! She had a clear vision of what she wanted and great ideas for a simple clean garden inspired look--with classic Kentucky Derby touches.
















This bouquet was really special. The composition is simple: pure white roses and peonies with mint and woodland fern. But look closely and you will see that the stems are wrapped with an Irish linen handkerchief belonging to Chloe's grandmother--embroidered with a shamrock.

The bridesmaids bouquets, (alongside the bride's) a loose gathering of Chamomile, tied with a simple grosgrain ribbon. Incredibly cheerful little flowers!

Look at these great details! Thanks to an excellent wedding planner, Mackenzie Spalding of One Fine Day wedding consultation. info at http://www.OneFineDayKY.com/

Each table was named after a race horse, with the name displayed in these Horseshoe frames.

Down the center of the tables we used a array of different vases--all glass--each containing an abundance of a single flower. Included were, Roses, Chamomile, Hypericum, Lisianthus, Hydrangea, Stock, Spray roses, & Freesia. We also continued the use of Mint and woodland fern.

Look at these great party favors (Chloe's idea). Each guest/couple received a commemorative cup from this year's Kentucky derby with a single rose and an abundance of mint. The place card and clothespins--another One Fine Day touch!

The groomsmen and groom wore seersucker suits with Chamomile boutonnieres.

The adorable flower girls. Hair-wreaths of spray roses and hypericum berries....













... matching pomander balls, tied with a grosgrain ribbon.

A night and day view of the cocktail area where we placed galvanized buckets with plantings grown especially for the day. Tea lights nestled in a bed of split peas were placed amongst the arrangements, casting a warm glow as the evening progressed.

So glad I got to play a part in this stunning day!
Speaking of stunning...images courtesy of Melanie Mauer Photography. info at http://www.melaniemauer.com/.

Wedding Inspiration

Something borrowed, something blue...

I'll have to admit, when I have a client that says she wants to incorporate a lot of blue in her decor, it can be challenging. Mainly, there are not a lot of true blue flowers out there and I'm not a big fan of dyed flowers. I'm currently planning a destination wedding with this "blue" bride and have found the perfect beautiful solution for her wedding in St. Kitts. These photos are from Destination Wedding Style.





I just love all the hues of blue and green to mimic the ocean's colors. Peacock feather's add a touch a sass and that "unexpected element" that you know I love!









Check out this awesome centerpiece of feathers, white peonies and hydrangea. So original! These amazing floral designs are by Yvonne Floral Design out of Hawaii... must be nice!!

yum!

love these personalised cookies from Beau Coup!

Informal Invite

Here is a cute, informal invite in hand calligraphy. I'm a bit obsessed with hand calligraphy at the moment... something more formal though I think. this is nice though from martha stewart weddings.

Red Bouquets

I'm in a very vibrant mood, so here are a few hot red bouquets!

from InStyle Magazine


from Florarama Modern Designs


from Australia's WaterHouse Designs

Glass Hearts and Weddings!

Incorporate wedding favors into your wedding or party decorations. I've said it before, you can use many different types of items to decorate the tables at your reception which may also double as favors.

An item that I particularly like are glass heart ornaments. ConiArtGlass.com offers lovely glass hearts in many beautiful colors. Use them many ways. For example, attach your place cards to a glass heart and place it at your table setting. If you are not using place cards, attach a small note thanking your guest for attending your nuptials. It's a gift that your guests will treasure forever.

These hearts are handmade, mouth blown glass ornaments produced in Eastern Europe. Every color is carefully selected to make the most beautiful, pleasing pieces.

Cornel Plescan, the glass artist that produces these unique, collectible gifts, works with each customer to be certain that the colors are just perfect for your event.

Tips to Protect Your Art Collection

Any lover and collector of art will do his or her utmost to protect their art collection. Artwork is not only a major investment these days, it is also an essential part of the fabric of any home. It is rare to find a home with no prints, sketches or paintings on the wall, not to mention sculptures figurines or art glass adorning mantelpieces and sideboards. It is vital that collectors take proper care of their artwork to make sure that no piece is degraded in any way, shape or form.

There are a number of ways that you can keep your artwork in perfect condition, but careful planning is required from the start. Put a strategy in place to protect your artwork before you even bring it home from the gallery or fair. Think about where you will place or hang the artwork to avoid any hazards that may turn into situations that leave the art damaged. For example, if a glass window does not protect the shelf on which a piece is to be placed, it may be wise to purchase a case in which to put it before it is actually placed on the shelf.

The majority of measures that you should take concerning the placing of your artwork are common sense really. For example, you should not place any art in the kitchen or above a fireplace because the heat, steam and fumes can cause untold damage. You should also avoid smoking in the vicinity of your artwork because this is liable to cause irreversible staining. Similarly, placing art in direct sunlight can cause it to fade, and this would instantly be noticeable to the untrained eye as well as other collectors. If you have pets or young children then artwork should always be kept out of their reach so that no accidental damage occurs.

The placement of artwork, as you can see above, can be extremely hazardous so it does require serious thought. It may be necessary to try a piece out in a few places during the first day that you own it so you can make an on the spot assessment of where its permanent home should be.
When you do buy the art in question then you should always ask the attendant that oversees your transaction whether or not any special measures need to be taken in order to preserve its condition. Some galleries actually hand out care leaflets when a sale goes through, whilst others may have extremely knowledgeable staff that can give you hints and tips that they have picked up over the years. There are also various publications that you can purchase to give you a good grounding in the care of artwork. You should read at least one of these if you are an art collection beginner.

The final thing that is essential in the preservation of you artwork is actually the cleaning regime that you have. It goes without saying that you should avoid using furniture polish and other similar oily substances in the vicinity of your artwork because that can cause irreparable harm. However, it is essential that a certain level of care be administered to regularly maintain it. For example, all sketches, paintings and prints should be framed wherever possible, and all sculptures and models should be encased in a protective cover. Although advice is usually specific to the nature of the piece and the materials present in its composition, it is fairly safe to pass a dry and clean cloth over all artwork from time to time to remove any dust build-ups. Dust can be just as harmful to art as any chemical, so it is essential that it is removed.

The golden rule of caring for your artwork is to always ask for help whenever you are unsure. Always think carefully about what you are doing and do not take the art for granted. One moment of foolishness can work out to be extremely expensive!

love this from one of Jlo's weddings... (via People)

Loving Langer

I'm currently loving Peter Langer! How great are these dresses!?





those who know me well would probably guess that #3 is my fav... :)

Your Wedding Bouquet – You Don’t Have to Spend Hundreds of Dollars.

It’s your wedding day and you’ve always pictured yourself with a stunning bouquet. Then you go shopping and the sticker shock is the only thing that’s stunning. You can have beautiful flowers for you as the bride and for your wedding party without spending a fortune. And you don’t have to be a professional florist to do it.

Keep in mind the season of your wedding. If it’s fall, you can order tulips, but you’ll pay a fortune. If you go with mums, which are in season in the autumn, you’ll pay a lot less.

Stay away from the exotics like tuberoses, gardenias, orchids, or calla lilies incorporated into your bouquet. Stick with more common flowers like carnations, roses, and baby’s breath.

You can carry a single spray of orchids or a single calla lily. One flower of an exotic species makes a dramatic statement and doesn’t cost a fortune.

You can carry a single white rose tied with a satin ribbon and each of bridesmaids can carry a rose to match or contrast with their dress.

If you have to have the traditional flowing bridal bouquet you can cut costs elsewhere by being creative with your table setting flowers.

Lush Calla Lilies

mmmmmm I'm loving these lush calla lily bouquets!

from InStyle Magazine Summer 2005:


from Evoke Photography


from Fred Savage's Wedding via InStyle Magazine


the next two are from the fab Becker's Blog by California photographer Becker
 
and

and

Live flowers for your wedding

Every little girl dreams of a fairy tale wedding with arches of roses, armloads of orchids and baskets of gardenias. Then we grow up and find out just how much one orchid costs much less an armload. You can have fairy tale flowers at your wedding without nightmare prices, but you need to go to the nursery not the florist.

Blooming plants in pots are perfect for weddings. Here are some ideas that could take your breath away and the sting out of your wallet.

Geraniums come in pinks, purples, reds and whites. You have your choice of the one quart size which is about a 4 inches high container or one gallon which is about 8 inches high.

Miniature roses, which refers to the size of the blossom rather than the size of the plant, come in a variety of colors. Most of the time they’re in 4 inch pots.

Standards are flowers which have been trained to have a trunk-like sturdy stem and then a burst of flowers at the top. The trunks can range from a foot high to four or five feet high. Roses, hibiscus, bougainvillea are just a few of the flowers you can find in the standard form.

Azaleas are available in late winter, spring and early summer and come in white and pinks. The bushes have glossy dark green leaves and are loaded with blossoms. Azaleas also come as a standard, but these can be a bit pricy.

Chrysanthemums are available at nurseries only in the fall, but you can find them in grocery stores nearly year round.

Now that you’ve got all these pots what do you do with them?

The first thing is to cover the ugly containers or to repot. You can buy cheap baskets. You can repot in decorative pots. You can buy cheap terracotta pots and spray paint them in gold or white and then stick the nursery pots inside. You can buy gift bags (the kind without the handles) and place the nursery pots inside and then tie a ribbon around the stems of the plant.

For smaller pots you can buy cloth napkins, place the pot in the middle of the napkin, and bring up the four corners, then tie. You can also do this with larger pots with fabric.

Take your decorated pots and line the aisle or the entry way to where you wedding ceremony is being held with gallon containers. Place pots on stairs. Put several pots on each table at the reception, at your cake table, or on food tables.

You can vary the height of your arrangement by placing one of the pots on an over turned empty pot and then surrounding it with contrasting flowers.

Rather than placing a flower arrangement on the alter, use a standard on either side of the alter table.

You can group several pots in a basket and then cover the pot brims with moss, available at a crafts store.

If you don’t want to take the pots home, let guests take them, or donate them to a retirement home or your church.