Inspiration Board

While in the midst of preparing my Thanksgiving dinner, I was working on an inspiration board. Before I present my feeble attempt at making one, let me give you a little back story...

I've changed my venue, dress and "theme" three times!!! I've wasted ALOT of money on deposits because I was so caught up in the "perfect" wedding. Basically what it boiled down to was me not staying true to myself and trying to have this "princess" wedding.. which by all means is fabulous, just not me. But it took me a few tries to finally figure it out.

The last time we changed venues and themes was when I met with my event designer at the now current venue. I told her what I wanted, which was the pink, black and white Glam theme...with the chandeliers, pink tufted couches, mirrored furniture.. the whole nine. She took one look at my inspiration photos and the new venue and said "no". I was dumbfounded.. what did she mean no?? Being the openminded person I am.. I asked her to give me her thoughts. She went on to say that the venue and the theme I wanted, clashed and proceeded to give me a color palette to work with. The nerve of her right?! It was genuis and I appreciated her honesty and not trying to appease my poor judgement.

Hmmmm, I thought to myself, actually I kinda like that idea. So then I went to my trusty laptop and showed a photo of a pair of shoes I saved and were planning to buy.



The much coveted, by me, Puccis!! That's when then "Pucci" wedding was born!

She fell in love with the Pucci-esque wedding idea. I told her that I wanted a fashion forward type of feel- something ridiculously stylish, cool and effortless looking. We decided to incorporate our own Pucci-esque design to the decor and other decorative elements, including our own custom made Pucci-esque fabric for accents to bring the whole look together.

My event designer plans to use beautiful blue table linens with accented with "pucci" napkins, there will be oversized pillows made for the lounge area- black leather couches and white lacquer end tables, plenty of candles and yellow orchids. She will be also using the fabric to wrap the personal bouquets, mine and the bridal party, there will be three flowergirls and the oldest will have a sash made out of the fabric and pocketsquares or ties for the groomsmen. I'm not sure where else she would want to use it but as long as it's done tastefully, I'm game. I'm so excited!!!

So now the colors were blue, aqua, black, white with yellow as an accent. I must say that it was kizmet because from the inception I wanted blue in our decor, as it's Treasure and my favorite color but didn't know how to pull it together without being boring. Finally, after much trial and error, we have something that's really cool and "works" FABULOUSLY with the waterfront, floor to ceiling windows, AMAZING view of the NY Skyline space and I owe it all to my lovely event designer.

Here's my first inspiration board with a preview of our monogram, by Delovely. I plan to do another once the fabric has been completed. We'll then design the tablescape and take pictures of it to share.



**Editor's notes - Nope, that's not my engagement ring but I do have a BEAUTIFUL 3ct canary diamond oval shaped ring with a diamond halo. I just can't take a good photo of it.

Why the photo of the couple on a boat?? Because we're getting married in the City but having the reception in Jersey, we'll have the opportunity to take the ferry to the venue. I think our guests will love the different mode of transportation.

Is that my gown? Yup! =D

Disappearing Act

This frigid weather is ravishing my skin and while I could go to my favorite spa for full body sugar scrub exfoliation and a hydrating body mask, I'd rather be here:

Just looking at the photo makes me happy so I can only imagine how over the moon I'd be, if I were there!!! I know the water, sun and sand would do my body and well being a heap of good.

The infinity pools are such a selling point for me in addition to all the other visual marvels of this resort. I've blogged about the Jade Mountain before, it's a BEAUTIFUL slice of heaven.

I find myself visiting the website more often and I really hope it's a consideration for the honeymoon. You see, I've been spamming Treasure with "P.S. I love this.." emails hoping he gets the hint as he's the one planning the honeymoon. I figure with me planning the wedding, he can plan the honeymoon. At this point, I don't know where we are going because I told him I want it to be a surprise. If the emails aren't a big enough "suggestion", then I will have to resort to my Jedi mind trick.

"...I Wore A Bird On My Head.."

Everytime I watch SATC, (yup I still watch it at least once a week) that part cracks me up. The girls are like, 'that's what that was.... oh it was nice'. I die laughing everytime. Just goes to show your bestiests are priceless.

That said, I think I wanna wear a bird on my head *giggle*. But nothing as fashion forward like Carrie's. I'm not that brave.

I've been looking for an addition or alternative to wearing the cage veil or cathedral veil. You know, something cute to adorn my hair after the veil comes off. And while I know I wanted a crystal comb or something, I hadn't found anything that spoke to me. I've come across plenty of pretty things but nothing that whispered, "buy me", until this...

I was really taken by it. It's vintage looking, sparkly and unique. Although it's a bird, it's designed in a way that doesn't exactly scream, look at me, I'm a bird! I think I could have found a better adjective but my brain has been mush all day. So anyhoo...not only do I love the design and the cute factor it will add to my hair and ensemb, I love what it will symbolize for me on that day. The bird represents me being free in my love with Treasure. It represents finding "The One" encouraging me to soar, in every facet of my life, beyond my wildest dreams. It represents the serenity I've found with him. It represents the beauty of knowing I'm making a wonderful decision to marry him. For that, I'll happily wear a bird on my head. =D

Invitation To Style 2

I've had the pleasure of being introduced to Minna Designs. Minna is a very new bride, married in May and has embarked on starting a invite design studio. Her designs are modern and wistful not to mention fabulous! It's always exciting to meet other wedding vendors born from exhibiting exceptional talent and skill when planning their own nuptuals. =D



Wasn't she a beautiful bride??

Minna is running a current promotion til the end of the year!

Love In The City

Most bridal magazines will suggest having photo inspiration ideas for your wedding day pics. Perhaps a list of 'must have' photos of friends and family or of semi -staged details... I don't have a must have list...but I do have lovely inspiration.

A quick jaunt to the Empire State Building for this stunning shot. Hey, we're getting married in NYC, so why not? =D

I just love the composition of this photo..

Fabulous!!!

THE getaway shot! Anybody have Louis luggage I can borrow? The hat box is a must!! lol

photos

For The Grown And Sexy

Remember my quest for the perfect wedding cake alternative? I was thinking of bucking a traditional cake for something equally tasty and fun. My peach pie idea was vetoed and I was less than thrilled with the idea of cupcakes because of their seemingly lack of sophistication. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE cupcakes but the frosted goodness that I've seen for weddings always remind me of a childrens party. Well ladies, feast your eyes on this!!!

I love this "Vintage Gardenia" cupcake!

An embossed cupcake, who knew?!?!

A island theme masterpiece. I couldn't even bring my self to eat. Well maybe I could but not after I took a few photos. =D

Such imagination...

I just want to bite the SCREEN!!! YUM-O!!!

Can a cupcake be "classic"?

While not a cupcake, I just HAD to post it. Isn't it what dreams are made of?? A cake that features all my favorite things..only thing missing is a glass of champagne. I wonder if this cake ships well?

These works of edible art are lovingly made by Bev Perry of SugarBloom Cupcakes. She is the creative director of this awesome cupcakery and has this to say about her couture creations. "I adore expressing myself artistically with baking and unlike most permanent art forms, I feel happiness in letting go of each of my creations to be consumed and enjoyed by the individual. I believe nothing is really ours to keep, it's the experience of baking and decorating that I love and, I love that I can share this delight with others." Isn't she precious!?!

Immediately after stumbling across this fab find.. I contacted her to inquire if these tasty treats were available for the wedding stateside. I found that she is in Australia. Yeaaa for Australian brides... booo for me. She explained that while she does ship locally, she hadn't shipped the US. But she did offer a sugary glimmer of hope... she said that she would look into the possiblity. Yeaaaa for ME!!!

Here's Looking At You Kid...

Was that line from "Casablanca"? I've never seen it, so I'm not sure but its a great segway for this post.

I was thumbing through the Summer 2008 issue of InStyle Weddings...the one with Roselyn Sanchez on the cover and came across this ad for Casablanca Bridal. I was mesmerized..not by the gown that was featured but by the arrangement of casablanca lilies that adorned the background. Yeah, I'm probably the only woman that would notice something like that, when there's a gorgeous gown to behold. But nevertheless.. I was taken by the flower. It's so beautiful, yet simplistic... so dainty yet statuesque. Gosh, I've fallen in love with a flower.

She's pretty, isn't she? I've searched high and low for a gorgeous bridal bouquet of Casablanca Lilies to no avail. It worries me as I have yet to see a bouquet that truly showcases this bloom in a fabulous way. Most arrangements are antiquated..to say the least. It saddens me that the most creative photos I've been able to find are of a mundane cascade design... not my style. BLEH!

This flower looks like a star to me and should be treated as such.

I'm hoping my fantastic florist will wow my stilettos off. *glass half full...glass half full* No, she WILL wow my stilettos off!

Fancy Florals

This pin-on flower is so HUGE, it's almost ridiculous. But I think it's kinda fabulous!

Part Deux

Like many brides, I plan to be a two dress bride. My reason is simple and practical, I want to be able to dance at the reception! My gown has a long train and I don't plan to have it bustled because I won't be wearing it after the first dance, which will happen pretty much at the beginning of the reception. Our plan is to get the "traditions" and toasts done earlier in the night so the partying can commence. Also that's a good time to get all the photography in because I don't want them to snap a bunch of photos of us dancing. I've seen my dance face.. it's too funny!

So I've found a few Part Two dresses but this is a strong contender for number 1.


I love that it's pink, short and fabulous. It's quite Marchesa-esque, no? I think so, but without the couture price tag. I even love it with the belt, which would be essential to widdle my curves that could be easily lost in a dress with all the ruffleage. A fun dress that's still special enough for a wedding reception. It's available in black but the pink really has me enchanted.

While looking at this pretty dress, I came across a few others from the same designer, Karen illen, that I loved as well:

This is a wool lace dress. The cut is flattering almost tailored and the style.. well is timeless. I've never been a fan of anything lace.. I've never been into grandma chic, which is what lace reminds me of.. but with this dress, I may be changing my tune.

Blue is my favorite color so this had my heart from "hello". Again great cut, perfect style..love the length.

How darling is this dress? I love the colors and the floral pattern.. again another thing that I never really fancied but I really want this in my closet. A great update on a 50's style. It's demure yet somehow sexy... I love it!

You can find all these lovely dresses and many other great pieces at www.ASOS.com.

Boudoir Dressing

I've taken a wee break from all things wedding to look for nesting items for our post-nuptual home. While I try to keep our decor traditional with a modern twist, the bedroom and my newly agreed upon dream closet, by way of demo of the wall of the bedroom next to ours, leaves me to my own glamourous devices!

That said, awhile ago I purchased this chair...way before the engagement and all the wedding stuff that came shortly there after. It was a chair that I just was drawn to for it's sleekness yet familiar style. It was so chic I just had to buy it, even though it didn't work with our decor back then, so I just put it in storage, site unseen..in person that is. Here's the beauty in all it's patent leather, antiqued rivets, elegant curved legs and padded arms, inspired by a design from Milan, gorgeousness:



a 35.00 dollar STEAL from Ebay, originally 800.00!!

Isn't she GORG!?!?! Love her! So this chair that has inspired how I shall decorate the dream closet and adjoining bedroom.

So in my search of something equally fab for the dream closet, it screams "Chandelier!!" I came across this:




EasyLiving store, Ebay

That black crystal chandelier is just so sexy!! My sister says that it's gothic to her...to her I say maybe but you can't deny it's fabulousness.

And what would a dream closet and dressing room be without a swanky mirror to check out the emsemb you've put together:


homedecorators.com

Love that mirror!!! That is the small mirror, they have a large one and that's the one I'm purchasing. So that's been added to my shopping cart as well as that faux sheepskin, fluffy white area rug. Yum!


I think I'm off to a great start with my dream closet. I can't wait to get started with decorating!


Here's another pic of the mirror.. the large one, for no other reason than it's fab.

GlamourEyes

Just like my fellow bridal-istas, I have been looking for my wedding day "look". I have my fab gown that really speaks to my personality and a great start for accessories... still undecided on shoes and if I will wear a veil.

I have a point of reference for my hair and now that leaves the makeup. My day to day look is a super perfected complexion, strong, well groomed brows, thin liner on upper lids and loads of three types of mascara. Hey, what can I say, I love a feathery lash. A swipe of highlighter on the brow bone, down the center of my nose and upper cheekbones. I finish with a warm nude lipcolor followed by a shimmery lip gloss. Looks good for everyday or mostly everyday. In fact, many of my bridal clients, once they meet me for their trials, they'll say 'I want my makeup like yours'. It's a great compliment and seemingly it's a great look for bridal.

But I feel like I want a little more for my wedding day look. I've been toying with idea of the smokey look, which can be perfect, if done correctly. And I say done correctly because I will have someone do my makeup.. although I'm a makeup artist.. the last thing I want to do is do my own makeup. The excitement of the day will probably cause me to never get my lashes on right.. make my eyebrows uneven or some other equally tragic makeup mishap.

So through my Google and various blog travels, I came across this photo of Alicia Keys. And while a huge fan of her music, her makeup always seems a bit off. It so weird but I digress so back to the fabulous picture of her with fab makeup.


source theybf.com

I LOVE this look so much. The gunmetal smokey eye with the nude lips, just sings to me. It's a very clean look with just enough sass. It's perfection for the late afternoon ceremony and evening reception.