Wedding Palette Board: Mustard and Teal

I'm always looking for a palette combination that's a little off of the beaten path but still aesthetically pleasing, and this one delivers! Weddings aren't just pink and white these days; a dash of deep teal adds to the richness and warmth of the mustard. Just perfect for a vintage wedding!

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{from top left: fabric envelopes via Hello! Lucky; mustard and teal chintz wallpaper via Apartment Therapy; paper flowers via A Hana Design. 2nd row: mustard ballet flats, Abby Jiu; lady in teal dress, Ana Lee; yellow typewriter, Laura Bucci. Bottom: Mustard velvet flower, Love Liette; yellow dress, Elizabeth Dye; knit necklace via Etsy; white dress/teal wall via Elizabeth Anne Designs.}

Old, New, Borrowed, Blue

The latest addition to my Etsy Store. The materials used for this bouquet are almost all vintage save a few ribbons. I am obsessed with this color palette right now. I would love to do something similar to this with cut flowers for a bride; divine.

I really love the way this turned out with all of the different textures. The brooches and pins are to die for. They were found in thrift stores and (!) the garbage. Who could ever throw that beautiful porcelain bird away?!

Smitten With Lily of the Valley

On my walk this morning I smelled a sure sign of spring; lily of the valley. Yep, even in Queens these perennial favorites found a patch of land to grow in. When I lived upstate, where my love of flowers began, I'd look forward to Spring when the lilac trees (yes, trees) and lily of the valley would bloom. At 10 years old I'd make bouquets and place them throughout the house in anything from coffee cans to jelly jars.


Spring all year round. Love this vintage looking lily of the valley wallpaper from Thibaut. Yes, I would like to sleep in this bedroom very much, thank you. {image via country living}


Few things are as timeless and elegant as a bouquet of lily of the valley. If I were to subscribe to the whole wedding ideal, I'm pretty sure I'd go with the simple beauty of a hand tied bunch of lotv pips. {image via artfool}


I love me some crisp white sheets. These particular ones from Graced with Lace are super posh. I bet they come smelling like rich people.


I like this Tee from MaryInk on its own. The lily of the valley hand printed design is an extra special bonus, like getting your bar tab comped at dinner.


The famous Givenchy "Les Muguets" gown. This is polished silver and pinkies out right here.


I don't know if I'd be able to actually cut into this cake. I mean, it's gorgeous. I want to put it up on the mantle and have my picture taken with it. Lovely is all I can say, word.


Damn, I'm going to miss having a garden this year. I've always wanted to buy some pink lily of the valley to plant. Someday.

Sea Glass and Eyelet Lace

Inspired by the ocean and dreams of spring. If you've ever searched a beach for sea glass, you know how this shade of blue is so coveted. When I lived on the beach, I painted my bedroom this shade of blue and had all white eyelet linens. It was the most peaceful room I've ever been in. It's also a beautiful palette for any sort of party, particularly a wedding!

from top left: ring pillow from etsy; vintage eyelet dress from poshgirlvintage.com; hey lady "at tiffany's" shoes; keira knightly in blue gown, courtesy of fashion bride; wedding sign from vintage design projects; robin's egg soaps from giannarose.com; image from martha stewart weddings; image from martha stewart weddings; veils from allure weddings; silver screen necklace from etsy

Dress For Sale

I searched for nearly a year for this dress. It is the Carolina Herrera daisy dotted dress that was featured in Martha Stewart Weddings Summer 2008 that was all the rage. Well, I have posted it to Once Wed as I won't be needing it. It is an absolutely gorgeous dress and it breaks my heart that I won't be able to wear it, but such is life.





Anyone interested can visit the Once Wed listing or contact me directly. I would like to see this dress go to someone who loves it as much as I did.

Even though I will not be getting married, I will continue posting as I do love the wedding world and all of the creative, inspirational people I've met along the way. I'm also getting back to floral designing so I'll be sharing my work with you. It's been a pretty tough month and appreciate everyone for hanging in there with me. Here's hoping 2010 is a better year!

Inspired By: Wine Labels

Let me preface this by saying that I know what comes out of my mouth next is going to sound incredibly girly and portray me out as a total wine neophyte, and that may be true in part. But I'm going to say it anyway.

I choose wines for their labels.

There it is. I judge my books by their covers. I am more impressed with the artistic design of the bottle than what is in it. In my own defense, I suspect a lot of designers do the very same thing. When you know the work and creativity that goes into something, you can appreciate it perhaps a little more than others. Or maybe that's just a front for my vapid, topical reasoning. Who knows, who cares. What I do know is that no one can deny the awesomeness of these great labels.








I've had more than my fair share of the La Vieille Ferme (delish, 13.5 %, and only $9/bottle) and Mollydooker, both of which I highly recommend. They all have me thinking of ways to emulate, whether in palette or as inspiration for stationary. Several of these have that vintage French advertising poster quality to them. Do you drink a wine with an unusual or fun label?

Rountree Flowers NYC

Being a wedding blogger has made me aware of some of the finest artisans in the country. As a floral designer, I have a strong appreciation for unique and creative work. So when I decided it was time to start working in NYC again, I had a few florists in mind that I was dying to work with.

Enter Jessie from Rountree Flowers. Not only is she aces when it comes to incredible bouquets, boutonnieres, and table arrangements, but she's super nice! Here is a sample of her gorgeous creations. I love her use of country wildflowers mixed with cultivated high end flowers, as well as the pods, berries and unusual greenery.







You can see more of Jessie's work on Sunday Suppers blog as well (it's an orgy for the eyes to be sure).

Palette Board: Candy Cane Wedding

Christmas is fast approaching so I whipped up a pretty red and white candy cane palette board to get us in the spirit. If you have every been to Woodstock, Vermont during the Christmas season, you'll appreciate the country, New England feel to this board as well.

Christmas Wishes: Newly Engaged

Christmas is the perfect opportunity to ask for items that will make your wedding planning a little bit easier. Being organized will take away some of the stress, and here's how to look pretty while doing it:

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Address Book: Consider this your best friend. Keep it in your handbag in case you run into a person you'd like to invite but don't have an address for. Love this one by Amy Butler.

Clothbound Classics: Nothing is more romantic than a classic British novel, in particular, Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen. Penguin Clothbound Classics offers a gorgeous, old fashioned cover.

Stationary: You don't even know how many notes and thank you's you are going to write. Traditional ettiquette states that the bride to be's monogram or initial be present on the stationary, like this letterpress set from Austin Press.

Files: Between the magazine clippings, contracts and scrap paper full of ideas, you're going to need a file system, like the vintage patchwork accordion file pictured from Wisteria.

Planner: This is a must. The ultimate organization tool. Know when to send out save the dates, keep track of receipts, appointments, and most of all, this handy dandy little book will keep you from pulling your hair out. Love Mindy Weiss's Ultimate Planner in pale blue.

Picture Frames: Everyone is going to want to take pictures of the happy couple, particularly during the holiday season, and you are going to want to display them. Photo albums you will also need, but most people like pictures in plain site (unless it's the one from last New Years Eve when I fell into a bush).

Palette Board: Pastel Christmas Wedding

I can list a thousand reasons why Christmas weddings are the bee's knees. If it weren't for the fact that my family has threatened to disown me, I'd unquestionably have the big day this time of year.

If you are getting married in December and don't want your decor to be typical red and green, think about pastel Christmas; lots of pinks, pale blue and seafoam green, and the best part is it gives you a good excuse to use glitter! Vintage glass ornaments provide the perfect palette for a cheerful winter fete.

Table Setting; Vintage Ornaments; Pink Tree; Button Tree; Cake Toppers; Dining Room; Glitter House; Vintage Ornaments; Blue Mantle; Silk Party Dress.

Smitten With: Holiday Dresses

This time of year is my favorite for many reasons, one of them being that ladies are called upon to get dressed to the nines. It is one reason I absolutely adore Christmas weddings; everyone is bedecked in their most elegant finery. Here are my top five dress picks for the season, whether you are attending a wedding, trying to find the perfect bridesmaid dress or doing the Christmas party circuit:







From the top: Eva Franco; Anthropologie; Holly Stalder; Free People; Darling.

Smitten With~ DIY Headbands

Seriously head over heals for Project Wedding's headband tutorial! Awesome photo styling aside, the color and fabric combos are so delightful! Perfect gifts for bridesmaids, flower girls, Christmas, or ones self. I'm so crafting my ass off this weekend!

Custom Menu DIY

Happy Friday everyone! With Thanksgiving only six days away (I almost fell over this morning when I realized it) I got to thinking about custom menus and their many uses. The one I have here is based on my dinner this year.



You don't have to be a graphic designer to do this. Just be sure to use a good cardstock or heavy resume paper in ivory.

Frame: The Graphics Fairy. You will have to resize the image slightly to fit on standard 8 1/2 by 11 paper.
Menu Font: Kelly Ann Gothic
Script Font: Angelica from New Revolutions Designs
Headers: Copperplate Gothic Light (standard on all programs)

If you feel the menu is too large, turn the page to 'landscape' and make two menus side by side. Again, you'll have to shrink the frame image, but that's fairly simple. Also consider your color palette when doing the text. If you have any questions, send me an email and I'll try to help.

Whether for the holidays, dinner for two, or your wedding, custom menus add elegance and personal detail.

DIY Love: Button Tree

My love of buttons comes from visiting my grandmother when I was a little girl. She had jars and jars of colorful buttons, all shapes and sizes, from vintage to new. She was a wonderful seamstress and like most granddaughters, I regret not learning all I could from her. But I digress. I came across this darling do it yourself button tree from Makin Projiks and thought "what a great way to get those buttons out of the jar"! A little time consuming, but easy peasy and oh so pretty. I really like the combination of pastels as shown here. If you found enough buttons (yards sales are gold mines for them), these trees would make great wedding centerpieces, or decoration at the guest book and/or cake table.



For instructions, click here.

Liz & Pete, by AE Photography

We all love weddings chock full of personal, handmade details, which is why I was so psyched when Ashley from AE Photography sent me Liz and Pete's photos.

It's so clear from the pictures that the day was about celebrating Liz and Pete's love. The intimate backyard ceremony was captured on an 8mm camera and played it back at the reception.

The colors are so vibrant and happy, making gerbera daisies an ideal choice. My favorite shots though are the ones of Liz and Pete on bikes with the handmade 'Just Married' License plates attached to the seats. You can tell that someone took a little time to draw and color the plates, making them so much more special than printing from the computer or buying from a store.











Congratulations to Liz and Pete! Be sure to check out more from their wedding on AE Photography's blog. While you're there, take a look at the 'Be Thankful' photo session Ashley is giving away!

Austin Press at Anthro!

I received an email from Kimberly over at Austin Press this morning announcing that she has a line of monogrammed notecards which are now available at Anthropologie. If you aren't familiar with Austin Press, skip on over to their website. Kimberly uses a vintage letterpress and styles her typeface from antique bookplates. Serious eye orgy for the letterpress obsessed, my friends. The custom invitations are beyond.




Anthropologie does not have the note card set on their website yet, but who can complain about making a trip there? Each letterpressed card comes with a craft paper envelope with the prettiest scalloped edge.