Hey, wanna see the invitation?

I thought you all might be interested in seeing the invitation I designed for the Thai wedding I went to this weekend! Cus, you know, that's why I'm here- ha!



It was a very simple, elegant flat invitation with multiple layers of off white and pyrite cardstock. There is a layer of patterned cardstock in there too to break up the solid colors.



It went rather nicely with the whole ambiance of the wedding since the reception hall was done in all white- white table cloths, white orchids, white candles hanging from silver trees, and an arbor done up in white roses.

Simple and gorgeous.

What A Weekend

I finally rolled back into Jericho at 12 a.m. last night after a whirlwind weekend in Burlington, Mass. The whole weekend was full of fun, hanging out with old friends, seeing family, meeting new faces, and eating tons of good food.

The wedding was a sensory experience on all levels- nothing like anything I have ever witnessed or been apart of before. All I have to say is if you get a chance to attend a traditional Asian wedding- do it!

Unfortunately, since I was part of the bridal party I was occupied with my bridesmaid responsibilities most of the night and therefore was unable to take many pictures myself. I have some photos coming to me and when I get them I will write up a very detailed description of how the whole thing went down (and its one heck of a story).

But in the meantime I have a few shots from behind the scenes as we were all getting ready.



Here are a couple of the other bridesmaids getting ready. On the left is Carla getting her hair done- we all had these crazy up-dos with real orchids pinned to the side. On the right is Nareh getting wrapped in the final sash that was part of our outfit. Our dresses were so involved that there was a person dedicated to helping us get into them!



Here are four of the five groomsmen all dressed up in their jackets. The groomsmen were very understated compared to what the bridesmaids were wearing.



These are some of the things that were offered up as gifts to gain the wedding party entry into the wedding- yeah that's right- the groom had to barter his way in to the ceremony! All of the groomsmen, bridesmaids, and the grooms parents carried gifts and a dowry to convince the friends and family of the bride that the groom was worthy enough to even be there.



And last, but not least, here are the bride and groom moments before the festivities started. Don't worry- they didn't get to see each other! This is one of two outfits the bride wore during the ceremony. The groom also got to change outfits halfway through.

I hope I get pictures of the rest of the night soon so I can share all of the details of this amazing night!

And just like that I'm gone again...

Yup, that's right, I'm off again- this time to Boston (or right outside it, anyway) for the big Thai wedding. My bro-in-law got married last May in a lovely wedding in the Vermont Islands, at the Grand Isle Lake House, but her parents wanted to throw them a traditional Thai bash as well. So a little over a year after their first nuptuals we are gathering at her parents restaurant in Burlington, Mass for a weekend full of festivities.

There will be plenty of Thai food, I am sure, as well as a traditional Thai bridesmaid dress and groomsmen jacket for my husband and I- I don't even know what mine looks like yet. I only know that its purple and gold- ooooh! We aren't sure how many people are coming, because apparently Thai people don't RSVP and they tend to bring their entire extended family with them.

There will be a water cermony which I hope to get some pictures of, but not sure how I will pull it off yet since I am going to be in it. Hopefully my MIL won't mind snapping some pics with my camera.

And I will of course post all about it when I get back! Which will be Monday. I might have internet access in our hotel room, though, so maybe I can post updates during the weekend. I will try, but I can't promise anything!

BTW- isn't that picture gorgeous? I snapped this right outside my house Tuesday evening. It was a full rainbow arching right over our road!

I Heart Thursday

Currently I am totally obsessed with bento lunch boxes, and it is all the fault of Wendolonia, a super cute blog I stumbled onto a few weeks back. It is the blog of Wendy Copley who, among other crafty things, packs her son Wyatt's lunches in adorable Japanese bento boxes! She even cuts stuff into fun shapes and sticks them on cute skewers! I would totally love for someone to pack me a lunch like this.

So now I have totally decided that I must do this when I have children and they are going off to school. But I am a little bummed that it is going to be a few years, since I don't even have any children yet. And to make matters worse, Wendy just announced that one of the best online spots to score some bento supplies, Ichiban Kan, is shutting down! Do you think it would be wierd for me to buy a bunch of bento stuff for children I don't have yet for them to use when they finally go to school? Hmmm...I am seriously considering....

Tully, Ho!

I meant to post this last Wednesday, but I got a little busy getting ready for the trip I was going to tell you about. The one where I went to see my Grandmother in Tully, NY and would be gone until today. So that is why it has been a little quiet around here, but I have a bunch of new posts planned for the next week, including full coverage of the second wedding for my brother-in-law and sister-in-law, which is going to be a traditional Thai affair complete with water ceremony. I can't wait to see what my bride's maid dress looks like!

(Oh, and the picture above is of the ferry in Charlotte, VT that I took to get across Lake Champlain and into New York- found on this site.)

Tie One On

So I would love to take credit for this idea, but I did see it somewhere (can't remember where- I read far too many magazines) and I was immediately smitten with the idea. Instead of just tying on the usual ribbon for your Father's Day present to Dad, tie it on like a tie! I think it is adorable and much more 'manly' looking than a super girly bow.

At first I tried to find the magazine I had seen this in to get the directions, but in the end I just looked up how to tie a tie online. Here is a good step by step if you don't already know how. After it is all tied up you just snip the ends of the ribbon to form the point. Just fold the ribbon end in half and cut at an upward angle.

Blog Love

You might have noticed I have added some sites to my 'Notable Inspiration' category, but in case you hadn't I wanted to point it out. It seems that I am constantly finding new and amazing websites/blog each day and if I listed all of them it would be a mile long! These ones were the cream of the crop of recent sites I stumbled across so if you are looking for some inspiration for your upcoming wedding or you just like to look (I have been married almost 3 years and I never tire of looking!) be sure to check these guys out. And if you know of any incredible, creative sites I don't have listed, but should, just let me know!

iDiY


Once Wed


Vintage Glam Weddings


100 Layer Cake


The B List


Green Wedding Shoes

Short Story Invite

I spotted this invitation on Design Sponge and had to share. It is so charming- I love the typography and the format, and it's cute that they include the entire story of their (lengthy) courtship. I think it really flows into the invite, though.

My favorite part is the end; 'dinner and dancing and eternity to follow'- very cute!

Best. Cake. Ever.

Yesterday a good friend of mine invited us over for a belated birthday dinner. He promised to make his signature Chicken Marsala and I promised to bring dessert. I never did have a real birthday cake so I decided to go all out. And of course it had to be chocolate, because for me, there really isn't any other kind of cake.

I went to one of my favorite food sites, Smitten Kitchen, and started researching. Eventually I decided on this recipe and, boy, am I ever glad I did.

Here are all of the ingredients ready to go- I even purchased 10" cake pans specifically to make it. Reconfiguring the recipe to fit my measly 8.5" round pans required math, and I don't do math. The extra few inches of cake were so worth it.

I used two different types of chocolate- a good quality semi-sweet bar and some Hersheys unsweetened coco powder. The recipe called for melting the semi-sweet chocolate with hot coffee, something I had never done before, but I have heard that coffee brings out the flavor of chocolate and makes it richer. Boy, were they right.


Unfortunately I was in such a rush towards the end that I didn't take the time to take pictures of the Seven Minute Frosting, or of the cake before we tore into it.

Sorry- I think I am lucky I managed to get a picture of it at all before it was decimated. Mmmmm I am drooling just looking at the picture. Definitely my new favorite cake recipe.

Still Raining

Image from !.kesssss.! on Flickr

It's been raining for a couple of days, now, but it's good, even if it's dreary. The garden, flowers, and trees will all appreciate the nice long drink. It's supposed to continue into the weekend, but that's ok with me- I am always more productive on a rainy day than a nice one. I have a long list of things to accomplish this weekend:

Finish a Happy Birthday banner for my nephew
Sew a minky blanket for my nephew (I am so excited about this project!)
Work on some baby announcement designs
Get creative with my Gocco machine (you know, because I have only had it for six months and haven't even taken it out of the box!)

What do you have scheduled for the weekend?

Let The Sun Shine In

It is an overcast, dreary day in Northern Vermont today, so I wanted something to cheer me up. This sunny yellow inspiration board should do the trick!

Top Row (left to right): Cake by Cuisine Lucette, Flower Cone and Tangerine Salt Favors found on Style Me Pretty

Middle Row (left to right): Yellow Candy Bar, Yellow clutch by J. Crew, Chandelier by Meg Braff, Wedding Gown with golden yellow sash seen on Martha Stewart Weddings

Bottom Row (left to right): Yellow Bee invitation by Truly Noted, Yellow bouquet seen on Martha Stewart Weddings, Tablescape seen on VT Vows

Stop The Presses!

This is a totally random, fly-by blog posting, but I was just reading The Storque and I had to show you this amazing wedding dress that costs......wait for it........$65!!! Can you believe that?? I have been wedding dress shopping and that just made my jaw drop to the floor- seriously.

I love Etsy. Have I mentioned that before?

Eye Candy

I haven't had a lot of time to blog this past week- but I promise I will have some new posts coming soon! In the meantime here are some pics that caught my eye while browsing today:

Images from Style Me Pretty

I love, love, love that cake! Too bad succulents are not native to Vermont!

Botton three images from Snippet & Ink

I am getting major inspiration for some new invitation designs from this pic.

El Carnival!

I am really excited to finally show you all the carnival invitations I have been working on. They are definitely the most elaborate design I have done! When the bride first contacted me she showed me an invitation from CeCe New York that she really loved and wanted to know if I could do something similar. I was pretty intimidated at first (I mean, CeCe New York!!) but after meeting with the bride and her mother I was excited for the challenge. They were extremely pleasant to work with and that makes all the difference when attempting something bold and daring.



The focus piece of the CeCe New York invitation was this amazing custom poster with a hand drawn skyline of a city on the water. My clients wanted to take that idea and tie it into their carnival themed wedding- with a ferris wheel and stars and a fun circus style font.



I did some research on carnival posters and found some great illustrations of a ferris wheel and a circus tent and then it sort of took off.


I love the wording of the RSVP card! Everything is just so fun and whimsical, but still pretty and elegant.



The bride had already purchased this gorgeous duponi silk ribbon with alternating bands of pink, blue, gold, and red that she wanted to incorporate somehow. I used the colors as inspiration for the design and then I wrapped the ribbon around the gold vellum paper that enclosed all of the invitation pieces. Imagine getting that in the mail!


To top everything off I did some custom labels for the outer envelopes that continued with the carnival theme. I did bands of color that matched the duponi silk ribbon and scattered some stars around the address.


I love how these labels wrap around so the return address is on the back! I got the label template from the Martha Stewart website.

So there they are! My pride and joy. Designing invitations has been such a wonderful experience and it's projects like this that confirm for me that this is what I want to do! Although they took a long time (there were 150 of them!) I can't wait for another, even more challenging request to come along!

The Color Purple & Providence Performing Arts Center

This past weekend I had the pleasure of going to visit my Mom in Rhode Island. My Mom moved there a little over a year ago and it has been fun to have a new place to explore and get to know. Especially since she is very close to Providence and there is a ton of stuff there that we don't have up here in Vermont, or in the White Mountain region of New Hampshire which is where I grew up and my Mom previously resided.


One of the great things in Providence is the Performing Arts Center- a gorgeous restored old theatre originally built in the 1920's. We went to see Fiddler On The Roof there on Valentine's Day and it was amazing. The architecture of the theatre alone is entertaining and I had a hard time keeping my eyes off the walls and ceilings to watch the show. (Not to say the show wasn't amazing, because it was, and it was my first time seeing Fiddler.)



When my Mom told me they were going to have The Color Purple showing at the end of May I insisted that we get tickets. Although I have never read the book (I really need to get on that!) the movie has been a favorite of mine for a long time. So as a combined Mothers Day and Birthday present to ourselves we went. My Mom managed to score some amazine seats too! Look how close we are to the stage!


I managed to sneak in a few photos. They don't really allow cameras into the theatre, but I made sure to only snap some shots between acts and before the play. Plus I didnt use my flash so I couldn't bother anyone or draw attention to myself. The image above is the curtain that hid the stage before the show and during intermission. It was made to look like an old piece of paper on which Celie (the main character) had written a letter to God. The play was awesome! So if you ever have a chance to go, I highly recommend it! (Even if you do end up crying a million times)

Handmade Wedding

With the economy in a slump and the resurgence of the DIY mindset, it comes as no surprise that many people are going the handmade route for their weddings. The resources available are amazing and even better than most of the mass made, box store merchandise in many cases. From Martha Stewart crafts sold at Michael's and WalMart to inspirational websites and blogs such as Project Wedding and Style Me Pretty showing you tons of creative handmade inspiration, the creative ideas are everywhere.

The handmade movement definitely has its roots bound in Etsy. The beautiful, artisan products available for your special day can be found in abundance here! From invitations to favors to bridal jewelry to groomsmen gifts- you cou easily plan and coordinate your entire wedding completely on Etsy. And it makes sense- most of the stuff I have found is not only made better than most mass produced items, but they are more attractive and usually can be customized for a low fee, plus the overall cost is comparable or only slightly more expensive.

Here is a sampling of some of my favorite items that I recently found on Etsy's handy Wedding search category:


This elegant ensemble is so gorgeous I want to buy all three items just to play dress-up. It is retro and sophisticated and would make any bride look like a glamerous old-holywood starlet.

Divine Deco Claudette necklace by EMbridal, Yvonne Dew drop veil with detachable hand sculpted feather flower by hairfasconators, Mavis bridal Earring by EMbridal



This is just a smattering of some of the decorating ideas I found in my one hour search- imagine what you could find in an afternoon? From table runners and centerpieces to cake toppers and floral arrangements- Etsy really does have it all. And a lot of it is truly unique- stuff you wouldnt find going to the mall.

Like the clay floral arrangment above, bottom-left. I didnt even know you could make flowers out of clay, let alone an entire stunning arrangement! The beauty and delicateness of it just takes my breath away. Created by seller PetalbyPetal (a very appropriate name I think), I was amazed at how affordable this was, compared to live flowers that will eventually whither and die. This will become a keepsake for you to treasure for years to come.

And the 'cootie catcher' menu, top-left, is such a neat idea I am kicking myself for not thinking of it first! What a fun and entertaining way to present your menu, or even a program of the day's events. They are available in many different styles from seller katskrafts.

The cute bride and groom wedding topper, top-right, is customizable with whatever hair color, suit and dress color, and skin tone you want. Or if you want to flex your own artistic muscle you can just get the DIY kit and paint them however you like! From seller goosegrease.

I really love the engraved oath stone with the bride and groom's names and wedding date. I think I might get this even though it has been almost three years since I got married, just because I think it would make such a neat keepsake. I am drawn to any nature inspired mementos and this would look so cute sitting on my plant table in our living room. I am thinking it might just make a great anniversary present! From seller SJengraving.

Martha Stewart also sells some 'make-your-own tissue paper pom-poms, but the colors are limited so I was happy to see these colorful kits, bottom-right, by seller prosttothehost. With over 30 colors to choose from you know you will find something that will go with whatever theme you have. Her kits also include quite a bit more than the Martha ones do.

So these are just a few ideas of how you can make your wedding more handmade with items that are unique and customizable. It really is all of the little details that make your special day stand out from the normal, hum-drum, wedding-in-a-box events and gets your personality to really shine through.