Fresh Take on Edible Centerpieces.

The thing I love the most about wedding planning is the endless amount of creativity that exists, so when I get to work with couples who challenge me with an idea that gets me to put my thinking cap on, I couldn't be happier.

This weekend, I met up with good friends of ours who are getting married next summer. The bride is just about the coolest nutritionist on the planet, so her desire to have edible centerpieces didn't really surprise me, but did get me thinking, "How on earth could we possibly make these cool?". Most research presents tacky hollowed out large fruits or vegetables stuffed with more fruit and veggies, which is such a literal take on the idea. Outside of these tacky traditional takes on edible wedding centerpieces, mini cakes, cupcakes and candy jars are the second most commonly used foods, but we want these ones to be truly unique, so I've had to think a little outside the box.

Sourced from Rachael Ray.

Food is probably one of the best ways to bring people together and every bride wants her wedding to be memorable, so having an edible wedding centerpiece doubling as an appetizer or dessert is a surefire way to make your wedding a night people will remember.

Depending on the vendor or the types of products used, these types of centerpieces can be just as expensive as floral ones, so be sure to do your research on what products might fit with your budget, or how much work can be expected if you are putting them together yourself.

Sourced from Martha Stewart.

For this wedding, I'm hoping to do two or three variations:

• The first being, a combination of leafy greens, whole artichokes which have a very floral shape to them, bunches of grapes and whole limes.
• The second incorporating skewers of meats styled to resemble flowers, cheese, crackers and pate, possibly offset by more leafy greens on silver platters.
• The last, a wooden box, similar to the following, packed tightly with a selection of beautiful fresh veggies, accompanied by various complimentary dips.

So much to think about, and I'm sure it will all evolve with input from the bride and groom, but I'm incredibly confident that we will end up with a gorgeous result!

Sourced form Nancy Conner Design.

Lastly, a few more suggestions on how to incorporate food into your centerpieces:

• Skewers of bocconcini cheese, cherry tomatoes and basil leaves standing upright in a jar.
• Deli meats woven back and forth or twisted around skewers, resembling flowers.
• Use a tiered cake or dessert stand to present a variety of sweets on each tier.
• Bunches of asparagus, tied with a ribbon, accented by white pillar candles.
• Mix whole grapefruits, apples, lemons, etc. with brightly colours flowers.

The Benefits of Lavender Oil.

When it comes to hair and skin, I am so incredibly cautious, which is why I can hardly believe the night before our wedding, I decided to try lavender oil on my face to clear up some redness and pimples that had appeared that day. Honestly, I don’t know what I was thinking, putting something on my face I’ve never tried before, when I already have such sensitive skin, but it didn’t even phase me until the next morning how silly it was! Fortunately, it worked in my favour and my skin was as good as new!

While familiar with lavender oil and its ability to to ease anxiety, relieve pain, enhance blood circulation and treat respiratory problems like asthma, I immediately wanted to find out more about the benefits of lavender oil for skin care and benefits for you beautiful brides!

HISTORY.

‘Lavender’ is derived from the Latin word ‘lavare’ which means, ‘to wash’. Through the process of distillation, lavender oil is extracted from the flower spikes of a certain species of lavender plant.  It was used in ancient Greece as a cure for everything from insomnia and back aches to insanity due to its calming effect on the nervous system. The Romans are said to have used it as a perform and even an insect repellent (who’d have thought?!).

SKIN CARE.

Lavender oil has antiseptic, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and restorative traits making it especially therapeutic for the skin. It prevents tissue degeneration, encourages new skin cell growth, aids in the formation of scar tissues, increases blood circulation and balances the skin, all of which makes it ideal to aid with skin irritations such as 

• acne;
• redness;
• scarring;
• stretch marks;
• inflammation;
• wrinkles burns;
• burns and sunburns;
• other minor sores. 

There is no need to dilute lavender oil before applying to the skin, which sets it apart from other essential oils. 

For acne or other minor skin issues, such as burns or stretch marks it can be applied directly from the bottle to the skin or to a small cotton swab first. To ease sunburns, add a three or four drops of the oil into a bowl of cool water, using this mixture to make a cool compress with a cloth which can then be applied to the skin. 

I also found this cool tutorial on making your own lavender oil, which would be fun to make and give to your bridesmaids as a mini thank-you gift!

NERVOUS SYSTEM AND SLEEP.

It is well known that lavender oil has a calming scent and effect of soothing the nerves, which aids in treating migraines, headaches, anxiety, emotional stress including depression and actually increases mental activity.  It is also known to induce sleep which is why it is often recommended to treat insomnia.

Of course, with anything, each person will react differently to skin care products whether they are natural or not, so please be sure to test this in a small area before applying a larger amount.

So my lovelies, now that you know the benefits of lavender oil for skin care and a stress-reduced lifestyle, be good to yourselves and start treating yourself by adding lavender oil to your daily routine to keep you calm, cool and radiant throughout your wedding planning process and most importantly, for your wedding day!

A Sweet 'Sundae' Afternoon.

On August 5th, 2011 we had our civil ceremony and it was the most perfect day! Being me, I had to style our civil ceremony really prettily too so that we would have the best of both worlds; the small vintage wedding and the big classic wedding. That said, I also knew I wanted to do this on as little a budget as possible and managed to plan a wedding for under $1000.

I had wanted to include my grandparents in the day since they wouldn't be able to make the trip to Toronto for our big wedding, so we decided to have it in the small town of Port Stanley, right on Lake Erie. We settled on Broderick's Ice Cream Parlour, right on the main street, which I had frequented often with my grandparents as a kid. They have what seems like 10,000 flavours of ice cream and the parlour is beautifully styled in the 40s and 50s setting. We did the ceremony on the back patio with our closest family present and then moved inside for cones and sundaes and cake for dessert.

Fred and Donna, new owners in 2010 were the most gracious hosts and even offered their small vacant apartment above the parlour as as a place for us to get ready. They had a plain pre-lit wedding arch that I covered in 18 white feather boas and we used their stunning classic marble top, ornate iron based bistro tables as the perfect accents for the cake and register signing. 

While we don't have all of our pictures, here's a sneak peak of our little "big day", which has a couple of images from a fantastic post on Eat Drink Chic. Definitely check out the link for their site which has some AWESOME templates for doing much of this on your own! Imagine a bridal shower, a young girl's birthday party or just a girlie afternoon?!

I'll be sure to share more details and more pictures when they come through in a couple of months and will also give you a break down of the costs!

To learn more about the artists features in this board, click here. 

The Perfect Little Black Dress.

The overall theme for our wedding day was 'classic' since the last thing I wanted was in 20 years to look back with 'what was I thinking?' running through my mind. Now don't get me wrong, I also love a fun, bright party dress but I knew that for my wedding, I knew I had to carry the 'classic' theme through here as well. I wanted a fitted black cocktail dress accessorized with pearls and a bit of sparkle - very Audrey Hepburn and something that could actually be worn again. Who doesn't need a little black dress?!

For us, the search became a bit of a last minute rush since an unforeseen circumstance prevented us from doing our original plan, but I have to say, there are a lot of great solutions out there! A few things I found helpful along the way:

1. Keep it simple. Whether the dress is long or short, the most important thing to do is keep the simplicity of the dress in mind. Black is a bold colour to begin with, so you don't want to add much as it can detract from gorgeous you, the beautiful bride!

2. Select a fabric that is more dull than the bride's dress - a knit or a chiffon. Again, the bridesmaid dresses should complement and not overpower.

3. Play with accessories. If the dresses are all exactly the same, mix it up by changing the length and weight of the accessories for each girl. We did pearl necklaces from Forever 21 ($3.95 - $6.95) in different lengths, some wrapping three times, some only two.

I thought this time I'd focus on Le Chateau, which seriously surprised me with quality and price. I've never been a fan, but it seems they've come a long way in terms of manufacturing dresses over the last few years. 

Each of these dresses is $150 or under, totally reasonable for a bridesmaid, with one being $189.95, where dresses are normally $200 plus. 

The first is the one that we used for our girls. It's the 'Ponte Starburst Shift' and retails for $150. This dress fit absolutely every girl perfectly, was fully lined, made in Canada and the starburst pleats on the side hit right at the natural waistline, cinching in the girls' middles. The number of compliments we got on those dresses was astounding. Oddly enough, after the wedding, I did stumble across the same dress at Jacob, for only $89, but it wasn't lined and didn't feel as solid, though it is still a great dress! Le Chateau also had a three-quarter sleeve version of the same dress (see below), though I thought it would be a bit too hot to dance in!

Ponte Starburst Shift - $150 CAD

Chiffon Halter Dress with Pleated Bust $189.95 CAD.

Acetate Satin Ruffle Shift $169.95 CAD.

Starbust Ponte Pleat Knit Shift Dress $179.95 CAD.

Bengaline Pleated Shift $139.95 CAD.

So, go find the best dress for you and your best girls!

 

Wedding Dress Preservation.

The wedding is over and the most important (and likely most expensive) dress you will ever own is one of your only keepsakes aside from your wedding pictures. The sentimental value that it carries often motivates many brides to keep it for use in the future whether it be worn by a friend or even by their own daughter. In order to be sure it will stay such a valuable piece, you need to find a reliable professional to clean, process and package your gown.

As much as I love do it yourself tasks, this is one place I do not recommend you take financial shortcuts. That out of the way, there are a few key rules to follow in terms of wedding dress preservation.

*Photography by Kenneth Chou from Renaissance Studios.

The Basics.
As soon as your wedding is over, place the dress in a pre-washed clean white sheet  instead of back into the plastic bag. Plastic attracts mold and mildew and traps moisture - all elements that will deteriorate your dress.

Be sure to think about this service as quickly as possible as you don’t want to wait more than a week or two to have your gown and any relevant accessories professional cleaned. If you are out of town for a few weeks after your wedding for your honeymoon, make arrangements before you leave to have a family member take your dress in for its wedding dress preservation.  With all of this said, if you do happen to forget, it is never too late to see what a professional can do for you as some good preservation companies may be able to restore a gown even after a number of years.

When selecting a wedding dress cleaner, be as diligent about hiring someone who has as good a reputation as the other vendors who assisted with your wedding. Often your bridal shop will have a preferred rate at a recommended vendor and the bonus is that they will be familiar with the fabrics and details used on your dress. Also consider how long the shop has been in business since you’ll want someone with a proven track record.

Warranties and Guarantees.
Warranties and guarantees vary from shop to shop so it’s best to consider what they offer before proceeding. It’s also a good idea to ask the cleaner how they intend to handle delicate trims and decorations on your dress if your dress has a lot of detail. The dress’ material and detailing will ultimately effect what type of specialized process will be used to clean it.

At the very least, the vendor should guarantee that the dress won’t yellow or change colour and that sugar stains will be properly treated to prevent caramelization of sugar stains (they’ll show up as brown stains if not removed properly). Hopefully, they will also guarantee against insect infestation.

Most importantly, make sure they stand by their work and be sure to have in writing that they will compensate you for the dress’ full value if any damage occurs while it is in their hands.

*Photography by Kenneth Chou from Renaissance Studios.

The Treatment Process.
Just as with any cleaning process, they will begin with pretreating the stains. This is often done by hand. While it is recommended that you look over your dress and accessories before bringing it in so that you can find anything with your own eye, a professional cleaner will now to look for stains that are not visible to the untrained eye, like stains from alcohol or sugar, which can significantly brown over time if not treated.

Inquire about whether your cleaner uses Perchloroethylene (Perc). While this chemical is sometimes used by dry cleaners, it is not suitable for wedding dresses. but it’s too abrasive for wedding gowns and has been known to melt beading or damage delicate fabrics.
After the full cleaning process, the dress and accessories will be placed into special packaging: a lined, specifically treated, acid-free box, which is resistant to water and other potential threats. If your cleaner uses plastic packaging, be sure to ask why since it is generally a bad choice as it traps moisture and emits fumes, both of which can make the dress yellow. Note though, that your cleaner should be providing you with the opportunity to inspect the dress and accessories before they are sealed in the box.

Storage.
The ideal location for your safely packaged wedding dress is someplace flat, cool, dry and out of sunlight like under the bed or in the corner of a closet. The basement and attic are definite no-go’s! Check the gown once or twice a year, each time refolding along new lines to protect the fabric from breaking, always with clean, dry hands. By inspecting it, you now have the opportunity to have them addressed right away instead of discovering years later!

Investment.
Finer fabrics, size and detailing can change the amount of cleaning and preparation needed. For example, a long train and lots of hand detailing will require more work than something simple. The severity of a stain will require additional labour, thus increasing the cost of the job. As with anything, location can impact this pricing as well. For example, Toronto will be much pricier than Hamilton, but you may be paying for a better service - someone who deals with dresses en mass. Average pricing for wedding gown preservation is somewhere between $200 and $500, but   of course, this pricing can always increase.

Spreading the Love: The Invitations.

If you've been following, you probably read in my last post about the sneak peak for the invites which captured our experience letter pressing our invitations. It's been just over a month and we now have them complete!

When I started the whole wedding planning process, I knew I wanted to hand make my invites because I was probably the only person who was going to be able to give myself what I wanted but also needed time to waiver before deciding on the final product. There have been many tears shed over these invites, but I wouldn't have done it any differently. 

For the concept of the invites, I knew they had to set the tone for the wedding. I know some people thing it's silly but it was a must have in terms of design. I wanted them to be glamorous with a mixture of elements and that was one thing I never did waiver from through it all. I wanted feathers, crystal and pearls integrated in some way and was able to use leftovers from the boutonnieres to complete the look. For the paper, I wanted a thicker more rough card stock balanced against a smooth, translucent vellum. As for the typeface, doing both printed and handwritten copy gave them a more vintage and personalized touch which was really important to me. I wanted people to really feel as though they were getting more of a handcrafted letter than simply an invite that was pressed 100 times and looked exactly like the last.

The Invitation Run Down.

If you've ever tried to learn about letterpress, you probably know it's one of those things that not many people know anything about and those who know a little something don't want to offer much advice because really, anything can happen and they'd hate to be the one. It's important to choose the right weight to your paper, something I knew, but still didn't know exactly how the weight of the paper I chose would work out. Knowing what I know now, I would definitely have picked a much heaver paper. For the actual letterpressed invite, I found an inspiring border on the web, but couldn't find anything like it on the stock photography sites so I made a similar version using Adobe Illustrator. I then ordered the letterpress plate through Boxcar Press - who were incredibly helpful in making sure they got everything they needed to actually create the perfect plate.

After that, it was on to the map. To do this, I basically took a screenshot of Google Maps and outlined it in AI again. I then purchased an art deco looking building icon as a place marker and added the street names. The most important part I found when making the map, was to leave only major roads and intersections that are vital to finding the location. Getting too detailed can actually be detrimental to your design. 

Next, I had to come up with something  keep the invite and map connected so that when they were taken out of the envelope, nothing was missed. Scouring the internet, I found a number of things that could be used (jumbo bobby pins, flat bookmarks, etc.) but the most economical product were jumbo paperclips that had a circular glue pad at the one end. I assembled feathers, pearl boutonniere sprays and ribbon to create a glamorous clip that also doubled as a gift for our guests. To add the handwritten element, I hand wrote small tags to attach to the feather clip that reiterated the RSVP directions and signed off with 'Love Laura and Byron'.

For the envelope, I couldn't get my self away from wanting to line them and I found an awesome gold damask Indian paper from Curry's Art Supply that was incredibly durable and didn't rip easily. Wanting to carry through the handwritten element again, I part stamped, part handwrote our address and names on the back invite flap.

The Suite.

Our guests are replying via our wedding website so no reply cards were needed, which greatly cut down on both supplies and postage along with being environmentally conscious. That said, though, we did need to create about 20 invitations to our civil ceremony so I decided to hand write these invites as a more personalized measure. The envelopes were still lined with the same damask paper and included a smaller, similar version of the feather clips.

Last but not least, are our thank you cards. I'm a huge believer that thank you cards must be hand written, but I also wanted to tie them in with the invitations. Luckily, the fact that the letterpress on our invites wasn't a huge impression, we could simply stamp them to get a similar look. So I bought a Martha Stewart stamp kit from Michael's with my trusty 40% off coupon, and off we went! We stamped and  hand wrote the envelope flaps with our names and addresses again to finish it all off!

So, many hours of work plus blood sweat and tears, but it was all so worth it to get the perfect invites!

Sneak Peak: Invitations!

Well, hello again world! I honestly don't know where the time has gone, but I have been on a serious neglecting my precious little Tweetcheeks! This year has gone past in a whirlwind so far and I decided I had to force myself to sit down and reflect on what I've accomplished in the last two months!

Looking back, I have tackled a ridiculous amount of projects both wedding and non-wedding related, but probably the most exciting one has been our invitations. With a little less than a month to go before it's time to head to the post office, I have had my game face on.

At the beginning of April, Byron and I visited with Jes, the gal who ultimately got me hooked on letterpress and we began the daunting task of letterpressing our invites, which I never thought woud happen. Probably the most stressful part was getting the plate made and being sure everything was just perfect, but the kind folks at Boxcar Press were great about calling to explain any issues with the files and what they would ideally like to work with. Next thing I knew, I had the plate in two weeks! As a first time letterpress-er I was surprised at exactly how thin the plate was and actually had moments of wondering whether or not I'd even ordered the right thing - it was so thin and flimsy - but of course, after it's attached to the plate base, it makes so much more sense!

Definitely a close second as the most nerve-racking part was the actual printing itself. It took two hours to be sure the plate was properly leveled, ink loaded and had just the right amount of padding behind the paper, but when we got it, it was such a sweet feeling! Unfortunately we had to print single invitations due to some issues with a missing bases, and the actual level indentation could have been greater, but when you're only printing 100 and you have a great team, it's nice to spend the time doing something productive!

Since then, I've been working on finishing the venue map and printing on velum, tearing my hair out trying to make a decision over which paper to use for the envelope liner (I found one!), updating our wedding website to accordingly and finally lining and addressing the envelopes themselves.

So I am now on the final steps of finishing the clips to hold the map and invite together, but another 30 to go and I'm DONE! It's been such a great experience, although there's been much frustration, but I am so incredibly happy with how they've turned out and I would do it all over again. I'll post final pics once they get mailed out!