Wedding Flowers

Back in March I showed off the beginnings of these beauties, but now they're finished. The total amount of flowers? Too many to count! 

The final order included one bride bouquet, five bridesmaids bouquets, 11 boutonnières and five corsage/brooches. 

You can see the details of the listing, or even create a custom order for yourself here.

Wedding Trials

How many flowers does it take to make up five bridesmaid bouquets? Approximately 55!

Working on a wedding for this fall. I think we're getting right with the types of flowers...now how about those colors? 

Hair Combs

The hair comb bang wagon has arrived. When are you jumping on?

Felt Corsage

Corsages remind me high school dances. It was that final accessory that completed the look and however silly it may have been, I loved getting them. While I those floral bracelets adhered to the bulletin board in my childhood room until just a few years ago, I completely forgot all about corsages until a few months ago. They are starting to make a major comeback in the wedding industry, and not just in the wrist variety.

Bridesmaids are now wearing them on their ankles (beachy brides are also sporting the ankle adornment) and arms, I am seriously loving the idea. Don't get me wrong, I love the traditional bouquets, it's what my bridesmaids carried. But you get about an hours worth of time out of them and then sometimes they catch fire at the reception (that's a story for another day). With the corsages, the bridal party gets to sport the pretty creation all night. Naturally, I wanted to test out the felt alternative and am just looking for an event to wear one of these lovelies to!

Have a special event coming up that a felt corsage would be perfect for? Custom orders are always welcomed! At least one week is needed to prepare, prices start at $14.

#85: Felt Corsage

I'm participating in the 92 Days of Summer challenge. Click here to see my 92 To-Do's for this Summer - and to see the brave souls tackling their own lists!

Wedding Wednesdays: The Dress

As an avid watcher of Say Yes to the Dress (judge me, I don't care), I can honestly say I haven't watched it once since I brought home my wedding dress. The show is so right (like, you won't end up liking what you thought you wanted) and so wrong (why would you EVER spend THAT much money for a dress?!) for many reasons and lucky for me, my dress experience was an absolute breeze. My Mom flew in for a long weekend. I took a Friday off of work and made three appointments. This may come as a surprise, but I didn't invite anyone else. With my family living in Ohio, wedding plan was all done via email, text message or Facetime calls. I knew I would get so many moments to spend planning and preparing with Mike's family and my closest friends, so this one special day and important life event was just for me and my Mom. Plus, the thought of walking out to a crowd of people ready to "Ooo and Ahh" or "Boo and Hiss" made me sick to my stomach!

I did have some dress options in mind when I started looking. I liked more of the column look, lace, vintage, no silk, fluffy, sparkles, yes to the possibility of sleeves or blush color and it had to be ready in five months. Easy enough, let's go. Silk was our first stop. It's a consignment shop, where all the dresses were runway samples, once wedded or were purchased before but not wedded. The woman helping us was amazing, and we had the whole store to ourselves. I loved that she didn't put me in anything that was so many sizes bigger (because you won't get the right idea of how it'll fit after alterations), nor did she let us get out of our price range.

The first dress I tried on, The Big Bird Dress, as my stepdad called it, actually took my breath away. I liked it! The bird-like ruffles were a little jarring at first. But reality sank in. I was a bride and holy shit, I just tried on my real first wedding dress. Ever. Sounds so silly and little-girl-princess type of stuff, but it was like I saw myself as this woman I didn't recognized. I grew up. I have my own life, my own car, an awesome house, a professional career and soon a great guy to call my husband. My Mom, who was snapping photos of me in these big white gowns was going to be the Mother of the Bride and I was that Bride. Of all the emotions I was preparing to experience that day, dignified and uplifted weren't at the top. I digress...

I tried on two more dresses at Silk, left for lunch where I ate a giant Philly Cheesecake for lunch (yes, the greasiest, fattiest lunch a shopping-for-her-wedding-dress bride shouldn't eat), then went to Ava Clara to try on, what seemed like, 20 more dresses. The store was nice and had lots of beautiful dresses to choose from, but none were like the fit and flare, lacy, strapless style from Silk. So, needless-to-say, we went back to Silk, tried on the third dress again, my mom cried and that was that! We bought the strapless, sweetheart neck, lace Tara Keely dress on the spot and believe it or not, not one single alteration had to be made to it!

It definitely was not what I originally had in mind, but I fell in love with it more and more each time I looked at it. The dress was perfect for the venue, the evening and me. Most importantly Mike loved it - and me in it!

It was also fabulous for twirling!

Toss Bouquet

My sweet friend Sarah and her handsome groom got married on October 25, 2014. I was more than thrilled do design their wedding invitations and signage, but I was so honored when she asked me to make her toss bouquet for the wedding. Her colors were coral and navy so I perused the artificial flower lanes at the craft store and found these perfect little Carnation minis for the filler.

Turns out, coral felt (the pretty, soft coral color) is really hard to come by. It's either red, dark red, or approximately 15 shades of pink. I ended up with "grapefruit" and got to work. A typical toss bouquet will come with 4 flowers and filler for $20-$25. It can match the wedding bouquet flowers perfectly (in a smaller fashion), or it can be something completely different that your lucky guest will be able to cherish for many years to come.

As for the rest of the evening, the wedding couldn't have been more splendid. The Attic at Waterman's is such a hidden gem! The venue over looks the Atlantic Ocean and is stunning as the afternoon and evening sun starts to set. The food was fantastic - and lots of it, plus the ice luge (which brought fond memories of a friend's 21st birthday) was a more-than-appropriate touch! Many congrats to my two wonderful friends!

Grapevine Wreath

Another score at Hobby Lobby....a grapevine wreath for only $7! I attached a bouquet of felt flowers and am sorta loving how it looks. Good thing Hobby Lobby is opening in just a few short months and I'll be able to grab these wreaths all the time!

#54: Interview Caterers

So far, this has been the most annoying part of wedding planning. Although, I think I said that about the venue decision. However, the caterers are pretty the main act of the show. We decided with such a late wedding, we were going to do hors d'oeuvre stations with a big dessert bar, which would be made and provided by friends. How hard (or expensive) could hors d'oeuvre stations be? Apparently, very. Especially when you add in the linens, dishes, serving ware, bar ware, tables, chairs...and the list goes on and on.

We talked with Omar's Carriage House, East Beach Catering and Cusiene and Company and ultimately decided on Omar's. We did a tasting last night with Omar himself and it was perfect. He let us taste 10 different items, which I think we'll be serving almost all of! I loved that everything, down to the cocktail sauce, is made right there and was super fresh. It was also a huge plus that Omar wasn't trying to sell to us. He gave us his honest opinion and tips, and is more than willing to work with our somewhat intricate schedule. And seriously, his crab cake and mac 'n' cheese (bar) are to die for. We put down our deposit and are relieved that this task was such a delight.

Caterer can be checked off the 92 Days list and the Wedding list.

I'm participating in the 92 Days of Summer challenge. Click here to read all about it and here to a see a gallery of pictures of everyone participating.  

#73: Felt Flower Garland

My new favorite felt flower project. Approximately 5 feet of the flower garland is now on sale at Table Seven in Ghent, for $50! Also to debut later this month at Lorak Jewelry - but more to come on that later!

You can also sign up to take a class at Kitsch to learn how to make this your self! The class is June 24th, at 6 p.m., for only $35! Quite a steal on this garland, if you ask me!!

I'm participating in the 92 Days of Summer challenge. Click here to read all about it and here to a see a gallery of pictures of everyone participating.  

#77: Tint Jars

I'm a hoarder of glass jars. When we moved last year I was hiding them in boxes everywhere so Mike didn't realize just how many I had collected. And why? I have no idea. I feel guilty throwing away a perfectly fine receptacle for pens, or cutlery at a party, or an upcycled vase for felt flowers. And what are we supposed to do with all the grease that you can't put down the kitchen sink (which I have used a jar exactly once for this purpose)?? Anyway, when I saw this tutorial on Pinterest, I knew I had to give it a try. Besides, my jar collection could double as wedding decor! However, I learned a few tips along the way the other bloggers are not reporting.

What you need: Mod Podge, food coloring, paper bags to cover your countertops, jars, wax paper and a cookie sheet. Mod Podge tends to get a little lumpy if you haven't used it in a while, so beware of clumps or dried up pieces within your bottle.

This mixture goes a long way. If you're just planning on doing one jar per color (like me), you need about a tablespoon of Mod Podge and a few drops of coloring - depending on the size of your jar. Make sure the inside of your jars are clear of any dust or dirt or crumbs.

You can forgo the water. I think it made the mixture way too watery and was tricky to get the rims of the jar covered without it spilling out the top. Swish the color around until all the sides are covered.

Dump the excess out and NOT IN THE SINK! It will dry and coat your pipes with a thin layer of dried glue. I emptied it all into another jar and threw it away. Yes, I threw a jar away.

Turn the jars upside down so they can finish draining the excess color. When you pick the jars off the paper, be careful, there might be a lot of liquid hiding under there and will start rushing everywhere :) Which brings me to another point. Even though it's diluted, you are still working with food coloring. This will stain your fingers, clothes and other surfaces, so be cautious when you're working.

Turn your oven to "warm" or about 200 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with wax paper and place your jars top down. Here's my advice. Either have a second wax-paper lined cookie sheet ready, or place your jars in a straight line (if they'll fit). After about 10-15 minutes, you'll flip the jars right side up and there will be leftover liquid on the tray. If you distribute habhazardly like I did, you run out of room and end up playing a juggling game with hot jars, a hot oven and a food-colored mess. Also, these are glass jars in an oven. They will be hot!

The last thing I will point out is the smell. I'm not a fan of the smell of Mod Podge. It grosses me out. But throw some Mod Podge-covered jars into a hot oven? Your whole house is going to smell like hot glue. Not a very flattering smell for someone who just came home from a run and was going to throw some chicken in the oven (sorry, sweetie). Overall, the jars came out just like the tutorial said. I love the yellow and the black created that nice green you see on the left. I want to try it again with red to make a nice shade of pink. Until then, I'll be finding uses for these lovelies around the house.

I'm participating in the 92 Days of Summer challenge. Click here to read all about it and here to a see a gallery of pictures of everyone participating.  

Getting the hang of it

I've been trying my hand at some larger bouquets ever since I donated one to Alchemy's charity auction a few weeks ago (and it sold for more than $65!). I also need to get some practice in before starting the bouquets I'll be using in our wedding. There are lots of tips and tricks I've been learning along the way, but am still working on perfecting wrapping the stems together. Since I'm using floral wire as the stems, which is way skinnier than most flower stems, the bottom of the bouquet has been a bit lacking. But, practice makes perfect, right?

This was also an attempt to use up the yard of hot pink felt I acquired....but as you can see, the hot pink wasn't the major player here. Anyway, I think it's a fun Spring- and Summer-appropriate bouquet and would look great at a shower, brunch or little girl's birthday party!

Girls Day

#30: Girls Day doing #41: Wedding Dress Shopping

I think you could say this weekend was extremely successful. Extremely fun, sweet and perfect. And I feel extremely blessed to have such a wonderful Mom and family I'm marrying into. Since she doesn't live here and has done most of her wedding contributions via the phone, I decided that dress shopping would be the thing that my mom and I get to do together. She drove down on Thursday to spend the weekend with us (#36: Host Guests) and our first stop was The Women's Club. Of course she thought it was super perfect for us - although Mike and I started having our doubts about the reception hall size, the stage, the ceremony setup and everything else. But she calmed our nerves and we headed over to Smartmouth for dinner and a beer.

Friday we woke up early, went for a walk and played in my grandmother's wedding dress. We had our first dress appointment at 11 a.m. at Silk Bridal Consignment in Virginia Beach. And it was all so suddenly real that I was a grown up girl, trying on wedding gowns and getting married. That first look at myself in a white dress nearly took my breath away (probably also because the dress was very tight). But the look on my mother's face when that curtain opened made me feel like a million bucks and I realized with her as my cheerleader we were going to power through this days.

#42 New Restaurant

After lunch at a new (to me) sandwich place, Philadelphia Cold Cuts, and what seemed like a hundred dresses at Ava Clara (our second appointment), we went back to Silk and bought The Dress. It's not at all what I imagined myself in. But it's exactly perfect for me. Almost too perfect in that I can't gain a single pound before we get married. And I won't!

The rest of the weekend we were able to relax and enjoy the sights around Norfolk. We checked out a few potential places for rehearsal dinners, went thrift store shopping, hit up Table Seven, even went to the beach so my mom could check some things off her 92 Days list.

My mom just packed up her car and is on her way home. Just like that the weekend is over and we're back to reality. Although now there's a wedding dress hanging on the back of the guest bedroom door that makes me smile ear to ear, affirming I am one step closer to marrying the best guy in the world.

I'm participating in the 92 Days of Summer challenge. Click here to read all about it and here to a see a gallery of pictures of everyone participating.  

Save the Date!

I was absolutely blown away with our engagement pictures that Angela Douglas took for us. An hour walk around Downtown Norfolk and bam, she cranks out more than 60 images that I can't stop drooling over! So you can imagine the time we had narrowing it down to just ONE image for our Save the Date postcards...

After many emails and votes we finally decided to go with my personal favorite. I was able to design the back in no time and sent them off to Vistaprint for a quick turnaround. They look great and it seems more real than ever that we're doing this 'getting married' thing (as goosebumps just covered my body).

I'm participating in the 92 Days of Summer challenge. Click here to read all about it and here to a see a gallery of pictures of everyone participating.