I think everyone knows how much I love James Grella. Any man whose hair is longer than mine is a keeper in the Diva Squad.  (FYI, the Diva Squad is a group of professionals that work tirelessly to pull Miss Thang, yours truly, together.  Other great members of the Diva Squad would also be the Crayola People for makeup LOL)

James, featured here by the awesome Scarlett Lillian with our diva bride, Tara is with Indulgence Salon on St. Simons Island.  He and his team specialize in hair and makeup for special events.  An awesome professional, James brings so much to the table– exploring different looks, colors and styles to compliment each bride’s face shape, complexion and personality.  Event better, they come on location!  Having worked with several celebrities and being a star in his field and world renowned, any bride would lucky to have him!

 Give James a call at the salon at 912.638.4045 or visit them at 2463 Demere Road, Suite 106 on St. Simons Island.    Tell him, Terrica, his biggest fan sent you!

Let’s talk shop.

I’m going to share some things with you that you may have heard or thought about, that might not necessarily be true or warranted.

• Hardly anyone really saves the top layer of their cake anymore.  Sure, they say they will eat it at their first year anniversary, but come on. Let’s be real. A lot of brides are ditching that idea and tradition– I hear so many say “I am not going to want that nasty thing next year! Let’s eat the whole thing!”  Besides, many bakers now give their clients discounted or free cakes at their first year anniversary. 
• Speaking of cakes…Wedding cake is cute. Wedding cake is sweet.  But believe it or not, not everyone eats it!  So it is really unnecessary to have a huge cake; save that money and apply it elsewhere.  You may even want to consider doing dummy layers to get that “big cake” look or order a cake for only 70-90 percent of your guest list if you are having a dessert served with dinner.
• You can eliminate the inner envelope from your invitation order.  Save a tree.  No one uses them anymore– they are antiquated.  I know some of the etiquette books might tell you otherwise– but when you crack it open again, ask it if it is contributing to your budget.  Originally, inner envelopes served a grand purpose:  it kept the invitation clean and free from smudges and dirt when they were delivered by a courier on a horse.  If that applies to you, then keep your inner envelope
• If you have a small wedding guest list, you can do an iPod wedding. Many entertainment companies now rent out sound systems for this exact reason.  This is particularly good for those smaller parties, especially with those in the guest list who are not big dancers.  iTunes offer the “clean” versions of several songs if you are afraid of offending Grandma.  Just remember to have a tech savvy friend man the station for important events (i.e., introduction, first dance, cake cutting, etc.).  Remember to put some thought into your playlist.   Start your party with something upbeat and fun, include songs from different eras to appeal to the masses, and occasionally slow it down to allow the couples a little romance time. 
• You should ALWAYS order extra invitations and envelopes.  Not just because someone might mess up the envelope or one my tear, but because sometimes envelopes are addressed incorrectly and are returned back to you (or sometimes not at all).  You will need to easily get out new invitations to go to your guests or send out invitations to those on your B list,in the event  from your A list sends their regrets.  Time is of the essence! Being able to do this quickly can eliminate the stress when the final numbers are due.

Ok.  My vices:

 *  Hair

 *  Makeup

 * Creme Brulee

 Creme Brulee is the best thing since sliced bread.  If creme brulee was a person, it would be my husband   After a hard day of playing Mommy, Mrs. S. and Super Wedding Planner, I am sitting in my living room with a signature Berry Creme Brulee candle watching the Ultimate Fighter and about to enjoy some of my “fake” creme brulee.

So as you can see, I love creme brulee. I, however, lack the patience to make it and wait for it.  So….I fake it!  Now, you can too with super easy and no-one-will-know-unless-you-tell-them recipe:

1 pkg of Jell-O pudding

1 cup of heavy whipping cream (Land O’ Lakes is really good)

1 cup of milk (I use 2%)

If you want a really rich recipe, you can sub another cup of heavy whipping cream for the milk.  I mix the ingredients together and whip it with my electric mixer until it is thick.  Next, I scoop out the pudding and put it into my ramekins and smooth it out.  After that is done, you have to cover it with plastic wrap to stop it from forming a “skin”  on the top.  Once that’s done, you refrigerate it. Truth be told, you could eat it right then after adding your sugar crust.  I refrigerate mine for about an hour or so to get it to set a bit more.  DEELISH! 

 Yesterday, while watching the Top Chef finale, I enjoyed a nice ramekin of fake lemon creme brulee and it is absolutely HEAVENLY.  Tonight, it’s vanilla.  I even have a box of Butterscotch pudding… Man. This is bad… I also have the flavored sugars– Cappucino, Raspberry, Praline and Butter Rum, in addition to my regular carmelizing sugar. 

Signs of a true creme brulee addict.  Don’t get me wrong, I adore the real creme brulee. But when I want it…and don’t have the time or the patience to do ice baths or waiting for a six hour set– well, hello, Jell-O.

I think I made Bill Cosby proud.

Wanting something a little more unique? 

Cupcake wedding cake. I know- YUM. It’s sure to leave your guests with some sweet memories of your big day. A cupcake wedding cake is usually less expensive than your traditional wedding cake, and since there are so many little cakes you can chose lots of flavors.  Plus, you can still have one cake tier (or seperate cake) for you and your new hubby to slice through.   Have your cupcakes decorated to match your theme, colors or even have your initials on each one. This is just one more way to give you a chance to show off your personality and great taste.

So remember… if you can’t decide on flavors- have them all. You really can have your (cup)cake and eat it too.

…At least where it concerns your wedding jewelry

So you’ve got the dress, the shoes, and the veil and you’ve spent the past three months searching for the perfect jewelry to complement your already perfect dress on what is to be your perfect day.  The only problem is not that you aren’t sure what you want…it’s that you’re TOO sure.  You know precisely what you want and can’t find precisely what you want anywhere.  How exactly do you go about finding the perfect shade of light pink, freshwater pearls in just the right size and then making sure the length of the necklace is not a hair over 18 inches long and earrings to match?  It will never happen…

            Or well it couldn’t until now.  Meet the fabulous Zia Sachedina, owner and namesake of the equally as fabulous Zia Boutique in downtown Savannah, GA (http://www.ziaboutique.com/).  Zia means “luminous” in Arabic and luminous is the perfect description of his shop.  Zia’s beautiful boutique on Broughton Street features loads of contemporary and traditional jewelry, accessories and home accents from designers from around the world, the most important of whom (as far as I’m concerned) is Zia himself.  A graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design, Zia grew up between Kenya and the U.S. watching and learning from his mother, also a successful jeweler. 

            But I digress…the point is that I meandered into Zia Botique a few weeks ago in search of necklaces for my bridesmaids, knowing what I was looking for but not able to find it.  I saw a necklace that was similar to what I was looking for, but not quite it.  I told him what I really wanted and to my surprise, he said “No problem.  I can have six of those for you next week.”  And he did!  The necklaces are exactly what I wanted and he even gift wrapped them!  I could not be more pleased.  The necklaces are fabulous, and as I blog Zia is presently working on a necklace and matching earrings for me to wear on the big day!

            Added to the fabulousness of being able to get what you want, is being able to get what you want at a super reasonable price.  Apparently, you do not have to be a super wealthy Hollywood starlet to find a jeweler to design your wedding jewelry for you. Who knew?  In fact, you don’t even have to be in Savannah, as you can order all of the jewelry from the website.  Getting exactly what you wanted was never so easy…now if only my future mother-in-law could be this accommodating…hmm next week’s blog idea?

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They would probably hose me down with Holy Water.  (This will make you laugh– but looking back at my Senior yearbook at my past reunion, my Senior Superlative was “Most likely to still be serving detention by our reunion”.) Carmen Electra’s Aerobic Striptease is the BEST workout…EVER.  I tell everyone about it!  Even if you think you can’t do it, don’t want to do it or have that look on your face, I still urge you to try it at least one time. 

I had major plastic surgery about two years ago that totally changed my body.  (The good Lord giveth, and my awesome plastic surgeon taketh away…that’s all I’ll say about that ) At any rate, I needed a workout that would be easy for me and fun.  This was IT!  I dropped two sizes and got cut.  When my husband came home from Iraq around this time  and I also began fight training with him.  I’m a HUGE UFC fan– so we go into the mat room and grapple, spar and the like.  (Hey, I’m not normal….I’ve got a pair of pink rhinestone Everlast gloves.    Even working out has to be divalicious.

Why am I telling you all of this?  Well, now I’m back in gear post-baby to look like Chyna from the former WWF.  (just joking!)  But seriously, if your are looking for a good workout program to slim down for your wedding day, you have to find something that you love.  It could be the strip aerobics, salsa or hip hop dancing, or fighting your sweaty husband in a mat room like me.  LOL

In addition to my addiction to makeup–I’ve clearly got an addiction to phones too   I decided to maximize my time and efforts with business and personal life and got a Palm Treo. It was cute. I felt like a big girl.  Even though I wanted a Blackberry– I decided to cut my teeth on this smartphone and essentially avoid carrying a palm pilot and a cell phone.  All was well with the world. Then….my two year old accidentally on purpose dropped it on my ceramic tile floor.

R.I.P. Palm Treo.

So here I am phoneless– with all my clients’, vendors’, family’s info, appointments, notes, etc. just gone.  Sure, it’s on my computer, but I need a phone!  So I hop on ebay and score a Blackberry. I loved it. Became a “crackberry addict” in a second.   I was horrible– two hours after I gave birth, I was on my blackberry notifying family and friends. 

So, Captain America and I go into the AT&T store to get a holster for our phones, and walk out with His and Her iPhones.  The phone is AWESOME. It takes a while to get used to, and although I did miss my crackberry enormously (ok maybe not that much), and felt like I was cheating on her, the iPhone was definitely an awesome investment.  So now I’ve cut down on the Palm Pilot, cell phone and iPod and consolidated them into one piece of equipment.

Go me.

Current Ringtone?  Rockstar by Nickelback.  Current Wallpaper?  Captain America and I kissing on the beach in Jamaica.  How many songs in my library? About 465, with 2 episodes of Top Chef and 2 episodes of Whose Wedding Is It Anyway. Oh. And can’t forget my Bill Maher podcasts.  What’s playing right now in the iPod portion? Kanye West’s new album, Graduation.  Photos? About 15– a majority of my new baby, kids and recently deployed husband, and a house I’ve been swooning over. 

While it’s not a hardcore business machine as my blackberry, it is definitely sleek, sexy and it does the job! 

Here are some contests to enter while you are at work surfing for cute items for your wedding.  Don’t worry. I won’t tell your boss.

• Win a set of five flower pot shaped glass vases from Marc Jacobs and Waterford

• Win ten rose and lisianthus centerpieces from RedEnvelope.

• Win 120 flower shaped lollipops from Twinkle Candy.

• Win a silver plated bouquet holder from Wilton.

• Win a package of freeze dried rose petals from Petal Garden. 

• Win a set of ten silk orchid centerpieces from Aldik.
• Win 1,000 assorted froses from Farms To Go.

If these interest you, be sure to log on to BRIDES to enter.  No purchase necessary!   Contest ends on October 15th.  Good luck!

I have spoken before about my complete “thumbs-upping-ness” for edible favors. Some people don’t agree, but I figure, if you want to waste a couple hundred bucks on things people will leave behind– send it to me! I could always use more lipstick and bronzers!   You can jazz up your edible favors– like pictured left. Monogrammed candy is becoming a big hit.  From initialed white chocolate to the built in sweet pops from Wedding Graffiti (those monograms are actually made into the candy.  No peeling!), you can do the edible favor with style and class.  If budget is an issue, you can even do personalized M&Ms in your wedding colors in organza bags (step AWAY from the tulle!), clear acrylic gift boxes or labeled tins (I mentioned this in one of my podcasts– if you decide to go with tins buy them wholesale– you try places that sell them for candles, they are uber cheap! Mill Creek is a great option.)

I am noticing that more brides are opting to ditch the tiaras and crowns next year, and are deciding instead to go for embellished pins and combs, as featured left from Nuagi.  This can be a good option– ditching the antiquated crown can prevent you from looking like Miss Teen USA twenty years from now when you look at your wedding pictures.  Also, you can express your personality or explore your theme more with the wide variety of pins and combs on the market.   From pearls to jewels to ribbons of silk and satin, you have several options at your disposal.  The stunning shapes that backpieces come in are sure to satisfy the grandest diva’s lust for hair sugar– like the Sweet Marie backpiece, again from Nuagi. You can also find more from one of our vendors, Mareas Headpieces, who offers couture headpieces for the even the most discriminating bride.