I have a new love—and its name is Sottero + Midgley. The new, sculpted designs are perfect for the bride who wants to add a sleek, fashionable flair to her wedding day look. Have a look at some of my favorite gowns, have a look at real brides in Sottero + Midgley or their press features.
You can view more gowns in the 2011 collection by viewing the Look Book:
I love these vintagesque custom beer labels done by Grapevine Paperie.
It turned what could’ve been ordinary bottles into a conversation piece and
part of the design.
The Village Inn and Pub is an award winning inn, featured in Southern Living Magazine, Coastal Living Magazine and more! Nestled under the ancient live oak trees and between the parks and the historic oceanfront Village, you will find the unique Inn on Saint Simons Island. What makes the inn so unique and charming is that the owners restored the 1930 beach cottage and designed the Inn around it to integrate the architecture of the neighborhood and the facade of the cottage. The Inn was built around the existing giant live oaks that inhabit the Island and not one limb was removed or destroyed!
You will step back in time when you enter the beach cottage reception area. It is there that you will start your adventure into the Island’s historic past. The Village Inn & Pub is reminiscent of the charming 1930’s style and grace. No two guest rooms share the same floor plan, making each beautifully unique. Each room has its unique style that adds to the character of the Inn. The Beach Cottage serves as the main gatehouse and features an antique English Pub made of solid mahogany. You will also find the original stone fireplace and various antiques and treasures within. The small and intimate guesthouse and Inn is the perfect setting for your wedding, reunion, business meeting or any private function. A continental breakfast is served daily on the sun porch located in The Pub. Rooms at the Inn can be obtained for as low as $99 and up during off-season and about $125 and up during the peak season.
Additionally, right across the street from the Village Inn and Pub is the Village Retreat: a quaint property with six rooms and pool. You can also check into the Beach House located on nearby Beachview Drive boasting a jacuzzi tub, quick proximity to the beach and space for 10.
These accommodations are perfect if you are looking for an alternative to the traditional hotel block for your guests who travel for your St. Simons wedding. It is nearby to the beach, shopping at the Village as well as the A.W. Jones Heritage Center and lighthouse for your wedding ceremony and reception.
I Dare You will be a new tag for you to keep up with some of the newest trends that we are noticing in wedding, event and entertaining décor. True, I could’ve called it “wedding trends”, but how much fun would that be?
We noticed lampshades making great strides when it comes to centerpiece décor. I absolutely love the trend—it’s fun, unique and offers a totally different spin on the feel of events.
Amazing wedding at the Omni Shoreham. post by DaVinci Florist
Flowers, beautiful and fragrant will take a huge chunk out of your décor budget. This may be fine if you desire carefully arranged centerpieces with minimal flowers. Many brides are finding that looks that they fall in love with need more flowers than they thought. If this is the case or you are not “a flower person”, consider the option of having non-floral centerpieces. Yes, it’s possible! You have several options, in several mediums:
Paper:
Nouveau Romantic Wedding Centerpiece made of white paper doilies suspended over a table and adorning the backs of wooden banquet chairs; white paper flowers in various vases with ornaments. Both from Martha Stewart.
Trees/Leaves:
Gilded Branch and Leaf centerpiece; Tall maple leaves in tall vase; Bountiful dried grains and grasses tied with a large satin bow; Gorgeous blossom branches in opaque vases; all from Martha Stewart; Hanging crystal balls hang from a tree centerpiece from Art Star Photography; Silver painted tree with hanging crystals from Brides.com
Fruit:
White painted fruit with silver millinery leaves sits atop of a ceramic white cake stand for a monochromatic look; Delicious and bright yellow lemons and grapefruit centerpiece piled high with organza ribbon showcases the event menu; Gilded fruit in bronze and golden shades are stacked in tiered stands and in bowls for a striking look against soft linens. All from Martha Stewart.
Shells:
Assortment of large shells and painted Manzanita branches to resemble coral surround a hurricane with a bright white candle from Martha Stewart; Stacked starfish in a wide cylinder surrounding by votives placed in cups with a sand base from Millie Holloman Photography
Ornaments:
Glass flutes filled with small golden ornaments in various shades to mimic champagne bubbles from Martha Stewart; Purple ornaments in matte and glossy finishes fill crystal bowls, flutes and tea light holders; Large red ornaments stacked onto crystal candle holders atop of a red runners; Ornaments filled in tall square vase and glass bowl offer dimension, just as tall cylinders of various sizes are filled with different color ornaments do the same.
Candles:
Soft color tapers in a mix of glass crystal candle holders of varying styles from Martha Stewart; Long banquet tables have an impact with square pillars going down the center; Round pillars on mix and match wooden candlestick holders are paired with votive holders with hurricanes for an eclectic look; A classic and rustic look with pillar candles in iron lanterns of various heights entwined with branches and rocks; Votives placed casually around raised centerpieces consisting of floating candles in glass bowls, photo by Jennifer Dery
What are your favorites?
I am soooo in love with Swiss Cottage Designs!
Their fresh, vibrant and ultra creative designs brings out the personality of each piece. From Save-the-Dates, invitations and custom maps, they offer wonderful heartfelt designs that are like a piece of art more than a piece of stationery.
Courtney Jentzen opened Swiss Cottage Designs (based in Brooklyn, NY) in 2010 after years of working in the gift industry as a stationery designer. Drawing insight from her design and illustration background, Courtney incorporates a range of bold looks, artistic trends and color schemes to suit each customer. To help customers navigate the sometimes overwhelming design options, Courtney engages each and every client to draw inspiration and incorporate their unique style (rustic, vintage, casual elegance) into the design process, often including illustrated images and hand-drawn typography.
What are your favorite Swiss Cottage Designs?
Checking out Laura Stone’s Art Star Photography Blog was a real treat a few days ago when she posted these absolutely DIVINE table concepts from the NACE Design Trends event in Atlanta. I love these concepts and cannot wait to see them more in weddings throughout the year. I told you—we’re bringing glamour back! Great job to all of the designers!
Love these hanging crystals and hanging votives intertwined with the natural heartiness of branches and white orchids. The tufted navy blue ruffled canopy over the table.
There is something so gorgeous and glamorous about this table with faceted glassware, silver votive cups, crackled candle holders with gold leaves and white roses. Almost has a winter wedding effect with its white, silver and gold hues.
Tall hanging crystal chandelier centerpiece and candle holder with crystal ball top mixed with jewel tone flowers and gold etched barware. Fabulous.
Going Natural doesn’t mean you can’t go glam, too. The oversized tree—stripped of leaves but adorned with hanging crystal balls, some with LED lights and crystal filler. small purple flowers care placed in tiny dainty containers of various sizes. The table of deep brown wood was dotted with green moss as an accent.
Here is a larger view of the tables—I love the scale and dimension with the high table and cocktail seating as well as the low tables with the plush brown ottomans with quilted purple pillows. Beautiful concept.
Have you seen great things during your tours of bridal shows?
Looking for something fun and non-traditional for your honeymoon or mini-moon? If you’re music lovers, definitely check out Sixthman’s Floating Music Festivals! Everyone loves long walks on the beach and romantic sunsets, but what about the giant culture of music lovers who want to combine their love of music festivals with a Caribbean vacation? Sixthman has a variety of floating music festivals for every taste!
In 2011, Sixthman will host several sold-out and almost-sold-out cruises including Kid Rock’s Chillin’ the Most Cruise, Cayamo: A Journey through Song (featuring Steve Earle, John Prine, Patty Griffin, Indigo Girls, Brandi Carlile, and more), 311 Caribbean Cruise, Barenaked Ladies’ Ships and Dip, and more. We even do an ELVIS Cruise with Graceland every year!
There are also a few cabins left on VH1 Best Cruise Ever (featuring Train, Lifehouse, Colbie Caillat, The Script and a dozen more), which sails on Carnival Inspiration from Tampa to Cozumel on April 28-May 2. If you’d like to see other Sixthman events, check out their website.
Which Sixthman party boat would you like to go on?
Glam, glam, glam and more glam! Right after the choice of choosing how to wear your hair for your wedding is what you will use to complement that hairstyle. Should you wear a veil? Should you go sans veil, but opt for a beautiful barrette or fresh flowers? Here are some great ideas and options:
Ivory Gardenia Clip found on Etsy (you could change your hair prior to being announced into your wedding and clip this on your dress)
Vintage Rhinestone Headband also found on Etsy
Rhinestone hair clip from Jena Richards
Rhinestone Flower Twist-Ins from Best Wedding Site
Other great random ideas:
Jennifer Behr via Wedding Paper Divas
If you go to any contractor and begin to tell them about building your house, they don’t begin with the brick or the pretty shutters and landscaping. They begin with the right foundation. The same can be said for your wedding gown, too. Even with all the great nutrition and workouts, having some help with your wedding dress can be enormously beneficial. Spanx and Shapeez offer a wonderful ally in looking your best on our wedding day.
With slimming shapers, Spanx has been a staple in women’s closets for years and can be a major help on the wedding day with slimmer thighs, preventing tell tale movements or “impressions” from unforgiving fabrics. Ranging from slips, bodysuits and camis, Spanx has also created Haute Couture which has been monikered “the dessert of shapewear”. Haute Couture combines the technology of slimming power mesh with luscious lace designs, you won’t want to put any thing over it!
Shapeez works in the same fashion with great bases, forming comfortable contours that make the an instant, polished appearance under your clothes:
Shapeez was founded in 2007 by Maryland-based, stay-at-home mom turned entrepreneur, Staci Berner, who never thought she’d end up in intimate apparel. After working as an esthetician, makeup artist and nail technician for twenty years, Staci took some time off just to be a “mommy.” Fed up with the way her bras made her back look and thinking it was just the size or style of the bra, Staci decided to get professionally fitted. Working with an “expert,” Staci bought new bras in the recommended sizes and styles. Still no change. Finally she realized it wasn’t herself! It was the elastic bands on the bras themselves that created the back bulges she was continuing to see. So, she took matters into her own hands!.
While her kids were at school, she went to work in her sewing studio trying to come up with something that would solve her bra dilemma. After some trial and error, she eventually had an amazing, supportive, REAL bra without elastic bands which kept her back smooth and made her look slimmer: The “Unbelievabra”.
Shapeez’s patented Unbelievabra was her answer to a bra/shaper that had all of the features and benefits could not find in the market. Ever since its inception, the Unbelievabra has been a huge success with women of all shapes and sizes because it simultaneously smoothes back bulge while lifting breasts. Today, the company offers six major innerwear products – The Unbelievabra which comes in the original full-length and The Shortee, an alternative to the sports-bra, The Tankee Long and Short, and they recently launched The Lacee in the Long or Short varieties, which is an elegant bra and camisole combination that is meant to be worn as outwear while still providing you with the same amazing features as the Unbelievabra. The products are priced between $75- $110 and available in twenty-six size ranges with cups sizes ranging from A to E in black, nude or brown. All are available in over 200 select boutiques throughout the U.S. and Canada.
These are just a few of the ideas in support you have. Be sure to take into consideration the shape of your dress as well as its fabric’s texture, and choose your “supporting cast” wisely!