This wedding is so dreamy, so feminine, so…well, beautiful. I just had to share it with you. Photographed by the oh-so-talented Katie Moos and planned by one of my favorite event planners, Rebecca at Duet Weddings, the wedding took place at the Firestone Winery: Crossroads Estate in Santa Ynez…

More pictures and details from this wedding to come!

Our next reader inspiration board was designed by Angie, who is also looking for a bit of help…

She was hoping to get some advice as to what flowers would be appropriate for this pretty, feminine affair which will be held next April. Any thoughts?

This next reader designed board is coming to us from Kelly…

The inspiration board is for an October wedding that Kelly is planning…but, she was hoping we could give her some feedback as to whether the colors are cohesive, whether you would add or take anything off? She was thinking that the addition of a lighter green might be nice or possibly a touch of electric blue. What do you guys think?

It’s been so long since we featured reader designed inspiration boards! So, I thought that in light the boards featured today, now would be a great time! This first board, designed by Abby (not me), is all about a jewel-toned peacock theme…

Love, love, love this rich board!! More to come!

This next board, designed by Sugar Plum Invitations is fun and preppy, featuring a sweet pink and green palette. We have featured this palette executed to perfection in Myra and Matt’s gorgeous wedding, but I love seeing the even brighter, bolder hues in this board…

Top: invitation set by Sugar Plum Key West collection, reply card by Sugar Plum, centerpiece by Sun-Dance photography

Middle: white petal cake by Jose Villa, J.Crew bridesmaid dress in fuchsia, floating candles by Cameron Ingalls Photography

Bottom: green orchid by Katie Moos Photography, bridal party by Tanja Lippert, Sugar Plum Key West envelope

If you haven’t already, definitely spend some time checking out the Sugar Plum website and very cool blog. Becky’s work is really beautiful…the kind of letterpress that you just want to touch! Here are my favs…

More reader inspiration boards to come!

Becky at Sugar Plum Invitations recently sent me this oh-so-fab inspiration board, designed around their own gorgeous invitations…

Top: orchid by Modern Day Floral Design, Katie Moos Photography, Sugar Plum InvitationLa Jolla collection, photography by Linda Wallace 

Middle:groomsman by Linda Wallace, sandals on the beach by Art of Light Photography 

Bottom:invitation by Sugar Plum, centerpiece by Krislyn Floral, ring Art of Light photography, feet by Tanja Lippert

How gorgeous is this color palette? The teal blue against the stark white…it’s so clean and pretty. I would love to see a wedding that uses these hues…it just screams Grecian elegance to me! I have another board coming, so stay tuned.

It seems like Summer has passed us by and already, the days are getting shorter and shorter. Most people would probably be sad, but for me, it means that Fall Weddings are upon us! And Bella Rugosa is all over it…check out their seasonal florals on their gorgeous website for tons of Fall inspiration!

Okay, on to the reception photos from today’s featured wedding…LOVE the cake. Love the simple but oh-so-chic table settings. Props to Alana and Alex for really putting their budget to good use!

From Alana…

My mother arranged all of our centerpieces for the reception and our tables were each named after a different Metro Stop on Montreal’s subway system. On the back of each name was a little write up of how each stop related to our lives in Montreal. For our place cards we placed a green apple at each setting and attached each guest’s name with a pearl pin.

In lieu of a traditional guestbook, we used a photo album and had guests write their well wishes on various sheets of 4×6 patterned paper, which we were later able to slide into the album alongside a few photos from our day.

Thank you for taking the time to listen to our story and look at our photos. Alex and I had an amazing day full of memories that we will cherish forever!

And thank you so much to Alex and Alana for letting us TELL your story!

I discovered Pleated Poppy’s Posy Pins when I was on Sugar Plum’s blog, She Walks in Beauty. I loooooove, love, love these little pins and am thinking that they would be the perfect addition to any wedding. Tucked into a low bun, in groups of three pinned to bridesmaids’ dresses, even adorning napkins at each place setting. I could go on and on! I think they fly off the shelves, so it you want one, better act fast!

More from today’s featured wedding…lots of gorgeous pictures and fun details from Alana!

So, so pretty! I know that the bright blue and the green are a really popular color palette, but I don’t always see it done as lovely as this. It’s fresh and happy, perfect for this cheerful outdoor wedding!

From Alana…

Music played a big role in our day. The bridesmaids walked down the aisle to “Love and Some Verses” by Iron and Wine; my father and I walked down the aisle to “How Deep is Your Love” by The Bird and the Bee; a good friend of ours performed two beautiful songs for us during the ceremony; and, for a little touch of fun, Alex and I walked back up the aisle to “All I Want Is You” by Barry Louis Polisar.

Alex arranged all of the music. Rather than hire a DJ/Band he created various playlists on iTunes that included only songs that we love. Everyone was raving about the music and we were able to personalise our event while avoiding the cost of a DJ or band.

More to come!

What I really love about today’s featured wedding, is that the couple took a very cohesive color palette and style, and threaded it through every element of the affair. Because they were on a tight budget, this was a great way to really make an impact without a ton of costs. Here are more pictures and details from Alana and Alex’s gorgeous wedding…

More from Alana…

All of the invitations and other stationery were handmade by myself. The bridesmaids and I made ‘puff balls’ from tissue paper to add a little more colour to the reception, we were also up until 1:00am the night before the wedding hand-tying all of the flowers for the ceremony aisle.

One of my favourite details of the day were my shoes!  I had them dyed to match the colour of the bridesmaid dresses (the girls had each chosen the style they felt most comfortable in). They were a nice punch of unexpected colour, and my ‘something blue.’

Photography was very important to us. We found our Photographer Stefan Matis on flickr.com. We saw his online portfolio and loved his work. I was blown away with the quality of his work!

So much more to come!!!

I absolutely loved this real wedding that one of our readers, Alana, sent me…it’s filled with lovely DIY touches and pretty, but really approachable style.

A bit from the bride, Alana…

My husband Alex and I were married on July 19th 2008 in Summerland, British Columbia, Canada. We currently live in Montreal, Canada but we both grew up in the Okanagan and couldn’t imagine our wedding taking place anywhere else. Our ceremony was held on my parents’ lawn, which overlooks beautiful Okanagan Lake. We wanted to create an elegant, clean & simple wedding.

We were on a budget so we kept our guest list relatively small (75 people) and tried to do as many DIY projects as possible. We also wanted our wedding to be unique and very representative of us and didn’t want to have to sacrifice that because of the budget.

Stay tuned to hear all of the details from this gorgeous wedding!

Here is the last bit from Lisa Hoffman at Ceci New York!!

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By sending a series of mailings, your guests continually get surprised and excited about what’s to come. Perfect way to really set the stage and make sure they remember to book their tickets! And of course, don’t forget to make a grand finish with your matching thank you notes. Carry your theme throughout all your mailings for that completely buttoned up look. (Notice how the crocodile paper was even brought into the liner of the thank you notes. I love to keep your guests amazed by continually incorporated the design concepts and materials in a unique way each time.)

So let this couple inspire you. Don’t be afraid to do what YOU want for your wedding. Take risks and make statements. After all, it is your day!

More from Lisa Hoffman of Ceci New York!

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The invite is printed on plexi-glass with the additional cards 2-color letterpress. Sent in a custom-made crocodile envelope with custom stamps to match. Every detail is a wonderful combination of mixed media art. The finished size was roughly 9 1/2 x 13″ – so the size alone was outstanding! Their guests felt like they were being invited to a royal wedding.

The guests received three mailings for this destination wedding. The first were airline ticket inspired save the dates. Sent in a custom crocodile ticket holder. Each ticket provided all the information for guests to plan their trips.

The second mailing was a folder full of colorful tiered cards that told a story of why the couple picked Guatemala and all the fun things to do there while visiting. Each card focused on a different part of the trip. We covered everything from the history of the country to all the travel details.

Stay tuned for more!

We had such a great response to Lisa Hoffman of Ceci NY’s guest blog, we’ve invited her back to do it again! This time, she is taking us through the complete, behind the scenes design process for an incredible invitation that she did for a couple who was getting married in Antigua, Guatemala.

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Spotlight Ceci Style: The Other Antigua, Lizzie & Daniel’s Wedding Invitation Suite by Ceci New York

Who doesn’t love those who aren’t afraid to make a statement? This invitation suite is the perfect example of a bride who appreciates great graphic design, incredible details and fine paper. Mixed with a little imagination, amazing things can happen. What a dream it was to work with her…

The objective was to create a completely over-the-top, one of a kind invitation that encompasses detail and unique materials that totally represented the couple’s unique style. Not only is there so much meaning behind the design but it is fabulously bold demonstration of mixed media – all in one piece. It combines so many printing techniques and materials – from multi-level blind embossing, letterpress, plexi glass, foil stamping and watercolor to create this magnificent statement.

The bride loved the color yellow and the groom grey. We wanted to capture the spirit of Antigua, Guatemala (the wedding location) with out being so obvious and traditional. The cover of the invite is hand drawn artwork of Guatemalan flowers and the quetzal bird blind embossed in 3 depth levels. The cover center has a custom take on a vintage Guatemalan stamp. The Mayan glyph presented in the center of the stamps is actually the couple’s wedding date!

Inside is a one of a kind watercolor that I hand painted of an abstract tropical take on the Quetzal bird – the bird of Guatemala. Playing off the aerobatic flight of the bird to create the composition. The long dramatic colorful feathers represent life and longevity. The longer the feathers, means the longer the bird has lived. I love the significance of this to the life that the couple is about to start together.

So much more to come!!

I looooove, love, love this next dessert bar. Photographed by the amazing Cheri Pearl and designed by Lisa Vorce of Oh How Charming!, with desserts by Vanilla Bakeshop, it makes me want to run out and buy everything that I see!

Are you in love yet? Thank you so much to Lisa at Oh How Charming! and to Amy Atlas for inspiring us to no end!

In my hunt for more great dessert bars, inspired by today’s earlier posts on Amy Atlas Events, I enlisted the help of one of my favorite event planners…Lisa Vorce of Oh How Charming! Check out these GORGEOUS dessert tables that Lisa designed, with goodies baked by the incredible team at Vanilla Bake Shop and photographed by the forever talented Aaron Delesie…

YUM! I mean, how chic can dessert be! I have another insanely gorgeous dessert bar by Lisa Vorce at Oh How Charming! coming later today, so stay tuned!

Okay, like I mentioned in today’s earlier post, Amy Atlas has been lovely enough to offer up her tips on designing your own dessert table. Since these fabulous tables are becoming more and more popular for weddings of every budget, I thought you guys would eat this up…

Amy’s Sweet Tips for a Fabulous Dessert Table…

Take something that inspires you and create your dessert table around it.  It could be as simple as the design on your wedding invitation.  For example, you can have your cake designer re-create the design on your cake, or you can incorporate that same pattern into a crafting element such as a banner.

Pick beautiful linens and unique vessels to dress up your dessert table. Since your sweets will be the star of your wedding dessert table, the background should have a coordinated, tailored look. 

Always sample your wedding dessert vendors before using them.  A beautiful cake is not always the best tasting cake!  The key is to find the right balance.

Incorporate some type of personalized tag or label element to dress up the dessert table. This will show your guests how personal your dessert table is. You can do this yourself, or have www.myweddinglabels.com create personalized wedding labels for you.

Provide goody bags for your weddings guests as take home desserts.  It is always a treat to give your guests something that they can take home to remind them of how sweet the day was.

Thank you so much, Amy, for sharing these sweet tips with us (and for providing hours of inspiration with your designs)!

Before we begin today’s post, I wanted to take a minute to send out a prayer to all of those in Houston who were hit by Hurricane Ike over the weekend. I grew up in Clear Lake, Texas where many of the reporters were stationed. Clear Lake and the surrounding areas were hugely hit and although my family (parents, 2 sisters and their husbands, my niece, my nephew and my grandmother) all evacuated safely and our homes all survived, I know that there are many who weren’t quite so lucky. My heart goes out to anyone that has been touched by the storm.

Now on to happier and lighter things…

Amy Atlas emailed me over the weekend with some drool-worthy images of her oh-so-stylish dessert tables. Amy is an event planner in the New York area who specializes in marrying the yumminess of desserts with the beauty of different celebrations…

I am obsessed with her monochromatic tables and her chic approach to dessert. I honestly was jumping for joy when I took a peak at her site because just “gets it.” Her work is insanely stylish and yet seems completely appropriate for children and adults, alike.

Lucky for us, Amy is stopping by a little later to offer her oh-so-fabulous tips on creating your OWN very chic dessert table. Stay tuned!

I wanted to share a few of the detail shots that Amanda Kraft captured of today’s featured wedding…

I am obsessed with those earrings. If you haven’t already, check out Twist Style (the source for the jewelry)…they have some great options!

Thank you so much to Amanda Kraft for sharing this gorgeous wedding!! I love the sweet simplicity of the affair and the overall elegance that seems to pour through every element. And to the bride and groom…congratulations on an absolutely beautiful day!