Wedding Inspiration: Giuliana Rancic

Another one of my fav celebrity weddings comes from someone I loved to watch on E! News and her show on the Style network! Giuliana and Bill were married in Capri, Italy with 190 of their closet friends and family. This was a very traditional Catholic ceremony (something my grams would love for me to have, but it wont happen that way for us) which I find to be beautiful seeing that I grew up Catholic. 

She wore a custom made white strapless Monique Lhuillier dress and Bill wore a custom made tux tailor my Giuliana's father who owns his own high end men's store! How neat is that! 

Last but not least, LOVE the bright yellow brides maids dresses! Even better, I love that G's maid of honor (here sister) wore a little different of a dress to stand out against the other ladies!

Wedding Veil

So I know my last post I spoke about my hair style for the wedding, but what about the ever important vial?

I am not your traditional bride ad I will not being wearing a cathedral vial, but a lovely simplest birdcage veil! This has been my vision for literally years! Even before it came back in style, I had love vintage weddings and dreamed of a little veil to softly hide my eyes. Not sure why but I have just these types of veils are more romantic, and from what I have seen, less invasive to your wedding hairstyle! Here are a couple of looks that I have picked out! What are your thoughts?

 

Wedding Hair

Most of my friends have known me to have long brown hair. Well last October (Halloween Day to be exact) I decide to cut 9 inches off my beautiful thick hair and get bangs. Needless to say it was an adjustment for me (and Romy) and since I have my doing all different types of hair remedies to grow my hair faster. 

In the mean time I have picked out some wedding hair styles. My hair is naturally wavy and Romy loves with I like my hair down o-natural! Thus, I will probably going with a half-up half down hairstyle with lots of Victoria Secret bombshell curl to it! 

Table Center Pieces: My 5 Do and Don't

I have been putting a lot of thought into our table decorations and center pieces. We will have rectangle tables with black table clothes. Since we have had a lot of friends already get married I have taken MANY of notes of things I don't and do like.

5 Things I Don't Like for Center Pieces:

1. I don't like flowers in your view of the person sitting across from you
2. I don't like fake flowers
3. I don't like "water" incorporated into center pieces (ie flowers submerged into water in tall vase)
4. I don't like floating candles
5. I don't like mirrors under center piece

I have found in this whole process I love romance and vintage! You may not like that, but I LOVE it! 

5 Things I DO Like for Center Pieces: 


1. flowers that sit low to the table
2. Bright colorful full flowers (specifically hydrangeas)
3. Lace-preferably doilies
4. Pillar candles, tea candles, oil burning candles-ALL candles! 
5. Cobalt blue glass 

Wedding Cake: Cake topper

So a couple of weeks a go I posted about our type of wedding cake.    Now I would like to tell you a little more about our cake topper. It has been pasted down from my dad's parents and both my dad and aunt had used it on there cakes for their weddings. Now it is my turn to have the cake topper pasted down to me! I actually did a little research and found the exact same one on pintrest! Anyway, the cake topper needed a little work after the past 50 + years of it hanging out in grams china cabinet. So this is the before picture (but the after picture that I took off the flowers and stuff...)

 A look at the discoloration and cracks from over the years

The lovely "stuff" my family members added over the years

Up close and personal she needs some work

 So I trucked out to Micheal's to get some supplies. Pearl pant and some flowers that actually fit the size of the figurines. After a day of working on this cake topper I cam up with some improvements that I think will look amazing on our cake! 

Add some  flower branches around the couple to make it look more "life-like"

I panted the base and dress in the pearl pant to cover up the stains and give it back some life

 Aside from our amazing cake topper I think I have found a design that I really like. I know a trend right now in bridal is letters up-top cakes instead of figurines, but since we have a cake topper already I still want to incorporate name new name into the cake.

Oh course our letter will be a R, but I love the pearl detail and the lace piping on every other layer is perfect! Also instead of having 4 layers we will only be having 3 layers.

Wedding Inspiration: Jessica Simpson

I don't know what it is about it, but  I have had a LOVE for Jessica Simpson's wedding (to Nick Lachey) since the day I saw the show on MTV. 

 I mean who wouldn't, this fairy tail was one to, be told when pop sensations tie the knot! One big detail that may seem small to you (that I have loved for ever) was her hair. I am all about the half-up, half-down wedding hair style. Check out her hair, along with her amazing Vera Wang strapless gown below!

Fashion Watch: Furla Satchel

Again, I need to post about my love of fashion. This time it involves my new handbag for the spring and summer season. I am all about structure and color lately, so when I came across this bag in my Vogue, I tore out the page and put it in my bidder of "Fashion Love" (I tear out anything and everything from magazines that I "would buy"). I had never heard of this brand before Furla, but I am in LOVE with it. 

 

This is called the Furla Papermoon Satchel in Purple. I LOVE that it is a "convertible" style purse with the handles and the long strap, but the color is what makes. I am obsessed with the purple leather and the red trim. The gold zipper and lock detail pop against the purple! I didn't snap pictures of the inside, but it is red jacquard fabric and it just completes the whole bag. 

I will definetly be purchasing another Furla bag in the future! What are your thoughts? Do you have any color pops for this spring/summer in statement peices?
 

Father Daughter Dance: Frank Sinatra

First off I would like to start by wishing my father a Happy Birthday! 

Taking a Que from Dylan Lauren, I am definitely not going down the route of "Butterfly kisses" for my father daughter dance! 

First of all let me introduce you to my father, the man in camo himself Jeff. A girl could not ask for a better father and great friend in life! He was the first person we told about the engagement and let me tell you, a 1:30 am call from your daughter who lives in the big bad city brings out the worst panic mode parent! After finally being able to convince him I was in no danger or trouble we then then told him the news! Which he immediately begin crying tears of joy, which lead to me sobbing! It was one of those great moments in life when you realize you will always be your parents child and its a great feeling to make them feel proud. 

So this dance is for you dad! I can't wait for you to whisk me across that dance floor!  

Love, Your Fred!

 

Fashion Watch: Kate Spade

So even though the majority of my posts thus far have been wedding related, I need to stray away today and talk fashion!

So I am a HUGE shopper and I love a deal when I can get one! But, lately I have been getting crazy amazing deals on Kate Spade product! I love color and her products are not shy when they come to color! Here are just a couple thing that was I able to score at the low TJ Maxx price!

The flats I scored had the box and dust bag (a rare find) and the wallet was something that I couldn't due without. (I came across one at TJ Maxx about a year ago and didn't get it, ever since then I had regretted it, and swore if I ever found another I would purchase). The lovely pink studs and bangle are perfect pops of color for spring. 

Have your scored any great deals lately?

Random Fact: Birch Trees

Another lovely random fact about yours truly is that I LOVE birch trees! Must be from my love of the north woods and northern Wisconsin. Every season I think they look beautiful weather they are covered in a fresh blanket of snow, blooms of new green leaves, or they are transitioning into hibernation in the fall they are amazing! There white was snow bark is something very different from mother nature!

Thus some how I am going to include them into our lovely reception decor! I have been in search of how to do so (and I may need to enlisted my Dad and Grandpa for some of there cutting abilities), but here are some ideas!

 

Flower Power: Family Florals

Now that you know what flowers I would like to focus on, I would like to bring you in on some ideas I have found for decor and bouquets. 


Lucky for us, Romy's family is in the floral business and has been for over 75+ years! Thus, we have the very best teams in the Fox Valley behind us to help pull this wedding together Reynebeau Floral and Riverside Florist!

Here are some ideas I have found and I think they will fit our vision perfectly!

Gluten Free Post: Wedding Cake

I have stated previously that I am gluten free, thus we will be having a gluten free cake! We have began to look at different options and I can't wait to taste test! 

In the top spot of our cake running is Simmas Bakery; who actually offers a g-free cheese cake option (Romy's favorite!). I actually had the privilege of trying Simmas cheese cake at work (non g-free) and it was orgasmic! So rich and creamy, having more then once piece was out of the picture because I was so full after the first piece. 

This is actually the design I am loving for our cake, very romantic and elegant with the lace pipping. Instead of the flowers topper, I actually have a family cake topper that was originally used at my grandparents wedding over 50 years ago and it has made its way my parents and my aunt/uncle used on their cakes. I am so happy to bring a family element into my day!

Valentines Love!

Just a couple of love quotes by a few great men, to get you in the mood for Love!!

"Love is composed of a single soul inhabiting two bodies"-Aristotle

"I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear." -Martin Luther King, Jr. 

"Love is the flower you've got to let grow."-John Lennon

"Love is a canvas furnished by nature and embroidered by imagination." -Voltaire

"Love many things, for therein lies the true strength, and whosoever loves much performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is done well." -Vincent Van Gogh

Flower power: Jeff Leatham

Last week I had posted about my color pallet of my wedding. To bring a little more light on this I figured I would go through my planed flowers to be included in the decor and bouquets.

I LOVE hydrangeas, love the variety of colors they come in and ever since I have seen the show Flowers Uncut  with Jeff Leatham on TLC I have been obsessed to have them in our wedding! Check out this clip of Jeff in action with his gorgeous flower creations!

 And I LOVE that they come in a large variety of colors (which all fit within my pallet and my love of purple and cobalt blue glass).

Wedding Inspiration: Dylan Lauren

So over the years I have read and seen many of things that have drawn me to my wedding ideas. One of my favorite wedding inspirations came from the wedding of fashion icon Ralph Lauren's daughter, Dylan Lauren. 

In the July 2011 issue of Vogue the article How Sweet on Dylan and her June 2011 nuptials to hedge-fund founder/partner Paul Arrouet. The article focused on how Dylan was able take important elements from her life and incorporate them into her wedding. For instance Dylan is the creator of they luxury candy boutique "Dylan's Candy Bar." She took the colors of her company's logo and actually had her bridal party (all 9 gals) wear matching colors; which of course her father designed. “I also was inspired by a New York Times front page of one of my father’s spring/summer collections where they showed the finale lineup of all those vivid colors of satin evening dresses.” Lauren stated in her Vogue article: See below: 

Aside from her father designing her beautiful bridesmaids dress he also designed Dylan's dress also!

Aside from the outfits, she also had a very sentimental touch of rabbits sprinkled throughout her wedding. From the cake, to crafted hedges, to candy treats, her invitation and more, Dylan incorporated her love for the furry animal into her special day. 

Dylan's wedding just makes me exact to add my own personal touch's to my wedding, even if they are corny and weird to some, it's my wedding and I will plan it as I see fit!

PS. Check out more of Dylan's wedding pictures here!