When J.Crew first introduced their wedding dress line way back when, I was amazed at how stunningly simple their collection of dresses was. Classic and modern styles made out of practical yet luxurious materials, offered affordable high-fashion design. Fast forward to present day and you have the first J.Crew Bridal Boutique located on Madison Avenue. I will definitely be stopping by for a jaw-dropping experience on my next trip to NYC! In the meantime, I have selected some of my favorites from their Fall 2010 lookbook. Hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

The class that I mentioned yesterday reminded me of a beautiful wedding I spotted recently in the latest issue of Wedding Style Guide. While summer is in full swing here in the states, winter is just getting under way in Australia and their winter issue is breathtaking as usual. The assortment of perfect little details throughout this wedding are pure perfection and stopped me dead in my tracks. I adore the couples use of a refined and sophisticated color palette combined with the playful stripes and silhouettes.

This stunning wedding was styled and designed by Maven Creative and I was able to snag a few more images from their site. You really must check out the latest issue and see the plethora of gorgeousness this magazine has to offer. I’ve already scoured each page at least three times! Also, visit the Wedding Style Guide’s blog and site for even more wedding goodies!

Hi everyone! I hope you’re all well and had a pleasant last few days. I took an extended holiday vacation but am excited to be back into the swing of things again.

A few weeks ago, I took a free wedding decor class from my local Pottery Barn. A friend of mine was curious to check it out and I was equally as excited to see what they had to offer so I tagged along. The store had set up several beautiful tabletops as inspiration and a mini candy bar display. The class was brief but it was a great way to see how the simplest accessories could be used to make a stunning arrangement.

Marianne Graham of the Artful Posy, a local Seattle florist and event planner, was there as a guest speaker. She put the centerpieces together and shared some inspiring tips for how to begin the design process for a wedding. She strongly sugessted that if there is a particular flower that you’d like to incorporate into your event, that you try to schedule around the time when it’s in bloom. Though not impossible to get most flowers year round, a little foresight will save you tons of money in the long run. Another tip; ask your florist to recommend a similar flower to achieve the same look if the timing isn’t quite right.

The three tables were really stunning and my personal favorite was the rustic purple garden theme. Her mixed use of succulents, sweet pea flowers, mint and lavender was perfect! I loved the mini watering cans that could double as seating cards and the burlap table runner. The burlap table runner could be an easy DIY project like this one seen on Style Me Pretty. Above are a few pictures I was able to capture at the event but feel free to check out Marianne’s site or blog and check your local Pottery Barn for upcoming classes.

I adore this screen printed wedding invitation suite designed by groom Mike Dornseif! With more of a show-poster feel and the utterly adorable illustration, this non-traditional invite would be so much fun to receive in the mail. With only a few short months until the wedding, I wish both the bride & groom a very happy and whimsical wedding!

Via: French Paper

Abby was kind enough to post my latest DIY wedding project up on Style Me Pretty yesterday! These DIY Wedding Bags are perfect for favors, bridal showers, or for a midnight snack for dancing guests, the sky’s the limit with a little imagination. Head on over for the full details and a link to the PDF.  Also come back here tomorrow for a coordinating wedding favor, you won’t want to miss it!

I’m taking a quick break from holiday posts this morning to share a little bit of sweetness with all of you. This is by far one of the most amazing and romantic proposals I’ve ever seen. Not to mention just plain cool. Australian illustrator, Guy Shield, drew this beautiful structure which appeared to be a series of random illustrations but when folded the message appeared. Not only is Guy fantastically clever but I just love his work and the color choices. Guy shares his process and the turn of events on his own blog, Turn Olympus to Atlantis. His story had me all choked up like you wouldn’t believe!

Via: Drawn! – Thanks Joseph for the tip!

Today is my birthday (Woo Hoo!) and I can’t think of a better way to celebrate than finding out that I was a finalist in the DIY Wedding Crafts Contest with Etsy and Martha Stewart Weddings. The Sparkler Cards that I entered are one of 19 other finalists and one winner selected. It’s a huge honor to be a part of this fabulous collection and I couldn’t be more thrilled! The winner and finalists are featured in a slideshow on Martha Stewart Weddings. A BIG ol’ Thank You to Etsy and Martha Stewart Weddings for making this one of the most exciting birthday’s ever! You can see the adorable winning Cake Topper here and the rest of the finalists here.

If any of you are curious, I am now selling a downloadable PDF template for the Sparkler Cards along with coordinating Coat Check Tags in my Etsy shop. I’ll be sharing more details soon but feel free to check it out in the mean time. I’m taking the evening off from blogging to spend some computer free time with my husband so I’ll see you all back here Monday. Have a great weekend everyone! xoxo

Happy Monday to all of you! I spent the weekend with my family celebrating my twin sisters 30th birthdays. We had a blast and I wish that we could have spent the whole week together. To celebrate the occasion I put together these little S’mores kits for everyone. There’s something about fall weather, a cabin and a fireplace that just scream S’mores. Besides, who doesn’t love Graham Crackers, chocolate and marshmallows?

I wish I could take credit for this fun little kit but I actually spotted this while shopping at Packaging Specialties, my favorite packaging store here in Seattle. They used clear accetate boxes to wrap up all the necessities for homemade S’mores and I just added a bit of baker’s twine to finish it off. The two bottom boxes measure 3″x3″x2″ and the top one is 2″ square. These would make a sweet guest room gift at a wedding or a nice treat for house guests over the coming holidays. Simply add a coordinating ribbon, roast and enjoy!

My husband and I had the pleasure of going to the wedding of our dear friends over the weekend. I sadly didn’t take our good camera with us but I managed to snap a few shots with my iPhone. It was one of the sweetest weddings I have ever been to and I couldn’t be more happy for both Terri and Chris. The event was so delightfully romantic and the joy was overwhelming.

This was a truly handmade made affair and the details were impeccable! Chris made all the wine for the event while Terri designed and created all the extras. I just couldn’t wait to share their favors and beautiful cake with all of you. Hopefully I’ll be able to share the rest once they get their professional shots but in the mean time here’s just a taste!

The favors were little glass vases of suculants and canvas bags filled with soil to plant at home. The suculants served as a simple and elegant canterpiece that ran down the center of the table and at the end of the evening we each took a vase to plant and remember this sweet event by.

The cake was not only yummers but a real stunner as well! (Not sure who made it but I will update the post as soon as I find out.)Displayed on a wood round and adorned with a tree motif from their wedding invitations the cake tied all the elements together. Love the two little birds! Congrats again to Terri and Chris and thank you so much for sharing your special day with us. xoxo

With everything else from the wedding being so amazing it’s only natural that the invitations would follow suit! Designed by my friend Katie they were a wonderful mix of green, brown, cream and an elegant gold metallic. I particularly love the floral pattern that reminds me of the bridal portraits.

I’m so happy to have had the opportunity to share this amazing wedding with everyone. A BIG thank you to Kyong and Donnie and congratulations on your new life together! Also, if you’re in Salt Lake City make sure to stop by Kyong’s lovely store, Koo De Ker, and say hello!