Brides and Books at Borders

I am thrilled to announce our partnership with Borders Books at the Dayton Mall to host Brides and Book at Borders- A Wedding Planning Class.

This class is a great opportunity for Brides and their man, maids, or moms to come out to Borders and get great wedding planning advice and learn more about the resources Borders offers.

I’ll be talking about questions to ask your vendors, ways to save money, and things to watch out for when planning a wedding.

If you're a local bride out there you don’t want to miss this FREE event. Pass the news on too… do you know someone you can share this info with?

See you there!

Vendors For Charity- A Night of Nibbling

I recently had the opportunity to attend one of the areas coolest networking events.  Here’s the down low from the brilliant mind behind the event, Matt Pine of Lifetime Films.

Couples planning a wedding in Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky (AND DAYTON MATT!!!)  are so lucky. In the past couple of years, several hundred wedding specialists: caterers, florists, wedding coordinators, photographers – everyone you might need – have formed an extremely powerful networking web.

About 200 of us got together last Wednesday, July 14, A NIGHT OF NIBBLING: Wedding Vendors for Charity at the amazing Leapin’ Lizards Art Gallery. The event featured 4 of the area’s foremost caterers who vied for “Best of The Evening” title: Eatwell, A La Cart, Bensons, and Creations by Melody.

We all sampled their dishes and voted for our favorites, paying $5 for each ballot. We collected quite a bit of money, of which 100% went to charities designated by the caterers. Donations were made to Lighthouse Youth Services, Cincinnati Parks, USO-Operation Enduring Care, and The Greenacres Foundation Equine Center. The charities benefited, and the vendors had a blast.
As an added bonus my dear friend Tracy Bellman (T-Bell as I know her) of Tres Belle Cakes provided some delectable cupcakes. The incredible Jeff Martin of Le Sucre Bakery entertained us all by deconstructing a traditional wedding cake Jackson Pollack style. It was something to see.

 

A Night of Nibbling-Vendors for Charity from Lifetime Films on Vimeo.

We had a great time at this event… here’s a few of my picture highlights from the evening.

A great time was had by all! It always feel so good to be able to give to charity in a fun and exciting way!

Till next time vendor friends….

Etsy Spotlight: lilimandrill

I ran across this wonderful Etsy seller the other day and just can’t wait to show you some of the super cute things she has in her shop.

The first thing I fell in love with were these super cute personalized stamps.

A description right from the store.

You are in love...
You are getting married soon...
You have to make hundreds of wedding invitations cards...
... This stamp is for you!
Send me a picture of you and your love,
i will do my best to draw and carve it.
Then stamp your faces on your cards,
a nice an original way to show your love!

And what a great job lilimandrill does. Check out the original picture of this couple.

And some others:

I can think of tons of ways to use these cute stamps. Stamp invitations, stamp out of town guest bags, stamp favor tags, stamp gift wrap, stamp belly bands for napkins, and and and and. I would love to hear your ideas for using these super cute stamps!

Here’s a few other great items in the line up of products.

I love that you can personalize the ASL! How cute would it be if you used these for with the letters for LOVE. This is…

Enjoy every click through the lilimandrill Etsy store!  And snap up those super cute stamps! They are just awesome!

Shoe Appeal Wednesday Retraction!

Holy Holy Holy Smokes! Not long ago I wrote a shoe appeal Wednesday blog featuring these shoes.

While searching online for another totally gorg pair of shoes I stumbled up the designer and consequently the cost of these amazing shoes.

I found them Bergdorf Goodman. The shoe is designed by Valentino and GULP… cost $4,700.

http://www.bergdorfgoodman.com/store/catalog/prod.jhtml?itemId=prod54680090&parentId=cat207102&masterId=cat203509&index=7&cmCat=cat000000cat200648cat203509cat207102

Now, I was absolutely shocked when I saw the price tag but after the chin came up from the ground I just had to laugh.  Here’s why…

When I first married my amazing husband he told me to start looking at cars on the road to see if I could pick out one that I liked. Now if you knew me at all you would know I know absolutely NOTHING about cars… I might remember the color…. Might! I have no clue which symbol goes with what brand or better yet what that symbols mean when it comes to cost efficiency or value.

So one day I come home and I tell him I found the car I love. I began to describe the features of the vehicle… much like you would a gorgeous being… the hips were curvy, the eyes were thin… etc. When all of the sudden my wonderful husband asks me, “By any chance was there a tiger sticking out of the front.” I responded quickly… “Yeah, I think so.”

His reply I will never forget… “Kellie, that was a Jaguar. Of all the cars in the world you picked a JAG? Nice!”

I had picked this:

Since then… every time I see this car I point it out… not knowing that I’m pointing out the same car over and over again. Somehow I have been blessed with extremely expensive taste.

You can send me into a boutique asking me only to choose my favorite item and I can guarantee you I will choose the most expensive item in the store.

With that said…. I do not recommend you purchase these amazing Valentino shoes. Well unless you plan on wearing every one of the 5 inches of heel everyday for the rest of your life!!!!

Having a wedding and indulging some is amazing! However, this is one indulgence I wouldn’t say is necessary.

So I’ll keep dreaming of my jag and if you’ve fallen in love with these shoes… You keep dreaming but please… if $4.700 isn’t pocket change to you… hold out for another shoe appeal Wednesday where we’ll feature something a little more budget friendly!

Eco-Chic! Eco-Friendly Weddings

 

10 inexpensive ways to have an earth friendly wedding!

Number 10: Donate to the community.
Reduce waste by donating leftover food to homeless shelters and/or food banks in your community. Speak with your caterer about how best this can be done and contact your local shelters for advice. Visit America's Second Harvest to search over 200 community food banks.

Number 9: Rethink your invitations.
Choose or create a postcard for your reply card as part of your invitations and leave out the outer envelope You're Invited offers a number of handmade envelopes, as well as custom and pre-made invitations with postcard replies.

Number 8: Settle on a City.
Have your wedding in the city where most of your guests reside. This cuts down on the amount of air or car travel, therefor reducing the amount of carbon released in the air. You can also encourage guests to take public transportation or carpool.

Number 7: Greening your Registry.
Create an earth friendly registry. Websites like Mamas Earth, Eco Wise, Ten Thousand Villages , all offer earth friendly registries. A few more places to check out are: Biome, World Wildlife Fund, and Earth Friendly Goods.

Number 6: Seedy Favors.
Give an earth friendly wedding favor. Try organic chocolates, natural honey, soy candles, or wildflower seeds as wedding favors. Plant A Memory offers $1 and $2 favors. Or create your own seed packets. Flowersoul.com sells bulk wildflower seeds at a reasonable price. (picture from Plantamemory.com)

Number 5: Thrifty Fruit Centerpiece.
Create an eclectic look by shopping the thrift stores for different kinds of vases and filling them with local organic fruits for your centerpieces. Guests can take the fruits home afterward or donate them to the shelters as well.

Number 4: Something old, Something new, Something USED!
Purchase a used or vintage wedding dress. Reusing items is one of the most earth friendly thing you can do. You may even be able to get a designer wedding dress for half the original cost! And for something that was probably only worn once, that ain't bad! Check out usedweddingdressses.com or check around your town to see if any stores sell used dresses.

Number 3: Give up the cameras, not the pictures!
One popular idea is to provide disposable cameras on each table. Instead, ask guests to bring their own digital cameras (almost everyone has them now). You can then set up a community album on flickr or photobucket, which guests can use to upload their photos too.

Number 2: Burn Baby Burn!
Use soy or beeswax candles to decorate and add ambiance. Soy and beeswax candles burn cleaner and last longer. (picture from Bluecorn Naturals)

DRUM ROLL PLEASE...
THE NUMBER ONE INEXPENSIVE WAY TO HAVE AN EARTH FRIENDLY WEDDING:
Number 1:
Elope! Skip the favors, the flowers, the menu, the entertainment, etc... Of course, that's not a plausible number one for most of us and if it were, I probably wouldn't be writing in this little blog, so I'll provide an alternative number 1.

ALTERNATIVE Number 1: Spread the word!
This is your wedding. It's a celebration between and for two people who love each other and the principles and values that bind them. Take the opportunity to share with your guests those values. Show them how you made your wedding earth friendly and you just might inspire a few of your guests to throw their cans into the recycle bin next time, to search for the organic certified label when they buy fruit, or maybe even start taking the bus to work.

 

*The above is an excerpt from the blog Earth Friendly Wedding.

The truth is there are so many different and smart ways one can be considerate of the environment while planning their wedding.

 

Remember the 3R’s

Reduce: Sometimes bigger isn’t always better. Pairing down can lead to beautiful and simple wedding decor. Don’t be persuaded by the over the top designs outs there.

Re-use: This is where the word up-cycle comes into play. Dig through old clothes to see what you can take apart and re-use for fabric elements. Look around your house to see what you might already own that can be incorporated in your wedding day.

Recycle: Consider  asking guests and catering companies to sort trash away from recyclable items. Even setting a receptacle out for bottles and cans makes a difference. Consider donating left over decor to nursing homes or local charities. Have the caterers gather left over food to donate or be used for a picnic the following day.

 

How do you plan on leaving a smaller carbon footprint on your wedding day?

Shoe Appeal Wednesday

So it’s not just one pair… it’s a whole line. Aren’t these just lovely? They’re part of a collection from Paris Hilton.

Aren’t they cute!? Hope you enjoy! Happy Wednesday!

Simply Gorgeous!

I have had the wonderful pleasure of finding a completely extraordinary seller on Etsy. You must see the amazing work of LaCamelot. These gorgeous cuffs are just the beginning of a journey into the magic world that she offers.

Here is a little info straight from her etsy store.

La Camelot designs range from antique or vintage textile and lace jewelry and accessories…from cuffs, to statement necklaces, earrings, brooches, rings, bridal accessories, fascinators, hair accessories, fingerless gloves, cameo jewelry, cloches and many other unique creations adapted from historical fashion influences in their design.
La Camelot specializes on handmade vintage lace and textile jewelry accessories. I use a variety of hand embroidery techniques combined with beading embellishments to create an innovative combination of textures with superb craftsmanship. Each piece is an elaborately decorated work of art reminiscent of an earlier Romantic era.
These magnificent period-inspired pieces retain the essence of the richly decorated dresses and accessories of the Victorian, Art Nouveau and the 20’s Flapper eras along with a touch of contemporary whimsy. The beautiful complexity of the hand embroidery displays a harmonious symphony in vintage laces and textiles, finely embellished with the sparkle of beaded decorations of glass pearls, rhinestones, crystal beads, French vintage sequins, vintage filigree as well as my signature hand crafted flower petals.
The rich opulence of the heirloom quality embroidery with a whimsical touch is memorable and conveys a sense of style, distinction, and elegant refinement for today’s woman.
One of my very first customers on my online Etsy boutique is the rock star Courtney Love.
Many of my designs sell at upscale boutiques and galleries as well as through direct sales.

 

These are just some of my favorites.

Truly a work of art! How perfectly vintage you would feel wearing on of LaCamelot’s designs on your wedding day!