Summer Wedding Season Has Begun!!!

This Memorial Day Weekend marked the first wedding of the summer season for me! It was an amazing 80 degree day in Seattle where love, laughter, and and joy was celebrated by two amazing families. Michele and Paul were married at St. James Cathedral with a elegant reception following at Hotel 1000. The couple played up the color palette of the gorgeous hotel using champagne, greens and burgundy. My pictures from the day are in the slide show above. I will post photographer Barbie Hull's pictures as soon as I get them!

Making it Legal...

As many of you know, in order to make your marriage legal in the eyes of the law, you need a marriage license. It can be applied for online, by mail, or in person. Here is a link to king county's marriage license website with all the information that you may need. There are a few important pieces of information I will point out:

1. You can apply for a marriage license in many ways, but you can only receive it in person. If you applied by mail, you will pick it up at the downtown location.

2. The marriage license is only valid for 60 days. You will need to have your ceremony within the 60 after receiving your license, or you will need a new one.

3. There's a 3 day waiting period before your license becomes valid. You want to make sure that you get the license more than 3 days before the wedding. If getting married on a Saturday, you would want to get your marriage license no later than Wednesday. I always recommend getting it the week prior, to be on the safe side. (Many churches require you to drop it off with them a few weeks prior. You will want to check with your church.)

4. Marriage license requirement vary from state to state, and country to country. You want to check with your state/local government to see if there are blood tests, or additional paperwork to take care of.

5. It is one of the largest pieces to making your marriage LEGAL. You also need a witness and someone to perform the ceremony, but with out it, you may just be having a really great party.

Peacock is the new Damask Print

We all had to have noticed the Damask print everywhere this winter. It was the center piece for what seemed like every store display, wrapping paper, gift boxes, and my wedding show booth.



It was so versatile and could be used anywhere. There were very traditional renditions, and new bold modern twists. There seemed to be a damask print suited for everyone. It was also a beautiful statement when used in small amounts.

For Summer of 2008 the peacock feather will be the new Damask Print. While looking for images for this post I have found the peacock feather has been played with a lot over the past few years. Prada introduced a stunning peacock dress on the 2005 runway.

Many blog posts in 2006 and 2007, were made about peacocks and their feathers. Brides vented their frustrations about how they were becoming overwhelmed and finding it hard to use. It seemed like a great theme, but many were unable to use the peacock to create the elegant wedding they hoped.

Why do I think that 2008 is the year it will come into fruition? Many reasons, mostly, because it like damask print, it's versatile and easy to use. There is a style or element that can be used for any wedding or bride. It can be wild, simple, playful, or contemporary.

Today's bride is willing to throw safety and convention out the window. They're taking bigger risks, and seeking the advice of professionals when needed, to reach their desired look. They want to use bold elements to create a powerful and exquisite look and feel for their wedding.
(This is not to say that past brides didn't have this as well, but more often they wanted simple elegance over bold.
For those who didn't, today's brides are following in your footsteps. You created a non-traditional, or modern approach to traditional, that established a easy path to follow and explore. For that, we thank you!)

Also, as we become a greener society, we are drawn to elements and colors of the earth. 2008 is a HUGE year for green weddings! The peacock feather has a very rich earthy color palette, and is a natural element. The aqua and teal reflect the ocean, gold, bronze and other metallic colors are found in the earth, the light and dark greens can be found in trees, and the many other colors in other natural places.





Key to success:
It is really important to use the colors in the peacock feather as well as the feather itself in moderation. Choose one or two of the deep hues as your base color and then accent with the more vibrant colors. I would use the black or deep brown with the deep peacock blue as my most prominent colors and accent with the gold, lime green, and aqua. I would use flowers, chargers, menu cards, and other small elements in those shades on a deep colored linen with dark colored chairs. Let the pictures be your inspiration to design your exquisite peacock wedding!



Like the Damask print, the peacock feather too will have its season in 2008, maybe linger a little longer, but then go back into hiding. Like any great trend, it will always resurface in a new modern way.

Pictures in order:
From Top to Bottom
Peacock: Animal National Geopgraphic
Peacock dress: Prada 2005 Runway
Peacock earings:Coffs Jetty Markets
Peacock table top: Tottaly tabletops
Black and Natural Dress: Newport News
Teal Blue Dress: Jessica McClintock
Peacock Stationary: Baron Cards
Peacock makeup:Paramita Academy of Makeup Inc
Peacock favor:The Krishna Store

Here Comes The Bride - down a custom aisle runner...

An aisle runner seems like such a small part of the wedding ceremony, but it deserves a little thought. It is the place in which all wedding participants, including the bride, make their grand entrance into the wedding. It is also the first thing you walk down as husband and wife.

I love the idea of playing up the aisle with a unique runner. It can really make an impact on the look and feel of your ceremony. You can use bold colors, patterns, or even have one customized with a quote or monogram. You can make your own aisle runner with fabric from a store or have one made. I have worked with The Original Aisle Runner, which has amazing ideas and products.






There are a few things you should know before ordering or making your runner:

1. Think about the fabric you choose. Make sure that it is not slippery when you and others walk down it.
2. Secure the aisle down tightly or line the back with a no slip surface. This way it does not move when walked on.
3. Know the length of your aisle so it does not fall short. If it is too long you can make adjustments accordingly.
4. Know the surface that you will be putting the runner down on. If you are getting married outside on grass or dirt, I would recommend an aisle of petals, if anything. Fabric does not do well on soft surfaces.
5. Ribbon off the start of the aisle so guests don't walk on your runner before the ceremony. This will only work if guests can access the rows from the outside edges.

Be as creative as you want to be. This is one of many ways that you can put a unique touch on your wedding day!

RSVP's beware

If you have sent out your invitations recently with out a first class forever stamp on it please beware. The price of stamps is going up on May 12th, 2008 from $0.41 to $0.42. If your RSVP date is later than May 12th you may want to make your guest aware of the postage price difference. You want to make sure that you receive all your guest's RSVPs with NO problems!

Happy Earth Day!

Celebrate the Earth Today and Every Day!

Earth Day April 22

Picture from B&E resource guide

From First Dance to Last Call... How to Make Your Wedding Day Run Smoothly

It is getting to the time of year when your wedding day is just around the corner. You have hired all your vendors, completed all your projects, bought your favors, had your dress fitted, etc., and now you need to know how to make your wedding day run smoothly.

Many of us have been a guest at wedding where there was a lot of standing around wondering, where are the bride and groom, or when is the next thing going to happen? I'm sure you want to avoid this for your special day. Good News! It is so easy to make sure that your guests have a great time on your wedding day by putting together timeline. You have probably considered the placement of the major events of the day. Whether you want to be introduced into your reception or slide in during cocktail hour. If you want to do a garter toss or avoid the whole thing. Luckily, now days there is no "right or wrong way" to way to put your day together. There are just many things to consider, from ceremony start time to last call, inorder to have a smooth flow to your day.

Many of your vendors have probably tried to help you do this already. But, I recommend putting together a detailed timeline for the way YOU see your day going. You should share it with your vendors to follow, and not rely on each individual vendor's. This ensures that everyone has an overall picture of the day’s events as you want them. It also helps you make sure that you are fitting in all the major events in the time allotted in your contracts. If you only have 7 hours with your photographer, you don't want the ceremony to start at 2:30 and the toast to happen at 10:00pm. You want your photographer there to capture all of the elements you have planned.

To do this I recommend using sticky notes and a large piece of paper. It can make for a fun game, mixing and matching the order of events. It is also a easy way to move the parts around to find the suitable order for the two of you!

No matter how you schedule your day, make sure that it's all about you two having the best time EVER!

Making a Difference One Dress at a Time

Ethereal Events has teamed up with Luxe Bride for a Fashion and Bridal Show benefiting Bride's Against Breast Cancer. This is an organizations who's mission is grant wishes to men and women losing their battle against breast cancer. They do such amazing work for people in need. This statement from their website tells all:

"It is the driving force of our Foundation to make a wish come true for these brave fighters. The wishes and memory-making events we bestow, allows the individual and their family the opportunity to put aside the realities of this illness, if only for a time, while basking in the joy of one another's presence. Our sincere desire is for every terminally ill breast cancer patient to pass from this world, comforted in the knowledge of having left one final beautiful memory for his or her family."

I have never personally been touch by breast cancer, but cancer has had an effect on my life, and the people I love. I would like to work towards a world where breast or any other cancer is obsolete.

I was presented with the opportunity to help with this amazing event, by the owner of Luxe Bride, Lindsay. She has volunteered with the Pink Envelope in the past, and is a strong supporter of many charities. I jumped at the chance to give as much of my time, knowledge, and skill, to create this event. The fashion show will raise money to help grant wishes of the many women and men and their families suffering. We will also collect bridal gowns to donate. The dresses will be resold in Brides Against Breast Cancer events to to grant more wishes.

I will have more information on the exciting event, and how to get involved over the next few weeks! Stay tuned.