Things I'm Loving Right Now

#1. Polaroid Art.  Yes, you read that correctly: polaroid art.  Jersey Maids creates unique gifts from polaroids that are blowing my mind.  Such personal and creative items that have a real wow factor but are elegant enough to use again and again.  Total win. 

#2. Keeping up with non-wedding blogs.  If you are engaged, you most likely subscribe to some wedding blogs.  But, as I tell as my clients- do not allow your life to become wedding-centric.  Follow a few non-wedding blogs; a few of my favorite are The Glitter Guide (fashion/ beauty/ lifestyle), Tom and Lorenzo (celebrities/ fashion/ reality tv), A Cup of Jo (lifestyle) and my new discovery Brooklyn Fit Chick (health/ food/ fitness).  I'm putting this under my 'things I'm loving right now' post because I'm waist-deep in booking season and even as a planner my mind needs a break from weddings a few times a day.

#3. DIY that I actually want to try.  Self-admittedly non crafty as I am, it is very intimidated by seeing SO many DIY wedding posts.  These couples looked like professionals and had to have spent a lot of time perfecting so many ideas.  More recently I have seen 'easier' DIY projects that reflect the personalization aspect over the perfection aspect like this yarn chandelier from Hostess With The Mostess Blog.  My goal is to try some of these ideas and post about them on here, showcasing the good, the bad and the ugly.  If I can master a DIY project, anyone can so keep an eye out for upcoming crafty posts!

The Quick List: Gift Ideas

Now that all the football craziness is over, let's skip ahead to the next big holiday: Valentine's Day!  Since we are about a week out, I wanted to do a post on gift giving since that seems to be the hardest part about this holiday.  It's not as big as Christmas or a birthday but some thought is required.  I've pulled a few links and ideas together, hope these inspire you!

#1. Valentine's gifts for the ladies.  Thanks to the Well-Groomed Blog, well actually thanks to his smart wife, for coming up with great list of fun, sweet and creative alternatives to flowers and chocolate.  If you are a guy reading this and not sure of your lady's ring size, find a ring that she wears regularly and bring it to a jeweler for sizing... and make sure to put it back in the exact.same.place.you.found.it.

#2. DIY Valentine's gift ideas.  There are some of you who are superiorly awesome in the way that you want to DIY most gifts and I deeply commend you.  Here is a lovely list of ONE HUNDRED handmade V-Day ideas.  Yes, 100.  Some are gifts for each other, some are home or party decor and there are even cute ideas for kids.

 

 

#3. Groomsmen gifts can double as V-Day or birthday gifts! The Plunge Project is one of my favorite 'new' blogs that I recently discovered.  I always have grooms asking me what to get their groomsmen and aside from the flasks (no one needs more than one), I love this guy gift guide.

 

#4. So can bridesmaids gifts! And the girls from The Plunge Project did it again- sweet and sassy gifts (on a budget!) for the gals in your life!

 

 

The Quick List: Making Your Holidays A Bit Easier

As we are right in the trenches of holiday shopping and all together holiday prep, I wanted to share a few tips for making this season a bit easier. 

#1. Holiday Cards-  As always, you have some options. You can buy cards (and upload your images) online in a 'one stop shop' like minted.com or vistaprint.com complete with printing and shipping, create your own template (I have used Microsoft Publisher) to send to your printer or you can buy stock cards without personalization (Target, Walmart, Kmart, etc.).  Well there is a NEW, affordable, time efficient option: using a professional template.  Blue Brush Studio on etsy.com offers uploadable templates on sale for as little as $3 and range up to $18!  I'm so excited about this new discovery, the one time purchase allows you to customize with your own photo(s) and print to your own printer instead of paying the printing and shipping fees associated with online card shops.   For that small template price, you can even splurge and print the cards off at a professional store like Staples or Kinko's.



#2. Gift tags- don't buy them.  Seriously.  They are such a waste since they are a one time use item.  My solution is for gift bags with tissue paper, fold a corner and write the 'to and from' on the tissue paper.  That way, the recipient can cut off that small section and re-use the tissue paper later.  

 

#3. Quick & easy recipes for your holiday parties- Most of us don't have time to make an elaborate dish for every holiday gathering this season.  While my tried & true recipe involves chocolate-covering pretzels and chips, I'm trying to expand my horizons.  Here are a few quick links to my favorite holiday recipes I've seen recently & I'm dying to try out!

http://camillestyles.com/2011/12-tastes-of-christmas-minty-meringues/

http://camillestyles.com/2011/12-tastes-of-christmas-candied-orange-peel/

http://theplungeproject.com/fab-friday-finds-cake-batter-recipe-roundup this link has 5 recipes!

Custom Gifts Just Got Better!

Like most people, I really enjoy photos.  LOVE even.  I love keeping special moments with family & friends tangible by keeping the photos framed around my house.  And just like framed photos, I periodically switch out the photo background on my phone to keep my favorites with me all the time.  This must have been the inspiration for what Case-Mate came up with, custom phone photo cases!

This innovative company is jumping on the technology trend by offering custom options for all of your case needs.  They cover iphones, blackberries, htc phones, smartphones, tablets and accessories.  The DIY custom case is as easy as uploading a photo, making sure that it is 1650 pixels high by 1650 pixels wide.  If it is smaller it cannot be enlarged to fit, like the photo I used below.

  Website: Case-Mate/ Photo Credit: Jacqueline Schlossman, ReadyLuck

Personalization Station: Silverware

I am pretty thrilled at any and all small details that make a huge impact at a wedding.  I particularly love the unexpected-yet-practical which is exactly what I discovered on Etsy's BeachHouseLiving shop.  This vendor specializes in vintage silverware that is hand stamped to be personalized for any occasion, but obviously the wedding items sparked my interest the most.  These gorgeous forks and spoons fit into an elegant theme and make great gifts for the couple.  There are plenty of options for the stamping including using the silverware as cake toppers and table numbers.  Not to mention that this is wedding decor that can be saved as family heirlooms for future generations to treasure (I love that idea)!  Please look around this lovely vendor shop for more ideas & inspiration (all photos are from the BHL shop).  Enjoy!

Great News for Shoes

Some girls go crazy for purses, some for designer jeans, and some for shoes.  Most of us females are trying to make peace with our inner fashionista during this recession.  Luckily a new designer, Absolutely Audrey, has come up with an answer to our need for versatility that our newly appointed inner recessionista side approves of- shoe clips!  You can shop by occasion or by color.  You can give these as a gift for your bridesmaids to wear again and again.  This can be your something "new" for your wedding attire!  The list goes on and on.  Not to mention that your fiance will be excited to see that you are spending less than you would on new shoes and getting a lot more for your money!  I've even included a few designs from the website.  Enjoy!

Ellie multi colored shoe clips. Source

 

Amanda crystal shoe clips.  Source

 

Felicia bridal white feather shoe clips. Source

Book Making Made Easy!

As much as I love scouring the internet for new ideas, I equally love when my brides turn me onto something new.  One of my DIY (do it yourself/ hands on crafty types) brides recently told me about Blurb.com which is a website/ company that helps people create their own books.  I know there are some programs that you can buy to do this, but for someone who is not overly technically savvy like me, this site is perfect!  Blurb.com ha stheir own software (Book Smart) that you can download for free which has a bunch of different templates for photo books, portfolios, business books, wedding books, blog books (converting your blog into a book) and actual books.

My bride is going to make a guest book for her wedding with photos of her & her fiance filled with pictures of them with blank pages for signing in the front and back of the book.  THIS I love.  As a planner, I am always looking for new ideas for guest books that will actually be read after the wedding day.  Creating a photo book is also a great gift for parents and the bridal party.  And of course, the couple can make their own book with their professional pictures which is a great way of reliving their big day a month or two afterwards.

I started my own book, a portfolio for Felicity C Weddings this week but it is far from done.  I'm so excited even though my last wedding of the year is not until Thanksgiving weekend so I won't be able to finish the book until I get those professional photos back.  When the portfolio is finished, I will definitely show some pages on here.  Until then, here is a link to a the book examples page and a here is a preview of the look book from the fabulous hat making company, Two Back Flats:

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them.

Click on people's faces in the photo to tag them.