Wiley Valentine

I recently visited the studio of the incredibly talented Wiley Valentine. The girls down at WV are such a incredibly talented group of designers. With all of their beautiful custom invites and greeting cards, you walk into a paper heaven! I'm not kidding! They have many albums for brides to browse through to get inspired and also create beautifully unique custom invitations and everything that goes with them! You definitely should stop by and say hi to the girls at Wiley Valentine! You can also check them out on the ever so wonderful Style Me Pretty blog!

my new favorite headband

I just got this amazing new hair accessory from Nicole Deanne whom I introduced in this post. I LOVE LOVE LOVE it! And she made it for me! She said she thought I would like one, and you know what? I totally do! She already knows me so well....

Matt & Renee revisited

I recently found some new pictures of Matt & Renee's awesome yacht wedding. So I thought I would share them! Yvonne Campbell did a fabulous job of capturing the details! Here is what she saw through her lens...

Upcoming Trunk Shows

I did some research and found some bridal trunk shows that are coming up in Southern California. Make sure you call the boutique and make your appointment!

The White Dress - Corona Del Mar
May 8-10: Modern Trousseau
March 20-22, May 15-17: Vineyard and Reverie
April 23-27: Amy Michelson
February 20-22: Priscilla of Boston gowns
February 27-28: Ann Barge
March 6-7: Elizabeth Fillmore
March 27-28: Badgley Mischka
April 17-19, July 29-August 3: Platinum
May 1-3, August 21-23: Melissa Sweet

The Dresser - Fullerton
February 20-22: Casablanca Trunk Show

Mary Me Bridal - Orange
Feb 20-21: Pronovias
Feb 27-28: Jasmine Couture
Mar 6-7: Tara Keeley

Mon Amie - Costa Mesa
February 27-March 1, March 6-8; March 13-15, March 20-22: Renee Pawlee Bridal Accessories
February 20-22: Ines di Santo (view the gowns and receive a hand-drawn sketch by the designer)
February 20-22: Maria Elena Bridal Headpieces and Veils
February 27-March 1: Romona Keveza (view the gowns and receive a hand-drawn sketch by the designer)
March 13-15: Monique Lhuillier Trunk Show
March 20-22: Augusta Jones
March 27-29: Platinum

Encore Bridal - Los Angeles
February 21-22: Veil Trends 2009 Collection

bridesmaid dresses

I am a huge fan of things not matching. Just ask my friends. or my husband. I never match. mostly i think it makes me really cool, but sometimes it really tanks. but i'm getting off track. I love when bridesmaid dresses don't match. Now, don't get me wrong: they MUST "go"....so it can't be just a ton of randomness thrown together. It looks something like the same color palette but different shades, or all pastels, or all earth tones, or just great colors that accent each other like turquoise and yellow. Are you getting the idea? I found this awesome example on one of my favorite blogs Style Me Pretty; a great place to find wedding and event inspiration! These girls are really pulling it off:

Posh-Paperie

I wanted to let you all know about my new friends at Posh-Paperie. They are a fabulous design and stationery company in the San Diego area. I LOVE their work! They have a fun, fresh, & clean style and create incredible designs and letterpress invites! They are high end, custom made invites and are just lovely. check em out! Posh-Paperie

And if you need some graphic design help, check out Karrie's other website! AMAZING!

Bridal Hair & Makeup

I want to spread the love about my new friend, Nicole Deanne. She is a premier stylist among Southern California brides! She not only does AMAZING hair and makeup, she offers tons of extras at her salon! Lashes, hair extensions, natural looking makeup and more extreme, fresh and funky looking styles....To top off the package, she is the cutest, stylish and most genuine person a girl could meet. I know my brides will feel right at home with her when they visit her and that makes me super happy. Check out some of her work (killer photos by Ryel J):

Headwear....

I'm lovin stuff on the head these days....flowers, headbands, feathers, short veils, birds...anything out of the ordinary...I think it gives you a unique opportunity to show off your personal style, and add a little kick to your wedding! Check out the pieces at the wonderful OH MY DEER! And check out a few that pulled it off legit style:

Dare to have Style - Carolina Herrera

I was browsing one of my favorite wedding blogs Completely Unveiled by Weddings Unveiled Magazine and saw that Carolina Herrera is having the much anticipated trunk show THIS WEEKEND at the Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills! What better valentine could a girl ask for than this:
I am IN LOVE with the boldness of this feathered fedora. Who agrees?

Ginalli Update

Ok girls, I have had a few inquiries about exactly which Ginalli curling iron I purchased to get this look:

this is the curling iron I got:
but this one gives you a little tighter curl and because of the inverted shape of the iron, your curls will start closer to your scalp:
I kinda wish I had this one too. The larger one that I bought gives more of a relaxed, wavy curl. This one will give a tighter, more consistent curl throughout the entire head of hair.

sunflower cake

My great friend Nate (i should be a poet) celebrated her birthday this weekend with a killer partaaayyy. I baked her a cake for the occasion. My hubby helped out by making his signature little creature to take everyone's attention away from the actual cake. This time it was a bee, which I actually really liked. The little guy kinda grew on me. My inspiration was to try and make something super cute, that would match Nate's sunny (i know, i'm cheesy) personality, while still making it her favorite flavor: chocolate. So the cake is chocolate with a mocha meringue frosting. We haven't tasted it yet, so I hope it's good!

foto cabina

My new favorite party favor is the photo booth! It is seriously so fun. You get to take awesome pics of yourself and your hot date (hopefully) and put on hilarious props (please notice my choice in glasses, martini glasses) and then it can be broadcast on a huge projector for the entertainment of all of the guests at the party! It really can't get any better than that! Here are a few shots that we took at a recent wedding. Yes, we were repeat offenders:


check out Foto Cabina for more information on the different packages they offer. Your guests will LOVE you!

Grey Suits

I recently had a friend and wonderful videographer Chrissie Wanke ask me a question about guys wearing gray suits in her wedding. Personally, I love the gray suit look. I like it even better if it's done in a funky, stylie kind of way.

But you can also go the classic route with a suit.

Or, you can go the AWESOME route and wear a top hat.

Whichever way you choose to go, I believe that gray suits are the new black.
Here is my favorite way to do a gray suit, classy and with style: