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Bridal Headpieces

How would our lovely brides have found all the wonderfully different wedding trends before the Internet? (Ah, the days where print ruled!). Your online wedding resource, StrictlyWeddings.com has found another talented designer. Lo Boheme specializes in one of a kind and custom accessories for weddings (and other special events).  Lo Boheme is the wife-husband team of Lauren (Lo) and Josh Christensen based out of a tiny 1920′s bungalow in San Diego, CA.

The Lo Boheme aesthetic is inspired by the details of eras past; whether it be French Bohemianism of the late 1800′s, the detailed lines of the Art Nouveau movement, or the glamor of Old Hollywood.  It is the delicate feminine sophistication from these times, coupled with Lo’s modern eye that produce unique yet wearable statement head pieces.

Lo Boheme sprung from Lo’s own wedding. In search of a unique personal gift for her nine bridesmaids, Lauren created one of a kind hairpieces made from vintage velvet flowers found in boarded up millinery warehouses in France and Germany. These types of creative personal touches flourished throughout Lo and Josh’s wedding. After rave reviews from guests and vendors, “Lo Boheme”  the company was born, although Lo, the little lady with a unique vision and Bohemian spirit had been designing and creating for years!

Wedding Color Inspiration: Pink and Gold

Hello readers, this is Jacqueline Weppner from Merci New York, a styling service for the busy city bride. I’m delighted to be back on StrictlyWeddings.com, discussing the hottest trends in wedding style and fashion.

Today we’re talking pink. And not just the ho-hum girly variety, but the overwhelming resurgence of lush blush pink with hints of metallic. It’s certainly become one of the most popular wedding day palettes for the fashionista bride; and if executed correctly, it can remain one of the freshest as well.

With a decided nod to the nostalgia of the 1940s and 1950s, a blush and gold palette suggests the sass and glamour of old Hollywood, yet it remains firmly nestled in a playful femininity suitable for any wedding day style. It lends itself to soft décor and tiny retro touches (think hints of tulle and a darling birdcage veil, as seen in my inspiration board above)… and it will always encourage a soft, polished calm.

Need more inspiration? Here are some tips and tricks to create a blush and gold look that is elegant without being stuffy:

• Pretty paper: Get thee to Ceci. The luxe bespoke stationer Ceci New York has NYC and all the country swarming for her gorgeous creations. And if custom designs are not in your budget, her ready-to-buy line sports a handful of pink and gold options that are equally divine, such as the Versaille and Antoinette suites.
• Inspiring cakes: Call up our favorite Manhattan confectionary master, the lovely Ruth Drennan, for a custom-made cake. Ruth’s designs are absolutely ethereal and wonderfully inspired, it’s no wonder they’ve found themselves on the pages of countless wedding magazines.
• Blushing beauty: Be sure to provide your stylist with a compact of NARS blush in Orgasm for the big day (considering she doesn’t already have it on hand, of course)! As you may know, this shade has won countless beauty awards for being the best blush on the market. Suitable for literally all complexions, it gives a pretty, yet subtle flush to your cheeks and lasts long into the night.
• Luscious gowns: Hands down, the most confectionery crème-de-la-crème of the blush-gown set hail from Vera Wang’s Spring 2010 collection.  Truly, you’ll look no further.
• Retro Accessories: In this department, famed milliner Philip Treacy is your go-to guy. I adore his sculptural bow headpiece. This exquisite finishing touch is a striking alternative to a traditional veil on your big day. How decidedly retro would it be in your get-away photos?

Inspiration board photo credits: From top: Meringue cake, Jean Tsai {pointe shoes, portrait}, Sarah Maingot {tulle, teapot, mirror images}, Anna Williams {cupcake papers}, favors, candles.

Here at StrictlyWeddings.Com, we are loving the Butterfly Theme for your Big Day

Who would have thought that butterflies are a hot trend for spring and summer weddings? But one of our own, Jordan Payne of Jordan Payne Events said that the trend began in 2009, but it’s “really” going to be hot for spring and summer weddings in 2010.

At getmarried.com we found this advise on the “butterfly theme.”

… keep the looks light and colorful. If you are having your wedding based on all kinds of butterflies, choose pastel or bright colors for the bridesmaid dresses. Should you prefer a certain kind of butterfly over others (like a Monarch), then choose colors based on that (shades of orange and black).

Accent colors on bridal gowns are becoming trendy. Choose one with light sparkles or a sash or ribbon to complement the wedding colors. Tiaras with rhinestone butterflies are a beautiful touch to a bridal hairstyle. Jewelry for the bride and bridesmaids easily incorporates a butterfly theme:

• Pendant necklace (James Avery has a lovely butterfly necklace in sterling and gold)
• Hair clips
• Charm bracelets
• Stud earrings or dangles with butterflies

The flower girl dress offers the most options for incorporating a butterfly theme. You may find some little girls’ dresses that have butterflies embroidered on them, or choose a simple white dress and place wings on your girls’ backs.

Men’s clothing should match the bridal party colors as well. Informal wedding attire might include a tie that features butterflies. More formal wedding attire could do traditional tuxes, but have a small cloth butterfly pinned into the boutonniere.

Ceremony Decorations

• Have the butterfly theme worked into your ceremony decorations and accessories.
• Have invitations and programs printed that incorporate butterflies on the front cover.
• Use a unity candle that has butterflies incorporated into the large middle pillar.
• Fabric butterflies can be wired into virtually any floral arrangement

Butterfly Wedding Cakes

• Using a wedding cake topper that has butterflies in it is an easy way to put butterflies on your wedding cake.
• You could also have your decorator make gumpaste or royal icing butterflies and affix them to your cake.
• Place sticks with butterflies on the top into cupcake wedding cakes.

Make a more unique centerpiece by having a butterfly net hang from the ceilings down over the tables (be sure to check with your reception site for rules regarding ceiling hangings). Have fake butterflies affixed to the sides of the netting and “hanging” in the center of the net using a wire.

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We found a few additional ideas for the Butterfly wedding theme:

Release live butterflies at your wedding - Wish Upon a Butterfly, Amazing Butterflies; Swallowtail Farms
Butterfly Wedding Accessories

And if you’d like to find examples of Butterfly Weddings just search Google! You will be amazed (or at least we were)!

This image came from WedSmack.com under Favorite Ideas

Summer Wedding Fun – The Parasol

In the world of weddings, like everywhere else, things go in and out of style. Some things, like sticking to the old adage, “Something borrowed, something blue…” always stay the same, but other things, like dress styles, decor trends, and food choices change as often as do other fashions. 

A summer addition to weddings that can be trendy is the parasol. There are ornate decorated umbrellas with 8 foot handles used to line aisles, mini-parasols planted in trees with lights behind them, and, of course, they can also be used as favors. Or you know, you could use them for the things that umbrellas and parasols are usually used for, keeping the rain and sun off. Unlike so many favors and decorations, they can be useful, and actually used again.

From Veils to Cakes, the Top Celebrity Wedding Trends

From landscape centerpieces to dramatic first dances, celebrities are going all out to celebrate their nuptials. In Style Weddings magazine highlights the many stars incorporating the hottest, newest trends for their walk down the aisle:

Luscious landscapes
First it was monochromatic, all-one-color centerpieces, which Heidi Klum and Seal did, then it was multiples — lots of little centerpieces on one table. The new look? Landscapes. According to celebrity planner Michele Rago, who did the flower arrangements for “SVU” star Mariska Hargitay, new trends include bead-strewn crystal candelabras, potted herbs and even natural motifs like mushrooms.

Why are these a trend? Because celebrities and regular brides are looking for something different. Landscape centerpieces give a whole new dramatic atmosphere to the wedding. They might include pretty bowls, moss, and even just mushrooms. It goes way beyond flowers.

Dramatic veils
Celebrity brides are going retro by wearing dramatic veils for their ceremonies. Veils had fallen out of favor for the “two dress” trend, where brides wear one dress for their ceremony and then change into a different dress for their reception.

For a while, people thought that veils were too classic and old-fashioned (they date back to ancient Rome). A lot more celebrities are adding veils to their dresses, as it’s something every bride can do without spending too much money; a veil is a great way to change your look from ceremony to reception at a fraction of the cost. You can chose to wear the veil even during the reception! But for comfort’s sake, try a shorter style.

Groom’s cake
This Southern tradition has been gaining favor over the last few years and is now a full-blown trend. It’s a way for the groom to personalize the wedding. Foodie Tyler Florence kicked off the trend with his “Steel Magnolias” themed groom’s cake. For his lavish Beverly Hills wedding, Josh Cappo, jewelry designer Erica Courtney’s son, had an armadillo-shaped red velvet cake. The cake should pick up on something about the groom — a favorite sport, activity, hometown or even nickname.

The groom’s cake should be an interest of or connection to the groom. It’s a fun surprise that can be featured during the reception so people can see it, and it’s served with the traditional wedding cake.

Global-inspired favors
Favors are a great way to thank your guests. Willa Ford sent guests home with herb-scented candles that complimented her herb motif. “My Girl” star Anna Chlumsky embraced her husband-to-be’s heritage by giving chopsticks.

For a couple with Indian heritage, all the female guests can receive colorful bangles tied with a ribbon. Or you can embrace your hometown with candy apples for a New York City wedding. People think favors are lame and throw them out, so if you are going to go through the effort, make sure that they mean something!

Formal first dance
As the TV sensation brings ballroom dancing to America’s living rooms, more and more couples (this includes our favorite celebrities) are leading their reception off with classic, choreographed dance moves. Once a couple finds their song, they find the classic dance — from a fox-trot to something sultry like the tango — to choreograph their moves to. People are tired of that fumbling high school dance — they want something memorable! Katherine McPhee even did a traditional dance at her wedding, to a 16-piece band, with twirls and dips (the works).

It’s best to prepare for your first dance with the same care you give to your invitations, gowns, catering, flowers and music. Start planning at least six months prior to your wedding date so that you can choose your special song, the type of dance you want, and take lessons before “wedding frenzy” sets in!

Private lessons are best as you will be able to dance exclusively with your fiancé and choose your own music. And remember, always practice the dance in your wedding gown (or close to it) instead of jeans …

For more information and wedding tips, visit In Style Weddings magazine online.

Summer Wedding Trends 2008

The Press Release Newswire has published the wedding trends for summer 2008 according to mywedding.com:

More Green Weddings
Environmentally sensitive weddings have proven to be more than a trend as they continue to be as popular as ever in 2008.
Branded Weddings
To make planning easier and more cohesive, many couples are choosing to create a “wedding logo” to theme their wedding around. Not only does this help couples narrow down choices for decor and food, it also gives couples a chance to infuse their personality into their wedding’s design.
Local Destination Weddings
Couples are deciding to think like tourists in their own towns and opting out of the traditional church and reception hall wedding. Instead, many are choosing wedding venues that have vacation appeal, right in their own towns. This way couples get the best of both worlds–the feeling of a destination wedding, without the long-distance planning hassles.
888 Weddings
While 7/7/07 was the hot wedding date last year, this summer couples are making their lives easier by choosing a wedding date they’ll never forget–8/8/08. The date falls on a Friday, which often reduces the cost of a traditional Saturday afternoon wedding–making it an even more attractive choice for simplicity-seeking couples.
Favorable Favors
Couples are opting out of the traditional miniature monogrammed wedding bells and choosing to hand out favors their guest can really use. This summer’s favorite favors include: potted plants that double as centerpieces, seed packets, miniature jars of honey or fruit preserves, personalized tea bags, and other perishable items.

Rings and Jewelry Trends

According to The Wedding Report, white gold and platinum wedding bands have now outpaced yellow gold by two to one in popularity. Platinum is especially popular because of its purity, rarity and durability. In addition, men’s rings are getting bigger and more intricate, with a rise in demand for engraved patterns, such as scrollwork or filigree. Men are also choosing rings that incorporate diamonds into the bands, particularly burnished-set stones that are set flush with the band instead of raised.

Ring designers are seeing colored gems and engagement rings with extra diamonds surrounding the larger stone as popular styles. Settings with elaborate and raised stones, and twisted wedding bands are also trendy. Colored stones and stacked wedding bands are alternatives to the traditional engagement and wedding band combination. Piling wedding bands on top of one another creates a striking look and paves the way for future anniversary additions, as well.

Recycling wedding rings is another growing trend, whether it be passing down family heirlooms or melting the metal of older rings and using it in a newly designed creation. Vintage-style bands and antique rings are also quite trendy for 2008. Detailed designs include scroll-like engraving, microset (tiny half-point) diamonds, delicate milgrain work, raised beaded edges, and filigree.

Antique rings with cushion and Asscher-cut diamonds, which were very stylish in the 1920s, are currently popular among brides. These diamonds are square-shaped and designed to reflect candlelight while drawing the eye into the stone. These cuts also complement pavé-set bands, which are currently trendy, as well.

Big, bold jewelry is also quite popular on the fashion runways this year, including wide bracelets, chandelier and long, thin shoulder-skimming earrings, as well as larger-than-life necklaces, such as chokers with six strings of pearls.