California Dreamin'

{Photo by Dragonfly Photo}

As you are reading this I am somewhere out on the open road making my way from New Jersey to beautiful Los Angeles! While I had hoped to get a few posts done for you to enjoy while I was driving these 3,000 miles, time just wasn't on my side this week. 

I am headed out to Los Angeles to work on a few fun projects that I hope I will get to share with you all this summer! But in the mean time, since I'm in that road trip sorta mood, make sure you don't miss my cross-country road trip inspired wedding post from a few weeks ago! 

I will be back in full blogging force from the west coast, Monday May 24th! And if you're lucky, I may be updating a few times this week with our cross country ventures!

                            

{A little peak at our route!}

See you on the other side of the country!

Aspiring to Inspire,

Kelly

A Day with Martha Stewart and Vera Wang

If you follow me on twitter, you know I had quite the exciting day on Wednesday when I ventured to my {second} favorite city, New York! I thought it would be fun to take a step out of the wedding inspiration world and share my day with you all! In fact, it may not all be wedding related but the day ended with quite a bang when I got to sit in on an event with the one, the only, Vera Wang. Now, I may not have unleashed my obsession, admiration and total I-worship-the-ground-she-walks-on love for her, but I guess no better time then the present! Before I start gushing and gushing about her (and sharing a few videos of her interview!), lets start at the very beginning, The Martha Stewart Show!

It was a bright and early morning (5 am wake up call!) but well worth it! The studio was essentially my dream world complete with a prep kitchen, TV kitchen, craft area and gardening station!

Martha did a little cooking, a little crafting and a how-to for a gardening apron and as soon as we knew it the show was over! It was live, and in fact I was chosen to ask a wedding question on air, but due to the live nature of the show, they ran out of time! Martha stuck around after the show and answered several audience questions and well, it was pretty exciting to be in the same room as the queen of crafting!

We took a little Soho snack & shopping break before we headed uptown to Bloomingdales. If you are in New York, and haven't tried Baked by Melissa yet, close the computer and head over there now. Right now. They are the most moist cupcakes I have ever tasted, and they are bite size (literally), so you can try a more than one!

Now for the best part, and the part you have all been waiting for! The event I attended was in celebration of Vera Wang's 20 years in the wedding industry (both fashion and fine china) and it was held at the Bloomingdales NYC flagship. We first checked out the 11 Vera dresses that were chosen to be displayed at Bloomies, and one of my all time favorites was included! In my opinion, Vera's fall 2010 collection was one of her best, ever, and my favorite gown from the line was on display...

Did you pass out from sheer amazement yet? Ok, stay with me!

A few of my other favorites...

The event culminated with a "conversation" with Vera herself (Oh. Wow.) and lucky for you all, I took a few videos of her answering questions about her experience in the bridal fashion industry! I suggest you turn up your volume because they are may be a bit hard to hear!

Vera on her favorite dress {and her very own wedding dress!}...

Vera on her black wedding dress...

Vera on dressing celebrities on their big day...

Seeing one of my biggest idols and most adored individuals in the industry, in person, was utterly amazing and I am so glad I got to share a piece of my exciting day with you! If you are lucky enough to live in, or around, Manhattan, the Vera Wang gowns will be on display through June 6th on the 4th floor of Bloomingdales (59th & Lex) and they are really worth seeing! Enjoy your beautiful weekend!

Aspiring to Inspire,

Kelly

Etsy Bridal Shower: Come Fly With Me!

This beautiful post began as a wedding concept, but I quickly grew to love it more as a fantastically intimate bridal shower, and an ultra-feminine one at that. The feel here is as if you raided grandma's vanity and scattered her beautiful things about your shower. It's complete with pops of magenta and a few pretty butterflies peaking through forests of tulips. Gold rimmed china, napkins tied with delicate lace, and paper garlands hanging from above. Leave this stunning gold tissue box holder as a place for guests to drop favorite memories with the bride!

{1. Tulip Photograph by Gracie Photography, 2. Handmade Lace Trim by Little Brown Magpie, 3. Locket Necklace by Vintage Styling, 4. Butterfly Gift Tags by Timeless Paper, 5. China by Which Goose Co., 6. Butterfly Garland by Garden Leaf Design, 7. Vintage Tissue Box Cover by Alice's Looking Glass, 8. Butterfly Bouquet by Just Ann's, 9. Vintage Brush by Alice's Looking Glass}

Aspiring to Inspire,

Kelly

As Seen On Etsy: Alice's Looking Glass

Today's Etsy vendor is responsible for the fabity-fab (I can make up words right?) ticking stripe sachets from yesterday's love letter inspiration. And the greatness doesn't end there. Alice's Looking Glass's shop updates almost every day with the most exquisite vintage finds and handmade goodies. Everything from the most fantastic vases, goblets and dishes to vintage recipe cards and one of kind treasures like that napkin ring set and that b-eau-ti-ful pillow! Expect to see that tiny crown of perfection in tomorrow's post (and maybe a few other lovelies too!). What's your favorite item?

{All Products & Images from Alice's Looking Glass' Etsy Shop}

I could spend a whole day digging through the gorgeousness on Alice's Looking Glass and I bet a few of you could too!

Aspiring to Inspire,

Kelly

Color Inspiration: Love Letters

It is very rare to receive a true love letter nowadays. Maybe a "love fax," in the words of Carrie Bradshaw? But who wouldn't want to receive a messenger-delivered, handwritten love letter? A girl can dream right? Well, this dream was the inspiration for today's post and I don't think you can find a wedding more inspired by love. I kept it neutral with tan, white and navy and let the romance do the talking.

For the men its simple: navy pants, khaki (or seersucker!) blazer and an adorable little bow tie. Perhaps my favorite find today was this bridesmaid dress- which can be styled in so many different ways. Hello, an actual reusable 'maid gown! Hooray! The "love letter" flower carries a special message and would be fantastic strung on a navy ribbon around the bride's gown. Navy accents, of course, to finish it off!

{1. Couple Shot by Tec Petaja via Once Wed, 2. Love Letter Flower by Emersonmade, 3. Earrings by White Owl, 4. Hat via Anthropologie, 5. Flower Girl Dress Shot via Style Me Pretty, 6. Boy's Blazer by J. Crew, 7. Dress by Butter by Nadia, 8. Shoe Shot via Green Wedding Shoes, 9. Bouquet via Martha Stewart Weddings}

For seating at your ceremony, turn bails of hay or benches into kraft paper-wrapped boxes (or if you can find this fabric, even better)! Kraft gift boxes work for favors too! Ticking stripe linens and sachets on the chairs and a cake as fantastic as this one! Leave a vintage love letter (yes, you can buy just about everything on Etsy) on each table and a vintage mailbox for guests own letters of love and good wishes. You can even put together a scrapbook of memorabilia, letters and photos from the day you met to the day you wed for guests to flip through during cocktail hour. This wedding really is all about celebrating love. True, undying love.

{1. Kraft Paper Fabric via Designer's Library, 2. Ticking Stripe Sachet by Alice's Looking Glass, 3. Handwritten Love Letters via Shop Nancy, 4. Scrapbook via The Society Inc., 5. Mailbox Shot via Ruffled, 6. Cake via This Is Glamorous, 7. Ticking Stripe Table Runner via Style Me Pretty, 8. Calligraphed Envelope via Oh So Beautiful Paper, 9. Kraft Gift Boxes by CDK Designs}

Aspiring to Inspire,

Kelly

Notables: Stripes! {PLUS The Giveaway Winner Announced!}

It's time for a little pattern love on Notable-- and today it comes in the form of stripes. What a fantastically versatile print, so perfect for so many weddings. One of my favorites has to be the bold, graphic stripes for fun straws or "goodie" bags, but I also have been obsessing over ticking stripe linens lately (check back tomorrow for more on that!). So, I've scouted out a few fab ways to use stripes in your decor and your attire. And behold, pretty patterns at their finest! But don't forget, keep scrolling to see who won last week's special Etsy giveaway!

{Striped Paper Bags by Minimega via Oh Joy!}

{Striped Vase via Country Living}

{Dessert Table by Amy Atlas}

{Seersucker Suit via Brooklyn Bride}

{Striped Table Linen Shot by Orchard Cove Photography via Style Me Pretty}

{Licorice Wedding Cake via Martha Stewart Weddings}

{Ticking Stripe Runner via Style Me Pretty}

{Striped Flats by Anthropologie}

And now for the WINNER of our City Light Photography giveaway! Drumroll please....

Melanie! Congratulations Melanie, I'll be in touch soon so we can get your fabulous photo prize into your hands! A special thanks again to Diana of City Light Photography for making this all possible!

Aspiring to Inspire,

Kelly

Weddings, Etc.: DIY Cupcake Stands!

It's a DIY day on Notable today! I'm bringing you the full tutorial on how to create the cupcake stands I made for the Relay For Life table I worked on last weekend! When I say they're simple, I mean they are simple. And, you can so easily adapt them to any color scheme so no matter what your wedding (or shower, or rehearsal dinner) looks like, your guests can enjoy some fantastically displayed cupcakes!

Here's what you need:

A 5" Round Terra Cotta Pot Saucer (The things that go under the pot!)-- I got mine at Michaels in the floral section.

A small candle holder, goblet, or other vessel that can act as a base. Anything will work as long as it is relatively short, has a flat base and stable top. I got mine from the sale section at Anthropologie.

White, Flat Spray Paint (One can covered about 8 pot saucers) for a primer,

Color Spray Paint of Your Choice (I used two shades of aqua for mine!),

Hot Glue Gun

On to the good stuff.. the how-to!

1. Begin by priming the terra cotta saucers with the flat white spray paint. Make sure your in a well ventilated area (translation: outside). I sprayed the underside first and let it dry according to the instructions on the can. Then I flipped them and sprayed the top. Make sure you coat them completely so you don't see any red showing through.

2. Now it's time for COLOR! Repeat the same process with your colored spray paint, and adjust how many coats (or how close you hold the can) according to how dark you want the color to be. I did one coat of a pale aqua and topped it with a light coat of a darker aqua to give it depth. Let this dry completely.

3. Once your saucer is painted and fully dry, get out your candle holder/vessel for your base. Have both the base and the saucer ready and close by on your table. We're going to apply the hot glue to the top of your base to avoid having it show on the finished product. Run your hot glue gun around the rim, as close to the inside edge as possible. The top of my candle holder had a very narrow rim so I ran the glue around the inside as well to ensure it would hold, without having an ugly glue line showing.

4. Next your going to quickly flip your base onto the bottom side of the saucer and hold it firmly for a few seconds so the glue can dry. Leave it upside down for 15 minutes, just to be safe and let it totally set.

5. Believe it or not, that's it! Flip over the cupcake stands and "garnish" with a cupcake! Perfect for weddings, bridal showers or just for fun!

If you have any questions about how to make the stands, leave them in the comments below or send me an email at kellylanza {at} gmail {dot} com!

Giveaway Reminder!! YOU could win a fabulous photo print (of your choice!) in our giveaway from City Light Photography! Click HERE to enter!

Aspiring to Inspire,

Kelly