2011 Oscar Red Carpet Looks

First of all, a big thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth at the Wedding Show at the Deerfoot Inn and Casino yesterday. It was lovely to meet all of the brides and husbands-to-be, and I look forward to working on your wedding stationery!

I'm sure many of the show attendees rushed home to watch the Oscar red carpet arrivals. It looks like red and champagne were a huge hit on the red carpet this year, and from talking with all the brides yesterday, it seems those colours are big this year for weddings as well. For those of you who might have missed it, here are some pictures of the night's top looks:

Amy Adams (via Harpers Bazaar)

Halle Berry (via Harpers Bazaar)
Loved this dress!

Anne Hathaway (via Harper's Bazaar)

 

 

 

Helen Mirren (via Harper's Bazaar)

 

 

Hilary Swank (via Harper's Bazaar)

 

Jennifer Hudson (via Harper's Bazaar)

This was my favourite dress of the evening

Mandy Moore (via wonderwall.msn.com)
Loved the dress, but thought the colour was too pale on her

Marisa Tomei (via Yahoo!)

Mila Kunis (via wonderwall.msn.com)
Gorgeous dress!

Nancy O'Dell (via wonderwall.msn.com)
LOVED the colour!

Natalie Portman (via Harper's Bazaar)The mom-to-be looked radiant!

 

Sandra Bullock (via Harper's Bazaar)

Reese Witherspoon (via Harper's Bazaar)
A classic dress, but I thought it looked kind of boring on her.

 

Classic gown silhouettes

For those of you who have already started looking for a wedding gown, you know there are a lot of different styles and shapes to choose from. Here's a list and description of six classic gown silhouettes from www.marthastewartweddings.com to give you an idea of what shape might best suit your body type and personality.


#1 Ball Gown

Introduced by Queen Victoria, reimagined by Dior in the 1950s, and never long out of fashion, this is the most romantic of all bridal silhouettes. It features a small waist (natural or dropped) and a voluminous skirt with petticoats. Most flattering to women of at least average height with hourglass or full figures, this style's skirt will overwhelm a petite or particularly buxom bride. Depending on the fabric, the skirt can appear weightless or heavy.


#2 A-line

This enduring style's name comes from the triangle (or "A" shape) between the narrow bodice and outer edges of the wide, ungathered skirt. Suitable for a variety of fabrics, the A-line is versatile: It may or may not have a seam at the waist, which may be higher or lower than the natural waistline; and the close-fitting bodice may be strapless or have any type of neckline.

#3 Empire

After the French Revolution, Napoleon's wife Josephine popularized this neoclassical dress with a very high waist; the sheer materials she chose caused a sensation. The cropped bodice of the Empire style flatters the small-breasted woman but not a more buxom bride; the raised waist creates a long line, ideal for a petite bride. The skirt may be straight, slightly flared, or even as wide as an A-line.

#4 Sheath

If you are comfortable with showing off your curves, consider the slyly constructed sheath, popularized in the 1950s by Marilyn Monroe. This body-hugging profile is artfully sculpted with darts, tucks, and seams. The effect will differ depending on the weight and drape of the fabric. A great choice for a tall, slim-hipped woman, the sheath is equally becoming to a petite, slender bride. Avoid this style if you have wide hips but narrow shoulders.

#5 Trumpet

A trumpet dress hugs the body at the top and through the hips but jets out into a fuller skirt at the bottom. This style is also referred to as mermaid.



#6 Short

Short dresses have a hem that is above or just slightly below the knee, and they typically aren't found in any of the other categories.


{all images and content from http://www.marthastewartweddings.com/}

2011 Fall colour trends

The verdict is in! According to Pantone, these will be the top colours for Fall 2011. Are any of these colours part of your palette?

{image from pantone.com}

Come see us at the Wedding Show this weekend!

Come meet us and see samples of our work at the Wedding Show on Sunday, February 27, 2011 from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. at the Deerfoot Inn and Casino. Admission and parking are FREE! We're also giving away a fabulous prize package and discounts to brides who sign up for a free consultation. We look forward to seeing you there!

Purple and yellow flower invitations

As mentioned in a previous post, one of the colour palattes I'm loving this year is purple and yellow. Here's a cute floral invitation we did using these colours:

Front of invitation using hemp twine and a punched image

Inside of invitation with a stamped image

 Invitation and response card

Vintage photo shoot

OK, I love everything to do with vintage, and I especially love vintage photos! I came across this gorgeous photo shoot on What Junebug Loves, shot by photographer Natasha Du Preez. How gorgeous are these photos?

{all images from whatjunebugloves.com via Natasha Du Preez}

Valentine's Day inspiration

We stumbled across www.bridalcanvas.com, a site that lets you build your own wedding inspiration board. We searched the web for real Valentine's Day weddings and came across these photos and made our own inspiration board. Enjoy!

Photo credits: bridalcookie.com, knottybride.com, theknot.com, vibrantbride.com, onewed.com, weddingsandcakes.com.

We Heart Hearts

In the spirit of Valentine's Day, the staff at Wedding Bells Magazine have put together a post on their website about how to incorporate hearts into your wedding day. Here are a few pictures of their heart inspiration:

{all images from weddingbells.ca}

Cakeballs

Birch centrepiece

Heart cookie

Heart cake

Ring Bearer pillow

Vivienne Westwood shoes

 Whoopie pies

Pretty palatte: purple and yellow

Two colours that we absolutely love together are purple and yellow! A pale purple and butter yellow is perfect for a spring wedding, and a bright yellow and royal purple are perfect for a summer wedding. We scoured the web and found some colour inspiration for this palatte:

Photo credits:
Top (L to R) bbrooks.com; onewed.com; weddingchicks.com

Bottom (L to R) weddingchicks.com; weddingchicks.com; momentville.com

Canadian designer Ines di Santo

So apparently I have been living under a rock. While perusing the web yesterday, I stumbled across a Canadian designer named Ines di Santo and up until then, I had never seen her work somehow! Born in Italy, di Santo moved to Canada, where she now designs dresses out of her Toronto studio. Her designs are fun, flirty and take the definition of girly to the extreme. Here is a peek at her spring/summer 2011 collection:

{all images from inesdisanto.com}

Stagette and wedding shower invitations

Happy Monday everyone! Thought I would start out the week with something fun...while I specialize in wedding invitations, I also do other event invitations and greeting cards, so I thought I would share some fun samples for a stagette invitation and a wedding shower invitation. Enjoy!

Love this Audrey Hepburn quote on the front of this stagette invitation

Inside of stagette invitation

 

 Front of wedding shower invitation. Love the sparkly detail!

Inside of wedding shower invitation

Lovely hydrangeas

So with Groundhog Day behind us and the optimism of an early spring ahead of us, I thought I would share some pictures I've found for a lovely spring flower - hydrangeas. So for all you spring brides out there wondering what flowers are in season, here are some examples of how beautiful hydrangeas could look for your big day:

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