Envelopments!

Recently, I partnered with Envelopments as another option for invitations and stationery. I have been a big fan of their items for a while now and have recently made a decision to become a dealer for them, and I'm so happy I did! I received their design studio a few weeks ago and love the way everything is laid out. The moment I received it I couldn't help but skim through the books and all the information. I'm so excited to add them to my services.

Folks, if you haven't seem their papers and options brace yourselves. There are so many possibilities and there's more coming soon! I'll be working on my own samples in the next few weeks. Stay tuned for the pictures!

White Christmas Inspiration Board

It's 2 days before Christmas. Usually by now, I'm already in the Christmas spirit. I'm trying, believe me, I'm trying. But regardless of sprit, I'm thankful for everything the Lord has blessed me with this year and I can't wait to give everyone their presents and seeing their faces light up. That's the part I love most about Christmas anyway. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone! Whatever holiday you celebrate, do it with love.

Here's a White Christmas inspiration board to keep everyone in the spirit (and to remind us Californians of snow). Check out this "chilly" color scheme of whites and blues and warm up the ambiance with some flickering candle light.

Photo sources: winter-wedding-dress.com, beaucoup, blogforbrides, project wedding, the knot, wedding paper divas, ioffer.com, instyle weddings, thebrideandgroom.com

Bridal Showplace, Hilton Pasadena

In collaboration with my family's bakery, Ninong's Pastries and Cafe, my aunt, my mom, and I were exhibitors at the Bridal Showplace Show at the Hilton Pasadena this past Sunday. It's been a long time since I've done a bridal show but this show was a lot of fun!

The weeks prior to the show were definitely hectic. On top of preparing for both booths, I was trying to not only juggle my work at the shop but also my coordinating business. My mind was racing with ideas and I really wanted to make both booths scream creativity.

The Ninong's booth had 3 cakes that I prepared, all 3 with a different design. The first was an all white 4-tier made of fondant (left). Every other tier had a hand-ruffled pieces while the other 2 tiers were a simple fondant covering with an elegant drape going from one side to the other. Finish it off with coordinating brooches and you're done! The second was a 3 tier ivory fondant with green accents (right). The simple piping design was meant to be elegant , not taking too much attention away from the design of the cake. To give the the cake height, I added a cylinder vase and added some battery powered candles to give it some flair. The main attraction of the booth, our brown and white brocade piece (middle). This 5-tier topped with large white gerber daisies was made of chocolate brown fondant and white royal icing to give it its bold, unique look.

I wanted to do so many things with my space. I had so many ideas and I couldn't decide on which one to do. So, I decided to make the most of my space and do it all.

I wanted to create different tablescapes with 6 different concepts. So since I didn't have the room to do that, I made miniatures. The first was a tropical/beach theme with a modern flair. The second was an orange and red "country" theme. The third, a vintage old rose/dark purple. Fourth - a modern/bold black, white, and green. Fifth - a simple yellow, ivory and lavender color scheme. And sixth, in the corner of my booth (but still surprisingly got lots of attention) an all while glamorous table scape filled with candles, an all white centerpiece, and beautiful flatware and dinner set that speaks for itself.

This was definitely a learning experience. Things have changed in the few years that I've been in the wedding business. This was the best response I've had at a show to date. Thank you to everyone that visited our booths! We hope you enjoyed what you saw and will be working with you soon!

Fancy Friday: Creating an Identity

The 2 year mark has passed for Charlie and I. It's official, we've set a date and have started talking about wedding/future related things. Charlie and I had a conversation last night and he told me that he's seen me in this mode before, "wedding mode." He says I always get this way when I start planning a wedding. Normally he doesn't care much, he knows it's just my job. But this time, I guess he wanted to get in wedding mode too since it's our wedding this time. So he decided to design our logo for the wedding to get into "wedding mode" himself. Thank goodness he's a talented graphic designer. :)

I'm not sure if it's because I have a graphic design background, but I think it's so important to have a logo identity or "symbol" that represents you as a couple. Why? Because not only can it be used throughout your design for the wedding, but it will give guests, family, and friends eye candy to remember you by. A well designed logo or monogram will make it easy for you to identify all aspects of your special day and tie in a design throughout the wedding. Here are some examples:

Our logo is still in development as far as color goes, but this is the final design.

Our initials (C and O) created the heart and the ring design that is the main focal point. The serif font creates the diamond on the ring and the bow tie at the bottom.

Debbie and George, my D&G couple, is a wonderful example of how you can take a concept from a logo design and use it as the running piece throughout your wedding.

Their Dolce and Gabana inspired monogram not only was a beautiful design that reflected their modern/chic style, but also gave them inspiration to use a fashion forward/hollywood theme to their wedding. Not only in their invitations and stationery but also a press wall for photo ops:

For their place cards and table numbers, they used body forms/mannequins:

And that's just the beginning!

Here are some suggestions to a good wedding logo:

1. Think outside the box. Great design happens when you go beyond what you've already seen.

2. Be yourself. Let the logo speak about you and your style.

3. Don't try too hard. Let the design come to you.

4. Don't be afraid to play around with concepts.

5. Hire a professional. Someone that has a graphic design background can get your point across effectively.

Fancy Friday: Fall Weddings

Fall weddings are absolutely beautiful! The weather is perfect, the leaves are starting to change color, and it's almost time for the holidays.

Warm hues like reds, oranges, and wood tones keep in line with the feeling of fall and are great for design elements! Check out this earthy and colorful fall wedding inspiration board.

Photo Credits: Martha Stewart, Beyond the Bride, Kuga Designs, Tim Tidball Photography, Soniasbridal.com, Sedona Wedding Cakes

Fancy Friday: Event Lighting

I love event lighting. Why? Something as simple as lighting can completely transform the look and mood of your event. Most of the time, your venue is limited to the chandeliers or "house lights" to brighten your event and to set the mood. Relying on these lights as a source of light for the guests is usually mainly for making sure it's not pitch black in the room and so the guests can see.

Event lighting adds to the room. It gives your white walls some character, texture, and/or color. It gives you a chance to personalize your venue, highlight beautiful design elements like the cake and centerpieces, get creative, and really make a statement.

A lighting designer will not only know how to spice up your room based on your wants and needs, but they will also know the required electrical to make sure there aren't any shorts and there is enough power going to all lights. Just like any other professional, they also know the latest and greatest in their industry that can make your event something that no one has ever seen.

Photo sources: Coverall Events, Think Like a Bride, Goldensound Ent., Prestige Lighting Events

Fancy Friday: Etsy!

For those that know about Etsy, you know what I'm about to rave about! This website is a great resource for not only everyday handmade/vintage things, but an AMAZING resource for weddings. I've used Etsy multiple times for different weddings to give a customized unique look. You can get practically anything!

Thanks to Doodlesbycarolyn, I was able to customize table numbers for a wedding.

Here are some great personalized gems for a wedding favor or place card by Sjengraving.

Here's an adorable head piece by Calexandra.

Here is a beautiful kissing ball design that would look great along the aisle or hanging on the ceiling for your reception. By Annemusingdesigns.

Fancy Friday: Saving on Save the Dates

Save the Date cards are a great way to tell your intended guests for your wedding that it's coming up! Like any aspect of the planning, you want to make sure you put your best foot forward and make a statement. This will be one of the first things your friends and family will see, after all. Here are some ideas for save the date's that won't break the bank.

Post Cards. These are a great way to save! Postage is much less ($0.28 within the US). If you're having a destination wedding, beach wedding, outdoor wedding, or live in a major travel city these are a great idea! Many of these designs I found on Etsy (awesome site for hand made/crafted items!).


Good design will really make the statement. No matter how simple the concept, the design of your save the date will really make the difference.



Do you have guests that are more internet friendly? Send out a save the date newsletter! There are many different newsletter providers that are available and are quite affordable. With the newsletter, you can also keep your guests updated with your planning progress and send out announcements with ease! Not only that, but they're so easy to customize! Here are a few examples:



Got guests that are more interactive and really want to do something unique? Make a save the date video! With the ability of video sharing, you can do almost anything you want! From a slide show to an actual video, there are so many possibilities. Best of all, it's free to send! Just send the link of your video to your guests and let them sit back and enjoy! Here are some cool ones:

D & G: Their Amazing Invites Part II

So I promised that I'd post the final product of Debbie and George's wedding invites. Finally, after my huffing and puffing about how great it looks...it's here! Well actually, I received it weeks ago and I just haven't blogged about it. Shame on me.

Their invites are sheer genius in graphic design/print form. When they told me they wanted to make a real statement with their invites while keeping simplicity at the same time I knew we had to be bold. Thanks to Jeanelle (my co-coordinator for their wedding), we came up with the concept of going chocolate brown with these invites. I knew that texture and color would play a huge role in these invites so the challenge was figuring out how to make print pop on chocolate brown paper. I knew thermography or letterpress would give it texture and we came up with the idea with adding the green satin ribbon not only for design but functionality.

Great ideas D&G! I'm glad you liked the outcome of your invites and I hope your guests enjoy them as well!

p.s. Sorry for the sucky pictures. I'll update to better ones soon!

D & G: Their Amazing Invites

Dolce and Gabana? Nah, Debbie and George. Their invites (printed by moi and Charlie's wholesale companies) and designed by Deb and George themselves have finally arrived! I love their sense of style, very similar to mine: modern, sleek, simple, and in your face. We had a mini-invite party last week to put the assets together and this awesome DIY bride got through them and finished the following day!

These chocolate brown invites were letter pressed and the inner pearl pages were laser printed. The green ribbon is hand-attached to complete the color-scheme and give a softer look. The envelopes are hand-stamped with a gold return address and addressed with gold labels to keep the design cohesive. Awesome design down to every detail!

I'm waiting for my invite to come in the mail. More pictures to come when it arrives!

Wedding Cake Ideas

(find these cakes on theknot.com and read more about them!)

People often forget about this part of the “tiny details.” The cake is an important part of tradition in weddings. These traditions date back to the Roman era when loaves of bread were used and broken over the couple to signify prosperity and long life. The guests would also try to take pieces of the loaves so they can also share in the prosperity of the couple.

Since then, cakes have transformed into a very important part of the reception festivities. The act of slicing and sharing a piece of cake together signifies unity and care for each other. The cake itself an edible work of art.

I’ve been surrounded by cakes my whole life. My aunt has been baking cakes even before my days walking this Earth working at the family bake shop in the Philippines. Since then, she’s honed her craft and recently opened a shop in Granada Hills with my parents to carry on the legacy here in the US (www.ninongspastries.com). She taught me that cakes have to be 2 things: DELICIOUS and BEAUTIFUL.

Sometimes cakes aren’t the most important thing to people, but I believe it is. This is one of the important parts of the celebration of a wedding, and it’s something that you share with the guests that mean so much to you.

There are so many ways to get creative with cakes. The shape, the flavor, the cake topper, the colors, the embellishments, the base, the height, the list goes on. Designers have definitely been pushing the bar with their cakes and moving from the traditional white/off white cake. Some are in full color, some with hints of the traditional with a new modern twist. Some cakes are all edible with gum paste flowers and decor, some cakes have fun non-edible embellishments.

The world of weddings is changing, but the growth in the creativity of wedding cakes is amazing. The future of wedding cakes is limitless and will continue to evolve as the years go by. I can’t wait to see what else people will be coming up with.

Photo sources: The Knot

Spring Event Ideas

Spring is in full swing! It’s a great time to be in the outdoors and enjoy your surroundings. Here are some ideas.