Manolo for the Brides

Ugh, seating charts. Who has the time to spend lovingly crafting them using Quark or somesuch? Not me! I plan to let people sit where they darn well please — something I’ve noticed everyone ends up doing anyway after briefly checking out their assigned seats.

If you would prefer to plant everyone’s butts where you feel they belong, however, seating charts are the way to go. Below you’ll find an example piece from Documents and Designs’ attractive and expensive monogram seating chart selection:

Don’t like it? There are plenty more where this came from. And, if you’re not keen on the notion of spending upwards of $170 for a poster, I bet you anyone with a bit of graphic design knowledge could easily replicate these designs for you But, shhhh, don’t tell anyone *I* suggested the idea.

First off, I want to say congrats to Rebecca and her fabulous Bianchi gown. Wait, I mean congrats to Rebecca and Josh, of course! But the dress was her mother’s, passed down from her oldest sister who wore it first in 1964. Is that not the best? I love well-done vintage.

If you’re a bride with a question (and what bride doesn’t have at least one or two), head over to Top Wedding Questions. This message board site delivers not only the questions, but also the answers, as put forth by expert moderators. When you posit your query, you can be sure you’re not going to get a double-handful of regular folks weighing in. If you just want to chat, however, head over to Beautiful Brides & Beyond, a truly fabulous nuptial forum.

And finally, be careful…very careful…when planning your reception menu. From the Manolo comes a news story about a suitcase full of monkey meat that found itself on the wrong side of the law.

A large suitcase containing the remains of 26 butchered monkeys was confiscated at Logan Airport in Boston on its way from Ghana. The 300 pounds of raw meat, destined to be served as the main course at a wedding in New Hampshire, was “oozing out of its container,” said Tom Healy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Um, ew?

Chris-O, a good friend of mine, sent me a link to a neat little dress-up game that lets you (in the form of a skinny cartoon lady) try on a small selection of Vera Wang gowns. Enjoy!

Ever wonder where the diamonds in your engagement ring came from? There is a chance they came from this ginormous open pit diamond mine (the world’s largest) near Mirny, Russia, East Siberia:

According to the U.S. Mine Rescue Association, the mine is 525 meters deep and a whopping 1200 meters in diameter. The air space over the mine is closed to helicopters due to a few accidents in which choppers were sucked into the pit by downward air flow!

And notice that tiny red arrow in the photo above. That arrow is pointing to a full size, 2o-foot-tall BELAZ 220-pound payload truck! Wild, no?

LA-based designer Tarina Tarantino wants you to get your pink on. While I’m not going to say that the Hello Kitty Pink Head Bridal Collection is my cup of tea, I can virtually guarantee you that it’s someone’s cup of tea. Just like there is an accessory for every budget, there is a buyer for just about every accessory. So, yeah, Pink Head:

Speaking of budgets, did I mention that these pieces are rather outrageously priced? A small velvet Pink Head Hello Kitty cameo hairclip will set you back $100 and a 1.25″ figurine on a clip (i.e. “bag candy”) costs $45. The garter shown above seems like a steal at $138 when compared to the $500 Swarovski crystal tiara. But, hey, if you are into cultural kitsch and have the money to drop, what’s the harm in thinking pink?

And here’s a heads up for you, courtesy of Dylan: Brides.com’s MODERN BRIDE OF THE YEAR contest has just launched. Enter before April 14 to win a trip to NYC and a chance to be a Modern Bride cover model. Do be aware, however, that it seems (as the sleuthy rasaroni discovered) they are simply looking for a model who happens to be engaged, not a real modern bride of substance and character. Shame, that.

Spring has sprung here in Boston, albeit temporarily. And when the warm weather rolls around, I like to celebrate by taking trips to local bakeries for flowery cookies and delicate pastries. Bikini weather seems so far off when you know that the weekend is going to bring a mix of show and showers. Bleah.

So here are some wonderfully ’springy’ cakes from Lovin Sullivan Cakes in New York to get you through any dreary weather yet to come.

And a question, folks: Are you digging the new four-image thing?

I’m on a Wang kick this week. Hahaha, did I just say that? I mean Vera Wang, of course. I am not lying when I say you’ll be doing your bridesmaids a favor by dressing them in Vera Wang Maids. The dresses are both on the edge of affordable and entirely re-wearable. Observe:

Being rather busty myself, I tend to stay away from plunging necklines. And, being also roundish in general, I also have made a point of avoiding the bubble hem trend. Nonetheless, I feel I can safely admire this dark ivory taffeta Vera Wang gown from afar. It features a draped bodice, an English net pleated underskirt, and an absolutely striking black bow.