Manolo for the Brides

It’s going to be a light week here at MftB because I am, as I write this, in Spokane, WA visiting with my lovely MIL. I thought that for the next few days, in honor of the woman who birthed The Beard and the fact that my computer is thousands of miles from here, I’d do away with the hate and just stick with the love. Planning a wedding usually involves buying at least a little something — e.g., a cute birdcage veil or a new pair of earrings — so why not make it a special little something?

I’m a big fan of Asian inspired reception decor and favors — everything above comes from Social Couture, but (HINT! HINT!) the look can be replicated easily and inexpensively with accessories from the craft store, eBay, the Oriental Trading Company, and Amazon.

You can start with the paper lanterns!

The huppah (or chuppah) is probably the most distinctive element of the Jewish wedding. The huppah is made of a tallis or beautiful cloth held aloft over the bride and groom by four poles. Holding the poles is a special honor, given to family or friends that the bride and groom wish to honor. The chuppa creates a beautiful focal point for the wedding. The huppah represents he Jewish home that the bride and groom will make together. It is open on all sides, symbolizing that guests will always be welcome in their home.

We don’t discuss the religious aspect of marriage here at Manolo for the Brides very often. It’s not that we have a problem with it, but rather, I think, because we consider it a matter between our readers and their various visions of God…or lack thereof. If you have a religious tradition, then you know whom to turn to for advice: the spiritual leader of your faith community. NtB and I are here to help you with fashion, etiquette, pretty or tasty things, and the emotional aspects of your wedding journey. Frankly, that’s quite enough to have on two plates. And while I can’t speak for NtB on this, I know that any spiritual advice you got from me would be highly suspect to any organized religion going.

But there are a few places where the spiritual and the fashionable meet and there’s one I’m a bit surprised I’ve never tackled or seen tackled in this space before: the chuppah.

(more…)

When I was choosing my wedding colors, green scared me. It seemed too bright for my daytime outdoor wedding in the height of summertime. Now I’m seeing all of these wonderful green, black, and white inspiration boards on the other wedding blogs, and said green is beautifully vivid and not garish at all.

I’ve come to realize that I shouldn’t have been afraid of green. After all, I love all green flowers without exception and almost anything limey or appley is all right with me!

So here I am posting my own floral inspiration board with images from The Art of Flower and Old Town Florist in the hopes that it will perhaps inspire some of you.

And for the record, let me also say that you shouldn’t ever fear color. I mean any color! The blue-jay blue, hot cherry red, or Sunkist orange you’re picturing in your mind may seem like too much for a wedding, but don’t discount it until you’ve done your homework. I’d wager that there are at least some pictures of weddings employing said hues out there in Internetland. You may just discover it’s everything you’re hoping for and more!

A lot of brides- and grooms-to-be are spared having to think about tabletop decor because their chosen reception sites handle that detail from start to finish. Other future newlyweds — and I include myself in this — don’t choose an all inclusive site and thus have to create their own tablescapes. It’s not as easy as it looks, and it turns out it’s a big deal to a lot of people. To wit: All of the inspirational pics in this post came from Kappa Kappa Gamma’s tablescape competitions.

I tend to think that fuller tables look nicer. At my own wedding, I made the mistake of disregarding scale when thinking about centerpieces and such. If it hadn’t been a backyard, outdoor affair without proper china and silverware, everything would have looked a lot more ridiculous than it did. As it was, the wind blew everything over anyway, sparing me any embarrassment.

The tablescape above was created by BBJ Linen, a rental company. There are a lot of super sweet ’scapes on their site, so if you’re currently in the market for inspiration I’d recommend checking it out.

(more…)

I know, I know, NtB just wrote a great article on centerpieces, and here I go copying her again. Well, not quite. I think this is more continuing on a theme. After all, she talked about using tea tins as containers…well, this is about using actual edibles as part of your centerpiece.

After all, there’s no law that says you have to limit yourself to flowers and candles on your table. There are dozens of edible things that are as pretty as they are delicious. For instance, I find myself wishing I’d thought of this for my outdoor, summer wedding:

Not only is it bright and festive, but the fresh scent of lemons (or oranges, or limes, or grapefruits) is delightful in the air. Oh, and this is easy, too. If you’re interested in trying it, the instructions can be found here.

(more…)

Martha Stewart — or one of her many clones — popularized tea tin centerpieces ages and ages ago, and people jumped on the idea. By people, of course, I mean bloggers and writers, because the only place I’ve seen ‘em is on blogs and in the pages of magazines

I’m not sure I get why. These centerpieces are so easy — loose, unpolished arrangements tend to look better — and you can coordinate without being too matchy-matchy by buying teas that come in tins that compliment your wedding colors. I’ve seen mismatched Mason jar vases and glittery pop bottle vases at actual weddings, but never tins.

(more…)

Faux can be fabulous, provided one has chosen either a high-quality imitator or something that doesn’t take itself too seriously. Artful artificial blooms can look stunning and, in some cases, do things Mother Nature cannot. You’ll never hear me criticize anyone who chooses moisenite, cz, or cut glass over real diamonds. Poly blends can stand in for silks wonderfully, depending on the frock. I could go on, but I think you get my point.

But faux ice? Fake carved frozen water that in some cases cost a great deal more than a traditional ice sculpture? I understand that the company behind it is marketing its product mainly to caterers and party venues who go through ice like I go through handbags, but it does suggest that friends of the general public “will be amazed at the exquisite UnReal Ice centerpieces [they] provide for each and every party.”

This reminds me of those neon ice balls you could buy in 80s-era supermarkets so that your drink wouldn’t get watered down by your cooling mechanism. I wonder if these operate on the same principle… There are some more photos behind the cut as well as a snapshot of an ice sculpture made of actual water for comparison.

(more…)

There’s a rather hypnotic tool over at brides.com to help you determine your wedding/reception color palatte. It’s called the Color Studio. You click your mouse on the color wheel, it spins around, and then spits out a fairly random combination of colors for your consideration.

I don’t know about you guys, but an easily amused person like me could play with this for hours.

Oh, and my favorite combination I landed on was Magenta, Purple, and Orange. Mmmm, tasty colors, but not for the faint of heart. Don’t worry, though, if your taste runs subtler than mine. You could also (and I did once) land on Silver, Blush, and Pearl.

I officially finished the first draft of my book last night–it was technically already done as of this past Sunday, but then I was reading it over, which meant there was a lot of, “Oh my gosh, what was I thinking using that word” and “This sentence has just got to go.” It has been a looooong two months, but there have been some nice little surprises to lessen the load.

Last week, I was lucky enough to receive some samples from Placetile Designs, which brightened my day considerably as my mail usually consists of nothing but mortgage insurance adverts and coupon booklets. I received some of these:

And one of these:

Company founder Kristin Bowen came up with the wonderfully clever idea of using erasable ceramic tiles as place cards and favors at her own wedding in 1999, and her guests loved them. The concept evolved to include all sorts of neat things, like wine cork place card tiles, menu tiles, napkin ring tiles, table number tiles, tiles for identifying foodstuffs, and a bunch of other lovely stuff you can write on with dry erase markers. So far, the wine stoppers are at the top of my potential book release party favors list.

For bigger, complicated receptions where there will be lots of attendees who don’t know one another, place cards (or at the very least, table numbers) are a must. I’ve always personally preferred place cards that double as favors or are integrated into favors because I like when everything in a tablescape has a definitive purpose. I’m envisioning a table with a erasable table number tile and wine stoppers or tags printed with guests names. If the bride and groom send the table number tile home with a guest, it automatically becomes a to-do list tile. Such is the beauty of being able to erase and rewrite.

On the off chance that the stuff from Placetile Designs is a little out of your price range, I’m going to let you in on a little secret. You can decorate your own erasable tile place cards and table numbers using the instructions here. Be aware, however, that you need to find tile that works like a dry erase board because some tile will hold onto the marker permanently. Check to be sure that what goes on can indeed come off before you buy bulk tiles, then go nuts with the paints!