Inspired Goodness

DIY:Decor

 Author: Lindsay

As our wedding approaches and the DIY madness continues, I knew I couldn't stop with just our wedding decor, I had to extend some ideas to the bridal shower.  Although the shower will be held at a restaurant, I wanted to add a few DIY decorations keeping with our earthy, white, with wood elements color-palette.

First, I created some simple...and I mean simple... flower centerpieces that could be taken home.  In my experience, most women don't want to travel home with a vase full of water, which is why the branch was a lovely solution. I plan on keeping some for my home too.

Here they are arranged in a larger vase (for storage purposes!), but could easily be arranged that way.

close up of the flower

The branches will be places in a single white bulb vase from IKEA. 

The flowers are made from 1 roll of white crepe paper!  Cost me about .50 a roll.  Simply cut pieces about 4-5 inches long and roll while pinching the bottom.  I added a little bit of tape to the bottom, then hot glued them to the branches. Done and Done.

A few more projects-in-the-making include potted tulip favors (painted white) and the infamous Martha Stewart Tissue Paper pomanders turned into garland.

Follow Up:  Found some green JCrew shoes on Ebay!!  Brand new and for a great price!! Thanks to those who helped me in the search :)

DIY: Card Box

When I first laid eyes on the card boxes from Estilo Weddings, I fell in love with their simple modernness.  I knew I wanted one, but being a bride on a budget,  I set out to create my own using this photo as my inspiration:

Materials were pretty simple for this project.  All I had to go out and buy was a cardboard box of my chosen size.  I ended up picking one up at Michael's for around $6.00.  I had Martha Stewart paper, ribbon, Modge Podge, and hot glue lying around from various projects.

The first step was to measure the paper around the box.  Slap a coat of Modge Podge to apply it, as well as on top to finish it, and give it a glossy coat.  Continue this process on all sides.  Before you cover the lid, measure a pretty long slot and cut it out with an exact-o knife.  I made sure mine was pretty big just in case we receive some larger cards.  Finish applying the paper.  Let dry.

Next, I measured out my ribbon.  Cut, then apply a little hot glue.  When adding the ribbon to the lid, make sure it is aligned with the box ribbon (as you are gluing the ends to the inside of the box and underside of the lid).

you can see how I wrapped the paper and ribbon
around the edge into the inside of the box

I added a little decoration on top with ribbon by looping smaller pieces and hot gluing them.  I made a little ribbon flower and affixed a button in the middle as well.

I tested it with various sizes of cards.  It held up pretty nicely-- holding about 60-70.  Considering I invited 300 guests, that might be a problem...but for roughly $6.00 in extra costs, I am pretty happy with the results and could easily make another!

Behind the Scenes 3: The Table Design

Yesterday I invited my clients, Shira and Loren over to go over some of the details I've been working on for their August wedding.

I've been designing all the decor in effort to transform their reception venue, The Central Park Boathouse into a vintage New York City art deco space. Using dark purple, aubergine, pewter and crystal accents, along with reflected surfaces, here's the plan I came up with:

Centerpieces:

• Large round mirror base on the center of the table. Originally, I had wanted to do the entire table top as a mirror. Unfortunately, this is very cost-prohibited and when push came to shove, it is a better decision to go with a centrally placed mirror so that there is enough space on the table for the place settings, wine glasses, etc.
• Various groupings of vintage-style mercury glass candle holders (3) tall votive holders and (6) small tea-light holders
• Varied height taper candles in art deco glass candle holders.

For the presentation, the table was covered with two table cloth options, one a crinkled purple and the other, a shinny pewter. All of us agreed the purple had the impact and look we were aiming for and paired with silver ballroom chairs, it came together to perfectly compliment the linens.

I also setup one of the place-settings with a long menu card printed on this gorgeous eggplant SILK paper, which we may use for their invitations!

Hope you enjoyed the sneak peak into the planning process!

The Martha Stewart Show

On Thursday, I was invited to attend the taping of The MARTHA show courtesy of Mrs. Bee from Weddingbee. I've actually been to two other shows before, but by far, this one was the best!

(I can't believe how tired I look here - it was the 8 a.m taping that did this to me)

First, our seats rocked - front row, right in front of the craft room.
We had close-up views of Martha, Darcy Miller and Ken Sharkey (all people on my
"OMG - it's a celeb and I'm About to Freak Out" List).

The set was all decorated for Valentine's Day.

There was an amazing segment with Martha and Darcy Miller -
featuring many details from the recent issue of Weddings:

 including a replica of the fabulous cake from the cover:

The backdrop for the wedding part of the show was this HUGE and colorful inspiration board:

Darcy talked about some pretty dyed shoes by Lela Rose
(available in TONS of colors - at Payless - I know, crazy, right!!)

I loved the showcase of the new color palette for the issue (pink, orange and yellow):

Not to mention a segment with the owners of the Lower East Side candy shop, Papabubble. I for one adore those candies and know a bride and groom who are sure to love sharing the samples they gave out.

image via flickr

(the turquoise color is lemon flavored - they say WE LOVE MARTHA and the red ones are pomegranate and have a tiny heart in the center)

Also we saw one of the Everyday Food Chefs, John Barricelli prepare a passion-fruit Panna Cotta (looked delish and so pretty in it's heart shape).

And before I forget, I also spied Brooklyn Bride in the audience. I didn't get a chance to introduce myself to her since we were asked to remain in our seats, but I hope to meet her someday soon.

Merry Christmas!!

Just like the littlest of kids all around the world, I'm waking up this morning to much anticipated event of the past few weeks...

  Christmas   Morning!  

This is the first year that we'll have the entire clan there opening presents, having a ton of fun and incredible amounts of laughter. There's sure to be photos galore - in fact, I've been known to take photos of every gift being opened!!

Hope everyone of our readers enjoys their Christmas day and time with their family. After all, when the last gift is open and the kids are happily playing, we're all there just being together with our families creating wonderful memories.

My husband and I are celebrating at my in-law's in Philadelphia. And since I have to provide you with some images, here's a little look into our Christmas Tree at home - with all the gifts under it, plus some of our favorite ornaments.

Behind the Scenes, 1

We are thrilled to share with our devoted readers a Behind the Scenes look at a wedding Inspired Goodness is helping to plan for late Summer 2009. Every few weeks, we will share an peek into the ideas our staff comes up with for this exciting event, the wedding of Shira and Loren.

For the first segment, we could not find a better place to start than by sharing images from the ceremony location, Temple Emanu-El, which has served for much of the inspiration behind our plans for this wedding.

Stay tuned to see this New York vintage-infused wedding come together and we hope you'll join us over the next few months as we share the journey of this upcoming wedding.

A Vintage Cameo Inspires an Entire Wedding

Inspired Goodness was recently invited to join Wishpot as a Wedding Expert - and ever since, we've been having a ball adding items we love to a growing set of wishlists.

A really simple way to keep your wishlists always just a button-click away is the Wishpot add-in for Firefox (our web-browser of choice). Every time you see something cool online that you want to add to your list, just click the button on your browser menu and "poof", it gets added right away!

Part of the fun of being a Wedding Expert at Wishpot, our team was asked to do a guest post -we choose to share how our staff would design a wedding around one object of special importance to the bride. We hope you enjoy reading it!

At Inspired Goodness, our job is to work with the information couples provide to create a vision for their wedding day. The end result is an event that reflects the happy couple via small touches and creative details.

Sometimes, the couples we meet don’t have much in the way of ideas but we stress that something as simple as a family keepsake can really impart a stamp on the look and feel of their day.

In this case, we took inspiration from a cameo brooch passed down from a bride’s grandmother. Check out our suggestions for infusing details taken from this precious heirloom and create a signature look of your very own.

• Color Scheme: Lilac + Black keeps things both modern and elegant.
• Décor: Commission an artist to draw a side profile of you and you’re groom. During the reception, use the art to mark your seats. Afterwards, consider them as a beautiful piece of art for your home.
• Stationery: Scan the designs and have thank you notes printed with the design on front.
• The Cake: Looking to satisfy your guests’ sweet tooth? How about recreating a wedding cake similar to this one in your colors? Or maybe these cookies packaged inside a clear box with pretty labels are the perfect favor for your guests.
• Flowers: To incorporate your heirloom, try having your florist affix it to the front of your bouquet with matching ribbon.
• The Dress: Or simply wear it around your waist with some matching wide ribbon.
• Gifts: You’re bridesmaids will love these custom designed necklaces (personalized with their very own profile. Contact the designer to commission a set that makes a unique gift for your closest family and friends.

Now it’s your turn to try. If you had to plan the look of your entire wedding around one item, what would it be and how would you pull it off?

Additional images: Flower cameo, Invitation by Ivory White, black and white invite by Carciofi Design.

Bathroom Decor: The Forgotten Area of the Wedding Reception

So many bride's tend to forget one of the places guests seem to spend the most time. That's right, I'm speaking about the Ladies Room. When you're guests are inside touching out their lipstick and making sure they their dresses look 'just right', why not decorate the room with some pretty accessories to give it a glamorous feel.

Best of all, you can keep the accessories for yourself when the wedding's done!

Crystal perfume bottles, glass jars and mirrored vanity set all from Z Gallerie. Add your favorite scented soap, a candle in each stall and treat your guests to hand monogrammed guest towels by Bella Lino. Believe me, they will notice and thank you for being such a gracious host with great attention to detail!

How do you Chuppah?

Meeting several brides over the past few weeks has really got me thinking about the myriad of choices out there when it comes to unique bridal styles. With the plethora of options available in decorating the reception of your dreams, how do brides impart their unique stamp on the ceremony?

Today, we wanted to take a look at how varied couples can choose to “cover their vows”. Typically used in Jewish weddings, a Chuppah is a canopy or piece of fabric supported by four poles symbolizing the home the couple will create together. 

Such an integral part of the wedding itself, the ceremony is the focal point and symbolizes your wedding – from the very first "welcome guests" to the presentation of the newly married couple. Here are some great ideas for how to do it your way…

The traditional route
 

birch poles held in place by family or friends with fabric top


Modern times
 


DIY + Personal Touches

Influenced by Nature

photos from: Chuppaz by Shira, Brides, Grey Dove,  Little Red Bride, Brian Dorsey Studios and Flickr; Quilted by Grandmother,  (b/w vintage bride + groom), Patchwork Quilt

Unique Wedding Centerpieces

Not interested in the usual flowers for your reception decor?  Looking for an uncommon centerpiece solution? Below are a few unique ideas that will wow guests at your wedding celebration!

1.  Mini - Cakes.  Instead of flowers in a vase, consider using individual cakes at your reception tables.  The mini-cakes serve as both decoration and dessert for your guests.  Ask your baker to make small cakes, one per table, to serve the number of guests seated there.  Dress up your cakes with ribbon or flowers.  Photo via Martha Stewart.

2. Balloons.  Oversized helium balloons and bakers twine can be used to create a look that is "simple and unfussy", but also incorporates a flair for creativity.  Photo via Brooklyn Bride.

3.  Fruit.  Collect hurricane vases and apothocary jars, and fill them with fresh fruit.  Add ribbons in a similar (or complimentary) color to dress them up.  You can even continue your fruit theme into the favors and place settings too...Photos via Martha Stewart.

4.  Greenery. While often used for "fillers", greenery can make a beautiful statement on its own.   Use ivy or herbs to create topiaries, or simply plant them in a pot or basket, for a centerpiece that's appropriate for ballrooms and garden receptions alike.  Photos via The Knot, Brides, and April Joy Events.

5.  Ornaments.  For a festive holiday wedding, use ornaments for your centerpiece.  Assemble a collection of cocktail glasses and vases (or mix it up with a few larger hurricane vases as well), and fill them with various sized of ornaments.  Place on top of a mirror or cake stand for an added effect.  Photo via Martha Stewart.