You know how in movies about "olden times", the women have really cool hairdos? You know the ones. The really twisty and complicated ones? Like Gweneviere from Camelot, or Queen Elizabeth from Elizabeth, or Reese Witherspoon in Vanity Fair?
Well, I have bad news. You can't wear your hair like them. No one can. Even if you had enough hair to pull it off, you'd look like you were dressed for a Renaissance fair. So, we have to move on.
Enter, Las Coronas. Designer Mary Beth McGowan makes some truly lovely, modern alternatives to the crowns and combs. They've got that same... je ne sais quoi? They're a little more "lady", a little less "Lady-in-Waiting", but still the same vibe, still the same romance, the same delicate-ness.

Back in the saddle again! I hope everyone had a super holiday. I had a great time visiting with my parents and my sisters at my parent's house in Connecticut. We had such a nice time, we always do. Lots of wonderful Christmas presents to play with, and a New Year's Eve party to plan. More on that later.
To start things off, I'm posting an update from Samantha, who usually posts on Mondays, but since this is sort of a Monday for me, I hope it won't throw you off too much.


Dave reminded me today that there’s a lot of great stuff out there and that one could go crazy looking for “perfect” this or “perfect” that. Basically that one thing is not the be all end all, there may be a few great things out there, end somes…if you will. So I’ve decided not to rush into anything. We just need to take our time and roll with it, good things will present themselves. For example Dave and I just had a lovely stroll through Nolita where we went into Calypso and later in the SoHo Anthropologie. Both had great jewelry, funky yet simple and elegant. In my last post, I mentioned my budding jewelry search and Christine suggested Helen Ficalora who’s great, we happened to pass her shop by chance today on the walk also. So I’m not going to run, I’m just going to take my sweet time. We still have a little over 5 months till the date and it’s a backyard garden wedding so it should be treated as such. Until then I’m going to enjoy my life, enjoy my painting, enjoy my fiancé and enjoy this unseasonably mild weather as we stroll around town. Who knows what gems (literal or proverbial) we might find on one of our walks!

I wanted to leave you all with a festive Christmas image before I signed off for the weekend. I found these delicious looking cupcakes over at Sprinkles. If you're in Los Angeles, Pheonix, or Dallas, please eat one of these for me. And don't forget to write and tell me which flavor you chose!
Please have a wonderful holiday, be with your families, bake some stuff, make some stuff, and be merry!

I have this obsession with collections of things. When I was a kid, nothing thrilled me more than a new box of crayons. Not because of the coloring possibilities necessarily, but because they were a collection of like items, all pristine, all at my finger tips. I would use the ass ends of my crayons, so that the tips didn't get worn down. I never wanted to spoil the tips. You could hide the ends in the box, but the tips, I tried to keep as nice as possible for as long as I could.
Hmmm. That sounded way more screwed up than I intended it. I guess we now know that my perfectionist tendencies started at an early age.
Really and truly, things have not changed much. I came across a makeup palette promising 96 shades of eye-shadow today. I almost peed myself. I don't need that much makeup. I won't wear bright green eye-shadow, or orange, or yellow (?!) But it doesn't matter. Just the untouched palette, it's varied hues, all in neat matching little cakes... (ellipses usually mean "pause" or "trail off", here they mean "shudder with glee").
I get the same joy from boxes of chocolate. This one from Marie Belle is great, because each chocolate is in the same shape, but is decorated with a different pattern. I don't even care what they taste like. I just want to OWN them.
Remember how the two tier, 4 compartment box of 64 Crayola Crayons was like the holy grail of crayons? Well, they now have a box of 120. Ya. 120. All I have to say to that is "...".

Lela Rose has such strikingly slender and simple silhouettes, it's hard to imagine how they can stand up to the be-decked and be-dazzled creations coming from other wedding gown designers. Her shapes are lean, unpretentious, and unassuming. But look a little closer. Zoom in on the details. The hand-sewn, oldy-worldy, save-it-for-your-kids details. This is quality. This is good stuff.
As the chatty bathrobe girls* from the yogurt commercials would say, "it's marrying a masseuse, good. It's marrying a cherry cheesecake covered masseuse, good."

Lela Rose, via Oh Joy, and also via W Magazine.

*Those girls are weird. Right? I think they're weird.

I was surprised and super excited to find out (from my incredibly with-it friend Bee, over at Wedding Bee ) that KenzieKate was featured in this month's issue of BRIDES! I knew that something was pending, but didn't expect anything so soon. I'm absolutely thrilled with the layouts. The Hanalei and The Paris were both featured in the "party style" section of the magazine, (and photographed beautifully I might add). I can't say how happy this makes me. I feel like one of the cool kids! Thanks BRIDES!

SUGARPLUMS!
I don't even really wear jewelry like this, but I would like to eat it. That green tourmaline ring? I imagine that would taste like a sweet honeydew margarita. The earrings, up in the corner? Orange creamsicle flavored. And, I would totally wear those drop earrings. The coral ones with the diamonds? Hell yes. I would totally wear those, like out to the ballet or the opera. Totally... Dell? Are you even listening? No. No, you're not.
Anyway, eye candy by Laura Munder.
Pipe-dreams by Yours Truly.

Happy Hanukkah! AND... only one week until Christmas! Everyone has something to look forward to. I'm just loving this time of year. I feel so cheerful.
Having inserted my two cents, we will now hear from Samantha:


Jewelry…any ideas? I know that I want to go with something funky that I can wear again. Something with gemstones perhaps and a colorful flare. My engagement ring is yellow-gold with a green tourmaline center stone and small yellow sapphires surrounding it. My dress is white and it has these little silver sequined appliqués on the upper bodice, below the straps, they remind me of 1930’s pins. I really would prefer to wear gold though, is that a faux pas? Help…any ideas? I love this kind of stuff (see pictures above). The designers are (in order) Satya, Alexis Bittar, and Boucher. I’m looking for more ideas. Maybe I could even find something vintage 30’s to go with the theme of the dress? Also, any ideas about a vintage hairpin or headpiece, you know like the small one that you can wear on one side. Any help from readers is appreciated! Thanks and enjoy those jewelry sites. The prices are pretty reasonable too.

These kind of make me want to cut my hair. I love the flapper vibe.
Alas, I have been growing my hair. When I decided to grow it out, I had a vibe in mind. An inspiration, if you will. Too bad I can no longer think of what that vibe was. Was it Tousled, Mediterranean and Timeless? I think, since the glow of summer has faded off of me like so much Herbal Essences Temporary Hair Color, "Mediterranean" is a stretch. Was it Long and Sleek with Sophisticated Blunt Bangs? If by sleek, you mean limp, then yes. That could have been it. But maybe, just maybe, it was Ponytail Everyday, Sometimes Ponytail-pulled-only-half-way-thru on Other Days. Yeah, that's the one. That's it alright. I've done it. I've achieved my vibe. Time for something new!

Normally, there's this weird thing that goes on when New Yorkers talk about LA. They get that "Honey, please." look on their face. You know the one? Like only people who would sell their soul for a bottle of Coppertone could actually live THERE.
Well not me. I'm jealous. Only in LA can you set up a gorgeous outdoor tent with voile curtains, plush "outdoor" furniture (that is not made of plastic) and yet remain completely confident that it will not rain. It will not sleet in LA. There are never, ever Nor'easters in LA. Today, in New York, if I had tried to set up a posh little tent, it would have gotten very wet, and very cold. It would have also been on my fire escape. Which would have been dangerous.

*crazy awesome tents from Raj Tents.

I'm feeling ladylike today. I'm all "almond toes" and "satin bows". Is anyone else really glad that super pointy toes are out? I never really participated in that trend, I've just sort of been waiting for it to be over. Kind of like skinny jeans. I'm waiting for those to be over to.

Stuart Weitzman, "Bowribbon" d'orsay pumps with large bow
Kate Spade, "Anastasia" frayed bow pumps
rsvp, "Odessa" peep toe pumps with medallion
Kate Spade, "lover" strappys with bow

For about $26 each, these light-up cherry blossom branches pack a heck of a punch. I know that a lot of you are struggling with vendors and spaces who won't allow you to use candles... I think these could approximate the subtle glow of candlelight quite nicely, while still contributing to the decor in daylight. Spend $100, and you could have lovely addition to a chuppah, altar, head table, church entrance... the possibilities are endless.
From Graham and Greene.

It's Monday! You know what that means? An update from our featured bride, Samantha:


I WAS looking for something that was not necessarily traditional in the dress category of my wedding. I had three friends tell me that I would be insane not to attend Vera Wang, that the dresses are %50-%70 off, wow. I do think her dresses are phenomenal but don’t have nearly the budget for her stuff retail.
Anyhow, I went! Infamously, people from all over the world wait online from 5am to claw each other to death over their dream dress. I thought to myself “this is not my style of shopping but go into it with an open mind and just see”. It turned out to be nothing like what I feared (besides the enormous line, I waited 3 hours from 7:45…ugh). Rather is was a modern "red tent." I saw so many groups of friends and mothers and daughters sharing this time together in so much joy. It was a bonding session. The dresses were stunning and I found one at a fantastic price. It very much reminds me of a dress I saw in an early Hitchcock film from 1931, “Rich and Strange”, it’s white, mermaid style, toile over satin. I love it.
What I ultimately learned was that it’s not really about finding perfect things to adorn your body or about creating the perfect party but about sharing the anticipation of this momentous life event with the people who have shared your life in the past though the present. Someday we'll be able to look back at this event and the photos of all the people we loved and love and remember where we started (oh and that we felt fabulous).

More to come for today, but for now I'll leave you with this vintage Vogue cover by George Plank. By the mischievious look in her eye, I'd say she's planning on seperating that bird from his hind feathers. Seems like she already has quite enough. Feather fetish? Kinky. If there's anything to be learned from her style, I'd say it's... don't be a bird. No just kidding. I'd say it's DO add color with accessories to your black/white gowns. Yes, do. See here.

Thru Fashion is Spinach, I found Watch Holly. I like Holly. Unbeknownst to her, she is acting as my canary. You know how miners used to send canaries down into the mines to make sure there was enough oxygen? If they died, then the miners didn't go down, if they came up alive, then the miners knew it was safe? Well, I'm using Holly for this purpose. She is pregnant. I'm seeing how it goes. If she can make it thru till the end, thru till the actual birthing without A) describing scissors and her nether regions in the same sentence and B) without buying, thinking of buying, understanding the concept behind, wearing, or considering the virtues of wearing "mom" jeans (the ones with the front ass)... I might start considering the possibility of maybe having a child one day in the distant, distant future.

I have a pretty sensitive nose. Or so I'd like to believe. I feel as though my ancestors must have developed a keen nose for bananas. I can smell bananas coming and going. I don't like to have them in the house because they smell like garbage when they start to go brown, and even when they're green, the smell makes my tongue feel... funny. Like I just licked a penny. I don't dislike the taste of bananas, but I just can't have them distributing their aroma all over my apartment.
So, that being said, I'm very much hoping there is no "eau de bananas" in the three new scents I ordered from CB (Christopher Brosius). I discovered his website yesterday through Outblush, and I'm smitten. I haven't even smelled anything yet, but I'm taken with his philosophy on perfume. The three scents that intrigued me the most were "Winter 1972" because I love the winter smell. I hope it is what I think it is. Second was "Memory of Kindness", which was described as smelling like earth and tomato vines. If it lives up to its description, it will remind me of my grandparent's house in the summer and getting wheel-barrow rides around the garden. Third was "Burning Leaves" because my apartment is freezing and I'm hoping it will help. Soon I'll be getting three very small bottles of my fondest memories and favorite smells. I can't wait.
You can, if you're feeling crazy, also order a little vile of celo-tape smell. Or crayon smell. Or carrot. Or snow. Or lava rock.
I think that when I get old, I could really love being the granny who always smells like snow.

*UPDATE* My order came in today, and it did not disapoint. Memory of Kindness- Spot on. Wheel-barrows thru the garden all the way. Burning Leaves- Heaven. I love this scent. Slightly sweeter than the burning leaves I remember, but that might be because I remember burning oak leaves, not maples. Lastly was Winter 1972- Slightly more evergreen than I'm used to in winter. I think I'm accustomed to a deader, more urban winter smell, but still, I definately get the shivers when I smell it. I'm dying to smell "snow". I think that one's going to have to go on the wish list, as my perfume budget has been drawn for the month. If you try it, let me know.

I love these! Designer Chrissy Wai Ching Leung of Wai Ching has really flattering and creative takes on the formal gown. The center one is beautifully and uniquely embroidered in red and creme, and the kick-pleats are lined in contrasting fabric for a little extra "kick". I just adore the first one. I'm picturing its possibilities as a summery/beachy wedding gown. With some really delicate gold jewelry? Uh. Absofreakinglutley.

Available over at Stars and Infinite Darkness.

The highlight of the last twenty-four hours, for me, was purchasing a sweatshirt. I bought a hoodie, standard issue, kangaroo-pocket hoody. It was $35.00. It's green. This was the highlight of my day. The low-light? That would be mopping the bathroom floor. I gathered enough hair on that mop to weave myself a new head of hair. Well, maybe just a set of bangs. Really gross tangly bangs with dust in them. Ew.
Needless to say; in the past twenty-four hours I have not been "every inch a lady".
The cure for this is a little twirl around Betsey Johnson. One must twirl around Betsey Johnson, there is no other way. I'm feeling a little better now. Hell, I feel like painting my nails, throwing together an updo (withOUT the new bangs, ew.), putting on a fantastic dress, going to a party, and drinking champagne. Say what you will about Betsey Johnson, but she sure knows how to dress a lady for a good time. Every single one of those dresses was born to party.

I found some wonderful hair accessories at Colette Malouf, including my new favorite headband. I saw it featured in Real Simple this month, (albeit with the leaves slightly more smooshed together) and I really loved the look. It's dressy, yet not princess dressy. It's sort of elfin chic dressy. I don't know anyone who doesn't have a place in their heart for a little chic elf.

A recent email from Pheobe has turned me on to these hilarious (yet slightly off-kilter) greeting cards by Uncooked. I appreciate their humor. How many times have I gone looking for a funny card and found nothing but a bunch of Hallmark's with pictures of kids dressed as adults? You know the ones? Where the whole picture is in black and white, all except for the red rose the little girl is holding? She's wearing an oversized hat and kissing a young boy wearing shoes that are too big? I'm sure you're familiar with the genre.
The cards by Uncooked also brought to mind another awesome card company I saw on d*s recently. O plus D has a mouth like a drunken sailor and makes some fantastically lovely greeting cards*. They all aptly illustrate just how funny swearing can be when done with a touch of style.

*cards that I can't picture here, just in case there are any children reading.

I was so pleasantly surprised to see such an unusual dress from J. Crew! Love the collar, love the eyelet, love the thoughtful tuxedo details. The price tag surprised me as well... it seemed a bit high for J. Crew. Although I suppose I wouldn't have thought twice about the price had I seen the same dress on a designer's website.

Check out Kakkoii Mono for great vintage dresses. Someone please (I'm begging) beat me to the red and white patterned one. I don't think my wallet can handle it.

Greetings from Montreal. Welcome back from Thanksgiving!
The death of a loved one is always a surprise, no matter how prepared you are. Unfortunately, we have been surprised by a death in the family. We celebrated Thanksgiving in Connecticut, but were called away for a funeral mid-vacation, and are now in Montreal until Tuesday. As always, I'm grateful to have friends in this case who can fill my shoes and post something relevant. Having said that, I'm going to pass you all over to Samantha for her regular Monday morning post:


This wedding is such a dichotomy for me. Dave is my perfect match in so many ways including our cultural upbringing and current views on religion. We are both agnostic yet were raised in the Jewish culture. His grandparents had a great role in raising him and were Holocaust survivors. Mine were both raised in Jewish communities and in families that celebrated their culture by observing with friends and family (in a reform and festive way). I was raised within a relaxed cultural context. Dave’s upbringing was a little more stringent, but not much. We chose to favor the cultural components of faith instead of the religious, for us it’s primarily about family not personal faith.
We can’t imagine eloping like my folks did because we want to share our experience and set our cornerstone with the friends and family. Nor do we want a stranger marrying us. A close family friend of my family (whose son I grew up with) is a rabbi. We would like to have him marry us but don’t particularly want a religious ceremony, yet we don’t want to deny the culture of our families or ancestors. It’s quite complex to explain that to us there’s a line between culture and religion without insulting family, but that we don’t feel that a marriage is necessarily a religious event.

Sometimes the earrings over at Anthropologie are very... theme-y. A little too much fabric here, a little too many bobbles there. Too much shabby, not enough chic. Sometimes.
NOT today. Today they are dainty and feminine. Just pretty enough to wear with anything from a collared shirt to a floor length gown.

What a fun way to personalize... everything! These embossers come in a variety of messages, from "Save-the-Date" to "Happy Holidays" and everything in between. I love the monogram embossers for tagging wedding favors. They're a bargain at only 28.00 each from Room Service Home.

*We're off to Connecticut for Thanksgiving today! I'll be posting all week from my parent's house. Hopefully I'll have plenty of spare time in between eating and... eating.

Once again, it's time to hear from Samantha.
*Warning* If you're on a diet, you may want to sheild your eyes.




Me: "Mom, you know I really want to have a unique wedding, so how about we cook all the food? You love to cook, I love to cook. We could make everything summer-ish and delicious. It could be served room temp, buffet style! Whaddaya think?

Mom: "Honey, I love you, but are you crazy?! I'm not cooking dinner for 130 people!"

My mom does love to bake, though, and loves baking cakes, so we've decided that, instead of having a traditional wedding cake, we're going to make a "cupcake tree." Yeah! I want to create my wedding in an unconventional way but that is easier said than done, as I'm learning all too well. When you're dealing with a party that involves so many people coming from all over the country who expect to be fed and watered..or...er…alcoholed, there are certain expectations that need to be met if you want happy guests. Dessert, however, leaves more leeway for a creative and fun approach.

above:
Bollywood themed cupcakes from Little Venice Cake Company
Queen's Garden cupcakes from Alice's Teacup
Whimsical cupcake tree from Maise Fantasie Wedding Cakes
Polka Dot cupcake tower from Little Venice Cake Company

So, I trolled. I found some lovely vintage wedding dresses on eBay, and I hope you'll give them a look.



1. I love this gown. It reminds me of a cross between last season's Reem Acra and Claire Pettibone. Imagine it without the sleeves.
2. I love the pleating in the bodice of this dress, and am convinced that with a liner in the bodice (please not black), a petticoat, and maybe a light blue ribbon around the hips, it could be really stunning for an informal affair.
3. Are you tall? Are you slender? Whyyyy aren't you wearing this RIGHT NOW?



4. I want to rip the sleeves off this one so that it can realize it's full drop dead fabulous potential.
5. This is vintage Henry Bendel. Hello Henry! It is also gorgeously embroidered all over the place and could be so very NOW.
6. This one could take the cake. It could be my very favorite of the whole lot. All you have to do is dry clean it. It's perfect.
7. This is a long satin and lace "topcoat" to wear over your dress. The pictures are crap, but it's got potential.
8. Again, the drama in this dress whifs of Reem Acra. I must ask that you mentally rip the sleeves off this one to sense it's full potential.



9. Did I say number 6 was my favorite? I meant number 9. I still like number six, but ooooo, number 9. I love the pleats!
10. This one is all set to go. Never been worn. Which makes me a little sad for it. It needs a happy home.
11. This one is so sweet. I can picture this with a stylish little blusher and some peep toe pumps on the pages of Martha Stewart Weddings.

Cheeky designers Viktor & Rolf teamed up with H&M to design this wedding gown, which is (sort of) available in stores now for $349.00. It is the first and only wedding dress H&M has sold, and they are flying out of stores all over the country! I'm guessing they're already all over eBay. H&M together with V&R have also come out with a men's tux, and other wedding appropriate wear. If any of you get to try one of these on, let me know how it goes. It's hard to tell anything about the cut of the dress from the photos.

Which reminds me... I meant to do a Trolling eBay post exclusively devoted to vintage gowns. Would that be helpful to anyone?

This makes a fantasic alternative to this, and the former costs twenty-three dollars a piece. TWENTY-THREE. Now I can't say for sure how much the latter costs. But I can say that it is for sure more than twenty-three dollars. Plus a fingertip or two. All I'm saying is that it's a dern good alternative. Consider the possibilities! At an evening wedding outside, hung in the trees. Hung low over the tables at a loft type event, or hung at different lengths, clustered together over the buffet table. I'd say there's lots of potential here. These can be found at Smith & Hawken, in white or red.

*AVOID DISCO FEVER: try not to hang just one over the dance floor.

Again, it is Monday. This morning we have another installment from my good friend Samantha. Take it away Sam.



We've been to many weddings in different places: fabulous lofts in Manhattan, tents on farms and on vineyards, campus chapels, all lovely in their own way. My main wish is that, wherever we have our wedding, the venue represents Dave and me. I really want it to be personal. So we've decided to have it at home...my parents' home, that is--we live in a tiny Manhattan studio. 130 people in there? I think not. My parents have a great aesthetic. My mom's an artist and my dad has an amazing eye. So if the three of us put our heads together we'll come up with some fantastic centerpieces and décor (I saw some lovely paper poppy pomanders somewhere…if only I could remember where).

The plan (as of now) is to have the wedding on June 9th-ish. We'll get married in the backyard under a big oak tree and then move next door to a lovely little one-room school house from the 1800's (now a community center) with a tent and dance floor outside. We'll have appetizers and champagne while mingling and listening to music. Later, we'll do a buffet dinner and watch a slideshow of me and Dave as kids. I adore slideshows! (We may even project it onto the barn in the yard). The only glitch is that if the weather is inclement, we would have to get married in the tent. Which I think would be less scenic. My dad made me promise to have fun regardless of the weather. His fear is that, if it rains, I'll sit there all night crying. (Dad, this is not my 1st-grade birthday party! I promise to roll with the punches.)

I just got an urgent SOS from a reader, requesting help finding wrapping paper. Since I know that that season will be upon us very soon, (when we all will need a little wrapping paper), I'm pointing you to my absolute favorite wrapping paper sites.


Whimsy Press- I like to imagine that princesses and Oprah probably use these papers on a regular basis. They're stunning, up there on the left is their "Hollywood Hills" pattern.
Heidi- gorgeous, delicate papers for all seasons. That's her's on the right, the pattern's called "Pine Cone".
Luxe Paperie- offers several brands of very cool papers, including Snow & Graham and Eieio.
Nineteen Seventy Three- a posh British studio, selling some pretty funky papers.
Kate's Paperie- Last, but certainly not least is Kate's Paperie, who has a nice selection, (including that Birdie and Pussy Willow pattern I believe someone was looking for)!

Since I usually "troll ebay" for pretty, special, or generally useful items, I thought today I'd share a few examples of what might not make the cuts during my usually rigorous selection process. For whatever reason, I tend not to post any of the hilarious crap I stumble across, but today, there was just too way too much to pass it up.

First, this product is described as a "Globe de Mariee" and I have absolutely no idea what it's for. It is shaped like a chair, it's covered with birds and mirrors, there's a wax crown (?) involved... I just don't understand what anyone would do with this. If you know, you must share.

Next, a hilarious juice glass that depicts an innocent 1930's bride in various states of undress.

Then, the world's most unflattering cake topper. The bride looks like a dejected Pillsbury Dough Boy in drag. The groom has to pee real bad, and isn't quite sure how he's going to remove his skin tight one piece jumpsuit before there's trouble. All that, PLUS they both have the same haircut. And it's not a very good one.

Last, if this veil could talk, it would say "phooooooof"

Anyone looking for a unique wedding gift? Rockett St. George is owned by two British design lovin' ladies, Jane Rockett and Lucy St. George. This boutique features some of the UK's freshest design talent and their website offers an incredible range of both beautiful and useful items. Personally, I love the fuzzy boot slippers and think they would make a fantastic gift for someone special on any occasion. The rose cut-out shelf or some of their distinct glassware would both make stellar wedding gifts.
*Also noted by Oh Joy, Rockett St.George will ship to the states. Fantastic!

My recent infatuation with eyeshadow has lead me to these combos from Pop Beauty. I'm venturing to Sephora today to try one of them out... Now I wonder if you're supposed to buy based on your own eye color, or the eye color you wish you had. For example, I would like to buy the green one, but I guess I should really buy the brown one. If only they had hazel... I could probably get away with hazel.

ps.I really should be getting the brown

Since the last invite naming went soooo well; we're having another one! The creative juices are flowing over here at KenzieKate and we've got new ideas coming and going (and by we, I mean me). But I need names! The game is the same; I like to name each of my invites after cities. I usually pick the first city that comes to mind when I look at the finished design, but alas, I am not as well travelled as I would like.



Oh yeah, and the results of the last naming! A huge thanks to Mary for coming up with some fantastic names! The beachy one will be the Cozumel, and the jewelry inspired one will be the Sevilla. Thanks Mary!



I'm hoping to come out with all four new styles at the beginning of January on the KenzieKate site.

*best announcer voice*
This week, on Sam and Dave, Samantha shops for her wedding dress! Will she find what she's looking for? or will she crack under the pressure? Find out as we continue our coverage of Samantha's wedding journey.
*end announcer voice*


Hi everyone, Samantha here.
Why can't I be a more traditional bride? My parents eloped on Martha's Vineyard in a teepee, which may be a source of the problem (that's them, up there). Either way, I'm looking for a non-traditional wedding dress. I already know what I don't want: anything poofy, sequined, beaded, or veiled. As far as what I do want: something romantic and ethereal. Something special, but also un-bridal. That narrows it down, right? Luckily, I happen to have a close friend who works as a fashion editor. Together, we visited some vintage/bridal shops in search of the elusive perfect fit.

First, we went to New York Vintage and pulled some slip dresses for me to try. I learned very quickly that anything cut on the bias is bad. Really bad. A stunning silk, unlined '30's nightie that hugs every curve and then flares at the bottom makes me look like a mermaid that ate too much lobster. I couldn't have looked worse if I'd been wearing a magnifying glass. Great for some, not for me.



Next, we meandered over to Foley and Corinna in the East Village, followed by Blue, also in the East Village. Last, but not least, we hit Thread, located on the Upper East Side inside The Wedding Library. They make lovely, unique dresses for bridesmaids and fancy occasions (pictured above). The colors were perfect: pinks, blues, whites, and creams. The fabrics were primarily chiffon and satin. My friend rolled her eyes at me every time when I said: "But I want shiny!" In her most diplomatic tone of voice, she said, "Sam, maybe 'shiny' shouldn't be at the top of your priority list."

Of all the dresses I tried, there was one that stood apart from the rest; a beautiful, strapless, multi-tiered dress of cotton eyelet with a small flower pattern. My friend loved it, and the helpful sales clerk loved it. I felt great. The only reason I didn't buy it on the spot was that I still had plenty of time to keep looking before making my final decision. But it's a wonderful relief to know it'll be there if I want it, and it's not even shiny—see, I'm open-minded.

I'm kind of ashamed to say that I'm looking forward to this show. Really, I would have expected more "aloofness" from me. Lately, I've been addicted to TV shows on DVD. Every week the Netflix fairy brings me new episodes, sans commercials, of Six Feet Under, which I am totally addicted to. I watched the first episode of season 3 last night, and all I have to say is "wha?". That was a little strange.
BUT... that's not why you came. I just wanted to give everyone the heads up, Big Day, a comedy about one couple's wedding day starts Tuesday, November 28th at 9:00 on ABC. The entire season takes place in one day, with each episode covering an hour of the day. I must admit, I have my reservations. If the decor they chose is an indicator of the quality of the show, it may never make it to the vows. Balloons? Really?

When women fall in love with men named William, do they play that song at their wedding? You know the one.
"Bill, I love you so, I always will..." The one from My Girl? The one Veda Sultenfuss sang to her unrequited love? I hope those girls play that song. Because none of the rest of us has a song.
But I digress. I'm supposed to be posting about these veils I found. We all know that great websites for veils are pretty hard to find, so I'm posting a link to Sara Gabriel. She has some lovely tulle* AND a fun little tool* to help you decide on your veil length.

*Um, hello. How many bloggers do you know that can use a homophone with that kind of ease? Hmmmm? That's right. A HOMOPHONE.

We haven't done this in a while. Let's troll!

First- we have a really unique wedding gown. Yes it's from the 70's. Sure you could say it's a little "hippy-ish". But I just can't get over the embroidery. The colors! I think it would be really perfect at a beach wedding in a tropical local. I suppose I might alter the sleeves slightly, but that would be pretty easy. I'd say definitely give it a look if you're looking for a really unique summery wedding dress.

Next- we have what I think would be a fun gag gift for a bride-to-be. A book, published in the 30's for the engaged woman, filled with recipies, advertisements, tips on how to dress for your man...

Then- we have a set of pretty pretty toasting glasses. Something Blue!

Last- very pretty mantilla hair comb.

Happy Halloween! Here's a picture of me in costume at the 7th Ave Halloween Parade. See? I'm not always thinking about invitations and parties. Sometimes I think about marine life.
The little skeleton I'm talking to threatened to cut off my tentacles with his light saber if I tried to sting him. I tried hard to look intimidated, but he was just too darn cute!

I love the idea of pairing opaque stones with formal white or ethereal ivory. Coral, lapis, jade... I think any of these could hold their own against floor length satin. They're so unexpected and such a nice departure from the faceted sparklyness we see so much of.
Not that that I have ANYthing against sparkles. Lord knows. I came *this* close to buying a 3 carat peridot cocktail ring off the TV. My entire line of reasoning behind this almost purchase was "oooooo sparkly". Luckily, I have smart people nearby who can fend-off my reasoning with genius counterpoints. I believe that in this particular case the smart person was Dell and the counterpoint was "You don't need a 3 carat cocktail ring". I knew I married him for a reason.
Oh yeah. You can check out Olia for the wonderful jewelry above and more; both sparkly and non.

Hey! Today we're trying something new. I thought it would be helpful if I could follow one woman through her wedding planning journey, start to finish. Now, you might not know this, but I have several friends. Until now, none of them have been engaged or willing to blog about said engagement. Today, TODAY is a special day. Today you meet my dear friend Samantha who has just gotten engaged! We will be hearing from Sam weekly with updates on her adventures in wedding planning as well as updates on her sanity.
So without further adoooo.....
Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you, Samantha Jasmine; pictured here with her fiance Dave.




Hi, I'm Samantha, and I'm an art teacher and painter. I started reading SOSN before I was even engaged! I'm really excited to have been invited to contribute.

I suppose I'd better begin with a little about my fiance. Dave works as a book editor at a publishing house here in New York. We met through Nerve.com (eek!) which used to feel as if it had a stigma attached but, lately, online dating seems more and more commonplace. He was my first online date anyhow, so that makes it sort of sweet.

We began to seriously consider getting engaged last summer. After a lot of research into unconventional ring ideas (eBay and Fay Cullen) and popping into places like Doyle and Doyle and Little King in downtown Manhattan, we wound up commissioning a dear friend from college (and gifted jewelry designer) to make one for us. In mid-August we got the finished ring, but I was strictly forbidden to see it until the question was actually popped—Dave assured me it would be buried safely beneath the surface of Jupiter until he was ready to do so, so there would be no point in snooping around the apartment.

Dave told me I would be surprised...and I was. In late September, his parents and sister were invited to dinner with my parents, brother, grandmother, and cousins. Mid-meal, I started pestering him to eat more. Usually, he goes nuts for all the fabulous food my parents serve. But this night he was skimping. Suddenly, he clinked his glass and cleared his throat ("Is he making a toast?" I wondered. "He sometimes does that," I thought as I spooned some applesauce into my mouth). Then he said: "As you all know, Samantha and I have been together for over two and a half years, and we love each other very much." I froze. Next, he pushed his chair back and got down on one knee— everyone was already saying "aww" and crying. As he knelt, his foot pushed the fireplace poker over and there was a loud crash as it fell down; laughter and tears now from the audience. He took the ring from his pocket, slid it on my finger and asked me "will you marry me?", but he already knew my answer: Yes! There was a lot of hugging and kissing around the table after that and, now, here we are.

We're already getting started on the planning for a lovely, creative, and classy affair in June. I look forward to posting the ups and downs of the process and hopefully, getting some of your feedback and ideas.

I have no room for more glassware. My cabinets are so crowded (or my kitchen is just so small) that I can't even clean all my glasses at once. Some of them always have to be dirty. If they're all clean, they don't fit into the cupboards. But yet, I remain obsessed with NEW glassware. Especially the botanical champagne glasses from peek keep. I don't drink nearly enough champagne to justify these, but they're so elegant! Peek Keep also offers a gift registry service...

I've been working on a directory list for the site, and it's finally ready. If you scroll down, along the sidebar you'll see a list of links organized by subject. I realize that it's anything but comprehensive right now, but it will grow as time goes by. Each time I blog about a new vendor or designer, I'll put their link up on the directory for quick and easy reference. I hope you find it helpful!

I love Jenny Packham's Fall '06 collection. The details and dress shapes are just the right kind of pretty, and it seems like there's something NEW to look at in each one of her designs. You can see an even closer view of these details by clicking on the image above. I would feel like an empress in that dress on the bottom right. Which, of course, is a good thing.

Mmmmm. Shopping.
Fantastic fall colors in this cover by the way. Perfect for my mood today.
Vogue Cover by George Plank, November 1914.