The Notting Hill


The Metropolis


The Woodstock

They're up! You guys are the first to see these, I really hope you like them! Your comments were so nice on the drawings, I was encouraged to get them up sooner!
We drove up to Montreal yesterday in the midst of a mammoth Nor'Easter stretching from Providence to Albany straight thru to Montreal. We arrived safely last night after about 8 hours of white knuckle driving. We're here for the week, all cozy underneath about a foot and a half of snow. I'm so excited to settle into a white Christmas and to see my family. I'll be back to regular blogging on the second of January, with plenty of new ideas and an entirely new blog design! Have a cheerful, safe and happy holiday and we'll see you in the new year!

So I promised you a preview of next year's new designs, and here it is! I was really into drawing patterns these past few months, and really wanted to do all hand-drawn stuff for this year's new designs. I had a really great time doing the patterns for the folders, and then designing around them to create slightly whimsical, modern invites with a real hand-made feel. Above is the drawing I made for the "Woodstock" folder. It's actually a perfectly repeating pattern, (something I am very proud of). If you tile it with itself, it's seamless, and the trees just go on for ever and ever... I'm thinking of wallpapering my office with it. Either that, or the pattern for the "Metropolis" which is below. Also a perfectly repeating pattern, only this time the city goes on and on forever. This one took me so long to finish, but I'm really happy with the way it turned out.


The last one was a study in patience for me, although not a perfectly repeating pattern, it's also hand drawn. The concept behind this one was to take two lines, integrate and twist them up with lots and lots of other lines, then color the original two with a bright hue and the rest with a neutral. The two bright lines travel together thru the tangle of other lines, kind of like how two people committed to each other travel together thru life (my idea never sounded as dorky as it did just then). Eventually the lines come together on the invites and form a knot.


The final products are not up on the website yet, so I don't want to spoil the surprise, but you guys will be the first to know when they go up! Let me know what you all think.

Christmas shopping, DONE! Blog re-design, um, not quite. New wedding invitations, DONE! Yeah, that's right. Done. Stay tuned for a sneak peek of those tomorrow. Yay!
So I'm back from my little hiatus, trollin the web as usual, and I see that Oh Joy! has posted amazing pictures from a fantastic blog called Once Wed. I have never been to this blog before, but I was captivated! Such eye candy! So many pritty photos! Definitely worth a good long look.

I've been on overdrive lately trying to get all my new designs finished for Kenzie Kate, my blog overhaul done, my Christmas shopping finished, it's been kind of crazy. Then, Friday I discovered that our basement was flooded with about 2 inches of water, which had to be pumped out, artwork and books recovered, everything dried out. Now I'm at the end of the weekend (in which I was supposed to accomplish lots of work) and I think I'm about at the same place I was when I knocked off work on Friday, minus a few boxes of basement stuff, (which is by definition stuff we don't really use that often). So while I'm happy we're high and dry, I'm feeling a little behind in my work and a little stressed out. That was a very long way of saying that posting might be light until I get back up on top of things in the next day or two.
In the mean time, I wanted to point you towards these amazing butterflies on Etsy. Wouldn't these be fantastic on top of a cake? Or strung from the ceiling hovering over the cake? I heart them, and they're made even better by being a bargain.

Have a party to attend this spring? These embroidered dresses are my favorites, especially the watercolor number. If only it were warmer. I love Anthropologie.

*Everyone had such strong opinions about the last dress, I thought I might look for something a little less controversial! Some of your posts definitely made me laugh, I'll never look at "ombre" the same way again! Thanks for the comments!

I have typically not loved "the fade effect". I tend to think that it looks a little like you waded thru a puddle... BUT, this dress caught my eye. I thought that it could be really pretty for a beach wedding. It's not something I would normally be drawn to, so this sort of surprised me. Although... I did love Gwen Stefani's dress, which had a similar white to pink fade. What do you think of the fade? Ok for the right event? Or just dirty looking?

How perfect would these his and hers mugs from Jonathan Adler be for a newlywed couple? Love Jonathan Adler, I want them all!

We're back! Our trip to Brooklyn was fantastic. My friends are now officially old. Ha! Kidding! We had an amazing time, ate at all our favorite places, shopped (although I was not inspired by my selection of tops), and had an amazing time in general. I'm back to my usual schedule this week, working on a blog re-design, new invitation designs, busy, busy. Plus! let the Christmas shopping commence! I need to get going on that, like now. Yikes.
Speaking of shopping, I'm thinking of upping the "gift" quotient on the blog between now and the holidays for obvious reasons. I've wanted one of these embroidered wall hangings from Chez Sucre Chez since I first saw them a few months back. I would love to give any of these as a gift, especially the initials or the "Love" letters for newlyweds. I also really love the peacocks. Check them out!

I'm off to Brooklyn this weekend, back to the ol' stomping grounds! Two of my very good friends are having their 30th (whoa) birthdays this weekend, and I wouldn't miss those shindigs for the world. I'm also going wedding dress shopping (not for myself) and am going to attempt to revisit all my old favorite stores. Mama needs some new tops! I'm also going to try and go to a few of my old favorite restaurants, I'm thinking Steinhof... If you can't tell, I'm thoroughly looking forward to all my weekend prospects!
In the mean time I will leave you with these adorable outdoor lanterns, available at Home Infatuation. Love them.

Birch veneer snowflakes, porcelain feathers or golden Christmas trees, all perfect as holiday ornaments, or as decor for a winter wedding. I would love to hang those porcelain feathers from a chandelier or get a bunch of the snowflakes and create a little indoor snowstorm around an alter or in a ceremony space. All from Roost, all available at Velocity. Via Oh Joy!

I love to look at beautiful cakes. I prefer it to gowns or jewelry or... most other things! It's just so much fun to see what sugar can do in the hands of an artist. It's something I would love to learn if I ever had a second career. Alas, for now I will continue to dump my sugar into my coffee and leave the art to the experts. One of those experts is Krista Markell of Sugarcoat It, who uses two dimensional shapes to create amazing 3 dimensional creations. If you're lucky enough to be based in San Fran, check her out!

My two favorite decor magazines have come out with fantastic books in the past few months. Collectively, they are my new favorite way to kill a Sunday. The Domino Book of Decorating is easy to read, fun to look at, and packed with useful information. The Home Book, from the editors of House Beautiful is a bounty of eye candy, image after image of inspiration, a book I could stare at for the better part of an afternoon and barely get half way thru. What I love about both books is that rather than focus on where to get specific items (that, let's face it, tend to be too expensive for most of us), the books focus more on the method, what to look for, what rules should be followed, which can be broken. Sofa legs on the carpet? Sofa legs off the carpet? Half on, half off? Will anyone notice either way? As someone who has always had an interest in decor, but never really any space to decorate, these are the sorts of things I want to know.

Either of these would be the perfect gift for newlyweds (or anyone) moving into their first home/apartment. Had I not a copy of both already (couldn't wait), they would be on my Christmas list for sure!

Yay for turkey, stuffing and a relaxing weekend with the fam. I had one of those rare weekends where I felt like I managed to both relax and get some work done. I spent some time outside, I lounged on the couch with my sisters... all in all, an excellent holiday. Give me 3 days, and I'm sure I'll be ready for another one! In the mean time.. Nicole Miller's new bridal line has me totally jealous. I can't believe these weren't around when I was engaged! Love the flowy-goddessy vibe, I love even more that there are very reasonably priced options in the collection. I might have actually been able to afford one of these! Jealous!

I very rarely post about wedding photographers. I think this is primarily because most of them are very city specific. You wouldn't use a great photographer based in Hartford, Connecticut if you were getting married in San Francisco. That being said, Joanna Goddard emailed me yesterday about a post she had up on Smitten of the gorgeous photography of Max Wanger. I just fell in love with these photos. I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that both the bride and groom are very attractive, and very happy... But I have seen the rest of his site, it's all really good! I absolutely love his style. I think that he's based in California, so that means a good portion of you might actually be able to use him (according to the survey, lots of you are reading from Cali). Anyway, I couldn't resist.
I'm signing off until Monday, let the cooking begin! I adore cooking, and couldn't be happier about a holiday based around the idea of cooking and eating. Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Enjoy your friends and family.

These have nothing to do with weddings, but jeez, if they aren't the gosh darn'd cutest little things I've ever seen. Skunk Boy Creatures makes the most unique and adorable little stuffed personalities. If you have any little ones that might need a Christmas present, look no further. Skunk Boy also makes adorable Christmas tree ornaments (above), 'tis the season!

I'm in the process of doing a little tune-up on Something Old, Something New - a little tweak here, a little re-design there, something new for the new year. I'm in need of some input from you, the people who read this blog and make it all worth while. So I put together a little survey that will give me my much needed info. If you have a spare 30 seconds (I swear, that's all it takes) I would be so grateful if you could fill it out. The answers you give will help me make this site an even more fun place to visit! Thank you, thank you, thank you in advance for helping! Click here to fill in the survey.

How cute would this be as a wedding band? What a pretty little reminder of your having tied the knot! From Kabiri, in 10K yellow gold.

Kwiat. It's fun to look ;)

Turns out, I've been blog tagged by Ashley L. of Decor Amor, so I had to think of 7 random things about myself. This is harder than you might think. I know a lot of stuff about myself, but I don't know which ones are random and which ones aren't. I googled "random" and this was the second or third image that popped up. It didn't really help me narrow it down. Anyway, here's my stab at it!~

1} I have two sisters, one of them is my identical twin. Whenever we meet each other's friends for the first time, they're always fascinated that we have the exact same laugh.

2} I'm addicted to House among other symptom-based medical shows. I'm pretty sure I qualify for a white coat by now. At least a stethoscope? ... maybe one more season.

3} I've been working on the same honeycomb quilt for the last 5 years. It's hexagon after hexagon of yellow fabrics stitched together by hand. I'm guessing it'll be a 50th birthday present for my husband, he's thirty-three now, so that gives me... just about enough time.

4} I cry at sporting events. Basketball, gymnastics, track and field... whenever anyone wins at anything. The Olympics are downright embarrassing for me. The other day I went to the web page for the New York City Marathon... lets just say I got "misty". For a website!

5} We have an Italian Greyhound named Shorty. When we had our regular low-Def television, he didn't care about dogs on TV. Now that we have the fancy high definition TV, he has to jump and bark at the screen whenever there's a dog. Even a cartoon dog. Even a panda. Any mammal besides humans. Watching Planet Earth is a real test of patience. Sort of takes the fun out of high-def.

6} I am completely musically incapable. Humming is a challenge. My husband laughs at me when I whistle.

7} Home Decor magazines and french fries are my greatest weaknesses. I find both irresistible.

J. Crew is at it again with a beautiful feathered number. That sounds like it might be some awful garish nightmare, but it's actually really subtle and pretty. I know that these special J. Crew Wedding gowns last very limited amounts of time, so if you are thinking about it, now would be the time!

Hope everyone had a great weekend! We celebrated my sister's birthday, and spent a rainy Saturday in our new window seat (installed last weekend, coziest place ever!!) with the dog, reading and computing. Jade from We Dream in Colour emailed me about her new line of bobbies, and since I love the copper green against dark hair, and the size is perfect, I thought I'd share them with you. I get questions all the time about affordable hair accessories, here they are!

I just saw two Christmas commercials in a row. Does that mean I can start doing Christmas posts? I think so. Let's start with keeping toasty warm in style for the holidays. Both from Mod Cloth, both very reasonably priced. I might not be able to resist the red one. I will try, but I don't know if I'll be able to.

I've been harboring a secret! We have been very industrious lately over at Kenzie Kate making holiday cards and gift tags for a new Etsy store! Pause for dramatic effect...
It's been a little hobby as of late, something we've been trying out as a way to play with paper. We use patterns and illustrations from our existing wedding invitations but we're trying different color combinations, different sizes and formats, and of course, we're offering them in smaller quantities. Not that I don't still love wedding invitations. I DO, I do! (In fact, I'm working on several new ones, set to come out in January, more on that later.) I just wanted to spread out a little and stretch my creative legs. Then, after the holidays, we'll experiment with more new stuff. Never a dull day! I'm so looking forward to this project! Anyway, you heard it here first folks! I'd love to know what you think.
We will be adding more and more stuff over the next week or so, so check back often!

These rings from Manak remind me of Queen Elizabeth. Such panache all on one finger... I love the tiara style one on the top. All from Ylang Ylang. The middle one would make a fantastic wedding band.

I don't know about you, but I need some colorful accessories in beautiful patterns to cheer me up on Monday mornings. Girl offers a bunch of really cute patterns in clutch form, all customizable for bridesmaids gifts at very reasonable prices. Check them out!

I found out about these kits from Oh Happy Day, and I think they would make a great little project kit for a ring pillow or boutonnieres. As a very crafty lady, there's something about a box full of antique notions and whatnot that just makes me smile. From Lobster and Swan.

I'm anticipating staying up pretty late tonight, waiting for the final, final results. I want to go to bed knowing who our next president will be. We have all heard so much about this election, I just want to know how it ends! That being said, I have plenty of time for surfing tonight while I watch the results! I came across these amazing corsages from Emily K. Botanic Studio right after they announced Iowa. Love the idea of giving your special ladies (grandmas, aunties, your mom, etc.) a corsage they can wear after your wedding, either pinned to a purse or dressing up a shawl or a coat. Check out Emily K's Etsy shop for a beautiful selection.

Happy Election Day everyone! Get out and vote!

I think one of the best things in the world has to be comfortable clothes that make you feel really attractive. Sure, anyone can pull together something cute, but feeling like you're in your pajamas at the same time? That's impressive. I've posted about Butter by Nadia before, and her amazing wrap dresses. I have one and it was one of the best purchases I've ever made, I absolutely love it. Her new line for spring and summer has a fun selection of stripes and solids in red, navy, black and white - short and long. All can be wrapped in about 22 different ways. Looking for happy bridesmaids? Send them here.

Happy Halloween everyone! Our neighborhood gets tons of trick-or-treaters and I'm looking forward to handing out candy in my costume (I'm going to be a jockey, Shorty's gonna be ma race horse!). What's everyone else being?

So once Halloween is over (in my opinion) we're in "The Holiday Season". We set the clocks back, I start my Christmas shopping, there will be parties, family get-togethers, twinkle lights, and oodles of wedding proposals... I can't wait! I love the holidays. Does anything create a festive mood like fancy shoes? I think not! All from J. Crew.

I laughed out loud when I saw that first set of buttons. I had just settled down to blog after carving a pumpkin and sketching out my dog's homemade Halloween costume, Dell was sitting next to me crankin out PHP on his laptop. I'm pretty sure these buttons were made for us. The others would be adorable as an engagement gift! Button Empire also has some other adorable and/or hilarious button options that might work well for favors. Check 'em out!

We're having crappy weather here today, wind, rain, cold... typical New England. I have to confess, I secretly love it. I love the coziness of it all. My favorite thing to do is camp out on the couch with the dog and a blanket and surf. I find the best stuff when the weather is bad!
These are all Vera Wang, and they're all at least 40% off over at Bluefly. The gray one is my favorite, (I think I'd carry a yellow purse). The yellow and the gray together would be adorable on a small bridal party.

I keep coming across adorable handmade hair accessories! I really wish I hadn't just cut off all my hair. I love the vintage flair that comes with these, from PenelliBelle. Love the brooches morphed into combs.

My friend Deirdre sent me this link and I thought I'd share it because so many people have asked me for up-do resources. The stylist is Johnny Lavoy from Ford Artists, and he has a series of how-to videos on easy up-dos that you and a friend could pull off for your wedding with a little practice. That's $300 you would have spent on a hair stylist saved for something else! Yay!

OK, so I'm going to try and accomplish a lot in one post today!
Wenona Napolitano, author of The Everything Green Wedding Book is holding a contest for brides-to-be called The Green Bride Giveaway. She'll be giving out three prize packages that include a copy of her new book and hundreds of dollars worth of eco-friendly wedding goodies. Get details here to enter.

Giambattista Valli (above) is having a preview trunk sale, taking place on the seventh floor of Bergdorf's in NYC on October 28th and 29th from 10 to 4. Purchase any one of their elegant new gowns straight from the runway. You heard it here first folks!

Melissa Bumstead of Melissa's Smitten is hosting a giveaway of DK Designs clay floral-wear on her blog. I've posted recently about DK, and I love their stuff. Contest starts Friday, and runs til November 7th. Here for the deets.

This is fun! Tigerlilly Jewelry is having an unofficial sample sale (they're only advertising thru word-of-mouth and blogs). Having shown all of their best selling jewelry and headpieces at Bridal Week in NYC, they have a ton of samples left over. They're selling their sample stash for 50% off on a first come, first serve basis. Find something you like on their site? Email them, if they have a sample for sale, they'll sell it to you for 50% off. Sweet!

Designer Carrie White of Chlorine takes one of a kind clutches and turns them to more modern evening bags for brides and special occassions. I love that Carrie has found a way to give new life to vintage goods, supporting the environment and making something truly unique in the process! If you require something a bit more bespoke, she has also been known to work directly with brides to create custom handbags.

I love coming across new vintage sources. The best and worst thing about vintage boutiques is that while they might have a ton of great stuff one day, but it's all gone the next and new stuff is in it's place. There's no time to hem and haw, if you like something, you must pounce! This is why it's nice to have a line up of great sources, so that if you miss the boat on something great, you have other hunting grounds to explore. Found a new stop! Posh Girl Vintage.

Love these dramatic hair accessories from Which Goose on Etsy. They have such a unique 1920's flair, while still seeming very modern and unique. The yellow flowers are my favorite!
On a completely different note- I'm headed back home to Rhode Island tomorrow morning and while I'm sad to be leaving my sister behind and I had a fantastic trip, I'm anxious to get back home. My poor little puppy Shorty ate a piece or two of sugar-less gum this afternoon, and after much Googling, my husband found out that this is actually really poisonous for dogs. While I'm sure Dell has everything under control, I'm worried about the little guy and so far from home I feel like there's nothing I can do. Anyone with a dog, please be careful with any gum that contains Xylitol (Orbitz, among others). It can be very harmful to dogs.

It's late, and I'm off to San Francisco early tomorrow morning (yay!). My twin sister moved there this summer to go to Berkeley for her PHD in archaeology. I haven't seen her since July, so I'm super excited! I'll be staying with her in Oakland, if anyone has any suggestions... I'm all ears.
I'm leaving you with this incredible eye candy from Amy Atlas Events, all sweetness and light! Via my favorite San Francisco based blog, Oh Happy Day.

"Hot" is how I might describe a Black Halo dress (in a totally chic, couture kind of way). Amazing shapes, gorgeous colors, and so sophisticated! I would love to see a chic winter wedding where the bridesmaids were all in polished Black Halo dresses in different jewel tones. It'd be like a page right out of Vogue!

I hope everyone had a good long weekend! We had a great day on Saturday wandering around Providence checking out our local design stores, something I've been dying to do but haven't gotten around to. Butterfield was one of my favorites, a place where seemingly everything was something I want now or wanted at some point in the past. Someplace I'll be going to again, for sure!
In the mean time, I wanted to share the amazing chic knits I came across over at Fringe via Perfectbound. Wouldn't these be amazing for a winter wedding? I've never seen so much drama in a cover up!

Four years ago yesterday, me and this guy got hitched in a loft in Hell's Kitchen, surrounded by all our friends and family. It's hard to put into words what he means to me. He's the cream in my coffee, the ketchup on my fries, the warmth of my favorite sweatshirt. He's all the good stuff.
The photo was taken on our one year anniversary, at a place called Mohonk in New Paltz, NY. Not sure why I never posted about that place before, but if you're looking for an amazing weekend getaway this fall, this is the place! As you can see, it's an enormous, crazy, eleborate, Victorian hotel nestled into a rocky mountain top, next to a pristine lake in the middle of leaf peeper's paradise. It's pretty cool.

Oh, Etsy. What did we do before you came along? Where did we get our adorable, unique, handmade hair accessories? How would we have found out about Muscari and all her feathery, flowery goodness? How I ask? How?