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A few months ago I wrote about the trouble I had finding the perfect bridesmaids dress.  Many dresses later, an off the rack BCBG dress was the winner.  After finding the dress, I decided on a bouquet of light and dark pink tulips for the ladies.  I thought the pink would really pop off the navy blue.

With the bouquets and dresses in place I was able to think about completing their look with shoes and jewelry.

One of my bridesmaids found the great shoes below, so jewelry was the only item left.

I had decided early on I wanted to get the jewelry for my bridesmaids as a gift.  On a recent trip to Nordstrom I spotted some great Kendra Scott earrings but the colors were not quite right.  A quick visit to her web site and I scored big.  On Kendra Scott’s web site you can actually custom create the jewelry by first selecting gold or silver and then the gem colors.

I have included two screen shots of the earrings and bracelet I created for my ladies.  If you are stumped in finding jewelry for your bridesmaids or yourself I encourage you to check out the web site and try your hand and creating a custom design.

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I have to confess I am a shoeaholic, so it should come as no surprise to those who know me that I have spent numerous hours online viewing potential wedding day shoes.

For some brides, shoes are one of the last items they think of, almost as an after thought.  Not for me.  I think the shoes are a key part of your overall wedding look and there are so many decision, color or no color, heel or wedge, strappy or peep toe…I could go on and on.

Instead of going on and on, I have compiled my favorite finds ranging from the more traditional pink and ivory BHLDN pairs to the preppy and colorful Kate Spade and J. Crew pairs.  I’ve saved mine to share at a later date as part of my overall look.  In the meantime I hope these spark some inspiration for you.

Credit: BHLDN

Credit: Kate Spade; Kate Spade; J. Crew 

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Things are really moving along with our wedding planning and I cannot wait to head back to D.C. in March for more big meetings and decisions.  Over the holidays I headed to Fluffy Thoughts with my mom and wedding planner to tackle the cake.

There are so many decisions to be made for the cake including flavors, filling, buttercream, fondant and the design.  Luckily with the help of the team at Fluffy Thoughts I was able to determine the flavor and the look in under an hour – hooray!

James and I both wanted to keep the cake on the simple side and while searching on Pinterest and Lover.ly I found great inspiration.  Below are two of the photos I found, where the cake has actual ribbon wrapped around it to create a simple, elegant design.   The team at Fluffy Thoughts suggested a monogramed cake topper similar to the one below and I was sold.  The letter with the ribbon created just the look I wanted.

Moving on to flavor, I quickly determined white cake was the flavor for us.  It was light and fluffy and would nor overwhelm the fillings or be too sweet.  James and I both love Raspberry so I was drawn to the raspberry jam and buttercream fillings.

At the suggestion of our consultant I tried the raspberry fillings paired with a little lemon curd.  It was fantastic!  Since the cake would have three layers of filling we decided to go with two layers of raspberry jam and buttercream and one layer of raspberry with lemon curd.  The acidity of the lemon helped balance the tart sweetness of the raspberry, keeping the cake from being overly sweet.

I cannot wait see the final product on our wedding day, it may be too pretty to cut into!

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Last week our wedding seemed far off and had yet to come together.  Fast forward a few days and it is only 5 months until the big day.  I am finally starting to picture what the day will look like, thanks in part to our flower and décor meeting with Da Vinci Florists over the holidays.

Early on James and I decided we wanted to keep the flowers simple and focus instead on showcasing the amazing view at 101 Constitution.  We both agreed that candles, lighting and smaller centerpieces would create a romantic yet modern and elegant look.

Photo Credit: Bouquet Bridal

While looking through photos of previous weddings, Jen suggested choosing a flower that was in-season during May, explaining that it would be less expensive to use an in-season flower.  James and I both love tulips and are in luck, because they are in-season in May.

Photo Credit: Silk Wedding Designs

With the flower choice selected we started on the smaller floral arrangements – the bouquets.  From then on we were on a roll.  Since our colors are navy blue and pink, our tulips will be white, light pink and a deeper pink.  Bridesmaids will have bouquets of light and deep pink, my bouquet will be white and light pink.  Our centerpieces will feature all three colors.  In this post are photo examples of different tulip bouquets and centerpieces that were our inspiration.  In March I will get to see samples of the actual pieces and I will make sure to take photos to share with you.

Photo Credit: Perfect Wedding Day

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This week James and I are heading back to D.C. for the first time since our move to San Diego.  Visiting family and friends will be our main priority, but wedding details will also consume our time.

Planning a wedding from across the country means we have to make the most of the two trips we have planned before the wedding.  Yes, you heard me correctly, only two trips!  Luckily our amazing wedding planner has been coordinating all of our appointments and I have been able to spend my time collecting pictures of all things pretty.

Photo Credit: Martha Stewart Weddings

In just two days this week we will check major items off our to do list including cake, décor, flowers and invitations.  Additionally, I will spend a day trying out hairstyles and make up.   Thus far we haven’t felt the stress of planning from such a long distance, but I have a feeling that will change this week.

Photo Credit: Save on Crafts

I hope you all have a great time celebrating the holidays and next week I will have tons of updates and photos to share with you.  In the meantime, enjoy a few of my favorite photos that I’ve collected recently.  Happy Holidays!

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When most people think of a wedding party they think bride, groom, bridesmaids and groomsmen, but that leaves out the cutest part of a wedding party – the flower girl(s) and ring bearer.  James and I will have 3 flower girls, Emma, Kate and Tess; and 1 ring bearer, Jackson.  They are all siblings and we can’t wait to see them decked out for the wedding.

Once we had decided on colors and bridesmaid dresses, I was able to move on to outfitting my flowers girls and ring bearer.  Emma is the eldest girl at 8 years old and Kate and Tess are 3.  With the age difference, I thought it would be nice to have Emma wear a more “grown up” dress that showcased her head flower girl position.

Luckily, our color scheme of navy blue and pink lends itself to endless options for the flower girl dresses.  I started my search at Nordstrom and found Emma’s dress instantly, a gauzy white dress with a pink bow and pink petals.  For Kate and Tess, I found a pretty pink dress with an empire waist and a full skirt.

Not to be outdone by the girls, Jackson will also turn heads at the wedding.  For a cute ring bearer I love the idea of a bowtie like the one below from Brooks Brothers.  Paired with a summer suit like this one from Tom and Drew, he just may steal the show from the girls!

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With the holidays in full swing, the art of gift giving is top of mind.  I am always trying to find new and personal gifts for everyone on my list, wedding party included.  Below are a few of my favorite gifts for newlyweds, wedding party and the soon to be husband.  I hope these ideas help you find inspiration and motivation to finish out your holiday and wedding shopping with a bang!

For the newlyweds: Customized pillow shams with their names and the phrase “Always Kiss Me Goodnight”.  These shams are personalized and bear a great piece of advice for the new husband and wife.   Also for the newlyweds these cute monogrammed salt and pepper shakers brighten up any new home.

Source: Walmart; Pottery Barn

For the bridesmaids:  This sparkly Kate Spade bag can be used for makeup or even as a clutch for a holiday party.  All the sparkles and glitter will definitely make your bridesmaids feel special.

For the groomsmen:  My favorite groomsmen gift are still the custom Nike ID sneakers that my future sister in-law and her husband gifted their guys.  You pick the color, style and can add a message or nickname.

For the husband to be:  Last year white watches were everywhere, this year it is all about the black.  This Michael Kors watch keeps it simple but edgy.  And bonus, you can even snag it from the hubby to wear.

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Custom monograms are a great way to add a personalized theme to your wedding and tie all your elements from the Save the Date through Menus together.

Choosing our monograms was one of my favorite wedding activities to date. Yes, monograms plural because as we learned, there are a few basic guidelines for wedding monograms.  The most important monogram rule we learned, “An engaged couple should never use the married monogram until after the wedding ceremony.”

With that rule noted, our wedding planner suggested we get three variations of a monogram:

1. Our first initials and wedding date:  This monogram can be used on your save the date, web site, invitation and any pre-wedding correspondence.
2. Our first names:  The wedding date isn’t necessary in the monogram used on programs and other day of printed materials.  Most guests will have the date ingrained at that point. Also, the date will most likely appear in the heading of a program or menu.
3. Married Monogram:  This monogram features the last initial and can be used for the reception, thank you cards and other post wedding items.  Depending on what monogram you chose you could use it for stationary, towels and other items for years to come.

Remember, your monogram should reflect the style of your wedding.  Think about what items you may want them printed on cocktail napkins, coasters and make sure the monogram is appropriate for those types of items.  Below are the three monograms we settled on. They were designed by Bellatristics for a very reasonable price and came will all printing and usage rights.   I hope you like them and find inspiration for your own with them.

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Last week I shared some of our great engagement photos and at the same time our save the dates were mailed to wedding guests.  Now that our guests have gotten the first look at the save the dates, I wanted to share them with all of you.

For our save the dates, we knew this would be the one wedding item in which we could include our dog Bruno.  We also knew we wanted to do something a little fun and use one of the great monograms we had designed (more on that next week).

After strategizing with our planner and photographer, we came up with a great concept and decided to go with double-sided post cards.  Above you can see the front and below you can see the back of the final product.  Thus far the responses have been great and more guests have visited our web site.  I hope you all like our save the dates!

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A few weeks ago, I posted about my struggles in finding the perfect engagement photo outfit.  This week, instead of telling you about our amazing engagement photos shot by Jennifer Lust, I am going to let the photos do the talking!