Today’s Real Wedding features Amy & Dimiter. Amy & Dimiter were married in August at the Testarossa Vineyards in Los Gatos, California. Amy also works at our favorite wedding favor retailer, Beau-Coup.
Amy & Dimiter
August 2008
To submit a wedding for the Real Weddings feature, send photos and an event description to blog@weddingpaperdivas.com.
Looking for special gifts to give your wonderful wedding party? Check out Ponko, a unique online shop that gives you access to tons of handmade gifts AND the opportunity to send requests directly to a designer! It’s your chance to turn your signature wedding flowers into a gorgeous pendant for bridesmaid necklaces, or to design cuff links for your groomsmen yourself.
This blend of technology and style is the perfect way to infuse your own creative spark into gifts for everyone who will make your big day a huge success, but there are plenty of ready-to-buy gift ideas on the site as well if you are too pressed for time to make a special order. Check out this darling dragonfly necklace, this modern fan (perfect for outdoor weddings!) and a cool “zen” puzzle (to help your friends focus on the morning of your nuptials).
Celebrities don stunning jewelry, fancy hairstyles and drop dead gorgeous gowns on the red carpet as if they were getting married. Why not steal their hairdos to look fabulous on your big day?
Up-dos: Eva Mendes’ messy up-do adds effortless, carefree style and romance to your wedding day (About.com). Kelly Ripa’s do is flawlessly styled and perfect for a formal evening (InStyle). Anne Hathaway’s braided updo is a style trend that will transform your locks into hair heaven (InStyle).
Lovely Locks: Let your hair down with these beautiful hair trends! Selma Blair’s sleek style is great for gals with short hair (People). Blake Lively’s long, wavy hair with intertwining braids looks beautiful and is perfect for a beach wedding (InStyle). Romance is alive in Fergie’s loose and gorgeous curls (People).
If you are anything like me, a lot changes when you get engaged. You and your fiancee are no longer just “dating”–suddenly, you are en route to not only being your own family, but to joining both of your families together as one. While it’s always great to expand your circle, it can also pose problems and force you to make decisions you’ve never even considered before.
One of the biggest issues comes up during the holidays. Whether you are engaged or newly married, this is a tricky time for most couples, and can become even more problematic if you or your families live in different states. You are used to your family traditions, and your fiancee, his. In addition, both sets of parents and siblings will most likely vie for your attention during the holidays. To top it all off, you probably want to have a more personal holiday with your future husband or wife-to-be, but with all of the back-and-forth between families, you will find little time for that.
If you live out of state, a whole new set of problems emerges. Which family do you stay with? If your families live in different states, who do you visit for each holiday? How do you achieve the privacy you’d like for Christmas if you are guests of one of your families?
There are the obvious solutions–alternating holidays between families, having an early Christmas of your own together, getting a hotel room instead of staying with one of your families, or staying at each parents’ house for half of your trip–but these don’t always work for every couple.
The bottom line is that you need to do what works for you. Eventually, you will have kids of your own and will develop your own traditions. Perhaps the best solution is one that we at Wedding Paper Divas can help you with–invite both sides of the family to YOUR house for a holiday celebration. That way, you’re in control of the who, what, when and where, and everyone gets what they want! To host your own holiday extravaganza, check out our Holiday Collection preview on parent-site Tiny Prints, like this Holiday martini Invitation:
So, you tell us: What is the best solution for you and your honey? How do you stay sane while balancing the demands of both families?
I love the energy that good groomsmen bring to a wedding celebration! From demanding that they all wear kilts to putting on impressive performances like this one, groomsmen always seem to be adding a lot of charm and style to weddings. Forward this video to the groomsmen for your upcoming ceremony as a source of inspiration for their wild wedding antics!
Outfitting your wedding with gorgeous centerpieces can bite a huge chunk out of your budget, but it doesn’t have to. DIY centerpieces are not nearly as hard as they might sound, and you can usually produce something beautiful on a small budget.
One of the easiest and cheapest ways to do centerpieces is to purchase curly willow or even long, tall branches. If you live in a wooded area, you can gather your OWN branches, leaves, pine cones, etc. Once you have enough, take some silver or white spray paint and cover all of the branches and leaves, then arrange them in vases. Too add some extra glamour, glue or hang small crystals from the branches, and arrange tea light candles around the base of the arrangement.
As another option, you can forgo the spray painting and just use bare branches, but drop a few flowers in for some color, as shown in the photo below. Gorgeous!
1. Pottery Barn just introduced its luggage collection, and I’m so excited! Check out their new stylish collection.
2. If you have trouble sleeping in new places, check out the new alarm clock everyone’s talking about. Brookstone’s Travel Tranquil Moments alarm clock is a clock, sound machine and voice memo recorder all in a compact style so that you can take with you where ever you go.
3. Tired of all those distorted, squished photos of the two of you? Bring along the Gorillapod so you won’t have to worry about who’s going to take your picture. Just attached your camera to this funny looking but useful tripod. (L.L. Bean, $22)
4. Planning on bringing home a ton of gifts for friends and family? These chic, reusable shopping bags fold up into a tiny little pouch that’s great for packing them up and taking them out to fill with all those great gifts!
Traditional wisdom dictates that no matter how casual a wedding may be, there are certain categories of clothing guests should NEVER wear. This timeless list of banned items includes white (for men AND women), shorts, super high heels (especially for outdoor weddings), bathing suits and anything sparkly (no one wants to outshine the bride–literally!).
And yet, in the modern age of underwater weddings, zoo weddings and weddings atop the wings of flying planes, does this classic fashion advice still stand? What do you think? If someone showed up to your beach wedding in a bikini, a pair of shorts or a slinky, sequin dress, would it make you want to rant or rave?
As if dessert tables weren’t already scrumptious enough, New York-based event planner Amy Atlas has turned the act of arranging sweets into a true art form. One of our own stylish Wedding Paper Divas staffers found her website while searching for design inspiration, and all of us in the office have been oohing and aahing over her work ever since!
If you aren’t lucky enough to live in the New York area, check out Amy’s website to glean some inspiration from her spectacular photos. The next time you have a bridal shower, birthday party or other big event to plan, stick with one primary color scheme and arrange your desserts in varying layers to approximate Amy’s super chic look.
I recently came across a great art studio called Figment Studio. Artist Kristine Baelin, owner of Figment Studio, uses her unique style to hand paint any photo or portrait in to a piece of contemporary pop art. This is a great idea for couples looking for a fun and interesting way to feature your wedding portrait in your home.
Figment Studio can either hand-paint your piece from scratch or provide you with a gallery quality digital print. For more information on Figment studio, email Kristine at portraits at figmentstudio dot com. And for ideas on using Figment Studio for family portraits, see our post on our sister blog Tiny Talk.
