Exquisite Weddings Magazine Spring 2012

May 7

I had several fun projects in the recent issue of Exquisite Weddings Magazine on newsstands now! There are a few real weddings, and some fun photoshoots that I will share with you over the next few days as they all deserve a little more of a story. A few of them are below to start things off. I designed the pink banner on the back of the trolley for the staff photo and some sweet signage for the gorgeous candy table shoot created by Christina from A Sweet Addition – have you seen her candy buffets? They are amazing!

Exquisite Weddings Magazine Spring 2012 cover

Exquisite Weddings Magazine Spring 2012 Staff Photo Banner

A Sweet Addition Candy Buffet Photoshoot Exquisite Weddings Magazine Spring 2012

Giveaway Winner! Yay!

April 2

Congratulations to Sarah G.!! Enjoy your beautiful print! Everyone else get over to Ashlee’s shop and pick up one of your own!!

Inspired Kids Collection Ashlee Proffitt

 

Giveaway! Win an Ashlee Proffitt Design print

March 22

Ashlee Proffitt Design

I am so excited to have my first giveaway offering from my dear friend and fellow designer Ashlee Proffitt. Win one of her gorgeous prints from her Inspired Kids Collection. A meaningful and sweet way to decorate your little one’s room. Each print is marked with a sweet reminder from the Bible about how they are loved, pursued, and valued. A few of her beautiful designs are shown below, but be sure to check out all of here prints in her Etsy store here. And be sure to check out her blog for design tips, recipes, style info and to get a peak at her adorable family (soon to welcome a new baby girl – yay!)

Ashlee Proffitt Design Prints

Ashlee Proffitt Design Prints
These “Big Brother” and “Big Sister” prints are one of my favorites. Such a sweet gift for a little one with a new baby in the house!
Ashlee Proffitt Design Prints

Ashlee Proffitt Design Prints

ENTRY DETAILS
1. Share the link to this blog post on Facebook, twitter or your blog
2. Visit Ashlee’s shop  ashleeproffitt.etsy.com
3. Leave a comment on this blog post with your favorite piece from the Inspired Kids Collection and letting me know that you did the above two things and you’re in the running!

CONTEST DETAILS
1. Contest ends on Friday, March 30th, 2012 at midnight.
2. Winner will be announced on Monday, April 2nd, 2012

Additional Details
• size: 8×10 fine art print
• paper: Highest Quality Paper (Luxe White Paper (300gsm))
• printing: Printed With Archival Inks
• packaging: Packaged in Clear Envelope with Chipboard (for protection against bending)
• shipping: Shipped in Protective Stiff Envelope (for protection against bending)

Additional sizes are available upon requestShe is also offering a coupon code for us! So sweet!
Ashlee Proffitt Design Coupon Code

Honey Love! The 2012 US Grant Wedding Showcase, Love Etc.

March 14

I recently got to work on an amazing collaboration for the US Grant Wedding Showcase. Jen of Jen Likes took her inspiration from here and turned it in to one of the most stunning booths I have seen at a bridal show. Honey Valentine turned into Honey Love which inspired sweet honey favors, honey stick handouts, honeycomb patterns and a plethora of gorgeous details.

Bridal show booth, honey love

The table was filled with gorgeous white and gold details; gold honeycomb netting floating in the vases, gold flatware, bright florals, and gold-leafed paper details. There was a fun and modern photo backdrop made up of small various shaped photos from Shewanders Photography that appeared to be floating behind the table.

Honey tags, paper accordion quotes

I created paper accordion pieces that were placed above each plate to add a pop of color and give each guest a little smile when they read the song lyrics on the piece which are a favorite of the bride and groom. All of the paper pieces were created with hand gold-leafed details – I LOVE the irregularity and textural element that the gold-leaf adds to each piece.

Panel invitation

Gold leafed, panel invitation

The invitation was a three panel piece with a tear off rsvp postcard. It included color coordinated vintage stamps, gold-leafing and a modern mix of honeycomb and chevron patterns.

Panel Invitation, vintage postage stamps

custom LOVE pillows

Gorgeous custom pillows made by Jen Likes

carnation florals

The carnations that Katherine of Root 75 used in the centerpieces were gorgeous! And this sweet pea arrangement below was so fun and whimsical I felt like it was going to get up and walk off the table!

sweet pea florals

US Grant team 2012

Here’s part of the wonderful team (from left) Suzanne & Mike from Shewanders Photography, Courtney from Brightly Designed, Katherine from Root 75 Florals, and Jen from Jen Likes.
Also involved (not pictured) were Audra Rene Studio, Concepts Event Design and Mikolich Family Honey.

Paper inspired by LOVE

February 14

Happy Valentines Day! I am so lucky to spend each day working on projects that are inspired by love. I hope each of you are getting to spend this day with someone special! Here are a few pics of some of our LOVE inspired designs. Enjoy!

Love Sparkles Brightly Designed Invitations

Cake + Ice Cream = LOVE Brightly Designed Signage

Love Quote Tablename Brightly Designed

Paper Flag Straws Brightly Designed

Escort Card Vintage Key Brightly Designed

Brightly Designed Invitations and Stationery

Brightly Designed Invitations

Love Quote Tablenames Brightly Designed

Brightly Designed Wedding Invitations

Brightly Designed Heart Knock Knock Joke

Photo Credits: Shewanders Photography (1-3, 8-11 and 13), True Photography (4), Hugh Forte (5 and 12), Boucher Photography (7), Trever Hoehne (14), This Modern Romance (6)

Ella’s Third Birthday Party

February 8

This past month Ella turned three! I don’t know where time has gone, she’s growing up too fast. Ella is all girl and wants to wear dresses every day, but she loves bugs. Not just butterflies; but crickets, beetles, roly-polies and just about anything with eight legs. We decided to throw her a girly bug party full of paper flowers, dragonflies, flower balloons and even a bug hunt!
Invitation
The invitation was a fun mix of googly eyed bugs, teeny tiny text and a homemade magnifying glass so the guests could actually read the information.
paper flowers, third birthday, butterflies
cake banners, butterfly and ladybug cakes
I decorated the cakes with paper banners, coiled moss, paper flowers and bugs. The chocolate and vanilla cakes were from VG Bakery in Cardiff, and they were amazing!
dragonflies, paper flowers
My amazing sister Ashley helped me with the designs and decorations! She made the gorgeous giant paper flowers for the wall and mantle, drew the bugs for the invite and was an expert with the wheatgrass!
grass, bugs, party decor
straw flags, paper cups, food
favor boxes, table decor
We made bug house favor boxes; ladybugs for the girls, ants for the boys. They were filled with bubbles, magnifying glasses, more bugs and candy! I would have loved to send home a little pet with each  child, but I don’t think the parents would have appreciated that!
butterflies, paper flowers
pin the stinger on the bee
The kids had a blast hunting for bugs in the yard, playing pin the stinger on the bee, and bashing into the butterfly piñata!
flower balloons
butterfly piñata
Thank you, thank you, thank you to all who helped me and indulged my crazy ideas for the party. My sister, my husband, my parents all had a big part in the decor, the food, the cleanup and the celebration! And thank you to Miss Suzanne Hansen from Shewanders Photography for snapping some pics!

Happy New Year!

January 17

Courtney, Ella and Dave Scowby

I know I am late! Late to say Happy New Year! Actually really late to even say Merry Christmas. I somehow managed to step away from work a little bit and spend some long overdue time with lots of friends and family during the holidays. Believe me there was still work. Lots of meetings with potential 2012 clients, wrapping up all the loose ends for the year and making plans for all the big things ahead. Every year I struggle with resolutions. I can never narrow it down. I dream big when it comes to change…..sometimes it seems too big. I learned last year that dreams can never be too big. You just have to break them down….baby steps! So I’ve been baby stepping my way into the New Year focusing on finding balance in the way life all comes together. I have a lot of fun projects to share in the next few weeks – Ella turned 3 (I can’t believe it!) and planning her birthday party every year is so much fun. This year was all about bugs! This family photo was taken by the AMAZING Natalie Norton (follow her blog, it will change your life). All in all 2011 was a year of growth, discovery and new found friends…..2012 will be a year of big dreams, family, friendships, and focusing on putting in place all the things I have learned that are necessary to living the life I have imagined. The biggest lesson of all….Slow down! Take it all in! And then jump! (or dance….that is always good for the soul).

Currently Loving : Geninne’s Art Blog

December 5

I can’t tell you how much I love Gennine’s Art Blog. If you haven’t visited it before head over there right now and check out the macrame belt she made this weekend for her pet rock – hilarious and amazingly beautiful! She also recently posted a download of a December calendar screen saver  (see below) – it makes me smile every time I sit down at my computer ! Take a break and get lost in her design for a little bit – not too long though, it is Monday and we’re supposed to be productive right?

December Calendar, Gennine's Art Blog

Vintage Finds : A Tin Sign

November 21

I love vintage finds. If I could  spend every day scouring antique markets I would. On a recent excursion I found this vintage tin sign with a sweet quote handwritten in gold ink across it. I walked past a booth and it caught my eye, but being the end of the day and having bought too many things already I passed. I walked away, but this voice in my head kept telling me I needed to go back and bargain a bit so I could add it to my collection. I am always inspired by pieces that are unique and hand-touched. I always wonder who owned it, who took the time to write that down on that particular piece of metal and where did it hang? Did it hang in a public place where it was seen by people every day and hopefully reminded them of the beauty in the world or did it hang in the kitchen of a family who did there best to live a life that did just that. I love antiques because even if the story is lost along the way the piece inspires us to wonder and imagine and create a new story to share.Metal Sign

The Paper Story : Pretty in Pink

November 11

A photoshoot that is near and dear to my heart was recently featured on The Bride Suite blog and I wanted to shed a little more light on all the prettiness. Suzanne from Shewanders Photography found this amazing pink dress by Claire La Faye and decided we needed to plan a shoot around it. We scoped out the perfect location at the Inn at Rancho Santa Fe and an idea took flight. From the minute I saw the tree I knew I had to fill it with paper. I am a sucker for vintage frames and have quite a few hanging around so they became the focal point for the backdrop. I hand cut words, silhouettes and hearts to “float” in the frames, I loved them so much that they found a home on my mantel for quite some time after the shoot. I also took on the task of designing the table which I must say was a lot of work, but who doesn’t love to shop for pretty things!! I found gorgeous plates and wine glasses at Anthropologie and filled in with more frames and my great-grandmothers silver. Paper played a huge part in the design of the table. I topped the linen with a paper runner and wrapped the vases in gorgeous printed paper to soften things even more. I wanted something dimensional on the plates so I created a scrolled menu and placed it with an antique soup spoon. The invitation was a fun piece that brought in soft stripes and a metallic pocket  with a framed window to showcase a simple heart when the invitation is first removed from the envelope. Topped off with some of my favorite vintage stamps it all added to the “pride and prejudice” feel of the shoot. Also, to add to the fun day, my sister Ashley was a bride for the day (the blonde)! Enjoy the amazing photos and check out more of them at The Bride Suite!

Vendors
Table Design & Paper Goods: Brightly Designed, Photography: Shewanders Photography, Florals: Organic Elements, Chairs and Linens: Concepts Event Design, Dresses: Claire La Faye, Jewelry: Jennifer Rea, Location: The Inn at Rancho Santa Fe, Hair and Makeup: Audra Rene, Hairpieces: Rachel Larraine, Wedding Cake: Cake