Amy Altas: Fall Dessert Bar

The always incredible Amy Atlas has done it again! And this time in a completely different style. The New York City event coordinator is known for her chic dessert bars and for this one she's added a rustic twist! I adore this look for fall...
Check out more photos of this dessert bar at Ritzy Bee Blog and see much more from Amy Atlas on the Amy Atlas blog, Sweet Designs.

House Warming Party For My Sister

My sister and her daughters just moved into an adorable new home and we couldn't resist throwing them a house warming party. 35 of our closest family and friends came to help celebrate. Everyone is thrilled for them and this new beginning, so the party turned out wonderfully!

Here are a few photos of the details...

top, The Dessert Bar: mini petite fours from Confectionately Yours, home made cookies by my neices, blue M&M's to match the party decor, and home made chocolate marshmallows from Whimsy & Spice.
bottom: close-up of the delicious chocolate marshmallows from Whimsy & Spice.

top, left: custom created toothpicks by Kio Kreations.
bottom, left: sushi bar of tuna, miami, & california rolls, maguro sashimi, edamame, and home made Laotian egg rolls.
center: orange ranunculus flowers arranged in a vintage milk glass vase.
top, right: champagne.
bottom, right: tissue poms from Party Poms hung above the sushi bar in varying shades of blue. We also hung purple and pink poms of different sizes in the girls rooms.

Adorable Lavender Sachet Favors:

from Veronica Sun.

Thank you to everyone who came to help us celebrate with Anna and her girls! You made the party perfect for them. We love you all!

More photos from the party are on the Finishing Touch website.

Charles & Leslie are married!

Doctors Charles and Leslie Te were married Saturday evening in a beautiful ceremony at Saint Boniface Catholic Church in Fort Smith, Arkansas. The ceremony was sweet and meaningful, with a full catholic mass and the traditional Filipino veil & cord ceremony. Charles and Leslie are blessed with incredible families and amazing friends who made the evening a true celebration!

Here are just a few photos that I snapped during the evening...

The reception was held at the Parish Hall of Saint Boniface & decorated by the DIY bride & her family and friends.

The wedding cake was a stunning, simple 5 tiered creation. And the awesome groom's Operation cake was created as a tribute to Charles' work as a surgeon! Both cakes were created by Confectionately Yours of Fort Smith, Arkansas.

The stunning table-scapes, created by the bride, consisted of white linens with satin, deep purple table runners. The guests were sent home with a custom bag of truffles that was tucked neatly into the folded napkin on each place. The modern menus stood on the tables along with votive candles to give the entire table a glow. The gorgeous tables were topped with brightly colored arrangements from Williams Florist & Gifts in Van Buren, AR.

A few details...

top, left: the mother's bouquet & custom cocktail napkins.
top, center: gold monogram on the reception door adorned with a burgundy dahlia.
top, right: monogrammed paper bags filled with truffles for the guests.
bottom, left: standing menu
bottom, center: lounge furniture from Festivities in Springdale, Arkansas.
bottom, right: gold lettering to direct guests to the always popular photo booth from Making Memories in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Thank you to all of the Vendors!
Venue: Saint Boniface Catholic Church & Parish Hall, Fort Smith, Arkansas
Photographer: Tricia Hurt, Fort Smith, Arkansas
Caterer: Ambiance Catering, Fort Smith, Arkansas
Bakery: Confectionately Yours, Fort Smith, Arkansas
Florist: Williams Florist & Gifts, Van Buren, Arkansas
DJ: Uncle Sam's Music, Fort Smith, Arkansas
Photo booth: Making Memories, Fayetteville, Arkansas
Rentals: Unforgettables, Fort Smith, Arkansas
Lounge furniture rental: Festivities, Springdale, Arkansas
*any of the above vendors without links do not have websites.

I hope to have professional photos to share within the next month. I will post them as soon as possible!

Congratulations again to Mr. & Mrs. Te! Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your beautiful wedding day. I wish you both a long and happy life together. Have a wonderful honeymoon in Belize. Enjoy the incredible SCUBA diving!

Golden Inspiration from Martha Stewart

This beautiful inspiration board from Martha Stewart Weddings literally took my breath away...Gorgeous! And many elements are great DIY projects (the manzanita branch escort card display & the gold leaf centerpiece). Hope this helps to inspire you for your Gorgeous Golden day!

Vera Wang's Top 10 Colors

The best colors for your bridesmaids straight from the queen of wedding style:
Make your bridesmaids happy - choose a dress they'll love and will wear again! See Vera Wang's full bridesmaid gallery here.

Real Wedding Inspiration from La Partie Events

This beautiful wedding has me completely smitten. I love the flowers La Partie Events chose! The color is sunny, but still natural and is enhanced by the beautiful surrounding fields.

And the vintage feeling of the bride's veil brings it all together!

Everything came together perfectly...Absolutely stunning! To see more photos from this beautiful wedding, check out La Partie Event's blog.

Fashion Week 2009: The Best of the Best Wedding Worthy Styles

These are the best Wedding Worthy looks from all of fashion week...in my humble opinion.

The perfect Little Black Dress for the wedding guest:

left: Chado Ralph Rucci
right: United Bamboo

Chic court house ceremony dresses:

left: J. Mendel
right: Christina Cota

Stunningly short wedding dress:

Badgley Mischka

Beautiful bridesmaid dresses:

left: Badgley Mischka
left, center: J. Mendel
right, center: Badgley Mischka
right: Monique Lhuillier

Brightest less known designer:

Naeem Khan

Best ball gown (& my absolute favorite look from fashion week):

Marchesa

all images via style.com

This is the last of the fashion week posts....until 2010...

Natural Wedding Elements

This beautiful post from Southern Weddings has me smitten. I love an outdoor wedding and I adore a wedding that draws on its surroundings, so this is absolutely perfect! Check out these incredible wooden and nature inspired elements for your wedding:
Get the scoop on all of these details at Southern Weddings Blog.

And here are a few of my favorite nature inspired Etsy finds:

top, left: Set of 3 Tea Light Holders, Made in the HV, $19.00
top, right: Wedding Guest Book Box, Cut the Cake Designs, $35.00
bottom, left: 14" Tree Trunk Cake Stand, Jesse Dirk, $40.00
*available up to 22" diameter
bottom, right: Rustic Log Vase, Made in the HV, $21.00

Hope you've enjoyed this nature inspired post! These details are perfect for any free spirit or eco friendly bride and groom out there.

Have a great weekend everyone!

More Fashion Week Favorites: The Best of the Best

All of these collections make me weak in the knees! I absolutely adore each and every one of them...

The classic designs of Halston:
Cutting edge gowns from Marchesa:
Ethereal Dresses by J. Mendel:And the always Glamorous, Oscar de la Renta:

More Fashion Week Favorites

Some more stunning finds from New York Fashion Week:

Glamorous Gowns...

top, left: Reem Acra
top, right: BCBG Max Azria
bottom, left: Halston
bottom, right: J. Mendel

Beautiful Bridesmaid Dresses...

entire top row: Cynthia Rowley
2nd row, left: Elie Tahari
2nd row, center: J. Mendel
2nd row, right: Luca Luca
bottom, left: Luca Luca
bottom, center: Erin Featherston
bottom, right: Oscar de la Renta

Long Bridesmaid Looks...

top, left: Reem Acra
top, center: Luca Luca
top, right: Monique Lhuillier
bottom, left: J. Mendel
bottom, center: Halston
bottom, right: Monique Lhuillier

Short and Sweet...

top, left: Reem Acra
top, left center: Michael Kors
top, right center: Vera Wang
top, right: Lela Rose
bottom, left: Michael Kors
bottom, center: Luca Luca
bottom, right: Halston

Gorgeous Guests...

top, left: Tory Burch

top, center: Michael Kors
top, right: Tory Burch
2nd row, left: Maria Pinto
2nd row, center: 3.1 Phillip Lim
2nd row, right: Carolina Herrera
bottom, left: Reem Acra
bottom, center: Carolina Herrera
bottom, right: Erin Featherston

Next Up...The Best of the Best

Anne Barge Trunk Show: Rogers, Arkansas

For all the brides out there who are still looking for that perfect wedding gown, She Said Yes in Rogers, Arkansas is having an Anne Barge Trunk Show on September 25th and 26th. Anne Barge creates beautiful gowns that are perfect for any style: from soft, ethereal draping, to structured ball gowns. There's something for everyone!
Stop by She Said Yes next weekend to find your perfect gown!

Paper Suite for Housewarming Party

I had some toothpick flags made for a Housewarming Party I am throwing for my sister and her girls. They say "Welcome to Our Home" and our absolutely the cutest things ever. After I received them and fell in LOVE, I decided to make a matching paper suite of food labels, thank you signs, etc. I'm crazy about how they turned out....
I will post better photos of them set up for the party in 2 weeks! They'll look absolutely fabulous in her new, beautiful home.

Vineyard Inspiration...

I created this inspiration board out of curiosity! My sister lives in Napa Valley and I'm dying for her to get engaged so that we can plan a gorgeous, nature inspired wedding at a vineyard in Napa. Here's my inspiration for that day...
I didn't want to go to literal with the colors, using deep Merlot and Champagne. Instead, I chose a green, ivory, and brown color scheme with touches of yellow thrown in. And it is perfect for the vineyard setting! The use of natural elements such as the moss, wheat, and wood tables left uncovered bring in the nature of the vineyard. Adding elegant vintage touches such as the chandeliers in the trees, silhouette portraits, and vintage skeleton keys as favors are the perfect twist to this gorgeous wedding.

Brooke: Get engaged already!

Ice Cream Parlor Deliciousness!

I adore this ice cream parlor created by Eat Drink Chic of Melbourne, Australia! It is adorable enough for a child's birthday party and chic enough for a wedding. Who doesn't love ice cream? Your guests will be thrilled!

top, left: Sundae toppings in wooden boxes.
top, right: Pink and yellow ice cream spoons from Spotlight.
bottom, left: Plain paper cup, covered with argyle printed paper. Download template here. Eat Drink Chic has also given us their striped template that coordinates with this one. Click here for the striped template.
bottom, right: The cherry on top is displayed in a chic, modern way.

There's much more information regarding this adorable Sundae stand on Eat Drink Chic's blog - from label templates to links for purchasing the different items and much, much more!

State Fair Engagement by Benfield Photography

Dale & Meredith of Benfield Photography have just posted a fabulous new engagement session on their blog! This couple chose the State Fair as their location and what an amazing result...The colors are incredible and the fair lends itself to such a fun vibe throughout. I'm in love!!
Check out the Benfield Photography blog for more from this session and much much more.

Real Wedding from Paul Johnson Photography

This stunning wedding on the beach in Carillon Beach, Florida is utterly beautiful!
As always, I adore the work of Paul and Mecheal Johnson and I cannot get enough of their stunning photographs. See more of this wedding on their blog.

Amy Atlas' delicous desserts!

Amy Atlas is always inspiring! She created this incredible Missoni inspired desert table for InStyle weddings.Gorgeous as always!

Decadent Desserts...

This couple from Tennesse had an incredibly elaborate dessert bar at their wedding that is to die for! The dessert bar by Abner's Attic of Knoxville, Tennessee, consisted of 8 different desserts ranging from casual, comfort food to elaborate desserts.

top, left: Parfaits with fresh fruit
top, right: Cookies and milk
*I have used cookies and milk as the centerpiece for a kid's table. Absolutely adorable!
2nd row, left: Doughnut tower
2nd row, right: Tiramisu
3rd row, left: Creme brulee
3rd row, right: Banana pudding
4th row, left: Rocky road ice cream
4th row, right: White chocolate mousse with pirouettes.

The key to pulling of this look is to make sure everything you serve is displayed in individual servings. Putting out a huge bowl of banana pudding isn't nearly as chic as these tiny shot glasses filled with the same dessert. Presentation is the key!

Calling all Little Rock Brides....

Are you looking for a unique, modern venue for your wedding reception? The Clinton Presidential Library is absolutely incredible! Imagine dancing the night away with your closest family and friends in a museum overlooking the Arkansas River...it doesn't get much better than this:
Check out more of this beautiful wedding from Hudson Photography.