When was the last time you sent someone a surprise bouquet of flowers? How about the last time you received one? “Sending someone flowers” is written off by many these days as cliche’ and unoriginal. Steer clear of a dozen long stems and you’re golden! Studio Choo delivers some of the Cutest Floral Arrangements I’ve Ever Seen! If you’re not in the mood to shell out for the real thing, or if you want to give the gift of an everlasting bloom, consider giving Paper Flowers (Super-chic. Don’t laugh). And if you’re in the crafty mood, bust out a Paper Flower How-To Book and make a romantic personalized bouquet for your loved one.

For the paper flower Single Rose Gift Box (above) or a bouquet of paper roses, visit zoebradley.com.

My summer theme song by Sam Sparro, titled “Black and Gold,” inspired me to create some style guides that are sure to have you looking like the chic-est beauty at the beach this year. ‘Black and gold’ is very old-school gaudy glam and of course my motto for wearing it is, “go big or go home.” I love the look of black and gold swimwear paired with huge chunky jewelry to match. It’s over the top, but it works. (Hey, atleast I’m not suggesting that you finish off the look with some gold lame’ stilettos for your next game of beach volleyball!) The suits are sexy and the jewelry’s affordable, so be sure to check out both lists of products for a new sexy look for this season. My fave: gold cuff bracelets on each wrist. Hottt!

Suit: Black by Despi 2009
Cuff: Dereon Mini Fleur de Lis Leather Cuff

Blame it on Carrie Bradshaw for wearing a bird on her head in the Sex in the City Movie. Feathers are totally here to stay. I’m on the hunt for the perfect feathery fascinator to complete my wedding day ensemble. My dress is a simple, 50’s style party dress and my vision is to have a fabtacular head piece to compliment it.  Here are a few of my picks:

The Jenny Fascinator:

The Sarah Fascinator

Check out more Feathers!!! and also some veil alternative ideas at The Un-Veil

A friend of mine just sent out some clever save the date cards for her wedding in November. She and her fiancé used San Francisco postcards and had a stamp made that included their wedding date and website.  I thought it was a great idea and probably a good money saver! She submitted this pic to Daily Candy’s DIY project and won tickets to this weekend’s Maker Faire in San Mateo.

Check out some more Save the Date Cards

A great way to really personalize your wedding invitations is to create a font with your own handwriting. Even if you have your perfect invites already picked out in that fancy script font you’ve always dreamed of, this would be a great idea for just your envelopes to add a little personal touch to them.

There are multiple websites where you can do this, but I just found a really cute one that just launched in April of 2009 called Fonts in Bloom. The process is really easy. You simply download their template that includes all of the necessary characters (upper and lower case as well as symbols) and then scan it and send it to them. They create a custom font for you to use in any program you choose.

Here are some sample fonts:

Check out some of my letterpress wedding invitation picks!

Having just created my own registry, and making an ongoing list of possible registry items over the past few weeks, I thought that I’d go through and pick out some registry necessities. Even if you feel like you have everything, you have to remember, now is the time to go for things that you may not normally splurge on for yourselves.

Bed and Bath
Frette linens have the splurge department covered- they are by far the most amazing bed linens I’ve ever slept on. Their famous Frette Hotel Collection is 100% Egyptian cotton, 200 thread count and comes in classic styles. Frette also makes amazing towels in 100% thick and absorbent Turkish cotton.  With your new towels, spice up your bathroom experience with the Yuzu Jasmine Hand Soap and Lotion duo. If you decide to go with Frette linens, you may want to add a little pattern to your bedroom with a graphic patterned Marimekko Lehtimaja duvet cover available at Crate and Barrel. They also have complete matching sets if you want to get pillow shams and sheets.

Kitchen
I am a firm believer in spending a little more for quality kitchen ware. Most quality stainless steel kitchen goods will last nearly a lifetime and you’ll find that they actually make cooking easier. You’ll never regret having a good All-Clad stainless steel, heavy-bottom sauce pan or saute pan- it’s amazing heat conductivity will insure consistent heat disbursement, saving you from charred sauces and the like. A good set of Shun Knives, if sharpened regularly, will last forever. And for the baker in the household, a KitchenAid Mixer will always come in handy. There are so many different attachments for the mixer- you can do anything from making fresh pasta to crushing ice. Don’t forget the NordicWare Bundt Pan. Everyone needs to be able to make bundt cake!

Dining and Entertainment
All entertainers should have some crystal wine glasses on hand. Even if you keep them boxed up for special occasions, they are good to have. My favorite glasses are made by Riedel and come in a set of two. You’ll also need to have a crystal decanter like the one from Schott Zweisel. Crate and Barrel’s Cove Dinnerware and accessories (like the Cove Pitcher), although simple in white or blue, will ensure a sophisticated dining experience while letting the food speak for itself.  To dress up your table top a little more while keeping it simple, grab some interesting tea-light holders like the Pixie Candleholder and the Chilewich Bamboo Placemats that come in a variety of colors and shapes and clean up really easily.

I found most of my these registry must haves at Macy’s, Crate and Barrel, Sur La Table and Williams-Sonoma, but there are a ton of great places out there create a gift registry. Drop me a line if you have any must-haves that I’ve missed!

We just created our wedding registry on Kazowie and we both found it to be incredibly easy. We were able to compile items from 3 different stores (Williams-Sonoma, Crate and Barrel and Sur La Table) into one registry, which means that our options are endless- we could choose as many stores as we want! When adding items to a Kazowie wedding registry, I found that all of the regular registry functions are available, like adding quantities for items, but you can also upload your own picture and edit the product’s description and name. I’m happy to be able to have just one web address to inform guests of where gifts can be found and it’s super easy for us to manage. Check it out: Sally and George’s Wedding Registry

With my wedding quickly approaching (where does time actually go?) I’ve begun the long and stressful process of coming up with the overall style of the wedding. Actually, I’ve known for a long time what the style was, the problem is focusing in on the details and bringing the vision to reality. In my search for the ideal reception table centerpieces, I’ve recently come to this important conclusion:

#1- Simpler is better

#2- Nobody is going to remember your centerpiece a year after your wedding.

Of the many (many) weddings that I’ve attended, I can’t remember what one centerpiece looked like. Except for a vague rememberance of a wedding where the centerpiece was so gigantic that no one could see anyone else sitting at the table except the people to there immediate left and right.  Definitely not a good idea if you want your guests to socialize.

I’ve decided that I’m a huge fan of the simple, minimal centerpieces with a single flower-type like these:

The one with the Lilies of the Valley on the left is from Pottery Barn. This is by far my favorite of the three. Simple and elegant, with the stalks of the flower adding some fresh greenery to the table. The tall vase (although a little spendy) can be found at Amazon and is another great example of simple yet interesting. The low bud vases from The Bridal People are something that anyone could whip up themselves and save money (at around $6 each)- just pick up a few dozen of your favorite flower and place the buds in the vase. So pretty!

Check out some more  Wedding Centerpieces- Square and Rectangular Vases and be sure to stay tuned for for more from my Wedding Series!

Disney-Pixar’s Up is less than a month away from premiering (May 29th in Disney Digital 3-D)! If you liked Monster’s Inc., brace yourself: Up is directed by the same guy, Pete Docter. I have a feeling it’s going to be absolutely hilarious and completely darling. How could it not be? Duh, I’m obsessed with the characters already and, as you know, I’m always looking for an excuse to dress up. If you’re like me and/or you’re just super-excited for a new Pixar movie, you should check out my Dress Like Carl Fredricksen from Disney-Pixar’s UP shopping guide. This outfit’s great for opening night at the movies, Halloween, a Pixar theme party, or just for fun. Obviously, the main character is MALE, but the products in my guide are all women’s apparel and accessories (i.e. a pre-tied bow tie). It’s really cute, you’ll see.

See my other “Dress Like” guides at the links below. There’s definitely going to be more of these in the future! If you have any ideas for a fun character dress-up, let me know and I’ll shop for you!

Dress Like Coraline

Tim Burton-Esque

Robin Hood-Esque Fashion for Women

I must admit that the idea of his and hers gifts is a little over the top, but they can be perfect for getting a good laugh at a wedding shower. Take for example, The Personalized Interlocking Initial Ceramic Mugs. Funny. Ha. Ha. Not necesarily something that a couple will cherish throughout their days together. Even the pic is cheesy.

I would go for something more along the lines of this His and Hers Lipstick and Moustache Coffee Mugs. Cute and quirky.

There’s also the option of having lifesized scales of the wedded couple-to-be made out of Legos by artist Nathan Sawaya.  All you do is send the artist detailed photos and measurements and he’ll go to town.

Check out some more quirky and fun His & Her’s gifts!