Guest book ideas

It is nice to have a guest book, somewhere for your friends and family to write you special messages and draw funny pictures. Where though is it written that it has to be a book?









I bought some card before our engagement party with the idea of making a guest book, I could not find the inspiration to finish what I wanted. I might have to put some more thought into it for the wedding and see what I can come up with!

Thank you to Martha Stewart Weddings 1, 2, 3 and
4

Yellow shoes!

I really do love shoes that pop! You expect conservatively coloured shoes and then "Wham!", they hit you. These yellow shoes especially are brought out by the large yellow balloons in the background. The bride's dress too is short enough that the shoes are a statement, unlike some of the more conservatives who cover their shoes with a long dress.

via Ruffled

The gift that keeps on giving

I do like the idea of bomboniere that is either useful or easily eaten! It makes it so much simpler. I love the concept of a small plant, and these can be grown at home for the cost of the pots and potting mix and a few packets of seeds, ore even cuttings! My choice would be for something edible, such as the herbs as shown or a tomato seedling.

This gift would not suit everyone however, and you would also need to consider how they would take the plant home! Another option would be to gift the seeds in lieu of the plant, and such a gift could easily be put into a pocket or purse at the end of the celebration and planted at the guest's convenience.



Images from Martha Stewart Weddings

Bridesmaid style

This is the concept for bridesmaid dresses that I am hoping to achieve. In this instance the dresses are tied together by the same colour and possibly fabric, and the matching sashes made from Japanese fabric. The dress styles have been selected to suit each bridesmaid, not so much so that they are all the same!

Image via Polkadot Bride

Still more shoes!

Image 1, 2 and 3 via The Bride's Cafe

Briesmaid accessories

One idea for a gift for bridesmaids that I quite like is for a clutch purse, coordinated with their outfit. Sydney artist rejenerate offers custom made clutches from a selection of vintage fabrics.

I love these two sets above - the purses match and at the same time each girl can have her own style.

Photos from rejenerate's Etsy store

Poms!

These beautiful poms are from Oregon artist PomLove. A whole Etsy shop devoted to the sale of these wispy wonders of tissue paper. Perfect as a decoration for your ceremony or reception, you can pick your colour combination from the eighty or so listed.

If you need any more convincing on the practicality of these items, according to the Shop Policies "my colored tissue papers are made from 100% post industrial recycled material and my white tissue paper is made from 100% post consumer recycled fibers. my cello bags are 100% biodegradable and/or compostable. i buy all of my embellishments from sellers on etsy, who make them with found/vintage materials."

Awesome!

Photos from PomLove's Etsy store

Unpredictable weather

There were forecasts of thunderstorms today. I did not take them to seriously considering last week there were also forecasts of a thunderstorm and all that happened was that it got really humid.

Ha! Little did I know...

This afternoon I left the office around 5pm, just before the skies opened up. I was trying to head down to the Novotel-Langley where C and his crew were. The rain got pretty heavy fairly quickly and I ended up taking refuge behind a bus shelter. Everyone else stood on the road side, I preferred the other side to the buses - every time they drove through they would drench the shelter! By the time C and B picked me up from the bustop about 15 minutes later I was drenched and cold. I could even pour water out of my shoes!! B dropped us home but of course traffic was pretty congested and it took a while!

Luckily we were in a 4WD (work vehicle) so the engine was better designed to cope with driving through water!

As we were driving along Riverside Drive we realised that we could not see any light in across the river in South Perth. As we drove down the freeway Chad actually called out of the window to one bloke who was on his balcony and asked if he had power. He said no, as did a couple of other blokes along Labouchere Road that he quizzed.

When we got home one of my neighbours told me that their skylights had been smashed. Since our units are pretty much identical she told me to expect the same. And they were! There was water down the bottom of the stairs and also in the ensuite. All four of us with the similar floor plans have two smashed skylights, and a couple of neighbours have casualties in the shape of windows.



As it darkened we scrounged torches and candles and placed them strategically around the house. I tried to create ambience with a plate full of tea lights but it just wasn't happening! Thankfully our stove top and hot water system are gas, so we could cook food and warm ourselves up in the shower. Power was restored around 9pm.

In the light of tomorrow we shall see what the damage is. We have two holes open to the skies and we have placed a large tub under one to catch the water. The other one is in the ensuite and should flow into the drain.

More info in news reports from the ABC and The West Australian.

More news:
Mopping Up,
Damage
more Damage,
Landslide,
more Landslide

Photo of Storm damage in Rokeby Road, Subiaco. Accredited to Clarissa Phillips, on The West Australian

Edible favours

Gingerbread sweet treats made locally here in Perth by The Gifted Gourmet. The cookies are gingerbread (yum!) and come individually packaged.

Photos from The Gifted Gourmet Etsy Store

Destination: Honeymoon V

(See Destination: Honeymoon I, II, III and IV)

One place that I would love to take C to is Italy. It is such a beautiful country, with many different and wonderful things to see and do. The food is so fresh and tasty. Even the flavour and the texture of the pasta that you buy in the supermarket is incredible. The breads are yummy and the gelato is fantastic.

In amongst the eating, we could check out one of their famous sporting venues...


...before taking in the view of the Firenze skyline...


..and top it off with a stay in the Cinque Terre region.


The last photo periodically makes an appearance as the background on my computer at work. It reminds me that I once went on holiday... it also reminds me that another long break would not go astray!

Real flowers!

I do not think that I have actually posted any photos of real flowers as inspiration, until now! I love the deep purple colour and I like this flower too, although I think it is normally white petal with yellow stamen.


Katy Gray Photography via The Bride's Cafe

How to keep your hands occupied...!

I am quite taken with the idea of an alternative to fresh flowers. Fresh flowers are very pretty but they have a limited shelf life and it might be nice to have a memento that you can keep.

My sister suggested sewing pcckets into the bridesmaid dresses if they do not have flowers. I do not think that I would go that far! There has to be something interesting and a bit quirky out there...



Brookelyn Photography via The Brides Cafe


Electic Images Photography via The UnBride


via Polkadot Bride


via Real Wedding Ideas

Guest favour packaging

I personally prefer the concept of a paper bag to present your bomboniere, especially if it is made from recycled paper! Something sustainable as I am sure that most of the packaging will be quickly thrown away.

Taking that even further, the gift of a cloth bag as the favour is definitely a positive statement for sustainability.


Image from Lovelorn Unicorn


Image from Polkadot Bride


Image from Polkadot Bride

A start...

My three bridesmaids came over for lunch today. I had originally thought it to be a brainstorming session, but I did not organise well for C to be away so it was crashed by the groom! We only have one living space so the background to our lunch was the V8 Supercars on TV! It was too warm today to be outside comfortably.

Anyway, the plan is to set out on our first adventure in April. Bring it on!
(First adventure = bridesmaid dress shopping. Woohoo!!)

Image found here

Fabulous Hen!

My friend MP is getting married soon and last night was her hen's night. It was hosted by her sister SP at her place just around the corner from the Brisbane Hotel.

We were fed lovely breads and dips and salads and meats and fruit and sweets until we were full, and the we headed to the Brisbane for some more entertainment!

Three sisters.

E, MP and J

Hen and friends!

MP, me and AB

Sisters MM and JR


Thanks for the party!

Quirky invitation idea!

These RSVP cards had a blank conversation bubble for the response. There were some creative alternatives to the traditional "Yes, we will be attending"!

Image via Martha Stewart Weddings

Cane toad advance

The ABC has reported that cane toads have made it to Kununurra.

The cane toads were introduced into Queensland in the 1930s to help control the cane beetle, but soon became a pest to all of the native fauna. They are toxic when eaten by our local animals, and they have no natural predators here to keep their numbers under control.

They have been slowly making their way across our country.

People across the north of Australia have been working hard to try and stem the tide, but the toads appear to be unstoppable.

So frustrating!

Words from Wikipedia on the subject.

Photo from here

Wedding card

Here is an image of the card that I bought for the happy couple for the wedding just gone! It is by local Perth designer Mokoh Design. We also purchased cards to send as thank yous for our engagement from Mokoh.

Mokoh have also released a whole range of new designs and I cannot wait for another excuse to buy them!

Image is from Mokoh however does not do the actual card justice!

Wedding stamps

Following on from yesterday's post, I wanted to share the wedding stamps here in Australia.

Actually there are only two, as part of a series of stamps for every occasion. The series includes Baby, Love, Romance, Party and Celebrate! The pictures above show the covers of the booklets of 10, the designs are used on the stamps.

I bought a few booklets of the 55c stamps for our invitations, obviously believing two things:
1. We would design lightweight invitations, and
2. The ACCC will not approve the increase in price of postage as proposed by Australia Post.

Images from Australia Post Stamps and Collectibles

Invitations - the finishing touches

BetsyWhite Stationery have posted advice on how to assemble your wedding invitations. This is the part that happens once all of the swirls are inked and all of the ribbon is stuck down. Useful tips include how to stack your papers and insert them into the envelopes, how to address your invitations and finding the right stamps!

Invite Assembly: Part 1 Stuffing the Envelopes

Invite Assembly: Part 2 Stuffing the Envelopes: Square and Tea-Length Sizes

Invite Assembly: Part 3 Methods of addressing

Invite Assembly: Part 4 Finding the Perfect Postage

Inspiration:Wedding

C and I went down to Dunsborough this weekend for the wedding of his friends M&R. The wedding was held at the lovely Clairault Winery! It was an awesome venue, the ceremony was performed on the lawn outside and the reception was in their restaurant. There was decking outside and that was set up as the dance floor.

The whole evening was nice and relaxed and casual, and a real celebration of M&R's love. Thank you for the great party!

Mr & Mrs A! The bride's dress was a simple and elegant Alex Perry gown; I did not get a particularly good shot of it but it seemed to be lovely layers of chiffon.

There was a violin and cello duo for the ceremony music; they also provided background music for the canapes as well. The entertainment once the meal was over was a one man band! Check out his dual didgeridoos.

The table runner was funky wallpaper. They used chunky square vases for the decorations, with either a fat vanilla scented candle or simple white rosebuds. The decor was very elegant.

Random end of the night photograph. The lanterns were on the high tables outside on the decking.


Apologies for the lack of interesting photographs, my shots were a bit random and I hoping to upgrade to a camera that will take better photos at night without a flash!

Secret Valley

I had a random moment at work the other day, remembering the children's show Secret Valley we used to watch.

I couldn't really remember much of it apart from gum trees, mountains, blue sky, and parts of the theme.

The theme song was sung to the tune of Waltzing Matilda, and I was doing my best to remember the words. Thank goodness for Wikipedia!

I had dream I could ride across the mountaintops
Ride on the waves where the sea turns blue
Gum trees, gum trees rise until they touch the sky
I know a place where it all comes true

Chorus:
I know a valley, I know a valley
My Secret Valley the world has to see
One place for children, welcome from around the world
Please come and share Secret Valley with me

Paris, London, Montreal and Amsterdam
So many friends that we want to know
From the hills of Spain to the city streets of Germany
I know a place where we all can go

Repeat chorus

Image from here

More pretty shoes!

Photo by Studio Nouveau via Ruffled Blog


Photo by Every Day You Photography via Emmaline Bride


Photo via Polkadot Bride

...third exotic location

Initially I was told that my third option for an exotic location was Maccas (or MacDonalds for those people not used to Aussie slang) however this morning Thailand was offered as my third option.

I wonder where Monday will bring!

Image from here

What colours should I pick?

I took the Martha Stewart Quiz: What Colour Palette Should You Choose For Your Wedding? to advise me what colours I should pick for my wedding. The outcome from the quiz is as follows:

You are undoubtedly Bold

Your personality and your color choices in day-to-day life are bold and vibrant, so your wedding color palette should be no different. Use lots of colors that show off your bold and passionate personality.

Try These Color Palettes for Inspiration:

Aqua and Red


Marigold and Pewter


Emerald and Aqua


All images from Martha Stewart Weddings