We're Featured: Jennifer and JC's Wedding

I'm skipping out to a wedding rehearsal now, but I just had to share my excitement before I go. The newest issue (Summer 2009) of Martha Stewart Weddings magazine just came out and one of our weddings is featured on p.72!! I am so honored to be featured with some of my FAVORITE people in the industry--Nancy Liu Chin, Good on Paper, Paula Le Duc, Gloria Wong, Gertrude and Mabel, and the lovely Tara Guerard of Soiree in Charleston, South Carolina. I adore them all!

Oh, and Paloma's Nest on Etsy, whom I just blogged about earlier this week, is also featured in this issue of MS! Way to go!

Custom Tiny Text Bowls by Paloma's Nest

Don't you just love the internet? It give us SO MUCH eye candy without us ever having to leave our computers. It can also be a little dangerous for your bank account if you don't have some self control.

My new love is with Etsy, the online marketplace for all things handmade. There are so much treasures to be found on this site everyday!!

I found these little custom white ceramic bowls that are simply fabulous! The best part is that you can put custom wording on the bowl!

What can you use them for? It's a great alternative to the traditional ring pillow. If you're giving your bridesmaids jewelry, what a neat way to present it to them in this cute little bowl!

Around the World

So many of my clients these days are well traveled, and we often incorporate parts of that into the wedding. For Emily and Danny's wedding, their tables were named after airport codes. For Jenny and Jacob's wedding, we had luggage tags hung on each chair with the guests' names on them. For Mina and Jeremy's wedding, the invitations were designed to replicate a passport.

I recently found another cute way to incorporate a travel, or destination, element into a wedding. Check out these vintage map cuff links, necklaces, and rings! It would make for great bridal party gifts. I wonder if the ring could be made bigger into a napkin ring. Each item can be custom made with the city or country of your choice. They have a lot of vintage and antique world atlases available, so it can really add that vintage element to your wedding, which is so popular today!


I also love these aluminum and glass encased compass cuff links!

We're Featured: Emily and Leonard's Wedding

I was thrilled to see Emily and Leonard's wedding featured in the newest issue of Brides magazine! They did a great job on the layout--I absolutely love the photo where Leonard dipped his new wife on the dance floor (taught by the fabulous Cynthia Glinka).

My only disappointment was that they did not credit most of the vendors involved even though I submitted all the info, but you can refer back to my previous post about this wedding and get all the vendors name there!

Special thanks to the amazing Lisa Lefkowitz for capturing all the beauty of that perfect day!

The Glowing Bride

When I start working with a couple to plan their wedding, I always ask what their priorities are. The reality is, everyone has different priorities, so it's important for me as a planner to know what those are!

Not that I tally it up or anything, but I can still tell you that the bride's 'look' is and always will be one of the main priorities of a wedding. After all, they are spending anywhere from hundreds to thousands of dollars on a dress that they will likely wear only once. On top of that, they are also paying a lot of money for photographers and videographers to capture them at their very best! So what ties it all together? Well, the makeup and hair ofcourse!

When I consult my brides about their wedding day makeup and hair, I tell them how incredibly important it is to hire a professional. Often times, brides think that means they are going to look too 'made up'. Well it doesn't have to be that way. If you hire a true professional who understands weddings, they will be able to enhance your true features and keep you looking natural, yet beautiful. They will know how to get it 'just right' for the photos. Besides, you are NOT suppose to look ordinary on your wedding day! Seriously, would you want to look the same on your own wedding day as you would when you are attending a friend's wedding as a guest? Ofcourse not!

Recently, a new makeup studio has opened right off of University Avenue in Palo Alto, name Thi Cosmetics. I am sure many of you will find this name familiar. The talent behind this fabulous brand is the amazing Taylor Pham, one of the most sought after makeup and hair stylist in the Bay Area!

I have had the pleasure of working with Taylor a number of times, and am always amazed by her. Quiet and focused, she works her magic calmly during the mornings of every wedding, sometimes as early as 5am! When I see her with her makeup brushes, it's like watching an artist paint. She knows just what to do with each of them, and truly enhances the unique features of each bride that she works with. She not only provides makeup service, but she's equally talented in hair styling for the wedding day too! From chignons to updos, Taylor and her team can handle it all!

After being in the business for so many years, it was a natural progression for Taylor to create her own makeup line, especially when she found that there is a lack of makeup products that were appropriate for Asian women. Today, her entire makeup line has expanded to serve all women and her popular lush lashes are just one of the many products that women love. Together with her incredibly bright and clever business partner Mimi, they have made themselves a home in the heart of downtown Palo Alto. I didn't get a chance to attend their opening party last month, but I wanted to share some photos of it here.....taken by the very talented Jennifer Skog and designed by the lovely Gloria Wong!

Sweet Times

I love it when I discover fabulous places with fabulous experiences so that I can have fabulous recommendations for my fabulous clients. I just wrote 'fabulous' 4 times in one sentence!

Last week, I had a 'business' meeting scheduled with Jean Marks and Viola Sutanto and Viola was brilliant enough to suggest Crown and Crumpet as the place for us to meet. Experiencing Crown and Crumpet had been on my 'to-do' list for quite some time, but who has time for high tea when you've got a 2 year old right? Well, it made total sense to kill two birds with one stone, so off to the lovely new tea salon I went to get some business done!

Crown and Crumpet is located inside Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco and it is by far the MOST stylish tea house I've been to. The moment I walked in, I felt giddy. The vibrant decor was so cheery, with polka dot tablecloths, shabby chic furniture, and a cute gift shop in the corner.

As soon as we finished snapping a million pictures of every angle of the tea salon, we settled at a table and were greeted by Holly--our 'Trolley Dolly'. Since all three of us had a late lunch, we ordered the 'Tea for Two' to share, with one extra pot of tea. It was so hard to choose our individual tea flavors since they had such a superb variety. I finally settled on Blue Eyes, which is a caffeine-free tea bringing hibiscus, rose hips, orange, and apple together with delicate sky-blue cornflower blossoms. It was very light and fruity--perfect for my palette.

Our Tea for Two came with a variety of tea sandwiches, scones, crumpets, and mini tartlets and brownies--all VERY delicious. Now isn't this a much better setting to discuss business for creative professionals?

Crown and Crumpet is a great place to host bridal showers, baby showers, or other girly girl events. Although they do not have a private room for special events, they are able to section one part of the tea salon off to create an intimate space, and you even get a beautiful view of the bay!