A Purple & Silver Wedding

One of our first clients, Ashleigh & Adrian, ended up being one of our biggest. We didn't mind, either, because they were so great to work with! We started off with their day-of-coordination 2 weeks after they got engaged, and then we had the privilege (i've used that word a few times today) to do their wedding invitations, favour boxes, centrepieces, wishing tree... We may not have been their full-on wedding planners, but it almost felt like it!

So we haven't seen the professional shots just yet, but we're sure that Bard over at Living Face photography will do a great job re-finishing everything expediently! We did, however, take some shots on my iPhone,and have some shots of the centrepieces, so here goes!

An aerial shot of the reception dinner setup — Atlantis Pavillion on the Lakeshore — probably somewhere between speeches.

A medium shot of the crystal tree centrepieces, our debut! Fancy crystal drop ends, coloured glass filler... we loved it, and so did the Bride & Groom!

An wider shot of the table setup... see the fun crystal charger plates? They went perfectly with the crystal strands on the centrepieces!

Rooftop photo shoot. Correction, unplanned, impromptu rooftop photo shoot. Yup, yup, pulled some strings, got them on the roof @ Atlantis at the last minute. Pretend i'm buffing my nails on my shoulder (as a gesture that you should be impressed. because really, you should).

So, there you go folks. A successful DOC gig, a happy couple, and a brand new life for Ashleigh & Adrian. Congrats guys!

We've been featured!

So yes, we've been uber-busy. It's a given, it's wedding season, but we were fortunate enough to be featured on a great blog! Elizabeth over at thefirstdance.com interviewed us at DBYT about wedding invitations, and it was so much fun answering the questions — not your typical questions, like when to send out invitations, how much postage, etc. I actually had to think about these! (even got Peter, the hubby, involved)

AAAnyhow, check it out! http://thefirstdance.com/weddinginvitationquestions.php

(i promise, i'll be posting new stuff soon. Baptism invites, save-the-dates, and pics from Ashleigh & Adrian's purple & crystal wedding!)

Our Crystal Seating-chart-tree

So a couple of weeks ago, we met with an exasperated bride: getting married in 2 weeks, and still needs her seating chart figured out as well as ceremony programs and money box. She had initially called us with her idea for her seating chart, which was a manzanita tree she wanted to hang table cards from. We added orchids, esperanza roses, candle holders, and sparkly crystal strands and came up with a gorgeous arrangement and new twist on your typical seating chart! We took pictures on Jenn's camera, but i'm impatient and i'm posting pics from my iPhone:

The tree featured 16 seating cards, 5 teardrop candle holders with votives, phalaenopsis orchids & esperanza roses, crystal strands with teardrop ends... love! :)

Here's a closeup shot (sort of) of the seating cards...

We also did her ceremony programs (which i don't have a picture of, yet) as well as her money box... a new product which we'll be adding to our site very very soon!! They'll be available in 2-tier, 3-tier, and even 4-tier arrangements, made to match your theme & colours. Check out Christy's!

Ribbons matched her colour scheme, plummy-purple and champagne, with some cute crystal accents to dress up the box a little.

Alleen & Jack's invitations! EEK! :)

So i've been racking my brain for blogging topics, and it hit me: duh, blog about what you're doing!! My latest project: Alleen & Jack's wedding invites.

My new favourites!! The turquoise and brown look really striking together, and the best part, it's got the kaleidoscope patterned paper from Envelopments!!! Jeepers, look at all those exclamation points; can you tell i'm excited about these ones? :D

k so check it out:

French roast pocketfold wrapped with platinum vellum belly band, accented with 2 swarovski crystals...


Open it up to a turquoise Kaleidoscope-patterned backing, and white linen cardstock on top; 3 inserts in the pocket, all incorporating bold colours and oversized elements of the pattern... LOVE!


Detail shot of the inserts. See, even without a metallic paper, it still looks great! Heavy ink on paper gives it a nice sheen, so you don't have to opt for the expensive thermograph printing, necessarily.

There we go. My next project is Ashley & Blake's purple invitation... those ones are using kaleidoscope patterned paper, but this time in PURPLE (which seems to be the colour of the season).

Something old, new, borrowed... leopard printed?

Shoes! I love shoes. Granted my shoe closet is just one of those organizers you get from ikea, and isn't nearly as full as i'd like it to be, but one day i will have an entire room dedicated to my wonderful footwear. Brides, you can fall into one of three categories when it comes to your bridal shoes: traditional, middle-ground, or completely out there.

(L to R): Coloriffics/Maya @ $87.95, Stuart Weitzman/Applause @ $200.00, Kate Spade/Hera @ $321.95
(All images from zappos.com)

These are my three favourite traditional shoes, in a range of prices from lowest to hights. Of course, i LOVE the kate spade ones, the not-quite-bow is a great alternative if you're not one for bows and such, and would look gorgeous with a raw silk white wedding gown. The Stuart Weitzmans are cute with the double bow and the cutout by the ankle, and the Coloriffics are at the perfect pricepoint for shoes you'll only wear once. Plus the rhinestone buckle adds a nice sparkle while maintaining its elegant feel. If you can't see the images with enough detail, check them out on zappos.com. So for the brides who don't really want to stray from the line, who like the idea of the classical white wedding, these are for you! (L to R): Nine West/Samiam @ $78.95, Betsey Johnson/Generosa @ $200.00, Elie Tahari/Blance @ $321.95
(All images from zappos.com)

So for those who know they don't necessarily want white, but don't really want to rock the boat too much, or maybe you're concerned about what your FMIL will say, these are three choices you can definitely wear again. I love Nine West, so when i as picking my bridal shoes, it was a natural first place to look. The soft slate blue is a nice touch of colour, and crossover pattern on the bridge of the foot adds a nice touch. The Betsey Johnsons in the middle would look great with an ivory or champagne coloured gown, and the touch of pink edging is a great compliment (plus it'll look fab with your tan!). My favourites, once again, are the most expensive ones. The metallic flower on the Elie Taharis are so pretty, the pictures here don't do it justice.

(L to R): Naughty Monkey/The Hype @ $85.45, Via Spiga/Fay @ $174.95, Giuseppe Zanotti/90023 @ $653.95
(All images from zappos.com)

The bridal gloves are off with these ones! No holds barred, these choices are purely for shock value (and the occasional nod from the fashionista guests), and would look awesome with your favourite jeans or perhaps a honeymoon outfit. The Naughty Monkeys are a runner up favourite for me, for one HUGE reason — all the Naughty Monkeys i've tried on are really comfortable. Like, you-could-dance-all-night-comfortable. The red Via Spiga slingbacks would look great with a pedicure, but the Zanottis... oh, the Zanottis... These are for the brides who love their shoes, and will treat themselves to a designer pair to truly feel like a princess. Just don't look at the price tag after you've bought them.

As for me... What did i wear on my wedding date?

What about you? What are YOU wearing on your big day?

Creative Weddings

So I did a google search on wedding, just to see what would come up. One of the results was a News article on Salma Hayek's wedding this weekend in Venice, Italy. Wedding? Yes, she's still married to hubby François-Henri Pinault, but they decided to make it official, again, witha second wedding ceremony! The shin-dig took place in the Venetial Opera House, and the female guests all wore Venetian masks.

Salma & her family all wearing masks... love it!

Guest Charlize Theron & bf Stuart Townsend on their way...

What are you doing to make your wedding unique? Are you incorporating any fun themes into the decor? Your day comes once, for most people anyway, what are you doing to make it memorable? Leave us a comment! We love hearing from creative brides :)

A new addition to the DBYT family ... CRYSTAL TREES!!

We're so excited to be able to announce the addition of a new product to our lineup of services! Designed By Yours Truly now offers Crystal Tree rentals! These versatile centerpieces come with 24-30" manzanita branches, loaded with glass crystals, and the option to upgrade with crystal drop ends and flowers. We'll even find the right colour filler to match your theme. So many options with these gorgeous arrangements, here are a couple of shots we took of our sample tree:



Attention all you brides anywhere in the Toronto area (as far east as Oshawa, and as far west as Waterloo), these trees are available for rent for your special day. Contact Designed By Yours Truly to reserve for your event — dates are booking up fast! Want to make your own trees? We've also become an official distributor of these wonderful manzanita branches, call us today for pricing!