Foxy on Fox 5

You heard about the blizzard, right? The one this past weekend that has pretty much shut down the DC area?

Well, our power went out, and my sweetie and I walked like a couple of hobos with a suitcase,  perishables piled into an IKEA bag, two laptops, and two dogs in tow to the closest major intersection to be rescued by my sister and her boyfriend.

Of course, like everything in my life, this was not without incident.

We drew Fox5's Blizzard of 2010 coverage like moths to a flame.

L'ezu & Lea-Ann

Recently, when I was in LA, I popped in to see the ladies at L'ezu Atelier. I always have so much fun hanging with Carly, Marta, and Corina, and not just because of all the beautiful things around!

While we stood around gossiping, Corina, one of the owners, told me that L'ezu will be carrying another one of my designer friends from my shop owner days, Lea-Ann Belter!

So, maybe even as soon as the next time I go back to LA in the beginning of March, Lea-Ann's dresses will be at L'ezu! More importantly, since Lea-Ann is not carried anywhere in the city, all you LA girls on the hunt for Lea-Ann Belter gowns will have someplace to get your try-on on!

Wedding in a Box: Courtney Swierczek

I have only met Courtney a few times, but each time her friendly welcome and sharp sense of humor makes me feel like I have known her much longer! That talent for making people feel comfortable (and for being super organized, as you will soon see) is probably a huge asset in her being the principal of her event planning company, A Sweet Soiree.

Courtney had not one box but two.  I could tell you all about how she "DIY-ed" pretty much her whole wedding, or how she and her husband hosted their Pittsburgh reception at PNC Park where the Pirates play...but it's way more interesting coming from Courtney herself:
 

image by Viglione Photography

I actually have TWO wedding boxes! The first one (red) holds the various trinkets from the actual wedding day. The second one (blue) is my fashion box, that has things like my jewelry, undergarments, and shoes from the wedding day.

The garter in the picture was my "something blue" and was given to me by my Maid of Honor. It was blue and gold and had "Mountaineers" on it as it was for my alma mater, WVU. The garter was never found again post-wedding night (hehe).

image by Viglione Photography

I searched high and low for my shoes. I actually took a risk and ordered them on eBay and they ended up being perfect. I highly recommend the sole inserts that you can purchase from Nordstrom: life savers!  I was a two dress bride. Coincidentally, I also ended up being a two shoe bride as the first pair I bought didn't quite match my gown. Glad I got it out of my system since I won't be a two husband bride! ; )

images by Viglione Photography

I had my headpiece made at a wonderful specialty store in Pittsburgh called Clarissa's Bridal. They plucked the vision from my mind and turned it into reality.

images by Viglione Photography

The coin wrapped in a handkerchief was lent to me by my soon to be mother-in-law.  My husband's grandmother and his mother both had it on their wedding days and have had long-lasting and happy marriages! It was an additional "something borrowed" just to be extra safe! My Maid of Honor pinned it into the lining of my gown.

images by Viglione Photography

The majority of "stuff" from my wedding was DIY, so I wanted to save most of it since I slaved over a lot of it for months! Even both of my "wedding boxes" were saved from wedding gifts that we received.

The ceremony program (long one) and reception menu (round one) sat on plates at the place settings at the reception tables.  Mike and I are both Lutheran, which made the church selection so very easy. We were married at the church I grew up in, just like I had always dreamed of.

My wedding invite (far left), Bridal Tea invite (far right), and Save the Date (bottom middle).

Our reception venue was also a no brainer. We are both VERY passionate about baseball, and our first date was at PNC Park. The minute we got engaged, we knew exactly where our reception would be. The Pittsburgh Pirates were so fabulous that they were even able to print our Save the Dates on the same tickets they print out for games! We even had the team mascot, the "Pirate Parrot" come help us entertain during the cocktail hour!

images by Viglione Photography

We had an explanation poem that was placed on every table along with disposable cameras. My aunt took her role as photographer seriously and  snapped a photo of us at our sweetheart table.  I made every single one of the place cards that sat at every guest's seat from scratch, including ours that read Mr. and Mrs.! I had some major blisters after bending and twisting metal for weeks, but they were such a perfect touch for the fall vineyard theme.

I cut out the cork coaster table numbers with their wine labels (they were in burnt wood frames); if you look closely behind the florals of our sweetheart table, you can see our table number that says, "The Newlyweds"!  eBay was a go-to resource for the DIY bride. I was able to buy the champagne wire cages, card box, wine labels, bridesmaids pashminas, and so much more from there!

I love the wording that wrapped around the Memorial Candle, and I still have my groom's dried boutonniere. We reused the ceremony decorations at the reception, too. For a small fee, our florist carted everything to the reception venue and we used the items to decorate the place card, photo, buffet, and favor tables. It was a great way to save some money and get the full use out of our florals.

image by Viglione Photography

Our favors were DIY also. I bought the champagne glasses from IKEA, the foil from an online site, the ribbon from Michaels, the truffles from a Harry and David outlet, and the custom labels from another website. The favors were a big hit and were fun to make, but double check your math as I ended up with twice the number of truffles than I actually needed. Everyone got truffles for the holidays that year!   From our cookie table, which is a MUST HAVE Pittsburgh tradition, I kept my "doggie bags" as well as foil left over from our favors, and the gem strand that was wrapped around our cake.

Also in my box are the specialty drinks menu and a bumper sticker (Pittsburgh style "OBX" type of thing) that was included in the welcome bags.  Those specialty drinks did the trick...my bartenders had to cut off TWO of my guests. We still laugh about it today. At least they had a great time!  


 

I was one of those brides that originally wanted zero kids at the wedding. Somehow, I changed my mind and now I am SO glad that they were there because they made the reception! If you were like me, you can hire a childcare attendant like I did who had activities for the little ones in another room (which sweetly included them making me that adorable scrapbook)!

 image by Viglione Photography

Our flower girl that had her fairy wings on (made for her by the double duty DJ)

image by Viglione Photography

My little cousin refused to give out high fives to the newest family member!

I kept a few of the cool response cards that we received back. I never expected to get such unique replies. Anecdote: my friend Jeff takes the cake by having the most original response card, and as you can see, also the most unique reception attire.

image by Viglione Photography

Thanks for sharing in Mike and Courtney's October 21st, 2006 Baseball/Fall Vineyard wedding in Pittsburgh, PA at PNC Park!

Wardrobe Malfunction

Last week, I went to something pretty glamorous.

A magazine launch in NYC.

That's right.

I was even invited.

The magazine, Eco-Beautiful Weddings, is an e-zine about, well, green weddings.  It's really beautiful, and you can check it out here.

Anyways, everyone who went to the launch from DC got to ride on a party bus to NYC for the event.  All kinds of awesome people were on it, including Robin Fisher from Polished Image and Style along with her team of stylists. I was excited about that since I have hung out with Robin before, and she is not only very smart and down to earth, she's also FUNNY. Very important on long road trips.

Robin and her team

I had no idea how lucky I was that I had Robin, the best personal stylist around, on the bus with me.

We had just arrived outside of the city, the New York skyline and all its promise glittering in the dusk before us, when Ashlee of Documentary Associates (another amazing person and professional) suggested she and I change into our cocktail clothes at the back of the bus.

That sounded great, since I had spent many years as a kid changing into horseback riding togs and ballet gear (really) in the passenger seat while my mom shuttled me to after-school activities.

Since I don't often go to fancy pants parties, I had spent the last two weeks creating the perfect outfit. My theme was "Catholic Schoolgirl Gone Wrong" or "Pin Up Secretary."  I had my sassy dress with a bustle in the back from Trashy Diva, a white oxford shirt, funky tights, killer shoes, and my lucky sparkly, chunky Betsey Johnson necklace queued up and ready to go.

I wiggled into my clothes, then asked Ashlee to zip me up. Which took doing, since we were being catapulted up and down by the jostling of the bus.  After finally accomplishing that, I sat down.

That's when my zipper broke.

I froze.  Gathering my courage, I reached around back and, sure enough, the dress was gaping open.

I remained calm,and called/cried out for Robin, who became a woman MacGyver in a split second, calling out for needle and thread, safety pins, nail clippers, you name it.

Whipping it off, I handed my poor garment to her.

I was almost in tears but, since my mom raised me not to make a scene in front of strangers (i.e. most of the people on the bus), I maintained my composure. Barely. Especially when after the first two or three tries Robin couldn't fix it.  She began coaching me, explaining how she could make my white oxford shirt, grey bra (it wasn't gonna show with my dress on!!), and jeans look fierce. Ashlee chimed in, sweetly offering her gorgeous black satin peeptoe slingbacks to replace my brown boots.

When she saw I was about to lose it, she tried again.

What happened next was magic. I am not lying.  That zipper was busted. I had seen this before in my bridal shop. I was already plotting an emergency trip to H&M.

Robin sat down, completely serene as the bus rocked and rolled, while I fought off a meltdown and watched.  In a snap, she bent that zipper to her will and it was fixed! It was cosmic.

So, I went to the party not looking like a hobo and feeling like I wanted to tell everyone I saw how amazing Robin is and how they should all have her as their personal stylist. STAT.

Me not looking like a hobo

See? Here is me and Robin and my zipped up dress!

Dress zipped! 

I met some really neat people, and saw some "weddebrities" too!

I should mention that the band, provided by Elan Artists, got everyone moving, the dresses from Cotton Bride lovely, cocktails from Tru Vodka and Honest Tea delicious, and Katie Martin, the person behind Eco-Beautiful Weddings fairly levitating she was so happy (see how happy she is below?).

It was awesome.

Katie Martin and her FANTASTIC necklace by Marlaina Stone

Punk Rock Pilgrimage: Muslin Fitting

The muslin fitting is an opportunity to make changes to a design, ensuring that the finished product lays correctly and has proportion. While in New York selecting fabric, Stephanie fitted Grace on one of Punk Rock Bride's models, Jae.

Stephanie's meticulous patterns paid off, and she was pleased with the overall fit on Jae.

Some adjustments need to be made before the dress can be produced. According to Stephanie, "The waist will come out.  You can see how it's bunched around the waist and pulling at her hips.  Bringing out the waist will also bring out the hip."    Jae is not a typical size 4 model, she's a size 8, which makes her more difficult to fit because of her curves (ironic, no?).  Since Stephanie is selling gowns to real women, and most women have curves, she prefers her models to reflect that. She also plans on bringing the skirt insets up and in a little; to her educated eye, the looked "a little off."

Finally, Stephanie will adjust the straps in the back.  They were slipping off Jae's shoulders and need to be brought in so that they are more stable. You can even see in the closeup of the back view where Stephanie drew on the fabric!

Coming up next, fitting the finished dress on Jae!

P.S. - Punk Rock Bride will be showing their collection at the DCCWC Bridal Show from 1-4pm this Saturday, February 6th at the Decatur House - visit here to register!

AND

Punk Rock Bride is launching their new collection soon! Stephanie is cooking up a really great party! Details coming soon...

DI-Why Not Challenge #8: Flower Corsage Tank Top

This DIY from The Sweetest Occasion involves neither glue guns nor pom poms.  Everyone breath a sigh of relief.  Your eyes will be spared from a full frontal pom pom assault.

For now.

Despite how 1-2-3 this DIY looks, I have a suspicion I may be needing a cocktail at some point during the process.

I'll report my results next week!

Wedding in a Box: Vicky Choy

Matter of fact and funny, Vicky Choy is one of those women whose focus during conversation makes you feel that she is absorbing every detail.  Owner of wedding planning firm Event Accomplished,  Vicky's straightforward style shines through on her blog, especially in her "Newly Engaged Starter Guide." Go ahead, check it out - we'll wait.

Worth it, right?

Vicky had two receptions, and, no, it's not what you think! Her mom's e-mail made me laugh out loud (scroll to the first image).  If that isnt' the quintessential "thanks, mom" moment I don't know what is.  The way she wove two cultures together throughout both events was really personal and beautiful.

All of this and more is better coming from Vicky herself:

I can't believe it's been 5 years since I got married. Time really seems to be flying faster the older I get. We got married on July 31, 2004, on one of the hottest days of the year with temperatures in the 90s and high humidity.

image by Emilie Inc

When Jessica asked us about our 'weddings in a box,' I was sure that I had one too until I started looking for it. I realized that I didn't have an actual box. I had stored all my wedding stuff in different places, but I knew exactly where everything was located. So if I had a box, these are the things that would be in it. What's not in the 'box' is my wedding dress because it lives in its own box. I had it dry cleaned after the wedding and the cleaners put it in a box for me, hermetically sealed I'm sure.

image by Emilie Inc.

The funniest thing has to be this email from my Mom. According to Chinese traditions, you need to consult a Chinese calendar/almanac using the bride and groom's birth dates and times in order to select an auspicious date for a wedding. My Mom took care of that task and emailed me a bunch of Saturdays that would work. You can see clearly in that I circled July 31 because it one of the "best" Saturdays in 2004. But nevermind the date. Look at the sentence underneath the date. My Mom said "Pick a day that you won't have your period." Always looking out for my best interest!

 I loved our ring pillow because my Mom made it herself. She told me she saw an article about how to make one in Martha Stewart Weddings and she just made it. Isn't is pretty? She's so talented. My Mom used to make a lot of her clothes and dresses. she told me she sewed her own prom dress.

I had very few pieces of stationery since we had a cocktail style reception with no assigned tables. What I did save was our invitation (the red one with the double happiness Chinese character), an insert that invited select guests to our Chinese banquet held in San Franisco the week after our wedding here in DC (the white vellum), and my DIY program for the ceremony that I designed in like 10 minutes and printed at Kinkos on resume paper. You can tell I didn't care much about that.

On the left, you'll see 2 copies of the passages from the Bible read by my Aunt Josephine and my sister-in-law Pam during the ceremony, printed on branded stationery of course. On the right is a copy of our rehearsal dinner menu at the fomer Mezza9 Restaurant at the Rosslyn Hyatt. The yellow notepad paper is a list of Chinese wedding Traditions that my Mom had translated into English from our a Chinese book. I wanted to know which ones we could incorporate within reason so she just translated the whole darn thing. It was 3 pages long, hand written.

 During the cocktail hour, I chose to change out of my white wedding dress into a traditional Chinese wedding dress. But because my Mom was renting it for me in San Francisco, and she's not tech savvy enough to take a digital photo of the choices, somehow you found 2 dresses from a magazine and glued them an index card and sent them to me. She also noted the one she picked out for me (similar to the one of the left). My Mom has good fashion sense so I just left it up to her. All the choices are gorgeous so you can't really go wrong.

 

I'm definitely not a crafty person but I saw a girl I knew who had cut out the wishes people had written in their cards and mounted them on a mat surrounded by a pretty frame. I thought it looked cool but couldn't be bothered with the whole mat thing so I just found some pretty scrapbook paper and did the same thing. I put all the pages into a scrapbook my mother-in-law gave me for no reason. It's nice to go back and read the things people wrote.

The night before the wedding, it's Chinese tradition to comb the bride's hair for good luck. The set of candles were used during that ceremony. Inside the ziplock bag are dates, a red envelop of money, and a few other items that you are supposed to put under the mattress for 100 years of good fortune. The red hair piece and the piece of shrubbery were placed in my hair for the cocktail hour and hair combing ceremony, respectively.

Instead of a guest book, we had guests signed this traditional Chinese cloth. It still needs to be framed.

Finally, my shoes. I loved the sparkly heel and I knew I needed shoe with straps since I planned on doing a lot of dancing.

I love the sparkly heels, too, girl...perfect for dancing! Thanks for sharing your Wedding Spread All Over The House!

Send me your wedding in a box! Jessica@afoxywedding.com