Goodies...

When thanking your oh-so-reliable bridal party members, especially the girls (who are expected to help you primp, stuff envelopes, schmooze, and potentially, yet heaven forbid, go into debt over your wedding), a well thought out gift that reflects them and you is best. The standard wedding day jewelry may be a nice gesture, but going all out for them, as they do for you should be no problem.

Luckily, we have several stores to help you find something for anyone. One store in particular, Patina, is quite perfect for bridal party gift shopping. There are six metro locations to visit. I visited the Highland Park location, and was in there for nearly an hour...There is really something for everyone. Outdoorsy girl, undiscovered chefs, the primper, the sarcastic, the eclectic, the fashionista, and more.

Here is what I found to love and adore. (All items can be found in the store or online, and photos taken from the website unless otherwise noted)


For your wordy friends who exhibit more high style than your average New York Times Sunday paper: Posh Crossword Puzzles, from Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC.

(Honorable mentions go out to the additional books in the line)

For your interior designer artist bridesmaid they have fantastic art on canvas:

For the bridesmaid that always seems cold in summer heat, this will warm her spirit, and calm her with lavender (if you are generous, you can throw in the lavender spa mask to help cure your DIY invitation all nighter) :

For your trendy jet-setting bridesmaid, stock her up with some great travel amenities: traveling journal, destination literature, and some good ol' Burts Beeswax.

(Honorable mention: if your traveling bridesmaid happens to be the sarcastic one as well...two birds one stone) Very clever luggage tags...

For your bridesmaid that was robbed of the Top Chef in her world title:

I will update my blog with additional great finds from this store in the future. For now, happy gift shopping!

Another Mill City Wedding...

I love my venue. It is more than great. Combine the venue with real weddings, and you get two of my favorite things. I found some photos for my blog entry yesterday, and stumbled upon another wedding at the Mill City Museum. What a find...

These photos are from the blog of Studio306. The wedding was for Erin and Jake, both the ceremony and reception took place at the Museum. The ceremony in the Mill Courtyard, and the Reception in the Mill City Commons.

Dine and Delightful

A few wedding reception venues in Minneapolis that are not so commonly highlighted are La Belle Vie, and Cafe Lurcat. Both of which are swanky and glamorous. Beautifully designed, and the setting is more than breath taking.

La Belle Vie

(photo credits: first photo studio306, additional photos Shea)

La Belle Vie is located on Groveland Ave, near Hennepin. This restaurant features French/Mediterranean courses, and a romantic setting. I prefer to think of it as a venue a modern day bride channeling Audrey Hepburn in Sabrina. This is where you would find Sabrina Fairchild and Linus Larrabee dining at the finest table in the room.

Chef Tim McKee frequently adjusts the tasting menu offering samples of his distinctive taste and technique.





I first visited Cafe Lurcat following a free concert at the Basilica this March. I was blown away at the atmosphere that I had been missing and felt so connected with. This venue draws my attention to a feeling of the Gilded Age. Beautiful art deco walls make you want to sport a wavy bobbed hair styles, and some blood red lips.

Cafe Lurcat

(photo credits: First photo pbase.com, additional photos from the restaurant's webage)

Bridesmaids: Prints vs. Solids

Still on my quest to find great bridesmaid dresses that actually can be worn again... I began to ponder the concept of pattern dresses verses solid styles. When tastefully done, a la Uli Herzner, from season 3 of Project Runway, it can be masterful.

Here are some printed dresses, in a more safari fashion. (photos from nymag.com)

Here is my interpretation on potential bridesmaid dresses, first the SPLURGE, Carolina Herrera resort 2009. (Photo credit nymag.com)

Next on to the MEDIAN price conscious bride... These dresses were found on the Macy's website. The first four are Maggy London, and the others are BCBG. $360.00 or under.

And finally. For the BUDGET savvy bride. I strolled through the mall in my area, and found this great dress at the Gap. I browsed their website and found a few other potentials. And from there it went to Banana Republic finds.

Auburn Delight!

You know who you are! My mother has red hair and freckles, so I naturally feel red hair is beautiful. Scientists say that they may one day be extinct. Fortunately, there are great stylists, and color treatments to trick anyone into believing that it was straight from Mother Nature.

Photo Inspiration Reem Acra. I visited this site and was blown away by their ad campaign. Stunning. The fiery tresses, and beautiful composition, took my breath away.

Tress me up!

Hair styles for the wedding day. Oh, so many choices to go with. Up or down, half, curled, straight, et cetera, et cetera.... I personally feel that the type of hair should govern the style of the day. While I would personally LOVE to have a wavy subtle hairstyle, it isn't practical in the humid heat of Minneapolis. The choice of style should be able to keep for the duration of your wedding day.

Here are a few photos I've snagged. First, from People style watch. The rich and famous tend to splurge on their hair. These few styles found, would fit quite well into an earthy feeling wedding.

The next batch of styles I found on the project wedding website under makeup + hair. I love this site for multiple looks and a plethora of photos to help for inspiration.

I envision earthy hairstyles as not to fussy. No perfect ringlets or super-smooth finishes. A bit of imperfection to perfect the look.

Full on Florals

While browsing through some local MN florist, I found two in particular that had great examples of florals with earthy and ethereal elements. Adding to the traditional blooms themselves, a few berries, wild flowers, and unexpected greenery makes all the difference.

The first florist recognized is Wistera Design Studio.

The second florist, Just Bloomed, keeps that traditional bride in mind, yet plays very well at adding surprise elements.

And....because I just couldn't get enough, I've added some photos I've found from theknot.com's Bridal Bouquet photo gallery.

Getting Dressed

Here are some beautiful gowns that convey an earthy and feminine look. The dresses offer a soft fabrics and draping. The two brands showcased are Elizabeth Fillmore, and La Sposa. (Elizabeth Fillmore photos sourced from Martha Stewart online)

La Sposa makes the average bride an afterthought. Simply stunning, and affordable! (Photo Credit from Brides.com)

This week of Weddings: Earthy

One gorgeous fellow bride was trying to come up with the words to describe what she wished for her big day. I pried as much as I could, but she gave me Earthy! I was like...That is all I need.

Her color story is a blend of rich purples and aubergine, silvery blues, and peachy corals with a touch of floral greens. It is not your run of the mill color scheme, which just makes it that more unique to them.

So here are a few photo boards of this week's inspiration. I will try to touch a bit on different Earthy ideas that one can incorporate for a wedding. (Photo inspirations from Snippet and Ink)

This board above focuses on the richness of the purple tones, with the brick and sky back drops to ease in the peachy tones with the blues.

These photos emphasize the blue and coral accent colors. Rich and beautiful.

Project Guestbook. Make it work!

So, I live near a most fabulous store, known as the Paper Source. Located on 31st and Hennepin in Uptown.

As I get my hands on all the paper goods in that store, I have stamped, embossed, cut, and bound many a thing. I love that they have book binding kits available. For any DIY bride at heart, this project is a fairly easy one. This is a book I made for my fiance for Valentines day. A similar one can be made for a perfect guestbook. You can buy the kit to make it easier, or if you want it done for you, the staff at the Paper Source will be more than willing to customize your very own.

Here is me getting down and gluey with the goods.... In the voice of the great Tim Gunn, "Make it work" (link to full web page of me making it work)

High and Low of it..... Maids... oh the choices...

As I have time to change my mind several times, I have done just that. I have not found a bridesmaid dress that I LOVE that my girls won't shoot me over for the price. I try to find styles that I love, with a median price of $150-$250. Let me tell you. It hasn't been easy.

(Style: JH5866T)

(Style: JH5883)

I love Jim Hjelm dresses, the two that I want are $250 for the tea length and $290 for the floor length.

I browsed theknot.com for dresses in that price range and found several from Priscilla of Boston. The dresses I love were from the Melissa Sweet and Vineyard lines. I found one similar to those styles on the Vineyard website that was less than $200.

( Dress styles: Vineyard 1408, Melissa Sweet 226 , Melissa Sweet 224, Melissa Sweet 215, Melissa Sweet 128)

I have an appointment this Thursday at the NEW Priscilla of Boston Boutique in my neighborhood. The store has been open for about 2 months now. I remember driving past it for the first time. I always glance over longingly at the Monique Lhuillier boutique, on 50th and France, and I was thrilled to find it! I will follow up on Thursday after our visit.