christmastime is here.

merry christmas! i hope you and yours had a warm, beautiful, and giving holiday season!

"let them eat cake!"

Credit: Cake Coquette / Photo credit: Elizabeth Messina

Marie Antoinette definitely got the dessert right when she famously declared, "Let them eat cake," but perhaps she wouldn't have endured the same fate if she had thought of additional sweet options that her subjects might enjoy. Cake is delightful and delectable to many taste buds and eyes alike, and while some palates do crave the traditional white tiered wedding cake, others adore cake but desire even more to make their wedding that much sweeter.

As you'll see below, there are some terrific cake choices, as well as alternative desserts that can be used in place of, or in addition to, a wedding cake.

Credit: Nine Cakes / Photo credit: Di Zhang

One great thing about the traditional wedding cake is the opportunity that it provides to demonstrate your creativity and visually represent your personality. If you and your fiance have a particular affection for peacocks, for instance, or if you're looking to surprise your new husband with a separate groom's cake with a symbol from his favorite sports team, a fun, personalized wedding cake would be a wonderful option!

Credit: Ron Ben-Israel Cakes / Photo credit: Mel Barlow

Photo credit: Entwined Studio

Wedding cakes also offer a visual continuity with a wedding's design aesthetic or theme. For instance, if your wedding is working within a coral, cream and slate gray color scheme then a feminine, pink-ombre cake would be a beautiful visual accompaniment to the rest of the wedding.

Whether your wedding is a more classic, art deco themed or lavender-strewn rustic affair, there is a wedding cake and a cake designer out there who can make your cake dreams come true!

Photo credit: Stephen Hughes

Photo credit: Ashleigh Taylor Photography

Photo credit: Lane Dittoe

Variations on the classic layered cake have recently become a popular trend, and can range from the rustic, vintage look of stacked Bundt cakes to individual cake pops that lend themselves to a more playful and whimsical vibe.

Photo credit: Our Labor of Love

Photo credit: Emona Hennen Photography

Providing small bites, like a cookie buffet or candy table is another option that gives you and your guests freedom when deciding on a tantalizing treat. If your fete is set to be fresh and sophisticated, perhaps French cookies like macarons or madeleines will work well with your reception venue and menu.

Photo credit: Anne McGowan Photography

Photo credit: Weddings by Two

If you're leaning towards a casual, outdoor environment with a menu incorporating all of your favorite comfort foods then chocolate chip cookies with milk shooters could be a perfect complement to your coffee service!

Photo credit: A Bryan Photography

A candy table is a wonderful option particularly if you're planning on hosting a great number of children (or young-spirited adults!) and can also double as a make-your-own-wedding-favor station at the reception.

Photo credit: Evin Photography

Photo credit: Leslie Walker

Assorted pies (apple, pecan, key lime, cherry, whichever you prefer!) or fruit tarts are a great dessert choice for a casual backyard or country rustic wedding. This option offers variety to you and your guests and satiates all sorts of different palates.

Photo credit: Jessica Claire

Photo credit: Ryan Ray Photography

To go along with a pie theme, you can even throw in a meat and vegetable pie during your cocktail hour, especially if your or someone close to you lacks that sweet tooth.

Or if you and your fiance would both prefer a savory alternative to a wedding cake and have a history of attending or hosting wine and cheese parties together then stacked fine cheeses and fruit could be a perfect way to end your wedding day!

Photo credit: Browns Photography

Go on and get inspired! The perfect cake and desserts are out there for you just waiting to be found.

While the late Mrs. Louis XIV may have started us all off in the right direction in terms of ending our weddings on a sweet note, it's nice to know that there are endless possibilities when it comes to after-dinner treats!

** An edited version of this post can also be seen on the blog for Stellina Events, a New York and San Francisco-based wedding and special events planning and design consultancy for which I have interned since November 2011. The Stellina Events article, posted on December 15, 2011 can be seen here**

wedding backdrops for personalized pizzazz

Outdoor ceremonies gained popularity in the 1960s when hippie couples looked for a way to make their commitment to each other a simultaneous statement against mainstream culture. While today outdoor ceremonies have become a more traditional choice for weddings, they still offer an opportunity for couples to express their individuality and creativity.

Photo credit: Delbarr Moradi

Outdoor ceremonies certainly offer beauty in their natural surroundings, but they also serve as a naturally beautiful canvas for any additions a couple may want to make to their wedding design to highlight their own personalities.

Photo credit: Ashley Rose Photography

Photo credit: Sean Walker Photography

Ceremony backdrops can be hung, stood or posted behind the bride and groom, and work to highlight (or substitute) an altar.

Photo credit: Steven Michael Photography

Some of the greatest ceremony backdrops are made from simple props such as picture frames, pinwheels, lanterns and flowers, as well as materials like tulle, lace, streamers and pom poms.

Photo credit: Jose Villa

Photo credit: Ashley Garmon Photography

These pieces add a touch of originality to any outdoor venue and can also be easily incorporated within the scenery, allowing the outdoor space to really speak for itself!

Photo credit: Kristen Marie Photography

Backdrops are a great choice for creative brides and grooms who want to play to the beauty of the natural environment and work with the surroundings of the outdoor space, not against it. In this way they make their altar space (and thus themselves) the visual focal point of the day... just as it should be!

Photo credit: Untamed Heart Photography

** This post can also be seen on the blog for Stellina Events, a New York and San Francisco-based wedding and special events planning and design consultancy for which I have interned since November 2011. The Stellina Events article, posted on November 23, 2011 can be seen here**

insta-gallery

how about this for an idea? you hang a piece of children's art, (or some doodle of your own if you're that kind of talented, which i am... not) to your wall(s), and hand-paint and sharpie detailed frames around the pieces. the result? instant gallery space. beautiful and original!

(sparkling here)

kate spade bug

how fabulous is this video?! i want a car this colorful, fun and cute! kate spade, will you make one for me too?

italian elopement

today i'm in love with this italian elopement. trey and lauren got married on the highest point of capri island and had the brilliant cana family there to capture it all. it is so romantic and beautiful and lovely! and it totally makes me want to elope.



(sparkling here)

single blooms

for brides seeking a chic and modern approach to the flowers on her wedding day might i suggest considering a single bloom bouquet. a single flower still makes an impact but won't overpower or outshine a bride on her special day.

these single flower arrangements are simple but utterly sophisticated and offer an understated elegance to any bride or bridal party. the effortless grace of these bouquets makes them the perfect choice for any wedding theme or aesthetic.

single blooms can be used in bouquets as well as in table arrangements, centerpieces and throughout your decor, so they're budget-friendly and eco-friendly too!

(single blooms sparkling here: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6)

** This post can also be seen on the blog for Stellina Events, a New York and San Francisco-based wedding and special events planning and design consultancy for which I have interned since November 2011. The Stellina Events article, posted on November 17, 2011 can be seen here**

living room love

i'm loving the palette and understated elegance of this open living and dining room. the balance of the overall romantic details with the more severe table makes the room look so unique. and that candle display hanging over the dining table doesn't hurt either. i'd love to relax and entertain in a room like this, wouldn't you?

(sparkling here)

symphony of science

now, i'm just as geeky as the next girl, but my personal breed of nerdiness is certainly not of the scientific sort. in fact, i think it might just be my scientific ignorance that makes me so very into this video.

maybe it's my lack of knowledge plus a little bit of love for "the remix," but whatever it is, i think you'll agree--this video is pretty awesome.



these ideas were pretty revolutionary in their time, and today people are still discovering things that prove just how insane this universe we live in is.

thanks, scientists, for figuring it out for the rest of us!

child's play

i'm mesmerized by Yusuke Suzuki's "childscape" series. they look like an amalgamation of childhood dreams and fantasies, a terrific alice in wonderland tea party and a scene from where the wild things are. a total escape.

(sparkling here)

(sparkling here)

(sparkling here)

(sparkling here)

ceremony backdrops

as a strong proponent of outdoor ceremonies that play to the beauty of the natural environment, i felt it was only right i present some different examples of how this can be done. i love when ceremony backdrops are simple, incorporate the surrounding nature, and only involve minimal materials, like fabric streamers and poms, tulle or lace.

(sparkling here)

(sparkling here via green wedding shoes)

(sparkling here)

(sparkling here)

i just adore how these backdrops let the wedding and location speak for themselves. they really lend themselves well to the idea of "that wedding magic," don't you think?

map it out

i have some sort of odd fascination with maps... though on second thought it might just be an extension of my constant wanderlust.

around every corner in amsterdam, for instance, i would walk into an adorable dutch shop and find (and subsequently fall in love with,) several dozen beautiful map prints. while those prints mostly depicted the romantic, dutch golden age of yore, there's definitely something to be said about more modern, "design-y" maps like these colorful silkscreens from These Are Things.



while i love the bold color of the "statement map" above, i think something more understated, with only a flash of optical excitement, like the central compass rose below, would be a perfect, mature choice for an office or den.


i also couldn't ignore the San Francisco neighborhood map, (don't worry, These Are Things also has prints of LA, DC, NYC, Chicago, and even Columbus!) partly because of my love for my city by the bay, and partly because it makes the visual thinker in me very happy. don't you think this could make a wonderful gift?? a print of the city a friend was born in for her birthday, or a print of the city a couple met in for their wedding??

dylan's candy bar bridal shower

today i'd like to share photos from an event i've been ooh-ing and aah-ing over for some months now. (and after you see them, i'm sure you'll understand why.) this bridal shower, (which comes from the truly unbeatable martha stewart weddings,) is that of Dylan Lauren, owner of the world famous nyc-based store, Dylan's Candy Bar, and daughter of designer, Ralph Lauren.

keeping with what i can only assume is the theme of her life, style and sweets, Dylan's shower oozes with whimsy, color, femininity and overall delight. the party seems like it matches the bride-to-be's personality and lifestyle... and how could anything be wrong with that!?

strawberry chocolate bars (personalized with the couple's initials) served as the invitations to this sweet affair.

this pink, white and yellow candy tableau welcomed guests to the party.
and that mosaic heart backdrop is made completely out of gum!

spectacular candy (i know, right?) rings from Barcelona-based bakery, Escriba were displayed (alongside oversize ring pops!)

Dylan (second from the left) and her guests enjoyed an impressive pink D ♥ P candy display...

... and made their own individual "I ♥ Candy" favor bags.

lemon drops were served with candy swivel-sticks on a pink jelly bean-lined tray.
there was also a bubblegum martini option!

salty, savory fries lended a gastronomic balance to all that candy...

... but for the more refined palate there were caviar ring-shaped snacks.

guests wrote well wishes for the couple... with awesome personalized, gold pencils.

and as a finishing and cheeky touch Dylan gave each of her guests a jewelery box with a candy necklace inside

(all photos sparkling here)