Congratulations, Arienne & Rahman!

Another one of our Memorial Day weekend brides was Arienne! This elementary school principal married her dashing lawyer prince, Rahman, on Sunday afternoon at the Cathedral of St. Matthew in Washington, DC. They continued the celebration a few blocks away at the Galleria at Lafayette Square. It's been a long time since we've worked at the Galleria but it's always so beautiful. I fall in love with the venue all over again each time I see it.

Without further ado, here are my non-pro photos taken at the wedding. Once I get the real deal from Greg Gibson I'll share those too!I don't always get to sit in on the ceremonies but I was glad to be able to watch Arienne & Rahman's. Father Kemp was so funny and wonderful! He kept the entire ceremony lighthearted but serious enough for the occasion. Here are our almost-newlyweds listening to his homily:And the entire bridal party lined up across the front:
After the ceremony most of their guests took a leisurely 3-block stroll to the reception. The weather was gorgeous and the Galleria was so sunny!
DaVinci's Florist did a knock-out job on the flowers, as always. These beautiful orchids are wired to branches and stuck into blocks covered with moss:The other half of the tables had these beautiful cylinders with submerged orchids and floating candles:Windows Catering provided the fantastic cake as well as all the yummy catering:Here's a behind-the-scenes look at the cake cutting. It's never just the bride and groom by themselves! Here we have (from right to left, photographer Greg Gibson, videographer Beth from Blue Sky Films, Rahman our groom, Arienne our bride, and Greg's assistant):Here's another sneak peek at the end of the night. Once all the guests left it took Windows about 40 minutes to clean up everything! The florist came back to pick up their vases and the rental company picked up their tables, chairs, and linens. I'm always impressed with how efficient this process is when Windows is in charge: I had a great time with this wedding and am hoping to see Greg's photos very soon. While it was a very busy weekend, Arienne was one of the most calm brides we've had yet. Our best wishes and congratulations go out to her and Rahman!

Mawar oh mawar

I was assigned to the do the roses theme by Mariati,my ex-officemate......she has given the idea which I find it easy for me to comprehend and I really enjoyed making all these roses.....like I said before if the order is in small quantity I dare to take the challenge as I'm still amateur in flower making....this cuppies will be given to Mariati's best friend as a wedding gift.Hope the cuppies is safe thru journey to Penang.

We've been Topped!

Within the past few days, Alltop.com has added a wedding category! Never heard of Alltop.com? Never fear...we hadn't either. The site was created partially by Guy Kawasaki (one of my marketing heros) and automatically updates every ten minutes. In their own words...

You can think of an Alltop site as a “digital magazine rack” of the Internet. To be clear, Alltop sites are starting points—they are not destinations per se. The bottom line is that we are trying to enhance your online reading by both displaying stories from the sites that you’re already visiting and helping you discover sites that you didn’t know existed.

Curious? Check out the Alltop wedding page to explore more wedding blogs or to keep updated on your existing favorites!

Our Giveaway Winners

Remember when we gave away a free photography session from Rob Holley Photography? Caroline and Joe were our lucky winners! They chose an engagement session and took a field trip with Rob to the Library of Congress here in DC. Check out the beautiful images Rob captured:And my personal favorite:Rob is available for engagement sessions and weddings all over the city! Unfortunately he's not always free but he's still great value considering the photographs he takes. Check out his website for more info.

My new toys

ha..ha..my new toys....after delivered the hantaran cuppies to adik nurul at Jln sultan ismail I went to section 14.....of course ICCA wilton centre....taking Putra LRT fr Dang Wangi station heading to Asia Jaya Station....and have to wait approximately 25mins to get Rapid KL bus(ghee...I thought the time interval for each bus is every 15 mins...cannot be called rapid nih...he...he...berleter la pulak)back to ICCA ,I reached there around 9.45am and its still early...bersemangat la pulak, kedai pun tak bukak lagi....isi perut dulu coz I haven't take breakfast yet as I went out early in the morning which I'm taking ERL on 8am.Then on 10.15am I'm heading to ICCA and guess what?I'm their 1st customer .....bravo....as usuall "rambang mata" but my pocket has restrained my desire ....he..he...kalau dah nama perempuan,semua brg nak borong... .I also bought the imprinting rolling pin for fondant(I don't know the exact name 4 it),at first I thought the cost will be around RM40 to RM70 but I'm totally wrong....it's really drained my $$$$$....the length of 10cm has cost RM99 and the above pin is RM129 for 30cm length...phew...pejam mata jer...nak buat camno, dah nak guna beli jugak le.

Hantaran in Cocoa/brown colour

The theme colour is brown/cocoa which is my favourite colour......and I don't have any idea how to create it.....at 1st stage I want to make roses then I was thinking that there's no roses in that colour and besides I will need some perseverence & effort to make it...25 pcs of it....thought I'm a newbee in flower making so I make this simple daisies instead of roses....16pcs pandan choco rice with fondant decorations(for hantaran) & the rest with buttercream(for makan2).
This cuppies has been ordered by adik nurul for her enggagement and as for her hantaran....



Assortment cuppies for my good neighbour & friend.......

Congratulations, Sarah & Ross!

Memorial Day weekend certainly kept us busy! First up we had Sarah & Ross on Saturday afternoon. This wedding was important to me in two ways. First, Sarah and I have been dear friends ever since we met in high school. Second, she and Ross chose Newton White Mansion as their venue. My husband and I were married there nearly two years ago and we always love going back.

Here are some photos that I took of the day:The handmade wedding arch was dripping with flowers:The program fans were so adorable:This little basket held paper parasols:The sand ceremony is a great alternative to a unity candle for outdoor weddings. I like how they asked their celebrant to participate and used three separate colors of sand:Their escort cards rested on a bed of sand:

Sarah would appreciate us noticing how closely the colors of her linens and escort cards matched:Check out the adorable shell cluster at the base of my place card:Yours truly. I actually got to sit for a moment and enjoy lunch with my husband! This is me giving him the 'please stop embarassing me, honey' face: Matters of Taste set up this beautiful buffet and even got creative with extra parasols:In lieu of a wedding cake they opted for mini key lime pies and a dessert buffet!



Professional photo credits go to the amazingly talented MK McKenna. Here's how the day looked through her eyes:I love how happy they both look here:The kiddo on the right is Trevor of Trevor's Treasures. Sarah is a pediatric nurse and Trevor was one of her patients. He now raises money and awareness about his very rare form of cancer:After the wedding they took advantage of the remaining daylight and took some portraits:Brookside Gardens on the left and The Gaylord/National Harbor on the right (and above):
Kudos to Brian Vaughan for a beautiful ceremony, Cheryl from Matters of Taste for being a rockstar, MK McKenna for these amazing photos, Matt Buerhaus for always being easy to work with, and Mike Valenti from Bialek's for a great job as always. Flowers were done by the groom's sister. Anyone need a florist in Vermont?

Check out MK's Blog for more photos of this great wedding!

Inspiration Board: Outdoor Elegance

Rustic elements contribute both a texture and casual dimension to your decor - even in the most formal of weddings.

row 1: centerpiece | chalk board | dress | barn | favors
row 2: lighting | bride | escort cards | bride & groom
row 3: musician | tables | votives | fireplace
row 4: invitation | candles | cupcakes | plants | carriage

This post is dedicated to my best friend and her fiancé who have booked a barn for their September wedding. Their unusual use of a clean, artistic space gives the ultimate flexibility in personalizing their wedding.

To the untrained eye, a barn venue could suggests the presence of livestock, red gingham, or early morning rooster calls. HOWEVER, as urban areas sprawl further outside city lines, many barns are converting to more civilized ways of life, including special event venues, art galleries, or every city dweller's favorite, bed and breakfasts.

How do you transform a rustic, blank canvas to something completely your own?

1) Lighting.
Simply stated, lighting is one of the most cost effective ways of decorating. Comparatively, you would have to use many times more flowers than lights to create the same effect.

2) Unique rentals.
Don't recreate the typical escort card table you find in every hotel - ask your florist if he/she has something more creative to loan you. Maybe you can find better options for a cake or gift table, bars, or favor displays.

3) Transportation.
One bride I spoke with had a wedding just after Christmas (Dec. 27) and offered her guests a real treat - sleigh rides from the wedding to the reception. Trolley rides or vintage cabs could immerse your guests in the feel of your event, depending on the theme.

4) Entertainment.
DJs can provide nearly any atmosphere, so work with your DJ to find the music selection for your reception, but your options don't end there. Maybe a strolling acoustic guitar, jazz trio, string quartet, or live band would provide the best ambiance. All musicians are amplified these days, so don't limit yourself!

And as always, have fun!