J.Crew Bridal Boutique

Hooray! Finally! The J.Crew Bridal Boutique opens on Madison today. Read all about it and see some interior shots on Racked NY.

New Design: Timeless Ardor

And here is the second new thermography design available through Wedding Paper Divas:

It's called "Timeless Ardor", and I just love it in the celery-green colorway. Visit weddingpaperdivas.com to view additional components and for further information about how to order.

New Design: Paisley Bliss

There are two new thermography designs available on Wedding Paper Divas! The first is called "Paisley Bliss" and it comes in four colorways: chocolate brown, robin's egg, mandarin, and (my favorite) gold.

If you're not familiar with thermography, definitely order a sample - the raised printing is just gorgeous. Below is a detail of one of my thermography holiday cards that was printed in gold - lovely!

To order Paisley Bliss or to view additional invitation designs by Blue Ribbon, please visit Wedding Paper Divas.

Vintage Gown Patterns

I love the way vintage sewing patterns illustrate how pattern pieces can be combined to create different looks. The wedding gown pattern below is a great example of how simple changes (such as shortening a hem or choosing a different fabric) can dramatically alter the look and feel of a dress.


The following designs are not wedding gowns, but could easily become so if done in the right fabric! I love that all the models are shown wearing gloves - I wonder if that will ever come back in style...



All the images above are from So Vintage Patterns, www.sovintagepatterns.com. Ebay and momspatterns.com are also good sources for old patterns.

J.Crew Weddings & Parties Sample Sale

Yesterday evening I attended a preview of the J.Crew wedding & parties sample sale. The bridesmaid and party dress selection was limited, but there were racks and racks of beautiful wedding gowns to choose from. If you are looking for a beautiful dress at a discount, this sale is definitely worth a visit!

J.Crew Weddings & Parties Sample Sale
Flatotel Hotel
135 West 52nd Street (between 6th and 7th Avenues)

Friday, February 19 and Saturday, February 20, 9:00 am — 8:00 pm
Sunday, February 21, 10:00 am — 6:00 pm

J.Crew Weddings Moves Downtown

I'm so glad J.Crew is finally expanding the number of locations where brides can see the weddings and parties collection in person - and now you don't even have to go uptown! I like that they used an illustration in this email blast as opposed to a photograph - it's a refreshing change of pace from the usual glossy (albeit charming) photo and has a nice vintage feel.

So, it's been a while...

It's been so long, I hardly know where to begin! Let's start with a recent wedding project for Blue Ribbon. This was so much fun to work on; this suite included everything from the basic invitation set to ceremony programs and favor packaging, all done in a soft and feminine lilac & lavender colorway.

A detail of the invitation suite
(This is the Rococo design)

The prettiest favor box

Petite program booklets with a fitting quote chosen by the bride for the back cover

And last but not least, the thank you notes

J.Crew Wedding Collection

Last weekend I went with a friend to check out the J.Crew Wedding Collection at the Rockefeller Center store here in New York. It was so nice to finally see all the dresses in person! The silhouettes are simple and elegant, the gowns are nicely made, and the prices are gentle on the pocketbook (most designs cost between $695 and $1500). A few standouts were (from top right) the Gracie Gown ($395), Penelope Gown ($695), Confetti Gown ($995), and Mimi T-Shirt Gown ($795) :

In addition to the bridal gowns they had a selection of dresses from the bridesmaids collection and samples of flower girl and ring bearer outfits from crewcuts - the flower girl dresses were especially cute. I also found out that J.Crew offers a monogramming service where they will embroider your initials and wedding date onto a piece of grosgrain ribbon that you can then sew into your gown - very sweet.

Inspiration: Ascot Gavotte

I'm not a huge fan of musicals, however I love Cecil Beaton, and his costume and set designs for the "Ascot Gavotte" scene from My Fair Lady are simply stunning. Even though his designs date from the 60's, the combination of black, white and gray patterns still feels glamorous and fresh.

(click image for a larger version)

Images clockwise from top left: Bouquet from Martha Stewart Weddings; Cover for Cecil Beaton's Fair Lady; deserts from Martha Stewart Weddings; Vase by Francis Palmer (www.francispalmerpottery.com) ; Original sketch for set and costume designs for My Fair Lady by Cecil Beaton (via artnet); Wedding Gown by Oscar de la Renta; Wedding Cake from Martha Stewart Weddings; Film still from the Ascot Gavotte scene (via reelclassics.com); Floral Frieze wedding invitation by Blue Ribbon.

Invitations & Cakes

A great way to incorporate your invitation design into the reception is to re-use design elements from your wedding stationery (colors, borders, monograms, etc.) for the decoration of your cake. Below are some lovely examples of how brides I have worked with used their invitations as the inspiration for their cakes.

Wedding cake photos above by Bella Pictures.

Wedding cake photos above by Iris Photography.

Inspiration: Wine Labels

I got married at a vineyard, so I have a soft-spot for wine country weddings. Regardless of whether or not your wedding takes place amongst the vines, wine labels can be a great source for interesting layouts, graphics and typefaces.

I love the calligraphic swirls and crests on old-fashioned and vintage-style labels. If you are after a more modern look, the packaging blog, The Dieline, has photos of some great contemporary labels, like the ones created by Duffy & Parnters (left) and ilustrator Yiying Lu (right).


Images:Wine bottle table numbers and wine favors (upper left), marthastewartweddings.com; Table numbers, save the dates, wine favors, and invitations by Blue Ribbon; Misc. Wine labels from mmdusa.net, Wolffer Estate, Laurent-Perrier, Bonny Doon, St. Supery, Polaner Selections, R. López de Heredia, and theartistslabel.com; Duffy & Partners and ASDA California labels via The Dieline.

Blue Ribbon on Wedding Bee Pro

In the coming months a selection of my posts will appear on Wedding Bee Pro (yeah!). Wedding Bee Pro has tons of inspiring photos and provides a behind the scenes look at the creative process of some of the best vendors in the industry. I'm really excited to be contributing alongside so many other amazing vendors - be sure to pop over!

Imprintable Menus

You don't necessarily need to spend a lot to include some exquisite personalized details in your reception. The menu below was done on an ink jet printer using pre-printed letterpress flats (from Blue Ribbon, of course!).

Hot Off the Press: Chinoiserie in Lilac & Lavender

Here are some photos of a new print job where the Chinoiserie design was printed in a Lilac & Lavender colorway. I think this might be my new favorite color combination for this design.

Real Wedding: Jessica & James

Look at these gorgeous photos from the wedding of Jessica & James posted by Brooklyn Bride today! This was such a fun wedding to work on. Jessica is a true paper connoisseur and I created a custom suite for her that included everything from the invitations to the place cards. The same scroll work motif was repeated in different variations on all the stationery pieces and even made an appearance on the cake! You can see more photos from this beautiful wedding over at Brooklyn Bride. (You can also see additional photos of the stationery suite in the custom design section of the Blue Ribbon website.)

(All wedding stationery by Blue Ribbon Design; Photos via Brooklyn Bride.)

Purple Palettes

I was very excited to spot my Wallpaper invitation pinned to the purple section of the color inspiration board in the current issue of Martha Stewart Weddings. Personally, I really like the subtle combination of different shades of purple, such as lilac & lavender, but purple also looks beautiful when combined with chocolate brown, black, silver, chartreuse, and even pale yellows and golds. Below are some details of pretty purple pieces.

Clockwise from top left: North Moore Menu Card, Kimono and Trellis Gift Tags, Chinoiserie Invitation with lined envelopes, Wallpaper Invitation, Printemps Invitation, Custom Invitation printed with lavender & chartreuse inks, Custom piece printed in lilac & espresso, Wallpaper Seating Cards, Printemps Seating Cards (center).

Hot off the Press: Rehearsal Dinner Menus

Here are some gorgeous rehearsal dinner menus and seating cards we just did for an upcoming wedding in Mexico. I think the ruby/espresso color combination is just stunning!

Rococo Rainbow

Colorways from left to right: frost & slate, rose & raisin, pear & espresso, sage & slate

Looking at all those macarons yesterday reminded me of this photo showing our Rococo design in a few different colorways; I think it's very reminiscent of the soft colors used at Ladurée. Although the pear-espresso colorway is by far the most popular for this design, these days I am partial to the frost-slate and rose-raisin versions. I wish someone would order it in lilac-lavender...I would love to see that!

Rococo in pear & espresso

Rococo in rose & raisin

Rococo in frost & slate

Paulette Macarons

I was just reading about this in the new Spring/Summer issue of Town & Country Weddings: "Beverly Hills pastry shop Paulette will bake macarons in your wedding colors..." ($4 for a box of 2 cookies).

Imagine the (delicious) possibilities! Yellow lemon, mint chocolate, pink grapefruit, dark brown Caribbean chocolate... well, you get the idea.




(All the stationery is by Blue Ribbon; All the photos of macarons are from the Paulette Macarons website, www.paulettemacarons.com)

New Custom Invitation Gallery

The new custom invitation gallery is ready! In addition to a selection of invitation suites, I have included photos of the pretty extras (menus, programs, favors, welcome booklets, etc.).  Enjoy!