AhaLife - Uniquely Curated Gifts For The Happy Couple

We love new ways of inspiration, and Ahalife (who have been featured in Elle and The New York Times)  provides just that. Ahalife is an online shopping site where you can purchase one-of-a kind, uniquely designed, and contemporary products from all over the world. It's all about promoting a chic and classy lifestyle, perfect for the newly couple who are working to build their new home together! Look at some of the crafts they have to offer. It can make the perfect wedding gift, for him or for her! And you'll see that they are super trendy.You'll be having people ask "Where did you get them from??"

Some of there items provide new ways, innovative ways of utility. You'll never think those items could have been used that way. 

Look even closer- and the details are just amazing.

And some items are just personalized with this modern branding that just oozes style.

With Ahalife- It's simply that. You got style.

China, Crystal & Silver, Oh My!

This weekend, I (finally convinced Dan to go with me and get us) registered!  It was a bit stressful admittedly, but we ultimately ended up having some fun! We started with china and crystal, which was definitely an education. Did you know that good china should be slightly translucent (you should be able to see the shadow of your hand when you hold it up to the light)? It is also really strong so don’t get too nervous about pulling out that back dinner plate (the sales woman at Macy’s startled us by smashing the dishes together!) Who knew?!

We are probably going to go with something pretty simple and classic to be sure that our china goes with anything and lasts through the years, but I can’t help but drool over these antique-styled and more ornate designs. They are great inspiration for for you wedding dinnerware too.

Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 

We are also going to be registering for classic, causal, everyday pieces at Pottery Barn. You really can’t go wrong with white dinnerware or towels.

Sources: Pottery Barn

And when it comes to home décor, I adore West Elm and Anthropologie. Unfortunately, West Elm doesn’t offer registry and Anthropologie only has a “wish list.” Has anyone out there done a wish list as a registry? We might just let guests know that we like these stores as an option for gift cards or making their own selections. I’d love any thought or experiences on this one!

Sources: Anthropologie, West Elm

Any other registry tips are welcome!

The Cake {table}

There are a few wedding traditions that I've never cared much for, the garter toss, receiving line and...the cake. I know that might infuriate some people, seeing as that most people would give their left arm for cake, but I've just never really liked cake. Unfortunately (for me...not for my guests) JB LOVES cake, so although I've tried many times to talk JB in to having a stacked cake made from cheese wheels and an array of mixed berries (cheese and berries are my favorite indulgence), it looks like we'll be having a cake. Although I don't really like eating cake, I do love the way some cakes look which is why I am most excited about working with whoever makes my cake to design their look and feel (I want to do a few small cakes rather than a large stacked one). I am ESPECIALLY excited about the cake table. Being only 21 means that my furniture collection is rather limited, so I would love to buy a piece for the cakes that i could have in my house after. Some of these are WAY out of my price range (see the west elm dining table), but a girl can dream.

Here's what I want my cake table to be like...except with cakes, of course:

Pottery Barn clockwise from top left: one, two, three

World Market clockwise from top left: one, two, three, four

west elm clockwise from top left: one, two, three

What are you doing for your cake table? I need some affordable ideas!

{from Wedding to Home} Beautiful Backdrops turned Whimsical Wallpaper

By the time my wedding photos surface I probably will have leaked some very important pieces that probably should remain a secret. But that is the beauty of me being my own boss, I get to do whatever I want. I have been utterly obsessed with the idea of starting a series of posts after the wedding about using all my wedding decor and turning it into the most perfect home decor. I love recycling decor as much as I love the idea of putting a bit of attention on the homefront which desperately needs some L-O-V-E.

So here is the big reveal of a very importance piece of wedding gossip, it's really quite juicy, as well as the reveal of my already-favorite series of posts, from wedding to home. I used book pages in the wedding. I won't spoil where, but let's just say, it definitely turned into a major portion of inspiration, though it was a very last minute decision. How I got the idea for it was actually totally weird. I thought about the idea of making a headboard out of book pages. The inspiration flew and before I knew it, I was up to my eyeballs in book pages and old books for my wedding. Funny how things just work out.

I decided to revisit the idea of the bookpage headboard and fell in love with an even better idea, book page wall!

These two images alone sold me.

I then started looking around a bit more and thanks to the lovely inspiration from my fave wedding blogs, I feel in love with yet another idea. Ribbon.

Book page wall, bookpage room, Ribbon table, ribbon wedding

How totally incredible would it be to have the back wall behind the bed and headboard as a flowing wall of ribbon. Seeing as all my furniture is white, I could add a little color with this and make it dreamy and fancy all at the same time.

I am now in a major pickle. Ribbon or Book Pages.

I am going to go with book pages and here is why. I have thousands of book pages. I have already done the work on the book pages and there is no point in re-inventing the wheel just yet. And so begins my first transformation project turning my book pages from the wedding into wallpaper for my room.

Apparently the DIYing doesn't stop after the wedding is over. No indeed.

Wish me luck! I am treading unknown territory as of now.

 

Guest Book Ideas You Can Use After The Wedding

I went with signing windows as my choice of guest book. I gotta say, it wasn't as cool as I thought it was going to be, but that was probably my fault.I am really big on having a guest book that you can use or hang after the wedding as a keepsake that can be forever seen. I ended up having two old windows and several colored sharpies. Let's just saw Sharpie's are not the best writing tool for window glass. Since I had two, each are equally bare and neither are full enough to justify hanging on a wall. But the idea was cute and the words people said were awesome.

So here are a few way cooler ideas than the one I chose. Ideas that could be used after the wedding in your home.

Source: Shutters, Guest Book, Frame

My favie fave is the shutter. If I did that, I would actually purchase the shutters and paint them awesome colors like the ones above. Those would make for some interesting art in your home by themselves but imagine having cute note cards popping out. Everything you looked at them, it would be a little surprise every time.

{Inspiration} Home Decor

I spent the last week moving. It has taken me away from the computer a bit more, but no need to worry, I am making great headway on the wedding planning for sure! More about that soon! As I have said before, I absolutely love taking home decor and transferring it into wedding decor (then straight back to home decor for dual uses!).

I wanted to show off a little of the home inspiration and I am grabbing from because I am of course only getting items that can be dual used for my wedding as well. This has given me a whole new burst of wedding inspiration cause it is new and different and the ideas are most definitely unconventional. Which, if you know me, us exactly what I love!

These colors and textures are definitely what I am looking for in terms of wedding decor and the feel I want. I take home decor photos and look for those little details such as shelves, books, lamps, coffee table decor, etc. and those are the things I definitely plan to dual use! I love that I have similar style for both the home and the wedding, talk about green and reusable! Are you incorporating any items into your wedding that you plan to use afterward for your home?

Home Inspiration-Translating to Your Wedding

Inspiration can come from anywhere, right? Most definitely. So, I have created a home inspiration board which can translate into a wedding color palette. Seeing as I plan to re-use all my wedding decor as home decor after the fact, I have found that using home inspiration inspires me in a totally unique perspective to wedding details! I want the feel of my wedding to be very comfortable and completely detailed oriented. Looking around at all types of inspiration from home, to fashion, to babies, etc. has helped me branch where I come up with ideas for the wedding from some nursery I saw. Point is, people have good ideas all around, so when you broaden the amount of inspiration you can pull from, the product is always a far more detailed and unique wedding!

From Wedding to Home: Frames

Here I thought frames would be an incredibly unique idea for a wedding, but frames have jumped to the next level and become wall art in homes as well. I quite like the idea of a wall of frames, filled with pictures or not. It just goes to show that home decor can be just as unique as wedding decor, and when you are striving for a unique wedding, shouldn't your home fit your same tastes?? Well, here we go with another idea of how you can use your wedding decor as home decor after the fact. Save some money, freshen up your home, and take a green approach to your wedding!

Source: Centsational Girl, Coastal Living

I happen to be an extreme fan of chalkboards, engagement shoot props, and unique wedding ideas-well, here you have all of the above wrapped into one pretty package! Have fun with these on your wedding day, engagement shoot, etc.  You can hang them in your home after the wedding to remind you of all that your day meant.

Source: Fabrice Grover

How about the simple approach of incorporating frames into your wedding photos. Hey, you could even frame one of the photos in the frame you used....just an idea!

Source: The Nichols

How are you going green and reducing the waste from your wedding?? Is any of your wedding decor going to find a pretty spot in your home afterward??

From Wedding to Home: Seating

I happen to be a big fan of adorable seating at weddings. Whether it is chaise lounges, wooden benches, Victorian chairs, or just adorable couches, the seating arrangement at a wedding can keep the space feeling comfortable and well decorated. Having a lounge area as part of the cocktail reception is a great way to allow guests to relax and mingle a bit, and will keep them from getting antsy while you take your wedding party photos. Nothing will replace the feeling of being in an comfortable and equally gorgeous space at the wedding. Source: The Knot

How can you turn your "wedding lounge" from wedding to home, without dragging your very own couch collection to your wedding venue?? Try something like purchasing a lot of adorable throw pillows to place on rented couches. The end result is a great little lounge space, decorated mostly with cute pillows, and a fairly inexpensive budget for the space.

If you plan to get wooden benches for your wedding, you could purchase a few of them (often found for about $50 at places like Ikea or Target) and use them to create an amply seated backyard area after the wedding. It may seem like a lot, but adding a few benches in the front yard and in the backyard would look nice and provide all the seating you may need.

Source: Made By Girl, Real Simple

These pillows are adorable and would look great at a wedding as well as at home! Be creative and fun with the colors and patterns, throw pillows will add instant decor and draw the attention to these inexpensive yet great looking decorations!