{Alt Summit Recap} Some Snapshots

I guess I owe the world an Alt Summit recap, huh? If you follow me on Instagram you may have noticed that something was a little different. Photos hit my feed of cooler things that my computer and coffee (hate to break it to the world but the life of a blogger is basically computers + coffee). I wore cute outfits and I put on makeup every day for 5 whole days! I even wore heels most of the time. Oh ya, that  is definitely different.

Well, I was in Salt Lake City to attend a blogger conference, Alt Summit. I've been wanting to go every year but this is the first year that I for reals decided to go for it. After that decision came an unexpected surprise, I was asked to speak. Yep, speak. As in attempting to form sentences in front of a couple hundred people and hopefully impart some knowledge to these eager ears. Talk about feeling honored.

Prior to stepping on that plane I was both completely terrified and totally ready. I had been packed for a week, I printed out my schedule for the next few days, and I had a few meetings set up with sponsors. I was ready, let's do this. But, the other side of things.... Being a totally unsocial butterfly, I was dead scared. I don't do well in places where I am forced to talk to people. I know that sounds terrible, but it is the cold hard truth. I'm behind a computer all day for a reason BTW. How was I ever going to do this?

Just a few of the awesome business cards I collected.

First thing Thursday morning I went to a panel about collaborating with sponsors. Right off the bat Camille Styles absolutely killed it. 10 minutes in and I knew I made the right decision in coming to this conference. I knew it was going to be exactly what I needed.

Thursday's keynote speaker  Chris Anderson (editor-in-chief of Wired Magazine) was another major turning point for me. I felt my entire life change at that moment. No seriously. Life changed. As in, I. will. never. look. at. anything. the. same. I immediately delved into his book Makers, and again, Life. Changed. I love surrounding myself with big thinkers, and this guy definitely does that way too well.

Here is a shot of my Friday morning panel Social Media 101 : Following The Conversation Panel. Meg of MegBiram.com, Kelly of Design Crush, myself, Erin of House of Earnest, Natalie of Bing.

I'll leave you with possibly the most important thing I learned from Alt Summit:

Here is the first thing to know about Alt Summit. It isn’t a conference. It is a culture. A culture of creatives, of thinkers, of makers. What is known in the conference circuit as "networking" Alt attendees know as collaboration. It isn’t about meeting people, it is about cultivating relationships.

This industry is filled with feelings of competition and comparison. Here you have the chance to strip everything down and realize at the core of it all, we are all in this together. We are creative people who add beauty to this world  and together we are trying to build a new industry. We couldn't do it alone, and sometimes we just need to remind ourselves and each other of that. 

(I was hired by iBlog Magazine to blog about my experience at Alt Summit. This is an excerpt of the article I wrote. It'll be published soon, so stay tuned)

The Details: Signage

It seems more now than ever before brides are using signs as part of their wedding decor. Of course, I could be wrong and this might be a long time practice but since I only went to my first wedding six years ago the trend really seems to have sprung in the last year or so. And I couldn't be happier this trend is "in" when I'm planning my wedding. I love signs. All signs, not just wedding signs. It's a known thing that I love signage and I'm really ok with that. Anyways....amazingly enough a friend from high school opened up a custom sign side business. Her work is absolutely fantastic and I cannot wait to incorporate it into my wedding details.

Some of the sign ideas I am loving.

Credits: Brides, Etsy, Lynnslens, Style Me Pretty, The Bridal Detective

What do you think of signs - too trendy or just right? Will you be using signs as part of your decor? Share in the comments, I'd love to hear!

Here Comes the Bride {aisle inspiration}

This past Saturday I talked with two different florists. Before doing so I gathered lots of inspiration and honed in on the look I wanted. I had been holding off on this because there are so many gorgeous options, I was having trouble committing to one. Creating a board with the things I decided on so far and adding in the flowers I was thinking about really helped me be sure I was going in the right direction. I sent the Pinterest board links to the florists and it helped them see my overall style and, more specifically, the flowers I had in mind (what did we do before Pinterest!?) One thing they both asked me on our calls was what my plan was for the aisle and ceremony space. I had been doing so much thinking about the flowers in terms of the tables and bouquets, I hadn't even thought of the aisles! So I asked them what they recommended and started searching and realizing there are endless options...

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Would love the candle look if I was having a nighttime ceremony.

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Shepherd hooks are really versatile and my venue has some I can use if I opt for this. No extra rentals =  money saved! But, you will be shelling out for the extra arrangements. One good option would be if you could move them to the tables after the ceremony for double duty!

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And then there are petals. I love the look of petals along the aisle because it creates such a strong visual pathway. It's also romantic, timeless and (apparently) pretty cost-effective. One of the florists told me she could use the petals of a less expensive flower along the aisle.

When you have a gorgeous venue, I think you can get away with a more minimal aisle decoration. I'm thinking I will keep the ceremony decor pretty simple (we have Mt. Hood as the backdrop, so I think people will be looking at that), and put more towards the tables.

What are you doing to dress up your aisle and ceremony space? Did you have it figured out already when you talked to florists? Any cost-saving tips?

When Was The Last Time You Didn't Like Neon Pink?

I recently purchased a neon pink crossbody bag. Despite the major sale, I was concerned that in a short time it would be out of style and the bag would find a place sitting in my closet to collect dust. When I told this to my husband his response was, "When was the last time you didn't love neon pink?" Of course my response was "umm, never." And just like that my decision to keep the bag stuck.

And so comes my lesson of the day. Your wedding day shouldn't be about trends or styles. With every detail from your wedding, think, when was the last time I didn't like this? If you have loved it forever, chances are your love affair won't be ending anytime soon.

Searching for The Skirt

Last July I semi-impulsively bought half of my wedding dress. After months of trying on wedding dresses and not falling in love with any of them, I purchased a gorgeous Monique Lhullier corset top and decided to design my own skirt. Six months have flown by, so it's time to start to seriously thinking about my other half. I love these simple silhouettes below but want something with a little more poof for the big day.

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So cool that the skirt below comes in 26 colors as I have been playing around with the idea of having a non-white (peach or gray colored) skirt.

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I'm  leaning towards a skirt design that marries the two silhouettes below.

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How did you decide? Did you dare to try designing your own?

Veil-ed It! {headpiece or veil?}

My wedding gown has a lot going on. I knew that I would never be that bride that can effortlessly and elegantly pull off a crepe sheath dress (Gwyneth Paltrow I am not). That being said, my accessorizing options are somewhat limited by the fact that my dress brings the bling in a major way. Herein lies the problem: I love headpieces, like true love. I have been searching for a headpiece that combines my love of vintage, my love of bling, and is understated enough that I won't look like Honey Boo Boo (think modified tiara, not full-blown tiara). Here are a few that I love:

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Recently, veils have seemed a little more alluring. I had honestly completely written off veils, since we're not religious, not having a religious ceremony, and the back of my gown is intricate, and I wanted it to be visible. However, BHLDN has struck again with a couple of very sheer, very delicate options that are making me rethink this whole headpiece obsession.

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Crafty Table Numbers

It's hard not to love wedding tablescapes. I love seeing the time and effort that goes into planning a perfect table and how couples decide on what goes where and how it'll look. One of the must-haves for any wedding tablescape is the table number. There's so many different ways differentiate tables that it's always fun to see what people choose. I love the idea of a crafty, diy table numbers since I think they would be a perfect addition to our tables. Here are a few that I love and even think you could make on your own!

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Have you decided what you are doing for tables? Are you using numbers or words to differentiate them?  

Six Month Countdown {check-in}

I am officially less than six months away from my wedding date! I keep counting it out on my fingers, thinking I'm wrong :-) The wedding planning is continuing to move along, but I have a feeling these next six months are going to fly by, especially once the festivities start getting under way. This week I booked my bachelorette flight and can not wait to be in Palm Springs with my favorite ladies celebrating my last days as a 'single' woman!

This week I needed to step back and look at the bigger picture before I delve into the little details like invitation design, table-scaping and bride accessories. So, I thought what better way to 'step back' than to get inspired by images from my wedding photographer, Sean Morrison Photography.

Love these kinds of shots. Is it called a fish eye lens?

Close-ups.

Nature, laughs, and love.

How cute is she?!

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And some fun shots...

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Looking at these pictures has me excited to dig into my next few tasks on my to do list. Nothing like some great images to get the inspiration going. The thing I love about my photographer is that he does wedding photography because it's his passion, not just his job. During the school year, he teaches digital photography at a high school in Washington. It's great to know my photographer really loves what he does. I think that comes through in his work.

My To Do List for the next few weeks:

- finding my hair and makeup person/people

- florist

- bridesmaid dresses - coordinating the mix-and-match look

Do you have any advice for me in the six-month countdown? Are you getting married this summer? Would love to hear how your planning is going!

Great Aftertaste

As I mentioned  in last week's post, we had our catering tasting this past week at Heirloom LA. It was wonderful!

Source (You can buy these cute forks off Etsy!)

With this being our first tasting, I had no idea what to expect and was pleasantly surprised. We got to try a smaller version of our crostini station (pictured above), five amazing tray-passsed appetizers (so appetizing that they disappeared before I could remember to photograph them), four different entrée options and two scrumptious desserts.

Our favorites of the night were Smoked Pork Chop with Yam Puree and Roasted Brussel Sprouts (pictured above) and Maple Rosemary Donuts (pictured below)

Now comes the hard part of narrowing down our options. Since we are doing a family-style dinner we want to make sure that what we pick will appeal to all of our guests. How did you decide on your wedding menu? With so many special dietary restrictions theses days (vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, ect.) how did you select for the masses without giving up what you wanted?

Showered with love {what to wear to your bridal shower}

While my bridal shower is a good four months away, and there will surely be white and cream-colored dresses a-plenty as the weather gets warmer, lately, I find my fingers wandering to sites like Nordstrom, BHLDN, and Anthropologie to search for the perfect dress to wear to my bridal shower. Requirements are as follows: 1) Effortless (no dress is ever truly effortless, but it'd be great if it at least looks effortless)

2) Chic

3) A little something extra (my mantra for all things wedding....sequins! Just kidding...sort of)

4) Bride-y (a bit hard to wear white lace on occasions when you're not being showered, no?)

What you wear should somewhat depend on the look and feel of the shower, as well as the attendees. Lucky for me, my most favorite ladies in the world know that I like to sparkle like it's my job. So, I don't think they'll mind if my dress is a bit much for a backyard ladies' luncheon in May. Here are some of my favorites so far:

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