Dramatic Black and White with Splash of Red!

What a whirlwind couple of weeks! I found some really beautiful things and I can't wait to share it with you, so here it is!

I love the dramatic theme of a black and white wedding, but I do feel like there needs to be a splash of color somewhere to give it some "oomph" ... whether it's red, mango, lime green, yellow ... I chose to go with red for this blog because it feels so Spanish to me and ties in well with a lot of our villa settings.


The Invitations
I fell in love with these invitations when I was designing an event a few months back. These are designed by Kenzie Kate and I think they are absolutely wonderful!

The Bouquet
Black magic roses, crimson calla lilies and feathers ... what's not to love?!! I would add a beautiful beaded trim and wa-la, gorgeous! I found these bouquets at The Knot. Of course, you know I try to stick to things we can actually get here in Vallarta and as you all know, beautiful beaded trim is usually something not readily available, as these are at MJ Trim. However, beads are available, and that's what I would do for this particular bouquet - make some beaded ribbon to accomplish a similar look!

The Ceremony
So much depends on the location, of course. But I love the idea of incorporating some detailed lace with sparkling crystals (Black White Bliss)! And these fans are a wonderful idea that I have every intention of incorporating somehow (found at The Bride's Cafe and created by Oh How Charming).

The Cocktail
For whom, and how I would use this idea, I'm not sure. But in this particular blog of black and white, here's a GREAT idea to recreate an old-fashioned look in a way that we can actually "find" here in Vallarta! These are just fabric covers over boxes but painted to look like furniture, found at Black White Bliss. I love this idea and I'm sure you'll see it one day in one of our designs!

The Reception
I couldn't find anything that really represents in my head when I think about this particular black and white with splashes of red look, but the idea is to print off a piece, such as this tango artwork and wrap it around a hurricane vase to create centerpieces. Then I would add a black tablecloth with white lace runner, similar to the photo (Easy Street Antiques), and some sort of red, white and black printed napkin (Saffron Marigold). I love this burnt number look and would incorporate that into the table numbers as well as the place cards (Black and White Bliss). Then, as the final finishing touches. a couple of filigree red lanterns and clear candles (Illumination) and you're ready to go!

The Dance Floor
I think red hanging lanterns with an arabesque touch would be a great touch and I love the way they are represented in this photo, found once again at the Brides Cafe and created by Oh How Charming. I'm sure you're wondering, "How on earth would you get something that looked like those lanterns here" and all I'm going to say is there are ways! If I gave you all my secrets what would you need us for?? :)

The Cake/Cupcake
I love both this cake (Glass Slipper Gourmet) and this amazing cupcake decor (Black White Bliss) equally, so it would be really hard to make a decision and would have to be up to the bride and groom's preference! But great ideas, nevertheless!

Well, that's it for mid-month. Next month I'm going to tackle the next current and upcoming trend which is vintage, vintage and vintage!

Mexico Chic Wedding!

Wedding Date: May 24, 2008
Location: Villa Crescencia
Wedding Coordinator: Vows Vallarta
Months of work: 4 months

Here it is, the event we've been working months on! The bride wanted her guests to have a true Mexican experience, but not in the "commercial" sense of the word. It was a fun, exciting project! Here is an example of my idea page which I used to inspire me as I created her design:

The Bouquet
The bride wanted calla lilies, but they weren't available. So, we decided on stargazers and roses. My favorite part of the bouquet was her accent ribbon and I was very excited when I found it when I was out shopping!

Bridal Bouquet

Bridesmaids and Bridal Bouquet

The Ceremony

So, we decided to create a papel picado huppah with the bride and grooms names and date of their wedding etched inside, atop a platform built especially for them, so their guests could see them better. We also had sandalwood fan favors with beads in the bride's colors of fuchsia and orange as well as seashell accents and chocolate brown ribbon. The bride and groom weren't real "seashell" people but, when I asked them for their invitation, their invitation had a seashell on it so I knew I needed to have a few accents of seashells spread through-out the wedding.

The Cocktail
After the ceremony, we took the ceremony chairs into the reception area and brought down cocktail tables which were covered with a rich chocolate brown and candles wrapped in orange, fuchsia, gold, chocolate brown and pink chiffon. The villa chairs were alternately covered in chocolate brown or various shades of chiffon. Adobe candles were also spread through-out the cocktail area.

Escort Cards and Drink Sign
The bride wasn't real crazy about fresh flowers, so we made paper flowers! The escort cards were propped-up in a large handmade paper flower rose. Drink Signs were modeled after the bride and groom's invitation, down to the cream and white striped background!

The Reception
Tables were covered with a beautiful sand/fuchsia tinted chiffon fabric and we used ordinary pinata bases for centerpieces but dressed them up with handmade paper rose and lily flowers and rocks. Table signs were various seashell photographs. Surrounding the paper flower centerpieces were adobe candles. I found out a few days before that two children were expected, so we bought and propped-up some toys at their place setting for them to enjoy! Napkins in sunburst orange were placed on the talavera dinnerware with the place cards. Paper flowers in orange, fuchsia and white were wrapped around the wine stems and indicated who was eating meat, fish or vegetarian!

The After Party
After dinner, guests were invited back into the previous cocktail area where we had lit the over 400 candles which were scattered through-out the villa as well as the hand-made beaded lanterns which framed the dance floor. The bride and groom had also supplied party masks which were displayed on the various cocktail tables. Hand-made floating lanterns were aglow in the pool - truly beautiful!

The Cake (cupcake tower!)
The bride and groom actually had a cupcake tower and, while we decorated the cupcake tower itself, the cupcakes were done by Charme! The cupcakes were adorned with the same seashell accent as their invitation and, as promised in a previous blog, the bride and groom cupcake were a dress and suit respectively. They were a big hit!

That's all for now ... mid-month I will tackle the black and white trend. Until then, have a great rest of the month!