In my opinion, one of the best things that has happened to bridal party attire recently is the idea that (gasp!) all of your bridesmaids are different and don’t need to be dressed up in perfectly identical frocks for your wedding.  Stylish, modern brides are putting this theory into play in a few different ways.

- Choosing 1 dress style & 1 color family: For the bride who wants a cohesive look in hemlines and necklines, this is a nice, foolproof option.  And with fashion forward designers like Simple Silhouettes, Coren Moore and Jenny Yoo offering not only chic dress options, but a wide range of complimentary colors families, this look is easier than ever to pull off.  Not sure what colors are complimentary?  Courtney over at the Little White Book did a great post recently on using paint chips to identify color hues that work together.

-Choosing 1 color & letting your bridesmaids select dress styles that suit them: This is a great option if you have a lot of varying body types in your bridal party (pregnant bridesmaids will be particularly thankful!)  Again, designers are making this easier than ever with fabrics and colors that can be applied to virtually all their styles.  I love J.Crew and Aria for this option.  Check out their real weddings album page for tons of inspiration on putting this look together.  The no-nonsense way to pull this off – put your bridesmaids in black.  The look is sophisticated, impossible to botch and allows bridesmaids to shop virtually anywhere for a black dress they love (READ:  will actually wear again).

-Choosing 1 color family & overall feel for dress styles, then thinking outside the wedding “box”: Certainly of all options, this one requires the most legwork and dress hunting.  But the result can be chic, modern and just beautiful.  To maintain a consistent design aesthetic, this look is best when hemlines are kept consistent.  Provide some direction to your bridesmaids for the overall look you want then set them loose to find options anywhere and everywhere.  Some of my favorite places to start include Bluefly.com which lets you search their dress inventory by color family and Anthropologie for their always fresh and unique styles.

{Photo credits:  top -  Todd Pellowe Photography, middle – Joe Mikos Photographers, Overexposed, bottom – Christian Oth via StyleMePretty}

{Photo credits:  top – One Love Photo, middle – Todd Pellowe Photography, bottom – Victor Sizemore Photography}

One last little gem that I like to see – bridal parties in 1 dress style in a coordinated color with the maid of honor in a complimentary, patterned dress (see middle photo above).   It’s a great way to spotlight her important role while still maintaining a consistent overall look.

Happy shopping!

{Photo credit:  Ashley Brokop Photography}

This image just cracks me up.  He couldn’t be cuter in that seersucker suit but oh, how close to a meltdown he seems to be!

Happy weekend everyone!

xoxo

Stop the presses!  When I saw this posted over at decor8 (one of my favorite home decor blogs by the way), I HAD to share it here.  Jonathan Adler, designer of chic, modern and much coveted contemporary home accessories and textiles has launched a new offering letting you design your own fabulous creations.  Everything from pillows to rugs to totes is available for customizing in a range of awesome patterns and colors.

But perhaps the best, most wedding-worthy part is their monogrammed offerings.  We all know that wedding lounge areas have been all the rage for some time now.   They offer a great opportunity for decor extension from your main reception area not to mention a nice spot for your dancing-weary guests to relax and take a break.  How ridiculously cute would these custom throw pillows be peppered in with other coordinating (and less costly) pillows in your lounge?  Personalized with your new married surname initial, they would complete the look AND be a nice addition to your newlywed home decor after the wedding (think accent pillows on your bed, side chairs, etc).

…sigh…now I must find a reason not to own all of these!  Also available are these absurdly chic rugs.

More houndstooth!!  The houndstooth gods are smiling down on me this week! I LOVE that bottom faux animal throw rug.  I’ll give you fair warning that you will spend way too much time playing around with this tool on the Jonathan Adler website but it’s too fun not to.  Happy customizing!

For the record, I did not wake up today determined to post about all things sugar and sweet.  But one thing led to another in my adventures around the web (as they often do!) and I landed on such a treasure, I just had to share.  Behold the most incredible cookie creations I’ve seen in a long, long time from SweetAmbs Cookies via Etsy.

Seriously…more edible houndstooth?  What did I do to deserve such a day? From Amber’s Etsy shop:

My Orange Vanilla Spice Cookies are about 3-1/2″ in diameter. They are made from a basic sugar cookie recipe, which is then flavored with fresh orange zest, vanilla beans, and a hint of cardamom. The royal icing has a dash of vanilla extract to bring together the wonderful flavors of the cookie.

I have to say I consider myself a bit of a pastry connoisseur.  I’ve been known to drag my poor husband around a city in an effort to satisfy a sweet tooth (trips to Paris with me are really fun).  But I have truly never seen anything like that painted frosting flower petal design.  That is some serious pastry tip skills!

So lovely and best of all cookie artist extraordinaire Amber can customize the design to be just perfect for your wedding.  Her blog is one jaw-dropping cookie after another.  You’ll get lost in it, don’t say I didn’t warn you!  Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to her Etsy shop to order those embroidered flower petal cookies…they will be mine!

There is so much about these wedding cakes that makes me giddy, I almost can’t take it.  The croquembouche, the perfect pink milk glass pedestal…THE HOUNDSTOOTH CAKE!  Oh my, the houndstooth cake!!  I have a serious thing for houndstooth in pretty much that exact scale – big and mod.  I re-upholstered a vintage high back chair in a strikingly similar pattern last year and it makes me happy just to look at it.  Now take all that happiness and spin it into pure Sylvia Weinstock cake perfection and I’m in love.

{Photo credit:  New York Weddings}