Sep 1 2010

Accessories that make all the difference

If the look you are trying to achieve on your wedding day is one of simplistic elegance, then its likely you have chosen a long, ivory or white, silk, figure-hugging wedding dress for the occasion. Its pure lines will accentuate your body shape and leave you more flexibility when choosing your accessories. By selecting one or more of these fabulous accessories, you will add a little punch to your attire and let your personality shine through without detracting from the overall look. Give it a try!

1. Colourful, sparkly shoes and socks

The new trend in wedding shoes is to go sparkly! Muted shades of silver or gold will add a subtle touch of glamour. For a bolder look, why not go for purple, red, yellow, or green to match your wedding color theme! A great alternative for a more relaxed, beach-style summer wedding are flat ballerina sparkly shoes. To add a little humor to your destination wedding, why not show your patriotic flair with some fabulous union jack ballerinas! A tongue in cheek glimpse at your nationality.


Pura Lopez peep toes sparkly gold shoes

 


Sparkly evening flat bow shoes found on ebay

 


Union Jack ballerinas by Mariko Oikawa



2. Birdcage veils

Complete your vintage wedding look with a birdcage veil, they just scream yesteryear elegance and glamour! Whether it be classic ivory or bold red, you will certainly make a statement wearing one of these retro accessories.


Photo by Veil Tales


Photo by Jerry Boon blogjerry.com


Photo by Womensweddingdresses.com

 

 

3. Jeweled hair combs or couture clips

Whether big or small, an intricate, jeweled hair comb can make even the most tousled updo look polished. These vintage inspired pieces are easy to pop on or off and wearing one instantly transforms your look into something sophisticated and chic.


Vintage style, jeweled wedding comb by etsy.


Photo on theknot.com
Rhinestone comb by EricaKoesler.com

No matter what your hair length – long, medium, or even super-short – a studded barrette is a guaranteed way to add glitz to any down do.


Photo on theknot.com Studded Barrette by JenniferBehr.com

4. Personalised cuff links

Let’s not forget the groom! If your H2B feels like his personality is being supressed by wearing a formal black suit or tuxedo to his wedding, let him add a splash of color, a touch of humor or a glimpse at his favorite pastime or hobby by choosing a fun pair of cufflinks or match your destination theme: Mini Eiffel Tower cuff links for the men and matching necklaces for the ladies. Here are a few of our favorites found on Cuffs ‘n’ Collars : Cuban cigars, Retro gaming and Photographer.




 

  • Share/Bookmark

Aug 24 2010

Original Bridesmaids Gifts

We understand brides who wish to thank their bridesmaids by offering them a gift worthy of the friendship, support and encouragement they have given you during the months of planning your wedding (we are sure you have driven them mad with the details !). But we also understand that you don’t want to opt for the customary necklace or earrings or order one of those cheesy personalised gifts at an online wedding store.

That’s why we’ve come up with our own exclusive Top 5 list of fabulous bridesmaids gifts, guaranteed to suit all types of bridesmaids from the most sophisticated and chic to the most down-to-earth and practical.

Make every day happy : A message that deserves to be shared with all those we love, especially on our wedding day ! This site proposes a fantastic selection of fair trade accessories created by Aissata Malhaire. The company’s origin stems from a beautiful human and ethical adventure. All products are 100% handmade. We love the selection of bags embroidered with its spangly leitmotiv. They are perfect to wear around town or on the beach. Add a little glitter to your bridesmaids lives. This collection is sure to please the most discerning bridesmaids around.

 



My Tikka Shop : This is another favorite of ours. From the laptop covers to the iphone and/or MP3 covers, each with a great selection of unique fabrics to choose from, to the handbag organiser, make-up bags and purses…you will be spoiled for choice! Perfect for the most practical and chic bridesmaid.

Laptop covers:


Handbag organiser :


 

Tutti Frutti Cordials : For the fun and funky bridesmaid, why not offer her a selection of mini cordial fruit drinks to mix the perfect colorful non-alcoholic cocktails to sip at home, at a party or alongside the pool? The bright bottles contain original flavors such as banana bonbon, cactus, chewing gum, crumble, poppy or liquorice and will add a splash of color to any kitchen. They also sell spray oils (olive and basil or olive and truffle) which are simply divine!

 



Cocktail mixing party : For those of you who have bridesmaids who like the real deal, why not treat them to a girly evening in, with a twist! Invite a professional barman to come and teach you how to mix the perfect cocktail before creating your own and sampling them all! Guaranteed to get you giggling and tipsy by the end of the demonstration. Make sure taxis are ordered to ensure everyone makes it home safely or invite everyone to crash at your place! A simple online search will provide you with names of local companies offering this service. Shaken not stirred please J

Decadence and Indulgence : Perfect for bridesmaids with a sweet tooth who love to indulge! Offer them one of this site’s unique and affordable combinations of chocolates with champagne, chocolates with tea, chocolates with flowers and other decadent gift ideas.


 


…and for those of you planning your perfect destination wedding in France, think about asking your wedding planner to order the gifts and have them delivered directly to them, thus saving on shipping costs and leaving some much needed space in your baggage for the million and one other things you will need to pack J Happy shopping!

  • Share/Bookmark

Jul 25 2010

Tales of a Wedding Planner’s own wedding planning…

 

In the seventh and penultimate installment of our up-close and personal series of interviews with Caroline Berthe-Altimani, our very own Senior Wedding Coordinator here at CVW, who is planning her own wedding in the South of France, we now find ourselves just one week from the big day! Read on to discover Caroline’s choice of theme, decoration, menu, surprises and her top tips for how to create a perfect wedding in the South of France!

CVW Blog: What atmosphere are you creating for your wedding in the South of France?

I am creating a casual and very summery wedding with a Spanish theme. I want to stay away from what I’m used to doing for my own couples and have a very non-traditional wedding day.

CVW Blog: How will you achieve this? Tell us all about the decoration…

We are planning an outdoor ceremony and have sourced some pretty red and white parasols to match our wedding colors. These will provide shade for the ladies during the ceremony. We also have some fans to distribute should it get really hot.

The decoration at the ceremony and cocktail will follow a countryside theme with old wooden boxes filled with fruit, flowers, herbs as well as some watering cans and wrought iron salad baskets to add to the old-fashioned effect. The garden flowers and herbs will smell wonderful!

For dinner, we will move inside into a big room, like a barn where market animals used to be kept. The ceiling is really high with old wooden beams painted white. We will be hanging the table center pieces from the beams, round balls of flowers in the colors of orange, fuchsia pink and red. The table names have been made using pink and red wire. The wire swirls into the name of the tables that we have named after ballroom dances as my fiancé and I are passionate about dancing. Flamenco is one of the table names for example.

As a change from the traditional head table, we have decided just to have a small table for the bride and groom, surrounded by a U shape table with all of our friends. This way, when we get up to say hello to everyone and talk, we aren’t leaving anyone alone. A table of honor is usually quite empty and I don’t really like the idea of abandoning my favorite guests all evening, so this solves the problem. J

CVW Blog: What type of wedding menu have you chosen?

We’ll be having a very long cocktail lasting about 2 hours with a Spanish theme. We’ll be serving a variety of grilled foods on “plancha” as well as a selection of tortillas, pan con tomato and some classic mozzarella and tomato skewers. There will be a huge Spanish ham cut up in front of guests, this will be fun and lively. I am sourcing some cute aprons for the waiters with Spanish stripes to make it more rustic and less formal.

After such a long and copious cocktail, we have decided to skip the starter and go direct to the main course. We have chosen to serve a giant Paella cooked in one of those huge pans measuring over 1 meter wide. Following the main course will be a cheese buffet and dessert buffet. As a change from the traditional wedding cake, we have opted for an assortment of mini French pastries that everyone will love!

CVW Blog: Will you be providing your guests with wedding favors? If so, tell us more!

First of all, a welcome letter and gift will await each guest in their hotel room. The gift is a small jar of homemade jam (strawberry or apricot) with a nice fabric cover (yellow, red and orange) with little Catalan Spanish dancers embroidered on them. A personalized label with our names and the date of the wedding will be stuck onto each jar.

The red and white parasols and fans can be kept by those who wish to keep them. Then, on the tables, we will place a small heart-shaped box containing a small scented candle on each plate.

CVW Blog: Are you planning any surprises?

Yes of course! Several actually! The first is a surprise group of 2 guitar players and a flamenco dancer who will play and dance as guests walk into the dinner hall. They will then meander throughout the room and stop to play at each table. We are sure this will really set the mood and warm up the atmosphere as we have dinner!

Tony and I have practiced the traditional first dance waltz…with a twist! Within one minute of the music starting, our dance friends will come and join us on the dance floor for a fast chachacha Spanish song. I’ve had a really cute chachacha dance dress made for me for our second dance. I can’t wait to see the look on our guests’ faces when we change from the sooo traditional waltz into a fast chachacha. It will be priceless!

CVW Blog: What are your top tips to help couples create the perfect wedding in the South of France?

This part of the South of France isn’t easy for weddings. The region is called the Pyrenees and is named after the mountain range that separates France from Spain. Not many venues are available in this region and there are only a few good caterers. My top tips for creating the perfect wedding in this region of south-west France are:

  • Make sure you have a contingency plan in case of rain as this region is renowned for its storms and planning an outdoor wedding is quite risky. Although the storm will likely only last a few minutes, it will be enough to destroy all of your setup. I haven’t taken this risk for dinner, although we would have preferred a full outdoor wedding.
  • Be patient with the wedding vendors as they don’t reply fast. Although professional, they are slow to respond and don’t seem to be in any rush to do anything until the week before your wedding. This is enough to make any bride-to-be nervous, but hang on in there, you will not be disappointed on the day of your wedding!
  • If you need to stick to a budget, consider renting equipment and other specific services from Spain which is often much more reasonably priced. It’s just a hop over the border!

CVW Blog: Have you hired a Wedding Planner to take care of the on-site coordination and allow you to relax on your wedding day?

I have planned everything to date and have really enjoyed myself. However, as soon as I arrive, my two colleagues will take over all of the coordination until the day itself. I want to feel like a “guest” at my own wedding, not only for me but for my family as well. So it is really important to me that someone else takes care of all the little details on the day, although you would hope that I will have thought of everything as a professional wedding planner!

CVW Blog: How do you feel only one week before the big day?

I feel so not ready! There is still so much to do. Although my list is getting smaller every day, time is just flying by! As I really want to be able to relax with everyone as soon as I arrive a few days before, I really want everything to be all set before I leave Paris.

I’m not nervous about actually saying “Yes” or anything. I just can’t wait to see how my family and friends are moved on the day and how they react to all of our surprises. Since we were so few in Sweden, this wedding with everyone we love around us will be special in a different way and it is the reactions and emotions of everyone around us that will make it different from our intimate winter wedding in Sweden and magical in its own way.

 

Stay tuned for the final episode after the wedding when Caroline will share her most special moments with us!

 


 

  • Share/Bookmark