Adding origami details

Origami can add a sculptural, modern quality to your wedding reception. You can hang dozens of cranes for an element of whimsy, or fold flowers to add onto a tablescape. It can even be reflected in the wedding gown.

by Brittany Watson Jepsen of The House That Lars Built

Table  |  Cranes  |  heart name tag  |  dress  |  photobooth diamond ring

What does it mean?

A year and a half after my own, I’ve been thinking a lot about how we spend so much time, energy, and resources on creating the “perfect wedding”. Brides (and their mothers!) often feel great stress and anxiety about the whole thing and sometimes I think, “for what?!”. I mean weddings can be a beautiful reflection of a wonderful union between two people, but they can also become overwhelming and much more involved than anticipated. To me, the ideal wedding should be an afterthought to the decision to get married, like “we’re so thrilled about this new step in our lives that we want to celebrate with those we love the most.” So, I thought I’d step back a bit on the wedding frenzy and focus on the meaning behind it with this new column, “What does it mean?”. Every month I’ll feature a different blogger and ask them what the most meaningful part of their wedding was. I’m quite excited to see how those I admire have celebrated their union, but first, you have to hear from me.

When it comes to keeping things simple, I shouldn’t be talking because I really used my wedding as an excuse to get my craft on, but there were a couple of things that I’m really glad we did. First, Paul and I gathered photos from our parents and grandparents on their wedding days and I glued them into the front and back covers of our guestbook. My grandparents always had a guestbook in their home and constantly played host to guests visiting their home in Los Angeles. I wanted the guestbook to be something that we could use after the wedding in the same way and because of this, I’m always reminded of our dear family.

Second, I sent out about 25 blank canvas flags out to friends and family before the wedding accompanied by a color palette with the theme “Scandinavian garden” and asked them to go wild. We knew that many invitees wouldn’t be able to attend our wedding because of distance so this was a way they could be there with us. Each time a flag showed up in the mail we were floored. They were SO creative! One friend used the format of the Danish flag and in one quadrant painted a daisy, the symbol of Denmark where Paul was from, another quadrant featured a California poppy where I was from, another quadrant featured a Canadian maple leaf where Paul was born, and the last were DC cherry blossoms where I was living at the time. I mean, how thoughtful can you be?! We felt so lucky to have our friends spend time on us in that way.

Can’t wait to see more “meaning” posts? Me neither! Stay tuned for more!

-by Brittany Watson Jepsen of The House That Lars Built 

[images from Ali Degraff]

Neon Brit inspiration shoot

Here’s a fun inspiration shoot to kick off your weekend with a bit of neon pop….I just love how the invitation translates over to the caketopper, escort cards and signage on the chairs!

Vendors:
Floral Design and Styling: Juli Vaughn Designs
Photography: Amber Wilburn Photography
Invitations and Paper Accents: Julia’s Poppies Design
Furniture and Vintage Items: Four Inch Fold
Venue: Ambient + Studio

[images from Amber Wilburn Photography]

The New Modern: Spring Green

Happy Spring Brooklyn Bride! I can’t believe we are on our 12th tablescape.  This table really sums up all we’ve tried to accomplish with this series. Which is to present a fresh modern perspective on floral design that is approachable and easy to create. When discussing the series with Adrienne and Tory, we kept returning to the word “happy’ as in our desire to create classic designs that make you smile. And there is certainly no happier a flower than the daffodil. They just embody cheerfulness to me. A ceramic blue and white planter from Pearl River (or any home goods store) holds a mass of fringed and double white tulips, green parrot tulips and hellebore. I made some little yellow daffodil “topiaries” using a bit floral foam covered with moss and place them in small Chinese bowls. A grass green runner and cute checked salad plates finish it off. Adrienne worked closely with designer Hermias Wishes who designed the perfect accompanying paper goods. I love the table’s crisp breezy feel -perfect for April. I hope you enjoy it.

I know I can speak for Adrienne and Tory when I say THANK YOU Brooklyn Bride for this amazing experience. The chance to be able to share with you my ideas has been a real treat.  – Denise

Vendors:

Concept and Floral Design: Denise Fasanello Floral Design
Coordination and Planning: Bespoke Affairs
Photography: Tory Williams
Paper Goods: Hermias Wishes

Denise Fasanello & Tory Williams are members of Brooklyn Brides preferred vendor listings

Brides sneak peek + win!

Check it out!  Brides Magazine has a new look, and as you can see, its gorgeous!  Take a sneak peek at the story below…I love how its shot kinda paparazzi style!

To celebrate the new look, Brides is letting me give away 10 1-year long subscriptions!  Want one?   Leave a comment below and we’ll pick a couple of winners for Friday!

[images from Brides]