Planning A... Wedding Inspired by the Domino Book, part II

Welcome back to part II of this "planning a" post. Please check out part I, if you missed it. We are featuring a wedding celebration we designed for a contest (and won! =)) based on the Domino book cover. Up next are the florals and ceremony and reception. We'll finish it off on Wednesday with the color palette we designed for the event.

Images for these boards are by Aaron Delesie, Katie Moos, Megan Sorel for Lisa Vorce and Elizabeth Messina for Rebecca Stone. Please zoom in on each board to see image credits.

The Florals:
I wanted to incorporate the "branches" that are all over the domino book cover, and found thoughts these arrangements were perfect! (zoom in to see notes and image credits)



The Ceremony:
I wanted to keep with the organic feel, as well as incorporate some branches at the end of the aisle, maybe with some flowers and birds attached.



The Reception:
I envisioned a tent frame, strung with small lights or lanterns for the evening. Table arrangements in wooden boxed among branches.

Planning A... Wedding Inspired by the Domino Book, part I

I know when I originally launched this series, I said we wouldn't be covering entire weddings since its time consuming. However, this particular "wedding" I did for a contest on my favorite blog, Elements of Style. The contest was to design a room around the Domino book cover. Since Erin, writer of Elements of Style, has said that events are "temporary interiors" I decided to design a whole wedding, complete with invitation! Well guess what, I won the contest!! I was so surprised and thrilled!! In this 2 part installment of posts you'll see the wedding concepts from the invitation, right down to the reception. Enjoy!!

Up first, here is a look at the domino book cover.


The invitation, by Zenadia Design.


For the invitation, I wanted an elegant organic feel. The invitation is housed in a handmade canvas bag, tied with twine and labeled with each guests name.


The invitation suite takes inspiration from the domino book cover, with the birds and florals.




The Attire:
I thought clothing that was light and airy would be ideal. Also soft in color, in keeping with the overall feel of the celebration. (Click the board to zoom in)



Images from brides.com, etsy.com, Jennifer Behr, BB Photo, Nine West and The Knot.

Planning A... Christmas Celebration

Whether you are planning a holiday party, or a Christmas Day celebration, these tips and pictures will help inspire you as you plan your affair.

Set the Tone. The invitation will definitely set the tone, but you also want to set the tone for the party before your guests enter the house. Decorating outside for Christmas is pretty easy, considering all the available options. Hang lights, trim the door with some garland and a wreath, line your walkways with luminaries. Here are some images to help fuel your creativity.


Photo credits Martha Stewart, Martha Stewart, Martha Stewart

The Decor. If you are like me, you'll have your house decked out for Christmas already. Some of my favorite ways to decorate are of course, your Christmas tree. I also love the idea of hanging a wreath inside in front of a window or a mirror. Another favorite holiday decor tip of mine is candles. I love candles and think they create such a wonderful mood!


Photo Credits Martha Stewart, Martha Stewart


Photo Credits by author, Martha Stewart

The Food and Table Decorations. If you are throwing a holiday party, simple food will be just fine for your guests, as opposed to a full on meal. I just helped my parents throw a Christmas Party this last weekend, and they served all the fixings for yummy sandwiches, plus a sumptuous dessert bar. Below are some ideas for table decorations and food presentation.


Images by author


Image by author


Images by author

Food. A dessert bar is always a popular and well loved addition to any party. See the images below for more simple and tasty snacks.


Hot Spinach Dip, White-Bean Dip with Toasted Pita Chips


Creamy Deviled Eggs, Parmesan Spirals

Good luck planning your holiday party and Christmas celebrations!!

Planning A...Thanksgiving Celebration, Part II

We pretty much all associate Thanksgiving with yummy food. Besides all the turkey and delicious gravy, amazing desserts abound at almost every table. Below are some sumptuous desserts, as well as other Thanksgiving staples to make your celebration its yummiest.


Cornbread And Sausage Stuffing


Roast Turkey with Quince Glaze


Perfect Turkey Gravy


Olive-Oil Mashed Potatoes


Cranberry Relish


Pumpkin-Chocolate Tart

I don't know about you, but I'm ready for Thanksgiving!!
All images from Martha Stewart.

Planning A...Thanksgiving Celebration, Part I

In honor of Thanksgiving this week, we are devoting all our blog posts to ways you can make your Thanksgiving super special! Up first are some fun DIY decorations to get you in that Holiday spirit! For directions, simply click the name under each picture. Most projects will take less than an hour. Part II will be featured on Wednesday.


Display your house number in style with these Gourd House Numbers. Besides numbers, you could put virtually any design on these gourds.


Light the way to your home in style, with these beautiful Autumn Luminarias.


Greet your guests at the door with these stunning Outdoor Bouquets. If you don't have an urn, consider sprucing up an ordinary terracotta pot.


This Feather Wreath could be crafted in virtually any color!


These Cornhusk Votives cast a beautiful glow on any table arrangement.


The traditional symbol of fall's abundance, this Oak-Leaf Cornucopia receives a beautiful makeover with a wreath of gold-leafed oak leaves and acorns.


Perfect for a centerpiece, this Pumpkin Vase is a great way to make use of an ordinary pumpkin.

All images from Martha Stewart. For more great DIY ideas for fall, visit this link.

Planning A...Garden Party Bridal Shower

Up first in our Planning A... series is a garden party theme bridal shower! This event can take place inside or out, however we have planned the event for an outside celebration.

Set the Tone
Obviously the invitation does this. However, you can also set the tone for the party before the guests enter the house, or backyard. Line the walkway with candles in lanterns or luminarias. String a bay leaf garland along the walk or place small potted lavender along the way (picture by Elizabeth Messina) which guests can take home later as favors. Anything that will give your guests a good preview of what they'll find inside.


The Decor
We'll start looking up. If you are outside, umbrellas are always nice. I'm a big fan of hanging votive candle holders. Even if it isn't dark outside, these pretty little things will add ambiance, such as shown in the picture below right by Elizabeth Messina. If you don't want to use candle holders, the ever popular paper lantern will do the trick as well. Hang them from trees, an awning, or string fishing line from your house to, say, a tree, and hang the lanterns on that. Lantern picture via The Bride's Cafe.


Moving down to tables. There are so many ways to decorate your table. Find a pretty cake stand or plate and place fruit mixed with herbs on it. A tin vase or mason jar with flowers is always nice. You can never go wrong with an arrangement of small potted plants either. For the napkins, even if you use paper, tuck a sprig of fresh rosemary or other herb into the napkin for a little added something.


(Pictures from top left clockwise coco+kelley, Jennifer Skog, coco+kelley, brides)

The food. If you are doing a full on meal, you can decorate the table with the ideas above and not have to worry about decorating your serving table. However, if you are having snacks or a buffet, consider how the food is presented. Food intermingled with flowers, as shown below via brides, is an excellent idea. Cake stands, bread baskets and pretty bowls and plates are great ways to present snacks to guests. Other picture from Martha Stewart.


Food to serve. Snacks are usually the easiest thing to serve at a bridal shower. Fruit, cheeses, crackers, sliced artisian bread are all a good start for the snack table. I love the idea of displaying a beverage such as tea or water in something beautiful, like the picture below right by Elizabeth Messina. The picture at left is some lovely Cheese Bite Hors d'Oeuvres. Ice pictue from here.


Gifts
Since this is a garden party, you can either go for garden inspired gifts, or just use the garden party theme as a base for your decor and have regular bridal shower gifts. To decorate the gift table, you can also use the ideas presented above.

Activities
Finding fun bridal shower games seems to be a bit of an issue these days. This book has some really fun ideas that should help get you started. Used from amazon its only $4.99!

New Series on Zenadia Design, Planning A...

I am so excited to announce a great new series here on Zenadia Design called "Planning A...". In a nutshell, we'll take an event, be it a birthday party, bridal shower, bachelorette party, and go over fun little details to include, decor ideas, etc. Now, bare in mind, these will be time consuming posts, so we won't be planning a whole wedding, however, if you have a certain element of your wedding that isn't coming together, email us the question and we'll try and tackle it in our next Planning A... post! Also, if you have a certain event you want some tips and advice on, let us know! Our first post in the series will be up on Friday.