Etsy is a website that every bride should visit at least once to find the most unique handmade wedding items in the world. The company spans more than 150 countries and is comprised of artists who are selling their handmade goods online. Just about every bride I have worked with has used Etsy for some part of her wedding... whether to find a one-of-a-kind feather hair piece or invitations unlike any your guests have ever received.

Your wedding will stand out if you put enough of an effort into incorporating simple yet stylish touches that reflect your personality... Etsy is a great place to start!

The traditional tossing of the bridal bouquet goes all the way back to medieval Europe and stems (please excuse the pun) from the fact that the bride was said to be especially lucky on her wedding day. After the wedding ceremony was over, the bride was essentially attacked by guests who attempted to rip off pieces of her dress to take home for good luck. In order to avoid the post-ceremony riots, brides began tossing their stockings (hence the garter custom) to the ravenous crowds. Finally the tradition settled on the tossing of the bouquet which was a more lady-like option for brides.

I recently planned a bridal shower and decided to put together a "candy buffet" as the favor for the guests. I had seen the idea on the Internet and it is a pretty visually awesome display...usually found at weddings on a larger scale, but it certainly worked for the shower as well.

From the research I did for the shower, I found that have roughly 10 different types of candy was sufficient. It's really important that you stick with your color scheme and also try to have a variety of different candy (for example, not all chocolate). You should also take into consideration any guests at your wedding that might not be able to eat sugar and there are plenty of sugar-free candies that you could incorporate (be sure to create miniature signs describing each kind of candy, or at least make the sugar-free candy stand out).

When trying to figure out how much candy to purchase, I went for the visual appeal more than actually calculating how much per person. It really is a decoration as well, which automatically means you will need to have way more than guests will probably eat. Think Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory.... it's all about the visual!

So instead of calculating per person, I started by purchasing the containers. I found trays, buffet serving sets and I used a trifle dish which I already had at home to create a jelly bean trifle. Make sure you add some height and have interesting looking containers and that will truly make it look incredible.

It's not that difficult to make your wedding invitations look like they were done by a master calligrapher... especially if you have the right calligraphy pen and you practice first! Here are some tips:

Hand Writing Wedding Invitations

Yes, DJ's are a lot of fun and they have mastered the art of balancing songs like the Chicken Dance and the Macarena with the modern hits, but let us not forget the draw of a live band. I'm not even talking about a wedding band or a cover band, I'm talking about an up and coming rock band that tours the local concert venue scene and perhaps the outlying area. Talented musicians deliver a degree of uniqueness that you can't necessarily find with a DJ.

Here's a great band that played a wedding I did last year that rocked our socks off: Charlie Apicella & Iron City. They happen to be a jazz/funk band, which is also dynamic and dance friendly.

Maybe a DJ is exactly what you always envisioned, but if you are looking for a new ice cream flavor, why not check out Metroland and give something different a whirl? Just don't forget to go see them play live somewhere before you make a decision, and definitely go over the ground rules of your wedding expectations and maybe a song or two that you want them to learn just for you. Most musicians will jump at the chance to cover a song that they can add to their repetoire.

Some guidelines for all of you bridesmaids out there planning a shower soon...

• Invitations should be sent at least 3 weeks before the shower

• Don't surprise the bride!!! Make sure she knows when it is so she can prepare and dress appropriately (just don't give her all the details so there is still some mystery to it)

• Make sure someone is present to help record the gifts and take care of wrapping paper as the bride opens her presents

• The shower should be 2-3 hours long with fun activities but no cheesy games!

• Make sure you provide good food, fun prizes and a lovely atmosphere

"There are six requisites in every happy marriage. The first is faith and the remaining five are confidence."   --Elbert Hubbard

I'm wondering how everyone feels about couples writing their own vows..... looking for some ideas for a couple that wants to exchange vows in a unique way. Any thoughts?

Had a great meeting with a bride this weekend... it got me into wedding mode! I'm sure lots of you out there are in wedding mode as well. As you get closer to your wedding day, you will likely start to feel all those butterflies and worry about things going perfectly. All those little details can be overwhelming... but there are lots of things you can do to ease that stress!

1. Draw pictures! It always helps me to sketch out reception floor plans, seating arrangements, and even flower positioning. If you are a visual person this is a great technique!
2. Make lists! Just like when you go grocery shopping, you don't want to forget any little detail that might be really important. 
3. Create schedules! Start with a bigger time frame, say the whole month before the wedding... then create one for wedding week and of course the day of the wedding. Walking through the day hour by hour will help you to remember details that may have otherwise been overlooked.
   
4. Hire a coordinator! Even if you can't afford a full planner for your whole wedding, there are individuals out there (like myself) who can help you get organized and just tie everything together a few weeks before the wedding. At a certain point you need to relax and be the bride/groom and hand over all those beautiful plans to a professional who can execute the whole thing according to your dreams.
   

"All you need is love."   -John Lennon