February 2007

Monday, February 26, 2007

0 let them eat cake

Wedding trends follow interior design which follows fashion. If you want to know what's going to be hot in the wedding circuit one to two years from now, then keep an eye on what is coming out of New York and Milan today. If you want to know what's going to be instantly popular, go to the movies.

Last year we saw a lot of Asian-themed influence in decor and favors because of the understated elegance Memoirs of a Geisha portrayed. Paper parasols, square dinnerware, and chopsticks as escort card holders, while not necessarily new ideas, made a big splash. Hanging lanterns became so popular that you can now find all sorts of sizes and colors at your nearest Target.

This year that sophisticated simplicity will begin to give way to ornate extravagance. Marie Antoinette was last year's big artsy film (picking up an Oscar last night for best costume design) and the rich textures, glitzy chandeliers, and opulent dinner parties are already being incorporated into bridal design. Candelabras will make a big comeback this year as centerpiece elements. Big jewelry and flouncy dresses will be seen on many a bridesmaid as well as bride. Luxury table linens will become a budget staple. And all those delicious pastries? Please save us one.

When it all comes down to it, it still is all about what you want and your personality. If you like the simple, straight lines, and understated elegance, use it. If the giant gowns with a thousand pickups make you feel like a big cow, then don't wear one. Just because big dresses are en vogue again doesn't mean you have to oblige.

Feeling comfortable and happy with your planning decisions will give you that radiant glow that puts your guests at ease and makes for a fabulous day. And really, that is what it's all about. Well that and the commitment you're making to the love of your life, of course.

Sunday, February 25, 2007

0 Highlight of the Week: Seth Godin's Blog

Seth Godin is the brilliant author of about half a million books that you need to read. His blog is one I try to keep up on a few times a week. I wish I could say I read it daily but sadly that's not the case. Maybe that will go on my 101 list. And maybe not.

His insights are sure to keep you on your toes. They are so to-the-point and common sensical (if that's not actually a word, then it is now) that they often leave you thinking "why didn't I think of that?". I found this post to be interesting food for thought.

1 for the record . . .

. . . if Little Miss Sunshinedoesn't win tonight then there is no justice left in this world. None.

0 I Love February

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

0 that lovin' feeling

Creating magic with candlelight requires a little more thought than just setting them out on the table. Here are some rules of thumb to keep in mind as you design your desired ambience:

For an intimate and loving mood, keep candles under 12 inches in height. This will keep the room darker while giving each table a soft glow. Tea lights and small pillar candles are perfect for this.

If you desire a relaxed, yet classy, conversational warmth, arrange for your candles to be lit 15-18 inches off the table. This will illuminate your guests' faces, allowing them to comfortably interact with one another.

For a fun, party feel, set those candles 24-36 inches above the table. This will light up the surrounding space, exuding an open and lively atmosphere.

Monday, February 19, 2007

0 how did we live before this stuff?

To the lady who invented Airborne: you're a genius and I love you.

Sunday, February 18, 2007

0 best books ever written

This past week, a friend asked me to name the author who has had the biggest influence on my life. As a self-professed voracious reader, there are many writers whose art and wisdom I have gleaned from. Hands down though, the award would have to go to Catherine Marshall. She was a vivacious woman married to Peter Marshall, a feisty Scottish senate chaplain who died at an early age, leaving her widowed with a young son. The first book of hers I ever read was A Man Called Peter, which sat on my bookshelf for years before I even picked it up. After that, I inhaled as many of her books as I could get my hands on. She candidly shares her doubts, fears, joys and humor and her down-to-earth insights into deep life truths have inspired, challenged and sharpened me on my own journey. She truly has left an indelible mark on my life and I encourage you to read anything you can by her. You won't regret it!

Saturday, February 17, 2007

0 Real Beauty

By far my favorite ad ever made.

Friday, February 16, 2007

0 Highlight of the Week: Portovert Magazine

Portovert, a brand new magazine for the "eco-savvy bride and groom" has recently launched its first issue. We love it because it showcases beautiful themes and ideas while still prioritizing a sustainable wedding.

From the website:

"Portovert (pronounced Porto-vair) is a magazine that offers beautiful, inspired, smart wedding ideas that support an environmentally and socially concious lifestyle. Our editorial content empowers readers about today's sustainable choices, from organic menu options to elegant, DIY favors. At Portovert, we believe that having a sustainable wedding doesn't mean sacrificing style."

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

0 très délicieux!

What better to write about on Valentine's day than chocolate? I mean really, it is the one thread that ties everyone together on this ultra-pink holiday whether they have a special someone or are flying solo.

So I am introducing you to Mariebelle Chocolates, simply the most divine confectionery I have ever tasted in my life. And darn cute to boot. All of the designs are silk-screened and these photos don't even do justice to their fabulousness.

If you're ever in Soho, stop by their shop to try out their Cacao Bar and Tea Salon tucked in the back. They have all of their candies available for purchase a la carte, ready for you to indulge in while you sip on fair-trade coffee. On a deliciously rainy New York winter day, my personal beverage choice was their hot drinking chocolate, similar to the long-gone Chantico from Starbucks. The only difference is that Mariebelle gets it right.

They also offer cute wedding favors, with two of their designer pieces bundled up in a simple and stylish box with varying color combinations.

You can find these little beauties online at their site, or if you'd like to order en masse, contact us and we can discuss better ordering options with you.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

0 Published on Wedding Approved

Wedding Approved, an online wedding planning site, recently published an article written by Blue Orchid Designs' owner Liene Stevens on how to avoid bridezilla status and still have a sophisticated wedding.

Click here to read it!

Monday, February 12, 2007

0 Something Green

Something Old . . . Something New . . . Something Borrowed . . . Something Green

The recent light shed on the blood diamond conflicts in Africa and the effects of global warming have reminded us that our lives are meant to be more than just about ourselves. As a result, couples are becoming much more socially concious in their wedding planning. Hopefully this trend will ingrain itself in our culture and become a prominent part of our thought process in planning and everyday life. Throughout the lifespan of this blog, we’ll be sharing tips and ideas on how to make your event have a greater positive impact on both the environment and humanity.

[Something Green 001 - Less is More]

Choose a lush outdoor venue for your ceremony and let the natural beauty of the existing foliage be the main element in your décor. Too many times people try to dress up an outdoor setting only to have miles of tulle and ribbon competing with the simplicity of the surrounding environment. While an outdoor event will require more setup, you’ll be able to save a large portion of your flower budget and put it towards another aspect of your wedding or donate those newfound dollars to your favorite charity.

0 Highlight of the Week: Soulumination

Early last year, I came across an organization called Soulumination. Through photography they provide hope and value to children facing life-threatening diseases. Check out their work and be inspired.

From their website:

Soulumination, founded by Lynette Johnson, celebrates the lives of children facing life threatening illnesses by providing professional photographs—free of charge—of these children and their families. The life-affirming photographs of Soulumination are an enduring, positive record of the child's brief life.

originally posted on February 10, 2007

2 101 in 1001

I recently spent some time with an industry colleague, Melissa Jill who is an incredible photographer. She posted on her blog recently about being inspired to set 101 goals to accomplish in 1001 days. And now I am doing the same and am up to about 65.

I feel blessed because I have been able to do a lot in my life so far. Some big goals and others nonconsequential: preferring my coffee black, meeting a real princess while hiking (her entourage of bodyguards sporting m-16s was the first giveaway), and seeing blue starfish while snorkeling in Southeast Asia. There are many things I want to accomplish, and some, such as becoming fluent in the five major languages (two down, three to go) as well as performing on Broadway (even just as a background dancer), don't fit within the 1001 days timeframe. And if I'm being totally honest here then I will also share with you that I am not brave enough to post all my goals as they are a mix of personal and professional. Perhaps someday I will be. Until then, here are a select few:

1. Journal everyday for a month
2. Blog everyday for a month (completed April 5, 2007)
3. Tone muscle
4. drink more water
5. Sort through and pare down my shoe collection
6. learn French and be able to speak it fluently
7. live in Paris for an extended amount of time
8. renew my passport before it expires this year
9. get lasik eye surgery
10. implement a structured internship program
11. Tour all the wineries in Arizona (there are no less than 21 of them)
12. go skydiving
13. have a wedding featured in Grace Ormonde
14. win an ISES award
15. spend a week at the surf spa in Hawaii
16. visit friends in China
17. do a celebrity wedding
18. go snowboarding in the Alps and in Lebanon
19. hike the Grand Canyon
20. organize my books
21. learn how to work my bluetooth earpiece thingy that's been sitting in its packaging unopened for a year and use it while I'm driving
22. take flamenco lessons again
23. learn to like onions
24. outline a reading plan for business-related material
25. get my vintage bicycle fixed and use it
26. carry my camera in my purse and actually use it
27. learn how to take decent pictures
28. take pictures of my 101 goals as they are completed
29. Clean out my closet and give away clothes I don't wear or never will fit into again (no matter how cute they were!)
30. re-read The Fountainhead and see if I actually like it this time around
31. find a good messenger bag that will hold everything I need it to and still look cute (I've been looking for over a year so far)
32. send out holiday cards for my business and personally
33. renew my CPR certification
34. schedule annual mammograms
35. give away, toss or sell 101 items
36. find the person who is holding the domain blueorchiddesigns.com hostage for no good reason and figure out how to get it
37. create a will
38. make it a point to pick wild blackberries in Sedona every year
39. plant tomatoes
40. spend a weekend at the Hotel Valley Ho for no reason other than relaxation
41. get another tattoo
42. read others' blogs more frequently and comment on them (completed August 10, 2007 + ongoing)
43. take voice lessons
44. try Mystic Tan. I might look good orange (completed October 2007 - it turns out I do not look good orange)
45. in an effort to make good on goal #27, complete a 26 Things Project
46. have professional photos taken of myself (this is no easy feat)
47. ride in a hot air balloon
48. cook an entire meal, including all the courses, myself. from scratch.
49. make it edible, and hopefully, delicious
50. send a letter of appreciation for excellent customer service once a month (not including event industry vendors)
51. meet Gwyneth Paltrow
52. get over my fear of yarn and crochet a baby blanket in order to be the best aunt in the world
53. learn how to brew beer and then do it
54. visit friends in other states

So there you have it: a handful of my 101 goals to accomplish in the next 1001 days. I'm open to ideas and suggestions and I'm curious to hear your own goals as well. It really is fun writing them down . . . enjoy!

originally posted on February 9, 2007

2 Highlight of the Week: Born into Brothels

Born Into Brothels is the best documentary I have ever seen. It is the true story of a photographer who spent time with some kids in Calcutta's red light district. It follows her work teaching them photography and her trials in trying to get them into boarding schools and out of the sex-trade industry. It also won an Academy Award in 2005 for best documentary. If you haven't seen it yet, be sure to pick it up or add it to your Netflix queue.

Here are some clips:

and the Editorial Review from Amazon.com:
Set in Calcutta's notorious red-light district, Born Into Brothels explores the lives of its most vulnerable citizens. Directed by Zana Briski and Ross Kauffman, the picture's eight small subjects shot the still footage themselves. Briski first teaches them how to shoot and edit. The children then put her lessons into practice. They gain confidence as the film proceeds, yet there's always the threat that any of the girls, especially 14-year-old Suchitra, could be forced to "join the line" (work as a prostitute). For most, it's only a matter of time. The boys don't have it much better. Promising photographer Avijit's mother is gone and his father is a drug addict. "Without help," Briski notes, "they're doomed," so she takes matters a step further and tries to get them out of the brothels altogether. Produced for HBO, this heartbreaking, if inspiring film won the 2005 Academy Award for best documentary feature. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

BORN INTO BROTHELS is an inspiring look at the transformative journey of a group of extraordinary children in Calcutta's red light district. Voted Best Documentary by the National Board of Review and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. BORN INTO BROTHELS, which was produced and directed by New York based filmmakers Zana Briski and Ross Kauffman, also garnered over 20 major film festival awards including the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival and the Best Documentary Award at the Seattle International Film Festival.
A tribute to the resiliency of childhood and the restorative power of art, BORN INTO BROTHELS is a portrait of several unforgettable children who live in the red light district of Calcutta where their mothers work as prostitutes. Zana Briski, a New York based photographer, gives each of these youngsters a camera and teaches them how to take pictures, simultaneously causing them to look at their world with new eyes. Together with Ross Kauffman, Briski captures the magical way in which beauty can be found in the most unlikely of places and how a bright and promising future becomes a possibility for children who previously had no future at all. Touching and heartfelt, yet devoid of sentimentality, BORN INTO BROTHELS defies the tear-stained tourist snapshot of the global underbelly. Briski spent years with these children and became a part of their lives. Their photographs are prisms into their souls, rather than anthropological curiosities, and a true testimony to the power of the indelible creative spirit.

originally posted on February 1, 2007

0 Bridal Show Recap

On January 6th and 7th, Blue Orchid Designs was at the Bridal Fashion Debut in Phoenix, Arizona. We got to meet a lot of people and inspire some to think outside of the box as far as wedding design. Here are some pictures from the weekend:

Yes, that is a hookah as a centerpiece. We had many reactions to it, our favorites including "do you put wine in that thing?" and "is that a bong?". The award for the person most enamored with it goes to a woman in her 60's. Go figure.

Special thanks to Rhonda Lewis for the photos, Fiori Floral for the amazing flowers and Mariee Galle ry for the custom gown.

We also have a new article up in the Trends section of the website on the perfect wine pairings and some great vino choices for your next big event. Be sure to check it out.

originally posted on January 17, 2007

0 Malawi Outreach

Blue Orchid Designs is committed to partnering with organizations that are making a difference in our world. To that end, we are pleased to announce that we are donating a portion of all sales during the end of 2006 and beginning of 2007 to Students Empowering Malawians with Disabilities, a non-profit organization specializing in designing medical devices that can be easily reproduced using local resources.

originally posted December 12, 2006

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