Real Wedding: Vintage England (aka my sister’s wedding!)

Kelly
July 23

I can’t believe its been almost a year since my sister Tracy got married… I traveled to England two weeks prior to the big day to help her with all the last minute details and to gather all the decor for the wedding. My sister wanted something that felt appropriate to the reception space and we talked about a color palette of soft blues, bits of lavender, and cream. I threw out the ideal of Toile which is that perfect shade of blue/grey and definitely had that old world elegance. Once we had that piece decided on, I ordered fabric and had my linen vendor make a runner for the head table and napkins for all the guests.

I brought the menus, linens & napkins, and a suitcase full of floral supplies with me (TSA was a big fan I’m sure). Tracy and I bought containers ranging from old tea sets, to old trophies, to vintage biscuit tins from flea markets and antique stores. I sourced flowers from the London Flower Market (I used Alagar, who were easy to work with and delivered the flowers directly to my sister’s house) and I ordered  garden roses from David Austin.

For seating cards, we found a vintage letterpress drawer to tuck the cards into. My mom was kind enough to write them all out, since I elected her as having the prettiest hand writing. The menus are from Wedding Paper Divas. I accented them with Italian paper from Paper Source and a “R” seal for Ryan (the groom’s last name). I got the seal and the wax from Letter Seals. My sister made the majority of the seals which we dubbed “Ryan money” since they looked like copper pennies.

Of course, what would an English wedding be without many proper pints? My dad, up top making friends with the groom’s family, and myself, after finishing setup.

There was much laughter and love that night, the two families with extremely different backgrounds came together and crushed many a pint. Above, my sister with my dad, below Tracy and I with the two bridesmaids, Lisa, my sister’s BF, and our cousin Jocelyn sharing a moment right after toasts.

My sister’s first dance was adorable… She chose “At Last” by Etta James which was fitting. They met in Australia while both were back packing and working… Mark is from England (though ethnically Irish) and she was an American… After much world trotting back and forth and going through the immigration process to get into the UK, it was nice to simply celebrate their new lives together.

I was absolutely in love with the adorable cake my sister designed with Georgina’s Cakes. The bride and groom figurines are sitting on a rucksack with a map and book saying Australia in reference to how they met. It was so much fun to get to spend time hanging out with my sister and her husband and seeing how happy they are. Congrats you too!!!

*And where is ceremony you might ask? It’s up on Snippet & Ink right here. Go look, the bride & groom photos are adorable! And I’m a big, big fan of the UK tradition’s of a confetti toss.

**And a very special thank you to the amazing Kirsten at Beaux Arts Photographie for coming all the way to London to shoot my sister’s wedding!

*** You can see more about my adventures in London right hereherehere and here.

Reception Venue: The Windmill, Clapham
Event Design & Production: Kelly Oshiro Design
Bride’s Dress: Marisa Baratelli
Bridesmaid Dresses: BHLDN
Cake Baker: Georgina's Cakes
Bride’s Shoes: Badgley Mischka

Puppy Chic with Bold Ikat

Kelly
July 18

Continuing my obsession with ikat and my puppy, Mira, I thought it would be fun to put her in a big ikat bow. She looks so good in color, don’t you think?

Here’s Mira “being a lady” (I taught her to cross her paws on command) and showing off the finest doggy ring bearer couture. Would you have your puppy rock this look?

Photographer: Nancy Neil
Produced by: Santa Barbara Chic

Flower Chic: Bold Ikat

Kelly
July 11

 

I’ve really been digging Ikat lately (pretty sure its gonna be the next “chevron”) and I’m loving this bold version I recently picked up at Michael Levine’s. The bold red, yellow, pink aganist white is just so perfect for summer. When I found yellow, with a tinge of red, peonies at Florabudance, its was obvious these two were meant to be together.

For the container, I used a white and gold haviland bowl (the same one I used for Wedding Chicks) layered on a gold scalloped tray I picked up at a consignment store. The gold glassware is vintage and is from an antique store in Los Alamos. I’m seriously loving gold right now.

To make this arrangement I used clear floral tape and created a grid at the top of the container (this acts as floral frog, and holds your flowers in place). I used these insane yellow/red peonies, but you could easily use only dahlias which are in season right now. Anyway, to make the arrangement you will need:

2 bunches yellow/red striped tulips

1 bunch yellow peonies

1 bunch red/yellow dahlias

2 bunches yellow/red calla lillies

1 bunch geranium

Floral Shears

Clear floral tape

Stay tuned for my picks of ikat products later today! And to see all Flower Chic posts click right here.

Photographer: Nancy Neil
Produced by: Santa Barbara Chic
Wholesale Flowers: Florabundance

Shoesday

Kelly
July 03

Shall we put some sparkle in our step with these shimmery nude shoes?

More sparkle-y flats:

 

Photographer: Leo Patrone

Editorial: Fairy Wedding Inspiration

Kelly
June 25

Today, we have an incredible editoiral shoot designed by the lovely Tricia Fountaine and photographed by Elizabeth Messina. Tricia is a lover of all things fairy and magical and this shoot brought those day dreams to life…

First up the Fairy Court… how amazing are the wings and the headpieces? Tricia made all the elaborate costumes herself!

For the fairy dinner table, wood stumps were layered to create a woodland tablscape. Grapes and flowers spill out in colorful abundance, floral garlands decorate surrounding trees, and moss covered chandeliers, add a bit of sparkle. To see more from this incredible shoot be sure to visit here and here.

Photographer: Elizabeth Messina
Event Design, Florals & Costumes: Tricia Fountaine Design

Color Palette: Pink, Soft Turquoise & A Hint of Yellow

Kelly
June 21

I love this soft, yet not boring color combination of soft turquoise with hints of pink and mint. For a wedding design, you could do a fun floral print for the table linen, similar to the photo on the left, and accent it with gold rimmed glasses and flowers in soft pinks with a hint of yellow. For a room, how pretty would a headboard in this type of floral print be? Perhaps accented with a soft pink wall, it could be the makings of one fun, and subtlety colorful room design.

Photographer: Left: unknown
Photographer: Right: Polly Eltes

Real Wedding: Wildflower Elegance at Ojai Valley Inn

Kelly
June 18

Today I’m in love with this eclectic and relaxed wedding that took place at the gorgeous Ojai Valley Inn & Spa. I love the flowers in the bride’s hair and her shoes, well, I’ll take a pair!

The ceremony was held in the herb garden at the Inn. Holly Flora complimented the location with flowers arranged in a loose and wildflower manner.

Couple and family photos were taken after ceremony during Ojai’s famous pink moment (as the sun sets in Ojai, all the mountains turn pink).

For the reception, flowers and decor were again kept loose and natural in a color palette of pinks, purples and whites. I particularly love the raspberry gophrena!

Photographer: Michael & Anna Costa
Reception Venue: Ojai Valley Inn & Spa
Wedding Planner/Coordinator: All You Need is Love
Bride’s Dress: Rivini
Makeup Artist: Christian McNally
Flowers & Decor: Holly Flora