Probably my favorite form of shopping is treasure hunting… aka flea markets. Kirsten of Beaux Arts Photographie and I made an excursion to the Pasadena Flea a couple of months ago. I was shopping for funky goblets for peach bride (found by the way, 10 mini goblets with etched dragons, $25 for all) Along the way I of course got distracted by all the vintage glass. I brought home this happy red peacock seltzer bottle…

But what I really wanted to bring back with me is this chandlier. Its insanely good. If she were mine I would put her in my grand (imaginary) foyer, the kind where a big sweeping staircase comes to meet a perfect black and white floor…. Someday…

Photos by the lovely Kirsten Ellis of Beaux Arts Photographie.

Monique Lhuiller‘s fall 2012 wedding collection was as gorgeous and amazing as always. This year, the collection showed a lot of breadth in terms of level of formality and silhouettes.

The show started with several simple and casual short wedding dresses. These would be ideal for a beach or destination wedding or would serve well as a dress to change into for dancing. I love that she showed dresses with pockets!!

After that flowing, very romantic, empire wasted dresses came down the runaway. I loved the lace cap sleeves on the right and the criss cross detail on the left helps anyone’s waist look small.

Next up were a series of lace dresses in different silhouttes. I think my favorite is the lace dress with a very lady like slip. Its hint of sexy while still being wedding day appropriate.

After the lace series, classic ballgowns came down the runway. This one, had a slightly avant garde feel as it mixed lace and satin fabrics across the bust.

I personally loved this dress with its frothy skirt and slit!

Fitted full skirts, dropped waists, illusion necklines, and moderate trumps silhouttes rounded out the collection.

But, my personal favorites from this collection was this dress, emotion.

I loved the pulled, criss cross chiffon layer over the body, it was unexpected  and modern for Monique. The neckline is kind of to die for.

End of the show… so many pretties lined up in a row! So which dress was your favorite?

I’m in love with these sweet gold fish-scale pumps by Kate Spade. The pearl detail is so sweet and ladylike.

For this fall season, I love taking the natural hues of the season, the reds, oranges and yellows and cranking up the volume and using a super saturated version of each color. Add in  a shot of fuschia to the mix and you’ve got a fun and seasonal palette.I picture a wedding with these colors taking place in an art museum where the all white space would balance the richness of the palatte.

Photos from left to right, top to bottom:

Its that time of year… I’m off to Bridal Market! I’m so excited to see so many new pretty wedding dresses in person, not to mention eating my way through New York…I’ll be live tweeting throughout the shows. You can follow me right here.

I love making bouquets… there’s just something so fun about making the bride’s most important accessory on her wedding day. I personally, love bouquets full of color and texture. For the the Vibrant Winery Wedding I used orange lollipop dahlias, pink garden roses, scabiosa pods (love them), sweet veronica, and pink garden roses.

What kind of flowers would you carry on your wedding day?

I love  a wedding full of vibrant color, and this wedding I designed last year had one of my favorite color combos: turquoise, orange, and hot pink. For her bouquet, I used pink garden roses, orange dahlias, sweet veronica, scabiosa pods and maidenhair fern and then wrapped the stems with a deep turquoise silk.

Their ceremony was held under the oak tree at Gainey Vineyards. The bride had a thing for hearts (she actually wore a heart shaped necklace on her wedding day) so I created a big heart out of orange rose petals.

I used the couple’s bird and heart logo on their seating card chart (I actually printed a large copy of it and then used an exacto knife to make a stencil out of it). A collection of vintage fans were placed in wood boxes filled with more orange rose petals.

For her tabletop design, I used a burlap runner as the base to pop the colorful flowers off of. A mix of hammered containers, petite mason jars and aqua glasses from Anthropologie held an assortment of garden roses, cafe au lait dahlias, orange lollipop dahlias, orange roses, tuberrose, geranium, and a bit amaranthus. I bought a bunch of old books and tied with them with more turquiose silk, sort of like old book satchels. At each place setting I hand braided torn silk strips to use as a napkin ring. I also switched out the usually white plates for orange ones to add even more color. I love the vibrant, playful look! You can see more of this wedding over on Style Me Pretty, right here.

Timeless little black heels for your Tuesday Shoesday… Photo by Karen Wise.

I love appetizers, and this rare roast beef on jicama is no exception. Created by Duo Events here in Santa Barbara, its as delicious as it looks.

Sneak peek of a photo shoot being featured in You & Your Wedding Day (UK magazine). Its should be available at Barnes & Nobles, I hope you pick up a copy. There is so much more to share… Stay tuned!