Posted by: Always Planned

Valentine’s Day is right around the corner and what better way to “Share the Love” then by thinking outside the box with a unique and fabulous Valentines Day Gift Guide! These are a few fabulous things we recently found out about and thought what a fun way to get the creative ideas flowing! Most of these fabulous products are made here in the US with the finest quality and care! Their unique style and design is so fabulous we had to share!!! Enjoy!

2012 Fabulous Valentine’s Day Gift Guide

For the Special Man in Your Life

Give him the gift of style with the Devora Libin “Ben” bracelet.  This functional / durable, black rubber cord offers a fun alternative to leather.

Sterling silver clasp, 7.5 inches, Handmade in NYC. www.devoralibinjewels.com

For the Doting Dad and/or Brotherly Love

Help him look and feel his best with a Commonwealth Proper custom suit or shirt.  Everything that bears the Commonwealth Proper label is made, by heart and hand, in the United States. Each Commonwealth Proper garment is crafted by this country’s most experienced and respected cutters, tailors and finishers. Quality is never compromised.  It is this combination – the proper clothing and proper advice – that gives clients a sense of security and confidence that they are looking their best, be it at work or after hours. www.commonwealthproper.com

For your mom

The Devora Libin “Bow” will make mom smile! With its elegant adornment, this bracelet is delicate, feminine and makes a simple statement with its bow detail.

Sterling silver, Adjustable closure, Handmade in NYC. www.devoralibinjewels.com

For Your Best Friend

The Devora Libin “Brass Bar” bracelet is the perfect way to spread the love to your bestie.  This beaded ID bracelet puts a trendsetting spin on a classic style.

• Yellow brass bar and 14k gold filled findings
• 6.75 inches long
• Handmade in NYC

www.devoralibinjewels.com

For the Stylish Sister

The “You are my Milky Way” 1979 cropped t-shirt is the perfect V-Day gift for your fashion forward sister.  This Rachel Bilson favorite is sure to make your sister heart you!

one size. www.1979couture.com

And may I point out that quite a few of these would make fabulous bridesmaids or groomsmen gifts??! I just love how fun and unique each piece is!! Hope you enjoyed these fun ideas for Valentines Day, Wedding Day or ANY DAY!!

Happy Planning!

Posted by: Always Planned

So in the midst of all of this FABULOUS planning, you are fielding calls from cousins, friends, long lost family and so many others asking about where to book their rooms, directions to the church and who is in your wedding…. Ok… NOW BREATHE!!! There is a solution and it’s as easy as sending that phone call to voicemail!

The wedding industry is forever evolving with the times and thanks to that little piece of technology we call the “internet”, we have SOO many resources at our disposal at the click of a button!

One of my favorites would have to be the ever-popular trend of the Personalized Wedding Website! Whether you have a very cute, basic Free site or if you splurge a little on the high tech: video, music, full on production site, your website is a great resource to use as the answer to all of those many, many questions! Freeing up your time for more snuggling and enjoying these next few months!

WeddingWire has an AMAZING FREE option with tons of beautiful designs that correspond with beautiful invitations! They even have Vera Wang paper and Martha Stewart Weddings pages!

The Knot gives you two great options: A FREE site with all the info you can imagine: including your love story, Hotel Room information with links, Directions to the Church and Reception and your own virtual guest book! OR the high tech version, which has a small monthly or yearly fee, that includes unlimited photos, music and video uploads and much more!

You can find these sites in many different places with a simple google search, it’s all about finding the one that fits you the most!

Get creative!!! As one of our fabulous brides has done recently, you can get online and make small business card magnets with their names, the date and their website to put in each envelope with their invites! Or even send it as a cute save the date! It is also a great way to put your registry out there without being too obvious! Hehe Wouldn’t it be easy for them to just click and shop?? I mean they are already online!

The Wedding Website can be a fun resource for you and your fiancé to share your love story and your journey to the altar! Get creative! Have fun! And send me any cute ideas you end up with!!!

Happy Planning! XOXO

Posted by: Always Planned

After seeing so many great ideas that have transformed the traditional Guest Book, I just really wanted to share some fun ideas that may be able to help you get the creative juices flowing for your own wedding!

The Guest Book has been a wedding staple for decades but many modern brides are hesitant to simply place out a signature book that they know will be placed in a box later and possibly forgotten about in the process. Your guests are a HUGE part of your wedding, you have invited each of these family members and friends to be a part of your love story and the guest book is a great way to remember all of the wonderful support and love you both have from them.

The good news is, if the traditional signature guest book is not for you, many creative minds have been at work and new, fun, inventive keepsakes are slowly taking its place. At a wedding I went to in June, the bride and groom had chosen a guest interactive approach and given each guest a fun page to fill out with wishes, your own drawing of the bride and groom and special memories you had of them! After the wedding, she was able to put each of them in a beautiful scrapbook and they were able to share some fun laughs as a couple reading over them weeks later! Last week, Sarah and Ron chose to have their guests sign decorative plates that can be mounted on the wall or displayed somewhere in their home with well wishes and encouragement that will remind them of that special day they shared with all of their loved ones!

The guest book can be as traditional or as creative as you would like, but I encourage you to look into other ideas and find the one that best fits your personalities. Find something you can have for years to come that won’t just sit in a box, but will be a daily reminder of the love and support your friends and family have for the two of you during this next journey in your lives together!!!

Happy Planning!

Posted by: Always Planned

There are many traditions in the wedding world that are changing and being updated as each decade passes, but there is one that seems to remain true to form: The time honored tradition of that Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed and Something Blue!! Today I thought I would share a few of my favorite things that would be excellent representations of this special tradition and what I found out each item symbolizes in the process! I have heard of this many times but never knew the true significance of each piece!

The meaning of the Tradition:

Something Old: This is meant to represent the link between the bride and her family!!

Something New: Represents good luck and success and hopes for a bright and beautiful future!!

Something Borrowed: This piece is to remind the bride that her friends and family will be there for her in the future and on her special day!

Something Blue: In ancient times, this represented the symbol of Faithfulness, Purity and Loyalty!

I hope some of these cute ideas will help inspire you to find the little things that mean the most to you! This tradition is meant to wish you luck, remind you that your family (Past, Present and Future) is holding you up and guiding you through this next Beautiful Chapter of your life!

Posted by: Always Planned

Happy Monday Everyone!

We had such a blast this weekend getting to visit with so many brides and some of our amazing vendors: Dei Gratia Photography, Tinkers Cake Shop, Gourmet Goodies and The Ashley Inn just to name a few! The Diamond Rings and Pretty Things Fall Bridal Show was wonderful and we loved getting to meet new brides and hopefully new friends!

This week is a busy one at the studio and we are so excited. For those of you who came out last week or even if you didn’t get to make it out, we are hosting our Second week of Simply Love Studio’s Bridal Benchmark Series! This week, we will be visited by Tiger’s DJ Services, The Ashley Inn B&B, Gold Shield Transportation and Gourmet Goodies! Thelma at Gourmet Goodies will be providing absolutely scrumptious treats for everyone who comes out! Sarah and the girls at Simply Love have come up with yet another simply adorable DIY craft that you won’t want to miss! Come out Wednesday night and join in the fun!

The fun doesn’t stop there, because Thursday night Always Planned and AP Luxury Travel are hosting our Sandals Night! If you are still looking for a fabulous Honeymoon or just an All-Inclusive luxury getaway, come out for some free food, drinks and information on these amazing packages! Rayna and Mallory both chose Sandals resorts for their honeymoons and now can’t imagine taking a vacation of any kind without Sandals!

This weekend was truly wonderful, and we hope to see you all out at some of our fabulous events this week!! Look out for info coming soon about our New Studio Open House next week!!!

Happy Planning!