I’m having a bit of a girly lacey DIY accessory moment, so please forgive!  I found 3 wonderfully simple and especially lovely DIY’s for you to give a go!  I think my fave of all of them is the Rosette Headband!  Whether they are for you or to give as gifts, these are definite winners in my book.

As well, be sure to check out the very end of the post, I have Style Me Pretty & Kendra Scott have teamed up for a Midnight Special Flash sale!!

DIY Lace Button Earrings

Rosette Headband Ps-The site doesnt seem to have direct links to the exact post, sorry.

Rose Cuff Bracelet

And last but not least, in the spirit of gorgeous jewelry, I wanted to pass along to everyone that Style Me Pretty has teamed up with Kendra Scott to bring you a boutique flash sale!  Here’s the small catch, boutique & sale starts at…..Midnight Tonight!!  So either take a good nap and set your alarm or head off with the girls for dinner and cocktails!  Your not supposed to drunk dial, but what about tipsy jewelry shopping!?  Thats fair game right?  Enter the code KSFLASHSMP upon checkout to redeem your 30% off discount.

I believe there is an unsung hero in the wedding photography ensemble.  Maybe its just because I suffer from a pretty big shoe addiction myself, but I Loooove shoe shots!  I love my own, I love peeping other peoples, I love seeing what brides choose and why and so on.  I think the magic of the shoe shot is that the heels are still yet fresh & full of life.  The photographers incorporate them in the bridal environment, creating gorgeous still life imagery.  Depth of field is as powerful a force as is the setup of the shoes themselves, as well as where they are displayed.  I hope to continually bring wedding shoe images on an on going basis, and any photographers reading this, please send them my way!  I encourage & challenge you to get creative, innovative, really make the shoe shot a piece of art in and of itself.  I really look forward to seeing many many more wonderful shoes!

Photo Love:

(1)Brittany Anderson Photography, (2)Sharon Arnoldi Photography, (3)Annie Agarwal Photography, (4)Annie Agarwal Photography, (5)Casey Fatchett Photography, (6)Sharon Arnoldi Photography, (7)Sharon Arnoldi Photography, (8)Casey Fatchett Photography, (9)Tilt Shift Studios, (10)Sharon Arnoldi Photography, (11)Amber S. Wallace Photography

PS to Brides-I know it is a difficult thing to ask, but a huge part of what makes the shoe shot so amazing is the newness.  Yes that means…. stay out of those heels ladies!  Dare I say, even on the carpet!  You dont want the slightly wear mark showing up in these photos.  Listen, if I can own amazing Louboutins for almost 9 months without wearing them, so can you!!!

Summer nights can make for a magical twilight setting & this styled shoot from Tilt Shift Studios in Brownwood,Texas features a gorgeously styled bride with a touch of Texas flare.  This isnt one of those bright poppy shoots, but instead a wonderfully moody set with perfectly placed accessories & big soft barrel curled hair.  Tilt shift teamed up with Belle’s Bridal for the dress, Bangs Flowers & Gifts for the lovely bouquet and Hair and Make-up by Kelsy Potts with Star of Texas Bed and Breakfast serving as the backdrop.

*All photographs by Tilt Shift Studios

Photo by Mélange, by Mary Schannen

Yes this can easily reflect the typical meaning of wedding planning & ideas that arent so run of the mill.  However in this case, I am actually referring to inspiration!   Everyone peruses the steady flow of wedding blogs, wedding magazines, wedding inspiration galleries, etc etc etc to find great ideas for their own weddings.  While that is absolutely wonderful & spot on, you might have realized by now, your starting to see a LOT of the same.  Now of course there isn’t anything wrong with that, but sometimes  it can feel a bit incestuous & you might find yourself yearning for something fresh new & exciting!  While these inspiration sensation places wont spoon feed you your entire wedding, the below suggestions are hot beds for various elements to help you complete the over all day!

There is a plethora of sites all around the web, especially in places you might not consider, that can really help you find wonderful ideas that you can incorporate into your wedding.  Just because it isn’t obviously wedding related doesn’t mean there isn’t a ton of ideas out there just waiting to be shaped for your wedding!  So where are some great places to look?

Figuring out your wedding day look, as well as the overall look of your bridal party can be difficult at times.  Fashion concise sites like

are fabulous for not only keeping you up to date on the hottest styles, but are fantastic for working through accessorizing!  If your looking for more then just accessories, dont worry, these wonderful fashion sites also stay on top of gorgeous hairstyles, wonderful makeup looks & trends, as well as a sprinkle of man style yumminess.

Believe it or not, a lot of the great big dogs have come a long way as far as style inspiration goes as well.  Who am I referring to exactly?  The big name department stores.  Now a days most of these big guys have buyers specific to each area as well as editors & creative directors.  They are constantly curating gorgeous collections that are not just pieces but complete looks.  As its their job to give the masses access to great product, it behooves them to always keep it fresh, therefore there is a never ending stream of  wedding day look ideas!

These department store giants are also a secret untapped source for some decor element hottness!  Yet again armed with a team whose soul purpose is making the sets around the clothing that they are selling look amazing, there is an endless supply of fabulous ideas to be found!  A perfect example of such a thing was on display when I was  at Saks Fifth Avenue lately.  Clearly they aren’t in the book selling business, but as part of their over all display were old books with the covers ripped off, stacked & tied together with twine.   The overall look is wonderfully vintage shabby chic, super easy, & can totally be done for very little cost!  Those are the kinds of elements that you can pick out & use for your own wedding.

Sorting out decor elements in general can often be a bit of the preverbal mind f*ck!  There are so many options to go with, sometimes it hard to cut through the noise.  There are wonderful sites that that are well known for frequently showcasing professionally styled parties that contain tons of ideas to use!  The Sweetest Occasion & Oh Happy Day are 2 of my favorites for these!  I recently stumbled upon Hostess with the Mostess and there is no shortage of gorgeously styled events there too.  These sites dont focus on weddings & as such offer up a lot of newer and different ideas then one might typically be exposed to.

However, what about something a tad more still off the beaten path?  Believe it or not, some of our favorite deal sites have blogs all their own and are constantly posting fun ideas in effort to humanize their companies.  Rue La La has a wonderful blog that they are ever posting a variety subject matter on.  From fashionable looks to hosting events, they are def one to keep an eye on.  Check your favorite deal site, as you’d probably be surprised to see all the great ideas they keep flowing!

Now  let me really freak you out.  You know, no joke, WONDERFUL places for inspiration??  Home Decor/Furniture shops.  Dead serious.  There is so much to be gleamed from these guys.  Backed with not only wonderful product that can make for some perfect decor elements, these places are well staffed by teams dedicated to perfectly style each set in the most innovative of ways.  I really feel this is an often untapped treasure of inspiration!

Places like Pottery Barn, Horchow, Restoration Hardware, Jayson Home, and so many more!!!  You might be asking yourself, ok, but what exactly can I take from them?  The photo above is a perfect example from Pottery Barn.  They have quite simply & perfectly in every little detail, put together for you what would make for an amazing tasty beverage area at your wedding.  From the wood stand which not only gives height to the overall presentation, also giving a place for the beverage dispensers & glasses to the food styling of the cut fruit within those beverage dispensers.  As well, check out the elements in the background.  How lovely and simple are the hanging pitchers & bunches of greenery.  These are the kinds of elements that can really help inspire you to really create an amazing experience for your guest & make your wedding the most amazing it can be!

These perfectly styled scenes can also be a wonderful source to acquire a wedding color palette!  Each set up is handcrafted to be as absolutely pleasing to the eye as it can be and you best believe that color is a heavy influence in that!  Also, floralspiration abounds in all of these wonderful set ups, so dont be surprised if you find yourself taking in tears from a William-Sonoma catalog to your florist!

When looking at the set up rooms on these various sites, look at how a room is laid out & how you can apply that to the flow of your space.  Perhaps a few accent chairs can be rented, giving a unique look & feel to your space.   These rooms are filled with all kinds of knick knacks, trinkets, elements that arent even for sale but help to bring a room together that can easily be translated into a wedding.

Setting up & designing the tables at your wedding can be an often missed element as well, something I touched on previously here.  A lot of these places I mentioned above have AMAZING tablescaping areas.  This is a wonderful source of inspiration for how you might want to ultimately set the tables at your wedding!

The point is, dont get trapped only looking in & thinking you can only find ideas for your wedding, only wedding sites/magazines.  There are tons of places that can spark ideas & they come in all kinds of  packages.  The power houses that have become creative directors, prop stylists, and advertising visionaries really bring it & there is no reason to let this kind of creative awesomeness go to waste!  Honestly, I’d even check out sites as surprising as something like Home Depot.  There are amazing teams these days that put together some of the most well styled sets, so why not use their amazingness to your advantage!!

*All Photos are sampled from the various sites referenced with the exception of the book stack photo which is my own.

Judging by the amount of hits I continue to get on my November post regarding Black Wedding Dresses, lots of you are at the minimum, very curious about wedding attire that is outside the lines of standard tradition.  Personally I  love this trend.  I love anything that is willing to push some boundaries & shake things up.  Though I didnt personally sport a black dress, that doesnt make me appreciate black gowns or black accents any less.

This got me thinking.  What about black veils?  Sadly, these have been used almost expressly in association with funerals, death & sadness in the past.  Not a very easy obstacle to overcome!  Personally I think its rubbish and I would like to see black veils begin to take a bigger step into the spotlight in the wedding world.  Its hard to deny that there is a definite air of mystery that is associated with a black veil, however there is also most certainly an element of regaliness that goes along with them as well.  I actually find the look to feel strong, polished, & quite sexy.

Whether your willing to go full Monty, rocking an entirely black ensemble or simply looking for a pop of black here and there, these gorgeous veils that I came across shake things up & stare the old mentality right in the face.  I’ve put together a grouping of different veil materials & looks.  I’ve given links when available to where they are available for purchase.

While I can not locate any info regarding the veil that Blake is wearing in this shoot, I choose to not only use it, but lead with it for 2 reasons.  Firstly, I think  its a wonderful representation of exactly what I am referring to regarding regal beauty.  There is a certain Je ne sais quoi about the black veil dont you think?   Additionally, I want to point out the material.  This particular netting is large diamond as well as having fabric puff accents.  Its a pretty amazing over all look.

The second veil is a very understated yet  an amazingly beautiful take on the black veil.  The use of bridal illusion tulle creates an illusion of mystery yet does not obstruct the view of the wearer in the least.  This ‘Addison’ Tulle veil was designed by Ellen Marie.

The veil on the left is designed by Anne Michelle Heirlooms. The gals behind this more fashion forward veil opted for not only the netting but to pair the netting with a lovely feather fascinator.  Additionally, the netting has a few pops of adornment as well.

The veil on the right is designed by Castle Bride Couture.  As a whole this designer’s focus is on more couture avant garde veils which are simply stunning.  I wanted to feature this particular veil, as its a wonderful option for any bride that wants to go with a pop of black versus a full on black veil.  There is something very classic 1930′s-40′s about this piece.  I love it!

I wanted to end with your classic standard birdcage veil, simply in black.  This particular one is again one with larger diamonds in the netting.  This classic veil in black can be found at Birdcage Veil Boutique   There really is no reason to associate these amazing veils in black with times of sorrow any more.  Black at weddings is quite in trend right now, & wearing a black veil is that extra fashion forward step.  Any ladies that have worn black veils or will be, please send me your photos!  I would love to feature them!  Xo!

**Update 2/21/12

As I was reading Celebitchy (one of my utter FAVE gossip sites!) I came across a post regarding an actress on Downtown Abbey.  The main image for the post (perhaps a still from the show?) showed Lady Mary wearing a very gorgeous floral adorned black veil.  Granted the image is most defiantly color warped in Photoshop, it would seem the flowers are lovely deep purple orchids.  This look, especially with the dark makeup and deep berry lips is filled with yummy drama!