One of my favourite, favourite sites out there for buying jewelry is Etsy.com – they have an amazing selection of reasonably priced jewelry that is all hand-made, gorgeous, funky and original. With necklaces starting around $10, their prices are fantastic. Consider browsing this site (warning: you will be on here for HOURS!) for your bridesmaids, flower girls, or anyone else that you need to get a gift for. It’s even a good place to look for groomsmen gifts, as they have a fantastic selection of cool cufflinks.

The earrings above are by Leaves of Glass at Esty.com and are $26. The gorgeous wood pendant below is $9 by Studio 9 at Etsy.com. The super-cute fishy tile pendant below is $5.50 by Caught Red Handed at Etsy.com.

You can also find some great pieces for your own wedding jewelry – and if you are looking for something a little more elegant, there are artists that use diamonds, pearls, gold and a variety of other materials. Pieces can run over $10,000. Now that’s variety, from $5.50 – $10,000!

This is just a sampling of their offerings, they also sell purses, art, glassware, housewares and lots more. Check them out at Etsy.com. It’s great to support these independant artists!

There is a new trend, which I’ve been reading about lately, where brides will destroy their dress after the ceremony is over and done with. Some wait until after the reception… some don’t! Some have the reception outfit to change into, so take advantage of the photographer’s presence and get some crazy and awesome photos of their dress-trashing catharsis.

Why trash it? There are some theories: to show dedication to the new husband, the bride wont be needing the dress again; to show destroy the old and start anew; to be absolved from the stresses of the wedding and planning mentally and physically; and (my person fave) to get some great photos!

The New York Post has an article discussing the trend, crediting Las Vegas photographer, John Michael Cooper, with starting the trend for a wedding photography shoot.

Also, there is a blog dedicated to this trend called Trashthedress.com

What do you think about this trend? Would you consider trashing your dress?

Signature drinks are a great way to enhance cocktail hour; you can tie the drink name, taste or colour into the theme of the wedding. It may also be a way to save some cash – see if you can come to an arrangement with your venue about serving only the signature cocktail during cocktail hour and possibly saving some coin. This signature drink idea is a play on the popular “Blue Hawaii” drink and would be great for a blue theme wedding, tropical theme wedding or just for a tasty drink! The recipe, from iDrink.com, is as follows:
1 oz Blue Curacao
3 oz Crushed Ice
1 Oz Orange Juice
5 Oz Pineapple Juice
1/2 oz Dark Rum
1/2 oz Rum
All ingredients are poured into a blender and blended until smooth.

Of course, make sure you try the drink well before the wedding to see if the colour and taste are to your liking.

Source photo & recipe: iDrink.com

OPI has a gorgeous spring/summer 2008 collection called the “India Collection” which has a great variety of deep, rich hues for your wedding nails. There are colours for the classic two-tone pink/white french manicure, but what about using your nails as a place to punch colour? Punchy red nails are becoming increasingly popular on brides; give a real “wow-factor” to your look with a rich red such as “Keys to My Karma” or go really bold with the black-red “Black Cherry Chutney.” For your something blue, you could always consider a deep impact blue such as “Yoga-ta Get This Blue!” If you’re looking for something more neutral but still not subtle, try the gorgeous bronzey “Charmed by a Snake” or the elegant pink “ElePhantastic Pink.” Not feeling that bold, but still want to add some colour? Try one of these great colours on your toes. Blue toe nails for the something blue is a favourite with brides.

Just keep in mind to try the colour before the wedding, wear it around a bit to see if it suits you and your style, also, you can have your nails professionally done the day of or before the wedding and bring in your fave colour to be applied by the technician.

Check out the entire line of OPI India Collection at the OPI website.

If you have a guest celebrating a birthday on your wedding day, or even sometime during the wedding weekend, it’s always nice to do a little something special for them. Think of it, they are spending a special day for them with you to honour your big day – that deserves a treat to say thanks! This goes too for anniversaries! Around the time of the cake cutting, you could call them up to the mic and have the crowd sing happy birthday to them and present them with a personalized cupcake (with or without candle) or a mini cake.

Cupcakes are a great idea if you have a few celebrating, as they are inexpensive. A great cupcake will run you around $5 with personalization (such as the guest’s name). You can have the cupcake iced in your wedding colours to stick with the wedding theme as well. If you would like to do something a little more subtle, I would suggest putting the cupcake in a small box (most cupcake shops offer individual boxes) and leaving it at the guests place setting (for assigned seating) or having the kitchen keep it in the back and you can deliver it personally!

As for photos, both offer opportunities, but the former provides a really great opportunity to create some great pics of the moment where the entire crowd can get involved.

My favourite Canadian cupcakes are at a place I visited on vacation in Vancouver called Cupcakes. Try the Red Velvet – they are amazing! I also love Blue Hawaii and Sweet 16.

Toronto has a few good cupcake shops, The Cupcake Shoppe is pretty good also try Babycakes or the Cupcakery.

Beverly Hills has the famous Sprinkles Cupcakes, a favourite of many stars. If you order online you can pick-up from several US locations such as Dallas, Phoenix or Newport Beach.

NY has Magnolia Bakery, Mitchell London and Greenberg Bakery to name a few.

To find out about cupcake shops across the US and around the world, check out the Cupcakes Take the Cake Blog for obsessively updated tasty reviews, articles and links.

These dyable flip flops by Shoe Boy are great for a beach wedding. They are versatile and can be worn by bride, maids, moms, all of them! Since they are dyable, they can easily be dyed to match dresses or worn in the colour they come in – ivory or white. They come in subtle different styles, the biggest change in look being the strap area. Another great thing about these is that they come in different heel heights depending on the height or look that you want. They range from 1 3/4″ heel to about at 3.5″ heel and of course offer flats as well. The price range is great, they run from about $30 – $55 USD; the typical (pictured above) is around $35. Check out myglassslipper.com for more info or to buy online.

Sniff makes these very cool tissues that come in a colourful array of designs, from leopard print to retro floral to bridal patterns and many more! There are many ways to incorporate these fun, funky tissues into your big day. One idea is to use them as favour, they are practical and fun and for $1.25 – $2.00 they are wallet friendly. Another idea is to give them out to a few select guests, such as the mothers of the bride and groom, close friends and family or members of the wedding party. You can also leave them on the seats of the guests at the ceremony site (maybe along with a program) for a splash of colour. Or have your flower girl(s) or friends pass them out at the door of the ceremony site to anyone who may need them. These are often available in greeting card stores, upscale grocery stores and nick nack boutiques. If you want a really impressive selection of these pocket Sniff packs, check out the Tissue Store to order online (you can also buy in bulk). Also try WishingFish.com.

Header Photo Source – WishingFish.com

Ok who doesn’t love Barbie? Seriously. The thought of her brings to mind words like “cliche” and “stereotype” but one look at her warms the cockles of my heart! Whether she’s walking the runways of Milan or set to fly a fighter plane, she’s always at her fashion finest! This girl is fierce! Ok, so, if a grown person can be charmed by the likes of Barbie, what little girl wouldn’t love a collectable Barbie for her flower girl thank you gift? This may also work for Junior Bridesmaids depending on their age. A holiday or collectible Barbie from the year or season that you are married is a great idea. There is even a new Vera Wang wedding Barbie scheduled to come out September 2008. They can run about $30+ USD and are available at most toy stores. Check Amazon.com

The entire array of Barbies, current and upcoming, are the Barbie Collector website.

Photo Source

Selections for pre-ceremony music, cocktail hour or dinner music can be as varied as your audience and will have your guests saying, “hey, I know this song!” Artists covered by The Vitamin String Quartet include:

The Beatles; Rush; Led Zepplin; Radiohead; Weezer; Morrisey; Nirvana; Nine Inch Nails; No Doubt; Pearl Jam; Phish; Depche Mode (Personal Jesus); David Bowie; Duran Duran (Rio is fantastic); Eric Clapton; Kayne West; Kelly Clarkson; Rolling Stones; Red Hot Chilli Peppers; INXS; Garth Brooks; Lynyrd Skynrd; Garbage; Fall Out Boy; Diana Krall; Jane’s Addicition (Check out the Jane Says cover, it’s awesome); Mariah Carey; Limp Bizkit; Tool; Sonic Youth; Beach Boys; and a TON more!

For something funky and different, consider these suggestions for processional music in a gorgeous string quartet version of these pop favourites:

Peter Gabriel – In Your Eyes
Queen – You’re My Best Friend or Somebody to Love
U2 – Beautiful Day or All I Want is You
Enya – Only Time
Bon Jovi – Always or Bed of Roses
Nora Jones – Come Away with Me
Aerosmith – I don’t want to miss a thing
Oasis – Wonderwall
Bjork – Big Time Sensuality
Neil Young – Heart of Gold
Elton John – Your Song
Sade – No Ordinary Love
Guns N’ Roses – Sweet Child O’Mine
Madonna – Crazy For You
Snashing Pumpkins – Today
Diana Krall – Let’s Fall in Love
Faith Hill – Breathe

They also have an album entitled “The Gothic Wedding Collection” – which is a little darker then my suggestions, but check it out if you have a more gothic theme in mind and like: Nine Inch Nails (Something I Can Never Have), The Cure (Pictures of You), Evanescence, The Smiths, Joy Division.

You can check out clips of a few songs on each album on the Vitamin Records Website.

Or if you have iTunes, you can check out a clip of any song you want, almost all of their albums – and individual songs – are available for download there.

Source: Yahoo!