gorgeous wedding photograph

I found this photograph as I was searching the web for wedding inspiration for my younger sister and fell in love. The first contact between bride and groom is a huge part of the wedding day and I love how this photo documents this event...

Stephanie Williams Photography

erratic repertoire: the dress for all occasions

I don't typically highlight clothing on my blog, but had to make an exception today for this amazingly creative dress designed for me by Jenna of the blog Erratic Repertoire. This dress is reversible and, due to shape and cut, can be worn in a plethora of styles. I had a little photo shoot in my living room (with my cat Penelope, of course) and modeled a few of the styles that immediately came to my mind. Since this shoot, I've come up with many other iterations that are so fun!

Jenna has some images of a similar dress that she made for herself on her blog, so check it out. Maybe if she opens an Etsy page like I suggested, you can buy one for yourself!

beautiful books

There is something magical about picking up a new book. Especially if this new book also happens to be pretty. I've recently gone on a bit of a classics craze and when I saw this Barnes & Noble leatherbound classics edition of seven Jane Austen novels I had to have it. While the words are the same as they've always been, the experience is somehow heightened when I sit and turn the gold leaf pages while reading one of my favorite's from this collection...

I was literally giddy when I first opened this book and saw the vintage floral print on the inside cover... and yes, I know, I'm a nerd. But despite this fact, I'm a strong believer that design not only improves the value of something, but also improves the experience of it. Good design is something you feel. It goes beyond logic or reason and touches on the intangible qualities of life.

The more I thought about the design of my pretty little Jane Austen collection and how great it made me feel, the more I considered the concept of creating beautiful books. In today's world, book design isn't one of the first forms of art the typical person would consider. With advances in technology such as internet and the latest craze, the Kindle, the tradition of sitting down with a book is becoming less common. And even for those who do enjoy turning pages while reading rather than clicking the "next" button, books themselves are less permanent than they once were. Most books are paperbacks now and end up with bent corners, spills, or even wrinkled pages from dips in the tub.

images via Barnes & Noble

While the wave of the future isn't necessarily a bad thing as it signifies the increased access we have as a society to reading material, books were not always as discardable as they are today. Many early works of art were in the form Biblical manuscripts that were passed down through the centuries. These books took years to create and were illuminated with beautiful colors and rich designs. The image below shows an example of one such manuscript. You can see from this example that the image was as important as the text and helped communicate the content of the manuscript.

The Book of Hours

Valencia, c 1460

Collection of the Koninklijke Bibliotheek

image via Colophon Page

Continuing on this train of thought, I went on a mission to discover inspirational and beautiful books of today. During my search, I stumbled across The Book Design Review, a blog focused on my very task. I would recommend checking out the blog as it offers a completely new perspective on art and design via books.

Here are a few of my favorites from this blog... there were so many interesting covers that I tried to pick a few that offered a range of styles. The first, and quite possibly my favorite, is Ruben Toledo's design of Wuthering Heights for the Penguin Classics Deluxe Editions.

The Children's Book, designed by Stephen Parker and adapted by Gabrielle Wilson.

The Great Perhaps designed by Jamie Keenan

images via The Book Design Review

28 gorgeous globes: a new pendant chandelier by Omer Arbel

I was recently perusing the pages of one of my favorite blogs, Contemporist, when I found this stunning light fixture designed by the same firm that brought us the 2010 Vancouver Olympic medals.

Omer Arbel created the 28 series of pendant lights for BOCCI using a unique glass blowing technique that creates the randomly placed pockets of air and distorted spherical shapes of these globes. Each globe pendant contains one low voltage spherical lamp and, when clustered together, creates a gorgeous and unique chandelier.

By far my favorite of the pendant chandeliers I've come across!!

images via Contemporist

diy project .:. vintage cake stands

Wedding plans have been keeping me very busy lately, but I love the little details that go into planning the event. I love dessert and thought that having individual and ornate desserts served on each guest table could create a beautiful and unique center piece. I was immediately drawn to the classic antique milk glass cake stands as they are simple, elegant, and fit our vintage theme. While these pieces are stunning, they are a bit pricey, so I decided to get creative and make my own custom cake stands for the guest tables at our wedding reception.

During one of my intense online wedding research sessions I found an interesting post on one of my favorite blogs, Design Sponge, about adaptive reuse of plates and china (please see my previous post on the marvelous Sarah Cihat and her inspirational and funky dishware adaptations). Design Sponge even highlighted a DIY project creating Sarah Cihat-inspired cake stands that I was instantly drawn to. Of course, I didn't want to paint bugs on my wedding centerpieces, so I went a more elegant route and have been collecting antique china plates and crystal stemware from various antique shops over the last few months in the hopes of adding some creative glamor to my wedding reception.

This last weekend, my sister and I went at the first 30 stands, using Epoxy to secure the crystal stemware to the bases of each plate. We used varying heights, shapes, and colors to add visual interest and rhythm. I love the outcome and can't wait to see them at our wedding. I'm thinking some soft loose blooms and LED lights would look stunning clustered around the bases of these stands.

Enjoy!

I adore milk glass and these pieces are absolutely stunning. These stands were my original inspiration for my guest table decor.

My sister and I collected mismatched china plates, crystal stemware, and candlesticks like those pictured above over the course of a few months (and many visits to the Antique Emporium in Eau Claire, WI). Once they were cleaned and sparkling, we organized them so that each plate was paired with the perfect base, offering variety of height, color, and design.

Phase two was all about the smelly Epoxy... we glued the 30 plates and bases together within a couple of hours and then secured them with painters tape and set them out to dry for the night. I wasn't sure that the Epoxy would hold the delicate crystal to the china, but that stuff is amazing!!

The finished product is surprisingly durable (and pretty cute)!