Fall 2015 Wedding Gown Trend

So fall is quickly approaching and I wanted to share with you all a trend that I have been seeing. It seems as though every since Kate Middleton married Prince William, of Cambridge, wedding gowns with sleeves have been on the rise! Weren't we all just awed by how beautiful she was?!

Not to mention this trend is nothing new, many of our moms rocked gowns with sleeves, these just give a modern look with a vintage flair.  As the collections are being released for the season, I have noticed a lot of designers including dresses with lace sleeves. I think these add a gorgeous touch to any fall wedding. I personally think this style is perfect for the right bride and I just love it when girls come in Tiffanys asking to these beauties! Take a look at a few of my favorites below and  tell me if you think this trend is gorgeous or something you will pass on! Let the fall trends begin!

Matina Liana

Matina Liana

Essence of Australia

Essence of Australia

Stella York

Mori Lee

Maggie Sottero

HUGE Announcement & Giveaway !!

Good morning pretty girls! I am so happy to announce that I am opening an Etsy shop! As a huge lover of Etsy, I wanted to create some one of a kind pieces for ladies who love cute quotes just like me. I hope my goods add a little sparkle to your gifts, homes, & celebrations! Be sure to enter my new giveaway by heading over to the shop and liking a few items! https://www.etsy.com/shop/ElegantDollHouse

There's more to come so stay tuned & continue to sparkle! 

Garden Tea Party Photo Shoot & Giveaway !

Hey Pretty Girls!

So I haven't posted on here in about a month and I have missed you girls oh so much!  Back in January, I had the vision to style a photo shoot for the first time. (OMG! I was so nervous) I had never done anything like this before and I was definitely stepping out of my comfort zone, but I knew doing a styled photo shoot would give me artistic freedom and showcase my designs. 

First, I had to brainstorm about what the theme would be. After some long pondering, I came up with the theme of A Garden Tea Party. I've always loved the daintiness of tea parties and Alice in wonderland. I imagined a tea party in a garden setting would be beautiful. Finding the venue of my dreams wouldn't be easy, but I knew in the state of Virginia it was very possible. 

The hunt for the perfect garden began! I searched all over and was introduced to Tuckahoe Plantation. The pictures of the grounds were nothing short of stunning, and even more lovely in person. Once I visited the plantation, I had a moment where I knew I could make this happen.

I needed to find a photographer who could help me bring my vision to life. As most of you know, I attended the Creative at Heart Conference, which afforded me the opportunity to meet many talented ladies in various industries. While browsing through websites and portfolios, I found Natalie Jayne. She was an absolute dream to work with and she totally understood my vision. 

Styled shoots are amazing because you get to do things YOUR way without having to conform to other people's style or staying within their parameters. Y'all I promise it's the best feeling in the world seeing everything come full circle

It took numerous people to help me bring my vision to life, from good friends to professionals. I cannot express how grateful I am for everyone who was involved, because it would've been impossible to do alone. 

Friends, it would be untruthful for me to say this was easy, but with every trial and set back I kept telling myself to keep going. I can definitely say it was WORTH IT... I truly believe that EVERYTHING happens for a reason and in hindsight it all worked out for the best!

Keep scrolling for a few sneak peaks and highlights of the shoot!

You can't have a tea party without beautiful blooms and sweet treats !

My playful pup Josie in her Tutu!

Natalie hard at work !

 
Pop, Fizz, Clink !

There must be some SPARKLE!

Nothing's possible without good friends & laughter!

I had to incorporate tutus !

Designing the tablescape was so much fun !

Finding beautifully, unique teacups was a must! The Menus were created by bestie!

"Dollishly"goofing around...

Stay tuned for the actual photos! I cannot wait until they are done!

Subscribe to the blog and comment "DONE" on Instagram to be entered to win this beautiful teacup that was featured in the shoot!

Talk to you soon & continue to *SPARKLE*!

Creative at Heart Conference

Hey Beauty's !

The Creative at Heart Conference was everything I thought it would be and more ! It was my first conference and I was super nervous, but I had heard nothing but good things so I undoubtedly knew this was the perfect conference for me ! 

Let's begin with how I nearly didn't make it to the conference due to bronchitis and my allergies ... Ughhh, I know , horrible right?! I literally had to force myself to get ready. I packed the day I was scheduled to leave and prayed I wasn't forgetting anything important. I looked so bad my mom questioned if I should go or not. I was too determined and made up in my mind that nothing was going to stop me! By this time it was 6 o'clock pm and I had a 3 hour drive ahead of me. My boyfriend offered to drive me but I knew the drive would be too much at such a short notice and he had to work the next day, so I gassed up my car, took a couple of puffs from my inhaler and I was on the road! Surprisingly the drive wasn't bad at all! I had made it! The hotel was absolutely lovely and I was cheerfully greeted by valet. I was making my way up to the room and I was EXHAUSTED! My bronchitis was getting the best of me and I could barely breathe as I tried to haul all of my luggage alone. Again, I had finally made it to my room and I walked into a room full of girls, wheezing for my breath. I left my luggage in the hall, introduced myself between gasping for breaths of air, and flopped down in the chair. I was so embarrassed and didn't want to seem like the crazy, sick girl lol. My roommates were so sweet and very understanding of my condition and immediately made me feel comfortable. I eventually got myself together and got ready for bed, super excited about the next day's activities !

We went down for breakfast and registration, I was pleasantly surprised that the girl doing registration recognized me and knew me by name already... This made me feel like I was among friends and not just someone attending a conference with strangers, who I would never speak to again. When I walked into the conference room I saw so many smiling faces and got tons of hellos ! It was amazing to see all the ladies in person that we had already began to form bonds with from the Facebook group ( which is an awesome idea for everyone to get to know each other!). The speakers were phenomenal! Bonnie gave us a beautiful saying, "Community over Competition", from that moment on I knew I was in the right place. The other speakers were amazing as well, each of them sharing their stories and wonderful personalities with us. We learned about branding and how to be financially fit ! I even had a "fangirl" moment when Abby Grace complimented me on my hair ! 

Sorby Sweets Cake Topper 

Tart Events

Lunch was set so beautifully each day, it was cool to see the ballroom transform and showcase talents from the decor to cakes ! 

Our group sessions were so informative! We got to be ourselves and actually talk about our specific crafts and how we could build them. I asked the question " What would your advice be to someone who is just starting out with planning and they want to showcase their talents, but don't have clients yet?"to Kat from Dear Sweetheart Events .  I got an immediate response to do a styled Photoshoot, which was more than enough advice for me. The next day, one of the owners of Paisley and Jade said that she wanted to revisit my question and went into more depth! That fact that she remembered what I said and gave it more thought was SO EMPOWERING and showed me that they truly wanted to help me out as a newbie and see me and my business thrive ! If that isn't helping a sister out, I don't know what is !!! 

Day 2 was just as amazing as day 1, from the speakers and group sessions to the surprise head shots *insert happy squeal * lol . Creative at Heart is a conference like NO OTHER! We have formed unbreakable bonds and a beautiful sense of community, not just in Virginia and in our specialized crafts, but throughout the nation and across different talents ! I'm so happy that I attended and had this unforgettable experience. Creative at Heart not only gave me knowledge to grow my business and eventually go full time, but it fed my soul and nourished my spirit with uplifting stories and words of encouragement ! We laughed , we learned, and we cried *heartfelt and happy tears of course * ! The couple of days we spent together were filled with so much love and sincerity; I truly feel like this was an not a conference but an experience like no other & I love my Creative at Heart sisters! 

Paisley and Jade

You're a Bridesmaid... What now?!

Hey Beauties!

You just found out your best friend is engaged and she has asked you to be part of the BIG DAY! You're super excited, but now what?! Being the Maid of Honor or a Bridesmaid is much more than just a title, the roles come with great responsibility and a few duties...

Maid of Honor

She's your BFF and will definitely be by your side at the alter, but what else does the Maid of Honor do? Of course she fluffs the Bride's dress and keeps her sane throughout the wedding day, but there are tons of other responsibilities that come along with the glamour of being the brides bestie.

* Go with her to find her gown and accessories (this will be fun for the both of you and an unforgettable bonding experience!)

* Plan and host the bridal shower and bachelorette party (get your creative juices flowing because you will need it!)

*Witness and sign the marriage certificate

* Puts together and emergency kit for bridal party (minimergency kits are cute and always come in handy)

*Holds the brides bouquet during the ceremony

*Holds groom's ring during ceremony

*Helps assemble invitations and wedding favors

*Gives speech/toast at reception

* Gives bride a shower and wedding gift

*Helps bride whenever she can and ties loose ends

Bridesmaids

Bridesmaids usually consist of the bride's closest friends, family and the groom's siblings/cousins. Always remember bridesmaids should be DEPENDABLE !

*Helps maid of honor/bride whenever they can

*Contributes to bridal shower and bachelorette party

*Responsible for purchasing dress and accessories by deadline 

MOST OF ALL FOR THE ENTIRE WEDDING PARTY :  BE A SUPPORT SYSTEM ! There will be many times that your bestie just needs someone to vent to  over a cocktail and dinner or someone to keep her from having a nervous break down before the big day. She will need you in more ways than you could possibly imagine!

The dedication of my sweet niece & more!

Hey Beauties!

This weekend was so exhausting, but absolutely amazing and I wouldn't change it for the world ! If you follow me on social media you saw that I had an amazing weekend filled with friends, family, and love ! 

As well know a lot goes into events behind the scenes and when your guests walk in they have no idea what it took to make everything happen (in my eyes that's the beauty of event planning). A few months ago my best friend told me she wanted to do a small get together after her daughter's dedication. How many of us know that a small gathering can turn into something big very quickly? Lol. So I'm pretty good at events, but my bestie is the "ultimate visionary " she comes up with some of the cutest themes for events. She said she wanted to use soft pink with some deeper pink accents, paired with ivory and gold, but didn't want it to look like a baby shower... So to Pinterest we went ! We shared pictures and ideas, then it was time to bring things to LIFE. How many times have we seen beautiful things on Pinterest then tried to do our own rendition *lol* ? This is the pic that inspired me... 

Well friends, that's what I did with the flower wall below .... I had a fishing line, needle , and garland of flowers in front of me and thought to myself "what next?" I went to YouTube , found a video and got to work . This was the end result ! 

(I started this about a month in advance just in case things didn't go as planned lol) I was super happy with the finished product. That same day my bestie took on a project as well, her lovely centerpieces ! 

She did an amazing job *told you she was fab*! 

Next she tackled the sweets table and cake! Luckily she know a beyond talented lady that makes sweets! There were Rice Krispies, chocolate covered strawberries and more! 

I pulled a bit of inspiration from a baby shower I found on Pinterest for the baby's name . 

She bought wooden letters from Michaels and she got her husband to spray paint them gold (he had to drill a hole in the J so that it could hang ). 

 

Events take many people and their individual talents to make it a success! Each piece is intricate and once they are  put together the vision for the event comes to life ! I will share more pictures below and I hope you all enjoy them!