Surfboard Bar

I wanted to recreate this gorgeous bar. However, one push and the surfboard is off the saw horses. Bye bye drinks. If I could find a way to secure it however, it would be very cute. Does anyone have any ideas?

Beach Wedding Hairstyles

Here are some great beach wedding hairstyles. The trick is to keep it loose and lovely, as overstructured hair looks out of place on the beach. I am not sure why all the beach hair models are blonde. I am not blonde. I have long dark curly hair so the 2nd and 3rd pictures are possible options.

Boutonnieres

These are such lovely, fresh boutonnieres for a beach wedding. They keep to sea colors of greens and blues, look lovely on a light colored suit, and the beading detail is precious. These could even be done in advance with silk flowers so that they always look perfect, no matter what the temperature.

Beach Photo

This picture is so dramatic and I love the colors. I am not sure who the photographer is.

Table Decorations

These are really simple, very beautiful table centerpieces that can be prepared in advance. Since everything relted to out wedding has to be brought in, every little bit helps.

My Engagement Ring

This is the engagement ring that Jeremy proposed to me with last December. It is a cushion cut diamond set in platinum band with small diamonds and two sapphires. I love the way the sapphire adds that extra spark and the beauty of the three prongs on each corner that hold the center stone. The ring is an Art Deco reproduction that was bought at Leigh Jay Nacht in New York City. It's set low so that it doesn't snag, and it is the most comfortable ring to wear.

Laura Nadeau

A month ago, Laura Nadeau of Lo & Co, a makeup artist specializing in bridal makeup, emailed me to tell me that I had won a makeup lesson. Hooray! So, on Tuesday, I met her at her studio for a three hour lesson. Laura was fantastic! She had a bubbly personality and gave me a look that was perfect for what I wanted. The colors were turquoise and greens, to go with the sea and the peacock feathers that are in my fan. My friend Yvona loved the result and I did too. I highly, highly recommend her to all Philadelphia and New York City brides.

New York Buying Trip

For the last 3 days, I went to New York City to buy things I needed for the wedding and to see my friend Yvona. I visited Tibet Kailash in the West Village where I bought my bridesmaids' skirts. I love Paper Access on 18th Street for paper goods. Then I had a makeup lesson with Laura Nadeau from Lo & Co. and met Yvona for dinner at Sushi Samba. The nest day, I went to the bead district around 34th St for beads and cufflink findings. I went to Tinsel Trading and M&J Trimmings, my favorite stores. Then off to the fabric district to find silver shantung silk for the maids' tops which I found at R&K Fabrics on 38th Street. I thought that they could all have their own tops of designs of their choosing but that the color would be the same. I then went to the flower district to pick up some brown floral tape as I am making the boutonneires. The trip ended with a nice sunset dinner at Blue Water Grill in Union Square and then the Bolt Bus back home.

Calligraphy

I love the look of light ink on dark paper. This was one of the inspirations for my invitations and the dark blue picks up on the dark blue of the ocean wave on the invitation. I used Winston & Newton white ink, a fine tip dipping calligraphy pen and within no time, I was done. I used my own handwriting but the pen made it easy to embellish.

Clippings

Dear Friends, please forgive me. When I was searching for inspiration for my wedding, I would often save pictures. Since these were for me, I never saved the blog or website from which they came. Now, months later, I am inspired to keep a blog but I dont know where some of the inspiration came from. If you see anything on my site that you know whom I can credit or where the photo came from, please let me know and I would be happy to edit.

Our Venue

Our wedding and reception venue is the lovely Stone Harbor Women's Civic Club. We picked it because it can hold our number of guests, we can have any caterer of our choice, we have it for the whole day, and most importantly, it is on the beach. Right on the beach. The only thing that separates us from the ocean is a beautiful sand dune. We were going to have the ceremony on the beach but we we could not mic the musicians or the readers so we decided to have the ceremony on the lot overlooking the sand dune.

Alexander Gorlizki

Our invitations were custom designed by the very talented artist Alexander Gorlizki in New York City. He takes classical Indian miniature painting and constructs them in an entirely fresh and whimisical way. He is fantastic to work with! Alexander was featured in Elle Decor December 2007. He also has a business called Riyaz Designs.

Diving Into the Water

I have been really inspired to start a blog after keeping up with my regularly favorite blogs, Oh Happy Day, Style Me Pretty, Brooklyn Bride, Etsy Weddings. I'm planning my own wedding for October 4th in Stone Harbor, NJ - a beach wedding - and I discovered these blogs in the process. So many cool things out there and so many cool ideas. My wedding is alot of DIY because I love crafts and because my fiancee Jeremy and I wanted to keep costs in check. Jeremy and I also have a love for things Indian, but with a little twist.