Wedding & Baby Ideas

I guess this is the time to vent about experiences today with wedding and bridesmaids! Being involved with recent wedding and now with coordinating one for in the family, there’s a few things in ediquette that now a days I don’t understand. Maybe it’s just laziness or even this generation of bridesmaids - at least from what we have encountered, they just want to be a part of the wedding to stand there and look pretty, then reap the rewards of having a free party celebration at the wedding reception. Beyond any of that, there’s no initiative from neither the maid of honor or any of the bridesmaids organizing or stepping up to make plans for any of the wedding. Not even the bridal shower!!! What is it with these girls today, there used to be long standing traditions from the girls, helping the bride plan her wedding. It was even traditional for the bridesmaids and maid of honor to plan and organize the bridal shower. From what we are seeing today, the bride is basically on her own with the exception of her parents guiding her through the planning process.  The Mom or someone close in her family is even doing all the planning and organizing of the bridal shower…….Hmmmmm, there’s something wrong with this picture. I think it is difficult enough for the bride focussing her attention on the details of her wedding, think about it, the bride deserve the best that she can get or have, this is something she has dreamt of since the age of 16 or younger, a fairytale wedding. She has many worries now that she is going to wed the man of her dreams so fo course every detail must be in perfection. So she has to worry about where she will be getting married and by whom, which part of the season she’ll get married in which now brings in the type of wedding or the theme that she has to plan. With that in mind, now comes the wedding decorations, color scheme, planning of the wedding reception, the food or caterer, the DJ, the invitations and all the other little things like wedding favors, table centerpieces, the wedding cake and shall I go on. There are a mulititude of planning and organizing that Must take place to have a successful wedding. After witnessing these events, now I can see why these brides (Some anyways) become what we call Bridezillas !! These soon to be bride are left on their own with planning and organizing their own event. Now I ask, it this fair to the bride, especially when these bridesmaid and the maid of honor are ask to be part or their special day. Heck, I have even withnessed when all the dresses, including the wedding dress came in, do you think that any of the wedding party went with the bride to pick their dresses up……There’s a BIG FAT NO. They were all told the dresses were in and asked them several times to go get them together. The bride herself ended up picking,  at that point she had to. The bridal shop where she purchased them from said they don’t warehouse dresses!!!!(David’s Bridal) That’s another story in itself!!!!!! So where has the true wedding tradition gone? It’s suppose to be one of the most happiest moments for the bride and it becomes a struggle know she is virtually on her own. For all of you bridesmaids and maid of honors out there, wake up!!! Let’s not forget why you are part of this ceremony and grand celebration, it is not about you and what you are going to get for free. You will be getting married at some point and think about it, you will need help, unless you are already married, then shame on you for entertaining the lack of participation.       

If your looking for creative and unique wedding decoration ideas, above is an elegant Shannon crystal vase which has been turned upside down to use as a wedding reception table centerpiece. Using the large base for your floral arrangement gives this centerpiece a unique concept as a decoration for any occasion. Once you have your floral in place, use floral lites inside to give a look of pure elegance at your event. With the lights dimmed for your wedding reception, the guests will definitly appreciate the unique design that’s been created.  Of course you can use these vases as they are meant to be used also which will look very appealing and desirable for your table centerpiece decoration. Imagine the wedding party table with 3-4 of these elegantly displayed with a soft glow of ambiance shining from inside. You can use any type or color of flowers or greenery to create a flower spray matching your wedding theme or color decor.  For any brides in the Detroit and Monroe Michigan area that would like to rent these or even Ostrich feather centerpieces for the wedding event, visit our website and give us a call for details. http://www.kimsgiftbaskets.com  Below you can see the beautiful arrangement of the ostrich feather centerpiece decorations which have become very popular in todays wedding receptions.  

The MGM bridal show in Detroit Michigan has now come and gone. For all the brides who missed attending the show, you missed not only the opportuny to meet many venders who provide exceptional services, but it was like a party atmosphere. With free drinks and hors d’oeurves, prizes and the opportunity to see some of the hottest designs in wedding gown fashions. It was obviouse that most of the brides were there just for the fashion show and I might say, there’s some very beautiful designs and creativity for 2009. We always enjoy participating as a vender in the bridal shows, it gives us a chance to not only meet and greet the lucky and beautiful brides, future brides, families and yes, some grooms, but also at the same time, meet some of the local wedding venders and their services.

  As we were set up displaying some of the 2009 wedding collections and wedding accessories, we also had a wedding collection consisting of a wedding guest book and guest book pen, flower girl basket and a garter set to giveaway to a lucky couple. From hundreds of potential winners who took their time to drop their name in the wedding card box, we could only choose one lucky couple. The lucky bride and groom to be is from Plymouth Michigan by the name of Amanda and Abraham. They will be married this coming summer so our congratulations goes out to the both of them and All the Best of Luck.

For those of you who couldn’t make it to the bridal show, below are some pictures of some of the hottest bridal dresses for 2009.

As you can see, this is just a very small sample of the newest designs for the bride and her bridal party. The fashion show at the bridal gala displayed many very elegant wedding dresses and from the response for all the future brides that were there, they just LOVED them!! Look for more pictures coming soon and even a video for more of the new fashions.

Thought I would share about  a wedded couple who has their mark in the Guiness Book of world records. A couple who will be having a wedding anniversary coming up on February 17th, 2009. What’s so different about this happy couple is they are celebrating their 83rd wedding anniversary. Can you imagine their achievements and hurdles they have endured over the past 8 decades of their marriage. The one quote which they have to say is ” You Have to Have Patience”. I really do believe that is the backbone of a marriage, you know, not everything is going to go exactly to what you hope to have plan.  I am sure this couple can tell us many great stories plus insights on what makes a happy marriage. With their long marriage, they have a considerably large family as you can imagine: 6 children, 30 grandchildren, 101 great grandchildren, and 40 great-great grandchildren.  They are in hopes to celebrate their 85th anniversary and beat the marriage world record from a couple who is now deceased . Our hearts go out to the happy couple!!.

Word of the day for the new bride and grooms and those who are celebrating their 50th anniversary……………..”You’ve Got To Have Patience!!” 

With the 2009 wedding season very close, brides are now getting their newest issues of their favorite wedding magazines to find the Hottest trends in the industry. Another great source to see the newest styles, fashions and great wedding services there are out that can make your wedding day a memorable event is to attend the bride shows in your area. Detroit Michigan has a brand event coming up on February 22nd from 12:00 pm - 6:00pm which is going to include not only the prestigious wedding experts and local vendors, but also will include hourly previews of the newest fashions. The Bridal Gala is put on by Red Carpet Event Productions and hosted at the MGM Grand Ballroom in Detroit Michigan. This exlusive bridal show is not one to miss!! The event will have media coverage  from Hour Magazine, Metro Detroit Bride, Six Degree, Channel 955, The Knot, Premier Bride and a few local papers. The bridal show will be having two exclusive runway shows by Roma Sposa for some of the hottest wedding fashions for 2009. Also MTV’s True Life ”I’m A Newlywed” will select 2 couples from the bridal gala to appear on their reality show. All registered ticket holders will receive an exclusive Dior gift certificate (a $100 value). 

  Of course, we’re going to be there to showcase some of the new wedding accessories for 2009. These accessories will include wedding essentials for the wedding ceremony and reception. Wedding collections to include the new Garbo ensemble along with the Elizabeth and the Orleans collection. The wedding ensembles are very elegant and a must to see. We will also have a selection of wedding favors for the viewing that’ll give brides  some ideas for their favors for the bridal shower or as wedding reception favors. Comes visit Kims Gifts while your at the bridal show.

With wedding season upon us again, the brides are all out looking for the newest trends in fashion and wedding accessories for their trip down the alter. This year, we have seen some very elegant wedding accessories coming out from the manufactures.  There’s a couple  very nice and elegant collections we would like to share with everyone, with these equisite wedding pieces available, it just makes me want to get married this year (even though I am already married) There are two collections which really catch my eye and after you look at the picture, I think you would agree. Especially, with black being the color trend this year for accents and accessories. The first wedding collection is the Elizabeth, which is detailed with hand beading and metallic thread accented with a faux diamond in the center. The collection has the accessories for both the wedding ceremony and the wedding reception. Includes the flower girl basket, ring pillow and unity candle for the ceremony and the wedding guest book and pen set for the reception. The Elizabeth wedding collection does come in White, Ivory or Black but my preference is the elegant black.

   Another collection that catches our attention is the Garbo wedding collection and accessories. With Claret one of the available colors, it definity grabs the attention of your audience and gives the look and feel pure elegance of a wedding. With satin exquisitley  and softly draped on each accessory and then finished with a romantic rhinestone piece, everyone will know there’s romance in the air for the bride and groom. This wedding collection also has the accessories for both the wedding ceremony and the reception.

To give the brides or anyone in the wedding business or party event coordinators an idea with what the possibilities you can do with these cute Mini Satin photo albums. Amber from Lifestyle Portrait Weddings used these as promotionals at a private screening party she participated in. She gave out 200 of these cute photo albums but not before she put some really talented creativity into them. There definitly were many ideas involved around how she would use them, not only for marketing, but also her ideas included special savings inside each for brides and of course, wedding consultants, coordinators, party event planners, etc. If your interested in capturing the moment on these mini photo album favors, visit http://www.kimsgiftbaskets.com/16011.html also, see the talents of amber on her blog at http://lifestyleportraitweddings.blogspot.com/

Here’s a unique idea for your favors! This purse style favor box would make a great addition to weddings or bridal showers adding your favorite favors inside for the guests. This is just one of many styles of the favor boxes to choose from. Imagine the converstions around this gem of a favor. Not only will these benifit for weddings or bridal showers, I think these will also be useful for birthday parties or even garden themed parties. With the variety and the assortment of colors that are available, you are able to create a sweet centerpiece as your guests arrive at your event or presented at each place setting. This favor box is accessorized with a beaded handle for easy carrying and a playful floral design. A Floral Lavender Peony Purse Favor Box just screams perfect. 

With the spring wedding season of 2009 stepping on the heals of those lucky brides, all eyes on on the trendy fashions and colors for the 2009 wedding season. Black is back this coming season for your wedding accessories mixing the classic styles, the elegant look and modern designs. Using the color scheme of black and white has the look and feel of sophistication and glamour. There are many bridal accessories that can be incorporated into the wedding from small accents to the bridal gown, black and white bouquets, wedding collection set such as the flower girl basket and ring pillow to the bridal party reception table centerpiece.

Another idea to incorporate a hint of black in the wedding is the unity ceremony. Use a unity candle with accents of black that will add to your wedding theme.

There are endless ideas where you can use black into the bridal accessories. A flower girl basket and the ring bearer pillow are an excellent choice exspecially if the bridal party has black sachets or bouquets and the groomsmen have black in their boutonniere. Those will bring out the highlights of the colors.

If your wedding colors have muliple colors such as black and pink, you can have your bridal accessories customized with such as you wedding guest book and pen to your tossing garter. Creating your own color combinations gives you the freedom to keep to your color scheme and decor.

Lastly, if you choose to have wedding favors waitng at your reception tables for each of your guests, there many styles and designs which have black accents. Of course, candle favors are the number one choice but also another wedding favor not to be ruled out are coasters. Coaster favors have come along way from the cork design from years ago and now with todays style of favors, these come in very elegant design in glass which guest are sure to use and enjoy.

HUGE 6-tier wedding cake.

Originally uploaded by Herbert Harper

With black being in for wedding accessories in 2009, wedding cakes decorated in the colors of black and white will be a hot topic for 2009. Brides will be paying close attention to the details when it comes to those delicious and not to mention, beautiful designed wedding cakes. The 6 tier wedding cake here was made by The Sweet Pea Bakery in Bozeman, MT and will feed 275+ wedding guests.