Happy New Year!

As we countdown the days to the new year, I can't help but smile with happiness and gratitude at all the great opportunities Posh Veils had in 2011. I worked with lots of beautiful brides that live in places I only dream of visiting: Australia, France, Germany, Ukraine, and a lot of US cities I haven't been to. Thank you all. I wish you happiness, health, and joy in the coming New Year.

xoxo, 

Sharon

Signature Drink

In honor of upcoming New Year's Eve celebrations, I wanted to blog about drinks. It has become quite a trend for couples to pick a signature drink for their big day; a drink that they both love and will serve for the toast. I think that's a neat idea. Not all wedding budgets can afford champagne. The drink does not have to be alcoholic, it can be a virgin cocktail. I think as long as it tastes great, you'll hit a home run with whatever drink you decide on.

You can come up with your own unique drink or you can pick your signature drink from the extensive list of existing drinks. The Knot has a great tool you can use to find a signature drink. On a side note, I can't help but think cocktails are so pretty. They looks so good in glasses and photograph very well. Here are images to show you what I mean :) :

Image Source(s) / Credits: 1. Nancy Ray Photography, 2. Joseph K. Muscat Photography, 3. Jenna Walker Photographers, 4. Julie Mikos, 5. Austin Gros Wedding Photography, 6. Arrow & Apple Photography, 7. Arrow & Apple Photography, 8. Unkown. 9. Decor8. 

Going Short

Short wedding dresses are chic, fun, and sexy. The best thing about going short is the wedding shoes. Oh, yes! You get to flaunt your gorgeous pair of heels! 
It takes a certain personality to arrive at the decision to wear a short wedding dress. It's not unusual to get a lot of unenthusiastic responses about your decision to go short. You may encounter a lot of resistance from your mom or even bridesmaids when you share your desire to wear a short wedding dress. Whenever you find that you're unsure about what decision to make, my advice to you is, just do you. Always be true to self.

If you're thinking of going short for your big day, have a look at these short wedding dresses from various 2012 bridal collections:

Amsale Fall 2012

Romona Keveza Spring 2012

Romona Keveza Spring 2012

Amsale Fall 2012

Jenny Packham Fall 2012

Monique Lhuillier Fall 2012

Romona Keveza Fall 2012

Images via: The Beauty Bridal

Monique Lhuillier - My Pick

So I finally decided on my favorite gowns from Monique Lhuillier's gorgeous Fall 2012 collection. It was hard to choose but I managed to pick my absolute favorites.

The collection is filled with flattering necklines, lots of tulle, petal embellishments, layers & ruffles, horsehair bows, lots of floral details, and lovely chiffon. It's simply divine!

All Images via: The Beauty Bridal

Place Cards

I don't know if you've seen any lately but I'm here to tell you that place cards and place settings are not boring anymore. Oh no they aren't hunny! They don't just designate a sitting spot for your guests, they're great accessories to your wedding theme and decor. The color, shape, texture, design, and originality of the place settings you choose to go with are a great way to personalize your wedding. 

Place card settings don't have to cost an arm and a leg. If you're artsy or have an artistic friend or sibling, you can get craft paper from your local art store and create your own designs. Something doesn't have to cost a lot to look good. As always, I encourage you to be creative and to do what makes you happy. Take a look at some of these place cards and place settings for your inspiration:

Image Credit: 1. Ace Photography,  2. Caroline Tran Photography

Image Credit: The Image is Found Photography

Image Credit: 1. Julie Mikos Photography,  2. Captured by Aimee

Image Credit: He & She Photography

Image Credit: 1. Scott Clark Photography, 2. Studio B. Photography

Image Credit: Simple Photography

Image Credit: 1. Unknown, 2.Vitalic Photo

Image Credit: Unknown

Pretty Accessories

Accessories can be as demure or as loud and over the top as you want them to be. It really all depends on what looks great with the dress you've chosen and what you love. Toss out all the rules on picking out your accessories. As long as you look great and everything works together well, you can wear whatever you like. You shouldn't hesitate to try on a bold and chunky necklace just because some blogger says not to pair a detailed gown with a chunky statement necklace. Unless you try something on, you'll never know how it looks on you. Always try something on.

I created today's inspiration boards to get you to think of what you'll be wearing with your dress. Enjoy!

Image Source: 1. Love My Dress, 2. Love My Dress 3. Uknown

Image Source: 1. Lord and Taylor, 2. Prette-a-beaute, 3. Net-A-Porter

Image Source: 1.Pinterest, 2. Bergdorf Goodman

Wedding Cake!

I love wedding cakes. They are an easy way to express the couples wedding theme and personality. A cake's flavor and overall design says so much about the bride and groom. Sometimes a couple has so much personality that they have a groom's cake too! Have fun with this traditional wedding element; be creative!

Now, if you're thinking you can decide on a wedding cake flavor that will please your 150+ guests, forget it! That's impossible. What you need to do is choose a flavor you love first and foremost. No matter how hard you think you can, you will not decide on a flavor that all your 150+ guests will love. Therefore, the easiest people to please, are yourselves. After all, guests never attend a wedding hoping that the cake is in their favorite flavor. They expect  the element of surprise. They expect the element of you. If it really matters to you to cater to a variety of preferences, consider a dessert buffet table with common sweet treats such as: various cupcakes, macaroons, eclairs, tarts, pies, ice-cream, and even candy.

Here are cake inspiration boards I put together for you all. Oh, how I love cake :): 

Image Sources: 1. Brides,  2. Zoe Clark Cakes, 3. Wedding Chicks

  

Image Sources: 1. Brides, 2. Perfectly Put Together, 3. Wedding Channel

Image Sources: 1. Wedding Channel, 2. Martha Stewart Weddings, 3.Martha Stewart Weddings

Engagement Shoot Outfit Fridays! - Torn Jeans

It's Friday! It's Friday! I'm sorry I haven't blogged much the last couple of days. My baby girl wasn't feeling well these last two weeks. She was battling a nasty cold. However, I'm happy to report she's all better now :)

I'm so excited to be sharing today's outfit idea with you all. It's sexy, casual, and totally laid back. Boyfriend jeans are such a wearable item. You could throw on a pair of Chuck Taylor All Star (sneakers) or a great pair of dainty heels and you'll still manage to look great! I put together this fun look with a laid back engagement shoot in mind.  All I kept thinking as I was choosing pieces for today's post was, some days all a girl wants to do is to put on a pair of jeans and enjoy her city with her man. Am I right? 

Another weeks is over; have a great weekend Poshettes. Mwah!!!

Now check out these great images sourced from The Sari-Clad Bride for inspiration on an engagement shoot idea that would work well with today's outfit idea. I love the NYC subway shot...something that is so ordinary made to look so romantic!

Image source: The Sari-Clad Bride

[Featured Item]: "Bow" Shaped Fascinator

A few weeks back, I featured the first of four headpieces I created for a lovely group of ladies that attended a wedding this past summer. Today I'm featuring the second of those four pieces; it's a blue goose and peacock feather fascinator. 

I had a face to face consultation with Shannon a few weeks before the wedding. We talked about her outfit (which was a gorgeous royal blue knee-length lace dress) and how she wanted to complete her look with the perfect headpiece. She confessed that the Royal Wedding this past April had inspired her to wear a fascinator to the next wedding she went to. 

Shannon knew for certain that she wanted the fascinator to be royal blue just like her dress. She also expressed her desire for a bow shaped fascinator. With all the her wishes in mind, I started on her headpiece. I chose to use goose feathers as they are easy to work with and shape. I also knew I wanted to use a peacock feather as it has lovely shades of blue. To create texture, I used a bit of french netting and streams of Ostrich feathers. To top it all off, I also used a gorgeous crystal button to center and accent the "bow" fascinator. In the end, Shannon was pleased with it. Here's how it turned out:

Image credits: Photographs are taken by me using my Nikon D5100

Baby's Breath Everywhere

Baby's Breath is an inexpensive and sometimes overlooked flower that looks absolutely lovely when used just right. It is very affordable and there's just so much you can do with it from: bouquets, centerpiece arrangements, boutonnieres, decor, cake decor, and even as a headpiece. Quite simply, Baby's Breath is a chic flower that seems to work with many color schemes. 

Here are some images of how others have incorporated Baby's Breath in their weddings. I hope this inspires you :)

Image Sources: Loveandlavender,  Ritzybee, Wedzu, intimateweddings, Stylemepretty, pinterest, Weddzilla, Stylemepretty, Bronzebudgetbride, Seattleflowers.