Cham's "Bee" inspired boutonniere.

Emplume™ boutonniere collection.

Mother of the Bride corsage.

Emplume™ corsage for the Mother of the Groom.

Kathlene’s corsage by Emplume™.

Corsage for Grandmother of the Groom.

1-Groom boutonniere

2-Groomsmen boutonnieres

2-Dads boutonnieres

1-Usher bout.

1-Ring bearer bout.

2-Moms corsages

1-Stepmom corsage

1-Grandmother corsage

WHEW! onward…..the next couple of days will be devoted to centerpieces and favors with some help from my Dad and Kathlene. We’ll be picking up where my mom and sister left off a couple of weeks back. I’m hoping for some more big check-off marks on my list by the end of this weekend!

Have a wonderful one!

~Carrie

Honey Bee themed invitations by Renee Rodriguez Designs.

Address label

Bee themed invites! Designed by Renee Rodriguez Designs

Reply card

More examples of Renee’s amazing work can be viewed at her website www.reneerodriguezdesigns.com/ Also visit her fun and inspiring blog Musings by Renee.

Thank you Renee!

~Carrie

Flowergirl dress inspiration photo.

The pattern was easy to follow but not very true to size- It was very big! I used pattern pieces for Dress C-top and Dress A-skirt to get the look of the inspiration dress. I ended up still cutting another 7″ off the skirt length and took in about an 1 1/2″ in the back before putting in the zipper. I did not use a pattern for the sash/bow. This was purely educated guesswork Love how it turned out!

Accomplishments from the weekend!

 The ring pillow was completely inspired by some fabulous scrap fabric I had and the big flower in the inspiration dress photo. I couldn’t be happier with the way this pillow turned out. I especially love how the mixture of fabulous silk damask {on the back & edge} and simple cream linen {front} gives the perfect balance of rustic glamour Lindsay is looking for in her wedding details. I can’t wait for my sister to see this in person!

Emplume custom ring pillow.

1-ring bearer pillow

1-flowergirl dress

Yea! now on to the rest  of it

~Carrie

Today there is officially one month left before my sister’s wedding. GASP!

During this month I will attempt to not only fabricate all that needs to be fabricated for this highly anticipated and extremely special event, but also document and share my accomplishments and possible failures here with you! {I am laughing hysterically now  b/c quite clearly it’s nearly impossible for me to update my blog any other time when I’m not experiencing chest pains } Oh Lordie….

So here’s what the next thirty days has in store:

1-Bridal bouquet

2- Maid bouquets

1-Groom boutonniere

2-Groomsmen boutonnieres

2-Dads boutonnieres

1-Usher bout.

1-Ringbearer bout.

2-Moms corsages

1-Stepmom corsage

1-Grandmother corsage

1-Bridal hair fascinator

1- Flowergirl dress for my daughter

1- Flowergirl wand

1-Ringbearer pillow

2-Maid reception accessories ( hairpieces or corsages? hmmm)

OK so that’s my list. Then 2 weeks ago I got my sister’s list meant just for me! I know it was given from her heart with lots of trust and love….heh heh:

15- Dinner table centerpieces

5ish-Cocktail table centerpieces

150- Preparing and assembling guest favors

1-Design and create a cake decoration

So the good news is that most of these things are all in various stages of completion lucky for her But the list is long. It also doesn’t include the fact that I am a wife and mother and a business owner Or that I’d also like to lose 10 pounds, whiten my teeth and get my hair colored, eyebrows waxed and nails done

It’s 30 days. I can’t wait to see all these things materialize! I know everything will be wonderful and beautiful and perfect just like my sister. Love you Lins! <3

Meet Shannon & Carrie

I would like to introduce you to two fabulous ladies, Shannon & Carrie, of Emplume Moderne Couture Bouquets. Five years ago they started their creative business designing couture wedding bouquets from feathers, gems, ribbons and more. Their creations are absolutely stunning.

About a year ago they asked me to help them with their brochure design and marketing plan, a mission I gladly accepted. We meet once a month at Emplume headquarters and discuss their fabulous business over delicious martinis and yummy treats. (tough job, but someone has to do it)

Now these lovely ladies really love my “girly girls” and asked if I would draw both of them for their custom stationery. How could I refuse?

First I would like to introduce you to Shannon.

She loves, loves, loves jewels, especially giant cocktail rings and wearing layers and layers of necklaces. Shannon has extremely good taste and an amazing creative mind.

Now, on to my other fabulous friend Carrie, too darn cute for words. She has a swanky little walk is always pulled together with perfection. She too has an affection for jewels and is the other creative mastermind behind Emplume.

So now that you have met my lovely friends, you can see how gorgeous they look together on their beautiful new thank you notes. The will be printed on creamy stock and then embellished with a few swarovski crystals – I know shocking, right?

If you would like to take a look at their stunning bouquets visit their Emplume website here. In addition to bouquets, they design hair accessories, corsages, wrist corsages, shoe clips and much more.**

**Copied from Musings by Renee Rodriguez July 19 2010.

Shannon and I are in love with every gorgeous ego she designs. See what I mean by visiting her very sassy and girly website reneerodriguezdesigns.com and blog Musings by Renee Rodriguez. Renee has also published a book filled with pages of different wonderful girls, each with a fabulous wish for you! Hence the title  ‘Fabulous Wishes For You’. This delightful little book makes a great gift for all your special girlfriends Get a copy to share here!

But first, do nothing else until you watch this!

We cannot thank our fabulous vendors and models enough! Stay tuned for more! xo~ emplume

bye-bye! ~ xo, Emplume

Carrie sent out some emails to our past brides – and we are sooo happy to report that we got some fabulous letters back! This really is why we LOVE Emplume so much! Of course we love the bouquets but I think we may love our brides, their mother-in-laws and moms even more! THANK YOU.THANK YOU. THANK YOU! to all of you who so thoughtfully replied to our request – we could not be happier!

I am of course going to post them for all of you to see.. but so as not to overwhelm and to give every gorgeous one of you your day to shine with our complete gratitude and thanks… here’s the first!

Dear Carrie and Shannon:

It was so good to hear from you.   As you know, when my daughter-in-law Stephanie saw your advertisement in Bride’s Magazine and contacted you by telephone.   I was skeptical about handling such an important part of the wedding over the internet without being able to see and/or touch the product.  You will recall we had a bad experience with another company who apparently was trying to do a knock-off of your creations of art.

I can honestly say we were like 5 year old children on Christmas morning opening the packages when they arrived for the wedding.  The packaging was fantastic.  I have my husband’s boutonniere and my corsage packed away neatly in the beautiful boxes they arrived in and have stored them in our wedding memory box.

The bride’s bouquet was stunning.    Stephanie chose a beautiful arrangement to carry and equally beautiful combinations for the maid of honor and bridesmaids.   Your creations were unique to our area and needless to say were a topic of conversation among our guests.  I purchased glass vases for the bouquets and they were displayed at the reception around the cake and Stephanie’s was standing on the sweetheart table.

I have never seen anything like these arrangements. The Swarovski crystals and pearls were a magnificent touch and added just the right amount of sparkle.  The magnetic clasps on them were a fantastic idea so as to not damage the fabric of the dresses/tuxedos.

I would absolutely, positively recommend your creations to anyone who is considering them as an alternative to traditional fresh flowers.  They are unique works of art and certainly deserve the consideration by any bride who wants something unusual and one of a kind for her special day. Hope your business is flourishing and you can rest assured that anyone who has asked where they came from I have quickly provided your information.

Talk care and we wish you much success!

Sincerely,

Brenda L. Eyler

Extremely Satisfied  Emplume Customer

THANKS BRENDA (and Stephanie)  It truly was our pleasure!  xo ~ emplume

Janet Kinkade is the designer and creator of Jewel Kade™. She’s also a wife and mother of 5 children! Janet built a career designing incredible window displays for Nordstrom department stores. Now, her whole family is involved in making Jewel Kade™ a huge success! She is a master of her materials which are canvas based original artwork, Swarovski® rhinestone crystals, beveled and hand cut glass, and embellished with real crushed glass glitter from Germany! And- made in the USA. yea! 

We die for them. I came to work the day after our Executive Kit arrived and Shannon was literally wearing every charm! Everyday we spread out all our JK booty on the table to pick and choose  which we are going to wear for the day. 

We are now offering them to Emplume™ brides who want to really personalize their bouquets for themselves  and/or their maids and have a fabulous gift to give at the same time. These are so perfect because each has so much personality and a gorgeous handmade quality. Maids feel incredibly special when so much thought is put into choosing their perfect  bouquet charm. 

Perfect petite glimmering initial*

Your new *sparkling* initial!

You get to wear them after the wedding as one of the hottest fashion accessories…