more handmade wedding dresses under $500

{each photo links to its shop}

[see also my first post on wedding dresses under $500.]

{inspiration: more balloons}

{images: 1 - natalia vodianova by patrick demarchelier for vogue us; 2 - tatielle; 3 - ffffound!; 4 - flickr; 5 - Snippet & Ink via follow studio; 6 - a cup of jo}

{inspiration: balloons!}

{images: 1 - funambula; 2 - lula via les surprises de fifi mandirac; 3 - ffffound!; 4 - via .v}

favor tins

Wouldn't these make an amazing favor display? Japanese chiyogami tins from Gamiworks seller on Etsy. I'd fill them with jelly beans or something small and sweet, and line them up exactly like this on a table for guests to take.

englishdept: more pdx dream gear

{ antique ivory silk taffeta ruffle bolero }

ohhh. yes please. until etsy, i never knew i was such a secret girly-girl. (not-so-secret now! wedding blog, natch.)

englishdept is the etsy shop of elizabeth dye, owner/designer of real life brick-and-mortar store the english dept. in portland oregon. the bolero above is handmade and can be ordered in custom sizes, and her other few pieces on etsy are sublime.

was going to end there, but seriously: the one-of-a-kind ivory beaded cashmere bridal shrug below, fashioned from a vintage sweater, is an amazing winter piece.



go now, and compliment this woman!
more at englishdept.etsy.com

feathery fun

Check out the amazing fascinators and hair accessories over at Lo Boheme on Etsy. I love the feathery look!

chinese new year: happiness doubled sampler

{ xin niang "bride" necklace by dorisworks }

a bit late, as the chinese new year was monday -- here's to the year of the ox.






{each photo links to its shop}

from today's etsy finds: rings + seababejewelry

{ hand-forged white gold and rough diamond ring by seababejewelry }

friends, this may be a cheater post, but with all the valentine's promotion on etsy they sent out an 'etsy finds' email with fun ring ideas today.

my favorite new find: seababejewelry, who deserve their own post! kristin and david make gorgeous things on the north shore of oahu -- i love the organic look of rough diamonds and other wire-wrapped gemstones in place of something perfectly machine-faceted and prong-set. not to mention living in hawaii and making jewelry sounds like a pretty good gig.

check out some of their other work below, and see the storque for more etsy ring finds this week!





more at seababejewelry.etsy.com

cabin fever

I think I have the fever. The cabin fever. I'm dying to open my windows, feel a cool breeze, eat some fresh, ripe fruit (thanks to this this post by Cannelle et Vanille) smell grass! If only...
Alas, I think we're getting another 10 inches of snow before the end of the day Wednesday, that means I will have to travel far and wide for the cure to my fever. On the plus side, I did find some amazing deals on flights to California this afternoon... there may be a vacation in my future?? I hope.
In the mean time, I'm entertaining myself by looking for stylish conflict-free engagement rings for a newly engaged reader, Cami (congrats!). Sarah Perlis makes a few of my absolute favorites, some are even made with recycled gold. Love the rough cut stone!

{inspiration: fresh-faced}

{republished from this is glamorous}