Happy New Year!

I thank you all for making this a wonderful year here on Weddings Fresh!  I am full of sweet anticipation for what is to come in 2011...

Have a fabulous New Year!!

{Image:  from here via Absolutely Ladylike}

A Snowy Soiree

What a gorgeous, perfect set up for a chilly but romantic soiree, and this photo is so lovely I just had to post it, as I would be in heaven if ever I was bought to a set up like this for dinner.

Or knowing me a quick snack as I hate being cold :) I can imagine I would be OK with major thermals and a gas heater but this would melt the snow which would be a shame!

It is just so beautiful though and again I have to thank Elizabeth Anne Designs for having this photo on her amazing gallery.

Perhaps this year I should take the A team up to the Sierra Nevada for a snowy photo shoot!

Andrew is already up there so be warned!

A Romantic Tuscany Wedding

I have spent a lovely evening with my eldest daughter surfing ideas and inspirations as I am trying to impart some of my knowledge in the hope she will find her feet with what she is truly inspired to do. She is a very talented young lady with a huge amount of enthusiasm and will find her vocation soon but I hope I inspire her in the meantime!

Having settled on the fabulous Elizabeth Anne Designs and finally stopped hyperventilating over these gorgeous images, I have to share these with you of this beautiful wedding in Tuscany.

I love the chandeliers hanging from the trees, the vintage crockery, the little details such as the Bride sign on the back of the chair, the whole wedding has been beautifully designed and styled, to see more of this gorgeous wedding click on the link above to be truly inspired with romantic details.

The Aisle New York!

Good morning!  I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!  I won't be doing much this week on Weddings Fresh, as my family and I are enjoying a nice extended stay-cation at the house.  It's just what we need after a busy holiday!  But I did want to share this bit of news with you:  The Aisle New York will be debuting Monday, January 3rd at 10:00 am EST!  I have mentioned this breakout online marketplace for designer wedding gowns, shoes, accessories, and lingerie a couple months ago, but the time has finally arrived!  If you haven't already become a member, visit their splashpage to be one of the first to gain access to their opening day.

On the 3rd, Monique Lhuillier, Angel Sanchez, Elizabeth Fillmore, Oscar de la Renta Jewelry, Suzanne Couture Millinery will be available for your purchasing pleasure.  The gown below is Monique Lhuillier, one of my favorites from her fall 2011 collection, and her designs will be ready for purchase from your computer at any moment of the day--I love technology.  Lela Rose, Mark Ingram Boutique, Pour la Victoire Shoes, and Stephanie Browne Accessories will be showing the following week on Monday, January 10th, with more still to arrive in the coming weeks.


I can't wait to dive into all of the eye candy that will be hitting our Internet!  I'm just glad I'm married already because there would have been a good chance of me maxing out all of my credit cards through this site... 

{Dress Image:  Marthastewartweddings.com}

Free Downloads

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and are enjoying the holidays.

Here I am still technically on holiday but given my work is my passion I am of course busy social networking, working and expanding on our new ideas for 2011.

What I have noticed in particular, there are many free downloads for wedding stationery and just lovely things in general on the internet which really are very good, so we will be posting our finds this January which I hope will be of use to our brides and our readers for 2011 :)

I know many of my brides are extremely busy working girls so if we can find these wonderful ideas and post them hopefully it will make your lives easier!

Here is one of them I found tonight which I think are very pretty from Eat Drink Chic

Merry Christmas!

I hope you all have a blessed Christmas!

{Image: Pintrest}

Christmas Week

This time of year is a time for reflection, enjoying family and friends and thinking about achievements, what we can do better to improve ourselves and preparing for another year.

For me starting my own business has been the most rewarding thing I have ever done (apart from having my three beautiful daughters of course!).

Creating a dream and making it a reality is the most satisfying feeling and I am so passionate about what I do that working is enjoyable for me, it does not feel like work, it is a hobby and a lifestyle, which I think is hugely important to create a successful business as you eat, live, breath and sleep it!

Everyone has a story and mine is no different and I did lose faith in having friends, but what I have realised over the past year in particular, is the lifestyle I have created for myself has introduced me to some wonderful people, and now I realise I have created a network of friends that I value enormously.

I thought I would share some of my days with you now to see what we get up to when we are not busy creating our wonderful weddings and parties.

Today I spent a morning surfing some fabulous blogs, gaining inspirations and ideas for next year's weddings. I then popped down to the shop this afternoon to see Loraine and Anoulka so I decided to take my camera with me and take some photos. Here are some photos of the shop in it's full Christmas glory and Loraine and Anoulka working hard creating fabulous Christmas bouquets, arrangements and decorations, I am the lazy one sitting on a chair with a coffee :)

I have also taken a photo below of my beautiful Christmas chocolate cake delivered to me a few days ago by Fi, our crazy and hugely talented cake maker, she has created a birdcage for me which I love and don't really want to eat but I will succumb shortly!

I then popped round to see Heather, the owner of Fiestasol, for a cup of tea and homemade biscuits at her lovely cosy home as she was housebound with her beautifully cuddly children and I wanted to deliver a Christmas card and also took her a lovely festive bouquet from the shop for her to enjoy.

Sometimes a working mum's life can be hard so I always think that the mum's need to be spoilt for once! Although of course Heather is very lucky to be married to a superb chef who has taken over the kitchen for Christmas with huge enthusiasm whilst I am still checking off my to do shopping lists!!

All I can say is if anyone out there is considering starting up their own business, just go for it, you have to be passionate about what you do and be prepared to work hours that no one else would even consider but it is so rewarding to create a lifestyle and meet hugely talented and interesting people that otherwise you would never have crossed paths with.

Inspiration: Christmas tree

Merry Christmas!

{Image: Shelterness.com}

Christmas Table Inspirations

I am having yet another lazy morning spent surfing the wonderful blogs I subscribe to and squeaked with delight when I came across this wonderful Christmas table top shoot on the City Sage Blog.

Created by Kelly Oshiro Design, this table top is so simple and yet beautifully done with soda pop bottles, red and white paper straws (which I am going to have to buy as they remind me of when I was a child), the humble carnation and baubles which catch the candlelight.

Both these delightful blogs are well worth a visit to be transported into a wonderful world of decor and design.

If you have decorated your tree and house but not thought about your table decorations I hope this inspires you to be creative, mine is going to be silvers with hints of magenta this year and I bought the most fabulously glittery table runner!

What to wear...

This is what I will be wearing on Christmas Eve...well, that is, if I would have been on top of it this year and actually bought it when it was available in stores.  (You can still order it online form J. Crew for Christmas by the way if you are interested).  I don't know why I haven't figured out what I will be wearing, neither do I understand why it's a decision I fuss over.  But it always is, as we attend Christmas Eve service and longtime family friend's holiday party each year, and I love to dress the part!  So this year I am searching for some buffalo check.  It's perfectly winter traditional, and admittingly a bit lumberjack, but when you combine it with chunky feminine jewelry and a wool mini and tights, it's unbelievably chic!  And as seen below, this buffalo check jacket is made fit for a woman by adding a skinny belt to define the waist and a pair of dark denim jeans making the silhouette slim and flattering.  What to wear this winter??  Buffalo check!

{...I just hope I can find what I am looking for in two days...}

{Images: J.Crew}

Winter Star Wedding

I love this inspiration board found on Brenda's Wedding Blog using stars as a winter wedding theme. Such a beautiful idea and very pretty, it would be a nice idea to have table names after different stars and even have a star named for your wedding day.

I thought golds would take over again this year and love the photo with the wedding dress, but I do think we will still see a lot of silver again for 2011, blended with duck egg blues, ivories, corals are still very much in and sage greens.

Engaging: Kelly + Chris

Love the bright red in these pictures- perfect for the holiday season! It definitely feels like Christmas came early this year, since we've had the chance to work with so many amazing & sweet couples! Kelly is such a ray of sunshine-- can't even describe how excited we are for this Spring wedding!

Look at those legs! Kelly + Chris are the definition of cute couple......

Congrats you two! We're looking forward to more sunny skies on your big day in May!

Inspiration: Emily Thompson Flowers

Good morning!!  Ooh, Christmas is coming!  I'm getting so excited it's hard not to give my boys their presents early!  Any of you hustling around this week for last min gifts?!  It's crazy out there...
I received an email from Levi Stolove Photography yesterday with these beautiful images of gorgeous winter inspiration from Emily Thompson Flowers.  Such stunning uses of natural elements and unexpected local materials to create an organic beauty worthy of any winter celebration.

Thank you both for sending your work and Merry Christmas!

{Images:  Levi Stolove Photography of Emily Thompson Flowers}

MERRY XMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR

We are all now officially on holiday at SugarLove & White and wish everyone a very special Xmas & New Year break. If you would like to view more of our work over the holidays feel free to peek inside any of these current issues Real Weddings, Bride to Be, Wedding Style Guide, Studio Brides, The Knot all available at leading newsagencies throughout Australia. It has been an incredible year for our team and we thank you for all the ongoing editorial support.

It is always a buzz to see one of our weddings appear in the magazines or online at one of the top blogs. We are looking forward to putting together our annual "best of 2010" images online in early Jan and also sharing some new Real Weddings on the blog. With many exciting projects in progress for 2011 we will continue to update you on all things SugarLove including our behind the scenes news & industry tips. Feel free to drop us an email or comment on anything you would like to see added in the future.... Wishing you a warm and safe holiday...Leigh x

Winter Wedding Inspiration Board

Top left to right Earrings Centrepiece Bouquet Winter Cape

Middle left to right Falling Snow Table Decorations Snow Bride Falling Snow

Bottom left to right Image Bouquet Bouquet Snow Queen

I am sitting here on this very dark morning with a raging storm and torrential rain overhead, so I have engrossed myself in creating a lovely wintery wedding board instead of looking out at a very gloomy day!

So here I am with my steaming coffee, all my Christmas lights twinkling and creating beautiful images for everyone to enjoy as we approach the big day :)

Which does remind me, I have an awful lot of wrapping to do today for a certain little person in my house!

To see the credits for the above inspiration board click on the descriptions

Inspiration: Christmas goodies

It's cold and rainy here in Portland...I just want to cuddle up by a fire and sip on some hot chocolate and munch on these chocolate and caramel dipped marshmallows...check out One Charming Party has all the details on to create your own snowman bowls and dipped goodies!

Cranberry Inspired Christmas Decorations

A morning of Christmas inspirations today and you must head over to Elizabeth Anne Designs to see this beautiful cranberry inspired decoration with a how to tutorial as well.

A rich colour scheme with an olive, deep reds and golds, with a beautiful centrepiece and table setting, plus ideas for making sweet displays and beautifully wrapped presents.

Which reminds me I still have a lot of present wrapping to do!