April Wedding Giveaway

I celebrated my 40th birthday in March and I thought that I should extend my celebration for a couple months. Well I thought that I would continue my celebration by giving away a gift. I recently wrote a blog post on tile wedding jewelry. The creator of the wedding jewelry has graciously offered to give one of her necklaces for an Inspired giveaway. Happy Birthday from me.

To enter for a chance to win, here is what you need to do:

1. Visit our sponsors page Bashful Bliss

2. Navigate through the site, come back and leave a comment about your favorite necklace. (hard to pick just one)

3. Like them on Facebook

4. Subscribe to this blog

Extra
* If you share this giveaway on your blog, twitter or facebook or follow this blog. Make a comment and you could earn extra entries.

That's it. This giveaway will end of April 15, 2011 at 11:59 pm. Winner will be chosen using Random.org.

Bridal Tile Jewelry

Came across a unique find, Bridal Tile Jewelry from Bashful Bliss . These beautiful necklaces are artfully created with glass tile. You will find designs for the bride-to-be and they also makes a great budget friendly gifts for bridesmaids.



Each necklace is hand-made with a 1 inch square glass tile attached to a silver bail that sits on a color coordinating ribbon cord approx. 18 inches long with lobster clasp.




Be Inspired by Bashful Bliss for a unique bridal gift

Fabulous Finds around the Web

I love when I come across unique finds on the web. Just the name of this Etsy shop makes you want to take a peek, Wine Coutures. I was also excited to discover that all of the wine charms and wine bottle necklaces were made from made from 50% to 90% recycled materials. I view the world through "wedding colored glasses" so everything I come across becomes a wedding related item; whether in inspiration or actual function. This is what happened with Wedding Coutures, my mind started racing at all the possible ways that these beautiful wine glass charms and wine bottle charms could be incorporated in your wedding.



The first function to me was decor. Adding a little bling to the wine bottles that will be used at your wedding reception or pre-wedding parties would be great.



Wedding favors

Maybe you are having a wine theme to your wedding. A set of two wine charms wrapped in a nice box would make a great wine themed favor. Possibly a different set for every guests, this will allow for Wine Coutures to continue her philosophy of eco-friendly wine charms.



Bridal party gifts

Do you have a wine connoisseur in your bridal party? A set of these wine charms would be great, maybe even a set of wine charms with a wine bottle necklaces. Maybe you have an old damaged pearl necklace that belonged to your Grandma, Michelle the creative owner of Wine Connoisseur, would be happy to work with your to create a custom order. This would make a nice gift for mom. Presenting a bottle of wine to your bridal party, dress it up a little. Ask your bridemaids to bring any broken jewelry, earrings that are missing a pair, broken beads (don't let them know why you need them) and have Michelle make them into wine glass charms or wine bottle necklaces, I love personalized gifts.

REAL Wedding: Bridesmaids Bouquets

In an effort to save money on wedding decor some brides might opt to enlist some fake items, it could be flowers, fruit or other items. Brides may opt to use fake bouquets because they want to save money or feel it is a viable "green" alternative. Well there are two issues that arise from using fake flowers, sometimes the colors chosen are so far from the natural color that your bouquets become very unattractive and have a "cheap look" to it. I have seen very realistic silk bouquets, that cause you to take a second look. They are indeed very nice and alot of work goes into them, however the price ends up being the same if not more that the cost of a bouquet with real flowers.

If the issue is saving money, then possibly you could have your ladies carry flowers that make an impact. Calla lilies do very well standing on their own, possibly two Calla Lillies hand tied with a organza or satin ribbon. When considering a single flower bouquet you must get flowers with strong stems. My personal favorite is the Gerbera daisy, it comes in fabulous colors perfect for a garden wedding.

Try smaller bouquets, less flowers, less money. If you have "green" in mind and are worried about the impact of transportation find a florist that will use locally grown flowers.

For DIY bouquets try wholesale flower shops. You will need to make sure you have a place to store the flowers so they stay fresh, like a refrigerator. However this option will help you save money and you get the benefit of real flowers. Also, with this option I don't believe you have to mention that you are getting married. Weddings are big business and the mere mention may bump up the price of your flowers, so mums the word.

For centerpieces you could try potted plants, go to local nursery. Maybe you could go to the really unassuming nursery and be pleasantly surprised by what you find. I have a local "nursery" near my home. She sets up from spring to late fall in a parking lot adjacent to a store. She has a great selection of flowers at really fabulous prices comparing to other nurseries. Try thinking seasonal, Mums for a fall wedding or tulips for a spring wedding. Possibly spend the money on really nice pots. You can also paint the pots, try a white or cream color with gold paint lightly applied with a sponge. For a rustic look stick with the Terra cotta pots with an organza ribbon tied around them. You can also cover them in moss and then add the ribbon.



Alternatives to flowers for Bridesmaids

Clutch - Maybe you could try a really nice clutch which will serve as your gift to your bridesmaids as well as a unique item to carry down the aisle.


This Etsy seller has loads of style packed into her shop and a great discounts for wedding parties. Get 5 bridesmaids bouquets for $325.00. When you consider that this will cover your budget for bridesmaids gifts and flowers, you have to agree this is a great deal.

Parasols

Parasols would be great for beach weddings , Asian theme weddings, outdoor ceremonies. The come in a variety of colors and make an impact. There are many places that you could get parasols, the ones below were found at Pamela's parasols. You can also try Cultural Intrigue for a wholesale option.





Explore your options make them your own and be inspired by Real beauty!!!

Bridesmaids Gifts

I am always in search of fabulous finds to share with my audience. Well I came across and Etsy shop (yes Etsy again) and found these fabulous clutches. They make perfect gifts for your bridesmaids, they will not stop talking about this gift. Whenever they step out with these stylish clutches by their side they will remember you. You could even have each bridesmaid design her own, so you could be sure that it will be a style she likes.

Etsy shop, Loveamarie, enjoys working with silk, satin, pearlescent paper, brocade and has some great designs.



The *lola mini* clutch is cute and perfect for girls-on-the-go... it's a great size clutch that can fit into your purse so you can bring your everyday make-up or other things to work. it can also fit snugly in your hand or under your arm if you wanted to take it out for the night.

As I looked through her site, I came across a great bridal idea. Instead of flowers, how about evening bags. the *talia* clutch is sweet and pretty... it's flat, has rounded bottom corners, and is a great size for fitting all of your necessities - great for your big day!






This shop carries a host of other clutches and bags that you could treat yourself too. For all those pre-wedding parties that you will attend you could have a new bag. You could never have too many bags.

Be Inspired by great design

Bridesmaids Gifts

Thanking your bridesmaids with a personal gift is a great idea. Selecting something that is specific to each bridesmaid will ensure that your gift will be memorable. Is one or more of your bridesmaids into really great fashionable handbags...then your check out my latest find.

D & D Sales sells fashion Handbags & Accessories at very reasonable prices.

This is my favorite handbag and when I saw the price I added it to my "must buy" list. At $27.00 it is a fabulous find. All the handbags come with a protective cotton storage bag!




They also have a great selection of wallets,



There is even something for the flower girl.