Sweet Tooth Tuesday!

by Ashlee

Hello everyone! Did anyone in the Washington DC area get to go see the cherry blossoms at their peak last week? I can't believe this weather and wind. I'm imagining they must be almost gone by now! The DC area FILLS with tourist from all over the world when the cherry blossoms start to bloom. My grandparents from South Carolina were supposed to come up this weekend to see them, but they forgot about other plans :( 

Many Spring brides try to incorporate the blooms into their wedding, but mother nature doesn't always like to help. One of the most popular ways to incorporate cherry blossoms are by adding them to the cake! Check out some beautiful pictures below on how to showcase them on your big day!

photo credit: Martha Stewart

photo credit: Lara Swanson Photography

cake by: PinkCakeBox.com

By the way, my new friend Abby Grace took some amazing portraits under the blooms last weekend! She is AWESOME!

Till next time, happy planning!!

Sunday Funday...a Day Late :(

by Ashlee

Hello Everyone! I hope you had a great weekend! The weather all last week so AMAZING, but of course the weekend hit and it was gross. I spent all day Saturday in Annapolis with one of my summer brides. The weather held out until we got to our last meeting, when we needed to be outside, and it started raining sideways!

On Sunday, Lisa hosted a great Scentsy party for her close friends and family. I am running low on my refills so I eagerly told her I would love to attend! Lisa made a beautiful tablescape with fresh baby's breath and beautiful mixtures of neutrals, browns and greens for a very organic look. After all, the Scentsy burners are supposed to the main focus anyways!! if you don't know what Scentsy is, it is a "a safe, wickless alternative to scented candles". You can click on any of the hyperlinks to learn more about the specific fragrances and burners mentioned below. 

Here are some pictures that I took from my iPhone before I scarfed down all those Rice Pops!

Lisa and I both ordered a beautiful new Scentsy burner that just happened to be called Bride. I LOVE it and can't wait to put it in my office :) My two favorite scents are Sweet Pea and Vanilla and Camu Camu and I stocked up on those. My house is going to smell ammmmazzzzzing!!!!

Till next time, happy planning!!

Sweet Tooth Tuesday!

by Ashlee

One of the best and cheapest ways to personalize your wedding is by adding a cake topper. Nowadays you can get a topper for pretty much anything!! A great place to find a them is in Etsy. You can find any and EVERYTHING in that place! Below I have some pictures of some unique cake toppers and links on where to purchase them!

Esty Shop: atcompanyb

Etsy: AprilHillerDesigns

Etsy: braggingbags

Etsy: Silhouetteweddings

Cake toppers just aren't your thing? Ask your florist to use real flowers to accent your cake!!

Credit: Style Art Life Photography

Till next time, happy planning!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

by Ashlee

Hello Lovelies! Happy St. Patrick's Day! Being married into a VERRRRY Irish family (did you know my married name is Gilligan? Doesn't get more Irish than that!!) has made St. Patrick's much more important than it has previously been with my Southern parents. Check out some beautiful St. Patrick's Day inspiration below. Lastly there is an awesome DIY favor idea for Irish Cream!

Source: The Perfect Palette

Source: Project Wedding

Source: Martha Stewart Weddings

Picture Courtesy of: Style Me Pretty

Materials
Cardstock
Downloadable Tags
Mason Jars & Ribbon from Michael’s Craft Store
Homemade Irish Cream

Recipe Link by All Recipes

Instructions

1. Download and print out labels on cardstock. Cut using gray guides, I used a rounded corner punch on two opposite corners. Also, hole punch top left corner for ribbon.

2. Make recipe of Irish cream and fill mason jars (be sure to wash jars first).

3. Attach tags with ribbon, using 21″ of ribbon on each jar.

Till next time, happy planning!!

Sweet Tooth Tuesday!

Hey Everyone! It's that time again, time for something sweet! Today I thought I'd share a DIY idea that is a good way to save money in your event budget and it also gives you a chance to spend time with family and friends. I'm talking about Rock Candy, and with this easy to make recipe you can use it to give to your guests as party favors. There are many different flavors to choose from and plenty of food coloring options to make this candy a perfect pop of color at  any event.
There are a few different recipes out there..... you can make the candy on a stick, or you can make it into loose pieces to put in a favor box or tin. Below is the recipe from lorannoils.com, my Aunt used it make the candy as loose pieces for my sister's wedding favors. Enjoy!

2 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup light corn syrup
3/4 cup warm water
1 tspn. Lorann super-strength flavoring
Liquid food coloring, if desired
Candy thermometer
Cookie sheet
Aluminum foil

Have all ingredients and tools assembled and within easy reach of the stove. The use of metal spoons and measuring utensils is recommended. Line with foil and lightly spray cookie sheet.
1. In a 2-quart kettle or large saucepan, mix together sugar, corn syrup and water. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves.
 2. Insert candy thermometer and make certain it does not touch the bottom of the pan. Bring mixture to a boil without stirring.
 3. Early in the cooking process, "wash down" any sugar crystals that form on the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush.
 4. Continue to cook the syrup, without stirring, until the temperature reaches 260º F; add drops of coloring until desired hue is achieved. Do not stir; boiling action will incorporate color into syrup.
 5. Remove from heat precisely at 300° F (temperature will continue rising), or until drops of syrup form hard, brittle threads in cold water (hard crack stage). After boiling action has ceased, add flavor and stir.
 6. Carefully pour syrup onto the prepared greased and foil lined cookie sheet. Do not refrigerate.
 7. Cool completely. Break sheet candy into small pieces and dust with powdered sugar, if desired. Store in airtight containers between waxed paper. Store hard candy in a cool, dry place. Do not refrigerate.

And here is a finished product. To complete the look they had personalized ribbon made to tie around the tin which commemorated the date and their first names.   :)

We hope you enjoy trying out this new recipe, and until next time, happy planning!!

Sunday Funday!

So, what does Sunday Funday mean to you? For me, it changes with the seasons...but some of my favorite Sundays include a cold beer and football. Here are pictures from my rehearsal dinner Superbowl party, and oh what fun it was! We found an irish pub in South Beach and invited our guests to celebrate the biggest day in football, and our love!

A special thanks goes out to the guys from Jason's shift, as they are the ones holding us up!

Now it's time to go out and enjoy this 70 degree weather and make another memorable Sunday Funday!

Til next time, happy planning!

Sweet Tooth Tuesday!

Hi Everyone! Sorry for the nonexistent posts over the weekend. There was no Sunday Funday 

:( I was sick as a dog, and now the hubbie is crazy under the weather too. Speaking of the hubbie, I thought for Sweet Tooth Tuesday I would show off his awesome Groom's Cake. My Mom can 100% take the credit for this. My Mom planned the design and had her FIFTEEN year old neighbor create the cake. Can you believe that?? FIFTEEN!!!!!! I think someone has a future in Wedding and Groom's Cakes....

And there is it! They drained the Natural Light Cans and used Rock Candy as the ice. I think everyone at the wedding touched the cake, including myself, to see if the ice was real. This thing got more attention than the Wedding Cake!!!

So I was going to show some other cool pictures of Groom's Cakes, but this popped up on my  search and really you can't top this.

Different strokes for different folks!

Till next time, happy planning!