Eat Drink Chic

Some fancy white frock inspiration... from Mango's Scarlett Summer range and a cute article from In Style Weddings with photography by Olivia Graham.

I'm really thrilled today! I've contributed a little DIY project over at the lovely Once Wed where I play with vintage buttons, beautiful paper and toy with my latest obsession- hand-carving rubber stamps!  Go check it out....

Imagine each of your bridesmaids receiving a handmade thank-you card with a beautiful silhouette of their dress, cut from watercolour wash paper. Such an adorable idea! Designed by Leslie Lewis Sigler of Lilly & Louise.

via Simple + Pretty.

On March 28, 2010 I married my best friend and the love of my life in my mother's vintage floral wedding dress in a small and casual backyard wedding.

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So you've probably heard that Mark and I cheekily surprised all our guests with a civil wedding ceremony during our 'engagement' party. Well, the following article contains the whole story along with all the sweet little details of the event, styled by yours truly with the help of some very talented folk.

Just in case you're looking to create a similar style of event in Melbourne, I've also provided a detailed account of where to source all the bits and pieces and have compiled a list of some of the creatives in the industry you should know.

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On Sunday March 28 at 2pm, our guests, believing they were about to attend an engagement party, began arriving at our beautiful backyard picnic.  One hour into the proceedings we shocked them with a surprise wedding ceremony!

The looks of astonishment and delight on the faces of our guests were pure gold.

After 10 years of friendship, in which the last 4 years we were an inseparable couple, Mark and I finally got married! 

This series of photos by Jonathan Ong depict our first kiss as husband and wife.

Stay tuned for more details and photos from the event. This is only part one in a series of posts!

When my mother and father got married, it was in a registry office in Sydney with 10 guests. Simple, small and intimate.

My mother wore a beautiful floral summer dress that cost her $45. She carried three red roses.

They married on New Year's Eve 1977.  I arrived 2 years later...

Just thought I'd share this sweet, nostalgic moment with you all :)

I'm still eagerly awaiting the engagement photos. So much so I'm having dreams about it.

I think I'm in love.

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Check out the beautiful wedding and engagement portfolio of Melbourne based photographer Jonathan Ong. We've just booked him for our upcoming engagement party! Found via Polka Dot Bride.

I first introduced you to my origami heart engagement party invitations in this article here. Well, after a working weekend of printing, cutting, folding, sewing, stuffing, addressing and stamping... phew... my fiancé and I have finally mailed out the little cuties!

Hand-stitching the edges of the translucent pocket was the most time-consuming part of the project. To ensure accuracy and quicken the hand-stitching process, we first measured and marked out (with needle pricks) the intended placement of the stitches.  To save time, we only did 5 stitches on each side.

The actual origami folding, thankfully, went a lot quicker than expected! However, the duration of the the final phase of the project- addressing and stuffing envelopes-  was sorely under-estimated. Having said that, we are both very proud of the effort that we put into creating unique, hand-crafted invitations for what will hopefully be a memorable event!

Special thanks to my hard-working fiancé, who whole-heartedly supported this crazy little project of mine. I am thankful that he shares in my desire to make this event as special as possible! Thanks also to our beautiful mothers for their contribution!

You can read more about these origami heart invitations here. Download the template to create a love note to someone special.

Cute wooden rainbow heart cake topper by Sarah Neuburger of The Small Object. Available at Together Forever. via freshlyblended

Such an artistic engagement shot of "Adam and Chastity" by photographer Ryan Brenizer. So perfect!

Love the simplicity and elegance in all of Elizabeth Dye's Bridal Spring 2010 collection! (My personal favourite is Giselle!) via A Cup of Jo.

An exquisite, pink rose created by Zoe Bradley and available in a gift box from her online store.

Her rose garlands, bouquets and other floral beauties would make stunning and unique eye fodder at a wedding. So beautiful!

This Marchesa dress, with its abundance of perfect, white pleats and frills, took my breath away when I spotted it on Martha Stewart Weddings. This is my personal idea of bridal gown perfection. Hands off ladies, it's so mine!  ;-)

Get all the details for how to re-create this exquisite blue and white, winter themed dessert buffet presented by The Inspired Bride and Bake it Pretty.  Check it out here! (Via Erin Vale Design)

Whether used for favours or simply as a cup that guests can use to collect their own selection of treats from your party's candy buffet, the festive colours in this cup design allow for use at any occasion- parties, weddings or even the upcoming Christmas and holiday season. "La Dolce Vita" - Italian for "The Sweet Life" is a somewhat fitting title for a cup with a solitary life purpose to contain lots of delicious candy- No? Continue for more pics, ideas and to download your free paper cup cover design!

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In the past I've received quite a few requests for home made jam labels. I finally thought it was about time I took on the challenge!

Home made jam makes a great gift with a personal touch. It also works well as a party or wedding favour, especially for an event with a bit of a 'crafty' vibe. Part of the fun of creating the presentation of your jam jar is searching for interesting fabrics and ribbon! To facilitate this, I deliberately kept the design of the labels quite simple, allowing for more freedom and variety in your decorating choices.

Read on for more pics, ideas and to download your freebies!

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Inspired by Jordan Ferney's brilliant wedding concept for an Old Fashioned Soda Bar, I set out to create these fun, retro-inspired label designs for soda bottles that hark back to the glorious era of soda fountains! These can be used for your party or wedding to create your own Soda Shop or to add a gorgeous beverage stand to your Ice-Cream Parlour theme. Guests can select from a brightly coloured array of flavoured sodas to make their own delicious Ice-Cream Sodas!

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I am lactose intolerant. This probably explains my unhealthy obsession with ice-cream. My favourite dessert is nothing fancier or more sophisticated than a simple Ice-cream Sundae. Nothing satisfies my sweet palate more than vanilla ice-cream with hot fudge sauce, whipped cream, crushed nuts, caramelised banana, wafer biscuit and the all-important cherry on top!

Despite evidence to the contrary (what is with this crazy Melbourne weather?!), warmer months are just around the corner down here in Oz and I've got ice-cream on the brain! So I came up with a design concept for an old-fashioned Ice-cream Parlour "Make your own Sundaes" buffet with all the accoutrements. Read on for more pics, ideas and freebies to help you with your own ice-cream parlour buffet for your party, kids party or even wedding.

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