Brilliant Blog

Beware of Sunsets

March 15, 2012

Every bride and groom dream of a great party at their wedding reception, and in most cases, that dream includes a packed dancefloor.  Keep the dancefloor full by planning your reception start time with sunset in mind – this is especially important in the summer months when the sun doesn’t go down until around 8:30pm.

Think about it: your favorite club doesn’t have fluorescent lightbulbs or natural light streaming in because people prefer to dance in darker, ambient atmospheres.  Too much light makes people self conscious and shy, and your dancefloor will be anemic as a result.  Also, any candlelight you’ve used in your decor won’t have any impact if your reception space is flooded with natural light.  If your venue has any kind of windows, use this sunset calculator to determine when the sun will go down and schedule your reception accordingly.

Photo courtesy of Italian Weddings.

Winery Wedding Invitations

June 20, 2010

This creative couple truly had a unique vision for their invitations.  With the help of their talented friend, Nestor, and the design skills of Kayleigh Jankowski, they selected invitations that not only reflect a clever wedding logo (DnA), but that also showcase the elegance and refinement of their day. We can’t wait for their July winery wedding!  Printing and paperie courtesy of Cards and Pockets and thanks to Abigail Hancock for the gorgeous calligraphy!

Platinum for Pennies: Envelope Liners

March 25, 2010

Envelope liners are typically $$$$ but the talented team at Cards and Pockets will let you pick out a pattern, choose the perfect color to print the pattern in, and then create your envelope liners for a cool 45 cents each!  Check out these examples below.

If you don’t like any of the 15 pre-designed patterns, you can work with their print department to have custom-designed liners like the gorgeous fuchsia and turquoise one below.  Don’t forget that you should also order your envelopes from them to be 100% certain the liners will fit perfectly.

All images courtesty of Cards and Pockets.

Come Join Us – October 28th @ 7pm!

September 30, 2009

We are thrilled to be a part of Lion in the Sun’s second Bridal Blogger Event!

Mark your calendar for Wednesday, October 28th from 7-9pm and join us for wine, delectable snacks from Naturally Delicious catering, and wedding chat.  

Everyone who attends will receive a 10% off coupon from Lion in the Sun so you can finally splurge and get those drop-dead gorgeous invitations you’ve been coveting!The panel includes yours truly along with these wedding geniuses:

Vane from The Brooklyn Bride

Anne Chertoff of From “I Will to I Do”

Xochtil from Always a Bridesmaid

Loren of Naturally Delicious

RSVP by October 26th to shop@lioninthesunps.com…can’t wait to see you there!

Carol & Ed’s Shabby Chic Wedding

July 21, 2009

We created a shabby chic wedding theme for Carol & Ed’s wedding day at Perona Farms in Andover, NJ.  The eye candy photos below are from Mariann at Blue Daisy Weddings - she is such a talented photographer and always a dream to work with.  The pink and violet color palette was started with these spectacular invitations by Inky Livie. Florals were done by Stem and Company and featured a mixture of crystal and silver vessels gathered from antique shops and flea markets to really emphasize the shabby chic theme.  The beautiful violet pintuck linens set off the vibrant centerpieces and were courtesy of Laurie at Cloth Connection.

Sachiko Yanase worked her magic and did fantastic hair and makeup for all of the ladies and the super-friendly Mike Burns from Infinite Video captured the day on video as it unfolded. Marge Fitts provided the angelic harp music for the ceremony and cocktail hour and DJ Medina had the guests dancing all evening. The night closed with a jaw-dropping fireworks display by Celebration Fireworks.

For more amazing photos of their day, click here and stay tuned for even more photos as they become available…especially photos of their amazing shabby chic lounge area!

Thank you Carol & Ed for letting us be part of your amazing day!

A Brilliant Wedding: Maya and Jay (Sneak Peek!)

October 17, 2008

Here’s a sneak peak of another Brilliant wedding: Maya & Jay’s destination wedding in Key West, Florida.  More to come on their gorgeous event including details on Maya’s custom-made dress, the unique cake featuring the floral design from the bride’s dress and notes from the sunset wine tasting aboard the most sought-after sailboat cruise in the USA.

This inspiring couple met while Maya was teaching English in Korea.  Jay, an award-winning animator, created this amazing logo depicting himself and Maya.  The logo was featured throughout the event on everything from the invitations to the gift bags.  More to come on this and other beautiful Brilliant weddings!                

Announcements That Really Stick

July 16, 2008

Instead of your typical save-the-date or baby announcement card, try doing a magnet! For your engagement, it’s especially nice for when family and friends may not have met your fiancee. For the new addition to your family, your loved ones will love to show off the magnet instead of the typical emailed announcement. There are tons of online vendors who can help you create this easy and affordable option to traditional cards, we like Magnet Street and Magnet Queen.

A Creative Alternative to Monograms

July 11, 2008

We get it…you’re excited about your new last name and you love the idea of plastering you and your beloved’s initials all over everything you own. But stop for a second and try this on for size.

Instead of paying someone to fancy up your initials, why not have a professional designer create a logo that really describes you as a couple?

A professional logo designer can create something unique for you and you can incorporate it throughout your wedding. From invitations and programs to dinner menus and dance floor light projections, your logo tells much more about you than your initials. As a last meaningful touch you can have the design printed and beautifully framed so you can remember the big day. You could even take it an extra step and use it on your family website or future baby announcements. A logo is a clever and unique choice for couples who want to change it up a bit!

Tiered Invitations: Proceed with Caution

July 10, 2008

As a general rule, we don’t support tiered invitations but if you MUST do this please heed the following suggestions…

-Do NOT, under any circumstances, put an A/B/C or 1/2/3 on the back of your RSVP cards. Trust me, your guests will spot it no matter how small you write it and will result in hurt feelings. If you must designate them, choose a non-descript symbol, such as a triangle for A, a square for B, and a circle for C…you get the idea.

-Do not publicize that you’re doing tiered invites.  That means only you, your future spouse and your wedding coordinator.

-If someone asks about where their invitation is and mentions that someone else already received theirs, it’s ok to tell a little white lie and say you ran out of stamps or the calligrapher got behind, etc. No harm, no foul.

Eco-Concious Party Throwers

June 25, 2008

The BEP team has recently discovered the perfect invitations for those eco-concious party throwers: custom invitations made from recycled junk mail. Not only that, but they also include seeds so your guests can plant them and grow fun plants like basil, and thyme. What a great way to save the environment and create amazing invitations! The two examples below are from Basic Ingredients (available on etsy.com) and Twisted Limb Paper www.twistedlimbpaper.com.