Our Wedding on Blushing Blog.

Wedding flashback today! Head on over to Blushing Blog to read more about our special day.

Love & Lace.

Tory Burch top & skirt / Valentino shoes / DVF clutch & sunglasses (c/o) / Hermes bracelet

Those who know me know I'm not one to shy away from mixing patterns....ever, but I simply love how polished these separates look together. To balance out the sweetness of this look, I reached for my beloved Rockstuds to edge things up.

Wedding Week: The Love.

Our wedding was the best day of my life. There has never been a time where I have been surrounded by all of my favorite people in one place and it was an honor to share our love and commitment to each other in their presence.

One of my favorite photos - a stolen moment alone just after the ceremony, but before the reception.

Photography: Colson Griffith Photography

Wedding Week: The Reception.

After the ceremony, family and friends headed to The Faimont for the reception. Guests joined together in the Loggia sipping cocktails and tasty Hor d'Ourves prior to lunch served in the Pavilion room, set in the garden where Stephen proposed. 

The Pavilion room has the best natural light with 3 floor to ceiling glass walls that also provide stunning views of the city. My favorite part is the intricate light fixture, it's unlike anything I've ever scene before. Absolutely breathtaking.

The floral design was created by Orna of Ornamento, resident florist at The Fairmont. Orna is incredibly talented and understood exactly what I was looking for. Colorful arrangements and centerpieces of hydrangeas, dahlias and garden roses complimented the floral grounds surrounding the Pavilion, almost as though they had been plucked right from the garden. 

Each table setting had a glass heart in cobalt blue, amethyst, seafoam, emerald or crimson engraved with our initials and date. Stephen made each momento at Public Glass Works a few weeks leading up to the wedding. They were quite beautiful.

The Fairmont's head chef, JW Foster, served a delicious menu - a crab & avocado tower, baby iceberg salad and filet mignon with Parmesan & smoked bacon polenta and garden vegetables. My mouth waters just thinking about it. So. Delicious.

After lunch, the toasts began. Stephen's brother, Brian, and my best friend, David, told the story of how Stephen and I met at Brian's wedding just 2 years prior.

 Then my father and godfather shared touching words of wisdom and full of love. We laughed and cried, it was a special moment.

Kelly of Inticing Creations created a beautiful cake with alternating layers of salted caramel and strawberry dream. Stephen actually played a large role in the cake design, but truly the sweetest detail was a mini Ziggy peeking out on the first layer. We just love that little guy so much.

After everything was said and done, Stephen and I escaped to the garden for a few minutes for ourselves to reflect on the day. Although a bit chaotic, we still found time to take it all in and enjoy the celebration of our commitment to one another with our dear family and friends.

Venue: Pavilion Room at The Fairmont
Flowers: Ornamento
Catering: The Fairmont
Cake: Inticing Creations
Photography: Colson Griffith Photography

Wedding Week: The Look.

Shopping for a wedding dress was probably the most stressful aspect of planning the wedding. Actually, I think I was more intimidated than anything. I never had that vision as a little girl as to what I would look like on my wedding day, but knew I didn't want anything too fussy, cheesy, or overwhelming. It wasn't until my mom and I were in New York this past February that I tried on my first dress at the Reem Acra showroom. Quite honestly, the entire experience was a dream come true and felt so right especially because at that time, we were planning for a New Year's Eve wedding. But as life happens, we moved up the wedding and had a much smaller time frame to work within. 

After I went to try on dresses at a bridal store in San Francisco, I knew I did not want to go the traditional route. It just wasn't me. I started to look at white dresses at Nordstrom, Saks, Neiman Marcus, you name it, but found nothing. I was starting to feel discouraged until my mom sent dress options from Gilt Groupe to my email, including this beautiful Valentino. Someone must have had the same idea because the dress was unavailable just a few minutes later and it was gone. Little did I know that my mom had waitlisted the dress and one day received an excited call from her to say it was available and it was ours. I finally had my dress. 

Next, I needed to find the perfect undergarments. My dress had such intricate lace and beading detail, but was quite sheer. I didn't want anything that would take away from the beauty of the design, but still wanted comfort and coverage. I turned to ThirdLove. and in minutes had taken measurements via their handy (and accurate) app and my order was received in just a few days. So simple, so convenient, so comfy - all so important for your big day.

Now the shoes.... Now this was the easy choice; I knew I wanted Valentino Rockstuds from the start. It was choosing the right color that posed the biggest challenge given that I didn't have wedding colors. I tried on every option possible, fell in love with these Bordeaux colored stunners and never looked back. 

I knew the moment I got engaged that I wanted owner of Salon Mona Lisa and dear family friend, Lisa, to do my hair. And even more than her styling expertise, she's just plain cool with such a calming vibe. I've always looked up to her and think of her as a sister. Not to mention my hair can be quite unruly at times and she's really the only person I trust.  I never had a hair trial. She's just that good. 

I wore a veil for the ceremony so Lisa created simple beachy waves parted down the center. And for the reception, Lisa recommended a romantic side-swept look secured with a vintage hair pin. I've felt so beautiful.

My makeup was done by Alexis from A Smooth Start. She's sweet, professional and incredibly talented. I had my make up trial a week before the wedding and Alexis created a natural look with light pink lip and classic cat eye.

I wore my great grandmother, Gamma's, exquisite wedding ring and earrings I wore to high school Senior Prom. Both perfectly complemented the sweetness of my dress.

Stephen wore a 3-piece Italian wool tan suit, blue striped bowtie and merlot paisley pocket square all from JCrew. I had the cuffs fixed on a crisp white shirt from Everlane so that he could wear his grandfathers cuff links. He looked so handsome.

Hers:

Dress: Valentino via Gilt Groupe

Shoes: Valentino via Nordstrom

Undergarments: ThirdLove's The Everything Bra & Microfiber Cheeky

Veil & Hair pin: Nordstrom

His:

Suit: JCrew 

Shirt: Everlane

Shoes: Kenneth Cole

Pocket square & Bowtie: JCrew

Photos: Colson Griffith Photography

NYFW Color // F/W 2014.

Alice Olivia holiday party dress, $530 / Valentino camo top / Opening Ceremony red top / Rag Bone coat / Alexander McQueen red pants / Elie Tahari high heel pumps / Alexander McQueen black leather handbag / Dolce Gabbana bracelet bangle, $385 / Hermès red hat / Burberry scarve

I've said it once and I'll say it again - red is such an intimidating color to wear. But this seasons runway gave me a new perspective on this vivacious hue. Incorporating red in intentional increments can be fun, if done the right way. Best rule of thumb, add a little at a time and always wear with confidence.  

Red Carpet Red.

Burberry dress / Dsquared2 red cardigan / Carven short sleeve shirt / TIBI red shirt / James Lakeland coat, $465 / Valentino short skirt / Helmut Lang legging / Valentino slingback pumps, $2,810 / Yves Saint Laurent clutch / Mulberry leather bracelet / Pomellato earrings, $2,000

The color red dominated the Golden Globes red carpet in a variety of shades from an eye catching crimson to a sexy Merlot. Let's face it, red is difficult enough to wear much less on a clashing red carpet, but Lupita Nyong'o's Ralph Lauren dress has inspired me to give red another chance. Because when done right, it's flawless. 

Biker Babe.

Valentino black biker boots / Loeffler Randall thick heel booties / Dune suede ankle booties / Steve Madden black studded booties / Sam Edelman short leather boots / Zara short leather boots / Aéropostale black buckle boots

I've got biker boots on the mind with a current project I'm working on. With so many great options out there, which one would you choose? 

Tuesday Swoon.

The title of this post speaks for itself. In LOVE with these flats.

Toe-to-Toe.

Christian Louboutin spiked flat / Dolce & Gabbana leather flat / Miu Miu oxford flat / Giuseppe Zanotti lace up oxford flat / Kate Spade pink oxford shoes / RED Valentino lace up flat

Oxford shoes are something I've had my eye on for quite a while, but never really embraced the trend. Perhaps I've been a little intimidated or maybe I haven't found the pair of my dreams just yet, but with these fun twist on the classic black versions are too good to shy away from any longer. Time to get shopping....

Under the Sea.

Diane Von Furstenberg lace dress, $415 / Faith Connexion knit dress / Hervé Léger bandage dress / Hope Collection solid color shirt / Helmut Lang short sleeve shirt / Madewell loose t shirt / Balmain long sleeve blazer / Burberry lightweight jacket / Lola embellished jacket, $190 / Jil Sander / Mango elastic waistband pants, $91 / High-waisted shorts / M Missoni a line skirt / Piazza Sempione cropped pants, $295 / 10 Crosby Derek Lam almond toe boots / Square heels / ASOS wide shoes, $53 / Marc by Marc Jacobs leather messenger bag / Michael Kors handbag / Sergio Rossi evening clutch / Valentino studded clutch, $1,640 / bluma project / Sapphire jewelry / A|X Armani Exchange bracelets bangle / Teal earrings / Vegan belt, $4.52 / ASOS

Hues of blue with a touches of nude are all I'm gravitating towards lately - perhaps I'm channeling my inner Ariel. That, or I'm just seriously jonesing for some beach time. Stat.

Love in the Air.

RED Valentino dress, $1,100 / Lavender Brown sweetheart neck dress / Crochet lace shirt / Versace scalloped edge shorts / Zara floral pants / Zara ballerina flat / Chanel leather shoulder bag / A.P.C. retro sunglasses

The warm Summer weather calls for feminine lace, scalloped edges, sweet floral prints and flowing fabrics. #loveislove

Speechless.

Rarely do I find myself at a loss for words, but when I laid my eyes on these Valentino's I felt butterflies like my first crush all over again. Swoon.