Roshan and Ale have been one of the best couples Alex from Cherry Blossom Weddings has worked with yet. Not only are they the nicest people, but they are so in love and have a general love of life. The couple always seems to be smiling and with smiles like theirs, it’s quite contagious. The bride chose colors of fuchsia and bright orange which fit perfectly with their theme of ‘Love is Sweet’. Ale wanted a venue that was nothing less then amazing. They ended up at the Andrew Mellon Auditorium for their reception and the fun colors only made the venue look more amazing than it already is. To back up a bit, Roshan & Ale tied the knot at St. Stephen Martyr on Pennsylvania Ave which is a hidden gem of a church. All the ladies bouquets had some sweets tied in and the bright colors looked spectacular. For the main event, the bride walked down the aisle with her father as the Steele Drums played ‘Ave Maria’. Back at the reception, the guests enjoyed a mix of traditional Columbian and Trinidadian appetizers with a tasty American dinner. Once dancing started, it didn’t stop. Guests took short breaks to relax in the lounge or grab another cocktail at the glowing hot pink bar. Congratulations to one of life’s sweetest couples, Roshan and Ale!
Special thanks to Procopio Photography for these STUNNING photos!

Roshan and Ale took time out with their photographers, Procopio Photography, for a very fun engagement session in DC. The theme of their August 7 wedding is ‘Love is Sweet’ and yes, candy will be incorporated throughout! For their wedding, Roshan & Ale along with their wedding planner, Alex Pare from Cherry Blossom Weddings & Events, chose the Andrew Mellon Auditorium and will be modernizing it a bit with a round bar, lounge furniture and hot pink and tangerine up lights – perfect for the such a “sweet” occasion!

The Cherry Blossom Blog has moved! We will no longer be posting on DC Wedding Spot, but you can keep up with all of our latest weddings and events on our new blog! -http://www.cherryblossomwe.com/blog

Baltazar Photography not only takes AMAZING photos but they are offering a $500 discount on any wedding packages for February and March of 2009! Check out their blog for more information or their website to contact them. 

This offer expires on November 15! Make an appointment today!  

Chantal recently attended the wedding of her dear friend Evan and loved the way they carried the theme of bright colors throughout the event.  A simple, elegant and cost affordable way to add some color to the tables, regardless of what color your flowers are, is to add ribbons and decorate the inside of the vases, even with fruit, as shown below.

And the head table, after dinner had been cleared.  Sorry for the dark image! 

And they carried out the gerber daisy theme with simple and cute cocktail reception decorations…  

Daily Candy's Washington DC edition recently publicized a new pastry house called Couture Cupcakes, located in Maryland.  What especially caught my eye was the unique planter idea that they designed:

Gorgeous? Yes.  Delicious?  You bet!  Now, that's a win, win.  This would be a great idea for shower centerpieces, a dessert reception or even an inspiration for centerpieces that could take care of decoration and dessert!

All the flavors have names and there are 19 so far.  I'm leaning towards:

Patti - Chocolate Cake with Peppermint and Chocolate Chip Butter Cream Frosting
or maybe for a light summer day:
Abby - Vanilla Cake with Chunks of Strawberries and Strawberry Vanilla Swirl Butter Cream Frosting

Let us know what flavor sounds the best to you and then report back if you try them! 

Not THAT kind of gas! Enjoy……

Have you heard the news?  The USPS will again raise the price of stamps.  Right now, the prices are:

Envelopes that are 1oz or less are $0.41.
Envelopes that are more than 1oz and less than 2oz are $0.58.
Envelopes that are more than 2oz and less than 3oz are $0.75.
Square and vertical envelopes require an additional $.17.

As of May 12, first class stamps will go from $.41 to $.42 each and the heavier mailings will go up as well.  But, the post office now offers Forever stamps, where you can buy them at the current 41 cent price and you can use them forever, even as rates go up.  The only problem with that?  There's only one style, the liberty bell.

American? Yes.  Does it define weddings? No.  I actually do look at the stamps that come with wedding invitations as I think they add to the overall design and attitude of the invitation and event.  However, these forever stamps would save you money and would be great for return envelopes, invites to other related parties such as rehearsel dinners, brunches, your thank you notes even.

You could always get some more colorful and event specific stamps and then add on the 1 cent stamps to add some more pizzazz.  There is always the traditional wedding heart stamp

or a great stamp for spring and summer would be these beautiful blooms: 

Then, there's the more personal approach of getting your pictures on the stamps, a fun recent trend.  Photostamps.com offers personalized stamps with your picture on it for only $5-$10 more than postage.  You can use an engagement or casual fun shot for save the dates or invitations and a wedding pic for thank you notes!

I wanted to share with you some pieces I put together for a black and red themed party that I helped out with this weekend. These Ideas can be used for any event, all you have to do is change the colors to match your own color scheme. Take a look and tell me what you think!

It's hard to find black candles so for this piece I painted modge podge glue on the red candles and rolled them in black glitter.  Added a couple red feathers, red rocks and jewels and finished it off with a rose bud.   

More candles rolled in black glitter, this also adds a nice texture look to the candles. 

  L

For these pieces, I filled the base of vase with a mixture of red and black feathers letting them spill out at the top. I then inserted black silk flowers and real red roses.   

 A larger black and red center piece with black silk flowers and real red roses. 

We used bouquets of balloons to section off the reserved area as requested by the host  

I'm a big fan of Real Simple and recently found this article online about entertaining on a budget.  This was designed for home decorating, but you could use some of these tips to spice up an engagement party, rehearsel dinner or even a wedding reception.  

A few highlights:

-Use stylish, high quality gift wrap to create a decorative table runner or table topper

-Instead of pricey fresh flower arrangements, try filling large glass vases or bowls with inexpensive, yet interesting filler elements, such as colorful glass ornaments, fresh cranberries, feathers, or modern potpourri/decorative ball 

-To add height to centerpieces or food tables, flip small bowls upside down and use them as pedestals for larger bowls. This will eliminate the need to buy brand-new pedestal bowls or cake stands.

-Garnish water glasses at each place setting with a flower or wedge of lemon and lime. Though they may seem small, little details like this can actually play a huge role in the overall look of your table!

-Use the "layer rule" to add interest to your place settings, but opt for budget-friendly elements. Set patterned or contrast-color salad plates on top of neutral dinner plates (or vice versa), then top salad plates with napkins and a decorative element such as a large flower bloom, cinnamon stick, party favor, or unique place card. No need to splurge on expensive dishware and linens if you don't already own them! In the image pictured at top, both sets of plates were purchased at IKEA, inexpensive paper napkins were folded into squares for a dressier look, and the orchid blooms that top each napkin were pulled from inexpensive faux stems purchased at Target.

Chantal's additional thoughts: 

-Tablecloths make a huge impression, but if your budget is really tight, consider just renting colorful napkins or patterned salad plates to help add a punch to the table.  One of our brides ended up buying hot pink napkins from a wholesaler to enhance the tabletop appearance- go Chaeli!

-Colored tea lights are another easy, cost-effective way to add color and play up accent colors.

-Stemware combinations can also add intrigue to the table, as shown above.  A classic champagne glass with a funky water glass can help add some attitude to the table and usher in the modern feeling.

-Napkin folds can make a big difference on the table.  The square fold is very sleek and modern, whereas other standard hotel folds may not dictate the same style.  Make sure you know what napkin fold will be on your tables to ensure it fits the style and design you are creating! 

Any other ideas you love or are inspired by?  Add a comment and let us know!