Last year, I posted about my cousin Stacy, who at the time, I was meeting with to plan her summer wedding at the Grand Del Mar. I’m so happy to finally be able to report that the stunning event went off without a hitch last July, and is currently being featured in this month’s California Wedding Day magazine!
We’re still waiting for one more publication to feature her beautiful wedding, but after that I’ll be posting a series of blogs all about Stacy and Mack’s wedding and the planning that went into each detail of their big day. If you’re in the throws of wedding planning or you just LOVE seeing how a big, fabulous event comes together, you won’t want to miss this upcoming series!
In the meantime, pick up a copy of California Wedding Day and look for my work in the ‘20 Real Weddings’ section! -Brian
I’m excited to speak again and share what I’ve learned since last year’s Engage! 12 in Vegas. Do you have any big events coming up? I’d love to hear about them in the comment section below. Anyone getting married this summer? Let me know! -Brian
I’ve featured my friend Urvi Tejani and her stunning jewelry on my site a few times before– some of you have even been lucky enough to WIN items from her beautiful bridal collection– but today, I’m giving you a peek inside her chic flagship store that recently opened in New York’s Upper East Side AND a heads up about a sale happening this week only!
First things first, check out these stunning photos from inside the new store:
Beautiful, right? Next order of business, the sale! Starting today, 3/25 through 3/30, use the following codes online or in-store and get up to 25% off your purchase:
Code SHP15100 – 15% off $100 Code SHP20250 – 20% off $250 Code SHP25500 – 25% off $500
Exclusions: Offer valid only on regular-priced items and cannot be combined with any other promotion. Sale ends 23:59 EST, March 30, 2013. Online and in-store.
Click HERE to browse all of TEJANI’s beautiful baubles on sale now. For more information about my friend Urvi and to follow TEJANI via your social networks, check out the links below. -Brian
This time of year, Americans collectively spend almost $2 billion on Easter candy. This falls just behind Halloween for which Americans bought 600 million pounds of candy last year. That adds up to $2.4 billion spent on trick-or-treating sweets. This has me wondering… when did Easter first become associated with certain candies?
Unless you live under a rock or really despise candy, you’re probably familiar with these classic Easter candies: Cadbury Creme Eggs, Jelly Beans, Peeps, and of course, chocolate bunnies. After a bit of research, I found out that the original Easter treat was actually something called “Hot Cross Buns” which were made for Good Friday. See photo below:
It seems that these round cross-bearing buns were first on the Easter scene, as well as the egg. Eggs have long been associated with Easter as a symbol of new life and Jesus’ resurrection. According to one blog I came across, chocolate came next:
The symbol of the egg, which was already being used in Easter festivities at this time, had been a pagan symbol representing fertility and re-birth in pagan times. It had been adopted as part of the Christian Easter festival and it came to represent the ‘resurrection’ or re-birth of Christ after the crucifixion and some believe it is a symbol of the the stone blocking the Sepulcher being ‘rolled’ away. It was during this time the first chocolate Easter egg appeared in Germany and France and soon spread to the rest of Europe and beyond. (Source: http://www.failedsuccess.com)
Chocolate treats grew in popularity and became the primary Easter candy throughout the world and in America all through the 20th century. Approximately 90 million chocolate Easter bunnies are made each year!
As for the Cadbury Creme Egg, the company began making chocolate confections in the U.K. in the 1800′s, but didn’t create the Creme Egg until 1971. Four years later, Cadbury Creme Eggs gained popularity in the U.S. due for the most part to great advertising (see video above).
In the 1930’s, the Jelly Bean was added to the Easter lineup.
Because of their egg-like shape, jelly beans became associated with the Easter Bunny, who by this time had rapidly gained fame after the Civil War as the harbinger of Easter and was believed to deliver eggs as a symbol of new life during the spring season. (Source: http://www.failedsuccess.com)
Next, came the mighty Peep! In the early 1950′s, Marshmallow Peeps began their rise to Easter domination.
When the Just Born company first discovered the yellow chick marshmallows being made by a company called Rodda, they took 27 hours to make just one Peep! In 1954, Just Born acquired Rodda and mechanized the process so that they were able to make the chicks on a mass scale. They didn’t branch out to other shapes like rabbits and eggs until the 1960′s.
Each Easter season, Americans buy more than 700 million Marshmallow Peeps, shaped like chicks, as well as Marshmallow Bunnies and Marshmallow Eggs, making them the most popular non-chocolate Easter candy. Each day, five million marshmallow chicks and bunnies are produced in preparation for Easter with yellow Peeps being the most popular, followed by pink, lavender, blue, and white.(Source: http://www.failedsuccess.com)
Image via RealSimple.com
So while you won’t find any of these candies in the Bible, you can see that they do have a history that dates back for many centuries in the U.S. and beyond.
Do any of you LOVE Peeps? What’s your favorite color and how do you like to eat them? Let me know in the comment section below!
Jaime and I have been working together for over four years now. We’ve designed spaces for movie premieres, product launches, non-profit events, and green-minded events.
The YourBash! creation featured in the BizBash Top 35 list is the V.I.P. tent we designed for the Teen Choice Awards (above). We used the show’s colorful surfboard award as the inspiration for this space. We’re also really proud of the design we came up with for FOX’s American Idol party celebrating this season’s Top 10 contestants, which took place just last week. Check out some photos from the event below:
St. Patrick’s Day is this Sunday (March 17, 2013), so today I’m highlighting a few cute ideas I’ve come across for food, favors, decorations and drinks, sure to liven up your St. Patty’s Day celebrations.
This cute DIY wreath by Sugar Bee Crafts is a great way to great your guests and get the party started! Click HERE for the full tutorial.
Another great DIY decor item is this fantastic shamrock garland, made simply by folding two different shades of green streamers and tracing a shamrock stencil on top. Next, you cut that shape out of each streamer. Click HERE for the full tutorial from Studio DIY.
Once they’re unfolded, affix the garlands to your walls or hang from your lighting fixtures or over your mantle to add the perfect pop of green to your party space.
Next, focus on adding fun pops of green to your party food–but try not to over do it with the green food coloring. Not everything looks appetizing in green! Here are some cute ideas to get you started:
Don’t forget, you can always add in some rainbow and pot-o-gold inspired foods too:
For drinks, stick to Guinness, green beer (add a few drops of green food-coloring) or apple martinis…
Use green sugar or sprinkles on the rim of your glasses for a nice finishing touch!
Do you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day? Let me know what your plans are in the comment section below. If you have any great St. Patty’s Day party tips or recipes, feel free to share them there as well. -Brian
I find the most interesting things while scrolling through my Pinterest feed! Today, I came across two tutorials pinned from a Chinese micro-blog called, weibo.com. Thanks to Pinterest, I was able to track down the original tutorials with all of the project details to share with all of you.
For the first project, originally featured on The Sweetest Occasion, you’ll need is a large bowl, some tape, and of course, some flowers!
For the second tutorial, originally from Better Homes and Gardens, you’ll need a few specific items. Some chicken-wire, potting soil, succulent plants, a pair of scissors, a large picture frame, and some plywood that you’ll have to cut to form a box on the back of the frame.
We’re still waiting for one more publication to feature her beautiful wedding, but after that I’ll be posting a series of blogs all about Stacy and Mack’s wedding and the planning that went into each detail of their big day. If you’re in the throws of wedding planning or you just LOVE seeing how a big, fabulous event comes together, you won’t want to miss this upcoming series!
