Adorable Idea: Fiesta Rehersal Dinner

When I spotted this Summer Fiesta feature by Emily of Once Wed on both Once Wed and Design*Sponge today, I knew it would make the perfect rehearsal dinner theme. I myself had an outdoor fiesta-ish inspired rehearsal dinner, and it is such a fun way to go. I mean, who doesn't love having fun with friends while enjoying margaritas, chips and salsa and great mexican food? This shoot was put together by Emily of Once Wed, Ashley of The Flashdance and Jesse of Our Labor of Love photography who wanted to put together a fun mostly DIY summer dinner party. Simple tissue paper cut into fringe for the invitations, stir sticks for the margaritas and hanging banners went a long way in creating a big impact at very little cost Individual potted cacti did double duty as a favor and place card - I also like the idea of mini hot sauces (personalized labels optional). Read and see more at Design*Sponge!

All photos by Our Labor of Love via Once Wed and Design*Sponge.

Credits: Event Design & Styling - Emily of Once Wed and Ashley Meaders of The Flashdance, Photography - Jesse Chamberlin of Our Labor of Love, Venue -

Next week I'm announcing a BIG giveaway and having some inspiration board, engagement session and real wedding fabulousness. xoxo Annie

Giveaway: Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler Winner

And the winner of my first giveaway is....

White Wedding...Nah who said...

I've used an eyelash curler once I think and LOVED it! But I've never actually splurged and bought one! This would be perfect!

I'll be contacting you shortly! Thanks to everyone who entered, I wish I had lash curlers for everyone! I seriously recommend trying the Shu Uemura lash curler though ($19) - especially if you're about to walk down the aisle! I thought a lash curler was a lash curler until I tried this baby. I promptly purchased one, went home, threw my Revlon one in the trash and my perfectly curled lashes and I have never looked back. :)

Lash Curler Tips: Always use BEFORE mascara, it curls better and won't pull out sticky mascara'd lashes that way. NEVER use a blow dryer to heat a lash curler up, a decent lash curler (like Shu!) will never need this, and you risk burning your eyelids. Replace your lash curler every 6 months to a year as they get slightly bent out of shape (the Shu curler comes with one replacement pad, I recommend switching that out at 6 months and replacing the whole curler after a year). With a decent lash curler, you don't need to press so hard - a gentle squeeze shut with the Shu curler will do it.

I have a HUGE giveaway coming up next week so watch for that and enter to win!

Note: I numbered all entries in the order they were received and used Random.org to randomly pick the winner.

Inspiration Board: April Showers

I hadn't put together an inspiration board in a little while, but wanted to do something different yet spring inspired, and this spring bridal shower inspiration board was the result. A palette of blues, greens and pops of bright buttery yellow comes directly from the colors of items on the bride's registry (what better way to pick the color scheme for a bridal shower?) If you're looking for a really different approach to a bridal shower, I like the idea of gifts from the registry displayed as decor. Instead of unwrapping each gift, the bride can walk around and see her loot displayed prettily with gift tags attached letting her know who it's from. The hostess should save all of the packaging in another room so the bride can safely take everything home. A dessert buffet with mini cupcakes and desserts is the perfect thing for a shower (mini dessert items seem less guilty, and the ladies won't feel bad having more than one :).

Credits: 1st row - plates and boutonnieres from Martha Stewart Weddings, milkmaid butter dish from Anthropologie, shower invitation from Wedding Paper Divas.

2nd row - yellow bowl and blue can with flowers photos by Jose Villa via Style Me Pretty, green hanging dress from Martha Stewart Weddings.

3rd row - dessert buffet by Enjoy Cupcakes and photo by Jose Villa via Style Me Pretty, blue latte bowls from Anthropologie, yellow daisy cake from Martha Stewart Weddings.

✻Don't forget to enter the free giveaway for a shu uemura eyelash curler!✻

Real Wedding: Natural Chemistry

I love it when couples go with a theme for their wedding that really reflects something special about them as a couple. For this chemistry themed wedding put together by Heather Balliet of Amorology Weddings, inspiration for the theme came from the bride's desire to do something unique and different and her job as a elementary school science teacher. The Heather and the Amorology team along with Robyn of Twigg Botanicals came up with sooo many amazing details for this wedding, from the periodic elements themed tables and candy bar with bags that said "Bonded for Life", to the test tube escort cards, to the amazingly wild and natural looking floral and succulent arrangements.

From Heather of Amorology Weddings: "Being an elementary science teacher, it seemed only natural that we create a wedding for the bride that depicted some of her background with the elements of the earth and the chemistry she had found with her true love. Our minds wandered to beakers and test tubes, organic succulents, Bunsen burners and all of the natural components of chemistry and life science."

Thanks so much to Heather of Amorology for letting me share this amazing wedding!

Credits: Photography by Gideon Photography, Wedding Coordination by Amorology Weddings, Florals by Twigg Botanicals, Signs by Brightly Designed

Giveaway: Win a Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler

I'm officially announcing Marry You Me's first giveaway! I will be giving away a Shu Uemura eyelash curler to one lucky reader, as these beauty gems will soon become a commodity.

Late last month, some sad news hit the beauty world. The iconic Japanese makeup brand Shu Uemura is no longer going to physically be sold in the U.S. beginning in August (don't worry, it will still be available online!). Shu Uemura makes THE best eyelash curler in the world, it is the most sought after beauty tool by makeup and beauty professionals. A must-have for any bride or anyone just looking for some lovely lashes!

3 Ways to Win:

*Leave a comment on this post (make sure you leave your email so I can notify you if you win!)

*Start following Marry You Me on Twitter

*If you already follow Marry You Me on Twitter, you can RT my giveaway tweet

The winner will be randomly chosen on Wednesday, April 28th. Good luck!!

*Open only to U.S. residents.

*Shu Uemura is not a sponsor of this giveaway.

Free Download Thursday: Custom Monograms from The Wedding Chicks

Had to share this amazing free downloadable heart and arrow custom monogram from The Wedding Chicks. You get to pick the design color and the font colors from 22 ultra-cool colors, as well as add in your and your significant other's initals. Then the finished design is instantly emailed to you, yours to use any way you like for invitations, envelopes, programs, menu cards, favor labels - or whatever you can come up with (I'm printing mine out and framing it to hang on the gallery wall in our bedroom). How awesome is that?

The Wedding Chicks are a super fabulous resource for not only great wedding inspiration and ideas but they also feature a shop for items like tees and tanks for your wedding party and the cutest custom tote/welcome bags that are definitely worth checking out.

Get the free heart and arrow custom monogram download HERE.

All photos from The Wedding Chicks.

DIY: Hanging Bottle Decor by Brancoprata

Sofia and Andrè of Portuguese wedding/event design and photography team Brancoprata came up with a gem of a decor DIY project I just had to share. They took glass bottles, added printed labels and tied ribbon around the necks then hung them near a guest book table. Inside the bottles were rolls of paper with stories about the couple as children, but stories about the couple's first date, a fun trip, or engagement story would also be great for guests to read about. Thanks for letting me share your work Sofia and Andre!

All photos by Brancoprata

Adorable Idea: DIY Grocery Store Dessert Table by The Bride Scouts

If you're anything like me and thought that dessert tables had gotten a bit too pricey for the average wedding or DIY'er, then this DIY dessert table by Bride Scouts will restore your faith. These crafty gals got super resourceful and set out to design a dessert table using only items you can find at any grocery store, with a budget in mind - $40! I'm pretty blown away by the results. This would be so great for a wedding, but how sweet would this be to have for a shower?

Grocery List:
1. 1 bag of large marshmallows
2. 2 bags of heart shaped chocolates (on sale!)
3. 2 boxes of sugared doughnuts (on sale!)
4. 2 boxes of Oreo Cakesters (my immitation whoopie pies)
5. Popsicle sticks
6. Mini yogurt covered pretzels
7. Mini marshmallows
8. 6 dollar store jars (for favors)
9. Pink Mints
10. Mini cupcake mix with frosting and cherries (FYI: my boyfriend made the cupcakes)
11. Mini Meringues
12. Heart shaped Cookies
13. Sparkling Water
Total Cost: 40.00$

All images from Bride Scouts