Letterpress at Home

I found this from a Paper Source email blast a month ago...letterpress machine! I looked into letterpress invitations for my wedding, but it was very costly (I'm talking thousands). I could only drool over the most beautiful imprints that letterpress makes on paper. Now, you can do letterpress cards and crafts at home for about $150!

Apparently, this baby is selling like hot cakes - it's on backorder, all sold out if you wanted to make your own Christmas cards. What I'm most excited about is when the Paper Source lady does an arts & crafts video with this machine!

It's No Secret...

...that I dislike networking. I finally figured out why, thanks to one of my favorite blogs by Jasmine Star. I was crazy about looking through photographers' blogs when I was doing wedding research, and her blog had such beautiful beautiful beautiful photography and was written with such passion.

Anyways, Jasmine's latest post was on her workshop, where she tackled the subject of ANTInetworking. Her slide spoke to me. Lots of people in the business world focus on networking, but I don't believe they truly make a real connection because there are plenty of people in this world who think "what's in it for me?" And then there are people who are just plain fake. I've always believed in being genuine and helping people, and I'm glad I'm not the only one who's ANTInetworking.

Wedding Wednesdays: All Good Things Must Come to an End

It's been more than a month since our wedding. I am very happy to put an end to that part of our journey and say goodbye to my obsessive behavior in all things wedding related. Sadly, with the end of that part of our lives comes the end of Wedding Wednesdays.

I will though, with no doubt, be sharing with you our journey in building our nest - I will be transitioning from being a "consultant designer" in my sister's new home to being a leading designer in our future home!

Wedding Wednesdays: Not So Traditional Greek Eats

My husband and I love eating local food when we travel, both traditional and non-traditional. We had the most non-traditional Greek eats in Santorini, one of our honeymoon stops in Greece. We had some of the most inventive presentations and flavors while staying there. I don't eat much Greek food in the States, and have never had New-Greek food, so I was pleasantly surprised by our meals there.

Here are some of the more inventive ones we had in Santorini:

• Octopus Carpaccio with Smoked White Eggplant Salad - Isn't the representation just stunning? Thinly sliced octopus tentacles rested on top of a dome-shaped bed of white eggplant, which is native to the island. The tough texture common in octopus was changed by thinly slicing it. The dish was tangy (a bit tangy for my husband), smoky and fresh, a perfect appetizer.
  

Selene's Octopus Carpaccio

• Sea Urchin Salad - Sea Urchin on grilled artichoke with fava cream and scallops with lemon foam. The dish was not "hit you over the head wow", but it was very nice.
  

Selene's Sea Urchin Salad

• Greek (or Santorini - forgot) Spiced Red Mullet with Sweet Olives and Bloody Mary Sorbet. I've never had sweet olives before. I must say, it was quite good! Overall though, the dish was just okay.
  

Restaurant 1800's Red Mullet

If you find yourself in Santorini, I'd recommend Selene in Fira. We liked 4 out of 5 dishes we had - not bad odds huh. Just don't order the Monkfish and Langoustine with Traditional Pasta - while it was tasty, the Langoustine was clearly not fresh. BUT I was willing to overlook that dish based on the incredible view and delicious dessert (cheese on puff pastry with sweet capers and sweet tomato).

Wedding Wednesdays: Traditional Greek Eats

Surprisingly, I didn't eat as much as I had expected on our honeymoon in Greece. With all the exploring and airport delays, we didn't have much time. We typically had big breakfasts, light afternoon snacks and traditionally late Greek dinners. The late dinners totally ruined my normal diet - I basically went to bed with a full stomach.

You really can't go wrong in Greece with food. We went to some random restaurants in Greece, and didn't have any inedible food. There may be some unmemorable dishes, but we had some generally good food. You name it, we had it in Greece:

• Souvlaki - Almost always served with french fries. I had a perfectly done Chicken Souvlaki in Santorini; it wasn't overcooked and was quite tasty.
  

• Gyro - I've never had a gyro with french fries inside before. It is always served with french fries inside if you ask for everything in Greece. The one I had in Mykonos (where everything is expensive) was tasty and surprisingly reasonably priced.

• Greek Yogurt - I will never go back to the yogurt in the States! Greek yogurt is thicker, tangy and so rich in milk taste. I simply drizzled it with honey and loved every spoon of it for breakfast. I'll leave out descriptions on its fat content.
  

• Stuffed Vine Leaves - I've always had it cold with mushy rice inside, but had a warm version in Athens served with a yogurt dill sauce which I loved loved loved! The rice wasn't mushy at all, and it was wonderfully fragrant with the use of dill.

• Eggplant Dip - They really love their eggplant. This one I had in Athens was tasty but was very garlicky though.
  

• Spinach Pie - Very fragrant with the use of herbs. I only wished the crust was thicker.

• Taramosalata (carp roe dip) - It wasn't overly salty like the one I had from Snack in NYC. I really enjoyed this one I had in Santorini.

Surprisingly, a lot of seafood is frozen (vs. fresh) in Greece. Most restaurants would note the items that have been frozen on their menu; they're mostly octopus and prawns. This is probably because it's rather hot in Greece. If you're dining by the water though, you can have their fresh catches.

All in all, I didn't have one bad meal in Greece. My husband said though that there was no difference between Greek food in Greece vs. that in the States. I haven't had enough Greek food in the States to attest to that, but from what I've had so far in the States, I can agree.

Wedding Wednesdays: Look What I Had at My Shower!

My sister throw me a surprise bridal shower the week before our wedding (thanks sis!). She totally read my mind in terms of sweets - look at the goodies she got from Payard! There were financiers, madeleines, and other yummy French baked goods.

Those were the left overs. She also got a box of macarons from the Macaron Cafe. Sorry, I ate them all before I could take a photo of them. They were good!!! I was surprised I didn't hunt down macarons from the Macaron Cafe in my macaron search. I'll write a review some time in the future.

Wedding Wednesdays: DIY for the Flower Girls

I was inspired by Martha Stewart's DIY for a floral headpiece I saw in a magazine when I thought about starting this project. Although her project was much more simple (she just strung together fresh hyacinth), I do want to thank Martha for the inspiration!


I had a vision when I started the project, but had no idea on exactly what to do. I bought some supplies I thought I needed, and used some I had already. I used the basic sewing skills I already had and made the rules as I went along because some ideas worked while others didn't. After making several prototypes, I am now pretty happy with the results. Here are the steps:

Supplies

silk flowers (six bunches should do; make sure the petals are at most 1.5in wide)
stretch magic bead & jewelry cord (5 meters, 1 mm.)
beads & pearls (various sizes)
ribbon
crazy glue or glue gun
thread & needle
scissors


Steps

I brought home the silk flowers in bunches like below and plucked out the petals.






They were very one dimensional, so I sewed each petal to make it less flat. Working on the petal's back, I pinched the petal in the middle and sew one spot together.





Pull the thread tight and tie a knot in the back to make the shape stay. Below is what it should look like after. You may need to repeat the steps on the same petal; it depends on if you did it right on the first try. Using the same thread (without cutting it, so they're all sewed together), repeat the same steps with the next 3-4 petals.




After 3-4 petals, this is what you should end up with. Cut off the thread after the last knot (double knot to be safe) and you're done with one flower.



I made a whole bunch of these enough for a headpiece and 2 bracelets.

Then comes the easy part. All you have to do now is figure out a design you like with the beads and pearls, string them on, and sew the petal onto the cord. Tie a knot where it ends, and crazy glue them to secure them.

Wedding Wednesdays: Flower Girls

I may not have had the bride gene or want to be a completely traditional bride, but I didn't want to take the fun away from the flower girls. Yup, I had flower girls.

My cousin was a flower girl two years ago, and she wanted to do it again so she can sprinkle petals down the aisle. You're only young once, so you can only be a flower girl up to a certain age. Plus, most little girls love to dress up and look pretty. How can you deny them this chance? And now I proudly introduce to you my flower girl!



Actually, that is a model for my DIY for the flower girls. I made floral headpieces and matching bracelets - this was one of the few places that I'm allowing myself to be traditional. Whether the young ones will tear them apart or refuse to wear them is another matter. Stay tuned for deatils!

Wedding Wednesdays: Payard

My husband (so weird to say that!) and I ventured to Payard a while ago to check out their macarons (my fav) and had some desserts while we were at it. I had even gotten a good look at the master, Francois Payard, who is famous for his delicious French desserts.

Everything we had was heavenly. We tried the Opera, which is a cake with Chocolate Ganache layered between chocolate sponge cake. It was rich and moist.

The macarons we tried include Chocolate, Raspberry and Pistachio. Their taste was pretty close to the macarons we had in Laudree - rich in butter. But they lack the shine that I recall seeing from Laudree. My favorite macaron in Payard is Pistachio, which was obvious rich in butter (the raspberry was filled with fruit preserves and the chocolate was filled with some kind of chocolate cream). The chocolate was inventive in the chocolate shavings finish.

Although we tried out a good number of Payard's desserts, what's on my wish list from them is their Croquembouche (French cream puff cake), which was the cake for our wedding. They look too pretty to eat!

Off to the Chapel...

...and we're gonna get married.

Above image from our photographer

Yup, IT'S ABOUT TIME! Our photographer totally captured the moment and the journey it's been for us.

Ok, there's no chapel, but today is the day. Wish us luck! I'll be back with more "Wedding Wednesdays."

Wedding Wednesdays: "You Have to Have Tulle"

"You have to have tulle," said my mother. My reply? No I don't!

What she was referring to was related to the wedding gown, which is 婚紗 in Chinese. The 2nd character "紗" means tulle. My wedding gown doesn't have tulle, so it's most likely not a wedding gown in her mind. What can I say. I'm not a traditional bride.

I am having tulle though, on my veil. I think that may make my mother not happy, but somewhat satisfied. Here's what I tried on:

#1 - A veil with a very nice design, but it didn't match my dress.



#2 - A veil that matched the lace on my dress, but a bit too matchy matchy.

#3 - Another nicely designed veil, but it was really heavy! The bead work went all the way around.

Thankfully, I can borrow my sister's veil. It can be my "something old!"

Wedding Wednesdays: Boxes that Fit the Theme

The focus these days is on eco friendly products, but they're also more costly. So when it comes to gift bags and such for the wedding, these paper boxes were so very tempting...

Above from Jam Paper

They're in the right color and right theme. It's not very often that you find the right combination. Maybe I can ask guests to reuse them and recycle them afterwards...then could it be labeled eco friendly?

Wedding Wednesdays: In Love with Amy Atlas

I've always loved the yummy looking dessert bars created by Amy Atlas, ever since her work has been spreading like wild fire on blogs. When I saw these images in purple I just had to show you (if you don't know by now, my favorite color is purple.)

Above from AmyAtlas.com

And look! Macaron!!!

Above from AmyAtlas.com

Oh I wish the dessert at our wedding can look like that.

Wedding Wednesdays: A Present Every Day

The little RSVPs cards have been rolling in every day. I've been opening them like they're presents because once in a while, I get sweet messages and comments from our guests on the cards. This one made me especially happy and warm:

And this one made me burst out in laughter (it still does!):

Thank you all for lighting up my day! It really makes a big difference when I'm under house arrest with a bunch of study material.

Wedding Wednesdays: If Timing Weren't an Issue

I had wanted branches like Cherry Blossom or Dogwood as centerpieces at our wedding, but they're only in season in April and at the latest May. This photo was from 3 years ago when I revisited the Brooklyn Botanical Garden in late April. Aren't they so dreamy?


They're fluffy and so romantic when their tiny petals are carried through the wind. They make such wonderful wedding arrangements as centerpieces or the focus of the escort card table.

Above, from Projectwedding.com

Above from MarthaStewart.com

Above, from Brides.com

The weather in April & May would be have been the ideal wedding situation than the summer heat too. Oh well...

Wedding Wednesdays: "Bad Bad Bad!"

Apparently, we had picked a bad date on the Chinese calendar when we decided on the date more than 2 years ago. So, to my surprise (not really), my mother's reaction to our printed invitations was BAD.

It's bad because the actual date ("十三" 13), the date according to the Chinese calendar ("廿一" 21), the year 2009 and even the hour of day are all odd numbers, which aren't good because a wedding represents the joining of two people, an even number. This also relates to double happiness "囍", which is essentially 喜 (happiness) put together with another 喜.

In our defense, the Chinese calendar for 2009 had not been published at the time (precisely 2 years and 2 months ago). June ("六") is an even number, and so is Saturday ("六"), the sixth day of the week. On top of that, half past the hour is 30 minutes, an even number. So it ain't all THAT bad right? Like all things in wedding planning, it's hard to please everyone, especially when it comes to tradition.

Not only did this make me feel bad, I feel pretty bad physically...we had our engagement shoot (tiring!) and I had fried chicken & fries for dinner over the weekend, which made my stomach feel bad (sickening) because I have been really good with my diet. Bad bad bad...

Wedding Wednesdays: Reuse, Recycle

Happy Earth Day! As you may know, I'm not a tree hugger, but I am conscious in helping the earth be a better place for future generations. I'm the type of person who gives people the evil eye if I see them throwing trash out of their window on a highway or anywhere. I recycle all the trash I have. And I hate being wasteful.

So, when it comes to a massive trash making event such as our wedding, I have planned to reuse and recycle. Some people overdo being green - a lot of times there's an extra cost (money or environmentally) to be green - I don't believe that extra mile is worth it if it hurts the earth or your wallet some more. Let me just preface this by saying that I won't obsess over being green on everything. I will do what is practical for our wedding:

Reusing Flowers

I had originally wanted fruit centerpieces because they can be consumed, but gave up when florists weren't hot on the idea and my fiance's showed no interest or support in the subject matter. So, we're having flowers instead, but we are using a few of the reception centerpieces for the ceremony (and also for the tea ceremony). Additionally, we only chose centerpieces that guests can bring home or can be easily donated. For example, we nixed the idea of submerged centerpieces because of the hassel involved in guests bringing heavy wet glass containers home. They may look nice, but they're not that practical.

Above from Projectwedding.com

Rewearing Attire

Other than the wedding gown, everything can be reworn. My bridesmaids' dresses should have more than one life after the event (ideally). My ladies were given a choice to buy any dress they see themselves wearing again in the future in the eggplant color family. I chose dark chiffon for them since that's a more wearable color and fabric than pastel colors with a shiny finish. Hopefully, they'll look as happy as these gals are in their non-matching, very rewearable attire.

Above from Instyleweddings.com

The groomsmen will be dressed in grey suits they may already have in their closets - it's better than paying for a tux that you don't get to keep. My future husband will be donning a suit that could be reworn after the wedding. As for myself, I made it a point to buy comfortable shoes that could be reworn for any special occasion.

Recycling Paper Projects

I have used as much material that can be reused as possible. To date, I have made projects using cosmetics cardboard boxes and am planning another project with oatmeal containers. However, my mother suggested (strongly) that I include individual favors for our guests, which requires lots of paper usage. I am not happy about killing trees. We'll see if I'll give in.

I really hope mother earth and our wedding party are happy with our choices! Above all, I hope they are the right choices.

Wedding Wednesdays: Keeping My Fingers Crossed

Rain. What else is new in April right? We had scheduled our engagement photoshoot a while ago for this weekend and I've been tracking the weather for the day lately. It looked like we might have to reschedule at first, but the forecast changed! Yay!

Weather report on:


April 10

April 11

April 12 (and 64!)




April 13 (and 65!!)




April 14 (and 67!!!)




This so reminds me of my working days plotting time series! Anyhow, the weather report is always wrong, so I'm hoping it's right this time.