Sweet

Smitten with this charmingly simple confection by Palmer's Bakery, and these goodies: 

A black-tie Napa fête photographed by Jose Villa on Snippet & Ink.

Riotously gorgeous spring flowers for Salt Lake Bride & Groom.

Paperless Post's new wedding collection, with options for print and paperless. Letterpress and engraving are coming soon, too! 

A stunning vintage celebration captured by Cramer Photo and featured on Ruffled.

Lemon meringue inspiration from the beautifully revamped Magnolia Rouge.

Southern Living's Carolina Lowcountry roadtrip–John and I are using it to plan our own adventure this summer, so if you've got recommendations in Savannah, Hilton Head, Charleston or the Outer Banks, I'd love to hear them!

Image by Frost Photography. 

Kate and Mike

 

 

Imagine receiving a hand-written letter on Smythson of Bond Street stationery, inviting you to a village in Gascony for the wedding of your dear friends–could anything be more heavenly?

Kate and Mike actually rented the private village of Castelnau des Fieumarcon for their three-day celebration; each of the town's 16 stone houses was filled with family and dearest friends who enjoyed pastries delivered to their door each morning by one of the groom's pals and spent late evenings celebrating with the newlyweds. 

The bride spent the morning in an Agent Provocateur kimono, opening gifts from her husband-to-be; a blue leather passport cover engraved with her new monogram, a first edition of Capitan Correlli's Mandolin, a photo of a friend's beloved dog they look after from time to time and a pair of diamond earrings were her something old, new, borrowed and blue–tell me you're not swooning at the thought!

 Mike looked dapper in a suit from Stowers Bespoke and shoes from Dolce & Gabbana, and Kate's bridesmaids wore ivory dresses from Whistles with Halston Heritage gold sandals. The bride wore a romantic Suzanne Neville gown with studded Christian Louboutin peep toes, and carried a bouquet of white ranunculus by Le Jardin des Fleurs.

They were married on a hillside in the afternoon, and after a sumptuous dinner catered by Fabrice Biasiolo , the newlyweds and their guests sipped Armagnac under the stars. With no other guests to disturb, the celebration stretched until 5am the next morning!

Luckily, Polly of Polly Alexandre Photography had the stamina to stay up with the revelers, and what gorgeous photos she took! Thank you Polly, for sharing your spectacular images of this beautiful wedding!

Red

“Red...after black and white, it is the only color.” 

Valentino Garavani

Image by Thérèse Marie Wagner, Couture Bow d'Orsay Pump by Valentino.

Wild

How is it that short weeks always seem so long? Or maybe it's just how busy I've been at the office lately, but I was almost certain Friday would never come! I grabbed a few goodies on my way home and John and I indulged in a French-inspired spread–three kinds of cheeses, pâté de campagne, olives, pickles, almonds, apples and quince paste, with a bottle of Bordeaux to wash it down!

We were both up early on Saturday morning and after an avocado breakfast pizza, we walked through Golden Gate Park to the de Young Museum to see the newly opened Dutch exhibit from Mauritshuis and catch a peek at the Rudolf Nureyev retrospective. We even caught a bit of an early music concert at the museum, then strolled back home where John logged hours with his guitar and I laid in bed logging hours with a splitting headache. Luckily a lazy afternoon of vacation planning and spicy Indian food were the cure, and after dinner we curled up with Hope Springs, which ended up spurning all sorts of wonderful conversations over the course of the weekend.

John surprised me on Sunday morning with breakfast in bed–what on Earth did we do before we learned to poach eggs? Before either of us could get too comfortable we devoted a few hours to projects and practice, then headed out to run some errands. The weather's been so gorgeous that we couldn't resist walking everywhere, and after a late lunch, we settled back in with our computers and vocabulary lists (I love to quiz John on his French!). Then we tried our hand at a new recipe–curried chickpeas in tomato sauce, inspired by this Martha Stewart supper, and while it simmered we scrubbed, scoured and swept every inch of our apartment. Then we tucked into dinner and two glasses of wine–a simply heavenly end to a restorative weekend.


Tell me, what were you up to this weekend? Any delicious meals, terrific new reads, or plans to escape the winter chill? 

Image by Green Apple Photography, bouquet by Honey of a Thousand Flowers.

Corked

"Once in Africa I lost the corkscrew and we were forced to live off food and water for weeks."

Ernest Hemingway


Image by Amy and Stuart Photography. 

Ruffled

This peony bouquet flecked with dusty miller is divine, but paired with Vera Wang's “Ghillian” gown, it's truly irresistible! PS–if you're smitten with this gorgeous dress but not the hefty price tag, a gently loved Ghillian is for sale on OnceWed! 

Image by Caroline + Ben Photography, Bouquet by Bella Flora of Dallas.

Taylor and Clay

 

 

When this Army officer proposed, he did so just before his year-long deployment to Afghanistan–I suppose that's one way to avoid the stress of wedding planning! Lucky for Clay, his bride and his mother, an interior designer, along with Jessica Leisl of Essential Details had planned a gorgeous and intimate celebration in his absence.

Taylor and Clay tied the knot on Long Ridge Farm in Shelbyville, Kentucky, where the groom's mother designed and erected a barn during her son's deployment. Invitations from Flora and Fauna echoed the wedding's rustic-meets-elegant style, family heirloom silver filled with white hydrangeas, peonies and anemones mixed with mason jars and table numbers the bride embroidered.

Taylor wore a gown by Peter Langner for Kleinfeld New York paired with Kate Spade shoes; she chose a Thomas Knoell for Kleinfeld pearl necklace for the ceremony and a crystal bauble from J.Crew for the reception, while her bridesmaids wore gauzy J.Crew dresses. The white bouquets Taylor and her maids carried down the aisle matched the gorgeous arrangements Kati Esser of Blooms by Essential Details designed.

90 friends and family members, along with the farm's horses, cows, dogs and cats witnessed Taylor and Clay's wedding vows, then tucked into dual-plated salmon and filet with locally-grown vegetables and grits catered by Corbett’s. In traditional military fashion, the newlyweds cut into their three-tiered confection from Mert’s Cakes with a saber, and with the help of Randomonium, the celebration continued into the early hours of the morning!

And of course, without the talented Josh Merideth of Bella Grace Studios, we wouldn't have any of these gorgeous images to enjoy–thank you Josh, for sharing your beautiful photographs!