Experience Summer Love with Relish

Experience Summer Love with the fun ladies at GetRelish.com!!!  Celebrate the summer season with 10% off + Free ground shipping!! 

Store wide Sale!!  Use Code SL0509 at the point of checkout.  Sale ends Sunday June 14, 2009 at midnight CST.  The great 10% discount applies to all products!!  Free ground shipping through July 31, 2009 for the Continental US only!!

For more information about  the great things going on at Get Relish, check out their super interactive site!!!  FAQ

Your Color, Your Style,  Your Day....Relish It!!!

Wedding Registry Questions

The time has come,  you've gotten engaged, taken your engagement photos, wedding planning is going fabulous...and now its time to complete your wedding registry!!  For many couples this is a exciting time to select things to build your new home!  I want to equip you with questions that you can ask your Registry Consultant at the retailers you select for your gift registry.  Many of the questions come from my 13+ years in Executive Retail Management & others have been through research and accompanying clients on their registry shopping!

Rule of thumb, you should not register any earlier than 6-8 weeks before your wedding or the start of your bridal showers.  This helps in controlling the items that may go clearance before your wedding.

Questions:

• How does the store keep track of items that have been purchased?
• How often are the registry's updated in their system?
• What is the return policy? **Very Important**
• Do you have a limit to the number of returns without receipts?
• Can you return duplicate gifts or anything that you just decide you rather not have?
• Is there a time limit after your wedding?
• Can you have multiple gift registry's?
• Is there a limit on the number of items you can have on your registry?
• If there is no gift receipt presented with your wedding gift, is the item returnable?
• How often can the registry be updated?
• Do you send out alerts or emails when items have gone clearance?
• Is your registry available online?
• Can you guest  purchase items online & how will your registry be updated?
• Can items be shipped to your personal address?  Is there an additional shipping cost?
• Do you provide registry cards to inform wedding guest that you are registered at their retail store?
• How long is the gift registry active after the wedding date? **Very important**

Remember to have fun, but also register for the things you want & really need!!

Tweeple Spotlight...Guess whose going to print??

Get Married.com!!!  

Twitter really does connect you with great people, so when Stacie Francombe-the founder & CEO  started following me, I was very excited.  I mean I DVR Get Married every day, its one wedding show that I look forward to watching faithfully!  Today on twitter, she gave us a sneak peak of the possible new cover of Get Married Magazine, Its beautiful!!

The first issue is set for distribution in October 2009!!  For more information or to get bulk subscriptions email Magazine@GetMarried.com

Thanks Stacie for sharing this with your Twitter peeps!!  

Wordless Wednesday - Partner let me upgrade ya....

Lasting Impression

Looking for a way to make a lasting impression with your future husband or wife?  Why not consider a unique Inner message ring by Korean artist Jungyun Yoon!  The custom rings can be designed with a personal saying in the inside like Marry me, Love you or Forever!  The cool thing is when you take off the band those words are impressed into your finger.  Love it!!

In loving memory

In honor of Memorial Day, this post will provide you with ways that you can incorporate close family members or friends that have passed away into your wedding day celebration.  

Engravable glass vases: Custom orders are available with Opulent Favors & Gifts

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Bridal Bouquets are a great way to remember loved ones with a photo in a unique locket.  Bouquet lockets can be placed on the front of your bouquet, or request that your florist or floral event designer secure it within the petals of your bouquet.  Either choice will allow you to carry that loved one close during your wedding!

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On this day we remember our loved ones, & also the troops that have served our Country and that have sacrificed so much....Thank you!

Beauty tip of the week

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Over the course of the blog, I have shared many beauty confessions & tidbits!  Last summer, I discovered the Band-aid Friction block!!  

This hidden secret  is wonderful if  you wear high heel shoes & sandals!  The friction black looks similar to a deodorant stick, but it is applied to the balls of your feet or any area that tends to slip or rub when wearing stiletto's!  Lets face it ladies there is nothing & I mean nothing worse than your feet hurting especially when you're trying to be fly in those fabulous stiletto's!

Great item for your wedding day & a great gift to put in your bridesmaids gifts baskets!!

Wedding planners this is a great item to have in your emergency kits!!

Try it out & tell me what you think!!!

Formal Place Settings

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If you are not the Martha Stewart type & have never worked in the restaurant industry...then this post is for you!  Formal place settings look amazing when your guest first enter your reception site, such a look of class & distinction.  However if you are not familiar which fork to use first or whose bread plate belongs to which guest, this can cause a little inner anxiety!

I reached out to a great food industry pro & he shared a hidden secret to remembering the art of a perfect place setting!  Its super simple.....BMW!!  If anything you will rememeber it just because its also a ultra fabulous car!  

• B - Bread on the left
• M - Meal in the center
• W - Water & wine on the right

Super simple right!  Ok, well what about all those utensils?  Remember to work your way in from the outside.  Your salad fork and knife will be outermost at your place setting; work your way toward the plate for each successive course. Dessert utensils are situated above the plate.

If you are throwing a uber classy reception or event, you may consider taking an etiquette class with your wedding party.  This is something that could be a gift for your attendants! In the Nashville area, there is The Etiquette School of Tennesee & they offer a variety of classes, which could turn into a very fun outing & bonding time for your wedding party.  

*Additional place setting options*

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Wordless Wednesday - Turquoise & Peacock Feather Inspiration

Custom Bridal Cookies

Brides are always in search of that one special thing to make their bridal shower or wedding favor memorable!  A few months ago, I was contacted by Carrie of  A Little Carried Away, a custom cookie bakery specializing in hand crafted, custom cookies made to order & I could not wait to share the sweetness!

This unique bakery offers an exclusive tasty recipe as well as an  extensive collection of unique designs &  for almost any occasion.  One of their popular picks are bridal & photo wedding cookies.   These amazing cookies would make the perfect bridal shower or wedding favor!

Each cookie is priced at $2/each or 1 dozen for $24, which is an amazing deal!

Aren't they so adorable?  I think by far my fave would have to be the white dress cookie with the pink sash!!  So sassy!!

Wedding Stationery - Tweeple Spotlight - Lucky Paperie

Social media is a beautiful thing especially when you use it to connect with people & business owners. I started using Twitter in October, 2008 & it has been so influential in business connections but also just meeting some really really cool people {aka..Tweeple}!

Today's Tweeple Spotlight: Lucky Paperie

Location: Atlanta Georgia

Twitter Name: LuckyPaperie

About Lucky Paperie: Lucky Paperie is a custom invitation design studio. They create luxurious letterpress & flat printed invitations for weddings, baby and parties. The studio is located in Atlanta, Georgia where we enjoy long sunny days and southern sweet tea.

Being the paper connousieur that I am, I had been following the Lucky Paperie blog for some time, and was in love with their "5 things I am loving right now post"! So when I had the chance to connect with Melanie Carter - the creative genius behind Lucky Paperie it was amazing! Now I can honestly call her friend as well as colleague who makes the most amazing letterpress & flat printed goodies you have ever seen! *swoon*

Enjoy the luxe wedding stationery designs of Lucky Paperie:

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Dont't forget to follow Bridal Opulence & Lucky Paperie on Twitter! Also sending well wishes to Lucky Paperie at the National Stationery Show!

Wedding Stationery - Laura Hooper Calligraphy

I totally fell in love with the calligraphy work of Laura Hooper, her work reaches the modern bride today because of its creative edge. As a connoisseur of great paper goodness, Laura Hooper Calligraphy does not disappoint from her event calligraphy, custom invites and the ever popular hand drawn custom maps & monograms.

{Side note- Laura Hooper Calligraphy created the fabulous Indianapolis maps for Eventology 2009 & also the amazing card pack for the swag bag!!}

Selecting quality paper sets the tone for your wedding or special event. I totally love getting great invites because it lets me know that the same level of detail that went into selecting such great paper goodness will also go into that particular event!

Your save the dates & invitations are a sneak peak of what is to come for your fabulous wedding, allow your paper to tell a story!

Custom maps by Laura Hooper Calligraphy!!

Helpful Wedding Planning Advice

Brides love to stay on top of all things current, which includes blogs, wedding designs & beauty tips to make their wedding a truly unique event.

I wanted to share two great blogs that have featured amazing wedding planning tips & beauty advice over the last week.

Beauty advice - take a peak at Bridal Beauty by Blush Studio

Wedding planning tips - Check out 10 Tips from 10 wedding planners by the fabulous Terrica Skaggs at Fabuluxe Inc.

Happy reading!

Opulent News Flash

We've had a really busy start to 2009 here at Bridal Opulence, which is always very exciting!

We have a new & shorter blog URL! Always looking to streamline....to meet our client needs! Our previous URL is still active, however BridalOpulenceBlog.com is our new official Blog URL!!

Launched E-Planning for Nashville Brides & they love this new addition to the opulent dossier.

Celebrated with those chic Southern Weddings Magazine Ladies for their Official SW Magazine Launch Party in Atlanta.

Opulent Favors & Gifts reached 100K site visitors before our 1 year E-commerce anniversary!

Participated in the Power of the Purse Luncheon at the Nashville downtown Hilton Hotel

Attended Eventology 2009 - The Science of Wedding Planning Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana

Sheesh, lots of Opulent goodness and many more events and exciting information to follow......

Etsy Spotlight - Custom Wedding Table Runners

Ok, ok so you know by now if you are frequent reader of my blog, that I am such a fan of custom bridal items, stationery, bags & Etsy. One of my personal favorites for custom table runners hands down is Darling Damask.

Darling Damask is a Etsy Shop that has excellent customer service & communication which is very important when ordering items online not to mention their shipping is amazing!

Darling Damask designed my runner for the Perfect Wedding Guide Bridal Show at the Frist Center. "Go Green, Go Bling".

Black & white damask is the most commonly used colors for this popular wedding fabric, but I wanted to share a few others damask options.

Black & White - could be paired with red, turquoise, steel grey, hot pink or yellow - very classy! Pink & white runner - would look amazing paired with grey linens! Pink & Orange runner - pair with orange or pink linens for a dramatic effect.

Turquoise & espresso brown - paired with espresso or turquoise linens - Accent with pops of Red

Darling Damask has been so gracious, the first 3 people that contact them & mention the Bridal Opulence blog post, will also receive a complimentary ring bearer pillow!!! How cool is that!!!

What's your favorite wedding tablescape print or color palette for 2009?