Stunning = Expensive? Not Always!

At any given time, I have a large bin jam-packed with yarn in all colours and textures. This bin is the size of a large cooler and it can barely close! So, you think I'd be a prolific knitter and crocheter (if that's even a word!), right?  Unfortunately, I can't knit or crochet worth a lick with a pair of needles, I can only arm-knit scarves, and arm-crochet scarves and until very recently, slouchy hats.  The intricacies of crochet and knitting with needles to create beautiful designs will never be in my particular skill set, but I am  fascinated when I see people making gorgeous sweaters, blankets and the like. Over the weekend, I found a story about one bride who crocheted her wedding dress. Her wedding dress was entirely crochet!!  She had a green dress as a liner, and the finished product was amazing. The project that she undertook with her aunt took eight months, the yarn cost her $70 and she purchased the green dress she wore underneath for $100 for a grand total of $170 for her wedding gown.  The price tag was minimal but when you factor in the uniqueness of her dress, a one-off creation,  and the fact that this was a labour of love, this gown becomes well and truly priceless!

*~The Ultimate One-Of-A-Kind Wedding Dress~*

When I did a little more digging, I found another creative bride who made her wedding dress as well, a stunning piece she worked on during her commute to work. And it was a dress so lovely that we could totally have seen in an editorial in a magazine!

*~High Fashion Hand-Crocheted Wedding Dress~*

What I love about both dresses is that they are ultimate proof that the price tag on your wedding dress  doesn't always correlate to how lovely and impactful it can be.  I lovelovelove the idea of a creative, unique and completely personal dress that can't be replicated because let's be real - when weddings can sometimes blend together seamlessly, wouldn't having a knock-out dress be the ultimate standout on your big day? Count us in!

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~

Lisa and April

Wednesday Whoa!!

She's a flesh and blood, real-life version of Jessica Rabbit, all curves, a gorgeous modern-day pin-up girl; he's sexy, handsome, and has some sweeeeet dance moves. They are Sofia Vergara and Joe Manganiello, and together, they are one amazing looking couple.

Hubba-hubba x 2
Image via tomandlorenzo.com

And as of this past Sunday, they are one amazing looking married couple!!

The happy couple!
Image via tmi.buzz

The vows under a floral cascade
Via tmi.buzz

The two tied the knot in Palm Beach and the wedding and reception was the grand finale of a wedding weekend, where they partied, ate, drank, danced and kicked back by the pool with family and friends before the big day.  The decor was stunning - flowers! flowers! flowers! - and romantic to the nth degree.  Some of her 'Modern Family' co-stars were, there as was his 'Magic Mike' co-star Channing Tatum who did a special dance for the bride.  Her dress was a custom Zuhair Murad, which required over 1600 hours to make, featured six pounds of pearls and eleven pounds of sequins. His suit was perfection, and he looked every inch the very well turned-out groom. Her jewellery is rumoured to have been worth close to seven million dollars and the wedding's price tag? A cool four million dollars!

*~The Beautiful People - Sofia + Joe Tie the Knot!~*

Congratulations to the happy, beautiful couple! And HAPPY WEDNESDAY to you all!

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

The Cost of a Wedding, in Humanitarian Terms

Samantha and Farzin, framed by the TORONTO sign @ City Hall
Image via firstpost.com

When we think of weddings, we immediately think of a party to end all parties; we envision a beautiful dress, gorgeous flowers, course after course of the best food you'll ever taste, a photographer following you and capturing the day for posterity and, nowadays, a hashtag that breaks the internet. Recently, a Toronto couple who were to marry this upcoming March and had been planning their wedding for a year, were struck by the ongoing crisis in Syria and its human toll,  and decided to cancel their wedding and channel the money towards sponsoring a family instead.  Here is their story:

*~An Everlasting Wedding Gift: One Couple's Wedding Budget Helps Another Family's Circumstances~*

This story is heartwarming and timely, considering the state of world affairs. It's also a story of extreme selflessness. Samantha and Farzin ended up getting married in a smaller but no less special ceremony in October and are well on their way to raising the $27,000 needed. I love me a wedding from the dress, to the colours all the way to the last dance, but for me, this is probably my favourite wedding of the year, hands down!

And while what Samantha and Farzin did was so amazing but also, an amazingly BIG give,  any couple can find ways to give a little to a cause that is close to their hearts. It doesn't have to be a grand, sweeping gesture,  but just like our grandparents used to tell us, every little bit helps!  Whether it's a donation to your favourite charity in lieu of a wedding favour, having a mini-food drive at a shower, or a 50-50 draw at the Jack-and-Jill where the money raised benefits a cause that has a special place in your life, your love can be a catalyst for something amazing!

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

#TBT - Entertainment Tonight Edition!

Celebrities are big business.  Whether we love it or loathe it, star-watching - and reporting on their every move, covering the good, the bad, and the ugly in their professional and personal lives - is its own multi-million industry. Just take a look at the sheer volume of tabloid magazines situated at the check-out at your local grocery store and that gives you only half of the celebrity reporting picture. The other half comes thanks to celebrity entertainment programs like ETalk, TMZ and Entertainment Tonight and its Canadian counterpart ET Canada. This year, Entertainment Tonight is celebrating 35 years in the business and that longevity is pretty spectacular, considering news, gossip and salacious celeb stories are literally a click away nowadays, on our phones and tablets! In celebration of their milestone anniversary, ET looked back at the biggest celebrity weddings of all time!

*~ET's List Of The Biggest Celeb Weddings~*

What do you think? Do you remember these weddings? Do you agree with the weddings listed as the biggest of all time? I think they definitely missed some biggies...


Posh and Becks (Over the top, complete with matching thrones for the self-appointed royal couple!)

Photo courtesy of unsportsmanlike.ca

George and Amal (for both the amazing fashion Amal brought every step of the way, as well as seeing the everlasting bachelor take the plunge!)

Photo via fashiongrin.com

Via the gloss.com

Photo via thegloss.com

Brad And Jenn (they were a golden couple at one time, before Brangelina was a thing!)

Photo via primped.com.au

Via primped.com.au

And that's just naming a few! I remember the celebrity marriages that were slightly off the beaten path, like Drew Barrymore and Tom Green; the marriages where opposites attracted and felt almost dangerous from the start, like Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston; or the marriages that promised fireworks and drama (Madonna and Sean Penn). In the celeb world, there have been a million weddings and an almost equal number of divorces - what would YOUR list of all-time biggest or memorable look like?

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

WWWE* Wednesday!

(* - White Wedding Wear Etiquette)

Photo courtesy of speakkellz.com

Over the weekend, Beyoncé attended a wedding with her adorable Blue Ivy.... And these very famous guests wore white. Yep - white!  I know we've lightened up on not wearing white after Labour Day; winter white looks crisp and so, so mint, especially when you factor in the textural appeal of faux furs, knits and weaves, suedes or leathers.  But, have we changed our mind on wearing white to a wedding, if we're guests and not brides?  While brides are increasingly adding hints and splashes of colour with their dresses, sometimes even eschewing the colour white and all the shades and tones in its colour family completely, I still consider white the domain of the bride and her wedding party that day,  whether she utilizes it not, or as requested by the bride (years ago, we were invited to a wedding with a black and white dresscode for guests, as per the bride and groom). For all the changes we've seen in regard to how weddings look, I think we'll always associate a white dress with a bride and any guest who wears this colour will stand out.  Am I being too old-fashioned and outdated? I mean, I wrote two days ago about including beloved pets in a wedding; I love when wedding parties no longer segregate ladies and gents on each side of the aisle, I think grandmothers as flower girls is so endearing and heartwarming and I LOVE me a non-white wedding dress. But not wearing white to a wedding almost feels like a tenet in Girl Code; even if a bride doesn't wear white, the colour feels like it's off the table, so to speak.  So why am I stuck on this one point? This opened up the debate on 'The Social' yesterday about this very topic and I think the Beyoncé factor kind of stalled the discussion, but that doesn't mean we can't hash out whether we think it's onside or offside to wear white to a wedding if you're a guest!

*~The Social discusses wearing white to a wedding - faux-pass or fashion-forward?~*

So, what's the verdict? Yay or nay on the issue at hand, ladies and gents? Here's what Cosmopolitan magazine thought - what's your take?

*~Is it a nice day for a White Wedding?~*

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

How To Include Four-Legged Family Members In Your Wedding WIN!

Photo courtesy manettegradie.blogspot.ca

Dogs and cats are my kryptonite.  I fall into YouTube black holes on the regular looking at videos of guilty-dogs, water-drinking cats, sleeping dogs, talking cats, swimming dogs, cats befriending other animals, trapped-in-bowls-and-boxes dogs and cats; when I'm in the car, I have a radar and can spot a fur-baby in record time.  And if I come across pictures of them in engagement or wedding pictures?

I. Melt.

Photo courtesy weddingsinma.com

So, when I saw a post about one couple's special day and how their beloved dogs were a big - possibly the cutest -  part of their nuptials, I was a puddle of oooh's and ahhhhh's!!!

*~One Bride, One Groom, Four Dogs = One Adorable Wedding!~*

Maybe you want to have your pets to factor in your wedding but having them at the ceremony or reception is not an option? No problem - they can find their way into your engagement photo shoot, or featured in your slideshow.  And don't forget about your day-of photography - you can get some beautiful shots of you and your four-legged bestie as you're getting ready!

Photo via blog.platinumpartyevents.com

Photo via dreamirish.com

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

#TBT - Country Bride, City Bride

In a textbook case of, 'where there's smoke, there's fire' reps for Gwen Stefani and Blake Shelton confirmed last week that the two freshly-divorced 'Voice' chair-turners were dating, after weeks of speculation, coy and somewhat teasing radio interviews and the subsequent cozy/telling photos from their Hallowe'en weekend of partying. Two hours before the red carpet for the CMA Awards, where Miranda Lambert was set to perform. Coincidently, it was her first red carpet since her shock divorce from Shelton late this summer.

That is some razor-sharp timing!

Meanwhile, in Gwen-world, hot on the heels of her publicist giving us all an update on her relationship status (Spoiler: It's not complicated!) US magazine detailed just how her marriage to Gavin Rossdale fell apart. Lainey Gossip gives us some sharp insight on both the situation, as well as just how the celebrity information machine works. (Side note: if you're not visiting Lainey's site on the regular, it is a must! She knows that of which she speaks, is HOOKED UP source-wise and while the celeb gossip is gooood, she's not just a gossip guru, she is giving us a backstage pass - a look behind the well-crafted curtain - on just how the celebrity world works, from how stars manage their images, what information gets out and what information is locked down, and to what end said info gets out, and the wheeling and dealings behind the scenes)

But before there was a Gwen-and-Blake situation, there was a Gwen-and-Gavin situation; they were a 1990's alt-rock King and Queen and when they got married in England in September, 2002,  our City Bride gave us good wedding!

Photo via elcajonbridal.com

Via elcajonbridal.com

*~And the Bride was tickled pink! Gwen Stefani weds Gavin Rossdale~*

And in another time and dimension (Texas, May of 2011). Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton tied the knot in a Country Chic ceremony. It was his second marriage, but it was her first and she nailed sassy, Country chic (and rocked a GORGEOUS brooch bouquet, one of my favourite new timey trends!

Image via theritzyrose.com

Covet-worthy brooch bouquet by the champs at theritzyrose.com

*~When Miranda married Blake in down home Texas!~*

Now that both marriages have been put to rest, a hot new coupling takes hold. He's a little bit country, she's a little bit rock and roll and it's stil too early to tell just how long they'll last or if they'll even get a couples moniker (Shelfani? Blen? Stelton? The possibilities might be a bit limited on this one!)  So, before we get caught up in the future of this new star couple, let's take a moment to look back at the roads that led to Stelton!

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April 

A Ring Of A Different Colour!

Last week, we looked at one couple's unique take on an engagement ring, the Wisdom Tooth solitaire:

Photo via thefrisky.com

I found myself thinking about rings almost obsessively ever since, and the good news is, there are an infinite number of options; a limitless number of stones, bands, styles and setting-  the possibilities truly are endless!

Photo via singaporebride.com

Image via apracticalwedding.com

Image via apracticalwedding.com

Here's a roundup of some beautiful alternate to the diamond, as lovely as she is.  Diamonds might've been a girl's best friend, but thankfully, there's always room for some new and exciting faces!

*~I see pretty! Oh, so pretty! Stones in all the colours of the rainbow~*

*~Mo' colours, mo' options' Beyond the pale engagement rings~*

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

Wedding Day Photography: Are Cellphones Taking Away From The Experience?

April and I are really lucky, doing what we do. We get the ultimate 'backstage pass' for a couple's wedding day! We know what the wedding will ultimately look like; from the dresses, to the venue, hair and makeup, colour theme - we see it all, months ahead. Heck, even on the day of the wedding, we get to see everything hours before friends, family and in the case of the venue, the bride and groom!

For everyone involved in and invited to a wedding, it's such an exciting day and there is sooooo much that we're looking forward to; we can't wait to see the bride, the kiss, THE DRESS! the reception and the festivities of the day.  And of course we want pictures of the day to record just how beautiful the couple looked, or the moment the bride or groom walked up the aisle towards a new chapter in this crazybeautiful thing we call life.  Sometimes though, I wonder just how many of these moments we're really enjoying and being present for, when we're busy snapping all those pics. I love seeing expressions on the big day - the look on a groom's face as he sees his bride for the first time as she walks towards him; the looks on the faces of friends and relatives as they react to the bridal party procession. But more and more, we don't see those faces looking towards the sights of the day, we see them looking at the day filtered through the screen on their phones, concentrating on taking a photo as the day marches past!

This article is a great read, especially for any couples who are currently planning their weddings and the idea of photography and videography is on the table. Will you have a fully plugged-in wedding, complete with a hashtag and Instagram fingerprint? Or would you consider a wedding where cellphones are checked at the door?

*~One Camera To Rule Them All!~*

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

#TBT - Model Weddng Edition

When I was a kid, the Holy Trinity was the 'the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit'; as a teenager, I worshipped an entirely different trio - Christy, Linda and Naomi, the newly anointed trinity of fashion.

Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington and Naomi Campbell
Photo courtesy of whtboutlove.com

This was the era when models WERE super; the glamazons who wouldn't get out of bed for less than $10,000, whose ever-changing hairstyles made headlines and their partying off the runway was watched as eagerly as their catwalk struts. Before you became a model by posting selfies and creating an Instagram portfolio, these were the ladies who put in the (million-dollar) leg work, did the go-sees, booked the hottest shows and creates personas so dynamic that they didn't even need last names.

Yasmeen.... Claudia ...... Christy
Photo courtesy claireverity.wordpress.com

Models were faces and bodies that move seamlessly from runways to magazines to music videos, and we were transfixed. They became household names and we saw them everywhere, from Playboy, W, and Rolling Stone, to taking their turns being Easy-Breezy Beautiful cover girls and we couldn't get enough of them. George Michael made two videos featuring models, one that was visually dreamy.....

...and the other that was cheeky and flirty....

Meanwhile, Chris Isaak went black-and-white, but devastatingly sexy!

So, it was only natural that we'd be watching them take their turn down the martial runway just as eagerly so, without further ado, here's a look at some of the model brides, Throwback Thursday style!

Paulina Poriskova + Ric Ocasek
Photo via bellazon.com

Claudia Schiffer + Matthew Vaughn
Photo courtesy of patsy.nu

Cindy Crawford + Rande Gerber
Photo via thecashmeregypsy.com

Iman + David Bowie
Photo courtesy of davidbowienews.com

Karen Elson + Jack White
Photo courtesy of dailymailuk.com

Lily Aldridge + Caleb Followill
Photo courtesy of  usmagazine.com

Coco Rocha + James Conran
Photo via oh-brides.com

*~The Ultimate Runway - When Models Get Married!~*

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

Gothic Romance and the Scent of a Woman (and Man)

My Christmas Eve come early this year - it happened on October 15th and it was everything I could have hoped for.  I spent the night with my husband and daughter and we were entertained by Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain and Charlie Hunnam at Allerdale Hall, a draughty old home whose opulent days had long come and gone. The rooms were atmospherically cold and dank and those dark corners? Yes, they were made even darker by shadows... and foreboding...

Photo courtesy of twitter.com

Ghost story and Gothic romance "Crimson Peak" by Guillermo del Toro previewed that night and after looking forward to the movie for what felt like forever (actual time: a year) I spent the day in an almost giddy state and by the time I nestled into my cozy seat in the theatre, it really did feel like all my Yule dreams were coming true. The film itself is an ode to the sumptuous, sweeping and visually stunning Gothic sensibility and while the film wasn't as terrifying as I thought it was going to be,  it took my breath away in terms of just how stunningly and beautifully - and lovingly - this movie was made. It was an eye-gasm from beginning to end, and not to give anything away, I was more frightened and shaken by the horrors of the living and reminded of how many dark corners can lurk within the human heart.  I was supposed to go with April but she was sick and I will be patient and wait to start hinting to go with her when she is up to it so I have a good reason to return to Crimson Peak!  Seriously, Guillermo del Toro made a movie that felt like a visual love letter to the literature of an period that inspired him as a filmmaker. More than a gorgeous experience, it is an amazing cheat sheet for anyone whose wedding theme is Gothic Romance. So for anyone who is thinking of incorporating this into their big day, please do yourself a favour and see this film! But to be fair, even if you're not planning a wedding, this movie is too enveloping of an experience to miss!

Photo via bustle.com

Photo courtesy of digitaltrends.com

Via digitaltrends.com

As lovely as my Christmas Eve was, I had another big day coming up.  My Christmas Day came shortly after, on October 31st and it was beautiful and full of promise and temptation. Yes, it was Hallowe'en and I have a deep appreciation for trick-or-treating kids in adorable costumes, bite-sized chocolate bars and festive, spooky decor. BUT, something even more wonderful happened....

Phot courtesy of makeupbysiryn.com

Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab released a collection of scents for "Crimson Peak".  Legendary Films and Guillermo del Toro entrusted the Lab with the task of creating an olfactory mood board for the film and based on early reviews of a few prototypes of the scents at various events leading up to the official release, A) they were going to be a stunning collection and B) my wallet was going to in a world of trouble!  I was SO looking forward to the scent impressions of this film as interpreted by a truly amazing perfumery.  When the 26 scents were unveiled, I felt a knot in my stomach as I realized that I don't know how to list a kidney on the black market because I will need a goodly number of the blends. But then I felt elated because for the wedding couples who found visual inspiration from the film, the perfume collection would add another (scented) dimension to the overall Gothic theme. And as a perfume hound, the idea of perfume adding to a theme is immensely exciting, and wearing a perfume inspired by a film that has inspired the theme and overall vibe of a wedding day? Mind. Blown. This is the collection of fragrance blends that encapsulate both elements of the film as well as the dramatic and heady Gothic romanticism of the period (some deliciously scented nose candy!)

*~Black Phoenix Alchemy Labs leads us down the path to Crimson Peak~*


Beware of Crimson Peak... In all her Gothic, heart breaking, mournful yet beautiful glory!

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

(Note: This was the blog post that didn't make it on Monday because my husband tore a muscle in his lower back and wrangling him into a rested and stationary position has been hard graft! I hope you enjoyed it! And also, to be very transparent, I am in no way or shape connected to either Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab or Guillermo del Toro. I have been wearing BPAL for 10 years and love them to bits, I have admired Mr. Del Toro ever since I journeyed through Pan's Labryinth. I'm not receiving anything for writing about either the perfume collection or the film. This is just serious love for the movie and for what it has inspired scent-wise!

Wednesday Wisdom (Tooth) And Rings

Photo via thefrisky.com

Confession: I recently stopped wearing my wedding band.

It's a thin band of gold, no embellishments, just a simple band slimmer than a pipe cleaner that I'd  worn religiously since we tied the knot, except for the period of a month when my cat picked it up off the bathroom counter and played with it until she swatted it down a return vent; had she not taken to sitting beside said vent staring forlornly at it and trying to pry it open, I'd never have found it. No marital discord, scout's honour! We celebrated our wedding anniversary a week ago (we ended up shyly kissing and giggling embarrassingly on the Kiss-Cam at the Toronto Marlies game, which made us feel like we were teenagers again which was kinda sweet considering it was our 21st anniversary and we're not definitely NOT teenagers anymore) so we're definitely cool, marriage-wise. Truth be told,  I haven't worn my engagement ring in at least 15 years. I'm just not a big diamond ring girl.  I'd much rather eat a baguette than wear one, and my ideal pear is juicy, not sparkly! But I will tell you, I have one ring that I would feel lost without is a ring my husband got me 15 years ago. It's a round disc of ivory mother-of-Pearl with a sweet Swarovski crystal embedded slightly off-centre atop a thick silver band. That ring went across the world with me (oh the stories it could tell, and the memories imprinted in it!) and it mysteriously disappeared for a few months (and even more mysteriously reappeared, but that's a story best told around a campfire, deep in the woods when everyone is telling you their best spooky stories) and every time I thought about it or saw a picture of it, I would feel a pain in my chest and I would cry. For serious.  I feel like that ring is my engagement and wedding ring combo that came to me five years after I said 'I do' and will be the ring that I give to my daughter down the road as a keepsake because it is more 'me' than any piece of jewellery I have, bar none.

When I saw an engagement ring that featured a wisdom tooth setting, I perked right up. No, I don't think I'd wear a ring with a human tooth as the focal point, but I so, so, so understand where this couple is coming from and I love that their ring opens up the conversation of what makes a ring special to a person or couple!

*~Your heart on your sleeve (or your tooth on your finger!)~*

The reason I stopped wearing my wedding band is that we're getting ring tattoos.  Again, mine will be just a thin band, of ink this time,  slimmer than a pipe cleaner that will be just as 'me' as my silver ring; this ring will be mine and mine alone from this world to the next. And it will be the ring that means the most to me. So... what will be the ring of your dreams that speaks to you and you alone? Thankfully, just like dreams, engagement and wedding rings are intensely personal and can be as vivid as you imagine, or as ethereal as you wish. Like dreams, they can be as colourful in both tone and design. Be bold and true to yourself - these rings will be with you for long time and will be as unique to you as your eye colour and the tone of your voice. Let them speak for you!


Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April