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Happy 2nd Blogiversary to Something Detailed

 Yes, that's me...in 1986(?) and in 2010. Crazy huh?

Wow! I can't believe I've been keeping this blog for 2 years today! Happy blogiversary to me. Maybe I'll enjoy some cake tonight.

It's been almost 3 years since I started creating beautiful paper details for Nashville Brides. I have met so many wonderful brides, bridesmaids, mothers, friends and wedding planners along the way. Here's to many more people and blogging to come!

With the announcement of the Something Detailed blog turning 2, I have some big news for my loyal readers to enhance your blog experience. Details to come on the big reveal next week!

Wedding Invitation: Pool blue, Chocolate & Cream

This wedding invitation is a simple design for an intimate affair. A brocade design creates a border across the top and bottom of the invitation in chocolate brown and cream. 

What's great about this invitation is that the background can be switched from pool blue to any color you'd like - It would be beautiful in light pink for a baby shower or a lemon yellow.

New Etsy Items: Birth Announcements

 Check out Something Detailed over at Etsy to get yours!

Aisle Runner: Alicia & Stephen

Hand painted aisle runner for Alicia and Stephen in 

apple green and blue (David's Bridal, horizon) 

Runners are digitally designed and then painted on your runner 

where ever you would like. This one is at the very end of the runner. 

These runners are pretty opaque and have a poly backing to 

help them hold up under foot traffic.

Co-Ed Wedding Shower: Vintage BBQ

Mae Beth & Allen's shower was this past weekend at Jim & Nick's in Birmingham. The 5 Points location has a great room for parties - also great for rehearsal dinners. I kept it simple using centerpieces down each long table. 

Using chalkboard paint, after scraping the labels off about 15 wine bottles (!), the bottles got a nice matte black coat of paint. I then applied cut out letters that included conversation starters for the tables. This one says Superior Grill, the couples favorite, low-key, restaurant. Also used were childhood nicknames, first pet names, where he proposed, first date location, etc.

I loved these little $1 frames from Michael's, customized with a little note "Love is sweet like BBQ". Everything sat on a 12" square piece of burlap. 

These galvanized pails are from IKEA. $.79 each. Customized labels matched the invitations. The flowers were from Import Flowers off Murphy Rd in Nashville. If you haven't been there, you have to go for your next event.

I also made gourmet s'mores for dessert! YUM. I'll share the recipe later this week.

Everyone had a blast. An easy, no set up, no cooking, no clean up shower is always the best. And the couple got some LOOT - I mean the gifts were insanely good, plus the bride has impeccable taste. I'm so looking forward to their wedding in October. 

Polite Southern Women (& Men) Reply to RSVP's: Courtesy of Cindy Edwards via Paula Deen

I simply could not resist re-posting this article on PaulaDeen.com (you can read the original here). If you have ever planned a wedding or party, you will become frustrated with people who do not rsvp. If you are in the midst of planning your wedding now, you will soon find out how important the courtesy of a reply to an invitation is. Cindy says it best in this article, so I'll let her be on this soapbox for now. But, I would like to pull out a quote from this article that says exactly how I feel about people who don't bother letting you know they are attending your event.

"Let’s back up for a bit and remember what we know about being polite: Quite simply, it is behavior that seeks someone else’s comfort before that of your own."

How quickly should I respond to an invitation?

by Cindy Edwards

If you have ever given a party or planned a wedding, then you truly appreciate the many hours of preparation that go into a successful occasion. Knowing how many people to expect is key to orchestrating the perfect party or event.

Let’s back up for a bit and remember what we know about being polite: Quite simply, it is behavior that seeks someone else’s comfort before that of your own.

A hostess spends many hours planning her event: setting the date, selecting the menu and finalizing her guest list. It is a special occasion for her and her guests.  Numbers are crucial to the success of her party. After all, she gave serious thought to including you and you should show respect and consideration for her by responding quickly.

Quickly means as soon as possible. Therefore, check your calendar and make arrangements in order to attend or regret promptly if you know that you will not be able to attend.

How should I reply?
Reply in the same manner that you were invited.
If…
… your neighbor calls and invites you and your husband over for a barbeque, you may accept or regret immediately. Or, check with your spouse and call back in a day or two.  I recommend checking with the spouse first!

… you receive a beautiful invitation in the mail with a phone number and a deadline for reply, please check your schedule and reply quickly in the manner requested. The same courtesy should be extended to an invitation that lists an email address. Of course, make sure that you reply before the deadline. Keep your message or call brief, and do not feel obligated to give an excuse or explanation for a regret.

… you receive a formal invitation the requires a formal written response, follow the form or style of the invitation. If it reads:

Mr. and Mrs. John Edward Doe
request the pleasure
of your company
for cocktails and dinner
Friday, the third of June
at half past seven o’clock
234 Shadow Brook Lane
Savannah, Georgia
R.S.V.P.

Note: R.S.V.P. is an abbreviation of the French phrase “respondez s’il vous plait”, which is a request for your reply. I have seen it in all caps (RSVP) and with periods (R.S.V.P.) in several different etiquette books. It may also read “the favor of a reply is requested” or “please reply”.

Simply pull out your informal note cards or your beautifully engraved half sheet stationery and pen the following response spaced in the same manner as the invitation:

Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Michael Watson
accept the kind invitation of
Mr. and Mrs. John Edward Doe
for cocktails and dinner
Friday, the third of June
at half past seven o’clock
234 Shadow Brook Lane
Savannah, Georgia

If you need to regret, it would read:
Mr. and Mrs. Anthony Michael Watson
regret that they are unable to accept
the kind invitation of
Mr. and Mrs. John Edward Doe
Friday, the third of June

Note: It is not necessary to repeat the date, time and place of the event in a regret, but it is nice to repeat the specifics in an acceptance so that the host is confident that you have the correct date, time and place.

What if…
… your plans change? Inform your host as soon as possible. You should only change a yes to a no for a very good reason. Only change your response if it is unavoidable and do so as soon as you know. An illness, death or professional conflict is an appropriate excuse.

…  you have out-of-town guests or want to bring a date? Consider the invitation. If it is for you and a guest, it would be fine to notify the hostess of your guest and bring him/her to the party. However, it is just not acceptable to ask to bring someone extra. If you inform the hostess that the reason you are regretting is because you have houseguests, she may extend the invitation to your guests. But, if she is working with tight numbers, do not expect this inclusion and bow out gracefully.

… you can go, but your spouse cannot? Use your judgment. If you receive a casual invitation from your best friend inviting you and your husband to come over for dinner on Friday night and only one can make it, you should explain the conflict.  She will either ask you to come alone or she will offer to include you another time.  You just simply follow her lead. If the invitation is for a more formal or seated dinner, I would probably regret and try not to complicate the situation. 

As always, thanks for reading!

Properly yours,

Cindy

Cindy Edwards embodies everything pretty, perky and proper about the South. She's a wife, mother, volunteer and freelance writer. Cindy volunteers enough hours to exhaust most by serving on the Board of Trustees for the Telfair Museums, the Savannah Book Festival Board of Directors and the University of Georgia Honors Advisory Board. She has also served on the Boards of the March of Dimes and Young Life Savannah. Cindy has been married to her college sweetheart, Dr. Joe Edwards III, for 24 years and is the proud mother of two sons: Joe IV, a junior at the University of Georgia, and Jack, a rising senior in high school. No matter how busy, Cindy always makes time for a competitive game of bridge.

Vintage Wedding Shower Invitation

This vintage wedding shower invitation is for a very dear friend of mine! It was so easy to capture her style for this upcoming shower.

It's a 9x4" invitation with lots of information on it! It's a couples shower where we are going to stock their bar and their house. The guys are supposed to bring something to stock their bar and the girls are supposed to bring something to stock their house. Should be an interesting party!

We also did a label wrap on these beautiful smokey gray No. 10 envelopes.

Looking forward to posting the vintage-casual party details soon!

Nashville Parties: 60th Birthday Party {Part 2}

Part 2 of Mary Sue's 60th birthday party! Daughter and DIY party planner, Suzanne, came to me a couple of months ago to help her create all the details of her mom's big surprise. Part of her vision included 2 display tables with pictures and messages from old friends.

You'll notice the patterned fabric on the background of this board is also what we used for the runner on the table on on the invitation.

We found the fabric first and created the bottom layer of this pretty little thing, custom to the theme.

The first display was inspired by the boxwood's at Boxwood Bistro. I found boxwood vine and balls to decorate this message display, wrapped in burlap. Each friend wrote a note to Mary Sue which was compiled in a keepsake book for her to keep.

Each scalloped card had an adjective to describe Mary Sue and hand made (sewn) flowers attached to the board -  more favors! We also framed the invitation and the recipe cards they gave as favors to the party guests - even more favors!

The other display board was wrapped in the patterned fabric. We used an old window, picked up for $5, and spray painted it to match the yellow in the theme - along with the crates that held photos in beautiful white picture frames, among the scattered boxwood and twine balls.

Mary Sue was in such a state of shock when she walked in - priceless look on her face. I love being behind the scenes to see people's reactions!

Nashville Parties: 60th Birthday Party {Part 1}

Party planning isn't always for kids, babies and brides. It's for 60th birthday's too! This fun and vivacious birthday party was for Mary Sue, aka: owner of B. Jackson's Bakery in Arrington, TN - check her out. Delicious stuff.

The vision of the party was built by Mary Sue's daughter and party host, Suzanne. She pulled pictures from the web and over a couple of coffees at Starbucks, we designed and planned the whole thing together. The party was held in a private room at Boxwood Bistro, located at the Factory in Franklin, TN. The idea of a warm spring Saturday and boxwood started the brainstorming. We incorporated coral pink, bright yellow and summery greens into all of the paper details.

Mary Sue showed up thinking that she was just having a quiet lunch with a couple of close friends. She had no idea that she was getting a custom made party with all these details and was completely surprised!

 
The back room at Boxwood Bistro, over looking the deck and courtyard, was the perfect room - lots of light and room for one big table and displays. The dining room was transformed! Linens were by Southern Events in Franklin - sage table cloth and pin point corn silk yellow napkins with large square white chargers. The runner was custom made - more on that later.

Every part of this party had touches of Mary Sue - a baker, and gardener and grandmother, a "Paula Deen", a mother and a friend. On top of the charger, we folded the napkin to show off the custom menus and (one of the many) party favors, an olive wood spatula. The place cards sat on top of hand folded paper boxes. The paper was chosen to specifically match the color palette and just happen to also have lilies too. The box was filled with green moss and another party favor - lily bulb for guests to plant at home. We even were able to find coral pink striped paper straws on Etsy from Dandy You. For all of these goodies, we had favor bags with a custom sticker. Mary Sue's seat was marked with a custom monogrammed sign.

One of my favorite favors was a little box of custom designed and baked chocolates from Schakolad Chocolate Factory in Cool Springs. They last thing you can give a person who bakes cakes everyday is more cake, so we gave her what every woman can never get enough of - chocolate. They created a special 3-piece chocolate box, with dark, champagne and cheesecake chocolates, with a custom 60 piped on the center treat. We matched the ribbon to the coral ribbon used in the rest of the party. This cheesecake chocolate was to die for - Schakolad is serious about chocolate. And you can get just about anything you want there.

This is just the beginning of the beautiful birthday party. Part II later this week!

Nashville Party Invitations: Cinco de Mayo

So you could see it up close... the cinco de mayo inspired party invitation. Love this for a casual rehearsal dinner or shower theme. Hint: more to come on that little thought soon! :)

Photo by the wonderfully fabulous Angela Disrud Photography

Inspiration Shoot: Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo is just 1 week away! Next Thursday, Mexican's and American's alike will mix margarita's and eat south of the border fare to celebrate Mexico's heritage. Here is some bright, non-traditional inspiration for your Cinco de Mayo party. See something you like? Check out my Etsy store to purchase your Cinco de Mayo party invites or menus!

Loving the yellow, lime green, hot pink and purple pops of color. So cheery and bright!

menus and invitations match this brightly colored decor

 food labels, water bottle labels, fiesta banner and ticker tape garland

This ticker tape garland is SO easy to make. I cut 1" stripes of 12x12 scrapbook paper in half. Stacked them up next to the sewing machine and just sewed right through them. 

 esquites (corn) cup labels, salsa bar labels

Let's eat cards & table setting
 

A special mention to Nashville Wedding Photographer, Angela Disrud for taking these pictures. She is wonderful - check her out!

Burlap Invitations for Low Country Boil (Crawfish Boil)

These invitations are for an event being held at a place that is near and dear to my heart. In Point Clear, Al, there is a little Inn (Dorgan's Inn) that sits on the wharf. (I am from South Alabama, and my family still lives there.) Dorgan's has this fabulous pier and deck that reaches way out into the bay. This couple is holding their rehearsal dinner way out there on that pier and serving a southern fav...crawfish. Their decor will use burlap, ice blue glassware and vases and these beautiful lanterns with red candles.

Oh yes...the important part...the invitations!

That's real burlap... it was a little experiment on my part to figure out how to get it stiff. After lots of fabric stiffener... and a really big mess on my patio...it worked perfectly.

So happy to see these meet the mother of groom's expectations. These will definitely set the tone for casual, relaxed and fun out on the bay.

Modern Magnet: Save the Date

Modern Save the Date magnet

Chocolate | Turquoise | Chartreuse | Rust Orange

Images by Angela Disrud Photography
Nashville Wedding Photographer - check her out!

1st Birthday Fun: Water Bottle Labels

More birthday fun! This time for little Saydee. Inspiration: this beautiful cake!

Photos by Serene Spaces Photography

I Love Him Sign: Groom's Cake Table

There are so many ways to decorate a groom's cake table. Personalized napkins, a custom themed cake for his favorite team, pictures, flowers... but, how about creating a sign that lists all they ways you love him??? 

This bride listed everything she loved about her groom and we put it on a sign. The sign was mounted on foam core and was on the cake table to surprise him at the reception.