Happy Holidays!

Wishing you a sweet Holiday!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

~Amanda and Aubrey~

Engagement Ring Trends

I am often asked about trends in the wedding industry, so I wanted to share with you some of the beautiful trends we are seeing in Engagement rings this season.

1. Pave

We are seeing micro pave diamonds on engagement rings and bands.  We are seeing a trend of pave diamonds with all diamond shapes and settings.  We are even seeing rings with pave diamonds on the prongs of the ring. The pave diamonds fit so closely together that you can hardly see any metal.  Just what all the ladies want, more sparkle! This ring is by one of my favorite designers Michael B. 

 2. Halo

This is a trend that started last year and has really taken off.  Halo stands for a Halo of diamonds surrounding the main stone.  This is being done with all stone types.  In most cases the Halo is made up of Pave diamonds. This beautiful Halo ring above is by Simon G.

3. The Solitaire

This is one ring trend that will never fade.  There is nothing more beautiful than a round diamond solitaire.  It really is a timeless ring and will never be out of style.  Another great benefit to the solitaire is that you can dress it up with the wedding band, or just leave its simple elegance.  The sparkling solitaire above is from Tiffany and Co.

What engagement ring trends are you seeing?



Holiday Party

We were so excited we were asked to create another event on WCIU's You and Me this Morning. With the holidays just around the corner we are happy to share with you some of our tips and ideas for your holiday party!

Step Number One:  Pick a Main Color

In this case we chose Red!  But you can choose any color you would like.  We incorporated this color in our linen, napkins and centerpeices.

We incorporated the red color in all of the aspects of our centerpieces.  We used fabric to wrap clear flower vases to give the table more texture.  We also spray painted  clear candle sticks from the Dollar Tree red to match.

To really add some dimension to our table we decided to pick red roses and carnations as the flowers.  Using these flowers you can make a very lush centerpiece at an affordable cost.

Step 2: Choose an Accent Color

For Christmas the traditional colors are Red and Green, but to avoid being too matchy matchy we only used Green as an accent color. These Green chargers we found at Target were the perfect touch of color our holiday table needed.

Step 3: Add a Personal Touch

This may seem way too simple but it is true, people love to see their name in writing! Especially if you are hosting an event in your home, having designated place settings for each guest makes any event more elegant.  We folded the red napkins into a small square and wrapped them in ribbon to look like a present.  Then to add that personal touch we printed each guest name on shimmer card stock and used a tag punch to punch out each name. After that we just secured each tag to the ribbon to complete the look.

Holiday Party Secret!

Want to impress your guests with decorative dishes but cant afford to by fancy china?  These decorative plates we found at the Dollar Tree!  They offer many colors and patterns to choose from. 

Step 4: Add a Signature Drink

This drink does not have to be alcoholic it could even be a punch.  Having a signature drink gives the guests an opportunity to try a beverage that wouldn't usually order.  For this holiday party we used a Peppermint Martini for our signature drink.

Peppermint Martini

Ingredients

•5 ounces of Chopin vodka

•1/2 ounce of Peppermint Schnapps

•Candy canes

•Pour all of your liquid ingredients into a shaker 1/2 full of cracked ice.

•Give a good 20 vigorous shakes and let the shaker rest for half a minute.

•Strain your lucious peppermint martini into 2 martini glasses.

•Add a candy cane in each glass for garnish.

Enjoy!

Step 5: Give each guest a favor to take home

This started when we were all kids.  As we were getting ready to leave our friends birthday parties we received a goodie bag to take home filled with treats and toys. I don't see why there is any reason as adults we can't still receive a goodie bag at the end of an event!  For this segment we wanted to include a treat special to Chicago.  Garrett's Popcorn was the perfect choice.

Candy stations and dessert bars have been very popular at weddings and events.  Why not downscale and have one at your holiday party?  Here you can see we filled the Garretts popcorn into various vases and inserted a scoop on top.  At the center of the table was a gift bag that included a bag to fill with popcorn, a twisty tie to seal your popcorn bag, and a list of favorites foods and drinks for your guests to check out next time they are in your neighborhood!

Step 5: Enjoy yourself!

Holidays are a great time to catch up with friends and family. Save the dishes for later and be a guest at your event!