Well, shut my mouth and call me weird! This is so cool, especially if you're having a Halloween wedding. The latest chiavari chair on the market is this unique little number from Royal Table USA--the glow chair.

BizBash Florida says Royal Table USA has expanded the number of colors in their chiavari chair line, including chairs that glows in the dark. It doesn't say how dark a room has to be for the full effect, but it would be worth it to have a dark, moody, romantic reception, full of candle centerpieces and glowing chairs to show off your wild side.

"Made of high-quality, 100 percent recyclable resin, the chairs are built to resist damage, or the company will replace them free of charge. The minimum order required is 100 chairs, with a starting cost of $49 per unit for standard colors. Specialty chairs sell for $69 each." All you need to do is find a place that rents them!

Get Your Guests in the "Spirits" of Halloween

If you're the kind of bizarre bride who'd fill her wedding reception with chairs that glow and lots of candles, I've got a couple of fitting candle wedding favors for you! Send your giddy guests home with the fabulous Petite Merlot Wine Glass Gel Candle with Heart Charm. This little wine favor is all about spirits that glow, if you know what I mean. If you're looking for "spirits" to match your glowing, green chair, how about the Margarita Gel Glass Candle? The green gel does have a bit of a natural glow to it. So there you go! Three cheers for glowing chairs!

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Well, that depends on what your bottom line is. When it comes to your wedding, is your bottom line a) solely about money, b) all about the look of your wedding, c) all about the look of your butt in your wedding gown, or d) the memories you create for your guests?

Here's help! If your bottom line is:
a) You can find quality, affordable wedding favors for as little as $1 to $2 per guest. Even if you're having a large wedding, the relative cost of favors compared to almost everything else is probably the lowest on your wedding checklist, and your ROI (return on investment--which, in this case is the cost of the favors vs. the delightful memories taken home by your guests) is extraordinarily high.
b) Creatively designed wedding favors can make reception-table place settings sparkle. You can match your theme, your decor and your personality with wedding favors.
c) You're on your own here.
d) Choose the right wedding favor, and your guests will have something in their possession to remind them of your fabulous day long after the sun sets on it. Long-lasting memories are easily made by practical wedding favors, like the Snowflake Bottle Stopper--a winter-wedding favorite (below left,) and the "Swept Off Our Feet!" Bride and Groom Keyboard Dusters (below right.)

The truth is, no matter what your bottom line is for your wedding, favors are worth every penny you spend on them!

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Okay. I'm all for college pride and school spirit, but sometimes I think people take it a step too far. In a blog I read today, the bride-to-be said she and her fiance (either University of Florida students or grads--not clear) are planning an orange-and-blue (UF school colors) wedding. OMG! I think Florida is a great school (Go, SEC!) but come on! If my dream was to make my school colors my wedding color scheme, I would have gone to a college or university that had, how do I put this, less dreadful colors. I mean, they're fine for a college, but for a wedding--yecch!--unless everyone you invite is a gator fan. Clearly, this couple isn't going for the classic, elegant wedding, and that's fine, because those two colors would never pull it off.

Other College Colors Not Quite Suitable For A Wedding

After checking the Internet, I discovered that many, many school colors would work beautifully as wedding decor. And quite a few--well, I'd think twice, and even three times before I made the call. Let's start with Fresno State in California. Their mascot is a bulldog, and their colors are red and blue. Being an American who loves her country, I truly love red and blue. Those glorious colors look fine in a ball park during baseball's World Series and at a presidential campaign rally, but at a wedding? I don't think so.

Here's a timely choice--Oregon State University. Colors? Orange and black. These two colors look great on a football uniform, but not so much at a wedding. Why? Because you want your once-in-a-lifetime day to look like a wedding, not a giant, frou-frou Halloween party! Put your bridesmaids in orange dresses with black trim, and they'll hate you forever--especially the fat ones, who will look like pumpkins walking down the aisle. I won't even get into the fact that their mascot is a beaver.

Wedding-Perfect College Colors

Go, ACC! And go, Georgia Tech--her colors of white and gold are an ideal wedding color scheme. There are so many ways to feature these colors in your wedding--accents on your wedding gown, jewelry, bridesmaid dresses, gold ties on the groomsmen, the chair covers, table linen, dinnerware, centerpieces and wedding favors. Here are a couple of great choices from MyWeddingFavors.com! Striking and delicate, these Orchid Stems in a white vase make an elegant centerpiece that would look simply smashing on a white-and-gold tablecloth! And the orchids even have golden centers. Favors? Just imagine how stunning this Miniature Gold Chair Favor Box with Heart Charm and White Organza Bow would look in the center of each dinner plate at your reception. You have to admit, white and gold is one winning, wedding color scheme. How do your school colors match up?

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Never in a million years would you think Queen Elizabeth II of England--whose photo sits right next to the word "dowdy" in the dictionary--would start a fashion trend, but apparently she has. When her majesty wore a fascinator for the May wedding of her grandson Peter Philips, thousands of other women couldn't wait to jump on the bandwagon. According to Debenhams, a well-known British department store, sales of the accessory have gone up by 82 percent since the Queen was photographed at the ceremony in May. So what, exactly, is a fascinator?

A fascinator is a headpiece worn on the hair. They're commonly made with feathers, flowers and/or crystals and beads, and they attach to the hair by a comb, headband or clip. Designed as an accessory for formal attire, they're gaining in popularity as headwear for brides and bridesmaids, too. Of course, they had a little help from Kenley Collins from Project Runway's fifth season. She's a big fan of fascinators and featured them on some of her models.

When ladies in the 18th century started to dress their hair in elaborate high styles, hats became hair pieces--small arrangements of feathers, ribbons and flowers with which to adorn the hair--and the fascinator was born. More and more brides are skipping the veil in favor of fresh flowers, hair jewelry or, of course, fascinators. Some brides are even using fascinators with veils for a dreamy look.

Breathtaking Bridesmaids

Fascinators for your bridesmaids would be a wonderful addition to your wedding color scheme! And your bridesmaids will have a fabulous accessory they can wear again and again. If you do an Internet search, you'll find lots of sites that sell fascinators, and even the most elaborate ones are not outrageously expensive, so you'll keep your bridesmaids happy. What else will keep your bridesmaids happy? Nothing less than a thoughtful, personal bridesmaids gift to thank them for being part of your milestone moment.

To keep the sparkle going beyond your wedding, here are a couple of extremely thoughtful, personalized bridesmaids gifts from MyWeddingFavors.com. The "Circle of Friendship" Personalized Bracelet with Swarovski Crystals gives you a couple of options. You can choose the crystals to match your wedding color scheme, or you can choose the crystal colors based on each bridesmaid's personality or style. You can do the same with ChaChaBella Hand-painted, Personalized Wine Glasses, which come in a variety of wild colors and prints with each bridesmaid's initial in sparkling Swarovski crystals. What a fun way to toast to everyone's future happiness!

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"I just need one tiny idea, a little spark and I 'm off and running."

Karen Axel

I thought you might like to meet some people at the top of the wedding game, according to Modern Bride magazine. The Top 25 Trendsetters of 2008 are located in the U.S. and abroad, but almost all are from the U.S. Over the next few weeks, I'll feature a few of these wedding wonders to show you what's available to you. Even though these people are based in various cities, I'm sure they'll have no problem getting on a plane or doing whatever it takes to put your wedding in another stratosphere.

First up is Karen Axel, founder of San Francisco's Tapestry Flowers, who creates both innovative and uniquely romantic floral designs by using color and texture in visually stunning ways. Axel, a member of the American Institute of Floral Designers (AIFD,) is known for "ingenious creativity, exceptional quality, and providing the utmost in personal and reliable service."

Karen is known for her floral pave' technique, which is literally paving with flowers--placing blooms tightly together to form one spectacular surface. Needless to say, some of her designs require thousands of flowers. A beach ball-sized sphere takes more than 1,000 carnations.

Unfortunately, the collage below contains the only images of her work I was able to copy into my blog. There are, however, some spectacular images on the TapestryFlowers.com Web site, which is definitely worth a look. There's another place worth a look, too, and that's MyWeddingFavors.com, where you can find favors to equal any one of the vibrant colors or spectacular floral designs created by Tapestry Flowers. A delightful wedding favor match for the floral design below is the Topiary Place Card/Photo Holder (left.) If your wedding hues contain pink or purple, the Orchid Gel Candle (right) is a beautifully elegant favor. And favors from My Wedding Favors won't get lost among even the most elaborate floral displays! Happy Wednesday!

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I recently came across this new technique for wedding photos (or any photos, for that matter) on the Internet, and I was truly captivated by the surreal and dramatic effect this process creates. Waxworks is the company, and their technique is a form of encaustic (beeswax) mixed-media painting process created by highly acclaimed artist, Leah MacDonald, and CEO, Susan Beard. Through franchises, Waxworks offers professional photographers the opportunity to merge any photographic image with their unique art process.

About the Technique

Waxworks employs a unique, ancient Greek technique that transforms normal photographs into tactile pieces of art. Artist MacDonald begins with a photographic image that is mounted onto a natural wood panel and coated in multiple layers of natural beeswax, oil paint and liquid resin. Custom colors and intricate strokes of hand-painting are added to enhance the texture and tonality of each piece so that a special photograph becomes a piece of fine art--interesting and infinitely more memorable.

Before and After

Just to give you an idea of the difference this technique makes, here are "before and after" images:

So I got to thinking--If a bride wanted to turn her favorite wedding photos into spectacular works of art, wouldn't she want wedding favors that were works of art, too? I mean, she's clearly into making the ordinary into the extraordinary which, to me, means that she wants that touch of personal magic in every part of her wedding. If she's an autumn bride, she already has the most beautiful season, bursting with spectacular color, as a dreamy theme. It's easy to incorporate the vibrant hues of fall into candle wedding favors (wax is so versatile,) like the "Fall Leaf" Tea Light with Place Card Holder/Photo Holder. And if art is truly her passion, she'd love the "Autumn Branches" Bronze-Finish Photo Frame, just waiting to hold a lovely photo of her and her groom, or even just a well-loved fall photo. When you think about it, brides are artists, too, creating unique weddings and wedding memories on a blank canvas!

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Holy Frosting, Batman! A friend sent me this slide show of wedding cakes baked by master bakers in Kuwait, and I was mesmerized by their intricacy and beauty. When you see wedding cakes like these--literally, tremendous works of art meant to be admired and enjoyed--you have to wonder what the rest of the wedding is like. I was certainly curious about it, so I checked it out. Here's the scoop on Kuwaiti weddings!

As you'd expect, Kuwaitis adhere strictly to the teachings of Islam, which has specific rules regarding marriage and its related customs. In the case of marriage, the bride and bridegroom will have been approved of, though not necessarily chosen, by both sets of parents. This tells me that most Kuwaitis are permitted to marry for love.

The bridegroom makes a down payment to the bride's father, and the more distinguished the family, the higher the dowry. There's also a delayed payment part of the dowry, which is much larger than the down payment because it's intended for the future security of the bride in the event of divorce or the husband's death.

After the happy couple has unofficially agreed to tie the knot, they become engaged in an Islamic court under Islamic law. Both names are registered, usually by two males or by two females and a male. I don't understand this, but apparently, the formula is that two females equal one male. Once engaged, the couple is legally entitled to date and see each other on a limited basis. In some ultra-traditional arrangements, the bridegroom may never see the face of his wife-to-be until after they are married. Surprise!

The marriage itself is testified to and legalized in the same fashion, after which comes the traditional wedding feast, truly a lavish affair. These cakes clearly attest to that! And at the reception, the males and females rarely fraternize.

So the women, who can be unveiled, are in the same room or tent, where they dance, eat, chant at the tops of their voices, and try to impress and outflatter each other. The bride is decked out in her finest, and sometimes she'll have had her feet and hands temporarily tattooed with a red dye called henna.

The men are also together in similar surroundings. Sometimes, the bridegroom may enter the room or tent where his wife is, where he sits beside her for a while, and then the happy couple leave to start their married life in peace.

So I only have a couple of questions--which gender gets to party in the same tent with the amazing wedding cake, and when does the couple get to cut into it? Oh, and one more--what kind of wedding favors can the guests expect? I have two super suggestions that give those amazing wedding cakes the honor they deserve! First is the Silver-Plated Wedding Cake Place Card/Photo Holder (left,) which guests can use at home to display a photo of the real cake. Next is something more for the women, who sound like they're having a rip-roaring good time in that tent. I think they'd love these "White Wedding Cake" Bubbles, guaranteed to add to the already joyful festivities! So tell me, what do you think of these amazing Kuwaiti cakes?

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When it's your day to shine, make it sparkle from beginning to end! It's easy to do with Swarovski crystals--perhaps the best-known name in the crystals game. Swarovski crystals are expertly faceted and polished to create the world’s finest-quality crystals, and they are used in so much more than simply jewelry. Crystals have been incorporated into a variety of products, and wedding accessories are no exception.

The crystals alone can't do it, but those crystals can have a dramatic impact on every part of your wedding. Though I'm going to show you five options for using crystals in your wedding, for each one I show you, there are probably five more--crystals in your toasting flutes, crystals on your wedding gown, crystals on your bridal shoes, crystals on your unity candles, crystals in your wedding favors--the list goes on.

Ceremony and Reception Essentials

Let's start with "Starlight" Wedding Accessories Collection (above left,) a crystal-studded, coordinated collection that includes a ring-bearer pillow, a guest book and pen, flower-girl basket, unity candle with tapers, a keepsake garter and a tossing garter. Your style shines with this set!

Hair Crystals

There's a growing trend among brides who prefer not to wear veils, but they still want their hair and face to be beautifully adorned. Some are putting fresh flowers in their hair, and others are choosing crystal, pearl and feather-decorated hair pins, combs and even tiaras. And there's no rule that says you can't use crystal combs and hair pins to enhance your veil. Once again, you have an opportunity to let your creativity shine!

Bouquet Crystals

I absolutely love this idea. You can add sparkle to your bridal bouquet with Swarovski crystal stems. Choose from rhinestone hearts or butterflies, or just choose some stems with crystals to match your color scheme! If you want to really personalize your bouquet, you can find your initials in crystals that insert into your bouquet. For even more sparkle, you can carry your bouquet down the aisle with crystal-studded bouquet holders. Crystals and flowers naturally enhance each other, so if you've chosen floral centerpieces, you might want to add crystal stems to those as well.

Cake Toppers

Brides are also moving away from the traditional, tiny bride and groom atop the wedding cake. Instead they're opting for something more contemporary, and this is another fabulous way to let crystals mesmerize your guests with their glistening beauty. The cake topper at the right features silver-finish metal letters decorated with Swarovski crystals, and you can customize your look by pairing two letters with the heart, two letters with the ampersand, or forming a monogram using three letters.

Bridesmaids Gifts

Well, I couldn't leave out jewelry, could I? Needless to say, you can find any type of crystal bridal jewelry imaginable. But I thought we'd take a look at a beautiful bridesmaid gift. The "Circle of Friendship" Personalized Bracelet not only lets you engrave your bridesmaids' initials on the sterling silver-plated disk--you can also choose crystals that match the personality or favorite color of each bridesmaid. At such a wonderful moment in your life, why not share the sparkle!

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