oh how i wish i could be her!

I was researching circus acts {as I more than occasionally find myself doing...} and found the most amazing act I've seen in a long time. I love this awesome woman! I'm going to have dreams of flying tonight that is for sure. I've done my fair share of crazy stuff in my life but in no way have I ever come close to competing with her. She might just be my new favorite hero! I wonder if she ever had a circus wedding?! Too bad she was doing this in 1936, otherwise I'd track her down and send her an admit one ticket to my wedding!! Oh and I think I would force her to be my friend too...just being honest.

snazzy suspenders

Dan did not like my idea that he should be the Ring Master at our vintage circus wedding and he didn't want to wear a top hat cause he has nice hair that shouldn't be covered {it's true!} but he did say he would be willing to wear suspenders and all-stars and he came up with this all on his own {yippeee!} And then...would you believe it?!... like two days later on Green Wedding Shoes blog I found these amazing pics of groomsmen wearing suspenders and all-stars! Dan approved and yesterday he bought himself some fantastic Jack Purcell Converse and this Saturday he is taking a shopping trip to Holt Renfrew to find a snazzy pair of John Varvatos pants with suspenders. I have butterflies just thinking of the cuteness!

practice wedding linens

For my "Practice Wedding" I'm looking for some vintage-inspired fabrics for tablecloths. I'm only having small 4 person tables scattered about so they can be fairly patterned. I desire a 'mis-matched yet matched' feel - like I just threw it all together even though everyone will know that I didn't really. The colours seem to be leaning toward a aqua/yellow palette. So far I've found these fabrics as options but I'm not completely sold since they are a bit more green than they should be. But do they give an easy breezy vintage mis-matched yet matched feel? Or do they scream 'she tried too hard!'? Again, in case you don't know, its a Vintage Circus slash Tim Burton's 'Big Fish' themed wedding! Anyone brave enough to make suggestions?!

i dreamed i wrote a blog in my maidenform bra

Our mom always jokingly quoted the famous Maidenform Bra ad campaign from the 1950's and 60's where women 'dreamed' of being in certain situations - 'riding a gondola, painting the town red, playing Cleopatra' - in their Maidenform bras. I remember shouting 'Mom where are you?' to the response of 'I'm making spaghetti in my Maidenform bra!'.

I can imagine that these scantilly clad ads were quite risqué for their time, but they seemed to allow women in that era to 'dream' they could be free and sexy and do what they pleased {I'm sure there are a ton of feminist views on these!}. The successful ad campaign always intrigued me though, and I was lucky enough to find a calendar from Urban Barn that featured these vintage chic ads! Looking for something to jazz up my bathroom, I decided to frame some of my favourites to add a bit of quirkiness to my decor. Here is a picture of my wall, and some ads...they are just too good not to share!

real wedding: julia + iain

Oh, what a beautiful wedding was Julia + Iain's. Using the colour palette of marigold and pewter, Julia and Iain asked inBloom to combine modern, vintage and Scottish elements for their autumn wedding at McMichael Canadian Art Collection in Kleinburg. Not only was it a gorgeous wedding, but take a look at the couple themselves! Is Julia not the most beautiful bride you've ever seen? I think someone could have a back-up career as a bridal magazine model if you ask my opinion. Take a look at some of the details of Iain + Julia's wedding below {photos by Jocelyn Fisher Photography}. There are more pics on our gallery on our new website at www.inbloomeventdesign.com.

holy, gorgeous bride!

a scottish piper leads the bride at the ceremony

various sized glass mason jars with tea light candles inside line the log behind julia + iain as they say i do i do i do!

vintage pop shoppe with curly "tie the knot" straws were served to guests

julia wrote each guest's name on river stones, to be used as placecards

orange mokara orchids + dahlias in glass mason jars line the tables

iain's bouttoneire was a scottish thistle with yellow berries {made by Rosebuds + Blossoms}

the happy couple

wedding eye candy

I love decorating. If I could sit all day and just come up with inspiration boards for wedding after wedding I'd be in design heaven. There are just so many delicious things to look at in this world. So many odd little ways to put it all together. Here are a few things that I've collected over the last little while that have been inspiring me for my own wedding[s]. I'm so happy I get to decorate two of them. My big "real" wedding seems to be shaping up to be a elegant, beachy affair with breezy layered fabric, bushy sprays of orange flowers, flower pots and jars of candles. My "practice" wedding more of a whimsical combination of found objects, vintage inspiration, lace and old-fashioned tent circuses.

These next pics are inspiring my practice wedding. I'm thinking of hanging objects from the trees on my family property. I've picked a section of the property that is mixture of old evergreen trees with spindly arms and big maple trees that create a beautiful natural canopy. It gives a feeling of an enchanted forest that fits perfectly with my whole circus tent vision!

Top picture of mason jar candles courtesy of East Side Bride. I think I'm tempted to double this idea for both my practice and my real weddings. Mason jar candles are equally appealing in both venues! Pictures two, and three from adorable vintage wedding found on Snippet & Ink. And the last two pics are from Martha Martha Martha!

And not to forget the beachy wedding inspirations of my real wedding. These are a few of the things I've added to my list of desires:

The flower pot is from IKEA. The invitations are courtesy of Kenzie Kate's Something Old, Something New blogspot. Message in a bottle guest favors originally from Martha Stewart (of course!) but found on Bridalwave site. And the succulent guest favor was featured in the InStyle Weddings Fall 2008 issue.