At Last: Custom Shoes by Nina

Believe it or not, when I planned my own wedding, I spent more time trying to find “THE SHOES” than “THE DRESS”! Odd as it may sound, I know I am definitely not the only bride who had a hard time finding the perfect pair of heels for my trip down the aisle. I lusted after some Manolos, Jimmy Choos, or Louboutins, but knew that realistically, they were not in the budget!

These are the Nina heels that I ended up wearing (from DSW)… I think they were the 4th or 5th pair I purchased (and returned) on my shoe quest. They were nice, but I definitely “settled” because I couldn’t find what I was looking for. And not to mention, slingbacks always tend to slide off my heel and I end up stepping on the straps…

Now if only Nina offered custom shoes back then!! I might have paid the $200 price tag for the perfect pair of shoes… Visit the Nina website and have some fun!

They currently offer 3 styles, and your choice of heel height and multiple color combinations:

Electra

Paladin

Culver

 

You can choose your color in 3 different areas: upper, heel and bow:

And considering how hard it is to determine actual colors on your computer monitor, it would definitely be wise to order their mini swatch book for $9.95, which is applied to your order later on if you decide to buy them.

What combination would I pick now? I would choose the Electra with the 3.25” heel in gold royal satin with a red rouge satin bow!

What combination would you pick??

Visit the Nina site to design your custom shoes!

Blog Love: my DIY wedding day

I just heard about the cutest new DIY wedding blog, my DIY wedding day from the editors of WeddingChannel.com! Its relatively new, so the archive isn’t huge yet, but there is so much potential! Readers can also submit their own DIY projects, which is part of the fun. Definitely check it out and submit your own DIY goodness (and let me know when you do!)

Featured projects that were super cute:

 Flowerbed centerpieces and favors

Personalized stir sticks

 Paper boutonniers

What do you think?!

Married: Lei Lei & Steven!

Lei Lei and Steven are high-school sweethearts who have been dating for over 10 years, many of which were spent long-distance! One of my favorite moments of the wedding was during Lei Lei’s father’s toast, when he apologized for chasing Steven out of their house when they were just teenagers, hehehe. Their lovely ceremony was held at Bond Chapel on the University of Chicago campus (Steven is alum!), a picturesque chapel tucked in the heart of U of C with beautiful stained glass windows. Their lunchtime reception was hosted at Wildfire Restaurant downtown, so you can be sure the food was FAN-tastic! Perk: Since the restaurant does not open for lunch, we had the entire place to ourselves! Perk #2: vendors got to eat filet mignon too :) And on a side-note, their staff was top-notch!

Lei Lei found me over a year ago through Weddingbee, and she was the first bride to ever book me without having ever met me! Thanks for the trust and vote of confidence, Lei Lei! And without a doubt, this was the most relaxed and easy going wedding I have coordinated to date! Thanks, Lei Lei and Steven for being such a joy to send down the aisle!

The wedding was captured on film (errr, jpeg?) by the fabulous Laurie Peacock and her awesome second shooter, Steve Koo. Enjoy!

Cute & comfy red shoes, and Lei Lei’s gorgeous Alvina Valenta lace gown!

About to see each other for the first time in their wedding finery…

 

Their first look… *tap tap*!

 
This picture gets me all misty eyed…

Adorable details - She SEWED her ceremony programs!

 

“WE DID IT!!”

Do you see the way they look at each other?! *le sigh*

The reason why all brides & grooms should pay attention to their footwear!

Do you see what we worked into their reception itinerary?? Update their Facebook status!
Gotta love it!! 

For some entertainment, they played the shoe game (more info about that another day), which was a HUGE HIT!

They also set up a MAC photobooth and some hilarious props (another hit with the guests!).    
       

It was obvious that Lei Lei’s bridesmaids ADORED her!

Now you may wonder, “Do people actually dance at a lunchtime wedding?” Uhm, YES, THEY DO! These guests knew how to get down, and even Lei Lei’s 11 yr old sister had some MOVES!

Pooped, but happy and married!

Ceremony: Bond Chapel
Reception: Wildfire Restaurant
Photographer: Laurie Peacock
Videographer: Jeff Manimbo
Flowers: GnG Designs
Cake: Sugar Syndicate
Stationery: Lei Lei!

New Blog Opportunity for Sweetchic Events!

A few weeks ago, I was super excited when I was personally contacted by the site director of TheKnot.com. He offered me the opportunity to blog for their new Chicago Wedding Blog on their recently launched microsite, Chicago.weddings.com. I’m happy to announce that the blog went live this past weekend! Currently I am the only blogger (guinea pig!), and of course you’ll notice that the blog content is being pulled from this Sweetchic Events blog, but eventually they plan on adding more bloggers from other vendor categories. Stay tuned and wish me luck (coming up with good, consistent content is hard)! And check out the rest of the site – there is a wealth of information there!

Giveaway for a Deserving Chicago Couple!

  {Photo courtesy of Slack Photography}

Do you know of a wonderful, engaged couple that has recently encountered some hard times in the midst of planning their Chicago wedding?  Perhaps one of them was recently laid off, or there are some other extenuating circumstances that are making it difficult for them to handle all of the (numerous) wedding expenses…

Send them our way, we want to help! Led by Thomas of Slack Photography, a few Chicago-based wedding vendors and myself have teamed up to offer our services at no charge to one deserving couple. What’s on the line:

• Photography by Slack Photography
• Videography by Kiwimonkie Films
• Day-of Event Management by Sweetchic Events
• Personal flowers by Kio Kreations

Requirements: The wedding must be taking place in Chicago/surrounding suburbs and in 2009 - we are hoping to help a couple in more immediate need!

How to apply: Send an email to slackphoto@hotmail.com with your story and why you need our help, along with a picture of you and your fiancé/fiancée. (You can also submit an application on behalf of a deserving couple.)

Deadline: None… we’ll accept applications until we find the right couple, but we don’t think this will take long! So get writing… and we’ll announce the winning couple when we find them!

The nitty gritty: The winning couple will ultimately be chosen by Slack Photography, and they may receive ALL or a PORTION of the above mentioned services, depending on the availability of the vendors. Participating vendors will do our best to accommodate the couple, and at the very least they will receive complimentary wedding photography by Slack Photography. 

Good luck, and please pass this exciting opportunity along!!
  
        

A New Headshot!

Over the weekend at the wedding of clients Lei Lei and Steven (more about them later when I have some pictures to share!), I had the pleasure of working with awesome photographers Laurie Peacock and her second shooter, Steve Koo. They rocked it, and I can’t wait to see the results!

Steve arrived at the reception first to capture the detail shots, and I had a minute to pose for a quick picture. Lo and behold, I have a new headshot! Thanks, Steve!

 
{Image courtesy of Steve Koo}

Inspiration Board How-To

Have you ever wondered how people put together those awesome inspiration boards that you see ALL OVER the internet, and yet, you literally have no idea how to create one yourself? (I admit, I didn’t know either!)

Well here’s an easy-peasy way that requires NO knowledge of Photoshop or any other graphics program:

Helloooo MosaicMaker!

You can link images from other sites, or you can upload your own images (you need to register to upload, but it’s easy and free!). You can even order your end collage as prints. They give you a variety of layouts to choose from, such as:

Square Tiles

 
Thin vertical frames

4 x 4 with large center

I decided to have some fun with images from my own wedding… Images all courtesy of the awesome, Dennis Lee!

Ahh, the memories…

What do YOU use to create your inspiration boards? I’d love to hear about some more (easy) options!