French Vintage Holiday Party

Last week, Nahid hosted a gorgeous and vintage French inspired dinner party for some of her close lady friends. You’ll see from the pictures the French theme had lavender, white, and hints of salmon colors along with lots of lace touches. It was a very chic take on French living without being obvious–a lovely and easy way to impress your guests!

Just because your theme is French-inspired doesn’t mean your menu has to be the same. Here, guests were treated to Middle Eastern appetizers and entrees.

The teacups and teapots are a really adorable detail! They’re easy to find in either high-end stores or your local antique shop.

And here is Nahid’s daughter, who is lovingly nicknamed her “Little Monster”

Photography by Braja Mandala of MandalaWeddings.com

Florals and Linens: ArtQuest Floral

Rentals: Nahid Farhoud

Holiday Sparkle Inspiration Board

With the holiday season being here, we’re sure you’ll be invited to many festive holiday potlucks, parties and company parties. Now is the best time to wear as much sparkle as you want! From dresses to heels to makeup, you can bedazzle practically any part of your body and stand out in the crowd. New Year’s Eve parties are another great chance to break out some sparkle and glitter to celebrate the good times. Here’s some inspiration to help you shop and get in the festive, sparkly mood

{Dress, Heels, Sparkles, Cake, Makeup, Silver Dresses}

Christmas Tree Decoration Ideas

We’re officially in full-Winter mode! It’s time to put up the decorations and enjoy the merry season. Christmas trees can be a hassle sometimes–needles on the floor, sticky sap, uneven bases.. headaches! We found some great do-it-yourself alternatives to decorating your tree that don’t actually require a tree! From handmade ideas to just new ways to decorate, we hope this inspires you.

{Starfish, Hanging Ornaments, Paper, Santa}

Love the idea of creating Xmas trees out of unique materials. That Santa tree is so cute and funny!

{Handprint, Cards}

The handprinted tree is a great way to get your kids involved in the holiday spirit without making too much of a mess. I especially love the idea of recycling old holiday cards to make a tree display–personal and easy!

An Anthropologie Inspired Holiday

Have you stepped inside of an Anthropologie store before? Well, you should! Even if it’s not to purchase clothes, their store displays are inspirational and worth doing the “No thanks, I’m just looking” speech. Anthropologie’s aesthetic ranges from comfortable luxury to glam boho chic, which makes sense since the parent company is Urban Outfitters, Inc.  Wedding Elegance Assistant, Buu, recently walked into Anthropologie and was amazed by the displays and gifts in the store. They literally encompassed an outdoorsy, cozy, and crafty holiday spirit inside their store!

So here’s some holiday inspiration for you! Whether it’s a whole tablescape, or just some do-it-yourself items, you can host a holiday party or create a rustic, but cozy wedding theme based on Anthropologie.

All items can be found on Anthropologie’s site. All photos were lovingly borrowed from Anthropologie.

Free Holiday Cards!

{The Wedding Chicks}

You heard right! Staples is offering 20 free holiday cards with the use of a coupon until November 19, 2011. To learn more about it/get the coupon, visit Staples.

Now if you have a grudge against Staples or want something a little more original, WeddingChicks, the blog about all things pretty, is offering free downloadable templates to use and print out as holiday cards. Just upload your photo, click “Print,” and BAM! a new window pops open with your free and oh-so-cute holiday card. So easy

But, if you’re more of a DIY-er or love the idea of handmade cards, we spotted some cute ones on etsy.com, that we want to share to inspire you! Or if you love them so much, you can purchase them directly from the sellers, too.

{graceloveDesigns}

{AlmondCrafts}

{TCWitchcraftFactory}

{blueprintPRDesign}

{apaperbuffet}