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One of the materialistic pleasures of wedding planning is accessorizing–of course accessorizing the event, but more importantly, accessorizing yourself. I kept it pretty simple. I wore my sister's veil, wore earrings and a bracelet (given to me as a wedding present by my sister) made by lillyella, and one of the best pairs of shoes I've ever seen in real life.

I'd had fun looking for shoes, but hadn't had much luck. We were trying to throw an epic event for 300 people on a less-than-average wedding budget, so I'd kept myself on a strict $50 or less budget for shoes. Since our wedding would be mostly outdoors, I wanted wedges so that I wouldn't aerate the lawns with my heels and fall flat on my face. I also wanted a pair that would be fun and surprising, but that didn't distract from my gown. {After taking my shoes and gown in for my last fitting, I walked around the part of town I was in, shopping while holding my shoes in my free hand. “Ooohh, what cute shoes!” I had a woman say to me. “Thanks, they're my wedding shoes!” “Oh. But you're not going to wear them with your wedding gown, are you?” “Yeah… I am… They're my wedding shoes.”}

My sister found my wedding shoes while out shopping for herself at no place other than Ross: Dress for Less. I love that place. Love. Along with TJ Maxx and Marshalls, there's no where else I'd rather shop for shoes and house decor. That is, unless, I somehow fall into lots and lots of money and I can rationalize and afford buying those things at Anthropologie. So she called me, told me she'd found my shoes, bought them for me since she knew they'd be perfect… and bought a pair for herself in purple since they were only $14.99. I can't blame the girl.

Anyway, I've had tons and tons… and tons of brides contact me asking me where I got my shoes and what the brand was. (They're Dollhouse, by the way.) Not only are they super cute, but the fact that they were such a steal makes them even more amazing in my book. So this post is dedicated to beautiful shoes: all fun, all statement making, all that could be worn under a wedding gown… all for under $50. {Click on the image of the shoe to be directed to the site it came from. }

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Growing up, I wanted so badly to have an “i” in my name so I could dot it with a heart. I even tried going by my middle name of Laine to attain the floating heart. No one bought into it. So, I guess I over corrected the situation by working hard to have the best handwriting. I wanted people to oooh and ahhh over it. For the most part, I succeeded. My handwriting is one of the few things I can say I feel talented in; it's one of the few things I can accept a compliment about. Though if the truth be told, I'm a bit prideful about it, and I'd be lying if I said my feelings don't get hurt when someone can't read my handwriting.

My sister-in-law and I were working on a logo/header for her new “conceptual spaces” venture and had too much fun perusing DaFont, which inspired this post. Tec and I got all of our wedding suite fonts from DaFont, and found the perfect ones to fit our theme. If you're trying to make your wedding invites, RSVP cards, return envelopes, etc. yourself, make sure you check out these sites.

You'll be amazed at how beautiful you can make these things by having the right font, spaced the right way and in the right color. With the obsession many of us have with typography, design and films like Helvetica, it's no surprise that free font sites like 1001FreeFonts and DaFont have become hugely popular. Below are just a few of my favorites from DaFont. What are your favorite fonts? Are you a sans serif or a serif gal or guy? Cursive versus print?

{HANDWRITTEN}

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Mallory and Phil are quite possibly the most attractive couple I've ever seen in real life. Right? I mean, come on–get a load of them! They were married last fall in Fallbrook, California at the Beverly Mansion. Though I didn't make a lovely for Mallory, I was able to make the boutonnières for the gents! I don't often make boutonnières, so it was a fun diversion and I think these sweethearts came out quite lovely.

Tec was lucky enough to photograph this wedding and I ventured out to the Golden State with him for this sweet ceremony. We made a mini-vacation out of it for ourselves as well! When can you turn down a trip to the coast of California when you live in land-locked Nashville?

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Amanda and Abner's wedding is one of those storybook weddings in my mind –the couple is in love, the colors are rich, the weather is perfect, and the details are just right. My husband, Tec, was able to travel down to the Manasota Keys in Florida to shoot the wedding and spend time with this lovely couple. Visit Tec's blog for more images from the celebration.

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Wow. How stunning is this wedding? Emily and Neil blended classic elements like her necklaces and gown with splashes of bold color and May poles! I'm in love with this wedding.

After Emily and I realized that we were both Atlanta transplants living in Nashville, the distance between us got even smaller when we found out I could see her workplace from our front porch! If you weren't aware, I'm crazy about small world stuff like that.

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Isn't Yia the most naturally beautiful bride? I love the simple elegance of her details, her dress and the decor. Yia and Sal were married along the California coastline in May and had the help of some incredible vendors: wedding coordination and design by Amorology Weddings, paper goods from Flush Designs, and photography by Paloma Images.

For a slideshow of their wedding, see more of Paloma's images from the day here.

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I wanted to showcase some of the images brides have sent my way after we work on a piece or two… or nine, for their wedding day. So here we go; let's kick this week off in style.

Heather and I were able to work together to make these sweet and unique pieces for her wedding back in the spring. She ordered her flower and the boutonnières from the impressive Myra of Twigs and Honey and the flower girl's and bridesmaid's pieces from your truly. I showed these pieces previously, but it's always so special to see the creations in action.

Leo Patrone photographed this wedding and, as always, did a spectacular job. For more images of the wedding you can view them on Leo's blog or over at Green Wedding shoes, who spoke with Heather and got a bit of insight on the day.

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Lately, I've had several orders of multiple pieces, typically for bridesmaids. These are a really sweet set for some lucky gals celebrating a Louisiana garden wedding in a couple of weeks. The outdoor ceremony will overlook the bayou and the reception is being held at the bride's parent's home. She's described the wedding as “simple, organic and chic.” Don't you just love the sound of a comfortable and classy wedding?

The bridesmaids will be wearing beautiful slate-gray shift dresses from BCBG that will work perfectly with the peachy-pinks of these lovelies. And come on -I can never get enough of those guinea feathers. Don't they just finish these pieces off perfectly?

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Since the Petajas have had a change of plans in terms of our abode (I can't wait to share more about this in the coming weeks!), I'm not going to be able to make the trip down to Hot 'Lanta for the NOTwedding. “Boo” is what I have to say about that.

But to tide us all over, I'll give you a peek at what I've been up to for the shin-dig.

{ Miss Winifred }
An ivory gardenia sits pretty with peeks of tulle and a pearl and ostrich feather center.

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Hello, hello, my long lost loves.So good to see you again. Here's another lovely pair of ladies that got their Oh, My Deer treatment for the big day. I love the way the guinea feathers contrast with this stunning eggplant color! If you're interested in having your shoes outfitted with a little bit of OMD lovin', feel free to contact me and we can discuss color combos, fabric options, and all the other goodness that comes along with having a pair of shoes that make your gams look even more fierce than they already do.

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