JL DESIGNS: April 2010

Thursday, April 29, 2010

happy spring!

mother's day is just around the corner and spring has officially sprung in cali so here's a cute little daffodil bouquet i made for a photo shoot last year...happy spring!!

tablescape design and bouquet: jl designs

cake design: sweet and saucy shop

table overlay: wildflower linens

photos: jasmine star

Friday, April 23, 2010

an "urban loft" tablescape for utterly engaged

this tablescape has to be one of my favorites...ever...it's like nothing i have ever done before...or even seen before...

the online e-zine, utterly engaged, held a new years party back in january and part of the event was a "design challenge" where anyone could enter in teams of 2 or more to create a tablescape...the only guidelines were:

1. the tablescape has to be MODERN

2. the focus of the tablescape should NOT revolve around flowers but rather some other element - paper, wood, metal, etc.

3. we had to spend $150. or less (not including rentals - we could use whatever rentals we wanted but no chairs)

i was asked to join forces with courtney from joyful weddings and events, then we immediately pulled in jane from olive hue paper to round out our team...from there we started brainstorming...we definitely knew we wanted to take it REALLY modern...like stark modern -fitting for an NYC loft wedding...so we called our theme "urban loft"...

in a industry where it seems nothing is new under the sun, i REALLY wanted to do something different that NO ONE had ever seen before on a tablescape...so i turned to one of my favorite interior retail companies, design within reach, for inspiration...me and my husband have always been obsessed with their "pendant light fixture"...so i thought, what if we created a bunch of those and grouped them on the tablescape, accented with a couple big headed blooms to add a pop of color? and with that, the tablescape was born!

here is our inspiration board:

and here is what we came up with!!!

those string pendants? i took it old school (like elementary days!) and did the whole "blow up a balloon, wrap it with string, slather it in fabric stiffener, let it dry, then pop the balloon" thing...pretty time consuming but SUPER cheap and SUPER different...

gorgeous dark fuschia peonies added that pop of color we needed and their ruffly effect kept it all pretty and feminine...

jane created these adorable glass tags that were attached using fuschia yarn...of course the initials were "U" and "E" in honor of our party hostesses...

courtney wrapped all the votive candles in fuschia yarn to add even more color and also keep the "string" idea running throughout the whole look...

we just had to ask melody of sweet and saucy shop to contribute her delicious cake pops! they were dipped in white chocolate and the little lines on each pop emulated the string orbs on the table...perfect right?

one of my favorite things on the table...jane's menu card...she did a "blind press" where it's letterpressed with no color (look closely to see all the font on the left side of the card) which i thought went perfectly with our whole "stark modern" vibe...then she flooded the right side of the card with a massive fuschia peony bloom...i loved it so much i kept mine and saved it :) we added more fuschia string to the napkin treatment, keeping it clean but adding texture...

how exciting that we tied for 2nd place at the party!! to see our feature in the e-zine, click here...

thanks to the utterly engaged girls for hosting a fabulous party and to jasmine star and jd for taking all the great photos! to melody for her yummy cake pops and to wildflower linens and classic party rentals for their contributions!

and thanks a million to my fabulous team mates, courtney and jane! i am so proud of what we came up with and i LOVED collaborating with you two! big hugs!! :)

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

JL DESIGNS featured in bride and bloom magazine!

we are SO excited to featured in the latest issue of bride and bloom magazine, on newstands NOW!

they put together a "top ten" of their favorite weddings they have featured in the last 5 years...the only NEW wedding they featured was the one i designed for nba player brian cook! seriously SUCH an honor!

i have to thank kathy and susan from bella weddings for bringing me in on this event and also leila from be inspired pr for working so hard on the submission itself! also, big thanks to carol poon, editor in chief at bride and bloom for choosing to showcase this wedding and jasmine star for taking the beautiful photos :) and of course much love to brian and victoria for trusting me with the design of their day - they were an absolute pleasure to work with!

be sure to check back in because i will be blogging this wedding either tomorrow or friday :)

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

erin and brent - laguna beach engagement session

this post is very near and dear to my heart because the couple is actually my sister-in-law and her fiance!!! they came all the way out to california for their engagement session so of course i offered to style everything for them...erin was really inspired by jen's love shoot on green wedding shoes, so i told her i would take that vibe and run with it...

i brought in all of my own vintage furniture, crates and props to create a little "living room" vignette along the side of the road in the laguna canyon...erin wanted it quirky, playful and eclectic...so i used an amber glass lamp with no shade, a strange constellation globe that i found at a good will, an hourglass, old tea tins, brass pots, vintage green vases, and a tufted velvet wingback chair to name a few things...

it was raining all week and it sprinkled that day, so we crossed our fingers it would clear up for the shoot - and it did, just in time :)

erin wore her wellies and brought her own antique umbrella in case of more rain...i thought they ended up looking so cute!

the skies were dark and gloomy but the rain held off...

and then...the sun peaked out!!!!

this photo is SOOOO brent and erin - i love it...

i have been DYING to use a tumbleweed in one of my events or shoots for so long now...when i spied this big boy i just knew we HAD to use him :)

i hung a floral sheet in some low-lying trees to create a little "fort"...blankets on the ground, petite floral arrangements of yellow acacia, a hobnail milkglass lamp (again with no shade) and some turquoise and celadon green pillows completed the breezy but cozy feel...

hands down my FAVORITE photo of the day...

i think that gabriel and carlie, the husband and wife team who make up gabriel ryan photographers, did an amazing job on this shoot!! i can't wait to see how they capture the wedding in september :) hugs to you both!

also, a HUGE thank you to jen at green wedding shoes for posting this session today on her blog! you have inspired erin so much during her planning process - keep the fab posts coming!!

brent and erin, i am SO excited for your wedding and for your new life together as husband and wife! brian and i can't wait to be able to officially call brent a part of our family :) and it was so fun to have you back in cali - come visit again soon! love you....

oh and check out my sister-in-law's blog, erin pot pie! it's pretty darn funny...

Monday, April 5, 2010

helen and mike - the ritz-carlton, laguna niguel

this wedding actually took place last 4th of july at the ritz-carlton in laguna niguel...but the colors (creams and buttery yellows) and florals (peonies, garden roses, sweet peas, tulips, hydrangea) just ooze with springtime so hopefully you all won't mind :)

helen and mike were going for a look that was classic and elegant, with a touch of "european-rustic"...we wanted to bring in some elements of the french countryside, while still tying in with the romantic, old-world vibe of the hotel...with the vision of beth helmstetter and the gorgeous photos by mary jane, i think we did pretty darn good if i say so myself!

enjoy!

flower girls carried pale yellow watering cans full of ivory rose petals...

bridesmaids bouquets were made up of garden roses, double tulips and sweet peas...

bridal bouquet consisted of peonies, garden roses, ranunculas and tulips...

i LOVE this first look photo...so much joy!

helen's dress (by lela rose) was quite possibly my favorite dress i have ever seen one of my brides wear...if i was getting married all over again, i would wear THIS dress...hands down...just wait until you see the ruffle on the back! it's clean, modern, classic, feminine...i love it :)

for the ceremony, we flanked the altar area and aisle head with 4 large, chocolate brown urns filled with curly willow branches, white delphinium, ivory hydrangea, gardenia leaves and pale yellow roses...clusters of theme florals were tied to every other chair using an oatmeal colored linen ribbon...

set on the ground, every other row, were dark brown wood boxes filled with petals for guests to toss upon conclusion of the ceremony...

could this wood sign by laura hooper be ANY cuter?!?! and the wheel barrow of lemons brought in by beth helmstetter was one of my favorite touches that day...

the lemonade station beth designed was made out of 2 wine barrels and an old wood door! wood wine crates were used for height and mason jars served as glassware...we accented the station with fresh mint, lavender, rosemary and lemons...

there it is...that gorgeous ruffle on the back of helen's dress...amazing right?

the reception took place inside the ballroom so we didn't want to go too rustic for the florals and decor...beth found a perfect linen for the tables which had an organic looking raised twine on top...she also brought in the amazing scalloped edge plates for a french countryside feel...