Inspiration to Invitation: Over the top Opulence meets Over the Top Pop
A while back I was asked to design a baby shower invitation for a shower being held at the super cool Royal T pop art gallery/venue in Los Angeles. With little inspiration to go on aside from the venue and that the mommy-to-be was in the fashion industry, I started looking into what the guests experience would be like for that special day. Since Royal T’s is famous for their Japanese anime inspired pop art I turned to one of my favorite modern artists, Murakami. I wanted to combine the ‘Royal’ experience of the venue name with the art style inside of it, giving it a over the top sunshine meets gilded gold feeling.
Although I love to post ‘Inspiration’ before the ‘Invitation’, the timing of this inspiration came a bit late in my design process, a whole year later. When I heard about the Japanese artist’s exhibit in the Château de Versaille I knew this had to be good…. And, WOW, it is. Murakami wasn’t shy when he met Louis Vuitton, and he certainly wasn’t bashful about meeting Louis XIV.
Without apology, Murakami seemingly took over the palace with his gleaming smiling daisies, dreamlike sculptures and massive gold sculptures. The contrast of excessive glam with excessive expression work so surprisingly well together you can’t help but smile.
Decoration to Celebration: Tie Rack Seating Chart
Recently I came upon to have the exciting and challenging fortune of having a male client. In this women driven industry women tend to forget about their other halves when it comes to weddings and other special events. Although feminine is fun, masculine can be such a stronger and more powerful inspiration when it comes to clean contemporary design.
In keeping with the theme of yesterdays post about the Spoon Rack Seating Chart, I thought it would be fun to share a sneak peak into another event I recently designed. The design was catered to the young dapper dandy that was our client, and in theme, created a vintage dandy meets modern day dandy environment. Here was the clever and stylish way we helped guests find their seats.
Event & Stationery Design by Alchemy Fine Events & Invitations
Photography Jen Lauren Grant
Read More »Decoration to Celebration: Spoon Rack Seating Chart
Tired of tented seating cards with little oomph or meaning? Create a fun and appetizing experience out of finding your seat with this fun idea! We hand hand engraved spoons made for each guest and arranged each table on its own row. Once the guests found their spoon and table to dine, they were then invited to find their very own glass to wine!
Order your own custom engraved spoons from Monkeys Always Look, an adorable local San Diego designer featured on Etsy. 
Check out this and other fun seating chart ideas in the latest issue of Exquisite Weddings Magazine! You can also see it featured on their brand new blog here.
Photography by Chantelle Photography
Read More »Inspiration to Decoration: Little World Design
During the planning and design process of the St. Barths wedding we posted about last week we were trying to find gorgeous, eco friendly and shippable decor items to bring to the tiny island. Enter Little World Design. Heather (formerly of Krislyn) creates wonder filled creations that seem to be born out of a fairy tale. With a seemingly weightless effect, these whimsical objects float and delight from tabletop to aisle as if they were born and grow where they lay. By using natural products and ingenious design methods, she creates decor objects that can be used for many moons after the celebration has said adieu, making them eco friendly as well. We must admit that we have ourselves quite the design crush. Whether it be a coral balsa wood bridal bouquet glittering with swarovski crystals, cleverly designed centerpieces with hidden floral tubes or small ‘oddities’ such as crystal seed pods and leaf skeletons, these designs are a must to add that special unique touch to your special day.
Here are a few words about where she pulls her inspiration from:
“We are inspired by the natural beauty that surrounds us: trees, water, flowers, insects, animals and humans. We love to create botanical objects that fuse these natural elements with unique fabrics and textiles; whereby our objects come to life through this transmutation. Some of our new custom creations include preserved greenery with black crystals dangling from a painted Manzanita branch with black swarovski crystals strewn about, creating a world of miniature objects that is enclosed under a bell jar. We’re constantly seeking fresh materials that allow us to bring nature inside, that blend reality and dream, creating a setting that’s as surreal as it is comfortable, as beautiful as it is thought provoking, tapping into the natural elements within and around us, and bringing them to life for you.” - Heather Pando, Little World Design
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