Ashley Brooke Designs: Guest Posting for Intertwined

The lovely ladies at Intertwined, a wonderful wedding and special event planning company, asked me to write a guest post on their blog about "What Every Bridesmaid Needs To Know"! I was honored to write such a special post for them!



Here is a little snippet of the post:

  Okay so here is the deal, the real deal... being a bridesmaid can go one of two ways, horribly wrong or oh-so-right! I myself have been in my fair share of weddings and fortunately for me I've loved every second of it!

The fact of the matter is that being a bridesmaid is an honor, truly. To be selected to stand up next to someone while they commit their lives to loving another is a BIG deal! And unfortunately for some, that part, what I consider the whole part, might be overseen.

...Click here to continue reading!



Thank you so much Katie and Meghan. xxoo- Ashley Brooke

Content and Illustrations ©2010 Ashley Brooke Designs. All Rights Reserved.

Ashley Brooke Designs: A *Post* Elopement Party!

The blissfully happy newlyweds Samantha and Chad contacted me needing something really special for her post elopement party! I was thrilled to be asked to design something so sweet! Samantha and I worked together on her Elopement Anouncements and was thrilled to work with her again! She was such a joy to work with and I just knew she would be again! Samantha came to me with the idea of wanting a folded card invite with the theme being "Eat, Drink, and Be Married" and to take that idea and run with it! We were both super pleased with the end results! Thank you so much Samantha you are a J-O-Y to work with! Enjoy your party! xoxo- Ashley Brooke





Content and Illustrations ©2010 Ashley Brooke Designs. All Rights Reserved.

Ashley Brooke Designs: A Bridal Shower + A Baby Shower (in the same weekend!)

This weekend was full of lovely ladies, great food, and TONS of cupcakes! That is right I hosted a Bridal shower at our house on Saturday and I co-hosted a Baby shower at my Parents house on Sunday with my sister and mom! There is nothing more fun than putting on a shower for your close friends to celebrate life's biggest moments!

I was thrilled to be apart of both showers and both Deanna (the bride) and Shavaun (the mom-to-be) were blushing with excitement!

Also, I was able to make both shower invites which is always so much fun! I kept both invites similar and changed out colors, pram, and wedding dress! I thought since they were in the same weekend it might be fun to do *almost* matching invites!


(Pink and yellow are Deanna's wedding colors so the shower kept that theme! Deanna is one of my dearest friends and I was honored to do something so special for her!)
-My sister made the delicious cupcakes and I prepared the rest!
- The gift was, a grocery list note pad with her new name, personalized recipe cards, and coordinating thank you cards!
** Oh and don't mind the photo where I am totally looking at the WRONG camera! Oops!

I love you Dee!! I Can't wait to stand by your side on your BIG day!
xoxo



(Sweet baby Anna is due in just TWO weeks and I know that I speak for the entire family when I say, we couldn't be more excited!!)
Shavaun is my cousin's wife but friend first! Shavuan is like a sister to me so throwing this shower for her was EXTRA special! We all know that Shavun will make a fantastic mother!


- Once again my sister made the delicious cupcakes! And my fabulous mother prepared all of the goodies!
-The gift was THE cutest tutu bathing suit, a mommy-to-be notepad that 10 sheets in turns into a mommy-to-do list, and of course matching thank you cards.


I love you Shavaun and I can't WAIT to meet sweet little Anna!! 
xoxo

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Content and Illustrations ©2010 Ashley Brooke Designs. All Rights Reserved.

Ashley Brooke Designs: Wedding Invitations

Two of my very best friends are getting married to each other in March! I couldn't be any more excited for them or more honored to be asked to do their invites! Their wedding colors are lemon yellow and raspberry pink!! Our bridesmaid dresses are the raspberry + we will be holding lemon yellow flowers = super fun and preppy! So I had to come up with a design that suited the fun, flirty, and bright wedding theme!

I absolutely LOVE the end result!

Etiquette: Envelope Addressing

Hello, and happy Monday!
This week I thought I would concentrate on Envelope Addressing. Lately I have had a lot of my wedding invitation clients and Ashley Brooke Designs Blog readers ask me questions concerning envelope addressing. I know that there are quite a few different ways to address an envelope - formal, informal, etc. So we will cover a few of these ways this week.


Married Couple with Young Children:


Formal

Outer envelope
Mr. and Mrs. Jordan Yates
7765 Garden Gates
Atlanda, FA 77689


Inner Envelope
Mr. and Mrs. Jordan Yates
Kyle and Kevin

or

Mr. and Mrs. Jordan Yates
Kyle Yates
Kevin Yates
................................

Informal
Mr. and Mrs. Joardan Yates
and Family
7765 Garden Gates
Atlanda, FA 77689

An Invitee and Guest:

Formal

Outer envelope
Mr. David Richards
839 Cedar Lane
Orlando, FL 33789

Inner Envelope
Mr.Richards and Guest

................................

Informal

Mr. David Richards and Guest
839 Cedar Lane
Orlando, FL 33789

A Tip From a Reader

Sweet Jessica sent me an email last week and her tip/question really struck a chord with me.  Part of her email was as follows:


I have a question for you. At some point in the last 5 years or so I heard a comment about sending a thank you note to the bride's parents after a wedding. Since then I have done that. I just send something that says "thank you for inviting me, it was a beautiful event..." etc.  Is this something that is appropriate? Common?


First of all, I don't think this common but I think it is one of the nicest things I've heard in a long time!  How kind to send a note to the people who presumably footed the bill for your great time and the wedding of your dear friends.  Obviously this gesture is most appropriate when you know or have a had some interaction with the parents of the bride, but even if you don't know them well, it could still be very thoughtful and you can sign the note Jane Jones, friend of the bride or whatever your relationship is.  So think about this little tip next time you are having a great time at a wedding and consider sending a little note over after the soiree!

Rehearsal Dinner

It's Rehearsal Dinner day! Woo Hoo! Can't wait to do a quick walk through the ceremony and head over to Hemingway's for dinner--should be super fun!

Aside from practicing some of the finer points of the ceremony, a rehearsal dinner is really an opportunity for the two families to mingle before the big day. There are no real hard and fast rules when it comes to the ins and outs of the dinner and rehearsal. Traditionally the groom's parents are in charge of the dinner, but some more modern brides and grooms like to host it themselves. As long as everyone is in agreement feel free to mix it up. The rehearsal dinner can also be an opportunity to present the bridal party with their gifts, particularly if your gifting something to be worn on the wedding day.

Wedding Quiz

With two days 'til the wedding (woo!), I thought it might be fun for all of us to test our wedding etiquette. Click here to take the "How Well Do You Know Your Wedding Etiquette?" quiz courtesy of WeddingChannel.com

The Officiant

When it comes to your officiant, its important to remember that this person, whether you know them well or not, is joining you and your fiance for life. Therefore its important to consider them when preparing your guest lists for various events.

The officiant should be invited to the rehearsal dinner and receive an invitation to the wedding. If applicable, you can invite their spouse as well. The rehearsal dinner will be another opportunity for you to get to know the officiant. Socializing the night before the wedding may make you more comfortable with him or her on the big day.


(sourced from emilypost.com)

It's Wedding Week!

Wedding week has arrived! I will be getting married in just 4 days--can you believe it?? The planning process has flown by and I've loved every minute of it. I thought this week we could talk about points of etiquette and tradition as they relate to weddings. I'm also planning some scheduled posts for Friday and next week while I'm honeymooning, so if you have any questions you'd like answered or things you'd like me to discuss, feel free to email me info@ashleybrookedesigns.com

For today, here's an interesting story on the origin of carrying the bride over the threshold from theknot.com

"The ancient Romans started it: the bride had to show that she was not at all crazy about leaving her father's home, and so was dragged over the threshold to her groom's house. Ancients also believed that evil spirits, in a last-ditch effort to curse the couple, hovered at the threshold of their new home, so the bride had to be lifted to ensure that the spirits couldn't enter her body through the soles of her feet. These days, it's just fun!"

Wedding Thank you Notes

Lately I have been receive a TON of questions in regards to Wedding-gift thank-you notes.

So here is the answers:

When to mail the note: You have some leeway on timing since your guest will understand that you have quite a few to write, but it is best to get them out within a month after the honeymoon. Although some etiquette professionals say that you have up to three months I would be safe and start writing them as soon as you can.

(sorced from: The Art of Thank You)

Wedding thank you note etiquette.

Should you break out your stationery with you soon to be new monogram before the wedding to write shower thank you notes and others?

No, actually the stationery that has your new monogram should be used for wedding gifts and you shouldn't start using them until after you are married, says tradition.

Also remember to sign your maiden name up until you are married on all of your thank you notes and your married name on the "Wedding" thank you notes if you are changing names.

(via Emily Post)

Will you be my Maid of Honor?

This is what I sent to my sister (my maid of honor)

and my fiance's sister (his bestman/lady).

I wanted them to pick out a dress that they loved for the wedding.

They were both thrilled when they received their cards!
I can't wait to see what they choose!

They bottom color card piece is perforated so that they can tear and go.

Maid Of Honor Etiquette

A few days ago I posted a tweet on twitter asking:

"What etiquette topics would you like to see on Ashley Brooke Designs Daily Dose?"

I received a few responses and they were all on Maid of Honor etiquette...

who knew everyone wanted to know about this?!

So here we go. I've found a few good resources for the inquiring minds.

1. The knot - "Maid of Honor: Her Duties in Detail"

2. Emily Post- Wedding Etiquette

and Do I Have to Wear White?

Hopefully this helps!

Wedding Invitation Etiquette

Mistakes to Avoid When Sending Out Wedding Invitations.

1. Spelling errors or address errors

2. Any mention of gifts ("no gifts, please" is also not appropriate).

3. Mentioning, "no children or adults only" if you don't want them there don't address the invitation to the family.

4. No dress notations except if the reception and ceremony invitation are one combined. Then it is acceptable to mention "black tie or white tie".

5. References to food or alcohol, those choices are for the reply cards.

How to Address Wedding Invitations

Close Family and Friends

Outer Envelope

Doctor and Mrs. George Smith

4587 Crest Hill Drive

Orlando, FL 33278

Inner Envelope
Aunt Kristy and Uncle George

...................................................................

Married Couples With Young Children

Outer Envelope

Mr. and Mrs Ryan Yates

4587 Crest Hill Drive
Orlando, FL 33278

Inner Envelope

Mr. and Mrs. Yates

Lilly and Tiffany

......................................................................

Different Adults Who Live At the Same Address

Outer Envelope

Mr. and Mrs. Charles Bake

and Family

4587 Crest Hill Drive
Orlando, FL 33278

Inner Envelope

Mr. and Mrs. Bake

Miss Hailey Jones

Mr. Johnathan Harold

................................................................................

Couples Who Live Together

Outer Envelope

Ms. Francis Taylor

Mr Cooper Jones

4587 Crest Hill Drive
Orlando, FL 33278

Inner Envelope

Ms. Francis Taylor and Mr. Cooper Jones

................................................................................................

An Invitee and a Guest

Outer Envelope

Ms. Lila Grace Thomas

4587 Crest Hill Drive

Orlando, FL 33278

Inner Envelope

Ms. Thomas and Guest

Emily Post

Etiquette Wednesdays

Question:

Do people bring gifts to the engagement party?

Answer:

Yes or No, Engagement parties are the first of many celebratory events for a couple and a gift is not tradition for this particular party. Although, some people do like to bring a small gift such a bottle of wine. But there is no rule about bringing a gift to an engagement party. (A thank you note is a must once a gift is received!)

Question:

And if I do take a gift, I would not have to buy another wedding gift ???

Answer:

Save the gift for the couples wedding. Traditionally speaking it is customary to bring a gift to the actual wedding.

Question:

When is the appropriate time for an engagement party?

Answer:

Right around the first couple of months (1-2) of the engagement. Typically the Bride-to-be's parents host this party.

For more reading:

about.com

Lovetoknow

Do I Have to Wear White

.....................................................................................

Make sure to enter the GIVEAWAY!

Making it Official

Acording to Mrs. Post:

The Before you inform the world of your engament via. local newspaper...ect., consider the people closest to you. Family and good friends deserve your special attention when it comes to your engagemet, consider an engament announcement for your close friends and family.

Wedding Gifts

Question:

How long do you have after a couple gets married to send them a gift??

Answer:
This is a tricky question since there really isn't a concrete answer and no couple/person is going to ever refuse a gift! Personally, I think that a gift should be sent with in a month or two of the wedding, any longer and the gift might be perceived as an afterthought.

Here are what the experts have to say on the subject:

• Some etiquette experts say up to one year, but I can't imagine a gift being refused after the "deadline."
  

• Wedding Etiquette states that guests have up to one year after the wedding to send a gift (which is generally accepted). C’mon now… that’s nice to know, but if you couldn’t figure out your gift during the engagement, do you really think you’re going to be inspired after it’s over and done with? We say it can be a little late, but try to get it there by the time they get back from their honeymoon or soon after. Otherwise, it will hang over your head all year!

• Send as soon as possible, certainly within the year.