By Invitation Only....you are invited to my wedding!

OK I knew I was going to have fun with this months theme when I got the email. Its time for our monthly "By Invitation only" where a group of bloggers get together and present their interpretation of an agreed upon theme......This was right up my alley,  Planning your wedding as if you were getting married today! A chance to do my wedding all over again? Fun and how fast can I say I do! Same guy of course but you better believe I might want to do things a bit differently almost 30 years later. I had a beautiful wedding, make no mistake, but it was more about a lot of pomp and circumstance, the big dress, and I do mean it literally, lots of ugh....volume shall we say! A formal affair, wonderful but honestly a little overwhelming to my then 22 year old self.

What would I choose today? Well something quite different, partially reflective of how times that have changed, and very much with how I have changed. How I appreciate the simpler things in life, that less can be more, and that some of the most beautiful moments occur when surrounded by nature so I have decided to spend this wedding outdoors as much as possible. So, here we go, the details right down to the nitty gritty details of my wedding, IF I were getting married today.......

The invitation would look something like this.....cannot make up my mind, but one of these beauties from The Lettered Olive! It has to be letterpress...have such an obsession with it!

Where is my wedding going to be?  Why, Napa Valley of course! I would have to have it there, its a place that calls my name and a place near and dear to my heart and I have made no secret of my love for Napa on this blog, as I talk about it often. I cannot imagine a more wonderful place to call in my guests from all over and invite them to come spend the weekend for pre wedding festivities. Wineries, outdoor jazz concerts, al fresco dinners, bike rides through the vineyard would all be a part of the weekend iternary. Everyone arrives on a Friday night, just in time to be part of a welcome dinner we are hosting outside under a great big tree at one of my favorite vineyards of course, but first everyone settles into their hotel rooms.........

Right at sunset, everyone gathers to marvel at the landscape and view, and soon we are seated ushering in a perfect night of friendship and celebration........

The next day everyone is able to  do as they please, go into town, visit wineries, go on a scheduled group bike ride and picnic lunch, spend the day at the spa, whatever strikes their fancy......

That night is the rehearsal dinner, held under a beautiful trellis at one of our favorite wineries, this is an intimate affair for my closest family and friends and it goes on until the wee hours of the morning....

First what am I wearing you ask? Well, since I am the belle of the ball....have to go with something that makes me feel princess-y but still fun and party like, so I opted for this fun party dress, that has a little bling, a few feathers...fun, chic and definitely special and with legs like these....I want to show them off!

Moving to the actual dinner......held under a fabulous trellis at my favorite vineyard, this is a night to remember, don't remember feeling this happy!

The most scrumptious mini wedding cakes are served for dessert!

As the night nears (or should I say early morning begins) we are told that we are expecting the most beautiful weather on Sunday, the wedding day.....clear skies, no humidity and 75! I will take it can am giddy with anticipation........as we end the night! 

We awaken to the most brilliant blue sky, slightly breezy cool air and blazing sunshine, its a custom ordered day! My bridesmaids are all dressed in different dresses but all done in blush tones, some lace, some silk, some linen, they each got to choose their own according to their own taste wtih a few parameters..they blend harmoniously like a perfect symphony!

The flowers are all done around the palest pinks, peaches and creams...my favorites peonies, roses, french tulips 

And if you are wondering about my own gown,I have decided to go wtih the most delicious vintage wedding gown that I have ever laid my eyes on......true I could have gone with something simplier but I just couldn't resist and if theres one day to pull out all the stops this is the one! Come to Mama......

The ceremony is outside of course and has been beautifully designed to focus on the beautiful nature, but oh what a magical setting!

 Love how outdoor seating areas have been set up, with real furniture, absolutely stunning right in the middle of the vineyard.

And for the actual tables.....a fantasy like concoction of bring the best of nature and elegance with touches like the crystal chandeliers and urns overflowig with luscious white blooms, how exhilarating to see my vision come to life. All this under a great big white tent right smack in the middle of my favorite vineyard.  The icing on the cake is seeing all those that I love and care about enjoying what I have dreamt up!

A close up of the all white flowers on the table

My cake is simple but elegant, inspired by beautiful and timeless Wedgewood....and very similiar to my wedding invitiation.

As the guests depart a small wedding favor is given to each and every guest, specifically designed just for them, monogrammed silver votives holding my favorite gardenia candle as a special keepsake of this memorable day in my life.....

The wedding is deemed a wild success...everyone proclaims it is the best wedding they have ever attended and that no other could possibly top it. The band goes on and on at the pleas from the crowd until 3 am! Cheers to that!

      And soon, after a weekend fit for a princess, we are off  driving into the Napa sunset....happy as a glass of a good Chardonay!

Thanks for stopping by "my wedding". How about you? Would you do things differently? How would you like to plan your wedding if you were doing it all over again? Would love to know!

Wishing you an enchanted day!


If you want to see more interpretations of a wedding day done by other talented bloggers, then visit Marsha the brainchild aka glamourpuss over at Splenderosa and you will see not only her gorgeous rendition but links to all the others, Click here to visit!

guest blogger jen: a special friday

Today is my last blog post for all of you. Thank you so much for letting me be a part of this amazing blog for a week!

I thought today I would focus more on Bev's wonderful boutique that I have been lucky enough to be a part of for over two years now! The Willows is a dream, and I secretly play house every day while I'm here.

Bev, I decided while you're gone I'm going to give away the store! heehee. We need some fun summer sales!
Friday Madness - Today only! 25% off all flip flops!!

Monday, July 12 - Saturday, July 17 - SALE!

First, we have a new promotion we are very excited about!

Spend $100 at The Willows 7/12 - 7/17 and get a voucher for $25 off any $50 purchase to use in August! Every $100 spent gets you another voucher - one week only!!

20% off all Seabags!

(please call the store for availabilty)

Free Gift with any $100 or more purchase! (while supplies last!)

Please call me at the store if you need any more details! It's going to be fun next week! Please stop in and say hello. I really enjoy meeting all of Bev's followers!

guest blogger jen - the wedding day!

Italians LOVE weddings. We were told this upon our arrival in Italy. Even knowing this, we could not have anticipated the outpouring of love from all who were involved in our wedding from our planner to absolute strangers on the street. It was an absolutely magical day that makes me smile every time it crosses my mind.

Erika, the owner of the bed and breakfast we were staying at, had some fun filling us in on Italian wedding traditions the day before our Friday wedding. She told us that we should not see each other the entire day before the wedding - which was not until 5pm! The whole crew had lots of fun keeping Vance and I apart that day! We only heard each other's voices once when Vance shouted down to me from a balcony to say hello!
The boys spent the morning doing their thing, and the women spent the morning relaxing! We went out to lunch and had an emotional time filled with happy tears in anticipation for the big evening! Then Vance's mom and I went to get our hair done at an Italian hairdresser - they spoke no English! Luckily, we had consulted with them previously while Erika translated. It began to rain as we got our hair done, but by the time I was getting ready in our hotel room, the sun was shining! In fact, during our wedding was the best weather we had there all week! I told all the girls at The Willows to pray for good weather during my wedding, and they came through for me!

Sergio, the owner of the restaurant where we were having our wedding dinner, picked me up from the hotel in a special car called a "tuk-tuk" to take me to the castle. It was so fun!

Our small, intimate ceremony was done in a private wing of the castle. It was spoken in Italian and then translated to English by Anna. It was very romantic!



After the ceremony, the tuk-tuk car took us through the streets of Malcesine where strangers started cheering and singing to the two of us! It was the most amazing thing I have ever experienced! People were even taking pictures! We rented a boat to take us around Lake Garda after the wedding. It was so beautiful at sunset!

The boat ride wouldn't be complete without champagne and plastic cups!

After the boat ride, we arrived at our restaurant to find a special buffet set up just for us! We toasted, ate appetizers and then sat down for dinner. The restaurant La Pace was so wonderful. They even surprised us by putting our cake out on the end of the dock so Vance and I could have our own special cake cutting ceremony at dark - complete with a sparkler on the cake! It was truly a dream day for the two of us.

Everyone in Malcesine drank these Aperol Spritzers - and they are so, so good! 1/3 Prosecco wine, 1/3 Aperol, 1/3 sparkling water, ice and a slice of orange. Mix and enjoy!

Thank you so much for letting me share my wedding story with you. I have a special surprise for all of our readers tomorrow!

guest blogger jen: the wedding trip!

Our 10-day trip started out leaving on a Saturday for London and then catching a flight to Munich, Germany from there. Our intent was to start in Germany, drive to Italy and then back to Germany after the wedding. The volcano had other plans for us. When we arrived in London, our flight kept saying "Enquire Airline". We came to find out that what this meant was our flight had been cancelled and there was no way we were getting to Munich as the airport had been closed due to the volcano! After a two-hour wait in line (after a 10 hour flight - we were not the peppiest couple at this point haha), we were told we could fly to Milan the next day. So, we were put up in a hotel and flown out the next morning to Milan where the rest of our family drove to join us!


Parking in Milan!

Milan was very fun! We, of course, went shopping all day! We also enjoyed this quaint outdoor cafe...

The birds were everywhere! I had to take a picture of them all over the tables!

The most amazing part about Milan was seeing the 4th largest church in the world, the Duomo. Pictures do not do this breath-taking cathedral justice and there are simply no words extraordinary enough to describe it. It is so large that one could literally spend an entire day there.

The interior of the Duomo. Just a tiny, tiny piece of this magnificent place!

After only a day in Milan, we had to head to Malcesine for our last bit of paperwork that needed to be done the next day. When we arrived, this was our view...


The town is literally breathtaking because it sits right on the edge of beautiful Lake Garda. Then when you look up, all you see is mountains! We took a cable car up the mountains one day - not only does the town have the tree-covered mountains, but also the snow-capped Alps in the distance!

We loved dining at the many restaurants on the lake. Seafood here is wonderful as they fish it right from the water! Ok, all the food was phenomenal - everything you hear about food in Italy is exactly right!

Here's the gang enjoying the day! My Alternative sweater from The Willows was my wardrobe for many pictures!

A closer view of the castle - it is so beautiful!

I can't say enough about Hotel Erika - the bed and breakfast we stayed at! We picked her because of her close proximity to the castle and because of the amazing reviews we read online about her hotel. She is an amazing woman, and truly became like family in our short stay with her (she's on the right in this picture)!

Here is a sampling of our breakfast every morning. She always had farm-fresh eggs hardboiled with adorable little egg covers! There was always more food than you could ever dream of eating and the table linens were different every day. She told us that every year she takes a trip to Paris where she finds many of the accessories for her hotel. How nice would that be???


We sat at the same table every morning so on the morning of our wedding, Erika had decorated the table for good luck. It was so sweet and wonderful.

Well, that's it for today - I am excited for tomorrow when I share our wedding day with you!