We’ve all heard the saying “Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed and Something Blue, and a Sixpence in your shoe” – But have you ever wondered what the meaning is behind it?  Well don’t worry because I am here to tell you!

This tradition comes from an Old English rhyme, and the four objects that the bride adds to her wedding outfit or carries with her on the big day are for good luck .

• Something Old – symbolizes continuity with the bride’s family and the past
• Something New- symbolizes optimism and hope for the bride’s new life ahead
• Something Borrowed – symbolizes good fortune.  This is through an item from a happily married friend or family member, whose good fortune in marriage is supposed to carry over to the new bride
• Something Blue –  symbolizes purity, love, and fidelity.  Also before the late 19th century, blue was a popular color for wedding gowns, as evidenced in proverbs like, “Marry in blue, lover be true.”
• Sixpence in your Shoe -symbolizes wealth and financial security for the couple

-From theknot.com

Now that you know the reason behind this little saying, what are you going to use for your lucky charms?  The Something New is probably pretty easy because there is a good chance that you are wearing a new dress, or new shoes, or new lingerie etc.  Jewelry from a friend or family member always works well for your something borrowed, and sometimes can also be your something old!  But what about your Something Blue?

Here are some fun ideas that we have at The Wedding Cottage…

Below is a pin that you can attach to your garter or inside of your dress.  It is a bit hard to tell from this photo but this pin is made up of blue rhinestones.  We have this little accessory both online and in the store!

This Something Blue will be for your Groom’s eyes only :)

Also sold online and in the store!

Instead of a traditional white or ivory garter, why not have a blue garter!?  Two garters come with this set – one to keep and one for the garter toss.

It’s a good chance there will be some tears during your ceremony.  You could dry your happy tears with these blue Bride & Groom tissues.

Below is a picture of my garter from my own wedding.  I wore my favorite garter that we have online and in the store, as I was obsessed with one small detail -The garter is embroidered with a tiny “I do” in blue thread!  Attached to my garter was also my Something Borrowed.  My mom has a gold pendant engraved with the names of everyone in our family, and so I borrowed the one from her that is engraved with “Jacob”.

My Something New was my shoes (also blue!), and my Something Old was a ring I wore that used to be my great-grandmother’s.

What are you using for your something blue?

A few weeks ago I got to be a bridesmaid when my best friend Shannon tied the knot, and it was truly amazing!  Amazing people, amazing scenery, amazing vows, amazing food, amazing blackberry cupcakes (yes had one too many of those) and amazing dancing.  Overall it was a really magical evening and I could not be more happy for Shannon and Alex.

I just looked at all the photos from the big day, and guess what word came to mind, yep, amazing.  I have to give credit to the photographer, Ryan Phillips for these fantastic photos.

My Mom and Shannon’s mom were in a pregnancy class together so I have technically known Shannon for 27 years!  Shannon and I have had so many incredible experiences together, and to be a bridesmaid in her wedding and watch her get married to her sweetie was truly one of the best.

When you own a wedding store there is nothing better than having a best friend get married because you have an excuse to shower her with gifts from The Wedding Cottage (of course!), and help with the save the dates and invitations.  I’m kinda sad that the wedding has come and gone, but I’m all ready to help another friend who is getting married in June!

The new Mr. & Mrs.

The photo above on the left is a blown up picture of Shannon and Alex’s invitation that they got from The Wedding Cottage :)

The photo on the right is the very canoe that Alex proposed to Shannon in.   It is the details that make every wedding really special!

Shannon’s gorgeous veil and hair piece was made by Andrea at August Veils

Not a bad background for a wedding ceremony!

Alex looking very dapper with his boys, and Shannon with her girls.

(That’s me 2nd from the right, in case you weren’t sure who writes this blog)

:)

CONGRATULATIONS S + A !!!

Even though it was a hot weekend, I’ve got Christmas on my mind.  Why you might ask?  Well that’s because we now have the most *darling* Christmas ornaments at The Wedding Cottage.  Think glitter and sparkle, the perfect combination.  Now I am a believer that those wonderful Christmas tunes and decor should hold off until after Thanksgiving, however, I am all for Christmas shopping before the season. These are ornaments but I actually think they could be really great wedding decor as well, don’t you think?  I can picture these hanging on a centerpiece, or being used for a photo prop.  I think my favorite is the one that says “Happily Ever After” but I am just as smitten with them all…

LOVE.

Darling, right!?

These ornaments are $15.00 each and can be found at The Wedding Cottage or online at www.shoptheweddingcottage.net

So close your eyes, think of sweaters, hot cocoa, jingle bells, evergreen, and start that Christmas shopping early!

Labor Day is here…which means the end of Summer, the last hurrah, goodbye white pants and hello sweaters.  Luckily for us Oregonians, September is usually the best month of the year, so I think we are still in for a little more sunshine.  However, this weekend usually means Summer is coming to a close so it is time for one last bbq.  And since I’ve got bbqs on my mind, I thought it would be fun to envision a wedding inspired by this very holiday that we are all about to celebrate.

Labor Day Inspired Wedding…

The Maids

The Ceremony

The Sweet Tea

The Food….yum!

The Dress (by Sarah Seven – Portland Designer!)

The Dessert

The fun sign rented from The Wedding Cottage! :)

What do you think of a holiday weekend wedding?  I know people have mixed feelings, but overall I like the idea.  I think your guests will be relaxed and ready to celebrate knowing they have a long weekend, and that it’s time to soak in the sunshine as fall is right around the corner.

Have a fun holiday weekend everyone!

I wanted to share this story I saw on the Today show about a girl who wore a wedding dress that has been passed down through four generations of women in her family.  I think this is just amazing that this bride was able to wear a dress that was 127 years old and was worn by her mother, aunt, grandmother, and great great grandmother!  Talk about having your something old!

I love when family traditions and history can be incorporated into weddings, and it will be wonderful to see how many more women in this family will have the chance to wear this dress.

This story made me want to keep my own wedding dress looking good so that maybe one day it could be passed down.   If you do need to preserve your wedding dress after your big day, we offer that service at The Wedding Cottage!  Just give us a call and we will be happy to explain the process.

I have always loved silhouettes – not sure what it is about them, but I just think they are darling.  I first saw this invitation in one of our new books and immediately loved how the design had a modern feel with the fonts and pop of pink, but also had a vintage vibe with the use of the silhouettes.  I thought it would be fun to envision a wedding inspired by this invitation.  After all, the invitation does set the tone for the event so it is only natural that it could inspire all the other details!

The Inspiration:

The Decor.

The Cake.

The Shoes.

The Flowers.

The Favors.

For the Photos.

The Thank You Cards.

( p.s these adorable cards can be found at The Wedding Cottage! )

Awww… sweet silhouettes, tell me you don’t love them.

There is nothing better than winning free items, am I right ?  And that my friends is why we are having a “Gifts for the Honeymooners” Giveaway here at The Wedding Cottage!

Headed off to a honeymoon soon, or maybe you know someone who is getting married? Then go to our Facebook and click “Enter Sweepstakes”!  There is no cost to enter and it will just take a few minutes (I promise!)

I am sure you thinking but what would I win!?!

So glad you asked…

The winner of the “Gifts for the Honeymooners” Giveaway will receive one of each of the following prizes to take on their Honeymoon- wherever it may be!

(Click on the links to see photos of all these goodies)

• Mr. Mrs. & More Mrs. Luggage Tags ($12.00 Value)
• Bride/Mrs. Tote Bag ($19.50 Value)
• Men’s Just Married Flip Flops (writes Just Married when you walk in the sand!) ($12.00 Value)
• Women’s Just Married Flip Flops (writes Just Married when you walk in the sand!) ($12.00 Value)
• Happily Ever After Robe ($70.00 Value)
• Just Married Door Hanger ($5.50 Value)
• Happily Ever After Frame ($12.00 Value)
• Mr. & Mrs. Pillow cases ($30.00 Value)

The sweepstakes begins August 10th and ends September 2nd at 11:59 (EST).

Good Luck Future Honeymooners!

One of the best parts of being engaged is all of the parties and events leading up to the big day, and the Bridal Shower is no exception!  These days it seems to me that it is becoming more and more common for Brides and Grooms to have a “couples shower” -What’s the difference between a Bridal Shower and a Couples Shower you might ask?  Well aside from the obvious (that the groom is at the party) it really is more of a “party” than a traditional shower.  Couples showers typically are held more in the evening than say on a Sunday afternoon, and most often don’t entail as many games and activities.  And let’s be honest, most people are not too fond of the games that seem to go on forever at showers, am I right!?

I was sure I had a complete understanding of a couples shower until I found myself planning one for my best friend Shannon and her fiance Alex (who got married this weekend!) – and I thought wait, what do I do?!

Aren’t they an adorable couple?!

I began planning and from the start out went the traditional bridal shower invites (even though we have some really cute ones at the store) and out went all my girly ideas for favors and decorations.  I had to find ideas that were both festive but that incorporated both of them.

The invitations were done from The Wedding Cottage (where else!?) and incorporated poppys which were flowers that were on Shannon and Alex’s invitation.

Next I made bunting and paper chains in the colors of their wedding (red and turquoise), and hung paper pom poms.

Each guest at the shower got to go home with a gerber daisy – fun for the guests but it also added to the decor

To give the table with all the food and desserts a little more color I headed over to the fabric store and got a few yards of some fun fabric that I could use as a runner.  I honestly didn’t even sew the runner – just pinned it back so that the edge didn’t show!

Since Shannon and Alex are using a typewriter for a guestbook at the wedding, I used miniature type writers with a small personalized note and placed them throughout the room – I got these from The Wedding Cottage of course :)

I’ve always  thought it is the small details that make an event really personal.

Lastly, I made little flags for people to place in their drinks (to mark their glass), which again were in the red and turquoise colors.

I have to say one of my favorite parts of the shower was having these coasters out for people to give advice to Shannon and Alex.  These coasters are sold at (you guessed it) The Wedding Cottage!  They were really fun to read later, especially the ones that got filled out after a few glasses of wine!

Congratulations to Shannon and Alex!  Your wedding was truly amazing!

I am so excited to share that The Wedding Cottage has helped to decorate one of the rooms in the 2011 Street of Dreams Home “Con Amore”.  The interior designer, Candice White with White House Collections wanted to have a room staged for a girl that is planning her wedding and about to be married, and that is when The Wedding Cottage stepped in!  We have been using our accessories to make everything in the room come together, and yesterday I was able to get a sneak peek of the house and the “Bride’s Room”.

In this room we have our Bride To Be Sash, Bride Tote, Picture frames, Happily Ever After Robe, Just Married Flip Flops and more!  Even hung on the walls are some of our favorite wooden signs – like the one above the bed that says “Always Kiss my Goodnight”.

To make it all come together we have a wedding dress in the room on loan from Charlotte’s Weddings and More!

If you visit the house don’t forget to take a look in the kitchen because you will see lovely items from my parents’ company, Crosby and Taylor.  They design and make pewter measuring spoons and cups as well as ceramic canisters – all showcased in this house!

The Street of Dreams is August 6th-28th and you can get tickets here at Tickets Oregon

Hope you will come see it!

Last week our wonderful Heidi (who has worked at The Wedding Cottage for over 5 years), celebrated 20 happy years of marriage with her husband Dan.  Since I am a newlywed of one year, Heidi and Dan are great role models and I could not be more happy for them!

Here they are on their wedding day, July 27th, 1991

Doesn’t she look gorgeous!?  Aww they are so cute.

If you’ve been into The Wedding Cottage you have most likely met Heidi – and experienced her charm.  She is very devoted to The Wedding Cottage and we are lucky to have her!  Of course, she no longer has a perm but here she is with her hubby of 20 years and her adorable daughter Hailey celebrating their anniversary.

Cheers to 20 more!