$10 Off Gingerbread Pedicure at Pinkies!

TREAT YOURSELF to a

DELUXE GINGERBREAD PEDICURE
at a Special Sweet & Spicy Price

$29.00

Regularly $39.00 (a $10.00 savings!)

from December 1 - December 17

Includes a delicious Gingerbread Sugar Scrub

and a 10 minutes lower leg & foot massage.

Trend Spotter: Eye on 2010! (Groom's Cakes)

The Groom's Cake is a Southern tradition; a way to incorporate the groom's interests and preferences into the wedding (where sometimes even brides with best intentions have otherwise taken over). If things are getting a little too, say, diamonds and pink, the groom's cake often features a sport, hobby, or nickname that is just about the groom feeling special. (And it doesn't need to coordinate with anything!)

Alternatively, a "groom's cake" can be just-for-fun: an excuse to include a more whimsical cake design as a part of the wedding decoration in addition to the more traditional tiers of white.





“I was at a loss for doing something special. You worked
with me on concepts and ideas based on my husband’s
interest. He was so surprised and loved it. Thanks for being
my savior!” wrote Regina of San Rafael, CA to Christian of Krumbs Cakes of the groom's cake pictured below:

Trend Spotter: Eye on 2010! (Homemade Favors)

While some people opt to eliminate favors all together, citing expense, or in favor of a charitable donation, here's a trend that will continue to gain popularity in 2010: Homemade Wedding Favors

To express gratitude to traveling guests who have go to great effort and incurred considerable expense to be a part of the celebration, many 2010 couples will offer homemade favors to express that thanks, and to send guests home with a personal touch full of love.

Lace Votive Directions: Cut a strip of lace that's long enough to wrap around the votive. Secure in the back with hand-stitches. These are very easy to make! Assign yourself 20 per night and choose a week, (weeks to months before you wedding), to get the job done!

Donations as Wedding Favors

"Giving is the highest expression of our power” -Vivian Greene

There is a newish, some might call it “green”, trend toward making donations on behalf of your guests, in lieu of traditional wedding favors.

Let’s clarify…

Traditional wedding favors:

Glass Photo Coasters (~$2/per)
Tins or Organza Bags of Candy (~$3/per)
Personalized Cookies (~$7/per)
Silver Plated Heart Shaped Wine Bottle Stoppers (~$8/per)
Mini-Monogrammed Box of Truffles (~$12/per)
Custom Etched Glass Chotchkie (~$20/per)

Pick your price point, multiply by number of guests, and donate that amount to an organization or two to which you would like to offer financial support.

(Check out http://www.charitynavigator.org/ if you need help deciding).

This approach also provides for an opportunity to share something about yourselves with your guests, as in: We care deeply about _______________.

What’s “green” about this? Well, it’s the opposite of rampant consumerism; it forgoes packaging (and shipping and handling $$); and it doesn’t clutter up your loved ones’ houses for days or months or years to come before it’s deemed un-yard-sale-worthy and doomed to the land fill. You might think that one or two of your guests would really cherish a mug with a picture on it of you and your honey lip-locking… And some might, but to most, it’s chotchkie- which UrbanDictionary.com defines with the following entry:

A small piece of worthless crap; a decorative knick knack with little or no purpose.
Meg loved her cow figurine collection, but Dave thought it was useless Chotchkie.
Side note: Chotchkie can be pretty, sentimental or even, occasionally, useful. (Though useful chotchkie usually breaks easily). If you are having trouble identifying chotchkie, just look around your house or someone else's and whatever you see that a burglar wouldn't steal is probably Chotchkie.

Some people object to the idea of charitable giving in lieu of favors, on the grounds that it might come across as preachy; or that it’s not much of a gift, since guests don’t get to choose for themselves where that donation on their behalf is made. However, I’d offer that being a role model for generosity and conscientious action is an excellent gift to those who admire you enough to come to your wedding, and is, indeed, something that they can take away with them (perhaps profoundly more useful than chotchkie).

Kathy Goodman of Well Rehearsed is partnering with Neiman Marcus to design a fashion event for MOMS. This event is specifically for Mothers-of-the-Bride & Groom to help them in selecting their rehearsal dinner & wedding day attire. It can be hard for moms to find “just the right dress" -Now there is a special event just for them!

Wedding Website & Matching Eco-friendly Stationary!

A new partnership that has just been formed between WedShare.com and Portovert LLC! Wedshare's online service allows engaged couples to set up their own personal wedding website, and they have just joined forces with the #1 green wedding media company, Portovert LLC., publisher of WedVert.com. WedShare and WedVert eco-designer Yoko Chapman have collaborated to provide personal wedding website designs matched with the very first 100% carbon neutral wedding stationery line named VERT.

Today's engaged couples are responsible and resourceful. They want a wedding that leaves an impression on their guests, not on the environment. Putting all of the wedding details online with a wedding website is a great way to reduce paper waste, but now engaged couples can take it a step further by purchasing traditional eco-friendly invitations and paper stationery that matches the site!

An Example of a ZahZoom Green Wedding (Deidre & Bobby)

Bobby and Deidre were fantastic clients, because I knew throughout their planning process that they were going to have a great time at their own wedding, no matter what. As it should be! I was grateful that this admirable modus operandi of theirs led them to hiring me.

The personal values that they prioritised, which made their wedding unique, were: their love of the city of San Francisco (and their commitment to building a life there together); their Catholic faith; and their sincere interest in making their wedding as green as possible.

The couple were married in the historic and naturally ornate St. Patrick's Church, in down town San Francisco, so there was very little decor that needed to be arranged and brought in for the ceremony. Also, being married in a historic building is a great way to feature and celebrate the history and architecture of San Francisco, as well as a smart way to ensure that their ceremony location would stand the test of time and be there for the fiftieth anniversary nostalgia tour!

Their wedding bands, by Brilliant Earth, were made from recycled precious metals (a niche specialty and green business practice of these native San Francisco jewelers).

Deidre's bouquet was made from California grown blooms, hand tied with craft twine, for an "organic aesthetic" that also required the use of fewer raw materials to hold the bouquet together.

While it's challenging to go all organic when it comes to local flowers; the bridesmaids bouquets did include peachy-orange, California grown, organic spray roses.To ensure that the bridal party would be physically comfortable, as well as not feel pressure to invest a lot of money in a "one-time-wear"; Bobby & Deidre had their bridesmaids select navy blue cocktail dresses in the style of their choice, something they could look forward to wearing again. The groomsmen wore navy blue suits, which they could keep around for interviews if they chose to buy rather than rent!

Family photos enhanced the personalized nature of the wedding decor.

Their table decor included natural beeswax, lead free pillar candles in garden lanterns. Their menus were on mini chalkboards (a nod to the Hamlin Mansion's other life as the Hamlin School for girls).
The favors at each place setting were magnets, handmade by a friend.

Deidre & Bobby's organic wedding cake, with Art Deco detailing in orange and light green, was made by Cake Coquette.

The myriad personal and thoughtful touches that came together, in the end, made this a very special wedding. And, yes, the bride and groom had a lot of fun!