StyleSchool

What began as a hobby quickly became a profession for Garden State native Meredith Perez, owner of Belle Fleur (bellefleurny.com) in New York City. Her floral studio is the perfect synergy of her love of design and flowers and that’s what keeps their bouquets looking fresh and chic.

What is your design philosophy?
Belle Fleur’s style is most definitely a fusion of classic and modern design. Our signature style is tailored and elegant, focusing on the most luxurious flowers and designing them in keepsake vases. Our love for details is apparent in the extra finishing touches like calligraphic note cards and fragrant tissue paper.

What most inspires your designs?
On any given day something will trigger an inspiration ranging from the obscure to the most simplistic. It can literally come from a stroll through Central Park to a fabulous vintage ribbon—it’s the unexpected that’s so invaluable.

How can brides make sure they get the most impact for their money when buying flowers?
I think a bride should be upfront and realistic with her floral designer in regards to her budget. I find that once I know the brides financial parameters I can think freely and clearly. Design is limitless; some of the most beautiful concepts are actually very affordable.

What is your favorite flower for weddings?
Peonies, peonies and more peonies! Hands down, it’s the most beautiful flower in the world. Of course, sweetpeas are precious, orchids are sexy and gardenias smell heavenly. But for me, there is nothing like a peony—it’s simply divine.

What should every bride know about flowers?
That a bridal bouquet is an accessory to a bride’s wedding dress. It’s so important to be sure that the flowers relate seamlessly to its style. Often, the first thing I ask a bride for is a photo of her gown. It offers the most insight to her taste and really plays a role in deciding what the flower selection should be.

What do you foresee as the next big trend in wedding flowers?
Garden roses are most definitely the next big trend. There are so many new varieties that are breathtakingly gorgeous and in a spectrum of unbelievable hues.

—Randy Miller, Editorial Assistant

The thought of an unexpected emergency on your wedding day is enough to keep a bride up every night before the big day. You spend months leading up to your "I Dos" preparing yourself for worst case scenarios: nail clippers for a broken nail, check; dryer sheets to prevent static cling, check; extra backs for your earrings, double check!

So you’ve got all your bases covered, but what about your groom? From the same company that brought you the SHEmergency Survival Kit and the Bridessentials Kit, comes The Groom’s Survival Kit. This portable silver trunk is filled with must-have personal care products like floss, boutonniere pins, extra buttons, a styptic pencil, even a stress ball! Just ask him to pick up a few for the groomsmen to have on hand and you’ll both be saved when a bad moment threatens your day.

The SHEmergency Survival Kit ($20), Bridessentials Kit ($25) and The Groom’s Survival Kit ($49) are all available online at msandmrs.com. 

As you may have noticed, cupcakes have been having a bit of a culinary revival. Who would have ever thought the childhood staple would be transformed into a decadent treat beloved by adults?

In keeping with the cupcake phenomena, the Ritz-Carlton Central Park is hosting a Cupcake Tea from April 1st through May 17th in celebration of the beginning of spring. Could there be a of a better way to spend an afternoon with your bridesmaids? The Tea will be held at the Ritz’s legendary Star Lounge, and each guest can choose from a selection of petite gourmet cupcakes in such flavors as Lemon Chiffon and Valrhona chocolate to pair with their tea selection. Space is limited and the Cupcake Tea will only be served on Saturdays and Sundays between 11:00 am and 2:30 pm, so don’t wait to reserve your space. It’s $25 a person, and while the calorie count might be significantly more than that, don’t fret—Central Park is just across the street and sunny strolls through the park are the provenance of spring.

To make a reservation or to learn more about the Ritz-Carlton Central Park’s Cupcake Tea, call 212-521-6125.

—Laura Wasson

True, photo albums are the traditional way to store and save your wedding pictures, but Jenny Gaynor (jennygaynor.com) has imagined a new way to preserve your memories. The artists’ custom photo transfer vases are a bright and cheery means of displaying your keepsakes.

Made of recycled glass, these vases are handmade by Gaynor, who employs traditional Italian techniques to craft each one-of-a-kind gift. Imagine the blue sky and sparkling ocean of your Caribbean honeymoon reflected in the sunlight of your windowsill. Or, if a subtle monochrome mosaic is more your style, opt for the black and white design.

Gaynor offers four different sizes to satisfy your individual whims—while the medium vase is well suited for a bundle of hydrangeas, the large vase would be perfect for a bouquet of long stem flowers. Depending on what size you prefer, simply submit no less than 10 vertical images via email (be sure the resolution is at least 300 dpi). The large vase holds up to 84 photographs, so consider documenting your entire wedding from showers to honeymoon on this showpiece.

For their final step, vases are signed, dated, and inscribed with a personal message. It doesn’t get much more personal than that!

-Randy Miller, Editorial Assistant

We’re back with the best in web-based wedding inspirations from this past week. Read on for an assortment of monograms and a unique proposal prop.

I'm officially jumping on the bandwagon—my co-editors have done such an impressive job showcasing their amazing baker and florist freinds, that I couldn't let all the wonderfully creative stationers I know miss out on the fun. So here's the first installment of Paper Break, a biweekly Q&A with paperie types. This week, Liz from Brooklyn-based stationery company Linda & Harriett (lindaandharriett.com) is doing the honors.

What's your best advice for the recently engaged entering the world of wedding stationery?
Go see what's out there. Take a trip to your local fine stationery store and flip through the wedding albums to get a sense of the styles you like. If you find a something that speaks to you but don't see anything that's a perfect match, try contacting the company directly to see if they have anything new, as the albums may not have their most recent work.

What's been your favorite design so far and why?
I love our Signature invitation with a vintage wallpaper envelope liner. The invitation itself is like a modern take on the traditional. It's not overwhelmed with color or graphics, but still has a personality. The combination of hand-lettering and sans serif font is just very clean and classic. And I love a liner with this invitation because it allows for a pop of color and pattern. Personally, I just love the texture and history of the vintage wallpaper. It can work for an outdoor wedding in Maine as well as a black tie affair in Manhattan.

What's your best stationery cost-cutting tip that doesn't sacrifice style?
For letterpress, it's definitely keeping the number of colors down. Going with a one-color invitation will save you hundreds of dollars. So use one color for your invitation and then allow other colors to play out in an envelope liner. Opening an invitation that has a colorful or patterned liner allows for a big impact, but those colors do not necessarily need to be found on your actual invitation.

What makes Linda & Harriett different from other stationery companies?
Apart from offering the best possible materials and print quality, we don't really adhere to trends in our design work. We are more interested in offering contemporary designs that will speak to the personalities of the bride and groom and their wedding day.

What's your biggest wedding stationery no-no?
A big no-no in my book is sending out stationery with your new name before you're married. Bridal shower thank you notes should be sent on your own stationery or on generic thank you notes. I also have a personal aversion to the wedding invitation "folios" that look entirely too business-meeting to me. Like all guests, I can appreciate an organized event, but there are better ways to detail wedding weekend activities without having a folder of tabs and inserts.

To see more from the Linda & Harriett line, visit lindaandharriett.com.

—Jeanine Edwards, Associate Editor

Our featured real wedding this week comes courtesy of Karen Wise (karenwise.com), an amazing wedding photographer based out of Brooklyn. She's sharing Diana and Osman's NYC wedding, which she beautifully shot. The location was so picturesque to begin with, but Karen really turned it into something even more special. Congrats Diana and Osman and thanks again, Karen!

All photos courtesy of Karen Wise Photography

This week we’re checking in with L.A. baker Elfie Weiss of Hotcakes Bakes. Known for her fresh pastries and savory snacks alike, Weiss lets us in on her recipe for success

How does your bakery differ from the rest of the pack?
Hotcakes Bakes was founded on the model of a French bakery (I grew up in Paris), where everything is baked fresh daily and all of the ingredients are natural. It seems simple, but you would be surprised how rare that is nowadays! At Hotcakes we bake all day long. The products are made on the premises and with our open kitchen you can see the bakers make your dessert right in front of you!

Hotcakes started out as a passion project, a mixture of old fashion and cutting edge culinary art. I get a wonderful sense of instant gratification seeing my customers’ happiness.

Why do you enjoy working on wedding cakes?
Wedding cakes are pure creation. And great baking is about creativity and we love to focus on the creative part of the cake. Being part of that special day—from the initial months of planning to the end result—is a very climatic process. We usually let the couple’s ideas drive the process. We enjoy being able to guide them to get exactly what they have in mind. Every time we design a wedding cake it’s a full-on production, like a movie.

What’s been your absolute favorite wedding cake you’ve designed so far?
Designing actress Marisa Coughlan’s cake was very special (turn to pg. 252 of the Spring 2009 issue of InStyle Weddings to see her wedding!). It was amazing to be able to create a cake that was in line with our vision. At Hotcakes we tend to like very clean, minimalist cakes, which are the most difficult ones to achieve because you have almost nothing to hide the imperfections. After all, we are working with organic matter and sometimes it has a mind of its own. Marisa’s was a beautiful 4-tier design flavored with chocolate, coconut and red velvet (which is our specialty), covered with white fondant and highlighted with a draped ivory fondant bow. The filling was our famous cream cheese frosting. Upon displaying the cake at the event we marveled how perfectly it tied everything together.

What’s the most unique wedding cake you’ve ever designed?
One of our most unique wedding experiences was outdoors in Pasadena. The bride had ordered several different cakes, each very specific but none resembled the others. There was a chocolate cake covered with chocolate truffles and a red velvet flavored cake with an old fashion swirled frosting design. Upon arrival we were presented with a wonderful box of antique cakes stands and beloved cake toppers supplied by parents and grand parents from their weddings. We then put it all together to form a heartfelt, personal display for their wedding.

Any advice for couples choosing their wedding cake?
It is your day and the cake should be done your way! Whether you have a vision or not, make sure you work with a bakery that is willing to work with you and not just for you. Some people have very different ideas of what the perfect cake should be and a good bakery should strive to help you find that perfect balance. Remember, there are always the classic designs, but there is also room for untouched territories!

Call 310-397-2324 or visit hotcakesbakes.com for more information.

—Rachel Jacoby, Assistant Editor

Give your guests charitable favors at your wedding by wrapping up Glowology Believe Honey Bars by Noodle & Boo ($12.50; noodleandboo.com) and placing them in each person’s seat. The luxurious, paraben-free soaps are lightly scented like the old fashioned soaps of the French countryside and have the words "faith," "hope," and "love carved into them.

All profits from these creamy white soaps will go to the Raise Your Hand Campaign, an organization committed to saving children’s lives by developing water purification systems around the world. Drew Barrymore, Mark Wahlberg and Ellen Page are just a few celebrities who support the campaign.

Your guests are sure to love these delicate little soaps, but even more, they’ll love you for giving such a great gift.

—Samantha Giordano

It’s a rarity these days that all your bridesmaids live in the same geographical area. From your hometown BFF’s to your college roommates, the chances of everyone getting together to shop is practically non-existent. Lucky for you, though, Vera Wang (verawangonweddings.com) is making things a little easier on you and your girls: her bridesmaids collection will be available to purchase online beginning next month!

Previously, Wang’s e-tail outlet included her famous fragrances, accessories, fine linens, papers, tableware and various other home accoutrements, but nothing in the way of apparel. Now, not only will your maids be able to view detailed shots of all the dresses, but they’ll also be able to order them on the spot. Best of all are the pocket friendly prices—the dresses range from $180 to $360. And judging by the fashion-forward new 2009 styles, your maids will actually want to wear these dresses again and again, so consider it money well spent.

Visit verwangonweddings.com to see all her current bridesmaids looks, and keep a look out for new styles premiering soon.

—Laura Wasson