Monthly Archives: April 2012

~Just So You Know: A Shahzadi Series~

Good Morning Shahzadis!

I am so excited today! First, I wake up to the glorious day that is today.. the sun is shining and the birds are chirping happily.  Second, I find out that Asiya at Aaina Bridal reads my blog and loves it enough to share it with all her friends and followers! CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS??

**** {BIG HUG} to ALL of the Beauties that are visiting thanks to Aaina! ****

Now.. I would like to take this opportunity to introduce a new series to you that I have been thinking about.

Just So You Know will be a series of post chronicling different wedding traditions and rituals around the world.

As we know, most of us being second or third generation in North America, we often don’t know the history behind particular traditions and rituals that surround our weddings.

Also, more and more Shahzadis are interested in fusion weddings and are looking to incorporate many traditions from different areas of the world. This series will look at all that!

I really hope you all will enjoy it and take something from it!

<3

The Traditional Bride… a look at bridal jewelry…

Tradition.  It is the essence of a wedding.

For as far back as we can go, into our history, one thing has maintained its consistency.  A bride is not a south Asian bride unless she is adorned in the most eye-catching, unique and significant pieces of jewelry.  I know if your parents are like mine, they saved up for years to send me off with a significant start to my own jewelry collection.

So it is no surprise that I am in awe of the beauty that is bridal jewelry.

For those Shahzadis that want to incorporate Gold jewelry into their wedding outfits… here is some eye candy for you… (believe me, both my parents and my husband are counting their lucky stars that I am ALREADY married!)

Sushmita Sen for Kalyani Jewelers

That is the picture of the traditional Bengali bridal look <3

Sonam Kapoor in Amrampali Jewels

I love how the traditional pearls have been reworked to create a new yet vintage look, Sonam can really pull off this look so very effortlessly!

Deepika Padukone in Farah Khan Ali

The ever so amazing traditional long stranded sheeta-haar has been beautifully created with kundan and uncut rubies! Deepika looks RADIANT!

Sharadha Kapoor in Anmol Jewellers

The newest trend of gems playing the starring role rather than a gold-heavy set is portrayed gorgeously in this look, the emeralds are to DIE for!

Amazing right?? OMG. Someone get me some water… *Faints*

Now Shahzadis, the price of gold is really high these days and the idea of buying an entire set of gold jewelry can be a little hard to swallow.  But never fear my dears!  There are a whole host of vendors that are doing bridal jewels gold-plated over silver so that it hurts the pocketbook less.  My fave right now is ArtKarat mind you… I said the prices would hurt you less.. I didn’t say they wouldn’t hurt at all… lol.

Lets have a look at their jaw dropping pieces…

ArtKarat

look at that minimalist matha patti/sheetapati! <3 (would have loved to see this whole outfit)

ArtKarat

I don’t know why, but Pearls make my heart sing!

ArtKarat

I love this, it’s a statement piece. Especially the Jhumaar/Jhaapta

ArtKarat

OOooOOOo another statement piece.  This set features a Meena style.  Meena is coloured enamel that is filled into raised gold work.  it is just classic.. ask your Nani, she might have a meena piece in her Khazana <3

Oh Shahzadis! I am such a sucker for shiny, sparkly, amazingly unique, meticulously crafted south Asian jewelry… I hope you had fun experiencing a little bit of my obsession!

<3

Vendor Spotlight: Film Style Weddings

If you have not heard of Film Style Weddings, you – my friend, need to get out from under a rock and smell the proverbial roses!

If you are planning your wedding this year, I strongly suggest you sit down with them! They are so great at what they do.  Super talented and amazing personalities.  I got super lucky when I found out they were available for my wedding!

Here is a trailer from our wedding:

*cute right? We look like we are right out of a MOVIE!* sorry… I get carried away.

This past year has been especially great for Film Style!  Checkout their amazingly sweet Thank you video featuring their 2011 weddings!

To see more of their amazing work: check out their Vimeo

Flowers fit for a Shahzadi

Dear Shahzadis

The sun is shining and spring is here! What comes when spring is here?

FLOWERS!

For most brides flowers are an essential part of their wedding. I think that flowers are a classic way to creat romance and ambiance. They are the quintessential wedding decor. Choosing flowers can get really overwhelming. I recommend really sifting through bridal magazines and blogs to see what kind of look really speaks to you. Once you have figured out the look you are interested in, check out the florists around you to see what kind of flowers are in season, when you will be tying the knot. Some flowers are much more affordable when they are in season, or else there are a variety of costs (such as transportation, storage and maintenance) that will be included in the cost of out of season flowers.

Incorporating flowers that are in season will add more meaning to your wedding date. I truly believe that every detail of your wedding, including flowers in season play a part in portraying the total look of your wedding…

Spring Flowers

Tulips

Hyacinths

My personal favorite: Pionies

Summer Flowers

Rose & Calla Lily

Celosia done three ways

roses... the classic

Some brides want to incorporate florals in a BIG way! Check out how beautiful the table looks with flowers galore. It is over the top but still elegant as they used flowers in the same colour family.

This setup is definitely fit for a Shahzadi!

The Design House

Bright coloured florals can really add punches of fun personality to a classy and formal table scape.

The Design House

Mandaps are a great place to showcase your florals! Not only are they pretty, they are an homage to the traditional ceremonies that we experience in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan!

Floral mandap

A simple way to incorporate florals without blowing the budget is to do small doses of flowers.

Maybe just bouquets for yourself and your bridesmaids, at the head table or backdrop, incorporated into a maybe a floral runner …

Head/parents table, Sara Baig Designs

Flower petal eisle runner

Wow all this inspiration is making me want to go out flower picking!! Hope this post was full of useful inspiration and information!

<3

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