Love and Splendor – Official Blog

Happy Monday!!  I’m excited to announce that the winner of our giveaway for two tickets to the CREAM event was Angela!  :)  Angela — check your email for instructions on how to get your hands on those hot tickets!!

Everyone else — thank you sooo much for entering the giveaway.  I would still love to see you there and it’s not too late to get your tickets, so make sure to get ‘em while you can!  Whether you are engaged, soon-to-be-engaged, or just seeking inspiration, I promise you won’t be let down by this fab event.

If any of my readers out there are in attendance on Thursday, please make sure to stop by and say hello.  We’ll have some little surprises for those who come by our table.  ;-) 

I’ll be back soon with the next installment of {the nuptial primer}, so stay tuned for that.  Enjoy a marvelous evening!

xoxo, Angel (10 days ’til my due date…)

Hello lovely readers!!  We are thrilled to share that Love & Splendor will be at THE CREAM event next week on Thursday, March 1st!  This unique event is a one-of-a-kind curated wedding  showcase of fabulous vendors in the wedding world, all put together by the lovely ladies of Bash, Please.  We are honored to be a part of this event’s “crop” of vendors and share some inspiration amongst our peers!

There are endless reasons why you want to be at THE CREAM next week, but here’s our Love & Splendor top ten…

• Come visit us and our playful tabletop display!  We are thrilled about our unique collaboration with Heather, floral designer of Twig & Twine, and cannot wait to debut it!
• Get dolled up by the incredible ladies of Fiore Beauty, who are going to be doing lashes, lips and neon/metallic shellac nails at the event.
• Ogle over (and even shop for!) the artistic creations of one of my favorite wedding friends — Myra of Twigs and Honey.  Anyone who knows me knows I’m a huge fan of everything Myra creates.  I’m sure you’ll find me buzzing around her pop up shop.  ;-)
• See some of the best-of-the-best in the wedding world, including some of our favorite vendors & friends — {found} vintage rentals, Braedon Photography, Sloan Photographers, Heirloom LA, Sweet Lucie’s, Casa de Perrin, and the aforementioned Twigs and Honey.  So many of our faves under one roof = guaranteed great times!
• Chat it up with some amazing bloggers like Jen from Green Wedding Shoes, Summer from Grey Likes Weddings, and the ladies behind 100 Layer Cake.
• Try Sno-Con Amor with us!  My mouth is watering over the idea of their sno cones made with natural handcrafted syrups.  With flavors like hibiscus, prickly pear, watermelon basil and pineapple with lime… I have a feeling one won’t be enough.  ;-)
• Watch a gorgeous fashion show by BHLDN.  Love this!
• Great food and drink from some amazing catering companies = nosh and nibble while you peruse the pretties.
• The Flashdance spinning tunes for your listening pleasure… and a dance-off where the winner gets a 3-night stay in PARIS — as in, Paris, FRANCE.  <3
• And finally — come take your bets on when I’ll go into labor (maybe that night?!  LOL) since I will be 39+ weeks pregnant!  Unless I’m in active labor, I’ll be there.  Live on the wild side with me.  :)

We are delighted to GIVEAWAY a pair of tickets to a lucky reader out there!!  To enter, let us know the top 3 things you want to do at THE CREAM (feel free to use 3 things off of my list above, or write your own!).  You have until this SUNDAY, February 26, at 9pm PST to enter.  The winner will be announced on Monday morning here on the blog!!

If you want to guarantee yourself a spot at this not-to-be-missed event, buy tickets HERE.  Cannot wait to meet some of you there!!

xoxo, Angel

Hello dear readers!  I’m excited to announce the inauguration of a new blog feature here!  I’m calling it {the nuptial primer}, and it will be a category of posts dedicated to practical wedding planning information, insights and tips.  The goal is to address various FAQs and major planning topics encountered by brides, as well as feature the expertise and pertinent input of some of my favorite wedding vendors along the way!

My first entry in the nuptial primer will debut soon, so keep your eyes peeled for it!  In the meanwhile, I’d love to solicit your initial thoughts and questions for future posts in the primer! Let me know if you have a topic or inquiry I can address down the line.  What do YOU want to know about wedding planning?   Or, as a former bride (or even a wedding vendor), what do you think needs to be addressed?  I am hoping to make this feature as educational and profitable as possible, so I look forward to your suggestions.

I hope you’re all having a fabulous week!

P.S. Today I am 35 weeks pregnant, 36 days away from my estimated due date.  :)

xoxo, Angel

Happy Monday!!  I am sorry I wasn’t able to check in on Friday to announce the giveaway winners, but I was out for over 14 hours on Friday… and I didn’t even have a wedding.  ;-)  That’s the busy life of a wedding planner sometimes!

Anyway, I did already contact the two lucky winners who were randomly selected using random.org: CONGRATS again to Jen and Maya!!  Thank you to everyone who entered.  I especially loved learning about some of your favorite eateries in soCal.

For any of you who may still be interested in checking out The TASTE, I am excited to offer you a special discount code!  You can get 40% off of your tickets by entering the word “family” at checkout.  Woohoo!  (Unfortunately, this discount does not apply to Monday’s event: Picnic in the Hills.)  I hope some of you take advantage of this excellent deal and experience this great event.  I will share my TASTE experience sometime next week…

Enjoy the rest of your day!  I’m diving into lots of final tasks for this weekend’s wedding + a small mountain of emails.  Ready, set, go!

xoxo, Angel

Happy Friday, everyone!!  I hope your week was fantastic in every way.  ;-)  I’ve just come out of a terrible sinus infection (my first one — bleh!) and am almost 100% again.  I think the worst part of being sick was watching Erik (who was also sick… who happened to *give* me said sinus infection) take lots of medicine that I couldn’t take, and therefore get a lot of relief I couldn’t get. LOL  Grateful that I never ran a fever and no harm was done to the gummy bear.  I’m also grateful that the sinus infection ran its course now… and not a week from now when I’m in the throes of one of my largest-scale weddings of the year!!

Thank you to everyone who entered our latest giveaway — I will post the winner’s name at the bottom of this post.  If you didn’t win this time around, don’t fret — Anna’s summer essentials will be posted soon, along with another chance to win.  :)

Today I wanted to send you off on the weekend with some gorgeous engagement photos of another one of our beloved couples: Sara and Bryon.  (Sara rhymes with Zara, btw~)  Are they too cute or what??  The photos were shot at our favorite Saddlerock Ranch, so I thought it would be fun to give you a glimpse of what the venue is like simply as a background for beautiful pictures.  (FYI — S&B aren’t getting married at Saddlerock!  You can pay a special “photoshoot” rate to have photos taken on-site.)  Many thanks to the lovely Suthi Picotte of Picotte Photography who shot and shared these photos with me.  Many of you may know that I was also Suthi’s wedding planner a few years ago.  Feel free to peruse the eye candy of her oft-imitated wedding… Her event was a trendsetter for sure.  xo

sara’s shoes!!!!

And now without further ado… Congratulations to Elisabeth, who won Michelle’s summer essentials giveaway!!  Check your email and we will get your goodies to you ASAP.  ;-)

Everyone else: enjoy a beautiful weekend.  My plans include lots of family time, lunch with a dear friend and catching up on some scrapbooking.

xoxo, Angel

Hello and Happy Sunday, dear readers!!  I hope you’ll forgive me for the blog silence as of late — I have certainly had my hands full with weddings galore (today we complete our 4th wedding in four weeks — woohoo!) and fabulous client meetings.  I have also had other exciting things to do lately…

I’m going to be a mommy!!!!!

And it is no small miracle.  Of course, every life that comes into this world is a miracle, worthy of wonder and awe.  But for us, this is such an immense and overwhelming blessing because we have waited so long for this baby.  It has been a difficult and trying road.  Over the course of the past few years, as I would smile as well-intentioned friends and acquaintances asked when we would “finally” have some kids, I did wonder.  I wondered if I would ever become a biological mother.  I wondered if perhaps what I had so quickly assumed was naturally going to be a part of my life, was just a naive hope. So we prayed and trusted and hoped and waited… and the Lord heard our prayers and in His abundant grace, has given us this sweet little “gummy bear.”  :)

me (at 3 months) and my mom — i hope my baby still has a Korean streak!

I am currently in between 7-8 weeks, and although I know many prefer to wait until they clear 12 weeks before sharing the good news, I am not the type to conceal a happy secret (well, if it’s mine to spill!).  I know that the very fact that I am pregnant is God’s doing, and I know that He alone gives and takes away.  I am going to trust in Him as we enjoy this wonderful blessing, and push away the fear that may accompany such a joyful time.  (P.S. We have already had an ultrasound and have already seen/heard the baby’s strong heartbeat!!  What a GIFT!!!)

Sweet baby — know that you are SO loved already.  You are SO wanted and anticipated.  I cannot wait to hold you in my arms next spring.  Until then, we are praying for you daily and eagerly awaiting the day you will join us.

Thank you to everyone for your love & excitement for us.  I can honestly say I can’t WAIT to grow a big ol’ baby belly.  ;-)

**Back to regularly scheduled wedding posts this week — thanks for indulging this personal post!**

xoxo, The Swansons

Hello everyone!  I hope you’re having a marvelous week so far.  :)  I am stopping by with a quick announcement of the winner of last week’s Stella & Dot giveaway.

I am thrilled to share that the winner of a fabulous Renegade Cluster necklace is Marie — a former L&S client!  Erik thought it was funny that one of my former clients ended up winning, but many of the entries were from current and former clients.  As always, winners were selected using random.org. Hooray!!  Thank you to everyone who entered; I loved checking out your fave picks on the Stella & Dot site.

I will be back soon with a fun peek at some photos the fabulous Amelia Lyon shot of me, Anna and Michelle last month.  Enjoy your day!

xoxo, Angel

WOW!!  Thank you, thank you, thank you for the overwhelming response to the new blog!  I cannot tell you how delighted I was to get so much positive feedback.  The ultimate compliment is that the blog is “so me.”  I really appreciate each one of you taking the time to write me a little comment — I look forward to sharing more of my heart (work, life, and otherwise) here!

I will announce the winner of the giveaway at the end of this post.  :)  Before I do that, however, I want to tell you about this AMAZING couple that is getting married this weekend.

photo by the lovely Nina Brav

How adorable are they, right?  I have enjoyed every moment working with these two creative, passionate, all-around-wonderful individuals.  We have a gorgeous celebration in store, and one aspect of the day that I’m really excited about is their music.  The have selected some beautiful and personal picks for their ceremony and reception.  I’ve written about this topic before (see here), but I never tire of seeing how couples infuse their tastes into the music used for their big day.  This weekend’s clients have exceptional taste because, well, I love every.single.song they picked out (and many are by my favorite bands/artists).  Here is a peek at the music behind the day…

{Ceremony}

• Parents’ Entrance – “Montezuma” by Fleet Foxes
• Groom’s Entrance – “Tonight I Want to Celebrate With You” by My Morning Jacket
• Bride’s Entrance – “Infinite Arms” by Band of Horses
• Recessional – “Space Age Love Song” by Flock of Seagulls

{Reception}

• Grand Entrance – “You Make My Dreams Come True” by Hall & Oates
• First Dance – “That’s Where It’s At” by Sam Cooke
• Father/Daughter Dance – “Harvest Moon” by Neil Young

What are YOUR favorite music picks for a wedding?  I’d love to hear what you used or plan on using.  :)

What else is in store for this wedding?  Oh you know… ruffled crepe, a citrus-inspired colorway, modern glass… and a dream team of vendors including The Food Matters, The Flashdance spinning records, Hollyflora making things beautiful, and the talented Nina Brav behind the lens.

I’ll be back with more loveliness next week, including my engage!11 recap.  Enjoy your weekend!!  xoxo, Angel

P.S. CONGRATULATIONS to the blog launch giveaway winner: Kim!  (Winner was selected using random.org)  Check your email so I can get your box of goodies to you right away!  ;-) For everyone else, I will have some other fun giveaways coming very soon, so be on the lookout for those!  xo

Hello everyone!  I am absolutely THRILLED to be writing my first official post here on the new blog.  ;-)  I am smitten with everything about it and it perfectly reflects the new branding I am currently rolling out!  You’ll see that I wrote a little post below last week, but I knew it would not be seen until my launch.  If you are reading this post in Google Reader, make sure you click over so you can see the layout in all of its loveliness.  Also, you WILL need to update your feeds (loveandsplendor.com/blog).

After 5.5+ years in biz, I knew it was time for a “brand makeover.”  I was ready for something fresh and unique, and more aligned with my personality and style.  I decided to start with my blog, since it is the place where I share my most current work.  A website makeover is underway, too!  My inspiration for the new branding (and of course, this blog):

-Colors: watermelon-tinted coral, muddled turquoise, pure white, cool gray

{from design editor}

{from creature comforts}

-Patterns & motifs: ikat, chevron stripes, ribbons, bold typography, calligraphy

-Overall feel & layout: modern, whimsical, playful, feminine

I had some incredible friends helping me with the design + transition, so I want to send my deepest thanks to…

• Xandra Zamora, of XYZ Ink, who painstakingly worked with me to create the perfect hand-lettering for the word “splendor” in my logo.  Here is a look at the “two-line” version that appears on my vertical biz cards:
• 
• My in-house graphic designer (and former client!), Kristin, who designed my brand new biz cards (which I L-O-V-E) and provided thoughtful feedback as I tweaked the blog design.  More on her to come!
• And last but not least, Steph Anne from Yellow & Savvy, who helped me with numerous revisions with the layout and design, and brought my vision to life!  She is exceedingly patient and creative and working with her was a complete joy.

With the new blog comes some new blogging habits.  ;-)  Now that I have such a gorgeous place to share with you all, I want to do it more often!  I look forward to sharing more content in the weeks ahead.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the new layout and “look” for Love & Splendor!  In fact, I’m so eager to hear your thoughts that I will randomly select a commenter on FRIDAY, June 10th, at 10 a.m. PST, and give away a little package of my current fab finds.  Make sure to get your comment in by 10a PST on 6/10, and I will announce the winner later that day!

Thanks for stopping by and checking out the new blog!  We couldn’t be more excited to finally share this with you.

P.S. Don’t forget to click the Facebook link on the right and “like” us there!  You can also follow my mind’s eye at Pinterest, where I curate things that move me in one way or another.

xoxo, Angel

Hello lovelies!! I hope you are having the most wonderful start to your week. I know I am beyond overdue for a posting, but I promise my absence has been for good reason — lots of lovely things are cooking in the Love & Splendor kitchen! One of the major things has been this BRAND NEW gorgeous blog! I will have a nice long post about it (and all the amazing people who were a part of bringing it to life) very soon…

In the meanwhile, I’m just stopping by to let you know that I will be out of town through Thursday, June 2nd, attending the Engage!11 conference! I am beyond excited… I have been enamored with the entire conference for years, only experiencing it vicariously through friends and recap posts online. ;-) This year, I am the humbled scholarship recipient and will finally get to soak up all the fabulousness myself!  I look forward to sharing a detailed, photo-laden recap of my trip when I return.

the grand del mar – host to engage!11

Although I will have my iPad with me during my trip, I am going to try to spend as much time away from it as possible.  Please expect a delay hearing from me if you email me this week. Current clients can call me with any urgent needs.  :)

Now back to packing for me!  Bursting at the seams with anticipation!!!

xoxo, Angel