It's been a while since I designed a t-shirt, but the other day I had the idea of a blank rubik's cube. So here it is - our simplify tee. Available in our redbubble store.
Another month over! I'd like to say things are settling down around here since our wedding, but I'd be lying. It's just as crazy busy as usual, but thats the way we like it. Just like the pic above by Amanda Pratt Photography.
This month this cute little hand stamped necklace caught our eye, marked with the words I do and your wedding date from Chantelle Nicole Designs. This stunning smocked dress from Kali Oseano Clothing would be just perfect for an Aussie outback inspired wedding. And of course it was Easter this month, so we hope the bunny brought you loads of chocolate, cutest pic via cafe cartolina. How did they get that bunny to sit still long enough to paint him though? :)
We hope you enjoyed this months Chinese Australian wedding. Thanks to everyone who commented and contributed. Next month things are starting to cool down...
Following on from yesterdays post on how to DIY your own paper fortune cookies, how about crochet ones!? Jennipho has put together a cute little video to show you how to finish off the cookie once you have made a simple crochet circle. Watch the video here or visit Jennipho's etsy shop to buy handmade crochet cookies.
You can't end a Chinese meal without a fortune cookie - so we're going to finish up our Chinese wedding this month with our very own DIY fortune cookies. So simple to make, you could leave one on each guests plate or mix one with some real cookies in a Chinese take-away box for a cute favour idea.
Turn your wedding photos into beautiful watercolour sketches in ten easy steps. This is a fairly straightforward photoshop tutorial but we do assume you have a basic knowledge of the program including using layers.
This effect doesn't work with every image, but something that already has a nice soft feel to it will be best.
DIY project:
Step 1. Duplicate the layer and make that new layer black and white by Image > Adjustments > black and white.
Step 2. Duplicate this new black and white layer and invert it by Image > Adjustments > Invert.
Step 3. Set the blending mode for this layer to colour dodge, don't worry, the image should disapear.
Step 4. Now go to Filter > Other > Minimum and use a radius of between 1 and 5
Step 5. Double click in the layers palette on what should be now called layer copy 1, this will bring up the layer styles options. Holding down the alt or option key click on the little tags under the underlaying layer bar. This frees them up to be moved around individually. You can see by adjusting these tags it gives more depth to the sketch effect. When your happy and have something similar to our example hit ok.
Step 6. Now you could leave it as this as it actually looks pretty good, but we're going to carry on and add a little colour back. Select Layer 1 copy and Layer 1 and merge them together.
Step 7. With the original layer seleceted go to Image > Adjustments > Hue/Saturation and increase the saturation to about +50
Step 8. Now reduce the opacity of the top layer (layer 1 copy) to about 85%.
Step 9. On this top layer, with a large soft brush and opacity set very low, slowly erase areas of skin to bring a little more colour back. Go over some areas more if you like as though you where painting the colour back in. You can also do small sections of hair too.
As always these amazing cakes just look too impressive to eat... oh well maybe I could just force myself to have a slice :)
Credits: Dark chocolate dragon design on top of white chocolate, by the organic chocolate cake company. Gorgeous icing detail of frog style knot buttons on this cake via the knot. Cascading cherry blossoms and the double happiness symbol from the pink cake box. Beautiful birdcage cake by Lark Cake Shop.
Fall in love with our latest wedding invitation. The tree of love is a romantic hand drawn illustration perfect for weddings and great for engagement invites too. Available in our online shop.
Matthew and Jenny's Melbourne wedding last year was a beautiful combination of Chinese tradition and Australian fun. Matthew arrived at the brides home in the morning for a tea ceremony, but wouldn't be allowed in until he passed the tests set by Jenny's bridemaids. A Chinese singing test, a quiz and the taste test followed where Matthew had to correctly identify tofu and ginger among others. Luckily he passed, and the ceremony and reception took place at the beautiful Red Spice Road.
Photographed by the lovely Alan and Karen Woo from Akwoo Photography in Victoria.
Our four legged friends have been strutting their stuff on the catwalks of New York as part of the Fashion Institute of Technology's annual Pet Fahion Show. And don't they look gorgeous, not to mention happy! Must be the first time the catwalks of NY fashion week have seen such cheerful and well fed models...
You might be surprised to see just how easy this lovely paper lantern centerpiece is to make. Its a great option when you don't have a huge amount of table space to play with as the sides can double as menu cards, drinks lists or table numbers. See the DIY tutorial on Project Wedding.
Spice up your wedding invitations with a simple frog fastener.
Here we have a really simple DIY wedding invitation project using our flexible eastern promise invitation design. Begin by printing out the invitation front and back, then mark up a semi circle on each side for the flaps. Trim the invite top and bottom and cut around your semi-circle flaps. Fold, and glue a simple frog fastener to the front with strong glue.
If you don't like the fact that you can see the invitation wording underneath you can always slip an extra piece of blank card or coloured rice paper in between.
Flights are delayed all over the place as the volcano in Iceland creates major disruptions. But it does have its benefits - beautiful sunsets are being caused by all the ash in the atmosphere at the moment. This is one of my favourite pics, check out flickr for more.
The Chinese tradition of folding 1000 paper cranes before the wedding was supposed to instill the bride and groom with great patience, just whats needed in marriage! Folding 1000 origami cranes certainly does require patience, but once you've got the hang of it, they are very simple to make. Stringing the cranes hanging from the ceiling is a truly beautiful way to display your finished creations. But there are plenty of other uses for them. They make lovely place cards and even wedding cake decorations. Pics: artist Giles Edsall via Artful Paper, the knot and The Selby
DIY project:
For a really comprehensive step by step to making your own origami cranes click here
Now available in our online shop are more products from the chinese inspired eastern promise wedding stationery range, including save the dates and menu cards. Enjoy!
It was hubbies birthday on the weekend so I tried out one of the chocolate cake recipes from the latest Donna Hay magazine and it turned out really well. Scampi was certainly very interested in getting his piece of cake. Sorry munchkin, no chocolate for doggies.
We all know how popular cupcakes are at the moment, and you might have seen birdcages popping up quite a bit in wedding decorations, but this project combines the two!
The bride spotted these birdcages in Chinatown and took them home to spray paint gold and create tiers inside to sit the cupcakes on. They make a fabulous display with strings of origami cranes behind. How about transforming old birdcages into beautiful table centerpieces too?
Bring your wedding decorations to life with a bright and bold combination of red and gold.
Credits: Paper lanterns are a quick and easy way to add some drama, especially on mass like this pic from Martha Stewart. Paper cranes from Made by Jo. A colourful combination of different table mat designs, pic via Burda Fashion. Beautiful Chinese bowls stacked together for an interesting centerpiece, pic by Sass Studios. Lucky bamboo make great favours. Frosted glass takeout holders via Stylehive. Cute little cocktail umbrellas can be used as place cards, pic from the knot. Pretty lotus candle holder.
The double happiness symbol is a very common feature at Chinese weddings and it adds the perfect finishing touch to invitations and favours. We've designed this FREE double happiness image, 2 inchs wide just great for stickers, for you to download and use in your Chinese wedding DIY projects. Enjoy!
Every now and then I come across a style of work that really makes me stop in my tracks. I just love the beautiful and inspiring blog and gorgeous etsy shop of Dolan Geiman - contempory art with a southern accent.
Just added to our DIY stationery range - eastern promise. To go with our beautiful Chinese inspired wedding this month is this gorgeous red and gold decorative invitation which can be altered to any colour scheme you like! Available in our ONLINE SHOP.
I'm absolutely positively loving the new tourism campaign for Wellington at the moment. So much work must have gone into it creating fabric miniatures of the Wellington region and landmarks. Very clever. Watch the video here.
Bright reds and gold certainly pack a punch. How amazing would these bridesmaids look?
Credits: Souki China red floral brocade hair comb, US$32.95 from Chloe an Maddie. Photo from Chinfun.com Floral travels woven dress from Forever21. Red ruffelled gown from Eurca. Red pencil dress from Joy the store. Fortune cookie happiness necklace, US$42 from Lanyapi. Sparkley red Christian Lauboutin heels and Alexander McQueen gold peeptoes.
I've been meaning to design these invitations ever since my very respectable bridal shower - Mystic High Tea at the Observatory Hotel (which I highly recommend, the tea leaf reading was brilliant and spookily accurate). So if you're planning a tea party in any way, these might be just the thing. Available in our online store.
Although red is the traditional colour for a Chinese wedding dress, in this case our bride has decided to wear white and have the bridesmaids wear the red. How about this beautiful gown from Rosa Clara 2010 collection which has a slight Asian feel to it, and pockets! Got to love pockets in a wedding dress. Gorgeous model pic from Model Mayhem.
Congratulations to ... oh, anonymous... who has won our little competition to blog about their wedding idea for the month. We loved the idea of a Chinese Australian wedding. Anonymous said:
"My brother is getting married and his bride is originally from Beijing so it will be a Chinese and Australia themed wedding (she is wearing white and the bridesmaids are wearing red). I've been asked to help with the decorations and invites. Any ideas would be great."
So here goes nothing - we've used a colour palette of red and gold that traditionally represents happiness and success in Chinese culture. Chinese lanterns and parasols make perfect decorations. There are many ways origami cranes can be displayed - a tradition for Chinese weddings. Gorgeous little cupcakes in gold painted bird cages, pic via the knot. Fortune cookies to finish off.
