During my early days of wedding planning, I entertained the idea of nontraditional table centerpieces. Alas, I went the traditional route and decided on flowers instead. I wanted small arrangements filled with garden flowers that were very simple, green and fit our rustic chic theme. I looked high and low for the perfect vase and found nothing that fit my vision. Then I had an ephiphany.
I decided to skip the traditional glass vases and instead searched for cups! I’m a huge fan of Japanese stoneware so I knew I was on the right track. I finally found some at a Japanese store and purchased all 30 they had in stock. It was pretty affordable too - I think it was on sale 3 for $10 at the time. The latte brown cups are very earthy looking and not perfectly round, making them the perfect container for my garden flowers.
As seen at our reception:
Some of you may remember I wasn’t too fond of the idea of a bachelorette party filled with dancing, stripping and alcohol so I decided to forgo a party altogether. Then my BM Sharrie commented that I should still do something. A few options came to mind which included: a day at the spa, dinner and a show and perhaps a weekend getaway; but by the time these ideas were thrown around, it was just about 3 weeks to my wedding which didn’t give us much time to plan something elaborate. Besides, I didn’t want to have my girls spend more. Finally, I figured it out. Yes I sort of planned my own party, but I think it worked out better that way. I gathered up a few girls including my sister in laws and niece and we all headed to Color Me Mine in Tribeca to paint pottery!
The studio is filled with ready to paint items of all prices and sizes.


Sometimes I think it’s a miracle that Mr. Violet and I fell in love and sustained such a wonderful relationship. I say this because we have practically nothing in common. We don’t eat the same things. We don’t watch the same television shows nor do we like the same movies (in most cases). He loves computers, video games & sports. I am the complete opposite. Except for our love of travelling and our dog, we do not share the same interests on a day to day basis. I get aggravated with computers/gadgets, love the idea of playing video games, but I’m a horrible player, and sports - well I just don’t get it. I once went to a Mets game with Mr. Violet on a scorching hot July day. I was so antsy in my seat that I took several trips to the concession stand just so I’d have something to keep myself occuppied. I ended up spending $50 on junk food!
Over the years I’ve tried my hardest to like what he likes, but trying is mental, doing is real. So this year, for the very first time, we are having our first football, oops I mean Superbowl party. It’s going to be a small party which should be much easier to manage than say having 20 people over yelling and screaming. I’m going to have plenty of Superbowl friendly food around. For the first time, I will sit down among my husband and his buddies and watch the game. I don’t mean that I’ll just wait for the commercials, but I will sit through it. Now that I’ve said it, I must do it. Stay tuned and Go Giants!?
Are any couples out there complete opposites like us, and what kind of sacrifices have you made?
A friend of mine went through two failed marriages. Needless to say, she has a pretty negative outlook on marriage. She said that when she got married, she became more demanding of her husband and he in turn became less interested. In her own words, “Now that he’s got her, he need not be as good to her as he used to be when they were only dating.”
I was pretty shocked to hear this. On the contrary, I’ve become less demanding and try my best to be nicer to Mr. Violet(yes, I can be mean sometimes); while Mr. Violet has been filling his husband role quite well. In fact, all the extra things that he has done to date amazes me. He helps me clean the house. He bakes for me. He surprised me with an MP3 player last night just because he felt I needed a new one; and I did. (He called it an early Valentine’s Day gift.) He gets excited to see me when I come home. He always wants to take me out or hang out together. When I do get mad at him about something, he tries harder to understand why. I was planning a trip to Aruba with my sister come April, and Mr. Violet helped me book the flights & hotels. He even gave up his Amex reward points for our flights so that we can fly for free.
My friend says jokingly, “I wonder how he’s going to be 25 years from now” and I reply, “I wonder too,” but if I had to make a bet, I’d bet he’ll be as good to me as he’s always been.” ![]()
Mr. Violet and I were looking foward to our cruise for so many months and now with a blink of an eye, our honeymoon is over and we’re back home. So sad, but we came home with many great memories and that’s what matters. We experienced the magic of every moment.
Sam wanted to come with us but alas, we had to leave her at home. I was a very sad momma!

Hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving. We certainly did! We did the same routine that we’ve done in the last few years; have Thanksgiving lunch with his family then off to dinner with mine. Yes we have two full Thanksgiving meals in one day! Of course, as much as I tried not to, I still ended up stuffing myself silly!
Now that Thanksgiving is over, I’m ready for my honeymoon! Actually, I’m leaving in 6 hours! Unfortunately I haven’t posted the reception or even the cocktail party pictures, but I thought I’d skip ahead to my trash the dress session for you all! I decided to do this after the wedding and I’m really glad we splurged. It was a really cloudy day at the beach but I love the effect it had on our photos.
Our photographer, Alberto from Duet Wedding did a wonderful job at our wedding. His team not only took a ton of great photos, many were taken without my noticing! Mr. Violet & I both agree that Duet earns an A (despite being a laid back bride, I can be quite critical sometimes so I didn’t give Duet an A+ because I believe there’s always room for improvement). We received a box loaded with proofs, along with a CD of full resolution originals & edited photos.
When I first started wedding planning, I wanted to DIY everything. I thought it would be cheaper if I did it myself and I wanted it to be personal. In the end, while I did have many DIY projects done, I also took some help from the professionals. The following photos encapsulate touches that we added ourselves and those that we left to the professionals.
DIY Altered Altoid Tins - Everyone loved these!
“Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born.”
- Anais Nin
We don’t have many friends but the few that we do have are important to us in their own individual ways. We are so happy and blessed to be surrounded by their love and support on our most special day!