October 26, 2011

{Wedding Memories & Dr. Seuss}


Dear Bride-To-Be:
You never know what your wedding guests will take away from your wedding. Of course, you're planning a ceremony of the heart for your rite-of-passage into marriage; an event filled with love and reverence and all you hold dear. And when you do that, your guests also take away something deeply moving and life changing for them as well!

Here is what author and counselor Arielle Ford wrote about being at her niece's recent wedding:

We just returned from Dallas where we attended the wedding of our niece Sarah and her beloved, Mark. It was a beautiful garden affair, at sunset, with a brass quartet and a very enthusiastic, loving and gracious minister.
The bride was stunning, the groom beaming, and one of the highlights of the ceremony for me was a recital of Sarah's all-time favorite Dr. Seuss poem that expressed the depth and the whimsy of the happy couple:
I will love you in the park, and I will love you in the dark.
I will love you through good or bad,
When you're happy and when your sad.
I will love you when you're rich or when you're poor and in a ditch
And I will have and I will hold,
Ten years from now a thousand fold.
And now we're here at this new start,
So I'll start by loving you with my whole heart.

Whatever poetic readings you choose for your wedding -- from Dr. Seuss to Shakespeare -- be sure you include your "whole heart" in all of your wedding plans so everyone involved gets to share the love!
 
Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia
 
[Photograph: Ian Grant]

October 19, 2011

{The Princess Bride & Her Tiara}


Dear Bride-to-Be:
Tiaras have been associated with brides since ancient Rome with their classical, elegant style. And “by the early 1300s a jeweled crown for a bride was a symbol of the marital state” of aristocratic women, according to Carol McD. Wallace in her book, All Dressed in White. Following Princess Elizabeth’s wedding in 1947—the future queen of Englandbeing a “princess bride” became the fashion and tiaras, of course, were the headpiece of choice even for “everyday” brides.

Although Diana Spencer wore an exquisite family heirloom tiara for her royal wedding in 1981, the bridal fashion for tiaras didnt catch on again until the late 90s. By the time Princess Dianas daughter-in-law, the lovely Kate Middleton, became a bride in the spring of this year wearing a borrowed diadem from the queens family collectiontiaras had been back in vogue for years. Something about that “princess bride” sensibility had captured the fancy of the times and went deep into the hearts of many brides. 

Whether you wear a diamond, paste or glass tiara; or a wreath of fresh flowers or just one fragrant rose tucked behind your ear; whether you wear a jeweled ornament, or a crown of vintage wax orange blossoms, or no headpiece at all when you are a bride; you wear a regal legacy!


Love. Listen. Let go.
....with love from Cornelia

ps: If you’d like to read more about princess brides and tiaras, click here to read a reprint of my article Tiaras and the Real Princesses.

October 12, 2011

{Bridal Gown as Art}


Dear Bride-To-Be:
Most brides put lots of attention on finding or creating the dress to wear for their wedding. Wearing it makes them feel beautiful...even looking at it makes them feel special!

Since the wedding dress takes such a beloved place in the hearts of brides, there are several ways to be sure that it remains special. And even have it be a work of art to enjoy long after the wedding ends.

Here are some creative ideas by wonderful artists:

Fashion illustrator Anne Underwood can create a lovely pencil, ink & pastel drawing of you in your wedding dress (from your favorite photograph.)

Photographer Dorothy O'Connor re-creates a wedding gown into a beautiful still-life image.

And if you want to preserve your gown yourself, click here for tips from assistant museum curator, Steven Rosengard.

After your wedding is complete -- settling back into your "un-bride" routine as well as adjusting to married life -- can be just as busy as the time planning your wedding. So before you let that lovely gown languish for too long on the back of a chair somewhere, be sure to have it cleaned and put away -- and perhaps even create a precious piece of art out of your memories.

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

October 5, 2011

{Choices of Your Heart}


Dear Bride-to-Be:
Wearing a wedding gown is so weird,” a bride was quoted in The Bride Revealed, a book by photographer Leslie Barton. It’s not like any other dress. I felt so grown-up and elegant in it. At the same time, it felt like a costume. Even during my wedding, when I saw my reflection, I was startled. Who is that?’ It’s such an important transformation, from the usual jeans and T-shirt to a formal wedding gown. I felt it strengthened the commitment, that what I said on this day would be with me for the rest of my life.”

This bride reveals something that you might soon find out for yourself. That your wedding gown, and all the other rituals you use for your wedding—the music, flowers, exchange of rings, even your vows—are all outward expressions of your inner self. They are a reflection of what you hold in your heart and meant to, as this bride said, “strengthen your commitment” to all you hold dear.

And you thought your wedding dress was only to make you look like a dream! It’s not only a transformation from jeans to formal gown,” but also a transformation of your heart—deepening your commitment to your best self. Make the things you choose for your wedding, choices of your heart.

Love. Listen. Let go.
....with love from Cornelia

[Photograph: Leslie Barton]