Simply Sweet, Whimsical Wedding

After creating Howie and Lili's Save-the-Date, I was anxious to get working on their invitation and remaining stationery. It was a fun challenge to come up with a set that would tastefully compliment their wedding style. Their color scheme was a beautiful tangerine orange and deep teal. They wanted whimsical elements but a look not so rustic, nothing overly ornate or too modern. They also wanted a custom monogram to depict their shared love of photography, but didn't want it to be the central focus of their design. My solution was a simple, subtle design with a mix of script and sophisticated type. All components were held together with the sweet touch of baker's twine and a hangtag of their monogram.  This combination was perfectly fitting for their fun, warm personality and had just enough structure and cleanliness to satisfy their perfectionist side. I especially loved that I was able to derive their monogram from each of their own hand-drawn sketches of a camera style they liked - a great personal touch.  Rounding off the collection are coordinating ceremony programs, the reception seating chart, tented menus, table numbers, and the monogram tags and twine were also used to adorn their adorable succulent favors. I couldn't be happier seeing it all come together on their wedding day. Congratulations Howie and Lili!

Vendors & Credits: Wedding Photography - Tauran Woo Photography / Cake - Suzie Cakes / Wedding Corrdinator - Nancy Luyen (nancy.luyen@gmail.com) / Wedding Flowers - The Bride & her girls! / Stationery Printing - Wet Ink Printing / Invitation & Stationery Design & Photography - Loralee Alcantara  

Cocktail Baby Shower

Before the year ends, here's a Cocktail Baby Shower I had the pleasure to design and host for my friend Ginger, the same mom-to-be of the Plum Party I had featured earlier this year. The tendency could be to merely serve finger foods and cocktails, but my goal for the event was to stretch beyond that and come up with a creative balance of sophistication and fun. The invitations cleverly incorporate the iconic martini glass into the event logo, cleanly framed against one of her favorite patterns. Invited guests find all the event details inside, a map, QR codes that conveniently link directly to gift registries, and an insert card with instructions for a "B.Y.O.B." game (Bring Your Own Baby photo!), all nicely packaged in printed envelopes with coordinating navy liners.


A sleek, contemporary clubhouse was the perfect venue for the event. Coordinating patterns, accents of homemade fabric bow ties, and a color palette of bold navy and azure complimented her preppy-chic style. The dessert table featured Japanese roll cake, cream puffs, macaron cookies with chocolate ganache, cake pops, and chocolate and blue velvet cupcakes. As a playful twist, I created several baby rattle shakers to house an assortment of sprinkles so guests could top their cupcakes with sprinkles of their choice.  At the bar, the self-serve drink station encouraged guests to fill glass bottles with their favorite "formulas." Traditional mimosas were served alongside an assortment of mocktails, with the option to add a splash of liquor for those who want to "feel a lil kick." The B.Y.O.B. game display used root beer cases and numbered clothespins ready for guests to hang the photos in random order when they arrived. And of course, a tip jar collected advice and special messages for mom-to-be. Overall it was a great event, "pouring with love" and made to fit mom's personal style, and all the fun continued out the door when guests left with miniature shakers filled with their own mix of cocktail flavored jellybeans. Cheers and congratulations Ginger!


Credits: Cupcakes, Cream Puffs, Cookies & Cake Pops: Baking in Faith

Kawaii Rock! 2nd Birthday

Introducing "Kawaii Rock" -- a birthday party theme for the super cool and adorable music lover that fuses a rockstar edge with Japanese "kawaii" (cute) pop culture. The collection was perfectly fitting as my daughter's 2nd birthday party, but can certainly be adapted for any age. Have a custom character resembling the birthday girl take center stage on the invitation, and incorporate a QR code that conveniently links devices to a website for party information and to RSVP online. Serve up anything kawaii and delicious with a variety of coordinating labels, and guests are sure to enjoy a fun dessert table displaying treat cones filled with "oishi" (delicious) popcorn, ultra cool Japanese style soda and juice boxes packaged as mini guitar amplifiers. Send music notes soaring and "do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do" singing from cupcakes with innovative transparent toppers. Welcome all the little rock stars with VIP passes, keep them occupied with themed coloring pages, and bid them farewell with handmade guitar favor bags stuffed with goodies. "Fanmail" photo postcards, ready for VIP loungers to write a special message to the birthday girl, make great additions to a memory book. It's everything you need, and more, for your little one to party like a (Kawaii) Rockstar!


Credits: Cake & Cupcakes: Baking in Faith

Lili + Howie: Save the Date

It's always a pleasure to work with couples like Lili and Howie who are laid-back, super fun and creative themselves. Congratulations you two and looking forward to designing your wedding stationery!

Credits: Save the Date Photograph by: Candice Benjamin Photography

Modern Noah Birthday Collection

Noah's Ark themed birthdays need a modern facelift, so I was delighted to give it a simple and refreshing look for the 1st birthday party of my friend's son. An assortment of coordinating sticker labels were created to decorate what would otherwise be drab drinking cups. In the future, these same designs could also be used for creating cupcake toppers. For favors, custom labels featuring the birthday boy and a thank you message were wrapped around baby food jars filled with the promise of something sweet (rainbow colored candy). And as with any of my designs, additional coordinating items can be created for any other features to your party.