Happy Diwali for those observing this holiday — celebrating the festival of lights!

Check out my article last year on Louis Vuitton + Diwali here.

xo,

PD

We’re currently working on the look and scheme for a couple’s upcoming engagement party! The bride-to-be wanted a very light pink, so we came up with a ombre palette that incorporates our version of ‘light’…it’s perfect for the blushing bride-to-be. What are your thoughts?

Our StyleGuide vol. 2 on Divanee Weddings

When we met with the bride and groom to design their wedding invitations, we immediately understood the ‘look’ they wanted. Understated organic luxury, with a very specific color palette chosen by the bride.

To go that extra mile and embody that luxurious eco-chic style, we used recycled metallic card stock, and 100% cotton twine for the ultimate textured contrast and dimension to subtlety convey Esheta & Doug are tying the knot. Additionally, we used sustainable green printing, which eliminates harmful chemicals and reduces energy usage with efficient equipment. Each were then sealed with a simple raffia ribbon in natural kraft.

We spent hours refining the twig and blossom design until the bride was satisfied! The original concept used a sage green in lieu of the apple green you see below, which matches the bridesmaids dresses. I actually prefer this shade of green with the rich ivory and chocolate brown. We’re looking forward to the wedding today on the beach!

Congratulations Esheta & Doug! Wishing you a 100% sustainable happiness together. =]

xoxo.

RoxxStar Bachelorette Shirts for Rakhee’s {aka Roxy} Bachelorette Weekend in Vegas.  Inspired by the pro-party energy drink, RockStar.  The stars {embedded with the RR monogram} were aligned– this bride-to-be was destined to party like a…

Our StyleGuide Vol.1 on Divanee Weddings

I remember when my parents used to take us on our annual family trips to Vegas every winter break to eat, shop, and play at Circus Circus. Not exactly sure why, as Vegas was never rated ‘G‘– but for whatever reason, I always had a Great time. However, Gone are the days that Vegas could ever be credited as a “Family Fun Zone.” Vegas can be rated many things, but it’s definitely closer on the ‘R‘ scale, than ‘G‘.
Let’s be Real.
We live in the era of ‘The Hangover,‘ {I’m slightly in love with Bradley Cooper, so I’m OK with this era} where partying and forgetting one’s problems are glorified.

Needless to say, when Monte Carlo re-strategized their branding and ad campaign back in 2009, I was totally impressed. David & Goliath — The Creative Agency behind this masterpiece, did an incredible job at painting you perfect pictures of scandals, glamour, and luxury… all without the pretense. {Sorta}
Using French-{ish} words in a phonetic breakdown with appropriately inappropriate imagery, the result was exactly “Unpretentiously Luxurious.”

I loved the series of questionable scenes and scenarios that one expects to find in Vegas. In this case, in Monte Carlo. It was perfect. This IS what Vegas is about.

I was inspired by this campaign to mimic the unpretentiously luxurious lifestyle to create T-Shirts for Sanna’s Bachelorette trip in Vegas. I thought it would be cooler to have everyone’s shirts have a different phrase, like ‘Tray-Sheek,’ ‘Bon App A Teet’…but “Duh Botch Or Ee’ stuck.
Not sure if it resonated, or if many understood it — but the artist in me can’t do anything without intention and a deeper meaning, blah-blah. I at least hope it initiated interesting conversations. And I really hope their weekend was full of… debauchery. =]

We were so excited to work on the logo and branding concept for Rubina’s Cake Shoppe! {revamp from her shop previously known as “Rubina’s Cakes.”}

After confirming the color palette of a rose pink and chocolate brown, we thought we’d add a touch of a modern-artistic-painterly look. We initially had the logo just include the hand-drawn swirl on top, so it would look like a somewhat abstracted cupcake top, but without the bottom wrapper, it could have easily been mistaken for a ice cream sundae…We obviously added the bottom wrapper extend from her shop name. The polka-dots were a no-brainer. A little mod, a little girly, and totally trendy…and voila, Rubina’s Cake Shop relaunch had begun.

I’m really behind on posting these pictures that her and her hubby so graciously sent over, so my apologies on the delay!

Rubina was a featured vendor showcasing at the “3rd Annual Valentine Romance “Sneak Peek” Oscar® Gifting Party” in Beverly Hills, this past February!

With the event styling by Hello Kismet Events, PaperDaydream designs, and the beautifully delicious Cake Truffles and Fabulously Sculpted cakes by Rubina, I’d say the event looked like a success. Below is the gorgeous Shop Owner and Pastry Chef herself with a few of Hollywood’s familiar faces, including Kevin Eubanks from The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Vivica A. Fox {Kill Bill, Booty Call}, and Kiowa Gordon of Twilight: New Moon & Twilight: Eclipse. Everyone loved how amazing her cakes were, Oscar Nuñez from the hit show The Office even commissioned her to create his wedding cake!

Feel free to contact her to sweeten up your day, and your next event.

McQueen at the Met?

Yes.

The sound of that just gives me chills, I had to confirm what I saw was real.

A little over a year after his very, very untimely and unfortunate death, McQueen’s magic can be seen beautifully curated at the Met until August 7th. It’s rare that an exhibit gives me chills. It’s rare that I get nervous upon entering a museum. And it’s even more rare that I almost fainted when I heard about this exhibit– the chills and the nerves just added to the majestic experience. McQueen was a master at delivering original avant-garde fashion during his triumphant 19 year career, and I love his intention, his execution and his sinister style behind everything. One of the reasons McQueen is my all time favorite designers, is because he never fails to arrange conflicting themes so amazingly well… every season. Not only does he blend unconventional elements together seemlessly, but he infuses so much of his dark side, adding so much depth and jaw-dropping worthy reactions. With 100 pieces from his work since 1992, including pieces from his Givenchy collection, each turn and each room left me in awe.

Oh..and the quotes cited were brilliant. I loved it. It tied the collection in so well, and gave you a peak inside the genius’ thought process.

I love this man so much, I had to write about him on Beauty and The Feast too.

McQueen doesn’t just inspire me, he empowers me.

Enjoy.

xoxo.

Spring 2001 – Voss Collection: Evoked images of beauty, horror, and madness. | Red & Black Feathers with Glass Microscope Medical Slides

My daddy supports my daydreams and helps me materialize them. He rocks sweater vests, and has an unlimited supply of argyle socks. He’s patient, wise, and always optimistic. No words, monetary value, or more socks, can ever express how grateful, fortunate and blessed I am to have him in my life. To all the best daddy’s in the world — Happy Father’s Day!  This one is for you, son.

{PS. My SLR is stuck in a car, that’s stuck in Westwood, in which my daddy had to come to our rescue. So until I get my camera back — I’m using my iphone.}

Still can’t get over how gorgeous the bride, Alina looked on her wedding day! Not only did she beam with an inexplicable radiance, but every detail of her event looked radiant as well. It’s not a easy feat to make a 750 guest list wedding feel intimate, but it all came together quite lovely. The black, red and champagne color palette was a classy and unique approach that mixed traditional with modern for the typical South Asian Weddings. In addition, we came up with the “Love: In Translation” theme to capture her idea to have a book/chapter/love-around-the-world theme.  After creating 750 programs for each place setting, we created the table numbers/names. Each table number/name includes the translation for I love You, along with the origin and language name. Instead of directing guests to a “table”, they were directed to a “Chapter” to their around-the-world timeless love via their skinny bookmark escort card.  Cheers to the beautiful couple! Wishing you a lifetime of love…in translation.

xo.

Wedding Photography: www.ajstudios.net | PaperDaydream Photography: Sadia K. | Event Decor: http://www.aseedandstone.com/

Oh baby, baby. Are you ready for some sereni-tea, beau-tea, and a par-tea?! Whilst trying to paint you a hyperbolic picture with my corny play on words, we realize that these probably are not the best pictures/photographs for it, but for now, they’ll do.

Chocolate-Brown-&-Mint-Green-Polka.Dot-Whimsy-Adult-Adorable-Baby-Chic Tea menus, favor tags, place mats, and seating name cards were designed for Nadia’s Baby Shower hosted at Alice’s Tea Cup in NYC.

The menus were obviously inspired by an actual tea bag. A little mix of traditional with original, we thought we’d make the entire menu card a “tea-bag.” Unfortunately, dipping it in hot water would only turn it to mush instead of whipping up some mint tea. Speaking of, that sounds really good right about now…so, while I go make some mint tea for myself…y’all can enjoy the par-tea.

Ciao!

xoxo.

Hola! I thought I’d share a few iphoneographs from Alhambra, Spain while still in Granada. The palace and gardens are unreal. I felt like I was in a fairy tale and was constantly overwhelmed and enchanted by how beautiful everything is. It’s deeply sublime and too amazing to capture in words… Or pictures no less. These pictures do not do this Nasrid Palace/Alhambra justice AT all … But just thought I’d share some international inspiration…on the go.

With all the fervor and media coverage of the Royal Wedding, we’d be remiss to not make any mention of this auspicious occasion. It’s lovely that it’s a love story, and not just a forced courtship between two royal families. I think that adds to the appeal of it all. And royal blood or not, Kate Middleton exudes nobility and sophistication all around. I’m in love with their love, and the hype behind this wedding-of-the-century is definitely exciting. Even my mom is excited! {Obvi}

Mom: Did you know Prince William was an Art History major, like you?!! He’s a good match for you!

Me: Really, Mommy, Really? Darn, looks like Kate beat me to my Prince Charming then. Ah, well.

{My mom’s a little more of a {day}dreamer than me =] }

I gotta say though – I was way underwhelmed after seeing their invitation. My reaction was “Wait, What? That’s it??? “ Gold Embossed on ivory stock – with handwritten guest names directly on the invite…WITH DOTTED LINES TO FILL IN THE BLANK!? Yikes. This is slightly embarrassing. No offense.  The overall aesthetic doesn’t seem to embody the modern elegance the couple exhibits at all.

That’s when we decided to come up with our own rendition of how we feel the invitations could have looked better =] We incorporated royal blue in the palette to streamline with her beautiful sapphire engagement ring.  Throw in some antique gold, ivory and caramel, and we’ve created our version of the Royal Wedding Regal Invitation.

This is just a prototype obvi -

• The real deal would be letterpressed on 220# ivory linen stock, {That’s like Cardboard with texture}  with blind debossing for more subtle texture, and a antique gold foil stamp along the Crest we custom designed.
• I opted for an English Victorian Rose “Garden” for the outer casing to compliment and contrast the Heraldic Design we created for the actual inserts.
• Then embellished with a crystalized pearl seal – and Sapphire and Topaz Swarovski Crystals on the inside.

We hope this fits the bill for the Royal Treatment they deserve.  We checked out the guest list, and noticed a certain British hottie couple – Victoria and David Beckham, so we used that as our sample invitee. {The internet is a creepy place — abundant in way too much information,  sorry.}   Thoughts??