Keeping The Flowers and Your Budget

Flowers come in a wide array of shapes, colors, sizes and fragrance. We love them because they add beauty and depth to every event/venue. In a wedding, flowers can be seen from any angle; with the bride (and bridal train), during the ceremony, as centerpieces at reception and in some instances as part of the cake.

According to a survey conducted by TheKnot.com, in 2010, flowers made up close to 10% of the average wedding budget in the US. This comes out to about $2000-$3000 and with the shrinking economy (and increased cost of living) this has lead many brides to wonder if the flowery feat is accomplishable…

It is indeed quite possible to have beautiful flowers on any budget and here are a few tips to help

1.    Avoid flowers that will be out of season at the time of the wedding. These tend to cost a lot more and do not last as long because they must be shipped.  If you must have these flowers think “Less is more”

2.     As a follow up, opt for flowers (and Florists) that are locally grown.  Florists are a lot more flexible with pricing and assistance when it comes to local weddings. 

Traditional roses can be found almost everywhere

3.    D.I.Y. – With a few hours of research and a steady hand you can create your very own beautiful bouquets, boutonnières and centerpieces. The money saved on hiring a florist can easily go into having more flowers for the day or into other areas of the wedding.

Simple and Gorgeous

4.    Mixing Flowers and other aesthetic elements. Instead of a bouquet made purely of flowers. Try using half the amount of flowers and adding beautiful elements such as Greenery, jewels, sculpted branches etc.

These arrangements are not only beautiful, they are far less expensive

5.    An alternative to real (and more expensive) flowers is to use silk/artificial flowers. Look out for our future article on the pros, cons and how-to’s of using them.

Can you tell if these are silk flowers? 

With so many options, the possibilities are endless. Have fun with a little research and let your imagination run free. No matter the size, budget or theme of the wedding the most important rule is to JUST BE CREATIVE.

Happy searching

Fashion Afrique: OCO BAGS

OCO BAGS was founded by Cynthia Osueke. She had the idea of creating durable handbags that combine Ankara with modern materials as she purchased fabric handbags from local vendors alongside a coastal resort in Mozambique. Though delighted by her purchases, she was later disappointed when the handbags fell apart after short usage. She took the concept of making durable bags to a bag maker in Nigeria who produced the first round. Upon returning to the USA, Cynthia shared her products and the news spread.

Cynthia holds a Bachelors degree in Government with an African Studies Certificate from Georgetown University. She is currently pursing a Masters in Public Policy from the University of Maryland with hopes of pursing a career in International Development with a focus on poverty eradication in Africa. Her parents immigrated from eastern Nigeria. She is native of Houston and a lover of all things fruit.

OCO BAGS combine beautiful African Ankara fabrics with modern materials to create distinctive handbags. All of our products are custom made. No two of our bags are exactly the same. No one else has these exact products. Our array of products are constantly changing and evolving. Many of our styles will not repeated. OCO BAGS brings affordable, custom made, top quality handbags to the world. It takes a tradition material, reshapes it and reinvents its usages.

OCO BAGS is more than simply another retailer of handbags. We hope to futher the appreciation of Africa around hte world while positively impacting lives of people in Africa as a course of business.

To that end, OCO BAGS are produced by small scale artisans in West Africa. Everything from the Ankara fabrics to the zippers is bought in African markets. The involvement of Africans in the creation of our products and supply chain directly ties our business to small businesses in Africa. Thus, we hope to provide additional streams of income from these African ventures.

Additionally, a portion of our proceeds will be donated to charities benefiting vulnerable children operating in Africa. Our first line of charities will be Operation Bobby Bear in Durban, South Africa, Children of Fire in Johannesburg, South Africa and Sons of Mary, Mother of Mercy in Abia State, Nigeria.

Be part of the journey. Witness the artistry and allure of Africa.

THE FIT-AND-FLARE

Summer is almost upon us and as the temperature begins to rise, so does the glam factor for this year’s wedding gowns.  When we say glam we don’t mean tons of jewels and sparkles. No, this season, Glam is defined in the texture, structure and body of your wedding dress.  Today we will be highlighting a wedding gown silhouette that is definitely appropriate not just for summer, but for all year long (with the right adjustments).

Whether you’re a simple bride or you want to shine like platinum there is a dress for everyone.

Silhouette: THE FIT-AND-FLARE (A.K.A.Mermaid, Trumpet)

Description: The Fit-And-Flare fits closely from the chest to the knee (or mid thigh) and flares out to the hem.

Why It Works: The dress speaks for itself. No accessories needed (but a few are ok if you so wish).  The top of the dress allows you to focus on the beauty and glow of the new bride. The bottom of the dress can be as dramatic or as romantic as you so desire without being overwhelming. Because of its form fitting nature, it hugs and accentuates your natural curves allowing you to be sexy without being inappropriate.

Who It Works For: It not only works for hour-glass (or X-Shaped) figures, it works for pear-shaped and straight-shaped brides to be as well.

We loved this dress from The Priscilla of Boston PLATINUM Collection, a perfect combination of elegance and drama.

This is another FIT AND FLARE called The Arabella by Melissa Sweet.

We call this, the in-between dress because it has something for the simple bride as well as an appeal of uniqueness for the daring bride.

  

Here is a unique Fit-and-Flare Wedding gown by Designer Tara Keely.

we love the bustier ;-)

This is a dress we found a few weeks ago while web surfing. This is in fact a real bride.

And yes this is a FIT-AND-FLARE. We loved not only the dress but also the look over all. This is truly a dress for the summer season and definitely reminds us of a warm summer night!

WELCOME!

Welcome everyone!

We are very excited to be kicking off our blog this month. This blog is our latest offering towards our goal of inspiring brides and brides-to-be of African decent living in the United States to create the wedding of their dreams!

We will share rich wedding culture from fabulous real weddings, provide unique insights and tips to help pull off an elegant wedding without compromising culture or high fashion sense as well as spotlight the amazing talent of some of our favorite wedding vendors across the country. We hope you will enjoy reading our blog just as much we will enjoy publishing!

~AfricanWeddingsUS

p.s. We love hearing from our brides and vendors! Join in the fun by following us, leaving comments on our posts and telling us more of what you will like to read about by sending an email to us at info@africanweddingsus.com