As we head into December (man it came fast!), we’re wrapping our heads around gift ideas to get our friends and family. In fact, I’m heading to the One Of A Kind Show this weekend to get some inspiration and maybe some gifts. If you have a bride-to-be in your life, here are some ideas for what to get them, all under $50:

Do you have a bride who will be moving soon? Get her this stylish but classic custom return address stamp. $38.24 CAD from Primele on Etsy.

What about the bride who loves to host? These adorable diamond pot holders make for a perfect gift. $26.56 CAD from ioana weber on Etsy.

If you’ve got an in on the bride’s planning and know her wedding colours, it could be a fun gift to get her nail polish in her wedding colour palette! Kisses & Bises, Frech Affair and Bachelorette Bash from Essie, $10 each.

If the bride-to-be on your list still has some planning to do, gift her a pair of tickets to one of the hottest shows this spring! $50 for two tickets to The Wedding Co. Show.

Rebecca Chan is a Toronto wedding planner and day of wedding coordinator providing sophisticated planning for the modern bride. Whether you need planning assistance or wedding day coordination, Rebecca can help you create your dream wedding day. Contact her today, she'd love to hear from you.

All of us ladies with some bling on our fingers should have the right tools and tips when it comes to keeping them sparkly. Here I’ve got some tips for you from Jennifer at the Fair Trade Jewellery Company on keeping your ring clean. Jennifer does custom design work at FTJCo and FTJCo is also where I got my e-ring made. In fact, that’s my ring up there in the photo

Note that these are tips for gold or platinum jewellery with diamonds/sapphires. For other materials, such as silver or pearls, other methods need to be used.

Cleaning

The best place to start is with a soft toothbrush, warm water, and liquid dish soap. That should take off the oil that holds onto dust and skin, and causes a film.

Some people like to buy a jewellery cleaning solution. It comes in a little container with a brush and a holder. If you use that, I’d still give it a little wash after to remove any solution.

Jewellers (like us) have stronger, safe machines designed to remove dirt from hard to reach places (like under the side diamonds). That can be done once in awhile, but not necessary all of the time.

Polishing

A soft cloth (like an eyeglass cloth) can give a quick shine.

There are also polishing cloths for sale that are impregnated with a compound to help bring out a brighter shine.

For more obvious scratches and dulling, jewellers can buff the ring again to bring it closer to the original. This does remove a tiny bit of metal, and is also not needed regularly. After a long period of time, some people choose to have the stone ((other than diamond) re-polished, and the facets sharpened up again.

The materials I would warn against are abrasives (like Comet or baking soda) that can scuff and dull the gold, and other jewellery with diamonds and sapphires (tossed in a bag/box/pocket together), that can scratch each other.

Safety tips

Make sure to do your cleaning over a bowl or container instead of the sink or in mid-air, just in case you knock out a loose stone or the ring slips from your fingers.

Regarding loose stones, you can check by gently tapping the stone with your fingertip and seeing if it moves, or makes a noise. If it’s loose, or suddenly began to catch on clothes, or it’s been left in the laundry, stepped on, or worse (it happens!), bring it to your jeweller for an inspection to see if it needs some upkeep/repair. Most jewellers do not mind taking a look anytime, to make sure the ring is in good shape and the stone is secure.

Rebecca Chan is a Toronto wedding planner and day of wedding coordinator providing sophisticated planning for the modern bride. Whether you need planning assistance or wedding day coordination, Rebecca can help you create your dream wedding day. Contact her today, she'd love to hear from you.

I just came back from a relaxing and fun destination wedding in Montego Bay, Jamaica! It was such a beautiful setting to have a wedding… set on the beach with the water behind you, the sun setting above you and alongside your closest friends. Just amazing.

I’ll post some more photos soon but here is a sneak peak of the view from my room. Imagine waking up to that every morning!

Rebecca Chan is a Toronto wedding planner and day of wedding coordinator providing sophisticated planning for the modern bride. Whether you need planning assistance or wedding day coordination, Rebecca can help you create your dream wedding day. Contact her today, she'd love to hear from you.

Ok I stumbled upon this wedding website from WeddingLovely and it is pretty fabulous. It’s not just good, it’s knock-your-socks-off kind of good. It’s the story of how this couple met, started dating, got engaged and then finishes off by inviting guests to enter the website to RSVP for their wedding day.

Let me tell you, I’m a designer and I can appreciate the work that was put into this. It must have been one undertaking. Just fantastic. Great job Jess and Russ, whoever and wherever you are, and all the best in your new life together! I can only imagine how awesome the actual website is!?

Source: http://www.jessandruss.us

Don’t just listen to me, see for yourself!

http://www.jessandruss.us

Rebecca Chan is a Toronto wedding planner and day of wedding coordinator providing sophisticated planning for the modern bride. Whether you need planning assistance or wedding day coordination, Rebecca can help you create your dream wedding day. Contact her today, she'd love to hear from you.

I’m sending you off on your weekend with a fun and short post.

One of the lovely couples I am working with lives in Australia and is holding their wedding ceremony in PEI and a second reception in Toronto (it’s going to be one long party week!). Because of the distance and logistics, I’m helping them collect their reply cards in the mail.

Yesterday I received a perplexing, and rather unhelpful, response…

….Yes, someone used the pre-stamped envelope to send this in, to let us know of their uncertain attendance to the wedding. Honestly.

Rebecca Chan is a Toronto wedding planner and day of wedding coordinator providing sophisticated planning for the modern bride. Whether you need planning assistance or wedding day coordination, Rebecca can help you create your dream wedding day. Contact her today, she'd love to hear from you.