Carte Blanche

Top 5 Wedding Cake Shops in Toronto

MJ — Thu, 16 May 2013 02:13:09 +0000

Everyone needs to have a beautiful cake at their wedding. This is your time to splurge and get a cake that will reflect the style of the wedding you and your fiancé are dreaming about. Over the past 10 years I have encountered various cake makers that have caught my eye as well as fulfilling my tastebuds. Below are my top choices for wedding cakes and cupcakes in Toronto…

Bobbette & Belle
Designed to be chic and elegant, perfected in both flavour and style. Specialists in french macarons, cupcakes, cookies & confections are available in store daily or packaged as wedding favours. Their beautiful
Artisanal Pastry Shop is an open air bakery located in the heart of Leslieville.

Connie Cupcakes
If you’re looking for confection perfection then you may want to have a closer look at Connie’s edible decor
everyone will want to devour. These delicate desserts have a serious wow factor! Connie’s bakery is located
in Yorkville.

J’adore Cakes Co.
Award winning pastry chef and owner Isabelle ventured out into the pastry world and discovered that her true passion for baking belonged in the world of cake. Located on the Danforth just east of Victoria Park this little pastry shop specializes in wedding cakes, cupcakes, cupcake bouquets and they now sell fresh donuts.

The Cupcake Shoppe
Founded in 2003, the Cupcake Shoppe is Toronto’s first and finest cupcake bakery, and we know how much fun a cupcake can be! Located in Toronto’s bustling Yonge and Eglinton area, offers a total of 28 nut-free cupcake flavours, with eleven available in-store every day.

Yummy Stuff
Morag Cleeveley and the Yummy Staff have been baking up a storm since 2003! Each Yummy Stuff creation is hand made with natural, fresh premium ingredients. Specialties from wedding cakes, custom cakes, cupcakes, cookies and Yummy desserts. Making Parkdale Yummier since June 2008!

Invitations and Calligraphy

MJ — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 15:43:53 +0000

I recently interviewed Barbara Kua of Barbara Kua Calligraphy.
Here is what she had to say about her craft:

Can you tell us about Calligraphy and why people hire you?
Calligraphy simply means ‘beautiful writing’. I’m most often hired to do calligraphy for events such as weddings. Envelope addressing and seating cards are the most common thing that I do. Clients are looking for a way to complete their invitation suite and wow their guests.

How did you get into Calligraphy?
I had a calligraphy kit growing up and always had neat writing in school. It wasn’t until I addressed my own wedding invitations that my calligraphy took off.

What is your favourite part about doing what you do?
I love the reaction my clients have when they pick up their stationery. They’re often wowed and amazed at how beautiful lettering can be and can’t wait to send their invitations off to their guests.

Can you tell us what some of your favourite projects have been in the past?
My favorite projects are invitation designs. Each invitation ends up being unique and customized for the client.

What types of tools do you use?
The tools I use are simply a nib pen and ink. I like using acrylic ink for its opaqueness. However, gouache is preferred if I need to custom mix a color.

What are the most asked questions when it comes to calligraphy? Can you give
us a few tips?
For those wanting to learn calligraphy, I would suggest purchasing a calligraphy kit with a fountain pen and cartridge. You can practice learning an italic hand first and once you’re comfortable with that move onto a script or even try using a dip pen and ink. If you would like formal lessons, you can check out a local calligraphy guild for workshops.

Wedding Guide: 10 top spots to get wedding invitations in Toronto

MJ — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 16:24:13 +0000

Happy to be part of – Toronto Life’s top 10 spots to get wedding invitations in Toronto! Click here to view story.
Toronto Life is known for their wonderful city Guides. Check out this year’s “Wedding Guide” to Toronto’s best wedding vendors in the city. Available at your local magazine store.

Top 5 Wedding Venues

MJ — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 04:00:13 +0000

One of the biggest decisions when planning a wedding is the venue. Having been in the wedding invitations business for 10 years, I have seen lots of great venues. Here are my top 5 favs in the Toronto area:

The Carlu
click here to view The Carlu’s website

The Berkeley Field House
click here to view The Berkeley Field House’s website

Graydon Hall Manor
click here to view Graydon Hall Manor’s website

South Pond Farms
click here to view South Pond Farms’ website

Palais Royale
click here to view Palais Royale’s website

Inspiring Colours!

MJ — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 02:12:36 +0000

One of the most important element you will need to choose for your big day is colour. This can sometimes be overwhelming but choosing colours and sticking with a certain palette will make your big day look that much more fabulous! So make sure you choose wisely.

Invitation Postage Part Deux

MJ — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 23:55:15 +0000

I usually keep most of my designs so size and weight will requires only a single postage. I would advise asking your stationer if they know what type of postage each of your invitations will require before the design process starts. You may also want to think of weight… most pocket folds for example will weigh more and often require double postage. Make sure you work postage into your budget so there are no surprises!

Invitation Postage

MJ — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 02:50:07 +0000

When the time comes to mail out your wedding invitations you might want to have a look at what Canada Post has to offer in terms of stamp collections. You may want to stay away from the rather average looking stamps with the Canadian flag or maple leaf and take a closer look at the beautifully illustrated or designed stamps. Each season Canada Post hires talented Canadian artists, illustrators, graphic designers, and photographers to create fresh looking postage stamps. So if you manage to find a stamp that would somewhat suit your invitation design this would be a great way to finish off each invitation set. Here are some of this season’s stamps that would be lovely with wedding invitations…

The Importance of Invitations

MJ — Sat, 02 Mar 2013 03:10:43 +0000

Sometimes I get clients who suggest that they don’t want to spend much on their invitations because people will throw them out anyway. This is what I have to say about that… first off your invitations are the announcement to your family and friends that you are indeed getting married. Very exciting! They set the tone… so they should look pro and reflect your big day.

Remember that most of your guests will keep your invitations as they will surely be needed on your wedding day to confirm time and location. Many family members love beautiful printed goodies and many future brides collect good looking invitations. So if your invitations look hot, they will surely go into the keepsakes box and will be admired in the future when new wedding plans occur.

Another great aspect about having a solid invitation design is your wedding day stationery will look that much nicer. Its those small touches that will make your ceremony more interesting, cocktail hour one to remember and your table settings stunning!

Oscar Winning Invitations!

MJ — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 02:54:36 +0000

In celebrating the upcoming 2013 Oscars, I thought posting my recent hollywood invitation design might be appropriate. After doing research on hollywood weddings and their invitations, what I found was not as inspiring as I imagined. I did come across this one company from Los Angeles, Lehr & Black, who have done many invitations for celebrities. I found their work was pretty glam in terms of what’s out there for Hollywood invitations and stationery. Check out their site… Lehr & Black.
As for this design, mixing new and old hollywood was key. Why not glam things up for your wedding invites. Don’t be afraid to mix different elements together!

Be Mine… Vintage Valentines

MJ — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 03:42:11 +0000

Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages, when lovers said or sang their Valentines. Written Valentines began to appear after 1400. The oldest Valentine in existence was made in the 1400′s and is in the British Museum. Paper Valentines were exchanged in Europe where they were given in place of valentine gifts. Paper Valentines were especially popular in England. In the early 1800′s, Valentines began to be assembled in factories. Early manufactured Valentines were black and white pictures painted by workers in a factory. Fancy Valentines were made with real lace and ribbons, with paper lace introduced in the mid 1800′s. By the end of the 1800′s, Valentines were being made entirely by machine. In 1850, Esther Howland, an American printer and artist was among the first to publish and sell Valentines in the United States. In the early 1900′s a card company named Norcross became one of the first companies to manufacture Valentines. With the exception of Christmas, Americans exchange more cards on Valentine’s Day than any other time of year.