Featured: Portland Wedding Vendors and Designers

Portland’s Le Cookie Monkey provides tasty, fresh treats with high-quality ingredients and sassy style. Best of all, owner Amber Darrington is a committed, perfectionistic and extremely personable lady who loves brides, their stories, and making wonderful cakes (etc) that match exactly with their style.

I met with Amber for my own wedding cake tasting, after meeting her through a couple of the wedding shows in January. She had prepared a fabulous cake feast for my fiance and me–four different kinds of deliciousness piled in a box: Lemon Strawberry, White Vanilla, Hazelnut Berry, and (best for last) the Chocolate Ganache. Each of the individual buttercream cakes were labeled with their flavor, and we cut in with anticipation.

Moist, soft and flavorful, we had an almost impossible job choosing our favorite until we got to the chocolate. With our mouths full, Nathan and I exchanged a knowing look. Yup, chocolate it is! But I’m telling you, if we weren’t such chocoholics, the choice would have been brutal. All the flavors were some of the best cake I’ve ever had, a welcome relief after attending a few weddings as a child where flavor had distinctly been sacrificed for style and the prettiness factor. No compromise here!

Cake!

I invited Amber to share more about her company, as I think she has a very “Portland” story to tell. I highly recommend her not only for weddings, but her other sweets (pictured below!). From our interview:

A tiny little something about you:
I grew up in Minnesota and have loved cooking since I was a little monkey:) I love to eat and love sharing it with people! Moved to Portland a couple years ago after marrying my husband Mike and have a little mini schnauzer named Manny! Love living here!

What inspires the design of your beautiful and tasty creations?
When I hear the color and style of a couple’s wedding, their invitation, combining a variety of other cake designs into one!

What materials/ingredients do you use?
We use as many local ingredients as possible, such as all local dairy, locally milled flour and sugar, hazelnuts..you name it..and come summer..the berries are the best in cakes!

What are some of your favorite flavors?
Our white cake is one of my favorites, we put almond and vanilla in it and it’s delish! I also really like our toasted hazelnut cake filled with a berry mousse, it reminds me of how awesome it is living in Oregon.

How did you start, and why Portland?
My husband and I have always wanted to live somewhere different and after my husband got offered a great job here we decided to make it our new home. I realized after years of cooking and baking professionally that this was also the place to start my dream of owning a bakery!

Why weddings?
I LOVE weddings! It’s such an exciting time in a couples life, and to be a part of it by giving them a delicious and beautiful cake is my favorite thing ever! I just love meeting a couple and working with them to create something that really represents them.

What are you pondering for future wedding projects?
Oooh, I would love to offer more yummy mini dessert ideas, helping to create a dessert bar with an assortment of cookies, mini tarts, something fun and different!

When a couple is considering a cake, cupcakes, pies, etc. for their wedding, what is your advice?
Well you can certainly do it all! If you have a stacked cake you can do different flavors for each tier, or I suggest to maybe have a small cutting cake and offer your guests cupcakes. An assortment of different tortes all decorated differently is really fun too!

What should we expect at a consultation/tasting?
You get to pick and sample 4 cake flavors and 4 fillings to try!

Where can we buy your yummy creations, and what is the price range?
Since we don’t have a storefront location we do all delivery! Our starting price per serving of wedding cake is $3.00 for any flavor cake with vanilla mousse filling and buttercream with decor!

Do you offer gluten-free/dairy-free options?
We don’t offer gluten free, but we can certainly do dairy free!

What has been one of your favorite projects?
Oh man, that’s a tough one! I’d have to say doing a mini dessert table for a wedding with a small two tiered wedding cake, the assorted mini desserts were like petit fours, fresh fruit tarts, mini cookies, soo fun!

Thanks to Amber for the opportunity to work with her on this project, the tasty bits of samples, and the joy in working with someone who also truly loves weddings!

When I first saw Lisa’s work, I melted. I love texture and color and different flowers and things other than flowers, and she wraps them all into some of the most unique and exquisite floral creations I have ever seen. Even in the winter, when it can be a challenge to find things other than roses to put into bouquets, she finds some of the most amazing additions to her arrangements. They are timeless, classic and yet very personal.

Beyond her work, Lisa is one of the reasons I love working with other wedding creatives. Her work is truly a labor of love, and you can see it in the glitter in her eye when she’s putting things together. She collects objects in her garage that she wants to use on future projects, and gets really excited about new ideas.

As a bride, I think it’s absolutely vital to choose vendors who love what they do, who love to help your dreams come true, and who want a personal connection with the couples they work with. For those very special wedding providers, this obviously isn’t just a job–it’s a way to make people truly happy, and contribute to memories that will last lifetimes.

Studio del Fiore can be found here on the web, and here on Facebook.

Sahlia’s gorgeous and unique bridal headpieces will stop you in your tracks. They certainly did for me when I first saw her display. The possibilities are endless: add a short veil, pile your hair up around them, let them dangle over the side, back, front… The sterling silver gives the pieces a quiet glow and they compliment a wide variety of dresses. The best part of all? She does custom work, so she can compliment the style of your special gown, and even a necklace to match. Her pieces are so natural and fit so well with Portland and the Pacific Northwest.

Her studio is a beautiful place featuring amazing jewelry. Sahlia herself is a talented, fun and approachable person, always making visitors feel welcome.

Three of her current bridal designs are shown below:

About Sahlia’s designs:

What inspired the look of these headpieces?

Planning the look for my own wedding.  I wanted a headpiece that wasn’t your standard veil or silk flower.  I wanted it to be organic and elegant at the same time, hence the rough-cut gemstones and pounded silver leaves.

What materials did you use?

Sterling silver, freshwater pearls, and rough-cut gemstones.

A little bit of history about your design and how you chose Portland as your home:

I grew up in Astoria on the coast and went to Eugene for school at U of O and have always loved Oregon.  I wanted to be in a larger city though so Portland was the perfect place!

Why bridal?

It started about 6 months ago when I got engaged myself.  Thinking about my wedding constantly, I’m always trying to envision what I’ll wear on the big day and have my bridesmaids wearing.

What are you pondering for future bridal projects?

More engagement ring sets.  Something other that the typical princess cut solitare.  My focus will be more on the metalwork and have small diamonds that seem to be “sprinkled” throughout.   I’ll be debuting them shortly.

If a bride is considering a custom piece, what is your advice?

I think if you can find something custom, it’s always more special.  It can be tailored to exactly what you want for your bridal look and will be something no one else out there has.  What most people don’t realize is that you can get something custom and handmade for a very affordable price.  I work with brides not only to meet their design concepts, but what their budget allows.

Where can we buy your pieces, and what is the price range?

So far, the bridal line’s only available at my studio in SE Portland (the Ford Building, suite #352).  There are a select few pieces on my website as well, www.sahliajewelry.com. (The pieces shown are around $275.)

Images from Sahlia’s studio:

Visit Sahlia Michelle Designs at:
THE FORD BUILDING
2505 SE 11th Ave, Suite 352
Portland, OR 97202

Dresses by Kate Towers. Models: Celeste, Emily and MJ.

I first fell in love with Kate Towers’ dresses at the Art of Weddings PDX show in early January. Soft, luxurious and flowing, they promised comfort and beauty and a very unique sense of self. One in particular begged to be stuffed into a carry-on bag and flown to an exotic beach, where you could be married in style and comfort with sand between your toes (and maybe go for a run down the beach afterwards).

I’m proud to feature two of her beautiful creations, plus more about Kate herself and what makes her dresses so utterly Portland.

About Kate:

“i’m a workaholic whether it be in my studio or around the house, taking care of my kids. i am never sitting still and i don’t remember the last time i said, ‘i have nothing to do!’. i’m passionate about my work and try to put a little bit of myself in to each piece.”

About the dresses:

“the ruffles and textures of fabric are sort of a signature look of mine. they have a very romantic and raw feel to them, which i love. i also like that they are sort of timeless yet modern, and lend themselves to numerous styling possibilities.”

About the materials (my favorite part):

“they’re made of layers of silk chiffon. i’ve always loved the idea of something being luxurious and formal, but also comfortable and easy to care for. i want people to feel at ease in this dress, to enjoy it and not worry about it being too delicate. don’t be afraid to run through the ocean, drag it in the sand, stuff it in a suitcase. and yes, the nice thing is you can technically (with a little bit of caution) throw them in the washing machine!“

Why Portland?

“i sort of ended up here after traveling across the country in a moving truck with a friend. i was living in boston, attending art school, and really had no attachments. i fell in love with portland from the start. i’ve been here for over 10 years and i can’t imagine finding a better place to live. clothing construction is very sculptural to me. i studied graphic design and illustration at art school, but was always interested in fashion. being self taught has had it’s advantages and disadvantages but i think it’s let me be more free and experimental with my design.”

Why bridal?

“i don’t only do bridal. for the most part i like to make dresses, that perhaps you could wear on your wedding day. i get requests from women who are looking for things other than what you’d find at a traditional bridal shop. i try to encourage the idea of wearing something that you have always wanted to wear, no matter what it is. make it your own fairy tale.”

What future designs are are you planning?

“i’ve been shying away from custom lately and finding that i’m happier designing a few wedding-esque dresses every year that i can just put out there. this way i’m not second guessing myself or worrying if it’s what the client really wants. it’s a true kate towers!”

If a bride is considering a custom dress, what is your advice?

“see above! it’s not that i’ll never do custom again, but it just has to be the right fit. make sure you are coming to me to get something that i make, not something that i can re-create from a photo you found in a magazine.”

Where can we buy your dresses, and what is the price range?

“right now you can only buy them from me directly. i’m taking some time off to raise my kids while they are young so my studio time is sparse these days. i’m doing what i can though! as far as my price range, it really depends on the details but anywhere from $300 – $3000.”

Any considerations on sizing?

“this is one problem with doing one of a kind. however, i have found that a lot of my dresses have fit a wide variety of body types and sizes which is nice! i try to choose silhouettes that can flatter many women.”

More information:

You can find more about Kate Towers at katetowers.com, and she has several designs on her Etsy shop (including The Cliffs dress featured here). She lives in Portland with her husband and two beautiful children, and designs her clothing in her in-home studio.

Headpieces by Sahlia Designs. Models: Celeste, Emily and MJ.