boutonniere and suspenders - wtf?

Dear ESB,

I'm making a really great boutonniere for my fiance, but he will be taking off his jacket after the ceremony. Can I pin it to his suspenders or am I breaking some cardinal boutonniere rule? Do I just pin it to his shirt? That seems dumb. Does he just lose all boutonniere privileges by losing the jacket?

ps - I totally googled how to spell "boutonniere" and have copied and pasted it rather than typing it every time it appears in this email.

*****

Yeah, no. When the jacket comes off the boutonniere is donesies. You can't just keep moving the damn thing around.

(As you may or may not know, I'm not a big fan of the boutonniere. But I do thank you for going out of your way not to call it a "bout.")

Photo: Andrew Garfield in Band of Outsiders

Review(ish): The Paper Bride

When I received my copy of The Paper Bride,* my first reaction was "Great. Another one." The image of the little porcelain cake topper in the upper right hand corner threw me off. I thought to myself, "Why does every wedding planning book have to have a bride and groom on the front? Or a fucking diamond engagement ring? At least it's not an engagement ring." Then I tucked it under a pile of papers and forgot about it.


This weekend, I unearthed the book (I have pledged to read the printed word, after all) and I was pleasantly surprised. When I looked closely, I realized the little porcelain bride on the front was carrying a bouquet of red and orange paper flowers and the groom had a big paper boutonniere pasted on his lapel. Esther K. Smith is making the point that you can personalize your wedding with paper, in both traditional and unexpected ways.

Smith offers several how-tos for making paper flowers (obv), along with many more rather advanced projects. Do I like the idea of a handmade Paper Pocket Planner? Or a Liquor Shower cocktail recipe book? Yes. Would I ever attempt to make these things? No. She lost me at awl. I do not own an awl, nor do I have any desire to go buy an awl.** I am, however, intrigued by the notion of a bone folder, which is recommended for the construction of the Garland Guest Book (pictured below).

The instructions for the garland went over my head the first two times I glanced at them, but when I took a third look something clicked. Now I'm antsy to give the project a try. Why don't I own a BONE FOLDER? (You can visit Smith's site to download pdf instructions for the Garland Guest Book. But do not attempt to crease your paper using a butter knife, a pencil, or a chopstick.)

I'm also intrigued by the templates provided at the back of the book, for, among other things, an art deco envelope, a curvy Parisian coaster, and a v. sweet little box (hello macarons!).

Tomorrow night, Wednesday, Jan 20, at 7:30 pm Esther K. Smith will be at WORD Bookstore in Greenpoint (126 Franklin St. Brooklyn, NY 11222) demonstrating some of the projects from THE PAPER BRIDE. Will someone please attend and report back to us? Maybe awls are more fun than they look.

*Sent to me for free by the lovely people at Random House, I AM REQUIRED TO TELL YOU. I believe I am also required to tell you that I was not paid to write this review.

**Fun fact: When he was three, Louis Braille accidentally gouged himself in the left eye with an awl. Both eyes became infected, and he was blind by the age of four.

She had me at leather.

I am generally not a fan of boutonnieres. There's something emasculating about them. As H-town put it when I enlisted his help in talking TTO out of organza,* "It looks like prom.... It defies the best-case scenario for wedding apparel, where the guys look cool and tough, and the ladies are all dolled up and decorated with flowers."

But Afton made these minimalist boutonnieres** out of wheat stalks and white deer leather. Nothing emasculating about that. Plus they're not just for the groom and the groomsmen but for her parents, godparents and family members.

*IknowIknow. I'm bossy. But that's why you love me.... Right?

**Also, I refuse to call them "bouts." Gag.

Groom Style: The Boy

Peonies and Polaroids posted the killer getting dressed shots yesterday.

On the subject of Groom Style and The Boy, which let's face facts, we are all overlooking in our oohs and ahs over Peonies herself:

1. Yes on the single flower plucked from his lady's bouquet. Overwhelmingly yes. (I must tell you, I have never been a big fan of the boutonniere.)

2. Hello, this shirt is fabulous.

Groom Style: that pesky boutonniere

From The Sartorialist, via the eagle eye of Martha at Nibs.

Instead of pinning on the boutonniere, the groom could simply tuck it inside his breast pocket along with a pocket square. Simple and chic.

Also note: if the suit fits well, it's more elegant to skip the belt.

Queen Anne's Lace for the bride and groom!

I'm digging this Queen Anne's Lace boutonniere Martha B. posted on Nibs. Also digging this look on the groom. (From the British Wedding magazine.)

I emailed Kathryn at Snippet & Ink to get her advice about a matching bouquet and she sent me a slew of pictures. This one from The Bloomery is my favorite.

Thank you, ladies!