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- When you toast at the wedding, you’ll most likely do so with Champagne. But, at the bachelor/bachelorette parties, you’ll need something a little stronger. Our suggestion? Tuthilltown Spirits, distilled in Gardiner in a former gristmill (now on the National Register of Historic Places). Gift your groomsmen with the Indigenous Vodka or the Half Moon Orchard Gin—both pay homage to the region’s apple-growing history by incorporating apples from Jenkins and Lueken Orchards in New Paltz. Available at Tuthilltown Spirits, Gardiner (845) 255-1527; tuthilltown.com.
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- In just 20 minutes, you can have a whiter, brighter smile to go with that white wedding gown. The Beyond White Spa teeth-whitening system uses hydrogen peroxide and halogen light to whiten your teeth five or more shades. The cheek expanders used during the treatment are a little uncomfortable and you have to forgo coffee, red wine, colas, and the like for 24 hours, but what price beauty? Expect to pay $125 per session or $350 for a series of three. Aesthetician Marisa Colson recommends touch-up treatments every few months at Village Skin Studio (330 Main St, Cornwall 845- 661-1932) or Skin NY (269 Purchase St, Rye 914-213-5724; skin-nywestchester.com)
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- Treat your bridesmaids to a beauty party in the comfort of your own home. Call Primp In-Home and all the salon, spa, and fitness services you desire will come to you. AnnaBelle Koffler and Jass Babin started the company in New York City, and have branched out to the entire Hudson Valley. (Bless you, ladies!) For a complete menu and prices, call (212) 217-6038 or visit primpinhome.com.
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- Thumbprint guestbooks have been the rage for a while, but who says they all have to look like trees with fingerprint leaves? Kelli DeMaio of Guest Tree ($19.99 to $74.99) in nearby Gloversville, New York, offers plenty of tree designs, to be sure, but she also mixes in other images, such as vintage cars or bicycles with the guests’ fingerprints standing in for celebratory balloons. Balloons offer more colorful options when it comes to stamps, since you can break away from the brown-and-green combo of a tree with leaves. Available at guesttree.com.
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- With the new addition of the LEGOLAND Discovery Center in Yonkers in March, LEGOmania has taken hold in our area. If you or your betrothed count yourselves among the blockheads, consider topping your cake with the LEGO Minifigure Wedding Favor Set. The set ($9.99) comes with a minifigure bride and groom complete with a bouquet, veil, top hat, toasting glass, cardboard trellis—and, of course, three swappable hairstyles for the bride (in black, brown, and blonde). Available at shop.lego.com.
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- When Kingston jewelry designer Linda Stella set out to design a wedding ring, she looked for something, she says, “with deep connection to life and family.” Enter her Tree of Life bands ($124 to $1,200 for sets of two), which the SUNY Farmingdale grad makes using a combination of wax carving, casting, and other metalsmithing techniques. Rings are available in varying widths and in white, yellow, or rose gold (pictured), as well as with sterling silver. Available at lstellajewelry.etsy.com.
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- No longer just for folksy home accessories bearing slogans like “Home Is Where the Heart Is,” embroidery hoops have found their way into shabby-chic weddings as table markers, ring holders, and hanging décor. Brooklyn’s Jessica Marquez creates custom hoops for couples through her Etsy shop, Minature Rhino. Prices range from $40 for a 33/8”-diameter hoop with your first initials emblazoned in a heart to $100 for a 53/8”-diameter custom hoop with your first names in your wedding colors. Available at etsy.com/shop/MiniatureRhino.
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- What are the most fashionable cakes wearing? Sometimes, next to nothing. For a more natural, rustic look, cake designers—inspired by the wedding cakes at Momofuku Milk Bar in New York City—are letting the layers show with unfrosted sides, as is the case with this carrot cake made by Pelham’s Provisions Bake Shop. Available at Provisions Bake Shop, Pelham (914) 738-6622; pelhamprovisionsbake shop.com
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- You want to preserve your wedding dress after the big day, but that might mean sealing it in a box and putting it in safe storage, where you’ll never get to see it. If you can spare a bit of lace from your dress, though, Green Grass Gifts can make it into a necklace ($50), earrings ($35), or a bracelet ($40) for you to wear even after the rest of the dress is packed away. You choose the backing color, and you can even incorporate your mother’s and/or grandmother’s dresses for a multi-generational accessory ($60 to $100). Available at etsy.com/shop/greengrassgifts.
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- If you’re planning a retro-inspired affair, consider hiring a ride to match: an old-fashioned trolley. The Peekskill Trolley Company offers private rentals of Stella, a Golden Gate-model trolley with a natural oak interior and brass accents. Or, if you’re in the Kingston area, the Trolley Museum of New York offers charters of its trollies — but, since they’re actually on tracks, you’ll have to stick within the 1.5-mile route, which travels between the Museum and Kingston Point Park. Visit Peekskilltrolleycompany.com or Tmny.org for more information
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- Follow Westchester/Hudson Valley Weddings on Pinterest. We scour local weddings, photographer blogs, Web sites, and our own archives to show you the most creative ideas from brides, vendors, and venues right in the area. Follow us at Pinterest.com/WestHVWeds
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- Once he takes a look at these wooden beauties, your man will forget all about the bow-tying tutorials he has saved on YouTube. Two Guys Bow Ties crafts its ties ($45-$75) out of lacewood, zebrawood, walnut, wenge, padauk, white oak, and other woods—each with its own distinct color and grain—then finishes each one off with a coordinating fabric centerpiece. (They attach with an elastic band that goes around the neck and clasps to the wood.) You can also fully customize your bow tie, choosing the wood grain, fabric, and even a laser-engraved message on the back ($90). Available at woodenbowties.com. (photo 1 of 5)
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- Once he takes a look at these wooden beauties, your man will forget all about the bow-tying tutorials he has saved on YouTube. Two Guys Bow Ties crafts its ties ($45-$75) out of lacewood, zebrawood, walnut, wenge, padauk, white oak, and other woods—each with its own distinct color and grain—then finishes each one off with a coordinating fabric centerpiece. (They attach with an elastic band that goes around the neck and clasps to the wood.) You can also fully customize your bow tie, choosing the wood grain, fabric, and even a laser-engraved message on the back ($90). Available at woodenbowties.com. (photo 2 of 5)
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- Once he takes a look at these wooden beauties, your man will forget all about the bow-tying tutorials he has saved on YouTube. Two Guys Bow Ties crafts its ties ($45-$75) out of lacewood, zebrawood, walnut, wenge, padauk, white oak, and other woods—each with its own distinct color and grain—then finishes each one off with a coordinating fabric centerpiece. (They attach with an elastic band that goes around the neck and clasps to the wood.) You can also fully customize your bow tie, choosing the wood grain, fabric, and even a laser-engraved message on the back ($90). Available at woodenbowties.com. (photo 3 of 5)
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- Once he takes a look at these wooden beauties, your man will forget all about the bow-tying tutorials he has saved on YouTube. Two Guys Bow Ties crafts its ties ($45-$75) out of lacewood, zebrawood, walnut, wenge, padauk, white oak, and other woods—each with its own distinct color and grain—then finishes each one off with a coordinating fabric centerpiece. (They attach with an elastic band that goes around the neck and clasps to the wood.) You can also fully customize your bow tie, choosing the wood grain, fabric, and even a laser-engraved message on the back ($90). Available at woodenbowties.com. (photo 4 of 5)
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- Once he takes a look at these wooden beauties, your man will forget all about the bow-tying tutorials he has saved on YouTube. Two Guys Bow Ties crafts its ties ($45-$75) out of lacewood, zebrawood, walnut, wenge, padauk, white oak, and other woods—each with its own distinct color and grain—then finishes each one off with a coordinating fabric centerpiece. (They attach with an elastic band that goes around the neck and clasps to the wood.) You can also fully customize your bow tie, choosing the wood grain, fabric, and even a laser-engraved message on the back ($90). Available at woodenbowties.com. (photo 5 of 5)
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