What is the proper etiquette when writing wedding invitations when the father of the bride is deceased and the mother of the bride has not remarried? Would it be Mrs. John Doe or Mrs. Jane Doe or Ms. Jane Doe?

We have seen invitations worded with all of the choices that you listed.  However, after consulting with Carlson Craft (a large invitation printer), they advised us that the correct etiquette is to use Mrs. John Doe.  The sample they gave is "Mrs. William Lewis Baker requests the honour of your presence at the marriage of her daughter Barbara Ann"

Weddings are always a little tough when parents have passed on, and our hearts go out to everyone who faces this.  Best wishes.

Approximately 75 stems of Lily of the Valley were used to make this classic bridal bouquet. Approximate price is $225.00 (significantly more when out of season).  The fragrance was incredible, and the unique look was stunning.  Lily of the Valley is usually available for only a couple weeks in May.  You can see this bouquet in our online portfolio at http://www.bloomeryweddings.com/portfolio_detail.asp?product_id=BW142

WeddingMapper.com is a new Google Maps mashup which you can use to map out the locations for your wedding.  From their website:

Wedding Mapper was built to make it fun, easy, and affordable for you to map out your wedding, ensuring that your guests have all the information they need in order to have a great time at your wedding.

We wanted to make it as easy as possible to build and share your wedding map, with a simple interface, both a map view and a list view, easy printing, and the ability to include your map in your wedding website.

The free maps display ads from Google, or you can pay $9.95 for an ad-free map.  This is a new service from the folks who brought you Community Walk, a service to map out all the cool spots in your local area.

hat tip: Lifehacker

We're departing slightly from our usual featured bouquet, and instead featuring a centerpiece set we created for an August wedding at Butler Country Club.  The main arrangement in the centerpiece was made from white hydrangea, peach stock, peach roses and hypericum in a solver footed bowl (you can rent these bowls from us).  The arrangement is made in a liner, so a guest can take it home after your reception.  At each end of the table was a small julep cup of peach roses, and dripless white pillar candles in hurricane globes were placed in between.  Small white votives ran the length of the table runner.

Click on the image for a larger version.

The Butler Days Inn will hold its Winter Bridal Extravaganza on Feb 18, 2007 from noon to 3pm, and a fashion show starting at 3pm.  This is a huge event each year, attracting over 70 vendors and hundreds of brides (with door prizes for the first brides to check in).  This may be the only bridal show we attend, so it's a great chance to come see and talk to use outside of a regular appointment.  Check out http://daysinnbutler.com/ for more details.

To be honest, we've never met someone involved in a wedding who isn't a little stressed about etiquette.  There are classes and books available, but they're not for everyone.  We recently came across the Mr. Manners' Quick and Dirty Tips for a More Polite Life podcast.  This is a free podcast offering very general etiquette tips in short audio files.  You can listen online, or subscribe and listen via your iPod or whatever.  This podcast is also available via iTunes at http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=203228276.  You can now brush up on your etiquette on your own schedule!

We've had a number of posts on making unique seating charts for your wedding, but this is the first on actually planning who sits where.  A new website named SimpleSeating.com is a free (for up to 50 guests) on-line tool for you to design your seating layout, and

SimpleSeating.com is the fastest and easiest way to make seating charts online. Experience the power of expensive desktop seating chart applications on the web without the learning curve. Create, preview, and print your seating charts in just a few simple steps.

We can't comment on its ease of use, since everyone has a different definition of "easy".  But it's tough to go wrong with a drag an drop interface.  If you're in need of a seating chart for any reason, check out SimpleSeating.com at http://www.simpleseating.com/.

(hat tip: Lifehacker)

We love baked goods, and are happy to report another bakery coming soon.  We recently received the following e-mail:

Dear Bloomery,

I am the owner of Dozen Cupcakes, a cupcake cafe opening in Squirrel Hill this December. We currently available for catering weddings and bridal showers. Made popular by Sex and the City and Oprah, cupcake trees are the latest trend in wedding cake options. A unique and elegant alternative to the traditional cake, more and more brides are choosing cupcakes because of ther practicality and uniqueness. Cupcakes can be easily customized to suite the wedding parties tastes.

I hope you will consider recommending us to your clients. And please take a second to view our website at www.dozencupcakes.com

Sincerely,
James Gray
Dozen cupcakes Owner

We checked out their website, and they have some delicious looking cupcakes.  We hope to cross paths with them sometime in the future.  Yum!  If you're interested in a trendy cupcake wedding cake, Dozen Cupcakes seems like a place to check out.

To mark Veteran's Day last week, One Enchanted Evening in nearby Wexford, PA gave away gowns to military brides.  Gowns normally retailing for hundreds or thousands of dollars were sold for zilch.  If you missed it, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette had a front-page article in the Nov. 11 issue (available online at http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06315/737545-85.stm).  We thought they deserved a shout-out.