I recently got back from a trip to Virginia, visiting my folks and helping my best friend out with her wedding. This lovely bride is Elyse. She is my best friend of 16 years and the most beautiful person (inside and out) that you could ever meet! As a wedding present I designed and painted her wedding shoes.
She is a huge fan of the 6 hour Pride and Prejudice, which is one of the reasons we became such good friends. So when she told me she was getting married on her fiance's farm and the theme was Enchanted Fall wedding, my mind went wild with ideas! Here's a list of things she wanted me to include in the design:
- a picture of the farm with the two trees she was going to get married under.
- the words, "To my best friend, with all my love."
- a bare tree with no leaves.
- a bouquet of flowers, like the one she was going to have.
- the wedding date.
I included it all, plus a few other things I knew she would like...
... like Pride and Prejudice style silhouettes of her and her fiance, Baron.
I LOVE working on wedge shoes! There is so much space to design. Elyse's shoes were especially fun to design because they had cork heels. It worked perfectly with the design, giving the impression that the silhouettes were on Victorian parchment paper.
Here's how I incorporated the words, "To my best friend, with all my love."
The inner sides of the wedge heels I made bright and colorful, but used colors that still blended well with the shoes. Elyse sent me a picture of the trees she was getting married beneath. The beautiful scene reminded me of the cover of the new Pride and Prejudice. So, with that inspiration, I created this...
A silhouette of Elyse in her beautiful wedding gown, walking on the grassy fields towards the two trees where Baron eagerly waits. The whole time I was working on this side of the shoe I had the song "Dawn" (from the Pride & Prejudice soundtrack) stuck in my head. I'm not complaining.
The final side, I decided, needed to have the bouquet of flowers, but to make it even more special I added one of Elyse's favorite quotes from P&P. When Mr. Darcy proposes to Elizabeth the first time, he ends a long rant about how his better judgement advises against the match, with the words:
"You must allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you."
Needless to say, Elyse loved the shoes. Honestly, I've never seen someone get so excited about my work. She is a dear friend and the most beautiful bride. Congratulations, Elyse! I love you!
Love,
Miranda Marie
