How, you may ask, could Vera Wang, goddess of bridal gowns, have in common with ice skating and the Olympics? Did you know Vera Wang has been inducted into the United States Figure Skating Hall of Fame?

  I've always loved ice skating, like a could watch it all day long, kind of love. While the only sports I could do that are in the Winter Olympics would be snowboarding and skiing (ok not really but a girl can dream, I can go down a hill standing up on both), figure skating would be my first choice. When I think of the Olympics, I think of figure skating, much to the dismay of my husband who thinks of boardercross and the halfpipe.  I'm sure if you asked anyone what sport they think of when they think of the Olympics, they'll say figure skating. It may be just because it receives so much extra press and seems to be the one sport that everyone talks about or is aware of. Think about it, up until the Americans medaled in the Nordic Combined, did you even know it existed? Nope, but you knew about figure skating.

Anyhow, last night was the men's short program competition. I watched all of it. Stayed up past my bedtime and watched it to the end. I'm obsessed. I love the costumes, the theatricalness (not a word, I know) and the drama....that may be because the infamous Harding-Kerrigan incident took place right as I was starting to become aware of the importance of the Olympics but I digress.

Last night Evan Lysacek was one to watch. When he took the ice I was in awe of his costume, the feathers on his hands, the criss-crossed fabric and that deep black accented his performance perfectly. I loved it...then today while perusing facebook Vera Wang posted a link to this on MSNBC about the designs of the figure skating costumes. Who knew. Turns out this amazing woman not only creates fashion forward bridal gowns, but also aspired to be a competitive figure skater, missing out on a chance at a national competition in 1968. How fitting that she now designs a few of their costumes. She has designed for Michelle Kwan and Nancy Kerrigan but I think my favorite is Evan's costume from last night:

Vera Wang with Evan Lysacek

As I was googling away for some images, my autofill prompted me to search for "Evan Lysacek girlfriend" "Evan Lysacek gay costume", "Evan Lysacek Edward Featherhands" and "Evan Lysacek is gay" Made me giggle a little.  And in case you were wondering, he's not gay, his ex-girlfriends is one of ESPN's hottest female athletes, Tanith Belbin, also a skater who also happens to be competing and rooming with Evan's close competition Johnny Weir. How's that for a weird love triangle?

Mel, a fabulous woman inside and out, in real life and online, has started a new blog featuring etsy.com finds. I've posted a few things about etsy on this blog here and here. I've purchased a few things, including the chandelier piece earrings I wore in our wedding, and have been thrilled with everything.

If you've ever tried to navigate through the hundreds of thousands of amazing listings on etsy, you'll appreciate Mel's blog. She explores the handmade world and posts her finds making it much easier for the non-searching types to find exactly what they're looking for. The pictures are there with a link to the seller's shop, how easy could it be. You can take Mel's advice on style too, she's a pretty fashionable lady!

Add it to your reader, become a follower....you may find yourself just as big an etsy addict as I am, and well, that could be dangerous.

Here's a little preview of today's post, who doesn't need a fabulous bag? Follow her here.

I met with a potential client on Saturday morning, she's using a fabulous, very unique color scheme. I'm excited to potentially put together some designs using these colors. They're great for summer and are so unique and fresh!

Another great way to use turquoise...pair it with green. Apple green, olive green, forest green, they all work. Use lots of different shades instead of just two. The 90's two toned weddings are gone, layer those colors up!

| Bouquet  theknot | Organza Flower  etsy | Paisley Background | Invitation | Butterfly | Orchids |

Oh, I love, love, love when businesses work together! I also love the Highlands and all of the cute shops and businesses over there. I'm not involved in this but it is truly too good of a deal to not share.

A few wedding related businesses, look at all of them down there, in the Highlands are holding an urban scavenger hunt of the sorts and the prize is $20,000 worth in wedding goodies! Head over to HappyCakesDenver.com or visit their adorable shop and have a cupcake while you fill out the application. All applications are due by Friday, Febrary 12.

Good Luck!

I've folded. Join Quintessential on facebook!

Tell your friends, tell your friends to tell their friends. And I'm done. See you on facebook!