Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From Poppi Photo… “And I was sick with heartache. And she was sick like Audrey Hepburn when I met her. But we would both surrender. True love is not the kind of thing you should turn down. Don’t ever turn it down.” – Avett Brothers song lyrics to January Wedding.   

When Catherine from Fox in the Pine and I decided to collaborate on a Valentine’s Day inspired photo shoot, I knew it was going to be good!!! Catherine is pretty much the most creative person I know. She makes pretty things prettier and doesn’t hesitate when it comes to adding beautiful details to all occasions. Catherine’s talents and blog influenced both the location of the shoot and their clothing (aka she made her skirt!). As much as Valentine’s Day can feel commercial, what a great excuse to be extra romantic, extra sappy and extra nostalgic. I hope these images have the same affect on you as they do me… Love is grand. Now go run through the woods with your sweetie.

Photography: Poppi Photo / Skirt: Handmade by Catherine Fox of Fox in the Pine / Cookies & Decorations: Handmade by Fox in the Pine & Poppi Photo / Hair & Makeup: Poppi Photo

In case you missed any, here are all of the pretty posts from the week…

a gorgeous Des Moines wedding
a beautiful farm wedding shoot
a stunning Los Olivos soiree
a sweet Titusville affair
a gorgeous Palm Springs soiree
a colorful Anna Maria Island wedding
a fabulous Idaho soiree
a breathtaking Maui wedding
a stunning Martha’s Vineyard soiree
an uber-gorgeous Rhode Island affair
a beautiful Sedona wedding
a lovely Malibu soiree

Some fabulous links from around the web…

fun Valentine Scrabble Gram via Oh Happy Day!
fabulous Brass Valentines via Camille Styles
a yummy Marshmallow tea latte via Oh Joy!
a sweet DIY Heart Sweater via A Beautiful Mess

We’d like to extend a warm welcome to our newest Little Black Book members…

AM Wedding Films
Scott Hopkins Photography
Jenny Moloney Photography
Sunstone Winery
L’Auberge Del Mar
Mark W. Brown Films
Southern Events Party Rental & Vintage Prop Shoppe
Modern Ketubah
Bluebird Event Destination Management
Two Ring Studios
Alucinarte Films
Impact Events, LLC
Austin Weddings Unlimited
Rustic Red Studio
Megan Thiele Studios

To apply to become a member of our LBB click here. We’d love to hear from you!

And last, but certainly not least… we have some winners to announce!

Style Me Pretty Illinois reader, Mary, is the lucky winner of a free bridal bouquet from Fragrant Design! Congratulations!

Congratulations to our SMP California reader Leighann for winning the adorable customized wedding hanger from My Amber Coloured World!

Have a happy, happy weekend, lovelies!  See you back here Monday morning!  xoxo

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2012. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Fox in the Pine, Photo Shoot, Poppi Photo, Valentine's Day, Wrap it up Pretty
Post categories: Photo Shoot, The Blog

Click here for the FULL wedding!

From the bride… I think the inspiration for our wedding actually stemmed from our photographers, The Nichols. Photography was one of the most important things to me, so after Darrell and I got engaged, I immediately started asking around. Someone sent me a link to The Nichols blog, and I instantly fell in love. THAT was what I wanted our wedding to be like — homey, authentic and happy. From there, we set out to find a venue, and stumbled upon the Hoffman Haus in Fredericksburg, Texas. It’s an adorable B&B — so sweet and comfortable. It felt like home, and I knew we had found the perfect place! One of the best things about the Hoffman Haus is that you take the entire property for the whole weekend, so we had the run of the place from Thursday night through Sunday morning. Our immediate family and the majority of our bridal party all got to stay on the property with us. It was exactly what we wanted — our families and all our friends coming together to celebrate with us all weekend. It was like a big house party! Before the rehearsal, everyone was hanging out in the garden, and Darrell looked at me and said, “This is perfect.”

After we found our venue, everything else kind of fell into place. With Style Me Pretty and Pinterest as my guide, we ended up buying or making most of the decor for our wedding (with lots of help from our families!). The ribbon backdrop in our ceremony space was one of my favorite things. It looked beautiful and vibrant blowing in the breeze, and it added wonderful movement and color to our ceremony space. Michelle Hodges at Sprout did an incredible job of tying everything together with gorgeous flowers. (She even managed to find me peonies in November!) Darrell and I got engaged in London last September, so we wanted to incorporate at least a bit of British flair. Working with Jason at Royal Fig Catering, we settled on a British-inspired cocktail hour and served Pimm’s cocktails and mini bangers-and-mash. Also on the topic of food, we decided to have an ice cream sundae bar in lieu of a groom’s cake. My mom made all the cookies and brownies and shopped for the toppings, and Royal Fig provided homemade ice cream — salted caramel and vanilla bean. Darrell and I often make brownies and ice cream for dessert on the weekend now because so it was special to us!

I loved the sense of calm and excitement that came over me when I finally reached Darrell at the end of the aisle (I barely kept it together walking down the aisle, but was totally fine when I got to the end!). Our ceremony was magical — very personal but also Christ-centered. I loved seeing everyone sitting down to dinner together talking and laughing and having fun. Our maid of honor and best man gave the sweetest speeches that were both heartfelt and funny. In lieu of a more traditional dance (which would have left me in tears), my dad and I busted out a choreographed dance to N*Sync. The whole weekend was absolutely perfect — the best day of our lives.

Wedding Photography: The Nichols / Wedding Venue: Hoffman Haus in Fredericksburg, Texas / Flowers: Sprout / Catering + Rentals: Royal Fig Catering / Wedding Day-of Coordinator: Aimee Villa of Lizze Belle Event Planning / Hair: Corinne Kimbro of Jackson Ruiz / Makeup: Deanna of Rae Cosmetics / Wedding Dress: Reem Acra via the Bridal Salon at Neiman Marcus / Groom’s Suit: Theory / Bridesmaid Dresses: Amsale / Shoes: Vera Wang Lavender / Wedding Invitations: Night Owl Paper Goods / DJ: Chris Hanson (DJ Rhythmic) / Wedding Cakes: The Peach Tree / Caramel Apples: Lone Star Candy Bar (830-990-9100) / Cake Stands: Sister’s Vintage Party / Ribbon Ceremony Backdrop: DIY

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Post tags: Aimee Villa, Amsale, Chris Hanson, Corinne Kimbro, DJ Rhythmic, Fredricksburg, Gray, Green, Hoffman Haus, Jackson Ruiz, Lizze Belle Event Planning, Lone Star Candy Bar, Neiman Marcus, Night Owl Paper Goods, Pink, Rae Cosmetics, Reem Acra, Royal Fig Catering, Sister's Vintage Party, Sprout, Texas, The Nichols, The Peach Tree, Theory, Vera Wang Lavender
Post categories: Casual Elegance, The Blog

We absolutely ADORE Weddington Way.  They’ve made shopping for bridesmaid gowns the easiest part of wedding planning… and let’s face it, with bridesmaids scattered across the country AND on different schedules, it hasn’t always been that way. Their online boutiques take all of the stress out of the dress decision and instead provide a simple, stylish and FUN experience for you and your besties. Shop, share and purchase your dresses ALL ONLINE.  Now that’s pure genius.

So, here’s the awesome part.  In celebration of our 2011 Best of Magazine, the fabulous team at Weddington Way is gifting one VERY lucky reader with the dress of their choice for their MOH. (Up to $250)

To Enter: Head on over to our Best of Magazine and leave a comment below telling us your favorite bridesmaid look – with the associated page number. (Example – GORGEOUS Lavender Gowns, pg. 28)

To Win: The winner, chosen completely at random using a number generator, will be announced right here on SMP on Friday, February 17th.

A very big thank you to Weddington Way for making this one uber-amazing Friday!  Good luck, SMP-ers! xoxo

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2012. | Permalink | 252 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Weddington Way
Post categories: Sponsored Posts, The Blog

Click here for the FULL vow renewal!

From the bride… When my hubby asked me to re-marry him, I was beyond thrilled!  Our wedding was such a fantastic time, but as everyone who has ever been married would tell you, there are always a few things you’d change. As photographers, we are blessed with having seen a million weddings. That made planning a wedding in one week not too difficult. With the help of one of the world’s best wedding planners and our favorite dress shop in town, we had the absolute best time with our vow renewal. We wanted to plan it through our daughter’s eyes. It’s so amazing to see how a wedding unfolds from a kid’s eyes — truly a fairy tale.  Redoing a wedding allows you to change the things you didn’t think were that high on your list, but end up being later in life. No more BIG wedding party, no huge guest list, much more elegant attire (thank you, Vera Wang and Anna Bé!), plated dinner instead of buffet, etc.

We just wanted this to be a very intimate affair, and we allowed so much input from our little girl. She wanted sweets. Why not put together a marshmallow chandelier? Why not include root beer floats, hot chocolate and powdered doughnuts? Instead of real rings, we exchanged little ring pops. So we could get a little elegance, Kara added in a lot of texture and details. We bought a vintage truck as our chariot and borrowed a horse from an 11-year-old down the street from our venue, The Manor House.  

I really particularly enjoyed the intimate time that I got to spend with my mom and my daughter getting ready. Basically, all the things we missed the first time around … we got right this time. But one of most beautiful moments was when my hubby surprised me with a song he wrote for me, and I managed to surprise myself with being able to write and say my vows without too shedding too many tears. As photographers, pictures are such an important part of our life that we spent days putting together our old photos and hung from a thin rope that we hung all over the chandelier. It allowed for great dinner conversation while we feasted on all of our favorite food and drinks. We finished off the night with some very silly moments at our ever-so-famous Brinton photo booth. All in all, I think we would all agree it was perfect … very us!

Photography: Brinton Studios with Two One Photography / Venue: The Manor House in Littleton, Colorado / Flowers, Event Design + Event Planning: Kara Delay of Love This Day Events / Rentals: A Vintage Affair Rental / Dress: Vera Wang via Anna Bé

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Post tags: Anna Be
Post categories: The Blog

Click here for the FULL wedding!

From the bride… Both having been married before in traditional weddings and not having children, Kathy and Randy decided on a private marriage ceremony at City Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Kathy wore a dress and shawl from Talk of the Walk. Her shoes (flats) were Vera Wang Lavender Label so that she could be photographed around the city at various locations with her husband including Love Park, Logan’s circle and the Art Museum. Thanks to photographer Alison Conklin and florist Sullivan Owen, who did the bride’s bouquet and the groom’s boutonniere, they have great memories of that first special day as husband and wife.

Approximately one week later, the couple invited 50 guests, who consisted of their family and closet friends, to a marriage celebration dinner at Terrain at Styer’s in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania. It was a beautiful Sunday in early October. The couple had Two Paperdolls design the invitation by creating silhouettes from photographs that the couple took of each other. The bride wore a tea length wedding dress and hair piece from BHLDN, a wrap from J.McLaughlin, shoes from Valentino and a vintage purse from her great-grandmother. The flowers at the dinner were designed again by Sullivan Owen. The menu was planned among the couple, Terrain Garden Restaurant executive chef Keith Rudolf and event manager Elizabeth Clark. Two Paperdolls printed a large menu for the event and smaller menus for each guest as a memento of the evening. Additional decorations were purchased by the bride from BHLDN and used in decorating the magical rooms and reception area at Terrain, including the Mushroom Hut, which featured cupcakes and whoopie pies from The Flying Monkey. The bride’s hair was done for both events by Megan Tadeo from John Andrews Salon. She did her own make-up using Bobbi Brown’s latest palette and colors and wore her own jewelry given to her by Randy from Marco Bicego at Neiman Marcus. The bride and groom’s rings are from Sydney Rosen Jewelers. The bride’s engagement and wedding band was designed by Coastal and was hand-engraved on platinum. The guests were given either mint mojito or rosemary sage travel candles as favors in gift bags from Anthropologie. It was a splendid and magical evening, enjoyed by all!!

Wedding Photography: Alison Conklin Photography / Ceremony: City Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (215-686-2233) / Reception: Terrain at Styer’s in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania / Flowers: Sullivan Owen / Wedding Invitations + Menus: Two Paperdolls / Ceremony Dress + Shawl: Talk of the Walk / Ceremony Shoes: Vera Wang Lavender / Reception Dress + Hair Piece: BHLDN / Reception Shawl: J.McLaughlin / Reception Shoes: Valentino / Reception Purse: The Bride’s Great-Grandmother’s / Reception Jewelry: Marco Bicego / Hair: Megan Tadeo of John Andrews Salon / Makeup: DIY / Bride + Groom Prep Location: Sweetwater Farm / Rings: Sydney Rosen Company / Cupcakes + Whoopie Pies: The Flying Monkey / Wedding Favors: Anthropologie

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Post tags: Alison Conklin Photography, BHLDN, Blush, Glen Mills, Gold, J McLaughlin, John Andrews Salon, Marco Bicego, Megan Tadeo, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Philadelphia City Hall, Sullivan Owen, Sweetwater Farm, Sydney Rosen Jewelers, Talk of the Walk, Taupe, Terrain at Styler's, The Flying Monkey: Anthropologie, Two Paperdolls, Valentino, Vera Wang Lavender
Post categories: Casual Elegance, The Blog

Click here for the FULL wedding!

From the bride… When we first got engaged, hitting the blogs and creating my “vision” was clearly my first task. I’m very detail oriented (or OCD, as my husband says) and soon created a Powerpoint presentation, a Pinterest page and started the “Wedding” bookmark tab on my Macbook. But since then, I’ve learned two things: (1) my vision must really be our vision, and (2) despite any planning you do, whatever happens on that momentous day will be an exact reflection of the two of you … and it will be perfect. 

Our goal was to create an experience that was distinctively Californian as 80% of our guests were flying in for the event. We’re both from the Midwest (Chicago and Detroit), but we met in LA and fell in love in there.  A stunning ocean view coupled with the backdrop of the Malibu hills and canyons served as a perfect Southern Californian setting. Our charming little venue captured our fondness for wine country with vineyards and an olive orchard in the backyard. The farmhouse cottage where the ceremony was held topped the Malibu hills and married our enchanted-garden-meets-vintage-ranch vision seamlessly.  Although it was a sweltering day that had us practically melting, by the time the ceremony started, a cool breeze wafted through the ceremony space and I knew everything would be perfect.

Since this was mainly was a DIY event, I relied heavily on my friend/planner/visionary to execute my plans. Another dear friend designed our save the dates and yet another, the flowers. My mom sewed our burlap runners and wrote the most amazing and funny speech. Our photographers were outstanding. Justin picked the caterer (a work friend whose food rivaled 5-star restaurants), created the all-important drink menu and stocked the bar with his favorites.  He also handpicked every song outside of the dance section, so the music we love and live our lives to filled the day. Our dear friends played acoustic guitar and cello and sang our favorite songs during the procession, which ended with Big Star’s “I’m in Love with a Girl.” We wrote our own vows and cried and beamed through every word. As I slipped his grandfather’s ring on his finger, I looked out to the crowd and saw four generations of our family, sitting together in the shade and knew I would never forget this moment. Overall, I think we achieved the rustic California garden feel with little effort and minimal day-of stress. Since we both have insanely busy work lives, many of the ideas we originally brought to the table were cut from the show — but it simply didn’t matter. We were so thankful to have both of our families together at our sun-filled venue and to share our love and happiness with them that we didn’t notice the little things that fell through the cracks. And to hear from our guests, that it was the most beautiful wedding they had been to, with the best food and music, still makes us smile. After six years together, we thought getting married wouldn’t really change our day-to-day life, but it absolutely has. Marriage is truly utter bliss.

Wedding Photography: Erin Hearts Court / Wedding Venue: Rancho del Cielo in Malibu, California / Wedding Design + Coordination: Billy Burgess, Friend of the Couple (billy_burgess@sbcglobal.net) / Catering: Bruce’s Catering, Friend of the Groom (818-376-1288) / Wedding Invitations: Bella Figura / Wedding Dress: Legends by Romona Keveza via MaryLinn’s Bridal / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: J.Crew / Shoes: Fendi / Hair: Mia Shin, Friend of Bride, of Anastasia Beverly Hills and B2V / Makeup: Vanessa Ceballos at Anastasia Beverly Hills / Groom’s Suit: J.Crew / Cake + Desserts: Magnolia Bakery / DJ: Paul Layton / Ceremony Music: Wendy Wang (Vocals and Guitar) + Gabe Noel (Cello), Friends of the Couple / Cake Toppers + Save and Date Cards: Christina Pierson, Friend of the Bride / Bouquets: Danielle Renee Thompson of Flowers Underground, Sister of a Friend of a the Couple

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2012. | Permalink | 32 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Al Fresco, Anastasia Beverly Hills, B2V, Bella Figura, Billy Burgess, Bruce's Gourmet Catering, California, Christina Pierson, Danielle Renee Thompson, Erin Heart's Court, Fendi, Flowers Underground, Gabe Noel, J. Crew, Legends by Romona Keveza, Magnolia Bakery, Malibu, MaryLinn's Bridal, Mia Shin, Outdoor, Paul Layton, Pink, Rancho del Cielo, Tan, Vanessa Ceballos, Wendy Wang, White
Post categories: Casual Elegance, The Blog, Traditional Elegance

Wine By: Wine for a Wedding / Wine Stopper: Z Gallerie / Wine Bites Book: Crate & Barrel / Decanter: West Elm / Wine Glasses: Crate & Barrel

We can’t even begin to tell you how much we l.o.v.e Wine for a Wedding.  They’ve made gift giving unique AND fun with their line of amazing three-panel wine boxes, which are not only uber-fabulous, but completely customizable with a “when to open date” on the outside and your special message to the newlyweds on the inside.  SOOO awesome.  Plus, you can fill up the box with your very own selection of wines OR choose from the spectacular menu on their website.  Toasting the newlyweds has never been easier.

And how’s this for exciting?  Wine for a Wedding is gifting THREE readers their choice of either the “Classic Trio” ($55 Value) or the “Scriptic” ($59 Value) wine box. (Wine not included.)

To Enter: Leave a comment below telling us your future anniversary toast.  I know.  This is going to be fun.

To Win: The winner, chosen completely at random using a number generator, will be announced right here on SMP on Friday, February 17th.

A big thank you to Wine for a Wedding for helping to make this one VERY fabulous Thursday here at SMP!  Good luck, SMP-ers! xoxo

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2012. | Permalink | 368 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Sponsored Post, Wine for a Wedding
Post categories: Sponsored Posts, The Blog

Click here for the FULL wedding!

From the bride… Our vision for the wedding was intimacy. It was most important to us to have a wedding about our marriage and not being overly flashy or over-the-top spending. We wanted everything to be quaint, sweet and the focused solely on our marriage in front of God and witnessed by family and closest friends. The officiant was the groom’s cousin, who is a pastor, and we chose the venue, L’Auberge de Sedona, because of its beautiful location by the creek. It was an absolute bonus that it snowed. We honestly thought that because of the long summer it would be sunny that weekend in December, but snow was a thousand times better!

My favorite part was how perfectly calming and intimate our ceremony was. It was amazing for us to feel so loved as we were placed in a beautiful snowy setting by a creek, surrounded by our guests. Benjamin said the first look was something he would never forget when he turned around and saw me. I won’t forget that when I saw him from the hotel room when he was shooting with Ryan first, it finally hit me — I’m getting married! I will never forget getting my makeup done and watching the snow fall all morning. What an incredible blessing to witness as I was getting ready. I also think the fact that our wedding was less about the wedding production but more about our marriage, so many of our guests told us after they had never been to a wedding like it!

What I enjoyed most about the planning was my venue team. Being a wedding photographer myself, it was a dream to work with my favorite people in the business, from my event designer, cookie designer, makeup artist, venue and, most importantly, the photographer that I had to have! I felt like I had the dream team and I couldn’t have asked for more. I’m so thankful that everyone was able to come together and work their amazing talents.I also loved that our ceremony was short, simple and sweet. I kept telling Benjamin I wanted to get married all over again. It was so much fun.

Wedding Photography: Ryan Ray Photography / Wedding Venue + Cake: L’Auberge de Sedona in Sedona, Arizona / Event Designer: la Ricki / Flowers: Bliss Extraordinary Floral / Hair + Makeup: Lizzy Marsh / Wedding Dress: Tadashi Shoji / Cream Belt: J.Crew / Black Belt: BHLDN / Earrings + Bracelets: Nadri / Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Jewelry: J.Crew / Groom’s Suit: Zegna / Tie: Calibrate / Shirt: Thomas Pink

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Post tags: Arizona, Badgley Mischka, BHLDN, Black, Bliss Extraordinary Floral, Calibrate, J. Crew, L'Auberge de Sedona, la Ricki, Lizzy Marsh, Nadri, Ryan Ray Photography, Sedona, Tadashi Shoji, Thomas Pink, White, Zegna
Post categories: The Blog