Talk about taking your passions to an all new height! Kurt and Tammi’s aviation wedding from Boutwell Studio ~ literally, takes the cake!

Tammi and Kurt tied the knot in an airplane hangar in Orange County, CA. As an ode to Kurt’s love-affair with flying, the couple chose to surround themselves with classic airplanes and a vintage travel theme, complete with a postcard “guestbook” and luggage tags as favors and placecards. The most memorable moment, however, was Kurt and Tammi’s grand entrance! The happy couple exited from a private jet, which rolled down the runway of John Wayne Airport and right in to the airplane hangar where the reception took place. ~ Boutwell Studio

To see more of Tammi & Kurt’s wedding, take a look at their entire feature on the Boutwell Studio’s blog!

Photography: Chenin Boutwell, Boutwell Studio / Cinematography: Luv Bug Films / Flowers: Karla Flores, Elegant by Design / Ceremony Location: Our Lady Queen of Angels Church, Newport Beach, CA /Invitations: ileedesigns / Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Dress: Model Novias / Cake: The Confectionist / Jewelry: Lugano Diamonds / Lighting Design: Atmosphere / Band: Tijuana Dogs

Just glancing at this first wedding had me instantly smitten.  Abigail Seymour’s images reside in a happy spot where casual elegance and a dash of southern charm co-mingle in such a beautiful way. And as if that weren’t enough for a major wedding crush, this little soiree also happens to be fabulously eco-friendly. Gorgeous and Green? Yep, the swoon factor just went through the roof. See every last pretty detail designed and styled by Leigh Pearce Weddings in the little ol’ gallery.

see all the pretty details in the gallery!

You could say that this wedding owes its Southern charm to an anonymous little kid selling lemonade on her front lawn — one day last year Jennifer and Craig (neither of whom are born and bred Southerners) were walking in their Greensboro, North Carolina, neighborhood and came across a little girl calling out in a thick drawl, “Lemo-nayyyyde, come getcha some lemo-nayde!” Something about that moment cemented for both of them that they wanted to settle in the South for good — and, of course, host their upcoming wedding there.

Jen and Craig’s starting vision for their wedding style came from their recently purchased 1930s bungalow — it represents their shared love and appreciation for family, history, and is itself a perfect balance of new and old. Their home is a very eclectic mix of vintage family treasures and modern design, so they worked closely with a planner to bring these ideas to the wedding day. Every detail of their day was every bit as stylish, thoughtful and eco-friendly as the couple themselves.

Some of the Green Details…

* The whole event was hosted at The Proximity Hotel, the nation’s most cutting-edge LEED-certified “green” hotel.

* Their invitations were tree-free, and they used chalkboards instead of escort cards to conserve resources.

* The table cards (each with a different favorite Southern-ism) were made with recycled paper, and the locally-grown flowers were displayed on the tables in a mix of apothecary bottles and glassware rented from the florist.

* The keys that were hand-tied each key with raffia onto dried lavender for the aisle flowers were rented from a local antiques store, as was the antique birdcage on the gift table.

Venue and Catering: Proximity Hotel / Event Planning and Design: Leigh Pearce Weddings / Dress: Amsale / Flowers: The Farmer’s Wife / Photography: Abigail Seymour Photography / Skeleton keys and bird cage rentals: Mary’s Antiques / Cake: Delicious Bakery / Scarves on the tables: Design Archives / Table name cards: pertyfultings / Favors: DIY by the mother of the bride / Bride’s hair piece: Made by the bride / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: J. Crew

This wedding from the always-amazing Erin Hearts Court is capital C, COOL!   It is super chic and modern but has the attitude and feel-good vibe of a house party.  The hip Shade Hotel sets the scene for this contemporary, Southern California celebration filled with loads of comfy lounge furniture and incredible, fresh florals from JL DESIGNS.  And that ceremony is just jaw-dropping awesome!!! Head on over to the full gallery to get your style fix for the afternoon.

Click here for even more inspiration in the full wedding gallery!

My husband, Morgan, and I were married this past August 2010 at Shade Hotel in Manhattan Beach, CA.  I was never the girl who pictured or planned her wedding growing up, but sure enough, soon after we got engaged, we had a very clear picture of the wedding we wanted.  We are natural party hosts; one of our favorite activities is having people at our home.  We wanted the wedding to feel like our parties do:  free flowing, fun, and filled with lots of good music, food, and drink.  With that image in mind, we began planning the wedding design and style.

As soon as we moved to Manhattan Beach after college, I fell in love with Shade Hotel.  It is modern, clean, and simple—a style that describes our taste perfectly.  Shade’s unique layout made us think differently about the flow of the wedding.  We had no assigned seats, all different types of seating, and stations all around the courtyard for the food.  We had rented the entire small hotel out, so the weekend felt like a long slumber party with our closes family and friends.

Shade had recommended Carissa from JL DESIGNS for our florist, and she really helped my vision come to life.  Not only were her florals gorgeous, she really took the role as the event designer and helped us get the right rentals and linens in place.  We went with green and white flowers and included some of my favorites, tulips, cala lilies, orchids, and succulents.  One of my favorite parts is the fact that each of my bridesmaids carried a bouquet of a different green flower.  They looked beautiful held against their gray J.Crew bridesmaid dresses.

As for the other details, design-savvy Morgan designed our invitations, website, and paper goods, we used our friends at Jamaica’s Cakes for our delicious cake, bought tons of details from different Etsy vendors, had the same ceremony guitarist from my parents’ wedding (with some of the same Cat Stevens songs.)  Luckily, our wonderful photographers, Erin Hearts Court, beautifully captured all of it.

Wedding Venue: Shade Hotel / Wedding Photographers: Erin Hearts Court / Wedding Cinematographer: Living Cinema / Wedding Florist: JL DESIGNS / Lighting and Rentals: Level 4 International / Linens: Wildflower Linen / DJ: Aaron Massey from VOX DJs / Officiant: Greg Mohr from You May Kiss the Bride / Ceremony Music: Marty Kaniger / Hair and Makeup: Nicole DeAnne Bridal Hair and Makeup / Bride’s Hair Accessory: 5eizen / Bride’s Dress: Modern Trousseau from The White Dress / Bride’s Shoes: Charles David / Bride’s Shoe Clips: bpoetic / Bride’s bracelet: emin jewelry / Bridesmaid Dresses and Shoes: J. Crew and Nine West / Groom’s Suit: J. Crew / Groomsmen Accessories: The Tie Bar, Express, and Converse / Flower Girl Tutu: tutugirl / Wedding Bands: Pasha Fine Jewelry / Wedding Cake: Jamaica’s Cakes / Wedding Cake Toppers: RedLight Studio / Favors: Gotta Have S’more

I want to marry this next wedding. Seriously. I want to marry this wedding and live happily ever after together. It’s just that beautiful. Which doesn’t come as any surprise considering the photographer behind the lens was Tanja Lippert who always sends us the greatest weddings ever. The kind of weddings that make you cringe with jealousy and cheer with delight at the exact same time. And this one, just might be her best one yet. And there is SO much more in the gallery.

click here to see the full wedding gallery!

We married on a warm summer day at my grandparent’s house on the lake where I grew up. The day was old-fashioned, personal, and full of love.

During the day, guests played bocce ball, croquet, horseshoes and badminton, which were set up around the property with handpainted wooden signs marking the areas. One of my favorite details was using one of the antique wooden badminton racquets from my childhood to decorate the sign post. A string quartet, who were friends from my grandmother’s days in the local symphony, played a mix of classical, swing and motown tunes, followed by a hip young backwater blues band that kept the party hopping till midnight. Our 100 guests enjoyed summer cocktails with quirky names, a menu of Spanish tapas selected by the groom, a Spanish professor, and buttercream-frosted chocolate-and-raspberry and carrot wedding cake.

Under a driftwood arbor I built with my dad, a close friend officiated, using words which described not only our love, but the meaning of bringing friends and family to this place filled with so much history and meaning. My father also built the long farm tables, the bar, and helped with the extensive restoration of the property, which had fallen into neglect since my beloved grandfather’s death. My wedding was a tribute to my grandpa, my most-loved role model, and his love of gardening and of literature. In the year before our wedding, we grew the lavender as well as nearly all the wedding flowers used for the tables and bouquets. We planted over 80 Grosso lavender plants around the ceremony arbor. I recommend doing this more than one year in advance, however!

Before the wedding, I was lucky enough to spend an entire week with my maid of honor, my best friend since third grade; she helped me prep the flowers as I arranged bouquets, centerpieces and aisle flowers. I letterpress printed our four-color save the dates, invitations, and signage seen around the ceremony and reception. It took 50 hours at the old platen press, but was well worth it. I made a lifelong friend of my letterpress mentor, Robert Johnson. Part of the letterpress design included a drawing of a mason jar hanging from a branch by a ribbon, and I knew just where to mimic that—from a twisted oak branch hanging over the ceremony area.

While I was never one to fantasize much about my wedding as a child, I did always have a favorite “wedding” book: A Frog Went A-Courting, so I used illustrations from the book as backings on our program fans. To celebrate my mother, a children’s librarian, we included a reading based on The Runaway Bunny. Marrying near the willow trees was appropriate because I used to beg my grandfather to plant one so I could get married beneath a willow “just like in Frog Went A-Courting.” He was adamantly against it, saying it would block the view of the lake. But about six years before he died, he planted not one but four willow trees, sprinkled around the lakeshore. He wanted to fulfill my dream.

Style Me Pretty was a huge source of inspiration for me. I truly enjoyed designing our wedding from scratch on an affordable budget: collecting vintage jars from antique shops, beverage dispensers, café lights, apothecary jars and other décor second-hand; handmaking eyelet lace candle holders, birch wood centerpieces, calligraphy drink name tags which we hung on a magnet mirror, and spending hours crafting eyelet candy favor boxes and other DIY projects.

I have since helped several friends with their letterpress, floral and design needs. Thus my event planning and design business was born, Clementine & Clover, based in Southern California. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you are planning a wedding and are in need of a swift sidekick, a deft day-of designer or a fiesty florist!

Wedding and Floral Design: Elizabeth Nixon of Clementine & Clover / Catering: Chic le Chef / Wedding Dress: Melissa Sweet / Wedding Hair: Danielle’s Dream Salon in Lakeport / Bridesmaid Dresses: David’s Bridal / Menswear: Jos Bank / Wedding Cake: McKee Somerville in Kelseyville / Graphic Design: Bellew Creative / Letterpress Printing: Clementine & Clover / Band: Quinn De Veaux and The Blue Beat Review / Photography: Tanja Lippert

You know the old adage, killing two birds with one stone? Well we happen to know of a capital A awesome bridesmaid dress company that has taken that phrase to a whole other level of gorgeous. Enter twobirds and their line of fabulous dresses that can be worn not one, not two, but FIFTEEN different ways so each and every maid can rock their own unique style while still maintaining a cohesive look. Completely and totally genius, right? We have gone absolutely bananas for their classic line for awhile now but the newest addition to the twobirds family has us practically speechless, it’s THAT good. And do you want to hear the best part? Two Birds has stopped by to offer up a lovely little giveaway to celebrate their new arrival to one extremely lucky reader.

The chiffon mini has been added to the line-up of twobirds‘ killer dress collection and it is a star in the making. Just like the classic version, this pretty frock can be twisted and tied into 15 pretty concoctions for bridesmaid wearing pleasure. But its pretty, pretty hand-sewn rosettes add the perfect feminine detail to an already gorgeous dress. Seriously, the hardest decision will be figuring out which wonderful way you want to rock your dress. Oh and twobirds has you covered there as well. They have a new free iPhone app that shows you just how to wrap each style. You can download it right here.  Plus, no alterations are needed with these babies and you can wear them again and again and again, thus killing “two birds” with one pretty dress.

I’m sure you are all dying to know the juicy details of this giveaway so we won’t keep you in suspense one second longer. Twobirds is offering up one of their lovely chiffon mini dresses valued at $370 to one fantastically lucky reader. Simply leave a comment below letting us know what your favorite style is from the twobirds Bridesmaid collection and a winner will be chosen at random on Friday, December 3. Good luck!

to view the terms and conditions of this giveaway, please click here.

Welcome back lovelies. We hope you all had a fabulous holiday and are rested, refueled and ready to jump right into our first gorgeous post. It involves copious amounts of bright, fluffy peonies so you know it is bound to be good. Add to that a fun loving bride and groom and images by M Photography and this Ontario wedding is completely what the doctor ordered for your Monday morning. Be sure to stop by the gallery for more from this Canadian beauty.

see more of this vibrant day here!

Shannon had a million amazing ideas to create this very special day that was as much about their guests as the two of them. A vintage photo booth, name tags, lovely custom illustrated invitations, programs and menus, are just a few of the many details that went into creating this chic modern vintage styled day. We had an epic engagement session. Anyone who has worked with me knows that I LOVE my engagement sessions and this one was nothing short of a blast. With New York inspiration, we had the amazing time shooting around Ottawa. During this session, I had the oppourtunity to meet Jon, who simply adores Shannon. The chemistry between the two of them is truly magical…like watching two people dance through life together.

Throughout the planning time, the ideas were getting bigger and more beautiful and with the assistance of some wonderful wedding vendors like Miranda Forbes, our rock for the day and expert wedding planner at the Courtyard restaurant in the Byaward Market, Mood Moss Flower Design, Third Avenue Candy Store, Buttercream Bakery and the Candy Store, the vision for the big day came together beautifully.

Photography: M Photography / Venue: Courtyard Restaurant / Flowers: Mood Moss Floral Design / Cake: ButterCream Bakery /  Dress: Vera Wang / Makeup: Sarah Walsh / Hair: Lori Dyck, Ottawa

We think that this photo shoot from the lovely designers at Good Earth Floral Design Studio is just about perfection! Along with a group of super-talented wedding vendors in the Kansas City Metro Area, they teamed together for today’s pretty, pretty, pretty inspiration …

See the whole gallery here!

As a newly-formed group of wedding vendors in Kansas City, we wanted to put together a concept photo shoot to showcase all of our talents. With a color palette of Coral, Green and Ivory, we created the scene of a wedding in the park. Long strands of ribbon hung from the trees, giving just the ‘light/airy’ feeling we were looking for. Through the use of vintage vases, teapots, and other containers the table setting seemed effortless and relaxed. The natural tones merged seamlessly with the trees and field setting. The response has been wonderful from the brides, who love the look!
To really make it a wedding, we brought in Jessica and Jake. They are engaged in real life, so putting them in a setting of pure romance really brought the shoot together. We cannot wait to create another Wedding Inspiration!

See the complete Kansas City Park Wedding from Good Earth Floral Design Studio ~ here!

Photography: Rebecca Peters / Flowers and Event Design: Good Earth Floral Design Studio (LBB Vendor) / Event Planning: Savvy Wedding and Event Planning / Invitations: Announce This! / Hair : Bella Hair Co. / Make Up : Tricia Root / Cake : Cake Girl / Jewels : Blue Opal

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are feeling all warm and fuzzy this weekend! Just in case you haven’t had enough of our beautiful autumn weddings on SMP, we have another for you today! From Yumiko at Hana Floral Design and Trish at Snap! Photography ~ we know this positively glorious New England wedding will put a huge smile on your face and give you a new twist on preppy fall wedding colors!

Katie & Pete ~ October 16th, 2010

Pete and I met in San Francisco – he had moved there in 2005, and I in 2006. Although we met at a friend’s party soon after I moved there, we didn’t start dating until 2007 … and became inseparable after our first date in March 2007. We had SO much in common!

Pete and I flew to Boston for my friend Carrie’s wedding on July 4th, 2009, and I caught the bouquet! The next day, after walking around Boston with my parents, he proposed.

I had grown up going to the beach in Watch Hill every summer with my family. My little brother and I used to ride on the Watch Hill carousel for what seemed like hours at a time. My parents often went to the Ocean House for cocktails on it’s deck.  A month after we were engaged, my Mom said she remembered reading that the Ocean House in Watch Hill, RI was getting renovated so she called and asked if we could swing by for a tour.

We toured the Ocean House in hard hats and reflective vests and had to use our imagination for what it would look like finished; the exterior walls were up but that was about it. We booked it on the spot that day in August for October 16th wedding, the following year. I had always known I would get married by the water, and the Ocean House was the perfect place!

Floral Designer: Yumiko Flecther, Hana Floral Design in Mystic CT / Photography: Snap! Photography / Wedding Gown Designer: Liancarlo – purchased at L’Elite Bridal Boutique in Boston / Bride’s Accessories: Custom hand-made necklace made by Devon Baer Designs, from Etsy / Hair Stylist & Makeup Artist: Linda Marzilli, Ocean House OH! Spa / Groom’s Attire: Joseph Abboud blazer and Joseph A. Banks pants and tie / Rings: Bouvier Jewelers in Boston / Bridesmaids Attire: J.Crew dresses / Gifts: Custom hand-made pearl necklaces by JoJoLovesYou / Officiant: Deacon Stephen Cote from Westerly, RI / Venue: The Ocean House in Watch Hill, RI / Invitations/ Programs: William Arthur brand from Paper Source / Videographer: Matthew Williamson, friend /Entertainment: The Tristan Paxton Jazz Trio for cocktail hour & dinner and Devin Yazmer was our DJ. The bride’s brother, Mike Connon, played his saxophone for a few songs, including the Bride’s 1st dance with her father / Transportation: MJ Bus Incorporated / Lighting and Event Design: Devin Yazmer Productions

These Vendors are members of our Little Black Book.
For membership information, click here

Hana Floral Design

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We hope you all had a lovely, lovely Thanksgiving filled with friends, family, great food and joyous company. We know there are tons of leftovers to be consumed so we won’t keep you long, promise. Turkey + stuffing sandwiches are calling your name after all. We just wanted to end this holiday week with a snippet of gorgeous coming at ya next week and whole hearted thank you from the SMP family to all of our readers that stop by everyday and to all of the fabulous vendors that create so much beauty for us to pore over and of course, to all of the lovely brides and grooms that so generously share their big day with us. We appreciate each and every one of you.

a snap shot of an out-of-control gorgeous wedding coming next week from Tanja Lippert

Enjoy these pretty posts and we look forward to seeing you on Monday!

a wedding that makes green look oh so chic
tree farm nuptials filled to the brim with color
a sweet as pie engagement session that dreams are made of
DIY meets Malibu and it is purrty
a California harvest inspired wedding
the loveliest garden wedding in Virginia
nuptials in the mist in North Carolina
a pretty, pretty Mexico inspired photo shoot
down on the farm in Maine
a vibrant, rustic affair in Colorado
Texas style done right with this beauty in Fort Worth
Fall deliciousness complete with an apple on top
Holiday Inspiration of the beautiful kind

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

JL Photographia
Indian Wells Country Club
Table 6 Productions
Veronica Martell Entertainment
R O O Y Couture & Consulting
A’La Vie Photography
Your Heart’s Desire Weddings & Events
Hannah Handmade

And the winner of the Libby Story Giveaway is…

Jessica! Congrats to you lucky duck.

Have a wonderful weekend and we will see you back here on Monday! xoxo

For those of us in the States, there is a lot to love about the day after Thanksgiving.  Of course there are the fabulous sales if you are brave enough to face the crowds, but I personally prefer a leftover turkey sandwich and scouring for inspiration to kick off all the holiday decorating instead. I have a feeling I am not alone on this one. So cuddle up under a nice blanket, grab your leftovers and enjoy this stunning photo shoot by Shauna Maness Photography at Royalty Pecan Farms. No crowds involved, even in the gallery.

click here for the full gallery!

From Jenni at Royalty Pecan Farms – The idea for this shoot came to me as we began planning for our busy harvest season. Our venue is not only a one-of-a-kind facility for weddings but is also a working pecan orchard; so with fall fast approaching, pecans were certainly on my mind. Immediately I thought of Shauna for photography because she has the most creative style I’ve ever seen and I knew she could capture the light and colors perfectly. The color scheme was all things fall, lots of spice colors with bursts of yellows and oranges. I explained my vision to Brandy, the floral designer, and she ran with it. Everything turned out exactly how I had imagined, she is truly an incredible artist! I also incorporated hints of amber and burgundy into the invitations as well as guest cards. Of course, pecans were abundant as well since our shoot took place in the middle of the grove. They were used in the decor, favors, and food. We wanted to bring the harvest theme back into the shots as much as possible to inspire our brides with these fun, unique, and very Texan elements. Overall, my goal was to give brides a fresh look at what creative options are available to them in our town and the team I worked with did such a fabulous job of bringing it all together.

Location, Design, and Planning: Royalty Pecan Farms / Photography: Shauna Maness Photography / Floral Design: Brandy Reagan/ Dessert Items:  Taste of Heaven’s Sweet Memories / Dress: Maggie Sottero’s Catarina from Bea’s Bridal / Hair and Make Up: Becca Wilson/ Stationery: Jenni Hankins of Royalty Pecan Farms

Good morning!  We hope y’all  had a fantastic Thanksgiving with loads of food, friends, family and all around fun times!  You must be feeling a little stuffed from all that turkey and pie (I know I am!) so sit back and digest while taking in some gorgeous weddings we have prepared for you today (calorie-free, I swear)!

What do you get when two Manhattanites uproot to Marfa, Texas and get married?  A perfectly laid-back and chic event filled with elegant decor and bursts of rustic goodness!  This wedding from Kate Mefford and the talented folks at Caplan Miller Events totally sold me when I laid eyes on that vintage airstream bar and those candy-colored metal chairs!  Get over to the full gallery to see even more from this Manhattan meets Marfa extravaganza!

Click here to see even more in the full wedding gallery!

Melissa Boswell, a New York transplant was looking to plan very fun, Texas-style wedding.  Since the bride and groom had recently purchased a home in the very trendy Marfa, Texas it was only fitting to theme her wedding Marfa meets Manhattan!  We set up a vintage airstream for a bar and served fresh lime margaritas and martinis.  The menu featured chicken pot pies, tomato bisque, and frito pies, just to name a few. Instead of the traditional guestbook, guests were asked to leave a suggestion for the suggestion box!  To fight off the winter chill we gave the guests cozy pashminas and cream colored snuggly blankets.  Spiked hot chocolate also warmed up the guests for an evening of dancing to eighties cover band, The Spazmatics.  The bride and groom departed as any New Yorker would, via taxi cab!

Wedding Coordinator:  Sarah Miller for Caplan Miller Events / Wedding Photographer: Kate Mefford / Wedding Venue: Laguna Gloria / Wedding Flowers: Gun and Rose / Wedding Decor: Townsley Designs / Wedding Caterer: Kurant Events / Lighting: First In Last Out / Wedding Rentals: Marquee Rents and Premiere Party Central

By now, most of you are probably face first into a plate of turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes. But for those of you that aren’t…we’ve got you covered. The fabulous Melody over at Innove Events sent today’s little dose of inspiration our way and we thought it was the perfect way to celebrate all of those little things we are thankful for. Like jars billy balls and apple pie, like little jars of of pumkin pie and shot glasses filled to the brim with warm, yummy soup. So, whether or not you are celebrating Thanksgiving today, this is just the kind of pretty that we love to devour. Click here to see even more.

click here to see the full wedding gallery of goodness!

From Innove Events…Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, and I have always wanted to host Thanksgiving at my house.  Due to geographic logistics, I can’t host our families on Thanksgiving, so this year I decided to have a party for my oldest girlfriends.  I have known these girls for 25+ years, some since kindergarten, so I was truly thankful and honored to have them all together at my home!  

I wanted to create a look that is rustic and warm, without too much of the typical “thanksgiving” decor.  Much of my inspiration came from an amazing estate sale I found a few weeks ago.  This house was LOADED with vintage goodies- the yellow seat cushions, the Eames era chargers with a perfect patina, the gold rimmed glasses, the metal crate & the breadbox all came home with me that day for less than $25!   From there, I scoured more thrift stores to accent the look by putting together mix & match vintage silverware.

I knew I wanted a burlap runner & the older steamer trunk had been staring at me in my stark white office for a few months hoping for the perfect job.   I had picked up the trunk and the huge ornate gold frame at a garage sale earlier this past summer for about $60 combined.  Inspired by a black/white photo wall I had seen in an interior once, I collected photos of my friends throughout the years and filled the frame, which made for a great display as well as a fun conversation starter of “remember when” & lots of laughter.  Bringing the black & white photos to the table, I decided to use a funny photo as a placecard for each guest.

Alas, in my backyard setting, the look all came together with lots of help from my good friend & floral extraordinaire Nancy Saam.  I gave her little direction but that I wanted oranges and yellows- and definitely billy balls!  She was almost finished and the table was set with a few orange arrangements & a few of the milkglass with billy balls, when she was cleaning up the stems from the amaryllis and discovered that the hollow stems created the perfect length to hold a whimsical billy ball arrangement.  She pulled a few pieces of burlap from my scrap pile and finished them off.  We agreed it was a “happy accident” that gave the table just a touch of height and fun that it needed!

I have to thank Annie Hosfeld for her beautiful photography & for freezing her little feet off on the cool fall night.

Nothing says Fall like a perfectly crisp apple. So what better fruit to build a sweet, sweet wedding shoot around? Think pine cones, warm apple pie and cozy, autumnal colors and you’re on the right track. Designed and styled to perfection by Jessica Sloane of Love Bird Style, captured by Souder Photography and decked out in lovely florals by Artisan Flowers, this is a shoot that is sure to get you in the Thanksgiving spirit and it is ever so appropriately titled The Apple of My Eye. You can see the full spread here.

get your inspiration on in the gallery!

As the designer for this shoot, I wanted to come up with a fun fall theme and I started thinking about why I absolutely love this time of year. The crisp air, the warm colors of the changing leaves, the comforting foods and approaching holidays. There’s a lot to love, so it seems only natural to celebrate the ones you love during this season! And thus the saying “you’re the apple of my eye” came to mind and the ideas began to flow… apple place cards, apple cider, apple butter take-away gift, apple bobbing station for the kids. Apples, apples, apples!

Concept and Design: Jessica Sloane of Love Bird Style / Invitation: Laura Jansen of Red Ribbon Fox / Flowers: Jasmin Trenary of Artisan Flowers / Pies: KT & Ro’s Pie Company / Rentals: Southern Events / Photography: Souder Photography

If you’re still at work, dreaming about the moment the clock strikes five and you can check out for Turkey day…we’re here to make the last few hours just a bit sweeter. Oh and did we mention that we’re blogging TOMORROW so if you’re not celebrating or if you have to work, we’ve got you covered. But in the meantime, we thought you just might fall in love with this next little beauty. Sent our way by the lovely Kelly over at Sweet Pea Events, this is Texas style done so so right. Click here to see even more!

click here to see the full wedding gallery!

This rustic romantic wedding was held in Fort Worth, deep in the heart of Texas. When we first met with Angela, the bride, she showed us her inspiration board and told us her number one goal was to have a wedding that looked like it came straight from Style Me Pretty!

Both their ceremony and reception were held at Art Space 111, which is an amazing art gallery that has a mix of modern and vintage elements. Her rich color palette consisted of fall tones with darker reds, raspberry, burnt orange, darker rum pinks, caramel and flesh tones. Floral designer, Debby Jewesson of Branching Out Events created a whimsical backdrop for their ceremony that was full of western chic items such as cowhide, antlers, tree stumps, and wheat. Their guests were greeted with homemade passion fruit lemonade garnished with sugar cane spears as they walked into the ceremony. The couples son was the precious ring bearer who was pulled in a vintage radio flyer wagon by the absolutely adorable flower girl.

After the ceremony guests were greeted at cocktail hour inside the gallery, where they were able to enjoy not only the art, but an amazing array of appetizers; apricot goat cheese lollipops, sweet barbecue rib eye on mini buttermilk chive biscuits, and pan seared ahi tuna on sesame crisps.

The reception then began under cafe bulbs and a beautiful Texas sky. Danny, the groom, is the owner of a popular local bar in Fort Worth, so entertainment was very important to them. One of their really good friends and groomsmen has his own band, Calhoun and they performed as well as Danny’s band, Holy Moly. They were a huge hit and brought lots of life to the dance floor. At one point Danny serenaded his beautiful new bride.

A couple of details to point out that we absolutely adore..homemade mini pie favors that Angela and her mom made with larger homemade pies served after dinner along with shooters of vanilla bean gelato. A large red “W” marquis was lit up and hung just below their head table to symbolize their new last name, Weaver. Along the back wall of the reception garden a clothesline was strung, and fun pictures of the couple were hung with clothespins. An old vintage coca-cola crate was used to collect cards at the gift table. The guests participated in games of cornhole all throughout the evening.

Photography: Melissa Zihlman Photography / Flowers and Event Design: Branching Out Events / Event Planning: Sweet Pea Events / Ceremony and Reception Location: ArtSpace 111 / Cake: Colleen’s Cakes / Catering: Wynnwood Catering and Special Events / Rentals: Celebration Event Rental / Hair: Halo Salon / Makeup: Makeup by Melissa / Bands: Calhoun, Holy Moly, John Price

Hello gorgeous (and loads of fun) Colorado wedding! The jovial personalities of this adorable couple seem to jump through each and every beautiful image taken by Melissa of Fresh in Love Photography. And then there are the details, oh the details, which are just as incredibly vibrant and full of life as the couple. It all just perfectly compliments the gorgeous Colorado backdrop. Oh sweet wedding, how I love thee. Don’t miss all of the fabulously fun photos in the gallery.

click here for the full wedding gallery!

After we found Piney River Ranch, with its extraordinary views, we focused on putting together a simple, vintage, fun wedding that would reflect our casual style while reflecting the natural beauty of the setting and the charming rusticity of the venue.Working with a small budget meant a lot of DIY by me and my sister – we made everything from the table runners to the favors to the escort cards to the photo booth to the s’mores table to the programs.  We decided to focus on quality food, drinks, and transportation for the guests, and save money in decorations.  We recruited help whenever possible: Randy’s long-time roommate, acted as officiant; Randy’s oldest friend, an artist, created the unique invitations from ‘cowboy’ and ‘indian’ childhood pictures of Randy and Katy; 2 friends contributed ceremony and cocktail music (bluegrass violin and banjo); Katy’s mother sewed the runners and tablecloths; Randy’s mother assembled the “R&B’s Grits” favors. So much internet research and a little trial and error gave us cheap, cute ideas to make sure the details reflected our style.  The best move?  The instant photo guest book and homemade photo booth – those pictures are priceless!!

From the talented Melissa of Fresh in Love Photography – Katy and Randy wanted to put together a simple, vintage, fun wedding that would reflect their casual style while reflecting the natural beauty of the setting and the charming rusticity of the venue at Piney River Ranch here in Colorado. A bluegrass duo played during cocktails, guests found their seats (place cards were clementines with labels on sticks) at their tables (named after places Randy & katy have lived or traveled to, represented by vintage postcards – a play on our save-the-dates, printed on vintage Colorado postcards). Dinner was BBQ ribs and game hens, served buffet style, followed by heartfelt toasts by the wedding party and cake cutting, which featured 6 cakes in different flavors (red velvet, almond, coconut, lemon-strawberry, chocolate, vanilla).  First dance to “That’s How Strong My Love Is” by Otis Redding, followed by parents’ dance to “What a Wonderful World”.  Then dancing and smores around the fire pit.  It was such an amazing, unforgettable wedding day!

Bridal Gown: Schafer’s Bridal, gown by Casablanca / Bridesmaid Dress: Nanette Lepore from Nordstrom / Cake and Bakery: Baby Cakes of Vail / Caterer: Piney River Ranch / Ceremony Site: Piney River Ranch / Ceremony Musicians: Bobby Kreuch, violinist, and Bard Edrington, banjo/ Flowers: Petals & Pours, Signe Jones/ Hair Stylist: West One Salon / Invitations: Robie Gay of  Thoughtbarn / Jeweler: Tiffany & Co. / Makeup Artist: Laura Anzalone of Glo Makeup /Photographer: Mel O’Connell, Fresh in Love Photography / Reception Venue: Piney River Ranch / Transportation: Timberline Tours / Wedding Planner: Krista Nelson, Petals & Pours

The east coast boasts many an ideal spot for weddings but Maine, with its gorgeous display of greenery and just the right touch of rustic seems to be at the tippy top of our favorites list. Fat Orange Cat Studio photographed the heck out of this pretty wedding and after taking a look, we were sold on the locale, on the easy elegance of the whole affair and especially on that fig adorned cake. Sit back and gaze upon some pretty whilst sipping your morning coffee and don’t forget there’s more where this came from in the gallery.

see it all here!

My husband, Rich, and I were engaged for two years, which allowed us time to really think about our wedding day, as well as save and plan. We knew we wanted to be married outside among the trees with birds chirping along surrounded by family and friends. It was also important to us to involve our family in the planning process. From this we developed the theme of “Homegrown Wedding.” We live in Rhode Island, I am from Maine, and he is from Massachusetts. It took us nearly ten months to find the perfect location after researching every possible and appropriate venue within those three states. Again, we had two years to plan, which really allowed us to take our time on this decision to make sure it was the correct one. We decided on Pineland Farms, a 5,000-acre working farm nestled in the woods of New Gloucester, Maine. With sweeping views of the White Mountains, cows and sheep grazing in the pastures next to a state-of-the-art equestrian center, hiking & biking trails, a one-acre perennial, herb, and vegetable garden and guest houses, it was the perfect spot to be married and to spend the weekend with our family and friends.

While we were searching for the perfect venue, I began working on many of the details, as I did not want to lose any time! I worked as an event planner for five years before I began my stationery and letterpress studio, so I found the process of planning extremely enjoyable and relatively stress-free. Our wedding was a true labor of love for our entire family and there is no way we could have done everything we did without their time and help. My mother, sister, and I spent a year collecting 175 vintage dinner and dessert plates and milk glass vases for the centerpieces (with the exception of the two plates Rich and I had which were from Anthropologie and had the Eiffel Tower on them, as a nod to where we were engaged). I also collected vintage handkerchiefs with my bridesmaid’s initials on them to give as gifts. My husband has a passion for music and is a talented drummer so we decided the centerpieces, as well as the labels for the tables, would be record albums from his collection surrounded by the milk glass vases I collected.

Before we even had our venue we booked our photographer, Li Ward of Fat Orange Cat Studio. Li began her studio as a pet photographer and we met when she took photos of one of our puppies. We adored her style, not to mention her and husband. She was not even into wedding photography yet and we had only been engaged for a month or so, but we asked her to shoot our wedding and we are beyond thrilled with our photos. She also shot our engagement photos. After two years of planning, collecting, making, printing, building, baking, & creating, our wedding finally came, and it was absolutely everything we could have ever hoped for and more. It was a gorgeous, sunny autumn day. Birds chirped, family and friends laughed and cried, we laughed and cried, ate delicious food and desserts, and danced the night away surrounded by everyone we loved!

Photography: Fat Orange Cat Studio / Cinematography: Lasting Memories Videotaping / Flowers: Minott’s Flowers / Ceremony and Reception Location: Pineland Farms / Catering: The Black Tie Company / Cakes and Dessert Table: Nothing Bakes Like a Parrott / Invitations: Parrott Design Studio / Illustrations: Debra Bianculli Calligraphy on Invitations, Envelopes: Grace Edmands Calligraphy, Escort Cards and Food labels: Fat Orange Cat Studio / Dress: BCBG Max Azria / Veil: Paloma Blanca / Shoes: Steve Madden / Bridesmaid Dresses: David’s Bridal / Bridesmaid Jewelry: Debra Bianculli / Flower Hair Pins: Handle and Spout / Suits: LA Fashion District / Ring Bearer Bowl: Paloma’s Nest / Garter: Rosebud Lips / Photo Booth: Parrott’s Photo Booth Company

If you are on the hunt for some fun and vibrant fiesta inspiration then look no further!  In The Now Weddings created a classic Mexican event with to-die-for vintage details.  Traditional and old world decor mixed with bold and playful elements are just perfect for a couple that wants to celebrate their heritage but throw in a few personalized surprises!  The super-talented Becky Hill Photography captured every last stunning detail so get to the full gallery to see it all!

Click here for more inspiration in the full gallery!

We wanted to bring to life the warmth and family-feel of a classic Mexican event. Even giving a nod to the Catholic traditions celebrated in Mexico.

A brief walk through of the event leads you from a “wisdom donation” guest book- where friends and family were encouraged to donate their experiences and enhance the bride and groom’s lives, sealed properly with a wax seal. The lush grounds of the Casino made the perfect backdrop for this festive event. We took bold, lively colors and mixed them with subtle muted tones to give a modern edge.Our “watering hole” held 3 colorful options for guests- alcoholic and non- to drink in the fun! The sweets station was an over-the-top idea mixing crowd pleasing flavors such as churros to modern plating like our sorbet served in ice shot glasses!

But the main event was the s’mores roasting station- a custom [mini!!] s’mores set up featuring and celebrating all that Mexican sweets have to offer. We made recipes for the guests to create-their-own custom treat. Favorite flavors like “Mexican wedding cookie” and “death by chocolate” are sure to make guests smile from ear to ear [and I have since sold TWO clients for later this year on this very idea!!].

Our sweetheart table kept it simple with lush garden-style florals in an array of oranges and yellows, adding in pops of that hot purple we can’t get enough of. We topped off the details with peach champagne to give that golden luster and tie it all together!

Photography: Becky Hill Photography (please note…although Becky is a well known Chicago photographer, she has a second home base in Los Angeles) / Design and Planning: In The Now Weddings / Hair and Makeup: 1011 Makeup / Models: In The Now‘ s Sharon and Steve  / Flowers: In The Now Weddings / Rentals: FOUND Vintage Rentals / Dress: Jenny Yoo / Suit: Friar Tux / S’mores Station: Sugar | Tart / Venue: Historic Casino San Clemente / Shoot Production: Be Inspired PR / Invitations: Momental Designs / Wood block & drink container text: Creative Media Print

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Bridesmaid

Jenny Yoo

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Spectacular seems to be the word of the day! Earlier  we featured a gorgeous wedding from Gulnara Studio that was simply spectacular! But that is also the precise word that came to mind when viewing Dorian and Kevin’s formal yet whimsical New Jersey wedding. The floral designs will knock your socks off!  See the whole wedding gallery here.

We wanted a fun and lively wedding without the stress. That is why we hired Samantha Goldberg as a wedding planer. She, along with A Touch of Elegance florist and Infinity Lighting transformed the Spring Brook Country Club into a magical garden where all our dreams came true. Our guests danced the night away under chandeliers of flowers to a fantastic band called Rhythm Jam of Red Hot Productions. The event was captured by the talents of Gulnara Studio and Stix Productions. Our cake was made by Carlos Bakery. The favors were boxes of the bride’s home made almond brittle dipped in chocolate. The stationery was from Honor of your Presence, with calligraphy done by a family friend. The bridal party was made beautiful by Melissa D’Aloia & Co., and were dressed in varying fashions by After Six while the bride wore a dress from Allure Bridals. The groomsmen’s attire was from Men’s Warehouse. We were swept away to our dream wedding in a 2009 Rolls Royce Phantom from Santos VIP Limo, while the guests were transported in shuttles provided by My Limo, of East Hanover.

Gulnara’s Blog of Dorian & Kevin’s wedding has lots more spectacular photos of this incredible wedding!

Wedding Gown – Allure Bridals / Ceremony: St. Mary’s Church, Dover NJ / Reception: Spring Brook Country Club, Morristown, NJ / Wedding Planner and Designer: Samantha Goldberg & Co. / Florist: A Touch of Elegance / Cake: Carlos Bakery / Band: Rhythm Jam of Red Hot Productions Videographer: Stix Productions / Lighting: Infinity Lighting / Stationery: The Honour Of Your Presence / Hair and Make Up: Melissa D’Aloia & Co.

Simply put, this wedding will take your breath away. It’s the incredible fog that rolled in, the total understated beauty, the sophisticated but homegrown style. It’s every insanely elegant detail that went into designing the most beautiful wedding ever. Plus it was photographed to beyond perfection by Casey and Drea Cunningham of Cunningham Photo Artists…so you just KNOW that it’s going to be good. Click here to see even more!

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I never dreamed of the perfect wedding, only the perfect guy. I knew Toby was the one from an early start. Once we were engaged, I began the process of googling venues in the Blowing Rock area. I immediately fell in love with Westglow Resort and Spa from the moment I saw their website and knew it was the one once I had my first in-person visit.

One of my main fears was being trapped inside of a hotel banquet room, with cliché flower arrangements, impersonal touches and really anything overly “wedding.” You won’t believe me when I say that my florist’s name was Fuschia Sky Moss Woods. She married a man whose last name was Woods. I’d say it was meant to be. I searched the SMP website for hours upon hours. I created folders on my computer that were designated for each aspect of my wedding, saving pictures that I liked to keep track of my favorite wedding details. Fuscia took the time to send me individual pictures of each flower I liked to make sure that my standards were met. She went above and beyond to not only find us mason jars for the wedding aisles, but blue tinted mason jars that look more authentic. If I had a vision, Fuschia was there to make it happen.

My something borrowed was from my sister/co-maid of honor. It was my mom’s locket. My mom passed away unexpectedly, Easter 2006, I had just turned 21. The pendant was looped into the twine that held my bridal bouquet together. My blue was my new married monogram stitched into the front underlining of my dress. Tob and I don’t have the best married monogram (I never knew such a thing existed until a close friend pointed out how awful our married monogram was): cAt…that spells CAT folks.

I felt that the personal details that center around the couple and bring the couple’s style out that day are the best and therefore, I tried to incorporate Tob and I into our day any way I could (all of my small detail inspirations came from SMP). I wanted simple, understated elegance and liked the look of a clean cake with pearls on the base. We had 3 different flavors: tiramisu, chocolate, and apple spice (Tob’s favorite is apple pie so this layer was for him; it was also the top tier of our cake, the one we’ll eat on our anniversary).

We didn’t have a cliché first dance or a sappy love song as our first dance…instead we chose to dance to “You Make My Dreams Come True” by the Hall and Oates. It was an upbeat, fun, get the party started kind of first dance AND Tob did make my dreams come true.

One of the 1st things that stood out to me about our photographers, Casey and Drea, was the fact that they wanted us to be comfortable with them so that when it was time to shoot our special day, we weren’t making cheesy, awkward, and unnatural faces because there was a camera there. From learning our wedding party guest’s names to immediate and even extended family, those 2 knew what they were doing and took command. And they didn’t just capture people and details, they captured emotions and feelings from that day, something I will never be able re-create. That is talent. And on the backend, they weren’t a one and done shop. They took the time and energy to make sure that I received the right wedding album for ME, not the one that they sell to everyone.

Wedding Gown: Rivini found at Nitsa’s Apparel in Phillip’s Place, Charlotte, NC / Bridesmaid Dress: Vera Wang / Florists: Fuschia Moss / Caterer: Westglow Chef / Cake Baker: Joanne, Hallmark Cakes / Band or DJ: The Swingin’ Richards / Photographers: Cunningham Photo Artists

Charming and lovely with extraordinary pops of color, this wedding by Jennifer Colina Photography brings the idea of a garden party reception to an entirely new level.  It also brings a Tuesday to entirely new level if you ask me.  There is just something so sweet and sophisticated about this affair,  and I am sure it will put a pep in your step today. For more loveliness be sure to check out the entire gallery.

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When Tim and I got engaged, we knew we wanted an outdoor, fall wedding. We both love the outdoors and love the fall—it was a no brainer!  After all, we did get engaged in a hot air balloon during a camping trip.  My parents helped us search high and low, and we found the perfect spot at our hometown’s beautiful botanical garden.  The garden’s beauty had the simple, elegant, romantic, and natural feel we were going for.  The colors we chose were a rustic orange, graphite grey, and ivory, which are not an obvious match, but we immediately fell in love with them.  The flowers were a mix of texture with orange dahlias, garden roses and hydrangeas, which also made for wonderfully hand-wrapped bouquets.  They looked amazing with my bridesmaids’ graphite grey, silk chiffon dresses!I wanted my dress to be a reflection of me, and I wanted the help of my Mother and Step-Mother in choosing it. We all met in New York City in search of the perfect gown. After visiting only a few shops, we found the almost-perfect dress at Pronovia’s. Pronovia’s worked with me to make some custom additions—a one strap detail and sweetheart neckline—making it the truly perfect dress.  I loved the experience, and I absolutely loved my dress!

Many of my decoration ideas came from a mix of blogging inspirations, SMP being one of them of course!  Some of the DIY and details in our wedding were these great pinwheels (tons of them!), escort card boxes made of wine crates from our local winery, and calligraphy by an artist found on Etsy. We and our guests also enjoyed a “photo booth” display that included a white, rustic frame found at a local antique shop, and a cigar bar, inspired by my Dad’s hints and in memory of Tim’s late Grandfather’s tobacco shop, which was decorated with local tobacco items also found in antique shops.  A favorite of mine was our custom made ring bearer’s bowl by Paloma’s Nest that read “To have and to hold, Ashley and Timothy, September 25, 2010,” which will be a perfect keepsake. We designed and created the ceremony programs and menu cards for each place setting. We designed beautiful grey and ivory letter-pressed wedding invitations and tied a rustic orange, satin ribbon bow tie around each one, which Tim had a helping hand in!  I don’t scrapbook very well, so Tim and I collect sticks from the places we travel together and then tag them. We incorporated our collection of sticks as a decoration and also named the tables after them.  My Mom created lavender scented handmade soaps, personalizing each one for everyone to take home as their parting gift.  We were surrounded with love on our wedding day that came together with the most beautiful weather, family and friends. We cannot thank them, or our fabulous vendors, enough for making the day flawlessly wonderful!

From Jennifer of Jennifer Colina Photography – Ashley and Timothy’s wedding day was full of loveliness and extraordinary fun! They were married in a charming Victorian garden right beside Bloemendaal House at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond, Virginia. It was such a perfect venue for a romantic ceremony that took place under an arbor lined with sculpted juniper topiaries. What made the day more romantic and beautiful were the accent colors of rustic oranges and calming silver grays that can be seen in the bridesmaids dresses, ceremony programs, menu cards, and in the floral arrangements. The celebration continued on while music filled the night. Some guests danced the night away, while others mingled and gave warm wishes to the couple.

Photography: Jennifer Colina Photography / Ceremony and Reception site: Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden / Floral design: Kristi Knight of Flower Girls / Caterer: Barbara Geary and Meriwether Gosdsey / Wedding gown: Pronovias / Make up: Allison Leary of Ahead of Hair / Cake: Graham Haddock of Cakes by Graham / Band: Jeanette Cregar of Premiere Band / Invitations: Reaves Engraving / Calligraphy: Pretty Pen Jen for signs and Little Flower Calligraphy for escort cards and table names / Ring bearer bowl: Paloma’s Nest / Wedding Planner: Wendy Wyne and Kelly Walsh of Fête Studios / Second Photographer: Meredith Montague of Meredith Montague Wedding Photography