Style Me Pretty

Real Wedding by Duet Weddings, III

And now for the finishing touches on today's featured weddings....the details. As cliche as it sounds, and as many times as I have said it on SMP, it's the details that transform a pretty wedding into a spectacular wedding.

Here are some notes from Rebecca, the planner behind this gorgeous day...

Welcome - As guests entered the grass from the dusty gravel road, they were greeted with lavender garnished lemonade in mason jars. The property had a bunch of old paint chipped doors lying around, so we used those to make up the table tops anywhere we had an excuse to! The mason jars sat atop the wooden door (which was resting atop wine barrels) and we adorned the table with a scattering of bricks and an old crate tumbling with lemons.

Best Wishes - We used another old door table top to display Sarah and Mike's wish table. Beautiful apothecary jars were used for guests to write notes for Sarah and Mike to open on their one-year anniversary as well as for them to take a pre-written wish that Sarah and Mike had made for their guests.

Right this Way - As a way to encourage guests to move from the welcome lawn to ceremony, I strung along an old fence a long line of twine and small clothes pins featuring dozens of photos of Sarah and Mike as babies, childhood, up until photos of them together as adults. Even the embarrassing glamour shots and awkward teenage phase photos made their debuts - guests were delighted.

Escort Cards - Juniper provided gorgeous terra cotta pots planted with herbs and lambs ear. I had guest names calligraphed on wood (tongue depressors!) and stamped table numbers in a fresh moss green.

Get Cozy - Wood boxes and baskets held slippers and pashminas encouraging women guests to kick off their heels and get cozy. The weather turned cool almost immediately after the ceremony so this touch was totally appreciated.

The Bar - I had Sarah and Mike come up with a few signature drinks that would be special to them- something they shared on a romantic vacation, their first date, a funny story, etc. We created a large chalkboard menu for them listing their signature drinks with funny and sweet descriptions of each drink and how it came to be.

The incredibly personlized touches that Rebecca infused into this wedding are just perfect. The end results seems like this magical evening, filled with intimate touches and understated elegance. Thank you so much to Rebecca of Duet Weddings and to Leigh Miller Photography for sharing this gorgeous wedding iwth us!

Real Wedding by Duet Weddings, II

Now on to the reception...the rustic, oh-so elegant reception designed by Rebecca Stone at Duet Weddings and photographed by the incredibly talented Leigh Miller.

Here are some of the details that Rebecca infused into this stunning affair...

Dinner was held inside the barn which was revealed for the first time as cocktail hour ended and the heavy barn doors were slid open. The barn cast this incredible glow and warmth and holds this effortless elegance. Leigh's photos really show the gorgeous warmth that was felt inside with the incredible light and texture in her work.

Tables- We decided to do cluster arrangements of white and green flowers and foliage. We used tall cylindrical vases, large mason jars, and I created vases from paint cans which I affixed vintage garden labels to. Fluffy white anemones, sweet peas, peonies, and hydrangea as well as green viburnum, moss, herbs, and artichokes created an unstructured natural composition and the various containers created a collected feeling. For the table numbers, we used a large metal address number leaned against the vases.

Favors- Mike's family owns an almond ranch, so using these family almonds as a favor for guests was an incredibly sweet touch. The almonds were placed in a natural muslin bag which displayed Sarah and Mike's bee logo (used on their invitations as well as throughout the day in other labels, signs, napkins, etc.)

Stay tuned...we have so many more gorgeous details coming up!

Real Wedding by Duet Weddings

Okay, now it's time to see how those gorgeous inspiration boards, designed by Rebecca at Duet Weddings, came together into an incredibly lovely Real Wedding. First off, the couple and the ceremony!

The absolutely breathtaking photographs were taken by Leigh Miller...an extraordinary photographer out of Southern California. I love the rustic beauty behind each image...seemingly antique and yet completely timeless.

From Rebecca...

The ceremony was held in a cozy shaded pocket of the property behind the barn. Juniper Presence provided the stunning florals for the ceremony and executed on the vision beyond our wildest dreams. Jars and lanterns full of fluffy blooms and overgrown greenery hung from tree limbs and the wrought iron gazebo that stood at the altar. For the aisle treatment, I used jute rugs which created a soft natural path for the wedding party to walk down, as well as a clean contrast to the bright green grass.  The bride carried a loose, all peony bouquet wrapped in a rough packaging twine and the bridesmaids carried tulips and anemones wrapped loosely in twine as well.

Real Wedding Inspirations

I am so excited about today's post...not only do we get to see one of the prettiest real weddings I've ever seen, we also get to see the inspiration behind the whole event. The wedding was a collective effort between two of our Little Black Book members, the oh-so-fab Rebecca Stone of Duet Weddings and the amazingly talented Leigh Miller of Leigh Miller Photography.

From Rebecca...

I met the couple, Sarah and Mike and was instantly drawn to them. They were so full of life, so completely in love and had such an amazing energy to them. Their wedding was held in a beautiful wild garden setting, with dinner inside the old barn on the property. We took several trips to the site together and walked through at different points in the day- I always like to soak in the feelings of the day, see the way the light reflects, etc. I fell in love with the location right away - the vegetable patches and pockets of wild flowers, the bees and hummingbirds, the barn in all of its cob-webby glory- it was this perfect mish mosh of unrefined, organic elegance with a vintage rustic flair. This was the palette for the look and feel of the day and Sarah and Mike were the medium.

With this in mind, Rebecca created four different inspiration boards for the events. Here is the pre-ceremony inspiration board (click to make larger)...

The ceremony inspiration board (click to make larger)...

The cocktail hour inspiration board...

And finally, the reception inspiration board...

Stay tuned to see how Rebecca transformed these inspiration boards into a warm and inviting, and yet incredibly chic real wedding!

Wedding Consulting by Allure

I was just about to start my post for the morning, when I read an email from Michelle at Allure Wedding Consulting & Event Planning. Michelle designs and plans weddings in the San Francisco Bay Area and I must say, they are absolutely beautiful...

I could have posted every single image that Michelle features in her gallery as they were all stunning, but I thought that it would be more fun for you to head over to her website and see each wedding in its entirety. Michelle and her partner, Kristin, work with brides on everything from day of planning to full event design.

This was JUST the inspiration that I needed to kick-start my day. The elegant simplicity of each event, the perfect details, the oh-so-romantic concepts...enough to make a girl want to get married all over again!

Wedding by Lyndsey Hamilton

Like I said earlier today, I am just completely smitten with this wedding designed by Lyndsey Hamilton Events. It's beautiful, without being showy. It's elegant, without going over-the-top. It's sweet, it's sophisticated, it's simply lovely...

And, lucky for us, Lindsey has shared some of the details from this beautiful event...

photos by Shawn Connell at Christian Oth

"My favorite wedding took place this summer at the bride’s family home in Westchester, New York. We planned the wedding from beginning to end.  We worked closely with the bride’s mother, as the bride lived in London throughout the entire planning process. It was a labor of love and so rewarding to see the event unfold and come into fruition. 

We began planning in January and over the next seven months, my team at LHE, Matthew Robbins and his team at Artfool managed to create a Martha Stewart worthy event, which is featured in the current issue of MS Weddings Winter 2008. 

We created a New England, meets Southern, meets British event. The wedding was a mix of the bride’s family’s Southern heritage, where we had a Dixie Land Band lead guests from the church to the reception at the family home. It was amazing to see over two hundred guests follow the band as they played. We also incorporated the groom’s British heritage and served “Pimm’s Cups” as the signature cocktail.  To combine both the bride and groom’s lineage, we displayed two flags atop the tent: one American and one Union Jack. 

The family’s classic New England style home was an intricate part of the wedding, as the bride and her mother wanted to use the home as a key element of the wedding.  After cocktails in the back yard, guests entered the back of the home, gathered their place cards inside the home, and exited the front of the home into the grand tent.

photos by Shawn Connell at Christian Oth

Guests dined on “lobster two ways”, highlighting the New England theme and the setting of the home, which is located along the Long Island Sound. The tent was decorated with an abundance of garden arrangements in antique containers at each table, with each container and floral arrangement being unique.  The linens were a lovely blue with a linen napkin, and floral treatments at each place setting. The tent was lit with lanterns and candlelight. Each table was named after quirky places where the bride and groom had traveled, or funny events throughout their life together.  One table was named after the bride's high school principal because she had spent so much time in his office throughout high school.  Guests were offered an array of old-fashioned cakes and cookies, ranging from red velvet to German chocolate, where we created a dessert bar. Guests danced until 4AM and truly had an amazing time!

We love planning events at homes because they are so personal and literally EVERY detail has to me considered, from what place setting to use, to the lighting, and the ingredients of the menu.  It is truly special to be apart of this process!"

A Wedding by Lyndsey Hamilton Events

I know that I use this phrase a lot, but...I am MADLY in love with this wedding, designed by Lyndsey Hamilton Events. I am only going to give you a teaser for the affair, as I am still working on a style board that I am going to feature in just a couple of hours. But, for now, these images should give you a hint at just how gorgeous this wedding was...

These stunning photographs were shot by Shawn Connell for Christian Oth and the painfully gorgeous flowers were done by Matthew Robbins from Artfool. Trust me, you will want to check back a little later to see all of the lovely details that Lyndsey and this talented team of designers put together!

Destination Wedding by James Abel

*Update...I just got some additional details from James Abel, the event planner for this gorgeous weddings, that I've updated in the comments section!

I hope everyone had a lovely weekend! I must say, I am a little slow going today, after a weekend in Naples, Florida for one of my dear friend's weddings. I can't wait to show you pictures of this event because it was, in a word, STUNNING. I am going to wait until the photographer has the proofs online, but I have to tell you that everything...from the gorgeous pink and orange color palette, to the bride's simple but gorgeous gown, was done to perfection.

Today, though...I wanted to share with you an equally stunning wedding. Designed by one of my good friends, James Abel of James Abel Events and shot  by B. Loved Photography (both James Abel and B. Loved are Little Black Book Members...how great is that?), this affair seemed to be the perfect destination wedding...

James Abel, who I should tell you is ALL talent, started working with myself and Abby Jean on the gorgeous yellow and black letterpress invitation that you see in the bottom photo. He sent us his sketch and we worked it into one of our existing designs. The end result was absolutely beautiful and really helped inspire the full wedding style.

This wedding was held in Anguilla and seems to be the perfect combination of understated elegance and beach sophistication. I love the formality of the event, paired with the casual beach surrounding. And the yellow hues...amazing. I am going to see if James can stop by later today and tell us some more fun details!

Tara Guerard and Stylish Entertaining

I am so excited to introduce today's first post. The lovely and oh-so-talented Tara Guerard of Soiree, and author of the best selling wedding book Southern Weddings, is giving us some ideas on how to infuse your wedding or event with details that your guests will remember for years to come.

So, without further ado, here's Tara!

Entertaining Ideas from Tara Guérard of Soirée

The first thing that I tell my brides is that we want to create an event that is special, memorable, unique and, most importantly, representative of the bride and groom.  I like to play “investigator” to find little details about the couple’s relationship that I can turn into something that can be shared with the wedding guests.  One of my favorite stories was about a couple who had met over coffee and then continued to meet at the same coffee shop during their entire courtship; so, I used coffee beans to anchor their place cards.

*It’s important to remember that wedding details aren’t all about grand flowers and towering ice sculptures.  Those may be the first items guests see, but they aren’t what guests are drawn to.  The small and thoughtful details are what are remembered and give a glimpse into the personal lives of the couple.

So, whether it’s with place cards, napkins or a sweet treat to go, it is of the utmost importance to make wedding details uniquely yours – and make it fun!  Here are some of my favorite Soirée Secrets…

*Display seating cards in a unique fashion.  We had a recent bride who wanted an invitation sent in a custom printed box.  We took the same box idea and put custom letterpressed menu cards (fit to the box exactly) and the card telling them at which table they would be seated inside. They were then wrapped in a paper that was custom printed from the invitations, and had calligraphied name tags tied to them.  They were organized and displayed in the same printed boxes that were given as guests checked into their hotels.  They were all amazed at the details carried throughout the weekend.

*For a more casual affair, don’t forgo extraordinary details.  For the invitation to a small and intimate affair, we created a calligraphied letter instead of a traditional invitation.  We addressed guests by their first names – which was the first indication of what an intimate affair it would be.  We also gave the guests at the seated dinner individual wedding cakes and with intimate seating everybody could talk, make toasts and enjoy the company of the bride and groom.

*A consistent color palette is key.  We used Tiffany blue and white for one wedding – from the bengaline linens to champagne with scoops of blue-tinted lemon sorbet.  The save-the-date cards from The Lettered Olive and guest booklets came in a Tiffany blue envelope and stickers for the gift boxes and labels on bottle waters gave a nod to the signature color as well.

*Take color cues from the great outdoors!  Use mossy green tablecloths of velvet with orange mums in large vases filled with nests of curly willow as the centerpiece for an early fall wedding.  With this theme, we had the ring bearer carry a little bird’s nest instead of the traditional pillow for the rings.

*To present the butler cards, we made a “tree” from live branches and hung cards from the limbs.

Thank you so very much, Tara, for taking the time to share these really wonderful ideas with us! Your work is forever inspiring brides and grooms to create a chic and thoughtful wedding. And, to readers...the fun is just beginning!! Check back a little later today for a couture style board made to reflect the perfect details mentioned above. 

Destination Weddings

The oh-so-talented Beth Helmstetter of Beth Helmstetter Events, recently sent me the sweetest email. When I had a chance to check out her work, I was blown away by her absolutely spectacular designs. Beth is a destination event designer and planner, with many of her affairs being held in incredibly beautiful, tropical locations. Here are some of her highlights...

photographs by Amity Mason and Laano Photography

Beth's services range from complete destination event design to last minute wedding planning, and even help in creating the most perfect proposal. Yep, it's true. Slip Beth's name under your hubby's pillow and you just might get a proposal worthy of a princess.

I have barely cracked the surface with Beth's work, so definitely take a moment (well, several moments really) to pour over her site. The images are completely magazine worthy and will inspire you in so many different ways...from stunning color palettes to perfect details, Beth will provide hours of inspiration and ideas!

Event Design by Hatch Creative

I love this event done by Hatch Creative Studio in NY. The soft greens, the tea lights in mason jars, the creamy white flowers and the miniature magnifying glasses...every detail is so pretty and delicate. This is the perfect look for a Sunday wedding or a really intimate family affair.

Although I don't know Hatch's specific resources for the items featured above, I did find my own interpretation of the pieces...

You can find really similar bowls, white chopsticks and square chargers at Pearl River. The mason jars in various sizes at Container and Packaging. The tea lights can be bought in bulk at the Discount Candle Shop. And the cute magnifying glass favors can be found at Oriental Trading.

I love how easy and inexpensive this whole look is...when you are trying to save money, buy in bulk. A lot of one item (in this case, mason jars with tea lights) can make a huge impact.

Event Design by Soiree

A few months back, I wrote about one of my new favorite books...Southern Weddings, by Tara Guerard. Well, I am now officially in love. The girls at Soiree emailed me a few days ago to check out her GORGEOUS website, with a gallery of weddings that will make you swoon...

This wedding for a bride who fancies warm chocolate and pale pink. Bartenders served lemonade in tents lit by custom lamps, beribboned in pink and chocolate.

For this Winter Wonderland, the bride chose an octagonal cake to set the tone...amaretto cheesecake covered in dark chocolate creme anglaise. Pure decadence.

Tara has be most beautiful taste...so refined and elegant, perfect for a Southern Affair,  but still edgy and contemporary for the modern bride. And, to top things off, Soiree recently launched a new invitation line called The Lettered Olive. Yep, it just keeps getting better and better.

Always A Bridesmaid

The girls over at Always A Bridesmaid just emailed me to let me know that they recently started taking questions from clients and readers on etiquette, style, stress and creative budgeting, etc. If you don't already read their blog, definitely check it out...it's packed with great tips and advice straight from the coordinators.

They also have some really fabulous ideas in their online gallery that I wanted to share with you...

The best part...these girls aren't your standard, run-of-the-mill wedding planners. They pride themselves on being wedding coaches, providing expertise, experience and guidance to help you realize the wedding of your dreams. That's right. They are in the trenches with you...blood, sweat and tears. Well, hopefully not blood or sweat. But definitely tears. Good tears. Tears of joy!

Plus, they are on the Style Network's "Whose Wedding Is It Anyway"...how much cooler can you get!!

Update...the link that I had up for those ridiculous dresses has been taken down...the pictures were funny, but the comments became disgusting and completely offensive. I am so sorry if any of you actually read them! Yikes.  Thanks to one of our great readers for catching it!!

It's All In The Details...

It's all in the details. I admit, a bit cliche, but when it comes to a wedding, it's so true. Chances are, most of your guests won't remember the pretty flowers you placed in the bathroom or the flawless topiaries that covered up corners, the crisp linen napkins that are the perfect shade of green or the pattern on your cake that took weeks to design. What they will notice, however, is the big picture...the style. And most of the time, that style is the result of many, many beautiful details that you thoughtfully infuse into various elements throughout the entire affair.

My friends over at Wiley Valentine recently told me about this incredibly talented wedding coordinator, who really knows how to create details...lovely little anecdotes that when brought together, create a grand impression. Here are some pics from Oh How Charming event design studio that are sure to inspire!

Lisa, at Oh How Charming, is brilliant. She has been featured in all of the best magazines...Town & Country Weddings, Grace Ormond and InStyle to name a few. She has a truly beautiful perspective and I am sure that my girls over at Wiley Valentine are right...she's sure to be the next big thing! 

What are some of your favorite details? I would love for you to share your thoughts!