Thanks to my orange shoes, a beautiful love story, the support family and friends, and a whole lot of luck, we were the 2011 grand prize winners of the Crate & Barrel Ultimate Wedding Contest. The contest enabled us to have our dream wedding in New Orleans, Louisiana. In mid-2011, we relocated to Beijing, China and our guest list spanned 41 states and seven countries. We wanted to give our guests a destination wedding in America that had a unique local flavor, worthy of at least a weekend visit. There is no better place to host a celebration than the French Quarter in the Big Easy, and our wedding mantra was “laissez bon temps rouler” (let the good times roll). Julie Gibson, founder of Studio Grace, designed our save the date and passport like-invitations that reflected both NOLA and our ever-traveling careers.

Romantic, old New Orleans was brought to life thanks to Yifat Oren & Associates, our wedding planner, courtesy of Crate & Barrel. Stefanie Cove, Managing Partner, was with us every step of the way to choose the best local vendors (neither Michael or I are from NOLA) that would bring the vision of Southern charm, cajun comfort, and French elegance to life. Laura Kleinhenz of Docuvitae, our photographers, captured each moment in their authentic photojournalist style. They produced images that were more than just photographs – they were art! Welliver productions shot our wedding video and stayed with us throughout the entire evening.

The day began at the Aveda Paris Parker Salon where the bridesmaids, mothers of the bride and groom, and me had our hair and makeup done. The stylists and artists treated us like old friends, did beautiful work, and gave us a relaxing morning. We returned to our hotel to change; the bridesmaids wore long, ivory Two Birds Convertible Dresses (purchased from Bella Bridesmaid DC), which gave them fifteen different ways to wear their dress. The thick, high-quality jersey fabric was comfortable to wear all day and photographed beautifully. I wore two dresses: for the ceremony, a Pronovias lace gown and for the dinner and at the reception a silk with tulle overlay gown by Vera Wang. I purchased the Vera Wang dress from the most lovely Bridal Boutique I had ever been to: Mimi NOLA. Gail and Mimi, two of NOLA’s finest ladies assisted me and theirs is the only VW bridal boutique in New Orleans. They gave us the most personal attention, service, and advice for hosting a spectacular local wedding. They are the place to go bridal shopping if in New Orleans, hands down. As a nod to how we met, I wore orange pumps and my bridesmaids and flower girl did too. The groomsmen changed into a Calvin Klein classic tuxedo from Men’s Wearhouse and my handsome groom wore his own tuxedo by J.Crew. To give the groom distinction, we had him be the only one in a white bow tie and the rest of his men in black.

We wanted to maximize time with our guests, so we decided to take pictures before the ceremony at one of the most iconic parks in New Orleans, Jackson Square. It sits before St. Louis Cathedral, which provided a stunning backdrop for the portraits. Next, we asked our guests to meet at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church, which tucked in the 140 friends and family for an intimate and cozy view of our ceremony. Pastor Stephen Aguillard gave what my Grandfather called, “the best wedding ceremony I’ve ever seen” as he preached about men’s and women’s needs in marriage. We wrote our own vows; Michael read his from a neatly folded piece of paper, me from my iPhone, which caused a few chuckles. It added to the interesting quirk of our young Pastor reading from his iPad, too. Our florals for the ceremony were by Ambiance Flowers and added to our mostly white with a few pops of orange in our bouquets. Harry Hardin’s string trio played Air on the G String for the family procession, Hallelujah by Jeff Buckley for the bridal party procession, and then my father and I entered with Mascagni’s Intermezzo. After a tearful vow exchange, we recessed to the traditional Mendelssohn’s Wedding March.

Joyfully marching out of the church as husband and wife, we were greeted by the brass instruments of the Storyville Stompers, one of the most decorated second line bands in New Orleans. Orange handkerchiefs and white feather boas were handed out to the guests and to their surprise, we began marching down the French Quarter. Michael and I briefly followed the parade in a horse and carriage, but we soon joined the crowd, not ones to miss out on any fun. Locals took pictures from their balconies and some even threw beads! We marched and danced with the brass band about eight blocks to the reception site, Galvez Restaurant, located in the French Quarter on the bank of the Mississippi river.

As the sun was setting, the second line band played for our cocktail hour outdoors in the Dutch Alley next the French Market. White lights streamed the alley, and specialty New-Orleans-inspired drinks and delicious Spanish-Cajun hors d’oeuvres were passed around. When it was time, guests were invited to walk up the votive lined stair case, up to the dining hall where five long king’s tables were set. I remember hearing my mother gasp, “Wow!” Each of the tables had no fewer than 100 candles illuminating the room; some in candelabras, some in candlesticks, and small votives. The room needed no other lighting, and the hundreds of candles were my favorite signature touch. The tables also were decorated by Ambiance Flowers vases with white flowers and baby’s breath. Each place setting contained a hand-written note to each guest, from either Michael or me, thanking them for coming.

Dinner was led by Chef Laura, of Galvez. Even though our event was black tie, we served our five courses family style to make for a more personal meal. Our guests passed around their incredible spanish, american, and french inspired dishes: ensaladas, crab cakes, grilled rack of lamb, paella valenciana, and shrimp and grits. It was cooked to perfection, thank you Chef! Our toasts broke up the courses, and our best man and maid of honor gave memorable and touching speeches. My father went last, and after his invited the guests to the dance floor, in the neighboring room.

The dance floor at Galvez is surrounded by French windows and doors that lead to a wrap around balcony. It’s one of the most romantic views in New Orleans, and our guests could watch steamboats chugging along the river as they sipped cocktails on the Crate and Barrel designed lounges outdoors. Or, inside they could get footloose with us to the incredibly talented, seven piece band, Taboo. They were a show stopper and played everything we asked, plus the favorites that even kept my Grandparents dancing way past their usual bed time.

We served two cakes: our wedding cake was by a local favorite sweet shop: Sucré, and they did a buttercream, three tiered wedding cake and our Groom’s cake (we’re in the South, after all!) was by Courtney Schmidig, a family friend and pastry chef at the French Laundry. I insisted on taste before appearance, so there was no fondant, only delicious butter cream and natural ingredients, they both were outstanding, but Courtney’s took the cake to another level!

We danced until midnight with Taboo and their incredible band arrangement and ended the night with a stellar performance that had most guests ready to continue their evening onto Bourbon street. In the morning, we relived the night over beignets and chicory coffee at Cafe Du Monde and bid a final farewell to our guests. We’re still hearing stories about how amazing strolling down the French Quarter with a second line band was, and the awesome jazz ensemble during cocktail hour, and the candlelit views of the Mississippi at night. Thank you Crate & Barrel, and thank you New Orleans, you gave us all an event to remember.

Wedding Contest: Crate & Barrel / Wedding Planners: Yifat Oren & Associates / Church: St. Mark’s United Methodist / Pastor: Stephen Aguillard / Reception, Catering & Bar: Galvez Restaurant / Invitations: Studio Grace / Photographer: Docuvitae /  Videographer: Welliver Productions / Flowers: Ambiance Flower Shop / Second Line Band: Storyville Stompers / Reception Band: Taboo / Bridal Gown (Ceremony): Pronovias, from Designer Loft, New York / Bridal Gown (Reception): Mimi NOLA / Rings: Blue Nile / Tableware, Lounge, and Decor: Crate & Barrel / Rentals: Your Event Delivered / Bridesmaid’s Dresses: Two Birds, from Bella Bridesmaid / Hair & Makeup: Aveda Paris Parker Salon New Orleans / Groom’s Tuxedo: J.Crew / Groomsmen Attire: Men’s Wearhouse / Wedding Cake: Sucre / Groom’s Cake: Chef Courtney Schmidig / Farewell Breakfast: Cafe Du Monde

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Post tags: Ambiance Flower Shop, Aveda Paris Parker Salon New Orleans, Baby's Breath, Bass Brand, Bella Bridesmaid, Big Bands, Blue Nile, Cafe du Monde, Candles, Chef Courtney Schmidig, Classic, Color Palette White Orange, Crate & Barrel, Designer Loft, Docuvitae, French Quarter, Galvez Restaurant, J. Crew, Louisiana, Men's Wearhouse, Mimi NOLA, Mississippi River, New Orleans, NOLA, NOLA Weddings, Pastor Stephen Aguillard, Pronovias, Silhouettes, St. Mark's United Methodist, Storyville Stompers, Studio Grace, Sucre, Taboo, Traditional, Traditional Elegance, Two Birds, Vera Wang, Wedding Photography, Welliver Productions, Yifat Oren & Associates, Your Event Delivered
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Traditional Elegance

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From Melissa of Melissa Andre Events… This white and lavender Muskoka wedding was sweeter than sweet showcasing a gorgeous summery view of the beautiful water. Guests were greeted with iced lavender teas served in vintage teacups. The lovely bride, Emily, personally baked each guest an individual heart-shaped pie that sat on each individual place setting. They also identified what table each guest was seated at. Since Emily is fluent in French – we translated the types of pies into Francais — tarte aux pommes, tarte aux cerises, etc. It was divine. The sweets table became “La Patisserie” and guests were pointed in the direction of the white tented reception with a sign that read “Champagne & Bonbons.” Baby’s breath, dried lavender, and peonies floated through the bride’s bouquet, hung in miniature vases from the top of the tent and were found in the beautiful white bird cages that lined the guest tables. When I met Emily and Quinn, I fell completely in love with how absolutely sweet they are. I pulled that sweetness into every beautiful detail and their wedding was completely magical.

Wedding Photography: Rebecca Wood / Wedding Designer + Planner: Melissa Andre Events / Makeup + Hair: Melissa Andre Events / Custom Dress Design + Creation: Ines Di Santo / Wedding Cake: Cake Opera Co. / Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Wedding Venue: Delta Rocky Crest Resort

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Post tags: Baby's Breath, Cake Opera Co., Canada, Ines DiSanto, Jimmy Choo, Lavender, Melissa Andre Events, Muskoka, Ontario, Outdoor Wedding, Purple, Rebecca Wood, Tented Reception
Post categories: Canada Weddings, Ontario Weddings, Traditional Elegance

From the Groom … My most vivid memories of the day include taking an early morning run across the beautiful ranch, passing by the cabins where my bride and her bridesmaids were getting ready, enjoying the solitude of the open valley, and envisioning the amazing day to come.  Also, the paired grooms and bridesmaids slowly winding their way through the meadow and down to the alter, followed by my gorgeous bride-to-be.

From the Bride … I love the photos of the bridesmaids amongst the aspen trees.  The contrast of the blue dresses with the tall trees is gorgeous.  I also love the photos of Geoff and I just after our ceremony when we walked around the ranch.  Jenna Walker Photography captured the sun’s rays of light beaming through us and nature in a way that appears so magical.

Wedding Planner: ZaZen Event Design / Venue: Devil’s Thumb Ranch / Photographer: Jenna Walker Photographers / Floral Design: Swank Stems – Fine Floral Fashion / Cinematography: Sky Focus Films / Invitation Designer: The Paper Guppy / Cupcakes: Bites Cupcakes / Wedding Gown: Watters / Bridesmaid’s Dresses: Amsale

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Post tags: Amsale, Baby's Breath, Billy Balls, Bites Cupcakes, Bouquets, Casual Elegance, Color Palette Blue, Colorado, Devil's Thumb Ranch, Frasier, Jenna Walker Photographers, Modern, Mountain Weddings, mountains, November, Outdoor Ceremony, Outdoor Wedding, Ranch Wedding, Sky Focus Films, Succulents, Swank Stems - Fine Floral Fashion, The Paper Guppy, Watters, Wedding Flowers, Wedding Photographers, Winter Wedding, Zazen Event Design
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Little Black Book Blog

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From A Charleston Bride … This Florida couple chose Charleston for it’s laid back charm. The Groom is a professional wakeboarder (hence the sign in “board”) while the Bride is in corporate real estate.  She has a very glamorous appeal and loves the finer things in life.  He’s your sweet, fun-loving “surfer dude” who is madly in love with her.  Her love of chandeleirs marked most of the decor along with custom up lighting that completely transformed the ballroom.

Photography: A Bryan Photo / Cinematography: A Bryan Photo / Flowers: A Charleston Bride / Event Design: A Charleston Bride / Event Planning: Melissa Barton, A Charleston Bride / Lighting: Technical Event Company / Ceremony Location: French Huguenot Church / Reception Location: Hibernian Hall / Invitations: Studio R Design / Film Work: Richard Photo

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Post tags: A Bryan Photo, A Charleston Bride, Baby's Breath, Black and White Photography, Chandeliers, Charleston, French Huguenot Church, glamorous, Glamour, Hibernian Hall, South Carolina, Studio R Design, Technical Event Company, Traditional Elegance, Wedding Glamour
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Traditional Elegance

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From the Bride… My husband and I got married on August 19, 2011 at the Old Field Club in East Setauket, NY. The Old Field Club was the only place we wanted to celebrate our big day. The Club was built in 1929 as a swim club for residents of Old Field South. Although, it is now a tennis and beach club it still holds the same charm as it did back then.

Our wedding color palette was navy blue, gray with touches of magenta. I choose a beautiful tulle gown by Christos with crystal and pearl beaded cap sleeves. John, my husband, along with the groomsmen wore a charcoal suit with a navy/white striped tie. My four bridesmaids wore classic J.Crew dresses in navy blue and my flower girl wore an ivory dress from J.Crew, as well. Our ring bearer wore navy pants/white shirt with an adorable gingham tie from Etsy! He carried a custom pillow from Etsy with our wedding date embroidered on it.

We wanted something special for our invitations and paper design. We had an AWESOME design team, Dapper Paper customized everything from our invites, to our escort card tags, menus, table numbers, program fans and donation cards. We also had escort tags tied to adorable watering can succulents. (Also from Etsy.) The table number and donation cards rested on mini easels I bought on Amazon and spray painted white! It was kind of a pain in the neck, but well worth it! Our cake topper was customized as well. Peanut Butter Bandit (Etsy) made a cake topper of John and I and our two rescue dogs. This was probably my favorite added touch at the wedding! In addition, to keep it simple we did all baby’s breath in galvanized pails with a simple navy ribbon tied around it. We also had mini pails line the ceremony aisle and tall pitchers on the deck overlooking the Long Island Sound. We think our wedding was amazing and we hope you do, too!

Wedding Photography: Shira Z Photography / Floral Design: Floral Designs by Nina / Event Design + Invitations: Chris and Elizabeth Boyette of Dapper Paper / Wedding Ceremony + Reception Location: Old Field Club / Bride’s Shoes: J.Crew / Wedding Dress: Christos / Hair + Make-up Design: Cloe Vitale of High Style Bridal Makeup / Watering Can Favors + Escort Tag Holders: SucculentsGalore / Cake Topper: Peanut Butter Bandit / Ring Bearer Tie: Me and Matilda / Ring Bearer Custom Pillow: Giggle Room / Wedding Officiant: Pastor William Britton

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Post tags: Baby's Breath, Blue, Chirstos, Dapper Paper, East Setauket, Floral Designs by Nina, Giggle Room, High Style Bridal Makeup, J. Crew, Me And Matilda, New York, New York Weddings, Old Field Club, Pastor William Britton, Peanut Butter Bandit, Pink, Shira Z Photography, SucculentsGalore
Post categories: Casual Elegance, New York Weddings

We had been looking for our venue for two years. I wanted elegant and classic and my husband wanted a more traditional feel with a great after party. It was extremely hard to accommodate both types and I was about ready to give up. My husband actually came across the Millennium Biltmore and I agreed to go see it. We walked in and were blown away by the classic décor and amazing architecture; the chandlers in every room were the perfect elegant touch. We were able to have two different rooms, one for our ceremony that lent itself so perfectly to having a grand aisle we didn’t even have an aisle runner. The other for our reception where cocktail hour was in the same room as dinner but the dining area was raised in separation. It couldn’t have been more perfect.

As for our style, I wanted it to be more elegant and because the venue was so bold with its decor we didn’t want to add too many details to it, our flower choice was to have clouds of baby’s breath at the tables and keep with colors that picked up the smaller details from the venue. Since we were going to Paris for our honeymoon we incorporated small details like the table card holders into our style.

We had been together for almost 10 years before we got married so the whole wedding was really more for our family and friends. The one thing that was for just us were our vows. We wrote our vows ourselves and oddly (or not so oddly) enough our vows were exactly the same! I think its because we are such a big part of each other, it may be silly but he is my other half, I can feel how I am not whole when he is gone, so saying words that were so personal to each other added that special touch to make the ceremony more for us.

My favorite moment was walking up the steps into the grand ceremony room. We had decided not to see each other before the ceremony and it was so worth it. All I really remember is wanting to leave to be with my husband. It was a great day and a great party and I was so happy to see all my friends and family but I just wanted to be with my husband and talk to him about my day. All in all everything was so amazing to us.

Our DJ was so much more than we could ask for, everyone loved how he kept them all involved and gave them an entire experience. This was great news for us because I had such a hard time finding a good one and when we finally found these guys they wowed us, so we were so glad to sign them two months before our wedding! Our photographers also worked really well with our entire family and everyone loved that fact that they were a married couple that worked together.  Everyone commented how it was the best wedding they had ever been to and we actually got a few thank you cards from people thanking us for inviting them to the event of the century. That made us feel great because we really felt the experience was more for them, our love will always and would have always been there no matter what our wedding was like.

Photography: JL Photographers / Flowers: Ariel Yve Designs / Venue: Millenium Biltmore / Invitations: studioTcreative / Dress: Lazaro, from Mon Amie / Veil: Vintage, Groom’s Mother’s / Rings: Robbins Brothers / Other Jewelry: Swarovski / Bridesmaid Dresses: Dressale / Groom’s Suit: Armani / Groomsmen Suits: Men’s Warehouse / DJ: Invisible Touch / Hair & Makeup: Hush Hush Bang Bang / Violinist: Tim Espinoza, Invisible Touch

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Post tags: Ariel Yve Designs, Armani, Baby's Breath, Ballroom Wedding, California, Classic, Color Palette Green Gold, Dressale, Hush Hush Bang Bang Tim Espinoza, Invisible Touch, JL Photographers, Lazaro, Los Angeles, Men's Wearhouse, Millenium Biltmore Hotel, Mon Amie, Robbins Brothers, Roses, studiotcreative, Swarovski, Traditional Elegance, Vintage Veil, Wedding Flowers
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Traditional Elegance

From Craig Photography … This couple, Gina and Brian, chose my absolute most favorite space to photograph in Pittsburgh – Mellon Park. It’s very “Garden of Eden meets Mid-Summer Night’s Dream.” There is amazing architecture and all the flowers, foliage and even an herb garden are maintained by volunteers.

For this session I was inspired to call Jody Wimer of JPC Event group, a friend of mine, to help with setting up a more elaborate session within my favorite space. Jody took charge of the entire look and designed and set up three separate scenes/sets for us to photograph in. For inspiration, I simply told her words to describe what I was looking for: romance, color, vintage, ethereal, soft and feminine.

As you can see from the photos, she did a terrific job. She set up a shabby chic set –  the table and chairs with sage cloth and vintage overlay, a vintage set – her great-grandmother’s ironing board with colorful flower arrangements and select homemade treats including delicious frangipane mini-pies, and a modern look with a handmade baby’s breath garland and accents and hanging fabric.

Photography: Craig Photography / Event Planning & Design:  JPC Event Group

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Post tags: Baby's Breath, Craig Photography, engagement session, Engagement Shoot, JPC Event Group, Mellon Park, Park, Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, Raspberries, shabby chic, Vintage
Post categories: engagement session, Little Black Book Blog

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From Anna Routh Photography… Heather is a fashion guru, so when planning her wedding she wanted to focus on a very fashion forward “gothic”-themed event. She chose a beautiful space at the House of Blues Dallas and filled it with towering baby’s breath arrangements and enormous amounts of melted wax. The event, complete with the most beautiful croc en bouche you’ve ever seen and a total outfit change for the bride, was a beautiful night of dancing and a fantastic celebration of Heather and Sam’s love.

Wedding Photography: Anna Routh Photography / Event Planning & Floral: Vera Green Productions / Wedding Ceremony Venue: Oak Lawn United Methodist Church / Wedding Reception Venue: House of Blues / Paper Products (Menus and Programs): Blue Eye Brown Eye / Bride’s Shoes: Vivienne Westwood / Wedding Reception Dress: BCBG / Croc en Bouche: Tart Bakery / Makeup: Brandi Elliott

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Post tags: Anna Routh Photography, Baby's Breath, BCBG, Blue Eye Brown eye, Brandi Elliott, croc en bouche, Dallas, gothic wedding, House of Blues, Oak Lawn United Methodist Church, Tart Bakery, Texas Weddings, Vera Green Productions, Vivienne Westwood
Post categories: Whimsical