Click here for the FULL wedding!

From the videographer…Megan & Ciaran celebrated their wedding in Megan’s hometown of Goshen, NY at the historic Harness Museum and Race Track (in the Hudson Valley). It was a truly unique setting where wedding party had a ball taking photos on the old racetrack. Megan handled all of the DIY elements and executed all of her details to perfection… from her vintage milk glass collection to the adorable potted succulent place settings to their fun sparkler send off.  And the love between the lovebirds of them was just the sweetest! Dave Robbins photographed the day and Hello Super 8 created the super 8 wedding film.

From the Bride…Ciaran and I live in Boston but chose to wed in NY where I grew up, and his family flew-in from Ireland and Australia.  Choosing a location was the easiest decision for us; the Harness Museum is ten minutes from my family’s home and a local landmark.   The museum is set around an idyllic track with a beautiful grandstand and stables in the background. There are still races to this day and a few jockeys were practicing during our wedding, which made for some fun photos and film.  While neither Ciaran nor I are equestrians, it felt natural to use the museum as an inspiration for planning the wedding.  That is where SMP became my essential wedding planning blog.   We found three of our vendors in the SMP vendor guide: Dave Robbins, the DJ Solution, and Hello Super 8.  Even a lovely bride and groom, Alicia and Ian, from A Denver wedding with DIY charm allowed us to use Ian’s horse stamp on all of our paper goods used throughout the wedding.  The camaraderie found throughout the SMP community is inspiring and fabulous.

Apart from other details in the wedding that included my sister making our invitations as a wedding gift, my cousin drawing our “wedding tree” guest book, trips with friends to the infamous Brimfield Antique Fair searching for every piece of milk glass in western MA, and a now solidified obsession with Etsy. Choosing to film our wedding was a serendipitous decision and one of the best ones we made.  After watching films featured on SMP (especially San Ysidro Ranch Wedding) I fell in love with the idea.  I contacted Megan Hill from Hello Super 8 five months before our wedding and our date was open, but I was concerned with the expense and spent weeks contemplating hiring a cinematographer.  While it wasn’t something we originally budgeted for I finally decided it would be an amazing treasure to have after our wedding.  I once again contacted Megan about 3 ½ months before the wedding and to my surprise our date was the only opening she had remaining that summer.  Besides sharing a first name I took this as a sign that it was meant to be…we booked Hello Super 8 immediately!

Venue: Harness Museum / Photography: Dave Robbins Photography / Cinematography: Hello Super 8 / Dress: Reverie by Melissa Sweet for Priscilla of Boston / Groom’s Suit: Alfani / Flowers: Floral Cottage / Succulents:  The Succulent Garden / Caterer: Pamela’s Traveling Feast / Cupcakes The Pastry Garden / Music: The DJ Solution

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Post tags: Alfani, Dave Robbins Photography, Floral Cottage, Harness Museum, Hello Super 8, New York, Pamela's Traveling Feast, Priscilla of Boston, Reverie by Melissa Sweet, The DJ Solution, The Pastry Garden, The Succulent Garden
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Hudson Valley Weddings, New York Weddings

Click here to see the entire gallery of images!

From the Bride…We fell in love with the venue because it was a beautiful all white space, and we wanted to embrace the stark whiteness of it, the blank canvas, but add some accents and warmth.  Lots of little candles everywhere.  We wanted to express the beauty of the urban environment, and take advantage of the rawness of the studio space in a cool industrial chic way.  But still beautiful, and a little unexpected. We wanted our guests to feel a sense of delight.  We wanted the venue to feel very New York, but “our” New York.

On the roof of the venue (Studio 450) there are two giant water towers, and water towers became a design element that we used in our Save The Date, Invitations, Website, our ‘logo,’ and embossed by hand on the cover of our programs. It’s hard to explain why we like watertowers so much — style, functionality, and unexpected beauty.  They invite you to look up, and once you do, you see the city in an entirely new way.  There’s a metaphor in there for marriage somewhere!

The paper chain idea was to make a beautiful mess of paper chains behind the ceremony space. We like the symbolism of the chains, joining links, as we join our lives together, as a couple, but also with our family and community. But we also liked the idea of taking a very common and humble material like paper and transforming it into something unique and beautiful.  Barb and Nelson took this little seed of an idea, and transformed it into an incredible installation that far exceeded our expectations.  It wasn’t just a backdrop for our ceremony … it became part of our ceremony.  It became a representation of our community, and all the different friendships and relationships that had collectively brought us to this moment in our lives. What started as design idea has now taken on a life of its own.  After getting married we formed a production company together: Paper Chain Productions.  The name now represents to us not only our wedding, but our partnership, our connected community of friends and family, and the idea that you can build something beautiful and inspiring, from a simple scrap of paper.

We were engaged for a year and a half, which is a super long time to be in the ‘planning stage’ of a wedding.  By the time the wedding rolled around, we felt pretty planned out!  So we decided it would be fun to have a moment of ‘planned spontaneity’ during our wedding ceremony, and we invited our lovely and fearless friends to help us execute it. Two days before the wedding we sent out an email to a group of our friends, asking them to participate in an impromptu performance smack in the middle of our ceremony.  We didn’t know what to call it at the time, but a ‘flash mob’ comes close.  We didn’t ask anybody to rehearse, and we had no idea how many of our friends would actually participate, let alone if the idea would work.  But that wasn’t the point.  The point was to do something fun, and utterly in the moment.  It was wonderful, and is one of our favorite memories of the day.  At the end of the readings, a friend stood up in his chair, and belted out “It don’t mean a thing, if it ain’t got that swing.” Followed by 15 or so of our friends standing up and joining in “Doo-ah, doo-ah, doo-ah, doo-ah, doo-ah, doo-ah, doo-ah, doo-ah, doo-ah!”  This happened twice, and the entire thing lasted maybe 30 seconds.  It was perfect. Looking out to see our friends and relatives bravely standing up and “doo-wah-ing” and dancing their hearts out, seeing the surprised and delighted looks on every one else’s faces, and hearing the explosion of laughter…it was such a sweet release, and connected everyone with each other for the more serious moments that followed.

Wedding Planner: Just About Married, Rebecca Joyce / Event + Floral Design: Hatch Creative Studio / Wedding Photography: Dave Robbins Photography / Photo Booth: We Love Photobooths / Invitation Design: Mother of the Bride / Officiant: Friend of the Groom / Ceremony + Reception Venue: STUDIO 450 / Lighting: Lightworks Interactive / Catering: Marcey Brownstein Catering + Events / Wedding Cake Decor: Hatch Creative Studio / Hair + Make-up: Face Time Beauty Concierge / Wedding Dress: Saja Wedding / Bride’s Shoes: Stuart Weitzman / Ring Box: Bride’s Great Great Grandfather’s Snuff Box / Logo + Map Design: Mark Stinson (Groom’s Step-Brother)

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Post tags: Dave Robbins Photography, Face Time Beauty Concierge, Hatch Creative Studio, Just About Married, Lightworks Interactive, Marcey Brownstein Catering + Events, Mark Stinson, Modern Style, New York Weddings, Saja Wedding, Stuart Weitzman, Studio 450, We Love Photobooths
Post categories: Contemporary, The Blog

Click here to see the entire gallery of images!

From Always a Bridesmaid…Elisabeth and Matt had been together for over a decade when they came to us to design and plan their wedding.  Working mainly with Mayra, she focused on their goal of bringing the Hampton’s summer beach vibe to the city for their 4th of July celebration.  Growing up and living in the city, they wanted to have their reception in a place that reflected their background and Skylight West, a raw loft space on the West Side not only had the urban vibe they wanted, but it also gave their guests front row seats to the amazing Fourth of July fireworks on the river.

Elisabeth is the owner of Ms. Elisabeth’s catering, so food was a priority to the couple. Because the space was multi-level, we decided to have the reception as a cocktail party with stations, passed small plates and hors d’oeuvers.  Marcy Brownstein Catering did an amazing job and food flowed through the night.   Guests were seated at a mix of high tables, cocktail tables and lounge seating as they mixed and mingled.

The groom, Matt, is a music producer, working with acts like the MeterMaids.  So, music was a big part of the celebration. For their rooftop ceremony, we had a platform built below a billboard to serve as a stage for their friends that played for their entrance and recessional.  During cocktail hour, a Cuban band took the stage before guests went downstairs, where stations awaited and DJ Rob Swift played for the crowd.  When it was time for fireworks and cake cutting, guests were invited back to the roof, where the Cuban band once again took the stage and later on the couple were serenaded by friends, jammed with their jam band and kept the party rocking into the early morning.

Wedding Photography: Dave Robbins Photography / Catering: Marcey Brownstein Catering & Events / Venue: Skylight West / Floral Design: Verde Flowers / Lighting: Bentley Meeker Lighting and Staging Design / Band: Yucaseca / DJ: DJ Rob Swift / Wedding Cake: Cheryl Kleinman / Wedding Invitations: Friend of the Bride / Calligraphy: Laura Hooper Calligraphy / Event Design and Planning: Always a Bridesmaid

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Post tags: 4th of July, Always a Bridesmaid, Bentley Meeker Lighting and Staging Design, Cheryl Kleinman Cakes, Dave Robbins Photography, DJ Rob Swift, Laura Hooper Calligraphy, Marcey Brownstein Catering + Events, New York City Wedding, Skylight West, Traditional Elegance, Verde Flowers, Yucaseca
Post categories: New York City Weddings, New York Weddings, Traditional Elegance

Click here to see entire image gallery!

From Dave Robbins: A Gorgeous wedding with sweet and fun couple, Camilla & Dave. Camilla got ready at the beautiful Mepal Manor and drove down the road to Gedney Farm in a vintage car. Guests walked to a ceremony on top of a knoll at Gedney Farm-maypoles along the path to show them the way. The Crossword Program offered a touch of whimsy during the ceremony. and  the couple walked blissfully back down the path to cocktails in the garden.  Cocktail decor was light and fresh-seaglass bottles, garden flowers and spring colors of peach, pink and lavender.  Guests lounged in adirondack chairs and enjoyed the jazz music.  After a quick “costume change” for the bride the guests were invited into the barn for dinner and dancing.  Dinner and barn decor was more elegant with golden apricot dupioni overlays, springtime flowers in pewter cups and votive chandeliers hanging from the rafters.

Photography: Dave Robbins / Flowers: Crocus Hale / Event Design and Planning: Experience Events / Ceremony and Reception Location: Gedney Farm

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Post tags: Casual Elegance, Dave Robbins Photography, Experience Events, Gedney Farm, Massachusetts Weddings
Post categories: Casual Elegance

If you’d like more of this sweet wedding, check out Joshua Brown’s highlight film!

Michelle + Josh by Joshua Brown Photography on Vimeo

The concept for our wedding began with a dream of whisking our family and friends away from the city and holding them hostage in the country for a long weekend. We hoped to find a venue which would afford us the freedom to create a fully customizable experience all our own. The Hill, a privately owned estate in Livingston, New York offered the perfect setting – a magnificent barn on an idyllic estate complete with the requisite rolling hills, grazing horses, and stunning 360-degree views of the Catskill and Berkshire mountains.

We had great fun assembling the details. I may have been a little old lady in another lifetime because I derived a surprising amount of pleasure from stockpiling lace runners, dusty suitcases, Mason jars, and other vintage miscellany for our tablescape and decor. Since no “rustic chic” wedding is complete without a typewriter-guestbook, we were thrilled to discover the perfect specimen at the local flea market. In fact, one of my proudest wedding planning accomplishments was changing the typewriter’s ink ribbon with the help of an instructional YouTube video!

We created escort cards by affixing Japanese Washi tape to shipping tags – a quick and easy project that came out great. All of these items were displayed on the beautiful wooden wagon that the owners of the property were gracious enough to let us borrow for the occasion.

Lest our Brooklyn guests get homesick, we served a signature cocktail called the Brooklyn Ginger, a concoction of Absolut Brooklyn, ginger ale, and a squeeze of lime. The menu featured a seasonal selection of local meats and produce. We also served seltzer in original glass bottles, which functioned as both decoration and drink. From the moment we arrived at our Rehearsal Dinner Square Dance, to the time we waved goodbye to the last school bus shuttling our family and friends home, the weekend was truly a dream come true.

Photography: Dave Robbins Photography / Invitations: Design by Paperfinger & Letterpress by Coeur Noir / Video: Joshua Brown Photography / Event  Coordination & Floral Design: Destiation Bride / Rentals: Columbia Tent Rentals / Catering: Apogee Catering / Lighting: BearFly Designs / Venue: The Hill

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Post tags: Apogee Catering, BearFly Designs, Coeur Noir, Columbia Tent Rentals, Dave Robbins Photography, Destination Bride, Joshua Brown Photography, Paperfinger, The Hill, Upstate New York, Vintage Chic
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Vintage Chic, Wedding Photography

But before we hit you with the blast of color, a little bit about how Amy and Stefan got together in the first place …

From Amy … We met at a mutual friend’s birthday party at a bar in Soho. I was getting ready to move to Los Angeles two weeks later (to start my new life). When we met, we sort of hit it off, but not in a romantic way – i just thought he was super cool and smart and cute. We are both public relations consultants, and after I moved to LA, I had emailed him to ask him for some pr advice and some favors (I think he was put off).  I told him I would repay him by taking him to lunch whenever he came to LA.  Long story short, we started emailing alot – and when I came back to New York to close on the sale of my apartment, he asked me out for drinks. I really didn’t see the point in getting together, since I just starred my new life in LA and he lived in NYC. But my mother insisted I should meet him, as who knows “he might have nice friends you can be set up with in LA and you never know…” I went to meet him for drinks and I begged one of my girlfriends to come as I didn’t want to be stuck in any awkwardness.  After 30 minutes, my friend left and the two of us spent the next four hours talking. It was literally magic, I just knew at that point. He escorted me to a taxi – and soon after emailed me and said “that was the best date I have ever been on!” Emails turned into long phone conversations and well ~ the rest is history. Lets just say we both spent alot of time with American Airlines and I soon moved back to LA! It was a whirlwind!

But wait ~ did we say that today is all about bold and beautiful?

David Stark was our event designer  – he did everything … the lights, flowers, design … he is a total genius! When we first met, we told him we wanted something totally unconventional and unique. The unexpected. I guess we both had been to so many weddings and just wanted something different – not uniform. When he saw my dress – which was made out of feathers – he went to work and presented a 1940′s Stork Club theme – feather centerpieces, black and white colors – it was wild and fantastic. Every detail was perfect. I barely even gave him direction, he came up with every single idea.

Simply amazing! Congrats to Amy & Stefan and THANK YOU to Dave Robbins!! There are tons more images from this spectacular wedding in Amy & Stefan’s Photo Gallery. Please DO take a look!

And stay tuned … we have another wedding coming up inspired by …. Willy Wonka?!?  {sneak peek here}

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Post tags: Dave Robbins Photography, David Stark, Dessert Table, New York Weddings
Post categories: Contemporary, Little Black Book Blog, Wedding Decor, Wedding Photography

We love, love, love, love it when we receive the story of not only the who … but the why and how … behind the photographs that are submitted for features on Style Me Pretty. Most of the time ~ the images alone do a pretty fine job of telling the tale ~ we see the style, the smiles, the little touches that brides and grooms sprinkle throughout their wedding celebration ~ but when we get more detailed info to boot ~ well, we kind of feel like we’ve hit the jackpot!

And so, without further ado, today’s featured wedding from Dave Robbins Photography!

Vanessa & Ethan, July 9th, 2009 ~ Wedding @ The Old Field Vineyards, Southold, NY …

How we met:
We actually met in middle school… yes, middle school. We became friends at 12 years old… dated for one month at 14 years old… and finally began dating again at 17. We have the same values, interests, and sense of humor, so it was pretty easy to stay together, even though we attended two different art schools for college. We’ve always marveled at how lucky we are to have each other. Our wedding was our celebration of 12 years together.

How he proposed:
We always knew we’d be married some day. In the meantime, after college, we started our own business shooting other people’s weddings. We found the Old Field Vineyards years ago, and began to visit it frequently every summer… always telling Ros (the owner) that we would get married there eventually. A few days before my birthday, in April 2008, we were sitting in our backyard together eating chips and salsa. I was in pajamas, sitting down next to Ethan, and I turned to reach for another chip but the bowl was gone! Not paying attention to what was going on, I noticed he had teared up… I thought something was wrong! Until I realized there was a box in my lap… I don’t think there was ever a question or an answer …

The Wedding:
I was so excited that we were really ready to have our own wedding! Old Field was the first thing we booked… and our photographer was the second. Since both of us are photographers (weddings by v&e), it was really one of the most important decisions we had to make. I had seen Dave Robbins’ work in magazines and had immediately fallen in love with his warm, unique, and somewhat quirky style. Once we met him it was a done deal. He was extremely relaxed, professional, and overall just really nice. His portfolio was extraordinary.

Our Guest Book:
I didn’t really want a traditional guest book. I wanted a record of our guests in photographs. We decided to create a “photo-studio” where people could click off their own photographs and write messages to us. I teach full time and the custodians at my school let me have an old slate chalkboard. We propped the chalkboard up by a large tree with the vineyard as the backdrop. Two of my students (who had just graduated) stood by one of our cameras on a tri-pod to man the station and hand out the wireless remote. Ethan set up all of the equipment before our ceremony.

Wedding Design & Planning:
Ethan created most of our wedding! I designed it and came up with the ideas, and he became the hands behind it. He reclaims lumber from storm-damaged trees and mills the wood into tables. Our altar table was the most beautiful organic slab table that we now use as our coffee table. He created two thick slab tables for the coffee tables in the lounge area of our tent. Ethan also made signs that pointed guests towards various happenings on the property. My favorite sign was the lov&e sign (with the v&e) inside of a heart. This has become the idea behind the new logo we are now working on for our own photography business (weddings by v&e)!

Escort cards:  We designed the escort card table with the help of our florist, Victoria, who was also amazing! We printed the escort cards at home and Ethan collected the sticks that they stood on. Ethan’s father whittled each stick in order for them to stand up in the bed of moss. My Uncle Michael and my father helped string gauzy curtains over fishing line for a backdrop to the escort cards.

We have amazing family and friends, plus vendors that really went above and beyond for us. We drove to the property two days before the wedding in a U-haul packed full of everything from tables, to pillows, to lighting, to fishing poles! Kristy Homan from (Classic Party Rentals in Watermill) was able to bring furniture in early, giving us time to work out the final floor plan under the tent.

Ethan and I enjoy being on the beach, playing croquet, and fishing ~ so we set up croquet, horseshoes, and fishing poles on the beach next to Adirondack chairs for guests to enjoy. Some friends even brought wiffle ball. The fishing was a huge hit with our guests!

We didn’t want to do the cake-cutting ceremony, and Miche Bacher (Sacred Sweets) made the most incredible cakes we just couldn’t decide on one. I had always wanted a few cakes and lots of mini cakes and cookies instead… I loved the idea of a bakery styled table for dessert. She created the most beautiful table full of mini-cheesecakes, red velvet cupcakes, carrot cake cupcakes, outstanding cookies, and three small wedding cakes (including my favorites… chocolate cake with peanut-butter mousse and dulce de leche AND a vanilla coconut cake with passion fruit filling). I think the dessert was one of the most memorable parts of the whole day. Ethan and I skipped the line and went behind the table of desserts. Dave caught a photo of Ethan actually feeding me some cake, and then we stood there and served dessert to each guest. Ethan was cutting the slices of cake, and I was pointing out what each item was to everyone… it was really fun and completely spontaneous. We were ridiculously happy. (One of my favorite photos of the back of my dress is us standing behind this table with the guests on line in the background)

The most impressive thing that Ethan created for our wedding was our “bridal suite”. I mentioned one day how great it would be if I had a place to change at the end of the night… somewhere that had a full-length mirror and lighting. He milled wood and created a bridal suite that could be easily put together on site the day before. We used IKEA curtains and an IKEA mirror inside, along with a table (that he had made) and carnival lights surrounding an antiqued mirrored star lantern. One of my favorite photographs is us standing inside the opening… just our silhouettes.

My favorite things about the Old Field Vineyards ~ the family that owns it is one of the sweetest most relaxed we’ve ever met. They are kind, sincere, and completely unpretentious.  The property is “authentic” to the north fork of Long Island. It is rustic … the buildings are original and it has been in the family for five generations. The owners are also all about sustainable farming and even have biodegradable cups made from corn in their tasting room.  You have everything beautiful about the north fork in one location… a vineyard, large old trees, old barns and chicken coops (including the chickens and roosters), and a beautiful beach with views of Shelter Island.

At the end of the night we drove off in our U-haul… exhausted and elated. Our lovely friends and family met us in the morning back at the vineyard to help clean up, re-pack the van and head home!

See Vanessa & Ethan’s complete wedding gallery from Dave Robbins Photography here!

Event Planner: The bride along with her family!  Day of Coordinator: Vanessa’s Aunt Annie, Photographer: Dave Robbins Photography, Floral Designer: Victoria of Designs By Ahn, Cake Designer: Miche Bacher at Sacred Sweets, Caterer: Pete Ambrose at Food For Forks (I would also consider him a day-of coordinator… his team made everything run so smoothly!), Event Rentals: Classic Party Rentals (Kristy Homan), Invitations/Menus/Placecards: Designed by the bride (Invitations were printed at Lion in the Sun), Hair: Tommy Sipala and Katie Murphy from Monet Salon in Northport, Make-up: Sally Duvall, Wedding Dress: Junko Yoshioka from Mark Ingram Bridal Atelier, Band: Arcadia (Lead Singer: Gus St. Angelo), Tent: Sperry Tents, Hair flower: Twigs and Honey, Bridesmaid Dresses: Vera Wang, Shoes: J.Crew, Slab furniture, signs and outdoor “bridal suite” created by the groom, Weddings by V&E

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Post tags: Dave Robbins Photography, Designs By Ahn, Food For Forks, J. Crew, Junko Yoshioka, New York Weddings, Old Field Vineyards, Sacred Sweets, Southold, Twigs & Honey, Vera Wang, Weddings By V&E
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Little Black Book Blog, Wedding Photography

photos 2,3,4(above) and 1 (below) courtesy of betsy dunlap

from the beautiful bride, Abby …

It was very important to me that every detail be incredibly personal and well-thought out. Our wedding was the idea of a weekend on Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay. It is an area about two hours outside of Washington, D.C. where I have many fond memories of weekends at my grandparent’s summer house on the beach and later on, at my parents home next door. Summers were spent with all of my cousins and sisters enjoying the water and the traditions of the area.

This area of Virginia, called the Northern Neck, is incredibly historic and I would visit Stratford Hall often, knowing that someday this is where I wanted my wedding to be.  How could anyone resist the drama of those steps and having the entire grounds to yourself for your special day?  I didn’t even know if they would allow a wedding!

For our invitation suite we worked with the very talented young calligrapher, Betsy Dunlap who wrote out all of our pieces. We then had her handwriting engraved in a glossy black ink on Crane’s pearl white papers. Betsy also addressed all of the invitations and we used affectionate names for friends and family on the inner envelopes. We also did this with Betsy for our menu cards, programs, escort cards, and other materials.

Our ceremony was on the steps of Stratford’s Great House and guests were seated on the Great Lawn. We incorporated my husband’s Jewish background and my Catholic background and had both a priest and rabbi present, combining wedding traditions from both. During the cocktail hour we had cigar rollers from Tennessee who freshly rolled cigars for our guests. Stratford Hall provided our local Virginia-inspired catering menu. Other than the Virginia peanut soup and salad course, the meal was served on large silver platters so that guests might be more engaged with one another and be able to serve one another family style. We served whole striped bass, filet mignon, vegetable gratin, and following our wedding cake, Stratford’s recipe for ginger cookies. We sent down pounds and pounds of our favorite La Colombe coffee.

We found a local band where all of the members are in gospel choirs and come together on the side to play soul music. We had taken dance lessons at the American Ballroom Dance Studio (of Mad Hot Ballroom fame-Pierre Dulaine) and our first dance was to a Stevie Wonder version of Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the Wind”. Father and Daughter first dance was to Otis Redding’s “Sitting on the Dock of the Bay’. We intermingled speeches, dances, and cake cutting throughout the dinner courses.

After running through a sparkler farewell lining the gardens paths, our official getaway from the party was in my father’s antique military jeep which he has saved since he was a child growing up in Montana. He drove us to a waiting car and we had a giant sign on the back where Betsy had written out “Just Married”. All of our guests then returned to the Tides Inn by waiting coaches and the wedding party in a vintage trolley.

Attire:
Bride’s Gown ~ Oscar de la Renta, “bubble dress” from Bergdorf Goodman
Shoes ~ Christian Louboutin
Bridesmaid’s Dresses ~ Diane von Furstenberg, “Kacia”
Tuxedo ~ Ralph Lauren Purple Label.
Gifts to Groomsmen ~ Ralph Lauren black and ivory pocket squares

All of our flowers, including the two hundred pound fresh magnolia wreath at the top of the steps, were from a local florist, Bridget’s Bouquets. We worked with her throughout the year and she understood the vision perfectly on the day. I sent her ivory and hunter green grosgrain ribbon from a source here in New York I knew about from my friend who owns a successful ribbon belt company. We only used magnolia leaves, tons of ivory roses, and boxwood. She built boxwood topiaries adorned with ivory roses for the rectangular tables in the tent. Our cake table was covered in magnolia leaves.  Our cake was all ivory buttercream in a basketweave design with ivory roses filling the top and again was a local source in Fredericksburg, Virginia called Paul’s Bakery.

This plantation was the birthplace of Robert E. Lee and the only two signers of the Declaration of Independence who were brothers. There is an elegant history that can be seen in the grounds, the building, and the formal English gardens. We held cocktails and tented a large section of the Cutting Gardens for dinner and dancing. We wanted everything about the wedding day at Stratford to be more of a timeless elegance and to convey an element of the important history, but with our own twist.

Thank you SO much Abby and Matt for sharing your wedding vision and images with us! And a HUGE thanks to Dave Robbins Photography for the fabulous photographs that so elegantly captured the spirit of the day!!

For the full feature, be sure and see Parts I-III of this featured wedding on The Little Black Book Blog.

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Post tags: Betsy Dunlap, Bridget's Bouquets, Calligraphy, Christian Louboutin, Dave Robbins Photography, Diane von Furstenberg, favors, Historic Venue, Oscar De La Renta, Paul's Bakery, Ralph Lauren, Richmond, Sparklers, Stratford Hall, Virginia
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Real Weddings, Traditional Elegance, Wedding Photography