“… vintage velvet bowties for the groom and groomsmen … homemade jam favors … homebrewed beer … vintage photo booth with fun props … beautiful handmade boutonnieres and headpieces … custom made chandelier (from metal recycled from a local winery’s oak barrels) … the food stations … burgers, fries, whiskey and coke, cotton candy … delicious tacos, aguas frescas or mojitos, chile rellenos … pizza, and more … vintage window frames with chalkboards listing the stations’ menus … tons of beautiful flowers … kids’ area with pillows, coloring books, hula hoops, fun toys … vintage getaway car and “just married” sign with cans … romantic country-esque cake arranged on cut logs … blue glass jars with vintage family photos on display …”

Again … whew! So ~ for some of the credits …

Jess Flood was their wedding planner and helped them pull all these sensational vintage elements together!

The girls’ hair accessories were from a local designer, Andrea Mota.  Melissa and her friends hand-made the boutonnieres.

The men’s ties were purchased at Aubergine Vintage Emporium in Sebastopol and the mason jars were from the Summer Cottage Antique Store in Petaluma. The cake was from Costeaux French Bakery, catering by A La Heart Catering, and flowers by Barbara Vakassian Florals.

Jessamyn brought along her vintage 1920’s camera for some fun shots. And ~ Melissa & Brett bought a vintage photo booth for the occasion! (ps…they now rent the photo booth out for other events!).

Oh, did we mention that they had 3 cakes? These two (above) represent Melissa’s love to garden and the fact that Brett is a volunteer fireman!

Melissa’s dress was designed by Linda Horn of One White Dress, Windsor CA – the dress is called “Blossom.”

Of ALL their fantastic and fun elements, I’ve gotta’ say … I LOVE the cotton candy!

Bunches of thanks to Jessamyn Harris and Melissa & Brett for giving us a peek into this VERY special day at Healdsburg Country Gardens!!

And for more of Jessamyn’s fantastic weddings be sure and spend some time on her blog and website!

One of our FAVORITES that we featured on The Little Black Book Blog was Amy & Brent’s 2008 October Wedding …

And more recently, Rachel & Giancarlo’s Wedding at Nestldown, Los Gatos: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

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Post tags: Barbara Vakassian Florals, Cutie Dynamite, Hair Accessories, Healdsburg Country Gardens, Jessamyn Harris, Linda Horn, Mason Jars, One White Dress, Photo Booth
Post categories: Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Little Black Book Blog, Vintage Chic

It’s almost impossible to believe that these are real bride shots!

Lindsey and her friend Kristen asked Kristin to fly with them to Miami to do both of their bridal sessions! How fun is that? Kristin says that they had a blast … and never even left the hotel! All shots were taken at the Mondrian Miami Hotel.

Kristin is also the founder and owner of Weddings And The City in Charlotte. She and her fabulous team of planners worked with Lindsey from start to finish! I’m seriously SO anxious to see the results!

Lindsey ~ you look sensational!! We cannot wait to see more! And Kristin ~ what can we say except WOW!

Lindsey’s gown is by Romona Keveza and her jewelry is from BCBG. The info we have on her veil is that she ordered it on etsy, but we’ll have to check into where.

In just a bit … we’ll have a sneak peek at the little ones who helped celebrate the day. Kristin’s very own little “twinkies” were the flower girl and ring bearer. You’re not going to believe their vintage adorableness!

And while we wait to see what Lindsey’s wedding has in store, here’s a link to another of Kristin & Weddings And The City’s hugely popular weddings featured on Style Me Pretty:  Elle & Todd’s Pink & Grey Wedding.

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Post tags: BCBG, Bridal Portrait, Charlotte, Hair Accessories, Kristin Vining, Mondrian Miami Hotel, Romona Keveza, Veil, Weddings And The City
Post categories: Wedding Dresses, Wedding Fashion, Wedding Style

from their wedding designer and wedding planner, Kathy of A Divine Occasion …

Over a year ago I had the wonderful opportunity to talk with Lisa in preparation for her June wedding celebration. Lisa and Lance came to me with a very clear and defined vision. Both coming from an artistic background they stood by their vision from beginning to end. We wanted to create a design team together to pull off their vision of French Couture & Moulin Rouge-style in an English Garden atmosphere.

The Hotel Bel-Air was a tranquil and perfect setting to begin the journey.

I introduced the bride and groom to Linnae from Asiel Design. I felt she would be the best visionary to Lisa and Lance’s design. Her ability to really listen to what the client wants and creativity helped give life to the project.

My best experiences with Lisa came during her decision making…every decision she made too in the consideration of others which I so rarely see. It was so refreshing to see her caring touch and style. The photographs captured every wonderful moment! Thankfully Lisa and Lance brought me together with Laura at Docuvitae for the first time. Her artful eye was the perfect match to this story and I look forward to many more memories together! I am so thankful for the experience and value my life long friendship with Lisa and Lance!!!

And from lovely Lisa … the black calla lily and a yellow orchid with red spots were the points of creative departure …

The feather was another source of inspiration, but as it’s been overused in weddings it was incorporated sparingly, both in our invitation design and in my cocktail hour feather boa … just a hint of romance and fun flirtation!

and also from Lisa …

The ceremony and cocktail hour trio, The Wine and Roses Band, played a combination of gypsy jazz and Klezmer music, paying homage to our Jewish heritage while also creating an air of celebration. Champagne, enjoyed ‘en plein air’ after the ceremony, was the drink of the night. The party then moved indoors for an evening of dinner and dancing accompanied by jazz standards and music from the sixties, expertly produced by the Chuck Wansley Band. Chocolate-dipped strawberry “tuxedos,” among other mignardises, satiated the sweet tooth of our guests before the cake by Cake Divas was cut at the end of the night.

Like brilliant photography should, the images speak for themselves. The unparalleled work of Laura and Rebecca at the wonderful Docuvitae captures the magic of what was nothing short of a splendid evening.

We couldn’t agree more! Thank-you to all for sharing this extraordinary occasion with us!!

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Post tags: A Divine Occasion, Asiel Design, Boa, Cake Divas, Docuvitae, Garden, Hair Accessories, Hotel Bel-Air, Los Angeles, The Wine And Roses Band, Vera Wang
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Real Weddings, Traditional Elegance, Vintage Chic, Wedding Flowers, Wedding Photography

I shopped one day for dresses. I knew pretty quickly that this dress was the one. I tried on more to be sure, but knew I’d probably end up with that first dress. It’s a Vera Wang, although that’s not why I bought it at all, it just happened to be the dress that fit me the best. It was flattering, gave me a waist where I don’t really have one and it seemed unusual.

Isn’t that the way it goes so much of the time? The first dress you try on!

Laura Kleinhenz, founder and principal photographer at Docuvitae shot today’s wedding in Malibu at the breath-taking Stone Manor venue.

But before we get to the details of the day, a few really sweet ‘getting ready’ shots that will make you feel like you were in the room…

Uh-oh …it appears that Rose is going to have a tough time getting through the day without the flood of emotion that often accompanies the moment … I can almost hear them saying “breathe … breathe …”

… and another pretty lady preparing for this special day …

But this little guy nearly steals the show (all day long)!

Everyone gathers at the amazing Stone Manor for the wedding ceremony.

Uh-oh, sweet Rose …

Congratulations Rose & Sunil!

More on the way from the reception …

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Post tags: California, Docuvitae, Hair Accessories, Malibu, Orchids, ring bearer, Sari, Shoes, Stone Manor, Vera Wang
Post categories: Bouquets, Little Black Book Blog, Real Weddings, Traditional Elegance, Wedding Dresses, Wedding Photography, Wedding Style

from Heather: The ceremony was in Rittenhouse Town, part of the Wissahickon woods. We could only invite immediate family and a handful of our oldest friends. To see every one’s smiles after the ceremony was the best part of the day!

My stepfather, Paul, drove me up to the ceremony in a 1932 Ford pickup he built himself from pieces. I was so proud to ride in it and loved that it matched the time period. He started building it while my mother was still alive and she never got to take a ride, so getting into it for the first time on my wedding day was an emotional roller coaster, so happy, but also sad. We were both bawling when I arrived to the sounds of the bagpiper playing “Here comes the bride.”

Did I mention everyone was crying at the ceremony!? My best friend Sarah read a passage from the Velveteen Rabbit about what is “real”. Jason, Shawn’s brother, read the last paragraph from “The Road” by Cormick McCarthy. After the ceremony Jason said a beautiful toast about how I have always been a part of the family, but it was good now to make it “official” and again I cried!

The reception was at the Sedgwick Theatre on Germantown Avenue in Mt. Airy. It is an art deco movie theatre built in 1928. I love the fashion and styles of that period so it was really important to me to have “vintage” hair and a cocktail dress.

The reception was a blast! I did not want a formal wedding reception, just a big party. It was a representation of us and our loved ones. We had a pool table and games for the kids. I also had a dress up photo booth for guests to take their own photos. On the center stage, there was a slide show running of my photographs from the past 14 years of our friends and family. The kids had fun jumping around on the stage and dancing in front of the photos! There was theatrical lighting to add to the ambiance. We had an Irish trio play at the cocktail hour who actually knew my mother, she played traditional fiddle in her life time. I also had the redware pottery she made put out on the tables. After cocktails the dj took over with a great assortment of country, indie rock, 80’s music videos played on the screen, hip hop and lots of dance music from our generation. It was overwhelming seeing every person I know and love in one room, all there just for us! I am so lucky to have met Shawn 14 years ago and gained so many friends and family.

These fabulous photos were taken by Sarah Miller, her friend and frequent second-shooter. For more of Sarah’s work, check out her website and blog!

LOVE the vintage-styled wedding touches that Heather executed flawlessly! Isn’t she totally gorgeous!!?

Heather has written about her wedding on her own blog and has provided a list of recommended vendors. It’s a really comprehensive list with great comments about each one. She’s also included the sources for her veil, shawl, dress, etc… There are a few photos taken by other photography friends of Heather’s and their names are also credited on her blog.

True vintage glamour ~~~

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Post tags: Art Deco, Bagpipes, Birdcage Veil, Hair Accessories, Heather Fowler Photography, Mt. Airy, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Photo Booth, Sarah Miller Photography, Vintage Hairstyle, Vintage Style
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Real Weddings, Vintage Chic

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Post tags: Hair Accessories, Jewelry, Regina B., Wedding Accessories
Post categories: Featured

From the bride…

All I really wanted from my wedding was a fantastic party with all of my friends and family around me. I hate formality so wanted a very relaxed affair (we used a photos journalist for our pictures so we didn’t have to worry about posing for shots) but I wanted it to be really stylish too! I decide on pink as my colour scheme as Tom and I both love the colour and instead of giving myself loads of stress trying to match everything to one shade of pink I decide to go for all different shades of the colour, which actually ended up working really well.

I guess that the theme for the day was a relaxed, country garden style, party, nothing overly formal. I wanted everything to be very relaxed and twinkly so there was loads of candle light and flowers, nothing too structured. The bridesmaids each wore a rose in their hair and I wore a gardenia in the evening in my hair once I had taken off my veil.

More to come!

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Post tags: British Gardens, British Style, Garden Wedding, Hair Accessories
Post categories: Real Weddings, Traditional Elegance

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Post tags: Hair Accessories, Oh Joy!, Wedding Accessories
Post categories: Featured

I am so in love with this romantic affair, with such pretty pink details. The whole affair was coordinated by Details Details and I have to say, it was done so flawlessly!

Oh and the bride is actually a pretty well known model/actress! So pretty!

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Post tags: Aaron Delesie, Color Palette Pink, Cupcakes, Details Details, Hair Accessories, Pink Roses, Table Settings
Post categories: Accessories, Jewelry, Shoes, Wedding Fashion