Grab the tissues…

Our wedding day was a long time coming.  Donte and I had a distance relationship for seven and a half years and I couldn’t wait for the day when we would be together in one place.  I was never one of those girls who dreamed of her wedding day and imagined myself being a princess.  I did, however, wonder about the guy that I would marry and I knew early on in our relationship that Donte was the guy that I had always imagined.

The ceremony turned out to be more beautiful than expected, despite the rain earlier in the day.  When I got down to the end of the aisle I realized that Donte was crying, and then when he read his personal vows he bawled!  There wasn’t a dry eye in the house and it made for a heartfelt ceremony.

When it came time to plan, we almost immediately knew that we wanted a formal, sophisticated, black-tie affair.  I know that millions of other brides say that their theme is Old Hollywood Glamour, but after envisioning what we wanted, I immediately understood why other brides choose this theme.  When you think of Old Hollywood you almost always think classic, elegant, romantic…and we realized that this was exactly what we wanted.

We chose black, white, and soft pink since it’s a clean palette and very classically beautiful.  I knew that I wanted full tall and short centerpieces so I chose the simple combination of pink roses and hydrangeas to bring color into the reception room.  We know that black-tie usually equals lots of money, so we figured out a way to have a lot of elegant touches without the big price tag.  That meant a lot of DIY projects!

I taught myself how to use Photoshop by watching YouTube tutorials and designed all of our paper items and uploaded and printed them through Vistaprint.  I designed everything from the invitations, wedding announcement poster, dinner menus, programs, escort cards, the aisle runner, table numbers, etc.  The secret to having successful DIY projects is to start early.  My goal was to have a wedding that only looked expensive and I think we pulled that off successfully.  Our wedding day was truly one of the happiest, heartfelt days of our lives and one that we’ll never forget.

Photography: Inlux Photo / Ceremony & Reception: Heritage Golf Club / Flowers: Flowers on Springtree Lane / Cinematrography: Poetic Cinema / Bride’s Dress: Maggie Sottero / Bridesmaids Dresses: Bari Jay / Makeup: Kelli Ramey of Beautimarkedbykelli / Hair: Michael Matteson of Square One Salon and Spa / Shoes: Me Too / Bride’s Bracelet: Rent The Runway / Cake: The Cake Studio

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Post tags: Bari Jay, BeautimarkedbyKelli, Color Palette Brown Pink, Columbus, DIY Projects, DIY Stationery, Flowers on Springtree Lane, Heritage Golf Club, Inlux Photo, Maggie Sottero, Me Too, Ohio, Poetic Cinema, Rent the Runway, Sparklers, Square One Salon and Spa, The Cake Studio, Traditional Elegance, Wedding Cinematography
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Wedding Cinematography

Jenny and Jim: Cincinnati Wedding Film from Steve Zugelter on Vimeo.

Jim and I wanted our entire wedding themed around friendship and Cincinnati, which is how our love story all began.  Jim and I met at work and quickly became  good friends.  Our shared interest in sports, Cincinnati Bengals, Cincinnati Reds, friends and living life to it’s fullest was hard to ignore and our friendship quickly blossomed into a love story.

As soon as we began planning our wedding we knew it had to be around the city we love and our friends.  Our invitations played a large part in informing our guest about our wedding weekend events and our passions.  Our custom made save the dates featured us on Cincinnati Reds Diamond Club seats and our custom made invites featured the skyline of Cincinnati.  We also wanted our rehearsal dinner to be intimate and promote our beautiful city – it couldn’t have been any better when we found our perfect rehearsal venue, Friendship Park.

We wanted a wedding weekend that was unique and special to us.  Our venues were extremely important.  We decided to get married in an old Cathedral that has since been converted to a venue to host events.  The beautiful floor to head stained glass windows, delicately painted ceilings, and collective bell towers decorated the interior and provided a warming touch.  Lush flower pots filled the red brick patio where guest had the chance to enjoy post ceremony cocktails.  As soon as the doors opened guest were wowed by the amount of candles we lined the church with.  With such a beautiful ceremony location the simple floral arrangements added a fresh scent and burst of purples, greens, and white.

We wrote our own vows and created a ceremony that was unique to each of us.  Embedded in my wedding bouquet was a locket with my Father’s picture so he was with me on my special day.  Our programs gave shout outs to friends and family, featured our aspirations as a couple, and even acknowledged our best canine friend Chili.

Our day was amazing, our wedding video was even more amazing.  It captures how special and unique our day was to us and our family. It captures the love that was in that room, how much fun Jim and I have together, and the overall theme of our lives – friendship.

Photography: Neysa Ruhl Photography / Makeup: BRIDEface / Floral Design: The Tulip Tree / Venue:  The Bell Event Center / Cinematography: Studio Z Films

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Post tags: brideface, cincinnati, Color Palette Purple, Neysa Ruhl Photography, Ohio, Studio Z Films, The Bell Event Center, The Tulip tree, Traditional Elegance, Wedding Cinematography
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Wedding Cinematography

Click here to see the entire gallery of images!

From Connection Photography… This photo shoot was designed around Jessica and Bo’s current relationship. They have been together for a year and most of their relationship has been spent sending letters and video chatting on the computer. They have spent the majority of their relationship apart because Bo is in the military. In the photo shoot Jessica wanted to be sending Bo a package and as she is walking up to mail it, he is walking up the other road to surprise her. He’s coming home. The pocket watch in the photos Jessica had made for Bo. Although their relationship has been long distance you wouldn’t know it. They are so in love and it radiates when you are around them. During the photo shoot we joked with Bo about asking Jessica to marry him and he just laughed it off. But when they got home he did ask! He is being deployed to the Middle East in the next couple months but they are definitely making the time they have together now, unforgettable.

Photography: Connection Photography / Location: Marietta, Ohio

If you missed any, here are all of our pretty posts from the week:

a darling North Carolina fête
a sweet as can be proposal film
a beyond breathtaking New York affair
a dreamy Los Gatos soiree
an awe-inspiring Los Angeles wedding
a charming Washington barn affair
a magical Atlanta soiree
a day filled with eight gorgeous weddings
a stunning New York City affair
a shabby chic Oregon fête
a Fall-inspired California wedding
a breathtaking boudoir session

Some fabulous links from around the web:

colorful modern wall art via A Beautiful Mess
uber-fabulous wildflower ice cubes via A Cup of Jo
gorgeous DIY herb and wildflower bouquet via One Lovely Day

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

Seasons of Life Events
Something Blue Weddings & Events
Julie Swenson, Beauty PhD
Nam Nguyen Photography
LittleOwl Letterpress
Janelle Brooke Photography
Belle of the Ball
Syracuse Makeup Artistry
Clean Plate Pictures

To apply to become a member of our LBB click here. We’d love to hear from you!

And last, but certainly not least…

Don’t miss your chance to enter the Inspiration to Invitation Challenge with Sarah Drake happening right now as.we.speak on SMP Illinois!  The uber-fabulous Ms. Drake will be picking her favorite board next week and turning it into one very amazing invitation!  So, don’t miss out… head on over to SMP Illinois and start building those boards!

Have a pretty, pretty weekend, lovelies!  See you back here Monday morning!  xoxo

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Connection Photography, Marietta, Military Engagement Session, Military Photo Shoot, Ohio, Wrap it up Pretty
Post categories: The Blog

Click here to see the entire gallery of images.

You can check out the rest of the magic right here…

From the photographer, Corey Ann… This wedding was a wish granted by Wish Upon a Wedding to Jon and Alyssa.  Jon has terminal brain cancer and doesn’t have much longer to live and his dying wish was to marry his soulmate, Alyssa.  The entire wedding was beautiful thanks to amazing donations from the talented group of vendors. Alyssa’s gown inspired the wedding design and the result was flawless.

We are so touched that Jon and Alyssa chose Style Me Pretty to share this with the world. It’s days like this one that remind us of just how important the heart of a wedding really is. The core, at it’s very purest form, is all about love. And love is the very first thing I saw when I opened this beautiful affair. Congratulations to Jon and Alyssa. Your wedding has touched our hearts just as it has your friends, family and the millions of people around the world that have shared your story.

Wedding Photography: Corey Ann Photography / Wedding Cake: The West Side Bakery / Catering: Spice of Life / Wedding Ceremony Music: Arion String Ensemble / Dance Floor: National Party Rental / Dessert: Bittersweet Chocolates & Culinary Occasions / DJ: The DJ Crew / Favors: Drummond Chocolates / Florist: Lynda Loren Floral & Event Design / Hair: Tiffany Ford of Dino Palmieri Salon / Hotel: Wyndham Hotel / Lighting: Vincent Lighting / Linens: L’nique Linens / Makeup: Kajal by Kimberly / Officiant: Bob Javorsky with Our Wedding Officiant / Rentals: Event Source + Lasting Impressions / Ring Pillow: Emici Bridal / Stationery: Pink Hearts Paperie / Transportation: A1 Mr. Limo / Valet: MVP Services LLC / Veil and Accessories: Christina Garcia Accessories of Distinction / Wedding Venue: Glidden House / Videography and Photo Booth: Moonstruck Productions / Wedding Planning: At Last Events / Wine: Colonial Beverage

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Post tags: A1 Mr. Limo, Arion String Ensemble, At Last Events, Bittersweet Chocolates & Culinary Occasions, Christina Garcia Accessories of Distinction, Colonial Beverage, Corey Ann Photography, Dino Palmieri Salon, Drummond Chocolates, Emici Bridal, Event Source, Glidden House, Kajal by Kimberly, L'nique Linens, Lasting Impressions, Lynda Loren Floral & Event Design, Moonstruck Productions, MVP Services LLC, National Party Rental, Ohio, Our Wedding Officiant, Pink Hearts Paperie, Spice of Life, The DJ Crew, The West Side Bakery, Vincent Lighting, Wish Upon A Wedding, Wyndham Hotel
Post categories: The Blog, Traditional Elegance

Click here for the FULL wedding!

From Jennifer at The Finer Things Event Planning…Lyndsey and Eric are an amazing couple! Their destiny began with Lyndsey (from Ohio) had flown to California for a friend’s wedding… it was love at first sight when she met her Groom Eric in Cali. Just like a seen from a movie, Lyndsey was smittened by Navy Pilot, Eric. From that night on, Lyndsey and Eric spent nearly two years flying all over the United States to see each other as their love turned a first glance into their wedding. The travel inspired wedding began with custom save the dates and invitations that even look like boarding passes. Throughout the reception, special places where the couple had traveled were brought in. The food stations boasted foods from San Diego, Kansas City, and Virginia where the couple currently resides. Each guest received a wooden airplane from “E & L airlines” to escort them to their destination city. (all 23 guest tables were cities the bride and groom had visited together!) Post Cards from various cities were signed by all of the guest and placed into the couple’s luggage! One of my favorite touches was the special Southwest Airline drink stirs that adored the signature cocktail “The Married Mojito” The custom groom’s cake, an actual replica of the F18 Plane that the Groom proudly flys on many trips to Iraq. The couple was blessed to have many guest travel from several states to help them celebrate in style…

Event Planning: Jennifer Kontomerkos of The Finer Things Event Planning / Photography: Picture the Love / Ceremony: King Avenue United Methodist Church / Reception: North Bank Park / Transportation: Columbus Trolley / Floral Design: Elegant Touch Events / Caterer: Sandman Gourmet Catering / Musicians: Alex White & Friends / DJ: Platinum Music Productions / Cake: Anita Kline Cakes (614-766-8288), Jan Kish La Petite Fleur / Stationery: Oscar and Emma Custom Design

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Post tags: Alex White & Friends, Anita Kline Cakes, Columbus, Columbus Trolley, Elegant Touch Events, Jan Kish La Petite Fleur, King Avenue United Methodist Church, North Bank Park, Ohio, Oscar and Emma Custom Design, Picture the Love, Platinum Music Productions, Sandman Gourmet Catering, The Finer Things Event Planning
Post categories: Traditional Elegance

Click here to see the entire gallery of images!

From the Bride…Both Calvin and I love the outdoors and appreciate it’s beauty.  Because of that we instantly knew we wanted to have an outdoor wedding and let nature be our decor.  We choose the Darby House in Galloway, OH for it’s breathtaking views, boat rides, and excellent service from Cameron Mitchell Catering. Because of all the lush greens I wanted to keep our color palette simple and chose a beautiful spiced wine color and white to accent all the greenery.  My Uncle helped create all the decor from rustic barn wood.  For the ceremony he made barn wood stands for the flower-filled urns to sit on.  The aisle was decorated with small wooden hanging buckets filled with green and white flowers.  Family members made paper cones filled with rose petals for guests to throw. The venue included  pontoon boat rides for the bridal party and the guests during the cocktail hour.

Wedding Dress: Wendy’s Bridal / Bridesmaid Dresses: J.Crew / Groomsmen Attire: Men’s Wearhouse / Flowers: Bloom’s Direct / Wedding Photography: Henry Photography / Wedding Cake: Taste of Cake / Venue: Darby House / Catering: Cameron Mitchell / DJ: Encore Entertainment / Wedding Invitations: Paper Occasions

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 14 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Bloom's Direct, Cameron Mitchell, Darby House, Encore Entertainment, Galloway, Henry Photography, J. Crew, Men's Wearhouse, Ohio, Paper Occasions, Taste of Cake, Vintage Chic, Wendy's Bridal
Post categories: The Blog, Vintage Chic

From Gina Leigh Photography … The couple met long ago while they were in high school together, and they were great friends. Eventually the friendship turned to romance, and then quickly thereafter, to marriage!

The wedding was 100% DIY.  It was held at Rachel’s grandmother’s farm at the end of a long dirt road in the middle of the Ohio countryside. Rachel’s grandmother handmade her wedding dress out of cotton eyelet lace and Rachel handmade each one of her bridesmaid’s lovely yellow dresses. The suspenders were a throw back to the groom’s father who wore suspenders every day of his adult life until he passed away four years ago to cancer.

The design on the invitations was hand drawn by Hannah, the lovely bridesmaid with the bright red hair. Christian is an amazingly trained cook at a historic restaurant, The Malabar Farm Restaurant, who provided all the catering. If you look closely, you’ll notice that Christian’s fingers are tattooed with the words “LET’S EAT” appropriately. Everything had a purpose and was filled with meaning.

After Christian proposed, my mother asked, “What do you see when you close your eyes and imagine your wedding?” All I could come up with was sunshine and my bare feet. With that humble foundation, we planned a wedding that was simple and extremely personal – everything had meaning for us.

Every single person involved was either family or close friend; the photos, food, music, flowers, outfits, even our officiant. Everything was touched by people who knew us personally. My grandmother, who has made dozens of prom dresses and ballet costumes throughout the years, sewed my beautiful ceremony gown, and I sewed all of my bridesmaids’ dresses. My reception dress was purchased at Mad4Mod after I swooned over it for months.

All in all, the planning was amazingly easy. We were married “beneath the walnut tree”, as our invitations, designed by my new sister-in-law Hannah, said, at my grandparents’ beautiful home. My bridesmaids and I made our bouquets and boutonnieres the day before with flowers from their garden – which I found very relaxing.

Every detail was in place, and Christian’s sister Gina (a phenomenal wedding photographer) somehow made everything look even more charming than it was. My grandfather, who so lovingly said prayer over the food in his West Virginian accent, noted that he and my grandmother, Eloise, would be married fifty years the following week, making the day even more special.

Our first act as a couple was taking communion. It was very important to us. We wanted to show our commitment to our faith and to each other. For our first dance, our good friend Renae sang and played guitar. Her voice is magical. Time absolutely stopped, and we were lost in each other.

Catering: Malabar Farm Restaurant / Photography: Gina Leigh Photography / Cake & Dessert: Malabar Farm Restaurant / Bride’s Wedding Gown: DIY / Bridesmaid Dresses: DIY / Floral: DIY / Bride’s Reception Dress: Mad4Mod

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Post tags: Budget Beautiful, DIY Bridesmaid Dresses, DIY Flowers, DIY Wedding Dress, DIY Wedding Invitations, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Gina Leigh Photography, Handmade, Handmade Dress, Mad4Mod, Malabar Farm Restaurant, Ohio, Wedding Photography
Post categories: Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Little Black Book Blog

Whether you are modern loving or vintage loving (I’m a little of both) you are sure to find something to adore from this adorable ’60s-infused wedding inspiration by Bliss Wedding & Event Design and C STUDIOS.  There is a touch of Man Men, a hint of modern, a splash of glam and a whole lot of awesome.  That gilded cake takes my breath away and I love each of this bride’s perfectly chic outfits.  There are so my stealworthy ideas so dive in and start pinning, tweeting and making one or two of your own boards!  Click here to see even more!

Now let’s bring all that incredible inspiration we just digested to life with this precious film from one of our favorite cinematographers Studio Z Films. Each little detail is captured so sweetly and I love the inside look into the preparations of the day. They always put together such an amazing reel of moments.

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From Bliss Wedding & Event Design… Bold geometric designs, paired with bright Clementine orange, crisp white and lush hints of green, inspired a fresh vision of a chic 1960’s wedding soiree.  We gathered our most beloved wedding artists to marry nostalgic 1960’s elements with modern day accouterments.

The bride sets the tone throughout her wedding day by revealing two distinct looks.  In the bride’s first look, she exudes regal, elegant composure in her Melissa Sweet gown (Sweet Carrine), paired with delicate strands of pearls, and a birdcage veil from Big Rock Little Rooster. For her second look, her charming Platinum dress by Priscilla of Boston (designed by Kenneth Pool) along with oversized pearls from Francesca’s, set the stage for a light-hearted reception celebration.  Throughout the day, her groom pairs perfectly with both looks in his classic white dinner jacket, black bow tie and black pants.

The stately Bryn Du Mansion was the ideal location for this bright, classic look.  The mansion has several expansive rooms, which haven’t been used in decades, which each feature the architectural character and antique details that served as the perfect backdrop for this nostalgic celebration.

La Tavola’s New York linen was the first, and most essential, part of the inspiration for the tablescape. The tiny, overlapping sequins created a texture that was reminiscent of fabrics from the 1960’s.  Next, we layered the look with colorful, vintage Viking glassware and a variety of fresh-cut floral arrangements, from Flowers on Orchard Lane, to add bright pops of Clementine orange and grass green.  The juxtaposition of modern and vintage glassware, replica designer Ghost Chairs, whimsical dinnerware and vintage metallic accessories, elevated the level of sophistication while still keeping the look fresh and approachable.

The delightful dessert table was a collaboration of the very best bakery artisans, including Jan Kish of La Petite Fleur, Pistacia Vera, Queen City Cookies and Cupcake Yum Yum.  Jan Kish designed the couture cake, for which she meticulously hand-sculpted the bronze sunbursts and applied each glittering silver ball by hand for a cake that is (almost) too gorgeous to eat!  She also provided the beautiful snowball cookies and the white chocolate and keylime cake truffles.  The light and decadent Pistacia Vera macarons are local favorites and their sugar-coated pate’ de fruit was a most perfect wedding favor. The adorable Clementine infused mini cupcakes and sweet powdered marshmallow clouds were designed by Cupcake Yum Yum.  And none other than Queen City Cookies provided the intricate and beautifully designed shortbread cookies.

Design: Bliss Wedding & Event Design / Photography: C STUDIOS / Cinematography: Studio Z Films / Location: Bryn Du Mansion / Flowers: Flowers on Orchard Lane / Linens: La Tavola Linen / Rentals: Event Source / Hair: Goode Hair / Makeup: BeautiMarked by Kelli / Hair Accessories: Big Rock Little Rooster / Wedding Gowns: La Jeune Mariee Bridal Boutique / Tuxedo: Romanoff’s Classic Tuxedo / Paper: Merriment Design / Cake, Snowball Cookies & Cake Truffles: Jan Kish – La Petite Fleur / Mini Cupcakes & Marshmallow Clouds: Cupcake Yum.Yum / Macarons & Pate de Fruit: Pistacia Vera / Buttery Shortbread Cookies: Queen City Cookies

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Post tags: 1960's, Beautimarked by Kelli, Big Rock Little Rooster, Bliss Wedding & Event Design, Bryn Du Mansion, C Studios, Cupcake Yum.Yum., Event Source, flowers on Orchard Lane, From Inspiration to Reality, Goode Hair, Granville, Green, Jan Kish, Kenneth Pool, La Jeune Mariee, La Tavola Linen, Melissa Sweet, Merriment Designs, Modern, Ohio, Orange, Photo Shoot, Pistacia Vera, Platinum by Priscilla of Boston, Queen City Cookies, Romanoff's Classic Tuxedo, Studio Z Films, White, Yellow
Post categories: From Inspiration to Reality, Photo Shoot