From Alanna Scully Photography … There is something about a red barn that just makes me feel at home.  When that red barn is in Vermont and you’ve got a beautiful fall day, it’s even better.  I asked my photographer friends (who became husband and wife this summer!) Debbie and Jared Burns to model for me as I set up a stylized shoot at the gorgeous West Monitor Barn in Richmond, VT.

It was Columbus Day weekend, which was by far the three best days of fall weather I have ever seen in Vermont.  It was perfect shooting weather and the late afternoon light was breathtaking, as was my couple.  I asked Nicole D’Agata of the Painted Tulip in Waterbury to help out with some beautiful florals for our table and for our bride and groom, and the amazing staff at the Vermont Tent Company provided the rest of our set.  When I edited these pictures, I was reminded of how great love is and how nice it was to spend an afternoon with Debbie and Jared, a couple who isn’t afraid to show their affection and share their joy with the world.  Love like this, much like a red barn, can make you feel right at home.

Photography: Alanna Scully Photography / Venue: West Monitor Barn / Florals: The Painted Tulip / Hair & Makeup: Lisa Borg, Tilton & Company Hair Salon / Table number & Pie signs: Green Apple Paperie / Wedding Dress & Groom’s Suit: J.Crew / Rentals: Vermont Tent Company

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2012. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Alanna Scully Photography, Barn Weddings, Barns, Birch, Bouquets, Candelabra, Centerpieces, Chalkboards, Fall Weddings, Farm Weddings, Green Apple Paperie, Inspiration Shoot, J. Crew, Lisa Borg, Photo Shoot, pies, Red Barns, Richmond, Rustic Chic, The Painted Tulip, Tilton & Company Hair Salon, Vermont, Vermont Tent Company, Wedding Flowers, West Monitor Barn
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Photo Shoot

Click here for the FULL wedding!

From Marta of Marta Locklear… Megan and Brandon’s wedding was absolutely stunning and a perfect infusion of both of them. Pure style with the graphite gray and soft peach tones throughout, and perfect hints of Brandon’s “Rocker” personality with surprise checkered Vans and steel gray glittered shoes for Megan. We started the day with a first look session to make the most of the gorgeous Historic Mankin Mansion grounds and daylight, and then wandered into a perfect sunset ceremony. The ceremony was lined with flower-filled mason jar vases on shepherds hooks in a sea of white chairs. Megan practically floated down the aisle with her dad while the sunlight lit her face under her blusher veil. During the ceremony, Megan and Brandon each wrote a letter to each other explaining why they loved each other and sealed and locked them into a vintage wine box to be read on their five-year anniversary. During cocktail hour, while the couple enjoyed a few moments together in the Carriage House the guests mingled under peach and gray paper lanterns and string lights while sipping their drinks from striped straws. The grounds had large chess boards for entertainment. For the reception, an infusion of graphite gray table cloths, peach cloth napkins, gold rimmed chargers and white and peach florals definitely set the tone for this wedding day. The cake was absolutely amazing and even studded with jewels! The guests enjoyed a full dessert table with take-away boxes, a personal slideshow from the best man, a fully-catered dinner and lots of dancing! The details were amazing!

Wedding Photography: Marta Locklear / Flowers + Vases: Flowers by Mona Ray / Wedding Venue + Candles: Historic Mankin Mansion / Wedding Cake: Cakes by Graham / Catering: Champagne Taste / Wedding Dress: Hannalores / Bride’s Shoes: Moda Spana via DSW / Bride’s Jewelry: Judith Ripka / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Jim Hjelm + Lazaro / Linens: Classic Party Rentals / Makeup + Hair: Tracy Gilland + Lara Bridger of Richmond Hair and Makeup

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2012. | Permalink | 19 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Cakes by Graham, Champagne Taste, Classic Party Rentals, DSW, Flowers by Mona Ray, Gray, Hannalores, Historic Mankin Mansion, Jim Hjelm, Judith Ripka, Lara Bridger, Lazar, Marta Locklear, Moda Spana, Peach, Richmond, Tracy Gilland, Virginia
Post categories: The Blog, Traditional Elegance

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From the Bride… Barry and I waited over ten years for this day and wanted to incorporate all the things that are important to us and individuals and as a couple. Our first date was to a photography exhibit in DC and we have enjoyed many museums around the world together since.  We both lived in and around the Fan during the VMFA renovations and could not think of a more perfect place to have our reception.  The timing was perfect in regard to the re-opening–but we did our share of hard hat tours (our engagement session was at the museum, hard hats and all).  We were both surprised to hear our reception was the first in the new Atrium at the VMFA.  What a thrill.

Barry is Jewish, and having a traditional Jewish ceremony was important to him.  Beth Ahabah is the 6th oldest Jewish congregation in the US.  The synagogue is beautiful and even has a Louis Comfort Tiffany stained glass window–I believe the Tiffany exhibit was taking place at VMFA during this time as well. It was also very important to us to acknowledge those family members who passed, so we included their names on the back of our program with the help of East Six.  East Six also helped us create an in lieu of favor card to honor Barry’s mother who passed of ALS–we made a donation to the ALS society in her honor instead of having favors for the guests.

We both love the classics and chose to have a classical string quartet play for the ceremony and a jazz trio with a vocalist for the reception. They were a highlight for us both. I will never forget hearing the string quartet as I walked up the stairs to the ceremony. Our favorite parts of the day, were…well…the whole day. For me, marrying Barry, in that dress.  He actually picked it out himself without realizing it.  After our engagement, it was in the NYT Magazine Bridal Issue he was reading one morning.  I tried other dresses, but knew that was the one.  He was surprised, and not, when he saw it for the first time on our wedding day. Also, when he kissed me on the hand while leaving the synagogue after the ceremony–so spontaneous, so sweet and so him. Our cake, that Graham had to cut out each of those white rings by hand and then glue them on–he is a master of his craft. The flowers. Of course, I could go on and on.

For him, having his father walk him down the aisle, breaking the glass, and seeing me carried on the chair in the middle of the VMFA. For us both, being surrounded by our family and friends on this wonderful day.

Wedding Photography: Meghan McSweeney Photography / Floral Design: White House Flowers / Event Design & Coordination: Jennifer McBride and Dee Kirchmier of McBride Events / Wedding Ceremony Location: Congregation Beth Ahabah / Wedding Reception Location: Virginia Museum of Fine Arts / Hair & Makeup: Lou Stevens Glam Squad / Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Groom’s Attire: Jack Simpson via Neiman Marcus / Wedding Dress: Vera Wang via The Bridal Salon at Saks Jandel / Wedding Rings: Tiffany & Co / Bride’s Head Piece: Hannelore’s of Olde Town / Ketubah: The Jewish Museum New York / Wedding Band: David Esleck / Transportation: James Limousine Service / Wedding Cake: Cakes by Graham / Wedding Invitations & Paper Goods: East Six

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 20 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Congregation Beth Ahabah, David Esleck, Dee Kirchmier, Hannelore's of Olde Towne, Jack Simpson, Jennifer McBride, Jewish Museum New York, Jimmy Choo, Lou Stevens Glam Squad, McBride Events, Meghan McSweeney Photography, Neiman Marcus, Richmond, The Bridal Salon at Saks Jandel, Tiffany & Co., Traditional Elegance, Traditional Wedding, Virginia, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, White Color Palette, White House Flowers
Post categories: Traditional Elegance

This, however, would cause the ceremony to begin much later than the planned 6pm. Starting without those guests was not an option. Chloe had her staff fire up some appetizers for the guests who were already there and we began cocktail hour prior to the ceremony.

In the meantime, how was the bride doing?

While I could tell that Katie wasn’t thrilled that everything was running late, she was happy to hear that the guests who had arrived were very well taken care of and quite happy! She was calmed by the fact that the other bus had picked up the guests and were on their way. She and Lee had a “first look” session and many of the photos were done in some extraordinary light!  Again, I believe that everything happens for a reason.

Next – the ceremony lighting. We were in the mountains, and it was October, so the sun was setting and was going to be all the way down by the time the ceremony started… luckily for us, the photographers we were working with – Sam & Mel Worthington, a husband & wife team from Worthington Photography from Richmond, VA, had shot a candlelit ceremony for one of my clients in the fall of 2009 and it was amazing. So I knew what they would be fine with minimal light. Chloe and her staff at Veritas collected as many candles that had been left over the years and we began creating the most amazing lighting for a ceremony that one could ask for!

6:45 arrived and so did the bus. We ushered the guests to the ceremony site and the ceremony began promptly at 7:00 and it… was…. gorgeous!. The glow of the candles coupled with the glow of the bride was breathtaking.

After the ceremony, as the wedding party gathered on the deck, Mel came up to the couple and said, “I know that wasn’t the ideal situation for you guys, but that was completely the ceremony you were supposed to have.” Katie & Lee totally agreed, especially after seeing the beautiful shots! We escorted the guests right into the ballroom for dinner after the ceremony and the rest of the evening, thankfully, went off without a single issue. Dinner was delicious, the room looked lovely, the band rocked the night away, and most importantly the 2nd bus was fixed and at Veritas by 11:00 for the departure of all the guests. Whew! I realize how lucky I was to have a great couple & families to work with given the situation – everyone was very understanding and thrilled with the end result. I completely feel that this was meant to be! They got the best of both worlds, the earlier light with their planned “1st sighting” of each other prior to the ceremony and then the dramatic look of a candlelight ceremony. Mel was right – it truly was the ceremony they were supposed to have!

See the whole gallery here!

Photography: Worthington Photography (more photos on their blog ~ here) / Flowers: Flowers by Natalie – Charlottesville, VA / Event Planning & Design: Weddings by Windy - Richmond, VA / Reception & Ceremony Location: Veritas Vineyards – Afton, VA / Invitations: By Invitation Only – Richmond, VA / Wedding Dress: Priscilla of Boston

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 8 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Afton, Charlottesville, Flowers by Natalie, Priscilla of Boston, Richmond, Veritas Vineyards, Virginia, Weddings by Windy, Worthington Photography
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Little Black Book Blog, Wedding Planners & Designers

photography courtesy of Erik Leise

From William Gaff at Humanstory Films, Andrea and Brendan’s wedding day ~

andrea and brendan preview from humanstory on Vimeo.

When Brendan and I met we instantly connected to each other; it was like a scene from a romantic movie where sparks flew and music played, metaphorically speaking of course, and I couldn’t believe it was happening to me. We were, and still are, inseparable and completely infatuated with one another, which explains why we fell in love so quickly. After five months of spending every free moment we had with each other and shamelessly head over heels in love, he proposed to me during a picnic breakfast at our favorite place in Richmond, Virginia, Maymont Park. He had a book made with photos of the two of us that told the story of our love for one another. We sat down on a bench together and he read me our story with tears in his eyes. I was clueless until he got to the final page and read, “The day I met you was a dream come true. Please say you’ll be my soul mate for life. Andrea, will you be my wife always and forever?” He turned the page there was a picture of the ring, he got down on one knee, pulled the ring out of his pocket and asked me to marry him. As my eyes filled up with tears, I quickly and ecstatically said “Yes, yes, yes!!!” That was the day that I became the luckiest girl in the world because I was going to marry my soul mate and best friend.

Our faith, families and friends are the most important things in both our lives and it was imperative that it show in our wedding. Throughout the whole wedding planning process these values and the support we had from everyone, including a truly wonderful wedding planner,Windy Jennings of Weddings by Windy, helped us to keep our focus on the importance of the day — that while the wedding is one day, a marriage is for a lifetime.

We are both Catholic and being married in the church where I grew up with a full mass was a given. My sister had her wedding reception in this beautiful mansion in Richmond, the Bolling Haxall House, and Brendan and I both loved it so much that it became venue for our reception as well. Everything else was just as simple to decide because of the help from our families and our wedding planner.

We love to take pictures, so although we opted against taking engagement photos it was important that we find a photographer for the wedding who we could connect with and who had a style that suited us. After we met with Erik Leise and saw the passion he had for photographing weddings through his portfolio, we knew he’d be perfect. Having a videographer was something else that was really important to us. William Gaff shot my sister’s wedding in a documentary style and it was beyond amazing and extremely touching, so having him do our wedding was a no-brainer. We wanted the memories of our wedding to be beautifully and emotionally captured; Erik and William made that dream a reality.

The music was especially important to us and my dad as well. Our wedding planner told us about a band, Right Foot Red, and one Sunday we sat down with my dad and went over their list of songs and it just got us extra excited about the reception. The band did not disappoint at all. Everyone was dancing and having an amazing time. The band even brought Brendan and me up on stage to sing Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing — it was incredible and so much fun.

The day was more than either of us could have dreamed of; a real-life fairytale. It was a beautiful day and only rained slightly during the reception, which no one even noticed since we were all inside having a blast! Our families and friends were very much included in the wedding: my dad walked me down the aisle and I saw a smile on Brendan’s face that I will never forget; our moms lit the tapers of the unity candle before the ceremony began; my sisters were both the maids of honor and their speech was perfect; Brendan’s dad was his best man and his two childhood best friends gave the best man speech on his behalf; my dad’s welcome speech during the reception was heartwarming and exceptional; Brendan’s sisters carried the gifts for the mass during the ceremony; we had close friends say the readings; and my sister and her husband sang a tear-jerking duet during the ceremony.

Every moment of our wedding day is especially treasured by us, not just because we can look back on those first memories we shared as husband and wife with amazement and delight, but because throughout the entire day we were so closely connected through the love and support of our faith, families and friends as we had wanted it to be from the very start. It was the best and most amazing day of my life — the perfect beginning to what I know is going to be a wonderful marriage filled with all the love I could ever dream of.

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 12 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Bolling Haxall House, Erik Leise, humanstory films, Richmond, Right Foot Red, Virginia, Weddings by Windy, William Gaff
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Traditional Elegance, Wedding Cinematography

from Meghan …

Paul and Teresa met while she was at a University Northern Ireland, from which Paul hails. The couple wanted to make sure the wedding incorporated each of their cultures (with him from Ireland and Teresa with her Bolivian and American roots). They used the Irish “claddagh” throughout the reception (cocktail napkins, cake topper and thank you cards) as it’s a symbol for love, friendship and loyalty.

They had salsa dancing during the rehearsal dinner and reception for Teresa’s Bolivian side. For Southern flair, the couple hosted their wedding at Tuckahoe Plantation, which is the boyhood home of Thomas Jefferson. Their invitations incorporated dogwood (Virginia state flower) and their guests enjoyed Virginia peanuts in their welcome bags.

We asked Teresa her most memorable part of her wedding day and she said, “Our favorite part of the wedding day was when we were finally able to cut loose during the reception. With my husband being called Paul McCartney, one of the things we bonded over when we first started going out was a shared love of The Beatles. So our last dance of the night to “I’ve Just Seen a Face” was definitely a highlight and the perfect ending to the whole day.”

I also asked her to share any advice for future brides, now that she’s walked down the aisle herself and she said, “If you have your heart set on an outdoor wedding like I did, be ready for extreme weather (in my case it was the intense heat) and for bugs. I’ve never been a big fan of fondant but at the last minute we decided to add it to the cake just in case of flies and to guard the cake against melting in the heat. So when we were invaded by ants that climbed all over the cake, the caterers were able to just peel away that top layer when it came time to serve it!

Photographer: Meghan McSweeney Photography
Minister: Dean Pittman, Greenwood United Methodist Church
Event Planner: Courtney Spencer, Merriment Events
Tent Rental: Skyline Tent Company
Cake: Sweetest Thing Bakery
Flowers: Flower Girls
Ceremony/Reception: Tuckahoe Plantation
Catering: White House Catering
DJ: Cam DiNunzio
Ceremony Musicians: Classical Encounter
Hair: Salon 23
Makeup: Stephanie Parker
Transportation: TNT Limousine
Party Rentals: Party Perfect

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Flower Girls Inc, Meghan McSweeney, Merriment Events, Party Perfect, Richmond, Skyline Tent Company, Sweetest Thing Bakery, Tuckahoe Plantation, Virginia, White House Catering
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Traditional Elegance, 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.

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2009. | Permalink | 8 comments | Add to del.icio.us
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

Abby and Matt’s reception was equally charming … simple elegance! Classic style.

But some of our favorite photographs from the day are the candid people shots captured throughout the day … those unrehearsed , often unnoticed expressions of love of friends and family …

And then perhaps the most exquisite shot of all …

We are going to hold off on showing you the rest of our favorites until tomorrow because Abby & Matt are going to be joining us to fill us in on all the details. In the meantime, to see more of Dave Robbins‘ work, take a look at his portfolio of fabulous wedding photographs. Dave is based in New York, but travels extensively!  More of Abby and Matt’s wedding … tomorrow!

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2009. | Permalink | 3 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Dave Robbins, Richmond, Stratford Hall, Virginia
Post categories: Little Black Book Blog, Traditional Elegance, Wedding Photography