When Bryan and I started planning our wedding, we knew we wanted something low-key and relaxed. I remember the first time I started planning for our wedding. It was one or two months after we had gotten engaged and we were kayaking in Northern Michigan with two of our friends. We had been on Lake Michigan for hours it seemed, kayaking 4-5 miles across a bay from the small island where we had set up camp the night before. My arms were sore from the trip out the previous day and our friend Kate was paddling next to me. We were talking about music festivals and I decided that was it – that was what our reception would be like. Laid back, outdoors, and filled with live music played by our talented friends and family. Kate, my lovely friend and kayak buddy, is one of the front-women in the local band The Crane Wives, so that started the wheels turning for the line-up for our wedding. By the time our wedding day arrived, we had also enlisted my younger brother, Garrett, and his friend to play, as well as my cousin Katie and her boyfriend. Once we had decided on the music-focus for the party, we started searching for locations. We lucked out and found an awesome lodge at one of our city parks, a little place tucked away in the woods with a wrap-around porch perfect for hanging out on a September’s afternoon.

Pulling together our wedding plans was a relatively simple process for us. Our ceremony was held at our church and we were so glad to be married in the beautiful tradition of the Orthodox Church. For the reception, we knew we wanted music and we knew we wanted it to feel like a big party. We also wanted it to be supportive of the great local food, beer and wine culture that we have in Michigan. We choose beer and wine from small local companies, as well as a few hard ciders to celebrate the autumn season. For food, we chose our favorite restaurant to cater an all-vegan meal for our 160 guests. The restaurant, Marie Catrib’s, has a great relationship with local farms and they designed a great autumn-themed menu for us. The meal is the number one thing that guests were head-over-heels with at our wedding and we’re still getting compliments on it. We had a local baker make an array of cupcakes, muffins, chocolates and truffles, all vegan, and my mom added to the sweets table with her famous apple pie and a tasty vegan pumpkin cheesecake. Another easy decision for us was choosing our photographers. Bobbi and Mike had taken our engagement photos (which is where Bryan proposed– I thought we were taking promotional photos for our website!), and after getting to know them we knew we wanted them to be a part of our day. They have such wonderful personalities and their work is, of course, just stunning. We were so happy to have them on board with us.

The other details of our day, all the smaller, frilly things – colors, decorations, flowers – were chosen rather easily. I am obsessed with the color mustard (my friends call me mustard mae), and well, purple just looked nice with it. I made most of the decorations in the last few weeks before the wedding, and it was a welcome excuse to get together with my closest friends and have a good time. The bouquets came from a local florist who grows flowers in her backyard and sells them at a local farmer’s market. I had found her through the recommendation of one of our past brides and I loved working with her. Since Bryan and I are wedding photographers, we were lucky enough to have a lot of support from our couples, and to even have one couple who shared their thrifted plate collection with us and another who shared mason jars with us. What a blessing!

So the day-of came, and it was beautiful. Sunny skies and warm for late September. I got ready with my friends, saw Bryan for our first look, and then we got married. And then it started raining. Right before our reception, which was supposed to be both indoors and outdoors. When we arrived at our reception, we were happy to see The Crane Wives, our cocktail band, playing on the wrap-around porch as rain beat down on the roof, with all of our guests on the porch as well. When we first arrived, we wove our way through the crowd and had the opportunity to greet all of our guests for the first time. It was such a wonderful experience. No one minded the rain, nor did they mind when the power went out because of the storm! When it went out, my brothers and our friend Matthew rushed to a local store and came back with hundreds of tea lights, which they lined the tables with. Some of our dear guests contacted folks they knew with generators and before we knew it, the party was back up and running, just in time for dinner and more live music. After dinner, the skies cleared, we snuck outside for a few more photos, and our guests were able to enjoy the lovely landscape and games that we’d set up. We danced into the night to a great mix by our awesome DJ. My favorite moment of the entire evening was after the party, when we ran out through sparklers. Bryan and I got to our car but before we drove off, we held each other and watched all of our crazy friends running around the lawn with the sparklers, yelling and having so much fun. It was beautiful and the best way to finish such a lovely day.

Photographer: bobbi+mike / Floral Designer: The Flower Garden / Invitation Designer: Hitch Design Studio / Desserts: Wednesday Evening Cookies / Wedding Gown Designer: Watters / Bridesmaid’s Dress Designer: Lulu’s / Rings: Touchwood Rings / Groom’s Suit: Topman / Caterer: Marie Catrib’s / Beer: Founder’s Brewing / Wine: Leelanau Cellars / Cider: Tandem Ciders / Veil: DIY / Fabric Flower Headpieces: Darci’s Doodads / Bride’s Hair: Hair by Kayley Heeringa / Cocktail Band: The Crane Wives

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Post tags: Babies, Baby's Breath, bobbi+mike, Bowties, Bryan And Mae, Burlap, Buttons, Casual Elegance, Chalkboards, Color Palette Yellow Purple, Croquet, Darci's Doodads, DIY Veil, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Greek Orthodox, Hair by Kayley Heeringa, Hitch Design Studio, Leelanau Cellars, Lulu's, Marie Catrib's Founder's Brewing, Mason Jars, Michigan, Mustard, Northern Michigan, Outdoor Weddings, Quilts, Tandem Ciders, The Crane Wives, The Flower Garden, Topman, Touchwood Rings, Vintage Chic, Vintage Windows, Watters, Wedding Photography, Wednesday Evening Cookies, wildflowers
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Little Black Book Blog

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From the bride… Alex and I met in July 2009 while I was on a study abroad trip in Costa Rica. I was there with a group from my art school and spoke very little Spanish. He spoke very little English. But like a cheesy romantic movie, we fell for each other within 2 short weeks! After I returned home, we kept in touch via telephone and Internet as I frantically studied Spanish and planned a 6-month return to Costa Rica. Following my second trip, where I was able to learn more about Alex, his family and culture, he decided to come to the US to do the same! And after a few trips back and forth, Alex was here to stay and we were planning our wedding.

Concerning the look and feel of the wedding, I was determined to have ours outdoors. I wanted something effortlessly beautiful — to be surrounded by nature without having perfectly manicured floral arrangements. I also wanted artsy little details that made our guests interact with one another and socialize. We had post cards on each table, DIY centerpieces and a corn hole game on the lawn for our guests to play. Trying to save a little money, I looked up DIY ideas that I could incorporate thoughout our big day. For flowers, I contacted a local farm owner who sold small bouquets at our town’s farmer’s market. She actually let me (and my sister and aunties) go pick flowers ourselves! Practically free flowers for a wedding?! We got so lucky. I wanted it to look like we’d just picked them from the garden, so that’s exactly what we did. My bridesmaids and I arranged the centerpieces the night before the wedding. I also had some bridesmaids paint the wedding signs with me. I was happy to have little projects that brought us together more often than usual.  

When it came to the venue, we decided to have our wedding at my parents’ house. We knew it was going to be a lot of work but felt more comfortable investing our money into my parents’ property rather than spending it on a rental fee at a venue. My friend, Brooke Covington of Dolce Bella Events, was able to sort through my thoughts and help plan it all. I wouldn’t have stayed sane if it weren’t for her great ideas! And while I was getting ready before the wedding, she set everything up and executed the day exactly as I’d hoped!

Wedding Photography: Nam Nguyen Photography / Wedding Venue: The Bride’s Family Home in Peachtree City, Georgia / Flowers: DIY / Wedding Coordination: Brooke Covington of Dolce Bella Events / Wedding Dress: Watters / Shoes: ModCloth / Wedding Cake: A Family Friend / Jewelry: Sophie Pie / Groom’s Vest + Tie: JoS. A. Bank / Catering: Sun in My Belly / Hair + Makeup: Ici Paris Day Spa & Salon

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Post tags: Brooke Covington, Dolce Bella Events, Georgia, Ici Paris Spa & Salon, Jos A Bank, ModCloth, Nam Nguyen Photography, Peachtree City, Pink, Purple, Sophie Pie, Sun in My Belly, Turqoise, Watters, Yellow
Post categories: Atlanta Weddings, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Georgia Weddings

Talk about making every one of our dress dreams come true.  From Bridal to Wtoo to Bridesmaids to Mother of the Bride to Flower Girl, Watters has your entire wedding COMPLETELY covered in gorgeous fabrics, incredibly chic silhouettes and a look that will suit every wedding style out there.

So here’s the best part. In celebration of our 2011 Best-Of Magazine, the generous team at Watters is gifting one lucky reader a Gift Certificate for $450 to be used towards any product at any of the retailers listed on their website.

To Enter: Head on over to our Best of Magazine and leave a comment below on your favorite bridal look with the associated page number. (Example – Modern in Miami, pg. 19). Feel free to gab away about the gown as well! Not required but we kind of love it.

To Win: The winner, chosen completely at random using a number generator, will be announced right here on SMP on Friday, February 17th.

Thank you so much to Watters for their general awesomeness and for contributing to so many gorgeous brides on SMP. Good luck, lovelies! xoxo

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Post tags: Magazine Giveaway, Sponsored Post, Watters
Post categories: Sponsored Posts, The Blog

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From Nate of Nate Henderson Photography… Laura and Joseph held an intimate wedding on the grounds of Dunham Farms, south of Savannah, Georgia, to celebrate their union as husband and wife. They were married under a roughly-hewn arbor, and their reception was a stone’s throw from the marsh. Guests were treated to amazing food by Savannah Event Catering, a makeshift photobooth with props, live music from a local band, and other games.

Wedding Photography: Nate Henderson Photography / Wedding Venue: Dunham Farms in Midway, Georgia / Wedding Cake: Delectable Designs / Catering: Savannah Event Catering / Wedding Gown: Watters / Flowers + Peacock Hair Piece: DIY by the Bride / Umbrellas: Bella Umbrella

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Post tags: Bella Umbrella, Blue, Delectable Designs, Dunham Farms, Georgia, Midway, Nate Henderson Photography, Red, Savannah Event Catering, Watters
Post categories: Casual Elegance, Georgia Weddings, Savannah Weddings

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From the bride… Sean and I knew even before we got engaged that we wanted to be married in October. It’s one of the most beautiful months in St. Louis and means a lot to both of us since that’s the month our story started. We had 16 months to plan, so  we took a “first things first” approach and immediately made a list of the top three tasks we wanted to check off our to-do list as soon as possible: venue, date and photographer. We feel like we really lucked out and worked with some of the best vendors available to us by taking this approach! We went for a simple, rustic and crafty feel that fit our venue perfectly. I definitely mean WE when I say it too, as Sean was a huge help throughout all the DIY creations I dreamed up. Sean’s biggest project was the save the date stop-motion video, while mine was our invitations. He spent many, many hours creating a story board, taking over 400 photos, importing them to iMovie and adding music. I spent well over a month sourcing the perfect (cotton) paper, setting up a new printer at home, designing, cutting, gluing, personalizing and hand-addressing over 100 invitations. Most of the decor for the wedding was handmade too. Sean, my mom and I folded, cut and fluffed around 250 crepe paper flowers to make the rings around the lanterns on each table. I wrapped 4-inch craft letters in yarn for our gifts table and used a leftover lantern as our card box. The seating chart was a hand-painted banner that read “find your seat,” and we painted a few pieces of wood to collage frames on that read every guest’s name and table number in alphabetical order. I designed and printed the table numbers to match our invitations, and my bridesmaids helped me cut and glue them. Sean and I cut and glued 200 paper flags that read “Yay” and “Hooray” for guests to wave as we walked down the aisle together. The cake topper was handmade by Brandi of Milk Tea, which I won through a contest on Love and Lavender. Our guestbook was probably one of my favorite details at the reception. I saw a similar example online from a bride who had used wine bottles to gather messages from guests, and I knew something like that would be perfect for our day since our venue was a wine garden. I collected bottles and put labels on them to correspond with the anniversary we’d be opening the bottle. We reused strips of paper from a wedding countdown chain Sean’s cousin had made us as a gift the previous Christmas. Our guests wrote their notes on the strips, rolled them up, and put them in a bottle of their choice. We loved reading the notes from the bottle labeled 10.15.11, and I had to pack away the remainder of the bottles so we’re not tempted to break in to any future anniversary bottles before we’re supposed to!  Finding my gown was easy — I saw it online and knew it would be the one. I chose to switch up tradition a bit and go with “Something new, something old, something black and something gold” in honor of the 100th anniversary of Homecoming at my alma mater, Mizzou, which occurred on our wedding day. My dress and shoes were new, and I wore a vintage brooch to accent my pearl bracelet as something old. I made myself a purse out of gold and black fabric to represent my school’s colors. The pearl bracelet was actually a necklace I borrowed from my mom that used to belong to my grandmother. I did manage to also wear something blue, which was the stone in a Claddaugh ring my parents had given me as a souvenir from their trip to Ireland years ago. Sean and I can’t think of a single thing that we didn’t love about our wedding day. We’re proud to say that we made sure to eat plenty, drink very little, and get a piece of the wedding cake as well! Wedding Photography: Lisa Hessel Photography / Wedding Venue: Wine Country Gardens in Defiance, Missouri / Dress: Watters via Nolte’s Bridal in Kansas City, Missouri / Hairpiece: eBay / Flowers: Les Bouquets / Cake Topper: Milk Tea / Invitation + Program Design: DIY, Bride + Groom / Bride’s + Bridesmaids’ Clutches: DIY, Bride / Save-the-Date Video, Guestbook Wine Bottles, Centerpieces, Boutonniere Favors, Paper Flags, Photobooth Props + Signs: DIY, Bride + Groom / Ceremony Musicians: Groom’s Cousins

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Post tags: Defiance, Do-It-Yourself Inspired, Ebay, Gray, Les Bouquets, Lisa Hessel Photography, Milk Tea, Missouri, Missouri River Valley, Nolte's Bridal, Purple, St. Charles County, Watters, Wine Country Gardens
Post categories: The Blog

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Cana Video Productions is one of my favorite videographers and after watching this sweet film you’ll see why!

From Kristin of The Dazzling Details… Devon’s one request was to be able to surf the morning of his wedding. Kara has a love of all lanterns, and at the top of the list are star lanterns. Relaxed, romantic and intimate was important. On the beach was equally important. They are a little bit Bohemian, a little bit rock and roll, a lot about family and friends. The color palette of green, gray and purple blended perfectly with natural wood to create one of the most beautiful wedding atmospheres I have ever experienced. We wanted the ceremony to be all about the natural beauty of the beach, so a canopy was created with natural bamboo and a simple white linen draped off-center and surrounded with upside-down hanging greenery. Lanterns filled with florals lined the aisle, and a shoe check area was created to encourage bare-footed-ness! The bridesmaids carried beautiful mini-bouquets, and the flower girl held the most adorable pillow (hanging on a branch) created from the same fabrics used in lounge pillows and embroidered with K + D.

While the bride and groom took a few photos following the ceremony, some guests enjoyed cocktails at the nearby palapa bar to avoid the hot sun while others braved the heat and relaxed in lounge area beneath hotel umbrellas! Beautiful beach cabanas were built with oversized pillows and low tables for those who wanted to relax right on the beach floor with a striking view of the ocean just yards away. And with a groom who absolutely had to surf the morning of his wedding, well, it’s just clear that surfing somehow had to be incorporated into the decor as well. We searched and searched and found old surf boards in Sayulita that we drilled holes into, hammered oxidized nails into and hung escort cards on twine right on the boards. The escort cards, which were each marked with a vintage surfing image, led guests to their dinner tables where the same image popped out of the florals. The tables were topped with burlap centers and decorated with an eclectic grouping of pieces including lanterns, simple jar arrangements, limes, tin stars and twigs. The result was so natural, stunning and fun!

During dinner, guests toasted, chatted and watched the sun drop in to the evening sky. And, of course, prepared themselves for the hours of dancing ahead. The dance floor was created especially for Kara; in the middle of the floor, we constructed a small canopy with upside-down greenery around the perimeter and dozens of star lanterns suspended from underneath to add a twinkling bit of romance to illuminate the dance floor once darkness had set in. Later on in the evening, cake was cut and served while guests mingled in lounge areas and on the beach.

Wedding Photography: Jeff Newsom / Wedding Coordination, Design + Flowers: The Dazzling Details / Wedding Cinematography: Drew Barefoot + Ben Potter of Cana Video Productions / Wedding Venue + Catering: Dreams Resort Puerto Vallarta / Wedding Cake: Charme Reposteria / DJ: Sonido Extasis / Trio: Trio Montecarlo / Bride’s Hair + Makeup: The Salon at Dreams Resort Puerto Vallarta / Wedding Gown: Watters “Sonora” / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: BCBG

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Post tags: BCBG, Ben Potter, Cana Video Productions, Charme Reposteria, Dreams Resort Puerto Vallarta, Drew Barefoot, Gray, Green, Jeff Newsom, Mexico, Puerto Vallarta, Purple, Sonido Extasis, Sonora, The Dazzling Details, Trio Montecarlo, Watters
Post categories: The Blog

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From the Bride… We love very DIY, romantic, rustic, and modern… I also have a strange obsession with butterflies and sticks, so we knew those had to be involved. Sticks are close to my heart — when I was little, my stepdad and I would go play in the park and pick up sticks big enough for walking with and make up songs about them… it sounds weird, but it’s sentimental. We are both designers, so we knew what we wanted, right down to the last detail. We also wanted to make sure our vegetarian/vegan friends had options, so we used Whole Foods catering to create a wonderful menu of food for our guests … some firm meat-eaters, even to this day, say how much they loved our food! We also had vegan cupcakes, so no one had to feel left out. We also didn’t want it to be stuffy, too “done,” or too fancy … we wanted everyone to feel comfortable.

In our engagement photos, our photographer set us up in a field with some mason jars and striped straws. We carried that through to our cocktail hour by making a sweet tea vodka lemonade drink as our specialty drink, which also helped us save money. We used purple and gray striped straws, since purple/silver/gray/white were our colors. We framed a photo of us from our engagement photos and put it in between all the drinks — it looked so nice. We also made sure to design, screen print, and assemble all of our wedding invitations. We had someone use calligraphy on our envelopes for invitations, and that made it look really special. I designed our wedding website with all the info on it. I think my favorite part of the wedding though was when we had pictures taken with my giant mascot Hello Kitty head and his storm trooper helmet from Star Wars — I think that really personalized it. People seemed to get a kick out of those as well.

I loved spending time with my friends and family and new husband. It sounds SO cliche to say that, but it will probably be the first and only time almost every single one of my loved ones were in a room together … and they blended so nicely. It was overwhelming to see everyone I loved ALL on the same day. I also loved the honeymoon — nothing better than getting to relax for such a long time (not long enough!) with the love of my life/best friend after all of it was said and done. Bliss!!

Wedding Photography: Matt Miller of Our Labor of Love / Wedding Venue: Ambient+Studio / Wedding Coordinator: It’s All in the Details Event and Wedding Planning (Now based in Seattle) / Florist: Le Bonne Fleur / Makeup: P3 Lab / Hair: Luxe Beauty Co. / Officiant: Rev. Gale York / Rentals: Unlimited Party Rentals / Cupcakes: Dulce Vegan / Catering: Whole Foods / Wedding Dress: Enzoani / Bridesmaid Dresses: Watters / Groom’s Tuxedo: J.Crew / Groomsmen Rental Tuxedos: Men’s Wearhouse

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Post tags: Ambient+Studio, Atlanta, Dulce Vegan, Enzoani, Georgia, It's All in the Details Wedding & Event Planning, J. Crew, Le Bonne Fleur, Luxe Beauty Co., Matt Miller, Men's Wearhouse, Our Labor of Love, P3 Lab, Rev. Gale York, Unlimited Party Rentals, Watters, Whole Foods
Post categories: Atlanta Weddings, Contemporary, Georgia Weddings

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From Lauren of Lauren Gabrielle Photography… Jocelyn and Kevin met in training at their first jobs out of college in February 2004, which lasted for six weeks. They quickly became friends; however, Jocelyn was based in the New York office and Kevin in San Francisco so they went back to their respective offices once training was completed. Work projects allowed them to stay in touch, but ultimately Kevin was lured by the bright lights of NYC and accepted a new job there. He moved to NYC in May 2005 and the pair officially began dating a month later. Kevin’s version of their story is a bit different — he says he was always courting Jocelyn from across the country and after months of $300 cell phone bills, he picked up and moved to NYC for a girl, then a job — in that order.

From the bride… Our original wedding date was August 28, 2011, but we were in for the surprise of our lives when Hurricane Irene forced all of NYC to shut down. We had to decide immediately what to do about the wedding.  Our venue, the Tribeca Rooftop, was one block from the evacuation zone in lower Manhattan and offered us new dates to reschedule. All our vendors were incredible to work with and within hours, we had settled on a new date in October. However, we still went forward with a mini-ceremony that weekend because our family had traveled from China, London, and California to be with us. My uncle, a minister, officiated our impromptu ceremony during what was supposed to be our original rehearsal dinner. We invited everyone who could make it to NYC on short notice and had about 50 people witness our first round of vows. It was wet, windy, emotional weekend filled with love and memories!

For the new wedding date of October 9, 2011, we still had the same vision and hoped for anything except for a natural disaster. Fortunately, we had the most beautiful weather – sunny and temperatures in the low 80s! I had always envisioned my wedding to be modern but with traditional touches and we definitely accomplished both. The Tribeca Rooftop had a great NYC-loft vibe with amazing views and we always knew we had to make use of the outdoor rooftop where cocktail hour was held. Our flowers and color scheme changed a bit due to the availability of flowers, but our florist, Victoria Ahn, did a great job of recreating our vision with what was in season. We kept everything to navy blue, green, cream and added a touch of purple! In the end, our worries stopped being about the planning and minor details of the wedding – we both felt so happy to be finally walking down the aisle after waiting an extra six weeks to be pronounced husband and wife that we just wanted to start celebrating with all our friends and family!

Photographer: Lauren Gabrielle Photography, Assisted by Diana Lupu Photography / Venue: Tribeca Rooftop / Band: Creations Music / Florist: Designs by Ahn / Bride’s Dress: Watters / Bride’s Shoes: Giuseppe Zanotti / Groom’s Suit: Zegna / Bridesmaid Dresses: Ann Taylor / Groomsmen Outfits: Topman / Hair + Makeup: Ayari’s Brides

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Post tags: Ann Taylor, Ayari's Brides, Blue, Cream, Creations Music, Designs By Ahn, Diana Lupu Photography, Giuseppe Zanotti, Green, Lauren Gabrielle Photography, Navy Blue, New York, New York City, Purple, Topman, Tribeca Rooftop, Watters, Zegna
Post categories: New York City Weddings, New York Weddings, Traditional Elegance