Click here to see the entire gallery of images!

From the Bride… Cristian and I are, what you might call, an unlikely couple. He was born in Colombia; I was born in Taiwan. Our paths crossed one fateful summer in a city far away from home, after some time getting to know each other long distance across US and international time zones, we both ended up working in Boston, MA. The rest is history as they say. When we embarked on the journey of wedding planning, we had a vision but not a clue on how to execute it. It was entirely a learning process that turned into many creative collaborations, DIY projects and the most fun I had in a long time! We dreamt of a rustic New England barn wedding but didn’t initially follow our instincts. With less than a year to plan, we rushed into our first venue – an exquisite ocean front historical mansion in Rhode Island – only to come to terms that it just wasn’t us. We gave up our deposit, started over, and found the venue of our dreams by by word of mouth with six months to go. Tip #1 – follow your instincts.

Our theme was rustic, vintage, shabby chic. Bittersweet Farms was the perfect venue. Bittersweet, a former barn in Westport, nestled in the woods with a garden gazebo, preserved all of the natural charm of a farm as backdrop to its formal dining amenities. The staff was incredibly flexible in letting us customize our experience – from food and drink menu selections to ceremony & reception set up. They even allowed us to use hay-bales for seating during our ceremony.

We wanted to feel at “home” on our Big Day, so we decided to turn the restaurant into a cozy living room / backyard. Vintage books from the public library (yay for unlimited check out!) and hand picked tea pots, mason jars, mugs, bottles from the thrift shop were spread across burluxe covered tables and various corners of the room. Our florist did a fabulous job selecting romantic muted colors including ivory, nude, and champagne with pops of coral & yellow flowers to fill the hundred plus vessels. She created a unique arrangement for every table that complimented our overall theme – all within our budget!

Tip #2 – Have fun. Cristian and I wanted to ensure that our family and guests enjoyed themselves on our special day. We were both “Gleeks” in high school before there was Glee, so we surprised our guests with a flash mob performance featuring 10 a capella singers dressed as waiters. Many seriously thought they were singing waiters! In crafting a fun filled experience for our guests, we had a ton of fun ourselves in the process including the creating a custom wedding website, interactive wedding invitations, a DIY cupcake tower, a hand drawn finger print “guestbook”, crossword puzzle in our DIY wedding program, a Jib Jab video in our wedding slide show (which our photographer, Amber, helped put together), and designing a marriage advice game that got everyone participating!

I still can’t believe we planned a wedding in six months! It would have been unimaginable without the help of friends, amazing vendors (some of whom are friends like our web designer & musicians and most of the others were found by word of mouth,) my mother-in-law who helped tailor and customize my dress, and our ingenious wedding planner, Veronica. I didn’t believe in hiring help, but I’m very glad we did. We had a million ideas in mind, but time was not by our side. This did not faze Veronica, who after 6 months of refining ‘plan A’ was faced with inclement weather on the day of our wedding (ceremony was supposed to take place outdoors) and had to reinvent our ceremony in a much smaller space. Her execution on the day-of was priceless.

Wedding Photography: Forevercandid Photography / Wedding Planner: Veronica Alexandra of Blue Ivy / Wedding Venue: Bittersweet Farm / Ceremony Musicians: Jenna Ordway, Justin Lee, Jaime Vergara + Kione Ebalaroza / Cocktail Hour Musicians: Receita de Samba / Wedding Videography: Well Spun Weddings / Cupcakes: Konditor Meister / Floral Design: A Victorian Garden / Hair + Make-up: Styling by Lisette / A Cappella Singers: The Harvard Opportunes / Shuttle Service: Groundforce One / Candy Apple Favors: Frenchy’s Popcorn / Formal Invitations: Blue Ivy Designer, Ricardo Morales-Hendry / Printer: Ink Kiosk / Guestbook: Blue Ivy Designer, Ricardo Morales-Hendry / Bridal Gown: Maggie Sottero / Bride’s Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Groom’s Suit: JoS. A. Bank / Wedding Website Design: Variabilis / Custom Bridal Bolero: Rosie’s Bridal (Miami, Florida)

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 18 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: A Victorian Garden, Badgley Mischka, Bittersweet Farm, Blue Ivy, Forevercandid Photography, Frenchy's Popcorn, Groundforce One, Ink Kiosk, Jos A Bank, Konditor Meister, Maggie Sottero, Massachusetts Weddings, Providence Hill Farms, Receita de Samba, Ricardo Morales-Hendry, Rosie's Bridal, Styling by Lisette, The Harvard Opportunes, Variabilis, Well Spun Weddings
Post categories: Massachusetts Weddings, Vintage Chic

click to see the full wedding gallery!

Jason’s proposal was touching and sentimental. It started with a poem and ended on a bended knee. Soon after, we were surrounded by friends and family delighting in our bliss. The celebration began at dusk and went well into the night. It was a night to remember. Jason and I knew we wanted our wedding to have the same feel; sweet, elegant, romantic and fun!

I started off looking at wedding blogs, including Style Me Pretty, for inspiration. I found myself drawn to ethereal, whimsical, romantic weddings. Chandeliers, candle-lit rooms, soft chiffon, drop veils from Monique Lhuillier, beautiful full peonies, garden roses and lilacs- all were part of my inspiration. Peachy-pink with touches of lilac purple, pinks and chamomile was my color palette. I hand-picked the peach-pink silk-chiffon for my bridesmaids’ dresses and had them custom-made. Not only did the dresses fit them like a glove, but they also showed a bit of their personalities because they were the ones who designed the tops of their dresses. I was also drawn to quirky details. I scoured here and there for the perfect quirky sock for the groomsmen, which I found in Paul Smith. For the bridesmaids, I wanted flowing streams of ribbon for their bouquets. It gave the bouquets a fresh and light element. As for the reception, I wanted guests to feel like they were in an ethereal wonderland full of soft lights and tall branches. I love the organic nature of fresh picked flowers from an English garden and I hoped to reflect that in our floral arrangements.

In all aspects, we had the wedding of our dreams. We knew that the beautiful and majestic Oheka Castle was the only venue we truly desired and was lucky enough to get our wish. Our amazing florists, Saipua in collaboration with Nicolette Camille, did a splendid job adding to the beauty of Oheka with a gorgeous palette and arrangement of flowers. They were so professional and incredibly intuitive. Within minutes of conversing, they understood my vision for my wedding day and they pulled it off without flaw. Our wedding couldn’t have gone so effortlessly without our planner Annie Lee of Daughter of Design and assistants. And finally, our EXTRAORDINARY photographer, Caroline Tran, was there every step of the way to capture all the splendor and elegance.

From the flowers to the cake to the smiles on our guests’ face, it was an amazing day… one I will never forget.

Photography: Caroline Tran / Cinematography: Well Spun Wedding Films / Flowers: Saipua / Event Planning + Design: Daughter of Design / Ceremony + Reception Location: Oheka Castle / Invitations: Bella figura / Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Dress: Priscilla of Boston / Hair: Valery Joseph Salon / Musicians: Rhythm In Motion, Inc / Linens and Coverings: Party Rental LTD / Makeup Artist: makeupnv / Transportation: M & V Limousines LTD / Film Work: Richard Photo

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 33 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Bella Figura, Caroline Tran, Daughter of Design, Inc., Jimmy Choo, M & V Limousines, MakeupNV, New York Weddings, Oheka Castle, Party Rental Ltd., Priscilla of Boston, Rythm in Mothion, Saipua, Valery Joseph Salon, Well Spun Weddings
Post categories: Traditional Elegance

Amazing, isn’t it. A HUUUUGE congratulations to Libby and Jim. You guys are so absolutely adorable and I know that if your life together is half as gorgeous as this wedding, you are two very lucky people. We love you!

Photography: Hoffer Photography / Cinematography: Well Spun Weddings / Flowers and Event Design: Beautiful Blooms / Ceremony and Reception Location: John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove / Invitations: Sarah Drake / Dress: The Gallery by Lela Rose / Caterer: Jeffrey Miller Catering / Makeup: Jill Fulop – Face The Occasion / Hair: Natalie Pagano – Hair By Natalie / Bridesmaid Dresses: Bill Levkoff / Music + DJ: Craig Konowal – Circle of Sound DJ’s / Favors: Etsy Vendor – 2 Birds In Love / Watercolor bird table markers: Christina Galagarza – C2G2

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 8 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: 2 Birds in Love, Beautiful Blooms, Bill Levkoff, Birdcages, Birdhouses, Blue, C2G2, Circle of Sound DJ’s, Etsy, Face The Occasion, Garden, Hair By Natalie, Hoffer Photography, Jeffery Miller Catering, John James Audobon Center, Lela Rose, owls, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Sarah Drake, Well Spun Weddings
Post categories: Wedding Cinematography

click here to see the full wedding gallery!

Libby’s wedding is also being featured in The Knot Pennsylvania & Delaware, on stands February 7th!!

Pinch me! We’re on SMP. I have been faithfully devouring Style Me Pretty for 4+ years and couldn’t believe my good fortune when I was asked to become part of the team a little over one year ago. What could be better than planning your very own wedding, while looking at other gorgeous weddings all day long? Not much, I say!

I met the handsome man above in a limo (!) during a mutual friend’s birthday celebration, while attending the University of West Chester, just outside of Philadelphia. After relocating to the Boston area, we entertained the idea of a New England wedding but decided to come home to beautiful Pennsylvania, where so many of our family and friends still live. We instantly fell in love with the John James Audubon Society at Mill Grove as we drove up the long, tree lined drive. This venue exudes Pennsylvania charm and has everything that we were hoping to find. Fieldstone barn (check!), Pavilion with huge fireplace (check!), Classic old estate (check!), Porch with rocking chairs (check!), Owl at the cocktail hour (BIG CHECK!) The owl definitely sealed the deal…

I never anticipated how tough it would be to nail down the overall feel of our wedding, since I see so many wonderful ideas day in and day out! Our “Love Letter” invitations by Sarah Drake set the tone for rustic romance and as the weeks went on, I also found myself incorporating vintage and woodland elements as well. While my mom and I are pros at “hunting and gathering,” we’ll be the first to admit that we sort of lost track of our vision as we got closer to the big day. How were we going to incorporate all of this goodness into one cohesive style? And when I say “goodness” I mean 300+ bud vases, 20+ mason jars, 25 birdcages, an old typewriter, blue/white hankies, family love letters – you name it, we found it.

We chose SMP Little Black Book member, Beautiful Blooms in Philadelphia to discuss a plan of attack. With their help and ideas, we were able to incorporate all of our treasures throughout the ceremony, cocktail hour and reception and it just flowed perfectly as our guests moved from one event to the next. My personal favorite was their idea to paint all of our birdhouses blue and hang little vintage bird playing cards inside of them with ribbon, along with lots of flowers. To Maya, Donna and the team at Beautiful Blooms – we cannot thank you enough for your creative, over the top, amazingness!

We also had a lot of help from our family and friends, which showed in everything from the programs, the ceremony music, hand painted table markers, sweet little bird nests with ferns from my mother’s garden, wooden table pedestals, down to the microbrew selection. We are lucky to know so many crafters, musicians and brewers! Speaking of music, one of the highlights of the night was when my adorable father surprised me with a song/toast called, “A Song For My Daughter.” Waterworks! Well Spun Weddings turned this into the sweetest video for us to keep forever.

Photography: Hoffer Photography / Cinematography: Well Spun Weddings / Flowers and Event Design: Beautiful Blooms / Ceremony and Reception Location: John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove / Invitations: Sarah Drake / Dress: The Gallery by Lela Rose / Caterer: Jeffrey Miller Catering / Makeup: Jill Fulop – Face The Occasion / Hair: Natalie Pagano – Hair By Natalie / Bridesmaid Dresses: Bill Levkoff / Music + DJ: Craig Konowal – Circle of Sound DJ’s / Favors: Etsy Vendor – 2 Birds In Love / Watercolor bird table markers: Christina Galagarza – C2G2

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 48 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: 2 Birds in Love, Beautiful Blooms, Bill Levkoff, Birdcages, Birdhouses, Blue, C2G2, Circle of Sound DJ's, Etsy, Face The Occasion, Garden, Hair By Natalie, Hoffer Photography, Jeffery Miller Catering, John James Audobon Center, Lela Rose, owls, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Sarah Drake, Well Spun Weddings
Post categories: Casual Elegance

Thank you so much to Jon Gangwer of Well Spun Weddings for introducing us to his gorgeous work and to this lovely wedding. And thanks to MK Photography for sharing the ridiculously beautiful images!

We have more to come, so check back soon!

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2008. | Permalink | 4 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: MK Photography, Well Spun Weddings
Post categories: Traditional Elegance

So so pretty…the couple seems so in love, so beautiful. We have more from this wedding on the way!

© Style Me Pretty : The Ultimate Wedding Blog, 2008. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: MK Photo, Well Spun Weddings
Post categories: Traditional Elegance