Inpsiration Board: Vintage Garden

One of the popular themes being seen in weddings now is the vintage theme. Since there are many eras to choose from when thinking of "vintage", there can be many different types of vintage events. This inspiration board showcases a "Vintage Garden" wedding, complete with flowers, pastels, and of course gorgeous vintage elements.


Row 1: Green bottles; Gray Bridesmaid; Jar Centerpiece
Row 2: Place setting; Chandeliers; Invitations; Crystal Candelabra; Bride on staircase
Row 3: Bride and Groom; Bouquet; Tablescape

Any suggestions for other types of vintage themed weddings? I can think of a few myself!

Bridal Show Bliss

It's Bridal Show season! This weekend was my first time on the other side of a bridal show, and it definitely opened my eyes to a few things.

One of the floral sculptures made by MMD Events for the bridal show.

Lets start with the different types of brides that I met. There was the bride who was in shock, overwhelmed, and didn't know where to start. The brides prepared with huge binders full of ideas, magazine clippings, and pictures. And the most common brides, in the middle of the extremes, who were calm, enjoying themselves, and there to find ideas and possible vendors for their wedding.

So amidst making these observations, I realized that there are many things brides should consider before attending a bridal show to make their time worth while.

• Have an idea of what you NEED. Do you need everything from a venue to a cake baker? Have at it and peruse the show to your liking. If you need a cake baker only, focus on those vendors and get the most information you can. Feel free to of course go to other vendors as well, because you never know what you'll find!

• Have an idea of what you WANT. If you've been toying with the idea of a planner, it doesn't hurt to talk to one. Talking to planner could make you aware of all of the things that you haven't yet thought of, including things that you would have to worry about on the day of your wedding. Use the bridal show as the chance to do that! If you would like ceiling draping in your ballroom venue, talk to an event design company. You never know, you might just get a complimentary consultation out of it! It's your wedding, and you want it to be the best it can be. Get all of the information that you need to make decisions wisely.
  

• Have an idea of your VISION. Almost every bride has some sort of vision of what she wants her wedding to be like. It could be the colors, the time of year, the venue, or a specific theme. If you don't think you have a vision of what you want, just think hard about the previously mentioned things (colors, time of year, venue, specific theme), and it will come to you. Sometimes just the colors or time of year will end up being the "theme", such as Rustic Autumn or Romantic Garden Party. You can even mention some of those things to different vendors and I'm sure they will have ideas to provide you with.

It's quite alright if you've just recently gotten engaged and go to your first bridal show with no ideas or plans whatsoever. It could be helpful to you and give you a plethora of ideas. However, be aware that it may be overwhelming. Wedding talk (venues, dates, dresses....the list goes on and on) can certainly be intimidating.

Nonetheless, I highly recommend going to bridal shows. Try to go to more than one, since different vendors attend different shows. Definitely do your research, collect business cards, meet the vendors, and get a feel for the personalities of the different vendors too. Also, don't forget, there are usually GIVEAWAYS of all sorts at bridal shows! And the most important thing is to have fun!

And now, a few pretty wedding-related things to start off your week!

DIY Tissue Paper Flowers

Via The Bride's Cafe, by Leo Patrone Photography


Photo by Angela Anderson Photography


Santa Barbara Chic

Via Bride's Cafe Blog, by Stephanie Williams

Why I Blog

I felt like sharing something about myself today, I hope you all won't mind. It's the answer to the question, "Why do you blog?" If you had asked me at this time last year about blogging, I wouldn't have had an answer because I had no idea about it! I knew that they existed, but I didn't know about the vast amounts of information, ideas, and inspiration (the three I's, how cute!) that were available through blogs.

In January (described in more detail here), I was told about Style Me Pretty. From then on, I was forever a member of the blogosphere. There are so many things that I would have done differently if I had been reading blogs earlier on in my wedding planning, as I've said several times in my blogging.

Photo from author's personal collection

I decided that when I returned from the honeymoon, I was going to start a wedding blog. But I didn't want to start a blog just because I was still in love with weddings. I started this blog because I want to help other brides, bridesmaids, mothers of brides, basically whoever is involved in a wedding! I want to provide tips and tricks to brides so their planning experience is fun and their wedding day goes smoothly.

I realized that I was one of the first in my circle of friends to get married, and therefore I didn't have anyone to go to for advice. At times, I know I was annoying my friends and mother with discussions of bridesmaid dresses, invitations, monograms, flowers, the list goes on and on. There were times that I felt like I had nowhere to turn for answers to questions about my wedding.

So brides, grooms, bridesmaids, mothers, fathers, whoever is reading: feel free to ask me questions! If you need some ideas, you can't decide on a monogram, invitations, centerpieces, whatever it may be, two heads are better than one! I would have loved to have someone to collaborate with on some of the decisions I had to make when planning my wedding. Leave me a comment, or send me an email. I will be more than happy to help!

Photo by CvB Photography

In my few months of blogging and connecting with others in the wedding industry, I've realized that I truly do want to help others enjoy their wedding day. I'm working to gain more experience in the wedding industry so one day I can physically be there to help brides have the best wedding day that is possible!

So, for my friends, family, blog readers, and anyone else who was wondering, this is why I blog! I absolutely love doing it, and I can't wait to share more with everyone!

What's Your Wedding Day Look?

Have you considered your "look" for your wedding day?

Some brides want functionality, and some want pure elegance. Many times brides want to make sure they look like they do every day. I agree- you don't want to look like a completely different person!

Photos by Ashley Brockinton Photography

You definitely want to consider the style of your wedding dress , since clearly that is a huge part of your "look". Also, think of where your wedding will take place, as well as the style of wedding you will be having. If your wedding is going to be in the summer and outdoors, you might want to consider wearing your hair in a loose up-do to stay a bit cooler. You want to be stunning and gorgeous on your wedding day, so be sure to consider all aspects of your wedding day to best achieve your wedding day "look".

Photos from TheKnot

The key to knowing what will be best for your wedding day look is to have trial runs. These trial runs are most beneficial to you when they are booked approximately 1 to 3 months before the wedding. You don't want to be squeezing in your hair and makeup trials a week before the wedding! If you've never used your makeup artist or hairstylist before, it's a good idea to have a trial run when you first book them. This lets you know what their style is like and whether or not they are capable of giving you the look that you want. (I personally had one makeup artist do my makeup for my engagement photos, and it wasn't exactly what I wanted. Thank goodness I did that, because I found an amazing makeup artist months later, and even had her do my makeup twice before my wedding day.) Trials will also help so you can be aware of how well the products will hold up. That way you'll know if you need to have some powder on hand or a bottle of hairspray nearby.

Photo via LM~Makeup Artistry

Photos by Kara Pennington Photography, via Kee To Your Heart

Now your hair and makeup probably won't look exactly how it looked for your trials, and that's okay! If anything, everything will probably look better than with the trials. It's definitely a huge help to the hairstylist and makeup artist (and the day's timeline) if they already know what they're doing to make you a beautiful, glowing bride!

Photo by Angela Anderson Photography

There are so many factors to consider when choosing your wedding day look, but remember, it all comes down to what will make you feel beautiful, comfortable, and happy!

{Check out these blog posts for extra tips on good makeup for photographs!}

An extra treat: WeddingBee is teaming up with Bare Escentuals to offer one lucky bride a makeup artist who will fly out on her wedding day. The makeup artist will expertly apply Bare Escentuals makeup for the bride and one attendant! In addition, two Weddingbee readers will receive a year’s supply of BareMinerals Matte Foundation! You can enter the contest HERE. The contest ends at midnight on Friday!

Featured Photographer: Studio222

I loved this wedding shot by Studio222 Photography (said as two twenty-two) so much that I had to share ALL of it in it's beautiful photographical goodness.

Studio222 Photography is comprised of Becka Knight and Nate Robinson, an engaged couple very much in love who just so happen to be amazing photographers! Their photography is innovative yet traditional, providing a perfect blend of photography styles.

Go on and "scroll" through their newly relaunched blog. I love it, especially because it provides a look into who they are as people as well as photographers.

Similar to what occurred in our "party bus".

I LOVE these bridesmaid dresses!

It looks like everyone had a great time at this wedding! I'm sure it helped that Becka and Nate were shooting. I can't wait to meet them when they shoot my October bride's wedding!

Inspiration Tuesday

I didn't have a chance to put together an Inspiration board, but I felt as if I still needed to provide some inspiration for today!

Color Me Inspired is a great new blog that Becka of Studio222 Photography and Trisha of Black.White.Bliss started! They showcase great color palettes, complete with gorgeous photographs and free printable items! It's such a great idea!

Head on over to Color Me Inspired for more beautiful inspiration and free goodies!

Red Carpet Wedding Contest from BridalTweet

Christine from BridalTweet gave me the heads-up about this awesome contest they're having. I wanted to get the word out ASAP so everyone can have a chance to win!

BridalTweet.com announced a contest today awarding one lucky bride a complimentary rental of dazzling diamond earrings to wear on her wedding day. Each bride who joins BridalTweet.com before October 30 will be entered to win, compliments of Adorn Brides. The Red Carpet Wedding contest is their way of thanking brides for joining the BridalTweet wedding community. You'll rent anything from visual props to floral arrangements, table linens, head-pieces and sometimes even dresses, so why not rent diamonds for the special day!

If you haven't heard of BridalTweet.com, it's a wedding community that offers free wedding advice, exclusive offers, giveaways, information about local events, local vendor directories, and more. All BridalTweet.com members, including brides, wedding vendors, and wedding bloggers, can also share tips and information via chats, blogs, discussions, groups, photos, and videos.

With Adorn Brides, brides can have access to the very best in bridal accessories, regardless of their budget. Now brides can rent thousands of dollars of diamond jewelry for a fraction of what it would cost to purchase them thanks to Adorn Brides.

These are both great new resources to the wedding world! Take advantage of this great offer and join BridalTweet to enter the contest! How awesome would it be to wear a pair of these gorgeous diamond earrings!