Stephanie and Jon

Venue: Glen Manor House
Photog: DB Photograghy
DJ: Victor from PartyTime
Flowers: Golden Gate
Bride and Groom: Stephanie and Jon--fun.fun.fun!

A Wedding Story: Candace & Danielle!

This week we have 2 Wedding Stories of brides whose weddings are quickly approaching! Up first is Rhode Island bride Candace; followed by New York bride Danielle.

Candace Brown has been planning her wedding for almost 2 and a half years and is now mere weeks away from the big day! Let's hear her story...


When are you getting married?
Saturday, August 7, 2010

Where is your ceremony? Reception?
The ceremony is at our parish church, St. Kevin, in Warwick. The reception is at the Crowne Plaza, also in Warwick.

What made you choose that reception location?
Several factors influenced it. First, since Matt's family is from out of town, we thought something close to home and at a hotel would be nice and convenient for everyone. Plus, the package offered by Crowne is very enticing, and having been to other events there, I'm confident it will be a great night. The staff have been great to work with!

What aspect of your wedding are you most looking forward to?
Seeing all of our family members in one place!

What has been the best resource for you during the planning process?
The Internet and word of mouth. Speaking with other brides has been the best way to get ideas and to get the scoop on vendors.

How is your wedding going to be unique?
I don't know that it will be unique! We're fairly traditional people. I think it's just the people factor that will make it unique.

Any advice for future brides?
I'd suggest not having a long, drawn out engagement. Sometimes it's unavoidable, such as for financial reasons like we faced. But a 2.5 year wait has been excruciating - I am just ready to settle down! Plus, I change my mind too often! It can be overwhelming. Other than that, just trust your instincts - you know what you and your fiance like, so trust your gut!
Great advice, Candace. Similar to what we heard from Diane, a few weeks back. The longer you have to browse ideas on the internet and read wedding magazines, the more likely you are to change your mind on different aspects of your wedding!

Photos courtesy of James Murphy Photography.


Next up, Danielle. In just a short amount of time, Danielle planned an entire destination wedding (in Hawaii!) and is getting married next month! She's chronicled the whole planning process in her blog: The Wedding Crasher's Guide to Planning. Be sure to check it out!

Here's Danielle...

When are you getting married?
August 2010

Where is your ceremony? Reception?
Both are at the Four Seasons at Lanai, Hawaii

What made you choose that reception location?
August of last year, we got engaged in Hawaii so it is sentimental. Lanai is one of the most private and remote of all of the islands, which is why we chose it.

What aspect of your wedding are you most looking forward to?
Saying my vows and officially marrying my best friend.

What has been the best resource for you during the planning process?
Google!

How is your wedding going to be unique?
The wedding in Hawaii is going to be very intimate with only immediate family and my best friend as maid of honor. But when we come back home, we are having a huge "wedding party" which is meant to be tons of fun and not stuffy. It is so we can celebrate our marriage with all of our friends. Although we will have a DJ, there will be beer, wine and barbecue and people jumping in the pool. Definitely, not a formal affair.

Any advice for future brides?
Have the wedding that YOU want. Do not let your family pressure you into having a wedding that is not what you want. It's about you and your husband to be, not everyone else. Some of our family members were upset at first that we did not want a huge wedding but they came around and I stuck to my guns because having an intimate wedding was important to me. Also, don't sweat the little stuff and try and keep the stress to a minimal.


Danielle - I can only speak for myself here; but I, for one, cannot wait to see the beautiful pictures from your romantic Hawaiian wedding! Enjoy your day, and come back and tell us all about it!

Photo courtesy of Photography by Roy, NY Visual.


If you'd like to be a Featured Wife or Bride, please email me at legallybride@hotmail.com

Nuptial Trends: Wow Factor!

Want your guests to walk away from your wedding thinking "That wedding was SO much fun" and "I will NEVER forget that wedding!"? Don't we all want that?! Here are some ideas I've seen around lately that would definitely leave an impression on guests!
Here we go...

Unique Favors

Long ago are the days of small chocolate candies in tied bags. These days, anything goes! From customized T-shirts to monogrammed glasses, the ideas are endless. [Check out my post about favors a few months back.] Adrienne M., married in October of last year, treated her guests to candy apples as favors and her guests LOVED them!

Photo courtesy of Bharat Parmar Photography

Personalized Groom's Cake

Surprise your groom (and your guests) with a not-so-traditional cake. Heather M., married last June, blew her guests away with a frightening treat at her rehearsal dinner!
"I surprised my husband with this grooms cake. He's loves fishing, especially in shark tournaments so it was perfect. The inside was red velvet so it appeared to be the inside of the shark."

Cake courtesy of Shemry of Corby's Cakes and Cookies

A Surprise Video or A Choreographed Dance

Slideshows of only your baby photos are a thing of the past. These days couples are thinking outside of the box and expanding on these ideas! Cara C., (remember her?) married last July, tells us what she did.
"We filmed our "love story" a few months prior to the wedding. We had our DJ play the video right before we were introduced into the reception. No one knew about it, so it was fun to peek through the doors and watch everyone's reaction. It included a slide show of Rick and I as children and then went into interviews with us about how we met, when we knew we wanted to get married, how he proposed, etc... Almost everyone told us afterward how awesome it was, or they couldn't stop crying, or they never heard our proposal story, or how it was evident how much Rick and I were alike, or how they never saw that side of me before. It definitely let an impression on people and I'm so happy we did it. And now we also have a nice keepsake from the wedding."

We also showed a surprise video at our wedding but with a different twist. We taped music videos "singing" funny yet appropriate songs to each other (i.e. my husband sang "Jenny 867-5309" to me in his video!) Here are pictures of the video playing, along with my Mom's classic reaction. We STILL hear about this video from our guests!
Photo courtesy of Zenobia Photography Studios

A Surprise Snack!

Jennifer R., married at Roger Williams Park Casino last October, tells us how she provided a non-traditional post-church treat.
"We had an ice cream truck. It pulled up outside the church just as the ceremony was letting out. The idea was, to occupy the guests while we all snuck off for photos. Except we were too excited that we were MARRIED and all our guests were here with us....that we stuck around and hung out. :-) People still talk about it. It was pretty cheap, too."

Photos courtesy of Melissa Robotti

Electrifying Uplighting

A great way to make a fun impression on your guests as soon as they walk in the door! Melinda M., married at Belle Mer last July (you remember her sunny yellow wedding from last week!), tells us how about her bright lights.
"I had uplighting. My husband had no idea, to him it was a surprise."

Photo courtesy of Rupert Whiteley

We also did uplighting @ our wedding:

Photo courtesy of Zenobia Photography Studios

Let them Eat!

Alicia D., married at the Towers last August (remember her fabulous feather wedding?) tells us about the post-dinner snacks they offered.
"We had a popcorn buffet at the end of the night with all different kinds of flavored popcorn (ie. chocolate, caramel, sour cream and onion, etc). We put out little popcorn boxes that said "He POPPED the question... and now they are married". It was a nice sweet and salty surprise treat towards the end of the night."
Photo courtesy of Kristin Spencer Photography

Angie M., who got married last July, had a dessert room at her wedding. Her guests commented that "the room was amazing" and they had wished they had known about it because they wouldn't have eaten dinner!
Samantha R., married in Illinois last June, had a different kind of buffet at her wedding...a candy buffet! To stick with the theme of her wedding, the candy was all shades of pink.
"I did the candy buffet..and it was a ginormous one. People still were mentioning it to me when I was in Illinois last week… it's still just the coolest thing ever."

We also did a candy buffet @ our wedding:

Photo courtesy of Zenobia Photography Studios

A Fabulously Fun Photobooth!

Tana M., married at the Crowne Plaza last May, shares a funny anecdote about her photobooth.
"Our photobooth was most likely the highlight of the wedding. Our guests had such a good time with the basket of props... including the banquet servers who clearly weren't aware that we received a copy of all of the images."

Photo courtesy of RI Photobooths

We also had a photobooth full of props at our wedding:

Photo courtesy of NE Photobooth

A Head-turning Entrance

Start your reception off right with a fun introduction! Becky S., married last September, explains their meaningful intro.
"We ran through a banner. We had our DJ mix 2 songs together. Thunder Struck and Crazy Train. Those are both songs that are played at Patriots games. Since we confessed our love for one another during a Patriots game we thought it would be fitting to have that incorporated into our wedding."

Holly (remember her beautiful wedding?), married last October @ the Biltmore, also did a banner run!

Photo courtesy of Melissa Robotti

What about you? Did you do any of these ideas or any other unique things that added to your wow factor? I'd love to hear about them!

A Wedding Story: Melinda!

This week we have Melinda Magner's Wedding Story. Melinda, originally from Massachusetts and currently residing in South Carolina, had a bright and sunny yellow-themed wedding in Newport, Rhode Island. With that, here's Melinda...


When did you get married?
July 10, 2009

Melinda's bouquet, courtesy of Florals by Alisa
Where was your ceremony? Reception?
Both took place at the Island House of Belle Mer, Goat Island Newport, RI

Melinda & her bridesmaids (who got their dresses at J.Crew) got their hair done at Main Attractions in Fall River and their make-up done by Brandi Shelly What made you choose that reception location?
We wanted a venue that had outdoor ceremony space with a water background. Newport was also a special place for us.

The placecards were a fun accent to this Newport in the Summertime wedding...Starfish
What was your favorite aspect of your wedding?
That we were able to get married on our 7th year anniversary of dating. The view, the food and having all our loved ones there to help us celebrate.

The centerpieces
What was the best resource you used during the planning process?
The Knot and friend's advice.

The bridal party outside @ Belle Mer.
What's the one thing you would have done differently?
To be honest nothing planning wise. The only thing I regret is not taking pictures with my side of the family.

Melinda had the PERFECT shoes for her yellow-themed wedding.

Any advice for future brides?
Don't second guess yourself. Narrow down the vendors you like for each category to 3 and then meet with them. Stick to your budget, its not worth going into debt for one day. You don't have to have everything that is available out there, narrow down what's important to you and your husband to be. Have fun with it and try not to stress too much. Let go and have fun on your wedding day!

Excellent points, Melinda. That was the way we did vendors as well. We found ones that we liked through their websites, emailed them a few preliminary questions and if all went well, we met with them. After meeting with a few, we compared notes and chose accordingly. It's also important to "click" with your vendors; especially ones that will be present with you the day of the wedding. If someone is going to be around you ALL day (ex. your photographer, videographer, etc) you want to make sure you like them as a person and not just as a vendor!


All photos courtesy of Rupert Whitely. Melinda's day was captured on video by Mike Picard Videography.



If you'd like to be a Featured Bride, please email me at legallybride@hotmail.com

Nuptial Trends: Green & Yellow!

This week I thought we could look into an up and coming color palette trend: Green & Yellow!
Check it out:

How to pull off this look...

In terms of bouquets, you can stick with yellow flowers and then use plenty of greens. Some popular yellow flowers for weddings are buttery cream roses, the bright yellow rose variety called “Sphinx”, oncidium orchids, yellow calla lilies and yellow tulips.
Here are a few samples:



You can also use any of those flowers as decor for the ceremony:


You can tie the color scheme into all of your paper products, starting at save-the-dates & invitations and continuing on to:
Ceremony programs,
Menus,
Placecards,
and coasters (or cocktail napkins)!

For the men, a yellow floral bout can bring in both the green and yellow. For ties, you could choose solid green or yellow or a pattern including both colors.
For bridesmaids, you can do green OR yellow dresses and then use the opposite color for the flowers or for jewelry.



For centerpieces, you could do any of the flowers mentioned earlier or you could use non-floral elements like yellow and green candles or lemons & limes.


For a candy buffet, look for green candies (green apple gummy rings, M&M's, Mike & Ike's, skittles and spearmint starlight mints) and yellow candies (sour lemon drops, jelly belly's, lemon fruit slices, bananarama candies and peeps) on sites like Metro Candy and Candy Warehouse.
For cakes you have LOTS of options to bring color in.
Again, you can bring in the lemon / lime theme.
You can use yellow flowers with greens.
You can do a cupcake tower! You can make frosting in ANY color and the tower allows you to bring in another accent color.
And, for my favorite, a white and green cake with yellow flowers.
For more yellow and green accents, you can use table runners, napkins or lighting to help bring the colors into your space.


Where do wedding trends come from? Fashion, of course! Check out these Green & Yellow trends at:

The Limited:
Macy's:


Nordstroms:

Zappos:

and Shoes.com!

What color palette did you use (or are you planning on using) on your wedding day?
I'd love to hear what you came up with!


All images courtesy of The Knot or websites listed.