DIY Farm Wedding by Holly Cromer

Florals make the best first impression, don't you think? These caught my eye and I just can't stop staring! This is a wedding filled to the gills with personal touches and plenty of DIY projects.

Inspiration behind your day/Your wedding vision:

We knew early on that we wanted our wedding to be a celebration of our family and friends, while also paying homage to our Virginian roots.  And... above all else, we wanted to have ridiculously good food throughout the night.  We worked closely with John and Karen Schopp to develop a unique menu utilizing local foods and flavors, and also featured beers and wines from our favorite local breweries and vineyards.

Your Special DIY Projects:

The entire event was based on what we and our family + friends could do ourselves, so every aspect was DIY to some degree.  For example... in each invitation we mailed out, we enclosed a small sketchbook and asked guests to fill it with memories, advice, wisdom, photos, etc and then bring it with them to the wedding to become part of a "library" that we can keep forever.  We both agree, though, that the altar was the most special project we put together for the event.  We're both architects, so utilizing reclaimed materials in a unique way helped us put a very personal touch to the ceremony.

Favorite memory of the day:

Brett's favorite memory is looking out at the guests during the ceremony and seeing everyone wearing the colorful sunglasses we provided --  even the grandmothers had on hot pink and lime green glasses... priceless!  My favorite memory was the end of the night, when everyone really cut loose and sang their hearts out to Bohemian Rhapsody with us.  Really can't top that in my mind!

 Advice for brides planning now:

Don't be afraid to call on your friends to offer their talents.  Having those extra personal touches are exactly what made our wedding so special and memorable to us! And you never know, you might stumble upon a friend with at 1963 Plymouth Fury to drive off in!

Photographers - Holly Cromer

Event coordination: That Wedding Bridal Consulting

Venue: Boxtree Lodge, Vinton, Virginia

Floral Design: Arrington's Flowers 

Wedding Dress: WToo Emerson Dress, from Ann's Boutique in Burke VA 

Groom Attire: Ties from Tie Bar, Suits from JoS. A Bank, Shirts from Ledbury, and Shoes from Vans

Paper Goods/Wedding Invitation: Printer Gatherer

Videography/Stop Motion: Holly Cromer

Cake and Catering: John and Karen Schopp of Center Stage Catering 

Bluegrass Band: Blue Moonshine 

Lighting, Draping, and DJ: Whatchaneed Productions 

Honey Favors: Bearer Farms  

Peach Wedding Inspiration by Carlie Statsky + Engaged & Inspired Events

During the off season I was excited to jump into some design work that was just for fun as opposed to for a specific client. Together with Carlie Statsky and Floral Theory, we created some wedding inspiration magic on a beautiful sunny day in Carmel Valley (It was actually my two year wedding anniversary!). I picked Holman Ranch as the venue because of all the amazing awe-worthy locations the property holds.

I feel like coral goes so well with the beauty of Holman Ranch and wanted to create a sophisticated type of rustic wedding that brides could actually achieve. This is the result! The gorgeous lace dress was from Haute Bride in Los Gatos and Melissa Hoffman did the best job with the model's hair & makeup. The amazing Mariko of Bee Curious Designs made the most perfect signs to match the coral bar I designed as well as a sorbet station. For my services, portfolio, and all that other goodness, Engaged & Inspired Events is my planning & design site.

You can see much more of this amazing shoot featured on Style Me Pretty.

Photography: Carlie Statsky | Venue: Holman Ranch | Coordination + Styling: Engaged & Inspired| Floral Design: Floral Theory | Cake: Amour Patisserie | Custom bar menu mirror + chalkboard sign:Bee Curious | Stationery: Little Miss Press | Rentals: Hartmann Studio Rentals | Flatware + Glassware:Anthropologie | Dress: Haute Bride | Accessories: J.Crew | Shoes: Valentino | Hair + Makeup: Melissa Hoffman

West Hollywood Wedding by Megan Welker

I'm so in love with this west hollywood wedding by Megan Welker Photography. The bride and groom  look like two people I'd love to be friends with. This home is incredibly awesome and I love that the bride did so much herself without it looking like a "DIY wedding". This exudes casual elegance at its finest.

Photography - The fabulous Megan Welker Catering - Tender Greens Officiant - Elizabeth Oakes Flowers/styling - Vanessa Friedman :) (The Bride!)

The Lab Event \\ Rockstar Glam by Gem Photo

Today I'm sharing another shoot from the awesome bridal event I co-founded, The Lab Event. The purpose of our event is to create a bridal experience where vendors bring their work to life and show of to brides. No booths and awkward conversations here! Nope, we have music, drinks, yummy food and SO much inspiration for our Northern California brides!

This design was based on a "Rockstar Glam" inspiration board. I love what Kate Miller Events did here. And Gem Photo captured it all oh so well. Take a look at the vendors below. Like what you see? They will definitely be there to help create the most awesome wedding for you.

Event Design: Kate Miller Events Photography: Gem Photo Floral: PoppyStone Floral Design  Cakes: Shannie Cakes Paper Design: Mink Cards Rentals: Classic Party Rentals Lighting: Creative Lighting Design DJ: Josh Dukes - Boutique DJs Venue: Cline Cellars

Designed and shot for The Lab Event

Rustic Barn Wedding at Tate Farms

I always wanted a picnic table reception. So when I saw this wedding I knew it was awesome. The bride is gorgeous, the venue, Tate Farms, is breathtaking and those picnic tables.....I LOVE. Susan Hudson Photography really captured the love between these two. This rustic beauty is one for the books. That is for sure. 

Pennsylvania Estate Wedding by Morrissey Photo

There were so many endearing homemade details in this wedding, it was truly the work of the entire family. The groom reupholstered chairs, built the bar and even their amazing sweetheart table that features the iron frame of an old Singer sewing machine table. (I have one of those as well, so I was delighted to see this awesome detail!) Morrissey Photo really rocked this one!

Our theme was based around “Our Love Story”. We had been together for six years and through those years created an amazing life together. I loved the rustic/antique look, and after finding our venue, we began to plan the details of our wedding that were most important to us.

We were planning a fall wedding so we incorporated teal and a deep orange color into our flowers and décor. I loved the look of blue ball jars and clear glass vases outside for cocktail hour, and inside the tent we kept it elegant with antique mercury glass vases and bottles for candles, votives and flowers on the tables that were a similar blue color, with greens and shades of white.

My dress was an elegant gown of hand-placed French Corded Lace designed by Christos named Femme for Neiman Marcus. The thoughtful placement of the lace created a chevron pattern throughout the gown. The fit-to-flare silhouette was accented by a sculpted bodice featuring delicate lace eyelashes along the neckline and a soft sweep train added a touch of unexpected drama. We decided to add a Swarovski belt and covered buttons down the back where the zipper was.

Paul has worked in catering and he knew that he wanted to bring an amazing catering company in that would work with us on each element of the catering and décor. Brulee Catering was the company that we chose for our reception.

Furniture was refurbished by Paul & his father to be placed on the lawn or in the tent. This furniture was planned to later be used in our future home. Paul personally made the bar from barn wood and fabric panels. He also made the sweet heart table with wood & a singer sewing table iron base and carved our initials in along with our wedding date, his & her chairs, old windows with guests names for table arrangements, personalized hor dourves trays made by Paul that included elements of our life together, lanterns, antique lace table cloths, and home made seat cushions for all the outdoor furniture.

Venue: Applewood Estate Photographer:  Morrissey Photo Musicians: Party Wave Band Caterer: Brulee Catering Hair Stylist: Jolie Salon & Spa Cake Designer: The Masters Baker Floral Designer: The Rhoads Garden

Williamsburg Elopment by Michael and Carina Photography

I think it takes a lot of guts to elope. I just love the idea of eloping and today we have a super one good one here on the blog. The couple sought out Michael and Carina Photography  to shoot some photos and Storybook Events to officiant their ceremony. 

From The Photographer: "Pilar and Jarad eloped last December. They decided it was time to tie the knot after 7 years. They wanted to ring in the new year as a married couple - and surprise their friends and family with the news on Christmas day. As they have close ties to William and Mary, they decided to elope near the William and Mary Campus in Colonial Williamsburg. Only the officiant and the photographers joined them on the warm December afternoon. They wanted their big day to be simple and all about them. They are perfect together, so laid-back and fun."

Vine Hill House Wedding by Bright Room Studio + Ken Kienow

I'm excited to share one of our blogger bride's weddings with you today. Kim & Dan were married at the Vine Hill House in Northern California on a beautiful day with an even more beautiful sunset. Kim designed her own wedding invites and various paper products all around. After her wedding she opened up a Graphic Design studio and specializes in wedding invitations.

Wedding Photography: Ken Kienow Wedding Photography | Wedding Venue: Vine Hill House in Sebastopol, California | Floral Design: BV Florals | Catering: Park Avenue Catering | Wedding Cupcakes: Foxy Cupcakes | DJ: AMS Entertainment | Wedding Stationery: Bright Room Studio | Wedding Dress: Ivy & Aster | Bride’s Shoes: Elie Tahari | Bridesmaids’ Attire: Asos | Groom’s Attire: Joseph Abboud | Groomsmen Attire: Calvin Klein 

Intimate Engagement Dinner Party

I just love the idea behind this shoot. An intimate get together with the members of your bridal party to get them acquainted  before the wedding day. And who doesn't love a good excuse to entertain? The idea behind this shoot was to give the most important people in the bride & groom's lives a chance to get to know each other and have a good time before their big day.

We teamed up to create a very intimate engagement dinner party. We know that when a couple gets engaged and they choose their bridal party, it sometimes consists of people that have never met. Most of the time, the bridal party doesn't meet until the rehearsal dinner. So, we created a dinner party to introduce the whole gang!

We were inspired by the classic black and white theme and added a sweet touch of honey! Vases were filled with honey and hand painted gold honey jars held informal posies. A ruffled cake added a modern touch, while still being very classic. The wedding party also got a chance to practice posing and getting comfortable in front of the camera.

Coordination and Florals: PEPLUM events&design Table Styling and Vintage Rentals: Dishie Rentals Photography: Jessica Bennett Photography Invitation: Rifle Paper Co Menu: Lalita Paperie+Design Cake: Buttercream and Roses Women's Wardrobe: Other People's Property Women's Styling: Dana Roquemore Men's Wardrobe & Styling: Josh Owen Hair & Make Up: Sarah Willis Models: Dan Risen | George Rutsyamuka | Josh Owen | Toya Ashayla | Courtney Hill | Dana Marie Roquemore

Sausalito Eco-Friendly Wedding by Sequins & Candy Photography

I have quite the treat for you today. Remember our oh-so-fabulous bride blogger Kalista? She was filled with so many ideas and had quite the vision for her wedding. Today we are here to share everything that came from her oh-so-special day and I promise they don't disappoint.

Kalista chose the most perfect Jenny Packham dress with a Sarah Seven hair piece. She DIYed so many beautiful things to make their special day unique. Get those Pin buttons ready because you're going to want to save tons of these ideas!

Photography by Sequins and Candy • Bridal Gown by Jenny Packham • Bridal Shoes by Beyond Skin • Bride’s Headband by Sarah Seven •  Bridesmaids Dresses by J. Crew • Makeup by Pretty by Julianne • Hair by Sproos Salon • Flowers by Gorgeous and Green • Officiant: Alison Hurwitz • Ceremony Music: Michael Stadler • Men’s Attire by J. Crew • Desserts by Fat Bottom Bakery and Cinnaholic • Catering by Katie Powers Catering • Reception Music: Fil Lorenz Orchestra • Venue: Headlands Center for the Arts