{Real Brides} Taylor :: The Backyard Bride

Name:  Taylor Chatfield (will be Taylor Martin)
 Location:  Fort Worth, Texas
 Age:  21 years old
 Occupation:  I work at Texas Christian University as the Assistant Director of E-Stewardship in the Office of Donor Relations.
 Wedding Date:  June 16, 2012
 Venue:  My parents beautiful home in Grapevine, Texas (a suburb right between Dallas and Fort Worth)
 Planner: My parents, myself, JB (my fiancé) and all my wonderful friends
 Photographer:  Braeden Rogers at Ambient 11 (he's pretty amazing)

Connect with Taylor: Twitter ::  Pinterest 

About Me: JB and I began dating after a lengthy AIM courtship during our sophomore year of high school. From riding in the backseat of our parents' cars (we were only 15), to high school graduation, two trips to Guatemala, college life at TCU and six months apart while I studied in Spain and he studied in New Zealand, to finally being able to call each other fiancé, we can't wait to be married (and I can't wait to throw this massive shindig).

Wedding Style: I've always had a slightly quirky sense of style, I love things that are handmade, unique and in every sense of the word, flawed. I'm very decisive about what I like and dislike (or should I say adore and despise...my opinions are pretty strong), even if my decisiveness seems to be without rhyme or reason. I want our wedding to not take itself too seriously (eek..I hope by giving it a persona it didn't just take itself too seriously). It's a party...a BIG party and I don't want to play it off as something it's not, which is why I plan to intersperse relaxed and fun classic party decor done in a modern way throughout the event. For example, I'm planning on having people throw confetti...true paper confetti as we recess back down the aisle, however I want it to be GIANT, chic, slightly ridiculous confetti. I am very excited about all of the handmade details that I get to add to the event  and I am ready to do as much by myself (and by that I mean with the help of my family and friends) as I can. I simply want people to leave our wedding with a renewed, dreamy, whimsical love for each other...the kind JB and I share.

Clockwise from top left: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight

Check you next Monday!

P.S. I love talking weddings, so feel free to email me with ideas, questions, inspiration, or if you just want to chat. If you're in DFW, maybe we could even grab some chips and salsa (I'm not a coffee girl).

Weekly Recap

Hello again! First of all, happy Saturday! Today is my amazing friend Lizzie's Wedding! Congrats to her, and I am beyond excited about today! I'll post pics as soon as I can (might be a month or two though!) Check out what we went over on the blog this week, very fun stuff!

Such an adorable Real Wedding shot by J. Andrew Photography. Stephanie (the bride) had some helpful tips for all you brides out there!

The debate of the week, should I have a backyard wedding?? Check out my backyard wedding pros and cons and add in your opinion!

Check out these great seating options. Use them for your wedding, then here is a tip for your after-wedding home makeover!

I'M IN LOVE. Talk about some amazingly cute dessert tables idea! The possibilities really are endless.

I was never into red weddings, until I did this inspiration board! So many gorgeous options.

And finally, check out pictures of the backyard I would have the wedding in!

Wish Upon a Wedding

I assume most of you have heard of Wish Upon a Wedding by now. To do my part in helping to raise awareness, I wrote an article about Wish Upon a Wedding for a fashion and lifestyle magazine I am a part of. Most of them are not heavily, if at all, involved in the wedding industry, so I wanted to do my part in spreading the word to a community that would otherwise not be aware. In doing this research, I was highly impressed by their past weddings. It is so fantastic to see a group of vendors (and of course a bunch of other people) donated their services to this event. I think the wedding turned out amazing, and the couple looks incredibly happy. I can't wait to see what else is in store for such deserving couples thanks to Wish Upon a Wedding. Oh, and I love her cake!

All photos by StellaSweet photography

"The Wish Upon a Wedding foundation is the first non-profit wedding wish granting organization out there. The purpose behind the organization is to help give people facing life-threatening illnesses the wedding celebration they deserve. By doing so, couples are able to give other couples a chance to take their minds off all the things going on in their day-to-day life and celebrate their love by giving them something they never thought possible – their dream wedding."

If you want to know more about the article or Wish Upon a Wedding, you can read the full article here!