Blog

We were featured in Southern Weddings for this latest wedding with our friends Jessica & Landon- check out the full article below 🙂

From Southern Weddings:

One of the best parts of Kristin’s and my jobs is connecting the amazing vendors the South has to offer with our darling brides through the Blue Ribbon Vendor Directory! It is also a joy to see our Blue Ribbon Vendors work together to create beautiful events. Molly and Richard worked with four of our delightful members for their wedding day, which was filled with lovely details, nods to their families, and the Southern hospitality to host 400 joyful guests. One of my personal favorite details (beside’s Molly’s super chic gown!) is that they decorated with Molly’s grandmother’s china, silver, and crystal that was passed down to her when she got married. So special!

Big hugs to our friends Landon Jacob for sharing this Columbia wedding day with us!

From Molly:

When I went to the church to make the final music decisions, it was truly a magical experience. My parents came with me and we walked up several flights of stairs to the music director’s office of Richard’s church, which has been around for over 200 years. His office was beautiful, complete with huge windows, and the music director played all the songs we liked on the piano so we could get an idea of how it would all sound together. We were all very impressed and left extremely excited for the ceremony, knowing we were in good hands. The song my bridesmaids walked down to was Canon in D–I love this song and I feel like it really sets the mood for a wedding ceremony. My dad and I walked down to Trumpet Tune. We had the hymn “Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee” played during the ceremony because it is one of my favorites, and it seems so holy when an entire church is singing the same song. The song Richard and I walked out of the church to was Toccata, From Symphony V, which was so joyful!

When I went to the church to make the final music decisions, it was truly a magical experience. My parents came with me and we walked up several flights of stairs to the music director’s office of Richard’s church, which has been around for over 200 years. His office was beautiful, complete with huge windows, and the music director played all the songs we liked on the piano so we could get an idea of how it would all sound together. We were all very impressed and left extremely excited for the ceremony, knowing we were in good hands. The song my bridesmaids walked down to was Canon in D–I love this song and I feel like it really sets the mood for a wedding ceremony. My dad and I walked down to Trumpet Tune. We had the hymn “Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee” played during the ceremony because it is one of my favorites, and it seems so holy when an entire church is singing the same song. The song Richard and I walked out of the church to was Toccata, From Symphony V, which was so joyful!

How did y’all meet? Tell us your love story. Richard and I went to the same high school and college, but we didn’t start dating until after college when we were both living back in our hometown of Columbia, South Carolina. We ran into each other one night and he asked me to go to the South Carolina football game with him the next day. Thinking I would ride with him and meet up with my friends once we got there, I said yes. He picked me up, and our drive was the first time I had ever been with him without our friends around. He was the most interesting person I had ever met. We have been together ever since!

Tell us all about the proposal! Richard’s mother had been planning a birthday dinner for him. They invited my parents, my brother and sister-in-law, Richard’s sister and her husband, and one of his best friends. He was living in Charlotte, North Carolina and I was in Columbia, South Carolina at the time. Dinner was planned for Thursday night in Columbia, and then Richard was going to take Friday off so we could go to the beach for a long weekend. He came into town and picked me up to go out for a drink downtown before dinner, since we hadn’t seen each other all week. We were on the way to the restaurant when Richard decided to take a side street by my church to avoid the downtown rush hour traffic. I was on the phone with my best friend, so I wasn’t really paying attention. Richard stopped the car in front of my church and said he wanted to get out for a minute to wait out the traffic. I got off the phone and we walked toward the benches in front of my church. There were cars everywhere, but Richard got down on one knee and proposed in front of my church. After lots of excitement and shock, we went to dinner, where everyone was waiting for us!

When did y’all get married? October 11, 2014

How many friends, family members, and loved ones attended your wedding? 400

What Southern details or traditions did you include in your celebration? What was Southern about your wedding? The ceremony was held at a large, historical, downtown church that has been around since the Civil War. The church grounds have ancient Southern oaks and magnolias all over the property, and Southern generals and Revolutionary War heroes are buried in the graveyards. The menu for the reception consisted of ham biscuits, fried okra, fried chicken, figs, shrimp and corn fritters, and fried green tomatoes with pimento cheese, to name a few. The table outside was decorated with my Grandmother’s china, silver, and crystal that had been passed down to me when I got married.

What advice do you have for folks currently planning a wedding? Have fun and be happy. All of the planning is for something that is so joyful, so be happy planning it! I felt so lucky to be able to plan such a special event in our lives.

What’s next for you as a couple? What are you most looking forward to about married life? We are living in Charlotte and are excited to finally be in the same city. We are most looking forward to doing normal day-to-day things together, like waking up together and eating meals together at our house!

Photographer: Landon Jacob / Videographer: Caravan Weddings / Planner: Jessica Rourke / Ceremony Venue: Trinity Episcopal Cathedral / Reception Venue and Catering: Forest Lake Club / Florist: Fern Studio / Cake Baker: Parkland Cakes / Rentals: Ooh Events! / Lighting: Tony Sharp / Band: CEO / Paper Products: Brian Faulkenberry / Bride’s Gown: “Paz” by Augusta Jones / Bride’s Hair Accessories/Veil/Jewelry: Augusta Jones / Hair and Makeup: Greg Garrett at Metropolis Salon / Bride’s Shoes: Tory Burch / Bridesmaids’ Dresses: “Annabelle” by Jenny Yoo / Menswear: Granger Owens / Calligraphy: Lydia Hendrix / Signage: Lady Letterpress

We were thrilled to see the wedding film we shot at Old Edwards Inn for Christine and Dave featured on Style Me Pretty today! Below is an excerpt form the article.

From Style Me Pretty

“What happens when you bring Gatsby grandeur to the mountains of North Carolina? An unforgettable wedding! Asheville Event Co. drew inspiration from the bride’s favorite movie, incorporating quotes and music from the F. Scott Fitzgerald’s masterpiece throughout the big day. With the help of Floressence Flowers and La Tavola Linens, they created an enchanting space – lucky for us, Parker J Pfister Photography captured the eclectic, glamorous event. See it all in the Vault, then get swept away in the film by Caravan Cinematography.”

From the Bride… Prior to planning our wedding, we envisioned a small private wedding in an outdoor setting during the summer. Since our happiest times have been spent in the mountains, we made it our mission to find the perfect mountain setting to exchange vows. After visiting multiple destinations in Vermont (Dave’s home state), Colorado, and California, we knew the search had ended when we arrived at Old Edwards Inn (OEI) in North Carolina. We both had never been in that area before, but it offered a central destination for extended family. Sitting atop a scenic, southwest plateau in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains with OEI’s 5-star resort services made it the perfect setting for our event.

“The Great Gatsby” influenced us, as it is one of my favorite movies, so we incorporated romantic and whimsical F. Scott Fitzgerald quotes into our invitations, cocktail napkins, ceremony, and seating placement signs and chose an overall theme of eclectic glamour. Our first dance was to Lana Del Ray’s, “Young and Beautiful.” As guests entered the ceremony, we served champagne in coupe glasses with a dusted sugar rim. It was important to us that we had a really fun party – luxurious, like Gatsby’s parties were. We even included modern songs from the movie’s soundtrack played by our fifteen piece live band. Guests were also greeted by a sign with a dramatic floral arrangement with a Gatsby quote: “And so with the sunshine and great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow fast in the movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with summer.”

We had a few favorite moments throughout the day. Of course, our absolute favorite was the exchange of the vows. My cousin married us – he is known as being hilarious, and he did not disappoint. We were also extremely fortunate to have great speeches at the beginning of the reception by the best man, maid of honor, and mother of the bride. Our family really put a lot of thought into what they said, and those words made all the difference. My other favorite moment was our first dance! After months of practice, the crowd went wild when Dave spun me into his arms and into the air for the grand finale.

Dave and I chose to have a dessert bar opposed to a single large cake. I tend to have a sweet tooth, so I wanted a variety of items available for guests to choose from. Once the dance party started, we distributed aviator sunglasses, glow sticks, and jello shots to get the party really going. We finished with a sparkler exit. The pièce de résistance of the entire event was having all the people we love in one room at the same time.

For all brides-to-be out there, don’t forget to take a time (off to the side) for you and your new husband to look around and savor the moment. Try to be present and share in the love and party that’s happening around you. Also, do your vendor homework. Unexpected things can happen the day of the event, and it’s important to have professional people around you to deal with these items – huge kudos to my great team!

Here is a link to the full feature.

 

Brooke and Ryan met in high school and charged us with the task of capturing their story. We loved every minute of this beautiful Hilton Head wedding.

We are thrilled to share with you Aditi and Calvin’s wedding today. This intimate outdoor wedding in the city mixed Indian, Mediterranean, and American traditions to perfection.

 

Our film for friends Jake & Maggie was featured on Once Wed today! Check out the feature here. Check out the article below as well as the full credits!

Planning a wedding at your home could fill even the most organized couple full of stress and anxiety. That’s why we love the sentiment behind Maggie and Jake’s wedding celebration, set at the bride’s family farm: behind every decision was the ultimate goal to ensure that their guests were able to look around themselves, and appreciate the simple, overwhelming beauty of creation. And though the details weren’t of high importance to them, everything from the bride’s amazing custom dress to the simple tablescapes and organic florals were all, in a word, beautiful.

Reflections from the bride on her wedding day:

“The first question everyone always asked after they found out Jake and I became engaged was whether or not we were going to have the wedding on my family’s farm (which inevitably operates as an actual wedding venue). I always said yes, it was never really a question to me. However, growing up I never imagined myself getting married in my own backyard & to be honest I don’t even think I really gave much thought to my own wedding until we started working in the wedding industry.

When it finally came time to sit down and sift through all of the wedding day details I didn’t want to simply make decisions because it would follow the traditional pattern of a wedding or make something “look” beautiful. I wanted everything to have more meaning and depth to it than that; I wanted the wedding to “feel” beautiful because of the intention behind the details. I remember sitting down with Abany one day and explaining that when I envisioned the wedding, I wanted our guests to see creation in its simplest form. I am a firm believer that less is more in so many aspects and I wanted our guests be able to look around and appreciate the true and simple beauty that comes as a gift to us everyday, unfiltered and untouched.

I wanted the guests to see the natural beauty that I bear witness to everyday on the farm; the varying colors of green in an open field, the vast tree line above, the way the light trickles through the pathways, the sweetness of gathered loved ones. I wanted guests to see the wonderful and beautiful gift of creation.”

Venue : Morning Glory Farm | Photography : Rylee Hitchner | Styling/Flowers/Planning : Abany Bauer | Gown : Custom Design by Ship to Shore | Hair & Makeup : Lula Hair & Makeup | Catering : Best Impressions | Paper & Calligraphy : Brown Linen Design | Rentals : Hey Love Rentals | Music : Dreamtones & Aaron Robertson | Videography : Caravan Weddings | Linens : LaTavola

We were thrilled when we connected with Amelia and she asked us to be a part of her big day in Wellesley, MA. It’s amazing that since we started filming weddings that almost 50% of them have been outside of our home state of North Carolina. We love to travel and are grateful every time we get the opportunity to do just that. The wedding was recently featured on Style Me Pretty here. Vendor credits are below 🙂

-Jon

From Style Me Pretty:

You followed her adventures from “I will” to “I do,” and today our blogger bride, Colour Bloc’s Amelia’s SMP journey is coming full circle. She’s giving us an inside peek at her summer garden nuptials designed by the pretties of Bash, Please and spoiler alert – it’s the stuff wedding dreams are made of. We have First Mate Photo Co. to thank for every snap of the day and there’s so much eye candy + one epic love story sitting right below.

ABOUT US
When Michael first met Amelia on a date to the South End Buttery, they both knew that they had met someone very special. Their early dates we
re spent exploring new restaurants around Boston, but soon they found themselves happiest when making each other homemade dinners and talking late into the night about life, friendship and family.

Michael excitedly took Amelia to his favorite places in New England; Crane Beach, Maine, and sailing to the Cape and Islands. Amelia would tell Michael she was genuinely impressed with his boogey boarding and surfing skills. And, it was there on the rocky cliffs of the Maine coast where Michael first told Amelia he loved her.

Amelia also loved exploring—and showed Michael the beauty of the South; Savannah, Kiawah, and Amelia Island. Amelia shared her passion for contemporary art with dates at the ICA, LACMA, and the South End Studios. For his 35th birthday, Amelia surprised a sick and jetlagged Michael with a surprise party at one of their favorite Mexican restaurants in Boston—Michael was deeply touched by the thought and effort Amelia put into it.

Amelia and Michael quickly became a couple on the go–be it for work, friends’ and family weddings, or weekends spent exploring. Reading a questionnaire in Vanity Fair on a flight to Palm Springs, Amelia asked Michael, “Who or what is the love of your life?” and without hesitation, Michael replied, “you are!”

PRELUDE
This courtship begins the old fashioned way. Boy meets girl on OKCupid, and hatches an elaborate multiphase plan to convince girl to go on a first date. Girl reluctantly agrees and wows boy with Southern grace and charm. Girl and boy spend increasing time together talking late into the night about art, travel, and family life. Girl travels to France with family, boy misses girl. Girl and boy travel together to their favorite places and explore new ones, girl starts her own company and wows boy with her immense talents, families are met over the holidays. Things start getting serious…

THE ENGAGEMENT
Nothing could be more intimidating than meeting your future father-in-law and asking for permission to marry his daughter. After receiving a big bear hug and a “welcome to the family!”, Michael knew that he would not just be marrying his best friend, but he would add a whole new family. Michael had always envisioned them getting engaged by the sea on a warm sunny day, because it was on the shores of Maine where he first told Amelia he loved her. A Southern belle, Amelia always spoke fondly of her family vacations to Amelia Island, Florida. After a weeks’ long search for the perfect emerald cut solitaire, Michael had found his ring—off the Florida they went! Once they checked into their seaside hotel, Michael insisted they take a long walk on the beach. It was there that he fumbled his way through the proposal, asking Amelia if she’d like to spend the next 65 years together. Tears streaming down her face, Amelia happily accepted!

DESIGN APPROACH
A modern southern belles approach to a summer solstice garden party. It was important to us to compliment and enhance the natural outdoor setting. We wanted to draw inspiration from the different gardens of the Elm Bank space using lush, feminine elements with a mix of modern and living materials. We wanted the wedding to feel romantic with each garden full of summer blooms and greenery, personal with hand written vows and toasts by the people closest to us, and like a reflection of us as a couple with signature cocktails and a customized wedding ceremony.

A few of my favorite visual details included the green moss A & M that hung on the entrance gate to Elm Bank, handkerchiefs with our monogram for each guest during the ceremony, and on either side of the aisle we had various garden flowers “sprouting” from the ground. It was also very important to transform the Sperry Tent into a garden type space, complete with delicate ferns wrapped in the chandeliers to a living wall that became the backdrop for the band. Another special touch was an assortment of family heirloom sterling silver vessels, complete with monograms of my family from generations passed, which held delicate garden inspired flower arrangements. The flowers lined the crisp white hemstitched linen table clothes. A perfect nod to a bygone Southern romantic era.

FAVORITE MOMENTS
My favorite moments from the day was reciting my heartfelt and handwritten vows to my husband in front of our favorite people in the world, my husband’s sweet groom’s toast, the moment we took to walk outside of the tent and just be in the moment of our wedding night, and our first dance as husband and wife!

Boston Wedding Cinematography: Caravan Weddings

Event Coordination and Design : Bash, Please

Florals: Foret

Venue: Elm Bank in Wellesley, MA

Our beautiful bride, Amelia, is an art consultant and also has a charming blog called Colourbloc. 

High up on a breathtaking Malibu hilltop is where you’ll find this affair. And as unbelievable as those views are, even more unbelievable is the beauty of this gilded wedding day. With details by Bash, Please that give bohemian a glamorous infusion and florals by Brown Paper Design that cover everything in a blanket of bold color, there’s not a single image by Max Wanger you won’t want to pin. And check out this stunning wedding cinematography by Caravan. Do so to your heart’s content right here.

From Bash, Please… Both born and raised in the south- her, Alabama; him- Georgia, Beth Murray and Ben Bricken met their freshman year attending the University of Georgia. They remained close friends throughout their four years of college. Upon graduation, Beth moved up the east coast, working on Capitol Hill and then moving on to New York City as a producer for NBC’s TODAY Show. An avid surfer, Ben went (much farther) west- working for Discovery Land Company’s Kuki’o development in Hawaii. He continued to pursue real estate- and chasing surf- ending up in Santa Monica at Douglas Emmett real estate firm. The two kept up through the years and reconnected in Los Angeles, while Beth was on a business trip for TODAY. “We went out for a drink to catch up on life since college and it was like a light switch turned on,” recalls Murray. “We ended up talking on the beach in front of his house until morning and the rest is history.” “We both just knew.” The two got engaged a few short months later- Ben proposed in Rosemary Beach, Florida while they were spending a weekend in the South with his family.

From the Bride… Our hopes for our wedding day was that it would be laid back, meaningful, and fun for our guests. We wanted them to feel the love that we share for each other- and for them too! Having an intimate destination wedding in Los Angeles allowed our friends and family to spend quality time with each other, and also get a glimpse into the place we now call home. The highlight of the day for us was the ceremony- we wanted to make sure not to rush through it- which included custom written vows for us by Ben’s dad, Rev. Reese Bricken. Another surprise for us during the ceremony was an original poem written for us by close friend and author Donald Miller, titled “Generation One.” We wanted the ceremony to reflect our commitment each other, our family and the meaning of marriage- and it really set the tone and the spirit of the entire day. The whole night was straight up magic.

The first piece of advice I got on wedding planning came from my sister-in-law- hire a coordinator! I knew that between moving from New York City to LA and planning a detailed destination wedding in 6 months, that I would need extra help. Paige and Kelly were the perfect fit. The magical, laid back, meaningful celebration we envisioned? Better than we could have ever imagined. P&K made the planning fun- not stressful- and their attention to detail made me feel completely at ease throughout the process. Their fresh eye for beauty and creativity really made the mix of both the traditional and modern aspects we wanted for the wedding flow together beautifully. They kept us laughing and feeling loved throughout the process. From custom paper goods, awesome gift bags, to putting my deodorant on me pre-ceremony (thanks, Paige!), we can’t imagine planning what we did with anyone else.

Max’s photography is a step beyond. His artistic eye is what captivated us from the beginning. I knew the photographer would be with me throughout the day from start to finish, and wanted someone laid back and fun. Max was a perfect fit. Apart from his extraordinary work, his easy demeanor is exactly what any bride would want with them throughout their day.

Amanda & Jeremy’s Wedding Trailer was featured on Once Wed!

About Once Wed:

At Once Wed, we delight in simplicity with a twist of modern innovation, infusing beautiful design with meaning and emotion. Our clean, organic images and compelling content is meant to inspire you to tell your own love story,to dream beyond trend and tradition, and to create a day that feels deeply symbolic of the love you share together.

Through this timeless online experience, we hope to enkindle a conversation: one that sparks artistically innovative, authentic ideas, and encourages you to shape aesthetics around the significance of your union.

Emily Newman launched Once Wed in March 2008 after she saw a need in the marketplace for an online listing service for second-hand wedding dresses following her own wedding. She later developed the company as an online wedding publication and resource to provide newly-engaged brides with inspiration and tools to plan their dream wedding. Her editorial eye and passion for helping brides plan inspired weddings has helped Once Wed rise above the ranks as one of the top wedding websites in the world. Once Wed greets over 6 million visitors a year with a daily social reach of 400k+ followers.

Emily has been quoted as an entrepreneurial and wedding expert in Inc Magazine, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, Brides Magazine, Cosmopolitan Bride, and NBC Today. Once Wed was named Most Glamorous Home Based Business in 2010 by MSNBC.

Her role as a Creative Director can be seen in campaigns for Fuji Film, Williams-Sonoma, Zola Registry, Allure, and Freixenet. She lives in Atlanta, GA with her husband and daughter.

We were thrilled to be featured on Green Wedding Shoes– here’s what they had to say about our film for Jeremy and Bailey:

And to end the week, I just love this sweet wedding film for Jeremy + Bailey by Caravan – a new wedding cinematography company based out of Charlotte, North Carolina that I think you lovelies will fall head over heels for!

Here is a little bit more about GWS:

At Green Wedding Shoes, we are truly. madly. deeply. head over heels in love with love. We love sharing weddings with our readers and believe that there is no “right” way to throw a wedding. Whether you’re dreaming of an intimate wedding on a farm, a weekend camping adventure or a handmade wedding in a loft, we love them all! I love showing couples how their wedding can be all about them and that it’s ok to break traditions to make the day their own. Since beginning GWS, our mission has been to help couples personalize their wedding day and make it truly about the two of them as a couple, because that is what the day is about, right?! We love great photography – because it’s the one thing you have to remember after the event! And we have lots of great artists to recommend in our GWS Wedding Artist Guide to help create a GWS wedding. Our site started with us sharing amazing weddings and has now grown to also sharing entertaining, lifestyle, DIY and fashion + beauty features – so there is really something for everyone!

Jen and Jason met at work. Jen was working as an Art Director and Jason was the VP of the company (a fun design company that developed websites and created online campaigns for movies). They quickly realized not only were they a great team at the company, there were becoming best friends and maybe more. Jen left the company for a new role as Creative Director (where she was a lead designer for ESPN and Yahoo! Sports) and their friendship quickly turned to more.

After a few years of dating, and the perfect woodland wedding in Jason’s hometown of Milwaukee, WI, Jen started Green Wedding Shoes to fill a gap she saw in the wedding blog world. Seven years later (and with lots of hard work), we are proud to both call Green Wedding Shoes our full time gig.

Jen’s the Editor + Creative Director. She carefully selects each wedding and feature to share on the site as well as well as expanding the GWS brand into a few product launches.

Jason’s the man behind the site. He runs the ad campaigns, software development and partner relationships. We absolutely love that we get to work with each other everyday on a site that helps inspire so many couples in love. We consider ourselves pretty lucky!

We live in Los Angeles, California and when we aren’t working on the site, love hanging out with our 3 year old daughter Sienna. Traveling, listening to music, checking out the newest LA foodie spot and enjoying the amazing LA weather are our favorite things. We definitely find the Southern California lifestyle inspires our design + interests.