Real Wedding: Brianna and Mike!

Soooooo excited to share this amazing wedding with you guys today!  These gorgeous pics come to us courtesy of Leah Lee Photography, who not only is super talented, but also has one of the coolest names ever.  Brianna is a dear friend of mine and she and Mike have been together for like a million years now so their wedding really was a celebration of true love.  Brianna is uber crafty and she spent hours working on the details for their day, everything from centerpieces to homemade boutonnieres.  She pretty much rules (and was one of the most gorgeous brides I have ever seen).  Enjoy the eye candy!

Brianna and Mike got married in a great space, the Camarillo Ranch House, which has an awesome combo of outdoor garden, Victorian style house, and rustic barn.  I love their barn mainly because it looks like a barn, but doesn't smell like a barn!  It even has concrete floors!

And who is that awesome band playing?  I think that may be Matt and the Matchmakers!  That guy on the left is super hot...

P.S.  That is one of the best bouquet toss pics I have ever seen.  Those girls are enthusiastic!

Thank you to Brianna and Mike, and Leah Lee for sharing these beautiful pictures with us!  Happy Friday all!

Garden Party Wedding

Spring is in the air!  I love spring for many reasons: Spring Break, warmer weather, pretty flowers, and of course, spring kicks wedding season into full bloom!  Spring weddings are always so fresh and pretty.  The flowers alone can make it a beautiful day!  If you are getting married in the spring, why not let it influence your theme and have a garden party wedding?  These are some of my favorite garden wedding inspiration images!  (Click pic for original source!)

 

Wow, I didn't notice until I scrolled back through those pics, but there is a common theme!  Apparently I am into hanging jars and long brown tables with pretty strung lights! Hope theses images brighten up your day!  Happy wedding season!

What the Pros Want You to Know!

Hello lovely readers!  Today I am starting a new feature called "What the Pros Want You to Know."  Originally this was only going to be one blog post, but I got such a great response from my wedding vendor pals that I am going to make this one a series!  Hopefully these tips from experienced wedding pros will help brides who are planning their celebrations be a little more prepared for the vendor hunt.  Finding the right vendors for your big day is super important--they are the ones that make everything happen!

For our first installment, I wanted to share some info that came back from almost every vendor, no matter what their service.  This one is easy: Pros want you to be honest!  Be honest about what you want, be honest about your budget, be honest about your expectations, your worries, your concerns, your hopes, your vision, everything!  No vendor can give you the best service if you do not fully disclose everything you want or need from him or her.  Wedding vendors really want to give you everything you have ever dreamed of for your wedding, but we aren't mind readers.  If you let us know exactly what you want, chances are we can make it happen (and if we can't, we'll politely tell you exactly why).

The second thing all vendors want you to know is that there is no extra special "wedding" charge.  There is this myth that brides and grooms put the word "wedding" out there to vendors and automatically the charges double.  So not the case!  Wedding vendors charge what they do because that is the price it takes to give you the best possible service.  From my experience, photographers seem to bear the brunt of this "all-wedding-vendors-are-overpriced" theory.  On the surface, it makes sense: $3000 for an eight hour day!?!?  However, the work does not stop after your wedding day.  Photographers spend HOURS editing your pictures to get them ready for you.  Plus, all wedding vendors have expenses like advertising, website maintenance, insurance, rent, and equipment--just like any other business.  I promise, vendors are not trying to overcharge you just because it's your wedding day!  Try to keep that in mind as you begin your vendor search.

I hope these tips are helpful and give you brides some insight into the minds of your wedding vendors!  I will be back next week with some specific tips from wedding photographers!

Photo credit: bakeryfantacy.com

Pinterest Tuesday!

Welcome to Pinterest Tuesday!  I am reviving this segment that I loved from my craft blog.  If you have been living under a rock, Pinterest is a virtual pinboard that allows you to collect ideas and inspiration from all over the internet.  Basically it's like crack, so if you aren't a member yet, proceed with caution!  These are some of my favorite pins from the week!  (Click pic for original source!)

Have guests sign the vase on their table, interactive and a great guest book idea!

Everything on this table is DIY! Click pic for tutorial!

Love these wooden letters!

 This dress would be great for a casual wedding, bachelorette or rehearsal dinner.

The hubs just asked if I could recommend these to my brides so he can have some.

You know me, I loves some sparkle, and this is another DIY!

Hope these brightened up your Tuesday!  Check back tomorrow for a very special new Wednesday feature!

Real Anniversary Shoot: Katelyn and Peter

I am so excited to be bringing you this adorable anniversary shoot from Scott Kretschmann Photography!  Anniversary shoots are kind of a new thing, and I absolutely love them.  In fact, I have been thinking about arranging one for the hubs and I sometime this summer for our one year.  I like the idea of having nice photos of the two of us that aren't from our wedding.  And since most of our pics involve Matt trying to lick me or bite me, we are in dire need of some pretty pics.  But I digress!  Today is about Katelyn and Peter, their super cute love story, and their gorgeous anniversary pics.

Since Kateyln and Peter met in elementary school and started dating in high school, the perfect place to start their anniversary shoot was a local park.  After the park they continued onto the docks at a nearby lake.

Look at those eyes!  So gorgeous!  After the docks it was time to get fancy!  The couple put on their Sunday best (including an awesome necklace from Lipstick n Lashes!) and headed to Top of the World Golf Resort.  How beautiful are these shots?

So pretty!  You can tell from these pictures that these two really love each other!  I love a successful high school sweethearts story!  Congrats to Katelyn and Peter for three years of wedded bliss and special thanks to Scott Kretschmann Photography for sharing this beautiful shoot with us!

A Tattoo Wedding

Okay, so I am a total slacker...promised you more tattoo wedding inspiration yesterday and I just couldn't make it happen.  I'm lame, I know.  But to make up for it, I have some really cool pics for you today!  There are many ways to incorporate tattoo designs into your big day, here are a few of them! (Click pic for original source.)

How about some super cute tattoo inspired wedding invites?  Love those!  Or some tattoo inspired wedding shoes?  Um, brilliant!

You could also bust out some cool tattoo inspired favors.

Set up a "tattoo parlor" and give your guests (temporary of course) wedding inspired tattoos!  Or give them a yummy tattoo themed treat!

Alright, and last but not least, as promised, here are the tattoos Matt and I got last weekend.  We knew we didn't want anything with names or dates, or anything too matchy matchy cutesy lovey dovey.  So we each decided on our own tattoo that tied into our wedding, but still represented us.  I chose to get a cartoon version of the cupcakes we had at our wedding and Matt got the music for our first dance song.  I love that the tattoos represent us as a couple and signify such an important day, but they also tie into our individual interests.  Without further ado, here they are!  (These pics were taken during the healing process so keep that in mind :o))

We love them (though I am so glad that I now have tattoos on both of my feet and can't get any more, feet hurt!) Thanks to Big J over at Aces High in Fullerton, CA, he is our main tattoo master!  What do you guys think?

Tattoo cakes

Alright lovely readers, back today with more badassness.  When I started my search for wedding tattoos, I found lots of cool ideas for a tattoo inspired wedding.  Does it get any more badass than a tattoo inspired wedding?  Yeah, didn't think so.  These cakes are totally awesome and unique.  If you and your fiance have a bit of an edge to you, why not take this inspiration and run with it? (Click pic for original source.)

Pretty sweet, huh?  Get it?  Sweet...like cake?  Alright, alright.  One more day of tattoo inspiration coming up tomorrow, don't forget to check back to see my new ink!

Family Feud

Hey all!  More badass wedding inspiration will be coming your way tomorrow.  For today, I wanted to share with you my third installment of my Weddings 101 column over at US Daily Review.  This one deals with an issue most of us will face during our wedding planning times, so hopefully it will help you out (or at least let you know that you are not alone!).

One of the most common problems my brides vent to me about is stressful family feuds. Planning a wedding can be an emotionally intense experience for all involved, and high emotions tend to equal disagreements and resentment. How do you deal with these disagreements when your wedding is supposed to be about love and happiness? Well, it is different for every family, but there are some common tips to keep in mind.

1. Be honest. Keeping the communication lines open is key. If something your mother is doing is upsetting you, tell her. If you keep quiet and let the anger and frustration build, it is eventually going to boil over. And when it does, things typically are going to be much worse than if you had talked out the much smaller issue back at the beginning.

2. Don’t put your groom in the middle. It is not uncommon for brides to butt heads with their future mother in law (FMIL). Many times those brides are tempted to complain to their grooms and expect them to fix the problem. It is fine to vent, but remember that you are talking about his mother. Don’t ask him to choose sides. If you are having problems with the FMIL, see tip #1. Feel free to bring your future hubby with you, but have a conversation with her. She’s going to be in your life for a long time, you might as well learn how to deal with each other.

3. Remember that you are not the only one who has been dreaming of this day. Of course your wedding is “your” day, but your parents (moms especially) have been planning for this for almost as long as you have (and some for longer). I’m not suggesting you forgo your wishes, but if your parents are asking you for small compromises, give in, especially if they are footing the bill.

4. Call in reinforcements. If you have attempted to talk out your problems with your family members and there are still issues, make sure you have back up. Tell your wedding coordinator or your maid of honor about your situation and ask them to mediate on the big day. The last thing you want to be worrying about on your wedding day is a family feud so have someone on guard and ready to step in should there be any problems.

5. Try to keep it all in perspective. Some family problems are serious and run much deeper than wedding planning spats, but many really do come down to the stress of planning such a huge event. If your family falls into the latter category, remember that your wedding is one day; your family that you are creating is for the rest of your life. In five years, you will hardly even remember the battle between you and your mom about linen colors, or the war waged with your in laws about the guest list.

When all else fails, take a deep breath, have a glass of wine, maybe have a good cry, watch some chick flicks and try to relax. Even if the planning process is rough, on your wedding day all that matters is that you marry the love of your life.

Wedding Ink

You might not know this about me given my penchant for all things pink, cupcake, sparkle, Disney, but I am kind of a bad ass.  And I've got the tattoos to prove it.  That's right, I'm all tatted up and bad ass.  Of course, my tattoos tend to be in the pink, cupcake, sparkle, Disney vein, but that is another story.  The moral here is that I knew when Matt and I got engaged that I would get some sort of tattoo to commemorate our wedding and our relationship.  I am not one for names or dates, so I started looking for some more symbolic options.  And there are some really cool wedding/couple tattoos out there.  Like, seriously cool.  Check it out. (Click pics for original source.)

I knew Matt wasn't going to go for anything too matchy matchy or lovey dovey, but I did convince him to get something with me...want to see?  I will post pics on Friday!  See you then! ;o)