Are you looking for a wonderful outdoor location for your smaller wedding.

Burritt on the Mountain in Huntsville, AL is the perfect location.  Located on Monte Sano, this site is filled with a mansion from around the 1930's, a church from 1884 as well as older log homes and cabins and a beautiful gazebo overlooking Huntsville.   There is also a Trillium Room with chandeliers and fireplace as another reception option.  The website contains all the rental information along with space capacities.

Looking for a Huntsville wedding planner? Contact me to talk about your wedding. 

Karol and Brad had a beautiful military wedding at The Governor's Club at Pleasant Hill Mansion.   The ceremony was complete with a professional Saber Arch with the help of the groom's friends. 

 The reception was beautifully decorated with red roses and candles throughout the pavilion and the mansion.  

Photographer: Aaron Yung Photography

Venue: Governor's Club

DJ: Nashville Party Authority

Flowers: Sweet Norma Flowers

Officiant: Ralph Griggs

Hair & Makeup: Bella Donna Salon

Cellist: Matt Nelson

I had the pleasure of working on a fall wedding at the Parthenon in Nashville.  The ceremony was held in the Athena room and then changed over for the reception as well.   Photos were taken at the Parthenon as well as Centennial Park in the gardens.

 The bride and groom incorporated color into the flowers and the groomsmen shirts.  

Instead of a traditional looking cake, the bride had a custom cake made using a mold from a pitcher that she owned. It was truly a stunning cake. 

Photographer: Spectra Dezigns

Catering: A Dream Come True

Cake: The Sweetest Day

Flowergirl Dress: Elite Dresses

The term DIY is everywhere in weddings.  Every blog is filled with amazing images of projects that the bride created herself.   It can make you wonder how she had the time.  Any bride can be a DIY bride the real question is should you?

Being a DIY bride can allow you to have a personal, tangible connection to your wedding, whether it is through the favors or the décor.  Almost no area of wedding planning has been untouched by DIY with the exception of actual day of events.  The list of possibilities is endless – chair sashes, bridesmaid hair pieces, cake topper, centerpieces, invitations, and so on. 

Before tackling any project, do you homework.  Research the final cost to create the item and then get a price quote from at least 2 wedding vendors.  If your only reason for doing DIY is to save money, you may find that it isn’t a substantial savings for every project.  If your reason is to create beautiful personal items that other will cherish, then also be sure to research the time investment. 

Don’t allow yourself to become overwhelmed with tasks.  Large tasks may require the help of bridesmaids, friends and family.  Time the projects so that they end at least 2 days before the wedding.   Unless you are skilled, experienced and have staff, don’t attempt to make the wedding cake or handle the catering yourself.  You don’t need the stress involved during the 24 hours before your wedding.

Plan ahead for transportation.  Now that you have created these amazing masterpieces, you have to know how they will get to and from the wedding venue.  Do they need assembled? Distributed? Arranged?  Talk with friends and wedding vendors to know in advance who will take care of these items.  Also be sure to designate who takes everything home after the big day.

Once you have handled these items, have fun with your DIY projects.  Invite your friends over for a crafting party and create a wedding that is unlike any other.  

Puckett's Grocery is great southern food. If you haven't already been to Puckett's Grocery, you should go. They have locations in Franklin, Leiper's Fork and downtown Nashville. The place is always packed, the food is awesome and they have songwriting nights throughout the year.  Everything I have eaten from the chicken to the prime rib to the burgers have been sooo good.  They have all the dishes you would expect including squash casserole and fried green tomatoes.  They would be a great option for rehearsal or reception.

Puckett's Grocery offers two options.
1. Their location in Franklin can be rented and seats 110.
2. The offer offsite catering.

See more photos of weddings at Pucketts at Style Me Pretty and Donald Yeager

Photo: Donald Yeager

Photo: Michael Howard

Wedding Stamps are custom postage stamps that allow you to control the look and feel of the postage stamp used on your invitations, save the dates, RSVP cards, or any other wedding mailings. While the USPS has two generic wedding stamps, custom wedding stamps allow for virtually limitless possibilities. There are currently over 150,000 different wedding-themed designs from which to choose, so you can coordinate your invitation postage with any wedding theme, color, or style.

Custom wedding stamps cost a bit more than stamps you would get at your local post office, but they add an incredible ‘wow’ factor to your invitations. To learn more about custom postage stamps, visit Wedding Stamps.

Amanda and Ryan were married at the Hermitage.  The ceremony was help in the Old Hermitage Church and the reception was help nearby at Tulip Grove both located on the Hermitage property, home of Andrew Jackson.   The old house was filled with wonderful details.

The photos were taken by the talented and always fun Matt Andrews and fellow photographer Twila Allen.  Check out more great photos!

Check out this awesome groom's cake!

As the evening went on, many of the guests, bridal party as well as vendors went outside to enjoy the fall sunset from the front steps.  

Photographer: Matt Andrews       Twila Allen

Catering: Monel's

Flowers: The Enchanted Florist

DJ: Cale Carver

Venue: The Hermitage

Cake: Signature Cakes by Vicki

This quick 5 minutes video gives you the initial steps to get started with wedding planning from what to do first to what vendor to book first.

If you go to any wedding, there is usually an abundance of cake - beautiful, whimsical, elegant, colorful, detailed - cake. Groom's cake can be unique  - cowboy hats, life preserver, Stratocaster guitar, blackjack table - I've seen lot of interesting cakes.  But it's still cake.  

There are so many other options that are equally delicious and more representative of your character.

1. Candy buffet - You've seen them in the range of flavors and colors.  But who doesn't love to see their favorites?  Beautiful displays and candy dishes make this option memorable.

2. Cake buffet - Instead of one cake, let guests choose from a dozen tempting choices. 

3. Pie - Great for a backyard or relaxed reception.  The hardest part may be limiting the flavors - apple, peach, chess, chocolate......Read More

4. Mini Dessert - Who can resist dessert and milk shooters?  Tiny milk glasses make this memorable.

5. Ice cream - For a truly memorable dessert option, serve custom ice cream times to be served after the cake cutting.  A popular option is ice cream sandwiches with gourmet flavors.   

6. Cookie buffet - Everyone's childhood dessert favorite.  Lay out a buffet of delicious cookies and goody bags to take some home.

wedding cookie buffet (Affordable wedding photography)

7. Banana Pudding - Who doesn't love this childhood favorite served with whipped cream?  Have it served in small cups for a great presentation. 

8. Strawberry Shortcake - This summer favorite is also popular at weddings.  A create-your-own buffet is fun for guests. 

9. Chocolate truffles - No matter how you choose to present them, these are a great choice for a groom's dessert or a favor. 

Kate Murphy

10. Family Recipe - Does everyone have fond memories of grandma's special pumpkin bread or Aunt Suzie's dessert custard?  Handed down family recipe's can be worked into weddings.  Some bakers will be glad to use a family recipe as long as they receive it with plenty of advance time. 

(Jenna Winstead photography)

11. Chocolate Milk - Served in vintage style milk bottles, this will be a success with your guests and makes a great photo.

As part of my new business resolution of Pay it Forward, here is the first free download.

Love the new paisley inspired wedding trend?  Enjoy these postcards with a paisley theme. These 7 postcards are in the newest colors. All of these postcards can be used for Save the Dates.  Of course, they can also be used for invites, parties, thank-you and much more.

Paisley is fresh and new again and appearing everywhere. This bright and graphic pattern adds pizzazz to your wedding elements.

These cards have been designed with classic colors as well as newer shades.  

Download Here

Technical Stuff:

Format: JPG

Size: 5.6 X 4.25

Printing Info: These cards can be used and printed through any software you prefer.  For affordable and easy printing, let me tell you about a great resource - Express Copy.   They will print a 2-sided color postcard and mail it to your address list for $.61 (or less).   Other sizes and options are available.  They have great pricing and very quick turnaround.  Their customer service has been great the few times I've needed it.    Simply upload your own design or use one of their large selection of pre-designed postcards.  

If you don't want them to mail your postcards, they can also just print them and mail them back to you.  Either way, this is a big time saver for busy brides. 

Enjoy!

Just like most brides, wedding planners have to stay very organized.  It can be very difficult when inspiration strikes while walking around shopping or sitting in traffic.  It isn't always practical to walk around with a folder of notes and photos either.

Now a great solution -

Evernote

.  After reading people rave about it on Twitter, I decided to give it a try.  I already love how organized it makes things.

First, Evernote is a free application.  Second, it has applications for desktop, web browser and mobile and they all sync together.

I use it to keep track of wedding trends and great ideas for my blog, as well as notes from brides.  You can jot down a note on your phone and then add onto later sitting at your computer.  With the web browser app, you can click one button and save the website you are reading.  Or just select the text and photos you want and save them for later, like when you are shopping and trying to remember which way that dress looked online.  Simply look up your notes on your phone.  Its a pretty smart application.

You can edit and delete notes just like any document.  You can also print and email from inside the app as well.

This is screenshot from my desktop app while making notes for new blog posts.

You can organize the notes inside of notebooks as well as add tags.  There is also a search function to help you find specific notes or topics.  The best part is that Evernote can recognize text within images as well as handwriting.  Want to keep track of your vendors, take photos or scan their business cards.  

You can also record audio notes and use the draw function to sketch. You are given a custom email address so that you can email things directly into your Evernote account, such as the floor plan from the lighting company or the rental list.

Brides, use this great resource to keep your wedding information organized and easily accessible.  Visit Evernote

Merry Christmas to all brides, recently married, just engaged or celebrating 50 years of happiness.  The holiday season is a great time filled with friends, family, happiness and goodwill.

For many brides planning their wedding, this is also a GREAT time to grab some bargains.  Almost every retailer has an after Christmas sale to mark-down holiday merchandise.  So stock up on ribbon, candles, electric candles, white lights, and so much more.  In addition to decor, some brides have confessed that they purchased cases of wine glasses, dishes, linens and so much more.  These are things they could not have afforded if not for this sale.

Beyond the traditional red and green, most items can be found in white, silver or gold or with gold or silver trim.  These are colors that can be easily incorporated into all weddings.  Some stores also offer decorations in pinks, blues, purples, etc - colors that can work for a lot of weddings.  Think large vases filled with pink or purple ornaments.

For the DIY bride, many craft supplies go on sale during this time as well.

Also think outside the box.  All those packaged gift sets of lotion, perfume and toiletries, can be repacked into nice guest baskets for the bathrooms.

If your wedding isn't too far after Christmas, all those chocolates and truffles can make nice favors or be used in hotel welcome bags for guests.  Also keep in mind the rehearsal dinner and other parties.

Happy Shopping

Deana and Phillip had a beautiful wedding at Lost River Cave in Bowling Green, KY.   The blue color scheme was used throughout the reception.  In keeping with the cave ambiance, all of the reception tables had gem names.

Here are a few photos from the event.  (For more of these great photos, see the photographers below)

VIP Bartending

Photographers:

 -

JenniGrace Photography

-

Monica Z Photography

Wildberry Catering - 615-812-1724

DJ - Scott Lewis 270-846-3020

Bradfield Stage Lighting

This holiday helps to remind me to be grateful for all the little blessings in my life...food, clothes, housing.  It also reminds me to cherish my friends and family and the most amazing blessings in my life.

I hope your life is filled with abundance and blessings this holiday.

This past spring I had the pleasure of working on a website launch party for ARC Design Build Inc, a green remodeling company in Huntsville, AL.    The event was held at downtown Huntsville's most eclectic historic venue A.M.Booth's Lumberyard.  The venue is full of unique decor and indoor/outdoor spaces.

 Events by Elaine provided planning, decor and event staff. We used a simple, muted color scheme with candles and some limited flowers. Here are some of the photos from my camera phone:

We filled these large cylinder vases with translucent gems and put lights inside for a great nighttime effect

We used simple flowers in the gold family of colors

We filled two dozen jars with candles and used them to light the walkway in the venue.

All the catering was provided by Emma's Tea Room.  The food they provided was fabulous and the presentation was better than most I have seen. 

The menu included a fruit and cheese tower made of glass shelving and vases with fruits cascading down. Fresh vegetable platters with dips.  Homemade crackers served with a variety of spreads.  Carving station  roast beef served with small sourdough rolls and gourmet mustards and aoli spreads.  Warm stuffed tomatos filled with cheese. Warm grilled vegetable skewers served with flavored dips and oils on the side.Warm homemade falafels with yogurt sauce on the side. Little freshly made fruit tartlets.  Brownie bites with freshly made whipped cream and berries chocolate covered strawberries.

Photos: Meishach Moore

In addition to the dessert by the caterer, there was a custom cake in honor of the event.  Look at this impressive cake by Slice at a Time.  Everything is edible except the computer screen, which is covered with edible decorations.  The actual cake (which includes the laptop and briefcase) is white chocolate and chocolate mud cake with layers of swiss meringue buttercream.  The coffee cup is all cake with fondue icing and raspberry fudge filling.  

If you are planning a corporate or event party, be sure to contact us to see how we can help you. 

Wedding planning can appear glamorous and fun.  However, for most brides it can amount to the workload of a second job.  There are also some unexpected bumps in the road.

Photo: Creative Commons

There are hundreds of books, websites and forums to get ideas and inspiration.  Unfortunately, all that creativity can also be overwhelming. How do you choose between fushia and pink?  It can be daunting to choose between  all of the fabulous options that exist.

Once you decide on the perfect flowers and cake, you realize how much its going to cost.  Everything costs money and it can be a little depressing to realize you can't afford to do all of the great things you planned.

So you decide to cut some costs by trimming the guest list and the catering menu.  That's the moment when everyone from your mom to your hairdresser starts giving you suggestions and telling you who to hire.  "We have to invite great-aunt Edna because she was invited to your cousin's wedding."   The one person who may not express any opinion or offer advice is your groom. Some guys just don't have a true opinion about all the little details involved in wedding planning.

While you can't avoid every detour and issue that arises, being aware can help you to step back and look at it as part of the process.  Try to take a few breaths and relax.  Stress only creates wrinkles (Oh, did we forget to mention that everyone will be talking about how you look.)