Florida Weddings

This next wedding is fresh dose of wedding inspiration coming straight to you from sunny Florida. Sent to us from the lovely ladies at the Atlanta Wedding Loft, we’re smiling ear to ear. We immediately fell for the elegant outdoor style, the adorable couple, and pretty paper pieces from the bride herself. And those flowers… heaven. This is one of those weddings that makes me wish I had a previous career as a brilliant floral designer so I could create something that is even a fraction this gorgeous.

{Click here to see the rest of this gorgeous garden affair in our galleries}

From the Atlanta Wedding Loft…

When they say that fate can brings two worlds together we are talking about the fate that brought Amber Lynn Bard and Josh Moon together.  They attended rivalry college schools, and lived across the country from one another, but it was that very thing, fate that brought them together!  As Amber’s job moved her to Stuart Florida, and Josh lived in Los Angeles, an accidental click of a mouse made them instantly friends… literally.

Amber began her new life in Stuart, Florida only to quickly discovered that the majority of Stuart residents were above the age of 50.  With this new realization she began to find herself slightly bored, and starting looking on My Space to see if anyone in Stuart was remotely close to her age. As Amber clicked on what she believed to be a link of people who lived in Stuart, FL, a very handsome Josh Moon appeared on her screen!  What she soon realized is that she had clicked on the link for people who listed their hometown as Stuart, FL.  Josh Moon who was born and raised in Stuart was actually living 2700 miles away in Los Angeles, California.

Coincidentally, weeks later fate brought together Amber Lynn, and Ms. Moon, Josh’s mother! With this crazy coincidence, Amber and Josh began talking, and found that they had many things in common, one being their passion for Eco-friendly building and design, and another their desire to live in California.  Josh’s friends joke that he drove to Florida to pick up his “business partner” and was engaged nine months later! This is a true love story like no other. With everything drawing them apart, fate brought them together.

Vendor Credits: Photography: Adam Linke  The Decisive Moment / Venue: Palm Valley Gardens – Ponte Vedra FL / Dress – Mikaella Bridal Style# 1409 / Custom Ring Bearer Bowl: Paloma’s Nest / Invites & Paper Products: The bride, Amber Moon – Pitbulls & Posies Press / Flowers – Martha Deneen / Cakes: Piece a cake by Gillian / Catering: The Perfect Pear

The mega-talented Agnes Lopez has shared another of her pretty pretty weddings with us ~ and who better to tell you all about it than her gorgeous bride, Kelly …

I get so excited talking about our wedding!  Ever since the new TPC Sawgrass clubhouse opened in 2005, I knew that’s where David and I would get married. It is so strikingly beautiful plus we love to watch golf together and we go to The Players tournament every year and always have the best time!

My inspiration for our colors, design and flowers was “Preppy Chic.” I loved the look of the coral against black and white grosgrain ribbon. As soon as I saw the “tea rose” color Emily dress at J.Crew ~ I knew it was perfect and my styling was coming together! As a little surprise to us, as soon as I chose those dresses, they went on sale and most sizes were already sold out. I had a small bridal breakdown but my super Maid of Honor came to the rescue and called the headquarters to secure dresses for my girls.

Next came the flowers. I really wanted to have color “pop!” against my cream wedding dress so giant coral peonies were my first choice! They ended up not being available so we used large garden roses instead- equally beautiful. Our florist tied in the theme with a beautiful black and white striped ribbon to tie it up. I also instantly knew that I wanted the bridesmaids to carry white French anemones. The white bloom with the large black center looked so sharp and chic!

We continued the color scheme for the outdoor reception with giant coral carnation balls at the alter which was covered with white and tied back in the black and white stripe ribbons on either side. Down the aisle were coral pomanders hanging on the chairs. One of my favorite touches were the black and white chair ties that were tied on the back of every chair on the back row to blow in the wind and add some pizzaz!

While guests were being seated and waiting for the ceremony to begin, waiters passed out cold water and Arnold Palmers to keep everyone comfortable. Then after the ceremony, as we ventured inside to the cocktail reception, we had the waiters pass “Scotty Mac’s World Famous” drinks which were decorated with a golf tee cocktail stirrer. This was a surprise to my dad since he is known for his “world famous” (as he calls it) drink.

Inside the reception room, I abandoned the preppy chic look for an elegant candlelit palette of champagne, ivory and white. It was a nice transition into the evening where we had a stationed dinner and danced all night to the music from The Faze Band.

As the evening came to a close, we were ushered out of the clubhouse among all of our friends and family with sparklers to a waiting golf cart with a beautifully handwritten sign that read, “Happily Ever After.”

It was a fairy-tail wedding and I couldn’t have imagined anything more “me.”

IF ~ you’d like to see more of Kelly & David’s wedding gallery from Agnes Lopez, click here ~OR~ here on Agnes’ blog.

IF ~ by any chance, you missed the incredible photo shoot of Agnes’ that appeared in Jacksonville’s BRIDE Magazine,  and that Abby featured last month on SMP (full SMP Gallery here), well … you totally have to take a good long look!

IF ~ YELLOW (& black & white) are your dream wedding colors, be sure to take a look at Lisa & Robb’s champagne brunch reception at the Carling in Jacksonville, Florida that Agnes has just posted on her blog. Really {seriously} terrific!

Photographer: Agnes Lopez Photography; Ceremony & Reception: TPC Sawgrass – Ponte Vedra Beach, FL; Flowers: Liz Stewart Floral Design; Planner: Nancy Padgett / Soirees; Music: The Faze Band

So, if you are lucky enough to live in Florida, today is your lucky day. Jacksonville Magazine’s BRIDE just released their latest glossy with THE most adorable photoshoot ever, photographed by Agnes Lopez. We’re talking balloons, perfect dresses, a cake made of honey (literally), a hint of whimsy and total style. And Agnes captured it all to perfection. If you don’t live in Florida, we’ve saved a special sneak peek for you. You can see even more from the shoot by clicking right here.

How sweet is this? Make sure to click here for more pictures OR pick up Jacksonville Magazine’s BRIDE for all of the dreamy goodness. Thanks so much to Agnes for sending our way and to the always fabulous Liza Chung for designing. You two are a bloggers dream come true. Seriously, they are. Remember this incredible shoot?

Florals, Styling and Set Design by Liza Chung, assisted by Liz Savage & Cynthia Banda / Bridal Gowns by Love – A Bridal Boutique / Bridesmaid Dresses by Bella Bridesmaid / Shoes by Emly Benham / Hair by Grazyna Mercado 904.534.7350 / Makeup by Kimtasha Armstrong / Balloons by Balloon Construction Company 904.220.5411 / Location, The Plantation at Ponte Vedra Clubhouse 904.543.7532 /  Models, Maureen, Lacey and Laura / Cake by Etiquette of Chocolate / Sweets by Couture Confections

We always like to ask our brides to give us some insight into how they approached planning their wedding ~ their inspiration, their vision. Here’s what Ashaki had to say ~

The main inspiration for our wedding came from my two favorite movies, Gone With The Wind and Marie Antoinette. I made Embry watch these movies countless times while we were dating, and when he barely objected, I knew he was the man for me!!! I really wanted to have a traditional wedding, but I also wanted to make sure that our day was young, fun, and bright. So we combined traditional accents (inspired by the two movies) ~ the antique gold candelabras, candlesticks, and bowls from the outdoor dining scene in Marie Antoinette … and a very traditional ceremony wedding gown with all the fixings – corset, lace, tiered layers  (like in Gone with the Wind!).

Our wedding coordinator, Terrica, was amazing at helping us combine everything!

I wanted the bridesmaids to wear lemon-yellow because I thought it would look absolutely gorgeous on them and also because yellow looks amazing under the sun. The hostesses wore beautiful cocktail dresses in plumeria. Both the bridesmaids and hostess dresses were designed by Watters & Watters and were made in dupioni silk. The girls looked absolutely stunning.

Ashaki and Embry were married in a gorgeous outdoor ceremony on the lawn of Crane Cottage at the Jekyll Island Club Hotel.  LBB photographer, Agnes Lopez, was there to capture their special day!

More from Ashaki ~

As for me, I knew I wanted a big white dress. When I went wedding dress shopping with my mother, I did not expect to find two dresses that I absolutely loved. For the ceremony, I chose a gown with tiered layers, a corset, and lace everywhere. For the reception, I changed into a strapless gown with a completely beaded bodice and beaded accents on the tulle skirt. And for a pop of color, I wore fuchsia Kate Spade peep toe pumps with both dresses. My earrings were designed by the fabulous wedding jewelry designer, Tejani.

What a beautiful wedding! Our thanks and congratulations to Ashaki and Embry for sharing their day with us!

* * *

More of Agnes’ stunning photography can be seen on her website and blog! Of particular interest ~ a recent bridal fashion shoot with some killer gowns (by Monique Lhuillier, Oscar de la Renta & Romona Keveza): Fashion Shoot (1); Fashion Shoot (2);  Fashion Shoot (3)

* * *

Credits: Wedding Planner- Terrica Skaggs with Cocktails & Details, Video- Christina Grimsley of In Motion Video Productions, Make up Artist- Daren Lee of Glamour Face Makeup, Florist- Gay Whatley Floral Design, Linens- BBJ Linen, Lighting- P.O. Lighting and Sound, String Music- Ambiance Trio, Reception Band- EXCITE!, After Party DJ- Dance Jammers

We featured McKenzie and Todd’s wedding earlier today and seem to have sparked off a bit of a controversy that we’d like to lay to rest!

McKenzie and Todd wanted a small intimate wedding and they had a budget of $20,000. {We’re not saying they had a low budget wedding. We’re saying they had a budget of $20,000.) They approached First Coast Weddings and Events to help them orchestrate their plans and made it clear that they didn’t want to exceed this figure.  Additionally, they are a very environmentally conscious couple and wanted their wedding to be as eco-friendly as possible.

Now … the point of the story is that sometimes it’s very difficult to stay within your set wedding budget … no matter what that number is (!) … and most couples planning their wedding can attest to that!  There are so many extras that become so tempting, but it CAN be done.

McKenzie and Todd were married in March 2008 at the Oldest House in America! Seriously … according to the St. Augustine Historical Society …

“The González-Alvarez House has been occupied since the 1600s with the present house dating to the early 1700s.”

from Danielle …

McKenzie and Todd met while attending Saint Johns College, a unique college that bases its curriculum on the works of the most influential minds throughout history. Here, they cultivated their love for history, anthropology, and one another. Their leisure time was spent biking and playing trivia. With college behind them and opportunities and new careers awaiting in Seattle, they wanted to plan this one last hoorah – full of their closest friends and family to bid them farewell.

When I first met with McKenzie and Todd, they were at the very beginning stages of their planning and had several guidelines set in stone.

1. The wedding would cost no more than $20,000. (note: this is where the staying within your set budget comes in!)

2. They wanted the wedding to be reflective of their personalities

3. The wedding needed to be intimate- 50 guests to be exact

4. They wanted it to be as low-key and green as possible, with respect to environmental and socially aware planning.

We chose the location of the ceremony for its strong history which was quite important to the couple. They wanted a space that felt warm and rich while still being able to not overwhelm their intimate ceremony. In keeping with their eco-consciousness, the guests and couple walked the three blocks to the ceremony at The Oldest House. They chose to have no attendants, rather they selected only their immediate family and closest friends to witness their vows. They each walked in solo as a string trio played the works of Bach and Mozart. In all my years of planning, I have never felt so engaged- just the two of them opening up their hearts to one another.

They wrote their own ceremony, with borrowed traditions from several cultures throughout time. Their very talented friends offered up their services to assist with the bread and honey ceremony, with one having a 250 year old starter for sourdough and another who owns a bee farm! We kept the decor simple, with a chuppah wrapped in a garland adorned with fresh locally-grown citrus fruits and a bouquet of hydrangeas. Adorning the entrance to the Oldest House were two topiaries adorned with mini citrus fruits.

Who says that no bridal party means no bridal party fashion? I loved that McKenzie’s mother and sisters all chose to wear dresses from a bridesmaid’s line. They were sophisticated selections that reflected each personality but definitely distinguished them as guests of honor!

In order to maximize the budget, we chose to hold the reception at the gorgeous Casa Monica Hotel’s Sultan’s Pool Deck. The space was discounted because it was a chilly off-season, but included space heaters. What I love most about this space is the stationery cabanas and amazing styling! It means that there is no worrying about tent, table, and lighting rentals. They also have an iPod dock that goes into their PA system, which we used for cocktail hour and background dinner music. Because the space is already highly-styled, there was little need to add more than a few hydrangeas and citrus fruits.

Guests were treated to a polaroid guest book and an extension of the bread and honey ceremony. Their friends made the cutest orange blossom honey escort cards. I thought that the most clever part about them was that the shade of green on the leaves denoted the guest’s dinner selection (fish/meat) which was a subtle way to help Casa Monica’s staff.

McKenzie and Todd announced early on that they were not the tiny dancers… not even close. Thus, they opted to skip dancing all together. Instead, they allocated those funds to a great menu and wine list. And, they employed the help of a friend that they had made over the last few years of trivia night. That’s right, they had a full-on trivia challenge! Designed to match their Dauphine letterpress invitations, these trivia menus were by far the most chic that I had ever seen! I loved that the guests were able to interact and have wonderful food and conversation.

At the end of the evening, we cut the cake. And oh what a cake it was! McKenzie and Todd worked with Sweet Weddings to create a lovely cake which had their college crest on top. Afterward, there was the crowning of the Trivia winners, a sparkler exit (followed by an impromptu dance off by their guests) and the couple was off to their honeymoon (biking all the way up the East Coast!)

In the end, we were able to stay within their budget by determining what was most important to the couple … the food, photography, and ambiance. And then, we found cost-conscious alternatives for the rest … the flowers and entertainment. Last, but certainly not least … they accepted help from their friends. We were able to achieve an intimate affair that was environmentally and socially aware, and completely reflective of the couple’s personality.

It would not have been possible without this amazing team: Coordinated by Danielle Bamba of First Coast Weddings and Events, Flowers by Riverside Event Design, Ceremony Venue – The Oldest House, Reception Venue and Catering – The Casa Monica Hotel, Photography by Leah Powell Photography, Cake – Sweet Weddings, Ceremony Music by Wehners Weddings Entertainment, Details by The Couple’s Talented Friends!

Thanks so much to Danielle for helping McKenzie and Todd achieve their dream wedding! Our congratulations to McKenzie and Todd!!

ps … the original post has been updated in response to our readers comments!

A Florida Romance: Two Sides To Every Story

Arden’s Version It was just another Friday night and she was tired. Not much in the mood to go out, but Marianne twisted her arm. They ended up at Finn McCool’s on the beach. In one of those Gray’s Anatomy-like scenes … two hot guys enter the bar and eyes lock. But lo and behold, only one of the guys is available. That’s OK with Arden. It was the other one she was looking at, anyway.

Dave’s Version Friday afternoon, his friend Trip called. Trip’s wife’s friend was in town … she gave him the go ahead to get out. Dave was beat and wasn’t much in the mood, but finally agreed and they ended up at Finn McCool’s. The moment they walked into the bar, this amazing girl gave him, the look. According to Dave, whether Arden knew it or not, she’d been waiting for him.

The Next Day

Arden’s Version She awoke to a text message asking when he could see her next.

Dave’s Version “I sent Arden a text at the end of the night wishing her sweet dreams, so she had my number. Knowing she had landed a keeper, she called me first thing the next morning and invited me to a barbecue. I accepted [picked ’em up in my BMW M-Series]… met her friends… I turned on the charm and the deal was closed.”

Arden’s Version “As the sun went down, we weren’t ready to say goodbye. I was head over heels in love with Dave and never wanted to be without him again.”

Dave’s Version “Somehow, after a few dates and walks on the beach, I found myself consumed with the thought of this girl. She continued (and continues) to amaze, and it wasn’t long before I knew that, when it was all said and done,  ‘I’ was the one who was truly fortunate.”

The Proposal

Dave and Arden’s Version A random Thursday night. Dave had done his homework, had worked with a friend in NY to have Arden’s ring designed. Carried it around for a couple of months trying to figure out how to actually propose. He had been teasing her about popping the question for a couple of weeks and she finally told him to cut it out. On this particular Thursday night, when the sweet-talking started, she was cooking salmon. She began to sweat and asked him to stop. In the middle of the kitchen, he dropped to one knee, said it was real and pulled the ring from his pocket. “Her eyes as big as saucers, I slid the ring on her finger and asked for her hand in marriage. She never really said ‘yes’. She just smiled big and goofy and joined me on the floor of the kitchen.”

The Wedding

from Arden …“The morning of our wedding, I stepped outside the balcony of my hotel room and could not have asked for a more perfect blue sky. The day flew by and before I knew it, I was in my dress … standing at the end of the aisle with my father. As the music played, he gave me away to the love of my life. Dave and I took our vows. I was married to the man of my dreams.”

Doesn’t get any better than this! Congratulations and thank you, Arden & Dave, for sharing your love story with all of us at Style Me Pretty!

{To see the full gallery, click here!}

A huge thanks to Agnes Lopez, one of our great Little Black Book members, photographing weddings in Ponte Vedra Beach, Amelia Island, St. Augustine, Jacksonville, and Georgia’s Golden Coast. Agnes is an amazing wedding photographer… take a look back at Christienne &  Justin’s wedding {Old World Elegance} on Style Me Pretty.

And more from her blog:  Arjola and Peter’s Wedding

The Jacksonville Luxury Living spread …

Agnes’ commercial website, POSE WELL studios featuring Little Black Book member, Etiquette of Chocolate (mmmmm……..)

Agnes Lopez rocks!