Missouri Weddings

Good morning, SMPers and a very happy Wedding Wednesday to you!  We can barely contain our excitement this lovely December morning, because not only do we have EIGHT gorgeous weddings in our lineup today, but each one is literally bursting at the seams with pretty, pretty details that are guaranteed to inspire.  And how very awesome is that?!?  So, prepare yourselves for an entire day of lovely and be sure to check out those galleries where even more swoon-worthy moments await!

Up first in our day of pretty is one very fabulous Kansas City soiree by Jana Marie Photography.  This charming affair is all about the romance with its sweet as can be coral and green hues, beautiful lace gown and uber-stunning blooms created by Maple Lane Designs.  And when you add to all of that lovely a chic urban loft setting and some gorgeous DIY details, there’s just no better way to start your Wednesday.  So, join me in the gallery for even more pretty and then stay tuned for a wonderful film from Hawleywood Films below!

Click here to see the entire gallery of images!

As promised, a sweet as can be film by Hawleywood Films that will have you falling head over heels for this adorable duo.  They are just too cute for words.  Enjoy!

From Jana Marie Photography… My favorite part was coordinating with the groom, for us to hand him one of our cameras right before his bride walked down the aisle, so that he could snap a photo of the first moment he saw her, so that he could remember that moment for the rest of his life! SO romantic! It was a surprise to her.

From the Bride… Our vision for the wedding was to create a setting that was very relaxing for our guests to ensure everyone (including us) would have a great time. We fell in love with The Berg Event Space as soon as we laid our eyes on it because it was the idealistic space for what we wanted and what we knew we did NOT want. The space and our vision aligned perfectly. Vintage yet contemporary. Simple. Casual. Urban. Loft. Romantic. Creative. Historic. Rustic. Memories.

We wanted to incorporate as much of the natural feel of the space into our wedding as possible. At an urban loft location like The Berg, this was extremely easy. Exposed brick, hardwood floors and stainless steel accents tied in beautifully to the feel we desired. The space helped us select our colors of apple green, coral, ivory, and khaki. This theme was infused through everything including the flowers, the dress, the suit, the centerpieces, the attendants gifts, etc. We also tried to delicately place things that were very personal to ourselves throughout the wedding. The attendants gifts, for example, were filled with one of our favorite candies, Mike and Ike. Leah carried orchids, which Nick’s grandparents raised for almost 40 years in their multiple greenhouses at their house.

One project that we created actually came from the Martha Stewart website. I found it while looking for DIY details for our wedding. It was a dahlia tissue paper flower. This website gave the idea of giving them out as wedding favors and putting a dahlia flower bulb in the middle of the tissue paper flower. I knew that I wanted to make these flowers and put them on the tables to accent our centerpieces, but I wasn’t sure what I wanted to put inside. We chose to put the candy Mike & Ike in the attendants’ gifts instead. Nick and I both have a sweet tooth and that is his favorite candy. We also thought it would hold up the best with a summer wedding and all.

I knew I wanted some kind of detail in our space to make it more unique, I just didn’t know exactly what it was that I was looking for. Our neighbor, Becky, is very crafty and creates beautiful handmade cards all the time. I had seen banners on all of the DIY sites and knew that simple little detail would add so much to the space. I enlisted Becky to create these banners for us so that we could work on other things. I told her what I was looking for and what I wanted the banners to say and she put them together for us. I liked how each banner added a piece of uniqueness to the wedding and broke up the space.

Wedding Photography: Jana Marie Photography / Wedding Cinematography: Matt Hawley of Hawleywood Films / Wedding Venue: Berg Event Space / Food + Cupcakes: Hy-Vee / Groom + Groomsmen Attire: JCPenny / Flower Girl Attire: JCPenny / Wedding Dress: Amore Bridal / Bridesmaid Dresses: J.Crew / Floral Design: Maple Lane Designs / Music: Kahuna Sound Productions / Photobooth: Captured Memories

The details in this gorgeous Kansas occasion by Lark Photos are divine – subtle, understated and oh so personal. For me, that’s detail heaven. With a love story worthy of a novel, this couple brought their spark to their gorgeous day in each and every turn through their well thought out personal touches. The bride, as a photographer herself, stepped out from behind the camera for a change and, with the help of some talented vendors, created a beyond memorable day. It’s the perfect culmination of gorgeous backyard ceremony meets ballroom reception, and there is so much more to see in the full gallery!

Click here for the FULL wedding!

From the bride…What a great day. This is my own wedding. I am a wedding Photographer/Videographer and it was so nice to be on the other side. We’ve had such a long road to this day, its just amazing that we finally made it. Piotr and I met online through an education language exchange website. I helped him learn English and after months of talking via Skype we had to meet each other. 3 years later after many visas, plane tickets, moving over three different countries in a struggle to be together we finally got through the long visa process and were finally able to get married.

Our wedding was very old world/ meets European classic since that is where my husband is from. We wanted the travel theme to kind of subtly come out without being overkill. I have a tattoo of the world map on my arm so I wanted to incorporate that in some of the details.  There were a ton of personal details that had to do with travel, culture, and our story. We had a very small intimate ceremony of 28 and a reception of about 50 people. To finally be on the other side after doing so many weddings was a surreal feeling. Working in the industry allowed us to have such a special wedding without breaking the bank and be very creative with our details. There are so many details!!!!  With being at so many wedding I knew exactly what I wanted.There was a tiny hot air balloon on the top of the cake because that is how Piotr proposed to me on a hot air balloon in Turkey. We made favors for the wedding guests of pumpkin bread wrapped in parchment paper, roped with a tiny compass.

The ceremony space I loved! A friend of mine’s family owns a bunch of land and we were able to set up our small fantasy oasis in the middle of a trail fork. I had the white mantle and a few antique chairs to give it the feel of a intimate fancy living room outside. The florist did an amazing job in capturing my vision for the flowers. Soft palettes with touches and small pops of pinks and lavenders. We collected a ton of silver platter ware and crystal pieces for the flowers to ornate.  We had an old mirror frame that we used to hang our initials at the entry way of the trail to the ceremony site with small  antique suitcases and a birdcage we found. We read out vows from a little old world map journal I found at a bookstore and matched the charm of our invites. We found some acrylic chandeliers to hang in the trees with a few paper lanterns. We spent a few hours pre-burning the candles to give them that look. I collected wine bottles and put old stamps on them for a few of the flower accents. My favorite DIY detail was the giant gold frame we found and put gold satin material behind and roped gold sting up and down to hang our favors. They were mailing tags with friendship lapel pins of the Polish and American flags. The tags read ” Together at last ” which was a very personal touch to our story with how many times we’ve have to leave each other because of immigration legalities. I loved my cake/cake table. I actually found the frame idea from SMP. It was fitting because of the profession I’m in and it was just very different than from what I’m used to shooting. We had a picture table that showed old photos of us and our parents, it was very important to have photos of his parents because they were unable to make the wedding from overseas. We wanted the wedding to really carry that old world feeling. The reception venue really carried off our decor beautifully. The Hotel Phillips was a great choice because we hardly had to decorate to make it fit out style. I was in love with the ballroom from the moment I saw it.

Photography: Laura Kackley of Lark Photos / Videography: Mike Varel / Flowers: Amy Cason of Victorian Gardens / DJ: Craig Loftis of Elite Sounds Entertainment Group / Cake: Megan Taylor Unverferth of Cake Girl / Hair: Katie Welch of Love Your Bobby Pins / Makeup: Amanda Williams of Dollface Aesthetics / Photobooth: KC Photobooth / Ceremony Venue: Friend’s home / Reception Venue: Hotel Phillips / Event Planner: Laura Smith of Concept Consulting (conceptconsulting@live.com) / Day of Wedding Coordination: Jen Fyffe of Savvy /  Invitations: Allie Statler of Announce this Design / Favor Tag Design: Dillon Kinnison / Dress and Alterations: Altar Bridal / Officiant: Craig Kackley of Harvest Chapel

We are wrapping up another wonderful wedding Wednesday with a wedding that mixes both vintage and industrial elements like a champ. I’m talking warm, rich tones juxtaposed with girly lace and two of the cutest little attendants you ever did see. Alec Vanderboom certainly worked his camera magic on this one. Check out the rest of the goods here.

See entire image gallery here!

Meggie and Doug met her freshman year of college, Doug was a senior. The second Meggie laid eyes on Doug, who was sporting shaggy hair and a vintage Led Zeppelin t shirt, she knew that she was going to marry him one day. Doug was blown away by Meggie’s big personality and much like himself, her love for life and music.

8 years and many vinyl albums later, they got engaged. As always, music played a huge part of their engagement and would later play an even bigger part in their wedding. Meggie and Doug knew they wanted a unique wedding centered around what bonded them from the beginning of their journey: music (Zeppelin specifically) art, and fun. With Meggie’s mom quickly taking on the role of wedding planner, the journey to the big day began to quickly come together. They chose a warm vintage building, with gorgeous hard wood floors and rich red brick walls. The groom painted the back drop, incorporating the wedding colors. They were married by a long time friend, who joined the best man in a surprise acoustic version of Bob Marley’s Is This Love, which the crowd quickly joined. A wishing tree was decorated with well wishes for the bride and groom. Guests enjoyed a photobooth with mustaches, signature drinks, dancing and great food, including a late night buffet with sliders and homemade chips. With amazing music and even more amazing friends and family, this night could not have been better.

Photography: Alec Vanderboom / Cinematography: I Do Films / Flowers: Blue Bouquet / Ceremony  and Reception Location: The Hobbs / Invitations: Maggie Goldsbury, Salutations / Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Dress: Allure / Beaded brown belt: custom made / Bridesmaid Dresses: LulaKate

We think that this photo shoot from the lovely designers at Good Earth Floral Design Studio is just about perfection! Along with a group of super-talented wedding vendors in the Kansas City Metro Area, they teamed together for today’s pretty, pretty, pretty inspiration …

See the whole gallery here!

As a newly-formed group of wedding vendors in Kansas City, we wanted to put together a concept photo shoot to showcase all of our talents. With a color palette of Coral, Green and Ivory, we created the scene of a wedding in the park. Long strands of ribbon hung from the trees, giving just the ‘light/airy’ feeling we were looking for. Through the use of vintage vases, teapots, and other containers the table setting seemed effortless and relaxed. The natural tones merged seamlessly with the trees and field setting. The response has been wonderful from the brides, who love the look!
To really make it a wedding, we brought in Jessica and Jake. They are engaged in real life, so putting them in a setting of pure romance really brought the shoot together. We cannot wait to create another Wedding Inspiration!

See the complete Kansas City Park Wedding from Good Earth Floral Design Studio ~ here!

Photography: Rebecca Peters / Flowers and Event Design: Good Earth Floral Design Studio (LBB Vendor) / Event Planning: Savvy Wedding and Event Planning / Invitations: Announce This! / Hair : Bella Hair Co. / Make Up : Tricia Root / Cake : Cake Girl / Jewels : Blue Opal

We hope that all of you are enjoying these wedding stories as much as we are! To take just a few minutes out of the day to smile for ~ and with these ladies and gentlemen who have completed the hectic months of planning their wedding days. Sharing these moments with them is simply a delight!

From Maura at Creative Video in Kansas City …

This couple’s story was maybe the most romantic one I have ever heard! They met in such a unique way and incorporated that into their wedding day so beautifully. Every detail in this wedding was so completely personal, from the pint glass favors, Danny’s baby blue VW bug, Katie’s family priest passing them Danny’s Kiddush cup and celebrating the breaking of the glass, the many toasts in prose, and one last note passed to Katie from the Southwest Airline stewardess that helped start it all. It was a perfect day.

Katie & Danny – Creative Video Wedding Film from creative video on Vimeo.

from the beautiful bride, Katie …
The story of how Danny and I met seemed to be a bit too perfect. Who meets on an airplane, especially on the way home from Vegas, through notes and poems passed via a flight attendant? I honestly thought it would be a fun few months of country concerts and we would move on. Before we knew it we were together two years going to Key West to celebrate. Little did I know Danny had flown down the same Southwest Air flight attendant who helped us meet to Florida. There she handed me what I thought was the last poem on the rocks of Key West. This note included his proposal to marry me! My dream had come true and I was completely surprised!!

I had never dreamt about my wedding, and actually thought I would go away somewhere exotic, but with Danny being the youngest of 14 kids and his parents being older, that wasn’t an option for us. We made a list of what we each of us thought was most important for this day, and we both agreed that family was most important. Danny’s list also included things like chocolate cake, and Southwest peanuts. He also thought it would be fun to drive away in his baby blue VW bug convertible and have bugs follow us to reception (his brothers own VW’s in various colors!). I wanted memories that would last a lifetime, like having our family friend priest who attends Thanksgiving at our house every year marry us. I wanted a unique venue, a fun party, intimate ceremony, awesome pictures, country music, the color purple, and a beautiful dress.

We focused our efforts (and money) on our photography and cinematography, as we knew this is what we would take from the day and cherish these forever. This was the best decision we made!! We incorporated little things that meant something to us, like M&M’s, which is Danny’s favorite candy and we had a VW bug chocolate cake. Danny contacted Southwest Airlines who sent us napkins, peanuts and wings (at no cost)! We also invited our flight attendant and we were thrilled when she said she was able to make it!

Video: Creative Video, Maura Coleman-Murray / Photographer: Epaga, Jessica Roark / Flowers: The Budding Entrepreneur / Reception Venue: Boulevard Brewing Company / Cake: Icing on the Cake,  VW Bug & beer cake: Bridal Kitchen

from a little girl’s dream to her dream-come-true wedding …

Since I was a little girl I always knew I wanted to get married in the fall. I had storybook visions of me in my white wedding gown among the autumn leaves with my handsome groom at my side. So, when Patrick proposed in August 2008, that meant waiting more than a year to get married (14 months to be exact)! Much to my friends, family and groom’s dismay I decided that the long engagement was worth it to fulfill my young girl’s dreams of a fall wedding! Oct. 24, 2009 was a spectacular day with the leaves in Kansas City at peak color. My photographer and videographer’s flawless work captured a day that was beautiful beyond my wildest dreams!

Growing up my passion was singing and dancing. When I was five years old, I started performing professionally in musicals. Throughout those formative years my summers were spent performing in musicals at the  Starlight Theater, Kansas City’s historic outdoor theater. Starlight is also special to me because my grandfather was one of the founders of this theater. So, it was fitting for Patrick and me to have our wedding reception there. It was magical and unique to have a wedding reception on a stage and something our guests really enjoyed. Starlight was the perfect backdrop for our very special night!

michaela & patrick from creative video on Vimeo.

Out of all the memories that I have from being onstage, our wedding reception will always be the most memorable! My amazing coordinator, Patti Gehring and floral artists at Trapp & Company helped make my dreams come true on my wedding day. From the gentle shower of white silk petals floating down upon us during our first dance as husband and wife to the twinkle lights that cascaded down like stars. The amazing arrangements and bridal flowers featured Circus, Tabasco, and Mambo roses, red gerberas, antique hydrangea, Sumatra lily and viburnium berry. The color palette was truly complete with the beautiful blue bridesmaid dresses, the warm reds of autumn and the glorious golds of the season.

As Michaela said, a glorious fall wedding!  Our congratulations to Michaela & Patrick!!  And our appreciation to Creative Video for sharing!

Are you feeling inspired yet? Join the club! This shoot is killing us with all of the amazing details. One of our faves?  The delectable dessert table with so many gorgeous cakes from Natasha’s Mulberry and Mott. Hello sugar heaven. This is the perfect example of how this shoot can be translated into not only a wedding, but even a rehearsal dinner or a bridal shower. The possibilities are endless. And if you are loving the paper goods as much as we are, be sure to check out Lilah Paper’s blog where she has DIY instructions for all of you crafters.

{click here to see the FULL photo shoot}

Floral Arrangements:

Our floral arrangements were inspired by the location. The Simpson House feels so romantic with stone walls and the massive oak trim and front door. The house is in a natural garden setting and that influence made me think “moss” and chartreuse as accents to purple flowers. Lavender stock hanging upside down at the “altar” looked like wisteria clusters. The entire vintage ambiance felt right at home!

Dresses and Accessories:

We wanted to make a bold statement with the bride’s dress as we felt the design board had so much glamour. So we went with the gorgeous Christy dress from LulaKate. The dress was accented with jewelry from M.Flynn and shoes from Blue Tux. Because the bridal gown was a show stopper, we wanted to go a little simpler with the bridesmaid dresses, but still incorporate the rich jewel tones and two-toned concept from the design board. We chose two Simple Silhouettes dresses, Orchid and Petunia, that helped bring out the tones of the peacock feather. Dresses were accented with broaches from Haute Bride, headpieces from Bird Cage Designs and purses from Nelle. Our flower girl wore a dress from Rosebuds and was accented with a sash and broach as well.

Paper Goods:

When it came to the paper goods, I was really inspired by the “jewel” aspect of the inspiration board. I used not only a jewel toned color palette, including golds, turquoise and purples, but printed the invitation on a metallic paper stock as well. The idea behind the design was to evoke the feeling of glam and elegant sophistication, while ensuring that the aesthetics were anything by stuffy Since the peacock feathers were so prevalent in other areas of the design, I decided play upon some of the finer details found within the invitation, and apply them to the additional paper goods, such as the dessert tags. For the menus and table numbers, I really wanted to do something different and out of the ordinary. I thought it would be fun to combine the two ideas into one piece that when printed on the napkin, could become an integral part of the table setting itself. These menu/table number napkins add a vintage look and are a fun, inexpensive DIY project that any bride-to-be can do.

Check out Lilah Paper’s blog for step-by-step instructions.

Photography: Adrienne Maples / Paper Goods: Lilah Paper / Event Planning: Simple Elegance / Cinematography: Creative Video / Cakes: Natasha’s Mulberry and Mott / Florist: Craig Sole Design / Wedding Dress, Bridesmaid’s Dresses and Accessories: Bella Bridesmaid, Kansas City / Makeup and Hair: Mink Artistry / Location: The Simpson House / Linens and Decor: Celebration Party Rentals

Now on to the really good stuff! This photo shoot has a bevy of inspiration to pull from and the richest color palette that ties everything together so beautifully. From the breath taking styling by Simple Elegance, to the gorgeous paper goods by Lilah Paper and the spot on photography by Adrienne Maples, this is a team that knows how to rock out an amazing photo shoot. There are some seriously gorgeous details that you can tuck away in that inspiration folder for your wedding. That is what From Inspiration to Reality is about after all – amazing vendors coming together to create real life inspiration that you can pull from and carry out on your own big day.

{can’t wait? click here for the full gallery }

Planning this project was so much fun! Our team chose an inspiration board built around a lot of jewel tones and “old estate” sophistication, so we wanted to make sure that this came across in our photo shoot. What really inspired us in this board was the floral bouquet; It has so many elements that bring in beautiful bursts of color, such as the large peacock feathers, but at the same time adds very natural and almost rustic textures as well. We used this bouquet as the main inspiration to really go “beyond the board” and bring in some natural elements that compliment the golds and deep jewel tones within the board. For the ceremony, we hung blue glass mason jars on shepherd’s hooks and filled them with florals creating a soft, romantic, garden feel, while bringing out subtle hints of turquoise.

As we moved inside for the “reception and cocktail hour” we wanted a slightly different feel, one that was romantic, rustic and had the element of formal elegance. From the gold dusted signature drink to the multi-colored macaroons the “guests” were sure to have an evening dinner to remember.

As for the location, we chose the Simpson House. We felt the Simpson House to be reminiscent of an old southern estate. The old stone house provided the perfect back drop and stage for our “wedding.” The three-story mansion is rich with decorative detail including original crystal chandeliers, Tiffany stained glass, ornate hand-carved woodwork, two fireplaces of Italian marble and granite, and gorgeous hardwood floors throughout the house.

Hold on to your hats! There is a TON more from this peacock inspired shoot coming your way in a bit.

Photography: Adrienne Maples / Paper Goods: Lilah Paper / Event Planning: Simple Elegance / Cinematography: Creative Video / Cakes: Natasha’s Mulberry and Mott / Florist: Craig Sole Design / Wedding Dress, Bridesmaid’s Dresses and Accessories: Bella Bridesmaid, Kansas City / Makeup and Hair: Mink Artistry / Location: The Simpson House / Linens and Decor: Celebration Party Rentals

Leigh Miller Photography is listed in our Little Black Book of awesome wedding vendors both in San Diego and in Kansas City. But I know for a fact, she travels worldwide … anywhere your little heart can take you for your dream day!  Last week, we featured Sarah (of Fuzzynk fame) and Rudy’s wedding at the San Diego Wild Animal Park … all photos courtesy of the amazing Ms. Miller! If you missed it click here. Fun, fun wedding!

Today, we’re featuring one of Leigh’s most recent weddings … it’s SO fabulous, it’s so chic, and it’s captured so brilliantly, you’re going to keel over with envy! But first, the couple’s  engagement shoot!

Here’s their story from Leigh …

Tim surprised Mindy by secretly renting a theatre, asking his and her family to join them there. He then began playing a movie of the two of them through the years. As it ended, he dropped to one knee and popped the question! WOW … so romantic.

So for their engagement session, where else would we head but to that very same theatre!

I love this last shot the best. No fancy props, no special scenery … just Tim and Mindy. Their faces even fit together perfectly!

Fabulous work from Leigh Miller Photography. Thanks SO much for sharing!

On to their wedding in just a bit …