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A Whimsical Farm Wedding for Meant-to-Be Lovebirds

You could almost call these lovebirds high school sweethearts. Almost. I’m so glad this Groom persisted and finally captured the attention of his Bride (you’ll have to read the whole story below!) because these two are pretty darn cute together. And their wedding follows suit. More goodness to peruse from Amy Rizzuto in The Vault!

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From Amy RizzutoSome love stories take a little longer to grow than others, but when they do blossom, incredible things happen. James always knew there was something special about Lauren. In high school, he asked her out multiple times, always receiving the same answer…no. Thank you. They ran into each other after graduation and he thought he would try again. Still the same response. A few years passed and James had almost given up hope when he saw Lauren out at a party. To his great surprise, Lauren came right up to him and kissed him! They began dating shortly afterwards, and the rest is history! Lauren and James tied the knot in a gorgeous ceremony at the Barn at Perona Farms. Afterwards, they danced the night away with family and friends close by their sides. It truly was a beautiful celebration for two beautiful souls.

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Photography: Amy Rizzuto Photography | Cinematography: Live Pictures Studio | Floral Design: Twisted Willow Flowers | Dress: Mark Zunino | Cake: Palermo's Bakery | Ceremony Venue: Perona Farms | Reception Venue: Perona Farms | Shoes: Jimmy Choo | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Jenny Yoo | Make-up: Artist Makeup Academy | DJ: Allure One Entertainment | Photography - Assistance: Mekina Saylor Weddings

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Family-Oriented Romantic New Jersey Inn + Garden Wedding

We’re only eight days into 2016, but I guarantee you this Bride’s Watters wedding gown will be making our best dressed list at the end of the year. Sexy, feminine and gorgeous, the deep-V lace dress is the crowning jewel to this beautiful garden wedding. From the fashion to the details, there’s so much pretty from Julia Elizabeth Photography waiting for you in THE VAULT!

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From Julia Elizabeth PhotographyVal and Carly were a pleasure to work with from day one. Incorporating their families into all aspects of the day, it was obvious from the start how important family is to these two. The whole day was full of little details both thoughtful and beautiful. Carly gifted each of her bridesmaids with earrings which she displayed on a delicate stand. They wore matching robes and laughed all morning together as they got ready at the Crossed Keys Inn. Carly looked incredible in her long-sleeved Watters gown and she wore her grandmother’s engagement ring as part of her look. The bridesmaids wore mix-matched dresses which came together perfectly. Close by Val was with his family and groomsmen made up of brothers and friends from high school. Val wore the same watch his father wore on his wedding day and gifted his groomsmen with socks from their hometown of Summit, NJ (also my hometown)!

Once Carly and Val saw each other for the first time the day really took off (with a few tears here and there). We took beautiful portraits walking around the venue which was full of greenery and gorgeous flowers – the ideal setting for a Summer wedding. The rest of the day flew by as they were surrounded by their close family and friends as they shared their own vows. The reception set up in the tent was gorgeous with dahlias and greenery running down each farm table. The party started right after the ceremony and carried through the rest of the evening ending with a gorgeous sparker exit.

From The Bride…Val was raised in Switzerland as a native French speaker, but he moved to my hometown in New Jersey when he was 10. He was three grades older than me, so we didn’t cross paths until I was a freshman in high school (and he was a senior!). We quickly became friends but both went our separate ways for college. Our mutual hometown kept us coming back together during college breaks, but it was never the right time for either of us to pursue anything more than a friendship. Then on Thanksgiving Eve six years ago, as I was prepping to leave for a spring semester abroad in Barcelona, we had a goodbye meal in Little Italy that changed everything. This neighborhood will always hold a special place in our hearts and is why we chose it for our engagement photos. NYC is where we fell in love, shared our first home together, and where Val eventually proposed in Washington Square Park.

Val and I had always envisioned a big outdoor wedding, surrounded by our families and friends. We found the Crossed Keys Inn during an online search and knew this was where we’d get married from the minute we stepped onto the property with our moms by our sides. Romantic, vintage, ivory, blush, and gold, with a few French touches here and there – the venue went perfectly with my inspiration.

We enlisted the help of Val’s uncle to marry us (he got ordained!) and he did the ceremony in both English and French. Val and I wrote our own vows and reciting them was probably my favorite part of the day. We kept our vows a secret from each other and were so excited to find out that we both mentioned our love for Taco Bell! Val’s grandparents were unfortunately not able to make the trip from Switzerland, so we had FaceTime going so that they wouldn’t miss a beat. Incorporating our families was so important to us, and the first thing we did after finding our venue was ask our nephews to act as ring bearers (or ring bears as they understood it). The boys pulled our six-month-old niece down the aisle in a decorated wagon and introduced me to the 200 guests who shared our special day with us.

I wore a long-sleeve ivory lace Watters dress that I’m honestly still more obsessed with by the day. Before I even got engaged, there was no question that I wanted a dress with sleeves. I never thought I’d actually find a dress that made me look and feel like the bride I always dreamed of being. I’m so fortunate to have the support in my life to make that dream come true. My seven bridesmaids each picked their own dress and we didn’t actually see them all together until the night before the wedding! The girls looked so perfect in their mismatched long dresses. Val chose a shawl-collared navy J.Crew tuxedo, which was complemented by an array of navy suits worn by his groomsmen. Val wore the same watch his father wore on his wedding day while I had a ring passed down from my great-grandmother.

After the ceremony, the band had the dance floor packed the rest of the evening. They learned a number of songs for us, starting with our first dance, and also the song I surprised my dad with for our father-daughter dance (it was my parent’s first dance from their wedding over 30 years ago!). We wrapped up the night with sparklers and s’mores, and then transported our guests in party buses to the after party.

People say their wedding was the best day of their lives, and now we can’t believe how lucky we are to honestly say that about our own!

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Photography: Julia Elizabeth Photography | Cinematography: Saltwater Studios | Floral Design: Event Designs by Katherine | Wedding Dress: Watters | Invitations: Sweet Invitations | Engagement Ring: Optimal Innovative Solutions | Rings: Doyle And Doyle | Hair + Makeup: Melissa Daloia Co Luxury Hair Make Up | Band: The Story Tellers Of New York City | Groom's Attire: J.Crew | Venue: Crossed Keys Estate | Bridal Boutique: The Wedding Store At Liz Clinton

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Elegant Crossed Keys Inn Wedding

In all honesty, this feature took me far too long to put together. Why? Because it’s impossible not to be completely captivated by this gallery from CLY BY MATTHEW, it’s just soooo pretty. And can we talk about the Bride’s insanely gorgeous Sarah Seven dress from Lovely Bride? I need this dress in my life. Toss on a little seafoam, a little teal, one super adorable vintage red truck and it’s wedding perfection.

From the beautiful Bride…I have never been one to believe in romantic movies and ideas that are prevalent in them like…FATE. I slept through Love Actually to the horror of my now husband who has watched Love Actually more times than he can count and knows lines by heart. As corny as it sounds and even though it goes against every practical, non-romantic bone in my body, I have to say that marrying Ray was fate. We have never lived in the same area and yet kept crossing paths throughout our lives (starting from elementary school). Eventually, when we crossed paths as young adults, sparks flew on one side but not reciprocated by the other. We barely got to know each other before we went our separate ways again and I never expected us to ever cross paths again. But 2 years later, January 2010 somehow brought us to be in the same place at the same time and this time, sparks flew on BOTH sides. Or it could be that I just opened my eyes finally to what was meant to be. And so began a love story 21 years in the making.

3 years later, we were engaged and started to plan what we referred to as “the greatest party of our lives.” We wanted a wedding that would be have a comfortable and relaxing vibe that would allow our guests to mingle and just have a good time without being restricted to a stuffy ballroom. I had seen Crossed Keys Inn in a magazine a few years ago and fell in love with the big white tent and basically everything else it offered. So naturally, I convinced Ray to drive an hour in the middle of January, a few weeks after our engagement, to see the venue in person. We both fell in love and could see ourselves having the perfect wedding here, even when it was freezing and covered in snow everywhere. Without even seeing any other venues, we immediately signed with Crossed Keys and began our long 18 month journey of wedding planning. In search for inspiration for the perfect romantic, vintage wedding that I envisioned, I spent countless hours poring over SMP and Pinterest. It’s not an exaggeration to say that I spent almost every single free minute I had looking through these 2 amazing resources. Obviously, I ended up getting overwhelmed with the endless choices and if it weren’t for my sane, reasonable fiancé and friends bringing me back to reality, I would have ended up planning way more than I can handle. In the end, our wedding day was the perfect amount of detail which I owe to our awesome, talented vendors, bridesmaids who made an amazing team, and the most thoughtful and caring fiancé in the world. Ray and I made nearly every decision together no matter how small of a detail without a single fight. The fact that I could look back at the pictures and videos and see both of our special touches everywhere (like the candle he brought so the girls can get ready in a beautifully scented room) made the day that much more special. Throughout wedding planning, Ray would say he wanted me to be able to look back 10, 20 years down the road and say I had the wedding of my dreams. This alone made our wedding day the wedding of my dreams already and everything else was just icing on the cake.

Photography: CLY BY MATTHEW | Videography: Kiss The Bride Films | Floral Design: Event Designs by Katherine | Wedding Dress: Lovely Bridal Shop | Wedding Bands: Love Rocks | Bridesmaid's Dresses: Ivy And Aster | Catering: Crossed Keys Estate | Hair And Make Up: VickyC5 | DJ: Gemini Productions | Groom's Attire: Bonobos | Wedding Venue: Crossed Keys Estate | Photo Booth: Big Cheese Booth

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A Fall Speakeasy Wedding in New Jersey

If you’re anything like me, you are counting down the days to falling leaves and Pumpkin Spice Lattes. This wedding captured by Pat Furey embodies all the best parts of my favorite season. The moody palette, the foliage and added to that, a speakeasy theme that is one for the books with super romantic blooms by Event Designs By Katherine and film to wrap it all up by NewYorkFilmworks. Click here for more.

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From The Bride…Our relationship over the past 7 years has felt nothing short of a fairy tale. We wanted to transport our guests into the magical, whimsical, utterly-romantic world that we feel everyday together. The inspiration was simple. I’ve always found the early 1900’s era absolutely charming and combining the asethictc of one of our favorite lounges, The Edison in downtown L.A., would create that secret world for our guests. If you haven’t been before, you enter through an alleyway and make your way down these grand stairs with Edison bulbs twinkling above and you discover the most enchanting experience. Old black and white movies are projected on old brick walls, a copper top bar serves crafted cocktails, and you get lost through all of the many secret rooms. With that in mind we wanted our reception to feel like a speakeasy, so it felt like a secret space you weren’t suppose to be in but had all of the crafted cocktails and craft beers you could want.

With that concept, we knew it had to be outside during the fall at The Crossed Keys Inn, where we would be enveloped by ivy, falling leaves and a spectacular rose garden. The color palate became a romantic array of coral, mint and gold. The bridesmaids wore coral, the letterpresses invitations had mint accents, and the gold came from the 100 vintage brass spittoons for the table centerpieces that my mom tirelessly bought day after day from Ebay. The table numbers, all of the signage and drink menus were a custom design I created and drew inspiration from the typography of the era and used the iconic Edison bulb as a accent. I also created the backdrop for the gift table and guestbook by collecting 1900s graphics and prohibition posters and creating a wallpaper. We wanted to create that same magic as The Edison with the projected old movies so my husband put together a collection and projected them over the dance floor onto the white tent while we danced the night away. Every detail drew inspiration from our magical speakeasy world.

The ceremony was my favorite moment of the wedding. We had a guitar and cello play as we walked down the isle, after first playing 1920s songs while guests shuffled in. After we read our vows, which still make me cry till this day, I was able to surprise my husband with a secret performance by my dad, my aunt, and my grandma as they sang and played guitar and the irish drum to “Home” by Phillip Phillips, complimented by the bridesmaids singing the chorus! A moment we’ll both treasure forever.

The dress was an ivory chiffon Romona Keveza accented by an ivory sash and a crystal necklace. The suit was dark gray with suspenders, gray striped tie and a antique brass tie clip.

Tips for future and current brides – Pick everything you love. Seems simple but was ultimately what made decisions easy. The hardest decision for us became what to give as gifts for our guests, so many choices it was hard to even begin narrowing it down. But it ultimately came down to what we love – chocolate and tattoos. So we did exactly that, the most mouth-watering chocolate covered bride and groom oreos and rad temporary tattoos. It was priceless seeing my aunts and uncles adorned with tattoos, we’ve never been happier with our choice.

Photography: Pat Furey Photography | Videography: NY Filmworks | Florist: Event Designs by Katherine | Invitations: Bella Figura | Hair And Make Up: Laboratory Hair Studio | DJ: Music by Max | Venue: Crossed Keys Estate | Ceremony Musicians: Penguin Music | Temporary Tattoos: Tattly | Wedding App: Appy Couple

New Jersey Barn Wedding Full of Elegance

Rustic can be so much more than just a wedding in a barn. With a few key components, it can be elegant and timeless. Take, for instance, a long, elegant Bridesmaid gown, lace incorporated into the smallest of details (the jam favors) and one of the biggest (that gorgeous wedding dress!). This wedding is truly a melding of rustic and classic. Barn and chandelier. Pretty and more pretty. See it all captured by Michelle Lange right here.

From the Bride… When Jason and I started talking about what we wanted in out our wedding, we agreed that we wanted something different from the everyday banquet hall.

When we first looked at Perona Farms, the barn that was on the property was in the middle of being renovated as a wedding venue and was still in the demolition stage. At first sight it was an empty barn, but Jason and I saw all the potential and beauty that the finished product would have and we knew it was the right place for us.

With the barn booked, the rustic theme flowed from there. I always knew I wanted a full lace wedding dress, and decided that lace should be incorporated throughout the wedding. In my search to find ways to further incorporate lace into the wedding, I found wedding invitations with a lace pattern as well as a burlap and lace table runner that I adored and that my future mother in-law offered to make for all the tables. We also tied lace on the lids of all the homemade strawberry jam jars as wedding favors.

My most memorable moment of our wedding would be getting to walk (or dance) down the aisle with my new husband. It was such a feeling of such bliss knowing that we were married and we had the rest of our lives ahead of us (not to mention a pretty amazing wedding reception). Our wedding was truly the most incredible day of our lives and there isn’t one thing we would change.

Photography: Michelle Lange Photography | Wedding Dress: Maggie Sottero | Wedding Dress: Maggie Sottero | Invitations: Minted | Bridesmaids Dresses: Here Comes The Bridesmaid | Hair & Makeup: Nicole Makeup And Hair | Wedding Venue: Perona Farms | Bridal Boutique: Maggie Sottero | Second Photographer: Jessa Schifilliti, Photographer

Crossed Keys Inn Wedding from Bia Sampaio Photography

When paper lanterns are used to their advantage, they can be stunning, and this bride knew what she was doing with those lanterns. Hanging like happy little clouds over the entire reception, they set the tone for beautiful charm, and the wedding quickly followed suit. After perusing Bia Sampaio Photography‘s images from the day, I can say with confidence, this wedding had beautiful charm popping out of every nook and cranny.


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From the beautiful bride… Since the day Satchel popped the question, I had been scouring the internet, magazines, and wedding shows looking for inspiration. Being from New Jersey, I knew that I did not want the “typical” Jersey wedding. I hate ballrooms, carpet, giant drapes, and giant poufy dresses. I wanted to bring a little bit of the southern charm that I love here in North Carolina to New Jersey. I decided I wanted a “country chic” wedding…and it’s just what I got!

After searching for the perfect rustic venue, I discovered I didn’t need to look any further than Crossed Keys Inn in Andover, NJ. It was perfect! From the gorgeous tent, fire pit, and corn field, I knew I was in heaven. The amazing dynamic duo of Jessica and Katherine made the entire process SO easy. They even had the fabulous farm house tables made.

Our color scheme was navy and peach. I wanted the tent to feel like you were walking into a North Carolina venue complete with mason jars and tree stump slice centerpieces. I have been a huge Etsy fan for years, but I would not have been able to have all the personal touches without that amazing community of talented people. The men’s ties, the monogrammed cake topper, cake server and bride and groom forks, bride and groom chair signs, here come the bride sign, bridal gown hanger, bridal chevron monogrammed clutch, vintage card box and my bridal garter set, all came from Etsy! We found little chalk board signs to place in front of each pie, and personalized the navy chevron candy bags with peach labels my mom made. It was all the personal touches that made the day so special.

I think the most amazing little touch was personalized mason jars! Instead of a regular old seating chart I created a little rustic moment in the tent where people found a mason jar with their name and table number written on chalkboard labels. Old painted windows hung in the background courtesy of friends of mine in NC, the old card box and bunting sign, all made the mason jar table really fabulous.

The flowers were one of my favorite things. I asked for peaches, cream and white, but the most unique item I wanted dispersed thorough the wedding was raw cotton. Satchel grew up in Georgia, so I wanted the raw cotton to be like a nod to his southern roots. Cotton was interspersed throughout the centerpieces and Satchel’s boutonniere was even a little bloom of raw cotton.

At my church, St. Peter’s in Essex Fells, NJ, each pew had candelabra with a small arrangement, garland was strung across the back, and the giant floral arrangements up at the alter and at the steps were perfect lovely peach flowers. The best part were our S and L moss letters out front of the church. They later were transported back to Crossed Keys to be placed in front of the DJ booth.

Photography: Sampaio/Walz Photography | Church: St Peter's Episcopal Church | Reception Venue: Crossed Keys Estate | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Bella Bridesmaid | Caterer: Crossed Keys Estate | DJ: SCE Event Group | Bride's dress: JLM Couture, Inc | Floral: Event Designs by Katherine