New York Weddings

Happy Memorial Day! I’m popping in quickly to make sure everyone gets their daily dose of pretty and this Manhattan wedding by Erica Berger is just what the doctor ordered. It’s a little bit vintage, a little bit quirky and a whole lot of darling topped off with an invitation suite from Tie That Binds that ties and binds the whole party together. How can you not love that?  Click here for even more!

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From the Bride… Jason and I had a specific vision for our wedding from the start. We knew right away that Public, a Manhattan restaurant with both a chic and vintage setting, would be the perfect place for our quirky style. After a few persuasive conversations and begging, we even convinced them to lets us bring Foxy, our beloved dog, to the ceremony!

We then approached Mekala of Tie That Binds with the task of creating the invitation I was imagining. Together we shaped the paper materials to fit exactly what I dreamed of. The custom matchboxes were a charming detail at the dinner reception, along with the city-chic place cards and table numbers. She also produced a custom New York skyline stamp and we used it throughout the wedding, and stamped every menu at each place setting.

When it came to coordinating the rest, I was surprised to find that I could do it myself! We didn’t have a huge budget, but I knew it would be important to find someone to run the show… wrangle parents, deal with flowers, and all of the complications that come with the wedding day. Keri Clavin from Clavin|Kelly Events is truly a gem, and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without her. As our day-of coordinator, she really got her hands dirty and made sure everything was in place that day. Not only was she highly organized, but she took the bumps of the wedding day in stride and her wedding and event expertise put our entirely family at ease.

Of course our photographer, Erica Berger, was one of the best choices we made. Her photography style was exactly what we needed for our venue and personality. She did a fantastic job capturing the moments that ended up being the most memorable. I really wanted a photo booth at the wedding, we created a space that turned out to be a HUGE guest hit! My mom and I simply hit the party stores, and found the bells and props used to add flair to the booth. It resulted in TONS of images chuck FULL of personality. We still laugh out loud when we look through them!

In the end, Jason and I got what we wanted- to be happily married to each other. But the journey of creating our wedding was wonderful, and we couldn’t be more thankful for the family and friends that came to support us. You really can keep costs down by doing things yourself, and I hope brides out there believe they can do it, too!

Wedding Invitations & Paper Products: Tie That Binds / Wedding Photography: Erica Berger & David Dooley for Erica Berger / Wedding Venue & Catering: Public / Wedding Cake: Public / Day of Coordination: Keri Clavin of Clavin Kelly Events / DJ: DJ Duane Harriot with 74 Events / Floral Design: Color of Magic / Hair & Makeup: The Bride + Simone St. Laurent of Laicale Salon / Wedding Dress: Palazzo via Veka Bridal Couture / Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Hair Pin: Jennifer Behr / Groom’s Suit: Paul Stuart / Groom’s & Best Man’s Shirt & Tie: Custom by Lord Willy’s / Ring Bearer’s Suit: Little Marc Jacobs / Ring Bearer’s Shirt: Ralph Lauren Kids / Ring Bearer’s Sneakers: Converse / Ring Bearer Bowl: Paloma’s Nest

Hello New York! Now that we have these pretty local blogs, we thought it would be a good idea to localize the wrap up as well. It just makes sense. Because having all the week’s pretty in one little happy post just makes life easier and we are all about that. As I send you off into one of my favorite holiday weekends, the unofficial start of summer, I thought I would leave you with an officially fabulous NYC elopement from The Melideos. There is of course even more in the gallery, to start your weekend off with sweetness. If you aren’t off on Monday, have no fear – we’ll have some pretty up and ready for you first thing in the morning. It’s just the kind of gals we are.

click here for the full gallery of images!

From The Melideos … Andrea and Garrette are from Alberta, Canada and they flew out to New York with three of their closest friends to get married on Easter Sunday in the Ladies Pavillion in Central Park. A buch of tourists were watching the entire ceremony and taking pictures, and even clapped after the first kiss. It was a lot of fun shooting the wedding and post wedding portrait session. The bride’s bouquet was from local flower market and the flowers were imported from France because those type of flowers are not available in NYC right now. This is just a fun shoot and proved you don’t have to go all out to still have a memorable wedding.

In case you missed them, here are the pretty posts from SMP New York this week:

a lovely Long Island affair
a sweet as can be soirée in Stony Brook
a mouth-watering prep to plate photo shoot
a seriously swoon-worthy SoHo photo shoot
a DIY Catskill celebration

A few pretty things we found around the web…

a funny take on people’s feelings on New York via Cup of Jo
a fabulous grilling buying guide via Oh Joy!
so many patio cushions so little time via Mrs. Lilien

Have SUCH a fabulous Memorial Day Weekend everyone! We’ll see you back here on Monday! xoxo, A.Blaire

I am SO glad I am not alone in my love for stripes. If you put stripes on a skirt, purse, wall, or really any inanimate object I am automatically smitten. This lovely bride, with fabulous taste I might add, has the same affinity for all things striped and decided to make it a central design theme for their wedding – and for that alone, I love her. This creative duo joined forces and DIY-ed the heck out of this affair, and you can see all of the fabulousness captured by 1. Art Beauty Life : Jenny Ebert Photography in the full gallery of images.

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From 1. Art Beauty Life : Jenny Ebert Photography… Chris Lane, a 30-year-old Production Coordinator in New York City’s film industry, and Lindsay Chandler-Alexander, a 28-year-old architecture student at the Harvard Graduate School of Design, first met in 1999 at summer camp.  Ten years later, while back at camp for a weekend away, Chris proposed on the bridge where they first kissed.  After an enthusiastic acceptance, the couple dove into planning a wedding weekend in the Catskill Mountains, five minutes down the road from the camp where they fell in love.

Lindsay and Chris, both coming from creative fields, jumped at the opportunity to make the wedding a personal project, designing everything themselves down to the last detail.  Lindsay, having an affinity for stripes, immediately had the idea to make black + white stripes the wedding theme.  The green accent color, inspired by the couples love for the outdoors and the natural setting of the reception, offset the graphic stripes.  The palate filtered through every element of the wedding from the handmade wood invitations, down to the hand-tied napkin rings.

Wedding Photography: 1. Art Beauty Life : Jenny Ebert Photography / Wedding Reception & Ceremony Location: Full Moon Resort / Event Coordination (On-Site): Melanie Warner of Full Moon Resort / Catering: Full Moon Resort / Hair: Jan of Emerson Resort & Spa / Makeup: Emerson Resort & Spa / Music: Eric of JTD Productions / Wedding Cake: Sharon of Bread Alone Bakery / Floral Design: Jim of Elderberry Flowers / Officiant: Rev. Sara Henderson (reverendsara77@aol.com) / Wedding Dress: Amsale via Vows / Bride’s Shoes: Kate Spade (Ivana) / Bridesmaid Dresses: J.Crew / Groom’s Attire: DKNY / Groomsmen Attire: Michael Kors / Wedding Invitations & Paper Goods: DIY, The Bride & Groom / Bride’s Hair Piece: DIY, The Bride & Groom / Welcome Bags: DIY, The Bride & Groom / Sailor Knot Key Chains: DIY, The Bride & Groom / Hand Painted Centerpiece Vases: DIY, The Bride & Groom / Wood Table Numbers: DIY, The Bride & Groom / Cake Toppers: DIY, The Bride & Groom / Dessert Bags & Labels: DIY, The Bride & Groom / Wedding Party Flower Arrangements: DIY, The Bride & Groom / Wedding Cake & Dessert Table: DIY, The Bride & Groom / Photo Booth (Props & Backdrop): DIY, The Bride & Groom

Dear Scott Clark Photography & DM Events; Please excuse the serious swooning going on over on this side of the computer screen. This shoot is just.too.much. I am seriously obsessed with your Trump Hotel gone hip styling, and the life lesson you are teaching to all who are lucky enough to lay eyes on this prettiness that DIY doesn’t have to fall in one style category. Not to mention my love for the magic of Face Time Beauty Concierge hitting the ball out of the hair and makeup ballpark. I am in L.O.V.E. and will be spending an embarrassing amount of time in the full gallery of images you sent over. Kisses and hugs, A.Blaire

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

The shoot was a play on what you would expect from a Trump Hotel.  When you think about Trump you think about classic, opulent, old New York, but this shoot was designed around the idea of mixing all of that with a hip, young, energetic style.

To kick off the fun, the table centerpiece was actually a faux candy bar. (Don’t worry, there was a real one filled with delectable treats nearby!)  There were no flowers, but rather lots of newspaper and oversized red balloons scattered throughout the design. And the stunning views of NYC from the top of the Trump SoHo Hotel provided an unbelievably backdrop for it all!

There were a lot of DIY elements in the shoot – this was so important to us, because brides often tell us that they would love to be a DIY bride, but they do not think that their style is the wildflower, barefoot in a field, antique look (Which we love, by the way!) that has become synonymous with “DIY.”  But DIY is not a style, it is a way to design.  So without any antique finds or wildflowers, we created a bold, fun party!  From the hand stamped marshmallows to the build-your-own photobooth, this shoot was filled with inspiration for brides looking to be hands-on… with their feet firmly planted on Manhattan concrete.

Venue: Trump SoHo Hotel / Design & Styling: DM Events / Photography: Scott Clark Photography / Hair & Makeup: Face Time Beauty Concierge / Bridal Gown: Enzoani via The White Gown / Bridesmaid Dress: Love by Enzoani via The White Gown / Accessories: The White Gown + J.Crew

If you hear a little rumbling, it’s most certainly my stomach after going through all the delicious images of this prep to plate shoot by Oh, Darling! Photography featuring Michael Stuart NY. I can literally smell the tastiness through my computer screen, and I absolutely ADORE this idea for a shoot. For anyone that has tried to throw a dinner party, you know that making the table guest-worthy is just the first step – the most important thing of all is the food. My hat is off to Michael for sure and you can see even more evidence why in the full gallery of images.

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From Michael of Michael Stuart NY… When I was approached by our friends Whitney & Dustin from Oh, Darling! Photography about doing a photo shoot encompassing the entire “prep to plate” process, I could not have been more thrilled. Since it is something I have always wanted to do, I immediately began planning the menu. This is what came out of it:

Lemon sole crudo with serrano chili, lemon-lime oil, pink peppercorn, and alea sea salt; Sweet pea risotto with foraged mushrooms, and fried quail egg; Diver sea scallop “sandwich” with crispy prosciutto, pea shoot, and sweet corn sauce; Pan seared branzino with carrot-ginger puree, grilled artichoke and gremolata; Crispy skin chicken with house gnocchi, asparagus coins, and black truffle; Local NY strip steak with farro & rice, rainbow chard & pickled ramps.

Photography: Oh, Darling! Photography / Catering: Michael Stuart NY

There is a special place in my heart for military weddings. They are the start of not just a new life, but a new adventure. This Army wedding from the talented duo of 4Eyes Photography features a bride who checks all the military boxes with ease. She planned the wedding with her husband via Skype, she took it in stride when her veil had a mind of it’s own, she jumped into a bucket of grapes – in her wedding dress – and she handled the saber arch with grace. LOVE it. Spend some time in New York this morning, then pop into the gallery for more!

Winslow and I met in college. After graduating he was commissioned as an officer and started his military career in the Army. In the summer of 2009, Winslow deployed to Iraq as I continued my life in New York City. We went on a cruise for his two weeks of leave and he proposed while cruising to Jamaica! Winslow returned to Iraq to finish his tour and I started planning.

I wanted to have a simple yet elegant wedding and loved the idea of a rustic outdoor celebration. I have a passion for wine and decided that a vineyard would be the perfect location for our reception. We chose Benmarl Winery located along the beautiful Hudson River, close to where I grew up. It was the perfect backdrop for our fall wedding with its rustic charm and breathtaking river views.

I decided to take on a lot of DIY projects for the decorations. I found an amazing vendor on Etsy and worked with her to create a simple design for the invitations. Since the reception was outdoors in the late afternoon, I wanted tons of candlelight. My mom and I found rustic style lanterns and wrapped faux grape vines around each as the centerpieces.

The day was exactly how we had imagined and we loved every minute of it. It turned out to be a relaxed and personal celebration that our friends and family are still talking about, six months later. Our photographers Rupert and Kellie from 4Eyes have a gift for imagery and did a wonderful job capturing the fun and emotion throughout the day.

We used to always talk about how wonderful it would be when we were finally in the same time zone, and I am truly happy to finally have my other half by my side. Needless to say, we would not have been able to put the wedding together without the amazing support and help of our family and friends.

Photography: 4Eyes Photography / Wedding reception site: Benmarl Winery / Catering: Pamela’s Traveling Feast / DJ: Tim Tubridy of DJ’s @ Work / Dress: Priscilla of Boston / Bridal Shoes: Badgley Mischka / Bridesmaid Dresses: Priscilla of Boston / Makeup: Christina Amador / Hair: Jessica Gaffney / Flowers: Michael’s Florist / Invitations: LB Creative Paper on Etsy

We just absolutely love hearing from brides and their families that went through the planning process arm in arm with SMP. It gives us the warm and fuzzies, and this wedding by Christina Bohn Photography is sure give you the warm and fuzzies as well. With a picture perfect bride and a backyard wedding full of sweet details, I would say all of their arm in arm planning paid off. For even more of this pretty backyard affair, be sure to check out the full gallery of images.

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From the Mother of the Bride… I am the mother of the bride… what an honor.  We joked about having a “Style Me Pretty” wedding.  Your site is an adjective.  There wasn’t just one wedding we wanted to emulate, it was all of them.  Each one had something special to admire and swoon over. My daughter and I spent hours and days upon days sending each other links and printing out inspiration photos from your site. We started collecting elements of things we loved and wondered how it would all come together as one cohesive idea, since we loved so many different ideas. Would it be rustic, tea party, garden party, elegant, or casual?  Along the way we found out it would be all those things, our favorite things, and in the end they fit perfectly together as if they were meant to be.  Once we discovered your inspiring blog, I found it impossible to concentrate on anything else. There were just so many beautiful things to see and dream about.

The words we heard most from the guests at the wedding…magical, exquisite, unique, a little girls dream come true. It was truly a spectacular and joyous party. However, as much fun as the wedding was, the journey to get there was just as special and important. I am blessed to have been able to plan this wonderful event with my daughter and good friend, Helayne, wedding planner extraordinaire. Helayne is knowledgeable, resourceful, organized, calm, and so kind. To be part of such an important time in my daughter’s life fills me with happiness. I felt privileged to be able to share this with her and grateful to have Helayne’s guidance along the way.

Ali has been looking at bridal magazines since she was 2-years-old.  I do not exaggerate.  When she was old enough to have boyfriends she asked to hide them (we had many) so as not to scare anyone away!  She really was the little girl with the fairytale wedding in her head.  This is a very difficult expectation to meet. Instead, we somehow exceeded it with help and inspiration from Style Me Pretty.

First came the dress, one of her favorite parts. The dress she found was just right. It was romantic and almost had a 50’s styling.  It was perfect for a garden setting. To this day she can’t understand why every bride wouldn’t choose this same dress. There was never a doubt.  Just love. The rest of the planning was easy and fun.  Ali wanted an eco-friendly at home party and wanted to do a lot of the decorating on her own. We did not want assigned seating and instead planned passed food and food stations scattered throughout the yard.  Food and Photography were top priorities.

Our photographer, Christina Bohn, was fantastic. Her personality meshed so well with Tom and Ali.  She somehow faded into the background, yet captured everything.  She made them feel so comfortable that she was able to capture them being real and not one photograph was a lined up group of people with fake smiles. She is so creative and was able to capture the love and warm feelings of the day.  I have never seen Ali and Tom looking so happy and having such a fantastic time. Christina is an exceptional photographer and at the end of the day all your have left are the photos to keep the wonderful memories alive.

It is a tremendous amount of work to have a backyard wedding.  We had close to 200 guests and the most amazing caterer, Food for Forks, and catering staff to help. Especially helpful was Mike Jessup who acted as the day of coordinator. Not only were they all truly professional, they listened carefully to my few requests and executed each thing to perfection.  They helped decorate each food station to perfection and they never left a dirty dish or glass around.  They were courteous and so friendly to our guests. The food was beyond delicious. I am still dreaming of the next party I can have, just so I can hire Peter Ambrose and his staff again.

We didn’t have to worry about flowers at all. Ali works with a fabulous florist and figured that was the one area she didn’t have to be concerned with.  She totally trusted Nancy to make all decisions relating to the type and style of flowers. Ali wanted everything to be simple and natural and we spent months collecting bottles and vessels to house the beautiful blooms. We couldn’t get over the beautiful bouquets that Nancy created, they were just perfect. Nancy used so many different beautiful flowers that it is impossible to list them all here.  She is creative, talented and so easy to work with.

Ali was the calmest bride I have ever seen.  She truly enjoyed every moment from planning to the celebration. Having an at home party allows one to spread the joy.  We had family and friends helping throughout and laughed through heat waves and crazy projects.

Ali and Tom’s ceremony was beautiful and personalized.  Tom’s brother, Mike, was the officiant.  It was very special having someone that knew them both so well performing the ceremony.  I don’t think I was truly prepared for the intense emotions I felt that day. It was overwhelming, standing with my husband, in this perfect setting, watching our daughter looking so beautiful and happy. We were surrounded by our closest family and friends.  I think I cried tears of joy all night long.

Wedding Photography: Christina Bohn Photography / Event Planning: Helayne Damianos (HelayneDamianos@me.com) / Floral Design: Nancy Munch of Open House Country Flowers / Wedding Ceremony & Reception Location: Private Residence / Catering: Peter Ambrose of Food For Forks / Rentals: Party Rental Ltd. / Guest Restrooms: Norsic / Tent Rentals: The New York Tent Company / Band: Stan Weist / Wedding Invitations: The Writing Place / Makeup: Jamie Mazlin (Jamie_Mazlin@yahoo.com) / Wedding Dress: Christos (Desiree) / Bride’s Shoes: Tracy Reese / Bridesmaid Dresses: Wtoo by Watters + Bill Levkoff / Bridesmaid Sandals: J.Crew / Groom’s Attire: J.Crew + Banana Republic

Hello romantic spring wedding by CLY Creation! Seriously, these images just ooze romance and the entire affair is just a perfect spring occasion. Her stunning gown, bountiful florals and could.not.be.cuter flower girls make it easy to see why I will be spending my day swooning over all the romance. It’s a tough job, but someone’s gotta do it and with a full gallery of images, you too can join me in the swoon fest!

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From the Bride… Our love story is a bit unusual.  We met in the dorms as students at Harvard Law School, became friends, fell out of touch, reconnected six years later, fell in love right away, and got engaged shortly thereafter!  Though years had passed, the same familiarity and comfort between the two of us remained.  We wanted our late spring New York wedding to reflect the feelings of the season, as well as our own feelings about our amazing (re)union:  freshness, loveliness, optimism, and the sense of things budding everywhere.  To reflect that, we picked soft lavender, sage, cream, pink, and gold as our wedding colors and designed around that.  We were married in a small English garden on our venue’s grounds, under an arch featuring deep pink peonies, sage green antique hydrangea, lavender roses, and cream dendrobium orchids.  Our centerpieces at our reception had these same flowers plus cherry blossom branches for drama and height.

We tried to DIY a few things for the wedding, primarily because we discovered through wedding planning that we actually love to make things ourselves.  Doing so allowed us to create unique, bespoke items with our own mark on everything.  For example, when we struggled to find a box that would perfectly fit all of our hand-calligraphed escort cards/envelopes (which were styled to look like pieces of mail complete with stamps on each corner), Gene handmade a box from balsam wood.  He even hand-turned almost one hundred pieces of copper wire for each escort card so that they would stand upright in the dried moss that lined the box!  We also made our menus with our “JG” monogram, our accordion-fold programs, and our favor tags (which hung from the neck of miniature bottles of zinfandel).  The programs and favor tags featured our custom silhouettes, hand-drawn by Gene’s sister, an artist.

Being both of Korean heritage, it was important to us to incorporate a traditional Korean paebaek ceremony into our wedding, during which we paid respects to our family members by bowing and offering wine.  Most of our younger guests had never seen this before so it caused a huge sensation when we re-entered the ballroom in our traditional Korean attire. After it was all over, I changed back into my gown and Gene back into his suit and the raucous dance party began!  We were amazed to see people of all ages cutting a rug, from our grandmothers to our distinguished guests (even members of the judiciary!) to our little nieces; everyone was out on the dance floor and having a great time.  It was a magical day, and for us, it truly captured how we felt about our (re)union:  full of hope, optimism, and just joy!

Photography: CLY Creation / Cinematography: Magic Flute Videos / Floral Design: Pedestals Floral Decorators / Wedding Ceremony & Reception Location: Crest Hollow Country Club / Wedding Invitations: Bella Figura / Calligraphy: Rona Siegel Calligraphy / Wedding Gown: Maggie Sottero / Bride’s Fascinator: Virginia Geiger Elegant Jewelry Design / Groom’s Suit: Calvin Klein / Groom’s Tie: Brooks Brothers / Day of Coordination: Vow Wedding Consulting / DJ: FM Entertainment / With Love Cards: Twin Ravens Press

Oh. My. Goodness. Three little words, but it’s all I’ve got. Seriously, this Manhattan Same Day Edit from red Bicycle Media has me speechless. Speechless and a little teary. It’s romance, it’s luxury, it’s ab-so-lute beauty. Gorgeous. I could ramble on and on with more adjectives akin to stunning, but instead, I’ll simply introduce this New York City wedding. Before we get to the film (which is worth the wait, believe me) we have world renowned photographer Jerry Ghionis‘ take on the day. And there is even more in the gallery, lucky you!

From James with red Bicycle Media … Natalia and Wayne are a very warm, passionate, and loving couple who made us feel very much at home. Their vision was a winter themed wedding inspired by one of their trips to their weekend getaway in upstate New York. The film intertwines and contrasts their city life and the beautiful sereneness of the mountains. It culminates at Cipriani on 42nd Street where real snow, cold and wet came down at their first dance.

Natalia and Wayne are the exactly the type of couple we love to work with. They appreciated and loved the art of our storytelling and were “all in” as far as the process.

Natalia has said the Same Day Edit makes not just her cry, but has made her husband, their loved ones, and even relative strangers tear up. I have no problem admitting that I can attest to that fact. So grab you’re tissues and enjoy this stunning Same Day Edit from red Bicycle Media.

natalia + wayne // SDE from red Bicycle Media on Vimeo

From the bride … My husband and I both grew up in New York City.  When we decided we wanted to marry in the City, we envisioned something very formal and very romantic.  We selected a venue, Cipriani 42, which we felt captured all of the romance of old New york.  Converted from an old bank, the space still has the tellar walls and giant marble columns.

We thought the most romantic time of year to be married in New York is in the winter.  We pictured a white wedding; all of our flowers were white and we brought in trees dusted with silver to ceate the feel of a snow covered forest.  We chose to call for black tie, to further the formality and romance of a winter wedding in New York.  People couldn’t understand why we wanted a winter wedding, and, at first, kept asking “What if there is a storm?”  We really wanted the city to be covered in a layer of white snow.

Of course, it hardly ever snows in New York in the middle of December, so our event designer David Beahm brought in a snow machine and timed it with our first dance. None of the guests could believe it was snowing on the dance floor!  New York City is a magical place to get married and we are so happy we chose to celebrate the beginning of our new lives together in our city!

Photography: Jerry Ghionis / Cinematography: red Bicycle Media / Floral & Event Design: David Beahm Design / Ceremony and Reception Location: Cipriani 42nd Street / Invitation Designer: Bernard Maisner / Catering: Cipriani 42nd Street / Cake: Sylvia Weinstock / Band: Starlight Orchestra / Wedding gown designer: Oscar de la Renta / Bridesmaid dress designer: Vera Wang / Bride’s Jewelry: Maurice / Bridesmaid Jewelry: Amanda Rudey Jewelry

Can you believe it’s already Friday? The week simply soars by when when you have five whole days of pretty, lovely, and gorgeous to get you to the weekend. But we say, what’s five days, when it could be six? So for those of us who need just one more day, just one more wedding, just one more batch of inspiration, we’ve got a treat for you. Tune in tomorrow to see more of this absolutely stunning New York Wedding. red Bicycle Media was generous enough to send over the Same Day Edit they put together for this sweet couple. And it’s a treat, so you won’t want to miss it. And until then, LBBers, click here for the recently launched Style Me Pretty Wedding Cinematography page. Have you checked that out yet? Have a wonderful weekend lovelies, and we’ll be back Monday, full force pretty patrol! xoxo

Photography by world renowned Jerry Ghionis.

This week’s wonderful weddings, all lined up pretty in a row:

a dash of Bohemian Chic inspiration from Nashville
a classic Manhattan affair
a lovely vineyard wedding in Georgia
an Oregon Scottish/American fête
a contemporary Philadelphia wedding
a great bit of vintage inspiration from Minnesota
a charming Tennessee soiree
an adorable wedding in the Massachusetts Mountains
a traditional New York City wedding
a sweet as pie celebration in Pennsylvania

We are taking a pretty minute to spotlight the FAB-U-LOUS proposal showcased over on the California Blog yesterday. Seriously, this doozie is one for the record books and has left us trying to pick our jaws up off the ground. That good. people. that good. And I promise we’re only a wee bit jealous. It starts with gorgeous, scrumptious, to-die-for letterpress and ends in a romantic, foreign destination. And, if you haven’t had a chance to visit our new additions to the SMP family, you best skiddadle on over to their stomping grounds. New York, California, Texas, Florida and the Destination Blog are brimming with real weddings, vendor spotlights, awesome inspiration and ALL locally grown, 100% Style Me Pretty approved.

Stop by the California neck of the SMP woods to see the full spread and catch up on all the stylish happenings over on the rest of the Local Blogs . And if we haven’t made it to your corner of the wedding world yet, fear not. We are busy, busy bees behind the scenes working to bring the latest and greatest to your city/state/region/country. We’re leaving no stone unturned so stay tuned!

There is just something oh-so-romantic about a wedding in THE city. Manhattan. Classic and chic. Just like this wedding. The bride decided on navy blue to compliment the traditional New York City ambiance, and the result was totally magical.You almost expect to see Frank Sinatra crooning in the corner. Melani Lust Photography is the genius behind the gorgeous images, and we can’t get enough of the excitement, the romance, the love that seems to pour out of them. And when you just can’t get enough, there’s always more in the gallery!

Steve proposed on our way to dinner at my favorite NYC steakhouse, The Old Homestead.  When my sister told me I should bring my camera in case we go out afterward, I had a funny feeling it was engagement night!

We both work in finance and a few years ago we had our Christmas party at Bridgewaters.  I loved it!  When we got engaged, I knew I wanted to have it there; we didn’t even look at any other venues. I always knew I wanted a simple and classic wedding, and thought nothing worked for the feeling I wanted better than navy blue!

We loved having Melani Lust there for our big day. She takes the most wonderful photographs. I have two absolute favorite pictures – one of Steve and I walking on Front Street, him holding my flowers and he and I kissing in front of Grand Central Central, all cars blurred in the background.

Favors weren’t important to us, I wanted to do something meaningful instead.  Steve and I made a donation to The Lustgarten Foundation in memory of my father.

Photography: Melani Lust Photography / Church: St. Vincent Ferrer / Flowers: Ariston Florist / Event Planning & Design: Bride / Shoes: Caparros / Dress & Veil: Priscilla of Boston / Make Up: Estee Lauder at Bloomingdales / Hair: Marie Bove Salon / Invitations: The Green Kangaroo / Reception: Bridgewaters

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Melani Lust Photography

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Eek! This photo shoot is SO up my alley. It’s full of classic, simple details that make a big statement. Styled to perfection by the ever fabulous Jacqueline of Merci New York – it is the epitome of east coast style. Best of all, we get to see the shoot through the lens of seven fabulous photographers: Mike Colón Photographers,  Anna Epp Photography, Kristyn Kimball,  Magdiel Sanchez, Marc Douglas Photography, Michael Rousseau Photography, By Petronella Photography and Johan Khalilian. Be sure to scroll over the images to see who shot which fabulous image and of course, get acquainted with all the lovely in the full gallery of images!

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From Katherine Harris of Mike Colón Photographers… Words that come to my mind when I think about the shoot with Johan and Gabi are: effortless class, East Coast, elegant, timeless, tailored, and polished.  What is so refreshing to me about Gabi is that she looked like herself.  Her hair and makeup were soft, natural, yet polished.  Johan was put together in a tailored classic suit that complimented her look.

What continually brings me back to the classic East Coast style is it is just that: classic.  You can look back to John F. Kennedy and Jackie O. and the tailored suits, cuffs, and dresses they donned are still wearable today and beyond.  When this look is chosen, you can look to the images and experience a “timelessness” as opposed to being able to pinpoint that such and such image was taken during this time period, because of what they’re wearing.

Jackie from Merci New York could not have created a better look or incorporated better details to really capture the essence of what we were going for.  On top of her fabulous styling, getting to shoot in Central Park on a cloudy overcast day completed the feel of the day.

While the details of a wedding are powerful, and can really set the tone and mood for the day, we went into this shoot really wanting to capture what the wedding day truly is all about.  Love.  The coming together of two different people.  Two different people, with different upbringings, with different pasts, different lives coming together to commit their lives together is so unique and beautiful.  Our goal was to really capture the essence of these two people coming together to be one couple, one story, one love.  Instead of finding contrived poses or moments, we wanted the couple to interact the way they interact with each other and capture real and intimate moments.  There is something about real moments that are moving.

That being said, the details we did have we really wanted to choose specifically and carefully.  Gabi and Johan’s attire consisted mainly of a neutral color palette.  The jewelry chosen for Gabi accentuated the timeless east coast feel of her gown, hair and makeup.  The pops of color we added were just to show that you can still have class with being modern!  The green sash on Gabi’s party dress, the pop of color in her bouquet, Johan’s pink tailored shirt all gave hints of their respective personalities.

Photography: Mike Colón Photographers + Anna Epp Photography + Kristyn Kimball + Magdiel Sanchez + Marc Douglas Photography + Michael Rousseau Photography + By Petronella Photography + Johan Khalilian / Stylist: Jacqueline Weppner of Merci New York / Floral design: Lori Meigel of Merci New York / Wedding Gowns: Sassi Holford (Long Gown) via Gabriella New York Bridal Salon + Allison Paris (Short Dress) via Gabriella New York Bridal Salon / Hair Accessories: Preston & Olivia + Sara Gabriel / Ballet Flats: J.Crew / Faux Fur Cropped Jacket: Club Monaco / Jewelry: Miriam Haskell via Rent the Runway + Nicole Miller via Rent the Runway + Erickson Beamon via Rent the Runway / Groom’s Attire: Rothman’s New York + Tallia + Hugo Boss + J.Crew

Get your Pinterest pins out people, because this vintage Americana road trip photo shoot is just oozing with inspiration (and is completely adorable!). It was destined to be fabulous – I mean, fabulous is just what you expect from a brainchild of Mélangerie Inc and Rock Paper Scissors Events and then captured by Jen Huang Photography. It all started with an oh-so-awesome viewmaster wedding invitation suite created by Mélangerie Inc. and ended up being the perfect way to start this Thursday. So hit the road Jack (or Jill) and spend some time in the full gallery of images!

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From Mélangerie Inc… The premise of this design grew out of an invitation concept we had to create a wedding invite using a Viewmaster (yes, like the ones we had as kids). We just love the Viewmaster form and thought it could be a great way for couples to integrate their engagement photos into their wedding invitations.

Viewmaster reels were originally conceived of as stereoscopic postcards in the late 1930’s, so this got us thinking about how we could blow out a wedding paperie suite based on other nostalgic souvenirs, like felt pennants, collectible USA state plates, vintage key chains, etc.

We began discussing the idea of styling a “nostalgic souvenir” inspired wedding design with our colleague, Ara, from Rock Paper Scissors Events, and she introduced the complimentary “Road Trip” idea. When seeking a location for our photo-shoot, we instantly thought of a local favorite, James Restaurant in Brooklyn, NY. James was the perfect setting for our intimate, vintage fete aesthetic.

We began brainstorming with Ara and together came up with a ton of fun ideas to fit the nostalgic souvenir/road trip concept. The Mélangerie team got started on the felt pennant Save the Date, Viewmaster Invite, and vintage key chain escort card display, while Ara and her crew began working on the tablescape design.

From Rock Paper Scissors Events… When Melangerie approached me with the idea to do a styled shoot based on a Viewmaster invitation with roadtrip ephemera I was excited as it was such a fresh idea, and I also had to get really creative about how we were going to take inherently kitschy things and make them pretty. So we started scouring Ebay and flea markets and vintage shops for the right elements so that we could create this quirky and fun vintage Americana souvenir shoot. By layering objects that were either neutral or fit a color palette of blues, blue-greens and red, we kept everything cohesive and pretty.

Table top particulars included a selection of vintage USA state plates, beautiful glass seltzer bottles to hold floral, a runner constructed of re-printed state maps, and table number vignettes themed after road trip locales with corresponding kitsch collectibles. Nostalgia is even a hallmark in the signature drink we came up with for the couple: “Jack & Coke” (especially pithy since the groom’s name is Jack) served in old-style coke bottles.

Mélangerie also translated the road trip aesthetic into a welcome gift for out of-town-guests with goodies from the Bride and Groom’s most memorable road trip destinations packaged in Mélangerie’s popular State-By-Food tote bag.

We recruited our talented colleague, Jen Huang to photograph the affair. Her romantic shooting style seemed like a perfect match for our design. An engagement session she photographed is also featured on the Viewmaster invite reel.

This Vintage Americana design theme offers couples so much room for personalization, and we hope you are all as inspired by it as we were while creating it!

Event Design: Mélangerie Inc. + Rock Paper Scissors Events / Floral & Styling: Rock Paper Scissors Events / Paper Goods: Mélangerie Inc. / Welcome Gift Design & Curation: Mélangerie Inc. / State-By-Food Tote Bags: Mélangerie Inc. / Photography: Jen Huang Photography / Venue: James Restaurant

A wedding inspired by and built around a gorgeous Amsale wedding dress is my kind of wedding. Dripping in luxurious undertones from the exquisite stationery by Deborah Nadel Design to the glittery Jimmy Choos, each image by Brian Dorsey Studios just screams elegance. Gorgeous, candlelit and sophisticated – sounds delightful indeed! For even more of this romantic affair, check out the full gallery of images!

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From the Bride… My whole inspiration for my wedding started with my dress. I found my dress the first day I even started looking and fell in love with it!  I am not one for glitz, but the dress was perfect because it made a statement on its own. From that point on I had this whole image of everything kind of blending and coordinating with my dress.

After five years as a merchandiser at Ralph Lauren, and now at Intermix, I obsessed over the color of everything. I wanted everything from the invitations to the the color of the roses to blend, and make a neutral, romantic color palette. Deborah paid attention to every detail and we worked together to choose the perfect paper and ink color to make everything match. Our florist, Meredith, from Belle Fleur knew exactly what I wanted to achieve and put together a regal and majestic day. We incorporated tons of candles in the the hallway, which created a romantic and calm environment, where Adam and I saw each other for the first time. It was one of the craziest rain storms on the day of our wedding yet it was so peaceful inside the country club.

After having gone to Emory together, and knowing each other for almost ten years, Adam and I were beyond excited to party with all of our friends. I loved that we went from this emotional ceremony to a crazy party filled with tons of friends, high energy music, and plenty of food and drink!

Wedding Venue: Fresh Meadow Country Club / Wedding Photography: Brian Dorsey Studios / Wedding Stationery & Calligraphy: Deborah Nadel Design / Floral Design: Belle Fleur / Band: Hank Lane / Table Linens: Table Wraps / Makeup: Kimara Ahnert / Wedding Dress: Amsale / Groom’s Tux: Ermenegildo Zegna / Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo / Bridesmaid Dresses: Jim Hjelm / Flower Girl Dresses & Shoes: J.Crew

Not only is this modern Manhattan wedding by Oak Street Studio beautiful, it was also planned in just three months! It always baffles my mind to see brides pull off such elegant affairs in the time it takes me to pick out a pair of shoes, and then look so calm and collective in every pretty image. It also helps this bride’s best friend, Karen Messing, was there to make sure the couple’s wedding stationery was a perfect fit for this modern duo. There is even more in the full gallery, and for you West Coasters, Oak Street Studio will be moving their studio to Los Angeles in the Fall!

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From the Bride… Eric and I gave ourselves three months to pull off an intimate, late afternoon wedding with only immediate family and our closest friends. Once I discovered Brotherhood Synagogue, a warm, old Quaker meeting house on Gramercy Park, I knew the rest would be simple! I bought blue vintage mason jars of different sizes on Etsy, picked an array of wild flowers to fill them with and opted for burlap tablecloths to preserve an organic vibe. The synagogue provided a simple, beautiful chupah.

My best friend, Karen Messing, and I designed and printed the invites, menus and placecards. Karen also accompanied me to Veka, where I bought the first dress I tried on! We decided on passed lychee martinis to get the party started and skipped the traditional cocktail hour for shared plates on the table when guests walked in. Instead of a traditional wedding cake, we decided on a bar of mini desserts which the guests devoured!

Wedding Photography: Oak Street Studio / Floral Design: The Bride (DIY) + Ariston Florist (Flowers) / Band: The Next Faze / Wedding Venue: Brotherhood Synagogue / Catering: Judy Marlow of Simply Divine / Wedding Invitations, Menus & Graphics: Karen Messing + The Bride / Wedding Dress: Veka Bridal Couture

Confession. I love Karen Wise‘s work. Sometimes, I honestly wish I could hang it on my walls. She just knows how to shoot an amazing wedding. She knows how to capture every moment. Pair her up with an all-star team of Little Black Book vendors (Lion in the Sun, Face Time Beauty), and voila! You’ll get something magical. Something like this New York City Wedding. It feels like a classic little black dress, doesn’t it? Timeless, with a little touch of sexy. Uniquely beautiful. And perfect. For more of this beautiful couple, check out Karen’s blog.

Click here for more!

Uli and I are true New Yorkers at heart. I’m originally from Nebraska and he is from Mexico. We met at happy hour in the meat packing district. Uli charmed me for two years while, as most New York girls do, I played “hard-to-get.” He finally popped the question in an unforgettable evening in Baltimore alongside our new family member, our beloved French Bulldog, Oliver.

We wanted our wedding to be elegant, romantic and a reflection of our New York roots. We conducted the ceremony in our usual Sunday mass church on Park Avenue. The ceremony had an unmistakable touch of ourselves as readers shared wonderful scriptures in “Spanish-accent” English and we were joined by a diverse group of friends from multiple countries and parts of the US. In total, we had over 10 countries represented and a number of major and small towns across the US.

Our reception was small and intimate at a nontraditional space, the River Café. It sits at the base of the Brooklyn Bridge and hosts one of the most amazing views of Manhattan. Our colors were silver, black, and ivory which merged well with the city lights.

We were fortunate that our day went off without a hitch. Our wedding planner Anna from Just About Married was top notch and Luke at River Café proved to be a God sent. After a wonderful night we departed back to where it all started – New York City. Our photographer, Karen Wise, provided us with the most wonderful wedding gift, several thousand pictures of this unforgettable night.

Wedding Planning: Anna Leath of Just About Married / Flowers: United Floral / Photography: Karen Wise Photography / Band: Hank Lane / Reception Location, Cake & Catering: The River Café / Hair & Makeup: Face Time Beauty / Stationery: Lion in the Sun / Limo: Tran-Star Executive / Ceremony Venue: St. Ignatius Loyola / Linens & Rentals: Classic Party Rentals / Groom’s Tuxedo: Hugo Boss /  Bride’s Dress: Pnina Tornai from Kleinfeld / Bride’s Jewelry: Michael F and Co. Jewelers / Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo

Hey LBBer’s, we’re trying something new this week – today is the start of our very own Wrap It Up Pretty Friday feature. If you frequent Style Me Pretty, which I’m sure you do, you’ll know that the Main Page likes to wrap up a week of lovely and tie it with a sweet little bow. It is exciting to see all the gorgeous from the past week in one spot. Plus, it’s a great send you off into your weekend. So in the name of granting you even more access to our uber-fabulous wedding party all week long, we’re jumping on the pretty train! Before we get into it, though, we’ve got a little sneak peak from one of the jaw-dropping weddings we have coming up next week on The Little Black Book Blog from one of our favorite LBB photographers, Melani Lust! Hope you have a fantastic weekend! xo

If you just can’t wait … here’s Erin & Steve’s Style Me Pretty photo gallery from Melani Lust Photography!

Here’s our Pretty Parade of weddings this week:

a warm California vineyard affair
a sweet Canadian winter wedding
a Dallas wedding with a bold color palette
a colorful and fun California fête
a rustic Colorado rehearsal dinner complete with horses
a completely DIY Ohio love fest
a pink California wedding + film
an Indian celebration in Austin
a classic Houston affair

These Vendors are members of our Little Black Book.
For membership information, click here

Photography

Melani Lust Photography

View Portfolio

My favorite part about this Hudson Valley wedding is not the lovely, lilac and lavender-hued flowers, not the stunning old New England barn and not even the breathtaking photography by Maggie Harkov.  My favorite part has got to be the light-up-a-room grin of the beautiful bride.  I am crazy about couples who can crack each other up and these two must have some pretty sore cheeks from all the smiling they were doing on their big day.  Click here to see even more!

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From the Bride… The truth is I have been planning my wedding since I was a little girl growing up in Portland, Oregon.  I even have a binder with clippings from bridal magazines dating back to 1995.  To spill my dirty little secret, I was also an avid SMP reader long before getting engaged.  A fact that only a few of my closets friends knew, but once they got engaged, I’d send them over to SMP knowing the site would inspire gorgeous weddings.  I had multiple versions of my dream wedding all planned out. All I needed to find was “the one.”

After years of living only blocks apart in Brooklyn, NY, Greg and I met on match.com. We frequented the same restaurant, bars and gym but it took an online wink to bring the two of us together. After two years of dating, Greg surprised me by proposing on a Monday evening in October.

We spent the first few months of our engagement trying to decide where to get married.  I grew up in Portland, OR and he grew up in Washington DC.  We toyed with idea of getting married in Nantucket where Greg’s family vacations, but ultimately decided to get married in NY.  Despite loving the city, I really didn’t want an urban wedding.  I wanted something rustic and charming.  My dream wedding at the time was actually inspired by a Style Me Pretty post from June 2008.  I fell in love with this wedding and from that moment on knew I wanted to get married in a barn. One day, a friend emailed me a link to a barn a former co-worker was getting married at.  With the barn being 2 ½ hours north of NYC and it now being the dead of winter, we had a little difficulty getting up to see the space.  But after a few snow storms, we were finally able to drive up.  Even covered in blankets of snow, I could tell that the Circa 1799 Barn, and the farm it was situated on, was the perfect place for our wedding.  Rustic and charming was exactly what it was.

With the place and date finalized, we set out on creating the perfect vision for our wedding.  The color palate and table settings were inspired by a Sunday Suppers blog post that featured burlap table runners, rustic dishtowels as napkins, and monochromatic bunches of flowers in various shades of purple.  From the mason jars as water glasses and the 140 dishtowels we personally ironed to the mini clothespins we attached the menus with – I tried to capture the perfect casual and charming style.

We tackled as many DIY projects as we could – printing the programs, table numbers and seating cards at home mimicking our invitation suite, printing our programs and tucking them into individual muslin bags, enlisting the help of friends and family to string lights in the barn, clip the menus to the napkins, etc.  One of our groomsmen even made the chalkboard we used for table assignments.  The little details really made a big impact.  People raved about all our hard work.

The day of the wedding was everything and more that I could have dreamed of.  Putting my dress on was one of the highlights of the day.  It’s when I started to feel like a true bride, getting ready to marry the love of my life.  By the time the ceremony rolled around, I could hardly believe it was finally here. I had lost my dad eight years ago and the thought of walking down the aisle without him was definitely the hardest part of my day.  But my Uncle Jim was there and looking back on the pictures, I was smiling and looking forward at my husband the whole walk down the aisle.  All I could think about was marrying Greg.

The ceremony was so personal.  The celebrant that married us took the time to ask our friends and family to write down advice and messages that our bridal party read out loud during the service. From the ceremony it was cocktail hour, taking place outside the barn on the lovely grass field, under the trees.  The weather cooperated with us better than I thought possible.  From there was dinner and dancing.  It was such a whirlwind of amazing speeches, delicious food, and boogying on the dance floor all night long. After the band shut down, there was a bonfire and smores, which was the most perfect way to end our evening, surrounded by our nearest and dearest making smores in the middle of a field.

We were so lucky to have Maggie Harkov taking our pictures.  We could not be more thrilled with the way everything turned out, and are so happy to have these memories to carry with us throughout our lives.

Wedding Photographer: Maggie Harkov / Floral Design: Gardenia Organic / Wedding Venue: The Circa 1799 Barn / Invitations & Paper Goods: Hello!Lucky / Celebrant: Murphy Birdsall / Day of Coordinator: Mary Shimkin of The Circa 1799 Barn / Catering: The Marketplace Catering / Hair: Shine Hair Spa / Ceremony & Cocktail Music: Teresa Broadwell / DJ: DJ Gaza of 74 Events / Rentals: Mahaiwe Tent & Party Rentals / Wedding Dress: Marisa / Bridesmaid Dresses: Alfred Sung / Groom & Groomsmen Attire: Gap (Khakis & Blazers) + Banana Republic (Ties) / Napkins: Ikea / Ring Bearer Bowl: Paloma’s Nest / Custom Cake Toppers: Goose Grease / Custom Hanger: Lila Frances / Flip Flops: Old Navy

Oh.my.goodness. I cannot tell you (but I will try) how much I love this engagement session by Judy Pak Photography. It might have a little something to do with the fact that this couple is downright hot (am I allowed to say that Abby L.?). I mean, how many guys can pull off a sweatshirt in a photo shoot and make it look hip? And I swear she is a model material. This session is just so them, and I don’t even know them, which means it’s perfect. And there is even more in the full gallery of images.

Click here to see the entire image gallery!

From Judy Pak Photography… Angela and Joe may be the sweetest couple I’ve ever met. So how fitting is candy and soda pops for the shoot? Don’t let them fool you though… they do have a bit of a naughty side as well! We ran around, broke some rules, and trespassed all in the name of good fun and some great photos! They will be getting married in Brooklyn this July.

Photography: Judy Pak Photography / Location: Highline & Meatpacking District, New York, NY