Ohio Weddings

It is about that time for one of our FAVORITE features and we are beyond excited to debut this beauty. As you know, inspiration comes in ALL sorts of pretty shapes and sizes. From a gorgeous piece of fabric to a hot pair of shoes, it runs the gamut. And the muse behind our latest From Inspiration to Reality shoot is no exception. It is in fact one of the most beloved flavors of ice cream out there…mint chocolate chip. Love it! Dished out by JMM Photography, Amo Ink, Yellow Canary and a bevy of other brilliant vendors, this shoot is chalk full of eye candy and better yet, yummy inspiration for your own wedding. Before we get into the pretty, pretty details, take a look at the Colette’s minty board that started it all. Pure deliciousness.

The perfect combination of cool mint hues mixed with those crisp blacks gives this look a timeless vintage feel while still maintaining a modern perspective. And, just wait until you see the resulting shoot. Absolute perfection. We’ll be back in a wee bit with the latest From Inspiration to Reality creation.

photography courtesy of Geri Ciulla Photography

We have one of the most heartwarming highlight films from Studio Z Films for you today. It will remind each and every one of you what you are about to promise each other. It’s about what defines marriage. Whether you’re at the beginning, the middle or the end of your wedding planning process, we hope you’ll watch this and let the message sink in.  It’s about love, it’s about promises, it’s about lessons learned ~ together. 

For the best playback experience, press play & then pause. Allow the film to load for a few moments. Then press play again.

wedding coordination by Viva Bella Events

There is certainly a place for humor and lighthearted banter during your wedding celebration. But the young lady who toasted Jessica and Cody … and the vows shared between the two of them, well, they are some of the sweetest, most sincere words we’ve heard. We are honored to share these moments from Jessica and Cody’s New Year’s Eve ceremony with you today.

We’d also like to take a moment to congratulate Steve at Studio Z Films on being named one of the top 50 most influential event film-making studios in the world by Event DV Magazine! We’re thrilled for him ~ and all of our other Little Black Book members who were listed in this elite group of amazing visual story-tellers!!

One thing we really enjoy doing on the LBB blog is showing off our own LBB members’ weddings! And that’s just what we’re going to do today! As a prominent wedding planner and designer in Ohio, Valarie Kirkbride, had all the contacts, all the tools to create her dream wedding! She is sharing a bunch of information that went into planning her own recent wedding …

I had been planning weddings for 6 years when I got engaged to Jimmy. I pretty much already knew all of the vendors I would choose for my own wedding day, due to my existing relationships and friendships with them. Jimmy gave me free reign for planning the wedding, so I was off and running with the details.

We selected Kirtland Country Club because it is an old mansion built in the 1920’s that was renovated into a country club a few decades later. We felt it was the most beautiful location in the area that had ample space for an indoor and outdoor feel. Jimmy’s idea was to have guests in the gorgeous West Porch Room for the cocktail hour, then to the ballroom for dinner, then back to the transformed West Porch Room for dancing and cocktails. I was leery about that idea at first, and guests moving so much, but it worked out really well and guests told us how much fun they had roaming about all of the different rooms and activities!

Inspiration

My favorite place to go in the summer is Cedar Point, the best amusement park in the world! I’ve gone every summer since I can remember. Every time I go, I feel like I’m transformed into a kid again, and Jimmy loves going too! So I wanted that carnival/summer/love feel for our wedding. With the colors, it soon morphed into a Moulin Rouge feel as well. The details included colors of red, magenta and gold, which I had never seen before for a wedding.

Food and Drinks

Our cocktail hour was serenaded by a lively and vintage recorded playlist including songs from Cirque de Soleil’s “O” soundtrack, Barbra Streisand, Elvis Presley, Edith Piaff and Pink Martini. We offered guests our signature drink, “Yellow Cake Martinis”! All of the food was summer themed, with a tortilla chip station and homemade chips and salsas, chicken quesdillas and crabcakes.

Guests found their seating arrangements on mini envelopes addressed in hand calligraphy with their names, sealed with a gold heart sticker and displayed in mini-rhinestones. Inside was a card that indicated their table name. Tables were named after emotion verbs: love, dream, hope, believe, laugh, imagine, dance, etc., and were displayed on homemade caramel apples.  The guests found their assigned seat by finding their name written on a paper-made piece of candy. The color of the candy coordinated to each guest’s dinner choice. The double matted red menus complete with a red heart rhinestone, read at the bottom: “All you Need is Love”!

After dinner, the Carnival Dessert Stand opened with a decadent display of caramel apples, chocolate covered pretzels, a popcorn machine, caramel popcorn, rock candy, salt water taffy, etc. Guests could fill up their bag (monogrammed with “All you Need is Love”) and take all the sweets home!

Guests also enjoyed a second favor. Gold painted baskets with assorted color dancing slippers were available for all of the women to take. Most women ended up taking off their uncomfortable heels at this point anyway, so why not let them enjoy some pretty slippers too? They all raved about it!!

The video booth from Moonstruck Productions was also running all night, where guests could go in and leave a message for us that will show up on our wedding video in its own section later! The wedding cake (from LBB member, Flour Girl) was absolutely breathtaking and of course it included red velvet cake, what else??! The party went until 12:30am with the band and DJ switching on and off every 30 minutes, sure to please everyone’s musical tastes.

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Wow, Valarie! I think you covered all the bases! Every little detail … all the little extras! We, at SMP, wish you and Jimmy all the best! Thanks so much for sharing your day!

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Credits ~ Coordination: Rachel at Kirkbrides, Cake: Flour Girl, Music: Tony Quarles & The Discovery Band and (DJ) Scott Jones, Floral Décor: Grande Designs, Hair: Barb Banko, Lighting: Vincent Lighting, Linens: L’Nique, Makeup: Ramona Dauksiene, Photography: Easywind Studio, Videographer: Moonstruck Productions, Brides Gown: Paloma Blanca, Bridesmaids: Badgley Mischka, Men’s Attire: Calvin Klein, Men’s Wearhouse.

Brooke and Chris were married at the absolutely beautiful St. Mary’s Cathedral Basilica in Cincinnati, Ohio. Their stunning wedding day was captured by Kortnee and Ted of Kortnee Kate Photography.  Take a look!

What a magnificent church!

I think it was about 10º outside when Kortnee and Ted shot photos of the wedding party!

Looks like they had a blast, though!

Then on to the dazzling wedding reception at the Hall of Mirrors at the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza Hotel.

LOOOOOVE the cake, the crystals, the rhinestones and well, just everything about it!

All of the drop-dead-beautiful flowers and floral decor from Ford Ellington Floral & Event Design, Ltd.

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful ….

The awesome cake is from Maribelle Cakery Cincinnati.

So great! Congratulations Brooke and Chris! For more fabulous shots from their wedding, click here.

Thanks Kortnee and Ted for sharing!! For more of their gorgeous work, visit their website. and blog.

A couple of weeks ago, we featured an incredibly fun floral photo shoot that Courtenay Lambert sent to us. Pure and passionate fun! {here}

Courtenay also sent us some gorgeous images from one of her winter weddings … Patricia and Adam’s elegant November celebration that we think you’ll love as well …

from Patricia …

We wanted the wedding to be simple but classy – The Lyceum was the perfect back drop to create such a feeling. Combined with the flowers, candles, music, food, and champagne!! It was perfect!. The gold dresses and accents were a nice nod to the holidays without being too much.  Since the wedding was in November, which can be dreadful in Cincinnati, the gold helped keep things warm and inviting. With our move to Switzerland 2 months prior to the wedding, we wanted to bring a few touches of Switzerland – The Swiss Chocolates were direct from the Lindt factory here in Zurich, Switzerland; the Swiss theme Cookies were made by “Cake Creations by Sue”, and the Swiss flag baggage tags were used for table assignments and then kept as favours. It was an easy way for us to provide our new contact information as well as open up an invite for visitors.

Simple and classy … warm and inviting … perfect …

Courtenay’s gorgeous bouquets and centerpieces added just the right amount of color to the elegant color scheme used throughout the wedding.

Patricia’s make-up was done by one of Cincinnati’s best … Little Black Book vendor, Brideface. Seriously ~ look at the close-ups … just beautiful.

{And by the way, Nancy has really great beauty and make-up advice on her Brideface blog.}

Patricia’s wedding gown was by Nicole Miller. Her stunning coat was custom-made by … an unnamed designer. (So sorry … we definitely WILL try to get that information for you!)

Cute, cute Switzerland-inspired cookies by Cake Creations by Sue; Cake by Tres Belle; Photography courtesy of Stephanie Carson of StephCarson Photography.

Congratulations Patricia & Adam … and thanks to Courtenay Lambert Florals for sharing their wedding with us!

Lauren and Jordan’s exciting Hollywood Glam wedding at The Phoenix in Cincinnati was inspired by a hairpiece by K. Autumn that Lauren found online. In the words of their wedding planner, Dora Manuel at Viva Bella Events … “After that, it just all fell into place!”

more from Dora at Viva Bella Events …

The reception featured both round and square tables with alternating red velvet and black/white patterned linens and 3 types of floral arrangements. We rented black chiavari chairs for all tables to keep something consistent at each table. The lighting designer saturated the walls with a “red fabric” pattern and the ceiling with a red mosaic design. A black and white dance floor completed the look …

The flowers were black magic roses, black callas and fern curls complemented by black feathers for Lauren’s bouquet and white feathers for the bridesmaids bouquets.

When guests were seated for dinner, they found a chocolate dipped strawberry awaiting them at their place setting. The strawberry contained a message from the bride and groom , “Life is Unpredictable. Eat Dessert First.”

As we mentioned in the first post, Lauren (the beautiful bride) is a graphic designer and created terrific invitations and all of the paper pieces that go along with a wedding! Her website is Giddy Ink and shows just how creative she is! Really, you should take a look!

And again, from Dora …

Before the party got underway, Lauren and Jordan shared a memorable … choreographed … first dance!

The total look was fierce and intricate. Uncompromising and memorable. Just like Lauren and Jordan.

A huge thanks to Dora at Viva Bella Events and Neysa Ruhl Photography for sharing Lauren & Jordan’s amazing wedding! And to Lauren, your designs {Giddy Ink} are fantastic!!  Best of luck from all of us here at Style Me Pretty.

Other Wedding Vendors
Make up Brideface – Little Black Book Member
Video: Iconography Video Services http://www.iconographystudios.com
Hair design Sam Hills www.highfivesalon.com
Band: Soul Pocket http://www.soulpocket.com
Rentals: Camargo www.camargo-rental.com
Rentals: All Occasions www.aorents.com
Venue for both ceremony and reception: Phoenix www.thephx.com
Florist: Sprouts www.sproutsfloraldesign.com
Cake: Bonbonerie www.bonbonerie.com
Ceremony music: String Celebrations www.stringcelebrationsusa.com
Lighting: Goodwin www.goodwinlighting.com
Bridesmaid’s dresses were each different chiffon designs from Belsoie.
Jordan’s Tux: designer: Calvin Klein purchased at: Romualdo’s Formal Wear
Lauren’s Dress: designer: Tara Keely; purchased at Bridal and Formal
Feather Hair Pin: Custom Design from K Autumn.
Flower Girls: Custom Designs from Pegeen
Dance Instruction: Best of Ballroom

Dora Manuel at Viva Bella Events in Cincinnati thought you would enjoy Lauren & Jordan’s wedding and we’re positive that you will! She did such a great job telling their story, we’re just going to let her take over.

Lauren and Jordan joke about how different they each are. She’s an artist. He’s a dentist. She’s Catholic. He’s Jewish. She’s a smalltown girl. He’s from the city. To meet them though is to gain an understanding of the complimentary nature of true love—theirs is a story of yin meets yang.

Lauren’s moment of inspiration for the wedding happened when she found her feather hair pin online… This hair pin became the design inspiration for the entire wedding… feathers, gems, red, black and white.

Lauren and Jordan’s relationship is built on a willingness to break the rules, and their wedding was to be no exception. Held at an old gentlemen’s club built in 1826 (The Phoenix), they had visions of a hip, retro Hollywood affair with bold strokes of black and red and a touch of glitz.

The “chuppah,” custom built by Viva Bella Events, was the centerpiece for the ceremony. It was draped in white fabric and accented with black and white patterned ties. We asked the lighting designer to uplight the inside of the fabric on the four corners and the background drape was uplit with red lighting. Because Lauren is Catholic and Jordan is Jewish, we made it an open canopy chuppah to blend their backgrounds. A Rabbi performed the ceremony, but the ceremony contained both Jewish and Christian traditions such as the Unity Candle (Christian) and the breaking of the glass (Jewish).

All of the stationery played a large role in creating final touches for the wedding. Lauren, a graphic artist at her company, Giddy Ink, designed each piece with care. Creating an intricate one-of-a-kind design (reminiscent of a 1940’s-style playbill), she blended vintage-inspired text with unique materials like feathers and gems. And the details kept coming, from programs, to escort cards envelopes tucked with feathers to drink signs, direction signs, chair signs and much more!

The stunning photography is courtesy of Neysa Ruhl.

More from Lauren and Jordan’s dramatic reception … in a bit …

A HUGE thank you to Genevieve Nisly for sending us today’s gorgeous featured wedding!!! The photographs were stunning and such an inspiration to all of us. And to Stephanie and Chris, congratulations on designing a wedding that completely reflected a fun loving, modern but wonderfully classic couple.

If you are dying for a little more Genevieve, just check out their fabulous, eye-candy-filled blog and website!

From Genevieve…Stephanie and Chris live in LA, though they miss the old historic and industrial feel that Cleveland has. So while they decided to have both ceremony and reception at a country club for convenience, they want wanted their wedding to have more of an edgy urban and vintage feel to it.

After several conversations, we chose an older part of Cleveland to capture their fun photos with the bridal party. Those colorful bridges and textured walls were the perfect balance to their top hats, fake mustaches and laid-back group.

I love the contrast of these photos with the sweet details from earlier. It’s the perfect contradiction! More on the way!

More eye candy from today’s featured wedding, shot by Genevieve Nisly…oh so fabulous details!!

Oh and that groom cake…big chunks of CHEESE!! Quirky, but so cute. More to come!!

I have so many gorgeous photographs of the bride and groom from today’s affair that it’s hard for me to skip ahead to the details, but I know that is what you guys are absolutely dying to see! So, without further ado, here are the reception pics from today’s gorgeous wedding!

photographs by the amazingly talented Genevieve Nisly

Absolutely delicious!! So much more on the way!

We are featuring SUCH a pretty wedding shot by Genevieve Nisly today. The details are pretty incredible and the thoughtful execution of the green and orange color palette is simply beautiful!

Here are a couple of really fun tidbits from the bride…the bridesmaids were all told to simply, wear a green dress! Whatever they had or found would be perfect. So cute.  And the fabulous paper products? The invitations were printed on handmade plantable seed paper purchased from Green Field Paper. The entire invitation could be planted to grow wildflowers. Um, SO COOL.

If you are just now joining us, we are featuring Stephanie and Chris’s bright and cheerful, Cleveland wedding. The couple is simply gorgeous and together, they designed a day that reflected their fun personalities and classic sensibilities…

all photographs by the fabulous Genevieve Nisly

We have tons of gorgeous photos on the way, from bridesmaids who are charming and gracefully mismatched, to a cake that is literally going to make you jump for joy!

Today is ALL about Genevieve Nisly on SMP. With her fun, vibrant orange and green wedding featured here and her more traditional fuschia and green inspired affair on the Little Black Book Blog, we are loving every bit of her.

I am slightly, okay completely, obsessed with the brides gorgeous gown and headpiece. Paired with the shockingly beautiful orange bouquet, this look is perfection. For those of you that are dying to know, Stephanie’s gown is a Liancarlo, style #3821…”silk taffeta strapless gown with sweetheart neckline and stitched ruffles skirt detail in white”.” The veil is by Sara Gabriel.

So much more to come!

I KNEW you guys would love this wedding. It’s colorful, it’s cheerful, it’s simply gorgeous! Genevieve Nisly is a genius behind the lens, putting out work that is fresh and smart, that is hugely emotional and yet wonderfully simple.

Kathy Siller did the flowers for this affair and as you will see in posts to come, they were GORGEOUS. Modern and vibrant, approachable but positively lovely. Lots more to come!

Even though Spring officially sprung a couple of weeks ago, there is something about April that makes me feel like it is really here. It’s still 40 degrees here in Boston, but April 1 gives me lots of hope that warmth is just around the corner. So, what better way to celebrate than with a positively colorful affair!

The wedding was sent to us by the AMAZING Genevieve Nisly, who is based out of Cleveland. Genevieve’s work is crisp and clean with a bit of vintage thrown in to add interest. I love her and after today, I know you will too!

So much more to come from this lovely wedding!

Today’s featured wedding from Little Black Book members, Genevieve and James Nisly, is jam-packed with lovely details and warm-hearted photos …

Tracy and Jeff were married at St Peter’s Episcopal Church in Lakewood, Ohio. Their beautiful reception followed at the Metropolitan Ballroom in Cleveland, Ohio. The photos that Genevieve and James captured are so rich and so striking that we know you’ll LOVE them as much as we do!

Maybe it’s the combination of colors that’s so great … the pop of fuschia and green against the more subtle neutral browns of the suits. Just LOVE it.

And then these shots of the young ones … too, too cute!

Add in black bridesmaids dresses, and voilá … the palette is complete!

Tracy and Jeff’s wedding had so many great details … I don’t think we’ve ever featured a wedding on The Little Black Book Blog that had better detail shots!

Another of Style Me Pretty’s fantastic Little Black Book members, Valarie Kirkbride was the wedding coordinator for this lovely wedding. The luscious cupcakes were made by Flour Girl … also one of SMP’s Little Black Book of FABULOUS wedding vendors!

Grande Designs did a remarkable job with the floral design. The assorted arrangements and the bouquets are simply perfect … pulled all of the elements of the wedding colors together beautifully.

A little bit about Tracy and Jeff from Genevieve …Tracy and Jeff are one of the sweetest and most gentle couples I know. They kept checking in with us making sure we had everything we needed. Her smile is contagious and just lights up a room whenever she walks in. They both carry themselves with grace and a dash of fun.

And my personal favorite images from the day …

BEAUTIFUL…

A huge thanks to Genevieve and James Nisly for sharing Tracy & Jeff’s wedding with us! You really captured the joy of the day!

Take a look at their website for more fabulous weddings!!

When capturing your very special day, wedding filmmakers have many tools in their proverbial shed! One of the increasingly popular formats right now is what’s known as a Super8 style. Here’s what Steve from Glass Eye Video had to say on his blog recently …

I’ve been so excited to make this post and announce that we have entered the world of Super 8 film! This has been a long time coming as I wanted to make sure I chose the right equipment and processing lab to handle my productions. After being inspired by the giants of the industry, I knew this was something I had to get into as well. The look, the feel, the raw emotion that is pulled from the film is something that simply cannot be imitated and is truly breathtaking. I filmed my first wedding a couple weeks ago and the bride was completely blown away by it.

More from Steve at Glass Eye Video … “Without a doubt, one of the greatest weddings I’ve had the honor of being a part of was Christy and Tom’s. St. Xavier Church was just the beginning that night. The reception at Music Hall was incredibly unique and insanely gorgeous, thanks to Brigid Horne-Nestor of i-do! Weddings and Events! Not one, but TWO live bands kept the guests entertained throughout the evening, including my favorite local band, The Rusty Griswolds. I’ve never seen a dance floor come alive like the one that night, it was AMAZING! I had the great pleasure of working along side Tine Hofmann, who was there snapping beautiful pictures one after the other! This was the first wedding I filmed in Super 8 and it was the perfect wedding to cover in this beautiful medium. It’s truly amazing how the film brings a whole new life to the images in a way that simply cannot be achieved with any other medium. I had the film processed in widescreen format to give it a modern twist and to help it flow with the HD footage that I shot that day as well. I hope you enjoy their teaser! The song is ‘Love and Some Verses’ by Iron & Wine.”

We, too hope you enjoyed the clip from Christy and Tom’s wedding. For more examples of Steve’s work, check out his website and blog.

A huge thanks to Little Black Book member, Tine Hofmann at TM Photography for providing the very lovely photos!

Ronald and Natasha were married in an absolutely beautiful ceremony at the Cleveland Botanical Gardens. Natasha and wedding planner, Valarie Kirkbride orchestrated a very unique Russian “Ice” celebration.

From Valerie,” When I first spoke with Natasha, she knew that she wanted an all white and cream wedding, with the only colors being the green of the flowers. I soon discovered that both of the bride and groom’s parents had moved to the US from Russia, so we started planning a loose “Ice” theme…

“The chuppah was designed with white fabric and hanging crystals strung with orchids.”

“The ballroom was up-lit in pale blue with leaf silhouettes to showcase the venue, the Botanical Gardens. Guests found their names on elegant rhinestone escort cards hung on white trees. The white satin linens and embroidered leaf organza overlays, chargers and specific silver flatware completed the settings. When guests found their tables, they were greeted with hand-made, personally calligraphied menus.”

“Natasha was born in Zhdanov, Ukraine.  She and her parents immigrated to the United States when she was five years old. Through mutual friends and family, Ronald’s and Natasha’s paths crossed many times during the ensuing years, but it wasn’t until December 2003 that they fell in love.  And as the saying goes, the rest is history!”

A huge thanks to Valarie Kirkbride, one of our great Little Black Book Wedding Planners in Cleveland and the surrounding areas. She’s provided us with an extensive list of wedding vendors involved in Natasha & Ronald’s beautiful wedding … Photography by Easywind Studio, Ice Sculpture by Elegant Ice Creations, Music by Grand Avenue Band, Cake by Flour Girl, Catering by Bon Appetit, Floral décor by Grande Designs, Lighting by Vincent Lighting, Videography by Moonstruck Productions.

For more of Valarie’s dazzling weddings, please visit her website and blog!

Thank you, thank you, thank you to Nancy from Brideface for sharing your absolutely beautiful wedding with us. I think that I can speak for most SMP readers when I say that it has inspired us to no end. And, if you are lucky enough to live in the Cincinatti area, Nancy is a MUST have. She will make you look so drop-dead gorgeous…your best “you” EVER.

And a HUGE thank you to the other vendors that helped make this wedding gorgeous…the fabulous Alison Wenstrup of Aviva Events and Little Black Book members, tm photography who captured the amazing images and Courtenay Lambert who designed the STUNNING florals and who owns The Bridal Studio, a one stop shop for any style savvy bride.