What do we love more than bringing you ideas with the Wedding Scoop? Answering your questions and helping you with your decisions with your planning! We get so many great questions and we sincerely hope we help each person out. I feel that on behalf of the ABG team and the awesome vendors we work with, I know I speak for everyone when I say that without you, our lovely bride-to-be, we'd be really really bored so thank you and keep those questions coming.
Nashville Bride's Question:
Hello Ashley - I met you at the bridal Gala in Lebanon. You helped me with my wedding at War Memorial. I have a question. Can you recommend any premarital counseling that is affordable? Also can you help me with finding an affordable make up artist? - Thanks
Ashley's Response:
Great to hear from you! I would reach out to Marie McKinney-Oates of Nashville Marriage Studio for premarital counseling. She also offers great workshops that will save you money on your marriage license.
Affordable makeup? Great makeup artists are a true investment - they make everyone look great and make your pics look wonderful. I would recommend hiring a professional that you connect with and one with a great portfolio and references. Here are a few to start with...
1) Amy Lynn Larwig (AmyLynnLarwig.com) who I trusted to do my makeup for my Sex and the City party!
Hey Ashley! I am totally in LOVE with this site and I love the new layout! I am getting married October 23rd of this year and I was wondering if you could spotlight someone who had their wedding reception at marathon village or will be having there. i want to see their ideas on decor for the space. it's a vintage event space and I want to turn it into an elegant and romantic area, but not sure how!
My fiance and I currently have Marathon Village booked as our reception site because it's so roomy, you can bring in your own caterer and alcohol, plus the view of the Nashville skyline at night is breathtaking!
I just wanted to see more pics of how the tables were set up and how other couples may set up the room, that's all.
Keep up the good work!!
Ashley's Response:
Thanks so much, that's so exciting for you and your fiance. Kristin Kaplan of Simply Stunning Nashville planned a rehearsal dinner at Marathon Village and the set-up the couple had was just as gorgeous as a full-on wedding. You're so right - the view is pretty spectacular! Hope this gives you a better idea of how the room can be used. You can see more details on the Simply Stunning Blog!
All the best!
While we're on the subject of venues and great planners, here's a budget-minded question we received.
Nashville Bride's Question:
My fiance and I are planning to wed on 10/30/2010. We want to have our wedding somewhere in Nashville but we are finding it hard to locate a venue that fits into our $8000 budget (when you include the caterer and all the extras). Is an $8000 budget unreasonable these days? Can you give any advice on venue locations that might work for us? a place with indoor/outdoor would be great or just indoor. We are inviting around 180 but hoping for 135 or less.
Ashley's Response:
Is $8000 your reception budget (including décor, rentals, etc), food/venue (only) or entire wedding budget? I recommend talking to two wedding planners who specialize in helping couples on a budget. They know the venues, caterers, etc. that can help make your day great on a dime! I'll direct you to their websites and from there, you can ask them your questions.
They are always willing to help - whether you hire them or not. Let me know what they advise so I can share it with other brides in the future!
Details by Margaret - detailsbymargaret.com
Your Day of Fairy Tales - Hillary - yourdayoffairytales.com
The 1940's evoke images of black and white movies with their dashing actors and stylish, elegant leading ladies. Casablanca, Citizen Kane, It's a Wonderful Life and many more classics made the decade and its fashion iconic - sharp suits and fedoras for men, beautiful dresses and sexy yet very classy accessories for women. It was a romantic era and it's no wonder when Kelly and James planned their big day, they adopted the 1940's theme.
Using creative, D.I.Y. smarts they successfully incorporated the theme and included their guests in the mix to really complete it! They did such a fantastic job too and thanks to Donald Yeager Photography, we get to share in the fun of their 1940's wedding. I had so much fun looking at the pictures and I hope you do too.
Real Wedding: Kelly & James' Downtown Wedding, 1940's style.
BrideKelly Hohenbrink
GroomJames Stewart
Our Wedding Details November 7, 2009 4:00pm
Ceremony Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Germantown, Nashville
James proposed the day after Christmas 2008 at my parent’s house. He had big plans to propose on Christmas day but everything that could go wrong with his plan, did go wrong. He ended up getting down on one knee the next morning in my childhood bedroom and proposed before anything else could get in his way!
What was your wedding style?
Classic and fun 1940’s.
What were your colors? Why did you choose them?
Our colors were black, white and red. Using black and white is always very classy and, by adding a pop of red, it really worked to make it glamorous.
Did you have a theme? What was it?
We made our wedding theme 1940’s Hollywood Glamour done Nashville style.
What did you use for inspiration?
We got a lot of ideas from watching classic 1940’s movies to see their style of dress, the mood of the era and to get ideas about centerpieces. The classic movies were pretty much all we watched up until the wedding day so we were really in tune with how we wanted the vibe of the ceremony and reception to be. We also bought magazines from the 1940s from ebay to make sure we were in line with the styles and to get ideas about how the invitations should look.
What was your budget?
The budget was very important for us. We tried to keep in under $15,000. We probably went over but not by too much.
What was your wedding WOW factor? {What did your guests love?}
The reception was completely decked out for the 1940’s. From the Big Band music and the crooning of Frank Sinatra to the actual 1940’s magazines scattered throughout the room, it was like stepping back in time. We had feathers and pearls everywhere. Each table was supplied with fedora hats and red handkerchiefs for the men and boas, pillbox hats, gloves and “pearl” necklaces for the women. Our guests were all able to dress the part and had a fabulous time. We also had lots of tea-light candles in Mason jelly jars for a southern, romantic feel.
What did you give as favors to your guests?
The guests got to take home the hats and accessories they wore during the night and also candy from the Mason jars that were on their tables. All the candy we put out was candy popular in the 1940’s and I made sure it fit the color scheme, of course!
How did you personalize your wedding?
One of the fun things we did was put framed pictures on each table at the reception from our engagement photo session with Donald Yeager Photography. We had the pictures taken in downtown Nashville dressed up in 1940’s style clothing. We also put out framed pictures of our grandparents on their wedding days from the actual 1940’s. They loved it!
What did you give your bridesmaids and groomsmen?
All the bridesmaids and groomsmen got full flasks that I engraved with their initials. Yep, engraving can be DIY, too! I got the engraver at Lowes for under $20 and stencils from Hobby Lobby.
What was your most special moment of the day?
My special moment of the day was walking into the reception for the first time. James and I didn’t want to see each other before the wedding so we took our pictures as a couple after the ceremony. This gave the guests plenty of time to get comfortable at the reception during the cocktail hour before we arrived. When we walked in, I saw the whole crowd dressed up in all the hats and boas and jewels that we’d put on their tables. They were eating, drinking, laughing and looked simply dashing. It just meant so much to me that everyone had really gotten into the theme. They looked amazing and were already having a great time.
Did you have kids at your wedding? What did you do for them?
We did have kids at the wedding but limited it to nieces/nephews and children of our friends. We arranged for them to have special kid’s meals and put crayons and actual 1940’s coloring books on their tables (ebay, of course!). Also, we gave them Ring Pops for a little extra kid bling.
Did you Do It Yourself or did you leave it to the professionals?
We were on a strict budget and I’m very artsy so everything that we could do ourselves, we did. We had friends do our flowers and wedding cupcakes. Pictures were very important to us so we made sure to use a professional photographer. Don Yeager did an amazing job. We also used a professional DJ under strict orders to only play music from the 1940’s.
If you did DIY, what was your favorite project? Why?
Making the vintage hats for the guests was my favorite. This ranged from simply hot-gluing a ribbon on a men’s fedora to constructing an entire ladies pillbox hat from felt. It wasn’t my favorite while making them (because there were so many!) but it made every hat unique and definitely personalized. And, there is something special about seeing everyone from your grandparents to your friends from work looking stunning wearing hats that you’ve hand-made. I still can’t help but smile thinking about it!
Wedding Vendors:
Planner: Planning was done by the Bride
Cake(s): Cupcakes made by our friend and expert cupcake-maker Jackie Kovarovics
Caterer: Chef’s Market
Photographer: Donald Yeager Photography
Stationery: All designed by the Bride, printing by GreenerPrinter.com
Bridesmaid Dresses: Pacificplex.com
Rings: Overstock.com
Music: DJ – Joel Price
Decorations/Detail: All designed by the Bride.
Bridal Gown: Ceremony gown from David’s Bridal, Reception gown from Pacificplex.com
Tuxes: Men’s Warehouse
Accessories: Hats, gloves, jewelry, seamed hose, etc all from ebay.
Flowers: a group of my girlfriends from work ordered roses online from Sam’s Club and then made all the bouquets and boutonnieres
Transportation: Limo service was given as a gift. Not sure which company was used.
Gifts: Flasks from Amazon, Vintage pins for the Mothers from ebay
Who were your favorites? {the ones you would highly recommend to your best friend}
Donald Yeager Photography was great. He was so willing and excited to shake things up a little with the 1940’s theme. I would definitely recommend him. Also, the bridal party got their hair and make-up done at Harlow Salon. Harlow is amazing and they are experts in 1940’s style. They are the ones who really made the whole look come together better than I’d even imagined they would.
Wedding Rewind
What would you do differently if you could start back at the beginning?
Nothing. All the DIY projects wouldn’t be for everyone, but I really liked putting so much work into it. Luckily I had flexibility at my job at that time and started early so I had adequate time to get everything together.
What do you consider the biggest waste of time and/or money?
The biggest waste of money was getting a venue that did not include the tables/chairs/plates/etc in the rental. All these things had to be rented separately which really adds up. However, we probably would have still done it the same way we did if we had it to do over because the location and look of the venue really fit our theme.
What do you consider the best value for the service and product?
Everything. It’s hard to say just one thing since most everything we did was either DIY or done by a friend.
What was the neatest thing you found for your wedding?
I found so many great things from ebay. I really wanted to be true to the 1940’s and couldn’t believe how many things I found from the actual era on ebay. I found a lot of great original hats and magazines and coloring books and vintage jewelry. It was perfect.
What was your biggest {and best} splurge?
We chose to have additional lighting brought in from Nashville Event Lighting– string lights over the dance floor and wash lighting against the walls. We could have done without it but it really gave the place a nice vibe and the string lights added some extra romance. They also looked great in pictures!
What a fantastic theme! Everyone and everything looked great and it looked like it was a blast. Kelly and James, here's wishing you a lifetime of dances and fun - congratulations! We're glad we got to take a peek into your wonderful day. Much thanks also to Donald Yeager Photography for the pictures.
Last week I shared my first recap of the q&a that took place at Brides' Night Out where lucky brides in attendance got to ask their burning wedding questions of local wedding experts. On the panel were wedding professionals from Signature Events, Dulce Desserts, Music City Tents & Events (MusicCityTents.com) and the Country Music Hall of Fame (CountryMusicHallofFame.org).
Here's the advice that you may have missed. Hope it helps as you plan!
Which trends are you seeing in weddings?
Video summary:
Dessert trends - Cupcake trend over? No! Great price point. People are really into cookies.
Rentals / linens trends - Couples are showing more of theri personalities - no rules anymore. We're seeing more squares, burlap, fancy mixed with handstitched linens, mix and matching of casual and fun. soft lounge seating vs table and chairs, live mingling.
Planning trends - budget, budget, budget is first! Prioritize - food, venue, cake - what's important? Let those answers determine how limited budget is spent so it best reflects your budget.
What have been some popular bridesmaids gifts lately?
Video summary:
- Some great gift and favor ideas are bags of cookies, sweets from local purveyors like Olive + Sinclair (who has donated yummy chocolate to our SATC2 party swag bag!), The cocoa tree - anything local and handmade
- Favors - create a brand for your event using Hatchshow Prints - such as custom save the dates, poster unique to bride and groom, which is a true work of art
The brides (and I) received awesome advice from the experts! It's good to know that we have such good resources and vendors right here in Nashville! Next week's installment will be about that question you know you want to ask - how do we invite only adults to our wedding and, for the more child-friendly celebrations, what can you do about childcare? Stay tuned!
Boy do I have a fun wedding for you today! Golriz (bride) reached out to me last week and said...
"Your site was a wonderful resource for me as I was preparing for our wedding. We only had a couple of months and a very tight budget but I really feel like my fiance-now-husband, devon, and I pulled off a gorgeous, creative, and very unique wedding."
After seeing the wedding video and wedding photos from this Anthropologie-inspired wedding, I couldn't wait to share the incredible details with you. Disclaimer - the photography was not included in Golriz's budget but was a gift from the photographer friend:).
Here are just a few things that I love about her wedding - 1) it's the first Ive seen at Marathon Village (a new, edgy venue that Ive wanted to check out) 2) the couple added so many unique touches that I feel I know them 3) I love their wedding video trailer and their wedding photography, which capture all of the not-to-miss details.
This couple has a very whimiscal style and they expressed it in every aspect of their day. You should do the same! Make your wedding a day that represents you as a couple - as zany, traditional or funky as you are!
Ceremony & Reception Location: Marathon Village, Nashville, TN
Guest Count: 150
What were your top 3 priorities when planning your wedding?
1. Aesthetic - we wanted the wedding to feel intimate, creative and cozy.
2. Budget - we had a very limited budget ($5000) and we were very careful to not go over this figure.
3. Uniqueness - we really wanted to infuse as much of ourselves and our personalities into our wedding.
What was your wedding style? Whimsical and romantic
What were your colors? Why did you chose them?
White, bright yellow and turquoise blue. We felt the colors suited a spring wedding and brought in our favorite elements into our venue (sunshine and blue skies!)
Did you have a theme? What was it?
We didn't have a formal theme, but from the outset both of us said we wanted the wedding to have the vibe of 'Anthropologie'
What made your wedding creative?
We wanted every ounce of our wedding to burst with creativity, but my fiance and I were on a very tight budget. This was actually a blessing as it forced us to be really creative and think out of the box. Let's just say we became regulars at the local Goodwill store! A friend recently described our wedding as looking like a Wes Anderson movie, so I think we achieved what we were aiming for!
What did you use for inspiration?
Devon's brain! He came up with the paper chandelier idea and even created a little model out of a box so that I could understand what his vision was!
What was your budget? $5000
What was your wedding WOW factor?
The installation with the vintage TVs, 18 hanging umbrellas and lightbulbs. We had a slideshow on the TVs set to music showing pictures of ourselves as kids, and throughout our relationship. Our guests also went crazy for our homemade photo-booth.
What did you give as favors to your guests?
CD's that we had custom printed with 3 songs that Devon and I had co-wrote and recorded. We placed each of the CD's into a fabric hand-sewn case and hung them with mini clothes pegs to ribbon outside the door to the venue so guests could pick one up as they left.
How did you personalize your wedding?
Devon surprised me during the ceremony by performing a song he had written for me. The song reduced all of our guests and me to tears! It was so sweet.
What was your most special moment of the day?
Exchanging gifts with each other on the staircase. Devon got me a ukelele - an instrument I've wanted for ages but have no idea how to play (!), and I got us matching Vespa helmets.
Did you have kids at your wedding? What did you do for them?
Yes, several of our friends and family have young ones and we wanted them to enjoy the occasion. The kids loved the photobooth, the cupcakes and the easel we had where we asked each guest to paint us a heart. They also loved dancing!
What did you DIY/Do It Yourself?
We did it all ourselves with the help of our amazing friends and family!
What was your favorite DIY wedding project?
My favorite project was creating the TV/light/umbrella installation. Even going around to local thrift stores with Devon for weeks beforehand to find the perfect array of TVs was so much fun!
What were some (of the many!) other projects that you DIY’ed?
~A massive paper and twinkly light 'chandelier' above our heads, with handmade strands of fabric flower garlands hanging behind us.
~An art installation with 18 hanging umbrellas, bare lightbulbs and 9 vintage TVs. The TVs streamed a slide show of pictures of the two of us set to music.
~Our wedding favors - we printed CDs with songs that we had written & recorded and put them in hand sewn fabric sleeves.
~Our centerpieces - willow lights with hanging strips of ribbon and bright yellow button mums.
~Cake toppers - little fabric birds.
~Cake stand - instead of purchasing/renting a stand for our 150 cupcakes we built one (using Cetaphil containers and cake boards!)
What are some of the obstacles that you faced in planning a DIY wedding?
Time! Hand crafting all the decorations took up a lot of time. Thankfully a few close friends flew in early for the wedding and we put them to work creating fabric flowers, centerpieces, and the large art installations.
Wedding Resources:
~ Cupcakes: Effie Sahihi
~ Photographer: Ryan Lash Photography (gift)
~ Videographer: FullFrame Digital Cinema
~ Rings: Village Jewelers, Hillsboro Village, Nashville
~ Music: Joel Price, Professional DJ
~ Hair: Genevieve's Salon, East Nashville
~ Makeup: Neda Ferdowsi
What would you do differently if you could re-plan your wedding?
Delegate more! Devon and I both like being involved in all the little details but we could have probably delegated more of the tasks to our willing friends and family.
What was the biggest waste of time and/or money?
Spending a lot of money on a dress. My dress was from BCBG (the bottom half) and my talented mother created the top part/neckline of my dress. I was thrilled with it and I didn't spend a fortune.
What was the best value for the service and product?
Our photographer - Ryan Lash. He has a background as a professional documentary style photographer so he knows how to seem 'invisible' and capture the most intimate moments.
What was the neatest thing you found for your wedding?
I adore the fabric flower garlands that we hung in our backdrop and behind the dessert table. They added such a splash of color and brought springtime inside!
What was your biggest {and best} splurge?
Hiring videographers. We LOVE the trailer and can't wait to see the full video!
Was there one thing you wouldn’t change about your wedding?
I wouldn't change any of it! We had so much fun and our guests are still raving about the experience. It suited us perfectly and was the most amazing way to usher in this new chapter of our lives!
UPDATE:
Just when we thought we couldn't get enough of this wedding, we got the full-length video from the beautiful bride. We hope you enjoy watching it as much as we have!
What a week! Thank you to everyone who has shown such tremendous support for the upcoming Sex & The City 2 Party at Aloft Hotel. This is my first SATC party and I know I speak for Ashley and everyone involved when I say we're super pumped and so excited. You can read about the updated details here and find out what's in store - it's all quite fabulous!!
We realized that many of you check out blog daily and probably are at a loss on the weekends when we dont post:). So, we decided to highlight some of our favorite Nashville wedding blog posts this week.
#1 - McNeal Wedding Films started a great new series entitled "Things We Wish Brides Knew". We enjoyed it and think it will really help you with your wedding plans.
#3 - A Catered Affair shared a great idea for non-alcoholic beverages that we wish we could taste through the monitor! Great for a family-friendly summer wedding or luncheon or a wedding reception where alcohol may not be an option (for budget or religious reasons). Cheers!
#4 - Release your inner vixen - the lovely ladies at Photographix now offer Boudoir Photography. Ohh lah lah!
#5 - Treat your special guests and family to a rehearsal dinner experience with wine flights from Chef's Market. Um, yes please!
#6 - Lotus Blossom Photography shared helpful, honest and HILARIOUS tips on DIY wedding photography. The bottom line is DON'T. Find out why and see pictures that truly tell the story on her blog. Say, "Not cheesy!"
#7 - Brocade Designs participated in a lovely photo shoot and shared this yellow wedding bouquet captured by Chris & Adrienne Scott!
Speaking of Brocade Designs, their owner Hillary was the target of a wonderful surprise and is now going on a shopping spree in NYC courtesy of What Not To Wear!! The day was surreal for her and Ashley was right there to celebrate the experience with her!
At Ashley’s Bride Guide, we’re always on the lookout for innovative and exciting wedding ideas.
Send us your wedding tips, creative ideas, or your own wedding
photos to share. We’d love to hear from you »
