Tuesday, September 23, 2008
WARNING...If you have already hired your photographer or have a small budget for your wedding photos - you just might be envious of the below:) I will admit - these are some of the most romantic wedding pics I have ever seen! They are breathtaking...ok - I warned you...onto the wedding...
There were so many reasons that I jumped at the chance to feature this wedding. Dawn is truly an ABG bride. She's been a loyal reader and supporter - forever! She attends like all of my events and even won my first contest - for a sparkling mug. Plus, she's gorgeous and I knew she would make a beautiful bride. So, when she told me about her wedding - months and months ago, I asked her if I could feature it. And she said yes! I loved her venue and her photographer, Dove. She'd made some classy and elegant wedding vendor selections and I knew the wedding would be simply stunning. (Note - quality wedding photography is truly an investment. A bride came to me a few weeks ago and said she'd fallen in love with Dove but couldn't afford them. I didn't tell her to go into debt to afford them BUT I do think that once you find a photographer that you love - you should see what you can cut from other areas that might not be a high priority. I cut my transportation, reduced the budget for favors, got a sheet cake to accompany my custom cake so I could do more with my money.)
About us:
Bride: Dawn Groom: Joseph
My wedding details:
Wedding date & time: May 24, 2008 at 6:00 pm
Ceremony location: Legislative Plaza
# guests: 90
Reception location: Uptown 162
Wedding Style and Unique Touches: Wedding style- We wanted a modern wedding that was classic at the same time. Wow factor- We heard that our guests loved the trolley. We had a trolley to take guests to the reception site from the ceremony site. It seems they had a great time on it.
My colors and why I choose them - Our colors were chocolate brown and chartreuse with some pink accents.
Favors - We had a candy table as our favors. Everyone seemed to love it... the adults and kids! Personalized touches- We had a monogram made and used it throughout decorating for our wedding day. We used it on our paddle fan programs, candy table bags, and on labels for mini bottles of water. Most special moment for me - The most special moment for me was getting ready to walk down the aisle. Our coordinator told me to take a moment to myself before walking down the aisle. She told me to just stand there for a minute to take in all the emotions. When the bells downtown rang in the new hour I walked up the stairs onto Legislative Plaza. I will never forget that moment seeing Joey at the end of the aisle waiting for me surrounded by all of our family and friends.
My wedding vendors: Planner... Weddings By Jess (aka Ms Fondue - on weddingbee:) Photography.... Dove Wedding Photography Flowers.... Dick's Flowers Dresses.... A Brides Storey Tuxes.... Street Tuxedo Rings.... Shane Co. Reception and Catering..... Uptown 162 Trolley...Fadd's Cake...Family friend Chairs for ceremony...Mid State Tent Rental
My faves: Our favorite vendors were Dove Wedding Photography and Jessica Winn at Weddings by Jess. Dove did an amazing job with the photography. We could not ask for better pictures. They were so professional the day of and so much fun to work with. Jessica Winn was great to work with too. She was so helpful the weeks prior to the wedding. She made sure things ran smooth and helped take the stress away on the wedding day.
My wedding rewind: What I would do differently if planning again? I would probably stress less over the guest list. This was probably one of my biggest worries. In the end it all worked out great. Best value for the service/product? The best value that I think we found would be Legislative Plaza. Legislative Plaza is a beautiful landmark. I had to make several calls to find out if it could be rented and what the cost would be. I was shocked when they told me it would be $65.00!! Plus, I'm sure it will be there for years to come allowing us to visit and reminisce about our wedding day. My advice for Nashville brides-to-be: My advice would be to enjoy every second of your wedding day.... it goes by incredibly fast. Don't worry about the little things that might go wrong. In the end it won't matter as long as you are married to your best friend!
Special thanks to the couple and Whitney and Peter of Dove Photography for sharing their incredible day and pictures with us.
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Posted by Ashley of Ashley's Bride Guide |
Filed under: Real Nashville Brides, Real Nashville Weddings
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Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Lorri, a Nashville newlywed, reached out to me and said "Ashley, Your blog is the best thing to happen to a Nashville Bride. I used your vendors and all my ideas for your blog." Lorri went on to tell me all about her wedding vendors, many of which she'd found on ABG (yay!).
Now, anyone that knows me knows that this email brought the biggest smile to my face. As a recent bride, I totally know how hard it is to plan a wedding, especially if you are like Lorri because she lives in Atlanta. So, I couldn't wait to see all of Lorri's wedding pics; so I was hoping that she'd hired someone amazing for her wedding pics. Lucky for Lorri (and me) she hired Angie of Gambill Photography. Angie is super talented and a really great person. So, I knew Angie would send me some great shots. Here's Lorri and Erik's story. Special thanks to the couple and Angie for sharing their incredible day with us.
About us:
Bride: Lorri of Nashville, TN Goodpasture High School Groom: Erik of Murfreesboro, TN Oakland High School
My wedding details:
- Wedding date & time - April 12, 2008 - Ceremony location - Vine Street Church - # guests 500 - # attendants 10 Bridesmaids, 10 Groomsmen, 5 Ushers - Reception location Musicians’ Hall of Fame - Rehearsal Dinner location Events at 1418
My wedding style:
- South Beach meets Nashville, lots of white couches and lounge seating outdoors. - My colors - Apple Green, Black and White. I Saw them on a wedding invitation on AshleysBrideGuide.com and love them!!!! - My theme - Simple Elegance - Wedding wow factor - They loved the food !!!!! - Favors - 1) Koozies - One side had our names and wedding date. The other side had a quote This Little Pigue Fell In Love My Maiden name is Pigue. 2) Cigars different types of Dominican cigars were on the bars for our guests to enjoy while they were outside. - Personalized touches - Wine Labels We made Wine Labels with our picture and wedding date for the bottles at both our rehearsal dinner and reception. - Gifts -1) Bridesmaids black satan clutch and earrings 2) Groomsmen Cigar Humidors which were engraved and filled with cigars and a cutter
- Most special moment - For Lorri Grabbing Erik's and hand as we walked out of the church together. I will never forget that feeling - Most special moment For Erik Besides marrying my beautiful wife, I have two: 1) The first was surprising Lorri with a gorgeous wedding band covered in diamonds. Lorri did not think we could find a band that would go with her ring so during the ceremony we were just going to use her mothers ring as a stand in. However, when we were exchanging vows, I slipped on her finger the ring I had made for her as a surprise. Only her sister and my brother knew about it. I will never forget the look on her face at that moment. 2) The second was having our bulldog, Sam, as a greeter. He stood at the front door of the church in a tux greeting all of our guests.
My wedding vendors:
- Cake Maples Wedding Cakes Jay is fab and I found him right here on AshleysBrideGuide.com. - Photographer Gambill Photography - Angie is the best to work with. - Caterer Pam's Parties (615) 384-6469
- Florist Sherry's Florist- (615) 384-6469 She took my breath away with the large arrangement she did for the reception. The cater and florist are sisters. This really worked to my advantage. - Invitation Swoozies Nicole Speake is a graphic designer who custom designed the invitations and printed the invitations with matching font. Very non-traditional which I loved. - Dress La Raine's in Atlanta GA. Atlanta is a great place for wedding dress shopping. - Bridesmaids Dresses Bella Bridesmaids Angela and Caroline are an absolute pleasure to work with they made the process so easy for my bridesmaids. - Tuxedo MW Tux - Rings Harlin Diamonds Atlanta, GA - Music Entice The Band has been asked about over and over by my guests.
- Hair Trumps Salon in my opinion the best salon in Nashville. They did my make up, hair and jewelery. I was blown away with the quality of service they provided hours before my wedding - Hotel for Guests Hampton Inn, 4th Avenue in Nashville, TN. Sara Borg was a godsend. She took care of everything from all the guest hotel reservations to putting all the gift baskets for my guest in the rooms. My faves: - My husband and I built our wedding website, Erik and Lorri (using eWedding) which we put on our Save the date magnet. We put the entire wedding party individual pictures. Where we were registered, details about hotel accommodations. My wedding rewind: - What I would do differently if planning again? Hire a wedding coordinator - Biggest waste of time or money? Hiring a limo to take us from church to reception - Best value for the service/product? My grooms Cake by Bethany McClellan 310-309-7567. She just moved here from LA she is talented and very reasonably priced. - Neatest find? My mirror tops from Liberty Party; they covered the entire surface of the table. My advice for Nashville brides-to-be: It is only one day and you have the rest of your life to spend with the man you are standing across from at the alter.
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Posted by Ashley of Ashley's Bride Guide |
Filed under: Real Nashville Brides, Real Nashville Weddings
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Monday, September 8, 2008
Special thanks to the bride's photographer, Shanna Mahoney Photography (who provided all the photos below) and the couple for sharing their wedding with us.
About us:
Bride: Christy of Mt. Juliet HS
Groom: Matt of Mt. Juliet HS My wedding details:
- Wedding date & time: July 26, 2008 6:00 pm
- Ceremony location: Eastwood Christian Church Nashville, TN
- # guests : 170
- Reception location: The Cannery Ballroom
My wedding style:
- My wedding style: Classy, Simple, Romantic, Intimate:)
- My colors: Black, White, and Tiffany Blue. I think black and white for a wedding are simple and classy. And throwing in the tiffany blue gave it a little something special.
- My theme: Not really a theme, just a play on colors.
- Wedding wow factor: The whole thing. The ceremony was very simple and intimate, and the ceremony was a big party!
- Favors: Tiffany blue boxes with a white ribbon bow filled with Lindor Truffles wrapped in black cellophane.
- Personalized touches: On both sides of our families, all of parents and grandparents are still married. And to show how important and sacred marriage is to us, we displayed wedding pictures of our parents and grandparents on a table with votive candles... Very sweet!
- Gift for bridal party? The bridesmaids were treated to a day at the spa with facials and massages and the groomsmen were given BIG bottles of Crown Royal... I know very classy
- Most special moment for me: Walking out of the doors at the ceremony and seeing the man of my dreams at the end of the aisle. I will never forget it for as long as I live. We were both tearing up and smiling from ear to ear!
- Gifts for the kids in my wedding: We got the girls dolls and the boy a batman car.
My wedding vendors:
- Planner - Hillary with Brocade Designs
- Cake - The Sweetest Day
- Caterer - Down South Delights
- Photographer - Shanna Mahoney Photography
- Dress - A Bride's Storey (everything from my dress to bridesmaids to flower girls. I also got a discounts for the tuxes based on buying dresses from A Bride's Storey)
- DJ - Canvas DJ
- Event Lighting - Nashville Event Lighting
- Reception Venue - The Cannery Ballroom
- Ceremony Venue - Eastwood Christian Church
o My faves -“ highly recommend Hillary with Brocade Designs was the best investment for the wedding. She took care of everything from designing all of the invitations to completely decorating everything day of wedding. She is absolutely amazing and I could not have done it without her. Shanna Mahoney is great. She made you feel so comfortable and confident when she was taking pictures. She takes great pictures and I will be using her for everything in the future!
My wedding rewind: -
What I would do differently if planning again? Hired Hillary sooner!!! I had already booked some vendors early on, and if I would have had her from the beginning, I would not have had as much trouble with flake vendors.
- Biggest waste of time or money? None. We trimmed all of the petty stuff out early on. Hillary saved me a ton of money, so I had no problems!
- Best value for the service/product? Hillary and Shanna Mahoney went above and beyond to make my wedding day as special as it could possibly be!
- Neatest find? Just Bargains... I got all of the flower girl baskets, ring pillows, candles (which I bought a ton of), pew markers... All 50% off at Hobby Lobby (you have to pick thru some of the tacky stuff, but it is worth)
My advice for brides-to-be: Shop around for wedding vendors. There are alot out there. Also, hire a wedding planner for at least the day of the wedding. The last thing you want to do is run around trying to decorate when you should be enjoying being a bride!!! The day only comes once and you should make the most out of it, because that will be the fastest day of your life (except for the 30 minutes before the wedding... that creeps by).
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Posted by Ashley of Ashley's Bride Guide |
Filed under: Attire - Bridal Gowns, Wedding Dresses & Accessories, Photography & Videography, Real Nashville Brides, Real Nashville Weddings, Wedding Planners & Coordinators, Wedding Resources
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Thursday, August 7, 2008
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Bride: Abby of Illinois Groom: Aaron of South Carolina
My wedding details: o Wedding date & time - June 13th, 2008 at 6:30 pm o Ceremony/reception location - private residence in Franklin, Tn o # guests - 200
My wedding style:
o My wedding style - Modern, mixed with classic
o My colors - I chose black and white with the accent of the peacock feathers. Both my sisters used black and white and the pictures turned out great. Years from now we won't look back and see that our accent colors date our marriage.
o Wedding wow factor - The two things we heard that the guest loved the most were the outside scenery and the flowers.
o Personalized touches - We had wedding fans that were our bulletins since it was outside during summer.
o Gift for wedding party - The bridesmaids recieved flip flops since their dresses were long and it was outside. It made it comfortable and easy to walk in the grass without heals sinking into the ground. They also recieved their jewelry and a snack bag for the day of the wedding. Each of the bridesmaids gift bag was tied with a picture of the bride and the bridesmaid. The groomsmen each recieved a snack pack with a monogrammed pocket knife.
o Most special moment for me - Seeing my groom for the first time.
o For the kids in my wedding - I had my two nieces there and they were precious to watch throughout the whole wedding. They were calling people's names, throwing petals during the ceremony, moving away from ants and asking when they could a song on the microphone. It was too cute!
My vendors
Photographer ~ Myrick Studios Planner~ Denise Boone, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) Cake~ Publix Grocery Video~ Courtney Helton, 615-417-5029 Dress~ Village Bridal in Hillsboro Village; Bridal Gallery Brides Ring~ Shane Co. Flowers~ Garden Delights
My wedding rewind:
o My faves We gave bubbles to everyone instead of rice as we left. We ordered them off of theknot.com. The pictures of us leaving through the bubbles were wonderful! o What I would do differently if planning again? Back up plan in case of rain. o Best value for the service/product? Pictures with Myrick Studios o Neatest find? We got our invitations at Michaels and we absolutely loved them!
Advice for other Nashville brides -
Make sure you have everything in writing. Ask whoever you want to be in your wedding! It's your choice and your day! I had 12 bridesmaids and I loved it because every person that I loved and wanted to be there with me on my special day was standing up there with me as we said our vows. I heard from a lot of people I had too many bridesmaids but I had everyone I wanted! Enjoy every minute of it and know that no matter how organized you are something will go wrong on your wedding but to just keep enjoying the day because you won't remember the thing that isn't perfect and no one else will know! It really will be the best day of your life!
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Posted by Ashley of Ashley's Bride Guide |
Filed under: Photography & Videography, Real Nashville Brides
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Thursday, July 10, 2008
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Planning a wedding is hard enough, but when more than half the wedding party lives out of town, it can be very frustrating too. So I took the bull by the horns and contacted all 8 of our bridesmaids and planned a time for us all to go pick out the bridesmaids dresses. The maid of honor, Nikki, came down from Baltimore, three other sorority friends came from Knoxville, 2 more from Hendersonville and 2 from Nashville. We even had the future ring bearer, Hudson, having his bottle and giving his opinion!!
(Bridesmaids in original dress style from Faccio)
(Kendall and nephew - future ring bearer)
Working with Elizabeth and her staff at Faccio Bridal in Cool Springs TN, we chose a dress we thought would be just perfect....it wasn't. Mainly because Kendall chose a different wedding gown than we originally thought, but that's when the fun began. We started pulling dresses off the rack and had some laughs and some no ways and then some sighs when we found our perfect dress.
(Final bridesmaid dress, Jim Hjelm from Faccio)
The girls chose a one shoulder black satin trumpet shaped gown by Jim Hjelm. There is a big bow on the shoulder and since it will be a formal candlelight ceremony, they will also wear opera length black satin gloves. It looks fabulous on them all!! We also have 3 junior bridesmaids and a flower girl....all of which also live out of town....but as it turned out the original junior bridesmaid dress worked great for them and the flower girl chose a dress with a white bodice and black skirt...really cute.
(Flower girl dress from David's Bridal)
(Junior Bridesmaid dress from Faccio)
The dresses are gorgeous....but they wouldn't let me wear one too!! It really was a fun time for all the bridesmaids as well as me. Everyone went from Faccio in Cool Springs to Arzelles in West End to see Kendall in her wedding dress...which she won't let me send you a picture of yet. Then, we headed lunch. What a morning!!!
(Kendall and crew shopping for bridesmaid dresses - Kendall is tall center)
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Posted by Ashley of Ashley's Bride Guide |
Filed under: Attire - Bridal Gowns, Wedding Dresses & Accessories, Bridesmaids & Bridal Party, Real Nashville Brides
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