Beat the Heat {Tips for Hot Weather Weddings}!

Since here in D.C. we've had a sweltering summer, we thought we'd share some fun tips for keeping your parties cool.

- Cool towels soaked in lemon or cucumber water offered to arriving guests. Waiters with rolled up cool towels on silver trays is such a deluxe way to welcome hot guests to an outdoor party.

- Likewise, pass cool drinks right off the bat so guests don't have to wait in line to cool off. Something refreshing like rosemary lemonade or flavored sparkling water can be offered along with champagne, mojitos or mint juleps.

- Fans. Lots of fans. Big ones. Especially under tents but even outside.

-If guests will be sitting for a ceremony, consider offering parasols (if people will be in direct sun) and paper fans (your programs can even double as fans if you get the old-fashioned wooden paddle kind).  The parasols make for great photos!

-If it's hot it's probably sunny.  Put sunscreen towelettes in the restrooms for guests so you won't have anyone taking home a sunburn as a souvenir. 

- Ice, ice everywhere. Try bug silver buckets of ice filled with champagne bottles as a decor element. Just the visual of so much ice will cool people down!

- Keep the lights low and the colors cool. A bright room full of vibrant reds and oranges does not keep the heat in check.  Think dimmed lights and cool colors like blues, greens and lavender. 

- Serve lighter fare. Don't load guests up with hot, heavy food when it's equally hot outdoors.  Chilled soup shooters, watermelon and feta skewers and crab salad on cucumber rounds are some of my favorite hot weather nibbles.

- A cool treat to pass around the dance floor. We've done mini ice cream sandwiches, milkshake shooters, snow-cones and itty-bitty ice cream cones.  These are a great way to cool off hot dancers!

- Something cool for the road.  Give departing guests cold bottled water to go.

Stay cool everyone!
Laura

Bella Bridesmaid Comes to DC!

Looking for a place to take your bridesmaids where you won't be shuffled off to the corner to look at a single rack of dresses while the salon bustles with brides? Bella Bridesmaid to the rescue!  This spacious, airy salon in Bethesda is dedicated to bridesmaids' dresses and they have lots to choose from. When Sara and I went to visit recently, we found ourselves longing for several of the styles for our own closets (hello, little wrap dress, we're talking about you)! 

 Check out all the lines of dresses they carry:

Alix and Kelly

Lynn Lugo

Coren Moore

Joanna August

Lula Kate

Two Birds

Saja

Swoon

Ciarla

Ardour Collection by Chloe and Reese

 

The dresses range from short and sassy to long and flowy and several lines are mix-and-match so each girl can select her design but the fabric is the same. There is absolutely something for every wedding in this shop! They also carry some fabulous evening bags and gorgeous ring pillows (and a small collection of beach-friendly wedding gowns).

 

Perhaps my favorite part of this shop is the serene atmosphere (aided by the soft blue everywhere). No rushed craziness here!  The owner, Lacey Campbell, only does one appointment at a time so your girls get plenty of attention and the dressing rooms are nice and large. It is appointment only at this stylish salon so be sure to call ahead (502-836-4829)!  I can't imagine a nicer way to treat your bridesmaids than with an outing to Bella.

Happy shopping!

Laura

 

 

New Engaged Magazine Hits the Stands!

Just when you were in need of some wedding eye candy and inspiration, Engaged Magazine comes to the rescue!  We always love Engaged for the planning articles written by real wedding professionals and the gorgeous real wedding spreads. 

We're so excited to have one of our weddings featured in the latest issue: the wedding of Kendall and Nick at The Willard Hotel.  This Fall-themed wedding had so many fun details like a dessert trio featuring cotton candy, funnel cakes and mini candies apples.  Check out the entire wedding in the magazine!

And be sure to read the amazing article by the Catering Director at the Four Seasons DC about why brides should hire a weddding planner and what mistakes to avoid with planners.  It's a really honest look at why your mom or best friend shouldn't be tasked with the role and why your hotel catering manager really won't do everything a real wedding planner will.  I love seeing this issue tackled by someone who sees lots of weddings and wedding planners and plenty of weddings without planners.

Thanks to editor Doreen Tisone for another great issue!

(Chocolate) Diamonds are a Bride's Best Friends {Chocolatier Goossens}

Are you a chocoholic who's looking for something really unique as a wedding favor? We just have to share our latest sweet find: unbelievably delicious chocolates made in the shape of diamonds from Goossens Chocolatier!  Not only are the chocolates intricate and gorgeous (they really do look like a multifaceted diamond and even glitter like one), they are sinfully rich and velvety.   We devoured the sample box in about two seconds and wanted more!

The diamonds are filled with rich chocolate ganache and coated with crystallized sugar (the outside of the chocolate is white) and are made in Belgium and flown over to the U.S. (or anywhere you'd like).  The box with three diamonds is a perfect favor or part of really fabulous welcome bags!  They also have heart-shaped chocolates in milk and dark. Gorgeous and delicious!

My Wedding Workbook giveaway!

Today's giveaway contest is for a free, 2-year subscription to My Wedding Workbook Premium, the total online wedding planning system that's the next best thing to hiring a wedding planner and can save you tons of time.

What is My Wedding Workbook? Basically, it's a complete system that is your planning partner, offering you the resources you need every step of the way to stay organized and sane while you're planning your big day. No other wedding tools or software compare to it, and their Premium Package includes:

• A Wedding Website with online RSVP, a blog, photo galleries, guest books and lots of other cool features.
• A Wedding Organizer that lets you easily and quickly manage your guest lists (including out-of-town guests and hotels), venues, vendors, budgets, appointments, payments, tasks/to-dos and much more.
• An Ideas-and-Inspiration Board for managing all your thoughts, pictures and Web links so have a place to record all your big ideas.
• An Email Communications Center for easily reaching out to your guests in bulk (plus it plugs right into your master guest list so you can create custom email lists).

To enter to win, just email us with "My Wedding Workbook" in the subject line. We'll pick a winner at the end of the month so check back! Good luck!

A New Wedding Destination {Summer Camp Weddings}

As the dog days of summer are beginning to wind down and kids start recording phone numbers and addresses of their summer camp friends, camps sites all over the east coast are apparently gearing up for a different kind of session.  That's right, spring and fall, the time just before and after children occupy bunk beds and dining halls, ropes courses and bon fire sites, summer camps are becoming the new weekend wedding destination site.

Here are some interesting points to consider.

• Cost: a weekend at Lake Bryn Mawr Camp costs $30-50,000.  A 5 hour reception in Washington DC would cost the same if not more.  
• Bonding:   With most DC area weddings having 50% or more of their guests coming from out of town, there is never enough time to spend with those people, even when you include the Friday night dinner and the farewell brunch. 
• You don't have to worry about who is sitting together, but you do have to decide who is bunking together!
• Fun group activities could include horse back riding, "color war", and kayaking.
• The views surrounding some camp spots can be a stunning backdrop for amazing pictures.
• Don't worry!  You can bring your favorite planners with you.

To learn more about some of the camp site locations offering this option and about couples that have taken the leap into the lake during their wedding weekend, check out summer camp wedding.

Don't forget the bug spray!  Guest welcome bags will take on new meaning here (how about including these cool s'mores packets?) :)

Sara

Bethany Lorelle Winner!

The winner of the Bethany Lorelle floral hair accessory is Betsy Kroon!  Congratulations Betsy!  We hope you have a great time wearing it!

A Romantic Military Wedding {Elisabeth and Seth}

The wedding of Elisabeth and Seth was a personal favorite of mine for many reasons. First, I loved, loved, loved the couple. Second, I loved, loved, loved the bride's family (with whom I worked closely  on the wedding). And last, but by no means least, the bride and almost her entire family and bridal party were fellow Duke alums! This was a good year for Duke (ahem, basketball national champs) so we had a fabulous time planning the wedding amid all the excitement.

But no amount of college basketball excitement matched the excitement of the day during the planning when the groom came home from Iraq after his second tour of duty. I met Seth right after his arrival at our menu tasting at Design Cuisine.  You've never seen anyone appreciate excellent food as much as he did! It was so nice to finally meet the groom after hearing so many wonderful things about him (all of which were true).

The planning was a dream, the wedding day was a (slightly warm) dream and everyone involved was a dream to work with!  We started the wedding day at the bride's home with the amazing Kim from Beauty Mark and the lovely and talented Giselle from Elegant Hair by Giselle.  These women are all-time favorites of mine.  They make brides look amazing and stay calm!

Elisabeth's beautiful dress was an Amsale from Engaging Affairs favorite Hitched. I love the grosgrain ribbon belt and broach detail!

Meanwhile, the guys were getting ready at The Hotel Sofitel downtown. Nothing like mixing beer and sabers!

The bride and groom took a couple of hours before the ceremony to meet and take portraits at the monuments with amazing photographer Greg Gibson. We love this shot where the bride seems to have run into a Quinceanera party on the way to meet the groom!  Now that's a lot of pink!

Then it was off to Metropolitan Memorial United Methodist Church for the beautiful ceremony. We had plenty of men in uniform, which is always fun!

The bride chilled out with her girls in the church basement and got some final touch-ups from Kim before going down the aisle.

I loved that this group had so much fun at every point of the day.  No stress or worry.  Just lots of joy; the way a wedding day should be!

The fabulous Mother of the Bride in an equally fabulous (and sassy) dress.

This is the solution to a shy flower girl and a large pomander. I think the flowers look great with his uniform!

Love this dramatic aisle!

The groom's face as the bride comes down the aisle is always a favorite photo of mine!

Happy couple!

The sword arch was such a fun way to end the ceremony!

One hilarious group shot in front of the Lincoln before heading off to the reception at Decatur House! We have been at Decatur House lots this Summer and it has been so much fun.  What a beautiful venue and great staff!

Sugarplum (our go-to tent company) provided the lovely white tent and the talented and lovely Susie from Heavenly Hydrangeas created the gorgeous green and white floral arrangements throughout.  A jazz trio from MSE Productions welcomed guests into the reception and set the stage for the festive evening.

Family wedding photos surrounded the guest book. I adore the photo of the groom's parents getting married in furs in Alaska!

The green and white sheer leaf linens and green rimmed china from DC Rental were perfect for a summer wedding in an tented courtyard.

Kendall's Cakes provided the delicious wedding cake that the bride and groom cut with a sword. Yum!  Always love sampling Kendall's cakes for quality control purposes.  It's a tough part of the job!

DJ Aaron from Chris Laich kept the evening moving smoothly and the dance floor packed. Not only was he polished and professional (no cheesy yammering), he played a great mix of music.  Thanks, Aaron!

As the bride and groom dashed off for a final photo shoot, guests tossed eco-friendly confetti from biodegradable paper cones made from plantable seed paper. Very eco-chic!

Thanks to our amazing team who did another stellar job: Linda at Linder and Associates for being all over the seamless transportation; Christine and everyone at Design Cuisine for the fabulous food (including my personal favorite: baked Alaska brownie sticks!); MarcParc Valet for efficiently parking all the cars; and Arioth at the Decatur House for ensuring that everything at the house was perfect.

Special thanks to Greg Gibson for the stunning images (Greg is always so much fun to work with and has an amazing eye) and to my assistants Alison and Maeve for being part of the 3-woman fan relocation team (did I mention that it was a tad bit warm?). And a huge thank you to Elisabeth, Seth and their wonderful families for letting us be a part of such a special day! 
Go Duke and Go Army!
Laura