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{small stained glass}

{one of the many colorful Victorians}

{decorative and worn wooden railing surrounded the  enormous wrap-around porch of our hotel}

{a sweet sitting area in our room – no phones or televisions made our stay a bit more peaceful}

{my husband and I just before the ceremony began}

 {the best man}

​

{just stunning mother of pearl + shell pendant}

First up? This absolutely stunning wedding ring. I swear to you, if an obese, sweaty, smelly, hairy man with zero redeeming qualities proposed to me with this ring, I might actually say yes. I’m just kidding, I wouldn’t really say yes. Ok, fine, maybe I would.

That wedding ring belongs to an equally stunning bride who celebrated her wedding in the Florida Keys. I’m all about destination weddings, especially when they look like this.

Aaaaaand this bride? Major girl crush.

Her poolside nuptials in Walla Walla? Pretty gorgeous too. Less really is more.

Also, I love this bride (and groom) even more for having these floaties present for the reception:

I’m also loving on this Santa Barbara wedding. The setting is just too perfect.

If one of you out there is planning a wedding like one of these, please invite me. I promise I’ll bring a good gift.

Then there was Summer.  Brandee’s sister, who kept everyone laughing, as well as made sure everything ran smoothly for the whole day.  She jumped in front of Brandee for a few shots….I know there was a story here!

Did I mention this whole group of girls was a riot??

This is just one of many kids in the wedding.  They were all adorable!

Brandee was truly stunning….and David was looking pretty darn good too!  They shared a very special first look before the ceremony.

Everything was at North Beach Plantation.  This was my first time out there, and WOW.  I love it.  The ceremony site was in shade for the guests, they served champaign, perfect places for pictures….I can’t wait to get back out there again!  Oh…as the guests arrived I saw a theme going on.  Everyone wore white/kaki except the bride and the groom.  LOVED!!!

At Brandee’s bridal shower, everyone brought a brooch.  They made an amazing bouquet for her, filled with hope and love.

Back to North Beach Plantation…..they have amazing places to take pictures, and a golf cart taxied us around to many of them, including the beach.

Onto the reception for a huge celebration.  Everyone was ready to have fun.  A HUGE thank you to Brandee, David and both their families for allowing me to share in such a special day.  It was an amazing, perfect day…and I wish you both a lifetime of happiness together!

Oh.  Summer’s speech???  Well even I laughed a lot, and I have not known Brandee that long!

We’ve all seen it. We all want it. We all know its going to happen. That glorious gown photo… Something you daughters will swoon over in the years to come, long after the wedding days are gone. Remember when you are planning your wedding that the hanger for the dress can make or break the shot. It is always more elegant to have a nice sturdy hanger to hold up your priceless gown than the one they give you with purchase.

It is something so simple and yet goes such a long way for the years to come. Better yet, if you are a bridesmaid, maid of honor or family member – what a perfect gift to the bride for a shower. It can be used for years to come and it is just a simple. hanger.

Hi, thanks for taking the time out to have a read of my blog…. today’s post is all about one supplier that I can wholeheartedly recommend.  In fact my featured supplier blogs are dedicated to people I know and trust and those that I’ve have had the privilege of working with on past projects whether it be weddings or commercial work.

So, I met Emma, owner of Eve of St Agnes back in July 2011 when I attended by invitation the Women in Business network at the Catherdral Quarter Hotel.    At that meeting, Emma had brought along sample size pots for us ladies to take away and try her products for ourselves.  I was amazed at the facial scrub so light yet very effective and no hidden nasties in the ingredients.  In fact that is what Eve of St Agnes products is about, using all natural ingredients that feed our skin with all the nutrients it needs, without the need for chemicals that so many cosmetic creams have in them today.

I asked Emma a few questions about her business and her plans for the future> Plus she also shared with me her article all about preparing the skin in readiness for brides, their bridesmaids, mothers etc for the big day .  Can’t get any better than that and trust me ladies, these products are gorgeous!

How long have you been doing this?

I have been making skincare products for around four years, but set up Eve of St. Agnes in 2011.

What aspired you to start your business?

My quest to find products that didn’t irritate or dry out my sensitive skin.

What aspect of your business gives you the most satisfaction?

I really enjoy formulating new products and discovering about new, exotic ingredients that have amazing benefits for the skin. I also love it when I get great feedback from customers who are receiving compliments on how good their skin is looking!

What are your future plans for your business?

I would like to increase the number of retailers that are selling the products both nationally and internationally to introduce the products to as many people as possible.

Eve of St Agnes products can be purchased online at www.eveofstagnes.com or via Derbyshire department store Bennetts.

Now I introduce Emma’s wonderful advice on how to get beautiful skin for your wedding day.

Say ‘I do’ to beautiful skin.

Your skincare preparation should start as long before your wedding day as possible.

The skin renews itself approximately every 28 days so how your skin looks now is a reflection of what you were doing / eating around one month ago!

There are two ways to tackle the quest for great skin and it’s not as difficult as you may think. You have to look at it from not only the outside but also the inside. It’s not just what you put onto your skin that has an impact on how it looks, it’s also what you put inside your body.

What does great skin look like? It looks healthy, glowing, looks radiant, plump, blemish free and well moisturised. So how can you achieve this?

Firstly let’s look at the skincare routine. You do have a skincare routine right???! Well if you don’t, you’re not alone, many women don’t have a routine, but now is the perfect time to find a skincare routine that really works for you and that will keep your skin looking its best right up to your golden wedding anniversary! By routine I mean ensuring that you cleanse and moisturise every day, especially at night. If you go to bed with make-up on you are asking for trouble!

The important thing is that you don’t try any new products a month before your wedding. You want to avoid the risk of having a skin reaction at all costs! Research what products are right for your skin type and ask for samples from retailers before you commit to a purchase. This way you can get a feel for what products are going to do most of the hard work for you!

If you suffer from the occasional blemish, be sure to exfoliate regularly – at least twice a week. You can exfoliate daily with an appropriate exfoliator designed for everyday use. The purpose of exfoliation is to keep the pores clear of dead skin cells and excess oil, as it is clogged pores that lead to spots.  Avoid using harsh cleansers that are aimed at oily skin. You need to use a cleanser that will help to balance your oil levels. Overly harsh cleansers will take out all of your skins oils, which will just prompt your skin to produce even more oil!

At the other end of the scale are those of us who suffer from dry skin. Again, choose a balancing cleanser, or a wipe off cleanser will be the best bet. Choosing the wrong cleanser could mean that you are using a cleanser that is too harsh for your skin, which will leave it feeling tight and even sore. Exfoliate once or twice a week and make sure you moisturise twice a day, using a face oil or serum before moisturising if you have very dry skin.

So internally, there are 5 things that you can do to help avoid the dreaded wedding day spots and help your skin to look radiant and healthy.

1.)    drink water – we are always told to drink plenty of water, but there’s a reason why you see bottles of Evian permanently fixed in the hands of supermodels and actresses! If your body is dehydrated, then so is your skin. Make sure you get into the habit of drinking 8 glasses of water throughout the day.

2.)    take vitamins, make sure you take a good multivitamin daily, as long before the wedding as possible, to make sure your body has all the nutrients it needs to help you look and feel fantastic!

3.)    exercise, I am sure I don’t need to tell you the benefits of exercise to the appearance of the body, but it can greatly aid in the healthy appearance of the skin, by increasing blood flow and nourishing skin cells and helping to flush cellular debris out of the system.

4.)    cut down on sugar. As well as being your body’s worst enemy, too much sugar can also be an enemy to the skin. This is because sugar rapidly raises blood sugar levels, so in order to keep up with the spike in both blood sugar levels and the proteins that are being burned, our bodies excrete a surge of hormones all at one time, including blood fats and oils. This excess of hormones can not only cause our skin glands to go into overdrive, but they can also produce an overwhelming amount of oil, clogging our skin and blocking our pores = SPOTS!!!

5.)    take an oil supplement – If you suffer from dry skin, start taking an oil supplement such as 2000mg a day of Evening Primrose oil, which can help balance your body’s oils levels and also help combat PMT symptoms.

Most of all, remember to relax as much as you can in the weeks leading up to your big day, as stress can play havoc with your skin. Remember to give yourself some ‘you’ time to relax and you will be all set.

Good luck with the big day ladies!

“I do” was my immediate response when asked if I wanted to go to The Belle Époque for a food and wine taster session. The reason, if you haven’t already fathomed – it will be the setting for my best friends’ wedding banquet.

Belle Époque is a period in French history that dates from 1871 to 1914. It was named retrospectively as an era that was defined by a peace and tranquility and one that enabled great music, art and literature to flourish. Belle Époque, the restaurant, epitomises the period in spades with detailed glass mosaic floors, an abundance of deep red leather upholstery and illustrious copper art nouveau fireplaces. It’s a classy joint.

Prior to going we were asked by the bride-to-be to choose three courses that could potentially be served for the wedding breakfast. I’m not sure that my choice of scallops followed by lobster thermidor was met with the warmest of receptions. In the end I have no idea what I ordered but it didn’t really matter; we were having tapas a la carte.

Initially baffled and overwhelmed by the vast wine list, we were informed that we could try a measure of all of the house wines on the house. From there we could then order the wines we liked the most. So the Oz Clarke’s tasted the reds and the Jilly Goolden’s the whites. After several swills, gargles, and very little spitting, we decided on a hearty full-bodied Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon and a dry yet fruity Italian Pinot Grigio.

Between the five of us, we were served three different menu choices and to give you the run down they went a little something like this:

Menu One

Pea & Mint Velouté with Oven Crispy Ham: Chosen by the couple to appease (I know I like my puns, but that really is the most appropriate word) the older generations in the family who may suffer from teething problems. The only thing is, they probably make a better version themselves. It tasted more like a pea purée than a soup and would be better served at Friday tea with a side order of fish and chips.

Ballotine of Chicken Breast, Mozzarella and Sun Blush Tomatoes: Certainly the safe option but a nicely cooked breast of chicken nonetheless stuffed with mozzarella and sweet tomatoes. It was served with al dente green beans and creamy dauphinoise potatoes which were both tasty and filling – always a winning combination, especially at a wedding.

Trio of Mini Desserts (Warm Selection): Lemon sponge, chocolate sponge and sticky toffee pudding. Three of my favourite desserts in their own right, but it was impossible to get a taste for any of them. I’d prefer a larger portion of one, more punch and lashings of custard.

Menu Two

Chilli Roasted Carrot Parcels: I was intrigued to know what a carrot parcel was; turns out it’s a fancy name for a carrot samosa. I think there’s a reason they’re not common in Indian cuisine. They were crisp and the accompanying sauce was fragrant with a subtle spiciness, but there was no suggestion of chilli or coriander as the menu describes. I’m not sure even Bugs Bunny could eat two of them without the doc asking him what’s up.

Slow Roasted Pork Belly & Pulled Roasted Shoulder: The accompaniment of gratin potato was the pick of the spuds for me. The greens were good but less memorable than the veggies served in the other two dishes. The pulled pork was everything you would expect from slow cooked pork – it was soft and fell apart upon eye contact. On sight alone, the belly pork had too much fat, but it tasted good and fizzled away as soon as it hit the palate; but still a potential problem if the guests choose to eat with their eyes. The cream sauce was richer than the last king of Lydia and coupled with the fattiness of the pork may well have guests reaching for the Gaviscon.

Individual Millionaire Banoffee Tart: In my best cockney Gregg Wallace voice “You’ve got bananas, you’ve got cream, you’ve got chocolate sauce, you’ve got buttery biscuit base. An absolute triiiiiiiiiiiumph.”

Menu Three

Goat’s Cheese & Tomato Tart: For me this was the stand out dish of the night. Both delicious and not shy on the portion size. I have one underlying mantra about weddings: “Feed people until they are full and wine them until they are merry; all else will fall into place.” Nobody will remember the priest arriving ten minutes late or that the napkins didn’t match the tablecloths; they will remember if they went home thirsty and undernourished. This dish would certainly get the meal off on the right footing. Big serving, and a superb combination of fine ingredients and flavours.

Pan Roast Contra Fillet of Conway Valley Lamb: A dish fit for Popeye with olive oil mash, carrots, green beans and two types of lamb. It would be a controversial one though for the wedding breakfast. The mash is an acquired taste and may come as a surprise to people who use olive oil as a means of cooking rather than an ingredient. The canon of lamb is as pink as Miss Piggy’s lady pocket and the shoulder has the most intense lamb flavour. It’s hard to believe that the two cuts come from the same animal. A great dish all the same but others may disagree, particularly those that don’t like to eat lamb that still bleats as you cut into it.

Apple Tart-Tatin Classic: I had it in my head that the Millionaire Tart was the winning dessert. Then I tasted this. A proper pudding if you ask me and although I can enjoy fine dining as much as the next Michelin man (I have the tyres to prove it), when it comes to puds, I’m a man of tradition. Light pastry and vanilla ice cream beautifully balanced with golden, delicious apples. Some more caramelisation and it would be the perfect ending to any marriage.

So the happy couple have a difficult decision to make here: To play it safe and please everyone, or to take risks, excite some and offend a few. Whatever they choose, it’ll undoubtedly be a wedding breakfast to remember. Just as well they have another tasting session to make up their minds.

I however, need to make a decision now. If I were in the groom’s shoes and based on what we ate tonight, I would go for the goat’s cheese tart, chicken or lamb (but with the gratin potato) and the apple tart-tatin. If he has any lawful objections to this, he should speak now or forever hold his peace.

The Belle Époque
King Street
Knutsford
Cheshire
WA16 6DT

T: 01565 632 661
http://www.thebelleepoque.com

And apparently I’m not the only one. Earlier this year, cultural observers and feminists from around the Internet chimed in when Jill Filipovic of The Guardian asked, “why, in 2013, does getting married mean giving up the most basic marker of your identity?”

It’s a valid question, and one that I’ve been asking since I was a child. At the same time, it’s hard for me (with my limited and very skewed network of friends) to get a real sense of broad societal trends like this one. What’s the status on name-taking these days? Are the custom hoodies telling us something?

Yes, according to The Daily Beast and Facebook.

In a recent study, the two organizations “zeroed in on 14 million married females, ranging in age from 20 to 79, who are currently active on Facebook and wed in the United States. From this pool, Facebook determined that 65 percent of women in their 20s and 30s changed their name in marriage. The percentage continues to rise for women in their 40s, 50s, and 60s—to 68 percent, 75 percent, and then 80 percent.”

At the same time, the number of people who judge women for not taking their husband’s last names is also increasing.

I’m planning to write more about the criticisms of name-changing (and about my own plans not to) later, but today I want to take a look at a few of the reasons women do choose to adopt their husband’s moniker.

For some, the idea of taking a new name is a given. Like Meghan Leimenstoll , who told The Daily Beast, “I always knew I wanted to change my last name when I got married. To me it’s part of the transition from ‘me’ to ‘we’ … I was proud to take my husband’s last name.”

For other women, it represents a new beginning, a turning point in their life, or an opportunity to rid themselves of a maiden names that represents a fathers who wasn’t there for them or mistreated them in some way. Totally understandable.

But there are those who just find it convenient. Because keeping your own name is a burden, apparently.

The Daily Beast reports: “Prof. Donna L. Lillian, who teaches a class at Appalachian State College on the topic, has been studying the trend since the 1980s. While Lillian believes a confluence of factors have contributed to the change, she sees the increasing number of young brides taking their husband’s last name as a product of watching their mothers’ struggle with hyphens and dual identities.”

For one bride, the hassle of keeping her own name just seemed to be too much: “I know people who are married and have two different last names, or a hyphenated one, and I think it’s weird,” she says. “I think it would be annoying to constantly correct people if for some reason I decided not to take my husband’s name.”

For some reason, this last reason really upsets me. Maybe it’s because my mother kept her name and I was raised with a hyphen and I think I turned out just fine. But maybe it’s because I have a problem with the argument that since women have to struggle to justify their independent identities after marriage, it’s easiest just to give them up completely. What does it say about a society that makes it so hard for women to justify a choice to stay who they’ve been since birth?

More on that to come.

Our first stop?

Mark’s Feed Store.

I’ve heard so much about this restaurant for YEARS now, and trust me, the deep-fried corn on the cob, pulled pork with mustard BBQ sauce, and buttermilk pie did not disappoint!!

Just before the rehearsal, we all trooped over to Churchill Downs to watch some horse racing on the track (status: sloppy- that made me giggle;) on Millionaire’s Row…

The next day was Jami and Randy’s beautiful wedding…

It was so much fun to meet their delightful friends and family, and I certainly appreciated the special wedding touches they included in their special day!

Congratulations, Jami and Randy!!

Wedding Attire and Accessories

Wearing “something blue” is a classic wedding tradition for many brides on their wedding day. Not necessarily the wedding gown, the ”something blue” may take the form of a garter, shoes, lingerie, hair bow, eye makeup or nail polish. Choose blue jewelry such as sapphire, turquoise, blue topaz or aquamarine. Dress your bridesmaid in several shades of blue gowns with the groomsmen in matching tuxedos, perhaps even paired with an Elvis tribute nod of blue suede shoes. Create a wedding bouquet of fabulous blue flowers such as hydrangeas, delphiniums, irises, thistles or bachelor’s buttons.

Wedding Date and Venue

For your wedding date, choose a blue moon, also known as the second full moon occurring within a month. Invite the Blue Angels to fly over your nuptials, although highly unlikely to accept your invitation consider an alternative such as obtaining the services of a patriot jet team to buzz over in synchronized formation above your wedding. Flood your nighttime venue in soft blue lights to create an impressive visual display. Decorate the pews or chairs of your wedding venue with blue ribbons. Beatify your wedding ceremony with blue floral arrangements and an elegant blue runner.

Wedding Reception

Go retro with your reception dance song list with blue inspired oldies but goodies such as Blue Moon, Blue Suede Shoes, Blue Monday, Blueberry Hill, Devil with the Blue Dress On, Blue Bayou and Mr. Blue Sky. Hand out blue colored favors, almost any favor will do as long as it is blue from favor bags to candles. Decorate your tables and chairs with blue tablecloths and seat covers. Create magnificent blue-hued centerpieces from such items as fresh cut flowers to ice sculptures. Be different, have a solid blue fondant wedding cake or embellish a white wedding cake with cheery blue ribbons and blue birds.

Stationary for Weddings

Select stationary for your wedding embellished with your favorite color of blue. Stationary items include the save-the-date-card, the official invitation, the reply card, wedding programs, menus and thank-you cards. Use a deep blue or navy for the ink.

Attend the Great Bridal Expo, a nationwide touring wedding show featuring current wedding trends, an incredible honeymoon showcase, New York-style fashion shows, live orchestra and DJ performances, endless exhibitions and a bevy of knowledgeable wedding professionals ready to meet with you and make your wedding dreams come true.  Click HERE to register and use code BLOG for 2 FREE tickets!

Subscribe to Great Bridal Expo via Email

Weddings are great fun, to prepare and to attend. There is the dress to pick out, the flowers, the cake. And naturally where, when, and who is going to come. I sometimes wonder who is more excited the Bride and Groom or the guests?
The last wedding we attended was more than 3 years ago and with our anniversary approaching it certainly brings back memories from our wedding. Like when it was supposed to be outside and it rained? And the wedding cake accidentally went up my nose? (and just for the record that burned like crazy!) And my husbands tux pants were too big and when we were dancing they fell down, and the DJ handed him a bunjy strap for a belt? (that was hilarious!) With all these things it was truly a wonderful and memorable, exciting day for me as I became Mrs. Vicki Moag…
Let me tell you the greatest wedding ever in the history of mankind, is in the making. The Groom is preparing a place for us and the Bride is getting prepared. The question is, has she handed out all the invitations? Have you got your invitation? You might be wondering what I am talking about and it is this. Jesus is the Groom, the Church is the Bride, the invitation is to a life saving relationship with the Groom, so that when he returns for His Bride, we can go. And believe me, with all the preparation we put into our own wedding ~ This Wedding Feast is going to be beyond your wildest imagination. Will you be ready? (You can read more about this in Matthew 22:1-14; Revelation 19: 6-8; and Revelation 22:16-17). The invitation needs to be delivered (by the Bride) and accepted (by you). Won’t you come?

What is a funny memory that you have had at a wedding?

It’s a pretty ceremony site, but it isn’t really ideal for the golf course.  We have to block too many tee times and it can, at times, be annoying to golfers if they have to skip number nine because a ceremony is taking place.  It wouldn’t be a good thing to get hit by a golf ball on your wedding day.  Typically, everyone is very cool about it, but we thought there might be a better solution to keep both our wedding couples and our golfers happy.

That’s when we talked to a family friend who owns a dozing company.  Dave’s Dozing out of Bondurant.  He dredges ponds and has several muck trucks to clean out ponds and back hoes to dig basements or in our case, ponds.  Here is a picture of him from last summer.

Dave spent a majority of the summer building us a peninsula in our pond.  It isn’t the easiest thing to do as the muck (mud) that makes up the silt from the bottom of the pond is pretty gross stuff.  He got stuck in the mud on more than one occasion.  In the late fall of 2012, he had finally finished the project.  We were left with a dirt peninsula that wasn’t very attractive.  Before we could get started with our landscaping, we had to wait for the muck to dry out.  This spring has been fairly wet, so it was only recently that it had dried out enough that we could take our skid loader out on the peninsula without fear of falling in.

Guess who was running the skid loader?  My dad.  If you recall, he had another project that he used the skid loader for earlier this summer.

If there is a reason to use the skid loader, dad is happy to oblige.  It’s his favorite machine.  He got to work smoothing out the dirt and filling in some areas to create the perfect ceremony site.

He is a thrill seeker, so he got pretty close to the edge a few times.  Luckily, he has learned since his youth when to push the envelope and he got the project complete without incident.

While he was busy moving dirt, Austin was busy planting native grasses in the banks.  We had discussed many options to put in along the side of the banks and settled on these native grasses.  They were the ones that we had burned earlier in the season and have been planted in front of the clubhouse landscaping.

We were never really fond of them in front of our boulder retaining wall because they grew too tall and blocked the view of the boulders.  Austin dug up all the tufts of grass.  Hum.  I think that is the first time in my life that I have ever typed tufts.

Then he took them over to the ceremony site to be transplanted.

He covered both sides of the peninsula with the grasses.  Austin spaced them out because they will grow and cover in the banks.

Individual tufts of grass were placed along the side of the bank.  It was Austin’s first day of work at Toad Valley.  We like to break in the new help with the fun jobs.  Shoveling.  Digging holes.  Getting dirty.  You know, the fun stuff.

He was a very efficient worker and got both sides of the banks done and cleared out all of the grasses along the clubhouse.   As they grow, they will help to hold up the bank and they’ll look nice, so it’s a win/win!

By the end of the day, the peninsula was looking good and prepped to be able to lay some sod and plant some grass seed.  Before we do anything, we will need to put in some trench lines for electricity and speaker wire.  We are also throwing around the idea of putting another sprinkler head out there to keep the grass watered.  One of the sprinkler heads from the practice green reaches out quite a distance, so we’re still on the fence as far as what we’ll do in the irrigation department.

We are very excited for our new ceremony site.  If you squeeze your eyes together and hold your mouth just right, you can almost see landscaping, green grass and an arbor.  Can you see it?  No?  Maybe you need to turn your head to the left a little.  Oh.  It also helps to use your imagination.

There are never enough moments, enough time or enough words to say “I love you”. Love is universal and in that you find that love is perfect. There is always someone waiting for your love, someone just casually walking around until the day they see you and then it is clear that nothing has ever mattered until that moment. From there on you will be each others company and will walk side by side.

Lauren & Brady are that, soulmates, they see each other through the crowd…and they smile with just locking eyes. It’s easy for them to be around each other and you know without a shadow of a doubt that you are in the presence of true love.

Enjoy some images from their special day. xoxo Vanessa