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Archive for the ‘Wedding Dresses’ Category

These two love hiking, being outdoors, and weekends away, so the sprawling woodsy property at Milagro Winery in Ramona, CA, was a perfect venue for their wedding.

Christina and Greg put so much loving thought into every detail of their ceremony, expressing their love as well as their humor throughout.

So great to work with Janis Foley, and please enjoy her amazing photo stylings. She gets the shots and angles that not every photographer has mastered. I think some of her photos look like paintings.

Milagro sign

I can’t say enough great things about Milagro Winery – it fills the bill on so many levels for a magical wedding ceremony and reception. It’s a bit of a drive, but definitely worth it.

 

getting-ready house

This cute little house is right next to the ceremony site and the perfect getting-ready area for the bride and attendants. It is spacious, has it’s own large bathroom and best of all – air-conditioned!

ceremony wide angle

Fairytale wedding ceremony among the trees.

ceremony-backdrop

Boulders and trees serve as the arch and ‘altar’

bridein trees

A beautiful frame for a gorgeous bride.

Christine-dress

How stunning is her dress? The bride had it custom-made – a perfect creation for this woodland wedding.

dress corset

Intricate delicate details of custom flowers – a delicious confection

Gayle-Greg-aisle

Starting off the processional, the groom and I head down the aisle.

escorting bride

Such a special moment as father escorts his daughter.

awtg the bride

The look on his face as he watches his bride walk down the aisle – priceless.

flowersonbarrel

Rather than ceremony tables, Milagro Winery uses wine barrels! Functional and authentic aesthetic

hammering

The bride and groom hammering their Wedding Time Capsule closed. They’ve enclosed private letters to each other, along with a bottle of wine, and in 5 years (wood is the element for the 5th anniversary) they will pry open the box, read the letters, and again toast their union.

hammering-bride

withthisring

With this ring . . .

heartboxsign

A variation on the wedding ceremony stone blessing: each guest found a small wooden heart on their chair. They were asked to hold it during the ceremony and think wonderful thoughts and blessings in support of Christine & Greg’s marriage. After the ceremony they signed their heart and dropped it in a keepsake box for the couple’s home.

 

 

bubbles

Bubbles! Blowing bubbles is a fun way for guests to celebrate the I Dos!

 

couple at lake

A private moment by the lake.

feet

How gorgeous are her shoes?! And the clever little heel protector makes it easier to walk on the grass. At the reception, just pop off the protector and it’s back in your sassy heels for dancing.

staff

I love that Janis caught a picture of the Milagro event staff in action- Melissa and crew do such a professional job. Makes it a joy to officiate ceremonies at Milagro, knowing everything is handled.

guests to reception

Guests have the opportunity to truly take in this magnificent property, with a leisurely stroll from the ceremony site up to the reception building.

FG-RB on cart

Or they can catch a ride on the golf cart!

Gayle with couple

“Dear Gayle, Thank you for doing such a wonderful job officiating our ceremony- it was beautiful! We couldn’t have hoped for any better.” ~ Christina & Greg

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For their April 1 wedding celebration at Grand Pacific Palisades in Carlsbad, this couple playfully executed a fun springtime event with grace and whimsy.
From pinwheels in the arbor to argyle socks reflecting their gray & yellow theme, Katy and Troy were so fun and fun-loving!

Argyle socks reflect the fun spring-time wedding theme of yellow and gray

Cutest funnest blingiest bridal shoes ever!

Their creative execution of playful surprises throughout the wedding made this such a memorable event, and fun for their guests as well.
Friends and family got in on the act as well – Mother of the Bride created all of the centerpieces with florals from a wholesaler, and friends put set up a fun interactive Candy Bar for guests to take home goodies.

Katy & Troy: fun-loving and in love

“Gayle did everything we hoped she said she would and more. . . . it was absolutely the best choice we made in the entire wedding process. The fact that I could relax and enjoy my day with my new husband, family and friends knowing that everything was taken care of was invaluable.”

Wedding guests can make their own to-go bag favor of goodies from the candy bar!

Congratulations you two!

Wedding professionals:
Photographer
Natalia Cruz

The bride's bouquet beautifully displays her grandmother's jewelry

Bouquets & Boutonnieres
Robyn Foreman

Mother of the Bride created these sweet whimsical centerpieces. Yummy Cupcakes provided by SweetCheeks Bakery

Cupcakes
SweetCheeks

Hair & Makeup
Cassie Talamantez

DJ

Kenny Romans

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One of my brides recently had an issue come up with her wedding dress. About a month before the wedding, the dress had still not arrived in the bridal salon and it was expected it would be another two weeks before it came in.

The sales person at the bridal shop, upon telling her the bad news, stated that the bride seemed so calm and was surprised the bride wasn’t freaking out.

Later the bride informed me of the situation and then asked, “Should I be freaking out?”

I would describe this bride as the ultimate goddess bride!

Just because many other brides might have freaked out, doesn’t mean that’s the best reaction.

I advised the bride to get all the information she could from the salon about tracking the status of the dress, backup options, turnaround time for fittings, etc. It’s all about assessing the situation and seeing what’s possible.

There was no need to freak out since the salon informed the bride of everything they were doing in their best effort to resolve the situation, and even offered her another beautiful dress already in their inventory that was similar to hers, as a backup.

Tips to Avoid Freaking Out:

~If in fact your dress has not arrived from the manufacturer as scheduled, get all the information about when the dress will arrive in order to make an informed decision.

~Decide on your boundaries – are you comfortable waiting or would you choose to try another salon or instead take their Option B dress?

~Ask about refunds, discounts, guarantees

~Ask for solutions. Sometimes the salon will come up with an idea you had not considered.

~Allow people to do their best for you.

Sometimes we freak out because we feel powerless. Empower yourself with all the information and then the decision is all yours. Freaking out doesn’t help anything.

Usually when we remain calm, situations are more easily resolved and it is almost unbelievable how many resources become available to us when we allow them.

In this case, the dress arrived in plenty of time for alterations and the bride was beautiful!

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It’s time again for the annual Running of the Brides! This infamous event at Filene’s Basement is an amazing opportunity to secure your wedding gown for as little as $250! If you have a strategy and a take-no-prisoners team on your side, that is.

Do know someone who’s been one of the lucky (crazy? fearless?) brides to find her dream dress in Filene’s – Drop us a comment – let’s hear the story!

I love this response on Filene’s web site under FAQs:
“Are men allowed in the store during the sale?”
Sure, if they dare.

Watch this homevideo of the madness as the racks are cleared in 2 minutes flat:

Filene’s Basement | Running of the Brides
Upcoming Bridal Events 2009 
Feb. 20th Boston, MA

Feb. 27 in New York, NY

March 20 in Atlanta, GA

April 3 in Rockville, MD

July 24 in Chicago, IL

July 31 Washington, D.C.

August 21 Boston, MA

October 16 in Cleveland, OH

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