Here's to Another Great Wedding!Lucky Bride's Wedding at South Seas

All photos below this point were taken by me, so yeah, they aren't so good because I am not a photographer who knows everything about lighting, angles, speed and all that stuff I find unfathomable to remember all at one time. But you get the point. To see better photos- always check out the photographers websites & blogs!
Location: South Seas Island Resort, Captiva, Florida Hello - it's GORGEOUS
Photographer: Susan Stripling OMG, she's AMAZING
Cake: Kakes by Karen To die for.
Band: Clint Wiley with None Other Seriously, there is none other in comparison

Lucky bride. Why lucky? Because an unfortunate plan fell thru (having the wedding in the Keys), lead to her getting beyond lucky with top of the line locations, vendors, and weather ever. With just a few months to re-plan the entire event, we were able to pull together some out of this world amazing things for her wedding weekend.

Now, you know that I have encountered many happy brides who had fun at their weddings. Lucky bride though- she took having fun to an entirely different level. She and her darling Lucky groom danced the night away. It was one of those nights that I live for; nothing but pure fun to be had in a beautiful enviornment. Lucky bride has exquisite style and it showed. She had a constantly packed dance floor thanks to Clint's band (who she got by luck because another client cancelled). Click here to see and hear more of Clint's band:Clint Wiley Video

Lucky bride had a series of family wedding photos printed onto canvas and we displayed them on the mantle:



Guest entry room with signature plate, a photo backdrop and corresponding album, and the gift/envelope box:


We originally tried to set up the backdrop outside, but it was too breezy. So inside it went, and it actually turned out to be better because we had use of it the entire night.

To keep the uniqueness to this wedding, we had custom runners made in 2 different shades. It took us hours of searching at an indian import store to find the perfect fabrics, but it was totally worth it. They looked beautiful.
Above: Head table for 20. Below: Rather than standard round tables, we did rectangle tables for 12. They make for much better conversation, and take up less space so that you can fit more people into a room:
Lucky bride put her faith in me and let me design the escort card table pretty much as a surprise. What do you think?
Clint revving up the party:
The wedding party watching the sunset:
A beautiful ceremony in the round. I am forever a fan of ceremonies in the round because everyone is closer. It absolutely gives the ceremony a more intimate feel.
Although we didn't have a rabbi perform the cermony, we incorporated several jewish customs into the ceremony like the seven blessings and breaking of the glass. We also did one of my favorite ceremonies that includes the participation of the wedding party and parents, the captiva island shell toss.


Custom cake toppers by Nicole Clark. I blogged about these toppers a really long time ago. So glad to have one grace a cake at one our weddings!

Kakes by Karen. Or I should say the Greatest Kakes by Karen?

Wedding cake. I adore it. Seriously, its right up there with wedding books on my list of favorite things. I love to feature the cake at the weddings we design and of course I love to eat them if there's an extra slice.
I have been so fortunate to work with some very talented cake bakers over the years. There is one though who I absolutly have to "call out" right now because she went above and beyond for a client of ours recently and well, it's time she got a little spotlight!Not only has Karen of Kakes by Karen designed some of the most perfect cakes for my clients, but they taste out of this world. I'm not just saying this, nobody is paying me to say it, they're really that good. My favorite, anything with the Lemon Curd. Yum.
The other thing about Karen is her passion. You might walk into her kitchen and showroom to just pick out a cake, but you'll walk out ridiculously excited about your custom wedding cake. During your consultation you'll taste her amazing fillings and cake flavors and she'll give you the 101 on what goes into creating your masterpiece and then finally she'll do a custom design for you. Sweet is what I say!

Here's to Another Great Wedding!Writer Bride's Cabbage Key Excursion

All photos on this post were taken by me, so yeah, they aren't so good because I am not a photographer who knows everything about lighting, angles, speed and all that stuff I find unfathomable to remember all at one time. But you get the point. To see better photos- always check out the photographers websites & blogs!

Writer bride wanted to have a fun getaway for all her guests the day before her wedding so we planned a cruise to Cabbage Key for a "Cheeseburger in Paradise" lunch. Rumor has it that Jimmy Buffet wrote the song after having one of their incredible cheeseburgers. I will personally vouch for the incredible part of that statement! To make the trip extra special we had dolphins jumping along side the boat. This time we did not end up getting soaked by dolphin splash, although I think we secretly hoped that somebody would.

Once we docked at Cabbage Key, each guest received a small bag with their name and table assignment. In the bag was a dollar bill and sharpie to leave their mark in the famous dollar bill room (see the walls in the team picture on the top right sidebar). Once guests finished their lunch, they were free to roam the islands trails, climb the water tower, play horseshoes and/or frisbee, and of course have a Cabbage Key Cocktail or 3.

More on Writer Brides wedding coming soon!

A Beautiful Rainy Wedding Day at the Ritz Naples

Last month we had a stunning formal wedding weekend at the Ritz-Carlton, Naples Beach. I'm not going to say, "Unfortunately, it rained" because while the rain did come, it was still an amazing evening. There was nothing unfortunate about it! We had back up plans in place and had called for all the events to take place indoors several hours in advance (this is crucial!) so that everything would seem as it had been planned that way all along. The key is to make certain it does not appear to be a last minute move.
All photos on this post were taken by me, so yeah, they aren't so good because I am not a photographer who knows everything about lighting, angles, speed and all that stuff I find unfathomable to remember all at one time. But you get the point. To see better photos- always check out the photographers websites & blogs!
Location: Ritz Carlton Naples Beach
Photographer: Michelle Reed
Flowers: Ritz Carlton
Cake: Ritz Carlton
Band: Vox Blu
The band was unreal. We had Vox Blu at a wedding last year and I was immediately a fan. I was so excited when Kim picked them out for her wedding. They have the best Michael Jackson compilation of any band I have ever heard. There was not a single soul in a seat. Honestly, the dance floor was packed the entire night. Well, until the fire alarm went off. But that's another story. Anyway, the Hora was off the charts! Kim and Steve were up in the chairs many times until Steve was ultimately dropped. Oops. No worries though, he landed on both feet.

Michelle+Daniel=Vibrant

Personalities that fill up a room, warmth & laughter that that overflows it, and classic old-world beauty. Michelle and Daniel have so much energy together - they were practically bouncing with happiness the whole day. Suave and chivalrous matched with grace & style - a perfect couple!

Some of our favourites:



Getting ready.



I love how little Dani the flower girl is gazing up at the bride!



The beautiful Michelle - look at those eyes!

Daniel doing the Windsor.



And looking good before heading out to the church.

That moment of anticipation.



We've never seen this tradition of the groom greeting the bride & her father halfway down the aisle instead of at the alter before - it makes for such a nice vantage point. Love how the backlighting adds so much depth to this image.



One of my most favourite ceremony shots ever.

The wedding party was crazy-hot!



And crazy-fun! Bar-stops and shooters during the photo session - yup, we do have the best clients!



Oh yeah, bride and groom? Crazy-hot too :)

Simple & forever: Love.

Oh, 5o 1.2, how I love thee.

The Fairmount Waterfront was all decked out in rich tones of brown and gold. Melissa from the Ivory Room made sure everything ran smoothly. Laura, from Laura Ann Cinema captured the moments of the day.



Michelle and Daniel were in their own little world during their romantic First Dance.



Michelle & her father share a laugh.

Daniel literally swept his mom off her feet - I just love this sequence!

And of course, then things got crazy with the wedding party: dance-off!

Congratulations Michelle & Daniel - can't wait for you to see your gorgeous album design!

I'm a tiny bit done with the Lime.

Yeah. I loved it for a long time. And I still do, but I love a little change just as much.

No Passport Required

Truly, I am a wedding book and magazine junkie. Want proof? Stop by my studio. I swear the sales people at Books a million think I'm a bit over excited about this wedding I've been planning for years on end. HA!
Anyhoo- I picked up the current issue of Destination Weddings and Honeymoons last week and was immediately drawn to one of the featured articles: No Passport Required. Can I tell you how excited I was to get to the article and find 2 of the 8 beach resorts chosen as the best "no passport required" are none other than LaPlaya Beach & Golf (Naples) and South Seas Island (Captiva)Resorts? Both of which are stunning resorts that we frequently plan weddings at. As a matter of fact we had Kim's rehearsal dinner at LaPlaya just last weekend, and this weekend we'll be out at South Seas for Lucky bride and Writer Bride. So yes, I agree with Destination Wedding Magazine, they are two of the best.
What's awesome about both these locations being chosen is that it proves that SW Florida is a prime location for destination weddings. While these two stunning venues are amazing, there are many more to choose from. With an international airport and direct flights from many major metropolitan areas, really- its perfect for destination wedding planning. How lucky am I to be here?