Holland Wedding

Real Weddings :: Mattie & Nick, Married in May

0 · Dec 2, 2016 ·

Wedding colors seem to come in waves. And about three years ago we were in the middle of a purple movement. I got bored of the color really quickly as there seemed to be very little variation in shade, design and I even had two weddings in a row wearing the same bridesmaids dresses. This royal Grimis hue was not causing my creative juices to thrive.

When Mattie and I began discussing her color scheme, I had a couple of flashbacks with she started talking about shades of amethyst. But then she added dove grey and moody mauve and I got really excited. She had this really sultry, in depth vision of pairing dramatic pewter and black accents against a classically soft spring color palette of lavender and lilac. I certainly shouldn’t be surprised that Mattie had such impeccable tastes, she’s a wedding planner herself and has some gorgeous work in her portfolio (check out Spark & Wildflower). I made the personal flowers and a topper for the cake and left the rest in Mattie’s very competent hands. I simply loved how beautiful this wedding turned out.

Photography: Ashley Slater Photography | Floral Design (personal flowers: bouquets, buttonholes, flower crowns and cake topper): The Day’s Design | Reception Venue: Baker Lofts | Invitation Printing: Crop Marks | Envelope Liners: Greyberry Design | Bride’s Dress: Bianka Bridal | Bride: Mattie Burke of Spark & Wildflower

And reminisce back to their engagement photos last fall here.

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Real Weddings :: Mary & Nic’s Foodie Celebration

0 · Oct 5, 2016 ·

Do you remember how hot it was last Labor Day? I mean, Labor Day 2015 – not this past year. That’s how far behind I am on blogging gorgeous momeries of days gone by.

Anyway, it was the hottest day I experienced all summer. I remember so distinctly because I was beyond thankful for the garlands my bride has chosen to line her tables and how she had also shared some concern about having a September wedding and the potential for a good fall chill to join the night air as the sun departed for the day.

This did not happen. I thought for sure I was going to melt into a puddle and the beautiful dahlias along with me.

The days leading up to Mary and Nic’s celebration were filled with trips to the farmer’s market, foraging excursions and finding the most succulent edible treats to add into their décor. As I sat down with Mary discussing her wedding florals she gave me only two parameters – they love food, so herbs and other edible delights were welcome (and vary much a MUST) and then she showed me her maid of honor’s dress, which I should use for the color palette inspiration.

So instructions were followed, with artichokes and apples placed into the bouquets. Bay leaves and olive branches were woven into garlands. Pomegranates, persimmons and potted herbs decorated the tables. And at the end of the night, I realized that someone thought the centerpieces looked so good, they actually took a bite.

They were wed at The Felt Mansion, which is one of my favorite venues in West Michigan. The classic architecture and the brick, the charming pond and perfect getting ready space. It’s all perfect. The mansion’s front door served as the backdrop to the ceremony, with cocktails following in the lawn and a tented dinner. Desserts were then served in the parlor with Love’s Ice Cream cart placed just outside.

And then we must talk about the dancing. These people knew how to dance. Mary and Nic start the night out in style with a very nontraditional first dance songs and an ode to one of my favorite movies, “Kiss the Girl”. The entire scene was made complete with a guest joining in with an impromptu Scuttle impersonation in the background. It set the fun tone for the entire night. While some late night weddings I like to find a place to disappear into the shadows, this was a evening of pure entertainment.

Sweet nostalgia in form of a fragrance, the aroma of bay leaves filled the tent and instantly took Nic back to boyhood memories of his days in California. I like to think that there will now be a new memory paired with this fragrant little leaf, a recollection of the day he and Mary started their happily ever after.

This wedding was also featured in the current issue of The Knot Michigan.

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Cinderella’s Proposal

0 · Aug 17, 2016 ·

My little sister just got married. But before the merriment of “I do’s” there is a story to be told. It’s a lovely story, a tale of two people who have fallen in love. It’s a story of friendship and longing. It’s story of patience and dreams that do come true.

A little birdie whispered in my ear that a certain someone was going to propose. The first step was finding the perfect ring. I found myself honored enough to assist with the jewelry shopping. He chose a ring with the style name honored our grandmother, Margaret, and then had the design tweaked just a touch to make it fit my sister’s tastes. It is a light blue sapphire (her birthstone) in a yellow gold setting and diamond accents. It is stunning.

Each spring I like to put together an inspiration shoot. It helps me to dust off my flowering skills and stir up some creative juices. But as of late, I have found them to feel rather “empty”. It seems like putting together these mock parties is wasteful, even frivolous. And I was stuck looking for an idea.

The knowledge that Devin was going to propose was not new to me. In fact, it was a secret that I had tucked away for nearly 6 months as my sister was searching for a new apartment, moving forward with her life and doing pretty much the opposite of what every newly engaged woman should be doing – all while we were off shopping for the perfect jewel. But I kept quiet, my lips were sealed. As I was mulling all of these things over and helping my soon to be brother-in-law brainstorm an amazing proposal, the idea struck me that we could combine both my inspiration shoot (which I had no ideas for) and his proposal (which he was also trying to make extremely memorable).

One of my sister’s all time favorite movies is the 1965 version of Roger & Hammerstien’s Cinderella – and if you’re not familiar with that version, stop reading this and go watch it. It’s simply the best version of Cinderella known to man. He had taken her to see a live version for her birthday, they had watched the movie together and it seemed like a very appropriate source of inspiration.

Under the guise of a small inspiration shoot, I asked my sister to model for me and proceeded to get her all dolled up. She had a pampering salon day at Cheeky Strut, she picked out a beautiful gown at Spring Sweet and we made her feel like a princess, she needed a real life Cinderella moment. Now if only she had a pair of shoes…

Spring Sweet’s store closed and we made Justine walk down to the main store level to find her shoes. The trip just so happened to take her down a beautiful wooden staircase which Spring and I adorned with blooming branches and greens. On the treads of each step were gold calligraphy letter from Lief Design spelling out Will You Marry Me? “10 Minutes Ago” from Roger’s and Hammerstien’s Cinderella started playing. And at the bottom of the stairs stood Prince Charming, holding her shoes and an engagement ring.

And don’t miss the video which I shared a couple weeks ago. Their proposal story was also featured on The Wedding Chicks last month. I can’t wait to share pictures from the wedding!

Real Weddings :: Nolan & Jessica

0 · Apr 29, 2015 ·

I don’t know if I believe in destiny or fate, or that there’s only one person in the whole world that you should marry and (finger’s crossed!!) you’ll meet them and timing will be perfect and you’ll fall in love. I do however, believe that God has a plan and know’s exactly what’s going to happen before we even have a chance to contemplate the possibility. I suppose he controls our destiny then.

Nevertheless, I think the way our paths are intertwined is really interesting, and our story of friendship is no exception. Back when I was just an under-aged, beauty school grad, I also had a late night weekend gig at a bar. And so did Jessica. However, we rarely had a chance to speak and although we worked at the same club, I’m not even sure I knew her name – she was just the girl with the most amazing highlights. And she’s always been someone I remembered and who stood out in my mind.

Fast forward a few years and here we are. I met my husband who happened to be best buds with Nolan, who would eventually become her fiance. My husband predicted from the beginning these two were in it for the long haul. And I guess he was right. Anytime I get to be involved in someone’s wedding day is really special to me, but when the bride and groom happen to be a couple of your closest friends it becomes one of the highest honors. It was more than just a wedding, it was a very happy celebration.

In the height of dahlia season, we watched Jessica and Nolan say “I do” at the historic Felt Estates. I handpicked every flower myself with sweet Jessica in mind knowing how important this day was, knowing that in just a few short hours she would marry her best friend, a relationship that I was lucky enough to see from the beginning. And will continue to see for years to come.

Wedding in the Woods

0 · Feb 20, 2015 ·

I love Michigan. Beautiful lakes, gorgeous views and my forever home. But sometimes the weather can be just a tad unpredictable for me. Today the windchills are hovering somewhere around -15°, I can’t really tell you how cold that it because I simply refuse to leave the house. Flashback to June. June is usually a warm and fairly mild month. Perfect for weddings. But this particular day in June was hot, muggy and drizzly. The weather unpredictability never seems to stop us from planning outdoor celebrations, but sometimes I think it should (but that’s just my logical side talking… who really wants to be trapped indoors??).

Airemiss and Kykeo originally planned a grand scale wedding celebration. But as it often happens, during the planning process they began to feel overwhelmed. And then throw in a couple of other inconvenient life circumstances and they decided to ditch they’re lavish plans all together. This doesn’t mean that they had to give up style or having a special wedding day. It just allowed more room to get creative.

A simple ceremony in the woods was the plan. They love Alice in Wonderland, so that furthered their woodland theme. Aire was a dream bride, other than wanting an ode to Alice in Wonderland and white roses in her bouquet, she allowed me to create and surprise them with a fabulous setting for them to sit and eat cake after they officially said ‘I do”. And of course, no celebration would be complete without a fabulous photographer, so thankfully Kelly Sweet was there to capture the memories (and gorgeous misty light) from the day.

This wedding was also featured on Style Me Pretty back in November. You can see it here.

Happy Friday, stay warm friends!!

Holland Wedding

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