Shades of Peach and Stripes

Gorgeousness...

Absolutely love these two-toned dresses...

Looking sharp. I love this look. The groom wears all white, and the guys are in stripe ties...

Other details I'm loving...

{Laurel McConnell Photography via Style Me Pretty}

Garden-Inspired-Butterfly-Theme Wedding, That's Us!

It took me awhile to commit to a theme.

Remember I mentioned we spent the first few weeks going over various ideas, but never came up with anything concrete that we could really use as a wedding theme? We thought about using our faith as a focus and realized that was a bit too broad. We thought about doing the cherry blossoms since our wedding is in April and we live near Washington, DC, but we know other people with this theme and it's not something we're passionate about.

We looked into having a candy theme, but it didn't seem appropriate with our historic manor venue. We really like the love birds theme, but both of us feel it's a little played out (no offense to other love bird couples out there)! And well, the list goes on and on.

I actually started to think we weren't going to have a theme.
I was pretty discouraged that we hadn't come up with anything concrete and couldn't come up with new ideas, no matter how hard I tried. Then it dawned on me to look at what we had decided on and what we already knew for sure was going to be a part of our big day. Advice: if you can't think of a theme, draw inspiration from other parts of your wedding that have been decided.

Our venue was the biggest thing. It was the one decision we had made and moved forward on... So we asked ourselves what's special about our venue? The garden ceremony. Definitely the garden.

Volia! We're having a Garden Wedding!! We've had this theme all along and we just never knew it! We picked the spring time of year, when gardens are in full bloom, and we picked a venue with a garden ceremony site! Not only that, but the one and only consistent thing (as in cherry blossoms, candy, love birds) I can stand is butterflies...

I kept running into butterfly inspiration, too.


I mentioned in my intro that I don't have a butterfly tattoo, but I do have a butterfly shower curtain, pillow case, and a huge collection of butterfly broaches. I've always loved butterflies and everyone who knows me, knows this. During our vacation when Mr. B proposed, we stayed in the "Butterfly Cottage." He knew that place would make my heart stop ... and it did!

So whether we knew it or not, we've been building up to a garden-inspired wedding. It's the only thing that makes sense with where we are right now and I must say I'm relieved to finally have a theme.

In honor of this new revelation, here is some garden/butterfly inspiration:

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What's your theme?

How was your theme inspired?

A Vibrant Vintage Chic Wedding

I absolutely love this wedding I spotted over at Wedding Chicks a few weeks ago. The bride is stun.n.ing! The colors are vibrant and the feel is totally chic and vintage, what more could a bride ask for?

I'm inspired, needless to say that our wedding will look as fabulous! Check out the bridesmaids attire, I think their look is my favorite thus far!!! I heart the junior bridesmaid in a different color! It pops! She must have special so special too! I never would have thought of that, but it's worth considering, seeing how awesome the bridal party pictures look.

I'm definitely loving, let me emphasis... LOVING this color scheme too. How would of thought turqoise and pink? Only a bold bride with an eye for style, right?

Wait, wait! I lied. My favorite detail is definitely the escort card display! Those green apples are after my heart! Favorite color alert! Green anything is beautiful in my eyes... 

{Anika London via Wedding Chicks}

Celebrity Wedding: Bethenny Frankel

Real Housewives Get Married too...

I know I'm totally late on this, but I was never a big fan of the Real Housewives of New York (I loved the Atlanta crew), which is why I had not watched the show Bethenny Getting Married?. However, recently, I caught a few re-runs and (I know she's been married for awhile now and had ber baby) finally saw the episode of her actual wedding!

I must admit, Bethenny was a good looking for a prego bride! I could not wear the dress she did now, let alone if I was pregnant! Overall, I thought this couple, Jason and Bethenny had a beautiful wedding. The ceremony was absolutely lovely and heart-felt, and the reception looked like a blast!

Some of the things about the wedding that really caught my attention were:  1. The cocktail hour before the ceremony. I know guests loved that. 2. Her reveal. When they pulled the curtain back and Bethenny appeared, she looked gorgeous! The look on Jason's face said it all! 3. The cake. Bethenny's cake was gigantic and beautiful! Apparently, it tasted pretty good too.

Here's a few photos I found of the couple and their wedding day details:

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Must Haves: Garden Photos

The gardens at Oxon Hill are perfect for pictures.

Don't you think?

I always search online for real weddings at Oxon Hill and I recently stumbled across the photo above. I was immediately taken back by this gorgeous shot! I thought, "omg, we have to get a picture like this too!" It's sooo pretty and really shows off the pristine landscape surrounding the manor. I've talked about this area before here, here, and here.

Funny thing is, Aaron and I met this couple a few months ago! We met them at an open house tasting for Carribean Caterers. We were all at the same table and became fast friends once we figured out we were both Oxon Hill Manor couples. It's really kind of cool knowing the people in this picture and knowing their wedding turned out gorgeous.

  

See the rest of the photos here.

Image Credit: Heather Z Photography

Is there a particular place you plan to take pictures at your venue?

Real Wedding Teaser: A Doughnut Cake

Last weekend one of my distant cousins, Meagan got married! I've only seen a few pictures of the wedding and I'm anxiously awaiting the rest (so that I can report back to you with all the details), but this is something I just couldn't wait to share.

Check out their awesome doughnut cake:

Doesn't this picture make you want a doughnut, like right now?

Please note that unfortunately, I do not have the name of their photographer to credit this photo. I promise to update this post as soon as I get that information. More of this real wedding soon!

New South Wales Wedding

Find Real Wedding Inspirations @ Real Weddings Magazine

I love looking at real weddings because you can see the ideas you have for your wedding in action. You're able to travel outside of your mind's eye and see your ideas in motion at an actual wedding. It's really helpful and one reason Olive Weddings! This New South Wales Wedding was one I was happy to stumble across for that very reason--it has so much of what I imagine at my wedding (like grey suits).

I've fallen in love with grey suits...

I like grey because it's not as informal as tan and not as formal as a black tux. In my opinion, these fellas look truly stylish in thier light grey ties (the groom is wearing a white tie) and pin strip pants. I'm not crazy about these bridesmaids dresses (I think I'd like them more if they were knee length), but I am crazy about the hair bands. I'm a stickler for unique accesories and today's wedding party is begging for something to stand out from the rest. The colors this bride chose are soft and lovely, and needless to say, the bouquets are big and beautiful.

A few other things I love...

Check out that old-timey car! We actually saw one yesterday at a Bridal Showcase we attended in Fairfax and literally, fell in love! I have no doubt our getaway car is going to be a step above the rest and something close to this timeless beauty!

Circlular, Square, or Rectangular Tables....

I have no idea if it will work at our venue (Oxon Hill Manor), but I want long, rectangular tables! For awhile, I wasn't too crazy about them, but they've grown on me. I really just like how it pulls the whole room together to one main focal point. It also reminds me of a big family dinner, which in essence is what our reception is all about.

Do you love rectangular tables? Grey suits? Hair pieces and old cars?

:: Renee Dow and Jonathon Howie :: 

{Photo credit: Sugar Love Weddings via Real Weddings Magazine}