Channeling your inner ballerina

I've been gushing over these gorgeous heels since I first laid eyes on them. So delicate and feminine and down-right perfect for a spring wedding full of whimsy. I love the idea of pairing them with a short, ballerina-inspired gown:

... which reminded me of this favorite board I created awhile ago.

{Petal Sandal by Christian Louboutin found here; Alexander McQueen RTW dress found here}

Tweet

Ask CB readers: Wedding Programs

CB reader and bride-to-be Holly wrote in with the following dilemma regarding her wedding programs. While I've personally replied to her with my own suggestions, if you have any ideas that could also help her, please feel free to leave a comment below. :o)

I need some help … wedding programs. I have been reading your blog for over a year now (I am a little obsessed) and I remembered that you did your own wedding programs. My dilemma is that I don’t even know where to start!! I have looked at some online sites, but I can’t find a template. Maybe I am just looking in the wrong place though. I wish I could just find one that I could just plug in my stuff and be done. But since I can’t find such a template I thought you could answer a couple of questions to help get me started. [...] If you can think of anything [...] that may help us, it would be much appreciated!!!!

Have your own question? Send it to theclassicbride@gmail.com!

Tweet

Q+A with Kate Headley

Having just been featured in Martha Stewart Weddings, there's no doubt Kate Headley is on her way to becoming one of the most sought-after wedding photographers in the nation! I've featured Kate's brilliant photography a few times before and am so delighted to share with you today this exclusive Q+A with Kate! Throughout the interview, you'll find images from a recent wedding Kate photographed. Hop on over to her blog and Web site for more inspiring photos!


Classic Bride: How did you first get started in photography and when did you know it was a passion?
Kate Headley: I always had a camera growing up and loved taking photos. When I got out of school and got a good job, I was able to buy a better camera and equipment. I loved taking photos of food, flowers and my friends and family, so as my friends started getting married, I would take photos at their weddings. (And I loved that my friends would frame my photos, not their photographers!) I also took some technical photography classes and I decided to just try a few weddings--it was love at first wedding. I’m thinking about taking some film classes this summer to improve my skills, I love photography and I want to just keep growing in it.

CB: Describe your style in 5 words or less:
KH: classic, beautiful, whimsical, editorial, colorful

CB: What's the absolute best part of your job?
KH: I love being the ‘artist’ at the wedding, interpreting and documenting their day. I love meeting couples and then seeing what they did to personalize their wedding. And I love when I have a creative client I can call and say, “Will you take engagement photos [insert crazy location here]?” I’ve got some cool shoots coming up.

CB: I love your styling recommendations for engagement shoots! Do you have any similar advice for brides and/or grooms on their big day?
KH: Thanks! I love it when brides and grooms either go really classic (bowtie, vintage dress) or really creative (short dress, unusual suit). I think it’s important to just show your personality, add some color and coordinate with the wedding overall. I think it’s ok to be slightly unusual. Like wearing a dress that wasn’t designed to be a wedding dress.

CB: Where do you find inspiration?
KH: I get inspired by the old and the new. I love magazines, fashion and textiles. I also love flea markets and old houses. I love classic beauty and lately my favorite photos are just my brides looking young and gorgeous.

CB: Top fave photo you've taken to date?
KH: I have a lot of favorites, probably my all time favorite is the one I plaster all over my website and business cards of Casey with the big grin and handful of balloons in black/white. I got up at 5:30 on a Saturday morning to blow up balloons, but it was so worth it.

CB: What are your favorite details to shoot during a wedding?
KH: I try to find new things at every wedding ... I am challenging myself to see details in a new way this season - the architecture, fabrics and colors, all in new ways.

CB: Any photographers you admire in the business?
KH: I like photographers with unique styles … Leigh Miller, Jose Villa, Jessica Johnston, Belathee Photography, Jonathan Canlas and Liz Banfield.

CB: Any advice to aspiring wedding photographers?
KH: I think you should focus on building your skills and portfolio, then worry later about getting paid for doing it. And assess what works for you and what doesn’t. I started doing kid’s portraits and later realized my true passion was weddings, so I am focusing on that right now.

CB: Let's end by daydreaming for just a second. Dream up the most beautiful wedding {in your opinion} to photograph. Where is it and what's the overall feel and style?
KH: Long tables with lanterns on the lawn of a lighthouse, photography by Jose Villa, flowers by Saipua, bowties on the guys, and simple dresses from J.Crew.

Tweet

Sweet backyard details

You know how much I love a good backyard wedding so imagine my delight when I came across the week-long series on Green Wedding Shoes devoted to just that! My favorite details are above {love the simple ribbon and greenery used to decorate the bride + groom's chairs!} but make sure to check out the whole series right here! Enjoy!

ps. Check out Anne's design and offset printing giveaway! Great for save the dates, thank you notes, anything a bride-to-be can imagine, really!

{images found here}

Tweet

The times, they are a-changin'

... and so is Classic Bride!

I hope you all like the brand new navigation bar and search box at the top of the blog! {blog hug to Darci for pointing me in the right direction on those!} I'm hoping these small additions will make your visits to CB more enjoyable ... or at least make the blog easier to navigate!

I'm also considering increasing the size of photos on the blog. I did a test on the last six posts for the sake of comparison. I'm hoping to get some feedback so please, please, please let me know what you think - whether you like the larger photos, if they're too big or if you just don't care ... It takes some work to get the photos larger but if readers {read: you!!} enjoy them, I'd be happy to do the extra bit of legwork! So please leave a comment and let me know your thoughts!

And a little overdue gratitude:
A warm thank you to Brides.com's blog, Wedded Bits, for including CB on its blogroll; to BrideTide.com for naming CB as one of the top 100 Wedding Blogs to follow in 2009; and I'm also excited and honored to be listed as #21 on this Wedding Blogs Power 100 List! Cheers!

Tweet

Let them eat {amazingly gorgeous} cake!

Some of the most gorgeous cakes I've ever seen. Yum.

{images found on Kiss the Groom}

Tweet

Wedding Style Guide feature!

What a wonderful dream come true for our wedding to be included among the marvelous pages of one of my favorite magazines, Wedding Style Guide! We are so very excited! The current issue is on {Australian} stands now and coming soon to American bookstores and newstands near you! Check out pages 132-135 (as well as the contents page!) for a heap of Classic Bride goodness! :o)

{Above images courtesy of WSG, actual photos shot by Look Photography}

Tweet

Happy spring colors

{lovely stationery images found here}

I love the white + yellow combination for a cheery springtime wedding!

Tweet

Engagement photos

{photos by Heather Waraksa}

Engagement photos often start looking the same to me ... the same poses and the same smiles with originality swept to the side.

Yet, the photos above made me take notice. Captivating and original without being too outside the box or overtly trendy.

There is something so British and proper about them ... I imagine the couple attending a coveted boarding school with afternoon plans of horseback riding in the country. And I love the tease of preppy tartan ... Does anyone else think they could be included in Gossip Girl's cast? :o)

Tweet

Vintage shoes

{Charcas wedding shoes from Harriet Wilde}

When Ruth shared her adorable line of vintage shoes with me, I couldn't resist sharing them with you! Based in the U.K., Harriet Wilde ships to the U.S. for $26 so if you're looking for a vintage-inspired wedding shoe, make sure to check these out!

Tweet

Cozy + welcoming

Sorry I've been away for a bit! I was busy enjoying an impromptu visit to my parents but I'm back home now! Hope you all had a lovely week!

Wouldn't that little restaurant above be a cozy + welcoming setting for a small rehearsal dinner?

{image from Lobster & Swan}

Tweet

Canvas & Poster print winners!

I apologize to those who have been awaiting this post ... but, without further ado, here are the lucky winners of the canvas and poster prints from Online Poster Printing:

18 x 24 CANVAS WINNER:
Stacey, who said... Oh, what an awesome contest! I've been pondering getting this done...I would love to win! I know exactly which photo from my wedding I would choose. It's one of me and hubby kissing on the beach in front of Haystack Rock on Cannon Beach. We moved not even 2 months after our wedding, and I miss that place SO MUCH! I'd love to have a reminder to hang above my desk in my home office (I'm a freelance designer who works from home). Hubby is out of town on business quite a lot, and I find myself staring at wedding pics when I start missing him. I'd love to have a huge one to look at! :) I'll post it to Facebook!

Stacey's gorgeous photo:

16 x 20 POSTER PRINT WINNERS:
Emily @ Peach & Pearl, who said ... I'll be graduating soon and likely moving away from my beloved East Coast, so I would use this poster print to remember some of my favorite spots in my hometown. A large canvas would be a perfect anchor for a bare apartment wall, too! :)

and ... nico, who said ... I'd love to put up some pictures from our wedding in our apartment. We have a lot of crazy art from my mom the artist and thrift stops, but NOTHING from our wedding. In fact we don't have ANY prints, because our photographer did all of her work digitally. I'd put our pictures in between our big Kennedy faux painting,my mom's painting of a dodo bird and a 50's era poster of Napoleon. It's a hodge podge of kitsch, but that suits us fine- and it would be even better with our own wedding pictures in the mix.

To all the winners: You will be receiving an e-mail soon regarding your prizes! Congratulations!

Tweet

Handkerchief winner + cute dog

The lucky winner of the three handkerchiefs from The Wedding Outlet is ...

Regan, who said ... Love it! Such a simple elegant gift to be able to give to our mothers. I have memories of my grandmother's hankie framed in her house from when I was little (not sure if it was from her wedding). I'd love to have not only a nod to her but to our mothers that are such an important part of our wedding day. There is no doubt there will be tears of joy shed - why not give them something meaningful to wipe them away?

Regan: You'll receive an e-mail shorly regarding your prize! Congratulations!
Canvas and poster print winners to be announced soon!

Wouldn't he make a cute wedding day dog?

Anyone included/including their beloved pet in the festivities?

{Melanie Acevedo photo via Under a Paper Moon}

Tweet

Darling DIY favor labels

I love these labels (& check out the corresponding inspiration board!)! And the best part, if you can believe it, they're totally FREE! Visit Flights of Fancy (the gorgeous blog of Atlanta-based stationer betsywhite) to download the 4-page PDF template! Easy to follow directions are also on the blog:

... And in keeping with the freebie news, don't forget to enter to win your very own canvas or poster print or some lovely handkerchiefs! Both contests end tonight at midnight CST so get your entries in!

Tweet

Carousel

{image found on this cool flickr stream}

Someone totally needs to rent one of these pretty vintage carousels for kids {and grown-ups!} to enjoy at a wedding reception! Imagine the photos!


ps. Bliss Weddings Market recently debuted some very cute OOT bags including the ones shown below. Lots more cities are represented so go check them out!

Tweet

Balloon bouquet

{miss dior cherie print ad via here}

As a follow-up to the last post, I thought I'd share a little more pastel-hued, balloon-friendly French-kissed inspiration in the form of this pretty Dior print ad! View the full commercial here, directed by the ever-amazing Sofia Coppola.

Wouldn't it be so fun to grab a bouquet of balloons and your favorite photographer and run around La Ville-Lumière for a day?

Tweet

Wrest Park + Lily Allen

{image found here}

By now I'm sure you've all seen the gorgeously directed Lily Allen video, The Fear, which takes my breath away everytime I see/hear it ... If you haven't, do yourself a favor and go watch it right now before you read any further. I promise you it won't be 4 minutes wasted and will make this post much more enjoyable!

{image found here}

Beautifully surreal, right? And can you get over the tremendous backdrop which, in reality, is Wrest Park House and Gardens in the UK (and yes, it was inspired by the gardens of Versailles)! Such a beauty and wait for it ... yes, it's a wedding venue! So start booking! Click here for a full brochure and visit the Web site here.

Let's have a quick look around the premises:

{image found here}

{above photo & those to follow from Ground Rules flickr}

Just screaming for a bride & groom to have a seat for a fun portrait before the ceremony.

I think it would be swell to have an outdoor ceremony on the steps of this little pavillion on the property!

Love the unexpected grittiness of this back stairwell ... If I were a photographer I would definitely get a shot of the bride traipsing up the stairs with her train trailing behind. {a lot of unplanned alliteration there!}

There's even a stunning dog cemetery which would make for an unusual yet interesting backdrop for portraits.

Send me photos if you have/had your wedding here! I'd love to see & share!

Tweet

Canvas arrived + contest reminder!

Just received my canvas print ordered through Online Poster Printing! The quality is superb and I just adore it! Now I just have to find the right place to hang it! Hmmm ...

Don't forget to enter to win your own canvas or poster print from the same great company! Click here for details and make sure you enter before tomorrow at midnight CST! Good luck!

Tweet

Daydream meets Real Wedding

When I spotted this New England gem on Coastal Living, I immediately started envisioning the details of an intimate summer wedding at home.

Love the idea of keeping the guest list small and being able to have everyone under the same roof for a week-long celebration.

And the following details from this real wedding photographed by Leigh Miller fit seamlessly with this laidback seaside style:

{Credits: 1+2 Coastal Living; 3+4+5+6 Leigh Miller Photography}

Tweet

Rustic charm

What is not to love about a rustic farm wedding? Bentwood chairs are the perfect fit for a casual barn reception and a chandelier is the proverbial icing on the cake. Such a striking balance of simplicity and glamour.

For decor, I love the idea of using mis-matched china with frilly, feminine patterns (I actually think chips add to the charm!) and incorporating a mixture of old bottles (these would fit the bill nicely) filled with wildflowers.

... And the cutest rustic detail I've found of late: Using moss-filled nests in place of ring pillows.

Want more rustic inspiration? Re-visit this fabulous wedding.

{Credits: 1 Martha Stewart; 2 Lobster and Swan; 3 Julie + Todd}

Tweet

Handkerchief giveaway!

I really adore the look of vintage handkerchiefs and even used some family hankies in our wedding! Mine was embroidered with our married monogram and I had two made for the Moms with an embroidered special message.

And the always lovely Wedding Outlet has graciously offered to give away 3 of their Venise handkerchiefs to one lucky Classic Bride reader*!

Just leave a comment below (including a valid e-mail address!) before Friday, March 6 at midnight CST to be entered. The winner will be announced the following Monday! Good luck!

*This contest is limited to US residents only.

Tweet