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Welcome to the Best Wedding Sites Magazine . . . the wedding planning source for dream weddings and honeymoons. From your Engagement, to the Bridal Shower, to your Wedding Ceremony and Reception, to your Honeymoon - we have everything you will need for each stage of the wedding planning process.
Here you will find the archive of posts before the daily blogging moved permanently back to Brenda's Wedding Blog after hearing the comments and requests from my readers. Please be sure to visit our vendor guide to find your wedding pros and resources.
Brenda [ Brooke + Chris ] in Tallahassee, Florida
Vendors:
Photographer: Long's Photography
Hair Stylist: Meena's Classic Touch
Floral Designer: A Touch of Class Florist
Reception Venue: Hotel Duval
Dress Store: Vocelles | The Bridal Shoppe
Cake Designer: Katie's Cakes and Catering, Inc.
DJ: Music Machine by John Summers
Tuxedo and Mens Attire: Vows Tuxedo
Brenda [ Brooke + Ari ] in Los Angeles, CA
Today we hit the streets of LA in California for a stunning day after session of Brooke and Ari, photographed by Blair Nicole Photography. Isn't this just amazing? I love the brides dress, her bouquet - EVERYTHING!!!! Oh, and Brooke happens to be a wedding coordinator herself with Orange Blossom Special Events.
Vendors:
Photographer: Blair Nicole Photography
Day After Sessions | tagged california, day after, los angeles, trash the dress Jessica Welcoming back Jessica with her first official post as our bride blogger . . .
Want my take on the most challenging part of wedding planning so far? Favors! Are you surprised? They seem so small and insignificant, right? Yes, they are just tiny little gifts. But as a gesture of appreciation for the family and friends we love so dearly, favors mean so much to us. How are we supposed to pack a grateful punch into a prezzie we can only spend several dollars on per person?! Here are our ideas so far…
Charitable Donation
This one is kind of a no-brainer for us. Andy’s beautiful mother Martha passed away several years ago from ovarian cancer. We will most definitely be making a donation in her memory to the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition. Rather than the usual one notecard per guest approach, we decided to frame an announcement of the gift and display it on the welcome table next to her photo.
Photo credits (clockwise): Love Donation Card, Favor Boxes, Animal Rescue, Letterpress Donation Card
Of course this left us still wanting to leave something small and special at each place setting. So here’s another idea of ours…
Personalized CDs
We’re still not 100% on this one. I think it’s a great idea for a smaller, more intimate wedding like ours (less than 100 people). But it’s one of those “taste-imposing” gifts that could be a grand slam for several guests and a strikeout for everyone else. The music we’ve chosen for our ceremony and key reception songs (our first dance and the cake cutting music, for example) are pretty non-traditional as well as eclectic in style, so it just might work!
Photo credits (clockwise): Photo CD, Bow Tie, Brown CD Sleeve, Flower CD Sleeve, Tin CD Cases
If we wind up deciding we want to go less personal and more crowd pleasing, we have one more safe choice for a second favor…
Sweet Treats
Who doesn’t like an extra yummy bite of something sugary to keep them going strong on the dance floor long after the cake plates have been cleared? Edible treats are one of the few favors I’m always a fan of as a wedding guest. And thanks to some amazing Etsians the options are nearly endless, always creative and extra adorable. Two of my top picks right now are raspberry marshmallows and salted caramel bites.
Photo credits (clockwise): Caramels, Glassine Envelopes, Raspberry Marshmallows, Paper Bag Calligraphy
So what should we choose? Luckily we still have a few more weeks to decide. But once we do you can bet I’ll be keeping it a secret until the big day!
xo Jess
Jessica is from Boston and is marrying Andy in just under 2 months. Their planning focus has now shifted to the nitty gritty details, like guest welcome bags, ceremony music and readings, favors. Jessica is also the blogger behind Shimmer + Silk whose blog is for chic, modern bridal inspiration.
Brenda [ Nesrin + Jeff ] in Petoskey, Michigan
Today's real wedding from Paul Retherford Wedding Photography is just gorgeous - check out the brides dress. WOW!!!!! The bride is from Turkey and the groom grew up in the area. They married in a traditional church wedding and held their reception at a local venue. Their portraits were taken along Lake Michigan and Bay Harbor Michigan marina. Nesrin's wedding dress is from Aysira Gelinlik - it is one of the Turkish wedding dress brands.
Vendors:
Photographer: Paul Retherford Wedding Photography
Floral Designer: Sky's the limit flowers
Reception Venue: Knights of Columbus Hall
Brenda Mismatched Florals, Classic Mixed with Modern & Cocktail Style
Receptions are amongst the Hottest Trends for the Season Ahead
The Wedding Salon recently held their latest show in NYC. "We were thrilled to be able to celebrate such a memorable occasion with some of the top names in the industry including Sylvia Weinstock, Shawn Rabideau, Le Cirque & Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings in addition to over 1000 New York Brides! We look forward to seeing all the trends from The Wedding Salon come to life in the season ahead," says Wedding Salon Founder and renowned Celebrity Event Planner, Tatiana Byron.
The ultimate trend that was seen at The Wedding Salon was a mix of classic and modern a true homage to Kate Middleton. Flowers by Topaz showcased this perfect mix with a display of roses for the ultra classic bride mixed with orchids for the ultra-modern woman. Shades of black, yellow and white were another modern twist on a classic look. Shawn Rabideau (of Bethenny Getting Married fame) also embraced the mix of traditional with modern by accenting antique china over an organic burlap linen. Rabideau further highlighted the modern twist my mixing a variety of flowers including pansies, hyacinth and tulips underneath a cascading willow centerpiece. {seen in photo below}
David Tutera designed a table fit for a modern queen for Disney’s Fairy Tale Weddings that additionally embraced the classic mixed with modern by mismatching tulips, roses and hydrangea with orchids & lilies. These mismatched florals cascaded over a classic display of china with floating candles and tea lights over regal silver linens.
Le Cirque revealed that although brides will always go for a classic sit down dinner, a huge trend in Summer 2011 will be the cocktail reception with passed mini-meals – Lobster Ravioli, Mini-Short Ribs, Mini Tuna Tartare and all the classic plates a bride and groom love but in a more informal setting. As for dessert, Le Cirque explained that brides are opting for more simplistic cakes, but instead choosing elaborate dessert displays with truffles, chocolate treats and macarons. Events by Devi of Top Chef fame reiterated the huge trend of cocktail style receptions with brides opting for more Asian flavors.
Another modern twist on a classic, the sleek silhouettes in the couture fashion show by The White Gown with figure fitting gowns showcasing the bride’s gorgeous figures. Jaehee Bridal additionally showcased these sleek silhouettes with classic Jenny Packham and Claire Pettibone gowns, a perfect fit for a classic but modern royal bride.
Brenda 
Today I'm so excited to bring to you a brand new feature of Best Wedding Sites - each week I'll have posts from bride-to-be's planning their wedding and you can follow along with their wedding details. And, of course, they'll be back after their wedding to share any tips they have after the big day and hopefully some photos too :) Our very first blogger is one some of you might know - please welcome Jessica from Boston, who is also the blogger of Shimmer + Silk. Her blog is for chic, modern bridal inspiration and my personal favorite is her weekly Glitz posts.
And, now I will let Jessica take over
and continue with her introduction . . .
Where we are in the planning process? We just hit the two month mark last week! Andy and I have been engaged for almost 19 months now. For so long our wedding was just a dream far off in the future, but now it's finally starting to feel real. Over the last year and a half we slowly but steadily nailed down all of the important details. Venue, photography, videography, decor and of course... the dress. Now that we're getting so close to the big day, our focus has shifted to the nitty gritty details. Guest welcome bags, ceremony music and readings, favors -- it's getting a bit harder to sleep at night with visions of all of my lists running through my head! It's definitely a crazy ride, but I'm enjoying every minute of it now while I still can because I know I'll be sad when it's all over :)
Please join me in welcoming Jessica to Best Wedding Sites and I'm sure I speak for all when I say I look forward to following along as you finish planning your wedding. Please be sure to check back next week when Jessica joins us again for her very first official bride blogger post.
Brenda Starting the week off with another stunning feature from Photography by Verdi. This real engagement of Amanda and Derrick is just beautiful - the perfect lighting, location, "natural" props and a couple in love. Photography by Verdi shares a bit about what they envisioned for this shoot . . "that this couple was just traveling through the west and come upon this all but deserted ghost town. Cleator Arizona." I'm in love with the gorgeous scenic backdrop - amazing!!!!
