Jennifer and Thomas

Our second wedding of the year was held last Saturday night at the Water's Edge Resort and Spa in Westbrook, Connecticut. It was the perfect location for Jennifer and Thomas' weekend celebration. With both families from out of state, the resort played host to the Friday evening rehearsal dinner, the Saturday wedding festivities, and the Sunday morning send-off brunch.

We met Jenn, Tom and Jenn's parents Marvin and Joan very early in their planning process, and hit it off right from the start. Their vision for a classic, winter, black, white and red wedding was so perfect for their February nuptial celebration to come. We had a great time planning together, from those early photographer interviews and DJ meetings, florist appointments, to weekend DIY projects, its hard to believe only 8 months prior, we had just met.

Amidst a classic New England Nor'easter, guests began arriving on Friday afternoon, and the resort was blanketed with 6 fresh inches of snow, which turned out so beautifully for the bride and groom's outside portrait session. Speaking of photography, Kiva Sutton from Annandale Photography beautifully captured the day as it unfolded. His work is so crisp and stunning, he did an incredible job with Jenn and Tom's pictures. (All pictures in this post credit of Annandale Photography, unless otherwise noted).

Dana Bartone did a fantastic job with all of the girls hair and make-up.

The ceremony took place in the regal, Royal Ballroom. The chuppah, rich fabric aisle runner, and all of the day's flowers were provided by Jane of Just For You. The red roses used in all of the arrangements were such a match for this February wedding, and the touches of pink and peach, including the spring flowers were so nice as thoughts of spring are around the corner.

Jenn and Tom's details were executed perfectly. Their stationary products, complimentary in design, carried straight through from their Save the Dates to their wedding day products. The following 4 pictures taken by Sixpence For Your Shoe.





















Rob Waldron of Standing Ovations DJs kept the party going and the dance floor active. Jenn and Tom didn't consider themselves real dancers, but even they graced the dance floor on multiple occasions! The videographers were great guys, Drew and Timmy from UI Productions.





Jenn and Tom were so nice to work with! We wish them all the best in love and life together.

Welcome Anastacia Therese!

At a recent wedding, Talia and I looked at one another and realized what a superb job we have as we get to witness two people begin their lives together. For this reason, I am so excited to post the new arrival of one of our first wedding couples and also a close personal friend of mine. She's a little beauty and was born on Valentine's Day! See for yourself -

Taking a trip down memory lane, here are Frances and Adam at their Glastonbury Hills Country Club wedding on June 23, 2006. Photo credit: Kathy McGary as published in Niche Hartford Spring 2007 magazine.

And their fabulous cake (by Donna, of course):

We wish you all the best!

Lindsay

Trash the Dress with Megan LaBarbera

Well we all know of the newest wedding photography phenomenon sweeping the nation, right? The trash the dress session is about as cool as it gets! So when I had the opportunity to "Trash the Dress" (ok not my actual wedding dress, but still), I jumped at the chance to work with Megan LaBarbera She is young, hip, and cool, and I should also mention superbly talented!

My actual wedding dress is sitting in a spare closet at home, boxed, cleaned and preserved, so I knew that wouldn't be an option. Quite honestly, it wasn't the right dress for the shoot anyway, it was grand, regal, and completely glam, perfect for my ballroom wedding, but not right for what I had in mind here.

So fall began with the search for the "perfect" TTD dress. It had to be sexy and flowy, fall perfectly no matter how I moved, and give me the freedom to try different things without feeling restrained. So what else than to turn to EBAY! It took a while but I found the perfect dress, sadly it was many sizes too big. I thought, "it's ok, it isn't like it is my wedding!" Off I went to this sweet little italian lady seamstress in the center of Milford. Despite the fact that she couldn't understand why I was already married, but still needed my dress altered, she worked her magic, insisted that she take it in, and up, just about everywhere, and unlike the bride I truly was in my day, I picked it up 20 hours before I would wear it, without even the thought to try it on. It fit! It was perfect!

That Sunday morning, I ran up to West Hartford, where the Fabulous Naomi Martinez and her lovely assistant Yazmin squeezed me in and "did me up". My make-up rocked, fake eyelashes and all, and my hair was wild, completely over the top, and just as I had wanted. Off I raced, down the highway, chasing the fabulous light I knew Megan wanted to catch so badly, (I too for selfish reasons, it was 39 degrees out!)

I begged my hubby to come along, insisted he would have fun and we would get some great pictures together, which we absolutely did!

Here are a few of my absolute favorites, all courtesy of Megan LaBarbera but swing over to Megan's blog to see more!

If this is something you have ever considered doing, but just haven't, I highly recommend it! It was so liberating! I will never forget the experience and love the pictures I have to visually remember it by as well!

For anyone who is still searching for that perfect photographer for you, I highly recommend checking Megan out! She totally rocks!

First wedding of the year!

After two months off for Talia and four for me due to the newest addition on our family, we were very excited to get back into the swing of things. Congratulations to Leslie and Christopher, Esq. and Esq., respectively, on their fabulous winter wedding!

Leslie and Chris were married on Saturday, January 5th at the Newtown Meeting House, which is truly the quintessential New England chapel and such a cozy and darling place in which to say one's vows. Her gals wore blue dresses and carried callas. Early on, Leslie fell in love with snowflakes and with the help of Jane from Just For You Weddings, executed her theme perfectly. Hanging the snowflakes (Pottery Barn via Ebay, I had to ask!) on the doors of Newtown Meeting House made such a statement and really set off the theme of her wedding.

The inside was decorated delightfully with a custom runner, huricanes lining the aisle and votives flickerly softly in the windows. I really loved how Leslie decorated the unity candle table with a custom linen, it had a great effect! Millennium Music provided the ceremony music and played beautifully.

Post ceremony, all the guests were handed lighted wands and they waved them into the night sky as the newlyweds made their grand exit. Sadly, I don't have a photo to post, but it was indeed a sight to see!

Following the ceremony, the reception took place at The Fox Hill Inn, where guests were treated to an extensive cocktail hour menu, a four course meal and a yummy dessert table. Men in Black from Boston played some great sets and kept the party dancing all night long. They even assisted the bridal party in belting out a few favorite tunes!

The Inn was decorated as a winter wonderland with branchy arrangements adorned with snowflakes and hanging tea lights. We overheard many of the guests remarking on how gorgeous everything was. Amanda Taylor of A Taylored Picture was the photographer and we are very much looking forward to her photos of everything!

The entrance arrangement truly made a statement in the intimate foyer of the Inn. .

and the centerpieces were equally magnificant on the tables, especially with the lights dimmed.

Each place setting was complete with a snowflake wine stopper and menu.

Some other fun details! In particular, the snowflake jewel in each bouquet was really the cat's meow.

Congrats again and best wishes for a wonderful life! We loved working with you!

xoxo -

Lindsay & Talia

Ringing in the New Year

Lindsay and I just want to take one last chance to wish all of our 2007 brides and grooms our marriage congratulations!

Whether you have been married for almost 12 months or just 1, we hope that 2007 brought a year of love, joy, happiness and bliss.

We look forward to celebrating all of the beautiful weddings sure to come with our 2008 brides and grooms as well.

Happy New Year!

Love, Lindsay and Talia

The rise of the "Mini-Moon"

Ok so this idea isn't exactly on the cutting edge, but the "Mini-Moon" or shortened honeymoon concept is definitely gaining popularity both with our clients and across the industry. For many reasons, couples are not afforded the luxury of lengthly or expensive honeymoons, so introduce the shortened get-away, maybe a few nights, maybe a few hours away, to escape to a miniature oasis, a seclusion from your everyday world.

Well I happen to love these types of vacations. My husband and I just returned from Newport, a favorite childhood destination of mine as I was given a gift by former clients, Kristin and Michael to stay at the lovely The Admiral Fitzroy Inn right on Thames Street, and walking distance to all of the shops and restaurants.

We have a fabulous time, for December the days were warm and sunny, the shops and restaurants were bustling with holiday excitement, the chowder was as good as ever, and the mansions were absolutely glorious. Of course, if all of that activity isn't up your alley, the Fountain Spa next door to the inn is sure to delight.

So maybe Newport isn't your ideal "Mini-Moon" destination. I have a few others up my sleeve that are sure to please. I absolutely love visiting Manchester, Vermont. Any time of year is a wonderful retreat.


While both The Equinox and The Reluctant Panther (my favorite room, the "Florist Suite" shown above) are highly regarded, I happen to love the charm and pure luxury that the Reluctant Panther affords. The restaurants at each are delectable, but regardless of where you choose to stay, I recommend dining at both.

If summer weather brings you to Vermont, hiking, biking, boating and outdoor activities abound. If it is winter weather that warms your heart, Manchester is close to many of the major ski areas, particularly Stratton Mountain. Of course, the Manchester Outlets are a hot spot no matter what time of year and very close by to both of the hotels I mentioned above.

So maybe heading out of state seems like too much trouble. Connecticut offers so many options as well. My all time favorite, including their restuarant is The Mayflower Inn and Spa in Washington, Connecticut.


I honestly can not think of a better Connecticut locale than this to retreat to even for the most discerning of travelers. The best time of year to venture to the Litchfield Hills is the peak of the fall foliage season. The landscape is so serene, the antique shopping is at it's best, and the wineries are fully operational, as it is the harvest season. My favorite in the area is The Hopkins Vineyard which overlooks Lake Waramaug.

I have enjoyed the opportunity to share with you a few of my favorite spots, and while I am no travel agent, I definitely encourage you to consider the concept of the "Mini-Moon" if escaping the realities of everyday life for the traditional one or two week honeymoon just isn't a reality for you!
Do you have a favorite nearby destination you would love to share? I would love to hear about it!

Beyond the bridal mag . . .

Quite often, it seems as if brides and wedding professionals alike become slaves to the obvious source of reference - bridal magazines (aka wedding porn). Taking a trip down memory lane to when Talia and I were both brides journaling our visions away on the Wedding Channel message boards (heh), I fondly remember how it was a great competition among all of us crazy brides to announce who had first spotted the most recent Martha, Elegant Bride, Southern New England Weddings or Grace Ormond issue at either her own doorstep, Borders or the local supermarket. I think sometimes we get so caught up in what is advertised in front of us that we forget other really terrific resources in which to stumble upon fabulous wedding ideas, such as fashion and decorating magazines.

Believe it or not, it was in fact the December issue of Cottage Living that inspired me to write this post, as I found within it the most adorable winter centerpiece that would look devastating in the best sense at any winter wedding:

Whats more, some of my all-time favorite bouquets were published in every fashionista's most swoonworthy magazine . . .Vogue, which of course obviously also has amazing ideas for shoes and bags.

For some reason I'm having issues putting in multiple photos in entry, but nonetheless the point is the same . . good style is as good style does. Keep your eyes open when reviewing non-wedding related resources. You may just come across something utterly spectacular when you are least expecting it. Even cooler, you'll probably never have a snarkly guest lean over to another at a table and say, "Oh, I saw that at another wedding too. . ."

Cheers!

Joining the ranks!

Well we have done it! Created a blog and are joining the ranks of our colleagues on the scene. I absolutely love reading and following along with what everyone else is up to, seeing gorgeous pictures, beautiful ideas, and of course happy brides and grooms, so I hope that Lindsay and I are able to provide some of the same for your viewing pleasure as well.

Stayed tuned!

Talia