100 Layer Cake

31 Jan

Charming hand-crafted Vancouver wedding: Natalie + Jason

categories Real Weddings

This is the story of a bride who did not wish for rain but prepared for it anyway. Who searched for a florist and came out feeling confident she could do the work for half the price. Who threw a wedding for under 15k. Who wore a short Sarah Seven dress when family wanted her to wear a long gown. Who crafted everything you see in the reception: banners, tablecloths, doily bunting banner, signs, invitations. And who didn’t sleep for the entire week prior to her wedding. Excitement and crafting will do that to you!

cute-sarah-seven-short-wedding-dress

vibrant-yellow-billy-ball-flowers

rainy-vancouver-couples-first-look

like-plus-like-anchor-tattoos

vintage-floral-bridesmaid-dresses

backyard-vancouver-wedding-ceremony

handmade-wedding-wine-labels

This may be a minor detail, but check out those wine bottles. Natalie and her mom had wine made for them so they could customize the labels. We love this!

cute-couple-shots-at-home

charming-backyard-wedding-details

whimsical-mason-jar-cocktail-bar

vintage-vinyl-record-garland

mexican-taco-bar-reception

homemade-wedding-pinata

vintage-suitcase-photo-booth-display

bunting-roladex-guest-book

charming-sarah-seven-wedding-dress

Natalie’s got the cutest blog called Fun Happy Things too. Check it out!

Congrats Natalie + Jason!

Photography: Gucio Photography/ Videography: Shayne Geddes / Event planning: Petite Pearl Events / Catering: La Taqueria / Officiant: Darian of Young Hip and Married / Bride’s dress: Sarah Seven / Shoes: vintage / Veil: handmade by Bride / Bridesmaid dresses: vintage / Hair: Studio 2291 / Makeup: Makeup Artistry by Denise / Groom’s apparel: shirts – American Apparel, pants – Levi’s, shoes – Vans

31 Jan

On sale now in the Pop-up Shop: Chez Renee

categories Details + Decor, Pop-Up Shop

This is a truly epic sale in the Pop-Up Shop, you guys. Chez Renee is SOOO full of amazing decor, accessories, supplies, signs, and vintage pieces that it’s literally a guarantee that you’ll find something you love in her shop. Srsly jump on the chance to purchase a voucher good for any merchandise in her shop.

Look how much cuteness:

And there’s tons more on the Chez Renee site! Claim your voucher asap because they’re not going to last long… if we have anything to do with it.

Plus you can also pick up a spot to The Little Branch’s floral workshops in LA this week in the Pop-Up Shop. Buy a few new vases or vintage vessels with your Chez Renee voucher and then fill them with the arrangements you’ve learned to make in a workshop with The Little Branch!

30 Jan

North Carolina Mountain wedding: Morgan + David

categories Real Weddings

Even though Morgan + David had known each other since the seventh grade, it wasn’t until they were juniors in high school that Morgan’s parents gave David the number one spot on the “Men Morgan Should Marry List”. Aside from knowing each other for so long, they work together, operating a small graphic design studio in Central Florida called Hatchet Design. Two designers planning a wedding means great details, and details they had. Obviously they designed gorgeous invites and had them engraved on birch wood. Pretty much everything was DIY in this wedding, from the table runners to the ring bearer pillow, the bow ties to the jewelry. Morgan sums up their wedding in 5 words: vintage lumberjack western chic fresh. Yeehaw!

Groomsmen in suspenders

Their venue had luxury teepees, complete with a claw foot bathtub and queen size bed! It also had firepits for roasting s’mores, a huge swinging wooden horse, a hammock, and beautiful log picnic tables. The perfect spot for you outdoorsy folks!

handmade birdcage veil

Morgan’s cute necklace and veil/hairpiece was handmade by her mother and friends!

handmade ring bearer pillow

here comes the bride sign

outdoor ceremony

outdoor reception

Check out those picnic tables, that swinging log with saddles carved into it – so many beautiful details already there to work with. That’s the perfect type of venue.

wedding cake and wedding pies

Additional money savers and DIY projects included: homemade pies, ice cream, cookies, candy, and home brewed beer. They did it all!

sparkler send off

Great tip for staying organized and easily communicating with your guests before the wedding:

Early on I formed a private Facebook group for all of the guests going to the wedding, which gave them the opportunity to communicate with each other and for me to easily communicate with all of them. Since the wedding was out of town, it was a really great way to coordinate carpooling to save money on gas, sharing rental cars for multiple smaller groups with similar flight schedules, and sharing where they decided to book rooms and why. It really helped us all get organized, and made it really easy for me to get a quick message out to everyone about updates and changes to the wedding weekend.

Check out their moving picture, shot by GoNorth Films:

Photography: Anna Naphtali / Cinematography: GoNorth Films /Venue: The Lodges at Eagles Nest /Flowers: Bless Your Heart Blooms / Catering: REID’s Catering Co. / Custom wedding dishes: Naomi Mostkoff / Musician: Michael Claytor and his Friends / Bride’s dress: Watters / Shoes: vintage Tiffany flats / Jewelry: handmade / Groom’s suit: custom Indochino / Shoes: DSW / Bridesmaid: J.Crew / Flower girls: J.Crew

30 Jan

Traveler’s Joy

categories Sponsored Post

Truth is, your family and friends would rather pitch in and buy you a gift that goes towards your honeymoon: a night’s stay in Bora Bora, a Vespa ride in Italy, or a camera to capture all your sweet lovey moments in Belgium. They’re gifts that mean something and don’t just take up space on your kitchen counter (yes, a blender is nice too). That’s why we’re smitten over Traveler’s Joy. It’s the best of both worlds: your guests can easily give you a special wedding gift and you receive what you really want – the honeymoon of your dreams.

Traveler’s Joy has become popular among couples registering for ‘physical items’ related to their honeymoon. Travel guidebooks, camera, video-cameras, luggage, snorkeling gear – really, anything you can dream of. Their registry system makes it easy to divide those high-ticket items into manageable gifts so a camera that may cost $500 is actually spit up into 4 gift of $125. Oh, the possibilities…

Get a glimpse into some of the locations and items couples are registering for on Traveler’s Joy Real Member Stories page. It’s the best way to get you brainstorming honeymoon ideas. Then start making your registry!

Check ‘em out! travelersjoy.com

This post was sponsored by Traveler's Joy.

27 Jan

Dear ESB: Can I tell my cousin-to-be to CHOOSE ANOTHER DATE?

categories Wedding Etiquette

Eeek. Sticky situation, best handled by our resident drama/etiquette expert East Side Bride.

Dear ESB,

I’ve been engaged for about a year. We set a date about, I think, 8 or so months ago and have been saving every penny to pay for our wedding. To our delight, every dating couple in my fiance’s family seemed to hurriedly up their marital plans during the time of our engagement. I know that it’s not “all about us,” and have happily bought plane tickets, shower gifts, wedding gifts, bridesmaids dresses, shoes, alterations, and, to the best of my ability, been happy and excited for them.

My question is this….

A close cousin to the groom got engaged to his short-term gf immediately after one of the siblings’ weddings. After a few jokes were made about actually taking our wedding date, she chose to have her wedding the weekend before.

The cousin spoke to my in-laws asking them if we minded (they said that it sounded like an inconsiderate idea), and then the cousin called us. Their reasons were that the bride wants a fall wedding, doesn’t want to be associated with Halloween, and wants to go to home football games. We politely asked them to chose any other date.

A month later the cousin called again asking if we minded. More forcefully, we urged him not to pick the date. The cousin knows he’s stepping on toes, but when he tells the bride she “cries as if I told her her dog died.” I’d like to talk directly to the bride, but she won’t call us back.

Am I being a bridezilla? What would you do in this situation?

Thanks,
Tired of his family

*****

You said your piece. Now you have to STFU.

Betcha the bride will cry even harder when family members who received your save-the-date first decline the invitation to her wedding.

(Photo by Emma Summerton for W Magazine via Fashion Gone Rogue.)