Something New?

Technology for something new? Interesting idea!

Congrats Holly & David!

Holly and David were married on Lindquist Beach waaaaay back in April! Holly shared these photos with me weeks ago but I'm just now getting to posting. Hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

Congrats Henry & Barbara!

A lovely ceremony on Lindquist Beach for a lovely bride & groom!

Something Old

SimplyBridal has started a Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed and Something Blue series. Over the next four weeks, we'll be sharing their ideas with you! Today is "Something Old" - what do you have planned for your something old?

Taming the Beasts

I stole that title from an article on WeddingBee - if you have children, you know it's appropriate! I've been meaning to blog this for awhile, I took this picture of one of my April brides name cards:

This adorable little giraffe was attached to the baby's name card! Any new mother would appreciate such a thoughtful touch. Keeping kids happy is hard. Especially when they are not the center of attention - they will pick up on that. To have a shiny new toy to entertain them with is key and when you're at a destination wedding, the shiny new toys you purchased to keep them happy on the plane may have lost their appeal by the time the ceremony & reception rolls around. For a bride to think of the little ones that have traveled so far for the wedding and have a little gift for them is not only the nicest thing to do, but very smart! Keep the kids happy and you'll minimize any disruptions or meltdowns.

Our wedding last weekend gave the children a sticker sheet - one with a bride and one with a groom - and sticker outfits to decorate them with. When I was in Indiana, I found this little sticker kit for $1 at JoAnne Fabric. The cake turns into a 3D piece of cake and it comes with yummy smelling stickers that look like icing that you can decorate the cake with. I wouldn't be surprised if they made a wedding cake version of this - this would be a great craft to keep even older kids entertained.

Or put the kids to work and place ribbon wands at their tables. It'll add a little extra decor and ribbons flying in the air will be very pretty & safe (it won't knock over any drinks or wait staff!).

There are a ton of products out there to help keep kids busy at weddings. Purchase one of these or make your own. My best advice is to keep away from adding too many sugary treats. This is one thing most parents will not appreciate! Last thing they want to deal with at a wedding reception is a child with a belly ache!

There are a ton of articles online to give you ideas. Check them out here, and here and here or do a Google Search on "keeping kids happy at a wedding".

Happy Mother's Day!!

To all my brides who are mothers or soon to be...and to all the mother's that gave birth to my beautiful brides as well! I work with some really incredible women (brides, mothers of brides and lots of women here on the island that help me with our weddings!) and I hope you are all enjoying your days!

One of my favorite brides, Jackie, had her wedding last week at Villa Botanica and surprised me not only with some fun gifts from Canada and seahorse wine glasses (will post a picture soon!) but these awesome little Canadian moose (meese??) for my daughters:

Thank you Jackie! The girls loved them! And I was so very touched that you thought of them!

Happy Mother's Day to you all!

A few more April wedding photos...

All photos are courtesy of our Simple Island Photography team!

We've been using these lanterns and moss/twine balls as simple yet elegant decor. Do you like?

I had to share this bouquet - it was a special request from the bride for all greenery and no flowers. I love what the florist made!

Yay for April Weddings!

I wish I could share a picture from each wedding, but I don't always have access to them. If you have photos you'd like featured on the blog, please share!

Cruise ship wedding & reception perfection...

I asked for photos and my brides answered! Here are some photos from our recent wedding at Villa Botanica, taken by the very talented Alexandra Lee of Young Hearts Photography. This couple had such a positive vibe. Very fun to work with! Thanks for making me a part of your special day!

April Re-Cap!

It's time for our monthly recap! Here are some photos from a few of the wonderful events we planned in April. If any of my April brides would like to send me some photos of their events, please do! We'd be happy to share!

Sparklers are becoming more and more popular for the first dance or exit. Brides used to ask me to bring a mason jar to display them but but these suckers are huge! We finally found a better solution.

 

I'm a little biased here, but my favorite wedding this month was my brothers. And my daughter is probably the cutest program girl I have ever seen.

Sunset wedding at Sapphire Beach...

Trunk Bay at sunset...

April 10th was our first official "Ultimate Cruise Ship Experience" wedding! *please help me with a better name!

These two were so beautiful together.

Laura emailed me this thank you after the wedding - it's emails like this that make my heart smile:

Jon and I just want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the amazing wedding you coordinated for us a couple of weeks ago.

The ceremony still brings me to tears when I think about it and the venue couldn't have been more perfect. Stuart's ceremony was the most beautiful ceremony I've ever been to; several of my guests told me the same thing.   I also never forget the feeling I felt as we walking into the reception room with our family and friends cheering us on. It was an out of body experience for me.

I've thought about the wedding everyday since we've been back and become overwhelmed with happiness to know that we got married the way we wanted to and it couldn't have happened without you and Stuart.

Thank you so much!

I'm a very lucky person to do what I do, sharing each couples love and joy on their wedding day!

One of my favorite things about my job is seeing the special touches brides come up with, like this handmade wedding cake topper featuring the brides beloved cats!

And some special elements are unplanned - much like the wedding! This couple decided once they arrived that they'd like to get married while on vacation! Last minute elopements? No problem! This bride was telling some of the staff at Caneel Bay that she was planning to get married and didn't have a dress. One of the staff members whipped up a handmade wedding dress for her!

And even signed it for her!

I'm going to be updating the photo albums this weekend - lots of new things to share, including many of our beautiful bouquets and centerpieces.

Who says wedding dresses need to be white?

I'm kind of cheating here because this couple was married on May 1st - they don't really qualify for my April re-cap! And the photo has not been edited yet - but I loved this little getaway photo! Married on Hawksnest Beach and heading out for a morning sail!

Love this guest "book" idea.

Heading to the ceremony at Villa Botanica - this is really one of my favorite parts of the day - you can feel the anticipation from the bride...

The father/daughter moments always make me tear up! Here's dad taking his girl down the aisle...

And onward we march through May!