Married: John & Vida – June 27, 2009 {Pt 1}

I have been so antsy to feature the wedding of my dear friends, John and Vida, I’m so excited to finally have my little hands on their pictures!! I have known John for over a decade now… we met in the cornfields of Champaign (aka the University of Illinois) and have managed to remain friends throughout the years. I always thought that perhaps John would be a “bachelor for life", but after he introduced our circle of friends to Vida, I knew that that title was on its way out…

Vida has a thing for sea shells. So he popped the question July 4th weekend of 2008 by tucking a gorgeous canary yellow diamond ring into a sea shell, proposing, and then whisking her off to a weekend beach getaway… so Vida could collect more shells :)

Their wedding was one of the most intense weddings I have produced to date, with a whopping 22 different vendors! FYI, a wedding typically averages about a dozen vendors. But it was certainly the most rewarding in terms of the final outcome… happy couple, happy guests, and fabulous wedding!

All images by one of my favorite photographers, Albert of Second Print Productions. Not much need for captions in this series below… the pictures speak for themselves!

 


I am a wee bit obsessed with Vida’s bouquet, by Grace of Vale of Enna. Hydrangea, cymbidium orchids, succulents, lotus pods and fiddlehead ferns. And the perfect shape and size. Le sigh…


 


Vida looks stunning, and so happy!

 
While John looks pensive…

Their first look at Vida’s parents’ home


 

 

 

 

 
That’s my wedding veil that Vida borrowed, and it looks very precarious in this shot… but I love it! 




Hellooo, gorgeous!

 More of Grace’s handiwork

 
Vida wanted some whimsical balloon shots…

And they turned out so cute!

Where in the world are they? Their venue, Envent, was in a warehouse district with some large silos… urban chic!

To be continued…

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Beautiful Invitations by Junefille

Today, I asked my friend and wedding stationer extraordinaire, Franchec of Junefille, to share some of their recent work, along with some background and insight into each piece. Fran and I met in the Corporate world a while back, but quickly learned that we both led secret double lives in the wedding world :)

(Commentary below by Fran from Junefille)

We set out to find a way to combine Cynthia's youthful presence along with her mother’s traditional view on her daughter’s special event. By focusing on her favorite color, using filigre and a crystal brooch, we were able to give Cynthia an invitation that embraced the young woman she was becoming with a punch of color that kept it her personal style.

 

Maria and Nathan wanted a unique twist on traditional invites. We suggested peacock feathers for a chic pop of color. The result is a vibrant look with a classic presentation.

When we first met Sara and Jonathan, they made sure to explain the importance of blending their cultures while still maintaining a modern appeal. The use of cherry blossoms symbolized Sara’s Chinese culture with a modern twist.

This image above illustrates the many ways couples can add special details to their invites with monogrammed belly bands.

The use of floral imagery was very important for this romantic themed wedding. The theme was carried out through all of wedding stationary, down to the elegance with the font treatments.

If you are looking for custom wedding invitations, don’t hesitate to contact Junefille… Their work is stunning, and they will collaborate with you to design invitations that your guests will actually want to KEEP!

Favorite Wedding-Related Reads

Print out this Borders coupon and get yourself 40% off list price of a book!

In store only and it expires on Monday 9/7, so hurry hurry. Looks like you need to sign up for a Borders Rewards Membership, but that literally took me a minute last time, so no biggie!

Here are some of my favorite wedding-related recommendations…

The Knot Book of Wedding Lists: Offers some fantastic tips for brides-to-be’s.

Fete: The Wedding Experience: Hello, wedding porn at its finest!! Inspiring weddings and great advice by NYC planner extraordinaire, Jung Lee.

Colin Cowie Chic: Fabulous inspiration by THE Colin Cowie…

Wedding Etiquette: And we can’t forget Peggy Post. While its often said that “anything goes” for wedding these days, we can’t just throw away ALL the rules! There are still some niceties and considerations that are just considered good wedding etiquette!

Any recommendations to add?

If I Could Do It Again: The Color Scheme

The color scheme of your wedding is a super important decision for sure! I am absolutely SMITTEN with aubergine aka “eggplant”, not to be mistaken with a royal purple-y/grape! I would pair the aubergine with small accents of fuchsia, large splashes of marigold yellow, lots of moss green and with gray serving as my “neutral.”

If you are looking for a cool site to help you pull together color palettes like the one above, check out ColourLovers.com.  Click on Palettes –> Create New, and then have some fun!

What is your color scheme… or if you are married like myself, what would you choose now?

{Disclaimer: Being a wedding planner, I see so many options, ideas, venues, vendors, etc., that I never knew existed when I planned my own wedding a few years ago. So I’m going to have a little fun with a series called, “If I Could Do it Again” and plan my dream wedding… if I could do it again!}

Chicago Weddings: Making it Legal

There are so many fun aspects to planning your fabulous wedding, that sometimes the process of actually getting your marriage license gets overshadowed. But definitely don’t forget about this important step!

Below is a map of Chicago area counties… get your license in the county where your wedding is taking place, and NOT where you live! For example, if you live in downtown Chicago (Cook County), but are getting married in the suburb of Oak Brook, be sure to go to the DuPage County Clerk’s office to obtain your license. And yes, this means you will probably need to take a day off to go there since the DuPage County Clerk’s office does not have evening or weekend hours…

(Source)

Since many of my clients are getting married in the City of Chicago, here are some Cook County tips:

Eligibility:
- be 18 years of age or older
- be of opposite sex
- not be blood relatives

Application Process:
- Couples must appear together at one of the Cook County Clerk's six locations
- Fill out and sign a marriage license application
- Present valid identification with proof of age
- The marriage license fee is $40, to be paid at the time of application by cash or debit card

Additional Information:
- License is issued while you wait
- License is effective the following calendar day after they are issued
- License is valid for 60 days
- License is effective only in Chicago and suburban Cook County
- And lastly, no medical or blood tests are needed

Please be sure to visit the official Cook County Clerk’s Office website for complete details on applying for your marriage license. (I didn’t cover the info on underage marriages or recently divorced applicants!),

Here are additional links with information on where/how to obtain your marriage license in other Chicago-area counties:
- DuPage County
- Lake County
- McHenry County
- Kane County
- Will County

Have a fabulous weekend!

If I Could Do It Again: The Photographer

{Disclaimer: Being a wedding planner, I see so many options, ideas, venues, vendors, etc., that I never knew existed when I planned my own wedding a few years ago. So I’m going to have a little fun with a series called, “If I Could Do it Again” and plan my dream wedding… if I could do it again!}

Wonderful, I’ve got my dream venue! What’s next? Generally, I recommend to my clients that they start their photographer hunt as soon as they’ve secured their date and venue. I’ll follow my own advice :) Now personally, this is a toughie! There is a serious abundance of FANTASTIC photographers in the Chicago area. Yay for options! Yikes for decisions, decisions, decisions… (and I know there are a TON of amazing photographers all over the country, but gotta represent Chicago here!)

While I want a modern, chic, whimsical wedding, I want my pictures to be forever classic and utterly romantic. Enter - Dean Thorsen of Thorsen Photography. I don’t know how much more “classic” you can get. See for yourself:

Dean photographed the amazing wedding of my former clients, Natalie and Jake last September. Natalie is fellow Weddingbee blogger, Mrs. Peacock! This one below is probably one of my favorite pictures of all time!

 

Perfection.

Ohhh, but do I have to pick just ONE photographer?! For my fantasy wedding, I’d like three, please!

Hellooo Olivia Leigh Photographie… so fresh and vibrant with a heavy dose of fun and a splash of vintage.

 

Now if you don’t mind, I’d also like a rock star at my wedding… Kenny Kim is a photography ROCK STAR! He is globetrotter these days, shooting high-profile and destination weddings galore; I just love the sophisticated and editorial look of his work! Check out the amazing photos from a wedding he recently shot – the groom is Yul Kwon, winner of Survivor: The Cook Islands!

 

 

Now, if budget were no issue, who would YOU hire?!