Tori, with the smile that is so captivating! She and Mitch were married at Rosewood in a beautiful garden ceremony. I don't know how many guests that had in attendance, but it was the most I have seen at Rosewood since Renee's own daughter got married last Spring. Wow!
The wedding theme was described to be as "Romantic, Southern elegance," of which they definitely achieved. It was a beautiful evening.
We were able to work with new (to us!) photographer, Daniel Taylor and his wife, Kelli, both of Daniel Taylor Photography. They were a pleasure, as we knew that they would be! I have seen their images and they are fantastic. Tori, Mitch, and their families will be very pleased!
Beautiful, Jessica and the not so bad Slade (kidding!!) were married at Riverchase UMC on Saturday. We had the opportunity to with with Greg Hawkins of Studio G. His photos are always amazing! They never disappoint!
For the wedding reception, we went to one of our favorite reception sites, the Matt Jones Art Gallery! The place is just naturally beautiful! And is always managed perfectly by the GoPro team.
Here is a clip of Slade and Jessica sharing their first dance!
Miss Virginia came to us from a referral by her photographer, the wonderful Marsha Perry. We love vendor referrals - they mean so much to us that other industry professionals value our work. I think the best part about Virginia is her sweet smile - maybe because it matches her heart. I don't know, but she is a girl that everyone likes instantly. She and Andy were married on a very hot day in July at the First UMC Church in Tuscaloosa with their reception at The University Club.
Virginia only wanted us to film the ceremony, thinking that she would just care about the ceremony. Well, we made a bet with her (after all we have talked with quite a few brides over the past seven years). We are always approached by someone saying their biggest regret from their wedding was not hiring a videographer. It breaks my heart when I hear this.
So we decided that we would come film the ceremony like we contracted, but we would also film the reception (for free). I told her that when she got back from her honeymoon, she could decide whether or not she wanted us to edit the reception. If she wanted it, then she would just pay us the difference in what we charged her and our normal rate. If she didn't, we would only be out our time for filming.
Approximately 35 minutes into the reception (right after she danced with her grandfather), Virginia came up to me and told me that she had to have the entire video. This is the footage that helped us to win the bet.
Ten years ago this month, John and I stood together in front of our family and friends and exchanged our wedding vows. You know the ones - through the good and the bad we promised to stick together. What a wild ride it has been! I am not sure we ever do things the easy way. We buy old houses, live in them while we do massive repairs, at the same time managing a thriving business and a busy 3 year old. Sure we get stressed and overwhelmed, but that is what marriage is all about - staying together through all of the good and the bad.
Somewhere during 23 continuous weekends of weddings, we made ourselves (Well John made me) take a couple of days off. When we were newlyweds, we dreamed that at 10 years we would travel around the world for our anniversary, but you don't think of things like responsibilities and kids and things like that which prevent you from taking 3 weeks off! So we settled (such a harsh word to use when talking about it) for Ross Bridge and a staycation.
If you are an active blog follower, you will know that we spent our 9 year anniversary there as well and maybe even our 8th. This year it was a little different. I am Facebook friends with Ross Bridge and they announced a really great special for a week before our anniversary. Loving a deal, I made our reservation with the hotel and subsequently my dad (aka Pop) to come and take care of Will for us.
Off we go to Ross Bridge (with only one laptop I might add) for the evening. While we were checking in, I casually mentioned that it was our 10 year anniversary that we were celebrating. The wonderful man at the desk upgrades us to an AMAZING tower suite. I love hotels - I love everything about them right down to the little shampoo bottles - so this was HUGE for me! I really am a little kid in this body, running around the hotel checking out all of the nooks and crannies of our swanky suite.
So let's keep score here: Fabulous room at a great price = check
Exactly at 4:00 that afternoon, a knock occurs on the door. Much to my surprise when I opened the door, the very talented (and current bride of ours) Meredith Brown (One Fine Day Artistry) was standing there. She tells me that she is there to give me a makeover for our evening out. When you are used to filming people getting their make up done every weekend, it is very strange to just sit there and let it happen to you. But I did because my wonderful husband and set everything up for me as a surprise. Jealous yet????
Evening makeup done by a professional makeup artist = check
After Meredith had finished her masterpiece - she really did a great job, we dressed in our fancy clothes for dinner. Much to my surprise (once again) James Coats and Caroline (the 1959 Jaguar) picked us up from the hotel to take us to dinner. Traffic was unusually bad and Caroline was having a tough day. Because James is our friend, it didn't matter to us to switch cars. After all, a new transmission on a old car is a whole lot of money and we didn't want to be the cause of that! We made a couple of detours before arriving to The Village Tavern for dinner. What an adventure!
Riding in style in a Jaguar = check
Another great thing about the day was that we were going to be dining for free thanks to a gift card from one of our happy customers! John knows how much I love to not spend money so he was so wonderful to go along with this plan. Now he might have had an issue if we had a gift card to McDonalds or something! Please note, there were no slides, jumpy things, or chicken fingers at this restaurant. I was in heaven!! Our meal was amazing! After dinner, James and a 1955 Chevy were waiting to take us back to the hotel.
Fabulous dinner for FREE = check
We even had time to jump in the hot tub after dinner!
The next morning we used our breakfast coupons (did I mention that they came FREE with the room)!!!! If you have ever had Brock's breakfast buffet at Ross Bridge, then you know what a treat that was. Yummy!
Yummy breakfast for FREE = check
Swimming was next on the list. We couldn't have too much fun without our little Will-man. My father brought him to the hotel ready to swim! After being a little timid in the water, Will warms up to the idea of the big water slide! John and I took turns sliding down this slide while holding Will. It was so much fun!!! And on the way home, our little boy fell fast asleep.
FREE family fun for hours = check
Sure reality hit us like a ton of bricks, but it sure was fun to get away. Since our staycation, our actual anniversary has come and gone. But with the help from the guys at Jamm Entertainment, John had one more surprise in store for me. When I arrived home from meeting with a bride, John had a hot bath waiting for me AND a mirrored ball hanging in our living room with a spotlight on it, complete with a smoke machine and music. With our wonderful son tucked into bed, we danced and talked about the past 10 years that we have been married. I can't wait to see what is in store for the next 10! I am a lucky girl!
World's Best Husband = check
Brenda: The Bubbly bride that never meets a stranger. David: The rocket scientist who invented something that actually flies on the space shuttle! Together this couple had a perfect wedding day. First at the Gadsden Presbyterian Church for an intimate ceremony with family. Pictures were captured by The Foto Atelier.
The day concluded with a fun reception at the Wynfrey. The food was delicious as it only could be with Occasions by Wynfrey. Jamm Entertainment entertained the guests not only with great music, but also with a photo booth in the lobby, a Wii console for the kids, and Karaoke for Brenda and her ladies! They were still singing when we left!!!
Congratulations Bill and Carla Sullivan! Wonderful vendors associated with this wedding: M. Elizabeth, The Veranda, Soho's Rosewood Hall, Andy Boyles and Rachel Gaudel (floral design), Barb's Cakes (one of my favs!!), Rare Transportation, Mason Fischer Photography, Acton Limousine, AG Lighting, and Chef Bob Catering!
The day started with getting ready coverage at the bride's aunt's house in Vestavia. After we got Carla into her beautiful dress, she had her 1st sighting with Billy at the Veranda on Highland. Great place, so many beautiful opps inside and out. From there the couple went to St. Francis Xavier for a romantic ceremony and then to Soho for a rockin' reception.
Congrats guys!!!
Another beautiful Summer evening at Rosewood. Angela and Chase were married in the gardens surrounded by their family and friends. With the reception inside the main house, guests were treated to a wonderful meal provided by Rosewood.
A little light dancing occurred during the reception, with the highlight being when we saw Chase shake his shoulders to the music. That term doesn't describe what we was doing, but I don't know how else to describe it. Several ladies "eeewwww'd" in adornment!
It is not often that we get to work with new photographers, but this particular weekend, we were able to work with Once in a Lifetime Photography. I believe it was their first time at Rosewood, and I am sure that they will be back many times! What a great evening!
I am not really sure where to start with this one. W.O.W. What a party!!!!
We found Molly & Kevin thorugh a previous couple (Adrienne and Luke - from Bridesmaid Jill fame) and she is just a doll! Right after they were engaged we sat down with Molly to go over her wedding. At that time, she hadn't booked any of her vendors, so little by little, I found out the details that would make up her perfect day! On the day of the wedding, Molly looked stunning in her Heidi Elnora dress.
There are so many things to say about this wedding! I am just going to do a list to make sure I include all of the vendors.
Jackie Rowell - wedding planner. We have known her through industry assoications but this was our first wedding together and I think it turned out great!
Rehearsal dinner: Park Lane - Funny story here. Beautiful venue and Mary Jones actually left the lighting up a little for me!! Hee hee!!! That night she posted on her FB page that "It looks like Motel 6 over here" You might have to be over the age of 30 to remember those commercials. I thought it was hilarious! They were leaving the lights on for me!!!
Photographers: Armosa Studios: First time to work with this couple. Great times. Love their work!
Very cool getting ready coverage at ALOFT hotel in Homewood. Cool lobby.
Reception: The Club, but not in the ballroom, but in the disco room. Looking for something different, try this. You still have the terrace, and you also have the cool dance floor!!! Tons of people there, I think I heard 675. It is not our record though, but that is a whole lot of thank you notes for Molly!!!
Band: Black Jacket. Never ending entertainment from them. Kept everyone on the dance floor the entire time.
Flowers: Beautiful flowers by Dorothy McDaniel's Flower Market.
One of the most AWESOME shots from this wedding will come from John hanging out of the van window with a camera following the couple from the church to The Club. They were in a family's antique car, driven by Vintage Auto. So if a minivan was being driven by a crazy lady with some guy hanging out the door on Saturday, no worries, we got a KILLER shot!!!!!