When Kara Winslow with the Hippodrome approached us about designing a shoot to showcase their basement, cinema, and bar as a wedding venue we asked for some time to think about it. We knew it would be a huge undertaking because of the multiple locations so we wanted to be sure it was something we could do well.

Once we heard photographers, Krystal and Matt Radlinski of Verve Studio were on board, it was an immediate yes! Their work speaks for itself; dreamy, vibrant, bold, playful, perfection, with a touch of drama. Just what the Divas ordered!

We had met Krystal and Matt only briefly at a bridal expo, but had heard they had a wicked and quirky sense of humor. For us that was the “icing on the cake” and the perfect coupling to make this shoot FUN! Shortly after we arranged to meet in person. It was friendship at first sight so, it was no surprise to us that after just a couple of hours of collaborating we were off and running searching for models and the items we would need to pull a shoot of this size off!

Did I mention it was wedding season and we only had 3 weeks to plan it? Call us crazy!

After the proposal was approved I contacted SFC’s stage lighting Goddess, Liz Reynolds and met with her to share my vision. She ”got it” right away so I told her to let her creativity lead the way. The results were stunning and as Dr. Sasser said, ”your vision was genius”!

It takes one amazing team doing what they do best to make an event like this become an experience to be remembered and we had the best. Thank you Liz, John, Chase, Gayle, Bob, Teri, Chuck, Laura and all the performing artists for sharing your passion.

Once Michelle and Mark decided to get married they did not waste any time setting the date. Since they had been together for a few years it seemed perfectly sane to plan a wedding in a short amount of time. I was a little concerned at first when she mentioned it would be in less than 2 weeks but felt reassured after she told me she had just purchased her wedding dress off the rack that day and hired Celebrations Catering the day before. She knew what she wanted and acted quickly which is the secret to a less stressful wedding.  She came to us looking for elegant flower arrangements in shades of white and blush along with props and lighting to transform her backyard into an outdoor jazz club her friends and family could enjoy. After spending under an hour getting to know her and getting an idea of her style she handed the details over to us.

The outcome speaks for itself. The bride had a clear vision, and hired solid professionals with tremendous passion so she could sit back and enjoy the experience of being the bride. She also kept it simple, inviting only the most important people in her life to share in their joyous occasion. Thank you Michelle and Mark for trusting us to be a part of your “happily ever-after”.

The thank you was a sweet surprise!

When a bride comes to the table with a clear vision and all the vendors involved work together in harmony to bring that vision to life a perfect wedding is what you’ll get. That is exactly what happened when Dana decided she wanted to marry her sweetheart on the back 40 next to the pond on their lovely farm. She started off designing it by herself with Party Time Rentals help until she realized it might just be a good idea to hire some help with the coordinating and the details of the planning. Enter, Adore Weddings and Events who brought us on board to do the flowers and Cannon Photography to capture those special moments.

The bride picked out these gorgeous eggplant colored bridesmaids dresses and the boots to match!

Photography was busy taking glamour shots of the bride and groom I had James Pion from Vivo Capture get some detail shots before it got too late. Thanks James : )

Florals: The Event Divas

Photography: Cannon Photography (Main Bridal Pictures)

Photography: Vivo Capture (Details)

Wedding Planner: Adore Weddings and Events

Rentals (linens, door, rustic chandeliers, place setting): Party Time Rentals

We LOVE, LOVE, LOVE designing themed shoots! It’s what keeps us on our creative toes! When Solutions called wanting us to be a part of this fun flirty shoot with Verve Studio you know we had to say YES!!! It is hard to explain what a wild rollercoaster ride it is to work with a talented ball of quirky, fun filled energy like Krystal at Verve Studio. I would be willing to bet that outsiders can actually see the creative sparks shooting out of our heads the day we met with her, Kayleigh, and Cherish from Solution’s Bridal. With words like rollerskates, cotten candy, Katie Perry, retro, pink perfection, high tops, pinwheel lollipops, giant balloons, and vintage cars, our to do list grew by the second. When the meeting was over we all had a good idea which direction we were going with the shoot so we quickly headed our separate ways to begin gathering our items.

A month later, a few emails in between, and the addition of makeup artist, Kara Winslow, Sabrina Johns of 6th Street Station, and Giovanni Lugo of Footstone Ink, we had everything we needed to create the pink perfection you see below. We hope you enjoy the ride as much as we did : )

Candyland shoot concept: Krystal with Verve Studio

Photography: Verve Studio

Event Decor/Design: The Event Divas

Bridal Gowns: Solution’s Bridal

Invitations: Footstone Ink

Makeup: Kara Winslow

Hair: Sabrina of 6th Street Station

And now for the details…

When the guests arrived at Villa East they were greeted by beautiful Asian inspired florals, designed and created by The Event Divas, and piano music played by the very talented Eric Redmond. Melissa of Masterpiece Weddings made sure everyone was signed in and lead into the reception where additional music provided by Jared of GYNS Entertainment filled the room with energy. Guests chatted while noshing on delicious appetizers provided by Celebrations Catering and Ms. Debbie’s “to die for” cakes! Throughout the evening the brides, mothers, sisters, and friends were given the opportunity to mingle with Gio of Unique Designs, Shena of Platinum Digital Video, the Martins of Russell Martin Photography, Tanya Odom of Heritage Farms, and of course The Event Divas. The night was filled with excitement as the guests planned their events and sampled all of what the vendors had to offer. Along with the amazing food and lovely decor the hit of the evening was definitely the Phobooth people who provided more fun and entertainment with their boxes of accessories than anyone could have ever imagined! The pictures are priceless!

Cake Designing 101

So many flavors to choose from and so little time. Between filling flavors of boston cream, berrylicious raspberry, exotic mango, tropical pineapple, just to name a few, and cake recipes of vanilla, almond, orange, and red velvet a girl could easily get overwhelmed. No worries, with Ms. Debbie’s help along with a detailed check list the decision comes a lot easier than you would think.

Let the designing begin. Once the flavors have been chosen it’s time to design! A great way to start is by pulling ideas from the colors and theme you have chosen for your event. If you are still feeling clueless don’t panic, Ms. Debbie will lead the way by showing you an album of some of the lovely cakes she has already created. Can you think of a better way to get the creative juices flowing? My best advise is to remember to relax! You are in the best of hands.

When the evening ended everyone left with at least some of their events planned and vendors booked. By the smiles on the guest’s faces a good time was had by all…of course the sugar may have had a little something to do with it ; )

A special thanks to Russell Martin Photography for taking some great pictures and being so pleasant to work with. You rock!

The cake goddess herself, Ms. Debbie!

From the beginning an outdoor theme was in my head. My excitement quickly began to wane when I was reminded we would need to have the event indoors. Who would have known we would experience one of the hottest months of May in history?!  I could not get the visions of barns, fences, and trees out of my head so I went to my Event Engineer, otherwise known as my husband, and shared my vision with him.Surprisingly he wasn’t looking at me funny but he was definitely speechless.  Batting my eyes I reminded him he built me a tree inside the Hilton so constructing a forest for table tops would be a piece of cake. Right? Before I knew it he had chopped a  few small trees that needed to be thinned out on our property and, whalla, my forest was created! Yes, he is amazing and no, his brothers are all married ; )Now to the fun part. The volunteers were excited when they saw the finished trees but kept fretting over where we would have room to put them. As lovely as the Museum of Natural History is the space is a challenge to work in. You should have seen their faces when I explained they would be going on the tables. “You mean the stage”? “No, on the tables”. They just could not wrap their heads around it until John actually put one on the table. I love the reaction to unexpected moments! What a thrill! The finished product was magical and everyone felt transported.A huge thank you to all of the volunteers that helped me pull this together and www.shannonwhitakerphotography.com and Debbie Bradshaw Norton Muga for the pictures they took of the event.

P.S. I would love to see a bride use these in her wedding. Add a little “bling” and it would be unforgettable.