Sunday, July 29, 2012

Meghan & Kendall | National Constitution Center

Meghan and Kendall were and amazing couple who became wonderful friends when I coordinated & did the decor for their wedding at the National Constitution Center. Meghan and I had so much fun and got along so well that she has become my assistant coordinator for the weddings we have had since! She was a godsend for WOAL  - I would have never been able to enjoy my sisters wedding with out knowing she was implementing all of our plans...so I was thinking of her today and thought I would give a little shout out about her day...pictures to follow!

Meghan + Kendall Wedding Highlight; National Constitution Center- Philadelphia, PA from Cord3Films on Vimeo.


This post that was meant to be - since the big news about GM ElliottVideography re-branding with their new name Cord Three Films just coming out! Check them out!
(Thanks Violet & Glen & Congratulations on the new name!)

Gretchen and Argo | Le Meridien

I am so delighted to have gotten a number of calls from brides who are having Le Meridien as part of their wedding day! I had such a nice consultation there this afternoon and it reminded me that I have yet to post my very first wedding there - shame on me! As a self described "Magpie" more bling, more & more ribbons, more feathers, more details = more better!
So wait no more..I need to start with the Jewels - because that's where Gretchen did! She is the most prolific,Type-A, mildly obsessive compulsive artist I know {and I say that with the utmost affection!} She owns a jewelry design company Studio 320 and the bling starts here. I don't think there was a free appendage to be found! Not only did she design all of the bridal jewelry that she wore herself, she did baubles for the bridesmaids, the flower girls including the pomander handles, her mother & a few other ladies to boot! Check out all of the in's and out's of custom work in her "Gretchen McHale Argood | Artist of the Month" spotlight!

And yes...of course she had time to design her rings too! WHAT?! Amazing! This part is one of the sweetest - they both tossed some of their treasures (Class ring, charms etc.) literally into to melting pot & came up with these treasures. Her jeweler John at Marchi on 8th & Walnut completed the vision: 
The personal flowers were the perfect balance to her beautiful dress by Ella Bridals with the long bridesmaids dresses finished off with the overflow of multi-textured ribbons...
 
The flowers were such delicate shades of Chanel pink, blush and cream in collections - like jewels of their own, each unique on each of the tables.
 
 
Now, don't let all that sparkle blind you - the Groom Argo is no slouch! Aside from being an amazing DJ who's crew represented in keeping the dance floor packed - but he also owns a design company "Argo Design" and did all the graphics and printed details from invites down to candle wraps!
I am not sure I know another couple who takes such advantage of what Philly has to offer - I love that they chose so many of  Steve Power's "Love Letter" Murals to celebrate their day. All of these images were the creative eye of their photographer Chris Kendig - his site is full of amazing work and moments and details!
There is so much more to say about all of the details in Gretchen's day...I celebrate her as "Artist of the Month"  - check out her inspirations in this post dedicated to her creativity & wedding vision!

Artist of the Month | Gretchen McHale Argood

Tell me a little about what inspired the design for your wedding necklace & your bridesmaids? The inspiration for me is always the fashion.  I start with the style of the dress, and move forward from there.  I then shopped for the elements for my jewelry and the girls jewelry.  I didn’t go into the shopping with a specific design in mind…I let the colors guide me and chose gems and crystals that I liked, and the designs grew from there. 
What about your mom's gems, is she as fashion forward as you? My mom is much more conservative than me, so I wanted to honor and respect her sense of style while still adding some flash and pizzazz! My mom’s jewelry featured freshwater pearls and Swarovski crystals in a variety of whisky shades.  I also made jewelry for the mother of the groom and the 2 flower girls, and used Swarovski crystals and chain elements in them. 
 
So for you then? My jewelry featured keshi pearls, Swarovski crystals, Swarovski briolette pendants, and vintage leaded crystals.  The bridesmaids had smaller versions of the Swarovski pendants featured in my necklace and faceted cloudy quartz. 
Exactly how many pieces did you have on that day? On my wedding day I wore the following things that I created: necklace, earrings, pearl bracelet with my “something blue” being a heart shaped toggle clasp with a key closure that says “you are my joy”, the wedding cuff, and an anklet that featured a sixpence from 1947 that had been a part of a bracelet my grandmother used to wear (and to complete the rhyme-something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, and a sixpence for her shoe).  In addition to the pieces I made, I wore an antique diamond and sapphire platinum ring that had belonged to my great aunt Kay, my Fossil watch (I seriously can’t live without knowing what time it is, and I hid it under my cuff!), my Lagos Heart of Philadelphia bracelet that was a birthday gift from all my dear girlfriends, my engagement ring that my husband and I designed together, and later in the day my wedding band that my husband and I designed together.
What inspired you to make the cuff? I wanted something bold and different, and I wasn’t coming up with anything that really excited me…I decided to try something really out of the box and different for me.  I knew I’d have a lot of fabric from my hem and that I wanted to used it in my bouquet, and when I was thinking about how that was going to look and be adorned, I got the idea for the cuff.  I worked with one of my bridesmaids on the construction of the base of the cuff and then spent countless hours embellishing it by hand with thousands of Swarovski crystals and tiny seed pearls.

How long did it take to make the complete wedding jewel package for your wedding? I procrastinated….a lot!  But it was my own wedding and I knew what I had to work with, and how long it would take to get done.  I shopped for my gems about 6 months in advance of the wedding, but the actual production and creating of the jewels took about 6 weeks of insanity.  That included 8 bridesmaids sets of necklace and earrings, 1 Mother of the Bride set of necklace, earrings, and bracelet, 1 Mother of the Groom set of necklace and earrings, 2 Flower Girl sets of necklaces and earrings as well as pomander ball chains, and the bridal Parure which consisted of earrings, necklace, bracelet, cuff, and anklet.

How far in advance do girls need to book your services? The cuff alone says 4-8 weeks…Timing all depends on how intricate they want the jewelry to be.  I’m a bold bride and knew I wanted really edgy bold pieces for my wedding.  Lots of brides like smaller, delicate things which can be made within a shorter time frame.  The cuff is tricky, as production on that can’t happen till the bride has had her fitting and has the fabric with which to create the cuff.  I did make one in 2 weeks but that was straight up sewing for like 6 hours a day (in addition to my full time job!)  The answer to the question is, I can work with whatever timeline comes my way.  If you give me a year, I can spend half of that time working on concept and materials sourcing, and the world is your oyster in terms of options.  If you’re booking 2 months out, you can’t be as specific with the types of gems and materials used, but you’ll still look divine on your wedding day!


Is it ok for me to refer to you as a Magpie? ;-) of course!!!!  !

Gretchen is one of a kind - and so are her pieces - so you have to move fast unless you are going to have her design somethings specifically for you! Custom work is truly welcome!Check out her pieces on her site studio320jewelry.com, you can pick up a few pieces of her latest on Etsy and of course see what she's up to on FaceBook! Share the "Like!"

Special thanks to Chris Kendig Photography for capturing G+A's day and details so perfectly!

Saturday, July 28, 2012

WOAL 2012 | Jennifer and Iain have tied the knot!

The long awaited Wedding of a Lifetime {WOAL} of my sister Jen and Iain has come to pass and I have so many things to talk about! (My apologies to every bride who met me after they got engaged & has either delighted in - or tolerated - my little ramblings about them as we planned for the big day!) The day has come & gone and we had so much fun! Jen was beautiful, Iain was dashing & the dance floor was packed!
I headed down South to Richmond, VA on the Tuesday before & we were in full wedding mode until the big day July 14, 2012. I am going to resist a little longer before writing up a full post; just until the Newlyweds go through all of the beautiful pictures Erin and Mike took. Their image above is just one of the lovely sneak peeks you can see on their blog! Thank you Tall and Small!

Melissa and Andy | Free Library of Philadelphia

My love affair with yellow is still in full force; imagine my delight in meeting Melissa! Not only does she share my passion for the hue, but is so full of energy and excitement that she shines like the color! {Andy's not too shabby either!}
She & Andy were so much fun to work with & full of enough DIY details to put Etsy out of business! It was a family affair and we felt like one of them when team Mom & Auntie showed up to set up all the hand crafted details. I love to see how couples who select the Free Library of Philadelphia as a venue make it their own - and this Rooftop wedding had all the details! Like these "Check Out Stamped" Programs, Book Mark Seating Cards and Whimsical hearts above the delicious spread set by Feast Your Eyes Catering:
Oh yeah...there were FLOWERS too! The day started super breezy so we had a lot of practice setting and resetting the designs - but Lynn from Feast Your Eyes and here team were amazing! Not only do they serve up tasty treats, but can move on the fly! The 'turn' was like a synchronized ballet! Garden style collections and groupings of flowers in vintage glassware dappled the tables with hints and notes from the couple...
Pete Malone of 217 Photography captured all of these images shown here and you can see more of the tender moments he snapped on his Website and Facebook - share the love, it's a "Like" you won't regret!
 Foxy!

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Fareha & Chris | Please Touch Museum

I had such a fun time working with Fareha & Chris for their May 27th wedding. My first consultation was with everyone except the bride! Family (yes) of the Bride, Groom and Chris himself! He really got the ball rolling and Fareha wrapped up the details in the end. They had their ceremony and the reception at the Please Touch Museum with Brulee Catering and On Q Productions highlighting the details with gorgeous lighting. Jeff Tisman captured some beautiful moments and shared them on his blog. They had so many personal and had crafted details...all the images below are his...I can't wait to see the rest!