- – Rock the Lace – - August 28, 2009

Happy Thursday!
So after looking at Elizabeth’s SPECTACULAR photos I got inspired and I wanted to share a little secret with you gals..
I love love love lace details in a wedding
Yes, it sounds like something so simple but it looks so chic! Lace in a wedding dress can look so timeless and elegant. And I just love adding a little vintage charm to any soiree I plan. Nowadays, lace is so classic you can find lace dresses anywhere.. look at these..

After surfing the net I found some great pictures of how to incorporate lace into your wedding as an accent that will make any other gal jealous. Because really.. It’s all about the little details ladies! I found these dresses for the bridesmaids and flowergirl.. LOVE!

Here are two invitations and a cake that look “lacey”

Last but not least.. here are some collages and other details to incorporate some lace love into your wedding!

::.:Ali and Kyle::.:Engagement Pictures PART 2:.: CITY PARK + WEST END August 26, 2009

its eray,
back to Ali and Kyle. We did 2 sessions when they came in town a month ago. I posted the French Quarter pictures already but I never posted the cute City Park shoot we did on the first day. It was about to storm the sun was coming and going but when the sun did show the shadows were perfect! After we took a chance by driving out down West End near Coconut beach- Where places like The Dock used to be. All thats left is a crumbly parking lot and old pillars where the restaurants were. It was about to storm and the wind was crazy. Ali made the wind cute and the dark clouds made everything beautiful.

::.:Jeff and Carol:.:.:.A Sweet Summer Day:.:::.: engagement pictures August 24, 2009

happy monday… e, here…
I’m going to start off the week with am engagement session about ice cream and City Park. I love the summertime new orleans love these pics give off. There is a little island in City Park that has a beautiful view of the Persistyle and these old moss covered trees.

I loved the Southern gentleman seesuker suit and sweet as pie lace summery dress.

Their first date was at Angelo Brocato’s so we stopped here for a little treat.


Congrats Jeff and Carol! see you in November!

Looking for a Fall Wedding? August 21, 2009

Hi there!
So, summer is almost over and Fall is coming on up! To ring in the new season I thought it would be a great idea to give you gals some tips and FAQs on having a Fall Wedding.

Here’s a few of them to help you out:
- “I’m having a Fall Wedding, do I have to use pumpkins as an accessory?”: NO! You can’t even imagine the amount of girls that I get that ask me that question. Brides think.. hmm.. Fall Wedding.. October is a good month in Fall and in that case I have to have pumpkins as an accent. Absolutely not! Yes, it can be a cute idea but so many people do that nowadays and why would you want to be like everyone else? Instead of pumpkins why not go with that nature theme and do branches or twigs? or if you like the idea of having something edible.. then what about apples or oranges? That “granny smith apple” green is a great color for a Fall Wedding and orange is always an excellent accent color.. don’t use it as the main color though, and you should dare to be different Look at these photos of how to incorporate nature into your recpetion…

-While we’re on the topic of good colors for a Fall Wedding..  you don’t always have to go with chocolate brown.  Brown is a typical color that every bride thinks she has to use in her wedding.  FALSE!  Some great alternatives for colors are deep plums, golds, greens, rust or burnt orange, and tans.  If you are wanting to go with a chocolate brown then maybe think of putting the groom and groomsmen in that color.  The boys don’t always have to be in black.  And if you are doing a casual outdoor wedding then you could even put the guys in a khaki or tan.  For the girls.. I love when the bridesmaids don’t always look the same.  A common misconception is that the bridesmaid and maid of honor have to be in the same color.. not true.. let the maid of honor stand out.  If you can’t decide on one color then let the maid of honor be different.  She is your best gal pal right?  Let her show some flair! I found these two photos.. they both show the idea of having the MOH in a patterned dress..

-”Do bridesmaid dresses in Fall Weddings have to be long?”:  Nope!  I will say this though.. the closer you get to December.. the colder it gets and then you might want to consider full length dresses.  But, if your wedding is in September or October.. let your girls rock the tea length or cocktail dresses!  It’s still semi hot outside and it would be more comfortable for them.  October is usually the month with the best weather so let your gal pals enjoy it.  You can also have them in strapless, I promise it won’t look too summery!  As long as you have them in the more fall tones then they’ll be fine. Both of the pictures I showed you above have them in cocktail length dresses and both are so chic!

 

- Another great way to incorporate Fall into your wedding is through texture and lighting.  For the reception tables you can use heavier fabrics that have a little bit of feeling to them.  What I mean by this is that you can easily put a burlap tablecloth with a softer fabric on top.  Or you can do a silk.  Just think texture!  In the summer and spring months you can’t get away with this as easy because its so hot outside you want to keep everything to a minimum and have a “light” feeling overall.  Lighting can also bring depth to your wedding.  Dramatic lighting on the fall decor (like a tree for example) would be a great touch to make the room feel cozy or you could even just “up-light” architectural features with your fall color scheme.  When I think of Fall, I think of a warm/cozy feel to the room.  Play on that idea!  And if you do want  just a “warm” lighting atmosphere.. add lanterns or candles.. check these babies out! 

 

Hope these ideas get you in the mood for the new season.. even though New Orleans doesn’t technically have a Fall.. you can still rock it at your event! Give your guests the illusion they’re in a state where the leaves do actually change

::.:Featured Wedding:.:.Jan and Jay:.:.Breaux Bridge, LA::.:.. August 17, 2009

Hi its Elizabeth – wanted to show you……..

JAN + JAY
The first day of August – a nice summer wedding.
we had a little time before the ceremony to go on the side of the church and do some fun bridal party pics outside in the trees. Her colors were apple green and chocolate brown so I gave some photos a nice chocolate hue.

Ceremony: St Bernard’s Catholic Church. :another beautiful church: lllooveed using the fisheye lens in here.

One of my favorite things to photograph is the rings! Jan had a vase of apples at the reception and these custom made programs with her own logo (which look very nice by the way- goes with Liddy’s blog about adding personal touches) so I used these to photograph the bling.

Reception:Dupuis Recreation Center

One of the hardest things to photograph is a group of people dancing around a fisheye lens. You have to get in the middle of circle and have people dance over the lens. They totally got it and were throwing money at the camera and getting crazy. Gotta love the wedding dance party.
Congratulations Jan + Jay!

Monogram Accessories August 13, 2009

Right now, a lot of brides are all about adding personal touches to their wedding. A lot of them have decided to go the route of adding items around the reception or ceremony locations that have the couple’s initials on it.

Here’s the problem: when is a little, too much?
When adding personal touches to the wedding it seems like a really great idea, but at the same time you can’t go completely overboard because then people might think you look narcissistic.  So, here are some tips and ideas on how to keep the very popular monogram touches at a minimum but still get the point across:

1. A great way to add your monogram details is on the cake table.  You can put your new last name initial on top; cute but simple.  A lot of people do that nowadays since the traditional bride and groom cake topper is becoming obsolete.  Here is an example of a monogram topper that’s great because you can have both your first name initials on each side and your new last name one in the middle.. these can come in all sorts of colors to go with your wedding decor.  

2. Invitations!  This is an easy way to add a personal touch and it can look so elegant too.. I found these two examples on Wiley Valentine (I warned you I love this vendor!).  Notice the initial on the top of the first example and on the left hand side of the second one.  These are both super classy!  I love when details like these almost blend in with the background but stand out when you finally see it; almost like a hidden mickey.. sorry.. had to give a shoutout to the place where I learned it all

3.  A monogram brooch on your bouquet.  Why not?  It’s a great detail that really not a lot of people see when you’re walking down the aisle, but a wonderful way to add your initials.  I also had a bride who instead of having a brooch with her initial, she had her grandmother’s cameo brooch and she had a handkerchief made with her new last name initial that looked antique which she held next to the cameo brooch on the bouquet.  So cute!  Mergining the different generations like that is an adorable idea.  Here an example of that handkerchief..

4.  A simple gobo on a plain wall at the reception or on the dance floor.  Look how cute this gobo is behind the cake table and with all the exposed brick walls we have here in New Orleans.. this is something any bride here could easily add and it usually isn’t that expensive..

5. Last but not least, the favor!  This is probably the easiest of all the ideas to do.  This can be a do-it-yourself project for you and the future hubs to do or any business.  I found these monogram cookies.. a great favor but more importantly.. a wonderful snack

 

I would say these are the some of the best ideas to adding monogram details into your wedding decor.  All simple touches that will definitely make a statement!

Featured Wedding.:.::The O’Leary Wedding::.:. August 13, 2009

Hi its ::.Eray::.

I woke up early to post this wedding. I couldn’t wait another minute! Katie and Pat – success! a beautiful wedding day!

For a few bridal pictures we literally just walked in front of her house in Gretna. The neutral ground looked like a giant park. It was perfect.

I have a photo crush on the ceremony pictures. St Joseph’s church is such a beautiful church! I loved the way daylight mixed with the indoor lights through the windows. There was such a range of color it was way too much fun to edit these. *photo love sigh*

The reception (dance party) was held at La Maison Creole.

::.:.Rick and Kelly.::.: – Louis XVI Wedding ::. New Orleans ::. August 10, 2009

Elizabeth here,

I always enjoy weddings and photo shoots with a little New Orleans flair. Totally love Kelly and Rick’s French Quarter Wedding at the Louis XVI Hotel. I feel like I can find hints of New Orleans in each picture- the trees, the architecture, the swirling iron balconies….


I loooved her dress. It was so elegant and form fitting – very *glam*. We were able to do some fun shots in the hallway of the hotel with the swirling windows that overlooked the courtyard.

awww… just dancing the night away….

Congratulations Kelly and Rick!!

Rustic Wedding Ideas August 9, 2009

First off, let me say that I think that every wedding should have some type of theme to it; even if it is something basic like “traditional” or “southern.” So, with that being said.. I think that if you’re are going for a theme like “rustic” then go all out! Why not? It’s fun! Think about it.. even when you go to your friend’s house for a party, isn’t it always more fun when there’s a theme behind it like “Hawaiian” or “toga” ?
Here are some of my ideas if you want to go for the whole Rustic theme:
When it comes to the bride and groom go simple.. Look at this couple in the photo. I love their look! And the idea of having them carry lanterns is so great! The grooms suit is a chocolate/tan plaid.. very equestrian.. and notice how the bride’s hairdo is effortless with the loose curls..

When it comes to flower girl you can definitely play up even more on your theme. For a rustic wedding, why not do something completely different like throw her in an adorable dress like the one I found (featured below) but instead of putting her in ballet flats how about putting her in a patterned rain boot? Something completely different but it would be adorable!

For cake you could also be “out of the box” and do a petit-four wedding cake. Have an old wooden table out there with trays of petit-fours. The great thing about them is they can be cheaper AND you do an array of color and design with them. Look how cute these petit-fours are that spell out love.. say it with me now.. AWWW..

In terms of the reception.. go REAL big! I found this idea for tea lights with burlap wrapped around them. This could definitely be a do-it-yourself project for you and the soon to be hubs to do together. And it could cut down on some costs..

also found this picture of a table set outside, notice the twig lamps hanging above.. j’adore..

AND this is such a cute idea for place cards..

Finally, during the course of the night you could have old Polaroid cameras on the tables and have guests snap photos of themselves and write wishes or blessings instead of the standard guest book concept. After the guest is done they could then hang these photos on a clothes line like the one below. At the end of the night you’ll have an assortment of fun, clever photos to add into a scrapbook. A definite keepsake!

*.Quinn and Andy.* Engagement Session August 8, 2009

Meet Quinn and Andy – engaged in London of all dreamy places to get engaged.
We took the love out to the Bywater
for a morning of colorful cracks, crumbles, and overgrown painted places.




You know that old rule don’t wear bold patterns or shapes to a photoshoot? Well Quinn walked all over that rule and told it to shut up. I love the burst of color that dress brings to the pics.
::.:Congratulations Quinn and Andy::.: