It’s so much fun for me to be able to share this wedding with you because the bride and groom are two of my favorite people. In the course of working in the wedding community I met Jessica several years ago and last year she and I teamed up on a couple of business projects so I’ve had an opportunity to get to know this wonderful person. Seeing her marry such a great guy was a joy and although it’s a few months after the fact I am so excited to show you some of the highlights of their out-of-the-box wedding weekend. Jessica wrote a wonderful narrative that I am also happy to share… so enjoy!

I was a wedding & event planner in Charlottesville, VA for about 8 years when I met Chris who had recently moved to town from Vermont. We got engaged in October of 2009 in Vermont after Chris had a custom Garnet engagement ring designed by a favorite local jewelry designer of mine. When we started to talk about wedding plans we knew that we wanted it to be fun, unique and somewhat casual. We wanted it to really reflect us and our favorite places & things. (And I wanted it to be totally different from any wedding I had planned in the past). We also wanted to have the ceremony on Friday and the reception on Saturday so we could spend plenty of time with everyone. Wow, this was going to be a challenge! As we started making wedding plans, Chris deployed to Afghanistan for a year. While he was home on leave in July of 2010 we decided to surprise our parents and just a few friends and we got married in our living room after inviting them all for a BBQ. It was the best day ever because we were married but we decided that we still wanted to bring all of our family & friends to Charlottesville for a ceremony and celebration on May 7, 2011.

CEREMONY:
Although we wanted to share the same ceremony from our original wedding with family and friends, we decided to keep it pretty small and invited about 75 people to the Clifton Inn on a Friday afternoon where we got married…again…in their beautiful garden with the oldest cottage on the property as a backdrop. I worked at Clifton for 4 years and met a lot of my closest friends there so it’s a very special place to me and had always envisioned a ceremony in this garden but fortunately no one ever took me up on it so I was able to do it myself! We stuck to a small wedding party of my 2 best friends and Chris’ brother and closest friend from his deployment. We did have a flower girl, Edie, who is one of the toughest little girls we know as she was battling childhood cancer at the time and our nephew, Chase, who wore a Red Sox shirt with ‘Bullard’ on the back to represent Chris’ favorite team and our now last name! Since we were already ‘legally’ married a close friend performed the ceremony and another close friend joined the guitar player we had hired to sing ‘Lucky” as we entered and ‘Smile’ as we exited. It was all very intimate and beautiful despite the downpour of rain that occurred right before the ceremony! Luckily the owner of the event planning company I used to work for called to warn us just in time so we delayed the ceremony a bit and just joined our guests…and opened the bar! It really helped everyone to relax (including us) and I think it made the ceremony even better. We went with a casual attire for the wedding party- the girls wore navy dresses and the guys matching red & blue plaid shirts. My bouquet was one of my favorite parts…I was inspired by the ‘brooch bouquet’ to collect a piece of jewelry (or something similar) from all of may friends and family members and I had what the designer decided to call a ‘memory bouquet’ made. It was beautiful…and heavy!

AFTER THE CEREMONY…
In place of a rehearsal dinner, Chris’ parents hosted a cocktail reception on the Clifton croquet lawn. We really tried to tie in the Virginia/Vermont theme by serving favorite foods from both areas and a beer from each as well- Starr Hill ‘Love’ from VA and a Harpoon IPA from Vermont which Chris’ dad and I both love. The flower containers were VA and VT glasses. We exited through bubbles to a 1949 Vintage Cadillac. We returned to have dinner in the Clifton wine cellar with our parents & the wedding party. A friend, Tucker Yoder, is the chef at Clifton so it was fun to have him create our dinner menu. That evening, all guests were invited to meet up at the place where we met, The X Lounge where DJ Western Front performed.

THE RECEPTION
Obviously we took the ceremony very seriously but we wanted the reception to be nothing but unique and fun! A friend later described it as ‘kick ass and classy’. Exactly what we were going for
Location:  We originally chose a beautiful little cabin at one of the local vineyards but when our guest list outgrew it, we decided on Old Trail Golf Club for it’s beautiful mountain views and convenient location.  We didn’t actually use the building though…we placed a round Sperry tent on the edge of the golf course and the party was held there.
Décor: I had seen more round tables with beautiful linens that I could handle in my career so we changed it up a bit and went with picnic tables with burlap runners and assorted red and blue flower containers.  These were a DIY project- we collected lots of blue mason jars but also mixed them in with homemade patterned containers stamped with a ‘B’ for our new last name.  The flowers were very simple- white tulips, hydrangea and a few gerber daisies mixed in too.  We did a mix of red & blue linen napkins with napkin rings (also DIY) that matched the floral containers.  It was all very bright, fun and comfortable.

Food:
This was a hard one for us. I honestly couldn’t think of an event I had done that included exactly what I would want in terms of food. Then Chris said ‘What about those pizza guys we met at the wine & beer festival last year? Do you think they cater?” I didn’t even pause to think he had lost his mind…we called them up and begged them to come. They aren’t just any pizza guys. They have a wood fired oven…on the back of a truck…they use all local ingredients…and they make the best pizza I’d ever tasted. We gave them the freedom to make whatever was local, seasonal and good at the time and it worked out perfectly! We added some salads and we were all set. I think we proved to everyone that pizza can be done at a wedding!
At the suggestion of my mom, we served favorites from the place Chris & I met for hors d’ oeuvres: White Truffle Mac n’ Cheese in tiny jars, Mini Burgers and Shrimp and Avocado Gaufrettes.

Beverages:
We decided to stick with beer and wine. The wine was pretty simple to choose but we got way more creative with the beer since Chris is a beer lover, home brewer and even has a blog about it. Chris, his brother and step-brothers spent several weekends home brewing & bottling cases of an Amber and an IPA for the big day. We had fun labels made to match everything else and he came up with the names, descriptions and a catchy tagline ‘to have and to hold and to drink ice cold’ for them. We also offered two local brews from Blue Mountain Brewery & Starr Hill. The homebrew was a BIG hit!! We also served trays of Orange Crush, Classic Coke Bottles and Root Beer with red & white striped straws. These were really for kids but the adults loved them too!

Music:
The band was the first thing we chose, even before we had a venue. I had worked with The Dickens many times before. They are super nice guys, a great band and it isn’t possible to not have fun when they are in the room! They were awesome as usual and everyone had their chance to dance on stage with them (and some even danced on the tables). The big surprise of the night was when our friend and wedding planner joined them on stage to sing. We had no idea she could sing but she’d arranged it all in advance and she was amazing.

We also decided to add a local favorite, Bennie Dodd, to the mix for the cocktail portion. He does southern rock and country, which added the one musical element that we were missing. He also happened to go to high school with my parents so he knew many of our guests and even stayed to perform with the Dickens later that night.

Sweets:
Chris loves cupcakes and the Red Sox so since ‘B’ also stands for our new last name I ordered Red Sox cupcakes with a small cake for us to cut. These weren’t just any cupcakes though. Anita at Maliha Creations came up with Lemon with Ginger Cloud Frosting (my 2 favorite flavors) and Red Velvet with Vermont Maple Frosting (Chris’ favorites). They were SO good! People loved the ‘keep calm and eat a cupcake’ sign that I ordered from Etsy. We also had organic cider donuts by the Carpe Donut truck. I had worked with them for years and since they donuts reminded me of the ones we get in Vermont I thought it was another great way to tie in where Chris is from…and have yummy donuts too!

Fun Stuff:
We added a photo booth at the last minute and were so glad we did! We provided some props but the photographer showed up with lots more and everyone had a great time with it. They turned out to be some of our favorite photos.

It was important to Chris that we got a photo of everyone in the group. As a planner, I know that is a pain to pull off but we did it and it’s another favorite photo of our. All of our favorite people under one tent…that was our goal…and now we have that photo to remember it by!

I now own a small marketing & social media company so I spend a LOT of time on Facebook. ‘Late night’ we had the bars switch to cocktail napkins that said ‘What happens tonight will go on Facbeook tomorrow’ People loved them.

We booked ‘The Wahooptie’ (a pink old school limo) to drive us and the wedding party back to town from the reception. It was fun and a great way to hang out with them for a bit longer at the end of the night!

Overall the weekend was exactly what we wanted it to be- a comfortable, fun, unique weekend that perfectly represented ‘us’ with all of our family & friends there. Being a planner, I kind of feel that we proved that it’s OK to do something different. When we originally told people that we were ‘making the beer and serving pizza’ I think they thought we had lost our minds but it all worked out perfectly and in the end people said it was the best, most fun wedding they had been to. I will admit that I spent weeks focusing on how I was going to let go of all of the details that a wedding planner usually worries about on my own wedding day but with everyone there and all of the perfect vendors chosen, it wasn’t really that difficult at all!

Contact Information for Sarah Downey Photography:
~ website: www.sarahdowneyphotos.com
~ blog: www.sarahdowneyphotos.com/blogs
~ phone: 540-840-4139
~ e-mail: sarah@sarahdowneyphotos.com

Additional Vendors
~ Engagement Ring: Erin McDermott Jewelry
~ Wedding Band: Angelo & Floyd Jewelers
~ Paper: Invitations, Beer Labels & Programs scissorhands on Etsy
~ Printing: Charlottesville Press
~ Coordinator: Barb Wired Events
~ Ceremony Location & Cocktail Party Food & Beverage: The Clifton Inn
~ Ceremony & Rehearsal Dinner Music: Crawford Smith, guitar & Lori Kush (vocals)
~ Brooch Bouquet- Lionsgate Designs on Etsy
~ Welcome Party DJ: DJ Western Front
~ Photographer: Sarah Downey Photography
~ Videographer: Ian Atkins of Ian’s Creations
Officiants:
~ Original ceremony- Claire Goodman, Sacred Ground Ceremonies
~ Clifton ceremony- Nick Gilger, friend
~ Vintage Limo: Albemarle Vintage Limousine
~ Friday Hair and Make-Up: Lora Elaine
~ Reception Venue & Hors d’ oeuvres: Old Trail Golf Club & The Event Company
~ Reception Food: Dogtown Pizza
~ Cupcakes & Cake: Maliha Creations
~ Donut Truck: Carpe Donut
~ Flowers and Containers: DIY
~ Tent & Picnic Tables; Skyline Tent Company
~ Rentals: Classic Party Rentals
~ Lighting: The AV Company
~ Saturday Cocktail Music: Bennie Dodd (booked through Sam Hill Entertainment)
~ Saturday Band: The Dickens (booked through Sam Hill Entertainment)
~ Saturday Hair & Make-Up: Face Value Studio

If you’re looking for a one-stop shop to fill all of your wedding-related salon needs Face Value Studio might be just what you’re looking for.  It is a clean and modern full service salon located in Crozet… just west of Charlottesville.  Face Value Studio is owned by the very talented Lucinda Riley and offers an amazing array of salon, studio & barber shop services many of which are designed specifically to supply the unique needs of brides and grooms.  You’ll find mani-pedi parties for brides and attendants plus many specialized salon and on-site hair & makeup services, to name just a few options.  Be sure to look at the full list of bridal services , take a virtual salon tour and check out their large portfolio of beautiful hairstyles: a small selection of which are just below.  Enjoy!

↑ photo credit (r): Jen Fariello Photography ↑↑ photo credit (r): Jen Fariello Photography ↑↑ photo credit: (l) Nicole Driscoll Photography & (r) Jen Fariello Photography↑↑ photo credit: (l) Holland Photo Arts & (r) Will Kerner Photography ↑

Contact Information for Face Value Studio
~ website: www.facevaluestudio.com
~ phone: 434-823-2009
~ e-mail: lucinda@facevaluestudio.com
~ address:
1015 Heathercroft Cir. (Suite 200)
Old Trail Village Center
Crozet, VA 22932

Lately I’ve neglected the “Bride Online” feature of this blog but when I came across Twigs & Honey I knew it was a sign that the time had come to pick it up again   Myra Callan started her business just last year “with the goal of introducing to others a completely fresh and modern interpretation of hair adornments,” and her pieces are absolutely beautiful and ideal for brides who want to add a unique and striking touch to their wedding day look.

Twigs & Honey, based out of Oregon, has both a website and an Etsy shop filled with wonderful pieces: floral and feather hair pieces, headbands, veils, jewelry, belts, shrugs/jackets and boutonnieres.  I just love Myra’s designs and am so happy that I can share them with you today… enjoy!
If you love Myra’s beautiful pieces be sure to also visit her blog to see her latest work. Oh, and I also wanted to mention that Myra does custom work too, so you can have a perfect, personalized look for your day!

Earlier this month I had the pleasure of spending about an hour with the very talented Jen Skriloff of Elan On-Site Salon Services to learn more about the services she offers. Although Jen and I are colleagues and she’s on the staff of my Weekday Wedding Company our paths rarely cross since she usually has finished her job by the time I arrive for the ceremony. So having an entire hour to visit and learn about her work was a wonderful treat!

Jen grew up in an artistic family and brings a lifetime of experience to her work helping brides look and feel beautiful on the most important day of their lives. She tends towards the lighter touch when it comes to makeup as she believes it’s her job to help your beauty shine through as opposed to making you look like a completely different person. (I like that philosophy!) She always prefers to have a hair and makeup trial run sometime before your big day but if that’s not possible she can certainly work with you on the day-of only.   She does advise, especially for those of you who are not generally big makeup wearers, to have some idea (maybe some photos?) of what you do and don’t like to give her some direction.

Check out some of Jen’s beautiful work… post continues below…

In addition to her wonderful on-site services Jen has a unique line of hair accessories to compliment the beautiful hair styles she creates . You can see one example here but there are lots more on the site.

Not only is Jen extensively trained and very talented (please visit her site for more biographical details) but she truly puts her heart into her work… her greatest joy is to help you feel and look beautiful on your wedding day… and to enjoy every minute of it!

Contact Info. for Jen Skriloff of Elan On-Site Salon Services:
~ website: www.elan-charlottesville.com
~ phone: 434-990-1234
~ e-mail: jen@elan-charlottesville.com

Yesterday, on my way up to do a wedding in Northern VA, I stopped at Kimberla’s Bridal shop in Northern Madison County (North of Charlottesville and Albemarle County) to meet Kimberla and learn a bit about her shop so that I could share it with you.

Kimberla’s Bridal is a bit challenging to find when you’re driving north on 29, so if you plan on taking the 30 mile drive to check out her shop I suggest you get good directions or give Kimberla a call (540-948-9908) before heading up there.

Kimberla offers such a broad range of products and services that I will won’t be able to tell you about everything little thing here. Certainly she has a broad range of wedding gowns that are available both for customization and off the rack with alterations. Additionally, she has evening wear, flower girl, mother-of-the-bride and bridesmaid’s dresses and I was surprised to discover that she also offers tuxedo rental.

Accessories, jewelry, lingerie, veils and shoes are plentiful at Kimberla’s Bridal. She also provides resources for additional services such as her colleague Cheryl Hilliard, an image consultant who works out of the shop.

I know that lots of brides in the Charlottesville area make the trek either to Richmond or Northern, VA to dress shop but Kimberla’s Bridal is much closer and has lots to choose from… give Kimberla a call and head up to Madison for a relaxed shopping experience… have fun!

Kim and Shaun got married yesterday at the lovely Clifton Inn. Just the two of them and it was so sweet! I’ve been to the Clifton Inn at all times of the year but I have to say that yesterday it was more beautiful than I’ve ever seen it… absolutely everything was in bloom: climbing clematis, iris, peonies and lots of other things I couldn’t identify.

The most touching part of Shaun and Kim’s ceremony was reading the letter that Kim’s parents wrote to them and sent from Australia for me to share with them on their wedding day. Such a special touch… and Kim’s Dad is a wonderful writer! Half way through the ceremony it started to rain so we all ran for cover and finished the ceremony up on the front porch of the Inn. It’s always those unexpected moments that are the most memorable!

Despite choosing to have a wedding without guests Shaun and Kim had all of the wonderful extras to make their day special: an amazing photographer: Jen Fariello whose beautiful photos you see here; Jill and Tim Rose captured the ceremony on video; Jen of Elan On-Site Salon Services helped Kim get her hair and makeup just right; Wayla Chambo and Wes Swing provided beautiful flute and cello music and Melissa of the Clifton Inn, as always, made sure every detail was in place.

We all agreed that there’s something really special about these small weekday weddings… if you have an interest in a small affair like this one please consider checking out the Weekday Wedding Company.

Thanks to everyone who made yesterday’s wedding so wonderful and many blessings to both of you Kim and Shaun!

ALL PHOTOS BY JEN FARIELLO: