Natalie + Brad

What a beautiful couple these two are. Natalie and Brad were married at the beautiful Bakersfield Museum of Art. Such a romantic and elegant setting. Many friends and family completed this gorgeous couples wonderful day. I wish them all the best in life! More from the bride in the images below.

Bride's dress with Mom's dress — Bride’s dress with Mom’s dress

Natalie's wedding dress — Natalie’s wedding dress

From the Bride:

“I first met Maria at a bridal show when I saw her beautiful display of sample invitations. I spoke with her for a few minutes about my colors and style and right away she had great suggestions. I knew of the colors and a little bit of the style that I wanted but never would I have imagined that someone could take those small ideas and turn them into the most beautiful and perfect invitations the way Maria did.”

monogram wedding invitation — Natalie and Brad wedding invitation

“There is so much detail that goes into making the perfect invitation and to have someone like Maria, who met with me multiple times to figure exact colors, styles, fonts, design and wording was such a blessing. I remember the evening I picked up the final invitations from Maria and brought them home. I went to bed shortly after, but had to get out of bed twice to go into the kitchen and turn on the light and stare at the invitation again and again, because I loved them so much! I felt like a five-year old with a new Christmas toy.”

Burlap and Lace Pocket Card Wedding Invitation

“My invitations were one of my favorite things about my wedding and one of my favorite keepsakes from the wedding. My family and friends were texting me as soon as they got them in the mail to tell me how beautifully they matched ME and my style. The funny thing is, even as well as I think I know my own style, I would not have been able to come up with something this gorgeous without Maria’s help. I would highly recommend Maria and All in the Invite for your wedding invitations.”

Elegant table setting with burlap table runner

Brad and Groomsmen — Brad and his Groomsmen

May 19, 2012May 19, 2012

BRIDESMAID GIFT IDEA: MY FACE LIL’ BLING NAIL CHROME

Here is an idea for a COLORFUL BRIDESMAID GIFT: MY FACE LIL’ BLING NAIL CHROME

We all like getting our nails manicured. Bridesmaids.com posted about these polishes and suggested giving as a bridesmaid gift. Lil’ Bling Nail Chromes are a collection of ten, dramatic, metallic nail shades that are not “your mother’s nail varnish”. Each shade has been matched perfectly with a blingtone eye shadow. They’re available on Dessy.com. Go check them out and find your favorite color!

April 23, 2012May 3, 2012

{Blunders to Steer Clear Of} Offering to Cover Wedding Related Expenses

We’re back today with a continuation of our series on: Blunders to Steer Clear of After Getting Engaged.

Today we evaluate a mistake that is huge. Staying within your wedding budget is difficult enough. If a bridesmaid agrees to be in your bridal party make sure you don’t assume she understands what her responsibilities are.

This may be her first time participating in a wedding. She may accept your invitation if she is under the impression that you are covering her costs. Creative way to ask your BFF to be in your wedding. (if you have not seen these you need to check them out.) Put your own spin on asking your girlfriends the oh-so important question. Will you Be My Bridesmaid?

Don’t Go There

Don’t offer to pay for something you can’t afford. You may have the very best motives but you have your own budget to consider. Being asked to be a part of the wedding party is an honor. Be clear about your expectations and her level of commitment. Lay out what her responsibilities are as your bridesmaid.

Money talks are a somewhat complicated subject to address. Talk to her and be honest. Let her know she’s one of your top choices but you understand if she has other commitments that make it difficult for her to take part.

While you may not be obligated to pay, you should be considerate of how your decisions will affect your bridal party. At the very least, make their financial obligations clear as soon as possible and try to make choices that don’t place too much burden on them.

March 16, 2012May 2, 2012

Blunders To Steer Clear Of After Getting Engaged

Today is our first in a series. We’ll be talking about avoiding some common mistakes newly engaged couples tend to make.

If you’ve recently gotten engaged, congratulations! As you’re fresh off of your big engagement news and made the choice to get married, it’s fairly certain that you’ll be fired up and psyched about the actual marriage proposal. After all, it’s an occasion that you both will remember (and re-tell your story of getting engaged) for the rest of your lives — as well as one that you’ve probably been fantasizing about since you watched your first Disney princess movie. You know you’ve looked forward to your wedding day since you were a little girl playing dress-up and practicing your walk down the aisle. In a nutshell: You’ll be deliriously happy, purely for the proposal itself, but don’t let your nerves lead you to make one of these all-too-common marriage proposal mistakes. Loosen-up and chill out. Take a moment to relish in this wonderful time in your lives. Relax and read about some common mistakes recently engaged couples make so that you can avoid them as you plan for your perfect wedding. Doing so will help you limit your tension, irritation and frustration as you prepare for your own special day.

Mistake number one: Wedding Guest Drama

Now, you really don’t want to start off inviting everybody you know to your big event. As soon as you do, you really have no way to tactfully un-invite them. You also must be aware of how many people your groom and his family will want to invite for their side of the guest list. Unless you are made of money you will most likely not be inviting everyone you, your fiancé, your parents and your fiancé’s parents have ever known or ever will know to your wedding. You may not have any real concrete plans or thoughts to what your wedding style or budget are just yet, or how considerable the expenses could be. You might be thinking that your wedding should be a big bash that the whole town will want to attend but your “honey” may have a different idea of what the wedding should be. While you may have dreams of a “Rock Star” (i.e. mega bucks) style wedding, he may have more of an intimate(i.e. less costly) wedding. Your budget will help to shape up your guest list and determine the number of invited wedding guests and sad to say, you are bound to let down someone. Do your very best to invite those closest to you and your fiancé. Parents, as a courtesy should have a say too, most definitely if they are helping to pay for the wedding. Be willing to work it out and make a deal but know that it is YOUR wedding So, keep away from making any promises. Just until you both agree on a wedding and reception spending plan. You will be grateful you did!

Next week we’ll be back and talk about avoiding WEDDING OVERLOAD – taking on too much, too fast.