Holland Photo Arts Blog – Charlottesville Wedding Photographers

Happy Friday!!

Ideas We Love – Custom Banners

We were absolutely thrilled to receive the fabulous Courtney Spencer’s (of Little White Book and Merriment Events fame) Christmas card this year. So inspired! (You can more of some of her fabulous ideas on her Holiday Inspiration post. Definitely some ideas on there I want to think about for next Christmas!)

Courtesy Little White Book Photo by Katie Stoops

So it inspired me to see how this concept might work for a wedding. Of course, I found what I was looking for at Martha Stewart Weddings!

Courtesy Martha Stewart Weddings

Courtesy Martha Stewart Weddings

Love it! You can click here or on either of the pictures for a link to the templates.

Links We Love –  What Junebug Loves

While Christy at junebug features a lot of West Coast resources, brides from both coasts can find a myriad of inspiration and plenty of eye-candy from this wonderful resource. I especially love her colorful inspiration boards and fun favors sections! Christy has an amazing eye for color and detail – definitely one of the best wedding blogs out there!

Courtesy What Junebug Loves

Top row:
Blue flower and feather hair accessory by Twigs and Honey, image by Lisa Warninger
Wedgwood wedding cake from MarthaStewart.com

Second row:
Pear photo from Sweet Paul
Guild letterpress wedding invitations from Bella Figura
Chocolate box wedding favors from MarthaStewart.com

Third row:
Twig and Leaf wrap style bangle from Stratus Silver on Etsy.com
Bird’s nest ring bearer pillow by Acanthus Floral, image by Junebug Weddings
Lesley one band feather sandals by L.A.M.B. at ShopBop.com

Fourth row:
Lace bridal parasol from Bella Umbrella
Bridal bouquets by Artfool
Delft dishes photo by Frances Janisch, from Sweet Paul

Our first wedding of the year was actually originally supposed to happen in 2009. Those of you on the East Coast will remember the storm around Christmastime that stranded thousands all along the seaboard. Charlottesville received nearly two feet of snow, which created a small challenge for the wonderfully relaxed Carrie and Ken–how to get their guests to their wedding? Given that even snowplows were getting stuck in the ditches, they decided to move their wedding back a couple of weeks, where everyone could travel more safely, and where they could celebrate with all of the original people attending. This originally meant for our dear friend Rob Garland to photograph their wedding, but they moved their wedding to a date he already had a commission, so we were very happy to help out.

We all gathered at the beautiful Prince Michel Vineyards north of Madison for the evening ceremony held in the Barrel Room downstairs. They had an almost exclusively candle-lit ceremony which really set an intimate mood for the evening’s festivities. Carrie’s mom had worked hard to design and implement some of the decor for the candles surrounding the ceremony site as well as the table decorations for dinner that evening, and it really showed.  During the ceremony, the couple wrote vows very unique to them and part of which elicited knowing chuckles from those in attendance. They also had each of their brothers perform a reading as well as two soloists before they were pronounced husband and wife and joyously ran down the aisle.

Check out some of our favorites from the wedding below, then log in to view all of the images from their wedding. The password is Carrie’s maiden name, and is case-sensitive.

Their guests enjoyed a relaxing stationed dinner put together by Gil Zentgraf, who also had a panini station with the most tasty little sandwich quarters ever! They were soooo good. Everyone got a good laugh later in the evening when Ken’s brother thanked everyone, “for coming this time” and both brothers offered funny anecdotes during their toast. After the toasts, they enjoyed mother/son as well as father/daughter dances, and Carrie surprised her dad by selecting a lullaby that he had sung to her when she was very young. Just about everybody hit the dance floor after that, save for a brief break for delicious cupcakes with just the right amount of frosting, made by a dear friend of theirs.

It was a fantastic evening, full of mirth and I was grateful to be a part of the celebration. Congratulations, Carrie and Ken, on your marriage (finally!) .

Yea for Fridays!!

Ideas We Love – Cupcake Wrappers

Anybody who knows us knows we LOVE us some cupcakes! Honestly, I certainly haven’t paid much attention to the paper surrounding the fluffy concoctions, but that would most definitely change if that creamy, sweet goodness was wrapped in such fun and festive wrappers as these. Lots of companies have jumped on the cupcake trend and now offer decorative wrappers, but these from Bella Cupcake Couture are some of the most elegant and sophisticated ones we’ve found. They’re available in so many colors and fun designs, you’re certain to find some that compliment your color scheme and/or wedding theme.  Some may say the cupcake trend has reached its peak, but we’re still seeing them at weddings and we certainly don’t mind a bit. (Mouse over the photos for the name of the design and click the photo for a direct link to that wrapper.)

Courtesy Bella Cupcake Couture

Courtesy Bella Cupcake Couture

Courtesy Bella Cupcake Couture

Courtesy Bella Cupcake Couture

Courtesy Bella Cupcake Couture

People We Love – Pineapple Productions

We’ve had the enormous pleasure of working with Alison Jackson and Elizabeth Duncan at Pineapple Productions over the years. Whenever we’re involved with one of their events, we know it’s going to be nothing less than stunning. They’re masters at creating stress-free, personalized weddings for their lucky couples. They primarily work out of their DC-based office, but have traveled throughout the country, coordinating fabulous events from Cape Cod to California.

Elizabeth & Jim’s Summer Wedding at Meridian House
Floral Design by Dragonfly Events

Elizabeth & Ben’s Spring Wedding at The Homestead
Floral Design by Posh Floral & Events

Maneli & Tim’s Spring Wedding (private residence)
Floral Design by Jack Lucky Floral
Catering by Well Dunn

Be sure to check out their fun blog, Pineapple Post and become a fan on their Facebook page!

One of our delightful clients, Joy, who married Jerry last Summer, was interviewed for Washingtonian Bride & Groom magazine’s ongoing series called Second Thoughts. It asks simply what couples have learned now that their wedding celebration has passed. Joy and Jerry offered compelling thoughts and you can read what they said in the current issue, on newsstands now. We were thrilled to have to a couple of images from the couple’s wedding on both the table of contents as well as a portrait of the two of them with the column, of course. Other images from various other weddings appear sprinkled throughout the magazine. Can you find them?

We’re thrilled, honored, and humbled to be once again chosen Best Of in the Photography category for Washingtonian magazine. The designation comes based on votes from top Washington, DC area wedding professionals as well as the magazine’s editorial staff, so we’re grateful to have been chosen for the fourth consecutive year. Thank you to all who voted for us, and we can’t wait for a fabulous 2010 with each of you!