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wedding blog + planning guide for creative weddings | inspiration for DIY Brides

Brenda's Wedding Blog is your online resource for planning your dream elegant wedding. Helping you find the "wow" in weddings.

Posts in Real Weddings
A Classic Fairytale Wedding at Biltmore Estate in North Carolina

Today's wedding, photographed by Two Ring Studios, is absolutely breathtaking - not only was it held at the beautiful Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC - but there's the color purple {one of my favorites} and it's a princess fairytale complete with a horse-drawn carriage ride {just like Cinderella}. And, since the carriage is in their wedding, I have to share their proposal story as written by the bride, Lori. "We were on a carriage ride at Biltmore Estate and the driver left us alone to admire the house from afar. It was a really romantic time when I thought he might pop the question. But the moment passed and he didn't ask. The driver returned and took some photos of us with the house in the background. Next thing I know, Clinton is on bended knee and proposing. He wanted to wait for the driver to come back, so he could capture the moment forever!" And, wait until you see the ending of this wedding - there were cookies and milk for the guests and the most spectacular nighttime shots of the bride and groom in the wet + rainy streets with the venue as the backdrop.

Vendors:
Photographer: Two Ring Studios
Reception Venue + Caterer: The Biltmore Estate
Event Planner: Honey Darling Events
Floral Designer: The Purple Iris
Musicians: Asheville String Trio
DJ: Spintastic Sounds
Dress Designer: Justin Alexander Bridal
Shoes: Benjamin Walk
Jewelry: Brilliant Earth
Hair Stylist: Suraj
Makeup Artist: Blush by Wendy Ballance, LLC
Transportation: Royal Rides

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An Eco-friendly Bayside Wedding in California at a Yacht Club

Today's wedding of Emily and Kirk in Newport Beach, California is absolutely gorgeous with it's shades of green and grey - which are carried thru the entire wedding with the use of succulents, from the brides bouquet to the reception centerpieces {which were made with love by Emily's mother}. Paired with the succulents were sand dollars and sea shell details. The beautiful photographs were taken by Heidi Ryder Photography and Heidi wrote . . . "It was a sweetly emotional day and it was obvious Emily and Kirk were so excited to become husband and wife." 

Vendors:
Photographer: Heidi Ryder Photography
Floral Designer: Urban Gardener
Musicians: Pete Goslow
Dress Designer: Paloma Blanca
Cake Designer: French's Cupcake Bakery
Jewelry: Anthropologie
Event Venue: Balboa Yacht Club

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An Eclectic Vintage Wedding in Indiana {a true family affair}

Today's wedding {beautifully photographed by Meghan Christine Photography} is filled with lots of love and so many amazing details - I am actually going to leave the following as the bride, Lindsey, wrote it .

"We wanted the wedding to have a sort of vintage/eclectic feel, but at the same time feel very relaxed and down to earth. Both Mark and I are very outdoorsy and we wanted our wedding to have a relaxed, laid-back summer feel. My mom was a huge help to me, as was my wedding coordinator. I love DIY projects and wanted the day to really reflect us, so I had a blast making a ton of different things! I made the pinwheel favors and ribbon wands after finding a DIY tutorial online. They were time-consuming, but so worth it! I found the inspiration for my brooch bouquet online and collected and assembled the brooches myself and with help from friends and the bouquet included brooches from my mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and the mother of the groom. The hankie favors were DIY, cut out of a thrifted sheet and embroidered on my sister’s fancy sewing machine. The boutonnieres were the only DIY project I came up with entirely on my own, without online inspiration or tutorial – I made mini versions of the larger pinwheels and hot-glued them, along with lace, ribbon and twine, to craft pin-backs. The place cards I stamped and embellished myself, and I also printed and assembled the ceremony programs. Most of the reception decorations were either thrifted or borrowed – we only rented a few things like the tablecloths, table runners and chairs."

I LOVE THIS from Lindsey!!!!!! "My wedding dress was my mom’s but since she and my dad got married in the 80s, it needed some significant changes – the giant puffed sleeves were out, for one. My amazing tailor Tricia took the dress and completely made it over – I got my mom’s dress with an updated look."

The pennant banners that decorated the reception area thrifted from bedsheets from goodwill that were cut them into pennant shapes with pinking shears, pinned to twine, then sewn together.

Lindsey and her mom and searched for months through the dishware sections of every goodwill and thriftstore in their area to pick out eclectic and vintage-looking chinaware. After carting home enough dinner plates, salad plates, teacups, and silverware to feed 200 people, her mom ran them all through the dishwasher. Then she paired up dinner and salad plates that looked good together.

As written by the Lindsey . . . "My cousins and I made all the wedding cakes. I chose three flavors – chocolate, white almond and carrot cake – and we baked for two days, under the supervision of my teenaged cousin Leah who wants to go to culinary school and open a bakery someday. I ordered the cake toppers from a shop on etsy. The cakes were one of the best parts of the reception – I have gotten so many compliments on them and lots of people asking for the recipes."

And, this is the sweetest way I've ever been able to end a real wedding post - with these words from the bride . . . "I found most of my DIY projects in various places around the web and relied on advice from my bridesmaids and cousins. This was definitely a family affair! I love having a big extended family, and I treasure all the time I got to spend with my cousins, aunts and friends. Since Mark’s family lives in Pennsylvania, only a few of his close family and friends could make the trip to Indiana, but they were so helpful in setting up and tearing down the ceremony and reception spaces. We had a great time at our wedding – it was wonderful to finally get to enjoy the fruits of so many months of planning and to celebrate our new marriage! If I could go back, there’s nothing I would change."

Vendors:
Photographer: Meghan Christine Photography
Floral Arrangements: by the bride's aunts
Wedding Dress Alternations: Tricia Gastineau of Alamode Kabash Sewing
Reception: Jasper County Fairgrounds
Ceremony: St. Joseph’s College Chapel
Coordinator/Planner: Rachel Hansen

A beautifully elegant purple and bright green California Wedding

Location: San Diego, California

Today's beautifully elegant purple wedding of Charline & Cameron was photographed by Diana Rush Photography and coordinated by the brides very own aunt, Diana of A Celebration by Diana. As many of you may know - I'm a huge fan of purple and this wedding is definitely a stunning one. I LOVE all of the florals and how the bright green makes the purple pop!!!!!! What's your favorite part?

Wedding Vendors:
Photographer: Diana Rush Photography
Caterer: Ranch Catering
Event Planner: A Celebration by Diana
Floral Designer: Sweet Flowers Weddings & Events
Reception Venue: Marina Village
DJ: Good Time Entertainment

Real Wedding : an Adirondack wedding theme at Lake Placid Lodge

I love everything about this fall wedding that took place at Lake Placid Lodge and was photographed by the talented husband and wife team Clark + Walker Studio {who happen to be a local photography duo right near me}. From the roaring fireplace to the blankets for all the bridesmaids it's a gorgeous fall wedding. Oh, and the desserts? YUMMY - caramel apples and an ombré cake.

I just love these little mementos that Courtney + Chris had. They wrote their own vows in these adorable little 'vow books'.

And, the bride and her lovely Oscar de la Renta dress.

Chris' wedding ensemble was just perfect for the Adirondack wedding theme. The jacket was custom and from Ptarmigan while the rest was a mix of Ralph Lauren/Filson/Vineyard Vines/Nike.

I love these photos of the bride after her gown is on . . . they're priceless expressions.

Courtney even changed her hairstyle for the reception :)