Real Wedding: Erica & Collin

All photos by Jacob Pritchard

Last fall, Erica and Collin got married at Webb Barn in Connecticut. Their wedding had all the elements that we appreciate here at PH+C. Erica’s 60's dress was found at vintagewedding.com and her veil was made from her mother's veil, to which she added new tulle and lace. Her bridesmaids bought vintage dresses from the 50’s and 60’s that they found themselves at thrift stores while the groomsmen's shirts were chosen to match the same vintage feel.

One of the highlights of the wedding was the band, aptly named The Barnstormers, which consisted of the bride, groom, father and brothers of the groom, and mother, father and aunt of the bride. Weddings are meant to be a reflection of the bride and groom and the people in their lives. This is really best highlighted by incorporating your personal talents and creativity into it!

Among the homemade decor was a giant wooden cut-out painting of Collin's father's guitar. The decorative guitar was originally made by Collin's uncle as part of a float designed by his late wife. Upon arrival to the barn, guests were served hot cider. As a gift for all the guests, they gave a mix CD.

Erica and Colin had their fingerprints imprinted on their wedding rings.

Isn't it great to see two people not giving into conventional wedding brouhaha and creating their own, creative, inspired day? Heck yes!

Wedding Band vs. Wedding DJ vs. Friend With IPod

And so, the endless debate rages on...

Such an important decision, but which do we choose? A live wedding band, a wedding dj, or a lucky friend of ours we volunteer to run the iPod? While it may seem like a difficult decision, after weighing in the pros and cons it just may actually become an easy choice depending on your needs.

There's really nothing like a live band to rock out to, but what if I don't want to listen to a cheesy rendition of “I will survive.” Should you worry if the dj wants to bring a siren? Do you really want someone to yell....“AAAAALLRIGHT party people, everyone shake yo' grooooove thang on the dance floor, that means you too grandma!” Some things to consider:

DJ

Pros

• Cheaper than a band

• You can tailor what they play

• Songs are played in original format

• Can fulfill MC duties

• Large variety of music

• Professional experience

Cons

• Beware of cheesiness

• May only have tacky, generic music

• Personality can make or break reception

Live Band

Pros

• Great atmosphere

• Singer can fulfill MC duties

• Feels more like a party

• Professional experience

Cons

• Expensive

• Limited to what songs they know

• Can be a challenge to work with

• Needs most amount of space

IPod or Laptop with iTunes

Pros

• Cheapest option (considering you can source sound equipment)

• Total control of playlist

• Least amount of space needed

Cons

• Not having professional MC

• People may think you are el cheapo

• You (or said friend) are responsible for set-up and any technical issues that arise

Since we wanted to keep our wedding in a more home-grown vibe and we are ULTRA picky about what music we like, we opted to go a hybrid dj/iPod route. Our lovely friend Jade who has been a dj was kind enough to offer the task of djing for us. We purchased an inexpensive iPod mixer (around $90) from Radio Shack which allowed her to mix between her iPod and ours. Being that our wedding was in a barn with no sound system to speak of, some other friends donated the use of two amplified speakers which were plenty loud.

We then selected most of the music for the whole night and broke it down into different playlists for cocktail hour, dinner, first dance and reception. The MC duties fell on the best man.

If you have the means and are sold on either a dj or a live band, make sure you meet with them and discuss exactly what you want and what they can offer you. They should come across as professional. Make sure their musical style is in sync with yours. Even better, if you can, check them out in person before your wedding.

If you do go the iPod or laptop route sans dj, I definitely would bear in mind song order as you make your playlists, especially for the reception. You should have someone designated to “man” the iPod from time to time, especially when switching between playlists. Also be mindful of the gaps between songs — preferably none as you don't want any dead air to break up your groove!

Winter Weddings

via Bryan Photo

If I could do it all over again, I wouldn't change a thing! But there is such a magical quality to winter weddings. So romantic with all the warmness and snow. I can imagine having tons of soft lighting and warm whisky cocktails. Lovely! Also, I love the look of the stole or caplet over the wedding dress. Instant glamour!

These are some of my favorite winter wedding ideas:

via Jennifer Behr

via East Side Bride

via Little Winter Bride

Bride Style: Hair

I didn't really think about how I wanted to have my hair until the day before the wedding. I know it sounds crazy but I just didn't really have time to consider it. After I realized it was hot and humid and I was stressed out enough, I just decided to pin it back. And it was the BEST idea I had for the whole wedding! I was so comfortable throughout the ceremony and reception, I was not too hot, and I didn't have to worry about the wind blowing it around too much.

A great resource for checking out some fun and different hair options is looking at celebrity hairstyles.

Unless you trust that your stylist knows you and you share the same vision, I suggest bringing a photo, or several so they have a clear vision. I brought my hair stylist several photos of the same style that I wanted to achieve, and boy was I glad I did! She was able to get a better idea of what I wanted, without any confusion!

Here are some looks I'm loving right now:

Blogging from 35,000 feet!

Hi Everyone. Sorry about the lapse in posts lately. Its not due to a lack of interest, rather, K and I have been soooooo busy lately trying to keep up with an ever-growing mountain of work! (which is a good thing) So many new projects going on at the moment. Aside from work, we just spent a week in LA visiting family and friends and having a blast. LA was so much fun and people keep tempting us to move there. We will tell you all about our weekend of fun in the next few posts!

On another note, I have to point out that this post is being written on our flight back to our dear NY. We flew Virgin Atlantic this time and have to say that it was a great experience. Our flights were super efficient and we hardly waited for anything. The planes are new and the cabins are lit with cool purple and magenta lights so it feels more clubby than airplane. And the BEST part...free internet on all flights till Jan 15th!

Thank you Richard Branson.

Groom Style: Guys, It's Your Day Too!

Before and After

It is a great understatement that a wedding is highly focused on the female involved (something borrowed something blue). There is absolutely nothing wrong with this but I do feel men should have some sentimental value invested in their wardrobe for that special day.

I have taken you through the wonders of having a custom piece made for your wedding as a guest writer on this blog once before but now I will take it one step beyond and let you in on how you can really step it up.

Recently my father gave me an old tuxedo he purchased back in the day and I had it restored and fitted to perfection and now what was once my father’s black tie gear is now mine. It feels really good to wear it because it’s been passed down to me from him and just as that first game of catch you have with your dad is a bonding experience, so is the moment he hands you one of his old suits. The process could also be enjoyed with an uncle, a grandfather, or even an older cousin. Just make sure the tux/suit is close to your size and can be altered.

If you already have your outfit made or picked out, ask your dad for a set of cufflinks, bow tie, even a shirt. This is something that can bring you closer to a strong male figure in your life as well as make the day just as special for you as it is for your bride to be.

Guest post by Dennis Cahlo of Made to Measure

Make Your Own Table Numbers

If you're looking trim some money off your wedding budget and get crafty at the same time, peep this tutorial and find out how to easily create your own table numbers like these for your wedding.

Step 1 Print out numbers from your computer onto card stock (or hand letter if you feel confident!) along with some kind of border which you will use to cut them out. We could fit 2-up on letter size paper and thought this was a good size. Remember you will need a front and back so print out two of each number.

When you are done printing, cut the numbers out with an x-acto knife (recommended) or paper scissors.

Step 2 Buy a pack of wooden skewers (the dollar store kind will do) and trim them down to about 6" in length. We painted them green but you can leave them raw if you prefer.

Step 3 Now place the skewer in the middle of two same-number panels so it comes up about an inch from the bottom with the number sides facing out and glue them all together. Use a hot glue gun (recommended) or Elmer's etc.

Step 4 Cut a cylinder shape from a brick of craft foam big enough to fit snugly inside your mini flower pot.

Step 5 Place the foam cylinder in the flower pot and stick the skewer with the table numbers attached in the center.

Repeat for all your tables and viola, you are done!

Illustrations by Scott Palmer

Kraft Paper Table Runners

Many of you have asked us how we produced our table runners for our reception. The truth is, it was borne out of necessity. We first had the idea of creating a dreamy summer night in the barn. I was searching high and low for specific lace fabric to cover the generic rental tables, but as it was SO expensive, we had to think of another option. The caretaker of the barn had just enough plain white table cloths that we could borrow for our event. Phew! The problem now was, how were we to cover them? We had found a way to cover the tables, now we had to figure out a creative, inexpensive way to evoke our dreamy table setting.

Since the cloths were white, it was a challenge in creating the warmness, as they were a stark, generic white. But alas, we could do it! We were thinking about creating another fabric runner but after numerous hours in fabric shops, we were stuck. Then we found a roll of Kraft paper in our apartment. Yes!! How could we forget about Kraft paper? After we agreed that this would be the perfect solution, both financially and creatively, the rest came together pretty quickly. I had met with the florist already so I knew the color scheme of my flowers.

In the coming weeks, we began searching for all the components needed to put together the sweet bird's nests. After that, we gathered as many mason jars as we could find, different colored tea lights, and our table number flower pots!

In the last days we decided on the moss and the final result was even better than we imagined!

We will be putting up a tutorial for how to put together easy (and inexpensive!!!) flower pot table numbers tomorrow! Stay tuned :)

Wedding Reception Dinner Napkins

A lot of people have asked us what kind of napkins we used at our wedding. At first, we were prepared to just rent cloth napkins from a vendor. But after we started refining our ideas for the look of our wedding, we realized that they would look out of place with our compostable tableware theme. We tried to think of another solution that might be more interesting.

And viola! What started out as an exhaustive (and fruitless) search for kraft style, natural, unbleached recycled dinner napkins ultimately led us to the simplest (and cheapest!) solution: plain old recycled paper towels. Now, I know what you are thinking...what kind of classless couple uses paper towels for their once-in-a-lifetime reception dinner at their wedding?? Well, I guess we did. But, not in the traditional sense. Our friend Kirsten came up with a lovely way of wrapping the utensils in the paper towels and then tying them with ribbon so that they looked beautiful in the end. Since our theme was BBQ/barn wedding, this idea actually lent itself. Obviously, a more formal, white cloth, china affair would probably not be as appropriate.

With vendors charging almost $1/napkin to rent, this creative solution saved us some money which we were able to use in better ways throughout our wedding.

Total cost: $4.82 (two rolls of paper towels)