Friday’s FAB Finds!

We’re hard a work editing and tweaking several FAB weddings, but they aren’t ready to share quite yet, so how about a few FAB Finds instead? Happy Friday!!

Ideas We Love – Bringing the Indoors Out

I’ve been wanting to do a post on this idea for a while now, as I’ve been seeing more and more people embracing the concept. Instead of bringing the outdoors IN, let’s bring the indoors OUT!

One of our favorite wedding blogs, Snippet & Ink, recently featured a couple of weddings that took the indoors out theme to such beautiful, brave and unique levels, I just had to share them with you in case you missed them on Kathryn’s FAB blog.

Kate & Jesse brought out vintage rugs and pillows and surrounded them by lanterns on the grass for lounging during the reception and for viewing an old b/w movie they screened after dark! These are just a few of their and their wedding planner, Emily Kelly, FAB ideas – be sure to check out their sweet wedding story on Snippet & Ink.

Courtesy Snippet & Ink, Photo by amy & stuart

Courtesy Snippet & Ink, Photo by amy & stuart

They also had an Italian style family meal at long farm tables under the trees. Beautiful (and brave to go without a tent, but probably a little less brave in sunny CA. 😉

Courtesy Snippet & Ink, Photo by amy & stuart

I found Brooke and Steve’s gorgeous wedding on another of our fave wedding blogs, Southern Weddings. (One of our Blogs/Links We Love back on the 04 edition of FAB Finds!) Brooke and her Dad, made a “church” for their golf course wedding! Can you believe it?! Sooooo cool and absolutely gorgeous. I absolutely love that she and her Father created it together – so incredibly special.

Courtesy of Smitten Photo

Courtesy of Snippet & Ink, Photo by Smitten

Jessica Claire’s fabulous wedding last Fall was one of the first ones we saw to blur the lines between indoors and out. Very cool!

Courtesy of Style Me Pretty, photos by Jose Villa

So what do you think? Are you a fan of the concept?

Hope you have a fantastic weekend – whether you’re indoors or outside! 🙂

xoxo,
…anne

OMG! Is it Friday already?!? Well, Friday, you certainly snuck up on me this week. Lucky for you I found a few FAB Finds for you today!

Ideas We Love – Fun Conversation Starters

I found this adorable idea on my favorite go to wedding inspiration site – Martha Steward Weddings a while back and knew I wanted to share it with you.

I  Knew You When

Image Courtesy Martha Stewart Weddings

Image Courtesy of Martha Stewart Weddings

“This bold time line serves as a three-dimensional reminder of when you first met your guests. Play it during cocktail hour guests and they will be sure to mingle.

Play It
During cocktail hour, each guest sticks a flag into the year she met either the bride or groom.

Make It
Save our clip art on a disk. Have it printed on oversize paper and mounted to foam board at a print shop. Cut flags from origami or scrapbooking paper; punch two holes and thread a corsage pin through. Stick into a fabric-wrapped foam board on a tray. Pins, by Lomey, from michaelsfloralsupply.com.”

Links We Love – ATrendy Wedding Blog

It’s no secret how much we adore Pam Barefoot of ATrendy Wedding. We not only get to work with her on some ah-mazing weddings together, we’re truly honored to call her and her wonderfully warm hubby Doug, dear friends. Truly two of the nicest people you could ever hope to know. Oh, and her two little girls are darn stinkin’ cute and sweet to boot! More on them in the future. 😉

Just one of the things we love about Pam, though is the utter passion she brings to her weddings, her couples, her friends, and well, the list could just go on and on. And now she is sharing that passion with the world – on her blog! Rivaling some of the best wedding blogs out there, Pam, aka The Blog-ette,  Pam pulls together some wonderful wedding finds and inspiration for brides on all budgets – whether your looking for rustic, vintage, modern, elegant, or shabby-chic–it’s all very personal. Even if you aren’t lucky enough to have your wedding expertly coordinated by her, I bet you’ll find at least a handful of gems on her frequently updated blog. Whether it’s one of her fabulous give-aways,  lovely inspiration boards she discovers, a post on thinking outside the box when it comes to table numbers or a simple single photo that can stop you in your tracks – it all exudes pure happiness and light. Head on over today and get your smile on!

Some of her recently featured eye candy that made me smile…

Image courtesy of Martha Stewart via ATrendy Wedding Blog

Image courtesy of Little White Book via ATrendy Wedding Blog

Image courtesy of Olivet via ATrendy Wedding Blog

Oh, and you can follow Pam on Twitter, too! Have a wonderful weekend!!

xoxo,
…anne

Thank Guinness it’s Friday, y’all!

Ideas We Love – Personalized Invitations

In another life, I would be a graphic designer. I absolutely love any and all paper goods. Who doesn’t love receiving a beautiful card, letter or invitation in the mail amongst all the ugly bills?

A great and fun way to inject you and your fiance’s personalities into your event is with the invitations. It’s often the first thing your guests will see and an invitation that speaks volumes about who you are, what you love, or even references the wedding site, for example, and gets them even more excited to join in your celebration. Whether you make them yourself or you have them custom designed for you, here’s a little inspiration to get you in the mood when thinking about your own invites.

The possibilities are endless with these adorable stamp sets from Yellow Owl Workshop. I can totally envision a backyard/garden party invite with just the tree and bike stamp.

Image courtesy of Yellow Owl Workshop

Image courtesy of Yellow Owl Workshop

Image courtesy of Yellow Owl Workshop

On the other extreme is this gorgeous custom designed invitation set by Rifle Paper Company. Absolutely divine. (Click on the photos below to go to Anna’s blog post about Carrie and Adam’s design.)

Image courtesy of Rifle Paper Co.

Image courtesy of Rifle Paper Co.

Image courtesy of Rifle Paper Co.

And why not have a little fun with the process, too. I found these reply cards featured on Martha Stewart Weddings. LOVE the speech bubble – think of what crazy replies that would inspire and way more fun to keep for posterity.

Image courtesy of Martha Stewart Weddings

‘Tis the season and lovely invitations are flowing into Holland Photo Arts HQ. Keep an eye on this space on future Fridays as we feature some of our FAB favorites. Happy Weekend!

Here at FAB Finds Mid-Atlantic based HQ, we can’t tell you how delighted we are that Spring appears to finally be Springing!

Ideas We Love –Personalized Guest Book

We had seen this really unique thumb print guest book awhile back on one of our favorite West Coast based wedding blogs, Green Wedding Shoes and think it’s a perfect Spring FAB Find, although it could certainly be used for affairs at anytime of the year.

The bride’s brother designed their wedding tree and each of their guests was asked to “leaf” their thumb print on the branches and write their name on their “leaf”. How adorable and how fun! You can see more of this couples unique wedding day on the full blog post. (Brides, be sure to check out the Bride’s gorgeous Melissa Sweet Reverie Collection dress and the MOH’s tiered ruffle dress from Anthropologie, too! FWIW – If you’re looking to have your wedding published in print or online, we’ve noticed that editors love to see unique wedding gowns, such as shorter ones.)

photos courtesy of taryn kent photography & scott lawerence photographs

Their bird & flower garlands were super cute!

photos courtesy of taryn kent photography & scott lawerence photographs

LOVE their cake topper, too!

photos courtesy of taryn kent photography & scott lawerence photographs

Happy, happy Spring and we hope you have a fabulous weekend!!

Welcome back! Just a quick and fun FAB Find for you today.

Ideas We Love – Beautiful Umbrellas

So the rain today got me looking for some beautiful umbrella options,  just in case Mother Nature decides that she is going to shower you with good luck (wink, wink) and rain on your wedding day (double wink, wink). The internet to the rescue! I absolutely love the gorgeous form of these pagoda umbrellas from Bella Umbrella, not to mention the fun colors.

Image Courtesy of Bella Umbrella

This bold stripe would look fantastic with a brightly colored bridesmaid dress.

Image Courtesy of Bella Umbrella

Image Courtesy of Bella Umbrella

And the best part about them is you can reuse them long after your wedding to brighten up any rainy day that happens to come your way. 🙂

Have a great weekend!!

It’s that time again – time for Friday’s FAB Finds!!

Ideas We Love – Fun Stuff for Kids

Having kids at your wedding celebration is a personal decision, but if you’re having the type of affair that allows them, we love unique ideas of keeping them entertained. We’ve seen specific tables set up just for the kids at the reception, complete with coloring books, glow necklaces and other fun little things to keep them busy, at least until the music starts that is! I saw this idea on Martha Stewart Weddings recently and loved it!

Courtesy Martha Stewart Weddings

Keep your littlest guests occupied with this photographic scavenger hunt. Who knows? One of them might even snap your favorite shot of the night.

Place a card, a disposable camera, and a pencil at each child’s setting, and see which kid can photograph all the items on the list first. You won’t need an incentive to get the kids playing, but a small prize for the winner is a good idea.

Download the PDF and print onto card stock. With a paper trimmer or a craft knife and metal straightedge, cut the paper in half to make two cards. Use a rounded corner punch to trim the corners of each card.

Places We Love – Clifton Inn

Over the years, we’ve been lucky enough to be a part of several wedding celebrations at the gorgeous Clifton Inn in Charlottesville. It’s not only one of our absolute favorite wedding venues, but it also happens to be our favorite special occasion place in town. We’ve celebrated many wonderful birthdays and anniversaries at the inn and have never once been disappointed. In fact, our first visit was way back in 1999 for Valentine’s Day! Chef Dean and his wife and pastry chef, Erin always knock it out of the park and we’ve been known to have to loosen a belt loop or two after a meal there! Be sure to contact Crystal or Brigitte if you’re planning a wedding and are looking for the perfect Charlottesville experience for you and your guests. Or if just need a romantic getaway from wedding planning! Here’s a few of our favorites from just a few of the weddings we’ve photographed at Clifton.

Eric & Lora’s Winter Wedding
Event Design by Jessica Sheffield with The Event Co
Floral Design by Pat’s Floral

Amy & Peter’s Spring Wedding
Event Design by Jessica Sheffield with The Event Co
Floral Design by Hedge Fine Blooms

Nancy & Paul’s Intimate Fall Wedding
Officiant: Claire Goodman

Tessie & Matt’s Winter Wedding
Event Design by Jessica Sheffield with The Event Co
Floral Design by Pat’s Floral

And if you like what you see, become a fan of Clifton on Facebook!

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!

Whoo-hoo! Thanks to a wonderfully busy and fun Fall wedding season, Friday’s FAB Finds has finally returned in the new year and thousands’ cheered! Ok, maybe five cheered, but they cheered really loud. ;-D If you’d like to see past installments, just click on the Friday’s FAB Finds category to the right.

Invitations We Love – Miranda & Eric

You may remember Miranda & Eric’s fabulous wedding this past September (see Part 1 and Part 2 on the blog) in DC and several people asked about their gorgeous invites, so we wanted to share a few more photos of them. Mindy and her fantastic event planner, Jamie Sears of Simply Chic Events, custom designed the invites and all the paper products through Haute Papier in Georgetown and they turned out beautifully. They really captured the mood and feeling of Mindy and Eric’s wedding celebration, as well as their personalities. 

They further personalized the invitation box with photo stamps featuring DC landmarks. Such a nice, little touch with big impact.

Who wouldn’t LOVE to get this in the mail?!

Yummy letterpress on thick paper. Love it!

Stuff We Love – Custom Made Stamps

We’ve blogged about Etsy before, it’s simply one of the best sites on the ‘net, especially for those planning a wedding. Instead of handwriting and having printed labels on your invites, how about having a custom made return address stamp? Or DIY your invites and paper goods with a stamp depicting your wedding theme. If you’re having a summer wedding, for example, you can have a stamp made of a ferris wheel. You could also do your wedding monogram or “logo”. The possibilities are endless!

In that vein, we were thrilled to find foryoo, a custom designed stamp shop on Etsy. We had a couple of custom stamps made as well as a return address one. Hey, anything that can make paying bills a bit easier is totally worth it! Sandy is truly an artist and is dedicated to providing quality products to happy clients. She primarily makes address stamps, but if you can dream it, I bet she can make it. I just need to figure out what else I can stamp so I can order more!

Sample design courtesy of the artist

Sample design courtesy of the artist

Sample design courtesy of the artist

Sample design courtesy of the artist

Sample design courtesy of the artist

Good morning everyone! You’ve probably been out of town quite a bit anyway and are now starting to catch up again on your blogs, etc. We’ve maintained Friday’s Fab Finds through the most weeks this summer but are taking a brief break with the column until Fall. We hope you enjoy some of the other blog posts that are coming your way here in the meantime. Thanks, and we’ll be back soon!