IZZY Magazine Blog

Real Wedding: Jenn and Doug

March 5th, 2010

Today’s “Real Wedding” comes from the talented photographer Janae Shields. Jenn and Doug were married at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in San Francisco. The ceremony was followed by a beautiful reception at the Kohl Mansion featuring bold colors. Congratulations Jenn and Doug! Thank you for sharing your wedding day with us!

The gown

Doug sees Jenn for the first time as she comes down the aisle

The ceremony at St. Mark's

I think this image speaks for itself!

Leaving the church

Jenn

Jenn's bouquet with a locket (a family heirloom) attached

Jenn and Doug in the gardens of Kohl Mansion

The beautiful bride

Doug and Jenn

The reception

Menu cards

Their beautiful cake

I love this image of the rings!

Doug and Jenn's first dance

Tags: IZZY, janae shields, jenn and doug, kohl mansion, online wedding magazine, san francisco weddings, st. mark's
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Thomas Fogarty Showcase

March 2nd, 2010

About a week ago I attended a wonderful event at Fogarty Winery. Thirty couples were invited to sample yummy food from Melon’s catering, view beautiful table set-ups by Amy Burke, and even get a free dance lesson! A highlight of the afternoon was seeing the difference in pricing for different table designs. So often we see beautiful set ups in magazines but have no idea what they cost. Thanks to Amy Burke and Kelly from Hartmann Rentals the pricing was explained in detail. Here are a some photographs from the beautiful event -

A seating card from one of the displays by Rachel Hanson

Beautiful tulips by Amy Burke

A menu card designed by Rachel Hanson

Seating card by Rachel Hansen

Table design by Amy Burke & paper goods by Rachel Hanson

Candles lining the mantle area

Menu card designed by Rachel Hanson and flowers by Amy Burke

Rentals from Hartmann Studios

Yummy fruity drink from Melon's Catering

Detail of a Jenny Packham gown displayed by Nouvelle Vogue

An incredible table designed by Amy Burke. Rentals from Hartmann Studios.

A display by Studio Cake

Munchies by Melon's Catering

A "virtual olive" by Melon's Catering

Kelly Burns and Amy Burke explain the pricing for table designs

The dance demostration

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Adventures in Wedding Planning – Part Two

February 2nd, 2010

Yesterday, I introduced you to Valerie, our new guest blogger. Today we finish her first blog posting about her adventures in planning her wedding…

Wedding Planning – November to December 2009, Part Two

Gregg and Valerie's "Save the Date"

For me, the hardest part had been finding a venue. The best resource that I have found out there to help answer questions is www.HereComesTheGuide.com. This site breaks down everything you will need in order to find the perfect place. Gregg and I originally wanted to get married somewhere in wine country but we slowly found out that everything seemed to be a la carte (you have to find your caterer, bartender, décor, ect). We both agreed that a Hotel would be a better choice for us. We really dedicated a month to finding a place. Making a list of things that you want to incorporate and also having an idea of how many people we wanted to invite. Since our wedding will be around 225 people and we both wanted an outdoor wedding. This helped in eliminating many places.

November 2009 we booked out location at the Sofitel Hotel in Redwood Shores, California. Since we will also have many guests that are out-of-town both from overseas and the East Coast, this place is perfect for us!

I also found my dress in November! I was really shocked that only two months of being engaged I had found my dress, thee dress! I had gone with my mom and dad, I knew that I wanted to share this special moment with them both. My first experience in trying on the first wedding dress, I felt really silly, in the sense that I felt that this wasn’t real. It was really hard to picture myself in a wedding dress even though as a little girl I had always envisioned my wedding. After the first 5 or 6 dresses I started to really see that this was all real and I wasn’t dreaming this up in my head!

I probably tried about 30 different dresses. The Dress Consultant from the beginning told me that any dress I loved to leave in the dressing room and any dress that I liked or wasn’t thrilled about to give back to her. This was probably the best advice I got while trying on dresses: “Love” vs “Like”. Only the dresses I “loved” made the cut…it helped with eliminating dresses.

I ended up with 4 dressed out of the 30. I tried them on for a second time and the first dress that I had originally had tried on fit perfect. I felt like a princess. I remember stepping outside of the dressing room and my dad had a “wow” look on his face and my mom just cried! As my mom and the Dress Consultant placed a veil on me, I got chills and various waves of emotion came pouring in. I knew this dress was the one!

When I looked in the mirror I knew this dress was going to wow Gregg just like it wowed my dad. From this moment forward it all hit me that I was getting married to the love of my life!

Now having selected a venue and finding the perfect dress, we booked out officiate and our photographer.

Since Gregg and I both come from different backgrounds and different religions, to us, the officiate had to be someone that could blend both of our religious and cultural traditions into our ceremony. My Aunt had recommended the White Robed Monks, who also officiated her wedding to my uncle. Together, we and the officiate are building in creating a unique ceremony that will make our exchanging of the vows memorable.

Our photographer will be our friends Rebecca and her husband Gabriel Beszeda. We selected them not just because they are our friends but also because Gabriel is an amazing photographer. After seeing much of his work, we know that he will be able to capture our special day not just through the eyes of a photographer but through the eyes of friends and knowing us as a couple.

As it is now 2010, we have finished our gift registry and we are now working on our save the dates. We have also completed our Wedding Website through www.WeddingWindows.com.

Today, I looked on our “To-Do List” to see what is next: Finding a Florist, Cake Tasting, Finalizing the Menu, Finding Wedding Invitations, and Finalizing a Honeymoon Location. We have 216 days till our big day!

Here is a list of my favorite resources:

Wedding Wire (www.WeddingWire.com)

Here Comes The Guide (www.herecomestheguide.com)

Martha Stewart Weddings

Wedding Etiquette by Peggy Post (this will help answer any and all questions regarding the wedding and the proper way to address issues that arise. This has been a lifesaver for me!)

Next month – More of Valerie’s Wedding Planning Adventures…

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Adventures in Wedding Planning – Part One

February 1st, 2010

I recently became acquainted with Valerie, who also happens to be newly engaged. After just a few minutes of talking with her, I knew she would be the perfect person to write a diary of her wedding planning adventures for IZZY. So with out further ado, let me introduce you to Valerie…

Wedding Planning – November and December 2009

Gregg and Valerie

My fiancé Gregg and I met in a very cinematic way that still blows me away. I remember that day as if it was yesterday! From the very moment I met him, there was something special about him – I knew he was “the one”.

Fast-forwarding a few years later to September 30, 2009 after many shared moments of happiness, laughter, an argument here and there, smiles and vacations, Gregg made me the happiest girl in the world!

He proposed! In order to surprise me he knew he would have to do something very special and very unexpected. He had contacted my boss who agreed to be in on the surprise!

My boss had told me that a friend of hers would be in town from Italy for her birthday but unfortunately she could not make it out to meet her friend. She had asked me to deliver a nice bottle of champagne and pick up some flowers for her friend, who would be waiting at the Saint Francis Yacht Club in San Francisco in a limousine.

I completely fell for it. I had no idea that Gregg would be the one waiting for me.

When I got there I was in utter confusion, my first words were, “Oh, hi there. What are you doing here?”.

Gregg smiled and grabbed me by the hands and told me to come with him as he led me to the waterfront over looking the Golden Gate Bridge.

I finally started to realize what was about to happen. He got down on one knee, told me how much he love me, and asked me to marry him. I gave him a huge hug and said yes!

After the proposal, we got back in the limo, opened up the bottle of champagne and made our way to Napa Valley for a wonderful afternoon of wine tasting.

We are getting married on August 28, 2010.

Like any Bride-to-Be, I wanted to start planning right away! After we announced your engagement to family and friends we started on the right track by beginning a list of important phone numbers from wedding party members to the florist and musicians.

I am grateful to have had friends that had experience planning their own weddings because I didn’t know where to start. Our good friend Joe and Sarah have been a big help so far. Sarah had passed down a Wedding Spreadsheet that has been passed down through many of the friends. This list was broken down to help with a “To-Do List” and establishing a budget and a timetable.

I have learned that in the beginning stages of planning always have a really good “To-Do List” for you and your fiance and anyone else that may be of help in the planning process. For me, I utilized the list in “Real Simple Weddings” and customized it to what was appropriate to us. Like the Wedding Spreadsheet that our friends gave us, I organized my “To-Do List” by Category and assigned tasks to my fiance and I, my Maid of Honor, Best Man and my mother and future mother in law. Along with assigning tasks I assigned a due date to each according to the time frames that everything should be completed. This list has been extremely helpful in getting everything done and keeping organized.

Tomorrow…Valerie’s favorite resources for wedding planning!

Tags: engaged, IZZY, online wedding magazine, valerie, valerie and gregg, wedding planning
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Twilight Inspired Photo Shoot

January 26th, 2010

Stephanie Carpenter and James Pion of Gainesville, Florida submitted this beautiful Twilight inspired photo shoot. Here is what they had to say about the idea behind the shoot:

The Concept: Due to a slight obsession, {Unique Designs} wanted to create a Twilight wedding invitation, an idea which blossomed into a full concept design and shoot. The intent was not to replicate Bella & Edward’s wedding, which was actually an Anne of Green Gables dress and was filled with white flowers, but to make another wedding style based on the mood and concept of Twilight. To acknowledge Edward’s personality, we chose a dramatic look with bold flowers, strong reds, and splashes of black feathers. To incorporate Bella, we wanted to take a vintage twist which can be seen in the creams, vintage brooches, and antique lace.

And here the concept comes to life!