Thursday, October 25, 2012

LRE Weddings - Virginia and Tim's East Hampton Wedding

When Virginia and Tim came to me to discuss planning their wedding, they were debating several options including New York City, East Hampton, the beaches of North Carolina and Scotland (where Virginia was born).  Quite a wide range!!!  After a lot of chatting and thinking, Virginia and Tim agreed upon East Hampton creating the perfect balance of beach and countryside, all in close proximity to NYC.  They hosted a full weekend "local destination" affair with a casual and fun welcome party Friday evening, Soul Cycle spin class and a beach hangout on Saturday followed by a post wedding brunch on Sunday.  


Our stunning bride, Virginia!  Photo - David Willems Photography

Some pretty amazing Louboutins.
Photo - David Willems Photography

What a beautiful group of bridesmaids in navy J Crew dresses.
Photo - David Willems Photography

Can't forget about Virginia's golden retriever Sully.
Photo - David Willems Photography

Tim and his groomsmen looking dapper in grey and tartan.
Photo - David Willems Photography

Beautiful aisle florals.
Photo - David Willems Photography

Gorgeous back drop for the ceremony!  It was one of those drizzly days, but the rain held off for the ceremony.
The weather added to Scottish theme of Virginia and Tim's wedding.
Photo - David Willems Photography


JUST AMAZING!
Photo - David Willems Photography

Traditional bag piper led Virginia and Tim out of the ceremony and the guests up to the reception.
Photo - David Willems Photography

Such a natural beauty!
Photo - David Willems Photography

Beautiful bride, beautiful backdrop.
Photo - David Willems Photography


Love this photo and love Tim's unique boutonniere.
Photo - David Willems Photography

Bridesmaid bouquet.
Photo - David Willems Photography

Virginia's first look (of the ballroom that is!)
Photo - David Willems Photography


Rather than table numbers, each table was named after a type of whisky and once seated, the guests at each table were invited to pour themselves a glass of whisky for Virginia's father's toast.
Photo - David Willems Photography

Photo - David Willems Photography

Photo - David Willems Photography

The wood farm tables made quite an impact in the ballroom!
Photo - David Willems Photography

Menu Cards
Photo - David Willems Photography

Photo - David Willems Photography

Photo - David Willems Photography

So nice to see the bride and groom so happy during the reception!
Photo - David Willems Photography


Photo - David Willems Photography

Later in the evening Virginia let her hair down!  She also sang a great rendition of "I Love Rock and Roll", wish I had a video!
Photo - David Willems Photography


Credits:
Photography - David Willems Photography - www.davidwillems.com
Hair and Make-up - Jessie Riley - www.jessieriley.com
Entertainment - Groove Society from Element Music - www.elementmusicnyc.com

Monday, October 22, 2012

Laura Remmert Events Featured on Style Me Pretty

So excited to have our wedding featured on Style Me Pretty last Friday! On the blog you can read all about my vision for the design of our wedding, balancing a formal space with a more whimsical and fresh design including tons of color!

Take a look at the link here:

http://www.stylemepretty.com/2012/10/19/saratoga-springs-wedding-at-the-canfield-casino-from-laura-remmert-events/




BIG THANK YOU TO ALL OF MY VENDORS!

All of the vendors that we chose did such an amazing job making my vision become a reality.  Kris Ann of Fleurtacious Designs went above and beyond with the flowers, the room was even more stunning than I ever expected with the PERFECT balance of bright color and elegance.

Photo by Elario Photography



Photo by Elario Photography

Photo by Elario Photography

Photo by Elario Photography

Photo by Elario Photography



Kris Ann's husband JP and father-in-law Joe (Elario Photography) captured the feeling of the evening perfectly and made all of our family and friends completely comfortable during the photos, I have never had formal shots move along so quickly.  JP has a way of making the photos fun and relaxed, and JP and Joe took some pretty amazing shots, it's impossible for me to pick favorites!


Photo by Elario Photography


Photo by Elario Photography


Photo by Elario Photography


Katie and Jill of Katie O' Weddings & Events were there with anything that we needed.  Honestly, I am a wedding planner and I had a wedding coordinator, I don't know what people do without one!  I know how many little things that I fix throughout a wedding and I wanted the chance to be the bride not a planner at my own wedding.  Katie and Jill were amazing!  (Special note - I used to work with Katie at both the City of Albany Office of Special Events and Classe Catering, so it was extra special to have her be a part of my wedding day!)

Photo by Elario Photography


When it came to choosing a caterer, I went with Classe Catering.  Before moving to New York City, I worked for Brian and Classe and learned quite a lot about the Full-service catering business!  Classe Catering provided all of the whimsical comfort food including a cocktail station featuring some comfort favorites - meatloaf and mashed potatoes, lobster mac and cheese and much more!  They also created a late night taco station for us including our a version of our favorite late night NYC treat, the Guaco-loco!  If you live in NYC and have never been to San Loco late night, I highly recommend it, one of my favorite treats after a night out ;-)

Photo by Elario Photography

Photo by Elario Photography



Last, but not least - Perrone Bros Entertainment "Naked Soul" knocked it out of the park with the music!  Everyone was up and dancing all night long.  If you have never heard "Naked Soul" you should definitely check them out, one of the best bands I have heard (and I hear a lot of bands at weddings!) and not only are they a great band, but Tony and Tommy are just amazing to work with, they are available to speak with you throughout the planning process and you can tell that they really love being a part of your wedding day.


Photo by Elario Photography

Photo by Elario Photography


Photo by Elario Photography

Floral and Event Design - Kris Ann Elario - www.fleurtaciousdesigns.com
Photography - JP and Joe Elario - www.joeelariophotography.com
Event Coordination - Katie O'Malley - www.katieoevents.com
Catering - Brian Palazollo - www.classecatering.com
Entertainment - Tony Perrone - www.perronebros.com

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Wedding Trends - The Local Destination Wedding

The "local-destination wedding" has become a very popular option among brides and grooms over the past few years.  I'm sure just about everyone reading this blog has attended at least one wedding that required some travel and a weekend hotel stay but the wedding didn't quite fit into the destination wedding category at least not in the traditional sense - when most people hear destination wedding they instantly think of a longer flight to a tropical or remote location, an intimate guest list and a long weekend or full week with close friends and family.  I happen to love destination weddings, but they are often more difficult for the invited guests because they require a more significant monetary and time commitment.

As many of us grew up in one area, went to college in a second and then moved to a third (or fourth or fifth) location, it's tough to decide which location is "local" and besides that, no matter where you have your wedding some of your friends and family will need to travel.  Additionally, because many of us no longer live near all of our close friends and family, weddings have become an excuse for reunion weekends to catch up with everyone.  

Enter the "local-destination wedding" - Pick a location that may be a short drive for some guests or a short flight for others and invite guests to stay the whole weekend rather than just one night.  

This type of wedding does require additional activities surrounding the wedding - often a larger rehearsal dinner, a welcome party and a post wedding brunch - but these can all be low key and do not have to be a major expense to the bride and groom and their families.  You do not have to provide activities for the guests for the duration of their stay - you can have a website or welcome packet with ideas of places to visit, favorite restaurants and activities and let guests explore on their own.  

As a wedding planner - I've received many requests for this type of wedding - locations such as East Hampton, NY, Bar Harbor, ME and Watch Hill, RI being recent examples.  

Stayed tuned for my next blog featuring photos from a recent "local destination wedding" in East Hampton.  Here's a sneak peak in the meantime - 

Virginia and Tim's East Hampton Wedding - Photo Credit - David Willems