Barbie & Ken Get Married: A True Story

In July of last year the wedding industry was hit hard by one French photographer, Beatrice De Guigne. Don't recognize the name? Well there's a good chance that you already know her work. Beatrice rose to international fame with her genius idea of creating a photo shoot focused on what it would look like if Barbie & Ken got married. Within weeks, this creative, quirky and straight out awesome photo shoot went viral (it was featured on Glamour magazine's website in August and was featured on the official Barbie website in September).  After that, pretty much anyone who had any interest in weddings was sharing this over and over and over.

Skip to today when I was looking over my Google Reader scanning wedding blogs per usual and I saw that this photo shoot had resurfaced. This time I went looking for more, checking Beatrice's website to see if she had created any other Barbie & Ken photo shoots... and the answer is YES! Obviously the wedding photos are the most popular but Beatrice started all of this fantasticness in 2010 with Barbie boudoir photos (hilarious), adding along the way with ceremony and reception photos and as recently as this February she did a trash the dress shoot. She is based in France and even though her "English website" is mostly in French, I managed to pull the Barbie & Ken shoots all in one place. First William & Kate, now Barbie & Ken... I guess that fairy tales really DO come true! Enjoy!

Barbie's 1st Boudoir Shoot

Barbie's 2nd Boudoir Shoot

Barbie's 3rd Boudoir Shoot

A Remembrance Of Loved Ones

Many couples want to incorporate their loved ones into the big day and celebrating the life of those who have passed is no different.  There are various ways to highlight these loved ones in both the ceremony and reception, I have picked a few of my favorites ways for some inspiration. 

#1. Photos.  Probably the most common and the most diverse way to remember loved ones, photos can be used in many ways throughout the wedding day.  This bride kept her loved ones close by putting a photo locket on her wedding dress' belt while others choose to attach a photo locket to their bouquet.  Another way is to set up a special space at the reception with photos and rememberance candles, which a FCW client did for her wedding in April 2011. 

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Williams wedding 4.2.11, photo credit: KRR Photography Ltd.

#2. Ceremony.  It is such a nice gesture to include a short note about all the loved ones both you and your future spouse will miss on this special day.  Another idea is to include any readings or songs that remind you of these people.  Some couples choose to incorporate rememberance into the wedding ceremony by set aside single white roses (or any flower you choose) to give to the direct family members of those who have passed on or simpy having a rememberance table.  If you have immediate family members who have passed on, leaving an empty chair is a powerful gesture.

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#3. Reception.  Having a dessert bar?  Use some of your favorite family recipes and share Grandma/Mom/Aunt Becky's delicious treats with all your guests!  Favors are another special way to honor loved ones with a donation to a favorite charity or cause.  Some charities like the American Heart Association will even gift you special favor cards to explain to guests where the donation is going and why.

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Thinking Outside the Country Club

To quote Dave Matthews, "it's not where but who you are with that really matters".  Hotels and country clubs are such an expected wedding site that when couples choose to branch out for their venue, people take notice.  USA Today recently featured an article about a couple who had their ceremony & reception in the last place anyone would connect with weddings- a funeral home. Yes, you read that correctly.  A lot of couples are choosing to have their ceremony and/or reception in a place that reflects them such as on top of a mountain, a BMX bike park, a museum, ceremonies while biking, and even an aquarium to name a few unique sites. 

The important details to focus on when planning a ceremony or reception at an atypical site are the logistics.  Make sure that the facility is equipped to hold a ceremony- bathrooms, accessibility, and parking are obvious concerns.  And for a reception there are obvious catering concerns in addition to overall space.  If you find a great offbeat site but it does not have a site coordinator or someone who will sit with you to discuss logistics, keep looking.  And if you are not sure if your potential site will fit for your wedding, you can always find a wedding planner who will be happy to lend expertise.  Enjoy!  

 

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The Importance of Editing Your Wedding

Anyone planning a wedding knows how many decisions there are to make & this process is too often complicated by the enormous amount of bridal resources- blogs, wedding websites, wedding tv shows, magazines, bridal shows, etc.  Yes, this planner is saying that there is such a problem as too many resources.  Indecisiveness is not only very time consuming but too many choices in addition to the desire to have "the best wedding ever" puts a lot of pressure on today's brides. 

As someone who subscribes to various bridal blogs, everyday I see hundreds of new and inspiring wedding ideas.  It is very tempting to incorporate every cool thing you see but no one wants a wedding that is all over the place & incohesive.  Editing simply means separating what you like & why you like it to focus the planning and design process.  Here are my top 4 rules for editing your wedding:

#1. Start out with a list of what you want your ideal ceremony and reception to be.  If you want a romantic feel, that will rule out industrial spaces and modern colors.  The budget, season, location, and formality of a wedding strongly dictate the rest of the planning so make sure you have those details sorted first.  Did I mention the budget? Yes, the budget directly effects every aspect of your wedding.  There is nothing that will ruin planning faster than a bride being disappointed because she has unrealistic expectations.     

#2. Keep a file (on your computer or an actual folder) of images that you like with notes of why you like those details. Also keeping track of details that you strongly dislike (no roses anywhere, no gold, etc.) can sometimes be more helpful in the beginning stages than figuring out what you do want.  It is kind of similar to how you pick a major in college- knowing what you don't like helps to eliminates most of the choices right away.  Focus on the feeling or environment that you want to create inside of what you need to have.  Once you have a few images picked out, creating an inspiration board is a strategic way to make sure all the elements are cohesive.   

#3. Make peace with the idea that you have one wedding and you cannot (in good taste) jam in everything you see from online, tv, and magazine resources.  This is not a competition. Repeat.  A wedding should reflect the couple & their families, not bragging rights to compare against any other wedding.  Trends change every couple of years and you should not feel obligated to stay away from or give into a popular trend.  Weddings that equally focus on the couple and the guest experience will never go out of style.

If You Love Etsy...

If you have not heard of Etsy yet, you are missing out.  Etsy is a website featuring handmade goods ranging from accessories, clothing, jewelry, stationary, and housewares.  Designers open up Etsy "shops" (registered webpages within Etsy) and sell their creations.  Beyond the "feel good" factor of investing into a small business and local entrepreneurs, the number one advantage is having one on one contact with the sellers.  SO many items are able to be personalized which is the obvious drawback in shopping in a huge national chain.  

As appealing as this website is for regular shopping, many brides seek out new and creative items on Etsy from accessories to stationary to decor.  So when I saw that Etsy has started a wedding specific site, I kind of freaked out.  Because weddings + Etsy= AMAZING. 

I always thought that if Etsy had a specific wedding site, it would be Wetsy but that sounds like an outdated doll that pees itself (good thing I wasn't in charge of the name!).  In reality, Etsy's wedding site is called Wedzu and once it is here, I can't believe we all existed without it. 

Wedzu features categories including apparel, ceremony & reception, jewelry & design, and calligraphy just for starters.  So my advice is to set side a few hours and check out Wedzu for yourself.  I can promise some great finds and probably a lot more than just a couple of hours of viewing awesomeness.  Enjoy!

The Emma Custom Flower by Petal Petal

Pearl and Filigree Glamour Necklace by Shlomit Ofir Jewelry