Kelly & Chandler's Wedding 3.17.13

   Kelly and Chandler's St Patrick's Day wedding is one that will be close to my heart for years to come! After carefully planning with the bride for over 7 months prior to the big day, their venue fell through a mere 6 days before the wedding! Luckily they had a guardian angel who offered to let them use his beautiful home for the ceremony and pulled some strings with the local yacht club and all was right with the world.

   The day of the wedding Kelly and her bridesmaids got their hair and makeup beautifully done at Rapunzel's in St Petersburg before heading back over the bridge to the private residence where the ceremony would be held to get ready and sip some champagne. Chandler and his groomsmen were already there, relaxing in, what can only be described as, the ultimate mancave.

   Unpredictable as usual, the Florida weather threatened the day but the clouds parted just in time for the couple's intimate, outdoor ceremony overlooking the bay.

   The party moved over to the beautiful Tampa Bay Yacht Club where guests danced and dined the night away! There were plenty of great Irish touches, corned beef and cabbage, a mother's dance to "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling", Guinness flavored cupcakes with Bailey's frosting from The Cupcake Spot, and lots of green!

   My personal favorite part of the evening was the bride and groom's send off. Kelly had been wanting a sparkler exit from the get go but the original venue had some pretty strict rules and the idea got scrapped. Once we made the move over to the yacht club, I decided if I could surprise her with sparklers it might make up for some of the madness that had occurred. The couple's wedding savior also had a fantastic farewell in mind and arranged for a gorgeous 60ft boat, The Vanquish, to pick Kelly and Chandler up at the yacht club's marina and take them to their honeymoon suite across the bay. The combination couldn't have been better. Off they went through a tunnel of lights held by friends and family to the beautiful vessel. Just when we all thought it couldn't get better, cannons fired! (If you're not familiar with the Tampa Bay area, we love cannons. There's a rich pirate culture here!) It was the perfect ending to a beautiful evening and I couldn't be happier for the newlyweds! Congratulations Kelly & Chandler!

Vendors
Wedding Planning & Coordination - Flawless Fêtes
Photography - AKA Photographs
         Assisted by - Ashlee Hamon Photography
Ceremony Venue - Private Residence
Officiant - Orange Blossom Weddings
Violinist - Laurie Vodnoy-Wright
Reception Venue - Tampa Bay Yacht & Country Club
DJ - Expert Productions
Cupcakes - The Cupcake Spot
Bridal Party Hair Styling - Rapunzel's Salon
Bridal Party Makeup - Christy McDonie

Paige & Gabe's Wedding

   Paige and Gabe are one of the sweetest couples you'll ever meet! As soon as I sat down with them I could tell that they are extremely in love and make the perfect pair.
   They enlisted my day of coordinating services in order to establish a timeline, as well as orchestrate and set up their beautiful beach ceremony. They have impeccable taste and their teal and coral color scheme was just breathtaking. A stunning arch and starfish accents made for a relaxed atmosphere for the friends and family that were obviously ecstatic to be sharing in the couple's happiness on the big day!
   Take a look at some of the fantastic pictures from East Coast Photography depicting Paige & Gabe's "I Do's"! Congratulations to the newlyweds!

Paige's gorgeous bouquet from DJ's Florist

Can you tell these two are a little excited to be getting hitched?

Stunning beach ceremony!

Its official! Mr & Mrs! 

Fantastic shot of the couple and their bridal party!

Congratulations you two!

Vendors -
Day of Coordination - Flawless Fêtes
Photography - East Coast Photography
Rentals - Alice Mae Rentals
Florist - DJ's Florist
Location - Sand Key
Bridal Gown & Bridesmaid Dresses - Modern Bridal Shop

Paige & Gabe's wedding was truly beautiful and we just love when we hear from a groom afterwards! Thanks for the review Gabe!

Brides Against Breast Cancer

   Back in February, I was lucky enough to stumble upon Brides Against Breast Cancer's event in Clearwater, FL and had the opportunity to volunteer. This event was part of their Nationwide Tour of Gowns. A huge variety of bridal gowns is brought in, set up and placed on sale for brides that attend the events. All of the dresses are generously donated! Some come from stores and boutiques (in which case most of these gowns were past season's sample dresses and never owned or worn by a bride yet). Others were selflessly contributed by women who have already had their wedding and didn't want their dress to sit around collecting dust when it could benefit a great organization. The gowns vary in size, style and price (starting at $99, yeah that's real) so there's something for everyone! It was such a fun night with incredible people, plenty of brides finding their dream dresses and of course the amazing feeling that everyone there is supporting a fantastic cause.

   After having such a wonderful experience at that event, I did some more research on the charity and learned that their boutique is located fairly close to me, in nearby Sarasota. I filled out their online volunteer application and within a day had an email inviting me down to the shop to participate! I trekked down this past Saturday and loved being a part of the wheels in motion behind the scenes!  They are always in need of volunteers so if you have a chance, reach out, spend some time with some lovely people and assist a truly deserving organization!

If you are interested in donating your bridal gown, 

please visit BABC's site gown donation page for more information!

To see if BABC will be visiting your town soon with their Nationwide Tour of Gowns 

check out their list of Upcoming Events!