New Blog

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The Days After: For the Bride

If you're like most brides, you are thinking about all of those little details and you want those gorgeous details documented in a way that really tells the story of your day. You don't just want a shot of your dress. You want an image of your dress that looks beautiful in an album spread; a shot of your dress that fits with the rest of the details you have thought about over and over again. You want images that you can hang on your wall and give as gifts. You want to be captured in a way that truly reflects the two of you... and then you want those images that prove you fell right out of a magazine.

A couple weeks ago, I posted Matt and Becca's Anniversary Shoot at Chandler Hill Vineyards. They were married three years ago and wanted to celebrate by having images of themselves in their wedding attire. Matt and Becca thought through the details of their anniversary shoot and I think that it just added a little extra something. A special something...

Jordan, 

This photoshoot was so special to us, not only as a celebration of 3 glorious years together, but also as a way to reflect on our relationship- our dating days, our engagement, and our wedding day.

You made this day special by asking us details about our style and our relationship. You asked us about things we enjoy doing together, our decorative style, and the "feel" we would like our photos to represent. You then asked us about our relationship and had us share our story. It was so fun getting to share the details of how my husband and I met and the story of our engagement. You used this information to help make our photos unique and special for us. 

Prior to the shoot, I was most looking forward to having the opportunity to take fun and relaxing photos with my husband to celebrate our marriage. As with most couples, our wedding day was busy and stressful. We did not take many photos together as a couple, and during the ones we did take, we were worried about time, getting our attire dirty, and trying not to sweat on our formal wear! This anniversary shoot allowed us the chance to take carefree photos where we could just have fun and enjoy the evening with each other.

My favorite memory of the anniversary shoot actually took place just after we had finished taking photos. A young boy had spotted us and was snapping photos of us with a cell phone. After climbing a hill near him, the young boy approached me and asked if he could take a picture. I of course said, "sure!" He then said that he wanted to be in the picture with me and that his aunt would take the picture. He could not stopping giggling and covering his mouth in awe that I would take a picture with him. At this point, his aunt shared with me that the young boy thought I was a princess! Before leaving, he suggested that we could keep in touch by writing letters and then blew me a kiss- talk about melting your heart! The genuine, heartfelt emotion of this boy sure left me feeling like a princess!

I had such a blast getting to work with you to take these photos! My husband and i were laughing almost the entire time as we posed, smiled, danced, and climbed through the vineyard together. More than anything, I was in awe of creation's beauty during this shoot. The scenery at the vineyard was gorgeous, the weather was perfect, and we got to watch the sunset!

We are so excited to have these images as a celebration of our marriage. We have been blessed with three years together and look forward to lifetime to come. Jordan, you captured such a sweet, gentle emotion in our photos that displays the essence of our relationship together. These photos will be treasured memories for years to come and will be remembered just as fondly as that special day three years ago when we said 'I Do.' We are so thankful for the opportunity to work with you to recreate the beauty and emotion of our wedding day.  

-Matt and Becca

El Salvador: Above the Clouds

He covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills. Psalm 147:8

Racing Games

We grabbed pillows and blankets and gathered around the tv. We had only had our Playstation for a few weeks, but it was quickly becoming our favorite toy and with the newest game it was sure to take priority over our chores. I was probably 10 when my dad brought home a Playstation racing game. We hosted tournaments between the three of us: my dad showing us how to select the fastest car and Jaelyn giggling as we raced to the finish line.

And to be perfectly honest with you, I still love racing games. Mario Kart anyone?! And this leads me to 10 totally random facts about myself:

1. I love to play racing games.

2. I lose my pony tails. 

3. I love popsicles in the summer. And the winter.

4. I would give up every other dessert for frappes and ice cream.

5. I would shoot weddings in the mountains for. EVER.

6. I love anything with crushed ice. Orange juice is a favorite.

7. I want to go to ireland.

8. Sometimes I gallop through the house. Old basketball habit.

9. I do NOT like pupusas (Salvadoran food). 

10. I twirl my hair nonstop. 

happy monday!

The Quarter On The Wall

We sat on concrete blocks and talked all day while the others were working. I guess that's how we roll :) We shared stories and encouraged each other to walk with God more. To trust Him more. To believe Him more. A year ago I met Eli and today she is such a dear friend.

Once she told me a story about her youngest brother, Andrew. They were leaving a restaurant and the waitress proudly proclaimed that she didn't believe in God. Andrew turned around and looked the woman in the eye. Filled with compassion, he told her about what God had done for him... for her... how God had provided His Son as an atonement for his sin. Only he said it in kid words.

He pulled a quarter out of his pocket and told the woman that he was going to ask God to hold the quarter on the wall. He put the quarter up to the wall and as he removed his finger he shared the gospel with her. When he had said what God wanted him to say, he touched the quarter and it fell into his hand.

I remember the day Eli told me the story. Because I picked up every rock and held it to the wall of a nearby home hoping that it would stay in place. Not to test God, but to see something amazing like that. Something crazy. I remember how I tried to cast the doubt out of my mind, but I couldn't. And each time the rock fell to the ground.

I forgot about that story until today. Andrew was holding something shiny in his hand. a quarter. Joy filled my heart as I remembered the story and I asked Andrew to hold it up to the wall. He removed his finger and the quarter remained on the wall. My heart flooded with emotion and I praised the Lord with all that is within me. And then I said, "Who holds the quarter on the wall, Andrew?"

"The Lord holds the quarter on the wall."

Rest + Peace + Joy

Today, I just want to soak up His blessings. I want to be still and simply enjoy the fact that He delights in me. I will walk with Him today and remember the rest, peace and joy that He has promised through His Son. And He stirs a great desire in my heart for you to do the same.

Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 

Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—

who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,

who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,
who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.

He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel:

The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.

He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.

For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust. 

The life of mortals is like grass, they flourish like a flower of the field; the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.

But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children — with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.

The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.

Praise the Lord, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word.

Praise the Lord, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will.

Praise the Lord, all his works everywhere in his dominion.

Praise the Lord, my soul. Psalm 103

Details, details: Events Luxe on Wedding Planning

I am incredibly honored to have my friends and very talented wedding planners on the blog today talking about how they approach the wedding day. Amanda and Tiffany of Events Luxe have been planning weddings and setting the standard in event planning for years now. I am so thankful for their eye for detail and ability to help the couple really enjoy their wedding day. Yeah, they're amazing...

Brides often wonder: “Now that I’m engaged, what is the first thing I should do??”

We tend to believe that if you want the best vendors in town for your budget (including your wedding venue and caterer, your photographer, your florist..), you should start by hiring a wedding planner.

If you have a focus on design for your wedding (you envision a very dramatic reception, you want every element to reflect your personalities as a couple, but you don’t know how to execute the thoughts in your head), you should hire a wedding designer.

Being wedding designers and planners, we are often hired at the very beginning of a bride’s planning process, where we can create a “dream team” of vendors in order to execute a perfectly planned and perfectly designed wedding day.   Funny enough, as I typed this, we got a phone call from a bride saying “I don’t know where to start… so I thought I’d give you a call!”  We hear that a lot.  And it makes us smile every single time.  There is something very rewarding about partnering up with a couple at the very beginning in order to learn all about them and help create a very special wedding, one that is memorable, unique, and incredibly personal to them.   It’s what gets us springing out of our beds with a smile every morning.

Below, we thought we would share 3 contrasting looks that we created based on the client’s unique personalities and needs.

A sunset wedding theme, based on special sunsets the couple shared when they met many years before in Mexico.

 An indoor sunset was created with specialty lighting, tablescapes, floral centerpieces, bouquets, and cake were among elements that were designed with the magic hour colors of the sunset in mind.  Photos courtesy of Under Grace Photography.

An event designed around an ombre theme, created for The Knot magazine using colors fading from pale sea green to deep purple tones. Scroll up to the sunset wedding to see how both of these events use a same tone of purple – but look nothing like one another. We wanted to showcase the ombre look to brides to introduce a modern idea that hadn’t been seen in St Louis before.

Photos courtesy of The Rasers Photography.

A tropical theme – we designed this reception to look “underwater” with Manzanita branch centerpieces painted a 

glossy red to achieve the look of coral, aqua to match the color of the sea, and white was representative of the white sand.  “Beach themes” can easily go wrong, so this wedding was carefully executed to look unique and colorful while paying a gentle homage to the Caribbean, where the groom was born and raised.  Photos courtesy of Under Grace Photography.

The first and most important part of the process of designing a unique event is to explore what is important to the couple or client and going in one specific direction.  Your wedding can quickly become a strange mess if you love horses, and your fiancé loves racecars.  Those perhaps may not be suitable elements to use as your theme.  But if bicycling is important to both of you, it’s how you met, it’s how you spend your time, etc, it could be a very cute idea to execute into a beautiful event.  And many times, color is all you need.  Themes are not a requirement!  Sometimes a theme just leads you in the right direction.  But if the color green is what makes you both happy, start there, and work your way out.

And don’t forget the details!  Photographers love details.  We like to carry our theme throughout to each small element.  Again, it is important to keep things modern and not douse every detail with your theme in an over-the-top way.  Sometimes you just need to know when to stop.  But small details (such as the menu above which we wrote to say “Me N U”, get it?), are things photographers eat up.  And they are the small things that sadly, you will forget about.  It is important to remember that all the effort you put into your big day will shine for only a few hours at your wedding.  The time goes by so fast.  Your flowers will die, your invitations will get thrown away, your meal will be eaten, your first dance will pass in 2 minutes.  But in a photograph, those things live forever!  All the money and effort invested in each element will stay with you always with a beautiful photograph.  And brides, be honest with your photographers.  If you have a very important element that you really don’t want to forget about, be sure to mention it so that he or she can get a few different angles on it, and make sure you are left with the perfect photo to commemorate it.  

In the end, have FUN, and work with your wedding designer to create something unique to YOU: that is the motto of Events Luxe.  We design for you, not for us.  This is your day.  Shout it from the rooftops!!

Love, 

The Girls at EL (Tiffany & Amanda)

Visiting the Orphanage

We pulled into the orphanage and children began to run to us. They pulled us in different directions to show us their drawings on the wall and how they could play the drums. 

I couldn't understand what they were saying as they talked to me, but I remember the great love that poured from my heart yesterday. I wanted to pick them up and tell them of God's great love for them and how He sent His son for them. And there is full life with Him. I wanted to tell them over and over again what the Lord has done for us. I wanted them to know that He is compassionate and He cares for them in the most amazing kind of way. Because even though their mothers and fathers have abandoned them, the Lord will hold them close (Psalm 27:10). 

Faithful to His Promises

The birds were singing just outside the window this morning. And the smell of fresh flowers filled the air. I am so very thankful for today.

The Lord is faithful to all His promises. Psalm 145:13

Willard Senior: Krystine Sechler

The walls were brown and orange with a hint of light yellow. It was warm. Inviting. And the smell of delicious coffee filled the air. We shared stories and talked for a while about plans for the year. She plays softball and is excited for her last year in high school. 

Krystine is so charming. Her smile seems to invite you in and make you feel so welcome. She seems like the kind of girl who would be running through a field of lovely wildflowers with a bouquet in hand. And then maybe she would do something incredibly athletic. She's like that.

Krystine, I had a fantastic time to know you and your family. You are so sweet. I am so blessed to know you guys!

Special Details {for the bride}

I love photographing weddings. Definitely no secret there :) But one of my favorite parts of getting ready is capturing all of those gorgeous details that the bride has incorporated into her wedding day. I remember all of the small details that were part of my wedding... the inscription on the inside of our rings, the detail on my wedding dress, the bouquet that my mom made for me. The list could go on and on. 

I always talk with the bride about the special details of her wedding day so that they are photographed and then told as part of the story. And I love to photograph these details because they mean so much to the bride. One bride used part of her mother's wedding dress in the back of her own. And another was extremely close to her grandmother... and the quilt that her grandmother started for her just before she died just happened to incorporate the wedding day colors. All of these details are part of the story on the wedding day. And I want to tell that story.

how much do you love this bridesmaid dress?! I looooove it!

Chandler Hill Vineyard Anniversary: Matt + Becca

I drove through the winding hills and watched the light dance through the valleys. This place was starting to feel like home and I wasn't sure if I would want to leave at the end of the night. Chandler Hill Vineyards is tucked away in the hills of Missouri. As the sun sets, it seems as though the valley of vineyards melt away into the sunset. 

It is something beautiful. 

Matt and Becca celebrated their third year of marriage, walking hand in hand through the valley. She told me about the beginnings of their relationship and the proposal and how they have journeyed together since then. Matt is a romantic. Always leaving notes and gifts for her. He would even have her friends deliver gifts to her when they were in college. And she is kind. Always thinking of others and pouring out encouraging words over their lives.

It is really something beautiful.

Matt prayed for Becca and for their relationship while they were dating. He wrote it all down in a pretty pink book and gave it to her the night he asked her to be his wife.

Since these pearls belong to Becca's mom, they were extra special.

a handmade bouquet...

so lovely.

Becca, you are GORGEOUS.

oh so sweet!!

 working their stuff.

Photography: Jordan Brittley

Venue: Chandler Hill Vineyards

Hair and Makeup: Studio Branca