Bliss Couple Featured on Essence.com

Congrats to Tia and Fred who were featured on Essence.com!  Their gorgeous wedding can be seen here and here.  Images by Ross Oscar Knight. 

Happy Anniversary! :: Rachel + Lee

Happy One Year Anniversary to Rachel and Lee!  We had a fabulous time getting to know this family and this gorgeous couple!  For the whole wedding from Meg Baisden Photography click HERE!

Venue: Pensacola Beach Hilton, Planning and Design: Bliss Event Group, Flowers: Kebbie Hollingsworth, Cupcakes: Betty Weber

Sara + Tyler :: Sneak Peek and a Love Note

Hi y'all!  We've had a great wedding season so far and are so excited to share the gorgeous weddings we've been honored to produce.  I had to share a quick preview from Sara + Tyler's wedding in Salisbury, North Carolina a few weeks ago.  Sara was a dream to work with and we were so blessed to get to know these families.  What an incredible day!  Much more to come, but here's a little sneak peek.  Planning and Design:  Bliss Event Group, Flowers: Kebbie Hollingsworth, Lighting and production: Christopher Confero, Venue: The Boxwood Lodge, Photographs here by the lovely Nancy Ray.  Full post with images from photographer Kyle Barnes coming soon.

Huge thanks to Chocolate Butterbean for the stunning custom signage and Smitten Sticks for the custom bow ties on a stick!  Love love love!  Oh, and those adorable striped straws?  Created by our very own Emily Ayer with calligraphy by Moya Mimms.

We always give our brides the option to anonymously recommend us, but we've been lucky enough that all of them want to share their glowing words with us!  So humbled by this recommendation from the bride, Mrs. Sara Dickinson:

Our wedding was three weeks ago in North Carolina. We both live in Arlington so Bliss helped us plan our wedding from a long distance.
 
In my opinion Bliss went above and beyond my wildest expectations. Lara and her team were accessible to me anytime during our 10-12 months working together and the promptness of their replies to my questions were practically real time. They have tons of resources to pull from and generously gave me options to choose from. Any wedding planning process is going to be challenging, but Lara made me feel comfortable throughout the whole thing -- I knew I could trust her to get the job done perfectly. I really enjoyed having Lara and her team handle all of the florals as well. That eliminated a vendor and really made the look of the day cohesive. Lara and her team also did a fantastic job dealing with my other wedding vendors.

Our wedding day was incredible. From the morning we started getting ready everything went smoothly to the moment I walked down the isle. I felt 100% relaxed and did not feel the need to have any sort of checklist going. Lara and the girls had it under control. Having Lara's assistant [Whitney] there was really beneficial with getting the guys ready/organized! I of course could not be in their area! I really felt so spoiled... I never wanted for ANYTHING throughout the day. Lara's crew are extremely professional and organized. I felt like I knew what was going on when and where, etc.

I do feel like I'm bragging to a complete stranger but I'm not the type to over embellish. I'm an extremely honest person and I mean it when I say this -- If you go with Lara and Bliss your wedding will be the most beautiful wedding you've ever been to. I promise you that.

On your wedding day it will be important to be surrounded by kind-hearted and loving people. A wedding is about love obviously and the love and passion that Lara and the crew have for their work is beaming through. I loved being surrounded by them on our wedding day. They will only add to the awesome joy you'll be feeling that day.

Good luck with your planning process and best wishes for a happy marriage! We're entering week 4 and absolutely loving it :)

Best Regards,

Sara Dickinson

We love you Sara and Tyler and can't wait to share your whole wedding here soon! xo Lara

[Sara and Lara pictured above as shot by Kyle Barnes]

Happy Anniversary! :: Tia + Fred

Happy one year anniversary to Tia and Fred!  Read their whole wedding story in Gulf Coast Bride or see the entire wedding on photographer Ross Oscar Knight's blog.

Happy Anniversary! :: Poonam + Chirag

Wishing a very happy one-year anniversary to one of my favorite couples of all time, Poonam and Chirag.  Even after a year, this wedding is still so fresh in my mind- the mind-blowing lighting from Nick Bodkins, the florals from Kebbie Hollingsworth, the clothes, the food, the decor, the amazing families... can we do it all over again?!  Pretty please?  I will never forget this celebration and feel so blessed to have been a witness to their marriage.  It was an epic week.  Here are three stunning posts from the phenomenal Whitney and Jesse of Our Labor of Love who captured the week of celebration so perfectly.  The images are seriously unreal. 

First the DETAILS

The WEDDING

and last but not least... the infamous SMILEBOOTH

Wishing you a lifetime of love and adventure, Poonam and Chirag! xo Lara

Happy Anniversary! :: DeAnna + Allen

I don't even know where to begin with how much I love this couple and their families.  While most of the time we spend the majority of planning working with the bride, this wedding was a little different.  Didi was by far one of the most giving, sweet, brilliant mothers of the bride we've worked with.  She knew exactly what DeAnna wanted and stopped at nothing to get it... even if it meant making, crafting, bedazzling and going to the ends of the earth to find the perfect champagne flutes. 

It was a dream to work on this wedding!  The best part?  DeAnna and Allen got pregnant on the honeymoon and now have a beautiful little boy! 

What a great way to celebrate a first anniversary - with a beautiful new family.  Many thanks to the dream team on this wedding: Pensacola Beach Hilton, Kebbie Hollingsworth, Betty Weber, Brian Oden Lighting and Meg Baisden Photography. 

For more wedding pics, click here.  Happy one year anniversary DeAnna and Allen! xo Lara

Real Bliss Wedding: Patricia + Jay in Atlanta

Where to start, where to start!  Working with Patricia and Jay was such a dream.  Patricia came to us just a month away from her wedding with the classic DIY bride conundrum: she had spent months crafting a labor of love of a wedding, handling everything from vendor booking to budgeting by herself, and then realized that she wanted to make sure her very specific and beautiful vision was carried out on her wedding day.  Patricia is a textbook example of the sort of bride we hope to work with on month-of coordination: someone who's already planned a beautiful wedding and simply needs someone to make that plan a reality.

Of course, we certainly didn't execute this wedding single-handedly!  Everyone at the Park Taven, where the ceremony and reception took place, was a joy to work with.  It was great to meet and work with so many new-to-us Atlanta vendors, including Heather and the team of Stylish Stems; Melissa of Melissa Schollaert Photography; Luna Strings, the string quartet for the ceremony; Mark Brickman of Baker's Man who created the wedding cake below and an INSANE Fruity Pebbles groom's cake; Magnum Companies, who was responsible for the dramatic dance floor lighting; and Diane of the DM Band, who kept the party going all night and even extended the band's contract because no one was ready to leave.  And last but not least, we were thrilled to have the chance to work with Eliana of EllyB Events.  She went above and beyond for us and we are so thankful!

It was also an exciting wedding, as you may remember from this post: Lara almost got attacked by a heckler mid-ceremony, and Emily nearly had her hair set on fire during the sparkler exit!  No one ever said being a wedding planner was boring...

Patricia and Jay, we wish you so much happiness!  Congratulations on an absolutely beautiful wedding and what we're sure will be an even more beautiful marriage!

Merry Christmas from Bliss!

Merry Christmas from the Bliss Event Group staff!  We don't blog much here because we're busy with this other blog that you may have heard of.  Trust me, we eat sleep and breathe weddings 24/7 and love every minute of it! If you don't already know, we also publish the wildly popular Southern Weddings magazine.  Be sure to check out the daily blog for loads of big day inspiration.

It's been a truly Blissful year and we've sent so many wonderful couples down the aisle.  Merry Christmas to all of our 2009 and future 2010 brides!

Altar Alternatives

We love when our brides think outside of the box.  Often couples only get creative with the reception details, but there is a way to make a ceremony beautiful and different while still focusing on the sacredness of the occasion.  Especially when the ceremony is outdoors, the customizing options are endless.  Here, a few of our favorites.

For a garden party, this over-the-top distressed shutter, vine, and rose confection (via Once Wed, photo by Jose Villa).  For a seaside soiree, this driftwood arch (photo by Corbin Gurkin via Once Wed).  For a rustic-vintage celebration, this twining grapevine huppah (photo by Jose Villa via Style Me Pretty).

For a graphic punch, consider typography and one of your favorite quotes (photo by Justine Ungaro via SMP).  For a laid-back party, choose streamers -- in abundance, they go from children's birthday party to punchy picnic faster than you can say "celebrate!" (Lower right photo by Tec Petaja)

Want an interior feel in the great outdoors?  Construct your own deconstructed chapel with old lumber.  A bright yellow dresser as an altar and a chandelier as a focal point are unexpected touches. (Photos by Stephanie Fay via Style Me Pretty)

Another way to make your guests feel at home in the out of doors: usher them into your ceremony through an elaborate door, as photographer Jessica Claire did at her wedding (photos by Jose Villa).

Which one's your favorite?

Blissful Day-of Coordination

Hello, Bliss brides!  We are starting to get VERY excited about the fabulous ladies and gents we will have the pleasure of working with this spring and summer.  Among others, we have a green and white garden party, a pink and blue beach soiree, and an all-out, three day Indian extravaganza in the works.  Needless to say, we feel very lucky to get to collaborate with such fabulous couples.

From its inception, Bliss has always specialized in "the works" coordination -- taking every step of the wedding planning journey alongside the bride, from budget formulation to design consultation, to producing the event on the wedding day from the moment the bride opens her eyes until long after she and her groom have left the reception space. We strongly believe this kind of service and attention to detail from the beginning makes for a flawless wedding day and a fun and relaxed planning experience.

But recently, we've been getting more and more requests from brides who, at the last minute, realize they can't do it all on their own.  So, we're accepting a very limited number of day-of contracts based on location and logistics. Day-of service (which is essentially month-of planning, giving us enough time to wrap up all your details and confirm your vendors) ranges from $2000 to $5000, depending on your needs.

If this sounds like just what you're looking for, please email Emily for more information.  We can't wait to hear from you!

Real Bliss Wedding: Rachel + Lee

What's not to love about Rachel + Lee's colorful and fun July wedding?  We had such a blast working with these two, as well as with some of our very favorite vendors, including the Pensacola Beach Hilton, Kebbie Hollingsworth AIFD of Kebbie Hollingsworth Floral Designs, and Betty Webber (love her cupcakes!).  Rachel was a dream bride to work with; she had an impeccable design sense and fabulous ideas (she made the favors herself!).  And of course, it was a pleasure, as always, to work with the very talented Meg Baisden Photography.

Lots of love and luck to you, Rachel + Lee!

Inspiration: Two-Tone Bridesmaid Dresses

Image credits, clockwise from top: Brooke Schwab, A Bryan Photo, Stephanie Williams

We love all of the different looks we're seeing on bridesmaids lately, from a range of colors to a range of styles.  Our new favorite twist, though, has to be the two-tone bridal party.  The blocks of color look so fresh, don't you think?  Best of all, the look can be classic and preppy (top), flirty and modern (left) or simple and romantic (right).

Here are some of our favorite sources for mix-and-match dresses, skirts, and tops to get you started:

Anthropologie

BCBG

J. Crew

Melissa Sweet

Shoshanna

Thread Bridesmaids

Vineyard Collection

Happy shopping!

P.S. We haven't forgotten about you, Bliss brides!  We're in final crunch mode over at Southern Weddings as we prepare to send our November issue off to the printers.  More regular posting will be back soon, we promise!  In the meantime you can follow us on Twitter: Bliss, Lara, Emily, Katharine, + Whitney.

Pink Inspiration for Breast Cancer Awareness Month

Happy October, friends!  Just as this month is a time to celebrate our favorite things about fall (crunchy leaves, crackling fires, corduroy, fuzzy wool scarves), it's also a time to remember loved ones who are fighting and have lost the battle with breast cancer.  In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the SW ladies wanted to provide a little pink inspiration.  This board has a very ladylike vibe and would work well for a brunch or a shower -- perfect opportunities to celebrate the strong women in your life!

Look for more information and for ways you can help at the NBCAM website and the site of the American Cancer Society.

Inspiration board from Emily's personal blog, Peach and Pearl. 

Sources from top left: Lisa Lefkowitz via Style Me Pretty; Brides.com; Lilikoi Design via 100 Layer Cake; Martha Stewart Weddings; Jennifer Behr via Perfect Bound; Lisa Lefkowitz via Style Me Pretty; Lovin' Sullivan, Martha Stewart Weddings; Brides.com; dogwood bouquet, favor boxes, and taper candles all from Martha Stewart Weddings

Real Bliss Wedding: Danielle + Justin

We've had such a busy year that we're just now getting around to blogging gorgeous Bliss weddings from forever ago!  Our blogging tardiness is no reflection on how much we LOVE these weddings and still talk about the incredible couples behind them.  Incredible images from Cook Images, flowers by Fiore of Pensacola, location Hilton Pensacola Beach.  Congrats Danielle and Justin!

How to Handle Bad Service: Lara Weighs In

Lara, along with Senior Editor of Brides.com Anne Chertoff, was recently asked to weigh in on how to handle bad service from vendors - when you should let it go, when you should step in, and, if you choose to confront, the best way of doing so.  We know you don't want to think about something going wrong on your wedding day, but -- just in case! -- this article is a great read.  Our thanks to Anna Sachse, the reporter, for thinking of us!

P.S. The article was syndicated to more than 200 news outlets across the country - exciting!  Here are links to a few examples:

My San Antonio

Chicago Wedding & Party Resource

The Monitor

Inspiration: Mismatched Chairs

{Image credits, clockwise from top left: Artfool, Ngoc Minh Ngo, Flickr, and Country Living}

I've always been inspired by juxtaposition in design, and lately tables and chairs which don't quite seem like they should go together but somehow mesh perfectly have been on my mind.  It's certainly safer to pair perfectly matching white chivaris with a traditional draped table at your reception, but it can be rewarding - and more exciting! - to switch things up.  If you're having a smaller wedding and won't need tons of rentals, this could be a great opportunity to make a big impact without spending oodles of money.  To recreate this look, raid your own furniture stash and try borrowing from family and friends.  For example, you could mix...

...vintage plastic lawn chairs with a long, rough wood table

...painted metal garden chairs with a simple folding table

...caned wooden chairs with a turned-leg farmhouse table

...wrought-iron flea market finds with a draped, hemstitched tablecloth

What do you think -- too much work, or totally worth it?  Would you ever try something like this at your wedding?

Poonam + Chirag on Maharani!

Poonam + Chirag have been making the rounds of the blog world!  Last week it was Smitten, this week it's Maharani!  Maharani provides inspiration for modern Indian brides, and we're thrilled that the editors included Poonam + Chirag on their site.  See the four posts here, here, here, and here!

Happy 1 Month Anniversary Rachel + Lee!

Rachel and Lee had a gorgeous ocean-front wedding in Florida last month!  I took these with my iPhone, but the real shots are coming soon from Meg and Charles Baisden.  Happy 1 month, Rachel and Lee! We hope NY is fabulous and you are enjoying married life together!  Isn't Rachel a stunning bride?

Real Bliss Wedding: Lindsey + Chad

We loved having the chance to work with Lindsey + Chad on their intimate seaside wedding this past June.  Like so many of our couples, these two included fabulous personalized details throughout their day, from sea star boutonnieres to a vintage rowboat filled with drinks at the reception.  We were particularly happy to have one of our favorite photography duos, Rae and Wes Leytham, capturing the celebration as it unfolded - see more of Lindsey + Chad's photos on their blog!

The hydrangea-decked cake was by Betty Webber, the floral design (including the jeweled wrist corsages - beautiful!) was by Kebbie Hollingsworth, the ceremony music was by Jonathan Clark, and the reception music was by Joe Occhipinti.  Lindsey's lovely look was accomplished with the help of Renee of Two Fishes Artistry.

Thank you so much, Lindsey + Chad, for letting us share in your happy day!  Wishing you lots of love and luck in your future together!

--The Bliss Team

Real Bliss Wedding: Danielle + Michael

We are thrilled to finally get a chance to blog Danielle and Michael's wedding from fab photographer Meg Baisden.  The images brought back so many great memories of their day, which started with a serene, light-filled ceremony under a seaside tent and transitioned into a colorful, high energy dance party later that night.  We were also reminded of all the ways Danielle and Michael infused their personality into the celebration, from the whimsical groom's cake and late-night putting green action (seriously!) in honor of Michael's love of golf to Danielle's sweet bouquet, mirrored in the delicate bow detail of the wedding cake.

We were lucky to work with several talented vendors on this wedding: Kebbie Hollingsworth took care of the flowers, Betty Weber delivered on the beautiful cakes, and the Pensacola Pier Park and MySpayce were gracious hosts of the ceremony and reception, respectively. 

Danielle and Michael, we wish you a lifetime of joy together!  It was such a pleasure working with you both, and now, months later, to relive your wedding day through Meg's photos.  Much love to you both!

 - the Bliss Team