This fall, I’ll be starting my senior year at the University of Michigan, studying for a degree in Communications. In my spare time, I love being outdoors and now that the sun is shining, I’ll be spending as much time at the beach as possible. My favorite movie is Clueless, I remember first watching it with my mom when I was a teenager and now it’s our mother-daughter tradition.

I got the wedding bug after I was a bridesmaid in my sister-in-law’s wedding last spring, so I’m really excited to go behind the scenes with TwoFoot Creative this season. I can’t wait to see how everything comes together to create the perfect day!

I am dreaming of sunshine and lemonade, so for a color post I knew that I needed to talk about the color yellow!

Yellow really is a great color that compliments other colors; it adds the pop that you need to make things stand out and take notice.

There are also many fabulous flowers in yellow – so you’ll have your pick from whimsical billy balls to elegant callas and almost everything in between!

The first combination I loved was yellow and gray. Gray is a great neutral color, but throw in a soft or bright yellow and you have something beautiful.

Yellow and Navy are such a modern look, and this has nothing to do with a certain college we all love (GO BLUE)!! The combination looks very fresh and clean, and can be done fun, preppy and elegant!

My next combination is simple but also warm and cheery- yellow and white. This would lend itself well to using house linens at a venue – since those usually are white – and adding yellow centerpieces and napkins to the table.

I also looked up what shades of yellow look good on certain skin tones just in case you wanted to allow your bridal party to choose different shades to add depth:

• A yellow, gold tone will look good on any skin tone.
• Medium to Dark skin tone will want to try the brighter shades of yellow.
• If you have pale skin your going to want a dull or pastel shade of yellow.

Summer is here, and our wedding season has begun. We look forward to hearing about your color combinations as well!

Melanie King – TwoFoot Creative, Ann Arbor

How did Ignited Photography get started? I (Heather) really began my obsession with photography back in High School with the encouragement and support of an amazing photography teacher (Diane Ledesma) and photography mentor (Marvin Booth).

When Kevin and I first started dating during my senior year of High School, he often accompanied and assisted me on my photography ventures, but he rarely picked up a camera to shoot. Eventually, I started trying to learn more of the technical aspects of photography and wanted to talk it through with him. He grasped the concepts faster than me and very quickly he was teaching me all sorts of things I didn’t know!

In 2006 I officially photographed my first wedding as the primary photographer. Kevin and I joined forces officially and started ignited Photography in 2009. It’s been an absolutely amazing 4 years together so far, and we feel absolutely blessed to be doing something that we are both passionate about as a team.

Where did you come up with the name? When Kevin and I started our new business in 2009 we really wanted to focus on fashion-inspired photography, with a emphasis on off-camera flash (studio lighting) used in various, on-location settings. After much brainstorming and many long discussions, we settled on “ignited Photography”. Not only does it reflect our style of photography, it also reflects our passion for what we do. We aspire to ignite a love for it in our clients and those around us.

Has it always been a team effort? That’s a good question, and I’d have to say yes! Kevin was with me through photography classes and assignments through High School and College. He is the technical brains, the lighting expert and is extremely creative, and its so amazing how we balance and compliment each other in various ways throughout our business.

Why do you like shooting as a team? Kevin and I dated for 3 years, have been married for 13 years, and have 4 beautiful kiddos. With that much time and life experience together, our level of communication goes beyond spoken word. We communicate volumes through a simple glance, through our body language and through our tone of voice – that’s something that you just can’t get from an assistant, business partner or second shooter.

What is one question you wish couples would ask when searching for a photographer? There are a lot of important questions out there to ask, but we really think one of the most important questions would be one they ask themselves – is the photographer someone that is looking out for their best interest and is the photographer someone that they would truly enjoy spending their entire wedding day with? This is an important question to ask because, along with the wedding coordinator, the photographer is the only vendor that is with them throughout the entire day – ideally, start to finish.

What is your take on the first look? The development of the first look is truly a gift to weddings in general and is a scheduling lifesaver! Although they are not new to the wedding scene (Kevin and I did a first look at our wedding 13 years ago, and it wasn’t a new concept then), they are steadily gaining popularity; about 50% of our couples opt for a first look.

What is your favorite moment at a wedding? Both Kevin and I agree that our favorite moment of every wedding is the time that we get to sneak away with the newlywed bride and groom for their couple portraits. The moment is beautiful and we love to allow our couples the time to enjoy it as we capture the genuine emotion that is exchanged.

What are a few of your favorite wedding venues?

• Oak Pointe Country Club in Brighton, MI – not only is the venue beautiful and versatile, the staff there is amazing!
• Meadowbrook Hall in Rochester, MI – you really cannot compare to the beauty and historic detail of Meadowbrook.
• Planterra in West Bloomfield, MI – for an intimate, unique and exotic wedding, Planterra is our favorite.  Plus, we love that with Planterra, even a winter wedding can have a tropical feel.
• Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite, CA – absolutely breathtaking!!!

What do you love about weddings where a planner is involved? Weddings with a planner are simply a world apart from those without. A wedding planner provides so much support, knowledge and organization ability that simply cannot be overstated. We know that the wedding will truly be much more stress and worry-free for ALL of those involved.

What is something people would be surprised to learn about you? Believe it or not, photography wasn’t always Kevin’s career of choice. Before Operation Treadstone and before Jason Bourne, Kevin had plans to become an undercover military assassin.

My life isn’t nearly as exciting as Kevin’s. Most people would be surprised to know that I have NEVER eaten a blue M&M. A friend and I made a vow when the blue M&M first came out that we would never eat one.

 The Spoiled Girl boutique reached out to us and we fell in love with their cute boutique, so we asked them if they would like to do a guest blog on our website. They are located in Shelby Township,  and love what they do which is creating and helping every woman become a spoiled girl!

At The Spoiled Girl boutique in Shelby Township, we offer affordable clothing, accessories, purses and more for women of all ages. Lately, we’ve noticed many brides visiting our boutique looking for accessories to wear on their wedding day, to wear at their rehearsal dinner and to give as gifts for their bridesmaids or mothers of the bride and groom.

Below we have included just a few of our many options for brides to wear and give as gifts in celebration of their wedding day.

 - Earrings

What I’ve noticed lately is that brides are choosing different earrings based on their individual girls. It’s very stylish for the girls not to match. Many of our brides will select chandelier or post-based earrings on their bridesmaids’ height and hair length. These seem to be the most popular item that brides choose to gift their girls with. Our earrings range in price from $12.95 – $28.95.

 - Compacts

These are very nice gifts for bridesmaids and mothers of the bride or groom. $26.95

 - Brooches

It has become very popular now for brides to wear brooches in their hair or create an entire bouquet made of broaches. Our brooches range in price from $18.95- $28.95

 - Headbands

These beauties speak for themselves! They look gorgeous on any bride. Our headbands range in price from $16.95 – $20.99

-Black and White Dress

This is a great dress to wear to a rehearsal dinner or wedding shower. It’s different than a traditional white dress and can also be worn during the summer vacation and graduation season. $48.95

Thank you so much to The Spoiled Girl boutique for being our guest blogger and please make sure you stop by and let them know you heard about them from us!

TwoFoot Creative loves the month of May, which is right around the corner now! Why you may ask? As wedding planners, May brings the start to our wedding season in full force! We are so excited for this year and the couples that we have been working with, and we can’t wait to share them with you.

TwoFoot Creative has four fantastic new interns, as well as 5 returning team members – it is going to be a good season!

As the season starts up we want to say a big thank you to all the wedding professionals we will be working with this year. We all work together to make these amazing events happen, and we couldn’t do it without you.

Love is in the air and we can’t wait to share all of it with all of you! So let the wedding season begin!

Entertaining your guests at your wedding is becoming a bigger priority to our couples. They are looking for unique ideas that will give their guests something to talking about.

Thinking outside the box when it comes to entertainment seems to be the latest trend when couples are searching for how they will have fun at their receptions.

Pianos on Fire is a dueling pianos company that can come to your event and create a fun and exciting atmosphere. What is dueling pianos you may ask? They don’t really duel each other, but they play together and interact with your guests, from dances to sing-alongs. Now, you may have seen this in a bar before and think that it may not be a good scene for your wedding, but these guys are highly professional and know how to keep it clean or judge your guests as the night goes on.

They have an extensive collection of songs they know, and pass out request slips.

This would be fun to do at a rehearsal dinner if you have a large crowd and want to start your wedding festivities off with an exciting night. Or this could be great if you know you don’t have a big dance crowd, but still want to make sure everyone is having a great time.

Melanie King: TwoFoot Creative, Ann Arbor

A couple of weeks ago my husband and I went on a date night and saw Oz The Great and Powerful. It was so amazing; I love how they stayed true to the the classic Wizard of Oz.

I loved all the details in the movie and with all the scenery I thought about how fun it would be to have a wedding theme of Oz.

Click those heels and take a trip with me to the land of Oz!

Winter was dragging on way too long here in Michigan and the opportunity to go and check out a resort in Reno, NV came up, so I packed my bags and headed to the sunshine!

The Peppermill Resort in Reno is a perfect place to head to for a event or meeting! I love their motto of “how can we make your event work?” They aren’t stuck into the way they do things, and really just want to meet all your needs and make life as easy as they can.

On Friday night they had a cocktail hour for us to meet everyone and take a tour of a few of the board rooms.

Early Saturday morning we started the day off with a tour of the massive resort. with 106,000 square feet of meeting space, and the largest clear-span space of 62,000 square feet, you can see how this venue would be the ideal place for any kind of event.

I also got to spend the day at that their amazing spa, after my massage I was able to spend the rest of the day in the Secret Garden which has these amazing massage beds that vibrate to the sound of the music you are listening to. They have saunas, hot and cold plunge pools, and a full salon.

Every meal I ate was delicious. The best part of my trip, well other than my massage, was getting to learn from the head chef at the resort. He took us all into one of the fine dining restaurants and and taught us how to make some amazing dishes.

The resort also has two very beautiful wedding chapels, and everything you need for a prefect casino wedding. With four fine-dining restaurants, and a club that you can rent out for your wedding, complete with a outside patio with a fire pit lounge area.

Our suite we stayed in was beautiful and comfortable. When I arrived in the morning, the staff had left me a surprise, a wine gift set! They sure know how to spoil a girl and I will be looking forward to any excuse to go back!

Written by Melanie King – TwoFoot Creative, Ann Arbor

The fun thing about fashion is it returns and shows up in all different things in life. This year the Roaring Twenties are making their way into a top wedding trend!

You will see this in accessories, apparel, decor, signature drinks, or the overall theme for your event.

Take a peek at what I found to inspire you!

A perk of our job is meeting and trying new things in the industry, and this even includes the hard job of sampling gelato. Margaret from Hello Ice Cream came to us with some yummy treats.

Margaret is super sweet and loves what she does, and her gelato was amazing so we wanted to share her with all of you! Here is a little Q&A we did with her..

Tell us about your company: Hello! Ice Cream & Gelato is a small, independent Italian-style ice cream & frozen dessert maker located in Ann Arbor, MI. Our gelato is known for its quality ingredients, intense flavors, and silky smooth texture. Our second claim to fame is our beautifully restored vintage ice cream van. We also have a cart that is pretty cute. We provide catering for weddings and special events, and we also set up shop at farmer’s markets and other locations in SE Michigan on a rotating basis.

What services do you offer for events? We like to describe our service as a “unique dessert experience” because it really is. We can serve guests from the window of our beautifully restored 1965 International Metro van. Our chalk board lists a customized menu and we can accessorize the truck to fit any theme. Our retro-inspired cart features whimsical activities including an interactive waving-hand sculpture (say hi!) and an iPad slide show menu display. We are happy to create custom iPad displays using the client’s photos and words. We can provide self-serve stations or we can provide full service. Our courteous staff dress vintage-style in Bermuda shorts and bow ties.

Can you create custom flavors and colors? Absolutely! We make everything to order, often on the day we serve it, so it is always fresh just for the event. Because every batch is custom prepared, we are able offer a wide range of flavors and ingredients. Whatever you can think of, we can make! Most of our flavors are the natural color of the ingredients, but we can also work with natural food dyes to match the event’s color scheme.

What else do you do other than Gelato? We provide a number of frozen novelties such as ice cream bars, sandwiches and mini cones. We also make gelato cakes. I’ve attached some of my favorite photos, but feel free to browse my website for ones you like better: http://www.helloicecream.com/