Last year, we were celebrating Ana & Gene’s new edition, baby girl Emma. This year, we’ll be welcoming Ashley & Michael’s new edition, baby boy Sebastian.
Ashley had a 5 month maternity shoot in May with Steven F. Fox photography in Holland, MI.
Sebastian is expected to arrive Oct 6th, 2011 which is perfect timing since wedding season will be at its winding down point.
We are so excited to meet the new edition to their family. Congratulations!
When it comes down to wedding accessories, your bouquet is an intricate part of your look. Although flowers are beautiful and traditional, there are dozens of other items or fabrics you may use to make your bouquet your own and quite unique. 
If you are allergic to flowers, or just want something a little different, here are some ideas for you!
Feathers give a bouquet a whimsical and light feeling, where an over-sized pinwheel can give your wedding a youthful and fun touch.
Colored or antique lanterns would be perfect for a rustic and artsy look, while helping capture some amazing night pictures. Painted fans can add a pop of color to your photos while adding a touch of culture as well.
If you want to stick with a flowery shape, there are hundreds of fabrics, from paper to silk, that you can use to construct your bouquet.
Flower broaches and buttons are other options to make your flawless bouquet just the way you have always imagined on your special day.
I am sooooo excited to share these gorgeous pictures from Holly & Peter’s wedding, taken by their amazingly talented photographer Aruna B.!
I can’t wait to see the rest - congratulations again to you both!
Are you obsessed with all things Royal Wedding? Here are some shows that The Knot will be speaking on that you might want to tune in to!
Thursday, April 28
TheKnot.com on Today Show
Airing during 10 a.m. ET hour
The #1 royal wedding detail everyone’s speculating about? The wedding dress! Check out Carley Roney from TheKnot.com on the #1 national morning show as she shares princess-worthy splurge vs. steal wedding gowns.
Friday, April 29
The Knot Inc. on CNBC Fast Money
Airing during 10 a.m. ET hour
This is the wedding of the decade, so we couldn’t let David Liu get away with not doing a segment! Tune in as David Liu of The Knot Inc. stops by CNBC Fast Money to discuss the state of the wedding industry and the royal wedding.
Monday, May 2
TheKnot.com on CBS The Early Show
Airing during 8 a.m. ET hour
From the jewels to the flowers and the gown, Carley Roney from TheKnot.com will show how brides can have a royal wedding on a commoner’s budget.
Now - why would a wedding planner want to blog about something described as “great for science experiments with using different lengths of light waves, or as an interesting addition to your next science fair project”? Here’s why:
RSVP cards! After slaving over invitation wording, proofing, assembly and mailing (and trying to find the one post office within a 30 mile radius that will hand cancel them), you then have to hope that your guests will actually send them back.
Even if they do, there is no guarantee that they will include their names. Believe it or not, that M____________ line really confuses people! So, my favorite solution is to number each card with the guest corresponding to that number on your spreadsheet - with an invisible pen from Steve Spangler Science!
No one will know that you lack trust in their ability to fill out an RSVP, and when you get some back without names, all you have to do is look them up with the blacklight included with the pen!
“In addition to helping make your wedding dreams come true within your budget - and perhaps saving you from costly mistakes - a consultant will save you time. With today’s hectic lifestyles, many bridal couples and their families do not have the time for the detailed planning and work that a beautiful wedding requires.” Association of Bridal Consultants.
Relief
Stress or Rest? Yes, planning a wedding can be a stressful process at times but it doesn’t have to be. Having a planner allows you to enjoy the process from a bride’s point-of-view so you can rest easy knowing they’ll make sure everything is the way you envisioned it to be. Most wedding professionals will at least recommend hiring a Day-of Coordinator so even if you’ve lost hours of sleep worrying about the wedding, you can relax on that day.
Time
Not Enough Hours In The Day? Planning a wedding takes a lot of hours from researching to vendor meetings and everything in between. Some wedding professionals even book all their weddings 1-1/2 years in advance. Imagine having a full-time job and trying to do all the planning yourself after work hours… It becomes a second job! For the majority of wedding planners, this is their only job - working on your behalf so you don’t have to balance it all.
3-2-1! Most online and magazine countdowns are for 12 months general to any bride but what about the brides who decide to get married 4 months from their engagement? A planner knows how to personalize and prioritize your countdown based on your needs and wants.
Money
A Little Or A Lot: Whether you’re working with 10,000 or 100,000, you want to get your money’s worth. Sure, you can search online looking for and comparing the best deals but planners already know the ends and outs of where to get the best value for your bucks. Most planners have relationships with other wedding vendors who will cut some percentages of the bill just because you’re their client.
Where’s My Calculator? When planning a wedding, you sometimes get that “scanner syndrome”, ringing up everything you want. Then there’s that moment when the cashier tells you the total amount. It doesn’t have to be a jaw-dropping reaction if you have a well-planned budget. That’s where a planner is able to guide you through the financial process keeping track of your estimated expenses and the actual costs of things. They’re able to realize your wish list and play the role of your budget conscience so that you don’t far exceed what you plan to invest.
Advice
Where Do I Go From Here? You may have your entire wedding mapped out or maybe just an idea or two. Either way, how do you put the puzzle together? Planners help conceptualize your ideas taking the big picture and breaking it down a piece-by-piece picture and vice versa. They’re inspired by your personality and style using those elements to create an event that’s uniquely you.
So, What Do You Think? When you get engaged, it seems like everyone has a few suggestions for planning your wedding but planners are the ones to go to for advice. Anything from great vendor recommendations to etiquette on putting your guest list together, they know the ends and outs of the do’s and don’ts.
Emergencies
How On Earth Did This Happen? Its your wedding day and what’s supposed to be one of the happiest days of your life is turning out to be more like a series of unfortunate events. The strap on your shoe breaks, it’s raining on your outdoor ceremony, and one of the groomsmen has had one too many drinks. This is where a planner comes in handy. They know the tricks to fix just about any situation to pops up on the big day. Most planners have an emergency kit stocked with quick fixes for common situations.
Details
It’s The Little Things Count. Whether it’s incorporating how the two of you met into your table numbers or suggesting that one thing to take your event to the next level, planners know how to finishing touches on every aspect so you wedding is cohesive and represents you.
Can you do all the planning yourself and have an exceptional event, yes, but at what cost? Investing in a wedding planner is one of the best decisions you can make. You’ll be able to look back at your wedding and say how unforgettable it was… for all the right reasons!
Written by Ashley Mason - TwoFoot Creative Grand Rapids
I am SO excited to share some of the professional shots taken by Melissa of A Girl In Love Photography of Krissy & Scott’s wedding!
The day started at the Campus Inn with hair and makeup - and the church was visible from the room’s window!
The limo Krissy rode in was awesome - a standard Escalade with the back seat converted into limousine style seating!
Scott sees Krissy for the first time that day…
Husband and wife!
Krissy’s Hunter boots definitely came in handy for the in-between pictures in the Arb!
Such a gorgeous couple, they should be in magazines!
All the lovely details!
Touring the Museum is one of the perks of getting married at the University of Michigan Museum of Art in Ann Arbor, MI.
TwoFoot Creative has the privilege of planning five weddings at the Museum in 2011!
Fun in the Photo Booth…
A blessing before dinner
Don’t you love the emotion? Melissa is an amazing photographer!
The first dance always gets me 
Congratulations Krissy and Scott!
A store that we love has just released it’s new Bridal line BHLDN (www.bhldn.com). Inspired by the stylistic roots of Anthropologie and some old photographs from a little print shop in Belgium, BHLDN features one-of-a-kind gowns, dresses, hair adornments, fabulous footwear and lingerie. There’s something beautiful for all types of brides as the designers stated “whether your a nostalgic romantic, a lady with a twist, a neo-sophisticate or la bohemienne”. Here are a few gown sneak-peaks from a new line that we adore!
How did you get started? As with many Chefs in the industry, I started washing dishes at a country club on Grosse Ile, MI. The Chef told me to help get him through the summer season, and he would make me a “prep-cook” - he kept true to his word. I remember rolling out thawed, pre-made pizza dough and spreading fake butter on it and dry herb mix as the first real kitchen prep job. Little did my parents know 17 years later I would be so passionate about what I do and running a successful restaurant in Metro Detroit. My mother and Father have been my biggest fans and supporters throughout my entire career; I love seeing the pride they have in me.
How long have you been at Toasted Oak/Hotel Baronette? I began in July of 2009. We moved right in and I was a part of the entire process of changing over the previous restaurant into Toasted Oak. I was here almost every day of the week maintaining banquets on the hotel end of the Baronette and developing menus for the opening of Toasted Oak. We took the entire hotel pretty much down to the studs on the inside and re-invented the entire concept of both the Hotel and the Restaurant. Being born and bred in Michigan, I was a good point of reference for the company to bring a Michigan “Up-North” feel to a modern boutique concept.
What do you love about charcuterie? Everything! Being a handcrafted art, it is so amazing to know that what I do every day in making curing meats, making sausages and smoking was a means of survival for our culture as humans. Before refrigeration, the survival of families meant you had to hunt, fish and grow for survival and find ways to keep your food fresh and someone figured that you can take a beautiful farm raised pig, pour some salt over it for a few days or months and hang it for a few more months and you have an aged ham. Alternatively, adding salt and sugar to vegetables to can and jam. As busy as we are, can you imagine having to milk a cow, grow vegetables, and preserve your own meat just to live day to day?
What do you love about weddings? Being a part of the biggest day in a bride and grooms life and the moment they will remember forever. Talk to anyone you know, what do you remember most about a wedding? The ceremony, the party, and the gathering. What do you talk about the most? Food. I love getting new ideas and presenting them to just the right bride and groom, however, I am not going to tell you about any ideas here! I have so much fun in the entire process and attribute this to a great team here at the Baronette, from the first point of contact in the sales team to me and the catering manager who see the actual event through to the end. I enjoy the entire development process of the big day; I remember how important it was for my beautiful wife Stephanie and I to be a part of the food and planning in our wedding, which is why she only trusted me to do it all!
Can you customize a menu for a rehearsal dinner or wedding, and if so to what extent? Any menu, any time, and to any extent. The hardest part of doing customized menus in today’s economy is trying to keep within a budget and still maintain the extraordinary means by which we craft the food. I am willing to try and prepare anything your heart desires in making it memorable for you and your guests.
Is there any food you cannot prepare? I have not met a food that does not like to be prepared by me! Cannot is not in my vocabulary, we will accommodate any request.
If you could star on a food-related show, which would it be and why? I would want Anthony Bordain’s job - travel, eat and learn the different cultures of food. I don’t really get into the “reality” cooking shows because I live it everyday.
What do you wish more couples would ask for in their menus? Something unique to a culture or something a family traditionally does for an event. I love a challenge and if I can place a personal touch on an event it means something they will remember. For my own wedding, I carved a giant pumpkin with our names and wedding date, lined it with a plastic bag and that was used to receive our cards. Everyone still talks about that one little touch. I remember last year a bride had given me her Grandmothers cream corn recipe that was the family staple for many years, we prepared it in cast iron skillets and placed it on each table “family style” to enhance the tradition.
Do you also help pair food with beer/wine? Yes, absolutely. We also have a well trained staff in Toasted Oak to help with this process. We offer a wide variety of beers and wine at Toasted Oak Grill and Market, though I am going to push the Michigan beers and wine on you!
What is something people would be surprised to know about you? I have a tattoo of a pig jumping into a meat grinder - that is how much I love charcuterie!
Krissy & Scott were married on December 11th at the University of Michigan Museum of Art in Ann Arbor, MI. In lieu of hiring a videographer, they rented five flip cameras from WedIt, a new company dedicated to offering couples an affordable way to capture their day on film. Enjoy!