Our last gorgeous issue above with head honcho Lara. Image courtesy of Smilebooth.

Hi friends!  Just a reminder that this Sunday, August 1 is the V3 ad deadline!  If you haven’t yet taken the plunge, now is the time to do so! 

As an extra incentive (not like you need one… haven’t you heard how awesome this thing is going to be?!), we’ll take $100 off the price listed in the media kit.  Don’t have a media kit?  Why, just email Katharine!  She’ll be happy to sort everything out for you.

Your favorite SW friends, with the addition of a few very special gentlemen.

In the meantime, we’ve compiled a list of 10 Southern things you can do with the extra $100 you’ll be saving. You may thank us later.

1. Outfit your family in bow ties.  May we suggest XOElle?

2. Buy five bottles of Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka.  Please, share with others.

3. Local favorite!  Treat eight of your best buddies to a picnic buffet at Chapel Hill’s Carolina Inn Fridays on the Front Porch music series.

4. Score a mean pair of vintage cowboy boots.  Emily likes these ones.  Alas, they are not her size.

5. Order a Paula Deen-approved deep-fryer.  We’re sure y’all can figure out what to do next.

6. Jet off on one of Southern Living’s under-$200-a-night vacation picks (okay, you might have to chip in a little extra for this one).

7. Get your New Orleans on and pick up a few boxes of macarons from SW favorite Sucre.

8. Make a trip to the farmer’s market, buy them out of cucumbers, then try your hand at pickling. 

9. Eat barbecue.  Lots of it.

10. Buy many copies of SW and give them away to your friends. 

Happy weekend, everyone!

P.S. Remember, our Twitter giveaway ends on Sunday, too… it’s a good one!

Just when I thought this wedding from Karlin Connell Photography couldn’t get any better… Jenna Claire + Tyler pull out the big guns with their reception at the Pebble Hill Plantation.  If you know me, you know I’m a big fan of long, simply-dressed banquet tables, and J + T’s tablescapes definitely get my whole-hearted approval.  Heavenly Tiers Cakes designed the black + white cake with floral accents.  Now, I’ve heard of some brides that don two dresses for their big day, but did anyone catch the groom’s quick change from a basic black tux to a white smoking jacket?  Loves it!  If you need me, I’ll be trolling Karlin Connell’s blog for more images.  Here’s a good place to start, if you care to join me!

Tell us about finding your wedding dress: I knew I wanted to find something unique and couture, but classic at the same time. I made three appointments in Atlanta to try on dresses one weekend. I thought I had found “the one” at the first appointment; however I wanted to go to my second appointment just to be sure (and to not be rude!). When I walked in Bridals by Lori, I was overwhelmed with their selection of beautiful gowns. My maid of honor spotted the Rivini beauty on a mannequin and insisted I try it on. As soon as I put it on, I felt like a bride. It was everything I wanted in my dream dress and more!
Describe your wedding flowers: My favorite flower is the hydrangea. I knew I wanted them showcased throughout the wedding. We used them both as Tyler’s reception boutonniere and in our centerpieces with a combination of pears and limes. Because each of my bridesmaids are extremely different, I chose 10 different white flower bouquets consisting of hydrangeas, lilies, daisies, etc. that would accentuate each of their personalities.  My bouquet was made up of a mixture of each of the ten choices that I used for my bridesmaids and turned out more beautiful than I could have imagined.
Describe your wedding cake: We wanted something simple and elegant. It was a three tier round fondant cake with pearl and black ribbon accents. We adorned it with dark plum flowers.  Tyler, a huge music fan, chose his groom’s cake in the shape of a vintage record player, complete with an edible David Bowie LP and album cover.
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? Of all the wonderful moments on our special day, the most memorable moment was probably when Tyler and I had our first dance. We danced to “A Girl like You” by The Troggs. Our band, The Grapevine, of Macon, GA, learned the song especially for our wedding. It was very upbeat and so much fun. We put our own spin on the first dance and it was fantastic!
Did you write your own vows?  If so, what was your favorite phrase, verse or line? We did not write our own vows, but since Tyler’s closest childhood friend who is a minister in Athens, GA married us, he sent us separate questions to answer about one another and included some very funny answers in the ceremony. It was extremely intimate and sweet and really gave our guests a glimpse of “who we are” as a couple.
What’s next for you as a couple?  What are you looking forward to in the future?  We just purchased our first home and are enjoying decorating and spending time there. We are looking forward to spending some time together as a young married couple traveling and enjoying each other as husband and wife, and eventually having a house full of children! 

Congratulations and best wishes for a long and happy marriage, Jenna + Tyler!

Y’all knew I wasn’t going to let this Karlin Connell wedding slide without some form of minor freak-out, right?  Jenna Claire + Tyler’s wedding at the Pebble Hill Plantation is glitzy, glam and jam-packed with black-and-white goodness.  But seriously, how awesome is the bride’s stunner of a dress (Rivini, naturally) and matching veil?  And that shot of the bride with her gown moments before putting it on?  Wow, wow, wow!  Other faves?  The bridesmaids’ asymmetric Priscilla of Boston dresses, and all-white bouquets from Singletary Flowers.  And from one B&W bride to another: Jenna Claire, it was your bridesmaids’ coordinated bouquets that made me completely redo my own flower vision!  

How did the two of you meet?  Tell us your story. Mutual friends set up Tyler and me on a blind date. After graduating from the University of Georgia, Tyler moved to Tifton, GA to work for his family’s medical equipment company. My roommate at the time, and best friend from college, was dating Tyler’s new roommate in Tifton. After spending a weekend with Tyler, she came home, walked into my bedroom and told me “I’ve just met the man you are going to marry.”  After a lot of persuading and plenty of mutual facebook-stalking, both of our roommates convinced us to at least meet each other and have dinner. From the moment we spent that first night laughing together over dinner, we knew we had something special in each other.    Describe the proposal. We were gearing up for a concert in Athens on a Friday night. Before we left for the trip, Tyler  told me that we had to make a pit stop in Greensboro, GA to pick up a piece of medical equipment. When we arrived at the Ritz Carlton, Tyler told me that they were having a medical device convention there and that one of their manufacturer’s reps was going to meet us with the equipment that we needed to take back with us. We went inside and the whole staff including the girl at the front desk was in on the whole thing. She told us that the rep. was on the way down and to have a seat in the lobby. Tyler insisted we walk around and look at the beautiful hotel.  We came outside to a beautiful illuminated fountain when Tyler turned to me and dropped to his knee.  We both had a very joyful cry together, and finally Tyler filled me in on the whole charade.  There never was any concert in Athens or any convention or person we were meeting at the Ritz.  We spent that night in the executive suite, drinking champagne and calling our friends and family, and the next morning we had a huge breakfast and a full spa day to celebrate our engagement.
Three adjectives that describe the day are: Unique, intimate and timeless.
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: Lots of things! Most importantly, the music! I walked down the aisle to “Here Comes the Sun” by the Beatles performed with a classical guitar and violin. Our recessional was “Wedding Song” by Bob Dylan performed acoustically by a very close friend of ours. Our band played a great mix of oldies and Motown favorites and kept everyone’s energy up throughout the whole reception. Tyler’s favorite detail was his groomsmen’s shoes, as he bought all of his groomsmen a pair of black Toms to wear with their tuxedoes. We loved the idea that no one was wearing uncomfortable tuxedo shoes, and that we were contributing to a great cause at the same time. We both loved our neon wayfarer style sunglasses that we used as wedding favors. They were a great way to add some color to a formal reception and really upped the “party-level” of our guests.  In lieu of a guest book, Tyler’s grandmother gave us a very old Royal typewriter that we had each of our guests write us a personalized note on.
What Southern details or traditions did you include in your celebration?  What was Southern about your wedding? First, the wedding venue was the iconic Pebble Hill plantation in Thomasville, GA, which is a classic example of old-world Southern design, architecture, and charm. We served our signature drink as well as sweet iced tea and lemonade in mason jars with antique lace tied around them. Any southern wedding would not be complete without shrimp and grits, and other modern takes on classic southern foods! Tyler and I left both the ceremony and the reception in a restored antique Chevrolet pickup truck. We arrived at the reception in the old truck with the entire wedding party in the wood paneled truck bed.

Hey y’all!  Well, I’ve been a busy bee here in the office as usual.  We’re working hard on V3 — which I have to say is the most beautiful thing on earth so far — and I’ve been deep into a few big projects.  But, without further ado… this month’s It List!  This is a very special edition — I’ve given you a few of my favorites, and have asked a few of the lovely ladies I work with to give one of their favorites, too!

Congrats to the last feature‘s top voter’s pick, Meghan McSweeney. I loved the powerful story behind that photograph.

PREVIOUSLY: Volume 1, Volume 2, Volume 3

How this works: VOTE for your favorite photograph by leaving a comment here and (combining our office votes with yours) we’ll award the top image of the month.  All of those images will then be in the running for Image of the Year at the end of 2010.  The best part?  If your image makes the cut, there’s a strong possibility it will make our print edition (of course, with the photographer’s permission).

My picks:

One of the brides in our upcoming print edition tried on 108 dresses.  Yes, 108.  I believe her.  I, oddly, get her.  When we went to Kleinfeld to help Katharine say yes to her dress, I was overwhelmed with schoolgirl giddiness.  My good friend Randy showed us around the massive store, including back rooms filled to the brim with fluffy white designer goodness.  Had I been granted three wishes in that moment, they would have been:

1. Have Randy pick out a dress for me.

2. Try on every dress in that store.

3. Rinse and repeat every day of the week.

Ladies, help me out here… I cannot be the only one!  You try being surrounded by Vera, Carolina and Monique…  hello temptation! So, naturally, this gorgeous photograph from David Murray reminds me of that divine feeling of slipping into “The One” for the first time.  Perfection…

I have a mental file of my favorite images of all time.  This file is easy to keep organized because there are very few photographs inside of it.  Well, it just got a little fatter with this gem from Ben Chrisman.  I audibly gasped when I saw it.  I love movement in images, as well as anticipation and surprise.  Her curled veil is like the cherry delectably placed on top of the perfect decadent wedding sundae.  In a breath, in a moment… their lives just changed.  Oh, my words just aren’t big enough for this photograph.  I suppose that’s the beauty of phenomenal moments captured – a picture contains so much more than 1,000 words.

There is an appropriate onomatopoeia in Alec Vanderboom’s name.  Like magic, this couple is surrounded by a rainbow of light and smoke… boom! Love love love.

It would be a natural tendency to label this image from Tanja Lippert “classic” … but classic denotes that it has been done before, has a timeless quality or is a perfect example of a particular style.  I would dare to say I have not seen this image before, nor done better.  The bride emerging into the light, the fullness of her dress, her graceful fingers extended as if she is saying hello to the first day of the rest of her life… need I go on?  Breathtaking.

My taste, as you can see, is varied.  I love anything that catches me and I love a photograph that shows strength.  This bride’s veil and the push of her hand cuts the air like a knife.  Direct, strong, sexy.  Thank you, Daniel Aguilar, for submitting this stunner.

I will confess that today is a tough day for me.  I’m reflecting on a personal experience one year ago that shook me to my core and still lingers.  It’s making me more reserved, quieter than my usual boisterous self, and a bit sad.  I had a great conversation with Dane Sanders last week where he asked me pointedly why I am passionate about photography.  My honest answer: photography changes me.  I am captivated, moved, uplifted by imagery.  This photograph from The Parsons is a prime example.  Hard day turns soft when I drink in the light, airy love in this image.  I can imagine her on the beach, wind in her hair, carefree and full of anticipation and love.  You can feel the sunlight, smell the ocean breeze, and without a doubt you know she feels really good in her own skin.  The power of photography.  I just went on a mini mental vacay. Thank you, Ashley and Jeremy.

I have long loved this sweet ceremony shot from Jasmine Star.  The adoration in the groom’s eyes, pride and happy tears from Dad, and the bride offering Dad a bit of comfort with a gentle touch on the back.  There are fireworks in this moment.  Just brilliant.  Gets me every time.

Awesomesauce.  That’s what these kids, captured by Michele Waite, are full of.  All dressed up with somewhere to go.  (That place, apparently, is Super Mario Kart land.  OK, I think just dated myself.  Kids probably don’t play that anymore, do they?)  Regardless, I love how sweet this image is — kids just being kids, contrasted, of course, by their wedding duds.

Picking a favorite image from this wedding by A Bryan Photo was an impossibility.  Southern perfection captured perfectly on classic beautiful film.

The moment I saw these images from Dixie Pixel, I imagined one of our office walls covered in this shot.  From top to bottom, the light, the movement, the look of joyful abandon in the groom’s face and… her dress.  Oh my, that dress!  As my friend Lydia says, Ack, I die!

There you have it friends!  I am known for epic posts and I have hundreds of favorite images, but those are just a little peek into what’s inspiring me right now.

Now, as promised, here are a few picks from Katharine, Emily, and one of our awesome interns, Nicole!

Nicole: Here is one of my favorites. I’ve had this photo from Bobbi and Mike saved for awhile because it just makes me laugh. Practice makes perfect, and what better time to learn to how to tie a tie than on your wedding day? For me, this photo perfectly describes all the little steps everyone takes to get ready on the big day and I’m sure the men in this photo are taking the responsibility of bow ties very seriously.

Emily: Ever since I saw this image from the ladies at Vue Photography, I haven’t been able to get it out of my mind.  The soft movement and creamy colors are so beautiful.  Plus, this mid-leap snap brings back my 12 years as a ballet dancer… just replace the wedding dress with a tutu, and I’d be good to go.

OK, Katharine is actually out of the office today doing wedding stuff, so we took it upon ourselves to pick an image we knew she would just loooovvvve.  Her two loves: babies and candy.  There are no signs of sugar in this shot and, technically, it’s not from a wedding, but it’s hilarious and the rest of this post will make you weep.   Shannon Sewell is brilliant.

Congrats to this month’s IT LIST picks and thank you for inspiring me!

I search high and low for a lot of these, but you can submit, too!  Here are the rules:

1. You can only submit one image per week, and…

2. …only via Twitpic (or the Twitter image service of your choice).  Follow and tweet your images to @LaraCasey with the hashtag #itlist to be considered. If your image is chosen, you’ll get a direct message requesting the shot.  This is a Twitter-only submissions system.  No email submissions or links to blog posts accepted.  Don’t have a Twitter account?  Sign up or have someone submit the image for you! If you need help learning Twitter or how to post an image, just leave a comment here and we’ll be glad to help : )

Images can come from anywhere in the world.  What I’m looking for: details, portraits, engagements, proposals, anything that makes you stop to take the image in.  I’m looking for that Mona Lisa factor… something that captures you!

Which one is your favorite?

Vote!

xo

Lara

P.S. If you are a photographer or wedding pro and want to learn the secrets to getting published and my take on phenomenal branding, you don’t want to miss this.

We love engagement shoots, and we know y’all love engagement shoots.  What better place to showcase your soon-to-be wedded love than on the tennis courts, where love is a part of the game?  Avid tennis players and all-around Southern cuties Stacy + Jeff took their love to the court with these fun and vintage-inspired engagement shoots from Kristin Vining.  Lindsey Reagan Thorne was the hair + makeup genius behind Stacy’s classic courtside look.

“We wanted some fun, yet classic, and these pictures really capture who we are and show something we can always share together,” the bride-to-be says of their shoot at the Myers Park Country Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.  Fun fact: Stacy was Whitney’s sorority sister at UNC!  We’re just a little bit jealous.

We love that S+J picked a setting that showed off their fun personalities and told us a little more about them as a couple.  What did or would you choose for an engagement session with your betrothed?  I’m thinking a candy store.  With bow ties.  Lots of candy, and lots of bow ties!

P.S. This isn’t the first engagement shoot we’ve featured from Kristin Vining + Lindsey Reagan Thorne.  The dynamic Southern duo also teamed up for Jessica + Scott’s sweet strawberry soiree!