Greetings from the Big Apple! This is Marissa and I couldn’t be more excited about my first post on Southern Weddings!  We hope y’all have been enjoying our tweet-coverage live from Bridal Market.  Lara and I hopped a plane on Friday to NYC in search of the hottest and most Southern dresses and accessories to share with y’all.  And let me tell you: these designers did not disappoint!  From the clean classic lines of Amsale to the dreamy romantic lace of Monique Lhuillier, it was a weekend of non-stop wedding wonder!  Not to mention, V3 has been circulating and making major waves here in the big city!

Bridal Market is a gathering of the best in bridal fashion from all over the world.  Think Fashion Week – only better – and we were thrilled to be invited to cover all the loveliness!  (Well, Lara was invited, and I convinced (more like begged) her to let me tag along.)  And boy, am I glad she said yes!  Noted style blogger and photographer, Fred Egan, was there to capture our adventures.  We’ve had such a blast so far!

First up was a private showing at Badgley Mischka. We loved the idea of jazzing up classic, simple gowns with a chic belt.  Of course, meeting the designers and seeing the always-dapper Colin Cowie was a major plus!

Photos above from Fred Egan and our iPhones. So so much more to come! Stay tuned y’all, and follow us on twitter for all the market party coverage from tonight!

I’m a girl who was all about candlelight at my wedding, so I might be a bit biased, but if I had to pick, I’d say it’s the lighting that makes a room.  And can we all agree that the hundreds of flickering candles and dim lighting made Lindsey + Ryan’s reception at the aVenue in downtown Nashville?  Chef’s Market catered their intimate celebration, and Village Florist styled the understated blooms.  Lindsey’s another bride who opted for the mix-n-match table arrangements with great success.  (Guess I’m a sucker for long banquet tables!)  Want more?  Hop on over to Kate Murphy’s blog post from L + R’s Southern soiree!

See all the photos from Lindsey + Ryan’s wedding in their Real Wedding Gallery!

Three adjectives that describe the day are: Beautiful, exciting, fun
Our favorite detail of the wedding was: The wedding topper. It was a bride and groom riding on a bike.
Describe your wedding flowers: All of our flowers were white and green except for a hint of purple in the bridesmaid bouquets. We wanted a bright, outdoor garden type of feel so we liked having so many white flowers.
Describe your wedding cake: It was a delicious red velvet cake with cream cheese icing. The top tier was topped with fresh flowers and was decorated with green flowers to compliment our “garden feel.”
What was your most memorable moment about your wedding day? When we first saw each other before the ceremony.

I can’t think of too many things more Southern than a beautiful bride in a simple lace dress, and Lindsey definitely fits this bill in her sweetheart WTOO gown.  The couple was married at the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Nashville, Tennessee.  Kate Murphy photographed the happy pair, and planner Alice Hendry styled their afternoon celebration.  One of my favorite details?  The bridesmaids’ sage green frocks from Jasmine Bridal!

P.S. from Emily: I usually try to include an assortment of images in our boards, but I just had to put in two of Lindsey’s gorgeous bouquet — love it!

How did the two of you meet? Tell us your story. We met our freshman year at Villanova University in August of 2001. We lived in the same dorm our freshman year and quickly became friends. Our friendship continued throughout those four years of college and then four years after while Ryan was in med school in Virginia and I was working in New York City. Eight years after we met, we realized that maybe there was a reason why we had always remained such an important part of each other’s lives since the moment we met. Doesn’t everyone want to marry their best friend? We moved to Tacoma, Washington in the summer of 2009 and were engaged in October.
Describe the proposal. Ryan planned a surprise trip for us to go to San Juan Island including hiking, lookouts of the ocean where you could see Orca Whales, an amazing dinner, tickets to see a show and a stay at a beautiful bed and breakfast. After we went to see the show we headed to the beach at the southern tip of the island. The night was perfectly clear and there were thousands of stars out. He got down on his knee and proposed. It was the perfect end to the perfect day.

On the final morning of the conference we each chose four breakout sessions to attend.  I chose Todd Fiscus of todd.events, Maria McBride from BRIDES Magazine, and Tara Guerard and Liz Banfield.  My last session was the editors panel with Lara, Shira from Martha Stewart Weddings, Susan from Destination Weddings Magazine, Marilyn from Inside Weddings, Brooke from Weddings Unveiled, and Carol from The Bride & Bloom.  It was moderated by Michelle Rago (whom I now love) and they all did a fabulous job!  On a side note, it was so cool to see V3 out and about and in the hands of all of our industry buddies!  Though a little crazy, it was also a really neat experience to release the issue while we were at Engage!

After a social media panel by Lienne of Think Splendid, we had the afternoon to ourselves.  I spent mine by the pool :)  Soon enough, however, it was time to get gussied up, because the gala was about to begin!  To say that The Breakers culinary and design staff pulled out all the stops is really not doing it justice.  When we entered the ballroom, there was a chandelier of hanging champagne glasses about twelve feet up in the air.  Oh yes, and there were waiters on STILTS waiting to cut one down for you!  I know this phrase is used a lot, but we all really couldn’t stop ooohing and aaaahing. 

Pictured below :: Lara, me and Harmony Walton; Jessica Lorren, Yesim Insel, Lara, and Sara Kauss; Lara and Sharon Alexander of Sweet Sensations; Lara, Todd Fiscus, and Xoua Vang of Preston Bailey Designs

Pictured above :: Lara, Jeff from The Breakers, Cameron Keating from The Breakers, Edward Neary of Joseph Edwards Wedding Filmmakers, and me; Melina Glavas from The Little Nell and Lara

Isn’t the decor just stunning?  Again, The Breakers staff truly outdid themselves.  Every table was different, but each was equally as fantastic.  As a paper nerd, I also loved the stationery — menus by CECI New York and calligraphy escort cards by Laura Hooper.  I was also thrilled to finally have a chance to connect with Tara Guerard and Charleston photographer Gayle Brooker the final evening.  I also sat next to Carol Poon of Bride & Bloom at dinner, and she was wonderfully friendly!

Dinner consisted of an individual raw bar, the choice of lamb or Chilean sea bass (the lamb was delicious!), and individual giant sundae bars.  We were also entertained at different times by a jazz band, dueling violinists, and STOMP-esque performers, all courtesy of Elan Entertainment.

Pictured below :: me, Jeff from The Breakers, and Lara; Anthony Luscia from Martha Stewart Weddings, Lara, and Randy from Say Yes to the Dress; our table — Brian Callaway of Callaway Gable, Laura Hooper, Beth Helmstetter, Alexandra Rembac of Sterling Engagements, Leslie Maynor of Fantasy Frostings, Carol Poon, Harmony, and Vanessa Van Wieren of Alchemy Fine Events & Invitations

The night ended with dancing, break dancing, mingling, some more eating in the adjoining ballroom-turned nightclub.  We also had the pleasure of screening Cloud Nine Creative’s GORGEOUS films from Days 2 + 3 of the conference.  Bruce and his team are so, so talented!

Watching the film really reminded everyone, I think, of what an amazing experience Engage! is.  This was my first time attending, and I was definitely nervous — would people like me?  Would I have anyone to talk to?  I needn’t have worried.  Unlike some other conferences I’d been to, it was SO easy to introduce yourself to anyone and to talk to everyone, even though some attendees were quite famous.  Others have said the same thing, but it’s so true — there really are no egos at Engage!  Everyone is there to learn and to teach, which makes for a magical experience all around.

To end, then, HUGE kudos to Rebecca and Kathryn, the geniuses behind Engage!  They do such an amazing job planning everything, and Lara and I are so thankful you allowed us to attend (and Lara to speak!).

On that note, if any vendor is thinking about attending a future Engage!, I would be more than happy to answer any of your questions.  Between me (first time attendee) and Lara (five-time attendee), we have all the bases covered!

All photos in this post are courtesy of Mel Barlow, DVB Photographers, Sara Kauss, Lara’s camera, or one of our iPhones!

Laura Hooper is a Southern Weddings sponsor.

This might sound a bit strange, but I think breakfast on day 2 might have been my favorite meal of the entire trip.  Think I’m weird?  Here’s the rundown of what I had: oatmeal brulee, a fruit and yogurt spoonful, a mini skillet of scrambled eggs with sausage and peppers, banana beignets, and a custom mix from the juice bar.  Yummmm.  Plus, breakfast was outside in the Mediterranean Courtyard, which was beautiful!

We then headed into the Venetian Ballroom for a morning of sessions from fabulous speakers.  Paul Leone of The Breakers spoke first, then Rebecca spoke on the “state of the wedding industry.”  I think I took the most notes during her presentation!  After that we read from the hilarious and heartfelt Mindy Weiss, who spoke about “the good, the bad, and the ugly” in her career and the wedding industry.

After that it was time for a snack in the adjoining ballroom.  Let me tell you, these people don’t let you go hungry!  This time around, we had petit macarons and yogurt parfaits.  Delicious!

Snacktime was followed by a panel of design experts: Tara Guerard, Todd Fiscus, and David Beahm.  The things they are doing with events and flowers and lighting are truly spectacular!  Lastly that morning we listened to a dynamite presentation from business expert and road warrior Cindy Novotny. 

Pictured below :: Cortnie Purdy of Canvas and Canopy Events, Harmony Walton of The Bridal Bar, Lara, and Lindsay Pitt of TOAST Events; Chris Confero and Lara

We were then ushered into the spectacular Circle Room for lunch.  The room itself is breathtaking, and with the addition of gorgeous decor and a fabulous string quartet, the experience as a whole was magnificent.  Plus, I just about fainted from cuteness overload — yummy boxes?!  The work of Smock and DK Designs.  Oh yes, then I almost fainted again when I got to help THE Sylvia Weinstock decorate a cake.  For reals.

After lunch we headed back to the ballroom for a few more sessions.  First up was the hilarious and brutally honest Marcy Blum, who spoke largely off the cuff.  Next was a panel lead by Martha Stewart Weddings editor in chief Darcy Miller, who was speaking with Amy Atlas, Abby Larson, and photographer Donna Newman.  The Knot founder Carley Roney moderated the next panel of Randy Fenoli and stationery designer Ceci Johnson of CECI New York.  Finally, we ended the afternoon with a talk by Bryan Rafanelli of Rafanelli Events, and I am not exaggerating when I say he blew everyone away.  He was definitely my favorite speaker of the conference.  P.S. You may have heard of him — he designed a little thing called Chelsea Clinton’s wedding!

Oh yes, then there were some more snacks — orange-themed this time.  I thought of my dear Katharine when I spotted circus peanuts in the mix!

We ended the night with dine-arounds at a few of The Breakers’ fabulous restaurants.  I was thrilled to dine with Marilyn Oliveira of Inside Weddings and Siri Eklund, as well as fellow attendees Susan Murray, Julie Sabatino, Josh Madans, and Christine Gallagher.  After that, it was — you guessed it — time for more food at the dessert reception on the Ocean Lawn.  Annie Lee of Daughter of Design and I couldn’t get enough of the custom donut station — delicious!  I also enjoyed speaking with Tim O’Neill of the Piano Brothers — we love playing his CDs in the SW office!

Pictured above :: Marcy Blum, Mel Barlow, Jeff from The Breakers, Lara, me, and Harmony Walton

Back with more from the third and final day soon!

All photos in the post are from Mel Barlow, DVB Photographers, Lara’s camera, or one of our iPhones!