Revolutionizing Chicago Elopements

In the last couple of years we've been working with more couples having weekday elopements.  Inspired by these couples, we're trying different ideas to blow away the old stereotype of "courthouse" weddings and elopements, and revolutionize this whole concept.  These kinds of weddings are not for everyone, but for those who do, we have been working on making the experience a lot more special, creative and fun.  We had a blast recently with Susan and Joseph, and this sweet ride, the Italian Fiat 500!

We'll post more from this elopement soon, but we just love this shot, and it epitomizes our quest at Wedding Creativo Photography to inspire couples who are eloping to think outside-the-box and beyond the City Hall basement court office....and have a lot more fun!

In addition to covering traditional marriage court weekday weddings, we have developed our own elopement packages that include photography and an officiant, as well as creative elopement planning.  Interested? Email us for more info.

Happy 4th of July 2012

We are enjoying the holiday this week and taking a break from blogging, but in celebration of the holiday, we put together this wedding inspiration board for July 4th.  Also, as we focus on Chicago-made good on this blog, we would like to take the opportunity to feature W.G.N Flag & Decorating. They have been making flags and decorations of all sorts in Chicago since 1916!  We think their 8x12 inch flags shown below would make a great table centerpieces for any patriotic holiday party or wedding.  FYI, we recently started a sister blog for our event venue, Creativo Loft, where we regularly feature Chicago-made wedding inspiration at www.smallweddingschicago.com.

Summer Styles for Maternity Brides 2012

Planning a wedding and selecting a dress can be hard for any bride, but particularly a maternity bride.  Consider these lovely fashions for keeping things simple, casual and cool for summer maternity brides in 2012.

Something Blue Shoes for Summer 2012 Weddings

Wearing blue shoes for your "something blue" is a great idea that has been around for several years, and a cool trend we think will never go out of style.  Here are lovely blue shoe designs in light blue hues for summer 2012 weddings.

Creativo Loft small wedding venue in Chicago

Over the winter we moved our photo studio to a larger 3000 s.f. private loft space in our building.  We are super excited about this expansion, and have started accepting bookings for small weddings, civil unions, private parties, corporate events and other intimate gatherings. 

We're calling our new space Creativo Loft, and recently did a little photo shoot for our website www.creativoloft.com.

Here are a few pictues from a recent photo shoot for our new space, including a few extras featuring some of our in-house decor items.

Fun socks for grooms

Offbeat fun socks for groomsmen have been a pretty popular wedding trend for a few years running. 

Here are some ideas for finding the best socks to express your personality:

argyle socks for groomsmen

striped socks for groomsmen

light colors and patterns socks for groomsmen

vibrant colors and patterns socks for groommen

socks for whimsical grooms

socks for quirky grooms

socks for tough guys

There are several niche shops that carry a variety of unique socks:

boldsocks.com

joyofsocks.com

sockdreams.com

socksmith.com

Grooms Wedding Day Survival Kit

At nearly every wedding there are essential emergency items that always come in handy.  While brides tend to have bridesmaids or someone with a handy kit, unfortunately the guys don't seem to have this organized as often.  We could make lists for everyone in the wedding party (and maybe we will), but we though we would make this handy cheat sheet for the guys.  In our two decades of experience, we find that all of these items are always useful to have on hand.

1.  There never seems to be enough safety pins in the world on the wedding day.  Guys, bring a handful.

2.  It seems grooms do not get enough sleep (or are maybe up too late celebrating with with the guys) the night before the wedding.  This can be trouble for a lot of reasons, but mostly can make a guy grumpy or have headaches on the wedding day.  Carry - AND DRINK - a small bottle of water and your favorite head-ache remedy throughout the day to alleviate physical ailments that might put you in a bad mood.

3.  Buttons always fall off at the worst times.  For lost buttons and other sewing emergencies, pack extra buttons along with a small sewing kit with needles and mini scissors.  Just bring the thread colors you need -- some that match the color of your shirt and some that match the color of your suit.

4.  This is so unbelievably common -- guys often forget or have some other problem with socks.  Bring a few extra pairs for the forgetful ones.  Also, if appropriate, bring a change of socks and shoes for the reception.  If the women will be throwing off their heels for flip flops before hitting the dance floor after dinner, the guys should be able to wear comfy shoes too.  Check with the bride on this to see if it will be cool.  If nothing else, pack a pair in the trunk for the ride home.

5.  You'll likely be talking to far more people on your wedding day than a usual day.  Carrying a small pack of mints in your pocket helps.  Chomping on gum is bad, especially for pictures.  You'll regret the strange faces chewing gum causes when you look at your pictures later.

6.  With all of the heightened emotions, running around, and socializing that takes place on your wedding day, it is easy to run out of energy and get hungry.  Couples often don't have time to eat a meal until late in the evening at the reception, so it is a good idea to keep a couple healthy snack bars handy to curb hunger pangs, headaches, bad moods, and foggy brain function.  Nuts, energy bars, and fiber-filled apples are best.  Less nutritious snacks like chips, candy bars or muffins are not as helpful to stave off hunger for longer periods of time, but if nothing else is around, they will do.

7.  You'll likely see the girls going around with tote-bags, but grooms may feel more comfortable with a travel kit or mini luggage bag.  Fill it with travel-size deodorant, tooth-brush, floss, mouth wash, comb, razors, and any of your other favorite toiletries.  Along with your other wedding day essentials, you'll be sure to survive the typical kinds of emergencies that grooms face.

Remembering Loved Ones at Your Wedding

Unfortunately, we all have known the loss of loved ones throughout our lives.  The absence of a loved one on your wedding can cause significant heartache, but many of our brides have come up with wonderful ways to symbolize the presence of loved-ones in their hearts and minds on their wedding day.

Keep a grandparent in mind by wearing a picture locket necklace, or carrying an inherited heirloom with your bouquet as you walk down the aisle down the aisle.

Framed portraits on display from your ancestor's wedding day are a lovely way to incorporate their memory on your special day.  Vintage looking frames add a nice touch of nostalgia.  It is interesting for guests and relatives to see the wedding fashions in your parents, grandparents and great-grandparents era, and also see how you resemble them today.

One of the most moving tributes we've seen was a bride keeping her mother close to her heart by wearing her mother's wedding ring on a necklace.

Finally, for loved-ones lost to illness, a contribution to a foundation in lieu of guest favors can be a loving way to pay tribute to a departed close friend or relative who would otherwise be an important part of your wedding day.

Wedding Ceremony Music : Classical and Opera 101

While many couples may be well versed in classical and opera music, we know there are plenty of folks who might be familiar with the melodies, but might not know the titles.  For a quick reference, we present a few favorite classical and opera songs for wedding ceremonies.

PRELUDE (while guests are arriving)

and PROCESSIONAL (bridal party and bride entrance)

"Air on a G String" - Bach

"Canon in D" - Pachelbel

"Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" - Bach

"Clair de Lune" - Debussy

 "The Prince of Denmark's March" - Jeremiah Clarke

MID-CEREMONY (prayers, after readings, musical interlude, etc.)

"Panis Angelicus" (Bread of Angels) - traditional Gregorian Chant

"Ave Maria" - Bach version

"Ave Maria" - Schubert version

"Arabesque" - Debussy

"O Mio Babbino Caro" - Puccini

RECESSIONAL (the bridal party exit)

"Ode to Joy" - Beethoven

"Spring" from Four Seasons - Vivaldi

"Watermusic / Wasermusik" alla hornpipe - Händel

"Wedding March" from Midsummer Night's Dream - Mendelssohn

Great Chicago Hotel Rooms for Brides

When it comes to envisioning the wedding morning, and all of the elaborate preparations that will go on, we imagine most brides would like their special day to start in a beautiful and relaxing environment.  For many that may be their own home, but for others there may be a search involved when it comes to finding the optimal location to get ready.

Trump Hotel

From a photography perspective, we're experts on what makes locations more appealing than others, and we think the best hotel rooms have all or most of the following features:

1. BIG windows.  Rooms with grand floor to ceiling windows are optimal, but rooms with many big windows are good too.

2. Good natural light.  This inherently comes with big window room, but a room with any windows is better than no windows.  Natural light is best for checking your makeup for color and tone accuracy, and most desirable for those fresh face close-up portraits. For the best natural light request a room with north or south facing windows, or optimally a corner suite with windows along two walls.

Dana Hotel

3. White, cream or very lightly warm colored walls.  In general light or pastel tones of beige and ambers are best for skin tones.  Dark walls in brown, blue or purple are okay, but make rooms very dark.  Above all, avoid green painted walls.  We love the color light green as much as the next person, especially for wedding colors.  However, green walls, especially darker hues, make everyone look sick. 

4. Suites or a larger room.  If you can swing it, or can get a great deal, try to get the largest room or suite you can afford, especially if you plan on having your bridal party get ready in the same room.  No one enjoys getting ready in cramped quarters.  Having a comfortable space definitely helps reduce stress.

Sax Hotel

5. Creature comforts.  Often hotels are very good at making brides feel like queens for a day by including pampering perks.  But even if they do, it is a good idea to bring extra treats if you are planning to have a roomful of ladies getting ready.  Champaign, white grape juice, water, fruit, as well as some sweet and salty snacks, or whatever you fancy, is good to have around in order to keep your blood sugar stable and stress levels down.

Sofitel Water Tower

With these criteria in mind, here are some hotels in or near downtown Chicago that offer brides and grooms ultimate spaces for getting ready, and of course also for your wedding night stay.  They all have rooms that meet our optimal conditions for lighting and decor for great "getting ready" spaces, and are listed in random order:

Dana Hotel

InterContinental Chicago

Trump Hotel

Wit Hotel

Drake Hotel

Waldorf Astoria Chicago (formally Elysian Chicago)

Park Hyatt Chicago

Wyndham Blake Chicago

Raffaello Hotel

Hotel Palomar

The Peninsula Chicago

Hotel Sax

The Ritz-Carlton

Sofitel Chicago Water Tower

Holiday Inn Chicago Mart Plaza

Four Seasons Hotel Chicago

Public Chicago

JW Marriott Chicago

Blackstone Hotel

The James Hotel

Engagement Rings Fall 2011

'Tis the season for engagements, so we thought we would help out by taking a look at some unique rings we've seen recently.  Regarding the actual proposal, we really have only one note of advice:  don't do it in a super public way (e.g. not center court of NBA basketball game, or any other way where 1000 people are looking at your potential spouse to say "yes.")  If you're both ready, there is no bad way to propose, but it should really be a meaningful deeply personal experience, not a public fiasco, err....show.   We realize there is this notion where some might think declaring your intentions to the world is a grand gesture, but if you really think about it, your sweetheart only cares that YOU want to get married, and what onlookers think is not important.

Rings at Lord & Taylor

Diamond Rings by Lord & Taylor

Jewelry by Nordstrom

Rings by Tiffany & Co.

Diamond Rings by Tiffany & Co.

Diamond Rings at La Garçonne

Diamond Rings by Roberto Coin

Diamond Rings at Barneys New York

Rings by Anthropologie

Diamond Rings by Cathy Waterman

Diamond Rings by Cathy Waterman

Classic Cars for Wedding Transportation

We always encourage couples to express themselves with creative details for their wedding, and sometimes this can even include their mode of transportation.  We're a big fan of classic cars, and in Chicago we're fortunate to have a few cool companies that offer couples unique vintage vehicles to get around on their wedding day.   Several companies that have classic cars in their fleet are on our recommended page, under transportation.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

Bridal Beauty Roundup: Hair and Makeup Trends 2011

As photographers, we always have a close eye on the work of hair and makeup professionals, and we would like to spotlight the lovely looks of some of our recent brides, made possible with the help of their talented stylists.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

Bride Nadia: hair and makeup by Heather Rae from Art + Science Salon

Bride Marissa: makeup by Elisa Vekkos, hair by Montage Salon

Bride Vicky: hair by Samara Toby, makeup by Krystyn from Bridal Beauty Chicago

Bride Megan: hair and makeup by Holly Kasprisin / Chicago Bridal Hair and Makeup

Bride Kallie: hair by Lauren Brashears from ONE Salon & Spa, makeup by Valerie Ward from Mario Tricoci Salon

Bride Kate: hair and makeup by Beauty on Call

Wedding Photo of the Week: Have Fun No Matter What

Attention wedding shoppers...be sure to bring loads of fun on your big day! 

© Wedding Creativo Photography

With all of the months (often well over a year) of hard work involved with planning your wedding, it is easy to become overwhelmed with the process and forget that this whole thing is about having a special celebration with your sweetheart and all of your favorite people in the world. 

We always tell couples, no matter what, just have fun.  Marissa and Alex were great at espousing this attitude.  Drenching thunderstorms rolled through right at the time we were scheduled to head out to the park for their bridal party and family portraits.  While we waited out the storm (and on the way to plan B), the couple decided to make a stop at a store for some quick refreshments. Let's just say we all got swept away with having way more fun than anyone should have in a supermarket.  But, the bottom line, they didn't let the storms ruin their wedding day fun.

Expect the unexpected, and often when we improvise off of the planned schedule it can be one of the most memorable parts of the day.

Wedding Photo of the Week: Alone Time

While the mini party following the ceremony on the trolley with the bridal party is always a fun, we also like when the limo ride to the reception is just for the newlyweds.  It is really romantic, and nice to have some alone time before celebrating the night away with family and friends.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

Wedding Photo of the Week: Bandages are Wedding Essentials

Essentials for the wedding day survival bag: bandages.  Without fail every wedding needs them.  If you do love shoe fashions, regardless of the pain, check out our post from earlier this week on 2011 wedding shoe trends.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

Double Destination Wedding: Chicago and Hawaii

As we look at some destination weddings this week, it is worth mentioning that several of our couples have had two weddings, one away and one back home.  Some just have a second reception back home if many family and friends were unable to attend a destination wedding.  In the case of Gabrielle and Chad, they live in Hawaii near the groom's family, but the bride's family lives here in Chicago.  It didn't work out for them to have everyone in the same place, so they decided to have two small weddings in both locations, Chicago and Hawaii. 

The cool thing about having two weddings, is that you can have two different styles for each one, as Gabe and Chad did.  For the Chicago wedding with the bride's Italian family, it was a 1950's theme, with the ceremony at the small chapel at Northwestern University, where the bride's mother also was married decades before.  The reception was an intimate family dinner a Chicago neighborhood Italian restaurant.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

WEDDING #1: CHICAGO WEDDING

WEDDING #2: HAWAII WEDDING

For the Hawaii wedding, it was a vibrantly colorful and more casual affair on the beach near the bride and groom's home in Honolulu.  The groom's family, native Hawaiian Kona coffee farmers, helped with the decorations and details.

And the day after, it was an afternoon of surf and sun for the newlyweds.

Destination Midwest: Milwaukee Zoo Wedding

When you hear about destination weddings, typically the Caribbean or far away exotic place might come to mind.  However, the Midwest is chock full of exotic locations that could be considered for destination weddings a little closer to home.  For exotic AND offbeat, you can't go wrong with the Milwaukee County Zoo in Wisconsin.  Jason and Nicole had a fun and festive summer wedding at this family-friendly venue.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

Help Wanted: Great Bridesmaids

So, what exactly makes a great bridesmaid?

We take a fun look at typical bridesmaids duties in the form of a hypothetical job listing.  Brides can be equal-opportunity "employers," so we just want to point out that both men and women can qualify for this position these days.

JOB TITLE: Bridal Attendant

COMPANY: Bride & Groom Inc.

REPORTS TO: Bride-to-Be

POSITIONS: Up to 10 openings available

PAY: I.O.U.

JOB DESCRIPTION:  Assist the bride on the wedding day with any specific assigned tasks, along with practical and emotional support. Attend and possibly help organize wedding day and ancillary wedding events and details.

IDEAL CANDIDATES:  Positive, cheerful and supportive attitude, problem solver, detail oriented, organized and works well with a diverse group.  Does not complain, even during formal wedding portraits in hot or cold weather. ;-)

ESSENTIAL QUALIFICATIONS, SKILLS AND JOB FUNCTIONS:

1. Able to handle heavy lifting (emotional or otherwise).

2. Comes to work prepared and organized with "wedding day survival" bag.  Bonus points if bag matches shoes or other accessories.

3. Gets along well with others and is a team player.

4. Has strong command of tools used for wedding preparations and general problem solving.

5. Maintains a tidy workspace free of dust and lint.

6. Good with fastening microscopic jewelry clasps.

7. Has nimble fingers.

8. Helps bride get into dress without getting stuck, falling, or messing up hair and makeup.

9. Knows what "bustle" means, and can figure out how those gosh darn thingies work.

10. Experience in shoe retail is a plus.

11. Assist fellow team members as needed.

12. Set a good example for junior team members and trainees.

13. Excellent conflict resolution skills are a major plus. Confrontations should be avoided on the wedding day, especially with any company board members, such as the mother of the bride.  If any conflicts arise they should be handled calmly and discretely, and preferably addressed at another time either prior to or after the wedding date.

14. Having a keen eye for details is essential.

15. Ability to break out into spontaneous comedy or stress relief exercises will be required of all successful candidates for this position.

16. The candidate with the best dress "floofing" skills will quickly be promoted to Head Floofer.  This person is responsible for maintaining high quality "floofiness" of the wedding dress throughout the day, especially during the wedding ceremony.

17. Candidates with M.D. degrees, "Masters of Doting," are highly desired.

18. Those who are interested in being considered for the Maid of Honor position must be willing to take on a central role as a team leader, and should also have the ability to give a reception toast that evokes reactions of both laughter and tears, no more than 30 second apart, or optimally, at the same time.

19. Past experience as a cheerleader is helpful, but having great enthusiasm and a supportive attitude is really what matters most.

20. Finally, having specialized party and entertainment skills is not required, but they can certainly be a big advantage.

We dedicate this humorous post in honor of Lucille Ball's 100th Birthday today...and salute all women with a funny bone who help keep us all in good spirits.  For more serious tips on how to choose your bridesmaids, and a guide for how to include them in your plans once you have them selected, check out this helpful article on The Dessy Group website.

Bridesmaids Invitation Cards Winners Announced

Thanks to everyone who responded to our giveaway of the Bridesmaids Invitation Cards, courtesy of Rifle Paper Co. We had a lot of responses and here is what you all had to say in response to our poll questions:

60% are having a smaller bridal party with their closest friends/family

30% are having a large traditional bridal party with family/friends from a wider social circle

10% are just having a Maid of Honor and Best Man

The majority of brides who answered our survey (totally unscientific by the way, it is just for fun) are choosing their sister as the Maid of Honor.  There were a few choosing their best friends, but we didn't ask if they have sisters or not.  Some have not decided yet, and were having a tough time not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings.

Tomorrow we'll wrap up our "Bridesmaids Week" with a fun post that might help with the decision.  However, it seems sisters are the ones most brides are calling on for help.  It was nice to read about the bonds that sisters have for one another.  Here are a few of our favorite answers to the question about choosing the Maid of Honor:

"My sister is 3 years younger than me and pretty much since we even knew what a wedding was when we were younger she knew she would be my maid-of-honor. My 3 lifelong best friends will be included as my bridesmaids. As much as I would have loved to have all of my closest friends in my wedding I needed to think of our budget and only have a small wedding party." -- Danielle, getting married in November 2012

"My little sister will be my maid of honor, because she's my sister! I would feel terrible not having her in a special role. Plus, she'll give a great speech! That said, my best friend will be the "matron" of honor and she'll be in charge of more of the organizational details. That's what she loves to do and she's great at it, so it's a good way to include her. Plus, my sister lives across the country and my best friend lives 10 mins from me, so it makes sense to have someone "on site" to help with a lot of the details. Plus last summer I was the officiant for my best friend's wedding...so she owes me one ;)" -- a different Danielle, getting married in August 2012

"My sister is my MOH. Honestly there is no one else I would have picked. She is my only sister and it would be incomplete to not have her up there with me." -- Roseann, getting married in May 2012

So, out of all of the entries we randomly chose two winners....and they are:

Rebecca W., who is getting married in June 2012

Karen P., who is getting married in August 2012

Both are having their sister as their Maid or Matron of Honor.  Congratulations to the winners and thanks to everyone for participating.  We'll do something like this again soon, so stay tuned. ;-)