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Look Out Peacocks! Hummingbirds Are Moving In On Wedding Fashions

Inspiration, Wedding Fashion, Wedding IdeasWedding Creativo Photography

Congratulations to actress Sara Rue on her marriage.  Details are emerging on People and other sources about her hummingbird and butterfly theme wedding, including her floral Amsale "Dahlia" gown and Swarovski crystal butterfly detailed Aruna Seth heels.

 

Photos: Dan Lecca/Amsale.com, ArunaSeth.com

Rue's bridesmaids also carried on the hummingbird theme with hairpins and broaches.  We imagine they might have looked something like these hummingbird jewelry styles:

Rachel Roy, Jay Strongwater, Full Tilt, Swarovski
ShopStyle

 

For the last few years peacock themes have been quite popular for weddings, and we loved how our couples have incorporated this beautiful bird into their details:

However, we've noticed 2011 fashion designers are adding a variety of bird plumage to dresses and accessories.  Here are a few favorites we've noticed in recent collections:

Designer: Marika Brose, MAX ostrich feather dress (left), and JAMES rooster feather dress

 

 

So, as far as we can tell, "bird" is the word for wedding fashions right now!

 

Wedding Photo of the Week: Alternating Height Centerpieces

Inspiration, Wedding Ideas, Wedding Pictures, Wedding PlanningWedding Creativo Photography

Today we are highlighting a detail from Chris and Kelly's wedding who were married one year ago this weekend. We were inspired by their vibrant yellow, violet and lime colors and liked how they incorporated one of our favorite ideas at wedding receptions - - alternating height centerpieces.  Not only do they make a stunning statement, but when done well, will not obstruct your guests vision across the table or across the room.  The creative folks at Flora Chicago did a fantastic job alternating placement of the centerpieces throughout the dining hall.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

Black Belt Punch for Wedding Dresses

Inspiration, Wedding Fashion, Wedding Ideas, Wedding PicturesWedding Creativo Photography

Belted wedding dresses are always wonderful, but today we would like to highlight the stunning black-belt look.

When dress designer Vera Wang's Fall 2010 line came out last year and featured many dresses with a black sash, we knew it would not be long before we started seeing brides sporting black belt dresses down the aisle.  

Last November our bride Kallie actually had two belts, one for daytime and one for evening to go with her lovely Sassi Holford "Chloe" dress:

We love the black belt look and hope we see more of this trend this year.

Black belts and sashes for brides:

 

Bridesmaids dresses with sash belts:

 

 

Lucky Wedding Horseshoes

Inspiration, Wedding IdeasWedding Creativo Photography

The Preakness horse race yesterday had me thinking about the lucky horseshoe. It has universally been considered a good luck charm for centuries, but the British have been wise enough to incorporate them in their wedding traditions.  Then, we realized that it was one year ago today that Catherine and Nick were married in Chicago, and the groom's English mother gave the bride a horseshoe as a gift to carry with her bouquet down the aisle. Congratulations to the happy couple on their first anniversary!  We were lucky to have been included in their celebration at Grand Piazza with the ceremony on the rooftop of the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

We've received several inquires about where to find beautiful ornamental wedding horseshoes since we originally featured this wedding.  Here are a couple that we recently spotted, as well as some other fashionable ways to include a little luck into your wedding day.

Horseshoe pattern Italian silk tie, and Good Luck garters, and vintage blue horseshoes pin:

    

Gift bag of luck charms and horseshoe wine rack:

 

Various lucky horseshoe jewelry and getting ready tank top:

 

 

 

 

Wedding Photo of the Week: Reception Live Band Karaoke

Inspiration, Wedding Ideas, Wedding PicturesWedding Creativo Photography

Today is the 5th wedding anniversary of Kristian and Claudia! Congratulations you two! Their wedding reception is still memorable to us as one of the most fun parties we've ever experienced. The bride and groom were a "rockin'" couple and incorporated the awesomeness that is Live Band Karaoke to be the highlight of their reception.  After all of the usual traditions of toasts, cake cutting and first dance, all of the sudden their reception transformed into a local live music dive bar vibe.  After the Live Band Karaoke musicians warmly encouraged the first few brave souls to the stage (Kristian of course opened the show!), soon enough EVERYONE was taking multiple turns singing, with all of the "fans" dancing and screaming with excitement at the stage.  No one was embarrassed because all of the guests treated each other as if they were the Beatles or Rolling Stones.  It was so much fun that we didn't want to leave when our time was up late that night!  This was one of our all-time favorite receptions and we wish more couples would consider this idea for their reception. Thanks Kristian and Claudia for single-handedly changing our opinion about karaoke from that day forward!

© Wedding Creativo Photography

Fathers Day is June 19

Inspiration, Wedding Ideas, Wedding PicturesWedding Creativo Photography

Father's day is coming up soon! June 19, 2011 to be exact. For a sweet gift idea, might we suggest framing a loving moment from your wedding day?

For our current active galleries, you can order directly online from your wedding gallery.  If your wedding was a while ago and the gallery has expired, just contact us for help.

Please note our deadlines for Father's Day orders:

Framed prints - June 3

Loose prints - June 8

We're thinking your dad probably has enough ties. ;-)

Hold The Wedding Kiss! 10 Seconds in Heaven

Wedding Ideas, Wedding PicturesWedding Creativo Photography

If you learned anything playing 7 minutes in heaven at any teenage parties, we think you should apply that experience on your wedding day....except this time you don't have to go in a closet. 

The "wedding kiss" is one of the most iconic moments of any wedding day, and sometimes that moment goes all too fast.  We love to see couples take a few seconds to gaze deeply into each others eyes while their marriage is officially being pronounced.  Then, when they hear those words "you may kiss the bride," it is always wonderful when that kiss is anything more than a nanosecond peck.  Optimally, you'll be so filled with joy and love for your new spouse that you'll naturally have a long passionate kiss.  However, if you are going to be conscious about the kiss, it is a good idea to remember to hold it for at least a few seconds.

From our perspective as photographers, we can also have a more solid opportunity to capture this all important moment if you give us a nice long kiss to photograph.  I think our recent couple Cat and Matt may have set a record.  When I checked the time coded on the image files, apparently their kiss lasted a whopping 12 seconds! We were able capture 16 sweet shots of the moment. That's love, I tell ya!

© Wedding Creativo Photography

...1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi, 3 Mississippi....or count the fireworks going off in your head

Best of all, this is likely something the two of you would enjoy practicing before the wedding day.  Also, there is no reason why married couples still can't play the kissing game! Grab your sweetheart and go in the closet for seven minutes of heaven today!

A New Leaf Chicago Wedding of Craig and Snow

Wedding Pictures, WeddingsWedding Creativo Photography

Before Snow and Craig's intimate wedding at A New Leaf in Chicago, we spent the afternoon touring the city with them for pictures.  We started the day off with the couple getting ready at The Drake Hotel.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

Snow and Craig were attracted to the creative portraiture work that we do here at Wedding Creativo, so we planned the schedule and locations for the afternoon after discussing their preferences and aesthetic tastes.  Every couple is different regarding how much time they want to dedicate to portraits.  Snow and Craig planned for a brief wedding ceremony with only two bridal party members, but it was just the two of them going around the city for portraits, so we were able to stop at more locations than if they had a large bridal party to transport around.  They also made sure to schedule a few hours for their "city safari" so that we could be more creative and go at a relaxed pace.  One of our favorite parts of doing portraits before the ceremony is coming up with a creative idea for the "first see" or "reveal," which is a private moment between the bride and groom when they see each other for the first time on the wedding day. 

Since it was just the four of us traveling around, we also suggested the idea of getting a classic car for transportation.  Snow and Craig loved that idea, and contacted Classic Chassis on our recommendation.  They selected a vintage 1940 Cadillac limousine. The car has a name - Godfather II, and it is a beauty.  We love driver Pete! He is a sweetheart, knows the city like the back of his hand, is relaxed and cool, and is one of our all-time favorite chauffeurs.

The groom wore a grey suit and tie, while the bride's color accents were light blue and white with her calla lilies and wildflower bouquet.  She also wore red patent leather shoes in honor of her family's cultural tradition for the bride to wear red.  The ceremony and reception were decorated with with white and blue hydrangeas, brown manzanita branches, and simply elegant brown and light blue linens.  The wedding cake featured the bride and groom's monogram and minimal detailing in brown, and was made by Maggie Roeder Cakes.  For the ceremony, the warm glow of candle light provided the ambiance for their intimate gathering of family and friends.

For their readings, the couple chose passages from their favorite books.  Snow's was the Dr. Seuss classic Cat in the Hat.

Hearty Boys, one of our favorite catering companies, provided the delicious dinner, sweet table and linens. For the cocktail hour guests snacked on scallops wrapped in bacon, mac and cheese squares and spiced figs. The main courses included steak, chicken, and sweet pea tortellini, which was amazing and the dish many of the guests were raving about.

Their ceremony was filled with lots of humor, and on the whole, Snow and Craig chose simple, yet meaningful, unique ways to celebrate their marriage.

Snow was also one of the first brides we noticed bringing back the patent leather shoe trend.  We've been seeing lots of brides wear them lately in a wide variety of hues.  Her burgundy red heels were stunning, and inspired us to create this fashion board featuring some hot patent leather styles.

 

Wedding Fashion Inspiration: Sexy Bride Lily Aldridge

Inspiration, Wedding FashionWedding Creativo Photography

Photo Credit: Joe Buissink / People Magazine Victoria's Secret model Lily Aldridge wore a couture Vera Wang gown at her wedding with Kings of Leon singer Caleb Followill on May 12, according to People Magazine.

What we're wondering is, did she get any take-home perks from her gig on the recent Victoria's Secret campaign that she was featured in?  The lingerie giant launched their new Sexy Little Bride Collection in April, with Aldridge modeling the new line.

There is a slideshow on Victoria's Secret website showcasing their new bridal collection, which is designed like a very cute bridal boudoir portrait session album.  By the way, if you would like to do something like this as a gift for your sweetheart, we can help you with that!

 

Here are a few of our bridal boudoir album designs:

© Wedding Creativo Photography

If you're looking to incorporate a "sexy bride" ensemble for your wedding night, here are more bridal lingerie fashions we spotted:

Wedding Photo of the Week: The Bride Spy

Wedding PicturesWedding Creativo Photography

The bridal portrait by the window will forever be a classic.  Right when you finish getting ready is the optimal time since your makeup and hair are fresh and looking perfect, and the natural daylight spilling in from the window is likely the nicest it will be all day.  Sometimes there is actually something going on outside of the window to make the bride laugh or smile, and it can just be fun to spy on your guests as they arrive to the ceremony.  If there is a window to look out where guests will not really see you, it can be a fun moment for some brides.  For our featured photo this week, our bride Melissa has a laugh while watching her grandmother fix her grandfather's jacket and tie in the parking lot.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

 

Wedding Fashion Inspiration: Bridesmaids Meet Chuck Taylor

Inspiration, Wedding Fashion, Wedding IdeasWedding Creativo Photography

Why should groomsmen have all the fun when it comes to wearing comfy and cool Converse Chuck Taylor All Star sneakers at casual summer weddings?  Bridesmaids could also wear them as a funky alternative to flip-flops or just bare feet when it comes time to give their feet relief from heels at the reception or maybe even wear all day! Either way your feet would be so happy.

Even our BRIDE Amie slipped into a pair of Chucks on the way to her reception!

Granted, this idea may not fly for all types of weddings, but certainly could be considered for more casual outdoor, beach or cocktail party style weddings. We've put together this inspiration board with some fun summer dresses combined with a few of the cutest Chuck styles.

Destination Inspiration: Ligurian Coast of Italy

Destination Weddings, InspirationWedding Creativo Photography

Giorgio was born in Genoa, the main city in the northwest Italian region of Liguria.  It is the costal area making up the Italian Riviera, stretching along the Mediterranean Ligurian Sea from the northwest French border down to Tuscany. Giorgio grew up surrounded by fruit trees, pesto pasta, 500 year-old narrow streets and rustic small villages that are legendary throughout Liguria.  Portofino and The Cinque Terre (the five villages of Monteroso al Mare, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola and Riomaggiore) are probably the best known areas of this region, as they have become popular vacation destinations. 

So, Giorgio was super excited to learn that his beloved Liguria was declaired to have Italy's cleanest beaches, according to The Blue Flag Programme, an environmental recognition by the non-profit Foundation for Environmental Education.  The organization works towards promoting sustainable development of beaches and marinas.

Giorgio loves to tell couples about Italy, especially about Liguria, when they visit us at the studio.  It is a great area to consider for your destination wedding or honeymoon.  Maybe one day you'll run into Giorgio when he is on a visit back home to see his family.  Or, if you take him there to photograph your destination wedding, he will make you some of his amazing pesto pasta and show you the best sights in Liguria!

Some of our favorite places in Liguria:

Vernazza, one of the Cinque Terre villages

Riomaggiore, another Cinque Terre village

Portovenere, near the region of Tuscany, actually has the southern starting point for the Cinque Terre hiking trail, but many people are not aware of that fact.  Shhhhh! It is still kind of a secret place.

Happy Mother's Day 2011

Creativo News, Lifestyle PortraitsWedding Creativo Photography

Happy Mother's Day to all of our mommies out there.  We always love when our wedding couples come back to visit us with their cutie bambini. We had so much fun with these recent family and children portrait sessions. Jeannie and Nick came for a winter holiday portrait session with thier adorable son Winston. Jennifer and Jim (who just celebrated their 5th wedding anniversary in March! wow, how time flies!), had a spring session with their lovely girls, big sister Tessa and her new little sister Sadie.  They're all so cute!

© Giorgio Ventola / Wedding Creativo

Getting Ready Robes for Brides

Inspiration, Wedding Ideas, Wedding PlanningWedding Creativo Photography

Here is an idea for brides to consider for when you are getting ready on your wedding day.  Essentially, you will need to wear something during preparations that you can easily slip off and not disturb your awesome hair and make-up in the process.  Some brides wear comfy button-down pajama shirts or cute "bride" tank tops, which are always fun.  However, we really love when brides wear beautiful robes made of silk or other fancy fabric.  They are a luxurious and romantic treat and add another element of style and beauty that you can have to set the tone for your wedding day. Not to mention, they look great in pictures.

We spotted some lovely robes on Etsy.com and other shops:

 

Ankle-length silk kimono style robe by Plum Pretty Sugar

photo: plumprettysugar

Koto kimono style robe by Underwrapz

photo: Underwrapz

Vintage light blue and yellow silk brocade robe from Inheritance Vintage

photo: InheritanceVintage

 

Fun With Dogs and Pets in Weddings and Portraits

Engagements, Wedding Ideas, Wedding PlanningWedding Creativo Photography

Dogs and cats (or other pets) are often great fun at weddings, and can really up the "awwwww!" factor! Just be sure to take into consideration care and safety for your pet and others involved. There should be someone designated to be responsible to watch/care for them the entire time (don't forget to have a bowl of water and food out), and bring your dog home after a short while if possible.  For wedding day and engagement portraits, it only really works well if your pet has at least mastered some basic vocal commands. If all they do is jump around and don't know how to obey yet, that is difficult for everyone and nearly impossible to get really good portraits to have on display. If you're dog is totally out of control, it is best to do your session outside or at your home, and not bring them into a studio and risk injury to your pet or damage to big studio lights and equipment. So, if you want a few with your enthusiastic (but uncontrollable) puppy that is great, but make sure an extra person is around to take Fido for a walk so you can focus on doing great portraits.


 

 

Wedding Photo of the Week: A Rainy Day is OK

Inspiration, Wedding PicturesWedding Creativo Photography

Giorgio and I find challenging weather interesting for photography.  Being based in Chicago, we really have no choice but to embrace the crazy weather changes we can have in just a matter of hours, especially this time of year.  Like they say, if you don't like the weather in Chicago, just wait five minutes.

It is a good idea to have a contingency plan for outdoor portraits in case of a relenteless downpour or severe storms, and we're always happy to help our couples with different suggestions for indoor alternatives.  However, in the case of this week's featured wedding photo, we like to show that a little rain isn't always a bad thing. And, as Giorgio says, "sposa bagnata, sposa fortunata," which is an old Italian saying for "wet bride, lucky bride."

© Wedding Creativo Photography

Katie and Ben's Wedding at Holy Name and Fulton's

Wedding Pictures, WeddingsWedding Creativo Photography

Katie and Ben had a beautiful sunny day for their Chicago wedding at Holy Name Cathedral and reception at Fulton's on the River.  Vibrant pinks and greens highlighted their elegant fashions and decor.  Also, the groom's family flew in from England and helped the couple incorporate many lovely British wedding traditions into the festivities.

© Wedding Creativo Photography

The groom presented personalized pocket watches as gifts to his groomsmen, who were all sporting green ascot ties, similar to the one that was part of David Beckham's dashing Royal Wedding attire.

After the ceremony, we had fun taking creative wedding portraits of the bridal party at landmark downtown Chicago locations while making our way to the reception at Fulton's.

Note to Giorgio's photography students: notice his award-winning technique using a bridesmaid's pink flip-flop to extend his lens hood. Ha ha.

We loved all of the touches of British wedding customs including Ben's mum's fascinator hair clip, the bride's lucky wedding horseshoe, and the handmade personalized candies that the groom's parents brought for all of the guests to enjoy. Ben also surprised Katie with a traditional German silver wedding cup that they both had to drink from at the same time, but be careful not to spill for good luck. They were successful and didn't lose a drop!

THE emcee of class and impeccable music taste, Al of Okyne Media Lab, kept the party train on schedule and guests dancing all night.

Wedding Photo of the Week: Cantigny Willow

Wedding Ideas, Wedding PicturesWedding Creativo Photography

Last year we tried to feature a "photo of the day" and that was kind of overly ambitious to keep up.  So, this year we're going to try a new feature.  Introducing - - - Wedding Photo of the Week!  It could be from one of our recent weddings, or from anytime in the last two decades, but it wil always be one shot that makes our creative hearts smile.

This week's photo is from Cat and Matt's wedding from a couple weeks ago.  We love them under this majestic weeping willow tree at Cantigny Gardens.

© Wedding Creativo Photography / Giorgio Ventola

Make Your Own New Wedding Traditions

Inspiration, Wedding Ideas, Wedding PlanningWedding Creativo Photography

Just one dilemma facing modern couples today is their internal debate whether to embrace or reject traditional notions of weddings, and marriage for that matter.  While there really is no right or wrong answer in this decision, many couples ultimately approach planning their weddings as a way to share their styles, personalities and beliefs with their families and friends.  But, that can sometimes be easier said than done.

Couples can look at their wedding as an opportunity to give everyone a deeper insight into who they are now as adults starting married life together.  It is likely that there may be some relatives and possibly friends that have not been seen since childhood or school years, and perhaps don't know much about who you are now and what interests, goals and beliefs brought you together as a couple. When else are you going to have the undivided attention of so many people in one place? So put some personality into those wedding plans.

Wedding traditions have been around for decades that basically give couples a road map for planning. However, if you have issues with some traditional customs or are just looking for fresh ideas, the suggestions below might help.  These ideas are inspired by some of the most memorable weddings we have experienced as photographers over the past decade. 

Five traditional wedding customs and suggested alternatives:

  • Tradition 1: Matching formal attire with grand gowns and tuxedos
  • Modern Idea: Having bridesmaids wear unique dresses has become more common over the last couple of years, but perhaps consider taking this a step further so more people (groomsmen specifically) can get in on the fun. We loved the period-fashion theme weddings we've seen including: a Great Gatsby 1920s style flapper wedding, a 1940s style wedding with groomsmen wearing white tuxedo jackets, and a 1950s sweet summer casual wedding where the bride and bridesmaids wore short party dresses and the groomsmen wore cool seersucker suits with Chuck Taylor All-Stars sneakers.

  • Tradition 2: Formal reception dinner with typical wedding customs
  • Modern Idea: If you rather create a different vibe for your reception than just the traditional dinner, cake cutting, and dancing, you may want to try a an entirely different approach, or incorporating a different "party style" along with the basic reception traditions.  Cocktail style receptions have been increasing in the last few years, with more of a mingling party atmosphere instead of a formal sit-down dinner.  You could also incorporate festive party themes or activities such as Hawaiian Luau, live karaoke or talent show, a 1920s/30s vice room for poker or other parlor games, or any favorite recreation that you enjoy and that expresses your interests.  One of our couples transformed their reception into a Venetian masquerade ball by hiding a variety of Venetian masks under guests' chairs and surprising them with an announcement by the groom when it was time to open the dance floor.

  • Tradition 3: Bouquet and garter toss
  • Modern Idea: Many couples don't feel comfortable including these traditions any more for various reasons.  However, you can modify this and still keep your guests engaged without the groom having to climb under the bride's dress.  You can still give away the bouquet, table centerpieces or other fun prizes with alternative fun activities.  Many couples enjoy doing the anniversary dance where the longest married couple remaining on the dance floor wins the bouquet. We've also seen live auctions with prizes going to the highest bidder (this can also be a fun alternative to the dollar dance), and especially cool if you have a relative or friend who is a professional livestock or art auctioneer that can wow your guests. Instead of all pulling the single people on the dance floor, gather all of the kids for a stuffed animal toss.  Finally, we think it would be fun to involve all of your guests in a big game of Bingo during dinner service.

Order your personalized version of this card on the Wedding Creativo Etsy Store!

  • Tradition 4: Following traditions only of your culture
  • Modern Idea: Many couples these days come from diverse backgrounds and faiths, so it is fairly common to see traditions from different cultures or religions being combined at weddings. However, some couples have liked what they have seen at a friend's wedding, and even if it is not part of their family background they have made other cultural ideas part of their own ceremony or reception. Eastern cultures including South Asian / Indian have unique three-day weddings and different rituals compared to Western weddings. Consider researching weddings from countries or cultures different from your own, and what meanings they have, and perhaps you can "borrow" an idea from another culture if it better expresses your personalities or beliefs.

  • Tradition 5: Not seeing each other before the ceremony
  • Modern Idea: Several of our couples have incorporated a special pre-ceremony "first-see" moment and outdoors tour for creative portraiture. By scheduling an hour or two with us before the ceremony, we have been able to capture some absolutely stunning moments with couples in settings from urban alleyways to floral parks, and everything in between. Couples that do this often feel more relaxed throughout the day and also realize they get to see each other "for the first time" twice: first a private moment together, and again at the ceremony with their guests.

Whether you decide to go traditional or not, your wedding will be best remembered by your unique personal expressions.

๏ปฟArticle by Sarah Toulouse Wedding Creativo Photography.