Engagement Session with Meg Runion

One of my good friends, a wedding photographer here in Charlottesville, called the other month and asked if she could use me and my Mr. as subjects for an engagement session. We were thrilled! I met Meg while working at a local preschool when she came to take pictures of the children for the school yearbook. The pictures were awesome! Meg was able to capture the little ones while they were playing on the playground and I couldn't stop staring at their cute little faces and the beautiful way that Meg captured their spirit.

Recently, Meg had been working with another photographer and decided it was time to start her own business. In her own words - "After 5 years I had so many dreams, thoughts, and ideas and decided to launch my own business to fit the more creative, personal, and customer service oriented business I was looking for and since founded Meg Runion Studios." Since leaving her previous business, she is in the process of rebuilding her portfolio and Mr. UVA and I were happy to help! :)

The photos are beautiful! It was such a fun day spending time with Meg and watching her work. She was so laid back and confident and you could see her mind working as she evaluated the light and the surroundings in order to get the best picture. She even brought her Grandmother's antique chair for us to use as a prop after hoisting it over fence at Ashlawn.
Meg is currently accepting wedding and family inquiries for 2010. So if you're still looking for a photographer, check out her blog (http://megrunionstudios.wordpress.com/) and get in touch!

photographer: check

So it sounds like I'm not alone in the wedding planning slump, the NearlyWeds have been quiet lately. I know Miss Charleston is in the final stretch, less than 2 weeks! I am le jealous.

Good news though - we have booked our photographer! Thanks everyone who responded to my previous posts on the topic - we've gone with Bisou Photography. Our photographer's name is Bong Lee, you can find him on Wedding Wire. His style is simple, not exactly Our Labor of Love or anything like that, but we really enjoyed meeting him and we're excited to have him. Honestly, not gonna lie, biggest factor was his pricing. Right now he just does this on the weekends as a second job, once he gets into it full time his prices will probably go up. I'm thrilled that we get to help him build his portfolio.

My mom and I had a good talk about that whole veil drama, I think she gets where I'm coming from and all is well. She still has opinions about Everything but she seems ok with the fact that I will not agree with her most of the time. She ended up making a quick sketch of the veil she had in mind for me... glad I nipped it in the bud. Not my style. Speaking of my veil though, it's coming along! I think I'm getting a feel for the way the netting behaves..

Random update on the marathon training: ugh! I'm sick right now and haven't been getting my runs in during the week. Supposed to do my 20-mile training run this weekend --> not. gonna. happen. Last long run was 16.5 miles, 2 weekends ago. :-o

Next on the to-do list: book DJ. And then a lot of those other items Miss Glen Echo listed off...

happy friday

I just found this photo booth via Snippet & Ink. oh my word I need to steal that idea! I've been trying to think of ways to display old family wedding photos, And I was thinking of having photo frames as props for the DIY photo booth I'm hoping to do, so this just combines everything. I just need to figure out how to rig up a camera with a remote clicker.. anybody know how to do that? Is it something I can rig any old digital camera up to do? I need to replace my old camera anyway so I might upgrade and make sure it's compatible with that kind of thing..

We're still in the grips of our photography dilemma. We thought we had a friend who could do it and budgeted accordingly - and then that friend moved away, and other things happened, and well we're back to square one, without room in the budget to splurge on a pro. Half the time I feel like throwing up my hands and saying I Don't Need Fancy Pants Photographers, just make sure as many of my shutterfly friends have their cameras ready and assign shots to different people so we make sure not to miss great moments, let's not worry about perfect lighting and focus.. And then I spend all day on Once Wed and Style Me Pretty and all the rest and I just can't imagine not having amazing photos like that of our day.. I do have a photographer friend of my mother's who may be interested in doing our wedding, we'll find out next month. If he doesn't want to/isn't available.. well we'll just see.

This weekend Mr. Fairfax and I will be sitting down to do some serious wedding brainstorming. :) Hopefully will narrow down the DJ options, start the ball rolling on the hotel room blocks, and talk about ideas for the ceremony. Have a great weekend everyone :)

Engagement Session Follow Up

Photo Credit

First, I apologize for being MIA the last week. I've been working super late helping out with another event and then had a migraine this afternoon after helping out at 6AM this morning at the National Mall.

But, on to the more interesting stuff. Our engagement session! It was awesome. After much deliberation on the outfits (I went through 3 different tops, 3 different pairs of jeans, 2 different skirts, one dress, one dress, and a partridge and a pear tree). Think of all the permutations of outfits that produced. Thank you to all my friends for their advice and insight - and thank you to my beloved maid of honor - for her constant attention, support, and patience. . . all the way from London.

The weather: gorgeous (last Sunday). Fiance: A.MA.ZING. Seriously. He was so patient and such a good sport about everything. Rob told him to look at him, he looked and smiled. Rob told him to stand over there, he trotted and waited. Rob told him to pick me up, he heaved. Of course, I think he hid behind me during many of the pictures, using his affection for me as a convenient excuse to press his head against my ear, but I didn't mind.

Tips and takeaways for couples about to take their engagement pictures:

Do have an idea of what kind of mood and shots you want to take - close up, far away, walking away, silhouettes, portrait facing the camera vs. artsy.

Do dress up a little - it just makes it special. Rob told us "Dress like you're going on a second date with each other."

Do wear something that complements your skin tones and eyes. I was very hesitant to wear black because I'd been told that black doesn't always photograph well, but Rob said that because it was a great contrast to Mr. Sweetpea's white button-up shirt. Both of our hair is also very dark brown / black and, as Rob said, he was "able to get the light to shine through" and highlight our hair and frame us in an awesome way.

Do talk to each other while the photographer is shooting. We were able to ignore everyone and just be ourselves in our own little world. It was really neat, actually, because all these tourists were mingling and strolling around, and we were just us. In fact, Rob told us that during one of our sessions, this little old man could not stop taking pictures of us because he thought we were famous!

Do research your venue! We were stopped by the little ranger at least 2 times to make sure we were in the allowed areas and that we had our park permit. Seriously, it was annoying because we were just like everyone else with their cameras -- only we had a flash diffuser (whatever that silver disc was), a mini-ladder, and 2 bags of camera equipment.

Don't be inflexible. It got a little cold in the last hour, so I just threw on my jacket, ran around in between shots, and forgot about the rest. Just go with it. Also, there were many tourists, but hey, it's DC, right? Rob captured them in the background of the shots and the photos look very modern and urban aka Awesome.

Don't be late. We ran in to a bit of traffic on the way to the Memorial - typical DC. But we were ahead of schedule a little bit, so that still gave us plenty of sun light.

Don't ignore your photographer. Get to know him/her (especially if they're doing your wedding). This is a practice session, so find out who they are and develop your relationship with them. We found out Rob went to school in Ithaca - oh so close to Colgate!

I'm still trying to figure out a way to share them with you gals without just putting up the link, but Rob of Robert Holley Photography is AWESOME. I highly recommend him. I'm so excited he's doing our wedding!

Miss Capitol Hill Wedding Recap - Why You Should Have a Receiving Line

In continuation of my wedding recap - Husband and I left the church and drove down the road to our reception site at The Clifton Inn.   For my reception I was sure of a couple of the things from the start and one of those golden rules was : There would be absolutely no MC/DJ type introductions of the wedding party or of Husband and I at dinner.   I hate these at weddings...I hate being part of them and I hate watching them...it always makes it seem like a circus or a production to me instead of a nice gathering of friends and family. I was going for intimate and warm not Price is Right "come on down!" 

What I wanted instead was something that is kind of going out of fashion...a receiving line. I really wanted to greet people at the door of our cute Inn and welcome them to our reception...as though I was welcoming them into my own home. I wanted them to feel a personal connection immediately and not stand around waiting for the bride and groom to make an appearance.   All over the wedding world I see comments about how horrible receiving lines are, but I think that's probably b/c most people don't do them right.   

I think in order for receiving line to be successful you should adhere to a two key rules

1) You need to have a small wedding.  Sorry, but receiving lines take too long and get jammed up if you want to say hello to each of your 400 guests. Part of the reason people hate receiving lines is because they have to wait around. And really if you have a large wedding then intimacy isn't probably one of your main goals to begin with and the receiving line would just seem mechanical cause you couldn't actually spend time talking to each guest. 

2) It needs to be just you and husband.  This might be controversial especially if your parents are hosting but when you start adding parents, grandparents, wedding party, etc. then that's what slows the line down and people are standing around and waiting again.  Plus many guests may not know your parents or your maid of honor so they will probably feel awkward having to shake their hand and say some niceties.  But everyone there knows either you or your husband and they are all their too see you, so no one feels awkward saying hello. 

The bonus of the receiving line is that you don't have to go around table to table later, since you've already talked to everyone at least once....this means that you and Husband actually get to eat! 

All photos below the work of Linda Wallace 

^Waiting at the door of the Clifton Inn as our guests arrived

^Hugging and laughing with Husband's extended family

^We were lucky that there was only one way into our reception site so all of our arrivals were staggered since they had to drive in one-by-one. We never had a line of people waiting. 

^You might recognize this couple from Ben's awesome travel blog The Flashpacker and from their wedding last November. 

^Still more hugs!

^Our photographer was able to catch pictures with us and many of our friends and family during the receiving line. The artsy shots are great, of course, but honestly these types of pictures are what your guests will probably put in a frame or print out for themselves. And if you live in Chicago and are looking to buy or sell a house then make sure you contact that smiling face above! 

Miss Capitol Hill Wedding Recap - The Getaway

Because we were staying at the same Inn where we were having our reception, we weren't going to have an end-of-evening getaway, but I love the idea of getaways so we had one from the church to the reception.  

I have to say that I LOVED LOVED LOVED our streamer throws that we used for our grand exit.  They were so much fun for us and for our guests. All the testing I did trying to decide between paper vs. mylar, colored vs. monochome, and Favors You Keep vs. Aerotechnic paid off. 

The multicolored, mylar streamerthrows from Aerotechnic were awesome and made for some really great pictures ...just as I had hoped!  And the best part: b/c they stay attached to each person's hand it makes clean-up super easy...just gather the plastic pods and throw away. 

All photos below the work of Linda Wallace

^Everyone lined up as we got ready to head for the car

^Streamers Away!!!

^It actually started to get difficult to move through all the streamers!

^And we only had streamer throws for about half the guests...imagine if we had one per person!

^It even looks great in black and white!

^Finally we make it to the car

^But the streamers are still attached!

^O.k. now we are streamer free and ready to take off

^This picture is awesome...it's Husband and I in one of the side mirrors 

^And we're off!

To be 100% honest as much fun as our getaway was it didn't go 100% according to plan. I wanted the streamer throws thrown in the church as we walked down the aisle. And despite communicating that over and over again with our coordinator, that message did not get to our guests.  Just another example of one of those things that the bride realizes is wrong and no one else does.  Although Husband and I did have slightly confused looks on our faces when we walked down the aisle and no one threw anything, in the end...it worked out. 

Next up: The Reception!

Vendors So Far:

Video- Monachetti

Photography - Linda Wallace

Hair/Makeup- Daphne Latham

Dress Designer - Vwidon

Dress Salon - Promise for the Savvy Bride

Shoes - Vera Wang new from Ebay

Bracelet- Carolee

Veil- Occansey Design

Purse - Belk

Hair Flower - Ella's Alley

Flowers - Blue Ridge Floral

Suits- Men's Wearhouse

Ties - Wild Ties

Socks - The Gap

Bridesmaid Dresses - Maggy London from Nordstrom

Flower Girl Dress- Rare Editions from Dillards

Sportscar - Sports Car Rental

Reception/Accommodations - The Clifton Inn

Getaway Streamerthrows - Aerotechnic

Miss Capitol Hill Wedding Recap - The Ceremony

Now it's time for the ceremony - 

All photos below the work of Linda Wallace 

^We began with the reading of i carry your heart with me 

^In case you are wondering this is the look a bride gives when someone walks in late during the first reading 

^But the groom is paying attention!

^Ok, I'm paying attention now too. Both fiance and I got a little teary during this reading 

^Pastor Garth says a few words about why we are there 

^Time for more readings - I loved that our readers stood up where they were sitting to read. The church was small enough that everyone could hear, so they didn't need to be at the front with a microphone. 

^I like this shot of my dress and veil 

^Once the readings were done we moved up onto the alter to do our vows and the ring exchange. Fiance was crying when he said his vows which I think got everyone choked up. 

^Fiance putting my ring on my hand

^This is me putting his ring on.  He has huge knuckles so I really had to force it on...it was pretty funny as you can tell from the looks on our faces. 

^Our guests were snapping away 

^The Kiss

^Fiance wiping his nose after the kiss... no one ever thinks that the groom might get emotional and need handkerchiefs so we weren't prepared with any tissues! 

^It's official!

^Coming down the aisle 

^Outside the chapel

^Now we turned to greet our guests and get all the well wishes 

^Needless to say people were happy! 

^There were lots of hugs and kisses all around

Next up...the getaway! 

Miss Capitol Hill Wedding Recap - Walking Down the Aisle

After we were done with a few pics of just us, it was time to start the ceremony. 

^Here are the beautiful wreaths from our florist Blue Ridge Floral Design 

^I told our florist that I wanted green and white wreaths, but that I wanted them to look "modern" which for me meant not having traditional wreath florals like roses and hydrangea. I think she did an awesome job. 

^And here is the inside of our tiny little chapel 

^This is the view from the front looking out the door 

^Our pew florals, which I also loved.  Also from Blue Ridge Floral Design 

^Here come the guys!

^Waiting outside the church 

^I love this pic of my nephew! He escorted my Mom

^Waiting to head into the church 

^Here I come! The families, groomsmen, bridesmaids, and flower girl came before but for the sake of brevity I'm skipping to the key moment 

 

^Fiance watching me walk down the aisle 

^Coming down the aisle. One of my friend's husbands had just whispered something like "you look awesome"...which is why I'm looking at him and not at my groom! Haha 

^Now my eyes are where they are supposed to be! For such a short aisle it still seemed like a long walk when you have everyone watching you

^Finally, we're ready to start the ceremony! My flower hair clip is from Etsy seller Ella's Alley. When I bought it in Feb it was only $9! Her prices have gone up a bit but they are  a steal compared to some of the other hair clips people are selling for upwards of $100 or more. I just didn't see the point in spending that much money and I was thrilled with how my little $9 flower came out. 

Vendors So Far:

Video- Monachetti

Photography - Linda Wallace

Hair/Makeup- Daphne Latham

Dress Designer - Vwidon

Dress Salon - Promise for the Savvy Bride

Shoes - Vera Wang new from Ebay

Bracelet- Carolee

Veil- Occansey Design

Purse - Belk

Hair Flower - Ella's Alley 

Flowers - Blue Ridge Floral 

Suits- Men's Wearhouse

Ties - Wild Ties

Socks - The Gap

Bridesmaid Dresses - Maggy London from Nordstrom

Flower Girl Dress- Rare Editions from Dillards

Sportscar - Sports Car Rental

Reception/Accomodations - The Clifton Inn