heather + dennis

I saw this photo…
and was completely in love with this wedding…and I want to borrow the bride’s red shoes!
Heather and Dennis McMahon were married back in June 12, 2010 in Syracuse, New York. Living in Colorado and planning the wedding in New York was no small feat according to Heather, “but damn was it a good time, and a day that I would do over and over again, and never change a single detail.” 
Two years later, the classic ballroom/vintage style of this wedding is still timeless and an inspiration for today’s brides. Per Heather and Dennis’ request, their photographer Kelly Stremmel captured their day the way it unfolded, without too many shots being posed, but rather artistic shots that represent things the way they took place.  The artistic, natural shots Kelly captured was one of our favorite things about this wedding…and we’re happy to share it with you today.
After meeting at SUNY Oswego in New York their last semester of college, and joining mutual friends at a Dave Matthews Concert several weeks later, Heather and Dennis had an undeniable love connection. Having dated only 6 short months, the love birds moved Vail, Colorado and on their 4th anniversary Dennis popped the question at The Vail Plaza Hotel before a romantic dinner at LaTour. They married two years later, almost 6 years to the day of our “first date” at the Dave Matthews show.
In Heather’s words: It was very important to me that my bridesmaids be comfortable and have the ability to showcase their own style. I gave each girl black coque feathers to put in their hair however they desired once it was styled, and a vintage brooch to incorporate into their dress wherever they liked. 
We wanted to have a bit of Colorado inspiration in our wedding, but still pull off the ballroom vintage vibe. We placed hummingbird fly fishing flies in our calla lily boutonnieres for the guys as Dennis is a big fly fisherman and our guest book was a coffee table picture book filled with stunning images of Colorado. 
To see each other or not to see each other before the ceremony was a question Heather struggled with, but as she said, “I knew that if I didn’t see him and get all of those emotions out-of-the-way, the anticipation was going to leave me an emotional, blubbering wife-to-be. Dennis is my rock and I needed him with me for the emotional roller coaster that was our wedding day… and I simply could not wait to be with him! So, about an hour prior to the ceremony Dennis and I met on a street corner.
 
The 590-room non functioning hotel was built in 1924 and has character and charm like no other. The floor to ceiling windows offer a picturesque view of the city, the stunning vintage gold chandeliers everywhere create an incredibly romantic ambiance, and on the 10th floor is the Grand Ballroom…perfect for our reception. 
In Heather’s words: The Dave Matthews Band was what sparked our fiery romance, and therefore their music served as inspiration on our wedding day. Our first dance was to none other than the DMB song, “You and Me.” Dennis picked me up when Dave sings “…teach them to fly…” And we leaned back and forth on each other singing “…we could do better than anything that we did, you know that you and me, we could do anything,” with a stratigic high five and then I did my happy dance. 
Per Heather and Dennis, their DJ handed our “flair” toward the end of the night, which brought out the silly in everyone.
And, who wouldn’t want to run in the rain at the end of your wedding night? How romantic and fun…the perfect send-off if you ask me!
 
VENDOR LOVE
Bridal gown: Maggie Sottero Amour Brooch, purchased at Spy Baby Bridal Boutique in Syracuse, New York
Bridal shoes: Nina
Photographer: Kelly Stremmel
Makeup: Gina Scammell {Ginascammell@yahoo.com}
Hair:Tiffany DeWald {tiffanydewald@ymail.com}
Wedding Planner/Day of Coordinator: Amy Preble {miller5401@hotmail.com}
Ceremony Venue: The Most Holy Rosary Syracuse, New York
Reception Venue: The Hotel Syracuse Syracuse, New York
Cake: Pascale Bake House, Syracuse, New York
Desert Bar: DIY {Do-It-Yourself}
Stationery: DIY

diy framed burlap table numbers

I am excited to share another DIY project from my own wedding: table numbers.

For the look, we wanted rustic. Something with burlap (love!). Something simple. Something that complimented the entire table setting.

Here are easy DIY steps to make table numbers with burlap fabric.

You will need:

– hot glue gun
– glue sticks
– scissors
– frames
– wood numbers

How to:

1. Stock up on frames from Michaels.
{hint: never buy frames that aren’t on sale at Michaels! if there’s not a sale goin’ on, wait a few days and there’s guaranteed to be one!}

2. Purchase your fabric. Super cheap.
{we went to Hobby Lobby}

3. Since I’m not the most patient person in the world, I decided to skip tracing the sample photo onto the fabric and dug right in to cutting while tracing.
{it’s okay if it’s not exact – the frame won’t show the edges in the front !}

4. Cover the entire glass with glue from your glue gun. Be quick – it dries fast! Press firm into the fabric after placing it onto the glass. Burlap is tricky – it’s tough to get it to stick completely. Don’t worry if it’s not entirely stuck onto the glass. When you glue the numbers on, that will act as a double coat of glue 🙂
{ps the glue won’t ruin your frames. it’s very easy to peel off – dry or after soaking in hot water for a few minutes! you can definitely reuse the frames!}

5. Place your new burlap covered glass into the frame and close the backing.

6. Glue your wood numbers and carefully place onto the burlap.
{we went to Hobby Lobby for the numbers and stained them red with a wood stain from Home Depot}

7. Voila! You’re done! Absolutely beautiful 🙂

Be creative!
I used these two for the gift table and guest book table to throw into the mix – so fun!

{images via Tutto Bella & Jenna Walker Photographers}

horse shoe escort cards

I am so excited to share the first DIY project from my own wedding:
horse shoe escort cards.
Our wedding reception was at Crooked Willow Farms in Larkspur, Colorado.
A perfectly elegant and rustic venue for the all-Colorado wedding.

For my escort cards, we used pony {horse} shoes tied with raffia and a hand-calligraphied card by Christi Johnson {contact Fleur de Lis (a paperie) for contact info} and hung them onto an old, rustic door.
Not only was it a fun DIY project, but the photos turned out AMAZING!
{And, horse shoes are lucky! Not a bad thing to be lucky in love, either!}
Thank you Cori Cook Floral Design for the photos!

Materials
{pony shoes from a local warehouse/horse shoe manufacturer, escort cards from Fleur de Lis (a paperie), calligraphy from a local Colorado calligrapher, raffia from Hobby Lobby}

Assembly Team
Wonderful fiancé, mother, sisters, aunts, fabulous bridesmaids and a few bottles of wine is all you need for an assembly team 🙂
{Thanks to everyone who helped me! xoxo}

{images via Cori Cook Floral Design}

when life give you lemons…

make lemonade…or at least something sweet with the lemons!

Last week I was into bright yellow sunshine and this week, it’s lemons. Apparently I’m into yellow right now. The cheerful hue has me day-dreaming about lemons, sunflowers and spring all day.

My grocery cart will be filled with lemons at my next trip to the grocery store {the lemon loaf looks too delicious not to make right now} and the next time I throw a party, I’m keeping lemons in mind. They make such sweet favors…no one will leave with a sour taste in their mouths.

Lemony Lemon Bread, Glorious Treats
{You can find the recipe here, yellowdrop twine at The Twinery and print the FREE printable labels here, courtesy of Glorious Treats and The Twinery}

 Homemade Limoncello, Matt Bites
We served Limencello at my wedding because 1. I’m Italian and 2. it was a fresh welcome to the party mini-drink. Although is was a hit, we should have more clearly expressed its potency or limited 1 per person…preventing some from passing out on a rock at 9 p.m. {wink, wink Nicole} :).
I love the idea of making homemade Limencello and sending it with guests as a favor…and with packaging as cute at Matt Bite’s who can resist? Giada DeLaurentis shares her homemade Limoncello recipe here. Salute!

DIY Lemon Drop Favors via Style Me Pretty
{created by Posh-Paperie}

Lemon drop candy, vintage bottle caps, small containers, ribbon and parchment paper make this DIY doable and adorable.

Homemade Lemonade Favors, Style Me Pretty
These homemade lemonade favors are so clever and make beautiful gifts in the vintage bottles.

{images via Glorious TreatsMatt Bites and Style Me Pretty}

be my diy valentine

We are hopeless romantics, and although we believe you shouldn’t tell the people you love that you love them one time a year {you should tell them all the time}, we love a reason to celebrate love and Valentine’s Day gives us a reason!

From DIY crafts to gift ideas, sweets, creative valentine’s for the little ones and parties…this will be your one-stop-shop for Valentine’s Day this year. Even the V-Day haters might get some lovin…

If you have any ideas, throw a fabulous Valentine’s Day party or want to feature your clever Valentine’s Day idea, send it to trejsorelle@gmail.com and we’ll feature it.

This matchbox how-to for ‘the perfect match’ from Ruffled Blog is so adorable for a wedding favor and a great gift with a sweet-smelling candle.

I love this festive Cupcake Liner Wreath, tutorial found at Tatertots and Jello, especially for a sweet holiday like Valentine’s Day.

Kathleen at Twig and Thistle has a lovely downloadable template for brownies packaged in craft paper bags here.

These homemade, individual mailboxes for valentine’s by The Anderson Crew are insanely cute, and the kids are sure to love them.

Transform matchboxes into colorful boxes filled with candy. Directions can be found at Inchmark.


These votives we found at Mint got a face-lift with pretty paper, lace and doilies. Makes for a great diy gift and decor for any party. Directions here.

We also fell in love with Mint’s Succulent Love Garden. So pretty and such a sweet gift or decor for your home for the holiday of love.

{images via Ruffled BlogTatertots and Jello,  The Anderson CrewTwig and Thistle, InchmarkMint}