Real Wedding: Julie + Brad

Julie & Brad were married on a lovely April evening, held at The Darlington House in Ja Lolla. It was the perfect setting for their intimate, garden wedding. The thought and care that went into planning this wedding was so sweet.

Julie did such an incredible job with all the details and personal touches for their special day. She hand made these adorable boutonnieres for the groomsman. They were so adorable, and I think she should definitely start a side business, don't you think? :)

Julie had been collecting hankies for years, and was finally able to put them to use! She made a beautiful handkerchief garland to line the aisle. It was certainly a special touch!

Check out those huge bouquets! Modern Bouquet did a absolutely stunning job on the wildflower bouquets!

The beeeeautiful bride. Julie, you were glowing!

Brad, looking GQ. I've never seen a groom so happy on his big day. It was darling!

That face. He was such a fun, and adorable little ring bearer...and certainly took his job seriouslly. So cute. : )

Miles Mcpherson did a great job marrying Brad & Julie. The ceremony was intimate, sweet and charming. Their personal vows made us tear up, they were so sweet! We love when the bride and groom write their own vows! It is so meaningful.

Some fun shots of the newlyweds following the ceremony. It was a gorgeous April evening in La Jolla, and made for fantastic lighting!

This is one of our favorites....

The reception details were endless! Each table had a variety of tins, and glass holding the most colorful flowers! They decided to have a cake table, and had Nothing Bundt Cakes for dessert. By far some of the BEST cake we've ever tasted. Guests enjoyed choosing from the variety of flavors.

Mr. & Mrs. Wilson...congratulations!!! We were so thankful to share in your big day. It was such a special journey to be a part of, and we wish you two the best! I know the Lord will do big things through your genuine hearts and love for one another, and others.

Special thanks to Nothing But Miracles Photography for all of these lovely photos! You guys did a wonderful job capturing every detail!

Love,

Ashlyn + Heather

C&C

Real Wedding: Aimee + Colin vol. II

It was so much fun working with Aimee to come up the theme and fun details for their rustic ranch wedding. She somewhat combined aspects from these two shoots, into one for her special day. Fresh peaches, canned peaches, old shutters, homemade table runners, and wildflowers lined the long banquet tables. All place settings were set with vintage silverware, and mix matched china. It was so beautiful...I have to include so many photos to show the variation of the tables!

On the corner of every gold chivari chair was a handmade place card with the guests name. No detail went unnoticed! The variety of color everywhere was completely stunning! The Floral Lab did such a beautiful job with the variety of flowers.


They made cute jars of homemade peach jam for each guest to take home! During the cocktail hour, guests sipped Shirley Temples or Sweet Tea out of mason jars with homemade "S" stir sticks.They were able to explored the ranch, play lawn games, and have their photo taken in a fun outdoor photo booth and chalkboard sign. Aimee added a orange sweater to her outfit after the wedding, and it was such a fun touch!

In lieu of a guest book, Aimee and Colin brought a large slap of wood for guests to sign, and Aimee will turn that into a coat rack with darling Anthropologie knobs. I loved this idea, and it is a fun memento to keep in their new house for years to come.

In cased you missed the trailer 4120 Weddings did, here it is again. I've watched it several times now, and love everything about it. Those guys sure have talent!

The dessert table gave off a ranch vibe with the fresh peach and apple pies, homemade cookies, and a cake! I love this last photo, as it completely reveals their spunky personalities!

Mr. and Mrs. Slade, we are so very thankful you allowed us to spend time with you, planning for your special wedding. We enjoyed every minute we were able to share ideas, the joys of marriage, and learn about you both. Together, you are a beautiful and incredible couple. We are blessed by your love, and are looking forward to wathcing your marraige grow and blossom. We love you!

Ashlyn + Heather

Utterly Engaged: Designers Challenge

In January we had the privilege to attend an industry event put on by the fabulous ladies from Utterly Engaged. The Utterly Spankin' New Year party was quite the hit! We were able to meet and hug so many of the faces we've seen only through the computer screen and twitter conversations. It was a wonderful evening and we met so many new friends.

Carter & Cook, along with Posh Paperie decided to enter the designers challenge. There were many rules to our table entry. It had to be a form of 'modern', and use some sort of industrial material, paper, or fabric. We chose to focus our table on Modern Craft and the use of all things paper, with a bistro flare! We didn't win the challenge, but did receive an Editors Choice award in the recent issue. Such FUN! Read about it in the latest issue of UE here.

To keep the look clean and simple, we used a table with all neutrals, whites, creams, and browns. The table's main focus and centerpiece was not supposed be flowers so we found very simple cream vases from Ikea with three large white peony blooms, and lots of paper flowers made out of old books. All white china, and white utensils, along with a cream dish cloth for napkins.



Paper was used in so many ways! The table runner was brown craft paper, laid over a white linen tablecloth [yes, we need a hand held steamer! :) ]. We decided to do beer with cheese and bread baskets, so we had brown paper boxes lined with parchment paper to fill with gourmet cheeses and breads.

The beers had darling custom labels that served as place cards, also created by Posh Paperie. Our paper bag styled menu fit our modern bistro spread.

The paper flowers were a definite DIY, and quite easy. I might be putting together a tutorial for those, so watch for that on the Utterly Engaged blog.

The candles were all wrapped in various forms and textures of vellum, paper lace doilies, and a cream paper mache. It's hard to tell in the photos, but the glow from your candles through the textures of paper is so beautiful and soft. This is an affordable way to jazz up your standard glass pillar candles.

My favorite part about the table was the front of the linen. We saw an art piece online, and decided to try to incorporate that into our tablescape. We used dozens of sizes of paper cupcake liners, to create a fun design along the front of the table linen. We secured them with silver push pins. Several of the cupcake liners were spray painted tan to give a pop against the linen.

Heather and I enjoying the party!


Henny, Lucia and Eva..the three lovely women behind Utterly Engaged. Thank you again for such a fun party! And a huge thank you to Jasmine Star, and JD for shooting the party, and all of the designer's tables. All photo credit goes to Jasmine Star.

A Brunch Inspired Engagement Shoot.

This is the first time we've ever used models for a shoot, and I must say, it added a whole new dimension. It was fun and really brought life to our ideas! Amy from the Wedding Chicks wanted us to design an engagement shoot inspired by our button brunch.

Katie and her hubby Ryan have been married for a few years, and their love for one another certainly showed in their photos. They were comfortable with each other and just plain cute!

We wanted our 'bride' Katie to wear a dress we found at Anthropologie. It had tangerine polka dots and a fun bright belt that tie in the colors we used earlier at the brunch shoot. We ordered a fun bow tie off etsy, but it didn't arrive in time! So the night before Heather whipped up a handmade bow tie with the extra material from our table runner. It was really perfect, and I am so proud of her....and thankful she's on my team for mad skills like that. ;)

Katie wore an Ink and Button hair piece, that was attached to her recipe box favor earlier that morning!

The shoot was set with a few different sheets for blankets and color, two of the bistro chairs we had used earlier, an old wood box, a cookbook and lots of fun baking supplies! The Floral Lab designed a fabulous bouquet made up of bright yellow acacia for Katie to hold. It was seriously fabulous! We wrapped the button garland around the bouquet to show those fun buttons!

This shoot is perfect for the little homemaker to be. Erica O'Brien baked us up some adorable colorful sugar cookies shaped like buttons.

Note to brides: When styling your engagement shoot, first, come up with a theme. Your outfits should reflect your theme and the colors. Bright colors always photograph nicely, and bring life into the photos.

Fun objects such as a clock, cookies, a handmade bouquet, furniture or even a fun and unique setting will make those photos pop! But best of all, you will have pictures of you and your love that you will cherish forever.

We really enjoy styling. Shoots, weddings, engagement sessions - you name it! Consider Carter & Cook to help style your engagement shoot as well!

Love,

Ashlyn + Heather

C&C