Mary and Brian Wedding - Cake Topper - Crescent Beach Club - Amy Rizzuto Photography

Planning & Inspiration

4 Ways To Manage Wedding Stress During COVID-19: A Bridal Therapist’s Take

Mary and Brian Wedding - Cake Topper - Crescent Beach Club - Amy Rizzuto Photography

Mary and Brian Wedding – Cake Topper – Crescent Beach Club – Amy Rizzuto Photography

 

COVID-19 has presented couples planning a wedding with new and unprecedented challenges. Routine decisions involving color scheme, catering, and entertainment are now giving way to more serious considerations such as health and safety regulations for gatherings, date postponements, change of venue, and guest list revisions. Modifying an original wedding vision in the face of a global pandemic is inevitably going to create anxiety and friction between two people.

Our thoughts are with everyone trying to navigate this uncharted territory. Now is a time for couples to look to those around them, both personal and professional, for advice and support. With this in mind, we reached out to AisleTalk, a boutique NYC-based therapy practice specializing in helping people cope with the stresses of wedding planning. Here, Licensed Mental Health Counselor and Therapist, Farzana Rahman, highlights four ways to manage wedding stress during COVID-19.
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Caroline & Jonathan Wedding - Wedding Cake Cutting - Oheka Castle - by Craig Paulson

Planning & Inspiration

Fresh Flower Wedding Cakes: 15 Ideas For Adding Real Blossoms To Your Big Day Dessert

Caroline & Jonathan Wedding - Wedding Cake Cutting - Oheka Castle - by Craig Paulson

Caroline & Jonathan Wedding – Wedding Cake Cutting – Oheka Castle – by Craig Paulson

 

When it comes to wedding cakes these days, taste is just one of the factors that couples consider when deciding on what to serve their guests. Now more than ever, natural flowers and greenery are replacing the traditional cake topper to create fresh, one-of-kind designs. We always get excited when our couples ask us to set aside elements from their floral theme to decorate their wedding cake. A few pillowy peonies on top, a cascade of garden roses, and a ring of ivy can take the basic white dessert to the next level. From petite and sweet to blooming show-stoppers, here’s a look at some of our favorite petal trimmed confections from the Real BB Weddings archives.
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Lorenza & Pete Wedding - Candelabras with Christmas Trees - NYBG - by the Hons

Weddings

Lorenza & Pete Celebrate Saying ‘I Do’ With A Festive Reception

After exchanging vows at the Church of St. Paul the Apostle, newlyweds Lorenza and Pete jumped into a vintage Rolls Royce and were whisked away to their reception at the New York Botanical Garden. Here, featured bride Lorenza shares the final chapter in her Real BB Wedding story.

 

Lorenza & Pete Wedding - Candelabras with Christmas Trees - NYBG - by the Hons

Lorenza & Pete Wedding – Candelabras with Christmas Trees – NYBG – by the Hons

 

Part 4: Reception, Card Table and Holiday Tablescape

“Since I was a little girl, I dreamed of waking up on my wedding day to snow,” recalls Lorenza. Sure enough, when she opened her eyes on December 9th, the season’s first snowfall was blanketing New York City. The magical outdoor setting was the perfect complement to her and Pete’s winter themed reception.
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Chrysanthemum - via new plantsandflowers.com

Planning & Inspiration

Fall Wedding Décor Ideas With Chrysanthemum Flowers

Chrysanthemum - via new plantsandflowers.com

Chrysanthemum – via new plantsandflowers.com

 

Do you know which flower to give to friends and family born in November? Chrysanthemum, the month’s designated birth flower! Festive, eye-catching, and versatile, it’s also a wonderful bloom to incorporate into fall weddings. From bouquets to wedding cakes, we’ve rounded up pretty floral décor ideas with chrysanthemums, this month’s BB Bloom in Spotlight.

Chrysanthemums (commonly known as “mums”) were first cultivated in China where the flower was documented in writings as early as 15th century BC. Around 400 AD, the bloom was introduced to Japan. So taken by the flower’s beauty, the Japanese adopted it as the emperor’s crest and official seal. After being introduced to Europe in the 17th century, the chrysanthemum received its present day name, which derives from the Greek words “chrysos” meaning gold (its original color) and “anthemon” meaning flower. Cultivation over the years has produced various types and colors including white, red, and purple. In the language of flowers, the chrysanthemum represents longevity, fidelity, joy, and optimism. With attributes like these, it’s no wonder couples want the flower close by on their wedding day!
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Mary & Galen Wedding - Cake by A White Cake - The Hudson Hotel NYC - Jacquelyne Pierson Weddings

Planning & Inspiration

Pretty Sweet: Wedding Cakes Inspired by Flowers

Flowers are our specialty. But we admit to having a sweet tooth and always look forward to seeing the wedding cakes that our brides have chosen to commemorate the day! Most often, these delicious creations make a statement, and add to the décor and atmosphere. And it’s a special treat when the design incorporates our floral motifs. The classic bride may opt for traditional white. Fresh blooms with heart accents are perfect for the ever-dreaming romantic. A towering confection embellished with cascading flowers is fit for a queen.

For the bride-to-be planning for her upcoming nuptials, we rounded up gorgeous, floral inspired cakes from our Real BB Weddings for inspiration.
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Lauren and Jordan Wedding - Bride and Groom Dancing - Blue Hill at Stone Barns NY - by Craig Paulson - 0463

Stunning Stone Barns Affair

We had the pleasure of designing Lauren and Jordan’s whimsical June wedding at Blue Hill at Stone Barns.

 

 

Lauren and Jordan have the picture perfect love story. The young couple had known each other as children, and their romantic relationship blossomed when they were sixteen years old. Their love for each other and family was solidified when Jordan pulled off a romantic surprise proposal in Lauren’s parents’ backyard. He conspired with her best friend to get her out of the house for the day, and decorated the garden path with candles and rose petals. Their families were hiding in the bushes when Jordan dropped on one knee and popped the question!

 

Lauren & Jordan selected a muted pastel palette of white, cream, blush and lavender for their ceremony, and incorporated fuschia, coral, pink and peach into their reception decor. The first venue they visited was Blue Hill at Stone Barns, a beautiful Hudson Valley farm that focuses on delicious and sustainable farm to table fare.

They immediately fell in love with the venue because of it’s gorgeous garden setting, critically acclaimed executive chef, and attentive staff. Foodies at heart, Blue Hill at Stone Barns provided a wedding menu to Lauren and Jordan that was unparalleled to any wedding food they had tasted elsewhere!

Lauren walked down a petal strewn aisle in a gorgeous Ersa Atelier gown and held a classic bouquet of white and blush peonies. Tears came to Jordan’s eyes as his beautiful bride approached him. We decorated the aisle with beautiful stone urns on pedestals featuring hydrangea, larkspur, limonium misty, amaranthus, stock, peonies, vendela, menta, quicksand roses and peach Juliet roses. We decorated the aisle chairs with sweet clusters of blush peonies and stock and lavender menta roses, while mixed lanterns with pillar candles lined the aisle.

 

After the ceremony, guests enjoyed a delectable cocktail hour and then a modern and whimsical reception in the HayLoft. With long wooden barn tables and stone walls, we brought in bright florals, mixed mercury candles and large lanterns to bring a contemporary vibe to the rustic reception room. Lauren originally did not want any greenery in her arrangements, but decided later in the planning process to add them in to create whimsy and natural movement in her wedding centerpieces.

 

We gave the room movement, texture and dimensions with four different style centerpieces featuring beautiful pops of color. Some tables were decorated with a tablescape of low arrangements featuring astilbe, hydrangea, ranunculus, peonies, roses, stock and eucalyptus in mercury vases interspersed between lanterns, pillar candles and votives. Other tables were decorated with the same gorgeous blooms in larger low centerpieces in trendy mercury pedestal vases and lit with mixed metal mercury glass votives. The third style and family head table were decorated with identical small and low arrangements mixed with mixed metal mercury votives and mesh metal lanterns. By keeping the arrangements low but varying their designs throughout the room, we brought texture and dimension to the room while still keeping the space very intimate. Lauren and Jordan’s family and friends didn’t leave the dance floor empty for a minute!

 

With such a beautiful natural landscape as a background, a full embrace of a spectrum of pastels and bright colors and a lush and garden like selection of several varieties of blooms, Lauren and Jordan’s wedding was an absolute joy to design!

 

Wedding Film

 

 

Vendors

 

Venue, Catering and Cake: Blue Hill at Stone Barns
Photographer: Craig Paulson
Planner: Paula Clemente Woods
Videographer: Cord 3 Films
Dress: Ersa Atelier
Tux: My Suit
Bride’s Shoes: Rene Caovilla
Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Miss Hayley Paige
Hair & Makeup: Stephanie Duelle
Music: DJ Martin D’Arce
Invitations & Paper: Momental