We are so excited to share A+L’s beautiful Sleepy Hollow Country Club wedding! This Holy Cross couple was so much fun to work with. We loved everything about Alexandra’s impeccable style and grace. She truly is sweet as pie! It was clear as day that this couple is surrounded by so much love. Enjoy!
xx
kerri-lynn
Planning: Stella Day Events
Dress: Romona Keveza
Photographer: Kristy May
Florist: Banchet Flowers
Invites / Paper: Roseville Designs
Photographer: Brooke Allison Photo
Styling: Stella Day Events / Lexington Home and Garden
Paper: Roseville Designs
Location: Wainwright House
Rentals: Abbey Tent
Hair: Milexy Torres
Dress: A Little Something White
Flowers: Just For You
Cake: Erica O’Brien
I am so excited to share Kassie + Giuseppe’s beautiful wedding at Black Rock Yacht Club! I had an absolute blast working with these high school sweethearts and their families. Leading up to the wedding I knew it was going to be very emotional as Kassie is the only daughter in her family and her dad was already emotional at the thought of “giving away” his little girl. The day was filled with lots of tears, lots of laughter ( I haven’t laughed so much at a wedding in a long time) and of course, so much love! Like most weddings, I was so sad when this weekend came to an end. I was lucky enough to spend lots of time with Kassie, her mom and her aunt before the big weekend and I am convinced these three need their own comedy show- oh and add her brother Jack to mix and it would be a hit! Special thanks to my fabulous friends Brooke from Brooke Allison Photography for capturing the day and Carrie Wilcox of Carrie Wilcox Floral Design for all the stunning blooms . K+G, I wish you lots of love and happiness and thank you for having me part of your incredible wedding!
xx Kerri-Lynn
A little over a year ago I started e-mailing with my now good friend, Jess Levin, the founder of Carats & Cake. I kept hearing about C&C and I knew I needed to meet the brains behind this incredible website. These days everyone is all about social media (especially brides) so Jess and her team decided it was time to tap into the industry. Since C&C just celebrated their One Year Anniversary… (whoop,whoop) I thought it would be appropriate for you to get the scoop behind the brains (and beauty) behind this hot new wedding website!
Photo Credit: Samuel Lippke
Photo Credit: Michael + Anna Costa Photography
Q’s:
You’re a born and raised Laguna Beach girl living in the Big Apple. what difference do you see in brides from the Left Coast vs brides from the Right Coast?
You see the laid back California vibe vs. the more fast paced New York lifestyle everyone speaks of played out in wedding form. So, Left coast brides tend to add more casual elements whether it’s hair down or barefoot where as right coast brides tend to be a little more formal. However, at the moment casual is very “in” especially in the summer so you aren’t seeing as big of a difference.
What inspired you to start Carats and Cake?
I saw what should have been one of the most celebratory moments of my friends lives, turn into one of the most stressful and challenging mostly because of a lack of information. Regardless if they were planning an intimate backyard wedding or a black tie bash, it was difficult to find authentic insight to guide them in identifying the right vendors. I wanted to make it easier for people to get what they wanted.
Words you live by?
Fake it till you make it. Seriously.
What makes Carats & Cake different from other wedding blogs?
All of our content is straight from the source and we provide brides-to-be with direct access to trusted local vendors reviewed by recently married couples. It’s all about turning your inspiration into reality.
Photo Credit: Manuel Mesarovits
We know firsthand that you love Sockerbit, any other guilty pleasures?
Ha! I have an uncontrollable sweet tooth. I also live for fresh flowers.
What did you think your dream job was before your dream job found you?
I have always been very entrepreneurial and I loved working in Venture Capital because I was surrounded by amazing people building incredible companies.
Bridesmaid dresses can be tricky, what color do you think will stand the test of trend time?
Personally I am a huge fan of neutrals (shocking I know considering I pretty much live in black white and grey) and I think there is something timeless about an all white wedding.
You see hundreds of weddings on a daily basis. What do you look for when brides submit their weddings to C&C?
We don’t have a traditional submission process at Carats & Cake but the weddings our users really respond to are the ones where the couples go above and beyond and really share their experience in the hopes of making their wedding a resource for brides-to-be. So not only sharing their photos and providing their vendors, but taking the time to add comments about why they chose their florist or how their photographer went above and beyond. It’s this whole idea of “what I wish I would have known.”
Any tips you might have for brides planning their dream wedding?
Try to remember the wedding is just the first day of the rest of your life together.
Photo Credit: Samuel Lippke
Best tip for balancing work and personal life?
So I asked this question once to one of the female entrepreneurs who I admire most, and it’s some of the best advice I have ever gotten “there is no secret, embrace the imbalance” so I try to do what works best for me and the people I love.
Last and certainly not least… you’re stranded on a desert island …what’s the one cocktail you would take with you?
Aperol spritzer. I love the taste and the color!
Thanks Jess, we adore you and we love watching C&C grow!
xx
KL
* Be sure to check out our Carats & Cake page and make sure to submit your wedding here!
K+J tied the knot on a gorgeous afternoon at The Ashford Estate in New Jersey. They were one of our Hurricane Sandy couples who had to push their wedding back because of the devastation in New Jersey. If you ask me, any couple that can cancel their wedding a few days before the big day and still have the most humbling attitude about it scores serious points in my book. They truly are an amazing couple and this was one incredible wedding to be part of!
Don’t forget to follow us on Insta & Facebook
xx
KL
Vendor Love:
Wedding Planner: Stella Day Events
Photographer: Susan Stripling
Venue: The Ashford Estate
Florist: Petal Beach
Make Up: Glow Artistry
I want to thank Eric Langlois of Raw Photo Design for working with us. We are so blessed that we had the opportunity to work with you and we will forever keep you in our prayers. Thank you for capturing the most special day in our lives. Much love to your entire family and extended family.
xx
KL
A few weeks ago a client and I were chatting over a glass of vino at one of my favorite UES wine bars, Uva. She asked if I had any advice on being a newlywed and of course my initial response was “have fun, fight fairly, drink lots of delicious wine and see the world together.” Today I stumbled upon this incredible quote and I had to share it with you:
So M, take the advice from this quote as it couldn’t be more true …. but don’t forget the delicious wine part!
xx
KL
Every now and again you need some time in a beautiful place to clear your head. This weekend we headed out East and did just that. With all the weddings and events we have going on, it’s so easy to get wrapped up in the hustle and bustle and forget to live life. With a little rosé, #cookingwithwithcappy, lots of laughs with beautiful people and some beach time, it was just what the doctor ordered! This weekend we head back out East for site visits and meetings with local vendors. Is it Thursday yet?!
A little lobstah from #cookingwithcappy (future post on the man behind this hashtag)
Even Muffy needed a little r&r… can we say, beach babe?!?
Have a great week everyone and don’t forget to follow us on Insta!
xx
KL
Do
In the past few months I have noticed a trend while meeting with new couples. They are all ridiculously awesome and incredibly excited for their big day but the wrap up convo typically sounds like this: “you have great taste, do you have any interest in planning our honeymoon too?”
When this question is asked I typically become lost for words and for anyone who knows me, knows that’s pretty uncommon. I love traveling. I mean, I L-O-V-E it. My best friend lives by the expression “pack light, go far!” Sadly, when I went on my honeymoon, I didn’t take her advice. In fact, on our way to Africa my luggage tipped the scale at 100 lbs…I actually started crying and layering my clothes on at JFK. Then I started stuffing clothes in my hubs carry on because obviously mine was already full (thank gosh he found this humorous). Needless to say, we were sitting at the airport bar before boarding and I was shvitizing because of all the layers I had on. Pat thought it was because I was nervous for the long flight–ha, what a guy! Any-who…. although I will never say “no!” to a client, I decided that it might be fun to help my couples out with their honeymoon. I’ve been to a bunch of countries and I love exploring, so why not! Don’t get me wrong, I will work with experts who are familiar with the location you plan to visit, but if it takes a little weight off your plate, just send it my way. And if you want, I’ll even go with you……..jokes, jokes!
With all this honeymoon talk, I figured I’d share some pics with you from my honeymoon. We headed off to the amazing country of South Africa for four nights and jetted to Mauritius for one week of beach time. Figured we needed a little adventure in the beginning and relaxation at the end!
Me + Small bumpy flight = cocktail.me.now
Picked up from the “airport” in style
Well hello there, Ranger Rick
For all you Bachelor fans,we stayed at Lion Sands Ivory Lodge -same suite as Ashley Hebert …she obviosuly didn’t get the final rose. Womp, womp.
Cocktails in the bush? Why not!
Next stop, to da beach…..where we stayed at the Dinarobin
oh hey, Quicksilver!
Spa Day was much needed…
As were cocktails on the beach!
Did a little deep sea fishing..
A little golfing..
A little tanning…
And a ton of writing in our travel journal … future blog post on this bad boy!
oh…and we never missed a sunset!
South Africa and Mauritius were two beautiful countries and I totally recommend visiting them. In fact, we know four other couples that did the exact same trip as us and they all had the greatest experiences! Next Honeymoon Idea post….Viva la France!
xx
KL
My summer intern is one of a kind. She is incredibly smart, stylish and is my wing woman for each event. She loves anything and everything related to weddings (my kinda girl) and is willing to go above and beyond for each one of our clients. In addition to being ridiculously awesome, she is has the best attitude! One of my fabulous grooms recently wrote me an e-mail thanking us for all of our help and said “I couldn’t think of a better team than you and Andrea.” Well, I thought it was the perfect time for you to meet Andrea and read her very first blog post for Stella Day Events!
From the desk of AC:
There’s something about summer that makes me love all things nautical. After all it is the perfect time of year to have a nautical themed wedding! I may be bias coming from Massachusetts and spending many a summer down on Cape Cod, but the crisp, clean feeling that a nautical wedding gives off is like no other. With all the modern touches that you can combine to make your day extra special, driftwood, seersucker and sea glass have never gone together better!
Setting the tone for that perfect nautical wedding is easy to do as soon as you say “Yes!” by starting with your invitations and can continue all through your night with little details like escort cards and place settings until that last piece of cake is devoured!
Sperry’s for the groomsmen make it a laid-back yet clean and classic look!
If you’re not getting married on Cape Cod, no worries! With enough little details like this, you can still feel like you’re sitting on the beach watching the waves roll in, no matter where you are.
Be sure to follow us on Pinterest!
Happy Tuesday!
Andrea
