Cheers to a wonderful New Year!

The Ashley Baber Weddings team is wishing you a Healthy, Happy and Prosperous New Year! It has become a tradition that we post about champagne/sparkling wine for New Years, so our pick this year is the Francis Coppola Sofia wines names for the Director's daughter. The Rosé is a stunning shade of pink and would make a perfect specialty drink for a spring or summer wedding- a refreshing Pinot Noir with a perfume that alternates between sun-warmed rose petals and just picked strawberries. Black cherry, raspberry and strawberry flavors share the palate with a vibrant acidity. And we LOVE the mini Sofie Blanc de Blanc pink cans {with a little straw attached to each can!} for your wedding- in welcome bags, as favors, or even for a special champagne toast! The Blanc de Blanc is a Sparkling Wine- a blend of Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscat with Green apple and ripe pear aromas. Lively on the tongue with lots of bubbles, the tart apple strudle flavors seem just a bit off-dry, balanced with nice acidity that keeps it light and refreshing.

The New Year is a wonderful time to reflect on the past year and get excited about the year ahead. We want to thank all of our amazing clients, friends and family for making our success possible. We are just thrilled about all of the things on the horizon for Ashley Baber Weddings in 2009. Cheers!

Happy Holidays!

We are signing off for rest of the week- taking a little break to enjoy family and friends and wonderful Holiday traditions. I did want to leave you with my favorite photo from an amazing winter wedding I found on Style Me Pretty from Colorado photographer James Christianson. Breathtaking. I also love this wedding because their reception took place at Timber Hearth Grille in Cordillera {just outside of Beaver Creek, Colorado}, where I coordinated my Uncle's wedding 2 years ago. Best Wishes for a joyous Holiday Season! We look forward to catching up on some more of our 2008 weddings next week!

Obsession: Paper Details

I have recently come to the realization that I am obsessed with paper details. I think cohesive paper details- table numbers, place cards, menu cards, favor packaging- are an essential part of a complete wedding design. Now- wiith the help of templates that are on-line {like those you see above from Martha Stewart's website and the "Sweet" labels from Stuck}- every bride has access to these cute, affordable, DIY details. I just think these little details are what make wedding special and memorable and, in many instances, they provide your guests with useful information. I hope I see LOTS of fabulous paper details in 2009!

Holy Press!

What a great day here at ABW! I was so excited to hit the newsstands today and find not 1, not 2, but THREE of our weddings in magazines! The Knot Georgia features the weddings of both Tracey and Michael {Kristen Alexander Photography} and Devon and Jonathan {Liana Lehman Photography}:

And the 1st Anniversary Issue of The Atlantan Brides features the wedding of Jan & Steven {Laura Negri Photography}:

Pick up these publications to read about all of the fabulous details of each couple's wedding day!

A Winter Wedding: 10 Years Later

Ritzy Bee reminded us that one of our favorite designers Rebecca Thus {award winning photo-stylist, a creative director, wedding designer and crafter} was married 10 years ago this month in a stunningly simple and elegant winter wedding in Washington, DC. The affair was full of timeless details. Her wedding was later featured in Martha Stewart Weddings, who Rebecca was working for at the time. Click on images to enlarge and Enjoy!

Super Sweet Table Numbers

I found this fun and adorable wedding on Snipett and Ink. One of my favorite details from Lexy and Jared's wedding is their table numbers. They used meaningful years rather than traditional table numbers. The years they were each born, the years their grandparents and parents were married and the year they will be married 50 years. So sweet!

Cheryl & Rusty

We were so honored to be apart of this wedding. Rusty is the Father of Lindsay who was married earlier this year. Rusty, Cheryl, Lindsay and Will enjoyed working with Amanda so much that when it came time for Cheryl and Rusty to tie the knot at Canoe in Vinings on October 12th, they asked for our help again! It was an intimate affair on a perfect Fall day by the Chattahoochee River. Congrats to this special family on a year full of joyous occasions! Thank you to Shawna Herring for these images!

Aressa & Chad

Aressa and Chad were married at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens on October 12th. Aressa worked hard planning their wedding while Chad was in Iraq. She wanted to represent her Caribbean heritage with a bright, tropical color palette of ocean blue and oranges. Everything came together perfectly as the couple exchanged vows in a sunset ceremony at the Robinson Gazebo with amazing views of the city skyline off in the distance. Guests then enjoyed a Caribbean style meal and danced late into the night... Thank you Christine Gallagher for this super cute board!

Rainy Wedding Days...

I am so glad to see the weather has improved today! Yesterday was so dreary with the cold rain, but it had me thinking about outdoor weddings. I know- no one likes to think about the possibility of rain on their wedding day, but I do think there is an opportunity for some unique photos if there is inclement weather on your big day. Here are a few amazing photos from rainy wedding days courtesy of the Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA) and these talented photogs: (Top to Bottom) . Debra Simpson, Adrienne Maples, Darcie Siitari. And here is a shot from one of our weddings- Ann and Charlie's ceremony in 2007 taken by Tina Rowden:

A Gift for You!

A special gift of great Bridal Hair & Make-up from The Moore Agency! If you book before December 5, 2008, you will receive 20% off your Services. If you book before December 19, 2008, you will receive 10% of your Services. Offer not valid with any other promotional offers. For more information, please contact Steve at The Moore Agency! Photo credit Ric Mershon Photography

Kelsey & Taylor

Emily and Heather were on-site as Kelsey and Taylor were married on October 4th at Rock Spring Presbyterian Church. Kelsey looked beautiful and timeless in a Judd Wadell gown and a coordinating headband. Her maids were also classic-yet-chic in navy gowns with a unique neckline. The reception was held at Druid Hills Golf Club. Kelsey opted for LOTS of color in the ballroom alternating tonal arrangements in every color imaginable on the guest tables. Guests danced and danced and danced to the sounds of the amazing US Beat Band. What a lovely wedding- Congrats Kelsey & Taylor! Thank you to the always amazing Laura Negri for these images!

Wedding Websites

In this fast-paced, technology dependant world we live in, we need to be sure we are still being polite when approaching modern conveniences such as wedding websites. Here are some tips from the etiquette expert Peggy Post of the Emily Post Institute:

"Your Web page should represent you as a couple. Take the time to develop a design and content that you are both comfortable with – one that reflects your personal aesthetic style.

Electronic RSVPs. If you plan to let people RSVP on your site, simply add a printed sentence at the bottom of your reply card sent with your invitation saying, “You may also reply by way of our wedding Web site: www.happycouple.com.”

Don’t list your Web site on your invitation. This may be tempting, but refrain. There are plenty of other ways to let people know about the site, such as including the Web address on other items enclosed in the invitation packet, such as the response card or maps.

Keep it Simple. A few well-designed pages will speak volumes.

Keep personal info private. Some pre-designed Web templates prompt you to type in personal details such as when you shared your first kiss, what you did on your first date, and so on. This may be good fodder for the bachelor(ette) party, but there is no need to share such intimate moments with your entire guest list – and anyone else who may stumble across your site. Keep your postings tasteful and inclusive.

Don’t put the emphasis on gift registries. It is fine to post links to various on-line gift registries on your home page. This is one of the conveniences of your site. It is important to strike a balance between discretion and a desire to make things easier for your guests. Place such links to the side of the page in modestly sized type.

Don’t overlook your unwired guests. Remember, not everyone has ready access to the Internet. If you know that a certain invited guest is not connected to the Web, be sure to send hard copies of any pertinent information.

After the wedding. You can use your site after the wedding to post wedding and honeymoon pictures, anecdotes and a heartfelt ‘thank you’ to all. This thank you does not replace the individual thank you notes that must be handwritten. "

There are a lot of great sites out there that will guide you through the process of building your own wedsite. These are 2 of our favs:

nearlyweds! is one of the web's top rated wedding websites. We love it because they have teamed up with Wedding Paper Divas so you can customize your wedsite to match your invitation suite.

One of wonderful clients, Melissa, used weddingwindow and I am so impressed with her site! They have a multitude of customizable designs and with your wedsite you have access to save-the-date e-cards, blog capabilities, planning tools and much more!

Winter Wedding Board

I love this board Christine Gallagher created inspired by her new logo. I think it is just perfect for a winter wedding, but the palette could really work anytime of the year! Don't forget to RSVP to Christine's Sip-n-Shop Party next week!

Grace & Nenad

What a beautiful and sweet couple! Grace and Nenad were married on September 20th at the Atlanta History Center's Swan Lawn. Grace's bridesmaids wore vibrant magenta J.Crew dresses and carried matching florals with pops of bright greens. The weather could not have been more perfect as the couple exchanged vows in front of their closest friends and family.

After the touching ceremony, everyone drove to the heart of the city for a fun night at a private restaurant Downtown. Nenad is Serbian and Grace is Korean, so there was a plethora of multi-cultural dishes prepared for dinner as well as a delicious vanilla and chocolate wedding cake. What great perspective in this shot of the cake cutting under that painting!

Guests also enjoyed assorted Serbian fruit-flavored brandy which made for a fun night of dancing. I love this picture of Nenad dancing with Grace's Mother.

It was such a great party, the couple had their rose petal exit and then everyone- including the bride and groom- went back inside and continued the party late into the night...!

Congrats you two! Thank you to Marc Pierre for these stunning images!