Utterly Engaged } The 1st Online Wedding & Bridal Magazine. Inspiring Brides with Style.

We hope you love Issue No.25. It’s a beauty isn’t it?! We love every single page of it. I think I personally went through it more than 5 times. Well, we have more coming your way.  Starting today we’re sharing with you more amazing images from our cover editorial feature of Elizabeth Messina’s “A Lovely Workshop”. Her workshop is at it’s heart an intimate & artistic collaboration. Elizabeth inspires and teaches photographers to challenge themselves both in their business endeavors and in their photographic work. Below is part 1 of what her students captured from this amazing workshop. It’s incredible how everyone sees things so differently. Be on the look out for these photographers, because they’re so talented. And be sure to browse through the Resource Guide at the end. It was because of these contributors that these amazing images happened. Here’s to more inspiration!

Tricia Whitmer

Serena Severtson

Greer Gattuso

(L)Rabiah Khwaja (R)Jessica Morrisy

Kelly Sauer

(L)Marisa Holmes (R)Jessica Morrisy

Nicole Mason

(L)Julie Paisley (R)Lauren Rosenau

(L)Rabiah Khwaja (R)Kelly Sauer

Greer Gattuso

Gina Moore

(L)Katherine Emery (R)Lauren Rosenau

Daniel Perez

Top (L & R) Lauren Rosenau  / Bottom (L)Jessica Morrisy (R)Lindsay Madden

Nicole Mason

(L)Daniel Perez (R)Serena Severtson

Rabiah Khwaja

(L)Marisa Holmes (R)Jessica Morrisy

Marisa Holmes

Daniel Perez

Please take a moment & explore the creative work &
websites of the 2013 “A Lovely Workshop” attendees

MARISA HOLMES
LINDSAY MADDEN
GREER GATTUSO
DANIEL PEREZ
KATHERINE EMERY
TRICIA WHITMER
LIZ ROBERTS
JULIE PAISLEY
RABIAH KHWAJA
VERONICA RAMIREZ
NICOLE MASON
KELLY SAUER
JESSICA MORRISY
SERENA SEVERTSON
TIFFANY BENDER
LAUREN ROSENAU
REBECCA STANLEY
SARAH PIRKRYL
GINA MOORE

From Humble Beginnings Come Great Things.

Springtime is a time for new beginnings, a time to celebrate growth and new life. A wedding is the perfect beginning to a new chapter in a couple’s relationship, where two people come together to start their life as husband and wife. In this union comes new happiness to enjoy, new adventures to experience, as well as new challenges to overcome. With this issue, we want to capture the excitement and joy of starting a new beginning, and also remember the simple beauty of the place where it came from.

This issue is graced by so many beautiful imagery of love captured through the lens of renowned photographers, including Elizabeth Messina for “A Lovely Workshop”, where her talented wedding industry friends share tips and inspiration on creating a more lovely day for your wedding, and Jasmine Star in “Leather & Tweed”, where fashion trends for everyday style can be incorporated into your wedding day. Our honeymoon expert, Katie Frederick of Ever After Honeymoons, answered questions from couples who are planning their honeymoon, which is usually the first trip they’ll take as newlyweds. In this issue, we also give you a double dose of He Said / She Said following the love story of two couples with two different beginnings, but both found their true love.

We interviewed two trendsetting women whose humble beginnings are making impacts and changing the industry, if not the world. Wendy Bird, the founder of Pearls with Purpose, shared with us the humble beginning of her pearl jewelry business, that has grown and helped the lives of hundreds of disadvantaged individuals and families in the Philippines and India simply by teaching them how to make jewelry and by responding to their basic needs. We’re also excited to share with you the story behind drop it MODERN, a contemporary backdrop company that started in a garage by Breanne Schaap, who was out to challenge the norm within the photography industry and introduced fresh, modern, printed backdrops for photographers and couples alike.

Putting together this issue, we feel utterly grateful for all the beauty that surrounds us and for our readers and contributors that have supported us all this time. We are nervous and excited as we approach our 4th year and cannot wait to welcome another new chapter in Utterly Engaged and invite you to embark on this adventure with us. And with this new year, we’re also gearing up to welcome another birth in our growing family, as our Co-Founder Henny is expecting her third child this summer. Congratulations to her and her family!

We hope you enjoy this issue and share stories of your own humble beginnings with us.

xoxo,
Lucia & Henny

We’re not going to lie. Watching what’s been happening in Boston is making it hard to go back to “business” as normal. We have been glued to the news and it’s quite frustrating because we feel helpless. We wanted to send our deepest thoughts and prayers to everyone who was impacted by the Boston Marathon bombing and let them know that they’re in our hearts. Let us all take time out this weekend to turn off the television and the news and choose love. Especially love for one another. Because time is so precious.

As the week closes, we wanted to share at least one wedding with you that’s simple, elegant filled with love. Looking at this wedding, a few words from Mother Theresa came to mind…

Thank you D. Park Photography for sharing this beautiful wedding with us. It’s simple, modern and elegant. Celebrating your wedding day doesn’t have to be over the top. Focus on what matters, and it will be the most beautiful day of your life.

Photographer: D. Park Photography /  Hair Stylist: All Made Up Team /  Caterer: Seafood World Restaurant / Event Designer: three petals / Reception Venue: Muzeo / Dress Store: Rosa Clara Group / Cake Designer: Lily’s Bakery / DJ: Copper Mountain Broadcasting / Ceremony Location: St. John the Baptist Catholic Church / Makeup Artist: Makeup By Liz / Shoes: Enzo Angiolini / Jewelry: Renee Pawele Bride,Bridal Rings Company / Tuxedo and Mens Attire: Calvin Klein / Veils and headpieces: NQ Jewelry

Finding the perfect venue for your wedding can be a challenge. But sometimes the stars align and the perfect venue just comes to you. That’s what happened to today’s featured couple Cara and Garret. When they were invited to Garret’s mom’s best friend’s home in Acton, California for a birthday party, they didn’t expect to find their wedding venue. Complete with twinkling lights under the desert sky, they knew it was “the one”.

Words of the Bride:
Linda Marshall (our florist) is one of Garret’s Mom’s best friends. Garret and I had already picked a venue in Northern CA (where I grew up) when we went to a birthday party at Linda Marshall’s home. The venue in Northern CA was beautiful, but Garret and I were frustrated because we felt with every venue there was something we had to compromise on (i.e. wedding ending time, using specific vendors etc.). When we went to Linda’s birthday party at her home, it was perfect. Her home is in the desert/mountains in Acton, CA. It was lit up with string lights (one of my essential musts for my wedding). Linda created a perfect relaxed, but very fun atmosphere.  Not to mention it was decorated beautifully (she’s a florist after all). Jokingly we said we should just get married at her house. Linda being the very generous person that she is, actually got very excited by the whole idea.  Her husband Dave even got ordained and officiated our wedding. So the Marshalls really made our wedding happen!

Some of the key decor that we incorporated into our wedding to match our rustic venue was: burlap table runners, mason jar drinking glasses and candle holders, and horse saddles in the cocktail area. A few personal touches included in the ceremony were: our dog “swamp monster” walking down the isle, my grandmothers’ necklaces wrapped around my bouquet (they have both passed so I wanted to include them), personal vows that included “in happiness and in grumpiness”, and a fiddle player Teri Villani who played “Puff The Magic Dragon”, “Norwegian Wood”, and “Here Comes the Bride”.  Some other fun stuff we incorporated was: Pirate Themed Beer Cozies as wedding gift saying “Till Death Do Us Part”, and Skull/Cross Bones cupcakes.

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Photography: Honey Honey Photography | Wedding Coordinator: Lisa Nutall of Crystal Clear Weddings & Occasions | Florist: Linda Marshall Acton Country Flowers (661-269-9326) | Hair/Makeup: Andrea Martin of Blush Up LA | Catering: Kenny Fryer (661-916-6224) | Rentals: A-1 Event Rentals (661-755-8111) | Music: John Spears (Runaway Train Band and Teri Villani

Finding the perfect bridesmaid dress is not an easy task. In fact, itʼs often much harder than finding your wedding gown! Iʼve had brides send me emails describing how hard of a time they are having trying to find a style (or styles) that both they and their bridesmaids love. When you take into consideration all the different body types, skin tones, and personal senses of style, trying to suit each girl can be overwhelming.

Whenever Iʼm consulting a bride on what her options are for her bridesmaid gowns, it all comes down to what she wants. However, you still want your girls to feel pretty and confident. Gone are the days of horrible bridesmaids dresses that are still hanging in your closet from the 90ʼs. There are so many different colors and shapes to choose from that are not only stunning, but will often fit in your budget.

Dreamy pastels and sherbet hues are a huge trend in bridal this season. The lineup includes minty green, coral, and shades of grey. These colors not only work on a variety of different skin tones, but they are also just in time for spring and summer weddings.

Iʼve selected a few of my favorite pastel bridesmaids dresses in all different styles, from short and sweet to long and lovely. I guarantee youʼll find a style that not only you love, but one that they will actually want to wear time and time again!

Minty Fresh
Mint was one of the most popular colors on the spring/summer runways. Thereʼs just something so beautiful about a mint green chiffon dress for a summer wedding. I love the color combo of mint and gray, which can work in a number of settings. Silver or gold accessories work great and will give your girls some styling options.

Chic Coral
Coral is another color that looks great on just about everyone. Itʼs also very versatile because it looks appropriate for a daytime wedding but can easily be dressed up for evening. Gold or metallic jewelry looks amazing with coral and will really pop next to the white or ivory color of your wedding gown.

Shades of Grey
Grey looks amazing in pretty much any setting, whether youʼre planning a wedding on the beach or in the city. Mixing different shades of dark and light grey looks super chic and modern. Look for grey dresses in different patterns and fabrics so that each girl has her own unique style.