We hope you enjoyed the continuation of our Launch of Love this week as much as we have! Two beautiful engagement shoots + two incredible real weddings and four swoon-worthy love stories is as close to perfect as you can get in our book! :) Lots to come next week… a couple introductions, the guided tour post I keep talking about, and a few other surprises too! We can’t wait for you to join us!

What we indulged in this week…

{On Monday} Love goes the distance in this vintage-colonial themed engagement shoot at Washington’s Crossing from Jessica Morrisy Photography!

{On Tuesday} The sweetest love story told in the bride’s own words in this cream and green rustic wedding from Hearts & Horseshoes Photography!

{On Wednesday} The July edition of our most popular flower series!

{On Thursday} Indulge in this Chinatown engagement shoot from Dawn E. Roscoe Photography and a learn a few key phrases in Chinese too!

{On Friday} A sweet as can be love story + a scavenger hunt proposal that will have you swooning on the edge of your seat in this Puerto Vallarta destination wedding from Michelle Turner Photography! I’m going out on a limb here saying this is my favorite. feature. EVER! It’s exactly what Heart Love Weddings is all about!

{Heart to Heart} Take a deep breath and smell the sunflowers with me!

{Saturday Snapshot} My favorite line from Sweet Home Alabama…

Also…

I was also a guest on the fabulous Henry + Masci Photography and Boudoir blogs this week! I talked about shoes… lots and lots of pretty ones! And the fun bits of a boudoir shoot… the getting ready, glamorous, girly bits, of course!

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From the Bridal Blog Swap:

She is a display designer for Anthropologie and the bride! This is a can’t miss on Wedding Chicks. Handmade and whimsical details on a very reasonable budget.

Have a summertime garden wedding to attend? Ramshackle Glam tricks you out in floral finery.

Reem Acra for Shopbop has arrived! Shop the complete collection on BRIDEfinds.

You don’t want to miss the gorgeous details in this elegant pink, blue, and silver wedding on Every Last Detail!

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Have a lovely weekend!

xoxo

A picture is worth a thousand words . . .

One Photographer. One Snapshot. One Quote.

One-thousand words and emotions.

From Sweet Home Alabama:

Young Melanie: What do you want to be married to me for, anyhow?

Young Jake: So I can kiss you anytime I want.

Photo by Mandy Lynne Photography

I took the day yesterday to take a deep breath and smell the sunflowers! I drove an hour and a half to Buttonwood Farm to see their famous sunflowers – acres and acres of them! And let me tell you, it was positively breathtaking! What started as one acre back in 2003, has grown to no less than fourteen acres (that’s more than 300,000 blooms) in 2011. The cut flowers are sold as bouquets for $5, of which I took home two. All proceeds go to the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Connecticut. They call it Sunflowers for Wishes. People come from miles around to see these sunflowers during the week of which they bloom (one week only). There were hundreds of people when I went yesterday… and they all but sell out of sunflowers every year. It warmed my heart to know that so many people both appreciate and benefit from what the owners of this farm continue to do.

Have you taken a moment to smell the sunflowers today?

xoxo

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Photo by Karin Beauregard

I am over the moon excited to share this destination wedding with you from Michelle Turner Photography today! Over. the moon. excited. Not only are we HUGE fans of Michelle’s work, but today’s bride is also the absolute sweetest! It was such a pleasure emailing back and forth with Rachel to find out more about her and Scott’s love and proposal story – both of which are AMAZING by the way! Speaking of…

Note: This post is a little on the long side, but you’ll be daydreaming so soon, you won’t even notice. I promise.

Scott and Rachel met on a Saturday night in October 2007 at a bar in St. Louis. It’s funny, because before that night, Rachel did not believe she could meet anyone worthwhile in a bar. But that night, she met Scott and everything changed.

Two days later, Scott took Rachel on their first real date to a local wine bar. They spent the night sampling great wines and talking about everything you’re not “supposed” to talk about (religion and politics), and closed the place down together. A few days after that, in the parking garage outside of Rachel’s apartment, after a fantastic date over ice cream, Rachel and Scott shared their first kiss. She calls that late night ice cream date the sweet beginnings of their sweet journey. (Awwwww!)

Some of Rachel and Scott’s best memories are from their travels around the world together. One such time when Scott surprised Rachel by obtaining his SCUBA license and whisked her away to the Caribbean on a private sailboat to dive for 10 days. (Uhm… best surprise vacation ever? I think so.) They both swear that adventures like this one helped strengthen their relationship, their communication skills, and the ability to really make the most of every moment they spend together. These skills were especially helpful in keeping their bond strong and moving in the right direction when Scott took a job in Houston, TX, hundreds of miles from where Rachel was interning in St. Louis. Even with the miles separating them, Rachel and Scott never lost sight of their love for each other.

Editor’s Note: Scott’s proposal to Rachel is honestly the best thing I have ever read. It’s hugely detailed and incredibly romantic – he put a TON of thought into this, let me tell you. I’m going to do my absolute best to to give you the shortened version – cramming as many details into it as I possibly can. I’d say bear with me, but you’ll be swooning on the edge of your seat soon enough…

When it came time to pop the question, Scott spent seven solid months shopping for and creating the perfect ring, planning out every single detail of his elaborate proposal plan, booking flights, and waiting. Finally, the weekend of December 18, 2010 arrived. Scott had promised Rachel a “relaxing” weekend of pampering after sitting a seven-hour long exam she’d spent months studying for and stressing over. On the morning of, Scott directed Rachel to the kitchen where a bowl filled with ornaments and a white envelope waited for her on the counter. Upon opening the envelope, she discovered he’d booked her a mani/pedi at the Chase Park Hotel Spa. As she hurried to get out the door, Scott reminded her that the whole day was planned out for her and she had to be back at the house by 11. His secret smile and ability to always surprise her left her wondering the entire morning.

The minute Rachel was out the door, Scott sprang the next steps of his plan into action. He grabbed his already packed suitcase from its hiding place, laid out her own, set aside even more envelopes for Rachel to open, and was out the door to catch his flight to NYC. Before stepping on the plane, he sent a quick text to Rachel instructing her to open envelope number 2 the moment she got home.

Rachel was more than happy to oblige, and had to restrain herself from tearing into the other half-dozen envelopes waiting for her. Inside was a piece of paper with a few lines of love, directions, and a short poem. “Dust off the luggage, out with the trunk; it’s packing time!!! Makeup and junk!” Rachel hurried to follow Scott’s directions and got dressed, packed her suitcase (including just one red shoe, she doesn’t know why), and eating the lunch he’d set aside for her in the fridge. Within thirty minutes she was out the door and on to envelope number 3 and a second poem. “Varoom, varoom off, to lands well known, where silver birds soar, to distances soon shown.”

Are you on the edge of your seat yet?

She made it to the airport in record time, parked the car, and caught a shuttle to the main terminal. When the driver asked for her flight information, she told him she had no idea. When everyone, including the driver, gave her funny looks, she explained the story of what was happening. Every woman on the shuttle swooned. (Wouldn’t you?) It was the most romantic thing they’d ever heard (yep, me too!) and were certain a proposal was in her imminent future. While Rachel secretly hoped this was true, she explained that Scott was well known for his elaborate surprises and didn’t want to get her hopes up. One engaged couple urged her on though as they followed her into the terminal and waited with baited breath for her to open envelope number 4 where she discovered her travel destination. “Shine it off bright, and take a BIG bite. Board your bird for an Apple with lights!”

One very long flight to NYC later with only an iPod playlist filled with music Scott had selected specially for her, and half a dozen women hanging on her every word for company. The second the plane touched down, it was all Rachel could do not to tear into the next envelope. “Confusion exists as a crowded sea of yellow. But away you must go, so “hail” a fellow.” Rachel exchanged phone numbers with the women eager to hear how the story played out, retrieved her suitcase in a hurry, and caught the first cab she could find.

Upon arriving at the hotel Scott had directed her to, Rachel stopped in the middle of the lobby to read the poem in the last and final envelope. “Safe and sound, good times abound. And just your luck, there’s a cute guy around!” And there was Scott, waiting patiently for his love.

But the surprise wasn’t over yet…

Hand-in-hand, they made their way down Fifth Avenue to Rockefeller Center, Scott texting mysteriously on his phone the entire time. And as they stood admiring the tree, Rachel told Scott that this was the most amazing Christmas present she’d ever received. He turned to her and said, “Well, there’s something else…” Words of love were exchanged, but it didn’t hit Rachel what he was leading up to until he dropped to one knee, opened the dark blue ring box containing the ring he’d spent months designing for her, and asked her to be his wife. Of course, she said yes! And the best part was a friend of theirs had caught the entire thing on camera!! Just another piece of Scott’s master proposal plan.

Master indeed. My breath is stolen and my heart is thudding around in my chest. And I’m not even the recipient of said master proposal plan, just a lovestruck onlooker. I told you the proposal story was INCREDIBLE! :) And so was their wedding… Le sigh.

{From the Bride} We wanted our wedding week to be complete with close family and friends. We were elated when 54 loved ones made the trek to Vallarta for our big day! Vallarta is very important to my family, as both my parents and uncles own property there, and we’ve been visiting for years. It was our goal to make our guests feel right at home in Vallarta, complete with influences of our travels and of Mexican culture and celebration!

Scott and I are so glad we decided on Playa Fiesta to host our event! They helped us personalize everything from the blended mango mojitos (our signature drink) to the daily newsletters that Scott designed to be placed in each room nightly, right down to our custom cake topper (a wedding gift from Scott’s brother), and photo booth props (made by a good friend of ours). We wanted our guests to know how much we loved them and how thankful we were that they could be there with us to witness the start of our journey and marriage.

Scott was the most amazing groom! He is so thoughtful and sweet and wanted to be a part of every facet of wedding planning! His creative ideas and continual loving praise helped make our vision a reality, along with the help of our dedicated wedding planners. Guests were greeted at the hotel with smiles, fresh guacamole, and margaritas. Our welcome dinner consisted of the most amazing taco bar ever imagined, Mexican fire dancers, and drummers. The day of the rehearsal, Scott set up a “Mexican Adventure Tour” that took us deep into the jungle for a zip line and a stop at a tequila factory on the way home. After our rehearsal, my uncles hosted a dinner at their condo with gorgeous views of Vallarta! The libations and gourmet food was inspired and created by my Cordon Bleu trained Uncle Len! There was even surprise music by Los Bambinos, a wonderfully talented local group. 

Wedding day was relaxing and wonderful! We tried to take every moment in! The bridesmaids and moms met for pedicures and lunch while our guests relaxed by the pool. One of my favorite moments happened before the wedding. Scott and I hadn’t seen each other since breakfast, and we’d been surrounded by family and friends. I had just taken a shower in our suite and was completely alone for the first time all day. I peered out of our window to see the progress below and saw Scott napping on a couch in the next suite. Without telling anyone, I snuck over to see my soon-to-be husband for a private moment before the wedding!

I really wanted to be able to keep my bouquet so we enlisted the help of Lalo Morales who designed our Mexican corn husk bouquets in his studio that helps to support the indigenous women in the Vallarta area through traditional arts and crafts. They were truly stunning and a total surprise! My mother kept the penny she wore in her shoe when she married my dad 36 years ago, so I would have it for this special day. It was securely taped into my Stuart Waltzman shoes. I even borrowed her beautiful blusher veil from her original cathedral length veil for my hair. My dad and I walked down the aisle to the romantic sounds of the 10 piece mariachi band where he handed me off to Scott before our family and friends at sunset.

It was very important to us that we honored our family and friends during the celebration. We wanted everyone involved in our wedding, so Scott wrote a simple and sweet shell ceremony in which each guest was given a shell and asked to fill it with kind thoughts, blessings, or wishes and cast it back into the ocean. It was beautiful.

Post ceremony, guests were ushered to cocktail hour with our signature blended mango mojitos while we whisked off to take pictures. The reception dinner was wonderful and the speeches were funny and heartfelt. We were so happy to be surrounded by so many loving people. 

The maracas with tags that read “Shake at the kiss!” as well as glow sticks were a huge hit on the dance floor and in the photo booth! Since it can get breezy by the ocean at night, my mom and dad collected beautiful shawls from their travels in Central America to place at each ladies’ seat at the reception. Instead of a garter and bouquet toss, Scott and I decided to recognize the couples in our lives with an anniversary dance. We gave bouquets to both sets of grandparents who have been married for 59 and 61 years!! Then, Scott and the guys enjoyed local Mexican cigars on the lawn to the sounds of crashing waves on the shore, while family and friends who weren’t able to attend enjoyed the reception via a live stream that Scott set up as a surprise! We ended the night with fireworks and the party continued until nearly everyone found themselves in the pool! It was truly a night to remember.

Oh my gosh. Neither will I. And I wasn’t even there!! The description of each well-thought out and heartfelt detail literally had me jumping out of my seat in joy! What an incredibly, magical day! I don’t even know where to begin on what I loved most! The robust orange color complemented by that pretty blue, the signature mango mojitos, the Shell ceremony, the live stream of the reception back home, the ending in the pool… Everything about this wedding… I’ll seriously remember forever. And Michelle did such a wonderful job capturing every last bit.

{From the Bride} The day after the wedding, our amazing photographer, ventured out through Vallarta with us! Not only is she über talented, she’s so easy to work with! After traipsing through the Romantic Zone of Vallarta and to the beach, she agreed to take some of the most amazing water pictures in the pools at my parents condo in Conchas Chinas. The time we spent with Michelle was relaxing and allowed me to kiss my new husband hundreds of times before parting ways back to Missouri and Texas. It was a special day we will never forget!

OK, I think every newly married man and wife should do this! It’s über romantic and just so, so sweet! Note to self: You will do a shell ceremony and day after photo shoot when you get married! Oh, and have a destination wedding weekend… and have signature mango mojitos… and… Can you tell how in love I am with this wedding?! Because I totally am! :)

Thank you, Rachel, from the bottom of my heart for sharing all the details of yours and Scott’s love story, proposal, and wedding day with all of us today! You truly took me (and I am sure everyone else too) on a journey worthy of many, many dreams! Congratulations to both you and Scott on tying the knot! We wish you so much love, laughter, and heartfelt surprises in the many years to come! And a super special thank you to the amazingly talented Michelle of Michelle Turner Photography for sending us this wondrous wedding day!!

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Photography: Michelle Turner Photography – Ceremony and Reception Venue: Playa Fiesta Beach Club

Coordinator: Lindsay Burgess – Officiant: Tamra Bradley – Flowers: Lalo Morales

Wedding Dress: Allure – Bride’s Shoes: Stuart Weitzman – Bridesmaids Dresses: Maggy London

Veil and Jewelry: Vintage from bride’s mother – Rings: Michael Genovese Jewelers

Groom’s Attire: Brooks Brothers – Groomsmen’s Attire: Van Heusen

Photo Booth Props: Kelly Phillips (close friend) – Maracas Tags: Susanschrock

Holders for place cards: Gallery360 – Cake Topper: Trevor Huston (groom’s brother)

Embroidered ribbon with “Rachel and Scott” for cake and place settings: Candi Bonn -

Maracas and Fish Scale Hair Rosettes: local vendors in Puerto Vallarta

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Le sigh. Perfect way to complete our Launch of Love!

Happy Friday!

xoxo

My heart was stolen the moment this Chinatown engagement shoot came across my desk! Not only is Chinatown one of the coolest places (at least in my opinion), but it was also the perfect backdrop for Dawn of Dawn E. Roscoe Photography to take Amanda and Jason’s engagement photos. Not to mention that I actually took Chinese in high school and have always been interested in the Chinese culture. That’s right, this wedding blogger speaks Mandarin! I loved it! Still do. I’m rusty, but I thought I’d take a stab at a few phrases anyway.  Be sure to check them out at the end of this post, alright? But for now, let’s find out how Amanda and Jason fell in love…

Although Amanda and Jason were introduced by a mutual friend, they were bound to have met eventually. They were both lawyers working in the same courthouse you see. Six months after their first meeting, Jason called Amanda to tell her about an available position at his place of work. Little did she know, it was all part of Jason’s master plan to win her heart. (Men and their crafty, well-laid plans.)

Amanda and Jason became fast friends soon after she joined his firm. They went to lunch together every Friday and often took their afternoon coffee breaks together too. At the time, Amanda had had a steady boyfriend, but six months after starting work with Jason, she broke things off. Within a few months of her breakup, Jason finally saw the opportunity he’d been waiting for and made his move. (Yay!)

And because they started off as friends, things between them blossomed pretty quickly. Before they knew it, they had fallen in love. When they moved in together two years after they began dating, Amanda knew it was only a matter of time before a certain question was popped.

They had just returned from Panama – where a grueling two-day hike to the top of a volcano had NOT ended in a proposal. It was Christmas time. Jason had the day off work and had spent the entire day preparing to propose. He wanted it to be as perfect as he could possibly make it. And he wanted to do it before they spent the next few days with family. That way they could tell everyone in person and celebrate with them.

He spent the entire day shopping, cooking, and bugging Amanda with questions while she was at work. (What exactly DOES rosemary look like, Amanda?) (Hahaha.) By the time she got home that night, Jason was more than ready to get a ring on her finger.

She walked in the back door of their apartment, bundled up in her winter coat and snow boots to find Jason nervously waiting for her in the kitchen with a bouquet of flowers. She barely had time to get one glove off before Jason hit one knee, ring in hand. He told her she was the love of his life and asked her to be his wife. Of course, she said yes!

{Behind the Lens with the incredible Dawn E. Roscoe Photography} Both Amanda and Jason wanted an urban, gritty and truly unique engagement session. We worked together on ideas and locations for the shoot. After scouting out a few locations on the south side of Chicago and off the beaten path of all the Michigan Avenue tourist attractions, we decided on Chinatown.

We started early on a Saturday morning with overcast skies and fog, which made for perfect lighting. We had such a great time walking through all the wonderful viaducts, parks and storefronts of Chinatown. Amanda and Jason were such great troopers for enduring mud, rainwater and dirty cobblestone streets to get our shots. Amanda and Jason were so adorable and comfortable around each other (and in front of the camera, which was a joy to photograph).

Chinatown is a bustling, colorful and gritty part of Chicago, and I really wanted to showcase the vibrancy of the location as well as catch great moments of Amanda and Jason having fun with each other. My goal with every engagement session is to capture the spontaneous intimacy between a couple amongst backdrops that reflect their style and personality.

Such a beautiful, vibrant shoot isn’t in? And their love for each other is just so playful and sweet! I’m pretty much in love with her cowboy boots too! ;)

Congratulations Amanda and Jason (who tied the knot on April 28, 2011)! We wish you tons of luck and lots of love in the years ahead of you! And a special thank you to Dawn E. Roscoe Photography for sharing their story and engagement photos with us today!

And now for those Chinese sayings (I would have had the characters and correct tone marks too, but I couldn’t figure out how to put them into WordPress correctly) :

Hello! How are you? … Ni hao! … (Pronounced knee – how.)

Thank you! … Xiexie! … (Pronounced she-yah, she-yah.)

Your welcome! … Bú keqi! … (Pronounced boo-kuh – chi.)

Goodbye! See you again! … Zaijian! … (Pronounced zaii – gee-n.)

I love you! … Wo ai ni! … (Pronounced whoa – I – knee.)

There you go! Some quick, easy phrases in Mandarin! So, not only did you read a sweet love story today, but you learned something new too! :)

Happy Thursday!

xoxo

P.S. I’m guest-posting on the Henry + Masci Photography Boudoir Blog today! Talking about the fun bits of a boudoir shoot… the getting ready, glamorous, girly parts, of course!