by Mandi | creative tips, quotes and toasts
Well, If you follow our blog, you know that I recently got married. I will go ahead and apologize for the amount I talk about my wedding on here, but if you have been through the process, you know what a special time it is. You also know all of the things you learn during the months of planning! I want to share with everyone what I learned along the way!
Today… I am going to talk about one of the things we did that I will cherish forever…. a professional wedding video.
I am telling you… this is so amazing to have! I have watched it about 10 times a day since they sent it to us!
1. WORDS. So many words are spoken during the day. Weather it is what you say while you are getting ready, your vows, what the preacher says, small whispers to each other, laughing, crying, etc. Photos will not capture that so be sure you get it on your video!
2. MUSIC. If you are like me you will take hours and hours to decide on the perfect songs! In my case, we had our fathers play a few songs together before the ceremony on guitar and mandolin. I LOVE that our video guys used that music as part of our background sound!
3. EMOTION. Photography, especially good photography, captures emotion of the day. With that said, it is that… a capture. A professional video will actually show clips of the emotion. Moments that you can watch over and over.
4. BLUR. People always told me. “try to remember everything, your wedding will be a blur”. I had no idea how true that would be. I never thought 10 hours could happen so quickly. It blew my mind as to how quickly the day flew by. My wedding video helped me see things I didn’t get to see. It helped bring back moments from my wonderful, amazing, beautiful, blur.
5. HIGH QUALITY. With technology today, everyone has a video, everyone has a camera. While this is true… it is not going to be the quality that a professional can provide you with! I’m telling you… get the high quality, the sound, the images. It is worth it!
I worked with the amazing husband and wife team at Whitewash Films. He does amazing work and she is just the sweetest to work with! Such a great combo. (Check out her day job at Inspire Wedding Magazine – so jealous!)
Here is my video!
Ryan + Mandi from Whitewash Films on Vimeo.
I can’t end this post without thinking my amazing photographer, Crystal Stokes. All of the photos used in this post are a thank you to her!
The amazing flowers are by Springvine Design, planning by Magnolia Events, and the wedding was at the beautiful Brawley House.
Be sure to follow Whitewash Films and all these other vendors to see their work!
by Mandi | personal, quotes and toasts
A little over a year ago, I wrote a post about my Granny and what a special lady she was to our family!
My family misses her every day, but we are blessed to still have my crazy, loving, one-of-a-kind Papaw around to keep us in check!
Today is his birthday and so I want to celebrate him! That man has tough hands from years of work, stories for days that he will tell you as he re-acts them out, and a heart bigger than I will ever have.
He is at the center of our family and still keeps us all in check. He has shown us how to be a part of our church and community. He supports all of us and is so proud of all of his grand children… don’t believe me.. just ask him! He will tell you!
He is still so active, going to the YMCA, having breakfast out with friends, going to local ball games, playing golf with old buddies and visiting old friends and family at their homes and nursing homes. He even got a new car recently that has “too much stuff” on it.. but he is learning and driving it around like the best of them!
He has a cell phone, which he will answer, but refuses to get a computer… sometimes I think that would be so nice… to remain disconnected!
I love this man, love his heart, , love his hugs where he squeezes and pinches my side, love his stores that he tells with so much excitement, love his face that has seen so much and continues to keep going!
He uses words that most don’t use anymore… Confound, Yonder, Down the Road a Piece, Kin-folk, etc…
Happy Birthday Papaw!
Love the face he gives me when I tell him to smile.
Lunch with Papaw
Old photo of “Super Dad!” Just ignore me in this one…#badhaircutinthe80s
Lunch at our favorite local spot
Love you, Lawrence Edward, Captain, Papaw
by Mandi | diy
I have always loved the look of decorating with letters in homes. I think your home should tell your story, give a glimpse into who you are and this is what I hope to do in my home with my new husband, the mister!
Below are a few ideas of what I am talking about so you can get an idea!
alphabet wall | burlap circle | B in nursery | gallery wall
I took this look into my wedding. I had an organic look and each table was different… some had B’s that I spray painted metallic (here is a blog post from when I made these). It was great to see those come to life!
photo by Magnolia Events Staff
I also had a larger tin “B” that I used for my guest book. I had a vision for this and although I have no idea how it would turn out, it turned out EXACTLY as I hoped! I couldn’t be more happy with it!
The “B” was a green color with a bit of a bronze background, so I bought some bronze sharpies, and asked people to only sign their name. We ended up with a “B” full of a mix of small notes and names of all of the people we love to display in our home. I LOVE IT!
And now, we have it in our house as a daily reminder of our special day! I honestly couldn’t be happier with it and am excited to have it forever!
Look closely and you will see a few more letters on my shelf 🙂 Those are from a shower that my sweet friends and family threw!
I have a few more “B”s from the wedding sprinkled throughout the house. Right now, they are in the kitchen, because we are still setting the house up, but I am happy with how it looks right now!
What are some unique guest books you have seen? Do you love decorating with initials?
