Philadelphia:

Love Me Do:

View ALL weddings featured shot by Love Me Do

What is your favorite tip for couples for being photographed on their wedding day?
Love Me Do: Relax and have fun! We want to photograph our clients as genuinely as possible, and the best way to do this is to have a little fun with them! Their wedding day is a huge celebration with all your family and friends around for support. It’s easy to just think about this exciting new step in your lives together. Let that be on the forefront of your mind when you’re getting photographed.

Tell us a little bit about you and what you do.
Love Me Do: There are a ton of amazing photographers out there, and we love them for what they do! When it comes down to it, it’s all about personality. We love getting to know our couples personally and letting them express themselves truly in our photos. Our brides (and grooms) book us because they trust us to let them enjoy themselves on their wedding day, as well as make them look fabulous at the same time!

Above images by Philadelphia photographer Jeff Wojtaszek

Amy Rae Photography:

Tell us a little bit about you and what you do.
Amy Rae Photography: The wedding day can be chaotic and I want to be the last person to add to the chaos. In fact I want to help make the day go by as smooth as possible. I take a relaxed and care-free approach to the photos to get natural images of you looking your best and enjoying the wedding day.

What is your favorite tip for couples for being photographed on their wedding day?
Amy Rae Photography: Forget about anything that is stressing you out, take a deep breath and live in the moment. Doing this will help you relax and have natural photos of you and your new spouse enjoying your wedding day.

Any favorite photo spots for engagement sessions or must see sightings?
Amy Rae Photography: I love shooting in Fairmount Park where everything is beautiful, green, and colorful! There is so much variety and beauty without leaving the city.

Schuylkill Haven:

Birdhouse Productions

Tell us a little bit about you and what you do.
Birdhouse Productions: Birdhouse offers short format wedding and life films with an emphasis on personal storytelling. By investing in lifelong relationships with our couples, we get to know them and their stories inside and out so that their wedding films are intimate, cinematic time capsules.

Any favorite photo spots for engagement sessions or must see sightings?
Birdhouse Productions: Backroads of Central PA – Reading to Harrisburg areas – have amazing yellow flower fields from April through June. The Franklin Fountain (Philly) for a retro ice cream shoot.

Photos below by Joey Kennedy Photography (view portfolio), Pittsburgh + will travel worldwide

Venues:
Moonstone Manor, Elizabethtown
Magic Gardens, Philadelphia
Sweetwater Farm, Glen Mills
Terrain, Glen Mills
GoggleWorks, Reading
Ash Mill Farm Bed and Breakfast, Holicong
The Audubon Center
Ridley Creek State Park
Community Arts Center, Wallingford
Holly Hedge Estate, New Hope
Morris Arboretum, Philadelphia
Aldie Mansion, Doylestown

Above video from Hi-Society Productions

Photographers:
Love Me Do (view portfolio), Philadelphia + will travel worldwide
Amy Rae Photography (view portfolio), Philadelphia + will travel worldwide
Jeff Wojtaszek (view portfolio), Philadelphia + will travel worldwide
Growing Tree Photography (view portfolio), Lancaster + will travel worldwide
Alison Conklin (view portfolio), Allentown + will travel worldwide
Joey Kennedy Photography (view portfolio), Pittsburgh + will travel worldwide
Brooke Courtney Photography (view portfolio), Lancaster + will travel worldwide
Michael Will Photography (view portfolio), Pittsburgh + will travel worldwide
Jillian McGrath Photography (view portfolio), Hummelstown + will travel worldwide

Above images by Lancaster photographer Brooke Courtney Photography

Event Design/Coordination:
Brava Weddings (view portfolio), Eastern PA
Styled Creative
Belovely Events
Daniele Pasternak
Kathy Romero Weddings and Events

Tree of Life Films:

See wedding feature here

Tell us a little bit about you and what you do.
Tree of Life Films: We’re a husband and wife team who love creating unique and artistic wedding films. It’s important to us to get to know our couples to make the best film that not only captures their day but them as a couple too. We love Love and and aim to bring out real emotion in our films. We were inspired after we received our own wedding film almost two years ago. We loved the way it captured our day and our love for each other. It made us feel amazing and we wanted to give that to other couples. Tom is an award winning, director of two feature films so it was easy to begin our new venture in wedding filmmaking together. We love what we do and can’t imagine doing anything else!

Any favorite photo spots for engagement sessions or must see sightings?
Tree of Life Films: We love the abandoned trains at the Wycombe Train Station (we chose this for our own engagement shoot too). We love any spots in nature during sunset (best time!).

Cinematographers:
Birdhouse Productions (view portfolio), Schuylkill Haven
Tree of Life Films (view portfolio), Philadelphia
Hi-Society Productions (view portfolio), Philadelphia

Above images by Allentown photographer Alison Conklin
See past features here, here, and here

Penna Ink Stationery:

Tell us a little bit about you and what you do.
Penna Ink: I work with customers to create custom wedding paperie or let them choose from my already designed collections. I am very comfortable and experienced working with brides from the local area and nationally.

Any favorite photo spots for engagement sessions or must see sightings?
Penna Ink: The Art Museum steps (from Rocky) in Philadelphia, PA

Stationery:
Penna Ink (view portfolio), Philadelphia
Love Leigh Invitations

Bakeries/Desserts:
Couture Cakery, Harrisburg
Little Baby’s Ice Cream

Above images by Pittsburgh photographer Michael Will Photography

Florists:
Wildflowers by Design (view portfolio), Manheim
Sullivan Owen
Love ‘n Fresh Flowers

Caterers:
12th Street Catering

Above images by Hummelstown photographer Jillian McGrath Photography
View past feature here

Rentals:
Maggpie Vintage Rentals (view portfolio)

Fashion:
The Wedding Shoppe

Makeup:
Jessica Jet Jones

Book Amy Rae Photography and receive a 20×30 canvas wrap ($430 value). Just mention Ruffled!

Related posts:

1. Local Wedding Guide: Florida
2. Local Wedding Guide: Illinois + Indiana
3. Local Wedding Guide: Pacific Northwest

© 2008-2012 Ruffled® , 2012. | Permalink | One comment | Posted under: Local Guide Birdhouse Productions, Love Me Do Photography, Penna Ink, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Tree of Life Films

Wedding Vendors (Philadelphia, PA):

Venue Location: Fairmount Park / Wedding Photographer: Jillian McGrath Photography / Event Designer: Belovely Events / Wedding Flowers: wildflowers by design / Wedding Dress: Patina Vintage / Wedding Hair: Brianna B. Adams / Wedding Makeup: Dylan Michael Cosmetics / Groom’s Attire: Tony Laguda Formal Wear / Personal Stylist: Brittany Bollard Styling / Wedding Caterer: Leila Miller of Stephan Starr Catering / Baked Goods: Addy Mae’s / Vintage Rentals: Maggpie Vintage Rentals / Wedding Invitations: Studio Four Three

Related posts:

1. Greenhouse Garden Wedding Ideas
2. Whimsical Ballroom Wedding Ideas
3. English Garden Wedding Ideas

© 2008-2012 Ruffled® , 2012. | Permalink | 12 comments | Posted under: Wedding Design Belovely Events, color wedding dresses, green, Jillian McGrath Photography, orange, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, pink, psychedelic wedding, purple, vintage wedding dresses

From the bride, Leaya: We really wanted the wedding to reflect who we were as a couple. Our first piece of inspiration was actually the video for one of our favorite songs, Elephant Gun by Beirut. It has this eccentric, bohemian, circus-y style that we love. From there, we just tried to incorporate everything we liked, including my obsession with color, stripes, paper products, and Japanese toys (domo and labbits) and Chris’s love for superheros and UFOs.

What are some adjectives that best describe the look of your wedding? Colorful, fun, quirky, vintage yet modern, and very personal. There was no overall theme except trying to incorporate everything we loved in all the details. Chris and I both love the DIY-look, but neither of us is very crafty, so etsy was a great resource. Kimberly Fink (our stylist/planner) was also an amazingly talented crafting genius who made all the awesome paper flowers and our striped ceremony backdrop, among other things, and really made all our wedding dreams come to life.

We knew we wanted a city wedding and a venue that wasn’t a hotel or a ballroom. When we walked into PAFA, we just knew right away that it was special. Since it’s an art school and museum and has both a historic and a modern building, it was the perfect venue for us, style-wise – we used the historic building for the ceremony and the modern one for the reception

Any advice for brides planning their weddings now? Just to enjoy the planning process as much as possible and to stay true to who you are and not feel pressure to have things just because it’s tradition. We didn’t feel like we needed a wedding cake since we like other sweets better, so we had a dessert bar instead – things like that. And also to pick vendors whose work you admire. We really lucked out by having such talented vendors who were so easy to work with.

View all images from this wedding in the gallery

Wedding Songs:
Parents and groom’s processional: “Scenic World,” Beirut
Wedding party’s processional: “God Only Knows,” the Beach Boys
Bride’s processional: “Elephant Gun,” Beirut
Recessional: “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” Gipsy Kings
First dance: “The Book of Love,” the Magnetic Fields

Below is the music video that inspired them + the song that Leaya walked down the aisle to:

Wedding Vendors (Philadelphia, PA):

Ceremony and reception venue: Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts / Event Designer: Kimberly Fink at Styled Creative / Florist: Margaux St. Ledger at Fleur De Lis Floral / Wedding photographer: Carina and Amanda of Love Me Do / Wedding Dress: Vera Wang “Evelyn” / Headpiece: Lo Boheme / Wedding shoes: BHLDN / Hair and Makeup: Claudia Seyler / Groom’s suit: Hugo Boss / DJ: DJ Prof from Roots and Groove / Caterer: Jimmy Duffy’s / Wedding Dessert: Felix’s Caketeria / Wedding Stationery: Loveleigh Invitations

Related posts:

1. Handcrafted Philadelphia Wedding
2. Handmade Library Philadelphia Wedding
3. Vintage-Inspired Seaside Wedding

© 2008-2012 Ruffled® , 2011. | Permalink | 9 comments | Posted under: Whimsical Weddings indoor weddings, Love Me Do Photography, Loveleigh Invitations, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Styled Creative

We both envisioned we would put together a wedding that would feel like us. If we could have married in a backyard or a barn we would have- so that kind of cozy feel was something we hoped to achieve..but in a larger space. We didn’t want anything to feel very traditional or “standard”. We also knew from the start we wanted to incorporate as many friend’s talents in the details- so I guess we did see it as a DIY/with your friends type of event,too. And we kept our focus on having everyone we love for one day together to eat good food, drink & celebrate.

Steve and I wanted to find a venue that was handicap accessible (for a good friend) and one that allowed for our own caterer (I’ve catered on the side for 10yrs and wanted to hire the group I work for). These two elements were a little difficult to find at first but then I stumbled upon the German Society of Pennsylvania online and that was it!

No real color scheme. We used a lot of burlap for the rustic feel: burlap wrapped flower personals, as overlays on all tables and used as the lining for the drawers. For the ceremony we used the library theme with the library card programs our friend made (photos: ). She also took a hard backed book I found at a thrift store and refurbished it as our guest book. We also used these old flat file drawers we trashed picked years ago as the vessels for the programs, the bubbles, the favors, etc.. so that was the library portion of the theme- oh because we were married in a library built in 1888. We didn’t really run that theme any further though.

We planned every element of our wedding with lots of help from friends and family. I searched through wedding blogs, Ruffled was a great influence, and magazines until I had all my ideas set- then I asked friends & family to help me bring it all to life. I was so luck to have all of their help!

DIY elements:

I wanted to use tree trunk pieces for the guest tables and at the bar so Steve went out and found a fallen tree then sawed it into pieces.

Table signs & other signs for the wedding- Steve and I made all of them from wood we painted with chalkboard paint. For the 18 tables we identified them using street names of all places we have lived either individually or together.

Seating Chart, library card programs & guest book all made by our friend & designer, Allie LeFebvre Flower vessels: I collected mason jars, milk glass, crystal skinny vases, colored glass jars and other random vessels from one friend and my grandmother & great-aunt’s basements. I made little flag pie garlands for all the homemade pies and larger ones for the dessert table. I also made ring bearer’s books tied with burlap string. Flower crowns for the four flower girls were made by our good friend Kristal Hill. Flower children’s felt heart pins made by my sister & bridesmaid, Amy Crossley. Flower children’s felt “Here Comes the Bride” banners made by Amy Crossely. Favors were homemade chocolate bark made by our good friend & chocolatier, Jenna Derhammer. The favor tags were embossed by the bride and three friends (Aseel & Tara Rasheed and Sarah Fishman).

View all images in the gallery

Any advice for brides planning their weddings now? I would suggest using as many personal touches as you can. We wanted the day to feel like “us” and that was the biggest compliment we received! It was so lovely to hear that from our guests- that they really felt like all the elements were representative of us as a couple. I would also advise to utilize the amazing talents of your friends and family. It has a large effect on the entire event and it took the focus from all about the couple to the community that surrounds and supports you. It made it so much more for us to know how many people helped with all the details it takes to put on a wedding.

Wedding Songs:

Processional & recessional instrumentals played by David Falcone.
Gimmie Shelter by the Rolling Stones for entire announcement of the bridal party include bride and groom.
Bride & Groom danced to the Red House Painters cover of “Follow You, Follow Me” on the Shanti Project Collection album
Groom & his mother danced to “Wild Horses” by the Sundays on Blind album.
Bride & her father danced to “God Only Knows” by Beach Boys.

Wedding Vendors and Venue (Philadelphia, PA):

Venue: Philadelphia German Society / Photographer: Love Me Do Photography / Dress: JCrew Bridal / Suit: DKNY / Caterer: Meg Gillespie, Staffing Associates / Invitations: Awesome Dudes Printing / Pies/cookies/cake: Isgro Pasticceria and La Copine / Buttons and Bags: Designer, / Tim Gough / DJ: Julian Grefe aka Julian S Process / Wedding Shoes: BHLDN / Florist: Alicia Neal (friend & artist) / Hair: Kerri Fawley / Makeup: Renee Pasceri who works at the Philadelphia salon, Adolf Beiker / Veil: made by bride’s aunt / Bridesmaid Dresses: Jcrew / Groomsmen suits: Their own grey suits / Ceremony Musician: Ceremony & cocktail hour music by friend David Falcone Reception DJ: Julian Grefe a.k.a. Julian S Process / Caterer: Staffing & day of event coordinating by Meg Gillespie (friend) & bride. Cocktail hour food provided by bride and dinner buffet prepared by Kristyn Marchus, Chef/Owner, Cream Valley Farm Catering / Wedding dessert: ricotta cookies from Isgro’s Pasticceria and homemade Pies made by friends and La Copine

Love Me Do Photography is a member of Blue Label. To find more vendors in your area, click here

Related posts:

1. Maryland Library Wedding
2. Handcrafted Philadelphia Wedding
3. Eco-friendly Handmade Wedding

© 2008-2012 Ruffled® , 2011. | Permalink | 8 comments | Posted under: Vintage Weddings Love Me Do Photography, Philadelphia

From Amanda of Love me Do Photography: Stephen and Amy had a down-to-earth and sincere, thoughtfully-handcrafted Philadelphia wedding inspired by our loving families, local history and passion for adventure. They set out to create a lively and heartfelt backyard garden party where guests felt like participants – not members of an audience. Stephen had all three of his brothers as his “Best Men”, Amy’s short wedding dress had pockets, their cake was 65 inches long and their “getaway car” was a bicycle pedicab. Our venue, tucked away on a tiny street in the middle of downtown Philadelphia, was warm and inviting with antique clocks, portraits of presidents past and ivy covered brick walls..

Some details from the bride, Amy :

My mother made my wedding dress and jacket using lace from her very own wedding dress. She sewed a 2011 penny into the pocket for good luck, and as a nod to Benjamin Franklin.

Stephen’s dad was our officiant and my uncle performed the same song that he played at my parent’s wedding 31 years ago. Bouquets were wrapped with my grandmother’s handkerchiefs.

Table assignments were printed on slides from Stephen’s collection of travel slides and the guestbook was fashioned from an old atlas.

Each guest received a jar of locally-sourced Hives for Lives honey accompanied by family recipes. 100% of the profits from this honey go to help beat cancer, a cause that is near and dear to our hearts.

View all images from this wedding

Wedding Venue + Vendors (Philadelphia, PA):

Bike cab: Chariots of Philly / Bridal dress: Julie Chidichimo / Cake: Katie Lanciano / Caterers: Birchtree Catering / Cookies: Lou Hahn / Dinner napkins: Barb Saxton / DJ: No Macarena / Embroidery hoops: Debra Touchette / Flowers: Whole Foods Plymouth Meeting / Hair: Snip / Invitations: Andy Schulz / Makeup: Tracy Lopez / Photobooth Backdrop: Nina Chidichimo / Photographers: Love Me Do Photography / Venue: Colonial Dames PA Headquarters / Videographer: Chris Carlone / Books for centerpieces: The Book Thing in Baltimore / Wedding Dress: vintage Amy’s mom

Love Me Do Photography is a member of Blue Label. To find more vendors in your area, click here

Related posts:

1. Handcrafted Southern Wedding
2. Hangar Vintage Glam Wedding

© 2008-2012 Ruffled® , 2011. | Permalink | 16 comments | Posted under: Vintage Weddings Colonial Dames PA Headquarters, Love Me Do Photography, pedicab, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, short wedding dresses, streamers, tea length wedding dresses, vintage books, vintage wedding dresses, yellow

From the bride, Carly: Our first date was in a canoe at a cabin we have gone to every summer since. Since we weren’t able to have the wedding at the cabin (the park ranger was not thrilled with the idea), we wanted to create an environment that would remind us of it.

Our color scheme was based on flowers that are significant to us: orange roses because they’re rick’s favorite flower to give me, and blue hydrangea because they were my grandmother’s favorite. Our vision was based on a rustic, vintage, and handmade theme. My mother helped me create a lot of the decor and it was wonderful to spend that time with her.

For the centerpieces, we hand sewed bird ornaments using one of my grandmother’s patterns. Then our florist, Michael Bruce, created an incredible arrangement of flowers, feathers, cattails and branches to hang the ornaments from.

We created orange, white and peach paper pom poms to hang around the dance floor (which also served as the ceremony space). My mom also made vintage hanky garlands that hung from the staircases. A few of the handmade details were provided by Etsy shops (ie, place cards, table numbers & holders, cake topper, our wedding bands, and the groomsmen ties).

View more images from this wedding

Wedding Songs:
Groom’s procession: “Oh! Darling” by the Beatles
Bridesmaids’ procession: “Here Comes the Sun” by the Beatles
Bride’s procession: “Something” by the Beatles
Recessional: “When I’m 64″ by the Beatles
First dance: “Beauty” by the Shivers
Father/daughter dance: “Always” by Frank Sinatra
Mother/son dance: “In My Life” by Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young

Wedding Vendors (Philadelphia, PA):

Ceremony and reception venue: Knowlton Mansion / Wedding photographer: Michael Smith of Ash Imagery / Wedding planner: Jennifer French of Daydream Events / Wedding flowers: Michael Bruce Florist / Wedding dress: Monique Lhuillier Bliss / Reception dress: Betsey Johnson / Wedding shoes: TopShop / Bracelet: Bride’s grandmother / Earrings: Coach / Necklace: Prada / Hair Stylist: Kristie Miller-Wright of Scruples / Makeup: Laura Stewart of Techniques Salon and Spa / Bridesmaids’ dresses: Aria / Groom’s suit: Hugo Boss / Groom’s shirt: J. Crew / Groomsmen’s ties: Tux and Tulle / Bridesman’s tie: ToyBreaker / Wedding music: No Macarena and Peter Smyser / Wedding catering: Conroy Catering / Wedding invitations: designed by groom

Ash Imagery is a member of Blue Label.

No related posts.

© 2008-2012 Ruffled® , 2011. | Permalink | 7 comments | Posted under: Vintage Weddings blue, cabin, handmade, orange, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, short wedding dresses, vintage details

Here’s a little vendor love to some talented photographers new to Blue Label: one is Midwest bundle full of talent and the other is an East Coast gem …

Ash Imagery is headed by Michael Ash, a Philadelphia artist whose images all have a beautiful, light quality and artistic edge. We’re beyond excited to have him as part of the Blue Label! To see more than the sneak peek of the the above wedding shot by Ash Imagery, check out this post and then peruse the whole website.

Gene is the talented photographer behind Geneoh Photography and we’re just blown away by his creativity. Geneoh Photography is based in Minneapolis but is also loves to travel. For the wedding above (and more of Gene’s work) check out their website.

Hello Love Photography is offering 10% off a wedding package to Ruffled readers!
Eileen Garcia is offering 20% off to Ruffled readers getting married in the spring!
Rojo Photo is offering 10% your booking with him when you mentioned Ruffled Blog!

Also, be sure to mark your calendars for New York Magazine’s Weddings Event, being held on March 30th at the Metropolitan Pavilion. They’re hosting an online ticket sale at reduced prices, which you can find on their website.

No related posts.

© 2008-2012 Ruffled® , 2011. | Permalink | 9 comments | Posted under: Alerts DIY contest, Philadelphia, wedding photography

View all images from this shoot in the gallery

Wedding Vendors (Philadelphia, PA):

Photography: Wren & Field Photography / Styling and Event Design: Glitter + Rye / Flowers: Love n’ Fresh Flowers / Paper Goods: Anne & Kate / Hairpieces and Chiffon Flower Accessories: Preston & Olivia / Hair and wardrobe: Jessica Pineda / Makeup: Josie DiCarlo of Red Letter Girl / Location: One Shot Cafe / Models: George and Blair

Love ‘n Fresh Flowers is a member of Blue Label.

No related posts.

© 2008-2012 Ruffled® , 2011. | Permalink | 15 comments | Posted under: Design Inspiration Glitter + Rye, gold, indie, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, pink, red, Valentine's Day, vintage, Wren & Field Photography

View all images from this shoot in the gallery

Wedding Vendors (Philadelphia, PA):

Photography: Carina and Nadine of Love Me Do Photography / Styling and Design: Veronika Placek / Hair and Makeup: Veronika Placek / Location: Private home / Bride’s dresses: vintage / Bride’s skirt: Urban Outfitters / “Eat Your Heart Out” plate: Folded Pigs

No related posts.

© 2008-2012 Ruffled® , 2011. | Permalink | 17 comments | Posted under: Design Inspiration dreamy, engagement sessions, Love Me Do Photography, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, romantic weddings, vintage, white

View all images from this shoot in the gallery!

Wedding Vendors (Philadelphia, PA)
Photography: Alison Conklin Photography / Styling: Beka and Kimberly of Styled Creative / Paper Goods: Two Paperdolls / Baked Goods and wedding cake: Brown Betty / Makeup: Beke Beau / Hair: Mack Stylist / Flowers: Beautiful Blooms

No related posts.

© 2008-2012 Ruffled® , 2011. | Permalink | 43 comments | Posted under: Wedding Design Alison Conklin, indie, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, pink, red, Two Paperdolls, Valentine's Day, vintage