A KPW Island Wedding off the Coast of Portland, ME

When Isabel and Ben found us and told us their idea to incorporate her Venezuelan heritage into his Maine wedding location we were more than thrilled at the opportunity to combine the two very different cultures. Using the Venezuelan culture we were able to incorporate vibrant aqua's and oranges into a coastal Maine island setting and when the two blended it created a beautiful overall design. Take a look at some of the images below. . . KM

The people who made this wedding happen:

Wedding Planning and Floral and Event Design: KPW studio

Photography: Claris Photography (myKPW member)

Videography: MapleLoft Studios (myKPW member)

Ceremony Music: Copley Chamber Players

Cocktail Hour and Reception: Dj Ryan Parker for the KPW Studio

Reception: Combo Sabroso for Cuzin Richard Entertainment Associates (myKPW member)

Custom Runner: The Original Runner Co.

Rentals: Be Our Guest Party Rentals, Boston, MA

Table Numbers and Placecards: Jan Boyd Calligraphy (myKPW member)

Ceremony Location: Sacred Heart Parish - Yarmouth, ME

Ceremony Transportation: VIP Tour and Charter

Bride Transportation: Grace Limousine (myKPW member)

Reception Location: Great Diamond Island, Portland, ME

Caterers: Diamond's Edge Restaurant (myKPW member)

Cake: Something Sweet by Michelle, Worcester, MA (myKPW member)

Hair: Hair that Moves, Berwick, ME (myKPW member)

Makeup: Joya beauty, Dover, NH (myKPW member)



All of the fabulous images are from Liesl Clark of Claris Photography.

The ceremony aisle was lined with simple galvanized buckets filled with white Hydrangea and miniature green Hydrangea. Notice the simple aqua banding to give the guests just a hint of what was to come.

This runner was absolutely gorgeous, we had it custom made by the Original Runner Co. to match the design of the wedding invitations.

Here is a close up the ceremony aisle adornments, very Maine with just a hit of Venezuela.

The Bridesmaids looked amazing in their aqua dresses and the contrasting vibrant orange bouquets of Mokara Orchids, miniature Calla Lilies, Crocosmia, and Milva Roses looked phenomenal.

Isabel looked beautiful in her gown (Love the orchid in her hair!), here she is leaving the ceremony in her antique car which was provided to us through Grace Limousine at the very last second after our original vehicle had a mechanical problem. We are so thankful that they drove all the way from Manchester, NH to Portland, ME to help us out!

We were so thrilled with Isabel's bridal bouquet composed of Cymbidium Orchids, white miniature Calla Lilies, white Freesia, white Polar Star Roses and white aqua gem studded Stephanotis.

The Maine Coast is such an amazing place for a wedding, despite a little bit of wind, Isabel looked stunning as she arrived on Great Diamond Island after the ceremony.

For the cocktail hour we made use of festive white feathers and green Monstera Leaves to bring in a little more of the Venezuelan feel.

Adding a signature drink to your wedding can be a fun little addition for your guests to enjoy. For Isabel and Ben we created a drink called the "Ocean" it was comprised of Hypnotiq, Coconut Rum, a splash of Pineapple Juice and a Splash of Club Soda, served on the rocks. A very festive drink with a aqua color to match the overall theme.

A small “cajita de paja” (straw box) that was hand-made in Ecuador held a Venezuelan chocolate. Venezuela is a major exporter of delicious cocoa, which is renowned world-wide. We paced the straw boxes inside the white boxes and adorned them with aqua ribbon and a custom quilled tag.

The wedding cake was comprised of two flavors, one representing Venezuelan culture, and one the Maine culture. Half of the cake was coconut based, with Passion Fruit frosting and Mango, all fruits that grown in Venezuela. The other half was a traditional lemon cake with blueberry sauce representing the famous wild blueberries that grow in Maine.

The table numbers were created by Jan Boyd Calligraphy, we loved the combination of having the table number and table name combined.

The glassware, china, flatware, linens and chairs were provided by Be Our Guest Party Rental out of Boston, MA.

These milk bottle lanterns are always a great addition to any wedding where your guests have to walk somewhere in the evening. Plus you can customize them to match any wedding by simple adding matching ribbon. These lanterns lined the road leading the reception site.

At Isabel and Ben's reception the guests had to walk a short distance from the tent to the rest rooms, the paper bag lanterns provided a nice pathway to direct the guests throughout the evening.

Here you can see the paper bag lanterns in the evening . . .

In true Venezuelan tradition Isabel and Ben wanted a Cotillion during there reception, take a look at the these masks!

A great way to add some depth to a tented wedding is to have custom lighting to uplight the ceiling of the tent. For Isabel and Ben we chose some warm oranges and pinks to create a warm and festive atmosphere for the guests.

Such a beautiful couple . . .


Hope you enjoy!

KM

Shout out to Diamond's Edge Restaurant

Diamond's Edge Restaurant is an amazing wedding venue located on Great Diamond Island off the coast of Portland, ME. The venue offers amazing catering service and a beautiful tented location for your wedding reception.

If you decide to have a island wedding at a venue like Diamond's Edge one of the most essential items to think about when planning your event is transportation to and from the island. Before making any final decisions on timing for your ceremony, cocktail hour and reception make sure you take a close look at the available transportation options and their schedule to ensure you are able to get your guests to and from the island on time. For weddings on Great Diamond Island we recommend Casco Bay Lines.

Check out some images from a wedding we did this summer on Great Diamond Island:

All images by Claris Photography

Diamond's Edge Restaurant
Phone: 207.766.5850
Website: www.diamondsedge.com
Email: diamondsedge@gwi.net
myKPW State and Budget: ME $25k-$50k and $50k-$80k

Diamond's Edge Restaurant is a member of my Kate Parker Wedding, a new online wedding resource guide launching in January 2010 geared toward directing brides to quality vendors based on their price range and state.

Bridal Boudoir - Claris Photography

Gaining popularity among brides, Boudoir Photography is thought to be an intimate yet a fun and playful experience - but what is it really about? Liesl from Claris Photography shares with brides (and grooms) her thoughts around the Boudoir concept and what it means to her. LS

The idea of Boudoir Photography is as old as it is new. It's been around for a long time but recently has received much attention. As it relates to Wedding Photography, it is usually meant to be a photography session the bride participates in prior to the wedding and in turn gives the groom on the wedding day in the form of an album or prints. This session can be scheduled before or after the wedding but most of the time it is completed several months prior to allow time to order products (i.e. albums and enlargements). Once in a while, it is scheduled during the "getting ready" phase of the wedding day but this time of the day can be chaotic and it is not always ideal.

I have found it to be one of the most profound and amazing gifts a man could ever receive from his soon-to-be wife based on the comments I heard after the fact. It has drawn the attention of women of all ages and even couples as a gift to each other. (I have even had a client who was inspired to do this as a 25th wedding anniversary gift for her husband)

Because of the intimate nature of this type of photography, it is imperative that the client feels a good connection with her photographer. As a female photographer, I feel this factor helps to ease the tension and allows a stronger trust and comfort level during the session. When I am first contacted about doing a Boudoir session with a bride, I want to know what style of imagery would she like to produce for this session, At this point I ask for several samples of what she has in mind either torn from a magazine or sent online in an email. From these examples I will learn what the client had in mind and use my own creativity from there. I usually recommend the client to have a stylist to do hair and makeup prior to the session and then to stay during the shoot to work closely with me during outfit changes to freshen up and/or change the look for variety's sake. I work inside and outside, weather permitting, based on the client's comfort level to produce a range of images in various lighting situations in about a 2 hour time frame. It can be done at the client's home, a hotel, my studio, or any location of her choosing depending on the style of the imagery.

This photography session can sometimes take bravery and courage on the part of the bride-to-be but it is truly appreciated on the receiving end. To give the gift of oneself is intimate and one-of-a-kind. There is no way to compare this to any other. I have never heard any complaints from any groom-to-be EVER! It is worth the effort and time in every way and with careful planning and communication with the photographer is a very fun and adventurous experience.


Check out some of Liesl's Boudoir work below:

Claris Photography
Phone: 1.800.207.8256
Website: www.clarisphotography.com
Email: liesl@clarisphotography.com
myKPW State and Budget:

- MA, $50-80k and $80k+
- ME, $50-80k
- NH, $50-80k

myKPW Site Reveal - Creating a Featured Wedding

Creating a Featured Wedding on myKPW is super easy and we just wanted to show vendors how quick it really is. Check out the snapshots below to get an idea of how setting up a Featured Wedding works on myKPW.

(And we just wanted to note that the example photos below are of a wedding this past summer, captured by Liesl at Claris Photography)

(more images appear as you scroll down)

On the Featured Weddings page, you will have a blank template to begin your setup. Open the toggle photo tray to display all photos that you loaded to your vendor page.

Once you've decided which photos you want to use in your Featured Wedding, all you need to do is drag the image to the desired spot.

And there you go! Easy as that. Once you've filled in all spot with the photos you want to use, now you're ready to give your Featured Wedding it's details.

In the Featured Wedding view, at the top of the page select "Edit Wedding Text".

Here, you can enter in a title and the colors scheme of the wedding.

The color options are simply a drop down menu which displays a wide range of color options.

Then you can identify the style, season, date of the wedding, and any sort of description that you'd like to include.

And there you go!

Now, just one more step...adding in all of the Vendors who were a part of the wedding. So back up at the top of the page, select "Edit Vendors". Each field will auto load the myKPW vendors so that each one will not have to be typed out in full.

And you're done! All of the Vendors appear on the right side of the page and are linkable.

Engagement Session by Claris Photography

An engagement session captured by Liesl from Claris Photography was recently featured on the Coco & Bella blog. Click here to check it out!

New Hampshire Photographers

We just wanted to announce that we have filled the space for New Hampshire Photographers in the 50-80k budget. We're so very excited to announce the Photographers who will be representing this category, and they are:

Claris Photography
State(s): Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire
Website: www.clarisphotography.com

MAC Photography
State(s): New Hampshire
Website: www.mac-photography.com

Studio Nouveau
State(s): New Hampshire, NYC-Westchester County
Website: www.thestudionouveau.com

Paige Hiller Photography
State(s): New Hampshire, Vermont
Website: www.paigehillerphotography.com

This completes the availability for New Hampshire Photographers. Even though we are currently full for Photographers in New Hampshire, please let us know if you are interested in learning about my KATE PARKER WEDDINGS and we'll keep you in mind for future opportunities.