Vendor Spotlight – Artxchic Cake Toppers

We love coming across new ideas in the wedding world, and it’s even more exciting when you know the person behind it!  Meet Hannah – talented artist, former study abroad schoolmate, and wedding cake topper innovator.  I first some of Hannah’s family back when I was a teen working as receptionist at a hair salon.  Fast forward to college and we found ourselves just down the hall from one another in the stone towers of Cambridge University in the UK during a summer study session. 

Hit the >> button again and here we are.  Hannah recently started Artxchic Cake Toppers and even more recently created painted shadow boxes that allow you to display your toppers long after your wedding day has come and gone.  Her landscapes have always caught my eye and I can’t think of a better way to display these keepsakes.

 

Your name:  Hannah McLaughlin

Your business name:  Artxchic Cake Toppers

Your location: Manchester, NH

How did you start your business?

I started it by opening a shop on Etsy after I made a set for my cousin and his now wife.

How many years have you been in business?

I’ve been doing this for about 1 ½ years

What makes you stand out from others in your field?

My cake toppers can come with fully customized pet or child which was new to the field when I entered into it.

What's your favorite part of the work?

I love working with people who are so excited and happy about their upcoming wedding day.  It’s really a pleasure and adds a nice balance to my day job of working as a school counselor.

Are you seeing any trends emerge for the next season?

I’ve started incorporating custom shadow boxes as a way to display the cake toppers.  It helps make them more of a keepsake and something you can look back at and remember your special day.

What's the single best piece of advice you can impart to a newly engaged couple?

Don’t sweat the small stuff. 

Pricing Information:

My cake topper sets range in price starting at $60.  Each pet or child is an additional $10.

If you have any spare time, how do you spend it? Or some other personal tid-bit you don't mind sharing.

When I have a free moment I typically am on the golf course :)

Contact Hannah:

Order your toppers on Etsy - www.etsy.com/shop/artxchic

Follow her blog - www.artxchic.weebly.com/blog

Follow her on Twitter - www.twitter.com/artxchic

Find her on Facbook www.facebook.com/artxchic

Email - artxchic@gmail.com

Vendor Spotlight – Samantha Melanson Photography

 

Happy Wednesday all!  I don’t know about you, but all this talk of more rain and snow in the next few days has really dampened my spirits.  It’s like last Wednesday all over again!  Luckily for me, and for you, we have the bright photography talent of Samantha Melanson to cheer us up.

Samantha was one of the talented vendors featured with us at the Vintage Wedding Weekend at Robin’s Egg a few weeks ago.  She has some shots of the event to share with us all very soon, but for now, learn a little more about Samantha and her work…

Your name:     Samantha Melanson

Your business name:     Samantha Melanson Photography

Your location:     I am based in Central Mass though I am available for travel all over New England and beyond. I have even shot a couple weddings in California and Virginia.

 

 

 

 

 

How and why did you start your business?    I had just graduated from photography school and wanted to dive right into photography as a full time career.  I decided to mainly photograph weddings because I absolutely loved capturing real stories of love and true human emotions and connections.  I wanted to be able to freeze these amazing moments and connections in people’s lives and to share them with these people in a form so vivid and true, as imagery. I set up a website and shortly after I booked a few weddings and then my business started to take off mostly through word of mouth referrals.  It all happened so much faster than I ever dreamed it would and I am so thankful for that!  I have my dream job. Photography has always been my passion and now I am making a living doing it and there is nothing better than that!

How many years have you been in business?     Almost 5

What makes you stand out from other photographers?    I have a unique style in that I can simultaneously capture real moments as they unfold on the wedding day (by taking a photojournalistic approach to the events and moments on a wedding day) while also using my sense of style and my trained eye to capture beautiful and creative detail shots and portraits of my couples and their friends and families that will be cherished forever.

What's your favorite part of the trade?    My absolute favorite part of my job is that I get to be surrounded by and to capture incredibly precious and intimate moments full of love and emotion for wonderful people.  I LOVE when my couples say that viewing their images for the first time brought tears of happiness and really brought back all of the excitement and love that they felt on their special day, as if they were reliving the moments.  There is no better feeling for me than being able to give someone a life time of memories so vivid that would otherwise fade with time.  Aside from that I also love that my job enables me to travel and to see so many beautiful places and also to meet and spend time with all of these uniquely amazing people who I would probably never have met otherwise.

    

Are you seeing any trends emerge for the next season?    In regards to wedding trends in general I am seeing that a lot of people are opting for “unplugged” wedding ceremonies which means that they are asking their guests to leave cell phone and cameras at the door so that they are fully present with them during their exchanging of vows.  A lot of photographers are noticing now that since everyone has a cell phone or an ipad that can take photos almost every guest gets up with a camera to try to capture a piece of the action, but a lot of couples are reminding their guests that that is why they hired a photographer.  Couples want their guests to actually witness the ceremony first hand and to really be fully present with them instead of viewing their ceremony on their iphone or the back of an lcd screen.  I can’t tell you how many photographs I have taken where the guest snapping photos of the recessional wears a concentrated but emotionless face while a guest next to them gazes excitedly and loving at the newlyweds with wide eyes and huge smiles, and no camera in front of their face.  I think this is really important, though I do also understand that everyone wants to freeze these moments to hang onto them. Here is a good article on the topic – probably a lot better than my description above! -  http://shangchenphoto.com/weddings/say-yes-to-an-unplugged-wedding-ceremony/

I am also seeing that vintage props and décor are becoming widely popular.  People are letting go of some of the most traditional aspects of a wedding and latching onto more forward thinking and fun ideas.  I am not a very traditional person and so I love a lot of the new ideas that are surfacing such as letting your bridesmaids wear different style and even different color tones in dresses.  Things like the garter toss and bouquet toss are fading out for example.  I love the more relaxed and casual feel of a hilltop ceremony and mason jar covered tables.  Burlap and mason jars are huge, so is the color mint.

What's the single best piece of advice you can impart to a newly engaged couple?    Not to let the craziness of life and wedding planning overwhelm and stress you out.  Slow down and take the time to love each other and to be happy!  That’s what your wedding is all about anyway!  Don’t let the precious moments slip by you because everything flies by so fast.  Just enjoy your time together and enjoy being engaged, young and in love.

 

Pricing information:    A full day of wedding coverage begins at $3000 and you can create your own custom package, which includes only exactly what you want.

If you have any spare time, how do you spend it? Or some other personal tid-bit you don't mind sharing.    I spend as much time as possible with family and friends and with my boyfriend and our dog Tucker.  When I have time I love to travel to see new places and try out new restaurants.  I also love to craft!  I’m always looking for new ways to let that creativity flow.  On a typical day off Andy and I love to take Tucker for walks together or to grab some coffee and peruse local consignment shops. 

 
Contact info:   

website: www.samanthamelanson.com
email: Samantha@samanthamelanson.com
facebook:  Samantha Melanson Photography
pinterest:  smelansonphoto

Vintage Wedding Weekend at Robin’s Egg

 

 

We had a blast designing for the Vintage Wedding Weekend and had the pleasure of getting to know the crew behind Robin’s Egg in Milford, NH a whole lot better. 

Here are our photos (with a few from Rhonda at Robin’s Egg) of the pieces featured at the event…

 

 

 

 

 

bouquet featuring garden roses, blackberries and trailing vintage lace

heirloom creamer to match!

dramatic compote style arrangement in colored glass

elevated centerpiece on a mercury glass pedestal and coordinating posy in a matching mint julep cup

springy collection of tulips, hyacinth and green tricillium in a burlap wrapped vase

another of our vintage sewing machine drawers filled with kale, viburnum and spray roses – a lovely centerpiece   

     

To see more, click on the full album below…

View Full Album

Robin’s Egg Vintage Wedding Weekend

 

Happy Valentine’s Day!  It’s been a busy week in the studio and the fun isn’t over yet.  Don’t forget to stop by and visit us at the Vintage Wedding Weekend at Robin’s Egg in Milford the 16th and 17th.  We’ll be there with plenty of vintage and garden inspired flowers (sneak peek above) and you’ll also have the chance to meet other area vendors. You can find all the important info on the Robin's Egg Facebook page.

The Nashua Telegraph highlighted the shop this morning with a great article and video – be sure to check it out!

Vendor Spotlight – Ashley O’Dell Photography

 

You may have seen a bit of Ashley O’Dell’s work earlier this week.  If not, you’re in luck!  We had the pleasure of learning a bit more about Ashley and her talents after she photographed Anna & Matt’s wedding.

Your Business name:     Ashley O’Dell Photography

Your Location:     162 Newbury Street Boston MA

How did you start your business?    By accident really. I studied photography at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, where I received my BFA in 2005. Upon graduating in the spring of 2005 I immediately started freelancing full-time, assisting commercial photographers in the area, so naturally I assumed that would be the direction my own photography career would go. Until one Friday evening when I was with my mentor/photographer friend who received a phone call from a local wedding photographer in need of an assistant for the next day. Her scheduled assistant had to cancel at the last minute, and there I was, starry eyed, budding photographer, anxious for any opportunity to come way my way, until I was asked to assist at a wedding. You see when I packed my bags and headed off for art school the last thing I assumed I would be doing is photographing weddings (I didn’t plan to be a photographer at all, but that’s another story.) So when a wedding photographer reached out for help I was conflicted, I really needed assisting gigs, but I, like many still assume, wedding photography isn’t art, it’s cheesy. So I proceeded to tell this photographer that I would be happy to help her this time, but I’m not interested in wedding assisting in the future, so this would be a one time partnership. And that very next day, I think without really understanding it at the time, I was on the path to becoming a wedding photographer.

How many years have you been in business?     After assisting for a year and a half, my now husband and I moved to Boston on January 1st 2007, and I started my business that day. I’m currently in my 6th wedding season.

What makes you stand out from other photographers?    I come from a fine art/commercial background, so I’m out to create images, not merely document an event. My work tends to be really colorful, whimsical and sometimes theatrical. And the best compliment I ever receive is “You made our wedding look even better than it actually did!”

What's your favorite part of the work?    My job is constantly changing. I work with new couples/families every week, and at all different locations. I also really love running a business, most of the time :)

Are you seeing any trends emerge for the next season?    For 2013, not specifically, however the wedding industry is always changing. I’m seeing less and less tradition. Wedding parties have shrunk in size, if the couple even has a specified group called the “wedding party” anymore. Cake cuttings have become sporadic. And the bouquet and garter toss went out years ago. I think moving into 2013 I’ll see more events that resemble a big party, rather than a wedding, which I love.

 

What's the single best piece of advice you can impart to a newly engaged couple?    Enjoy the planning process! I say this all of the time. The wedding day itself will go by in an instant, so I remind couples to really enjoy their engagement, they will remember that time as much, if not more, than the actual wedding day.

 

Pricing Information:    My coverage begins at $3900. Most couples spend between $4500-$6500 with me, which can include additional hours, albums, prints, an engagement session, etc.

If you have any spare time, how do you spend it? Or some other personal tid-bit you don't mind sharing.    Traveling. Exploring the world with my husband will always be our priority in life. 

Contact information:   

email: ashley@aodell.com
phone: 617-676-8227
site/blog: www.aodell.com
facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Ashley-ODell-Photography/44986594022
twitter: https://twitter.com/aodellphoto

 

See more of Ashley’s beautiful images below…