It seems like every time I look up there is a new wedding venue in East Texas.  (We already have The Villa di Felicita, Elmwood Gardens, The Belgium House, Castle on the Lake, Roseland Plantation, Hunt Villa, and The Legacy Venue.)  I have not had a chance to shoot at all the new ones but still wanted to make you aware of them.  Here are just a few of the newer places.  Most are already open, some are opening soon.  The good news for brides is you should be able to find a place to get married practically any day you want. :)

Arabella Manor (Gilmer, TX)
http://arabellamanorevents.com/
903.746.5461

Bella Sera Ranch (Palestine, TX)
http://www.bellaseraranch.com/
903.723.0900

Centaur Arabian Farms (Flint, TX)
http://www.centaurarabianfarms.com/
903.561.6926

Kiepersol Estates Bushman’s (Bullard, TX)
http://www.kiepersol.com/bushmans/index.html
903.894.7505

Stone Oak Ranch (Athens, TX)
http://www.stoneoakranch.com/main/
903.530.7947

After about 10 minutes with these two they quickly moved to the top of my “Weddings I Can’t Wait To Shoot Next Year” List.  They were so fun and so laid back.  They love to go out on the lake so that’s where we started the session.  Here are a few of my favorites.

As we were driving along I became fascinated with Gini’s hair that was flying all over the place.  I’m loving these two shots.

Charlie would “propose” to Gini every so often with a ring pop.  One day he gave her this plastic ring without the sucker.  She complained and then he gave her the wrapper with her ring inside it.  Well played Charlie.  Well played.

Like I said, I’m giddy as a school girl to get their wedding.  It’s gonna be at The Belgium House in Longview & The Mug Machine will be wrecking havoc.  Save the date folks.

Some of my favorites form this time last year. Enjoy.

Today’s tips are on choosing your wedding cake.  Who better than the amazing ladies from Edible Art to help you with this choice. :)  Check out their work.

1)  Plan early- there is nothing more disappointing than to wait until March to plan your June wedding cake to find out the date is already booked.

2)  Have ideas- research/look at pictures on the internet, magazines, do you like square, round cakes, flowers, no flowers, etc..

3)  Make appointment with wedding cake designers-  Have designer look at your picture ideas, listen to your ideas, sketch out your design so both of you have the same vision of your dream cake. Be sure to ask to taste the flavors of cake.  Taste is as important as the design!

4)  Once you have chosen your cake designer- pay a deposit asap and get you wedding date of the books. Brides are so disappointed when they wait 3 months and come back to find another bride booked her wedding date and now the designer cannot create her cake.

5)  Confirm everything 30 days before your big day- Make sure the designer reviews your dream cake and both of you have the same vision.

(A note about Edible Art’s payment plan.  We work with families on these large cake orders.  We have “Cake Lay-a -way” available for wedding/large events.  Once a deposit is made, we are all about working with our brides.  Payments can be made in any amount at any time for the months leading up to the big event. Our only requirement is the cakes be paid in full 10 days before the wedding/event. If their choose to pay a deposit and wait until then to pay that is ok too.  Ask your bakery about a payment plan to help you get your dream cake.)

Edible Art
504 West South Street
Longview, TX 75601-7052
(903) 234-2114
Give them a call today!

I started doing this last month and got a good little response so I think a tradition has been born.  It’s time to jump back to May of 2009 and take a look at some of my favorite images from the month.  It’s crazy for me to think that I shot these frames last year, some of them only feel like I took them 3 months ago.

:) Past couples, this is your chance to leave a nice comment about me and how much fun I was to work with. :)