Renewal in Zion – Our anthem

Love this shot of Zion at night by Greg Gibson

Yes, that is right, we have an anthem that encapsulates pretty much everything we vision for our #renewalinzion.  If you remember back to this post, where I suggested Destination Events have a mission statement, well,  having a theme song is along the same lines.  Destination events are costly for guests to attend and take a good deal of prior planning, SO it is your job to  motivate people to attend.  Let’s face it, the people on your guest list, love you, wish you the best BUT may not be feeling the prospect of traveling great distances to see you get hitched.

Just like a great invitation can inspire and excite guests,  so can a strong mission statement and further an anthem backed by a great story.  You may be thinking, is she nuts?  a mission statement?  anthem? Come on!  I am serious and not nuts on most days   Remember the last time you read a great book that transported you to another place, made you want to be in that place?  How about a great song, whose lyrics and melody excite so much that it reminds you of a past trip or inspires future adventures?

This song for us is World Falls by The Indigo Girls…Our invitations for the renewal are going out to guests this month and the lyrics of this song will be integral to the design in hope that our guests get a look into our passion for choosing the Zion location for the ceremony and days of fun to follow.  It is our hope that sharing this song, along with photos, maps and other practical, useful info, that our guests will feel confident to make the trip with inspiration and a desire for a bit of adventure to boot!

During trips traveling our country and experiencing many National Parks this song always seemed to be playing. As we filled with excitement at the first sight of redrock on each additional trip, World Falls became our anthem of sorts:

I’m coming home with a stone, strapped onto my back.
I’m coming home with a burning hope turning all my blues to black.
I’m looking for a sacred hand to carve into my stone.
A ghost of comfort, angels breath – to keep this life inside my chest.
This world falls on me with hopes of immortality.
Everywhere I turn all the beauty just keeps shaking me.
I woke up in the middle of a dream, scared the world was too much for me.
Sejarez said, “don’t let go, just plant the seeds and watch them grow.”
I’ve slept in rainy canyon lands, cold drenched to my skin.
I always wake to find a face to calm these troubled lands.
This world falls on me with dreams of immortality.
Everywhere I turn all the beauty just keeps shaking me.
Running – end – earth – swimming – edge – sea – laughing – under – starry sky
This world was meant for me.
Don’t bury me, carry me.
I wish I was a nomad, an Indian, or a saint.
The edge of death would disappear, leave me nothing left to taint.
I wish I was a nomad, an Indian, or a saint.
Give me walking shoes, feathered arms, and a key to heaven’s gate.
This world falls on me with dreams of immortality.

So to explain the photo at the beginning of this post…the hubby and I decided to take an evening drive through the park last Wednesday.   We stepped out of the car at The Grotto and were simply blown away at the site.  It was one of those magical moments for us that is truly hard to explain.  The dark silhouette of the canyon walls set against the sky peppered with twinkling stars was humbling to witness to say the least.  Experiencing a site like this makes you feel honored to be alive…to draw from a certain song  “Running – end – earth – swimming – edge – sea – laughing – under – starry sky. This world was meant for me….”

Renewal in Zion – Flowers, flowers and more flowers!

photo courtesy of the talented Gideon Photography

Even though our renewal in Zion will be intimate the hubby and I decided to leave no detail overlooked or under-worked.  We both have a pretty lush sensibility when it comes to visual inspiration so the flower design would certainly be no exception.  This past Wednesday while in Utah Mom and I visited By Bloomers in the heart of St. George.  As we walked into the shop we were greeted by gorgeous tall ceilings, a fresh green palette and overflowing buckets of flowers set just about everywhere.  Clearly the ladies we in full design mode and it was quite exciting to see their works in progress.

These shots I found on the By Bloomers blog were what really grabbed me and inspired me to give a call.  While veggies in floral design bit has been done, these designs seemed to have a life and unique quality that was somehow new to me.  Contrasts and textures are big for me and I was thrilled to see how they used both visual details in so much of their work.

We met with Angie and her bubbly presense and creative spirit were instantly obvious.  We connected immediately.  If I could give any advice when it comes to working with your vendors it is this….trust your instincts and then trust the artists.    I feel strongly that instinct plays a huge role when making big design and decor decisions about your wedding or celebration.  Laboring over a decision and experimenting too much sometimes can lead to muddy ideas and unclear visions.

We chatted about flower types and ideas for only about 20 minutes.  When  “Be as creative as you like” and “I want to see what you always dreamed of creating” came out of my mouth, I saw a true spark in Angie’s eyes.  She was immediately inspired and fascinated by the freedom I had given her.  I can only imagine what she will vision for us, but I know it will be spectacular and I also know it will be greatly due to trust on both of our parts.   Here is a selection of the flowers we discussed using.

Lotus pods, Billy Balls, Mango Callas, Red Peonies, Red Dahlias, Sagebrush, Berries

Thanks Angie for meeting with us on such short notice, we are thrilled to have you on our #Renewalinzion design team!

Out and About – A Renewal in Zion

Greetings from the Philadelphia International Airport where I am about to board a plane (with Mom of course too) headed for Las Vegas.  This trip has been a long time coming as our renewal plans have been in the works since Christmas of 08.  It is hard ot believe the hubby and I are finally headed to Springdale, UT to finalize plans for our renewal celebration this coming May 15th!  There is tons to do, of course, and we are ready to go!  We just booked our photographer and of course now need to finalize the ceremony locale, celebration menu, flowers and a number of other tiny but important details.

The save the dates went out just before Christmas and we are thrilled to be hearing from family and friends nearly everyday who are hoping to make the trip with us.  If you would like to follow along with my adventures over the next 6 days search twitter using the hashtag #renewalinzion or just check in here for some posts from the road.

Zion here I come!

A Peek into the Studio – Blooms, Swirls and Vintage Lace

The studio is buzzing and we are working our tails off here!  Jess has been helping me lately with the rush of samples recently and we love her gorgeous landscapes and venue illustrations!  Early spring weddings are in full swing and bloom as you can see.  Emily’s  precious pink dogwoods with hand painted pink and pretty white dots are a studio favorite this week.  Mary Lou’s stationery collection has inspired countless brides lately and this reception celebration invitation takes the cake.  I love how the completely hand painted white roses just pop off the page!

Michele and Tom’s  chose a summery palette of green and pink with a dragonfly fluttering through the Vintage Lace pattern.  Amanda’s Versailles Swirls look sweet and sophisticated in their purple palette.

So what am I up to?

- Getting ready for the Eco Beautiful Launch Party next Tuesday where I finally get to meet Dana, The Broke Ass Bride!

- Just finishing up another  stationery collection for a photoshoot with Daniela of Bella Signature Design this weekend.  Our last project together made it on Style Me Pretty, did you see?

- Feeling completely blessed to be named one of the Top 100 Wedding Bloggers by Bride Tide.  Thank you, Thank you!

- Packing the painting supplies for a trip next Saturday to one of my favorite places on earth.  Oh yes, and while we are in Utah, we must make time for a bit of renewal planning.

Renewal Inspirations – Green Apple Photography

Yay!  We have found our photographer!  After a roller coaster ride of a search over the last 5 months the hubby and I have finally found our perfect photographer!  Choosing the photographer for our first wedding was a bit different primarily since this was before the wonderful word blog was part of our vocabularies – can you believe it?!   We traveled to many studios and sat for hours thumbing through heavy, dark, leather bound albums to find the perfect match.  This time around the process was quite different.

One of the greatest parts about being a part of this industry are the friends and connections you make along the way.   I had two very amazing offers from photographer friends who were eager to capture our day.   The deal was this though… if an amazing wedding came their way for the same date…they had to take the opportunity.  So the the story goes, both photographers had deliciously perfect weddings come their way for our May 15th date,  leaving this stationery artist a bit panicked, although very happy for her photographer friends!

So last week I started my search from scratch without much hope.  I turned to www.utahweddings.com to perhaps find some talent in close proximity to our location in Zion National Park.  I came across this tiny thumbnail shot and was instantly intrigued.

Isn’t it amazing how a bit of color and texture can just draw you in?  I immediately visited the site and within minutes was sending my first email to Lindsey at Green Apple Photography!    After a bit more browsing I came to discover that Lindsey was the artist behind this precious shoot on Ruffled a few weeks ago.  I was even more excited at that point…

Never meeting Lindsey in person seemed unimportant.  After reading her bio and spending hours on her site, I already seemed to know her, her style, affinity for color and friendly, laid back approach….all of which communicated perfectly in her photos.

I asked Lindsey to share a few of her favorite shots for this post so enjoy!

Renewal Inspirations – A Zion palette

With all the Holiday madness and wrapping up last minute 2009 orders the renewal planning took a back seat.  I am sure most brides can relate to this as January 1st comes and goes you inevitably have the “oh, you know what” moment when the realization of planning to-do lists grows in your mind!

Since it has been a while you can catch up on my planning story here, here, here and here.  Right now we are still on the hunt for a photographer, but I am putting my panic aside to gather my thoughts about color, food and decor.  Now remember, I am planning two events.  One is Zion and the other two weeks later in Pennsylvania.  First things first, Zion it is!

My hand-painted letterpress save the dates with calligraphy by Betsy Dunlap,  recently featured on Oh So Beautiful Paper are the driving force behind my creative decision for all other facets of  Zion planning.

I just love the celebration table shot below.  Linens are by LaTavola and the setting is so reminiscent of where we will be hosting our renewal dinner celebration.  Adobe walls, rustic finished, bold splashes of color balanced by thoughtful neutrals.    Mom and I are heading to Utah later this month to finalize details and most importantly visit a local florist.  Our plan is to pick up several buckets of locally harvested flowers and design the bouquets a day in advance of the renewal.  Turquoise beads and suede findings will certainly play a part in the floral design.

Terracotta, Bouquet, Zion Landscape, Sangria

Dinner will be  at the Bit and Spur Restaurant, a favorite of ours for years.  The food is fresh, organic, homemade and sustainable.  We hope to serve family style on big beautiful pottery platters with pitchers of fresh fruit margaritas and sangria by their side.  The guest list is small so one long banquet style table should suffice but still no detail will be overlooked.  Linens from La Tavola, and hand-painted paper runner by moi will be just some of the visual details in addition to my signature hand-painted letterpress menus and place cards.

One of the most exciting aspects of planning is the very special project that is brewing with Caroline from Palomas Nest.  I cannot say too much but I am so thrilled to be collaborating.   All I will say is it is thrilling to work with Caroline…our ideas click and the result will be the perfect art piece combining both of our artistic sensibilities.   A day of painting and sketching is definitely on the schedule while in Utah to produce the perfect sketch needed for this project.  I cannot wait for our guests to receive the fruit of our labors!

Hand-Painted Letterpress on Oh So Beautiful Paper

It has been a wild and exciting two weeks here at the Momental Studio.  We have brought on some amazing new clients whose projects were are really excited about.  Our ears are ringing like mad with the Style Me Pretty feature and wedding planner blogger features from last week.  Needless to say the Momental Girls and I are feeling quite blessed and grateful.  It means so much that this community of wedding friends and professionals are rallying around our work with such excitement.  Thank you, thank you.

Oh So Beautiful Paper is a blog I have been following for some time and to be honest it was always a dream come true to have my work featured last week.  When I received the email that Nole loved our hand-painted letterpress save the dates I was thrilled!  Head over to Oh So Beautiful Paper to check out the post but take a look here for some additional shots!

I had a blast with these envelopes from Envelopments®.  The texture and shimmering cobalt color really popped and so reminded of the vibrant blue skies in Utah.  How about those stamps?  The second time in history Zion was placed on a stamp and it coincides with our renewal – how cool!

Betsy Dunlap was available to take on my project and I was excited to find this lettering style that mimicked the Zion redrock landscape the hubby and I love so much!

I have always loved letterpress.  Combining our signature hand-painted invitation look with the texture of letterpress is a dream come true.    More and more brides are falling in love with the combintation of pressed artwork and individually painted strokes of color and we couldn’t be more excited!