Wedding Bells | Engagement Photos

Hi my future Mrs.! A few weeks ago, my fiancé and I took our engagement photos and I wanted to share a few of our faves as well as give some quick tips on how you should proceed with engagement photos if you’re a bride to be!

1. Choose the Photographer– Obviously the most important thing when taking engagement photos is to find a photographer. It may sound like a no-brainer and an obvious thing to do but it’s important to do research and choose someone that jives with what you want. Each photographer has their own style of photography and it’s good to know the different styles that are out there. Check their Instagram and Facebook and when you see their photos, it’s easy to tell what you like/ don’t like. Something that’s also important is to find someone that works well with you as a couple. Our photographer makes us feel so comfortable posing in front of the camera and his personality matches ours really well. It’s really something to think about because you want to make sure your photos look as natural as possible without being too staged. If you end up choosing the photographer as your wedding photographer- think about how long this person will be with you- you kinda need someone that you get along with and don’t mind being around  during a really long and hectic day.

2. Choose the Location– When we booked our engagement photo date, we had no idea where we wanted to take them and had to do a little research. I think it’s really cute to choose a location where you met or you spend a lot of your time so people can see the reason why you chose there. We met at a bar so obviously it would be weird to go back there and take photos in front of strangers and it also limited us to one scene. We wanted a place where we could have multiple backdrops. Also- think of the time of year you’re taking your photos. Ours was in the end of October and we really wanted some good lighting. Our photographer suggested 4pm to take them so we could get really beautiful lighting and sunset photos. Timing of day is important because if you do a spring/ summer shoot- they would have to be later in the day to get a sunset if that’s something you’re interested in. If you’re interested, we took our photos at a reservoir/ walking path in Tarrytown, NY- absolutely perfect for location for what we wanted!

3. Choose the Outfits- Out of everything, I found this to be the most difficult. I originally wanted us to be dressed casual because that fits our personalities best but then I saw on our photographer’s Instagram, a couple who got dressed up super fancy and I fell in love with that style! I mean after all, you only get married once- might as well dress to impress and be extra glam. I wanted to still be able to portray who we are as a couple without being too over-the-top. I decided to wear a long, black lace dress and have my fiancé wear jeans with a sports jacket instead of a suit so that we could still look a little more laid back. Choosing the outfit and location kind of go hand-in-hand because you don’t want to be dressed in a way that looks unnatural. For instance, you wouldn’t want to wear a dress and suit to a sporting arena or jeans and t-shirts to an upscale museum…they need to flow together. P.S., I ordered a few dresses online and they ended up being on back-order so I quickly went on Amazon to see if there was something I could get shipped Prime and I ended up finding THIS DRESS for under $35!!! It worked out to perfect in the end and was exactly what I was looking for.

4. Mind Your Hairstyle– I wasn’t going to include this in my tips but I wanted to mention that my photographer brought up a really good point during our session. I had my hair professionally styled the day of the photos. My hair was parted to the side which I don’t usually do and luckily the side I chose to part it at, is also the side I like my face shown in photos (everyone has their good side LOL). He said so many times girls will part their hair to the opposite side of their face that they want to show and their hair ends up blocking their face in all the photos- this is not a good look and something you should try to avoid. 

5. Have Fun– You just got engaged, this is going to be the best time of your life so don’t take things too seriously and don’t be nervous. I honestly didn’t even want to do engagement photos because we’ve already been engaged for over a year and I didn’t find them to be necessary. I also used to think engagement photos were “corny” and looked too staged but here I am taking mine and I’m so happy we did! Aside from having a good time, we got really good practice for the big day. We were able learn how to pose without trying and really make sure we got along well with our photographer for the big day. It’s almost like an interview for the actual wedding.

Now, here are a few more pics that were our favorites because to be honest, we’re both obsessed with how they came out and can’t wait to share them with everyone!!!

Also want to mention that if you’re interested in our photographer, we used Photography by Alfonso in White Plains, NY and we love them so much! We found them through family and friends who have also selected them and we could not be more happy! Can’t wait to see how the the wedding photos turn out!!

BellaMi Beauty Bar Experience!

Since the grand opening of the original BellaMi Beauty Bar in West Hollywood, CA, I have been dying to go! I am a huge fan of Bellami hair extensions lately and thought it would be so cool to visit an actual store instead of ordering them online. I think my biggest issue with online shopping is that I need to see things in person before buying them and when it comes to hair extensions, it is extremely difficult to choose the right color or thickness simply from a photo.

I live in New York and have never visited the West Coast before and with no immediate plans of visiting California, I assumed I would never get to see the Bellami Beauty Bar in person. I follow them on social media and over time, they added a new store in Miami and I was thinking to myself that if there is more than one location. eventually they would HAVE TO open a store in New York. To my surprise, they posted about new locations coming soon and New York was one of them…so exciting!

The New York store opened it’s doors just a few weeks ago and I made sure to visit immediately. It’s located at 410 W. 14th St., New York, NY. I had called prior as it is necessary to make appointments for certain services they offer (you can also book appointments online). They were super friendly and helpful on the phone.

One of the cool things they offer free of charge is a color match service. I walked in there and they sat me down and a stylist pulled different hair colors, lengths and thicknesses she thought would work for me. You can pay $50 and they will professionaly clip the extensions in your hair for you and show you where the best placement would be on your head. This service is pretty nice if you’re on a budget and don’t have the means to go through a full styling session. Among the list of their services, I really liked that they offer the Blend Mi and Style Mi service which is a technique they use to further customize the extensions to your own personal style and really makes them seamless. You can also bring your extensions in there at any time and get a blowout or have them styled for a speacial occasion.

I think their price list is pretty reasonable for NYC and I thought the store itself was so pretty. I felt like a VIP being in there. My stylist was Stephanie and she was amazing. One important thing to note is that I didnt feel like I was pressured to buy anything (even though I wanted to buy everything) and I didn’t feel rushed. I felt like my best interest was in mind. I will definitely be going back to her and Bellami in the future!

 

Wedding Bells | New Series

Hi lovelies! As you already know, I got engaged back in September and I had mentioned I wanted to start a new series updating everyone on my wedding plans. That day is finally here! The series is going to be called Wedding Bells and I want to take you all along on my wedding planning adventure.

My sister just got married in October so my fiancé and I have been  taking our time with planning. I mean I’ve ALWAYS had my wedding planned in my head from wayyy before I even got engaged but now its officially starting to happen.

Right before my sister’s wedding, we started looking at venues online and using The Knot App. We had discussions of  where we wanted our wedding to be and what time of year. We didn’t want a destination because that’s not really our vision but we didn’t want a place too close to home either. I think the biggest thing for us was finding a place that fit our styles and that neither of our families have been before. We are both Italian so of course we have large families and almost every place close to our homes, someone we know has already been to. We decided that a good travel distance from our home would be about an hour away give or take. I live an hour outside of NYC so we were looking mostly in New Jersey, Connecticut and the Westchester, NY area.

Luckily for my fiancé and I, we were able to take the wedding list from my sister and the wedding lists from his brother’s who were also both recently married. This gave us an idea of how many people would be invited. I think this is a good place to start in your wedding planning so you can get an idea of how large of a room you will need for your reception.

As soon as my sister’s wedding was over, we set up two appointments the following weekend and went. We fell completely in love with one of the venues and ruled out every other place we were going to look at. This was a big mistake for us because unfortunately, this place was way out of our budget. I know a lot of people have a budget in mind before they start looking at venues but I was so caught up in finding the perfect place that I didn’t even think about the cost. This kind of discouraged us because every other place we went could not compare to this super expensive venue. I would suggest discussing a budget with your fiancé and families first and then before going to look at venues in person, ask the venue for an average cost per person on the phone and go from there so you can rule out any places that will only waste your time.

After attending a few appointments and different venues, we started a list of pros and cons of each place. We also started using the The Wedding Planner & Organizer by Mindy Weiss. My sister gifted me this book and I love it! It’s got a wedding planning timeline and plenty of space for notes. One of the my favorite things in the book is a sheet where it asks you and your significant other to list their wedding visions. I think this was important for both of us because it showed us what we both wanted to see the day of our wedding and it kind of helped us narrow down venues. We narrowed it down to one of the venues we visited and set up a second appointment with my parents to come see it. I rely a lot on their opinions and it was very important to both of us that our parents approved of the venue we chose. They also liked it but after leaving the appointment, I still had an unsettling feeling about the venue. There was something missing. I was feeling as though if we chose this venue, we would be settling. My biggest advice is not to rush. Take your time choosing venues that catch your interest and work with your budget. I felt under pressure because I know how quickly venues can book up but after attending a few appointments, mostly all of them still had the dates we wanted available. Also, be more open to dates you wouldn’t think about choosing. We knew we didn’t want a winter wedding but in the end, this can save you a ton of money! Be sure to ask every venue what their peak and off-peak wedding seasons are. I always thought all venues were the same but every single one was different. A one month or even one week difference, can dramatically reduce costs depending on the place. 

So after appointment after appointment of not being satisfied, we decided to give one more place a try. I had saw this particular place in the very beginning of venue hunting and my fiancé immediately ruled it out because he wasn’t fond of the location. After a discussion and much pleading, he gave the blessing to look at this place and we ended up walking out of the appointment in love with it! I had that “told you so” moment because if he had just listened to me from the very beginning, we would’ve found this place sooner! It wasn’t a big deal though because we got to really do our research and see what we wanted and each place we visited helped us make our choice. We were so set on this place, we called the venue in the car ride home and booked it over the phone. Needless to say, I found my venue and we now have a date! August 23, 2019 can’t come soon enough!

I will reveal my venue after the wedding and of course share photos. In the meantime, here are a few photos from the venues we visited but did not end up choosing. For anyone in the New York or New Jersey area, these venues were all so gorgeous and great in their own specific ways! I would honestly recommend any of these places to couples looking!

The Venetian- Garfield, NJ

The Rockleigh- Rockleigh, NJ

The Terrace- Paramus, NJ

Marina Del Rey- Throgs Neck, NY

If you have any specific questions about any of the venues I looked at or venues in general, feel free to reach out to me. I would be more than happy to help! It’s like we can plan our weddings together ❤ XOXO