Happy Easter!!

by Ashlee

I hope you all have a great Easter weekend and have safe travels!

photo credit: Pinterest

photo credit: Better Homes and Gardens

photo credit: Better Homes and Gardens

Till next time, happy planning!!

Sweet Tooth Tuesday!

by Ashlee

Do you ever have those days where you become completely obsessed with something? Well today I've been pinning on Pinterest like a crazy person. I wasn't too into it before, but the past two weekends, at client meetings, other vendors have asked "Do you have a Pinterest board for your bride?"....Say WHHAAAT? I hadn't heard of such a thing! I mean I have boards of pictures, ideas, DIY things, but for each wedding? Hmm...then I started thinking. That is brilliant! There are many things that I understand and can visualize, but my Brides will have no clue what I'm talking about! That is why today, I started to organize my boards to easier find and show things. 

Two things I was pressed on were favors and signature drinks! If you look at my Pinterest Boards, you will find that I have a love of things fruity, especially strawberries. I found this great DIY favor via Inimate Weddings.

Spread the Love: Strawberry Jam

Ingredients (Makes approximately 10 250 ml jars depending how long you boil the strawberries.)

13 cups of fresh strawberries (about 4.5 lbs)

6 cups of sugar

½ cup of lemon juice (we used organic lemons.)

It took us five hours to make 29 250 ml jars, but we did it in three batches. (Not including cleaning and hulling the berries.) It would have taken less time if we would have had a bigger pot for larger batches.

This recipe is a variation of the Classic Strawberry Jam Recipe from Foodtv.ca.

Equipment

Canning Specific Items 

(Links to Amazon Affiliates.You can usually find these items at local grocery/hardware stores too)

Bernardin Mason Jars – 250 mL (See all Canning Equipment)

or Ball Canning Jar 8 Oz.

Canning Jar Lifter

Wide-Mouth Funnel

or a Home Canning Kit

Other Items 

Pots

Regular Tongs for handling lids.

Ladle for distributing jam into jars.

Place required number of canning jars into a large pot.  If you are making wedding favors you’ll probably want to use the 125 ml jars or the 250 ml jars if you are feeling especially generous. Cover jars with water and bring to a low, rolling boil. Keep jars hot until ready to use.

Heat lids in hot water (180°F/82°C).  Keep lids hot until ready to use. Bernardin says to set the screw lids aside, but I also heated them just to be safe. Place ladle, canning tongs and funnel into hot water as well to sterilize. (I used a separate pot for these.)

Wash and hull berries. (We used a knife to hull them. Last year I used my hands and my thumb was sore and stained red for days:)

Place berries into a large pot and mash berries with a potato masher, while bringing them to a simmer over medium-low heat.  How much you mash them is up to you. Some people like big chunks of fruit in their jam, and some do not. (I fall into the latter category.) BTW, that’s my hubby’s hand, not mine:)

Add sugar and lemon juice. I used an old fashioned hand juicer and squeezed real lemons (organic) for the juice. Make sure to pour the juice through a strainer if using real lemon juice.

Stir and bring to a boil for a approximately 30 mins.  Skim the foam as you are boiling.  The foam tends to build up quickly when it first starts to boil again after adding the sugar.  You have to be watching it closely.  Periodically, test the thickness of the jam by spooning it onto a plate. If it runs like syrup, it’s not ready. (I spooned it on a plate and let it cool for about a minute, giving it time to set.) Make sure you stir constantly and don’t let it overthicken. Remove from heat. (Skim the remaining foam before you remove from heat.)

Remove jars from boiling water with canning tongs. Place canning funnel into sterilized jar. Ladle jam into hot jar leaving proper ‘head space’, which is the space at the top of the jar between the underside of the lid and the top of the jam. For jam it’s ¼ inch. Overfilling and under filling can result in a jar that does not seal properly.

Wipe jar removing any stickiness with paper towel. Using tongs, place lids on jars.

Using tongs, set screw bands on jars. Evenly and firmly screw them on until resistance is met and they are fingertip tight. Place sealed jars into boiling water for 15 minutes. Be sure water covers jars by at least 1 inch (2.5 cm); add boiling water if required.

Remove from water and listen for the ‘pop’ of the jar lids. (I swear, that ‘pop’ is music to my ears!) This means they are sealed. As one canner put it, the popping sound signifies the jam ‘sealing itself off to the outside world.’ Sometimes it can take several minutes for the popping sound. Check jar seals by pressing on centre of each lid. If the lid center is pulled down and does not move its got a good seal. If you’ve waited a few hours and the seal hasn't popped, place jar in refrigerator.

Viola! Now you have a delish homemade favor!!

A special Thanks to Christine from Intimate Weddings for letting us use her pictures and tutorial above!

Till next time, happy planning!!

Weekend Recap!!

by Ashlee

Hey Everyone! Hope you all had a great weekend! AVE was out and about ALLLLLL weekend. Lisa and I went on site visits with a Spring 2013 Bride and Groom all over Northern Virginia. Site visits are one of my favorite things about being an Event Planner. I love traveling and getting to see parts the Metro DC area! 

This couple is looking for an rustic, estate  type venue with lots of outdoor space. Well let me tell you, there are a million in this area! We started off bright and early at the Thomas Birkby House. This venue is located in downtown Leesburg.  It is a very elegant setting and has great indoor and outdoor space. One of the big perks is that is comes with a beautifully lined tent that is included in the rental cost!!

photo credit: Artful Weddings by Sachs Photography

photo credit: Kristen Gardner Photography

Next we drove off to Sunset Hills Winery. They have a beautiful barn that dates back to the 1800s. Two large decks allotted them tons of outdoor space too. We toured around the property and ended our visit with a tasting and come delish cheese and tapas. 

Our last stop on Saturday was Bluemont Vineyard. Bluemont is one of my favorite wineries in the area. They have great wine, food, and a KILLER view. They are located atop the Blue Ridge Mountains and rumor has it you can see the Washington Monument on a clear day.

photo credit: Bluemont Vineyards

They have a beautiful venue about half way up the mountain called The Stable. Words don't do this place justice. Just check out the pictures below.

photo credit (both pictures above): Ash Imagery

photo credit: Lauren Gay Photography

Sunday, we met at a familiar venue, Merriweather Manor. Lisa and I did a wedding here last Fall and knew this would be a great choice as well. They have a beautiful flagstone terrace that serves as a beautiful ceremony location that later can turn into a huge dance floor! Also, they have a massive tent that would easily accommodate their 175 person guest list. 

photo credit: Kristin Gardner Photography

photo credit: The Full Bouquet Blog

After touring all these beautiful venues the couple decided to go with......Merriweather!!! 

Till next time, happy planning!!

Sweet Tooth Tuesday!

by Ashlee

Hello everyone! Did anyone in the Washington DC area get to go see the cherry blossoms at their peak last week? I can't believe this weather and wind. I'm imagining they must be almost gone by now! The DC area FILLS with tourist from all over the world when the cherry blossoms start to bloom. My grandparents from South Carolina were supposed to come up this weekend to see them, but they forgot about other plans :( 

Many Spring brides try to incorporate the blooms into their wedding, but mother nature doesn't always like to help. One of the most popular ways to incorporate cherry blossoms are by adding them to the cake! Check out some beautiful pictures below on how to showcase them on your big day!

photo credit: Martha Stewart

photo credit: Lara Swanson Photography

cake by: PinkCakeBox.com

By the way, my new friend Abby Grace took some amazing portraits under the blooms last weekend! She is AWESOME!

Till next time, happy planning!!

Sunday Funday...a Day Late :(

by Ashlee

Hello Everyone! I hope you had a great weekend! The weather all last week so AMAZING, but of course the weekend hit and it was gross. I spent all day Saturday in Annapolis with one of my summer brides. The weather held out until we got to our last meeting, when we needed to be outside, and it started raining sideways!

On Sunday, Lisa hosted a great Scentsy party for her close friends and family. I am running low on my refills so I eagerly told her I would love to attend! Lisa made a beautiful tablescape with fresh baby's breath and beautiful mixtures of neutrals, browns and greens for a very organic look. After all, the Scentsy burners are supposed to the main focus anyways!! if you don't know what Scentsy is, it is a "a safe, wickless alternative to scented candles". You can click on any of the hyperlinks to learn more about the specific fragrances and burners mentioned below. 

Here are some pictures that I took from my iPhone before I scarfed down all those Rice Pops!

Lisa and I both ordered a beautiful new Scentsy burner that just happened to be called Bride. I LOVE it and can't wait to put it in my office :) My two favorite scents are Sweet Pea and Vanilla and Camu Camu and I stocked up on those. My house is going to smell ammmmazzzzzing!!!!

Till next time, happy planning!!

Sweet Tooth Tuesday!

by Ashlee

One of the best and cheapest ways to personalize your wedding is by adding a cake topper. Nowadays you can get a topper for pretty much anything!! A great place to find a them is in Etsy. You can find any and EVERYTHING in that place! Below I have some pictures of some unique cake toppers and links on where to purchase them!

Esty Shop: atcompanyb

Etsy: AprilHillerDesigns

Etsy: braggingbags

Etsy: Silhouetteweddings

Cake toppers just aren't your thing? Ask your florist to use real flowers to accent your cake!!

Credit: Style Art Life Photography

Till next time, happy planning!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

by Ashlee

Hello Lovelies! Happy St. Patrick's Day! Being married into a VERRRRY Irish family (did you know my married name is Gilligan? Doesn't get more Irish than that!!) has made St. Patrick's much more important than it has previously been with my Southern parents. Check out some beautiful St. Patrick's Day inspiration below. Lastly there is an awesome DIY favor idea for Irish Cream!

Source: The Perfect Palette

Source: Project Wedding

Source: Martha Stewart Weddings

Picture Courtesy of: Style Me Pretty

Materials
Cardstock
Downloadable Tags
Mason Jars & Ribbon from Michael’s Craft Store
Homemade Irish Cream

Recipe Link by All Recipes

Instructions

1. Download and print out labels on cardstock. Cut using gray guides, I used a rounded corner punch on two opposite corners. Also, hole punch top left corner for ribbon.

2. Make recipe of Irish cream and fill mason jars (be sure to wash jars first).

3. Attach tags with ribbon, using 21″ of ribbon on each jar.

Till next time, happy planning!!