Annie and Grant are a warm, funny and welcoming couple.  Every meeting with them was a true joy.  From the first time I met them, I knew I wanted to work with them so I was ecstatic when they said “yes” to me!

They wanted their wedding day to be elegant yet laid back and tons of fun for their family and friends.  In one of our meetings, Annie pulled out four different shades of nail polishes in her purse and said “these are the colours I want plus a hint of gold.”  As Annie and I swooned over the colours, Grant was skeptical of it being too feminine and for the gold to be too “80s”.  We soon turned him into a believer.

Annie and Grant’s wedding was a seaside in the city kind of wedding. I exaggerate by saying seaside since in Ottawa we don’t have a sea but this laid back, romantic, fun wedding definitely had a beachy feel with all the corals and pinks, the acoustic guitarist in the background, the wind off the water and a truly amazing couple at the center of it all.

This wedding was so beautiful (and beautifully photographed) that it was published in Weddingbells Magazine 30th Anniversary Edition.  A very big thank you to Andrew Geddes of Union Eleven Photographers for capturing this amazing wedding.

Karen and James are an amazing couple who wanted family and friends to celebrate their big day at their new home. They invited me to their property in Carp Ontario with the hopes of getting my opinion on whether or not a backyard tent wedding was a possibility. Luckily I had brought my rubber boots because the backyard had no grass, just mud. Karen had given James a tractor as a gift and he had put it to good use clearing out the brush over the acres of their land. There was still much to do but we were all confident we could turn their backyard into the perfect wedding venue for them. After much planning and measuring it was determined that for a tent to fit, a couple more trees needed to be removed. James was on it! Every time I came out for meetings, we checked how the grass was growing. I have to say, this is not usually part of my client meetings!

Come August though, there was plenty of grass! Up went the tent, the floors, the very nice porta-potties, the tables, chairs, linens, decor, flowers, hay bales, barrel cruiser tables, lights (TONS of lights) and candles, the BBQs and the special rustic wood bar. Even the hardworking tractor of James’ was invited … to hold the icy beer! Friends and family stayed long into the night enjoying time together by the bonfire, knowing they had a safe ride home thanks to Responsible Choice.

Always a huge pleasure to work with Derrick Rice of Union Eleven Photographers who captured some incredible moments and kept Karen and James laughing all day long.

This Fairytale began as an office romance that turned into an engagement and TWO new additions to The West Team Realty, Richelle and now baby Jack! Josh and Richelle are hard working realtors who knew they didn’t have much in the way of spare time to plan the wedding of their dreams.

That’s where I came in. They wanted a wedding that reflected their love for Ottawa, was elegant and timeless and a whole lot of fun for their friends and family. Richelle is a stunning blond who loves all things elegant and so the Fairmont Chateau Laurier was the perfect venue for this princess’ wedding!

Their ten person bridal party was made up of their very close friends who kept us all laughing throughout this day. They wanted nothing from their day to look dated when they looked back on their wedding photos on their 50th anniversary. So from the ceremony at Knox Presbyterian Church to the reception in the Laurier Room at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier, everything was elegant and timeless …. and all out fun!

Throw in a horse and carriage for the newlyweds, rickshaws for the entire wedding party plus an amazing DJ and really nothing could have been more perfect! Having Derrick Rice from Union Eleven Photographers to capture their wedding story was the icing on the cake!

I am so blessed to have been part of this day and now call these two amazing people friends.