Hi all,

Thank you to all who participated in the great Inktastic giveaway! The randomly chosen winner was commenter #11, Ally.

Ally said: “I love the tote bags and v-neck t-shirts. My bridal party would love those for our lake bachelorette party!”

Congratulations, Ally! Enjoy!

Craig John sent over these images of a great Chicago wedding he photographed, which featured a traditional ceremony and a very chic and modern reception. The day started at the newer and ultra modern hotel The Wit, where the bride Lindsey got ready for her big day. The ceremony took place at St. Michael…another example of the gorgeous architecture and beauty of all historic Catholic Churches. What a nice ceremony location and lovely backdrop for photos! The reception was held at A New Leaf. I like the mix of traditional and modern that this wedding features. I also had a mainly traditional ceremony and a reception that skewed modern. I always love Church ceremonies. I also love the groom Mark’s choice of a grey suit and the floral arrangements and their stunning colors…and did I mention that cake?

to read more, click here →

I kept the opportunity to enter the Inktastic giveaway available a lot longer than normal because it is such a GREAT giveaway! And it is customizable meaning something for everyone. So, I am giving you ONE LAST CHANCE to enter the giveaway. If  you’ve already entered – yay, you! If not, why not head over and comment to win something fun and free?!

Heather Parker sent over these photos from a recent Chicago wedding she shot at the Garfield Park Conservatory. Check out the wonderful city architecture, Metra and greenery as the backdrop!

to read more, click here →

If you’re not already familiar with TOMS shoes…TOMS is the One for One company that gives a pair of shoes to a child in need for every pair you purchase. TOMS is launching a brand new line of espadrille wedges. The shoes are comprised of lightweight fabrics in various colors and prints. These wedges would be great for the beach bride, the philanthropic bride or a bride who’d like to forgo heels for more comfortable wedges. Or of course, get a pair or two for your honeymoon. You can check the wedges out here. TOMS also has a wedding styles line as well as a vegan line.

This fun vintage-inspired engagement session was sent to us by Photographer Heather Parker. The engagement session took place at Architectural Artifacts, a large antique showroom (featuring other treasures as well!) in Chicago’s Ravenswood neighborhood. What a creative location for an engagement session / photo shoot. Very cool.

Today, I am happy to announce a giveaway from Inktastic. Inktastic offers customized apparel and unique gift ideas and they will be giving a $25 gift certificate to one lucky trendsetting wedding reader that can be redeemed online (or in store, near Wooster, Ohio).

TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY:

- Take a look around the site.

- Leave a comment on this post with your first name stating what your favorite item(s) is and what you’d use them for.

From women’s and men’s shirts and bags, to baby and pet products, Inktastic has you covered. Planning a bachelorette or bachelor party and want custom shirts? check. What matching shirts for your bridesmaids? check. I’ve received both this raglan tee and this handle tote bag, and I have to say the print quality is great! So check it out.

In no earlier than 2 weeks, the giveaway will be closed and the winner will be chosen randomly. So don’t wait to comment. Good luck!

You know I like engagement sessions that show different sides to the couples’ personalities, so it is no wonder that I am a fan of this engagement session of Monica and Tomás by Miller + Miller. They rode bikes, posed with the city and the city lights as a backdrop and more…

to read more, click here →

The International Home + Housewares show recently landed in Chicago. We were invited by Hoover to visit the show, where we had the opportunity to Hoover’s new products – with our readers, brides and grooms and those looking for great registry items in mind.

We narrowed down our favorite vacuums for you:

Have hard floors? Cleaning hard floors is easy with the FloorMate. We saw this vacuuming, washing and drying cleaning machine  in action and it was impressive. Spill something on your floor, it cleans (with solution and the great SpinScrub and grout brushes) it and dries it. Then all you do is empty the liquid.

For all pet lovers and pet owners, there is this great vacuum that comes with attachments for easy cleaning. So sweet and precious Fido and FiFi don’t have to worry anymore.

Some of you may be tight for space (and who couldn’t use more space in their closets?). For that we recommend this, which is cordless at that.

It was a great couple of days. We met the Hoover Reps and PR team as well as some other bloggers and internet media writers and enjoyed a great dinner at Chicago’s Hub 51, accommodations at Affinia Chicago and a nice little welcome gift–black Bearpaw slippers to wear indoors on our newly cleaned floors.

It’s National Raise Awareness Week! And, what a great cause Wish Upon a Wedding is. For more information and to see how you can be considered or help, click here.