Have you ever been to a surprise wedding?!?! This was my first surprise wedding experience and let me tell you, Kate & John are onto something here.

I had the pleasure of spending the afternoon before her wedding with, Kate. What a beautiful soul inside and out. She’s so calm, cool and collected as she’s getting herself ready for her wedding day AND taking care of her and John’s son, Jack. Talk about multi-tasking!

These surprise nuptials took place on Cape Cod at Woods Hole Golf Club. It was a sting operation (or so I felt). None of the family knew it was a wedding except Kate, John and their immediate families, who were also apart of the ceremony. All of the other guests, family & friends thought they were getting together for an Easter celebration, like they do every year. As everyone was gathering in the club house John’s father called everyone out to the back patio facing the greens and made an announcement. “You may not be here for the reason you think”… and continued to tell friends and family that they were about to witness the wedding of Kate & John. Jaws dropped, tears were shed and Kate & John (and baby Jack) walked down the aisle together to make a beautiful promise that they will spend the rest of their days together.

Kate & John, I had such a great time with you both and I can tell you share a beautiful love. May you have many years of love and laughter.

Peace, Love & SURPRISES!!!

April K

Now that I’m an experienced Bride (wink wink) I want to share with you all of the things about my wedding day that made me say “thank god I did that”. The “First Look” was definitely at the top of that list.

Tradition would have it that the Bride & Groom do not see each other until the Bride makes her way down the aisle to her man. The First Look is for (badass) couples who don’t care about meaningless tradition! I know I know, that is a bit harsh, but in reality, quite true. After talking with fellow First Look’er, friend and kickass photog, JP Elario, he adds a great point

Lets face it. We’re living in modern times here! Most couples already live together and have a house before they walk down the aisle. They probably even sleep in the same bed! At that point the jig is up and you can throw that old wedding superstition out the window.

Amen brother.

I think if people were more educated on having a “first look” then they would understand why it’s very necessary to enjoying your day to the fullest.

So, what is a First Look?!

- It’s when the B&G get to share an intimate moment together before the chaos and commotion of your day begins.

- It’s a tender & quiet piece of the day traditionally shared with your entire guest list, but is now only between just the 2 of you.

- It’s a time before the ceremony for the photographer & videographer to capture each of your individual reactions, which would not be the same reaction you would have standing up at the altar seeing your bride/groom for the first time. He now has a chance to lay one on you, twirl you around and bask in the glory of how HOT his new wife is! Hey girl, you’ve been working on perfecting this look, let yourself soak it all in and shine!

What are the benefits of a First Look?

OMG, where do I start?

1. Your wedding party will THANK YOU! My wedding party was all primped and looking fresh to death for all of the photos. They weren’t sweaty and their hair and make up was still on point. Let’s face it, all they want to do is party, when they’re dragged away from cocktail hour they’ll do it, but they aren’t thrilled. They (and I) were also thankful that after pictures there was just the Ceremony and partying left to do!

2. Your guests will Appreciate it! Justin and I got to join in on our cocktail hour. This was clutch for me, I’ve seen so many weddings go down and I decided long ago that a First Look was for me because of this very reason. I got to mingle and chit chat with every single person who travelled near and far to share this day with us.  Your guests really really appreciate it, I even received a message from a cousin saying:

Normally, a wedding is about the bride and sometimes the groom. You managed to make EVERY guest feel special and appreciated. From gift bags @ our hotel, to the best bathroom basket ever, to the time you spent with each person. I cannot understand how you did it, but after your wedding I want to do mine over again! The little things really mean the world.

3. Your Husband to be will Thank You! Oh yes he will, he’s going to be a nervous nelly waiting for you to walk down that aisle. The fact that he gets to see you before hand puts him at ease (start your marriage off on a good note).

Justin had this to say about our First Look:

It made getting married less nerve-racking. Seeing you before the ceremony made me feel calm and great about everything. It was a really nice and fun experience… the anticipation of not being able to look at you until they let me turn around drove me crazy but I loved it. Even though it was un-traditional it was really fun and worth doing. Highly recommend, guys!

JP Elario also adds from his experience:

I was a groom once and I was nervous. All that buildup to seeing your bride walk down the aisle and ceremony nerves are gone! I’ve had so many grooms tell me they were nervous up until the time they saw their bride at the first look then it all settled. By the time the ceremony begins you’re totally relaxed because you’ve spent the whole afternoon together taking beautiful photos!

4. Your Photog (me!) will Love it! My final thought and reason is Lighting… This is probably the last thing you are going to think about as a Bride so let me drop a little photog knowledge. We had a 3:00pm Ceremony start time on a January day, the sun would have set by the time the ceremony was over and our pictures would have had to be held indoors with flash. That’s not the end of the world but it’s not what I wanted (ask yourself what kind of photos you want). I wanted all of those beautiful outdoor shots with the sun shining down. Even if you get a rainy day, outdoor pictures are still awesome (think umbrellas, rain boots and splashing!). With more and more weddings happening in late spring and early fall you come against the same situation if you have a ceremony later in the day. JP adds:

It’s October 19th, its a Friday which means late ceremony. The sun sets at 6:00pm but its a 6:00pm ceremony and when the bride and groom walk out of that church or ceremony location its pitch black outside. What does that mean? Well, for us photogs we can’t take those pretty outdoor couples photos you see because its too dark out!

It’s so true. These are things to think about, let these thoughts marinate, talk it over with your Fiance. I am not pushing anyone to do this who doesn’t want to, but simply sharing my experience and why I (and others who’ve had the experience) think it’s the best way to enjoy your day to the fullest.

Take some time to think about how you want your wedding photos to look. Do your homework and share that knowledge with your photographer so they can get you exactly what you want!

Peace, Love & GETTING MARRIED ROCKS!

April K

Oh my beautiful brides, so many of you have asked and I now have your answer… Who would I recommend for hair and make up around Boston? Well, I’ll tell you who turned me into a glam rockstar in just under 2 hours… Sara Faella, Artist, Designer, Stylist! This little blonde bombshell knows her $h!t and knows how to use a make up brush like nobody’s business.

Let me tell you a little story… since changing my wedding date I went into a slight dismay, “who’s going to do my hair and make up now, Sara is all the way in Rhode Island and my wedding is now in Cohasset! It’s the dead of winter, what if there is a snow storm?” Ok, I talked to a few other hair and make up ladies and they sounded “eh” over the phone. You know me and know that I will not tolerate bad customer service so I was not sold at all. I thought to myself… Ok I’m going to call and just see what Sara says.

Ring Ring
Sara: Hello! Sara Faella Hair (whatever her opening phone line is)
Me: Hey Sara my name is April Krueger and I recently changed my wedding date from September 2012 to January 28th and was wondering, if you still did my hair, since you’re not local, if there is a snowstorm what would happen?
Sara: Oh no big deal, I’ve done hair and make up with no power, we have generators I can bring just in case and I have an SUV to get my Glam Squad and I to the Red Lion Inn with no problems, don’t worry about snow. Trust me, my brides do not go without and I will be there to make you look fabulous!!!
Me: Ok then, let’s schedule a trial!

(**please note I did not take the bottom and right hand picture so they’re a little blurry, no biggie, just a side note)

When I met with Sara today she was not only as cute as a button, the girl clearly has style and spunk. I’m sorry, but as a bride I do not want some haggardly hair dresser/make up stylist working on me on the biggest day of my life! I want someone who I respect and appreciate and Sara is certainly that person. As a savvy business woman and fellow creative entrepreneur, she’s started her own line of make-up and bridal hair accessories. I highly recommend her to any of my brides, talk about Vogue baby!