Prior to her wedding day, I have prepared my bride with a few reminders of what to have in her bridal suite.  A list of some of these items are discussed below along with the reasons I ask for the:

1. The Invitation Suite

The invitation suite sets the tone for the day for the wedding guests.

Is it a formal affair or a casual fête? This, along with the save-the-date is one of the many decisions a couple makes when planning a wedding.

I ask for the invitation suite for two reasons: 1) to give the couple a visual reminder of their day for years to come and 2) to give the invitation designer professional images of their contribution to the wedding day.

The wedding industry is so large yet it can be small and tight knit, so the more that your vendors work together to ensure your day is flawless the better. Providing images to the other wedding vendors keeps my couples from getting multiple requests after the wedding and allows them to enjoy being husband and wife.

2. Your Wedding Day Fragrance

Have you ever been somewhere and had a scent hit you that instantly brought you back to a place in time of a pleasant memory? I have too!!

In my past few years of photographing weddings I have made it a point to photograph the scent that both the bride and the groom wore. Who knows, forty years from now they may be reminiscing about their special day and being able recall that fragrance may generate the same feelings of anticipation they experienced on the wedding day!

3. Your Wedding Day Jewelry

Do you plan to wear your mother’s pearls or will your “something borrowed” be an old broach that you plan to attach to your bouquet?  These little details that go into the uniqueness of your wedding day should be captured in order to preserve those memories.

4. Any Special Memories or Heirlooms

One of my 2016 brides, Jessica, had recently lost her grandmother prior to her wedding day and I felt the love of how influential her grandmother had been in her life as I began Jessica’s wedding day preparation photos.  Because of this, I saw the framed photo and used her photo as a part of Jessica’s details shots.

5. Your Bouquet

I love when my brides trust my timing for their wedding preparation because it allows your wedding planner to give us some buffer time so that you aren’t rushing to get dressed and get out of the door for the first look or ceremony.  When the bridal bouquet is delivered to the bridal suite, this extra time allows me to capture bridal portraits right after you’re dressed.  It’s still that moment of anticipation of the day but it’s one of the last chances you get to sit for just a minute and take it all in while getting stunning portraits to look back on.  Having your bridal bouquet in the suite for your bridal portraits completes the look!