June 13, 2018

A Classic Vintage Savannah Wedding: Danielle + Kolby

June 13, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

Ideas of professional collaboration quickly fell away, and they went on their first "date" — she didn't consider it one at the time — on June 29th, wandering through art galleries, grabbing a bite and a beer at Kayak Kafé, spinning records in Hang Fire, and sitting and talking in Ellis Square. At the end of the night, a stranger selling palm roses approached, entreating Kolby to recite a poem and confess his undying love for Danielle, which was surprisingly not awkward at all.

June 11, 2018

Meera Graham Photography Is Ready to Love the Sh*t Out of Your Wedding

June 11, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

We love getting to introduce our vendors to our readers, and Meera Graham has been a long-time supporter whose passion for the couples she works with is undeniable. While she's based in Missoula, Montana, she's available to travel and is regularly serving couples throughout the Northwest U.S. Read on to find out why you NEED to consider Meera when picking your wedding photographer.

June 07, 2018

Real Couples // Living in London, Married in Ireland: Jon + Donal

June 07, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

Donal and Jon aren’t religious so they opted for a Humanist ceremony. Following a meeting with their chosen celebrant Sally O’Kelly they knew straight away that Sally was the perfect fit for them. She talked them through the process and how best to decide upon the script for the ceremony.

Keeping it short, including special readings, music, and the inclusion of mothers of the grooms to light the unity candle and as witnesses made the ceremony that extra bit special.

Donal and Jon decided not to include their own written vows but instead used a slightly more traditional script, not only because otherwise they would have been too emotional to speak, but because they felt the traditional script suited their feelings towards marriage and each other.

June 05, 2018

Real Couples // A Special Clemson Engagement Session in Columbia: Brent + Cass

June 05, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

I loved being able to document the little looks between these two and learn about their engagement story. When Cass first told me about the way Brent proposed I was ecstatic to hear something as romantic as the story she shared! She told me about how Brent invited her to travel to Paris with him, how they spent a few days in the city as girlfriend and boyfriend, and how he surprised her one morning with the question of a lifetime. Doesn’t that sound dreamy and oh-so-romantic?! Brent and Cass left the country as a couple dating and returned ready to promise each other their forever.

June 04, 2018

5 Reasons to Capture the Magic of Your Wedding Day with Abstract Art

June 04, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

I once read that you don't remember what your wedding looks like, you remember how it feels. But what do we do to preserve how our weddings feel? Angie Barker of Angie the Rose has an idea: capture those fleeting moments with abstract art.

May 31, 2018

Real Bodies // Em's Boudoir Shoot for Radical Self Love (NSFW)

May 31, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

I decided to do a boudoir session for one reason: radical self love.

A few events sparked my motivation to begin this journey, however. I'd just come out of an emotionally abusive relationship that left me feeling unlovable, ugly, and with the lowest self esteem I've ever had. I was frustrated that I wasn't feeling the way I knew I deserved to feel about myself.

May 30, 2018

The Queen Photographers // Photo of the Week: 4 Years In

May 30, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

I teamed up with a few other photographers and we came up with this awesome styled wedding. Using a real couple for models was very important. We wanted their love to be genuine. We wanted to capture the true essence of their love. Elliot and Tywanda Hansen were perfect! They had just celebrated their anniversary — 4 years of marriage!

May 29, 2018

Real Couples // A Lake Michigan Beach Engagement: Emily + Ang

May 29, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

Emily's engagement ring is gold with a small diamond and was made for my great-grandmother in the 1940s by my great-uncle in Melbourne. My great-grandmother was a rabble-rousing Anglican woman who loved me dearly and was always kind. It seemed appropriate to give it to a rabble-rousing Episcopalian woman who loves me dearly and is always kind.

May 25, 2018

Styled Shoot // Amber and Jaleesa's Colorful Asheville Glamping Elopement

May 25, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

This glamping styled shoot in Asheville was our way of shooting for us and our portfolios. It was a way for us to have a little fun behind the camera without the pressure of paying attention to clients’ expectations. I was so happy when I found Amber and Jaleesa via a model call I put out in The Queen Photographers on Facebook. They are such a lovely couple who are truly SO in love. It was a pleasure to photograph them for this shoot.

May 23, 2018

10 Outfits That Prove Western Brides Don't Need White Wedding Dresses

May 23, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

Okay, I'll be the first to admit that I wore white on my wedding day. It was a pretty awesome dress, but I chose it knowing full well that the idea of wearing white on your wedding day is not some tradition as old as time, just as old as the Victorian Era. White dresses are a little bit about purity and femininity, but also a whole lot about wealth. It wasn't until the last few centuries that the average woman could dream of affording a dress that they would only wear once.

So let's banish this whole idea of the white wedding dress as being a necessity. If you want to wear one, that's awesome! If you don't, that's fine, too! Let's celebrate these 10 AMAZING outfits that prove that you can pretty much do WHATEVER YOU WANT.

May 22, 2018

Real Couple // A Fijian-Mexican Engagement Shoot in Oakland: Falisha + Jorge

May 22, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

We chose to have our engagement photos in Oakland because it's special for both of us. My grandparents migrated from the Fiji islands to Oakland, and his parents from Mexico to Oakland. It was the landing place for both our families – their first taste of a foreign culture where they longed to be and the start of the American dream.

May 21, 2018

How to Capture Your Wedding Genuinely with Corey Torpie Photography

May 21, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

Corey Torpie Wants Your Wedding Photos to Age Well. She'll tell you that you don't realize right now how precious your photos are; that they'll become increasingly valuable as you grow older; that there are certain images you won't even see the importance of until some time has passed.

And she should know! After six years of marriage, two years of parenthood, and a decade photographing weddings, Corey's experienced it all personally — and with her couples.

These days, she's asking herself the question: what is important, holistically, to document for her clients? And how can you create a wedding environment that fosters being present in the moment?

May 18, 2018

Real Wedding // A Brooklyn-Themed Bar Wedding: Abby + Joey

May 18, 2018/ T.B.D. Brooklyn/ Catalyst Wedding Co

Joey and I met at The Cove, a dark and dirty bar in Williamsburg. We met on the dance floor... not the place you imagine meeting your husband, but we lucked out! And oddly enough our close friends who married a year before us met on the very same night at the same club! We were sad to see it shut down a few years back.

Our wedding venue was TBD, which also closed down now. We loved the mixture of indoor and outdoor space and it ranked high for "dance-ability" as well. Aesthetically, I loved the mixture of cement, greenery, metal, and street art; it felt really "Brooklyn" which we both loved! And since we had a lot of friends and family we wanted to attend, the size really fit our needs.

As some of our photos suggest, we really tried to include "the city," and namely Brooklyn in our wedding photo story. Street art, hip hop, and the backdrop to our single lives before and now married life after.

Rima was a huge part of that, including the memories we'll hold onto forever. She came to us with high recommendations and did not disappoint! We also found out that not only did she used to work with my best friend Kat in television, she also photographed a friend's wedding in Wheeling, WV as well. The coincidences felt too significant to ignore!

May 17, 2018

5 Tips for Hiring Inclusive Wedding Vendors

May 17, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

We know our Catalyst readers are some of the most progressive couples out there, and the struggle to “stay woke” while navigating this super traditional wedding industry is REAL. Thankfully, one of the easiest ways to have a woke wedding is to book inclusive vendors. But how do you get started? We’ve outlined some steps that can help.

May 14, 2018

The Wedding Nest Is the Gift Registry That Will Finally Help You Achieve Your Dream Home

May 14, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

The Wedding Nest is an Australia-based wedding registry site that knows that for some couples decorating their home with the same IKEA or Crate and Barrel couch just isn’t an option. This service is unlike any registry you’ve ever seen. How, you ask? They offer original artwork, let you customize your gifts, and they style your wishlist like a lookbook so you can easily imagine your future designer home.

May 11, 2018

What Happens to Boudoir When We Banish the Male Gaze

May 11, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

We at Catalyst want to celebrate bodies of all types, and for folks that are queer, trans, and genderfluid or non-binary, these bride-centric ideas of femininity that have come with bridal boudoir simply don’t apply. That doesn’t mean we want to banish boudoir. Quite the contrary, in fact. We want to see it reclaimed.

May 10, 2018

Styled Shoot // An Organic, Modern Love Shoot in Baltimore, Maryland

May 10, 2018/ The Assembly Room/ Catalyst Wedding Co

We wanted to create an organic, modern atmosphere mixing hard and soft elements. Combining the Assembly Room’s brick walls and graffiti with pastel florals, candles, and organic dress details really made that theme come alive.

We also wanted the true love between Hassan and Dymir to stand out as much as possible. I used directions and fun techniques to make them feel at home and focus on the connection they have with one another. They were the most humble couple I have ever met, and so deeply connected, that it was a dream working with them.

May 09, 2018

6 Creative Floral Trends to Make Your Wedding Stand Out

May 09, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

Whether the flowers you use are real or fake, florals are a perfect way to create the aesthetic for your dream wedding. Bouquets and boutonnieres have long been the go-to way to incorporate florals, but there are many more creative ways to add greenery to your wedding.

May 08, 2018

Real Couple // Fun-Filled Carnival Love Session in Durham, NC: Brittany + Deon

May 08, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

Deon and I (Brittany) work at a North Carolina-based health insurance company, and are happily married with three kids.

We met at a high school football game (my school vs. his). I noticed him right away in his white Avirex jacket, black jeans and Diesel shoes. I thought he was staring at me all night (he disputes this!), so I sent my friend to get his number.

We talked on the phone for a few months, then we lost contact when I moved to Charlotte. I don’t quite remember how we got back in touch, but we did. We had a conversation about taking our relationship to the next level and have been inseparable ever since.

We told our photographer Nikia Williams that we wanted to do something different and have a background that we felt captured our personalities. A photo session at the carnival allowed us to re-live our high school days!

May 07, 2018

New York and Chicago Couples, LVR Events Turns Your Wedding Dreams into Reality

May 07, 2018/ Catalyst Wedding Co

During our conversation Meg told me about a story that’ll go down in the Hall of Fame for Wedding Planners. She brought up her dedication to the client and their day saying “I could break my foot and they would never know about it.” The funny thing is, she actually did. “I got the couple through their ceremony, went to the ER, had an assistant cover me while I was gone, and came back for their reception in a cast.” She came back! Most people would have called it quits and gone home but she came back to make sure her couple had a fantastic day. That’s dedication.