Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Wendell Berry on Gardening

Although I haven't found the time to plant my own garden, this year I signed up for a small share of a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) through Elmwood Farm (Georgetown, Kentucky).  It is so nice to experience the natural rhythms of the season through the food we eat; it makes you feel more connected to both time and place.  

I love this Wendell Berry quotation about gardening and look forward to the day when I can grow my own food for our family to enjoy.  In the meantime, I love supporting local agriculture.  What's growing in your garden?


Pin It Now!
Print Friendly and PDF

Weddings with a Southern Touch

As a girl who counts the South as one of her great loves, I've always adored little southern touches in weddings. If you're looking for ideas for your wedding or know someone who is, here are few gorgeous ideas to inspire you!

photo credit: Landon Jacob, via iloveswmag.com
photo credit: Tonya Joy
photo credit: Robert Wojtowicz
Photo credit: Krissy Allori Photography, Courtney Jade Photography,
via stylemepretty.com
by Fusion Photography, via kyweddingblog.com
Cute Favor Idea from marthastewartweddings.com

via weddingchicks.com
by FiveDotDesign.com, via weddingrowkentucky.com
photo credit: Vesic Photography, via iloveswmag.com
photo credit: Josh Elliott, via greenweddingshoes.com





Pin It Now!
Print Friendly and PDF

Monday, June 17, 2013

My Renewal Ceremony

On July 5, my husband and I will celebrate our tenth wedding anniversary. On July 13, we will renew our vows to commemorate the event. Two weeks ago I shared some of the details of our original ceremony so this week I thought I'd share some of the inspiration and ideas behind our renewal.

First things first, this is NOT a wedding. This is not Sarah's chance for a do-over. I've looked at my fair share of renewal ceremonies online and so often it just seems like the bride is playing dress up. Now, don't get me wrong. I LOVE playing dress up but this isn't a costume party. It's a celebration of my marriage, my family, and the life my husband and I have built together.

So... there will be no long white wedding dress, no big fancy wedding cake, no seated dinner, no walk down the aisle.

Now, I DID get a new dress. Let's not go overboard here. I wanted something tea length with a 1950's silhouette. I loved this dress and used it as my inspiration. I ended up with something pretty similar to my original dress in that it's mostly lace but it's short and ivory and VERY comfortable to dance in. I'm going to add a colored ribbon around the waist and similarly hued ballerina flat to cut down on the bridal aspect even more.

I also happen to be very good friends with the best and most creative florist in the tri-state region who I have given complete and total creative control so there WILL be flowers.

The bouquet is the inspiration for the floral theme - lots of bright summery blooms and overflowing arrangements. It's going to be stunning I have no doubt and a complete surprise to me which is even more fun!


We're having the ceremony in our front yard at sunset. Our plan is to walk out together with the boys and then exchange a few words underneath the giant maple in front of our home. My three dear friends from college who performed at our original wedding will be reprising their roles at this ceremony, which means the absolute world to me.

Afterwards, we're going to go around back and eat dessert and drink and dance the night away. Several years ago I attended the wedding my dear friend (and herKentucky contributor!) Amy Hille Glasscock. It was a gorgeous and thoughtful wedding from top to bottom but one of my favorite touches was she had friends and family bring pies to fill up the dessert table. I absolutely loved the idea of all that food made with love by people who knew the couple best so we'll be stealing Amy's idea. No cake just long tables full of pie!

Otherwise, my only plan is to have lots of twinkly lights, a loud speaker for my friend Mike so he can keep us rocking and dancing all night long, and lots of gangsta rap for when Mike takes a break.

No stress. No drama. No notebooks or Pinterest boards filled with high expectations and higher budgets. I did that the first time. This time it's about me and my amazing man and celebrating the relationship that has defined my life for the better part of a decade.

Oh... and there might be some Dip 'N Dots.

~ Sarah Stewart Holland Pin It Now!
Print Friendly and PDF

Friday, June 14, 2013

Happy National Bourbon Day!

Today is officially National Bourbon Day!  Sure, I'll celebrate!


My husband is becoming a bourbon aficionado, so more and more we are choosing our dinner destination based on its food AND bourbon menus.  Trust me, I am not complaining. Recently, while dining at Jonathan's at Gratz Park (Lexington), we sampled the Pappy Van Winkle (23 years old) and Parker's Heritage.  Both were superb and highly recommended. 


Pappy Van Winkle (20 years old), The Village Idiot, Lexington

 Two other bourbons we recently purchased and recommend are Angel's Envy (my personal favorite) and Jefferson's Presidential Select (18 years old):

Angel's Envy

Jefferson's Presidential Select (18 years old)

What's your favorite bourbon?


Pin It Now!
Print Friendly and PDF

How a Wedding Photographer Plans Her Own Wedding

I am so happy to share today's guest post with y'all. I've known Amy Wallen for as long as I can remember -- our families have been friends and neighbors for generations. It's kind of amazing that the cute toddler who played in the yard with my little brother is now a beautiful bride-to-be with a unique and creative eye for photography and a business of her own! Amy agreed to share with us a few of the pro tips she's learned along the way and that she is working into her own upcoming ceremony. You can see more of Amy's awesome work on her website and her Facebook page. -- HCW



I just love the fact that my life is engulfed in weddings! What can I say? I love love, and I love photographing it! I still can't believe that I've created this business doing something that I'm so passionate about.

My fiance and I are coming up on our own wedding day, June 22.  Being on the other side of weddings, mixed up in all of the hype of planning, has truly given me a better sense of what a couple goes through when planning a wedding.

As a photographer, I never got to see behind the scenes during the planning process.  I would come to a wedding and instantly get excited. The venue is beautifully decorated, the bridesmaids are tending to the bride, the vendors are getting place.  It all seemed so fun to me! But now that I am so close to my own big day, I've realized just how much hard work, effort and MONEY goes into planning this monumental day. 

One thing that I like so much about shooting weddings, is the fact that each and every wedding is different from the last.  A ceremony on an airport runway, in a castle, at the church where her parents were married. Horseshoe favors, signature drinks, sparkler exits.  Everything about all of these little touches just gives me the warm fuzzies. I'm all about letting your personality shine through everything that you do. And when my clients show off a family heirloom, have a special father daughter dance, or incorporate a high school letterman jacket, I feel as if I'm right in the middle of their love story.

When I began planning my wedding day, I knew that I wanted it to be unique, and very true to Sam and me.  We are laid back, goofy, country and a little bit old school.  We love Sunday drives in his '83 Chevy truck, fishing at Jenny Wiley Lake, dancing in the kitchen, and laughing constantly. Our breezy outdoor field ceremony fits perfectly with our personality.  We both love being outside, and spending time with our friends and family. The woods were the perfect venue.
Amy and Sam
I love the idea of not being matchy. You can throw in SO many personal touches nowadays, there's no reason to try to blend in!  Mismatched bridesmaids dresses also pulled our big day together. Light peaches and pinks with breezy fabrics surely fit the bill.

Being a photographer really almost makes me overanalyze my decisions. “What if it rains like it did at x’s wedding? What if we run out of food? What if???” So many things run through my mind, just because I’ve seen so much of it before. At the end of the day, every single wedding I have shot has been beautiful, due in part to the bride and groom being head over heels in love. Isn’t that the most important part?

Sometimes I feel like we forget the reason for a wedding. It’s meant to share the love between two people amongst family and friends. I can’t wait to have my own wedding. Regardless of everything else, I’m marrying my soul mate.  That’s good enough for me.

{all images courtesy Amy Wallen.}
Pin It Now!
Print Friendly and PDF