Principe Perfection

It's always very special when one of our New Leaf clients gets married. Joanna Principe and her mother, Marcia, have been faithful New Leaf-ers since the doors opened in 2001 so we were pretty excited when Joanna and Walter got engaged...

Joanna and Walter have been together for more than 11 years--whew! Patience must be Joanna's #1 virtue. Joanna has a big italian 'familia' so we knew her wedding would be a pretty big deal.

If you follow this blog at all, you might notice that I am slightly obsessed with the weather for brides. Needless to say, I was checking the 10 -day forecast for Joanna's wedding. I know, I know, overcast days are best for photos. But people are always in such great spirits when it's a beautiful day so who wouldn't want to be surrounded by all that happiness on their wedding?

Anyways, it was drizzly in the morning when they arrived, and sunny by the time everyone left...yipee! The New Leaf touch.

It was not a secret that it had to be a nice day for Joanna and Walter. Rain was simply not an option. You see, they were getting married at Blithewold in Bristol. It's an outdoor venue under a tent. The amazing grounds must be seen to be believed. 

Given the lack  of air conditioning, Marcia, Joanna's curly haired mom, was a tad concerned. As a curly haired girl myself, I understand the phobia of humidity. Humidity can make waves turn to frizz and fine hair fall flat. Fear not though, New Leaf will come to the rescue!

Here is the adorable Joanna with her birthday mimosa (yes, she got married on her birthday...neat, right?) LOVE that gorgeous grin!

Making sure the volume is just right....

Leah and Amy painting their canvases...

I love this shot of Joanna's bridesmaid! We promise that no one has to walk down the aisle like this:o)

Much better....

Meet Shade, pronounced Sha-Day. She was a major cutie-patootie. Ashley was in charge of making her a spotlight stealer...but I don't think Shade needed Ashley for that! 

Apparently, Shade told her mom that she was tired of people saying how beautiful she was and that she wished they would stop. We all agreed that it is a problem we all wished we had!

The 'fancy' Shade and her mom take a moment to relax.

This is a very hot style right now for bridesmaids. We can thank Jessica Alba and Jennifer Aniston for rocking the side-braid to red carpet events. Sometimes, a celebrity trend takes right off!

How gorgeous are all Joanna's ladies?!?

This wedding was extra fun because another loyal New Leaf-er was in Joanna's wedding. Michea and Joanna have been friends since they were in diapers. She is so pretty and has this amazing long, thick hair that she had never worn 'up' for anything before. I was up to the challenge!

We decided on a natural, bohemian kind of style with plenty of hair left around Michea's face. If you tend to wear your hair down a lot, having some softness around your face in an updo might make you feel more comfortable and not so exposed.

Finalizing Joanna's textured chignon...

Leah working her magic before the reveal...

And AFTER the reveal...Can you say gorgeous???

Everyone seemed to escape after their make up was done without us assaulting them with our camera (I know, again...we are going to have seriously consider holding our wedding parties hostage until their pictures are taken!) 

To see all the girls, you HAVE to check out our fabulously talented friends at Snap! Photography. They have the best blog, so fun to read. To see Joanna getting ready, check out  the snap! To see Walter and Joanna canoodling at Blithewold, click here.

Thanks Joanna, Marcia, Michea and all the ladies...such a blast! Congrats and hope you are having a fantastic time on your honeymoon. See you when you get back!