So, you know how you get super, super busy and kind of put off a task for a while? Yeah, that’s me. I have put this blog on the back burner for quite a while. Ok, like a few years. Fine, 5. 5 years. So, I thought this would be a good time to play a little catch up and post what we have been up to in the past few years. Here’s a fun vintage, 4th of July style shoot we were excited to be a part of. It was shot by Knots and Tots Photography. The idea for this shoot actually came from the owner of Knots and Tots, Rita. Who said something along the lines of “Hey, I want to do a cool, 50’s, 4th of July, barbecue style shoot. I’m not real sure how that will all work.” Well, I did! Here are the results!
Pen and Ink- Custom Invitations and Gifts
We are so thankful to have Pen and Ink providing the winners of the Crystal Occasions Ultimate Wedding Giveaway with custom invitations! Read more below to find out what they can do for you!
PEN & INK – Your expert in Wedding Invitations!
Congratulations to the special bride and groom who will be the winner
of the Crystal Occasions Ultimate Wedding Giveaway! Pen & Ink will be offering wedding invitations, response cards and printed return envelopes to one lucky couple.
Since 1993, Betsy Horton, owner of Pen & Ink, has provided individual attention to brides in Austin,Texas, and surrounding areas. Betsy provides each customer with a personal consultation that makes selecting wedding invitations, reply cards, save-the-date magnets, napkins, maps, accommodation cards, programs, stationery, and unique gifts a simple, enjoyable and memorable experience.
Some brides are overwhelmed by all the choices. The added pressure of having to make a snap decision in a store or having only a photo on a website for guidance can be frustrating. Pen & Ink’s philosophy is that most brides would rather actually see and feel the invitation announcing the most important day in their lives.
Betsy will meet with you at your convenience, personally help you sort through your options, and then let you make your decision in your own time. And she is always available to answer follow-up questions as you and your advisors weigh your alternatives.
Pen & Ink can be of assistance or if you have any questions about placing your order, do not hesitate to call. Betsy looks forward to your business.
To see more of Pen & Ink’s Invitations visit her website:
Facebook Page:
http://www.facebook.com/shopPenandInk
Twitter:
@pen_an_ink
Dessert Divas- Customizing Sweets and Candies For Every Occasion!
Candy buffets and dessert bars are becoming big sensations at weddings. They give the guests something fun and interactive to do. Dessert Divas will be providing this experience for the winners of our Crystal Occasions Ultimate Wedding Giveaway. See what they can do for your wedding or event.
Dessert Divas ~ Specializing in Candy & Dessert Buffets & More for Weddings & Special Events!
We’ll Shop, Bake & Create For Your Special Occasion – We guarantee that you can find all your sweets under one roof….from wedding cakes to birthday cakes and everything in between to cupcakes, cupcake shooters, cake pops and cake balls, decorated gourmet cookies, chocolate-dipped anything, candy centerpieces and SO MUCH MORE!
Dessert Divas is dedicated to thinking outside-the-box and make your SWEET dreams a reality! We pride ourselves in the highest quality and customer service. Our company is based on the belief that our customers’ needs are of the utmost importance. Our entire team is committed to meeting those needs. As a result, a high percentage of our business is from repeat customers and referrals.
With a variety of offerings to choose from, we’re sure you’ll find everything you are looking for & more!
We would welcome the opportunity to earn your trust and deliver you the best service in the industry.
To meet the Dessert Divas please visit our website at http://www.dessertdivastx.com or contact info@dessertdivastx.com. You can also follow us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/dessertdivas
Parklane Jewlery By The Burills- Making Our Winning Bride Sparkle!
Who doesn’t love a little bling? I can tell you who does…..brides. The winner of our Crystal Occasions Ultimate Wedding Giveaway is going to get the opportunity to get some lovely bling from Parklane Jewlery By The Burills.
Jewelry plays a very important role when deciding on a wedding outfit. After choosing the style and color of a wedding gown, every bride looks for fabulous jewelry that can add grace to her wedding outfit. This season’s most popular wedding jewelry includes chandelier earrings, statement necklace, bangles, stacked bracelets and blingy rings! These are all the rage for a fashionable and stylish bride.
We also have fabulous jewelry for women of every age; we even offer designs for men and children, as well! Jewelry makes the PERFECT GIFT! It has sentimental value, and is appropriate for any occasion. Park Lane jewelry is backed by an unconditional guarantee.
For more information on how to make your day sparkle even more with Parklane Jewelry, Please contact:
The Burill’s – Thad and Marissa
website: www.myparklane.com/tburill
cell (512) 736-9337
Angelic Strings- Creating Beautiful Music For Any Event!
Meet Angelic Strings!!
Angelic Strings is another one of our Crystal Occasions Ultimate Wedding Giveaway vendors. We are so honored to have them donate their time and talent to help make the winning couple’s wedding perfect. Find out more about them and how they can make your wedding magical below.
Angelic Strings, with Harpist Michael Morris:
Michael & Belinda Morris are the husband-wife, harp-viola duet Angelic Strings. They began performing at weddings in Central Texas after their own wedding in April of 2003. It is very much a part of their nature to lend their expertise and personable service to each event. They will not only strive to bring beautiful music to the event, they will also make the whole music process fun and your special day flow smoothly.
They offer such a delightful variety of music that their clients can ‘go crazy’ or ‘go traditional’ or perhaps a little of both.
Special Touches:
As a part of the ‘wedding music package’, Angelic Strings will learn new music if it is doable on harp. This is why they now have a 7 page (and growing) song list. Michael loves taking requests and growing the repertoire. Michael will also offer accompaniment for performing vocalists as a part of the wedding package in addition to also being available as a vocalist as well for some songs.
By request they have learned songs such as:
Bittersweet Symphony (The Verve)
Final Fantasy (several theme songs)
Free (Zac Brown Band)
Your Hand In Mine (Explosions in the Sky, Austin band)
The Prayer (Celine Dion)
Feather’s Theme (from the Forrest Gump Soundtrack)
Hey There Delilah (Plain White T’s)
For recent weddings they just learned:
As Tears Go By (Rolling Stones)
Marry You (Bruno Mars)
One of their best compliments:
There was a Dallas groom who booked the duo over a year in advance for his wedding in Lakeway. He commented that Angelic Strings has raised the bar for all of his other vendors and that even though he knew we had lots of other weddings on our schedule that the rapport Michael and Belinda had with him made him feel as though he was their only client.
Sample Music:
‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’ on Concert harp & Viola from a recent Open House Event:
http://www.youtube.com/user/angelicstrings#p/a/u/1/JJ54Ea196lg
Michael and Belinda both enjoy each and every opportunity to meet with couples and consider it an honor to perform at such a sacred, meaningful, and joyous occasion…the wedding ceremony.
For Music Samples and more: AngelicStrings.com
Contact info:
Michael & Belinda Morris
(512) 589-4075
AngelicStrings.com
(512) 589-4075
AngelicStrings.com
Bella By Sara- Creating Amazing Floral Designs For Any Event
I am so pleased and excited to have Bella By Sara participating in our giveaway this year! She is a fresh face in the floral industry with a skill level to match those that have been around for much longer. She is always smiling and happy and does what ever she can do to fulfill the brides every wish! We are so excited to see how she takes the theme chosen by our giveaway winner and uses it to create something amazing for the reception!
Bella by Sara wedding and event floral design focuses on making any event a dream come true. We pride ourselves on providing quality flowers that are custom designed to express your personality. Our specialty is creating custom floral designs that reflect a unified theme.
Sara Mulder is a certified floral designer and wedding planner in the Austin area offering engaged couples a complementary consultant to help them create their perfect day and carry out their vision with care. We can work together to create a visually stunning event that will leave a lasting impression and will be forever remembered by your guests.
Bella by Sara’s clients are our best resources for inspiration. Each bride comes to us with their individual style. We help them to enhance their ideas to create a wedding day floral design beyond their expectations. What makes us different from other companies is that it’s Bella by Sara’s goal to thrill our clients and give them a night to remember. Nothing gives us more pleasure than when our client’s and their guest arrive to the event and say “WOW”. We bring together the most creative, skilled and talented resources for any wedding or event. We help couples in all aspects of the wedding from beginning to end.
To see more of Bella By Sara’s work visit her website- www.bellabysara.com
Or her Facebook Page
McMurtrie Farms- The Perfect Place For Your Wedding!
We are so thrilled to once again have McMurtrie Farms donate their venue for our Crystal Occasions Ultimate Wedding Giveaway. It’s really two venues in one, so we are super excited to be able to design such a fab wedding! McMurtrie Farms is a super versatile place to have your wedding. They have a huge meadows area complete with an iron arbor set in front of the creek and small waterfall on one side, and a big limestone staircase on the other. It’s the perfect space for larger parties because it can hold up to 300 people. Plus McMurtrie Farms can provide you with tents in case of rain. An extra perk from the venue is that it stays mosquito free thanks to the birds
They also have the Pecan Pavillion and Gazebo on the other side of the property. The Pecan Pavillion can be used to hold your reception or even your ceremony. It is an outdoor venue but the sides of the pavilion can be brought down incase it gets a little chilly or rainy. The Pecan Pavilion is a 3,000sq.ft. Pavilion with stone columns, hill country pine timberframe roof, and eight chandaliers to light your soiree. The adjacent dance floor, gazebo, and fountain provide a lovely backdrop for pictures and your ceremony. Rental of the Pecan Pavilion includes The Ramble Creek Lodge (the 2,000 sq.ft. ranch-style home on site) for your Bridal Suite, Groom’s Den, and Accommodations for 10 overnight! Full ammenities makes a weekend package very comfortable and affordable! There’s so much you can do with just these two spaces alone!
Meet The Vendors Of The Crystal Occasions Ultimate Wedding Giveaway!
We are so excited to be able to offer another couple the chance to win a dream wedding for the second year! We could not do it without the support of some amazingly talented vendors. We have a great team so far and still have a few more vendors looking to participate! Check out whos contributing below, and then check back to see their individual stories!
McMurtrie Farms- www.mcmurtriefarms.com
McMurtrie Farms is donating their amazing venue which includes The Meadows, The Pecan Pavillion, and The Lodge
Ed Kelley Photoraphy- www.edkelleyphotography.com
Ed Kelley is donating the wedding day coverage for the bride and groom and a dvd of images for them.
Crystal Occasions- www.crystaloccasionsevents.com
Crystal Occasions is providing the design and coordination for the wedding.
Erins Custom Cakes- www.erinscustomcakes.com
Erin will be creating an amazing cake for the bride!
Texas Party Rental- www.partyrentaltx.com
Will provide us with linens and rentals to create a beautiful reception for the couple.
Cedar Park Florist- 512-258-5577
Lauren will be creating the brides bouquet and the grooms boutannier.
Angelic Strings- www.angelicstrings.com
Will be playing the cermony music for our winners.
Bella By Sara- http://www.bellabysara.com
Bella By Sara will be creating georgeous floral designs for the reception.
Blevins Best Catering- www.blevinsbestcatering.com
Blevins Best Catering will be providing appetizers for the cocktail hour as well as full dinner service!
Anne Marie Carson Photography- www.annemariecarson.com
Anne Marie Carson Photography will be providing the engagement session for the lucky winners.
Rebel With A Camera- http://www.rebelwithacamera.com
These super photographers will be giving our winners a crative and fashionable after wedding session.
Peace Love Nails- www.peacelovenailsaustin.com
Will be giving our bride a mani and pedi for her big day!
Parklane Jewlery By The Burills- www.myparklane.com/tburill
Will be providing our bride with a selection of jewlery for her to wear on the wedding day.
Chaplain Larry Todd- www.austinweddingchaplains.com
Chaplain Larry Todd will be available to officiate the wedding for our winners.
Austin Beauty On The Go- www.austinbeautyonthego.com
Beauty On The Go will be making our bride even more georgeous by providing hair and makeup services
Dessert Divas- http://www.dessertdivastx.com
Dessert Divas will be creating some sweet treats for our winners.
Also Participating:
Complete Music- www.cmaustindj.com
Complete Music will get everyone out on the dancefloor after dinner!
Knots and Tots Photography- www.knotsandtots.com
This creative photographer will be giving our bride a boudoir or bridal session!
It’s so much fun to work with all of these vendors! I can’t wait to see what we create for our winners and brides in the future!
2012 Wedding Giveaway In Full Swing!!
Our Crystal Occasions Ultimate Wedding Giveaway 2012 is moving ahead quickly! We are having so much fun reading all of the sweet love stories and proposal stories. We have even gotten a few proposal videos! We have an ever-growing list of vendors who just can’t wait to help make someones wedding dreams come true! Check out the amazing people who are donating their time and services below!
McMurtrie Farms– Event venue
Crystal Occasions– design and coordination
Ed Kelley Photography– Wedding day coverage and a dvd of images
Erin’s Custom Cakes– Brides Cake
Texas Party Rentals– Linens and rentals
Cedar Park Florist- Brides bouquet and grooms boutannier
Bella By Sara– reception centerpiece and floral design and decor
Parklane Jewelry by The Burills- Bridal Jewelry
Complete Music– Reception DJ
Angelic Strings– Ceremony Music
Candy Bouquets by Connie/ Dessert Divas- Candy buffet and or dessert bar
Austin Beauty On The Go– Bridal hair and makeup
Peace.Love.Nails– mani and pedi for the bride
………and we still have a few more to come!!
If you or anyone you know wants to enter, you can find more info on our Giveaway Page! Entry deadline is March 26th!!
Or Like Us on facebook!
Meet Stelly Weddings!!
We lucked into meeting Dustin, owner of Stelly Weddings at The Modern Bridal Expo. They were super nice and put together an amazing video interview for us. After watching it, I can see why he is one of the best! They were super nice and easy to talk to and actually made me forget I was on camera, even though it was right in front of me : ) Check out his bio and if you need a videographer, he is definatly your man! You can find more info for them at www.stellyweddings.com
My name is Dustin Stelly and I own a wedding film boutique called Stelly Weddings. I grew up at an intersection touching Houston, Pasadena, and South Houston, so I can claim all three. I received an Associates Degree in Audio Engineering at San Jacinto College before transferring to Texas State University in San Marcos where I received a bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication/ Electronic Media. After college, I moved to Austin where I now live with my girlfriend Rachael.
It took me a while to figure out what I was meant to do in life, but near the end of my college career a professor just happened to mention that he had a former student doing wedding videography. He said it without much inspiration, but for some reason a huge light bulb lit up over my head. I quickly reached for contact information and my life was changed forever. I studied all the arts of filmmaking under Cinematographer Jonathan Reeves Holt for nearly three years. In that time I got to work as a camera op and editor on narrative films, music videos, reality TV shows, long-form training videos, commercials, documentaries, web videos and above all else, weddings. I was given the opportunity to work on well over 100 weddings in under three years, shooting over 50 in my last year alone. The high quantity at a larger company allowed me to quickly get more practice and experience than most people in my field get early on. While my boutique, Stelly Weddings, handles a much smaller volume, the experiences I had (like shooting three weddings in three days in two cities) have made me a very effective filmmaker. I try to take every single wedding I’ve ever done in the past with me to every wedding I do in the future.
About My Company:
When I started this wedding film boutique I had to choose a name for it, and while I came up with a few that might have been more clever or cute, I decided that the name should really say what is most important to my business. “Stelly” means that when you hire me, you get ME. I’m never going to send some second team of shooters that may or may not be able to get the same shots I get, and I’m never going to have my videos edited by someone I’m training that can kinda do something similar to what I do. I’ve been filming and editing weddings for years, and the expertise, talent, knowledge, and skill set that I have acquired need to go in to every single aspect of the product…after all, that’s what you’ve paid for right?
The “Weddings” in the title means that I am a full time wedding film maker. In the past, before starting my boutique, I worked on all kinds of video projects, as mentioned above. But these days, I’m 100% focused and dedicated to making wedding films. What this means to you, the client, is that I’m constantly developing my specialty and focused on a specific niche. When you need surgery, you generally go to a specialist. You don’t want a doctor that did plastic surgery on Tuesday to do your heart transplant on Wednesday. I think it’s kinda the same way with video work. It’s difficult as a filmmaker to get into the mind set of creating an original love story on Saturday if you spent your Friday making a car commercial.
So, with my core belief that I am my company’s most valuable asset, I’m a little more limited than many of my competitors in volume. The only way for me to provide the quality and originality that I believe in, is to limit myself to 20-25 weddings per year. This is why I like to refer to Stelly Weddings as a boutique more than a business. When I hear the word boutique, I think rare, hand crafted, original, and exclusive. My promise is to strive for Stelly Weddings to meet all of those descriptions.
Crystal Occasions 