CNYweddings.com would like to send out a huge congratulations to one of our vendors, Marion Cardwell-Ferrer, owner of Sincredible Pastries. Marion recently had one of her amazingly decorated cakes accepted into a nationwide search for the “50 most beautiful cakes in America” by Brides magazine.

You can view all of the cakes nominated and vote for your favorite, here.

I’m also happy to say that Marion’s cakes taste as good as they look.

copyright © 2007 Alisha Clark Photographer

The “old school” method of preserving a wedding dress entails treating the dress with the utmost of care during the course of the long wedding day. Being sure not to step in mud puddles, taking care not to rip, tear or stain the dress. Basically treating the dress as if it really shouldn’t be worn in the first place because of its exquisite beauty and fine craftsmanship with handmade lace and crystal appliqué. The dress must be preserved after the wedding by an expensive process of cleaning, boxing and storing.

All well and good except some modern day brides are throwing that tradition out along with the leftover wedding cake. For a new breed of bride there is a new tradition…trashing the dress. Apparently they’ve asked themselves why they are saving the dress that likely won’t ever be worn again and quite possibly won’t even be seen again once it’s been cleaned, preserved, boxed and stored away in a dark corner of the attic or basement.

What exactly is “trashing the dress” you ask? Basically it is taking some out-of-the-ordinary photographs of the bride wearing the dress in some quite unlikely situations. Think along the lines of laying on a sandy beach with waves crashing over you. Or perhaps jumping into a pool and having pictures taken of you in your gown while underwater. Oh yes, this trashing of the dress isn’t for the faint of heart but it can result in some spectacularly original photographs that are sure to garner interest and be talked about for years to come. The generally recognized originator of this style of photography is John Michael Cooper from Las Vega, NV.

CNYweddings took an informal poll of a number of well-established photographers in Central New York and discovered that while the “trash the dress” phenomenon isn’t unknown in these parts, it is not all that common either. According to Alisha of Alisha Clark Photography, “It (trash the dress) seems to be more popular in warmer weather type states such as in the southern and mid-western states.” She recently photographed a wedding in Mexico and the bride, who was from Arkansas had reqeusted the “trash the dress” photography. However Alisha told me that what is more common is a “day after the wedding” photo shoot where the bride and groom simply pose more normally in their formal attire.

Another photographer I asked, Renee Marquis , owner of “Capture Your Moment” photography, told me that she has a trash the dress photo shoot scheduled for an upcoming spring 2008 wedding in Central New York but it’s not something that is frequently requested.

I also spoke with photographers Robert Kaussner and Brady Dillsworth, neither of whom have had any requests thus far for the “trash the dress” style of photography. So it seems that Central New York is not exactly the hot bed of activity for this trendy and possibly short-lived type of photography.

I wanted to know whether brides really trash their $5,000 Vera Wang wedding dresses and according to Alisha, “Sometimes it’s the actual wedding dress, but more often if the bride has an expensive dress, she will do more along the line of portraits rather than “trashing” it as the main objective.” In some photo shoots, the bride will actually have an inexpensive dress to trash instead of the actual wedding dress worn at the wedding.

If you are considering having a “Trash The Dress” photo shoot after your wedding, make sure you can see samples of photos from the photographer you are considering. The last thing you would want is a trashed dress and nothing to show for it.

Our good friend and amazing pasty chef, Marion Ferrar, has announced the Grand Opening of her new kitchen/studio. This “not to be missed” event is scheduled for Sunday, October 21, 2007. The open house begins at 10:00am and will end at 3:00pm.

Marion will have a delectable assortment of goodies to taste and will be showing off her new digs. There will be door prizes and special goodies for the kids! It is open to the public so spread the word.

Here is how to get there…

Sincredibles Pastries Kitchen Studio
29 Searles Road, Groton, NY 13073
Phone: 607-533-7051

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When you try to come up with a fully adequate word to describe the beauty of Margaret Neher’s, hand blown and sculpted Cake Toppers, you are left speechless. No single word can convey the beauty and uniqueness of these one of a kind works of art.

Each piece takes 3 days to create and is a labor of love. Margaret works with borosilicate glass rods and tubing, working each piece over an open flame (oxy-propane for the inquisitive.) To see the artist actually creating one of her unique pieces, watch this video of her appearance on HGTV’s Carol Duvall show.

A work of art. A museum piece. A stunningly beautiful cake topper that will long be cherished and admired, made right here in Central New York by artisan Margaret Neher.

Here are two samples of her work…

Our eagle-eyed fashion consultant at CNYweddings discovered these beautiful, handmade purses recently. No two purses are alike. Each is individually handcrafted using precious, semi-precious, crystal and glass beads. The design and colors can be customized for each customer. They are truly one of a kind works of art, exquisite and unique.

The purses, along with stunning bracelets (which could be a one-of-a-kind, striking bridesmaid gift), are made in New York City by Inna NYC Designs.

Today was the day! This morning at about 10:35am, I made my guest appearance on “Bridge Street with Rick and Julie.”

Now that it’s over, I can honestly tell you that if you are ever in a position to know that you only have exactly 3 1/2 minutes to live, a great way to extend that short amount of time to an ETERNITY is to be a guest on a live television show. That’s basically how I felt this morning as I made my television appearance on Bridge Street with Rick and Julie to talk about “Alternative places to get married in Central New York.”

The hosts, Rick Gary and Christie Casciano (filling in for Julie Abbott) made me feel quite comfortable on the set, but still, the butterflies were flapping away and the brief segment seemed much longer than 3.5 minutes.

Happily, it went very well. You can visit the WSYR website to see a summary of what was discussed and view the actual segment.

I also hope to have the segment up on CNYweddings at some point in time.

Thanks to all of you who sent me encouraging emails prior to the event. I also want to thank the producer Shauna and Assistant Producer Melissa Lopoo for not only asking me to be a guest in the first place, but also for calming my nerves as we approached air-time.

It was really exciting!

I want to thank the photographers who provided the awesome photos of the featured venues…Gary Hodges of Jon Reis photography, Bob Haggard, Brigette Kingsley, Steve Chester and Frank DiMeo. Without all the great photos these photographers provided, the segment would not have been anywhere near as good as it was. Thanks!

Exciting news!

CNYweddings was contacted yesterday by a producer of “Bridge Street with Rick and Julie“. All next week, Feb 12-16, 2007, Bridge Street will be airing segments having to do with weddings and wedding planning. The 4-5 minute segment on which I’ve been asked to participate will air on Thursday, February 22, 2007 some time between 10:00am and 11:00am. The segment will address “Unique places to have a wedding in Central New York”.

I’m so excited and hope that you’ll be able to view the show.

When it comes to looking for wedding related books, there is no doubt that the vast majority are geared toward women. So what about the guys? Don’t the future grooms of the world deserve a few books of their own? Craig Michaels certainly thought so. Craig, founder of the website Groom411.com, a site geared primarily to the Groom-to-be, recently published the book, “Thirty to Wife-The Tell-All Groom’s Guide To Weddings-How To Get Hitched Without Losing Your Mind Or Your Fiancée”.

We’ve had a chance to read the book and can tell you that it offers a real-life experience of what the process leading up to marriage is like. Sometimes funny, but always practical, the book gives a birdseye view of what a groom-to-be can expect to encounter (and how to deal) in the days leading up to the wedding ceremony

The book is helpful in that it provides checklists, timelines and lots of tips and practical advice. It’s written with the male perspective but is also helpful to the bride-to-be.

So guys, don’t enter marriage without checking out the helpful advice that Craig Michaels provides in this book. It just might give you a tip or two that will ease your transition from “wild and crazy single guy” to the man who is the apple of your wife-to-be’s eye.

After a brief stay in Hospicare, Kevin Stearns (Valois Photography) passed away November 16, 2006. He will be missed.

Kevin was one of those people who once you met, you would never forget. He had worked at Cornell and was also a published author. His book, “Finger Lakes of New York: A Photographic Portrait” contained truly spectacular images of the Finger Lakes and was a fine example of the excellent photography that characterized Kevins’ work.

The day that Kevin passed away was rainy, dark and gloomy. However the weather miraculously broke for a short spell and displayed the following rainbow. Thank you Kevin. We will all miss you.

It is a fact of life that due to circumstances beyond your control (inclement weather, accidents, hospitilization), you might have to cancel or postpone your wedding. If the unimaginable happens and you have to cancel, what happens to all the money you’ve put down in deposits and obligations you may have to pay even if the wedding doesn’t take place? Couples frequently face these unforseen events. Wedding Insurance can bring peace of mind with the knowledge that you’ll be offered some protection in case of such emergencies.

Wedding insurance policies are relatively inexpensive and may provide a great deal of help in covering expenses that you have incurred. These policies will generally provide coverage for things like forfeited deposits, travel expenses, and even loss of wedding rings.

One thing that is not covered with Wedding Insurance is getting cold feet. But if the unimaginable happens and you must cancel your wedding, having wedding insurance could save a lot of expense and headaches.