StyleSchool

This week we caught up with Amy Berman, executive pastry chef and co-owner of Vanilla Bake Shop (vanillabakeshop.com) in Santa Monica, California. Berman’s love of everything sweet began when she was a little girl, thanks to her mother’s frequent surprises of homemade cakes and treats. After graduating from culinary school, Berman and her husband Jeremy created a dessert catering company which soon bloomed into their artisan bake shop named after the world’s “most universally loved flavor,” vanilla!

How does your bakery differ from the rest of the pack?
Taste! We bake fresh from scratch with all natural ingredients every day. I love that we use real vanilla beans in almost everything we make, and go through hundreds of pounds of butter each week. High quality ingredients make the biggest difference in taste. Your wedding cake should look stunning, and taste incredible.

Why do you enjoy working on wedding cakes?
Wedding cakes are very personal. There is no other cake in your entire life that will be quite as important. I really love that. I recently designed a cake for a couple that incorporated vintage brooches from the bride’s mom, mother-in-law and grandma. It was incredibly endearing and unforgettable for their family.

What’s been your absolute favorite wedding cake you’ve designed so far?
I love all the wedding cakes we have created. I remember the story behind each one. One of my favorite and most recent wedding cakes was for a bride who adores fashion and owns a fabulous shoe company. She wanted a cake that was chic, and played off the jewel detail accenting her wedding dress. For her cake, we accentuated the height of each tier and made handmade sugar jewels dusted with charcoal and silver luster for sheen. It was meaningful, luxurious and happened to be Chocolate Truffle, one of my favorite flavors!

What’s the most unique wedding cake you’ve ever designed?
The most unique wedding cake I designed was a collaboration between a good friend of mine who's an amazingly talented floral designer. We've worked together over the years on many weddings. When it came time for her own wedding she gave me a call. I was really honored. Her husband is an architect, and the cake was definitely “his” thing. It was important that it be unique and focus on clean lines, structure and simplicity. It turned out to be one of the most talked about cakes we have ever done.

Any advice for couples choosing their wedding cake?
Research cake designers and chose someone who has the best tasting cake as well as impeccable craftsmanship and design. Schedule your consultation about four months before the wedding. When you meet with your designer have an open mind and experiment with the untraditional. Sometimes it can be a fun contrast to the rest of the environment and add an unexpected touch! And, don’t forget to have fun!

For more information on Vanilla Bake Shop, visit vanillabakeshop.com.

—Darcy Newell

If you’re planning a destination wedding, picking a photographer can be a daunting task. To help you out, we caught up with Katrina Wallace and Andrew Mejia of Sedona Bride (sedonabride.com). They are a husband and wife duo based in Sedona, Arizona that specialize in destination wedding photojournalism. Here, they offer their best advice for tying the knot in style.

What influences your work?
I find inspiration from the historic work of the masters of photography. Henri Cartier Bresson was the master of capturing the decisive moment and I love classic fashion photography by Lillian Bassman. We also love fine art, new and old.

Andrew's inspiration comes from his background in oil painting and fine art. He likes painters like Mondrian, Kandinsky, Rembrandt, Seurat, as well as modern photojournalists who've taken pictures for newspapers and magazines over the last 60 years.

What makes you different from other wedding photographers?
We can't speak for other photographers, but we work very hard for every client. This, in turn, encourages us to always push ourselves to become better and strive for better images. Some photographers might shoot a single frame of a moment or detail and leave it at that, but we're always looking for that better angle, or perspective, or waiting for that perfect moment. It's a labor of love for us. We're into what we do, and we always put all of ourselves into our work.

How do you two work as a team?
A lot of photographers have a second photographer who is not the same person at every wedding. We almost always work together, and because of that we're able to read each other's moves without having to speak. We often try to document the whole day together, but sometimes we split up. For example, when the bride is running late I'll often stay with her and finish documenting the preparation photos, while Andrew will go photograph the groom's preparation. Having a solid second photographer really allows the main photographer to take certain calculated risks and shoot from more creative perspective—a perspective the photographer might not have taken without the coverage of a great second shooter. What's more, being a husband and wife team allows us an interaction and synergy that one single photographer probably wouldn't have with his/her hired second shooter.

Film or digital. Why?
We shoot digital, but are in the process of incorporating film back into our workflow. Digital is fantastic because we are free to really shoot as much as we want. We pay for it on the back end with huge amounts of editing, but we always find amazing moments that might have been missed had we been restricted by confines of film.

We are incorporating film into our work again because we simply love the organic qualities that film offers: the grain, the imperfections, and the way certain film renders color.

What advice can you give to couples looking for a wedding photographer?
Find a photographer whose work speaks to you. If you can imagine yourself in the moment the photographer has captured, then that photographer is probably a good fit for you. You can be sure you love a photographer's style by seeing several weddings they have photographed, and not just the best of the best of their images. We like to create slideshows of the highlights of the wedding day, which is a compilation of the best 100 or so story-telling images of the wedding day. We show those slideshows to our prospective clients so they can really get a great feel for our style and see the consistent quality in our work.

What are some new wedding photography trends you’ve been noticing?
We have noticed for a couple of years that there has been a push for adding textures and heavy post-processing to images. While we do like to process our images to have a softer, more film-like quality, we've resisted the “textures trend,” which we believe lends an overly artificial look and will date the image. We believe that wedding images should be timeless, since they are often considered a family heirloom.

Another trend we've noticed is what is sometimes called a "day after session." Most of our clients plan a destination wedding, and thus plan to spend a few days at their destination to enjoy the locale after the wedding-day pressure is past. By having an extended portrait session the day after the wedding, we can do a lot of things and explore a lot of reality we otherwise would not have seen because of time or lighting constraints. It's a win-win situation because the bride and groom can actually spend their cocktail hour with their family and friends and still have a really great set of images of themselves together on the day after session.

What advice can you give for a couple planning a destination wedding?
Find a good wedding coordinator that either specializes in the area or specializes in destination weddings. The weddings that go the smoothest and have the best personal details are the ones planned and stylized with a wedding planner.

Also, find a photographer that takes a photojournalistic or documentary style approach to weddings. Photographers with that style will be able to document weddings beautifully in any location, not just those they are familiar with.

What are your top 5 must-take shots?

Visit sedonabride.com to learn more about Sedona Bride.

—Darcy Newell

We've always been huge fans of Paper + Cup's designs—they're playful and modern, but still elegant. Their letterpress designs are always beautiful, but the addition of flat printing offers an equally stylish, yet budget-friendly option to brides. Cofounder Minhee Cho has an incredible aesthetic, so we asked her to share some of her best advice for brides-to-be.

What's your best advice for the recently engaged entering the world of wedding stationery?
Don’t be afraid to be unique and to share your own story. The stationery sets the tone for the entire event, so make it personal and have fun! And involve the groom, too!

What's been your favorite design so far and why?
These place cards we did for a winter wedding. They were miniature flashcards with the couples favorite pastimes. We hung them on a giant Christmas tree like ornaments and guests had find their name.

What's your best stationery cost-cutting tip that doesn't sacrifice style?
Flat printing and custom-printed mailing labels instead of calligraphy.

What makes Paper + Cup different from other stationery companies?
We love experimenting with innovative designs and ideas, but have a soft spot for classic design basics. Weddings celebrate a new beginning as well as tradition and we try to show that through our designs.

What's your biggest wedding stationery no-no?
Registry on the invites or RSVPs.

Visit papercupdesign.com to learn more about Paper + Cup and to see the full stationery collection.

This week, we’re checking with Sonal Pardeshi, owner of Chocolaz Artisan Cakes in Seattle, Washington. Pardeshi has been making cakes since she was a young girl—she grew up helping out at her neighbor’s bakery. After traveling the world to learn from famous bakers and pastry chefs and garner inspiration from architecture, cultures and art, Pardeshi opened her own bakery.

How does your bakery differ from the rest of the pack?
I view cakes as an art form that’s not only about taste, but beauty, creativity and harmony. I use inspirations from the world around me—my travels to various countries and exposure to their art and culture has totally inspired me. For example, Europe is a hub for fashion. Their designs and the quality of craftsmanship is phenomenal. I always want to bring a taste of Europe and their love of couture to my clients through my art form—cakes!

Why do you enjoy working on wedding cakes?
A beautiful wedding cake can be the center of attention and desire at a wedding. It's a reflection of the couple's sense of style and taste that's harmonious with the decor and other aesthetic elements. I thoroughly enjoy being able to bring the couples artistic aspirations and their story to life through my wedding cakes, making it a significant part of their memories.

What’s been your absolute favorite wedding cake you’ve designed so far?
I love each and every design that we have made, but sugar flowers are our speciality and we incorporate them with modern, pop-art designs for a fresh look that's personally very appealing to me.

What’s the most unique wedding cake you’ve ever designed?
It's great when clients challenge us to do new, adventurous designs for cakes. I have been asked to do animated 3D sugar models of a couple as a cake topper recently and several designer shoes for wedding showers—I really enjoyed making those cakes. I also like handpainting and was asked to create a replica of one of Picasso's paintings on cake!

Any advice for couples choosing their wedding cake?
Even a very simple wedding cake can make a real statement if executed with precision and quality worksmanship. I encourage couples that go in for a cake consultation to evaluate the taste and quality of the cakes. Ask to see not only albums of past creations, but also observe display cakes for attention to detail and handiwork on the cakes.

For more information about Chocolaz Artisan Cakes, visit chocolaz.com.

—Rachel Jacoby, Assistant Editor

A few months ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Heather Wiese Alexander, founder of Bell'Invito (bellinvito.com), and seeing her incredible letterpress work in person. All I can say is, amazing! Heather used to the art director at Neiman Marcus, so it goes without saying that her style is impeccable. It's really no surprise that her stationery—from the paper to the printing—is right up there with best a bride can get. Read on for more about Bell'Invito and her insider tips.

What's your best advice for the recently engaged entering the world of wedding stationery?
Enjoy the experience! Your stationery and invitations are the first impression you give of the style of your wedding and your style as a couple. Choose a stationer you feel confident with and let the magic begin. And be sure you have plenty of stationery for thank you notes!

What's been your favorite design so far and why?
I love styling invitations for brides who letterpress calligraphy on their invitations. It is such a personal expression of a classic tradition with a modern twist. It is unexpected and has the richness of true couture styling.

What's your best stationery cost-cutting tip that doesn't sacrifice style?
Order everything up front from your stationer. A smart stationer will be able to help you coordinate your designs into all the collateral you’ll need to set the tone for the entire wedding, from the correspondence to the event, and following. If you’re using letterpress or engraving, you should be able to save significantly by submitting your order all at once, with different due dates, according to when you need things.

What makes Bell’Invito different from other stationery companies?
It’s the combination of several things that sets us apart. We start with the best foundations of Italian cotton papers, and silk-screen envelope liners if the bride so chooses. Our designers have extensive art training, as opposed to only software knowledge, so the design is simple, clean, fresh, and above all, completely tailored to our client’s wishes. Of course, the actual process of hand feeding presses and hand assembly ensures the highest quality of each invitation. Each designer and sales associate is trained in customer service and etiquette. The overall Bell’Invito experience is something we pride ourselves on.

What's your biggest wedding stationery no-no?
Never mix formalities. If your wedding is formal, use an enveloped reply card. If your event is informal, use appropriate wording for the invitation. There is a fine line between having your own style and trying to rewrite etiquette. Choose a stationer who understands your style and can help guide you through the process. After all, it’s our job to make the best first impression of your event.

—Jeanine Edwards, Associate Editor

Photo courtesy of Kevin Dotolo

This week, we're checking in with New York-based baker April Reed. Reed launched her eponymous cake design company in 2005 with an unwavering commitment to cakes that actually tasted good. Since then, her bake shop has become known for modern designs, scary-realistic sugar flowers, and of course, delicious cake.

How does your bakery differ from the rest of the pack?
Flavor is job number one. Period. That is one of the biggest things that sets us apart from other cake design companies in New York. I graduated from the Culinary Institute of America and, prior to opening April Reed Cake Design, had been cooking in the three-star NYC restaurant world. My cake approach starts with flavor, then moves to design. I had a client who was unable to save the top tier of her cake for her anniversary because the guests demanded to eat it. It's the reason I make cake.

Why do you enjoy working on wedding cakes?
Wedding cakes are a chance to create stunning design while making people happy with tastiness. They are fleeting—they exist for four hours, then they are eaten. I love that...

What's been your absolute favorite wedding cake so far?
Thread designer Melissa Akey's cake is one of my all-time favorites. It's understated elegance to the max and wedding-y without being wedding-y. The single big blossom hearkens back to a bygone era of elegance. Melissa had an old-fashioned red velvet cake with cream cheese filling and white fondant. Her cake was trimmed in the most luxurious Mokuba ribbon.

Any advice for couples choosing their wedding cake?
Taste, taste, taste! After you have narrowed your top cake designers down to a style that works for you and your wedding's aesthetic, set appointments with them to taste their cake. It is a given that the wedding cake should be show-stopping, but it should also be the BEST piece of cake you will ever eat.

For more information on April Reed Cake Design, visit aprilreed.com.

—Rachel Jacoby, Assistant Editor

Mackenzie Sala of Kenzie Kate Invitations (kenziekate.com) is known for her trendsetting color combinations and eye-catching graphics. Here, she shares her top tips for brides.

When you think of stylish, "green" bridal gowns, you may very well wonder if such a thing even exists. The answer is a resounding "yes" thanks to Adele Wechsler's new gorgeous (and affordable!) Eco-Couture collection, an addition to her eponymous bridal label. We recently sat down with Wechsler to learn more about merging style and sustainability.

How did you first get started designing wedding gowns?
I sort of fell into bridal; it wasn’t by design. I was designing a line of occasion wear using knit fabric combinations and I loved working with beautiful French laces and cut velvets. Those fabrics look so beautiful in ivories and champagnes and blushes that I always included them in my collection. People started coming in and saying, "Oh, I want to get married in this." It was the early eighties so there was very little alternative to the Cinderella, puffy bridal gown, and my designs were more fashion conscious and modern. 

What made you decide to design organic pieces? 
After designing gowns for many years, I was sitting down to design yet another bridal collection and I began to think that the last thing we needed was more wedding gowns just to fill racks. I thought there had to be something more, and it must have heart and soul. I wanted to find a way to differentiate myself and make more meaningful gowns not only to me, but to the brides. My Hello Africa collection was the first to feature a charitable and humanitarian component, with hand-beading done in Africa. The next logical step seemed to be addressing the green movement, making something for brides who really care about the world in which they lives.

Who is the Eco-Couture bride?
She’s definitely educated and career-oriented, for sure. She’s also very down to earth. There’s something very down to earth about all my brides, actually. We do get a good mix, though, of the really earthy brides who absolutely want something eco-friendly and brides who don’t initially realize how important being eco-friendly is to them, but they end up connecting with the organic aspect on a different level.

Has working on the Eco-Couture collection affected your approach to your non-organic designs?
Of course. We’ve always used fair trade labor and all of our work is done locally in North America. We are continuing with our classic collection because we want to be able to work with all of those beautiful laces and other fabrications that aren’t yet classifiable as eco, but we incorporate the remnant fabrics into all our designs and of course we try not to be wasteful.

Do you have a favorite Eco-Couture dress?
I would say ‘Misty.’ It’s just really great on so many girls, just so flattering. It has a sort of wind-blown feel with the draping, and the way the organza is wrapped around it, it almost looks like a layer of mist. It’s very mysterious and romantic, but still classic.

Do you have any advice for brides just starting to shop?
I think that it’s important to realize that it’s not just about the dress. You obviously want a beautiful gown, but you want it to say something about who you are. Don’t just go for the big pouf of fabric; pick something that reflects your personality, something that reflects your sense of style. People should see you and not just a generic wedding dress.

To view the complete Eco-Couture collection and all of Adele Wechsler's wedding gowns, visit adelewechsler.com.

—Laura Wasson

This week, we’re checking in with Mercedes Strachwsky, the head designer at Bake Me A Cake (bakemeacake.net), a family owned and operated pastry shop and bakery in Orlando, FL. Here, Strachwky, a completely self taught pro who's been in the business for 20 years, shares her favorite cakes and best advice for brides.

How does your bakery differ from the rest of the pack?
Our bakery pays exceptional attention to detail. If the cake isn’t perfect, it doesn’t get delivered. We take pride in the relationships we create with our clients. They are more than a number or a dollar amount—they become a part of our family.

Why do you enjoy working on wedding cakes?
In our bakery, making wedding cakes is way more than flour, sugar and water. Rather, it is a culinary representation of the union between two individuals. The wedding cake is such a significant and memorable moment in couple’s lives.

What’s been your absolute favorite wedding cake so far?
One of our absolute favorite wedding cakes was a six-tier white fondant cake, which we actually created for a cake convention. The design was modern, romantic, spiritual, and elegant.

What’s the most unique wedding cake you’ve done so far?
One of our most unique wedding cakes was a three-tiered white fondant “under the sea” inspired cake. It’s completely covered with sugar coral and sea life. A sugar replica of the couple in wetsuits was the cake topper to pay home to their passion for scuba diving. They were thrilled to see their passion translated to their wedding cake.

Any advice for couples choosing their wedding cake?
>Relax and enjoy the experience of picking out your wedding cake! The experience should be one that you reflect on with happiness, not stress. Also, the design of the wedding cake should be one that is directed by the bride. That why there is a wedding cake and a groom’s cake to cater to both parts of the couple. Brides should feel free to express their personalities through design, making sure it complements to the wedding presentation as a whole.

To learn more about Bake Me a Cake pastry shop, visit bakemeacake.net.

—Rachel Jacoby, Assistant Editor

Jeffrey and Julia Woods (jeffandjuliawoods.com) have a special advantage in the world of wedding photography—they've been married for 18 years! Perhaps that makes the two so good at what they do. Here's their best advice for brides.

What influences your work?
Most of our influence comes from outside the wedding industry. French photographers Henri Cartier and Robert Doisneau and the painter Jack Vettriano are just a few of our favorite artists. If we had to choose a wedding photographer that really inspires us, it would be Parker Pfister. He challenges us daily in our work to find light, texture, and emotion.

What makes you different other wedding photographers?
How we treat people really distinguishes us. We love to have a relationship with our couples so we understand them and their style. With that understanding, we can capture their wedding day based on their relationship. Brides really appreciate that because their wedding pictures won't look like any other bride's. Weddings are about relationships, and our goal is to capture those relationships in many forms. We make every effort to be in the right spot at the right moment.

Film or digital. Why?
Well, to be honest, we still love film. We used film for the first 8 years of our career. However, in today's wedding market, with all the technology available and opportunities for social marketing like blogs, Facebook, Twitter and working with vendors, today's web-savvy brides seem to appreciate those benefits more than those of film.

This year, though, we were really nostalgic and started shooting super 8 film alongside our digital stills. By showing an image and then adding a few seconds of film footage, you get more holistic documentation of what happened in those moments. We have a vintage aesthetic that meshes well with great cinematography. Click here for a sample.

What advice can you give to couples looking for a wedding photographer?
Well first and foremost, don't get caught up in all the fluff. Make sure you have a connection with the photographer/photographers and connect with their style. It's a long day, and you will spend a lot of time with them. 

Every bride has a budget so make sure you know what you're getting up front and that there are no surprises on the back end after the wedding. Just because a photographer's price is less than others does not mean you're getting a great deal.

Also, many brides don't think about the wedding album at first, because they're worried about the price. However, your album will mean so much to you in the years to come; it tells the story in a way that images by themselves cannot.

What are some of the new wedding photography trends you've been noticing?
We believe there is nothing new under the sun. However, with new technology comes the ease of creating some new products. One is ability to capture HD video with an SLR camera. This has a potential to completely change wedding photography and wedding cinema-photography.

Album options continue to exceed the possibilities. With the use of vellum, metallic papers, environmentally-friendly materials and endless cover options, the wedding album can be anything you can dream up these days. It is very exciting as photographers, but also for clients.

What are your top five must-take shots?
Only five? This is a tough one...

To see more of Jeffrey and Julia's work, visit jeffreyandjuliawoods.com. 

—Jessica Derschowitz