Although a pillow is traditional for a ring bearer to carry, many brides are choosing to give their little guys in tuxes something different to tote down the aisle. Birds, nature and nests are all en vogue, so this simple little DIY project fits the bill for a creative ring holder perfectly!

You will need the following supplies for this project: sturdy box (the size and shape are up to you!), nice wrapping paper, moss, ribbon, a nest (available at craft stores unless you find a real one), fabric flowers, straight pins, hot glue gun, scissors and double sided tape.

Start by covering the top of your box with moss (available at craft stores), and you can use hot glue to adhere the moss to the lid of your box. Perfection is not the key as this is a rustic, nature inspired DIY. Then, use the scissors to cut your paper to the size of the box (unless you find an already beautiful box), and adhere it with the double sided tape.

Lay your ribbon on the lid to determine the pattern you would like, and then cut your ribbon to size. Use straight pins to secure the ribbon (hide them as much as possible, and you can remove them later), and hot glue the ribbon around to the underside of the lid.

Position the nest and flowers, and once you have your placement, just hot glue the pieces down, and voila! You have a beautiful ring bearer box. The rings can be laid securely into the nest, and the couple can keep precious wedding items in the box and display it in their home. I think that it would actually be a lovely place to store all of the cards with sentiments from the wedding … don’t you agree?

Again, we thank Emily Kim Bart for the use of this project from her own wedding. Don’t forget about our giveaway … entries close at 11:59 pm tonight. Do not miss the chance to win a beautiful initial necklace … click here to enter!

It’s Thanksgiving week, and we are taking a much needed blogiday! Enjoy the oldies but goodies that we have for you this week. 

What girl doesn’t love a fun, colorful pair of shoes? Jennike definitely made an adorable choice with her footwear for her wedding! Kimberly Burke of KD Burke Photography captured the moments between Aaron and Jennike on their wedding day, which included fun and special times with their 180 guests.

Here is a little bit about the couple and their engagement in Jennike’s own words …

We met in Richmond after graduating college in the summer of 2008. Aaron approached me at a local bar, and we went on our first date shortly after. After two years of dating, Aaron took me on a hot air balloon ride in Charlottesville (something I had always wanted to do). After helping the crew put up the balloon, we took off in it to see the sun rise over the mountains. When we were down with the hot air balloon ride, Aaron took me on a morning picnic near a vineyard, and he proposed while we were packing up!

As soon as I was introduced to my first Nancy Drew book as a young girl, I was hooked. As the star of stories filled with suspense and anticipation, Nancy was level headed, smart and resourceful, much like her male counterpart, Frank Hardy of The Hardy Boys mysteries. Just like a thrilling novel, love can hold the same secrets of the unknown while causing feelings of intrigue. So, armed with the memories of staying up late at night to read the children’s mysteries and a love for books, I propose a twist of fate… a secret unlocked within the City of Seven Hills. Meet our Frank and Nancy, whose life together begins when the books debuted in the 1930s, as they play out their story at the Old Jones Memorial Library in the historic city of Lynchburg, Virginia.

As a sidebar, I would also like to mention that our “models” are a real life couple… both local students who were dating at the time of our photo shoot, but they are now engaged. We like to think we had a little to do with their true to life love story, and we wish them many happy years together!

Ok, on to Frank and Nancy…

Whether it is a delectable food spread made especially for a gourmet magazine or a staging of an already established home, many teams of people express their creativity through deriving the perfect scene to photograph. You can open the pages of many modern magazines, and you will see what is the result of stylized photo shoots.

When I entered the wedding blog world, I enjoyed viewing beautifully done weddings and even breathtaking editorials, and I thought it would be amazing to derive an editorial shoot of Hill City Bride’s own. I knew it would be a lot of fun in addition to bringing a new dimension to the blog.

First I went to Jeremiah Guelzo of Stone Blue Productions, and we started to plan, plan, plan. We threw around a few theme ideas, but I knew that with the title of my blog being Hill City Bride (Lynchburg is the Hill City) and the shoot being brought to life in the pages of Lynchburg Living, it needed to tie in specifically to Lynchburg.

I thought of all sorts of ideas, but then I remembered that the Hill City has a sister city in France, which is Rueil-Malmaison. When I did a little research, I discovered that the couple Napoleon and Josephine resided there, and thus an idea was born … an idea that included a love story, a dilapidated building and a regal and rich feel. The theme was set in motion.

Then entered Liz Cook of Sincerely, Liz: Photography, and we brainstoremed some more. Our wonderfully formulated Project Management Team was rounded out with Michelle Duncan of Church Street Bridal and Crystal George of Crystal George Studios. We did things like take “field trips” to Church Street Bridal to look at potential wedding dresses, scout locations in the rain and have a great night of model casting calls to find our royal pair … such great memories, and we all had so much fun together.

I could not have asked for a more perfect group of people to help plan this editorial shoot, and for the implementation of the idea there was no other choice than the trusted vendors of Hill City Bride. I can’t wait to brag on all of the amazing vendors who worked hard to bring the vision to reality in the next posting … they are listed in credits for you at the end. Also, as a side note, I wanted to mention that the stemmed glasses belonged to the grandparents of Jeremiah … he was so intricately involved in the project, and I love how his family’s history was included in our shoot.

Enjoy this first of three image groupings. This one is entitled “The Sitting Room”, and it is a staged scene depicting Napoleon and Josephine. Napoleon was quite the writer of love letters, so we focused a bit on their timeless love and the affections Napoleon had for Josephine.

The Sitting Room

Special thanks goes out to …

Bowen Jewelry Company for the lending of their beautiful, vintage jewelry

Celebration for the tuxedo (minus our handmade ascot, which I believe was a napkin!)

Church Street Bridal for the wedding gown (which I dubbed “the cupcake dress”)

elle&anne for their handmade headpieces (ivory and dark plum … the green and burgundy one is from the collection of Crystal George) and help with the ascot

Interiors by Moyanne for the drapes, furnishings, rugs and major accessories for The Sitting Room scene

Love Is in the Air for their amazing calligraphy and some minor accessories for our set

Petal Flower Company for the fresh and colorful bouquet and boutonniere

RS Exclusive for their help in staging (and also being on ascot duty!)

Stone Blue Productions for our amazingly unforgettable photos

SPA 4109 for their wonderful artistry with eyelash extensions (Joellen Perkins), hair (Kate Pitera), makeup (Patty Mattingley) and nails (Jeanine Maxwell)

And of course thanks goes to our models, Gordana Ban (Josephine) and Jordan Sorber (Napoleon) for being wonderfully photogenic and great sports for the day.

Below is a full listing of those involved with the photo shoot:

Project Management Team

Jennifer Prince – Hill City Bride, Project Coordinator/Art Director

Jeremiah Guelzo – Stone Blue Productions, Photographer/Art Director

Crystal George – Crystal George Studios, Artistic Consultant

Michelle Duncan – Church Street Bridal/elle&anne, Style Consultant

Liz Cook – Sincerely, Liz: Photography, Creative Consultant

Hill City Bride Vendors

Bowen Jewelry Company – jewelry

Celebration – tuxedo

Church Street Bridal – gown, headpieces

Michelle Duncan, elle&anne– headpieces

Interiors by Moyanne – drapes, furnishings, rugs

Jennifer England, La Bella Torta – cake artist

Linda Hall and Mary Love, Love Is in the Air – food, calligraphy

Elisha Dudley, Petal Flower Company – bouquet, boutonniere

Sandra Guelzo, RS Exclusive – table design, decor

Sabrena Deal, S Carter Studios – favors

Brad Bennett, Shaking Hands Productions – cinematography

SPA 4109 – Eyelash Extensions (Joellen Perkins), Hair (Kate Pitera), Makeup (Patty Mattingley), Nails (Jeanine Maxwell)

Please click here for more of this stunning editorial photo shoot.

Photographers are so in tune with capturing the details at a wedding, and several of them sneak away for a mini photo session with the rings. The bride and groom each cherish their ring as an outward symbol of their love and commitment, and we are excited to share this photo set with you that is compliments of some of the wonderful photographers of Hill City Bride. Enjoy!

The texture of vintage books is a perfect backdrop for this stunning ring photographed by Adam Barnes of Adam Barnes Fine Art Photography.

How appropriate … “The Art of Marriage”, as seen on an antique magazine cover, adds grace and beauty to this image captured by Crystal George of Crystal George Studios.

Sabrena Deal’s perspective of these rings gives a unique flair to this portrait of the bride and groom by S Carter Studios.

I love that there are so many metaphors for this photo … making beautiful music together, living in harmony … etc. What a stunning shot … it was taken by Liz Cook of Sincerely, Liz: Photography.

The bouquet itself is stunning, and the roses make for a great nestling spot for this pair of rings photographed by Jeremiah Guelzo of Stone Blue Productions.