Jennifer Carroll Events Blog

{Inspiring Ideas} A Winery Wedding Suite

Happy Friday! The Jennifer Carroll Events office has been aflutter with tons of new paper projects and the arrival of Baby Carroll into our lives! Baby Emma was born Sunday, February 13, and the entire Carroll family is happy, healthy, and excited to be together.

We're thrilled to find that some of our current brides are garnering inspiration from the design details of our past brides. With summer weddings right around the corner, we've been hard at work designing papers-- invitations, ceremony programs, menus, escort cards-- for several of our brides getting hitched at some of the area's gorgeous outdoor venues. Here's a peek at some of the past papers that are fueling our design fire right now...

{photography by Jen Fariello}

All of these suites incorporate a unique design element with vibrant colors and an extra little textural flourish-- is that a feather? Why yes!-- to give each wedding that je ne sais quoi. Do you see anything to inspire your next event?

Happy weekend!

-Jennifer & Stephanie

Love, fit for a {president}

In honor of President's Day, we here at Jennifer Carroll Eventsfound ourselves thinking back to a recent wedding that showcased historic Virginia beauty-- Robin and Steve's Ash Lawn-Highland nuptials! When the couple chose James Monroe's estate as the location for their May nuptials, we were thrilled to transform the historic venue into the wedding of their dreams.

{photography by Eric Kelley}

From fun lawn games and a delectable dessert bar, to live peacocks wandering the venue and a flirty blue and yellow color scheme, Robin and Steve combined historic beauty with their lively personalities to create the day of their dreams.

Happy Monday! How are you spending your President's Day?

-Jennifer & Stephanie

Leigh & Scott in Southern Living Weddings!

Fans of Southern Living, take note: the South's premiere magazine has started up its wedding publication again! While we're so lucky to live in a country where weddings are gorgeous no matter where you live, we at Jennifer Carroll Events do have a special place in our hearts for those oh-so-Southern soirees-- and for its debut issue, Southern Living Weddings is featuring one of our beautiful 2010 couples, Leigh and Scott!

{photography by Jen Fariello}

Leigh and Scott's King Family Vineyards wedding was chock-full of rustic details that spoke to their love of Charlottesville. From a bluegrass band and mint jelups to their yellow-and-green color palette {inspired by the vines at King Family and the Blue Ridge Mountain backdrop} and bocce ball lawn games, Leigh and Scott paid homage to their Southern roots.

Thanks so much to Leigh and Scott for letting us be a part of their big day! We're so honored that Southern Living-- one of our most favorite magazines-- chose one of our couples to include in their first issue. Thanks to all the incredible vendors who helped us bring Leigh and Scott's fun ideas to reality:

Photos: Jen Fariello Photography

Florals: Pat's Floral Designs

Desserts and Cake: Hot Cakes

Caterer: Have Food Will Travel

Location: Westminster Presbyterian Church and King Family Vineyards

Happy Friday! Enjoy the spring weather!

-Jennifer & Stephanie

{It's Football Time!}

Fall brides-- pull out your calendars! The UVA Football team has announced their 2011 schedule! No, we at Jennifer Carroll Events are not assuming you're a huge football fan and eager to get your season tickets. But as every savvy Charlottesville gal knows, home football games can cause the entire city to shut down-- and that could make a huge impact on your fall nuptials.

{The UVA versus Va Tech rivalry usually brings a ton of fans to town!}

For those not in the know: UVA plays 12 football games each season and approximately half of those games are played on their home field at Scott Stadium, located in the heart of UVA territory. Usually {depending on the opponent}, Charlottesville becomes football central: fans come in from out of town {on both sides of the pigskin}, traffic can be difficult, especially around the University, the Corner, and Route 29, and students flood every available sidewalk. Even if you're not planning on having your ceremony or reception near Grounds, you should mark these weekends down-- oftentimes hotels and restaurants are booked solid.

But no need to fret if you've already sent out your Save the Dates for one of these weekends! Early planning will ensure your gorgeous fall wedding will go off with a hitch. Just be sure to inform your out of town guests to get to town early-- and wear only UVA gear!

UVA's Home Games:
September 3: against William & Mary

September 24: against Southern Miss

October 1: against Idaho

October 15: against Georgia Tech

October 22: against NC State

November 12: against Duke

November 26: against Virginia Tech

Happy Wednesday!

-Jennifer & Stephanie

{Happy Valentine's Day!}

Happy Valentine's Day, from our hearts to yours! We here at Jennifer Carroll Events hope all of our dear friends, family, and readers out there have a fantastic Monday-- start your week by giving your darling a big smooch!

{Valerie & David}

{Tati & Justin}

{Leigh & Scott}

{Chloe & AJ}

{Alissa & Jeff}

{Don't you just love Love?} Happy Monday!

-Jennifer & Stephanie

Super Bowl Snack Time!

It's football time! Friends and family might not hear those words from the girls here at Jennifer Carroll Events often, but even we don our favorite team's jersey or start spouting stats when Super Bowl fever comes around. Throwing a game-watching soiree this year? Jazz up your usual gridiron grub with some delicious-- but simple-- snacks!

One of our new favorite goodies to munch on comes from the darling food blog, Love and Butter. Cake pops are a growing trend and, besides being delectable, are super simple to make! Check out the latest issue of Celebrating Everyday Life with Jennifer Carroll for more Super Bowl tips here!

Ingredients (to make 50 pops):

1 box cake mix OR 1 store-bought pound cake

{if you choose to make your own cake, you'll need the ingredients listed on the box as well}

1 can frosting

1 pkg. chocolate candy bark for dipping

Paper lollypop sticks

Styrofoam block

White icing and tips for piping

 

Step One:

Prepare cake according to package. Let cake cool completely. {If using a store-bought cake, skip to step two.}

Step Two:

In a large bowl, finely crumble cake. Add 1/2 of the frosting {you can add more if needed, but start with 1/2}. Using a spoon, gently combine mix and frosting until it's well blended like cookie dough.

Step Three:

Scoop dough into balls and roll into football shapes. Place on a wax paper-lined baking sheet. Once all dough is rolled, place sheet in fridge to set.

Step Four:

Meanwhile, melt chocolate candy bark in the microwave. Be careful not to overheat it. Remove footballs from fridge and grab your sticks. Dip end of stick into melted chocolate no more than 1/2". Then stick the chocolate dipped end into the football. Repeat until all footballs are on sticks. Let chocolate set.

Step Five:

Get your styrofoam block out. Dip entire football into melted chocolate to cover. Gently tap the football to allow excess chocolate to run off. Stick football into styrofoam block to allow it to dry.

Step Six:

Once footballs are dry, lay them on your baking sheet and prepare your white icing for piping the laces. Pipe the long vertical lines first, then pipe your short horizontals "laces". Serve and enjoy!

 

Happy Friday! Go team!

-Jennifer & Stephanie

{Introducing} The February Issue

Happy February! 2011 is off and running, and here at Jennifer Carroll Events, we're so excited to be running with it! We know there might be times when winter seems never-ending-- but there's plenty of reasons to celebrate, despite the occasional cold and snow, and we're excited to show you how to turn the everyday into a memorable event in our latest issue of Celebrating Everyday Life with Jennifer Carroll!

This two-month issue is packed with tons of fun winter DIY projects, inspirations for Valentine's Day dinners and decor, two fabulous weddings, and tips for how to make the most of the upcoming Super Bowl Sunday! Click here to read or download the new issue!

We're so grateful to all our friends, family, and clients-- at Jennifer Carroll Events, we're so lucky to work with the best and most inspiring people! If you love this issue, head here to subscribe to our monthy newsletter {laid out like an online magazine!} and "like" us on Facebook to stay up to date with all our events, projects, and inspirations!

Happy Wednesday!

-Jennifer & Stephanie