NWAWI October 23 Issue

Would you like to see your wedding picture on the cover of the NWA Wedding Ideas magazine? Submit your photos to info@nwaweddingideas.com with the subject "Magazine Cover Photo Submission" and then watch for the next issue to see if you're photo was chosen!

Wedding Crossword

Across

[2] A small gift given to the guests

[3] Groom upon saying I do

[5] “You may now the bride”

[6] Words before a kiss

[7] Tie the !

[8] “I shall” and “I promise” e.g.

[11] A young girl who carries owers at a wedding

[12] Bride upon saying I do

Down

[1] Party held for a bride to be before the wedding

[4] A dress worn by the bride at a wedding

[7] Posed to Propose

[9] Deep and passionate a ection

[10] Commitment symbol

Hand crafted goat milk soaps, lotions, lip balm, beard balm & oil, and wax melts! The perfect gift for your wedding party.

Find us on the square at the Bentonville Farmers Market and Under The Pines on the corner of Hwy's E and 90 in Pineville, MO.

This month we chose Shannon and Christian Madrid for our cover shot. What a beautiful couple! Why wouldn't we choose them to be on the cover of the Northwest Arkansas Wedding Ideas magazine?

Cover Photo: Shannon and Christian Madrid

Cover Photo Credit: Germiniani Photography

Inside you will also find our featured vendor article, Pretty Old Stuff NWA, an outstanding company to rent all sorts of beautiful items to make your wedding perfect. We also have a story about the history and tradition of the white wedding gown.

Under The Pines Event Venue

Under The Pines Event Venuewhere cherished memories come alive amidst nature's embrace. Call (417) 455-6641 to book your event.

Pretty Old Stuff

Beautiful Vintage Rentals and Tablescape Design

Vintage china plates glimmer and goblets sparkle, as sunbeams highlight a beautiful and special setting. For Julianne Darnell and Annie Johnson, it’s a dream come true.

The mother-daughter duo offers hand curated, customized tablescape items for all kinds of gatherings, ranging from weddings and corporate events for up to 300 people, to small parties with only 10-20 guests.

Pretty Old Stuff – a vintage design and event rental house – features a collection of lovingly curated vintage china, dinnerware, teapots, teacups and saucers, brass, glass, crystal, linens, and flatware.

“We specialize in providing customized tablescape orders for weddings and parties and events of all sizes as well as complete onsite designer set up,” Julianne said.

Pretty Old Stuff also serves as a cash/carry resource for customers and event planners who need unique vintage tabletop items to complete their own design plans.

“We have the largest rental collection of colored and clear midcentury goblets and vintage

china in the state,” Julianne said.

The product collection is unique, because the duo carries many things that other local rental provider friends don’t have. “The vast majority of our items are upcycled vintage, and handpicked one by one,” Annie said.

Julianne formed Pretty Old Stuff LLC in 2014, after working with her friends Danna and Tim Grear, as coordinator at their daughter’s vintage themed garden style wedding.

The Grears had spent months scouring the planet to collect enough perfect vintage china combinations for their family’s celebration, and the process was fun, but lengthy, and not without challenges in finding enough of just the right items for the desired table design . From that experience, Danna and Julianne had the idea to curate and offer a full upcycled vintage tableware rental collection to NWA and the business was born.

In 2019, Julianne’s daughter, Annie, moved “home” to Northwest Arkansas and started working weekends with the company. The two quickly realized they were a dynamite team, and Annie left her career field of college administration to join the company full time and has now become part owner.

“We ask the client to tell us a little bit about their ideas for whatever

event they’re doing, or to send a photo or two,” Annie said. “We’re passionate about understanding the customer’s vision using just the perfect tableware to bring what’s in their mind’s eye to life, and we include a limited complimentary design concept with every order.”

“We consider the most important factor for a successful tablescape design: capturing the vibe that the client has in their thoughts, and helping them achieve that when they feature our Pretty Old Stuff at their celebration or event,” Julianne added.

“Our designers will add to your inspiration ideas with ours, and pull together beautiful pieces for your order to bring your design plan to fruition,” Julianne said.

“We get real joy in helping bring the client’s celebration tablescape ideas to life! We want each client to feel that has been achieved when they have hired us for onsite design staging, or rented our pieces,” Annie added.

“We love being the vintage tablescape resource for NWA and getting to play a small role in the celebrations of our clients – the real good stuff of life!” Julianne said.

To ensure a successful event, customers should email inquiries to www.prettyoldstuffnwa.com, and reserve desired wish list items with deposit, immediately after receiving their complimentary design concept and quote, since orders are filled on a first come first served basis.

If you're looking for a quaint country church that has everything that you need for your wedding, SimsBerry Chapel will be available soon! It not only offers the sanctuary for the main ceremony but a sound room, two separate rooms for wedding preparations, and a basement with a full kitchen and bathrooms for your reception.

The White Wedding Gown: History & Tradition

Article by Sally Carroll

Most people don’t know that the white wedding gown tradition was fashionably revived, mainly in an effort to market the lace industry.

In the early centuries, a wealthy bride wore a white gown to display prominence. It was difficult to keep white clothing clean, however, because of the lack of proper washing methods and easy laundering availability. So many brides opted for other shades, including red – which became increasingly popular.

Some prominent and rich brides even chose to wear furs and jewels to display their fortune at the altar.

To properly show off her treasure of jewels, Margaret of York had to be carried into the church at her 1468 wedding. She simply couldn’t walk with her incredible adornment of jewels.

Queen Victoria changed all that.

The 20-year-old bride-to-be knew her impending wedding to Prince Albert of England in February 1840 would set the stage for her legacy. All eyes would be on her – and her approach would speak volumes to her people.

Conveying the right message was critical.

Queen Victoria also wanted to promote the country’s lace making business. A cohort of extremely talented lacemakers worked diligently to perfect and sell their craft. The industry, unfortunately, had taken a downturn. Queen Victoria wanted to push the lace maker industry, displaying their exquisite craft in a worldly showcase.

How best to do that?

Queen Victoria carefully considered her options, and had her dressmaker design a plain gown, adorned with the locally crafted lace

from Honiton and Beer, in Devon.

Approaching her wedding in a simple gown – minus the jewels and furs – would send a strong message to her people.

As she approached her impending marriage to Prince Albert, she wanted the people to know she was going to take her role very seriously. Her message? That she would be a strong, solid advocate for her people as Queen, not caught up in fancy affairs.

“I wore a white satin dress, with a deep flounce of Honiton lace, an imitation of an old design,” she wrote in her journal.

The message – and the white wedding gown idea – caught on.

Wealthy brides quickly flocked to the new fashion trend. “Lace makers across English were thrilled by the sudden surge in the popularity of their handiwork,” writes Julia Baird in Victoria: The Queen: An Intimate Biography of the Woman Who Ruled An Empire.

Queen Victoria was not the first royal to wear white, as Princess Philippa of England did so in 1406 and Mary, Queen of Scots, wore white in 1558, but it was Queen Victoria’s white wedding gown fashion that quickly became all the rage.

Fashion magazines began to dub the white wedding gown as a representation to a bride’s purity and innocence.

The fashion continues today. Many brides choose a white wedding gown to symbolize their girlhood innocence and devotion, following the long and rich tradition started in 1840.