Hello, readers. This is Kelly, with a rare personal note.
Steve Jobs once said, “The only way to do great work is to love what you do.” An entire year has come and gone, I still love what I do and I hope the LTEC readers believe we have done great work. To think this amazing, whirlwind of an opportunity has been a part of the world for a year is a crazy thought. Countless hours, reading and research have gone into this labor of love and Melanie and I hope, dear readers, we have brought joy and invaluable wedding inspiration and assistance into your lives.
To celebrate our year in the wedding blog world, we thought we would highlight our favorite moments from 2015.
Do you have a favorite blog? Maybe we helped an idea to spark or a party to be had? Is there something we missed that you wish we’d cover in a post or series of posts? Share with us in the comments. We hope to continue bringing wedding wonders to the blog world for many years to come.
​Marigny Opera House
The Marigny Opera House held a lot of great moments for me. I had never been to the space and love experiencing new areas of the city. I was extremely excited to have the opportunity to not only visit, but also bring my camera and snap some photos of the space. Being a non-denominational space housed in a church originally built in 1853 gives the Marigny Opera House one-of-a-kind characteristics and a unique backdrop for any type of ceremony or wedding gathering.
Heidi Elnora Interview
Heidi Elnora is quickly gaining ground in the bridal fashion world. As a fan of the original seasons of Bravo’s “Project Runway,” I remembered seeing Elnora compete for a few episodes, followed by a few years later when I came across her “build a bride” concept after the launch of her TLC show. Meeting Elnora was a definite treat. It's nice to see how designers interact with the real brides that are wearing their designs, as well as get to converse about their process and what inspires them. She was a delight and interviewing her was a highlight for the year.
Ring Thing Series
One of the first things anyone asks when a couple gets engaged is “can I see the ring?” The engagement ring is something that holds the spot for the wedding up until the Big Day. It’s important that not only the ring is of good quality, but also the couple knows what they paid for. We put together the Ring Thing series as a way to highlight each aspect of a diamond ring – the 4 C’s. It was fun for LTEC because we knew overall color and clarity guidelines, but the little, detailed intricacies were new to us.
Cultural Traditions
One of my favorite series to contribute to is the cultural traditions pieces. Weddings as they are celebrated in modern America are not the same as wedding ceremonies and celebrations in say India, China or other countries across the world. Even in our own country, people of different religions and beliefs practice a multitude of wedding traditions. A few of my favorites include the Indian and Hindu Mehndi Ceremony and the Chinese zodiac pairing tradition.
Wediquette Wednesdays
​Wediquette Wednesday is something LTEC started as a way to create dialogue with our readers. Outside of the blog, we are constantly asked etiquette questions referring to weddings. Who pays for what? Is it okay to have a brides-man? Is it okay to buy gifts not on a registry? All of these questions, and many more, were asked and we needed a way to respond. Wediquette Wednesday was born and has become our longstanding weekly article. Our biggest question to date has been “is it OK to go barefoot at the reception?” and what a response we received. We are always looking for your questions. Send any Wediquette questions to Melanie@MyNewOrleans.com.
Thank you, readers, for continuing to stick with us for this year. In the year to come we hope to bring you new ideas, inspiration and a whole lot of wedding bliss.
Hi, everyone. This is Melanie. I couldn’t agree more with everything Kelly mentioned in her recap. Especially the part about us working to bring something to you each day that is not only informative, but also, when possible, entertaining. Thankfully, New Orleans is a city that loves to celebrate, especially weddings, and has a wealth of wedding-related businesses, trends and — most importantly — traditions. As the editor of the blog, I love seeing what Kelly comes up with each day and when needed, helping her grow some of the ideas. That said, we always love hearing from you, so don’t hesitate to email one or both of us (Kelly’s email is kelly@myneworleans.com) or leave notes in the comments. An interesting byproduct of this endeavor is that the blog has become a resource for party planning in general, not just wedding planning. Several readers have mentioned to me that they use it to get ideas, find locations, florists, party frocks and more for all kinds of celebrations. So thank you to our bride and groom readers and also to our party-loving readers. Cheers to another year of fabulous and fun wedding and party blogging and — to those of you getting married — to your upcoming weddings!
