Cristina Northcutt had a fantastic bunch a girls surrounding her on her wedding day. All 8 of them decided to get "celebrity treatment" at New Leaf...hair and make up for all--yipee! We love when that happens because everyone seems to look and feel so good when they leave. You can always seem to tell when a woman feels pretty...it's that whole confidence thing. It's amazing what some lip gloss, hairspray and a few bobby pins can do for a girl. The best is when you don't even have to stress out about doing your hair and make up yourself, then you really feel like J-Lo in the chair!

Do you know when you meet someone and you feel like you have known her forever? Well, that's how we felt about our bride Jonah Neagle. I bet the minute her fiance met her, he was smitten too.

Jennifer is just an all around amazing person. She radiates beauty on the inside and out and is always smiling. Her husband is a lucky man (but I bet he knows that).

Jennifer Rossi has been another faithful New Leaf-er since 2006 so we were ecstatic when she got engaged last year. Actually, her sister Elizabeth, another New Leaf-er got married in 2007 in Newport and we did her hair too!

We knew it was only a matter of time before New Leaf would be 'discovered'. Well...not really. Let me explain....

A year and a half ago, Floridians Michelle Cassidy and John Bannon decided to tie the knot in Newport, RI. Little did they know that they would find themselves being filmed for a network television series on WEtv called "Platinum Weddings". It's basically a show about really fancy weddings. Please don't confuse this show with Bridezillas (although that show is a fantastic car wreck kind of reality programming). Michelle was nothing like those brides...she was sweet, down-to-earth, and incredibly easy-going. Oh, and beautiful.

When I first met Danielle Demarco, she was this statuesque beauty who spoke so eloquently that I started to make sure I pronounced all my R's and didn't say 'wicked'.  Turns out, she is an incredible Pilates instructor (perfect posture explained) in Providence and was born and bred in Miami, Florida (lack of New England dialect explained). The beauty comes from her Cuban heritage. Lucky. Anyways, hurricanes slam Florida all the time, right? When is the last time a hurricane hit New England? Well, Danielle gets married the day Hurricane Danny rolls into town. Oh, the irony!

The reception was at the Bristol Harbor Inn right around the corner. They have this beautiful location in the harbor where the boats go by and the sunsets are amazing.

Okay, so maybe all this bravado while blogging about "perfect" wedding weather has finally caught up to New Leaf. We talked a good game. Overconfidence never pays off. A hurricane swept into town and it was mad. It was angry that every weekend, brides kept having sunny days and outdoor venues. Well, not this time.

I knew Gretchen Babyak's wedding was at Blithewold but I was really praying that she was NOT planning on an outdoor ceremony. She is a smart New Yorker so rest assured, her ceremony was in a church--whew!

With a hurricane on it's way, Megan O'Brien sure had luck on her side. The day was sunny, crisp and fall-ish...not what you'd expect for an August wedding! Megan had a vintage-theme in mind for her hair and make up. She brought in a Jessica Simpson image to inspire me:

I urged Meg not to be horrified as a teased and curled her hair. I told her that a New Leaf bride would never walk out the door with "pageant hair"...GASP!! I just needed to make sure it lasted all day and night and this is how the magic happens...

Katie Hewett was truly one of the sweetest brides we have ever met! Although she lives in Boston now, to our pleasant surprise, she grew up right here in Bristol (locals call themselves 'Bristoleans'...cute, right?)