MarieSam Sanchez

Wedding Website: MarieSamandTommy.com
MarieSam Sanchez is an LA freelance journalist with a love for sports and a passion for all things wedding. On June 26, 2009, she married her long-time sweetheart Tommy on the beautiful shores of Akumal, Mexico in front of 65+ of their family and dearest friends. The pair met in an AOL chatroom more than 10 years ago and made it official on the anniversary of their first date. She and Tommy reside in Southern California with her 14-year-old daughter Cheyenne, whom she proudly proclaims is her “mini-me” and will one day grow up to be a rock star.

Aside from aspirations to one day become a Sideline Sports Reporter, MarieSam loves spending time with her family, shopping, eating, traveling and learning about other cultures. Her own wedding experience also spawned a newfound appreciation for good photography and images inspired by love. It is her life’s challenge to fill her passport with a rainbow of stamps from every corner of the earth when all is said and done and of course a bulging Flickr account filled with amazing photos capturing every journey.

MarieSam says the perfect date with her husband would include a day-time USC Trojan football game/victory (even though he’s a UCLA Bruin), a delicious meal followed by a Lakers game/victory (they both agree on this one), post-game talk radio, and a cozy couch to fall asleep on next to her husband and daughter.

She describes herself as a person with big dreams, a joy for life and an affinity for laughter. She hopes that one day her lifelong love affair with writing will finally inspire her to write a book about life, love and everything ugly and beautiful in between.

Leaving a Stamp on Your Wedding

Posted by MarieSam Sanchez on March 23, 2010

After picking our destination wedding date and location, we really focused in on setting the tone of our Mexican paradise themed event. So we decided to brand it with the moniker “El Verano del Amor” aka Summer of Love. We loved the way the words rolled off the tongue and how it made our wedding sounds so sexy, beautiful and exciting — the exact elements we envisioned our wedding to be!

Photo Credit: Stephanie Williams Photography

Once our theme was set, we went even further and decided to create a logo/monogram that we could use on all our save-the-dates, invites and other little wedding touches. I wanted to “brand” our event with symbols and words that would forever echo the love, laughter and joy shared during our special day.

As a sibling to one of the most talented artists I’ve ever known, it was only common sense that I ask my brother to create our monogram. He spent the next couple weeks drafting our design on his computer sketch pad and after plenty of color, style and format modifications — mostly due to my slightly bridezilla complex — we finally had our logo!

Design Credit: EUSA Artistry

I will always remember seeing the final product because it made my heart ache with joy. We couldn’t be happier with the outcome because it was custom made to our taste and perfectly embodied the tone of our wedding ~ relaxation, nature, and love in a blissful paradise.

We used the logo on our Boarding Pass Save-the-Dates as well as our Passport Invites created by Ana de Roux. It gave our paper products and decor the perfect little touch and whenever someone saw our monogram, they would get excited and think of our wedding.

Photo Credit: MarieSam Sanchez

Photo and Design Credit: Ana De Roux

Photo and Design Credit: Ana de Roux

Photo Credit: Stephanie Williams Photography

Since our logo was circular, it didn’t always fit in the format of our paper goods. So, we decided to have a second more simpler monogram made to allow us more freedom to decorate our wedding decor and guests’ handouts. After a little research, we decided to enlist the services of a former destination bride who now designs logos — Allurements by Rebecca. She was offering a design special at the time, and once again, after a little fine tuning, we had another beautiful creation that blended in perfectly with our wedding theme and decor.

Design Credit: Allurements by Rebecca

Photo Credit: MarieSam Sanchez

It’s been almost six months since we married, but seeing both of our logos still gives me goosebumps and makes me smile!

I know not everyone is lucky enough to have access to an artist who can draw your design, but with a little patience and creativity you can either make your own monogram or use the services of one of the many wedding logo design companies that are out there.

Some tips to ensure that your logo brands your wedding to perfection:

– use your wedding color palette
– if you have a particular theme or design to your wedding, try to find a way to include it in your logo
– make sure your logo is clear and legible
– brand your wedding by using your logo in your paper products, stationary, and decor
– LOVE your logo!

And on that note, I’ll leave you with some exquisitely beautiful monogram infused decor by some very talented design artists. Happy branding!

Photo and Design Credit: Sproullie Designs

Photo and Design Credit: Allurements by Rebecca

Photo and Design Credit: Ana de Roux

Filed under: Customization, Our Brides & Grooms

March 23, 2010 by MarieSam Sanchez

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Trashing The Dress

Posted by MarieSam Sanchez on October 20, 2009

Finding “the wedding dress” is probably one of the most stressful yet wonderfully exhilarating aspects of being a bride. So imagine the look of horror that blanketed my mom’s face when I told her I wanted to “trash” mine.

I spent the next 30 minutes of that conversation explaining the concept of a “Trash the Dress” (TTD) photo session — “a session that the newly married couple partakes in where the photographer captures their first adventure as husband and wife … in a magically beautiful setting … under the perfect light … snapshots filled of love, laughter, and passion,” I tell her. “Oh that sounds so nice,” my mom said as her quizzical frown turned into a smile.

Photo credit: edpingol.blogspot.com

Photo Credit: Nathaniel Thompson Photography

Then I unleashed the kicker … “Oh yeah, and sometimes the couple gets in the water or lays on sand, dirt, and mud in their wedding attire, hence the term ‘trash the dress’.” Yeah, mom’s smile quickly faded and back came the disapproving scowl and more confusion.

Photo Credit: Nicholaus Haskins Photography

So in an attempt to convince her that this artsy yet edgy concept was truly all the rage these days, I pulled up website after website of breathtaking photos that first introduced me to this fabulous style of imagery. And slowly but surely she began to understand the magic of the TTD — fun-loving, romantic, sexy and stress-free. I also told her that many brides said their dresses were perfectly fine after a little air-drying (for those destination wedding brides) followed by a good ol’ professional cleaning at home.

Photo Credit: Elizabeth Medina Photography

There is no doubt that wedding day photos are uniquely special and emanate an incredible sense of beauty all their own. Wedding photos represent the complete uniting of a couple’s lives together and a new beginning — kind of like those photos of a mother holding her baby for the first time.

Photo Credit: KLK Photography

But “trash the dress” photos, sometimes referred to as “day-after photos” (if you don’t plan on really dirtying up the gown and suit), capture a couple’s first steps together, embarking on a new adventure. Without the stress of a wedding day schedule. Without guests who are vying for attention. Without worrying that the decor looks exactly how you envisioned or any worries that everything “goes as planned.” The TTD is carefree, exciting and truly all about love. It’s the start of a couple’s lives together, the beginning of new plateaus — kind of like those photos of a baby walking for the very first time.

Unfortunately, my dreams to dirty up my beautiful wedding dress were not truly fulfilled because of the material of my gown, so we opted for a “day-after” session instead. And although we managed to stay dry and dirt-free, the time we shared was just as fun and magical as I envisioned it would be.

And much like I toddler taking those first few steps … we loved, we lived and we laughed together into the start of something new and special.

Our Day-After Session with Stephanie Williams Photography

Photo Credit: Stephanie Williams Photography

A shot with the local children of Akumal pueblo.

Photo Credit: Stephanie Williams Photography

And just a few others that happen to be my favorites …

Photo Credit: KLK Photography

Photo Credit: Divine Light Wedding Photography

Elizabeth Medina Photography

Filed under: Our Brides & Grooms, Photography

October 20, 2009 by MarieSam Sanchez

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The Path You’ll Take

Posted by MarieSam Sanchez on September 4, 2009

There are all kinds of milestones in a woman’s life. Your first crush, your first kiss, and the awful first zit. Hmmm then of course times when you realize who your real friends are, and then the shock you feel when you lose someone to death. Sometimes equally painful is the day you realize your heart actually can be broken like an eggshell on the edge of a mixing bowl. Conversely, the moment may also come when you realize that you’ve found the love of your life and every day brings upon a blank page ready to be filled with life changing moments and vivid memories full of love and laughter.

But perhaps there is not a more stress-filled yet wonderfully exhilarating event than “THE WEDDING DAY” — and yes, it warrants all caps because when it comes down to it, the entire experience really is just that fabulous!

Photo credit: Stephanie Williams Photography

It was just a little more than a year ago when I really started delving into full wedding mode. With our big day set for June 26, 2009 in Akumal, Mexico, the clock was ticking and the to-do-list ever expanding much like my waistband *sigh* Ah yes, the fluctuating weight was just one of my many ups and downs during my bride-to-be era!

Now if you were anything like me during that 1 year+ leading up to the big day, your mind is probably racing with never-ending queries, thoughts, ideas and concerns. This really is a wonderfully exciting and special time so soak it all in — stress, bills and all — because you will only get the chance to be a first-time bride once, so make sure you cherish every moment!

With that being said, the path to your wedding day will not always filled with shiny yellow bricks that are easy to follow. And if it is, please tell Dorothy I love her red shoes!!! But really, there will likely be a few ups and downs, some disappointments, and I’m sure a couple of surprises when least expected.

But try not to punch the panic button too fast, take a deep breath, and know these zany problems are prone to every wedding experience. And hey, if you do by chance get blessed with “perfect” planning and a stellar wedding day to go with it, PLEASE PLEASE give me a call and we’ll bottle up your magic formula and sell it! I’ve already got an informercial ready to go and we’ll have millions of customers lined up at the door, I promise, lol. But really, when the old wedding path leads you astray, try to keep focused on THE WEDDING DAY and enjoy the ride no matter how bumpy it gets. Trust me, while it may feel like a marathon, as you near the end you’ll wonder where the time went and you’ll miss it like an old pair of comfy jeans that made your butt look great, times 100.

Photo credit: Stephanie Williams Photography

Throughout my own wedding experience there were many times I cried tears of frustration and moments I even tried to convince my then fiance/now husband we were better off just canning the whole “destination wedding” idea. Between zany airfare prices, travel and accommodation concerns, unexpected illness and death in the family — Oh, and how can I forget my 2-week obsession with Fox News and CNN when I cried buckets during the “Swine Flu” meltdown, and lest I forget my bridal shower being postponed twice! At one point I honestly thought our wedding was jinxed. But somehow through all the mixups, missing emails, unruly bridesmaids, last minute RSVPs and cancelations, everything came together like a flock of birds in the beautiful blue sky, or in my case like a school of sergeant majors in the Caribbean Sea. With a trails of tears left behind on my wedding path, everything just fell into place and it … was magic.

So get your rest, drink lots of water, and put on a comfy pair of shoes. Your wedding awaits, and believe me, it’s a ride you’ll never forget!
Image Credits: Stephanie Williams Photography