Farm-To-Table

Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards in Charlottsville, VA allows your guests to enjoy the panoramic mountain backdrop while enjoying traditional menus centered on the abundance of locally produced veggies, fruit, meat and cheeses from local farmers.

Acacia in Frederick Maryland is a smaller venue and may be a great rehearsal dinner option. Acacia emphasizes fresh natural ingredients prepared on site using whole grains and organic products produced locally whenever possible. It is new American cuisine with exotic fusion in a warm California setting.

ABU hosted a wedding last September at Grandale Farm in Purcellville, VA. Head chef AJ Clark is an amazing host and prepares an exquisite menu made from scratch using locally ingredients whenever possible. Grandale provides catering services to several nearby vineyards as well.

For those of you who want farm-to-table ingredients, but don't necessarily want the rustic backdrop, Ridgewells catering whips up delicious and beautiful menus from sustainable farm-to-table ingredients. They are leading the way with organic and green entertaining in the Washington, DC area.

Images via (2) Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards and Ridgewells

Tips to host an Eco-Friendly Wedding

Looking to host a full-on sustainable wedding or maybe just want to infuse some green trends? Here are some tips and a few of our fav eco-friendly finds:

Green doesn't have to sacrifice beauty these days, look for invitations printed on recycled paper with recycled ink in an arrangement of colors and finishes. You can even buy seed paper and your guests can plant their invite to grow pretty wildflowers or herbs for their garden!



There are plenty of options out there for eco-friendly guest favors and they range in price. In lieu of favors, you may consider donating money to a Green cause. Two of our favorites - Bamboo servers & seed paper!

These recycled glass vases from Anthropologie will make cute centerpieces or great gifts for the bridal party -

Recycled Bride offers used bridal attire and accessories! Shop at the farmer's market or go with a farm-to-table and support your local communities. Live in the DC area and looking for a spot to host a farm-to-table wedding, All Buttoned-Up did a wedding last September at Grandale Farm. It was a beautiful setting and the food was exquisite.

Check back tomorrow and we will do a local round-up of farm-to-table options around DC!

Images via JessCreates, Green Wedding, Botanical PaperWorks, Anthropologie

All Aboard

After meeting with my Aug. bride this weekend and discussing her upcoming ceremony aboard the Cherry Blossom - I am loving all things nautical. Have a nautical Monday!

Images via Wedding ideas & tips, Brides, Beach House Living, SMP

Tim & Anabeth Get Hitched

Tim & Anabeth get hitched at Grandale!

Hop on over to Sublime Design for a sneak peak at our September wedding. We can't wait to share a full album with you and update All Buttoned-Up with our latest work!

Bridal pic via Kelly Cox, detail pics via Sublime Deisgn

Registry Woes

Gifts are supposed to be the fun part, so why do we feel so overwhelmed with registering? Here are some helpful hints and suggestions to help get you through this process and settled in with some great gifts!

• Register where you can get something in return for yourself or someone else: Macy's Registry Star Rewards gives you 10% back on self purchases and 5% rewards on gifts purchased from your registry. This starts to add up quickly! WeddingChannel.com will make a donation whenever anyone uses weddingchannel.com to purchase a gift from your registry. The final donation is based on a percentage (up to 3%) of how many purchased registry items through WeddingChannel.com. Many retail partners participate with WeddingChannel including Crate and Barrel, Bloomingdales, Target, Amazon.com and Barney's among others. Most stores offer a completion program where you can come in after your big day and buy items left on your registry at a certain percentage. While this is great, there are usually better coupons and sales out there than the discount offered by the completion program.
• Some think that registering is to forward and they don't want their guests to feel obligated to purchase a gift. However, most guests prefer to have a registry to base a decision from. It makes the purchasing process easier and more personal. It is helpful for guests to have a variety of price ranges on gifts so that they have options in a price range that they are comfortable with.
• If you register at multiple stores pull the lists together on one site like MyRegistry.com or be sure to cross check your registries. It will be helpful in the end as it is easy to lose track of what you have registered for and you don't want to end up with 10 party platters and no serving utensils!
• As the wedding date draws near and you pass gift milestones like the shower, check on your registry inventory and make sure you still have options for your guests. If you don't want to peek at what you are getting ask a friend or relative to keep an eye on it for you. If it is low you may want to consider adding more items or gift card options.
• Register for items that you want and need. Just because Aunt Agnes keeps asking which china pattern you are choosing doesn't mean you have to order china. If china isn't practical for you and your partner to be, don't register for it. Maybe you have lived together and really don't need new towels and dishes, then registering for your honeymoon or favorite charity may make more sense for you.
• Check with close friends who recently wed and see what they like/dislike about some of the things they registered for. This may help you when it comes to choosing big items that you will use frequently like cookware sets and luggage. Ultimately, the decision belongs to you and your significant other but it will be helpful to hear reviews from someone you know!

Need to purchase a gift? See below for some chic gift wrapping inspiration and check back this week for great gifts to give or register for!

Images via Real Simple, Style Me Pretty, sublime design, Bahraini Diva, itwasMadewithLuv

Grand Debut

Hello! I'm Natalie, owner of All Buttoned-Up Event Planning & Design Boutique located in Washington, DC. I'm a PR professional by day and manage All Buttoned-Up on the side. I have over 5 years event planning experience and after falling head-over-heels planning my dream wedding, I decided to open All Buttoned-Up.

All Buttoned-Up website, http://www.allbuttoned-up.com/, will go live in December thanks to my wonderful designer, Jess with Sublime Design. Check out her work @ http://sublimedesign.wordpress.com/

In the meantime, if you have an event and need a planner - give me a shout! All Buttoned-Up will offer a special discount for our first "official" customers!