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I knooow. I'm sick of the same. thing. over. and over. again.not everyone is having a vintange, diy, outside, with old furniture and jars of jam wedding. ugh!
I was never a huge fan of the site - I prefer real brides' blogs. But after seeing your post, just had to go see what you're referring to. I totally get you - it's all that one style of wedding that's pretty cool, but not so unique anymore after you've seen a few dozen :)
i was cracking up at jars of jam, too!
The same inspiration to reality thing is on Oncewed today, too.
I totally agree! That blog was good for wedding p0rn in the first planning stages, but not so much now that I'm focused on the "how" and "when" of planning, instead of looking for inspiration for the "what."
Funny as I checked out their blog today, I thought the same thing. I mean really? Realistically you won't be sitting at an old desk with your new hubby, it's def a far stretch. And yes, I cannot see another jam jar, I get it, it's practical.
Haha, I was just looking at that post earlier, but I thought it was a real wedding (didn't read any of the text) and didn't like it. I personally find the table and dresser in the middle of the grass to be a bit too much. Maybe for an engagement session, but for a wedding it's a bit too photoshoot-y.
I'm so glad someone said it.
I never tire of real weddings; weddings can be as diverse as the people who have them, so even if they start looking the same, there's always individuality & meaning in it. One of the reasons I love SMP is because they consistently feature good photography, which I enjoy looking at.
HOWEVER. They have gone a little overboard with this. An occasional photoshoot, maybe -- after all, we see them in magazines all the time. But blogs are supposed to be more "real" than magazines, so posting days & days of these fake weddings, complete with models just seems inauthentic.
I really feel as though people are running out of ideas and trying to funnel brides in a new direction. It's a wedding, and yes, you want it to be beautiful, but it's not a photo shoot.
I saw a real wedding about a month ago that was styled to look exactly like one of these photo shoots, and I found it sad. The bride talked endlessly about how it was designed with antique chairs brought in from somewhere, and an old library shelf drug out to the middle of a field (or something) and I kept thinking, "Fine, but how did you feel about it? Show us how happy you were!" No matter how beautiful a wedding is, it's the feeling in it that makes it special & meaningful.
I completely agree with all of this! I kind of feel like a lot of weddings that are great for photos are not the same in person. For example the old furniture may be fine in photos, but personally I think it would be odd to go to a wedding with that type of stuff. I definitly stopped going on that blog as much I feel like its really lacking in diversity.
I still enjoy going on to the site just because I love to look at the pretty pictures. But I too thumb past the reality board sections.
I used to RELIGIOUSLY read SMP.
Then I started to glaze over because, well, first i loved everything, and then, I realized everything looked the same, and that's why I loved it. And then I got tired of it. :p
I just prefer reading real-bride stuff nowadays, because I already have enough ideas for the most part. Perhaps too many ideas! :p
I also think SMP used to be a little more diverse. The colors spanned farther than dusty rose, that vintage champagne, and the muted blue. (Which are pretty, but we need more variety!)
While I used to really love SMP, I don't really read it anymore because I got tired of them posting only "homemade" looking weddings. While I agree that those types of weddings are beautiful, I still think a little variety would be nice.
I agree with the PPs. Having old furniture at a wedding is a little ridiculous (IMHO). I would like to see a variety of weddings, not the homemade ones. They are pretty to look at, but I am not able to find any inspiration from them. I want a bright and vibrant wedding and 99% of the weddings on SMP are muted shades. I also love the modern feel - not shabby chic...I'm pretty much over that site. I think today was the last straw for me.
SMP was one of the first wedding blogs I read, and everything was gorgeous. I agree with many of you--I haven't found it as valuable since I've figured out what I want my wedding to be like, because none of the weddings they feature look like mine. I actually rarely visit anymore, because I can't tell anymore when they're featuring real weddings and when it's photoshoots, and they all have started to blend together.
@jamie Totally agree, today was definitly the straw that broke the camels back. (for me at least)
I'm so glad I'm not alone!
I used to be soo adicted to SMP, knowing that it wasn't healthy (really, on my budget?)
All these Inspiration to Reality Challenges have made it much easier to break this addiction!
Does anyone else feel that these photoshoots are a total waste? Why not have challenge to design someone's actual wedding? ...just my opinion.
Wow, I thought I was the only one. Weddingbee and SMP are the ones I check out religiously. But lately they've had too many of those contests. I like their Style Circle concept but I think they've let it take over. We still want to see real weddings! I feel like they've shifted their focus. Why though? Do they make more in money in ads if they have a photoshoot? Does it create more revenue?
Don't hate me but I do love SMP. Even though my wedding is nothing like what their reader base would like, I think it still would be amazing to have a feature. That said, SMP gives me a huge complex. Especially as a Shoestring Bride. I am not DIY friendly. I wish I could afford me some Jose Villa. I now want everything to be perfect perfect perfect (like I was not a perfectionist to begin with) and I bet the photos don't show the not so pleasant parts of the weddings.
I love the first photoshoot but this one is not to my style. To each their own. I pick and choose what applies. And skim the rest.
Miss Yap, don't get me wrong. I love SMP but I just think they're going overboard with the inspiration boards. They have 3 this week alone, or something like that. It just seems a bit excessive. Unlike you, I did like this last shoot, though. I agree with you that it might give bride a "perfection complex". I mean those models are gorgeous and the pictures are impeccable!
The problem with style me pretty: a wedding is NOT a photoshoot. It's a wedding- and people are really getting caught up in the whole "my wedding has look like a magazine ad" myself included. I finally had to sit myself down and say:
"Self...your wedding is not going to look like this, it's okay if you use the linens and plates that the hotel supplies, it's okay if you are not sitting in an old vintage chair trying to look like a 1940's movie star, it's okay if you don't have little puff balls and feathers and matchbooks strategically placed, it's okay if you don't have weird props like suitcases, telephones, and mustaches... you are marrying the love of your life not posing for Vogue so STOP STRESSING" I mean, really.
And I DO want some cute pictures-but I want pictures of my family and my friends...i don't want pictures of freaking apple pies!!
EDIT: I get that it is all about STYLE ( hence the name) but let's see some different style. We are all different!
Hmmm...until you pointed it out, I hadn't realized how much I'd been skipping over SMP in my reader. When I first found the site, I was constantly saving posts and pics....and I haven't saved anything from there in at least 6 weeks or so. Maybe it is because I've figured out what I want to do and it's a different direction.
Everything looks so overstyled. Who wants a wedding that is more about style than the actual wedding?
Totally agree with everyone on not loving the recent "Inspiration to Reality" features. And I also find it frustrating that all their weddings fall into the "vintage, rustic elegance, homegrown, handmade" theme. It's great if you have that, but what about more modern/urban weddings? What about weddings in hotels and reception halls, instead of tents and back yards and historic estates? I find that often, the weddings really all look the same--same palatte, same inspiration, same "shabby chic" sort of style, and the editors say the same things about all the weddings :" The most beautiful wedding I've ever seen..." "I swooned over this wedding..."
like lkbp, I too have been skipping over SMP lately, and I didn't realize until now why. In fact, it's been so long since I've checked it out that I don't even know what this iinspiration to reality challenge even is!
I hate to pile on, but I've stopped reading it too and it used to be my fav. All of the weddings the site does feature seem to cost a small fortune, even the so-called "diy" weddings. If I read "forever chic" one more time, I'll lose it... I'm pretty much just reading A Practical Wedding and WeddingBee these days!
I am just so sick of the writing describing each post. So much hyperbole every day. It is very repetitive. And while I am having a barn wedding and appreciate the rustic look, it started making me nervous about my rich colors because everything SMP had was muted.
And the vintage furniture. Yes it is pretty but how on earth do you get it to your site? A U-haul? Not very practical or budget friendly and what do you do with it afterwords?
Agreed. I subscribe in my google reader, and as soon as I see "Inspiration to reality" i mark it as read. Dont even look any more, so over those.
I also stopped reading wedding style blogs like SMP a while ago. I prefer real bride-blogs :)
Ya'll are cracking me up...seriously... it's like SMP is on repeat! I'm glad I'm not alone in getting totally bored reading it...
I was wondering...I know its a photo shoot but is the couple a real couple? Or are they just models? I have to say I love making inspiration boards and getting some ideas from there...
@flamingred: "you are marrying the love of your life not posing for Vogue so STOP STRESSING" I think this is such an incredibly true and important thing to remember! I myself have had a few moments of "This is my marriage, not the Anthropologie catalogue, and it's okay."
I actually really can't get into most wedding blogs other than Weddingbee. I think reading about the bride's whole experience, thoughts, decisions, etc., has been SOOOOO much more valuable than just looking at a photo spread. I think seeing recaps of the finished product is so much more meaningful when you know from the Bees what went into them.
"Jars of jam" made me giggle so hard. I also used to religiously read SMP, but like some one else said, now that I'm in the "doing" part of my planning it's helping me less and less. I usually just skim through the pics. Also, I'm not having anything rustic or vintage or outdoorsy in my wedding soooo there's really not much inspiration for me to grab.
I totally agree with you ladies. The photo shoots are getting out of hand and I wish they showed a larger variety. That being said the flowers from that last photo shoot with the eucalyptus and berries were exactly what I'm looking for and I can't wait to show my florist!
I used to love SMP but I'm tired of (1) ALL muted colors, let's have some variety; and (2) ALL vintage and rustic weddings, I'm a modern city girl and need some inspiration too.
However, I will admit that I am SUPER excited about the inspiration to reality shoot that's coming up, because they're doing black and gold, which are my wedding colors. Hopefully it's not vintage and rustic. Again.
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I may be completely alone on this rant, but I just wanted to see others opinions. Is anyone else tired of style me pretty's inspiration to reality challange? The fake weddings they set up do not inspire me, and they all look the same. I wish she would stop posting those and talking about how great they are. Ok thats the end of my bitter rant today :)