UPDATED: NEW DEADLINE AUGUST 15TH!
Hi friends! As y’all know, preparations for our next print edition — a.k.a. V5 — are well underway (we’ve got another shoot tomorrow!), and we want you to be a part of it. Photographers, brides, planners, designers and anyone else interested in submitting content for us to consider: please follow these easy directions and make sure to read our helpful FAQ page for editorial guidelines. We’re so excited about V5 and can’t wait to see what y’all have up your sleeves!
REAL WEDDINGS We are looking for the best of the best in real Southern weddings for print. Y’all know we love what you love – great photography, inspiring love stories and lovely details. To be considered for a Real Weddings feature in print, the wedding must have taken place in the southeastern United States. Photographers, please email 20-25 good web-quality .jpg attachments to our Creative Director, Emily Ayer, along with the following information: couple’s name, wedding date, wedding location, and any vendor information you have (names and websites). We only accept digital submissions. Brides, please ask your photographer to do the above. Please note we do have a strict exclusivity policy and cannot share work that has been featured on another blog or in another publication, and we would prefer that print submissions not be seen anywhere online, even the photographer’s blog or Facebook. Please title your email V5 REAL WEDDING.
EDITORIAL SHOOTS We loved the editorial shoots we featured in V4! Check them out in our gorgeous Editorial Galleries! If you have shot or created something wonderful that you think our readers would love, send preview images to Emily for review.
BOUQUETS In every issue we assemble a gallery of stunning bouquets. Send low-res previews to howdy at iloveswmag.com for review. Please attach the images individually to the email, or embed them in the email. Please do not send zip files. Please include the photographer’s name in the file name. We do allow bouquet shots to have been previously published online. Please title your email V5 BOUQUETS.
RINGS We love a little bling, and we know you do, too! In every issue, we highlight the most creative, Southern ring shots around. Check out a little taste from our last issue below. Please send low-res previews to howdy at iloveswmag.com for review. Please attach the images individually to the email, or embed them in the email. Please do not send zip files. Please include the photographer’s name in the file name. We do allow ring shots to have been previously published online. Send low-res previews to howdy at iloveswmag.com for review. Please title your email V5 RINGS.
EPIC IMAGES Y’all know we love great photography in print! Have an image you think has that Southern wow factor? We take a good number of single shots – details and portraits and Southern environmental – from all over the world to fill our pages and story elements. Send low-res previews to howdy at iloveswmag.com for review. Please attach the images individually to the email, or embed them in the email. Please do not send zip files. Please include the photographer’s name in the file name. We do allow epic images to have been previously published online. Please send a max of five images and title your email V5 EPIC IMAGES.
PRODUCT SUBMISSIONS Have a Fab Find, a product or paper good that you think our readers would adore? Please first send a digital submission – just a photo of the product plus a short description (why would our readers gobble it up!?) – to howdy at iloveswmag.com for review. If approved, we’ll request a physical sample. Please title your email V5 FAB FIND.
PLEASE NOTE: Due to the high volume of submissions, we unfortunately cannot respond to all inquiries, though we will do our best! If your wedding or shoot is chosen, we will email you to request an interview from the couple and additional details. If you have not heard back from us on a Real Wedding submission within four weeks, we welcome you to submit your work to another publication. Other image submissions may take us longer to reply to as we have to fit them into stories, etc., as our publication date gets closer. Submissions deadline: AUGUST 15.
Have a question? First, read our submission guidelines. We take a lot of time to detail these out so you know exactly what to send. Next, read the Twitter series Lara wrote last year on how to get published for a few quick tips. Study our blog and print editions to know exactly what we’re looking for. Have other questions? Jumping out of your seat excited? Leave a comment here and help us spread the word! We can’t wait to see what you all cook up!
P.S. Want to get in on the V5 AD ACTION? You have till August 1 to confirm your space with Marissa!
Smelling honeysuckles as you drive with the windows down on a warm summer evening.
Oh, that sounds divine!
Laura, that is my FAVORITE thing about the summer!
Laura: I forgot to write Laura F. Greensboro, NC. Whoops! :)
The last drop of honeysuckle while chasing fireflies with the cup of your hand at dusk laughing like a child again.
We believe a wedding reception isn’t complete without Lady Fingers on the sweets table. – Sheila H. Ocean Springs, MS
Red velvet and ruffles! And faith, family and tradition. :)
I believe that wedding vows will hold true forever when God is the foundation of the marriage.
Wow, Amanda! Your comment just gave me the chills! Thank you for posting! xx
I believe that marriage is easier when you realize that you two are teammates and not opponents. [Damaris Mia ~ Southern California]
Believe that you will be one of the fortunate couples to say “I do”…forever. My grandparents are both 91 and will celebrate their 70th wedding anniversary this year.
I believe homemade always tastes better… I believe a good night’s sleep makes any challenge more manageable.
Elizabeth P., Dallas TX
I believe a hug from someone you love can fix just about anything! Nicole S., Morgantown, WV
The food always tastes better if it’s Grandma’s recipe.
I always smile when I make eye contact with people, because you have to show them what Southern Hospitality is all about.
Ashton K.
Mooresville, NC
Looking forward to V5!
We believe that nothing makes a table scape more beautiful than fresh vegetables from daddy’s garden and warm biscuits from mama’s oven! Jessica J. Knightdale NC
Ice cream truck at the reception? Lovely childhood memories of summer time and ice cream from the ice cream truck. Also, rooting the local minor league baseball team.
Hi ladies! Im a HUGE believer in all things on your manifesto!! LOVE that yall are putting marriage first, that is the reason for the wedding after all! Great job SW ladies!
Im absolutely supporting my badge!
Tamara M. Groves, Texas
Hi ladies! Im a HUGE believer in all things on your manifesto!! LOVE that yall are putting marriage first, that is the reason for the wedding after all! Great job SW ladies!
Im absolutely supporting my badge!
Leaving love notes in my Fiance’s lunch box, or on his bathroom mirror.
I forgot to say- Katie B. Raleigh
A Southern lady knows that the most important part of the wedding is the union of a husband and wife with the Lord and the life-long marriage that comes when it’s all said and done. :)
-Molly S., Hillsborough, NC
I believe that even a Yankee like me can be a Southern girl at heart if she is charming, hospitable, and full of joy! -Kelsey F., Cochranton, PA
I believe that weddings have style and that themes are for proms. I believe that you should skip on traditions that don’t matter to you and embrace the ones that do. I believe that showing your guests Southern hospitality means more than any pretty little detail ever could (but they sure are nice!). – Leigh P., Greensboro, NC
I believe that a pause and a deep breath can lock a perfect memory in your mind forever.
Love the manifesto! I believe that marriage is FUN, that God is GOOD, and that tea should always be SWEET. I believe that weddings should be filled with laughter, love, and beauty. I believe in capturing sweet moments and making them into beautiful memories that will be cherished for years to come. I believe that every wedding is special and that the Lord takes great joy in two becoming one.
We know that just because our daddy gives us away, it doesn’t mean our amazing mommas shouldn’t be honored in our ceremony too!
Oh Kendall, I LOVE this!
I believe in cowboy boots, handmade quilts and starry nights from the bed of an old pickup truck. – Jessica R., Denison, TX
I believe that where I come from we don’t return your tupperware empty; we refresh it with a homemade treat.
hey Ladies. I just water to say that I love this post. And I had to share this with people I know would understand.
I have been through every nook and cranny in my home and never saw anything from my folks wedding other than an album and a gorilla mask (don’t ask). But just this year I somehow stumbled upon a gown bag I had never seen and checked it out. Inside was my mom’s veil, it is perfect and gorgeously romantic. I asked her if I could wear it and she was so excited about it! It means the world to me that I will have that from her when I walk down the aisle
Hi Brittany! I DO appreciate your story, and I bet your veil is gorgeous! So happy for you that you get to wear it down the aisle!
I believe that there is nothing more Southern, than obsessing over being southern! :)
I believe that we’re all Steel Magnolias at heart!
I believe that the most important man for a woman to love is her daddy!
I believe that when life gives you lemons, put them in your sweet tea and thank God you’re from the South!
*Gainesville, Florida*
I believe that Every Story is a Gift!
I believe you should spend your time, energy and budget on what is going to matter in 30 years and that it’s easy to say vows but living them out with integrity day by day is what marriage is all about.
Courtney from Murray, KY
I believe that spending the extra dollar on letterpressed invitations and calligraphy has no price. After all, an invitation is the first part of any event the guests will see.
I believe in making your guests truly feel a part of your wedding celebration and surrounding them in Southern hospitality.
I believe that time passes too quickly not to stop and smell the gardenias! It’s a reminder to enjoy the sweetness of life. -Emily M, New Orleans, LA
I believe in holding doors open for others and that a kind smile goes a long way.
I believe in keeping true to your roots. I love the South (particularly the Low Country of South Carolina). There is a certain element that the South has. We hold our heads a little higher and strand a bit straighter. We are proud of our home and everything it has to offer!
this sounds like a perfect place to share my marriage of 5 going on 6 years and being together for 10 and we are still in Bliss :)