Spring is in the air: It’s daylight savings time, the days are longer and warmer and our May/June issue is on the newsstands! What could be better? I can’t wait to give you a sneak peek, because no matter where you are in the planning process, this issue has fantastic stories, great advice and a ton of ideas you can use.

(Pictured from left to right: My sister Lisa, Mom, me, Michael, Dad, my sister Laura, and future brother-in-law Kevin)

We celebrated the upcoming Hunger Games movie release in the best way we know how at BG—by putting together a wedding inspiration board, of course. Suzanne Collins' bestselling trilogy is undeniably an unlikely source for wedding planning. (Even Lionsgate thinks so; they declined to comment on this story.) But if you can look past the twisted premise (a televised survival competition where districts must battle to the death for the sake of entertainment), you'll find that at the heart of it all is an incredible love story that sparks a revolution. 

The Invitations 

In lieu of traditional invitations, send lottery tickets to the reaping. Printable party invites by ClickableParty.

The Seating Arrangements

Sort guest tables into each of the 13 districts using this handy map.

Most brides-to-be plan to have their dream weddings filmed and photographed—but for Lainie Schultz, photographing the days leading up to her wedding has led to an outpouring of support and admiration across the nation.

"Since I have been diagnosed, I only want to help others see cancer as I see it—and not to fear it," says Schultz.  

In 2008, Schultz learned she had both stage-two breast cancer and Li-frameni syndrome, a rare disorder caused by a genetic mutation. Emily Harris, a photographer who had previously done work for Schultz's sister-in-law, contacted the bride-to-be, asking to photograph her cancer journey and wedding planning.

"[Emily] happened to call me the day before I was planning to shave my head, and I said, 'it was fate you called to come over tomorrow. Let's get this story started!'" says Schultz. Joseph Jones, Schultz's now-husband, shaved his fiancée's head weeks before the wedding.

The day was far from sad; the room was filled with plenty of smiles, food, drinks, and loving relatives. "I work with so many bridezillas, and it drives me crazy," Harris told Today.com. “This re-lit something inside me because this brings the focus back to a marriage being about the love and devotion between two people.”