Where's the oddest place you've been for a wedding?

Me, I attended a wedding at Michael Jacksons Neverland Ranch. My roomate at the time was going to sing during the wedding ceremony (I think she's a member of En Vogue now)and I came along for the weekend. We didn't know that the reception was at Michael Jacksons house, but when Boys to Men showed up as the groomsmen, and they passed out the confidentiality forms, we knew something was up. The cocktail hour was in the guest house which had been transformed into this huge arcade. After we spent an hour drinking champagne and playing in the photobooth and pinball, we took the train over to the "backyard". The backyard had a ferris wheel, the crazy spinning ride that I swear should be illegal, bumper cars, carousel, bumper boats, a movie theatre complete with a fully staffed candy & popcorn counter, a zoo, oh, and yeah, there was a tent in the middle of all of it for the reception. We never stepped foot into that tent- too busy screaming our lungs out on that crazy spinning ride. I think its called the Zipper? I think the movie we watched was a Keanu Reeves flick, but I can't remember for sure. I do however remember being embarrassed beyond all belief when I spilled my popcorn all over one of the guys from Boys to Men. Ugh.

Perfect & Steady Sticks

In my last post I had mentioned Steady Sticks and Perfect. I got a buncha emails today asking what in the world Steady Sticks were and what about Jon McLaughlins song Perfect was so "proposal perfect".

Steady Sticks are phenomenal gadgets that I received for my birthday a couple years back. They hold a bottle of champagne or wine in the ground as well as glasses! So you can have a nice little picnic or wedding proposal on the beach and never spill a drip of your Veuve Cliquot. You can get your own Steady Sticks at Red Envelope.

And then there's Perfect. I think it should be the anthem for proposals. Read the lyrics (over there on the right sidebar)and then tell me you don't want someone to sing it to you.

And I found someone to walk me through this life
the brightest sun has opened up my eyes
Tonight I need exactly who she is
We're going to be perfect

(Bridge)
and in my life,
if I can have one thing I don't deserve
then I have never wanted anybody else but you

I'm pretty certain you can buy Indiana (Jon Mclaughlin) at Amazon.com and Target.

An Engagement Story

An extremely private surprise wedding proposal at Lighthouse beach on Sanibel Island. A groom wanted to bring his girlfriend out to the beach for a sunset walk and happen upon a beautiful table in the middle of undisturbed nature at its finest. Hidden under the table, a bottle of champagne and 2 flutes in their steady sticks and a cd playing Jon McLaughlin’s Perfect. And on the table he would place the let’s just say, “Hard to miss” engagement ring. The groom would tell his girlfriend to walk up to the table to smell the flowers and he’d take a photo. While she smelled the roses, she finds the ring. Behind her he took a knee. She turns around and, well, there’ll be a wedding to plan…

Destination Weddings & Honeymoons visits South Seas Resort

I was so excited when I walked by the wedding magazine rack today and saw the cover of destination weddings & honeymoons! "Wow, that looks familiar...hmmmm." Yep, its none other than South Seas Resort; one of my favorite places to plan weddings.

This past May, Donna & Jim tied the knot at Sunset Cove (which is in the distance of the cover photo) and then had their cocktails on Kings Crown lawn, followed by dinner and dancing inside Kings Crown. All the bouquets in the article (and Donna & Jims wedding)were by my favorite floral designers on the islands, Floral Artistry.
Currently, I'm in the midst of planning 4 other weddings on South Seas before summer hits, so yeah, you could say its a very popular place. Mostly because it is beyond gorgeous and the food is to die for. Or maybe its because of the dolphins, sea turtles, and manatees. Or maybe its the golf and tennis. Or maybe its the beach and sunset. Or maybe the pool that kicks every other pools arse with the fancy little cabanas and pina coladas. Alright, enough reasons already. The place just rocks.


All 4 of the upcoming weddings are as different as the locations my clients are coming from, and I am truly looking forward to each. I'd love to plan more- call me!

A Renewal

In the last couple weeks I had 2 very different intimate events to plan. Last Sunday I did a vow renewal for Becky & Marc. It was just the sweetest thing ever. Becky & Marc privately renewed their vows at sunset on Bowditch beach during a weekend getaway to Ft Myers Beach. Becky walked down the natural sand aisle carrying a bouquet made from flowers she had saved from their wedding 6 years ago.

After exchanging their vows, they took part in a Sand Ceremony. A Sand Ceremony is very much like the lighting if the unity candle (which does not work out on the beach!). The bride and groom each pour individual cylinders of colored sand into a larger cylinder to create a vase of unity. Many brides and grooms choose to include their parents in the ceremony by having their moms pour 2 additional cylinders into the unity vase at the start of the wedding ceremony.
Happy Anniversary and many many more!

Vanessa & Greg's Directors Cut

Last April I had the pleasure of coordinating one of the grandest destination wedding weekends ever. It was grand on many levels; it was the combination of top notch wedding professionals, incredible locations, and families and friends that were beyond amazing.
Vanessa & Greg had a church ceremony in Naples followed by an unbelievable reception at the Ritz Carlton Naples Beach.
This morning, the gang at AMC Video sent me the directors cut. Yep, I started my day sobbing like a baby. Have a look at this video. Warning though- turn up the volume and take out a tissue.
Rob- thank you so much for sharing this cut!

I forgot to mention

I was tagged by Sarah at Toast and Tables and Stephani at Masterpiece Weddings! So who shall I tag? How about:

Isis at Posh Events
Nicole at RSVP Shindig
Julie at Studio Julie
Gigi at Gigi Hamlet Photography
JP at JP Langlands Photography

You are all officially tagged- here is your mission:
Write a post about three ways you try to minimize your impact on the environment. Then tag (be sure to notify) 5 other bloggers.

Like Mother Like Daughter

I often find that most of my brides have very similar tastes as their moms. Which is great- it makes everything easier when it comes to designing their wedding. What moms and their daughter brides don't usually agree on- etiquette, tradition, and guest count.
Well, same goes for me and my daughter Maddy. No, she isn't getting married anytime soon, but she did just have her 9th birthday party.

Etiquette. Madeline thought it would be okay to show her entire class the invitation to her party. Even though only one classmate was invited. Boy did we have a long talk about that.
Here is the invitation:

Tradition. Madeline wanted to serve steak from Outback Steakhouse(her favorite) at the tea party. I quickly explained that traditionally, its sandwiches at a tea party. I won this battle. Here's the kid friendly buffet we created:

Guest Count. Madeline wanted to invite everyone under the sun of course. I said we had to limit it to the number of kids we could fit at one 6' banquet table and 2 36" round tables end to end. Here's the table:


For fun, the kids decorated their paper mache purses with all kinds of colorful items. For the few boys in attendance, we had foam visors to decorate. Here's the decorating station:


It was a great party. Did you notice Maddy picked both our favorite colors for her party? Like mother, like daughter. Happy Birthday Maddy!

I've been tagged to prove I'm Green (with a touch of pink)

Yesterday I was tagged twice for the Green Tag game and October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. So I decided to pull double color duty on this post. Not to mention I kinda like the green & pink combo (obviously as my logo suggests).

First, the Green:
1. We have all energy efficient lightbulbs in this house (home office).
2. I use my market totes and green bags when I go shopping rather than taking plastic bags.
3. I don't leave my office to run a quick errand. I wait until I have at least 3 errands to run so that I don't drive unnecessarily.
4. Rather than print all the pictures out that my clients send me and I send them, we post to a blog and send the vendors (floral & lighting designers, invitation designers, etc.) a link to preview our ideas.
5. Power out! Everything gets turned off when not in use. Cell phone and laptop chargers get unplugged; computers, printers and fax machines are turned off. No spinning fans in rooms without people, and open windows rather than lightbulbs during daylight hours.

Now the pink:
How about a little eye candy? Here are a few photos from Keri's table mock-up. Keri is getting married next month at a beachfront park in Naples and then having a brunch wedding. Her colors are Perfect Pink, Sage Green, and Chocolate.

For anyone who thinks videography is hum drum, watch this

1st let me explain the photo. Julie is beyond comical. I think I was dropping off her invitations or something, and it just so happened to be halloween. She required that I wear the glasses to look appropriate next to her in her Rambo costume.

Video. It's usually the 1st thing couples cross off their wedding budget, and the 1st thing I ask them to reconsider. Why? Because if you don't have video you can't see yourself walk down the aisle. You can't hear your Best Man give his hilarious toast again. You'll never see what your first dance looked like with that great band you hired playing in the background. As I see it, videography is as important as Photography.
So then why do some many couples nix the idea? Because they saw a really bad video from 1995. One camera, big blaring light, little or no editing, and probably on vhs. Videography has changed so much in the last 10 years that you really have to see it to believe it. The one downside to the new technology is the length of time that it takes to get your video. The editing process literally takes months. So the newest trend is getting a package with Directors Cuts and Preview Trailers. These 3 to 5 minute edited segments are ready to roll just weeks after your big day and are uploaded to the web for you and your guests to enjoy.
Here's a great one I got from AMC video. What's great about it is that it's completely and totally custom to this particular wedding. It's not the typical song choice. Julie & Phil got married last December in Bonita Springs. Julie was the happiest bride I have ever seen. The woman never stopped smiling! Their reception was all about the party- non stop dancing. The dancefloor was packed the entire night. When I say the entire night, I mean that 1/4th the guests never even ate dinner because they were too busy dancing. And the song Rob made this cut to was one of the biggest hits that whole night. The crowd literally went nuts- everyone was singing along, "Meet me at the altar in your white dress..." So as you can imagine, this cut is , while not for everyone, is completely and utterly Phil & Julie.
When you have some time, check out some of AMC's other samples on their website. They have dozens of samples showcasing some of the different elements and styles there are to choose from these days.

The Wedding Salon

SW Florida brides...or brides who will be here November 12th, this blog is for you. If you've been dying to attend the infamous Wedding Salon now is your chance! Send me an email and I can add you to my reservation list. Or you can always just go to the Wedding Salon website and pay $75 for your ticket. "hmmmm, what to do , what to do? Email Kelly, or pay $75?" If there are enough brides, we'll do it up and take a limo over to Miami for the event!

If you're reading this and wondering what the Wedding Salon is- it's THE luxury bridal show. First, it's at the Biltmore:

Sylvia Weinstock Cakes...

Get your hair & Make up done...

Eat some unbelievable food...

And of course see the best in Wedding Dresses, Flowers, and Tabletop design

And to top all this off, awesome gift bags!

I love Greys Anatomy, but I love a wedding movie even more

Just this past Friday I was out on Captiva Island with my lovely April bride Melissa. We had a wowzer of a tasting feast thanks to the amazing chef at South Seas and lovely Amanda from catering. Anyhoo- during our feast, Melissa springs it on me that she has been a bridesmaid SEVEN times. I thought that only happened in the movies. One thing for sure about being a career bridesmaid- your friends truly love you. Being chosen as a bridesmaid is a big deal, it means "you've been an important part of my life, and now you'll be an important part of our lives" But now Melissa's the bride and is doing everything she can to completely enjoy every minute of planning the celebration of a lifetime. And really- I can't wait for this wedding. Kilts, bagpipers, and a dance I have to look up called the Gay Gordons. Although, Melissa's mom & dad gave us a preview and it looks like SO MUCH FUN!. Yep, it's going to be quite the party.
So what does any of this have to do with Greys Anatomy and wedding movies? Well, when Melissa mentioned her 2nd career as a bridesmaid, I was curious about how many times the average bride is a bridesmaid before they are a bride. I still don't know. But if anyone finds out- let me know. What I did find out during my search was that Katherine Heigl of Grey's Anatomy is starring in an upcoming movie (Due in theatres January 11th)called 27 Dresses. And even better, James Marsden is the leading man. In unison girls, "Ahhhh". To top it off, Modern Bride magazine is having a contest called "Always a Bridesmaid"!


A little info behind the contest: Modern Bride is looking for all current and former bridesmaids to submit in 100 words or less what’s great – or not – about being a ‘maid. Entrants must also submit a photo of themselves in a bridesmaid dress at a wedding and how many times they’ve been a ‘maid. The winner will have their entry published in a future issue of the magazine and will win a trip to the world premiere of 27 Dresses as the guest of Modern Bride’s Editor-in-Chief Antonia van der Meer. The winner will have their hair and makeup done, be outfitted in a gorgeous gown and will have their photo taken with Katherine Heigl.

Melissa- this has your name all over it. I wonder if you can enter 7 times. One for each photo. Ha! Ok, to enter the contest, just click here.

Today is the Martha Stewart Wedding

Lucky Jessica & Cody are getting married today on NBC during the 8:00am hour on NBC. They'll be married on Rockefellar Plaza and then have their reception inside Tiffany & Co. Not too shabby. Oh, and Martha Stewart herself made Jessica's gorgeous bouquet. I'm sure Darcy's blog will be full of content on the wedding and the wedding will also be featured in the Winter issue of Martha Stewart Weddings magazine, which hits newsstands on December 24. Additional wedding-related tips and ideas were also developed for broadcast throughout the wedding series and are available online at Martha Stewart and the Today show.

The Cake
Sylvia Weinstock Cakes, New York, NY: The design of this cake is inspired by the turn-of-the-century Tiffany

Stamp of approval

Yesterday I was at the post office shipping out a clients invitations and I saw these amazing stamps. I was so excited! Yes, I agree, I get excited about little things all too often- but hey, the details are what makes the difference. Anyway, back to the stamps. As you know, our dear postal system woke up a few years ago and created stamps specifically for weddings. And they are lovely, yes. But they are also lavender and light green. Lavender and light green are not going to compliment every invitation. However, these cute guys...they bring a whole different meaning to the invitation. This celebrate stamp I just adore. You can't help but get anxious about the party you're about to get invited to once you rip into the envelope.

Ah, the pretty flowers. What I love about this one is that it isn't pastel. It's bright happy flowers. These would be perfect for a garden wedding, an afternoon wedding, a shower, a luncheon...I could go on for ages.

Another very cool option- photostamps. You can get as custom as you like by just uploading an image and creating your own personalized stamp. This is one great example of how to tie it all together.
Jillians mom worked with Two Paper Dolls in Philadelphia to create this amazing Save the Date ensemble for her Captiva Island destination wedding weekend.
Quick Tip- ALWAYS bring a completed invitation to the post office to get the low down on what your postage will be.
Oh- and don't forget to put some thought into your response card stamp!

Showcase #7 Last but certainly not least!

From: LaKendra Kennedy of Affairs with Elegance



"I love to entertain especially during the holidays. My design is for a Christmas holiday table setting. All items are from things I already owned. The white plates and flatware are my everyday items. The place card holders are from Pier One and were purchased last year at the end of the season."

From Nikki of Special Occassions by Nikki


Hot pink and tangerine, a popular color combo this past summer!