Yes, you can “do it yourself.”

Visit www.animoto.com – yes it’s very user-friendly and you can create a 30 second wedding video for free (Yes, this is the upgrade so I could make it a bit longer.

 

Another Great Wedding to Share

Tara’s table decor

Tara and Matt’s Vows

Cake by Party Flavors

I assisted my long-time assistant Jennifer for Tara and Matt’s wedding.
Working with Arthur’s Catering, Lee James Florals, Soundwave Entertainment, Cory Callahan Photography, Jeremy Tomlinson, cake by Party Flavors, and I can’t forget to mention VIP Transportation. It was a great day at the Lake Mary Event Center. Just a brief shower in the afternoon before the wedding, Tara’s theme incorporated earthtones and deep burgundy. See for yourself.

 

Looking for an All Inclusive Destination Wedding?

Beach ceremony setup at NH Riviera Cancun

One of the best honeymoon bed sets I’ve seen

My husband got to go along on a recent FAM (Familiarization Trip) to NH Hotels Cancun Riviera – a new resort and excellent site for a destination wedding. Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mexico is clean, safe, and a delightful site for vacationing or honeymoons. In fact, one part of the property is family-focused, and the other side of the property is “adults only.” When you’re looking for a destination wedding, it’s important to work with someone who has been to the resort, met with the wedding coordinator, and familiar with the legal requirements, logistics, and capabilities of the destination site. Having spent a few days learning about imports, area transportation and sites, resort amenities and activities, room inspections and sampling cuisine, I can confidently recommend this property and their wedding coordinator, Sandy Casillas. What did I like best? It would probably have to be the hot tub on the balcony where you could relax privately with an incredible ocean view. Least favorite part – a lot of polished marble, beautiful but caution: slippery when wet.

 

Working with Wedding Professionals

Practicing to save a life

Anyone can be a “consultant,” and there’s a plethora of Wedding consultant “certification” programs out there, so I’d like to explain what makes Association of Bridal Consultants members differ.
First, you must be an Association member to register for ABC’s Professional Development Program. Why? Because any educational program offers just the foundation to becoming a professional. The ABC program doesn’t “certify.” Truth is, “certification” is often misused as no state requires certification to practice our skills. ABC members work to advance from Novice to Consultant and then earning the advanced designations of Professional Bridal Consultant (PBC), Accredited Bridal Consultant (ABC) and ultimately Master Bridal Consultant (MBC), with increasing requirements at each level. Additionally, ABC members and ABC vendors all are required to complete 6 hours of continuing education to maintain their membership. Here are my colleagues, ABC-Florida consultants becoming CPR certified at our recent state meeting in Fort Lauderdale. Who do you want as your wedding professional?

 

Feeding Your Vendors

My good friend and colleague posted this on her blog. I couldn’t say it better. JoieDeVie Blog

 

Weddings in the Heat

My husband attended a wedding recently (I couldn’t) where the outdoor heat was a balmy 95 degrees, in the sun…and there was no shade. While the bride provided small white umbrellas that didn’t help much, she didn’t think to provide a water station or bottled water for her guests who sat broiling for close to an hour and his shirt was literally soaked with sweat. The outdoor (but covered) cocktail hour was more than many guests could tolerate.
Where was her coordinator? She didn’t have one. Lesson learned: In scheduling an outdoor wedding in the summer – please be considerate your guests. If it’s too hot, shift to your inclement weather plan. Yes, her guests will remember her wedding, maybe not for the right reasons.

 

What do you do with your engagement ring during the ceremony?

Engagement Ring Etiquette or Just Practicality?
I was reading this online poll and wanted to share the “practical answer” with you. Choices are:
a. Move it to your right hand. The traditional, proper etiquette answer is to move it to your right hand.
One respondent commented that her right ring finger is larger than her left – that’s particularly true if you’re right handed.
b. Remove it or leave it at home – why? You have a much better chance of losing it – and your wedding day is the best day in your life to show it off.
c. Leave it on your left hand. That gets my vote. NOT because you can change it later, but let’s help out our grooms here – that bling is a target for him. He’s not expecting it on your RIGHT hand or not at all.
But my secret tip here – put a little lotion on your ring finger just before the ceremony – AND the groom’s to help make that ring placement just a little easier. No lotion in the groom’s room – a dab of liquid soap will do.

 

Why You Need a Coordinator

Yes, you can plan it yourself to your heart’s content, but take four minutes to watch this video on another ABC member’s blog. It’s absolutely priceless. Not how a bride should be spending her reception…..
http://pinkblossomeventsblog.blogspot.com/

 

Clicks and Tips: Photography, Part I

Time to highlight some wedding vendors. How do they get to be someone I refer and recommend? First, it doesn’t happen because they sent me an e-mail, asked to be on my referral list, or offered me a referral fee (kickback). According to some, there are nearly 750 photographers in Central Florida – no, I haven’t actually counted. Only a small percentage, let’s say 10% of them are truly wedding photographers, which reduces the list significantly. Weddings are a unique specialization, Why do you go to an optomotrist to get contacts, not your family doctor. Just because a photographer has a camera does not mean they’re the best to photograph YOUR wedding.
Let’s start with the gorgeous photos you see on their website. Those are the best of many weddings – not really representative of one couple’s whole wedding. Not every bride is a “Barbie” model. How do they work with real women who aren’t “perfect?” Every photographer has bad photos. You want to see every photo of your wedding – do you want them to delete only photo of Uncle Joe because it was a little out of focus?
You’re evaluating 3 aspects: their products, their service, and their personality.
Unless you’re a technical expert, you’ll select a photographer based on liking what you see (products) and “they’re nice” or something to that effect, and your sense of “value” on what you’re getting for what your photography $$$. Being able to have a good rapport with your photographer is important, but “nice” only goes so far – you need service too.
So, why would a consultant have nearly 20 photographers on their referral list? Because it’s our job to have worked with 50 to 60 photographers and refer those that have the best of everything: product, professionalism, service reputation, experience, personality, equipment (including backup), personality, a passion for weddings, and a solid “track record” with our clients. The best photographers are working by referrals, not by great websites, ads in magazines, or booths at bridal shows. It’s our job to play “matchmaker” and refer vendors that “fit” your vision, budget, and personality. For instance, I work with two photographers for intimate or destination weddings. They’re in slightly different price ranges, but still less than many in the area, mostly because of our long-term relationship, we truly like working together, and they prefer a wedding of 5 on the beach to a wedding of 500 in a ballroom. Other photographers like large wedding parties with every combination of family members at upscale hotels, but may not want to deal with the salt, sand, sea, and sweat of beach weddings. Sure, they’ll do it, but it’s not their passion. It’s our job to know that and to help you select the photographer that best meets your needs, saving you time, money, energy, and stress.
We’ll cover other selection considerations in Part II.

 

Wedding Stress

Sometimes you just need a little humor to lighten up.  A colleague sent me this one…