When a couple gets married there are new birthdays from the other side of the family to be remembered and celebrated which is why when I saw this wonderful guest book idea from Devon and Dan’s Real Wedding on Martha Stewart Weddings via Pinterest, I thought it was brilliant! Guests sign their birthday – you could ask for wedding anniversaries as well – and you have a perfect record of everyone’s birthdays so you can make sure to send those cards on time!

You could either grab a calendar that fits your theme or you could make one with your engagement pictures!  Shutterfly lets you start the calendar any month and year you would like so you could create one beginning with your wedding month!

I saw this picture on Pinterest and loved it!  It speaks to a problem that I see so many couples struggle with – they see things differently and sometimes it even speak a different language!

To brides: if your groom tells you that he doesn’t have an opinion on a color or flower or tells you that he just wants you to be happy, believe him!!!  He probably doesn’t have an opinion on whether your accent color should be plum or eggplant and would be happy with whatever you decide.  Also, don’t get frustrated with him – remember, to some guys, purple is just purple.

To grooms: if your bride asks you whether you like plum or eggplant and you have an actual opinion, go ahead and share it but don’t be afraid to tell her that you would prefer she make that choice.  Also, don’t get frustrated with her if she pushes for an answer – she just wants to know you care.

Happy planning and good luck picking those colors!

I like to spend the last day of the year reflecting on the prior year and looking forward to the year to come.  Here are some of our favorite highlights from a very busy year:

*We welcomed our first intern class in January – Laura and Becky were with us all year and did a fantastic job!  Nowadays, Becky is in her senior year at OSU and Laura is now the venue coordinator at Station 67 in Columbus.  I was very lucky to have them working with me and they set the bar really high for all future intern classes!

(Photo: Grogan Studios)

*We celebrated Abby’s 1st birthday at the end of February with a big party with friends and family.

(Photo: Grogan Studios)

*The 2nd Annual Cakes for a Cause took place on March 1 and we raised enough to feed 16 people every meal for a year.  Every. Single. Meal.  It still makes me smile from ear to ear!  We nearly doubled our 2010 result and we shattered our original goal!  It was an incredible evening with delicious food and wine, lots of sweet treats up for auction and tons of cake and ice cream.  We are so excited for the 3rd Annual event taking place on April 5, 2012 – make sure to save the date!

(Photo: Karen Evans Pictures)

*We kicked off wedding season in May with Megan and Michael’s Southern inspired wedding at the Darby House in Galloway – even though our planned outdoor ceremony wound up being an indoor ceremony, it was a gorgeous day!

(Photo: Cassidy Dawn)

*We were back at Darby House the following weekend with Lindsay and Kevin – this time the weather cooperated and we had a beautiful outdoor ceremony overlooking the river!

(Photo: Kimberly Potterf)

*In June we traveled around Central Ohio a bit!  First we headed out to Zanesville for Ann and Kyle’s wedding!  The longest bridal party table I have ever done (seating for 20 in one loooooong table) plus there was square dancing. It was a heck of a party!

(Photo: Lotz Studios)

*The following weekend we headed down to Lancaster for Nancy and Doug‘s wedding at Nancy’s childhood home.  A ceremony under a very old tree followed by dinner and swimming, snow cones and s’mores all on a gorgeous summer day!

(Photo: Karen Evans Pictures)

*We spent the very warm July 4th weekend up in Delaware with Mollie and Kevin.  The wedding was at an 18th century barn that houses an auction house – incredibly unique location!  We love those!

(Photo: Jennifer Otchy Photography)

*We closed out July at Northbank Park with Rachel and Travis for their lovely little love story wedding!  Loved their sweet ceremony overlooking the Columbus skyline and that they spent the evening on the dance floor!

(Photo: Kelly Maughan Photography)

*Had a little break in August and September so we took a trip down to Disney World in Florida to celebrate Ellie’s 4th birthday!  Love those teacups!  And yes, they are dressed alike – they are 1 and 4, I can still do that once in a while. 

*We kicked off October helping Kelsey and Ryan get married at the Columbus Art Museum!  This was as close to a repeat client as I get – Kelsey is the sister of one of my 2006 brides, Meredith and Meredith was referred to me by Megan, another 2006 bride!  Loved catching up with everyone.  We’ll post pictures from Maer Studios soon!

*The next weekend we were with Valeri and Bill at the Athletic Club of Columbus with a vintage, mixed metallic wedding.  Love all the carousel horse touches we incorporated.

(Photo: Nicole Dixon Photography)

*In the middle of October, we took a road trip to Cincinnati with Kasey from Bliss to help another planner get married! Alison from Aviva Events asked us to coordinate her wedding for her – she did all the planning and we just stepped in at the end to run the day.  ONLY for another planner would we do that!

(Photo: Kortnee Kate)

*We closed out our year with Rebecca and Gavin’s gorgeous wedding at Franklin Park Conservatory and The Westin.  Loved the Grater’s sundae bar that was a nod to where the met!  We will share pictures from Red Gallery as soon as we get them.

We loved each and every one of our clients and their friends and families – we truly have the best clients in the world!  2012 is shaping up to be just as amazing and we can’t wait!  We still have a few more spots open for next year – send us an email or give us a call {614.678.6320} to set up a meeting to talk about how we can help you have an incredible wedding!

A very Happy Veteran’s Day to all those who have served and all those on active duty!  My family has its share of veterans from my Grandfather John (Army) and Granddaddy Myron (Navy) to my Uncle Jim (Army) and cousins Andy and Molly (both Army).  Randy’s family has veterans including his dad, both brothers and his only nephew (all Army).  To you all and everyone who has served, I am so grateful for your service and thank you.

Now to keep this wedding related, a little background.  I am an only child but if you asked me if I had any siblings, my answer would be that my cousin Molly is as close as I have to a sister.  She is Aunt Molly to my little girls and Major Melissa to everyone else.  She’s active duty Army and is deployed right now – she’ll be gone for over a year and we miss her terribly.

I am betting her husband misses her even more – you see Molly is also a newlywed.  Just 3 weeks before she deployed, Molly and Bob were married in a small ceremony in Richmond, Virginia.  The wedding that was planned in less than a month.  I think she was a beautiful bride and Laura Gordon did an amazing job capturing the day.  Thanks to Laura for sharing these with me!

Wasn’t she a beautiful bride?  Molly and Bob share an anniversary with my parents who have been married for 41 years so I am thinking August 20 is a good day in our family!   To Molly and Bob, we love you both and to Molly, come home safe – we can’t wait to see you!

This is so brilliant and so overdue!!!

Amy Atlas, the queen of all things dessert display, has put together a great primer on patterns on her blog.  If you are looking for a pattern to tie into your wedding or just want to know what the heck people are talking about when they mention Toile, Quatrefoil and Chevron, look no further!

Amy Atlas Pattern Board for Design Styling

Great info and a huge thank you to Amy for putting this together and sharing!

This past weekend, Kasey from Bliss and I took a roadtrip to Cincinnati and had the pleasure of coordinating a fellow planner’s wedding!  Alison from Aviva Events married her longtime love, Seth at the Contemporary Arts Center.  It was a beautiful day and I was honored to be a part of it – I will try to borrow some pictures and post them for soon.

One of my favorite discoveries from the day was the prelude music which was provided by the outstanding DJ Toad.  Seriously, he was amazing – the dance floor wasn’t empty for a second all night.  And he travels to Columbus.  Just saying.

If you weren’t listening very, very closely to the prelude music, you likely would not have noticed it wasn’t your usual music.  There was no Canon in D, Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring or Trumpet Voluntary.  There was ‘Nightswimming’ by REM and ‘Today’ by Smashing Pumpkins but I am willing to bet that most of the guests didn’t realize they were listening to instrumental versions of those songs.

A group called the Vitamin String Quartet has taken songs from just about anyone you can think of – from 311 to Adele to Elton John to Metallica to Radiohead to The Cure to Van Morrison – and done instrumental versions.  If you have always wanted to walk down the aisle to ‘Like a Prayer’ or ‘Jane Says’ but didn’t want your parents to flip out and grandma to have a heart attack, look no further!  Vitamin String Quartet has you covered.

A quick search iTunes produces literally thousands of covers of songs available – if you aren’t a classical fan or are looking for an interesting alternative to the traditional prelude and processional music, you must check out Vitamin String Quartet!

You may remember that I currently serve as the Wish Granting Chair for the Ohio Chapter of Wish Upon a Wedding.  We grant wedding wishes for couples facing terminal illness and other life altering circumstances.  We give them a day – one day to forget existing health issues, while surrounded by their closest family and friends to celebrate LOVE.

The majority of the costs of these wedding wishes is gifted by the amazing, phenomenal, fantastic vendors who serve as Wish Granters but there are other expenses that aren’t covered.  You can help us cover those costs and score some great deals or a once in a lifetime event (Like a 1 hour phone consult with Preston Bailey or Drinks with Randy Fenoli from Say Yes to the Dress in NYC?) and help us keep granting amazing wishes like these in Ohio and across the country:

Linae and David:

Jon and Alyssa:

And our next wish taking place on November 13 in Columbus, Danae and Derrick:

Just visit Bidding for Good to see all the auction items and help us continue to grant wishes for these deserving couples!  You have until October 31st so get to bidding!

*Thanks to Carmen and Pugh Photography, Corey Ann Photography and Picture the Love for the pictures!

Weather can be tricky in Ohio – especially in October!  You never know whether you will be dealing with freezing rain or blazing sun or something in the middle.  Sometimes we get lucky and get a perfect fall day and this past Saturday we had a perfect day for Valeri and Bill!  It was sunny, clear with a light breeze and nearly 80 degrees for their wedding day.

The Athletic Club of Columbus was the location for the happy couple’s nuptials.  Nicole Dixon captured the day in still photos and Steve from Studio Z filmed the whole thing.  A few pictures from Nicole (you can see more on her blog here):

I will share more of this gorgeous wedding when I have pictures and video!  Big thanks to Val and Bill for trusting me to help them with their day and letting my team and me be a part of it.

Yes, I used an exclamation point in the title because this is a big deal – to be honest, I am stunned.  Priscilla of Boston has announced that they are closing their boutiques and all their dress lines will be retired.  This includes all bridal gowns and bridesmaid gowns from Priscilla of Boston, Jewel by Priscilla of Boston, Platinum for Priscilla of Boston, The Dress by Priscilla of Boston as well as Melissa Sweet, Reverie by Melissa Sweet and the Vineyard Collection.

So what does this mean for brides?  It depends on whether you have placed an order or not.

*If you have already ordered a gown from any of POB’s lines.  You are fine.  POB is going to fill their orders and make sure that their customers are taken care of.  If you have any questions, just call the bridal salon you ordered from and don’t freak out!  POB has said you will still get your gown!

*If you had your eye on a gown from any of POB’s lines but hadn’t ordered.  Sorry but you will not be able to place a custom order for any gowns – this includes brides and bridesmaids.  Keep in mind that there will likely be a flood in the consignment market of sample gowns from different bridal salons looking to get rid of their sample gowns.  Lucky for Columbus locals, we happen to have an AMAZING consignment shop right in downtown Worthington called LuxeRedux.  They happen to be our neighbors!  Give LeAnn a call and see if she can’t help you.  Also, keep an eye on their online boutique – good chance some gorgeous gowns from POB will be popping up soon!

For more answers, Priscilla of Boston has a list of FAQs on their website.

Personally, I am saddened by this news – I have had brides over the years wear POB or Melissa Sweet and they were lovely dresses with beautiful detail and styling.  I have a bride wearing a gorgeous Reverie skirt next year and I know how excited she was when she found it.  The bridal industry is losing a jewel with the closing of Priscilla of Boston.

If you follow me on Pintrest (which you should really be on because it is fantastic and addictive) then you might have seen these pictures of back drops for cake and sweets tables pop up in my pins:

The one on the left is just 12×12 sheets of scrapbook paper with rings connecting them – the one on the right is a kajillion individual paper circles glued together.  Both would be very cute for a wedding but I couldn’t help but think that the one on the left, while easy, was a little too plain and the one on the right, while gorgeous, was too complex.  Such a Goldilocks issue!

That brings me to today – I was wandering around The Container Store and saw these little pretties (forgive the camera work these were taken on my phone):

 Cute hanging panels that connect with little rings.  Each package has 4 panels and costs only $9.99.  Buy a couple of packages and you have a fantastic (and super reasonable!) backdrop for a cake or sweets table.  You can find them in store if you are lucky enough to have a Container Store nearby (they are in the dorm decor section) or online: Decor Screen Panels.

I think these would be just right! Goldilocks would be thrilled.