HOME OF PRETTY
Molly & Jake's wedding - to Saba with love
Slideshow
This is my first blog slideshow (thanks for helping me pick the right software Jenna!). You're welcome to turn your volume up and click play, or you can scroll down to see the photos one at a time.
And last, but not least, a photo of the star trails from my balcony. :)
THEY'RE NOT FRESH, BUT I LOVE THEM ANYWAY!
These bouquets were created by Amanda Heer of Fantasy Floral - Home Of The Brooch Bouquets. Each bouquet is made up of several brooches in different sizes, styles and colours giving you a very vintage look.
And these handcrafted beauties are made entirely of pieces of silk, linen, cotton, and upholstery fabric by Milkpod Studio. Milkpod also makes corsages, boutonieres, centerpieces, pomanders, and really sweet hair clips out of fabirc too.
WIN YOUR WEDDING FILM!!
Shot entirely on the beautiful and timeless medium of 8mm and 16mm stock, in either colour and/or black and white, { First Kiss Films } uses traditional cinematic techniques to capture the emotion of your day. Not only will your film allow you to be transported back to your wedding day time and again but it makes for a truly unique heirloom that you and your family will cherish for generations to come.
About the lovely Bridget:
{ First Kiss Films } was born when Bridget Farr the artist fell in love, got married, and became Bridget Redmond the artist and wedding cinematographer. Now Bridget is applying her 15 years of film making and photography experience to capture the beauty of once-in-a-lifetime moments. A graduate of both Film Studies and the Photographic Arts, her numerous award-winning films have been screened at international film festivals and events on all five major continents. Her photography has been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world and on numerous touring exhibits including Oprah's "Live Your Best Life" Tour.
Head on over to the { First Kiss Films } blog for details and contest rules. You have until 5pm (EST) Friday April 30 2010 to enter with the winner being announced Tuesday May 4 2010. Good luck!!
THE CHIC CHANDELIER
WEDDING DRESS WEDNESDAY
LOUNGING AT YOUR WEDDING
Cassandra Cherneski of The Florida Bride's Blog offers the following five tips as general guidelines to creating a fabulous lounge space at your wedding.
Choose the physical space.
For some reception venues, this may be easier than others. Perhaps your venue already has a separate little enclave that would be perfect for a tucked-away lounge space. But if you’re dealing with an enormous ballroom, you’ll have to get a little bit creative. Try using pipe and drape to delineate a separate area for your lounge. Or group your dinner tables in one section, and place your lounge area in its own corner of the ballroom.
For reception venues with outdoor space, this is the perfect place to put a lounge, provided the weather will be comfortable. The comfortable furnishings and outdoor breezes will definitely inspire your guests to put your lounge area to good use!
Select your furnishings.
Your furniture is the foundation for the entire look of the lounge. Typical lounge furniture items include sofas, loveseats, benches, and ottomans. You can mix and match these items to create a customized space all your own. Most major metropolitan areas have a rental company that provides these items, so try googling “wedding lounge furniture” and see what you find. Your event planner should have connections as well, and may even be able to offer you a discount!
Some tips for your furniture: I love to keep the furnishings all one color. This way you can create a neutral base for your accessories, which helps them really pop. I also like to match the styling of your furniture to the overall feel of the event. For example, for a shabby-chic wedding I would choose Victorian-looking furniture with curved backs, rolled arms, and carved wooden feet. For a modern wedding, try all-white leather, and geometrically shaped pieces.
Almost every successful lounge area uses pillows to create “pops” of color and to customize the space. Depending on your overall look, you could get away with just a few pillows, or you could use tons of them. Typically, your rental company has these; but you can also find great pillows at home-décor stores, often at prices comparable to or less than rental prices. Use your pillows to tie the space to other areas of your reception, and to incorporate your wedding colors. Look for pillows with unique textures and embellishments. You may also consider pillows made of luxe fabrics, such as dupioni silk or tucked taffeta.
Don’t forget the little touches that add character and personality to your space! Think residential elements: carpets, lamps, candles, floral arrangements. Incorporate the unexpected. If your lounge space is outdoors, don’t neglect your overhead space. Can you string lights or paper lanterns above? If your space is near a tree, think pomander balls or votive lanterns hanging from the branches.
One caveat when adding accessories: keep it simple. You don’t want your sleek space to become cluttered.
Last but not least, add lighting! It may be as simple as groupings of votives or pillar candles on “coffee tables.” Or you may want to rent elaborate par can lighting. For those going for the modern look, some rental companies are offering LED “glow cubes” and benches. For a beachy theme, the tiki torch really sets a mood. You want your guests to bask in a sultry glow in your lounge space. Leave the lighting low enough to be romantic, but don’t leave your guests in the dark!
THIS MONTH'S VIVA LA WEDDING Q&A
UNDER THE BIG TENT
With all that goodness however comes a heck of a lot of work. Unless you've made it a habit of hosting large events in the past, chances are you don't have stored in your garage a tent, 30 tables, 300 chairs, a dance floor, and all the linens, dishes, etc, etc, etc needed to pull a backyard wedding off.
Unlike a downtown hotel or conference centre who because of the many events they host will already have these items on site, you'll need to bring them in yourself. Fortunately Ottawa is full of great rental places to help you out.
Thinking of having a tented backyard wedding? Here is a checklist of just a few items you'll need to rent and things to consider.□ Tent
- Large enough to fit head table, all guest tables, dance floor, dj/band, stage/platform, cake table, gift table, bar, cruiser tables, lounge style seating, etc
- Weatherproofed (wind, rain resistant)
- Roll up sides/windows
□ Tent decor
- Ceiling swags
- Drapery for main entrance
- Drapery around support poles
- Chandeliers
- Paper lanterns
- Ground luminaries around perimeter and to create pathways
- Gobo or spotlights to project patterns on walls/floor/ceiling
- Flooring if ground is not firm
- Large potted flowers/plants/trees
- etc
□ Tables
Ceremony – once ceremony is over, tables rented for ceremony can be moved to reception site and used there
- Table to sign marriage certificate
- Table for sand ceremony, stone blessing, etc
- Table for programs, water bottles, etc
- Table for DJ/musician if required
Cocktail Hour
- Cruiser tables
Reception
- Guest tables
- Head table or sweetheart/couple’s table
- Table for escort cards
- Guest book table
- Tables for DJ
- Tables for bar
- Cake table
- Gift table
□ Chairs
Ceremony – once ceremony is over, chairs rented for ceremony can be moved to reception site and used there
- Chairs for all guests
- Chairs for musicians
Cocktail Hour
- Lounge style seating
Reception
- Chairs for all guests
- Chair for DJ
□ Linens
Ceremony
- Table cloths
- Skirting
- Chair covers if required
Cocktail Hour
- Table cloths
- Table runners/overlays
- Cocktail napkins
Reception
- Table cloths for all tables
- Skirting
- Table runners/overlays
- Chair covers if required
- Dinner napkins
□ Caterer
- Hors d’oevres for cocktail hour
- Plated/buffet/home style meal
- Coffee/Tea service
- Late night buffet
- All tableware (dinnerware, flatware, glassware)
- Cooks
- Area for cooks to cook/prep meal
- Servers
- Bartenders
- Bar area for bartenders
- Ice
- Garbage
□ Table top
- Centerpieces
- Table numbers
- Place cards
- Menus
- Guest favours
□ Dance floor
□ Podium
□ Lighting, sound system and electrical
Ceremony
- Microphone so guests can hear the officiant as well as the bride & groom
- Microphones/speakers for musicians
- Outlets for electrical
- Extension cords
Reception
- Microphone for speeches
- Lighting for evening receptions
- Outlets for electrical
- Extension cords
- Generator
□ Gift table
- Card box
□ Signing table
Ceremony
- Pen
Reception
- Guest Book
- Pens
□ Washrooms
- Rent portable washrooms
- Don’t forget lighting to/in washrooms for evening receptions
□ Parking
- Need sufficient space for all your guests to park
- Consider parking restrictions
- Parking signs to be posted or hire parking attendant to direct guests to parking
- Lighting to guide guests to their vehicles for evening receptions
□ Heaters/fans
- Portable heaters for cool evenings
- Lap blankets or wraps
- Fans if tent is not air conditioned
□ Bug Repellent
- Spray for bugs ahead of time
- Use citronella candles
- Rent bug zappers
□ Permits
- Special occasion permit (SOP)
- Liquor liability for private residence
- Party alcohol liability insurance
□ Noise restrictions
□ Neighbours
- If neighbours aren’t invited but may be affected by your wedding (more traffic/cars parked on the street, noise late into the evening) it’s common courtesy to let them know you’re hosting a big event
□ Disabled guests
- Walkways easily accessible for those in wheelchairs and using canes
- Appropriate washroom facilities available
- Rent small golf cart to transfer older guests if hilly/uneven terrain or great distance between ceremony and reception site
□ Rain
Ceremony
- Reception tent to double as ceremony area
- Ceremony to take place on dance floor
- One row of seating on each side of dance floor designated for parents/grandparents
- All other guests to either stand on dance floor or to be seated at assigned tables for duration of ceremony, mingle during cocktail hour and then be seated at same tables for dinner
- Keep extra umbrellas at entrance of tent for guests to use
Pictures
- Tent
- In house
- Nearby heritage buildings, museums, etc
□ Sun
Ceremony
- Consider direction of chair set up (you don’t want your guests looking into the sun)
- Check with your photographer for picture purposes
- Set up a beverage station with pitchers of ice water and fresh cut lemons so guests can help themselves or provide bottled water
- Hand held fans
- Sunscreen
Cocktail
- Provide shaded area for your guests if you don’t want them in the main tent until dinner
□ Wind
- Make sure candles are protected by using hurricanes, lanterns, fishbowls, etc
- Use weighted vases for flowers on table tops
- Heavy centerpieces will help keep linens down, pin whatever can be pinned
- Let you guests know in advance that they will be attending an outdoor wedding so they will be prepared and can dress accordingly