Hilarious Wedding Entrance!

Lantern Wedding Centerpieces

The image above was taken at Michelle & Dan's wedding last weekend at the Stone House at Stirling Ridge. Their flowers were done by the incredible, sweet, lovely Laura Clare. I loved that Michelle incorporated lanterns into her centerpieces. I had been checking out these gorgeous Moroccan Lanterns from Wedding Table Decor and Michelle's centerpieces are the perfect inspiration and time to share them!


Mid White Moroccan Lantern

Moroccan Design Amber Glass Lantern

Moroccan Lantern with Blue Glass

White Fancy Lantern with Stand

Yellow Glass Moroccan Lantern


Don't be afraid to incorporate non-floral items and splashes of color into your centerpieces! I love the amber and blue glass in these!

Head over to check out more photo's of Michelle & Dan's wedding by the fabulous Kella MacPhee. I love the sparkler pictures!

Vendor Meal Etiquette

Q: "Do I need to have a table in the main ballroom for the vendors?"

A: Nope! It is not necessary or expected. Your vendors have very little time to sit down and eat during your wedding, so the majority of the night, you'll have an empty table. This is also a good time for the vendors to sit, chat, and network about the business, which we may not be able to do as easily in the ballroom. There's no need to purchase additional escort cards, centerpieces, linens, china, etc. to accommodate your vendors. Speak with your venue contact in advance and set up a vendor table in a back room or in the cocktail space. What you feed your vendors is also up to you and your venue. Some venues give the option of the same food as the guests are eating, while others opt for a boxed-meal for a smaller fee. Make sure to check your contracts, as many wedding professionals have clauses about meals.

Cupcake Photography Contest

My friends Jannet, Angela, and I are obsessed with cupcakes. Everywhere we go, we eat cupcakes. It's a topic of conversation every time we get together. We have a plan to someday travel the country eating cupcakes and blogging about it. A regular feature on this blog will be cupcakes - so this post is just the beginning. I can't think of a better way to spend Wellness Wednesday than by looking at (and hopefully eating!) cupcakes. This week, I want to share a cupcake contest. Baked By Melissa bakes mini-cupcakes that are to-die-for. I love their small size because you get to indulge without completely over doing it.

Baked By Melissa is running a photography contest. Take a picture with their cupcakes and you could win $500 and 100 cupcakes! Entries must be sent in by August 15. I am going on a Caribbean cruise for vacation on August 13th and am planning to bring the cupcakes with me on board and get some awesome shots to send in! This contest is the perfect excuse to indulge!

If you know of any great cupcake recipes or bakeries anywhere in the country, please let me know! There will be many more cupcake posts to come! I hope you enjoy your Wellness Wednesdays and take a little time for YOU!

photo courtesy of killahbeez.com

Cut Down Your Guest List!

When you are planning a wedding on a budget, the very first thing you should look at is your guest list. Keep in mind that there is more to a per-guest price than just food. Even adding one or two guests can throw off the balance of an entire room. You'll need more tables, additional centerpieces, favors, invitations, menu cards, programs, and place cards. Suddenly, what looked like a quick add just made your overall budget jump. Weddings are no longer a race to see who can fill the largest church. Couples are looking for small, intimate time with the people most important to them. Try to keep your list to people that you know well. If you think you'll look back on your wedding photographs in ten years and not know who the people are nor think you'll still be in touch with them, this budget cut should be an easy decision.

Lemonade Bar

One of my upcoming weddings is featuring a Lemonade Bar during their cocktail hour. It's something that your guests will love to drink and it looks beautiful too! Here are some lemonade variations that you could include in a lemonade bar or as your signature drink:

Purple Basil Lemonade

In this recipe, basil is crushed with sugar to release the oils. If you don't have a mortar and pestle, process the basil, sugar, and about 1/4 cup of the water in a food processor or blender.

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

4 cups water - 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice - 1/2 cup loosely packed purple basil leaves (about 1/4 ounce) - 6 tablespoons sugar - 4 cups ice - 4 purple basil sprigs

Preparation:

Combine 4 cups water and juice in a large bowl. Place 1/2 cup basil and sugar in a mortar; pound with pestle until a paste forms. Add sugar mixture to juice mixture; stir until sugar dissolves. Strain mixture through a sieve over a bowl; discard solids. Place 1 cup ice in each of 4 glasses. Pour about 1 cup lemonade into each glass; garnish each serving with 1 basil sprig.

(recipe courtesy of Cooking Light)

Vodka Thyme Lemonade

Yield: 8 servings

Ingredients:

2 cups sugar - 12 sprigs fresh thyme, plus more for garnish -4 cups freshly squeezed lemon juice, about 24 lemons -2 cups vodka

Preparation:

1. In a small saucepan, combine 2 cups water with the sugar and thyme; bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat; let cool to room temperature.
2. Pour mixture through a fine sieve into a large glass measuring cup; discard thyme. You should have 2 cups syrup. Cover with plastic; chill.
3. In a large serving pitcher, stir together lemon juice, vodka, and chilled syrup; garnish with thyme. Divide evenly among eight tumblers filled with ice; serve immediately.

(recipe courtesy of Martha Stewart)

This is a simple and relatively inexpensive way to make your event look elegant. Slice lemons, limes, and oranges into your lemonade and be sure to include large sprigs of the herbs you are incorporating to give it a punch of color.

Whichever recipe you choose, always make sure that the alcoholic versions are clearly marked and that there are non-alcoholic versions available.

Fill My Fall!

This weekend will mark the end of my "wedding season." My spring season began on March 28 and it's been a steady stream of weekend weddings ever since. It has been As You Wish Wedding & Event Design's busiest season yet - and I cannot even begin to thank those couples who made it possible. I am so lucky to be a part of a season full of memories for some amazing couples.

What I learned from this busy season is that there is nothing in the world I would rather be doing than planning weddings. It's been a crazy few months, but I have learned so much and can't even call what I do work because I enjoy it so much. I really look forward to many more spring and summer seasons to come! But, it was so great, that I don't want to wait until next spring. I want you to Fill My Fall!

My goal is to fill up every weekend for myself and my consultants from September through December. We love what we do, and we want to do more of it. Times are tough and we want to help out as many people as we can, so we are slashing our Day-Of Coordination rates by HALF!

Aside from all of the great reasons to hire a Day-Of Coordinator (article to follow next week - check back!), we want to give you an extra incentive. If you book with us, a portion of that fee will be donated to The Neuropathy Association and the Make-A-Wish Foundation in your name. I can't think of a better way to celebrate the end of 2009 than helping some incredible charities!

Consultations are always complimentary - we'd love to hear from you! Help to Fill Our Fall!

30 Day Shred!

A big part of Wellness Wednesdays will be exercising and living a healthy lifestyle. I will be the first to say that when my life gets busy and hectic, exercise becomes a low priority for me. One of my goals for this summer was to change that. A good friend recommended Jillian Michaels 30-Day Shred DVD to me for workouts on rainy days. I love to hate it. It's a a tough workout but it really gets the job done in a short amount of time. Each of the three workouts on the DVD are made of up quick circuits of Strength Training, Cardio, and Abs. Each workout lasts only 20 minutes, but it's non-stop. There are no breaks.

Whatever your workout routine, make sure that it is a priority! Happy Wellness Wednesday!

Frugal Flowers!

Wedding magazines are every girl's guilty pleasure. One drawback to them is that they often showcase flowers that are exotic and very expensive. All too often I have clients who have their hearts set on the exact centerpiece or bouquet that they see on one of those colorful, glossy pages. When they hear that the bloom in the photo is a rare orchid from New Zealand that is only available three weeks out of the year and that it costs $250 a stem, it changes everything. Have a firm floral budget worked out before you meet with your florist. Work with your florist to see what flowers are readily available within your price range during your time of the year. Always bring the photos that you fell in love with. Chances are, your florist will know of similar blooms and arrangements to make your floral dreams come true for much less!

Best Bridesmaids Dresses!

This past year has been the first year of my friends getting married in full force. I have personally come into contact with many bridesmaids dresses - the good, the bad, and the ugly. I won't get into which is which, but I have to gush about the dress I wore last week. It was comfortable, beautiful, and we got SO many compliments on it. Two Birds Bridesmaids dresses are a bridesmaid's dream. It's one dress, but convertible. You can tie it ten different ways (although we came across way more than ten if you get a little creative!) and it's one size fits all. I had a tough time believing that one size fits all, but it really is true.

I love this dress so that much that I already have my eye on this gorgeous champagne color!

There are so many colors available. They also offer two lengths: long and short. A pregnancy size is now available as well as a bandeau top to make bigger busted girls more comfortable.

This is the "Caroline" style - the way I chose to wear my dress for the wedding.

I love the bow tied around the neck in this photo. Next time I wear the dress, I am going to tie it that way!

We purchased our dresses from Bella Bridesmaid in Madison NJ. They were great to work with and we got the dresses earlier than expected.

If you like that idea but not this specific dress or price tag, you can find similar alternatives at Butter by Nadia and Victoria's Secret!