Why Hire a Wedding Planner?

Is it worth to hire someone to do something you could do yourself?  Or can you...?

This may not be news.  Hiring a professional to guide you though unknown waters can save two valuable things:

- Money
- Stomach lining

If you just got engaged, now is the time to think about talking to a planner.  But, hold on!  This doesn't mean you have to hand over your creative control to a stranger who may or may not satisfy your needs.  A planner, a GOOD planner is not there to take over the vision of your wedding and cut you out of the loop.  

The role of a GOOD planner is to be YOUR agent.  They are there to argue on your side, arrange price breaks, advise you on common pitfalls, mediate family opinions and preferences and eventually, execute your wedding plan 
 
The most valuable (and possibly unreported) asset the wedding planner can provide is objectivity.  With the ever changing landscape of wedding etiquette, a knowledgeable planner can shed light on the common traditions and help you determine which ones are meaningful to you.  They can also help you navigate the sometimes treacherous waters between mothers/mothers-in-law and anyone else who wants to give you helpful guidance. See this post for more on the editing process.  What is Essential to a Great Wedding - and What Isn't.

Many times in my life, I have been attracted to the less expensive Do It Yourself solution to problems.  Sometimes that works out just fine.  Other times, I just end up spending my money twice.  Once, for all the supplies and fixes that come with the learning curve of being an amateur.  Then, again, to hire a professional to do it correctly.  

Your wedding, however, is not going to have a second time around!  Hopefully, you nail it the first time out of the gate.  

Simply, a wedding planner can help set you on a course to realize all of your dreams without the learning curve!

- They can save you money
- They can mediate difficult family disputes about taste and tradition
- They can be there for you when members of your wedding party are too busy to help out
- They take the whole journey of creating a perfect event with you and are ultimately the one who will supervise the decoration and execution of all details that you may be too overwhilemed to deal with two days before the big day.

My opinion: 

A planner is not for everyone and everyone needs a different level of assistance with planning an event of this magnitude. Seek out a planner who meets your individual needs and consult with them. You won't regret it.

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Christmas Advent Calendar Blocks By Janice K. Wallace

Christmas approaches beautifully with these hand-painted blocks that count down the days until the big morning!

 

These amazing blocks were handmade and hand painted by the amazing Janice K. Wallace of St. Louis, MO. (more on her in a later post) Janice is an abundantly talented and prolific artist.  She surprised us last Christmas with this incredible set of birch blocks.

 

 

Each block has a different theme on each of its six sides.  Letters, dates, hand-painted snowflakes, a pine tree stencil, fabric patterns, wood grain and that awesome silver circle design!  I can never decide which side I like best. 

 

 

The woodgrain is exposed on one side and the rings are selectively painted, then covered with a layer of polyurethane.

She also painted these dainty little snowflakes on one side of each block. 

 

 

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DIY: Holiday Tissue Paper Pom Poms

A twist on basic pom poms! Add fun and holiday spirit in a flash. 

 

These puff balls couldn't be easier to make.  Both my kid and I have them hanging in our bedrooms year round.  They really add life and lightness to a space.

But! A couple of weeks ago I was shopping and saw this cool candy cane striped paper, then red with white star bursts, then red tissue with hologram glitter!

I decided that I should make hanging pom-poms out of that cool tissue paper. I figured those patterns would add a little extra holiday spirit.  Now I have them hanging everywhere in the house!

Once you have your materials, these pom poms should only take 15 -20 minutes each to make.  If you have older kids, they will be totally able to handle this project with you.

MATERIALS YOU'LL NEED:
- 8 to 10 sheets of 20"x 30" tissue paper.  (The sheets can be different sizes as I have pictured in this post, but make sure your dimensions are proportionate.  Square pieces of tissue make oddly shaped puff balls).  Any color will work, I got these patterned papers at Walmart, but you can use any pattern, color or style you can get your hands on.

- Thin wire, like floral wire.  Something that's easy to bend with your fingers.

- Sturdy sharp scissors.

- Twine or fishing line to suspend the pom poms.


**Optional Materials** For glitter, eyelet pom poms, you will need:

- A standard hole punch

- Glitter (any color or size)

- Glue (Elmer's or PVA are ideal)

- A small paint brush

- 10" - 12" wooden skewer

Watch slideshow below for all the steps!

STEPS:

 1: Orient the paper so the short end is facing you.  Fold the tissue, accordion style, into 2" folds.  The width of the folds will vary depending on how large the paper is.  For smaller puffs, your folds may be closer to 1" wide. Medium size; folds should be about 1.5". Get it!?

2: Cut the ends of the strip so they have a nice curved edge or a pointed tipped end.  THEN! Fold the strip of accordion folded paper in half lengthwise and gently crease it.  Cut a small notch out of the top and bottom of the middle of the paper. 

3: Cut a length of wire about 10" long.  At one end, make a small loop and twist the wire back on itself.  Then, take that wire and wrap it around the center notches you just cut. Twist the wire back on itself, with the wire loop pointing upward; this will be your hanging loop.

4: Fan out the folds and  gently lift each layer of tissue paper.  Be careful not to tear the pieces as you pull them apart. Try to maintain a little horizontal wave in each layer so it looks more flowery and less like flat layers.

5: If you want to hang it, just tie a piece of string around your metal loop and you've got it!

Now, that you know the basics, you can build on that!  My favorite of all the puffballs is the eyelet variety.  

To make them, just follow steps 1 - 3.  Then once the layers are fanned out, use a hole punch to create a couple rows of eyelets along both edges.  After that, proceed with steps 4 & 5.  Just be extra careful when pulling apart the layers as the eyelet holes make the edges sort of fragile.

  

Aren't those pretty?  

I tried the same thing with that cool hologram glitter tissue.  Very cool! 

Puffing In Progress with Melanie and Meg

The last thing we tried was to make glitter puffs.  It's a little more time intensive, but boy are they sweet! I tried these with a couple friends and we did tag team glitter and it made it go faster and way more fun!

STEPS FOR GLITTER PUFFS:

Again, repeat steps 1 & 2.  Then, you will take the layers apart and glitter and glue them separately.  It doesn't matter if you keep them in any kind of order.  Ours got all turned around and it actually looks a little better!

1 & 2: Just lay the pieces flat on a large piece of scrap paper.  Put the glitter and the glue in separate bowls.  Paint the scalloped or pointed edges with glue; (you have to work kind of fast).  The glue may seem a little dry, and that is alright.  DO NOT WATER DOWN THE GLUE! 

3: Once the edge is painted with glue, sprinkle it with glitter and shake off the excess.  Repeat until all layers are glittered.  Let the sheets dry for 20 minutes or so.

4: Realign the sheets and refold them.  

5: Proceed with steps 3-5.

** 6: Orrr.....  You can make flower out of your puff!  Just cut a longer piece of wire and instead of a loop, wrap the wire around the middle of the tissue.  Take the remaining length of wire and tightly wrap it around the wooden skewer.  Then once you have pulled apart the layers, you can stick the skewer into a vase or a potted plant or something like that.

That's it!  I would love to see pictures of your puff balls/pom poms!  Does anyone have any other options to share?

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New Recipe: Brussels Sprouts, Green Beans and Bacon!

YUM.  What a great combination.  Bacon, Brussels Sprouts, Green Beans and Parmesan Cheese!

Hope you all had a delicious Thanksgiving!  I, for one, was very ready to have that turkey. 

We tried a new dish for Thanksgiving which sounds simple, but was especially delicious.  It's easy, but turns out really special.  It looks beautiful with the different shapes and textures - and tastes even better!
 

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound Green Beans - stem end trimmed (I like to leave the curly tip intact - I think it looks cute and elegant) 

1/2 pound Bacon - chopped into small pieces (PS: Its way easier to chop bacon after it's been in the freezer for a little while)

1 pound Brussels Sprouts - trimmed and left whole
  
2T Butter - optional

1/4 cup Shaved Parmesan Cheese


1: Blanch the green beans in a small pot of boiling water for 3-4 minutes.  Remove from the water and drain.  Immediately transfer the beans to a bowl of ice cold water to retain the bean's bright green color.  Drain again, and set aside on paper towel lined plate or sheet pan.

2:  In a large skillet brown the bacon.  Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel.

3:  In the same skillet, add 2T butter (if necessary or desired  - sometimes the bacon doesn't yield much fat - HA!).  Add the brussels sprouts and saute over medium heat for about10 minutes, until they are mostly done.

4: Increase the heat to medium-high/high heat.  Add the beans back into the skillet with the brussels sprouts.  Saute while stirring/flipping every minute or so.

5: After about 5 minutes, add the bacon back into the pan.   Cook another 5 minutes until all the vegetables are tender-crisp and the bacon crisps up.

6:  Transfer to a serving bowl and toss some Parm on top.

EAT IT!!

Final product....

 

My step-mom (extra mom), my daughter and my dad on Thanksgiving this year.

What a pretty table!  Also made those rolls which turned out pretty great, too. 

Does anyone have any great dishes from their Thanksgiving to share?  I would love to see your pictures!

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Breakfast Birthday Party

Something Simple But Beautiful for a Birthday Breakfast Party

Sometimes all it takes to turn a simple breakfast into a special event is making a pretty display out of your ingredients. 

We just had scrambled eggs, with bagels and lox with all the condiments.  It's all about the arrangement, in my opinion.

Trader Joe's has excellent lox for a great price, a nice ripe tomato, shaved red onion, sliced cream cheese and capers. 

Also, I think adding kosher salt and pepper to the tomatoes really livens up their flavor.

 

Then, a quick visit to Andre's to get these awesome desserts.

http://www.andreschocolates.com/

A lemon tart, a classic Napoleon, a dainty almond layer cake with pistachio butter cream, a super Rummy Rumball and a hidden dark chocolate covered macaroon.  All you need to complete the dessert is a nice hot cup of black coffee.

Very easy and very delicious!

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Discovering Vintage Rentals

Unless you are a hoarder or a collector, chances are good that when it comes time to entertain large groups, you may not have all the dinnerware you need.  Also, when it comes to convenience and elegance, renting plates, linens, glasses and silverware is just the best way to go. The advantages to renting dishes are many: no dish clean up, delivery and pickup directly to your event space and a wide variety of styles and sophistication levels.

Locally, I have had great experiences with AAA Party Rental.  http://www.aaapartyrental.com/
They have a nice selection of basic plates, linens, silver and serving pieces. They will also deliver tables and chairs promptly and they are incredibly friendly. However, it seems that more and more brides and hosts are looking for something with a mismatched retro flair.

 

Thankfully, there is a new trend emerging that allows us to have cool vintage plates and cake stands without having to scour flea markets and garage sales for months before your event.

Vintage rental companies are becoming more prevalent lately and that is GOOD!

Some focus on plates and dinnerware, and others have furniture and props as well.  While there are several here in the Missouri/Kansas area, I have to include some cool rental companies from the coasts, who are renting mid-century modern and kitschy 70's vintage items!
 
It's a great trend!

Now, Kansas City has vintage rental vendors!

The Vintage Plate: 

Owned by my friend and colleague Sydney Gasper. Her business is located in the West Bottoms, Kansas City, MO. She specializes in plates and dinnerware and has a great collection of cake stands.Check out their great collection at  The Vintage Plate website.

These beautiful photos were taken by multi-talented jewelry designer, Amani Skalacki of Skala Designs.

 

Ultrapom: 
Their motto is "We Love to Share". They have an interesting collection of decorative elements. Some unusual features are their table runners, chandeliers, bunting and a pretty decent selection of vases, bottles and vintage glass. Located in Overland Park, KS.

http://ultrapom.com/collection

Source: ultrapom.com via Amy on Pinterest

Source: ultrapom.com via Amy on Pinterest

Source: ultrapom.com via Amy on Pinterest

Brossie Belle:
This was Kansas City's first vintage rental company. Located in Kansas City, MO and owned by a gal
 named Jenn.  They have a nice collection of accessories, but from what I can tell they don't offer any dinnerware or linen.  It appears that they stock things that work more like props rather than functional pieces for your event.

http://www.brossiebelle.com/public_html/Home/Home.html

http://brossiebelle.wordpress.com/

 

 

Source: brossiebelle.com via Amy on Pinterest

Worn Vintage - Columbia, MO
These were the great folks that brought the dinner plates for Meg's wedding in August. They also delivered a beautiful loveseat we used for the photo booth and a few other props.  They have a fairly wide selection, but their website is pretty limited.  In fact, I am not certain where to locate all pictures of their stock.  I know firsthand that they have it, but it is difficult to track down.  I even had a hard time finding the image below.

/http://pinterest.com/source/wornvintagerental.wordpress.com/

Source: wornvintagerental.wordpress.com via Amy on Pinterest

Also, I had to include a few vintage vendors from elsewhere because they are doing such inspiring and novel things with the vintage objects.

On Solid Ground - Minneapolis, MN
They have a lot of cool containers and seem to be very inventive with their wedding themes.  There is a whole segment on a "Summer Camp Wedding".

Source: ruffledblog.com via On Solid Ground on Pinterest

Source: ruffledblog.com via On Solid Ground on Pinterest

Source: greenweddingshoes.com via On Solid Ground on Pinterest

The Vintage Table - Los Angeles
Really like the use of these traditional vintage plates with the non-traditional Dia de los Muertos theme.

Source: greenweddingshoes.com via Kathy {The Vintage Table Co.} on Pinterest

Source: pinstagram.co via Kathy {The Vintage Table Co.} on Pinterest

Yeah Rentals in Los Angeles:
Amazing stuff - kind of a mid-century modern approach that really stands out in the realm of "shabby chic" vintage. (Pardon that term Shabby Chic, which I dislike and usually try to avoid.)
 

Source: yeahrentals.com via Amy on Pinterest

Source: yeahrentals.com via Amy on Pinterest

Source: yeahrentals.com via Amy on Pinterest

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What Every Wedding Planner Should Know About Today's Brides - Thoughts?

I found this compelling post on the My Wedding Workbook Blog. What do we think?  Is this true of you or the brides you know?

http://www.myweddingworkbookpro.com/blog/index.cfm/2011/7/27/6-things-every-wedding-planner-should-know-about-todays-brides

6 things every wedding planner should know about today's brides

Posted At : July 27, 2011 8:01 PM | Posted By : Admin
Related Categories: Wedding Trends

Brides are usually the ones who seek out and eventually hire wedding planners (grooms are usually along for the ride), and since we launched our sister site My Wedding Workbook a few years ago we have surveyed brides on a number of areas, including their thoughts about hiring a wedding planner. Here are the seven things you should know as a wedding planner about your target audience.
1. They are most worried about their budget, their dress and their appearance.
According to our research, the top three things brides worry about is the cost of their wedding and staying on budget; their dress and attire for the wedding party; and their physical appearance (physical fitness, makeup, hair, etc.). As a wedding planner, you can reassure them that, by hiring you, you can keep their wedding under their specified budget and make sure they and their big day will be elegant and beautiful.
2. The top three places they first look for inspiration are wedding-related Web sites, blogs and search engines.
In the past, the first place a newly engaged bride-to-be looked for inspiration was wedding magazines and publications. But today's bride is fully plugged in and online searching for wedding ideas within a week of her engagement. So, if you want to be found, you need to have an online presence and the ability to be found on the Web.
3. Most brides still attend bridal shows.
In fact, 70% of brides in our research attend at least one bridal show, with many attending 3 or more. So if you haven't exhibited at a bridal show yet, you should visit a local show as an attendee to see the turnout and get a feel for if paying to be an exhibitor would be worth your while (and you should definitely ask if exhibitors get the attendee list or can market to the list after the event).
4. They say cost is the main factor in considering hiring a wedding planner.
Let's break this down. Of the brides who didn't consider a wedding planner, 75% said they didn't hire one because it was too expensive. Of the brides who did consider a wedding planner, cost was the top factor in deciding who to hire. You probably already know this through your experience with prospects; however, it emphasizes the need to demonstrate to prospects how you can help them save money (through your connections with vendors and negotiation abilities) and help them get the most value from what they do spend (by avoiding pitfalls, bad vendors, etc.).
5. They're looking for a planner who they connect with, who has strong vendor relationships and who has experience.
First and foremost, brides place a premium on personal chemistry. For them, they want more than a taskmaster and a planner; they also want someone they feel a bond with. In addition, they want to hear about your relationships with vendors (so you can negotiate good rates for them) and your past experience. So in your pitch, make sure you provide plenty examples and proof of these things. Also, case studies and stories of your event productions on your Web site also help.
6. They're asking their friends for recommendations.
When brides look for wedding planners to interview, the first place they consult for suggestions is their friends and family, followed by Web sites and online wedding forums, bridal shows and search engines. This should certainly give you a road map of where you need to market your services, starting with actively and regularly asking for referrals from your past and present clients as well as industry partners (we go into more detail about this in our recent white paper, which you can download here).

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No Joking on Game Day, Even About Cupcakes.

The day you are getting the goods together for a party, the catering kitchen can be a very tense place. The light humor that usually accompanies our work kind of takes a smoke break for the day. When we would be cooking to get a party out the door, if you would ask John at Catering By Design, "Do we really have to wrap 300 shrimp in basil and proscuitto?!", he would say "No joking on game day."And that meant business.

Let me set up the real story.  Meg's wedding was fast approaching.  Meg is a best friend of mine and it was my great pleasure to help her orchestrate her wedding.  We had been working on it for nearly a year.

We were totally prepared to set up and cook for Meg's wedding.  My daughter had been dropped off with grandparents for the weekend, all groceries were bought, prep lists were made.

Then, the unexpected thing that would throw off all of our plans, that we knew would likely come up; happened. Our cake maker had a major family emergency.  No cake.  No wedding cake.  Cupcakes, actually. Two-tiered, red velvet and strawberry, individually decorated cupcakes. The idea was still alive and well in our minds, but the baker and executor of the cakes was no longer in the picture.

Now, in a matter of minutes, I was the cake maker. I scrambled.  Found a VERY competent baker and tracked down some papers and decorations.

So, many hours later, here we are.  The night before the wedding. I was working with my baker, Amy Shapley.  We were doing a couple trial cupcakes for Meg's approval.  In our overtired state, we were joking and giggling and testing out icing tips and snacking on the crunchy edges of reject cupcakes.  Amy was taking pictures of our progress and snapped one of a particularly homely cupcake that had been eaten on, and had various clumps of cream cheese frosting here and there.

We thought it was the funniest thing we had ever seen.  Meg being our close friend, we thought she would get a laugh if we sent her this picture  via text of the cupcake "prototype".


Hours later, she still hadn't replied.  Finally, we hear from her.  "Looks great. But, will it also get a second layer?"

We got her reply and both froze.  She doesn't actually think we think that cupcake looks good, does she?  Is she delirious?

She didn't get the joke.

We were kind of embarrassed by the thought that she might be trying to make nice and settle for this pathetic little bastard child of a cupcake we made in our own delirium.

Then the words of my old boss rang in my head.... "No joking on game day."  The night before a girl's wedding is no time for silly pranks.

No matter how well you know someone or how funny you think it may be, the hours before a person's big day, is not a good time to try to get a laugh.  Lesson learned.

And in the end, the cupcakes did turn out beautifully.   

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