Planning Tips and Trends for 2010 and 2011

I was lucky enough to attend a network event last week about trends for the coming wedding season and wanted to share them with you. I was also a guest blogger for Mike Staff Productions and they posted this on their blog as well. http://www.mikestaff.com/

Planning your wedding or any special event can be a huge undertaking for anyone, but if you’re doing it for the first time, just knowing where to start can be a daunting task. Tonight I attended an event dedicated to showing all of the great trends for 2010 and 2011. It was such an amazing and inspirational event, I am so excited to share what I learned with you. Not only will I review the trends with you but tips on how to pull your entire event together and great ways to get you started.
The first thing you should do when planning any event is have a theme or color scheme in mind so that when you are visiting venues you will know what works and what won’t. I assisted with a wedding and the bride chose yellow as her main color which was such a brilliant choice because her facility décor was gold and yellow. I’ve also seen an event where the decor of the room was red and gold and the bride chose hot pink and lime green for her wedding colors, it didn’t flow as well. The look and feel of the room will dictate the look and feel of the event. A popular trend right now is choosing a historic site. Typically these facilities have so much character you can cut down on décor, which will in turn save you money.
Most everyone wants their event to feel special and personal. While a monogram is a great way to personalize your event, it has been popular for the past few years. Come up with a new way to personalize your event without getting too carried away. Some great ideas are using a favorite quote, poem, line from a movie or song, and printing them on your invitations, place cards, and table numbers. Another way to add a personal touch would be incorporating family photos through out the room. I saw a wedding, where the bride took a framed picture of every family member cutting their cake on their wedding day and placed them on her cake table. She had pictures of her brother, parents, grandparents, and all of the groom’s relatives on the table. It was really cool to see all of the different wedding styles throughout the years.
On to the trends… Colors for this season and next are going to be bold, lots of turquoise, all shades of purple, pinks, and metallics. Black and white is classic, adding a pop of color will make the look fresh and trendy. If you love the black and white look but are using a venue with more neutral tones, try using a black and ivory damask print, the ivory in the print will still give the look you want but won’t be as harsh as the white. Another big trend for this season and next is offering a soft seating area. Creating a lounge space in your reception room near the bar will allow your guests to mingle and enjoy the wedding. You can frame the space with a fabric drapery and add some couches with pillows and end tables; you can decorate the space with pictures, flowers, and candles. Most rental company in your area should be able to accommodate your request for a soft seating area.
I hope this has been helpful for you. Remember that you can always call on the experts at Mike Staff Productions or me, for help planning your special event. Good luck and happy planning!

The empty box

Nice idea for your wedding ceremony:

I recently heard this story of a gentleman celebrating his 50th wedding anniversary. Surrounded by his friends and family, children, grand children and great grand children he was asked, “What’s the secret?”
He said, “50 years ago today I was standing in church waiting for my lovely bride, obviously nervous. I caught the notice of a man, who at the time seemed quite old but was certainly younger then I am today. The man stopped and asked, ‘getting married today? Let me give you a little advice; marriage is an empty box, you can only take out what you are willing to put in.’ That advice has served me very well over the last 50 years.
“Most people who get married believe a myth – they believe that marriage is a beautiful box filled with all the things they’ve longed for - they believe that it is filled with companionship, intimacy and friendship. The truth is that marriage at the start is an empty box, you must put something in before you can take something out.:”
“There’s no love in marriage … love is in people, and people put it in marriage. “
After telling this story the officiant will explain the large wooden box that is by the alter;
“I have asked you as a couple, to find a strong wooden box that will hold one bottle of wine, and two wine glasses. In addition, I have asked each of you to write a letter to one another, expressing your thoughts about the good qualities that you have found in your future partner, as well as, your reasons for falling in love with each other. I requested that you were to seal them in individual envelopes and put them in the box with the wine and glasses.”
“Together we will seal this box, and on the happy occasion of their anniversary, you will open the box, read the letters, drink the wine, and add new letters to the box. As time passes, you will have a record of the yearly reflection on your relationship and a living document of the growth and depth of your ever evolving bond.”
Now you just need a box and some wine.
If you’re in Metro Detroit the best source I know of to get fine wine is Fine Wine Source in Livonia. Jim and his staff are incredibly knowledgeable and extremely helpful. If you’ve never had a glass or if you’re a full blown wino they will make sure to fine the bottle for your taste and your price range.
finewinesource.net
No matter where you live there is an excellent Michigan company that can provide you with a top quality box that can hold your letters/wine, display your wedding photos and be used to collect all your cards for your reception. Kelly Marie started her company here in Michigan after planning her own daughter’s wedding. They have great products for a very reasonable price and they can ship it to anywhere in the world!
theperfectcardbox.com