SEMI PLANNER PICK ~ Gorgeous Wedding Shoes

If you are searching for the perfect wedding shoe for you and your bridesmaids, visit WeddingFeet.com, an online wedding shoe resource. With hundreds of styles to choose from, you can easily navigate through the website by heel size, color or style. It is a super user friendly site with LOTS of GORGEOUS wedding shoes! Have fun shoe shopping!

www.WeddingFeet.com

Sincerely,

Cindy

SEMI PLANNER TIPS ~ Meeting with your Florist? Ask yourself these questions first!

Must-Ask Questions to Ask (Yourself) before Hiring a Florist

When you are ready to sit down and meet with your florist, you may be thinking what questions should I ask the florist before I hire them. However, I am going to tell you what you should be asking yourself before you sit down with your florist. There are some key elements that you should be thinking about that will affect the overall feeling you are trying to create for your wedding day. You will be flooded with ideas and exciting things that you will want to share with your florist. But if you invest a little time before your meeting, it will be more productive and you will walk away feeling like you created exactly what you wanted for your wedding day. Here are SEMI's Must-Ask Questions to ask yourself before hiring a florist:

How do I want my wedding to look and feel? You will want to have a few words picked out to describe the overall feeling of how you want your wedding day to feel because your flower selections will depend on the mood you are trying to create. For example, a more traditional wedding will most certainly have roses where a more modern chic wedding will have more calla lilies and orchids.

What type of flowers do I love? By asking yourself what flowers do you love, only means to take notice of the types of flowers you like. Naturally, we don’t expect you to know the names of all of the flowers, your florist can help you with that. If you take a few moments to clip magazines or browse the internet for photos of flowers that stand out the most to you this will help your florist have a better understanding of your style and tastes. Which ultimately will help bring you one step closer to creating the wedding you always envisioned or just begun!

What colors do I see for my flowers? Do you like bright bold colors for a bridal bouquet or soft pale colors for your flowers? When selecting the colors for your flowers, your florist will be able to show you flowers in your colors that are available and in season at that time of year. Plus, your color choices reflect the overall look and feel for your wedding, which goes back to the question how do you want your wedding to look and feel for the day?

How many people in my bridal party and family members will need flowers on the day of the wedding? When you sit down with your florist, this is one of the beginning questions they will ask you. You will need your bridal bouquet, bridesmaids bouquets, flower girls, ring-bearers, groomsmen boutonnieres, groom’s boutonniere, flowers for parents, step parents, grandparents, god parents, officiant and any other members of the family that you may want to honor with flowers. This is important because this number can greatly affect the cost of the flowers.

What type of bouquet do you want for your wedding? When we ask what type of bouquet do you want for your wedding, we want to know do you like a hand-tied round bouquet, a cascade of flowers or a pomander (kissing ball)? The florist will want to know what type of wedding dress you are wearing so that your flowers will compliment your dress and not take away from the beauty of it.

How much do you want to spend? This is a critical question because this number will affect what your florist can do for you realistically. Because flowers are such a significant part of your wedding day, we recommend that you spend at least eight to ten percent of your budget on flowers. They will be seen in many photographs and enjoyed by all of your guests. Plus, you can take them with you at the end of the day. :)

Inside the Wedding Planner's White Book

This week for Inside the Wedding Planner's White Book, I am happy to feature Paper Presence. Paper Presence specializes in custom, one-of-a-kind invitations and announcements that help capture the spirit and personality of your special event. Andrea McMahon is the owner and creative force behind Paper Presence. She does a great job capturing the essence of your event from concept to creation. Andrea's designs are all custom, unique, and tailored specifically to your style, inspiration, and budget. They approach each new design with one goal - to make your wedding or event as unique as you! Find out more about Andrea by reading below!

What do you love most about weddings? The "it's you and me" moment: that moment when you know, to your core that you are going to love and be loved for the rest of your life.

How do you continue to challenge yourself in this industry? By feeling the fear, and doing it anyway. Whatever “it” may be at the time, I never want to be so afraid of something, failure OR success, so much that is keeps me from excelling in what I have found to be my professional passion.

What do you think is the most important thing each couple that works with you needs to know? I love what I do. I am blessed to call this my “job” and I work incredibly hard to make each design special, unique and true to my clients’ personalities.

The famous Bernard Pivot questionnaire:

1. What is your favorite word? Gravy J My husband and I share this nickname.
2. What is your least favorite word? It’s two words actually…World War. I can’t say them together without slowing down first, and then of course war just stinks.
3. What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally? Living with all 5 senses. I was introduced to this concept by an industry icon, and there is nothing more motivating and inspiring than experiencing everything around you in every way possible.
4. What turns you off creatively, spiritually or emotionally? Pessimists
5. What sound or noise do you love? Children laughing
6. What sound or noise do you hate? People screaming at each other
7. What is your favorite curse word? I don’t have a favorite. I dislike them all and would wash my mouth out with soap if it really worked. LOL
8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? I’d like to own one of those posh doggy daycare places. J But right now, I don’t want to be doing anything else. I love my profession immensely.
9. What profession would you not like to do? Anything with blood. Ick.
10. If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? Heaven does exist, and I hope to hear God say, “Here are your wings.”

You can find out more about Paper Presence at www.paper-presence.com!

Real Wedding ~ Kelley and Nick Charnas

We love helping all of our brides and grooms plan the wedding day of their dreams! We recently had the pleasure of working with Kelley and Nick on their nautical themed wedding at the Sheraton Sand Key Resort in Florida!

But what do you do when it rains on your wedding day and you are all set for an outside beach ceremony? You have to go with Plan B! You can view the slideshow of their wedding day, that despite the stormy weather, was still a day full of LOVE and ROMANCE!

http://www.jerrymcgaghey.com/Charnas

Our Little White Book ~ A big "Thank you" to all of our amazing vendors!

Wedding Planner: Me! Stonehouse Events & More, Inc.

Photographer: Jerry McGaghey Photography

Florist: Events in Bloom

DJ: Inspire Entertainment

Entertainment: Photo Lounge

Venue: Sheraton Sand Key Resort

Transportation: Ambassador Limousines

Linens: Connie Duglin Linens

SEMI ~ Planner Pick!

We have been researching some new ideas and came across this great twist on the Photo Booth! We found this site, www.koyalwholesale.com, where you can purchase, for a reasonable price, a personalized backdrop for your wedding photo booth! We think this is a great idea and another FABULOUS way to personalize your wedding day! :)

~ Cindy

Wedding Photo Booth Backdrops!

Wedding Photo Backdrops coming soon to Koyal Wholesale. We will have six new personalized wedding photo booth backdrops available by Monday, May 3, 2010. At only $89.99 each and including FREE personalization, our fun wedding photo backdrops are sure to be the hit of your bridal shower, rehearsal dinner, or wedding reception. Great creative, and let your guests let loose in front your names and wedding date.

The Wedding Photo Booth Backdrop comes in 6 unique designs and may be personalized with names and numeric date in the following colors (you choose): cloud, aqua, sage, wisteria, petal pink, raspberry, wineberry, plum, claret, tangerine, chocolate, grey or black. This is all included in the price, no additional cost! PERSONALIZATION IS FREE!

Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Nosworthy!

March 27, 2010

Brooke and James began the first day of their lives saying their vows with the gorgeous backdrop of the Powell Crosley Estate in Sarasota, Florida. With amazing food presented by Olympia Catering and wonderful music provided by Inspire Entertainment, Brooke and James shared their wedding day in an intimate setting with their family and friends. To celebrate the lives of those who were not able to be present, Brooke honored them with a photo above the fireplace in the main room. It was a beautiful sentiment. Olympia Catering created a gorgeous candy table display for the guests enjoyment and as a thank you for sharing in their day. Everything was just perfect! Thank you for allowing us to be a part of it!

The Little White Book

Day of Coordinator: Us, of course! :)

Caterer: Olympia Catering

Entertainment: Inspire Entertainment

Photography: Becky Johnson Studios

Flowers: Beneva Flowers

Officiant: David Wildes

Hair and Makeup: Beauty Brought Out

One of our brides featured!

One of our recent couples had a story written about them in the St. Pete Times Tampa Edition newspaper today! This is one wedding that we can't wait to share! Enjoy the sneak peek about this amazing couple, Jennifer Hsiung and David Shoemaker by cutting and pasting the link below!

http://www.tampabay.com/news/humaninterest/love-set-match-in-beijing-for-tampa-wedding/1100923

Or, you can follow the photographers Divine Light Weddings, link to view it at:

Jennifer & David's Wedding Featured in The St. Petersburg Times/www.TampaBay.com!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

~ Cindy