Por Favor?

Back in the day wedding favours had little to no place in a wedding budget. They had no theme and came in three different flavours: fire (matches), raisin (fruit cake wrapped in a doily) or nut (Jordan almonds). Wow, have times changed! I mean, the entire dynamics of weddings have changed, so it comes as no surprise that favors must also evolve. There are countless websites selling silver pears and apple cider packages by the hundreds. My issue with these is that they can be very expensive (sometimes up to about $5 a piece!) and in the end, not very original. A big thing people say all the time about favors is they are a waste of money, no one uses them, takes them home, eats them, etc. I don’t think usefulness is actually the point of a favor. It is to thank your guest with a tiny token of appreciation, and these days, add to your theme and décor. I am a very detail oriented person, and favors are one thing I definitely do not agree on skipping out on.

There are several creative, personalized options out there and I will share a few of my very favourites. For the wedding of Mark and Ashley Dyer last year, they ordered custom Jones soda bottles with their picture on it. I thought it was so whimsical, cute, and for those that need the “usefulness” side of a favour, extreme drinkability. For $29.99 plus shipping you can order cases of several flavours of Jones soda with several different pictures on them, as well as adding a personal message to your guests, I believe Mark and Ashley’s said “thank you for sharing our day with us”. http://www.myjones.com/

Another personalized option is m&m’s can print your picture and date on thousands of their delicious candy coated chocolates. This is a neat way to personalize a favour, as you can then order favour boxes or tins suited to your occasion. For one wedding I was considering these damask tins, at a $1.30 a piece - http://www.candlesandsuch.com/eb1072-damask-tins.html and then filling them with black and white personalized m&m’s which you can order in bulk here: http://www.mymms.com/celebrations/weddings.asp

Now on to a little less expensive, yet a little more labour intensive favors, those of the homemade variety. You don’t have to be Martha Stewart’s apprentice to be able to pull something like this off. When you are planning a wedding do not be afraid to ask some of your more creative friends and family members for help, most of the time they will be more than happy to. The first fairly easy and inexpensive idea is homemade magnets. These are made out of glass a stone, the one’s that people buy for fish tanks, flat on the back, rounded on top. You can buy bags of these at most craft stores for very little money. Then a good craft glue and a coil of magnetic tape, tissue paper in your wedding colour and however many favour tins with clear tops you will need, and that’s it for supplies. The fun thing with these is you can make whatever pictures or words you want. For Alicia and Neal Bateman’s wedding this past spring we typed “live, love laugh” about a million times on her computer and cut them into circles, used the white glue (which dries clear) to attach them onto the back of the glass stone and then attach a square of magnetic tape. To finish the project off, cut a small piece of tissue paper into each tin and place three magnets in each tin with the words or pictures facing out. Voila! Each favour works out to be about $1.40 total, which is quite affordable, and these were a big hit.
Another idea I was so fond of I considered it for my own wedding is little robin’s egg nests. These are so cute and go with quite a few themes, colours and décor. Taste wise, I personally like no bake cookies to be the ones with coconut and oatmeal, but the one’s I found were with Chow Mein noodles. Then you can use either mini eggs or Jordan almonds for the eggs. So cute. You can double these as name cards by placing the names on little sticks and poking them into the nest portion. These work out to less than a dollar a piece. A very affordable and very fun favor idea.

Now, this post could go on and on, but the point of it is to just give you a few ideas to inspire you and then go from there. This last idea is something unconventional, but seems like it may be a growing trend. People that are a bit more practical with their money may appreciate this one. I have decided for our favors we will be doing a “in lieu of favors” donation to the SPCA in Calgary. Now of course I still want to have a creative spin with this. What I am hoping to do, is to visit the SPCA with Josh and visit with a number of dogs (possibly cats and rabbits, but Josh is more of a dogs only guy) and bring numbers along, have a photo shoot with several dogs, as many as there are tables and do portraits of the dog sponsored at each table with a write up about them such as “My friends Brittany and Josh would like to thank you for sharing this wonderful day with them, and in lieu of favors, they have donated money in your honour to help me survive, thrive and hopefully find a forever home. (Dog’s name, breed, age).”. Some people may find this a bit off the wall or odd, but no one that knows me will. I love animals and from a young age I told my parents the SPCA would be the only ones put in my will, ha ha. Every couple has different charities or causes that mean a lot to them, some environmentalists could plant a tree in every guests honor, or give money to the cancer society and do black and white photos of people you are honouring or remembering on each table. The nice thing about this idea is it is a feel good favour and can be very personal.
What ever your budget or theme is, a favor can really tie things together, and as much as many of them get left behind, there are individuals that enjoy and appreciate a favor, and if anything, they make a great conversation starter, just look at me, I wrote for an hour about them!

The Destination Wedding

If you’ve read this blog before, you know, I have dreamt of being a bride since I was 4 years old. My first choice of location was a haunted castle in Ireland. I am not sure if that had to do with all the time I was spending at Ceili’s, two of my best friends being Irish, or my dad’s claim to fame that we are descendants of an Irish king, but I thought it would be so magical being so in love and vowing to stay that way in a far way land.
Years later, I discovered a beautiful wedding location on Vancouver Island by the name of Tigh-Na-Mara Resort ( http://www.tigh-na-mara.com/ ). I checked out the menus, the accommodations and was sold when I saw their amazing spa and grotto pool. I am very driven by the sea and for the short time I lived by the ocean in Vancouver, I felt like I was finally home. I could imagine a whole family and large group of friends really having the time of their life at this place; the photographic opportunities that were there as well as the relaxing atmosphere would be perfect.

Fast forward a few years later and I meet Josh. In exception to my two year stint in Vancouver, we are both born and raised Calgarians. When we started discussing marriage, we were both really into the idea of the beautiful Banff Springs Hotel (http://www.fairmont.com/Banffsprings/). We had spent a very special few days there together and we said those few days were the best vacation we had ever had. I immediately looked into pricing (probably one of the pricier venues in Alberta!), ceremony and reception rooms, menus and photographer’s blogs who had covered Banff Springs weddings. It is one of the most gorgeous places I have ever had the pleasure of staying at, and love to show it off to any visitors coming from out of town. We were fairly convinced this was the place.

The more I thought about the wedding being even and hour away from Calgary, the more I felt uncomfortable with the fact that maybe people could not afford to stay there, possibly guests could not make it if it was out of town, and also, how would we get in our Saddledome pictures, the railroad tracks, Stephen Avenue, the Calgary Tower, all the things that we know and love about Calgary and have grown up around. I didn’t like thinking that we would not be able to fit these into our wedding. So that brought us to the conclusion we were not meant to be a destination wedding type couple, there are too many nostalgic feelings in Calgary, and too many guests that we need to have by our side come the day.

Now, this all being said, I have attended a few destination weddings, one being in Cranbrook (okay, this is a destination for us, because we had to leave the city…) and my dad and his new wife’s wedding in beautiful Maui, Hawaii. From the beginning, they wanted to have a wedding in Hawaii, and make it more about the joining of families than anything. Sue has two daughters, my new sisters, and my dad has four daughters including me. We were so very lucky to stay at a beautiful mansion in the hills in Hawaii, and have perfect weather every day. I instantly fell in love with Hawaii, what a magical place, and what a wonderful atmosphere to commit your love to someone. On the day of the wedding, my dad and his daughters went to the beach and swam and snorkeled with the vibrant tropical fish and a famous sea turtle affectionately known as Volkswagen, what a sign that this day was going to be perfect. We went back to the house, got ready for the big show and drove to the hotel for the ceremony and reception. We had a quick rundown with the wedding coordinator there and then the ceremony got under way. The processional included a Native Hawaiian conch-shell blower and a beautiful fire maiden, we all walked in, representing my dad on his side, and Sue’s daughters by her side. When I saw little Brooklynn with her gorgeous dress tossing flowers, leading my dad in, the tears almost started right there, I am going to be a disaster at her wedding! My sisters and I were all very weepy the whole time, as it meant a lot to us to see our amazing dad so blissful marrying the woman that has done that to him, in such a breathtaking setting. As they were saying their vows, my younger sister Caitlin poked me in the back and said “look!” I turned around and there were whales breaching in the ocean. Wow. Could it be any more magical? My mind was officially changed for destination weddings. My dad and Sue had everyone (ok, there were people missing, but still…) they loved watching them in one of the world’s most gorgeous places commit their lives to each other, and then celebrate that night over a delicious dinner and some crazy dancing (had nothing to do with the Mai Tai’s being served!). The week was great with snorkeling, matching sister tattoos, a wonderful luau, and days of relaxation and celebration.

Leaving my city for my wedding will never be an option for me, but I know different things work for different people, and I now know how absolutely magical and fun a destination wedding can be.

On a side note - I think my dad has possibly breathed a sigh of relief that I have downgraded my wedding plans from a castle in Ireland, to a castle in Alberta…to a hotel in Calgary, what low standards I have, ha ha!

How Sweet It Is

The other night I was sitting at home, kid in bed, boyfriend at hockey, and I turned on the TV (I do this rarely if I am alone) hoping for an episode of Rich Bride Poor Bride, but to my pleasant surprise I discovered a new show called Cake Boss. Fantastic. Not even a word of a lie, cake is my favorite food, which is kind of evil, I wish I could say it was cucumber and egg white scramble, but no, sweet delicious cake. Over the past year I have changed my eating habits to be a lot more healthy, the one thing that will never be banned from my life is cake.

Over the past ten years, the dynamics of a wedding have been completely changed. Now it is all about the colours, the decor, theme, favors, special effects, flowers...and CAKE! It's almost like a competition, to have a wedding, not necessarily bigger, better, more expensive, but something different from the rest. Unique. The need to stand out from all the other weddings your guests have attended.

I am a bit of a Martha Stewart, in the way that I can cook, bake and craft like a mad woman when I am in the right mood. I have made cupcakes for several occasions, and have a few weddings that are coming up that I will be baking for. I just do not see the need to spend $2.50 a cupcake for something I can make for maybe a dollar. I love the cupcake tiers at weddings that have sprung up in recent years. I think that they are a fun and whimsical way of integrating the cake into the reception. I especially enjoy when the couple orders a small cake to top the tier, as I do like the wedding classics such as the cake cutting. Cupcakes are a great way to go as people will actually eat them, they are portable, and there is no need to sit with a fork and plate. I find weddings that serve cupcakes have less waste than a giant cake.

Now, do not get me wrong, I love a good cake (big surprise!) I just like them to be a little bit different. I am not a fan of the three tier white cake with nothing to make it stand out. There is so much choice out there now, and an endless amount of inspiration out there. I don't believe on spending a fortune on the cake, I think there are so many ways around this. Almost everyone knows a baker and with some direction, this baker family member or friend can create a cake that everyone will rave about. Call me boring but I also am not a fan of "creative" fillings. I like chocolate, vanilla, confetti, banana and maybe cherry cake. Please do not try and feed me wedding cake, that is disguised in a delicious icing coating but filled with orange cake and fig jam. Blech! Keep it simple for the cake portion, then everyone is happy and the cake gets eaten.

Some of my creations:

Now, off to make a cucumber-egg white scramble...

The Anti-Bridezilla

I met with Erin after work one day at Starbucks, she works at the same company as me and volunteered her fiance, Cliff and herself to be one of the couples I help coordinate this year. She is a very laid back bride-to-be, she wasn't even 100% on the date yet.

Erin and Cliff have been dating for almost 11 years, and are the same age as me, so yes, they are Junior High sweethearts, which I think is so awesome, they have grown up together, and probably know each other better than they know anyone else. Even before I met up with her, I got a great reading on Erin's personality...she reminds me of me, that's why I like her, ha ha! No, but seriously, she is very easy going, and by the sounds of it so is the lucky guy. She basically said, "he doesn't really do pink" and that was about it.

Like me, her most important expense is photography. I am a true believer that after the day is over, after the months of anticipation, time and expense, the pictures are the one material thing you have to look back on your day. Cheap out on shoes (ducking for cover from you shoe-a-holics out there!), do your own make-up, but make sure you do your research on a great photographer.

When I meet a couple I want a vision. I need to know a look, theme, colour, something about what the couple is aiming for. When I asked this of Erin she told me they were thinking chocolate browns and apple greens. Yes! I love this colour combo, and has been one of the schemes I have thought of for my own imaginary wedding. It's modern, clean and stylish. It's natural, yet super chic. Eco-chic! But yes, this made me a happy wedding planner. I got home that night and worked on their palette. For flowers she mentioned calla lilies and orchids, again, my favorites. The centrepieces we discussed were possibly going to involve live fish. Love it. Donations toward charity in lieu of favors, I will most likely do this at mine too. People spend hundreds of dollars these days toward favors, and half of them get left behind, the other half, thrown out, why not just put it towards something that is meaningful towards the couple.

Back to the anti-bridezilla thing...we still are unsure of a solid date...or place. But we have some beautiful locations in mind, until then, we'll work off the palette I created for this young, modern and laid back couple.

Damask Madness

I was going to put myself to bed the minute Brooke went to bed, as I have a massive headache, but decided that I was going to start putting together a palette for the wedding of Amanda and Trevor who are getting married next July. I met with Amanda today and I think for the most start we are starting a bit from square one, which is awesome as I have some great ideas for what they want. So far, they know black and white will be predominant in the scheme, and Amanda was pretty sure about adding coral to this, and I thought maybe an apple green accent as well would tie everything together.

The look of Damask has made a major comeback the past few years, I even have a lululemon hoodie in Damask! Using this for a black and white wedding really breaks up the starkness of the two pigments and makes it a bit more elegant and romantic, no checkerboard wedding here. Because of it's popularity you can find pretty much anything in this Syrian originated fabric (you thought it was French didn't you?), from candles, table runners, invitations and even toilet paper. Not sure if anyone works in specialty toilet paper into their budget!

Amanda is from the East Coast of Canada and wanted to integrate this into the wedding. Most shells have coral colours in them, so this wouldn't be difficult at all, it was the tartan that might be a challenge, but I want to make sure sentimental components that clients wish to have are always used. They have purpose and meaning and it's always about the little details. I found a sample of green, white and coral tartan that could be used to tie around vases or around the bouquets. I was so happy that I found something that really blended well with everything else I had chosen for this palette.

We have over a year to get this one together, so I am not sure as to why I felt I needed to do this tonight, I guess I knew I'd be awake all night worrying I would forget all of my Damask madness by morning.

An Exciting Week

Mid-week, I had to complete an assignment for school, which made me cranky as I was not in a scholarly mood that day. I locked myself if our room and pounded out what I thought was an alright effort for someone just wanting to watch So You Think You Can Dance.

One of the parts of this assignment was to come up with an outcome from this course, something measurable, within a years time. My last instructor suggested I start building my portfolio, and to do so, volunteer my services for weddings. I am not one to do things half-way, so I knew that by doing so, I would be committing a lot of volunteer work this year, but all in the name of weddings, so that was more than okay with me. My measurable outcome was to have a complete portfolio and business plan by next summer.

The next day at work, I took a 3 minute break to post something on the company buy and sell. It stated that I required a few willing newly engaged couples to hire me on for free as their wedding consultant, thinking I might have a few bites by the weekend. Within 10 minutes I had three brides! Erin, Amanda and Jaclyn are my three first lucky stars and I am thrilled they are trusting me with their weddings. All three have very different needs and ideas, but I will be there for each of them 100%. I meet with my first couple, Jaclyn and Shawn tomorrow (and possibly the moms! Yay! I love moms!) all the way from Saskatchewan. They will be married October 31st, 2009 in Calgary and I am so ecstatic to get some ideas and brainstorming sessions in!

Secondly, my wonderfully talented Josh spent a good part of his week designing my logo, and we played around with it quite a bit last night. This part is very important to me as I am a visually sparked individual, as are many people and a bad logo is bad news, but from what he's shown me I will love the outcome. I spent my time after that doing market research, business card designing and government website reading on starting a small business. My goal is to have the business official by next August.

Things are slowly coming together, and I couldn't be more happy!

Portfolio Schmolio

Since I was 4 years old, I wanted to get married.

Now that I have a 4 year old daughter, I know how weird this is. She wants to marry her friend Jacob, or so she says. He is the only boy for her, but I know this will change over time. She has already been a flower girl once, and is in training for her second rose petal tossing in a few months for one of my best friends. She has a mom who is slightly wedding obsessed and who is now taking courses to become what I think, will be Calgary's best wedding planner. She watches Rich Bride - Poor Bride and Hitched or Ditched with me. My daughter is doomed to be just like me.

I have bought wedding magazines, read blogs, gone to wedding fairs, and all with no ring on my finger. I just enjoy the entire process of weddings, from the engagement, the celebratory parties, the photos, the food, the excitement, the crafting of favors, brain-storming for ideas and the overall emotions and excitement that come with "the big day". Numerous friends of mine have gotten hitched in the past few years and I have heard more than once "Oh my gosh Brittany, I think you are more excited than me!" from the bride to be.

I started taking Event Management at Mount Royal College this year. I know that no one will trust someone who just gets really excited about weddings to be in charge of one of the most important days of their lives. I want to be able to prove that I am the best, I am capable of doing this and I am the one for them. This is the beginning of my Wedding Planner portfolio. When I get an idea, I want to be able to write it down somewhere, share pictures and ideas. One day I will be planning weddings for a living and my job will be helping two people plan to be together forever, but until then the wedding brainstorming factory is open for business.

So to start off, I will explain what my dream wedding is. Let's get this straight, I am not engaged, although my boyfriend Josh (he too, is doomed) have discussed our big day.

To get started, we will have our engagement photo's taken at the Calgary Stampede. Fun and whimsical, and we can both dress in our favorite Stampede threads. Anyone who knows me, knows how much I adore this time of year. The Stampede is my favorite event of every year. It is also where Josh and I had our first kiss.

We are both born and raised Calgarians, so it is important for both of us to integrate this background into our wedding. It will be in Calgary, at Hotel Arts, no other place will do. The ceremony and reception will most likely all be there, with a poolside reception in between. The colours will be reminiscent of our trip to Cabo, light sand, turquoise waters, and lush greens. I know my bridesmaids, as I am very lucky to have sisters and best friends whom I love with all my heart and my day would not be complete without them by my side. I want pictures on the railroad tracks, under the Calgary Tower and at the Saddledome. We will write our own vows and the wedding party as well as myself will walk into the ceremony to the Hawaiian version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, and I will cry my little eyes out, at least I think I will, I cry at everyone else's weddings. Brooklynn will also be involved in the ceremony and will receive a "family" ring.

The reception will be casual, fun, young and modern. I want a feel of a Miami club, warm and dimly lit. Think destination wedding, but at home with all those we love. Lots of candles, lots of food, drinking and dancing. I think both of us just want a great big party. Once the reception has started, I no longer want it to be all about us, but rather all about our families and friends having the time of their lives too.

See, told you Josh was doomed.