Picking the Date

The lovely Katie writes again...


With the holidays fast approaching, I have been working ahead to get my work schedule figured out so I know when I can travel to visit family, and of course, eat lots of delicious food. While perusing the November and December schedules, it came to my attention that there are weddings at one of our locations both the Saturday after Thanksgiving and the Sunday right after Christmas. These seem to me like days that get reserved for eating Turkey and opening presents, not usually for getting married (but what do I know). Perhaps the couples think hey! Everyone will be in town anyway, let’s plan the wedding then! Or perhaps the couple is Jewish and Christmas is just another day.

I was on the phone a while ago with a lovely girl who would like to have her wedding in Wisconsin, but is trying to plan it from the East Coast, while her fiancé studies abroad in London. She was hoping for a summer wedding outside, on a Saturday. Our Saturdays book like they are going out of style, and even Saturdays in 2012 are becoming hard to come by (in the summer). After rejecting a few of her dates because we are already booked, I asked her if a Friday or Sunday event would work. You would have thought I asked her if the sky was purple. Without skipping a beat, she said no way! She was Catholic and absolutely had to get married on a Saturday. I empathized, as I recalled being appalled a few years back when a friend of mine from high school got married on a Sunday. (Who gets married on a Sunday, I thought?!) I have obviously since then been put in my place, several times over, as Fridays and Sundays are also very popular days to book events.

As I write down the dates of new couples and contracts that come through our office, I often wonder, how did you decide on that particular day? In Wisconsin, the summer months are popular because of the weather. But there are still more than enough couples who decide they want to set the date for the middle of winter. New Year’s Eve is popular, for example. If you get really lucky, a soft snow of the large, puffy snowflakes will fall the night before, coating every surface, making your wedding look like you are in the middle of a winter wonderland. Or 12 inches of snow could fall, delaying flights and causing the city to declare a snow emergency. What then? Similarly, this summer we had a flash flooding event right in the middle of a couple’s ceremony and reception. Most of their guests (as well as the officiant!) were delayed several hours because the highways were flooded and cars could not move.

All that aside, I can’t help but wonder what motivates a date selection. Perhaps a dating anniversary can influence a wedding date. Or a specific time of year (for example, a little girl growing up always dreaming of a fall wedding). What about the availabilities of the members of the wedding parties or family members? And, of course, what about the location? My guess would be that there a two ways to look at picking a date and a location: either the date is important and the location can be worked around that, or vice versa, the location is important and the date must be flexible around that. However the date gets selected, it will go down in the couple’s history as one of the most exciting, important and happy days of their lives together. And each year, on their anniversary, on that specific date they chose during their engagement, they will celebrate their accomplishments and the successful passing of another year.

Watch Out Veils...Head Bands Are Taking Over!

To Veil or not to Veil...that is the question.

Many brides seem to struggle with this question. The traditional bride has a veil that sweeps romantically over their face and their father "unveils" the bride right before he gives her away to her future husband.

However, like many traditions...they like to get a little spiced up. Tiara's and head bands and flowers have seem to take over the veil this year, and frankly...LOVE IT!  A lot of times a bride will wear her veil for the ceremony only and than switch to a head band for the reception, this is a nice compromise if you would like to keep the tradition but add some spice or flair for the reception.

There are SO many cute head pieces out there and they can really show off your personality. Here are some headpieces I found on Etsy:

And if you are really creative...I bet these could be some fun DIY projects...you could make different color ones for your bridesmaids!

What do you prefer? Traditional veil or headpiece?

To Suprise or Not to Suprise?

Another post from Katie, events assistant!!

            It appears as though I will be entertaining you all with my insights and quarks here at Something Blue on a fairly regular basis, which is something I am very excited about and happy to do.  I am, however, a creature of habit and work better when I have a game plan.  So, as my posting here will be a weekly (or so) thing, I decided to come up with a theme.  I am new to the wedding business.  I knew very little about how weddings worked when I started working them a year ago, and had only attended four in my entire life.  As such, I thought it would be interesting to step through the entire wedding process, from the initial engagement, through the dress shopping, cake selecting, and location scouting, all the way to the gifts and the thank you cards, to get a better handle on how these traditions came to be.  I often wonder, as I’m sure many of us do, how couples make these decisions or better yet WHO makes them, and why.  What kinds of things are you curious to know more about and/or how did you tackle these steps in your planning process?  Feel free to give me a holler if there are any suggestions about what you’d like to know more about!

             So without further ado, today’s topic is going to be proposals.  “How did he do it”?  “Did you have any idea”?  These seem to be common questions directed toward a bride-to-be after making the announcement that she is engaged.  I, myself, am a planner.  I’ll admit that right now.  I like surprises as much as the next girl, but being caught off guard with a surprise proposal would probably send me right in to panic mode.  Which got me to thinking about the history of proposals.  How did this tradition get started, and was it always about the surprise?  How often in this day-and-age are engagements a surprise?  Why is it generally the guy that pops the question?  Are more and more women choosing to propose to their guys?  (I have friends who plan to ask their boyfriends instead of the other way around).  Do guys still ask fathers for their permission?  And why must guys get on one knee and present a ring?

Consulting the internet on this particular subject revealed the following.  The tradition of the marriage proposal is a relatively new idea, as it is meant to give the women a say in whether or not the relationship should move forward.  The proposal itself consists of a question “will you marry me?” and a response in the affirmative solidifies the couple’s desire to plan for their eventual marriage.  Getting down on one knee symbolizes respect, such as when knights kneel while being knighted.  Presenting an engagement ring at the time of the proposal is an outward symbol to society that the woman is engaged to be married.  It is becoming more and more common for guys to want to wear engagement rings prior to their wedding as well.  It is traditional for the guy to ask the girl for her hand.  While this norm is shifting and more and more women are deciding to propose to their partners, many guys indicate that they prefer to be the ones to “pop the question.”  Why?  In all of my research, the best answer I could find is because they want to!  Many women spend much of their lives dreaming about the perfect wedding.  For guys, the thrill of coming up with a creative and surprising proposal has become their “claim to fame” in the wedding process. 

While a ‘surprise’ proposal is exciting, a general rule of thumb these days is to discuss the prospect of marriage before popping the question.  Asking whether or not the girl wants a ring, and if she wants to pick it out, is also customary.  While asking for the bride’s parents’ blessing is not required, especially if the bride is older, it does show respect for her family and their wishes.  In the end, there is no right or wrong way to carry out a proposal.  Making it a joyful and memorable experience for the couple makes for a great story to share for years to come as the couple makes that big step to commit their lives to one another.

Do you want to/ were you surprised by your proposal?

For your viewing pleasure: http://www.metacafe.com/watch/3041930/the_best_marriage_proposal_in_world_history/

Operation Wedding Day

On September 16, 2010 a very special wedding was held at the War Memorial Center. Nick and Kristen (nee Krempely) Colgin were the recipients of an all inclusive $100,000 wedding that was held at the War Memorial Center as the winners of Operation Wedding Day.

Operation Wedding Day was a contest organized by David Liska Custom Jewelers in which a Wisconsin resident that is active military or a veteran of the Armed Forces was allowed to submit a story on why he/she should win this lavish wedding. After many essays were turned in, Nick’s essay won.

Nick is a veteran of the U.S. Army and recipient of a Bronze Star for helping save a French Soldier under fire in Afghanistan who was on active duty. Nick’s name was put on a list to receive books, magazine and snacks. Kristen found this list and sent a care package to this unknown soldier, and never realized that the package would start a relationship, and continue on to a marriage.

Over 30 area vendors, including the War Memorial Center, donated their time, equipment, food and efforts to make this an unforgettable wedding.

After personally spending time with Kristen and Nick, I must say that they are such a great couple. SO HUMBLE and honored to have been selected by the voters! I truly wish them all the best!

It was such a spectacular event and I have been waiting to blog about it until I have pictures. The AMAZING photographer was Jim from Blackdog Studios.  The talent of Jim is definitely portrayed through his pictures of the night. Check out his blog for more pictures from this wonderful event.

 Savvy Bride dontaed all the bridesmaids dress and the gorgeous wedding gown that Kristen wore. Check out their website for some awesome and unique dresses!

DIY Photobooth

A trend that has been going on for awhile that is always fun and interesting is the photo booth. There are a ton of professional photo booth specialist out there to make your wedding day a success...and they throw in some great accessories like albums and copies of pictures for everyone.
However...when you are on a budget these extras are the first things that tend to get chopped off the list. Unless...you make it a DIY project.

All you basically need to make your own photo booth is a backdrop, a tri-pod, a digital camera, and a table for props.  Props are the best, they make everything super fun!
You can get props anywhere!

I found these on Etsy for under $15!

Or check out the  Windy City Novelties and you can find an abundant amount of things for cheap! For example:

 Crazy Glasses

Not exactly sure what this is....but it could be fun!

Make sure to leave a guest book by the prop table so everyone can leave their email address for you to send pictures to!

If you are computer savvy...check out this blog on offbeat bride...here is another way to design your own DIY Photobooth

Now, as an event professional, there are many great photo booths out there and they take all the hassle out and add extra fun and excitement to the photo booths. If you are looking for some options in the Milwaukee area, check out:

Shutter box

Shutterbooth

MiPhotoBooth

Party Picturebooth

The Traveling Photo Booth

Something Borrowed, Something Blue and a Six Pence in the Shoe

Our wonderful and always very stylish events assistant has graciously lent her writing skills and wrote a blog for me today. I am sure there will be more from her in the future! Thanks Katie!!!!

“Are those blue shoes?”

I always anticipate every wedding I work to see what each couple will do to make their day stand out among the rest, mainly because I am not generally one for traditions. One tradition, however, that seems to be consistent among all brides is the “something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue” poem. Call me uncreative, but I always thought satisfying this list was pretty straight forward. Borrow some jewelry for the old and borrowed part, wear blue on your garter, and your dress of course would be new.

Lately, however, I have seen several brides wearing stunning blue earrings that make a statement against bright white dresses. Another bride wore a beautiful lace headpiece that was constructed out of her mother’s wedding veil. But one bride in particular blew my perception of this tradition out of the water. As she made her way carefully down the stairs toward the aisle, she revealed cerulean blue peep-toed high heels. A bold and wonderfully creative move in my opinion. I was so excited about this innovative spin on a seemingly straight-forward tradition, I turned to the internet to learn more about the story behind the tradition, and to learn more about how modern brides are keeping this tradition alive in new and interesting ways.

The full poem actually goes like this:

Something old, something new.

Something borrowed, something blue.

And a silver sixpence in her shoe.

The last line clues us in to an old English origin, as sixpences originated in England and were made from the late 1500’s through the late 1960’s. The sixpence was meant to signify wealth and financial security as the new couple began their lives together. Carrying something old was meant to represent continuity, of the Bride’s past and family, so as to not forget where she came from. These items traditionally included jewelry, photos, an old pillow for the ring bearer to carry. Carrying or wearing something new symbolized optimism and hope for the couple in their new life. New items included the flowers, the rings, and of course the dress. Something borrowed was typically from a happily married friend or family member, whose good fortune would then be passed on to the bride and groom on their wedding day. And finally, the Romans wore blue to symbolize love, modesty, and fidelity. Christians dressed Mary in blue to represent purity. Today, this color still carries with it meanings of love and loyalty. These items can include anything from jewelry and nail polish, to ribbons, garters, and as I learned, shoes!

Finding out WHY this tradition has stuck was a bit harder than learning WHAT the tradition actually means. Either way, the variations on this theme that I have seen in brides lately has given me inspiration. First, because the continuation of a centuries old tradition reminds us that wedding days have always been and will continue to be a very special time in the life of two people committing their lives to each other. And second, though the words of the poem remain the same, the way in which each bride chooses to carry out the tradition is as personal and unique as each of those marriages will be. Who says that a dress can’t be borrowed? Or that a diamond in a ring can’t be old? The possibilities are endless.

Did you and/or do you plan to carry on this tradition on your wedding day? And if so, how/why?