Paige & Kevin - Full Coordination in Winnipeg

I first met Paige and Kevin almost two years ago, when I had little experience, and I'm really grateful to them for taking a chance on my new company.  Paige and Kevin were wonderful and I had such a great time working with them that I was actually a bit disappointed when their wedding came because now they're not my clients anymore!  They live in Dauphin, where Kevin is a sports broadcaster and Paige is a copywriter at the same radio station with a new writing business.

When we first met, they were looking for a wedding venue where guests could mingle outdoors and there was good food, where the focus was celebration and the colours were chocolate brown, lilac and green.  They chose Pineridge Hollow as the venue, and Villa Flora as the florist.  A wonderful thing about this wedding was all the family contributions - Paige's aunt officiated, Kevin's brother sang, and Paige's mom designed the invitations and banner.  The party was great and a dancing chicken even made an appearance:)

Bond from BLF studios was the photographer, and I was thrilled to work with him.  The photos are amazing, and Bond and his second shooter, Esther, are so very friendly.  The following photos are from BLF studios, and please click here to see the rest of the photos on Bond's blog.

Paige liked apple green as one of the colours in the wedding.  In the end, we decided green apples were the best, most natural way to accomplish this.  I love the way the green pops in the room:

The favours were sandlewood fans.  It was a hot, hot day and the fans were put to good use.

Paige and I.  It's hot, and I'm tired, and yes that is my attempt at a smile :)  I think this is the only photo I have of myself and a bride, so thanks to Bond for taking the photo.

Paige and Kevin, you were a pleasure to work with and all the best in your marriage!

Jess

5 Years in Photos

How Many Meetings?

Happy Tuesday!  Strange things are happening this week.  Leaves are turning yellow, I'm wearing a sweater, and my flower garden that used to be bright and cheery is dying away on me.  Inquiries are coming in for next year, my schedule is filling with consultations instead of weddings, and I feel like I'm catching my breath a bit.

As consultation season begins (for me, anyway), I've had some questions about how many vendors couples should interview before making a decision.  I've been in meetings with brides that booked on the spot (and I was their first meeting), and I've been in meetings where the couple lets me know that they've booked consultations with every planner they can find.  Both approaches seem to work, and I do think that couples should keep going for consultations until they find someone they click with.  However, before starting to look for vendors, here's a few things to keep in mind to save you time and frustration:

1.  Do some research ahead of time.  Look at websites, ask friends for recommendations, send an initial email with any questions you have and make a shortlist of vendors to meet with.  Look for vendors who have good recommendations, get back to emails in reasonable time and answer your questions, and seem like someone that would match your personality and goals for your wedding.  Researching ahead of time will save you meeting time, and time is valuable when planning a wedding.

2.  Ask for starting prices before the consultation.  This ensures that there will be no big surprises.  If a vendor is priced out of your budget, don't assume you can talk them down in price - a cut in price almost always means a cut in services offered.

3.  Once you've made a short-list of a few vendors, go for meetings.  Ask questions (write down questions ahead of time if you want to), try to get to know the vendor, and see if you click.  Remember that some vendors, like planners, photographers, videographers, etc. will be with you throughout your wedding day, and compatibility is very important.

If you go through your shortlist and don't find the right fit, that's when it's a good idea to broaden your list and go for more consultations.  Apply the same principle to vendors as you did with your wedding dress and groom - "when you know, you know!"

Any other consultation tips?

Two Year Birthday Promo!

We're Turning Two!

Two years ago today, With a Flourish launched quietly from my apartment.  I had quit my job, advertised a couple of places, and called every wedding professional I could find to introduce myself and gather information on the industry.  I was excited and ready to start planning weddings and events.

Our first year, we had 6 weddings.  With the goal in mind to double the amount of events we planned for the first three years, we're well on track.  Over the past year, we planned 8 weddings, styled 2 weddings, did floral designing for 2 weddings, and created floral arrangements for a handful of other events.  We also planned a really neat fundraiser with the Green Party of Manitoba, and we're working on another fantastic event called EcoShift, planned for September.  It's been a great year, with a variety of interesting projects.

We added Styling Services, to assist on events that had the logistics taken care of, but needed help with the atmosphere and décor of the event.  It's quickly become popular with brides, and we're excited to take on more styling clients in year 3.

Globally Minded elements are at the heart of each event to plan, even though as of today we've changed our tagline.  I was nearly in tears this morning thinking about it, but it's time to simplify the tagline to reflect what I actually do, rather than what I thought I would do before launching.  I've always hoped to drop Globally Minded Event Management someday - I hope that one day it will just be a given that people do their best to minimize their environmental and social impact for their events.  Our new tag: Event Styling & Planning is easy to remember and simple.  We're still as globally minded as ever, and you can still come to this blog to read about eco-friendly weddings and events.

When the idea for a little green wedding planning business came about, there were no other wedding planners advertising eco-friendly weddings.  Now there's a handful that have added eco-wedding elements.  That's fantastic.  I knew of one florist, two invitation designers, and a few caterers that adhered to globally minded principles, so making green recommendations was more challenging.  Now I'm excited that when a bride and groom approach me about their eco-friendly wedding, there are way, way more options for them to explore.  Green weddings are no longer a hippie alternative - they're mainstream, beautiful, and just as elegant as any other wedding.

I continue to be thankful for the industry professionals that have supported me, spread the word about my business, given me favours when they didn't even know me, and put up with my occasionally quirky ideas.  My clients, particularly those who chose me when I had no portfolio, little experience, and just ideas and passion have been amazing.  Nicole, who designs my marketing materials, Adrienne who designs stunning decor and reads my mind, and Char who is always encouraging are the best sister-in-laws ever.  I have an adorable son who always asks if he can come along to the "wegging" and promises to "sit still and be quiet" if I let him come to work with me.  My husband has cut out hundreds of fabric circles, been my wedding slave manual labour, done my bookkeeping, made me coffee and breakfast every morning and encouraged me through many late nights.  This has definitely been a family effort.  The first two years have been wonderful, and I'm looking forward to a great year three for With a Flourish!

Since you read all the way to the end of this post, you deserve a SALE!  Check back tomorrow for a great end-of-the Summer and HAPPY BIRTHDAY WITH A FLOURISH promotion!

Preet & Khalad - Wedding Planning & Styling

When Preet and Khalad contacted me in March to plan and style their July wedding, they had a few ideas about their wedding.  They knew they wanted a venue that was open to the outdoors, and outside of the city.  They wanted the caterer to make East Indian food, and for decor they requested red and green apples.  Preet and Khalad wanted their guests to feel included, and they had an intimate wedding with about 25 people at the reception.

The couple wanted everyone at the ceremony to be part of the wedding party, so the men stood on the groom's side and the women on the bride's side.  The comissioner was Jaime from Travel & Events With Style, and the ceremony was beautiful.

The venue was Cherry Hill Estate just outside of Steinbach.  They were very accommodating and even made a customized dish of butter chicken (which was delicious).  All photos below were taken by Tracey Kiansky Photography, and I must say that the photos are fantastic and she was very cheerful and fun to work with on a hot, hot day.


Here's the stunning bride and groom, braving the heat and risking the water:

Adrienne made Preet's bouquet:

Preet and Khalad requested red and green apples as the colour palette.  We added ivory and just a bit of black.  The colours ended up being fresh and vibrant in the white room:

The cake was made by P.S. Cake Designs.  I especially liked the fondant apples:

The plantable favours were from Botanical Paperworks:

We made these fabric ruffly balls, which took forever to make but looked great.  Worth it, I think.

Instead of a guest book, we asked guests to write little notes to the bride & groom, and pin them to our message board:

The tables were simple and fresh looking, with the red really popping against the white and green.  Because the tables were so narrow, we used chair sashes instead of table runners on the tables:

Preet and Khalad were a pleasure to work with and an incredibly sweet couple.  I had tears in my eyes during speeches, as their friends shared memories and heaped good wishes on them.  We at With a Flourish, and I think every other vendor working on this wedding felt very lucky to be part of such a special day.  Thanks very much Preet & Khalad and all the best in your marriage!