To Boldly Go, Where Few Couples have Gone Before

For die-hard Trekies, the only place on earth where you can have a personalized Star Trek wedding is aboard the USS Enterprise at the Las Vegas Hilton's Star Trek: The Experience. Vulcan Ears and phaser funs are de rigueur, but Klingon witnesses are optional.

If you know a Trekie and want to do it, there is alot of information on their website.

{Image Source: CNN}

Walk the Plank

Become pirates for a day aboard, a 65-foot wooden schooner in Fernandina Beach, Florida. The couple will exchange rings beneath the skull and crossbones flag while their guests wear eye patches and faux parrots on their shoulders.

If you are interested in having a Pirate Wedding, visit their website.

**Update, the link wasn't working, it looks like Fernandina might be reorganizing, so I posted a link to Fantasea Weddings.

Wacky Wedding... Start NOW!

Your eyes are not deceiving you -- This is a wedding that took place on three bi-planes! The groom is on the left plane, the bride is on the right plane, and the officiant on the middle plane.  And, check out the awesome shirt (below)!

{Now how did they kiss?}

So, it got me thinking of some Wacky Weddings that we've done or are in the process of planning, and I wanted to share some of them with you.

More Wacky Weddings to come on Wacky Wedding Week, right here on Adventures in Wedding Planning. {said in my best movie announcer voice}

Pink vs. Pink

As I sat in church this weekend, it was clear to me that there was a wedding on Saturday. The flowers on the alter were just a big more lush and beautiful than usual. And I as glanced ahead there was a wedding program that was pink and brown in the pocket in front of me. So, of course I had to peek.


But this got me thinking. I started thinking about a wedding that we did a few years ago where the bride had specifically asked for a explicit flower. A very specific rose, and then asked the florist to provide other flowers and roses that coordinated with that specific rose. Let’s call them Pinky Roses.

When the bride was presented her bouquet filled with Pinky Roses and others, it was amazing! Simply incredible! The bride loved it! Until she caught a glimpse of a bucket of garden roses in the tent for décor. She then decided that Pinky Roses in her bouquet were wrong and they were too peach in color, and she wanted it fixed. She wanted the Garden Roses to replace the Pinky Roses, immediately!

I explained to the florist the predicament, and they explained to me, showed me the contact, and re-explained that Pinky Roses were what she wanted. At that point, it really didn’t matter, she now wanted the Garden Roses. The florists fixed the bouquet and the bride was happy.

But as I sat there in church, I looked at the altar arrangement, and saw pink Gerbera Daisy’s and Pink Roses, and Pink Mums and thought, hmmmmm…..

Let's Eat Cake!!!

There are so many amazing things happening with Let's Eat Cake! please check it ou! Also a few bits of information:

• Let's Eat Cake! is a fundraiser, supporting St. Jude's Children's Hospital, which means that we need your help, and every little bit helps, $5, $10, $100, $1000 - whatever you can do to help is very needed!
• Our Save The Dates went out this week! So, if you are a baker and want to participate, let me know if you don't get a Save The Date and need one {thank you Lucky Designs!!!}
• We are going to have Let's Eat Cake! Website soon!

And most importantly, check the blog for updates! Thanks for your support!! Really, Thank you! {Image: Caroline Johnson Photography - Cake by KB Kake Creations}

Invite Etiquette 104

This next question has do do with liquor at a reception and offering a cash bar. I feel quite honestly, this is completely unacceptable. Try really hard not to have a cash bar, if your budget is that tight, just don't have alcohol. Or limit the alcohol to beer and wine only - take a peek at this great post by my friend Saundra.

Here is Invitation Consultants take on having a cash bar at the reception:

• How should I indicate that there will be a cash bar at the reception?

What Emily Post would say…any references to food or drink should not be included in the invitation wording (however, it is of course acceptable to include the menu options on your RSVP card).

What we have to add…Your best bet would be to put this information on a reception card if absolutely necessary. Otherwise, again, this is great information to include on your wedding website and to be spread via word of mouth. Other examples that fall into this category would include if you want your guests to know you are having a dry reception.

I hope this information will help you navigate the sometimes bumpy road of wedding invitation wording etiquette. Please feel free to post any questions or comments. And visit our blog for more fun invitation facts!

Thanks so much to Melissa for giving me the opportunity to post this week, it sure has been fun!

Inspiration Board-Off II!

And the winner is......... Christina who created Board 2!

Both were absolutely lovely! And the emails I received prove that you all loved them both - and had a difficult time choosing just one.

Congratulations to both of you for such a great semester with me, and I will miss you desperately! Please stop by and say hi!!!

Invite Etiquette 103

This next question has been a very touchy issue with lots of brides. Although I think everyone already knows the answer, for some reason durning the planning process our minds get all foggy with mis-information. Let's see what Invitation Consultants has to say about gifts. And have you seen their blog?

• How do I let everyone know our registry information?


What Emily Post would say…it is NOT acceptable to list gift registry information in your wedding invitation wording. Traditional etiquette would have you avoid mentioning gifts at all, even to say “no gifts, please.”

What we have to add…Save the date announcements and bridal shower invitations are meant to be informal, so it’s more acceptable to indicate registry information there. Just as with attire inquiries, guests will want to know where you have registered, so including your wedding website in your save the date or bridal shower invitation enclosure would be really helpful.

However, if you have any specific requests such as wanting monetary gifts only, please do NOT notate this request anywhere on invitations, save the dates, or enclosure cards. Requests for specific types of gifts should be limited to being spread by word of mouth or listed on your wedding website.

We Guest Blogged!

Have you been to Invitation Consultant's blog? We had a guest post there, it's pretty spectaculous {yup, that's my word!} if I do say so myself!

Invite Etiquette 102

Today Invitation Consultants tackle attire... this is a question I ask of all of my brides, what are they expecting their guests to wear. You can very easily accomplish this task by the formality of the invitation.

• How do I notate what attire is requested/required?

What Emily Post would say…you only need to notate the dress if the reception and wedding are held at the same location. Also, if the event is Black or White Tie, you’d want to indicate so in the bottom right corner of your reception card (or invitation if applicable).

What we have to add…for non-formal weddings, consider using the word of mouth or wedding website approach. Although you don’t need to notate the dress on your invitations, a lot of guests may ask you what they should wear (I had a beach wedding, and a LOT of people were unsure of the appropriate dress). This could save you some phone calls, which is always a plus. Please also make the distinction between requested and required. For example, if the country club is requiring jackets and ties from the gentleman for entry, then say so. However, if you are requesting costumes, then you can indicate this, but you cannot require it of your guests.

Check out Invitation Consultants Blog!

Invite Etiquette 101

Recently we've recieved numerous invitation questions, and for those answers, I turned to our old friends at Invitation Consultants. This week we are going to be tackling those invitation etiquette concernts. So without further ado, I bring you Dawn from Invitation Consultants.

Hello, adventurous readers! My name is Dawn, and I am a consultant with Invitation Consultants. Although our consultants answer questions on our products and the ordering process, we also receive a lot of inquires regarding invitation wording and etiquette. Most brides have never done this before, so all the intricacies of wedding etiquette can be a bit (or sometimes a lot) overwhelming. Sometimes clients will apologize for their not already knowing the answers to the questions they ask, but let me just tell you, I did not know a THING about this topic until I started working in the wedding industry. Try not to be hard on yourselves; this is for the most part all new information. If you, like me, were not all born with the inane sense of Emily Post perfect etiquette, the following is a list of common invitation etiquette questions and our suggestion for how to answer them:

• How do I request adults only for my wedding and/or reception?

What Emily Post would say…it is simply not appropriate to write this request (no matter what the format) on the invitation or enclosure cards. The most tactful way would be to address the invitations only to members of the family who are invited. So, for instance, you would address them to “Mr. and Mrs. John Smith” instead of “The Smith Family.”

What we have to add…never underestimate the power of word of mouth. Your request can start from the bridal party or your mother/mother-in-law and spread from there. Also, a lot of brides and grooms have their own wedding website, which can be created at no cost at many different websites (listed below in “resources”). You can list this request on the website as backup. If you insist on writing the request, we recommend doing so on the either the reception card (preferably smaller at the bottom) or within the RSVP wording, such as “___ out of ___ adults will attend.” If you have a lot of guests with families traveling from out of town, it would be a really nice gesture to consider hiring a couple of babysitters (or enlisting teenage family members/friends). It’s a lot cheaper to buy pizza for the children than to have them attend event, and it will make everyone happy!

Don't worry there is lots more to come this week from Invitation Consultants!

Tell me how many...

So, I was talking to a florist friend of mine the other day, and he was telling me that a fair amount of bride's recently have been asking for the exact number of blooms that will be in their bouquet.

And, while I feel this is a valid question, my concern is this. Let's say the bride wants about 40 roses in her bouquet, but she wants it to be this big. And when the flowers come in, they are a bit smaller than normal, so to compensate the florist should add some extra roses to the bouquet. But if your contract says 40 roses... well, they shouldn't and probably wouldn't add any blooms.

The bride would then be disappointed in the size.... but the florist did what the contract said.

The bouquet in the picture above has about 30 stems... sounds like alot, but in reality, it's about average... so keep in mind when talking to your florist, you want your bouquets measured in size not in stems.

[that almost sounds like "Fish are Friends not Food] - [Measure in Size not Stems]


{Source: The Flower Expert}

Font Whore!

I am a self professed font whore! I love me some fonts! And then I saw this...

Beautiful, isn't it! It's the most beautiful invitation suite that I've seen in a while! Brought to you by, Miss Cupcake herself!

I knew the moment that I set eyes on it - two things, after I lifted my jaw off the floor

1. I now love, lust and swoon over teal and green together!

2. I had to have that font!

So, after some searching {in the comments section} it's called Albemarle Swash, and it's now mine! I so love it!!!

Inspiration Board-Off! II

It's been a while since we've had an Inspiration Board Contest! So here comes another... This time we've asked two of our out-going interns {Christina and Cara}, as their final project to create inspiration boards with Green, Brown and White for a Formal Wedding. No other instructions were given...

You can vote below for who you think has the most comprehensive board based on the color and theme.

Board I:

Board II:

For those using Google Reader, you must come to the actual blog...
Board I Sources: Flower with Ring, Table Setting, Bouquet, Chalkboard, Boutonniere, Hanging Name cards, Wine Bottles, White Lanterns, Hanging Flowers, Menu, Grass Buckets, Green Ribbon Fan Programs, Dog, Bridal Party, Lounge Area,

Board II Sources: White Wedding Dress, Brown and White Candies, Green pinwheels, Cookies, Green and Brown Reception Site, Hydrangeas on chairs, Bouquet, Green Invitation, Green shoes, Cake,

Blue and Green, oh my!

A fun blue and green wedding! Don't you love it, the simplicity, the beauty, the colors?

{Sources to follow}

Cake Love!

So much unexpected Cake Love today!

I must thank Jenn from Hostess with the Mostess a bazillion Thank You's for the beautiful post about Let's Eat Cake!  Seriously her post is incredible! You must stop by and check it out, and while you're there, grab a cup of coffee and stick around a bit, she has some great entertaining idea's!

And, I have to thank Giovanni and Kenya from Unique Designs for some Cake Love today, too!

Thanks guys! I totally feel the love, and Let's Eat Cake! loves you too!

{sources 1st Cake, 2nd Cake, 3rd Cake, 4th Cake, 5th Cake, 6th Cake, 7th Cake, 8th Cake, 9th Cake}

Did Yah hear?

Let's Eat Cake! Has a slew of new judges... some famous some famous'er! It's getting so fun, and we're 6 months away... can you believe it!

If you haven't had time to mail a check, don't forget you can donate via PayPal at the Let's Eat Cake! blog.

Check it out!

Another Inspiration Board Off...

We haven't had an inspiration board up in a while, but don't you worry - we'll have another inspiration board off very soon!!!

Just thought I'd give you something pretty to look at in the meantime, brought to you by Style Me Pretty.

Twitter Quitter

I am a Twitter Quitter... I guess I am challenged at new technology, although I always considered myself fairly savvy.

I need your help! I hate leaving anything undone. I want to be a Twitter'er... Can someone help me figure out what in the world I am doing wrong.

I tried, and tried.

I have an account, but I just can't figure out what in the world I am doing. Wrong.

Thank you for your help. You can email me at melissa {at} masterpieceweddings {dot} net

From the mouth of Babes

{click to englarge}

I received an email from a friend of mine recently and it included all of these adorable notes from children to God. It was so sweet, some funny, some honest, and some so heartfeltedly {I know not a word... but give a bit of room would ya - it should be!} true that it makes you think a bit.

Engagement {Ear}Rings!

I was chatting with a good friend of mine who recently mentioned he was about to ask his long time girl friend to be married! Hooray!!!!

Then we started talking about rings, and what she might like, he thought maybe a mix of sapphires and diamonds - so I sent him some links to take a peek at.

Today he emails me, and says that over the weekend they were talking and she'd like to have her grandmother's vintage ring made into earnings for their engagement! Sweet, huh!

That got me thinking, eventually she's want a ring, right?

Maybe not?

Does everyone need a ring? What do you think?

SO Excited!!!

I just can't even tell you how excited I am for the Olympics to start tonight! John and I have selected our bottle of wine to open, and some cheeses, olives, we'll just call it cold supper, and the Olympics!!!

The Olympics and I have a nice history... one day I'll tell you alllll about it!

Let's just say that Greg Louganis and I have some history.... (NO, not that kind...)

All Top!

Did you see! We are amongst the best now!

Have you heard the Buzz?

Can you hear the Buzz tonight?

Dare to b Unique the motto of Unique Designs... I had such a blast chatting with them! It's nice when you meet someone that you click with right away, and are able to chat about anything. I've had the best two meetings with Giovanni and Kenya from Unique Designs!

They are so much fun - have such great spirits, and are willing to do or try anything! Oh, did I mention they are do invitations!! My favorite subject lately... paper! You should check out their site, and then in the next month when they unveil their Couture line, you can swoon and drool with me!

Blogging in My Footsteps!

One of our {favorite} clients, Amanda, has started a Blog! Blissful Bride You should check it out, she's got all sorts of fun stuff in there!

She's blogging about her plans of becoming a wedding consultant, as well as just plan life after a wedding, and life in general, it's a fun read!

{image source: K Gallery}

We are looking for Interns!

I am almost alittle scared to post this, but MasterPiece Weddings is now looking for 2 Interns. First, please read this. Now, if you've read that and you are still interested, here are the criterion. We do get a lot of applicants, please keep that in mind. I know how busy our firm is, I don't need 100 people to intern for me this semester. It wouldn't benefit any of us.

1. You must be able to work weekends.(including Fridays)
2. You must be receiving school credit for your work and hours.
3. You must be excited about weddings and wedding consulting.
4. You MUST have good commications skills, know how to use a computer AND type an email.
5. You must email me your resume first, to melissa {at} masterpieceweddings {dot} net

I do look forward to hearing from you!!!

Love Languages!

I was thinking about love the other day (this is not a rare occurrence)I thought about Gary Chapman’s 5 Love Languages and I thought it might be fun to review them.

Everyone has their own Love Language and once you realize yours and your fiancée or husband or boyfriend and you can connect with them in their own language, it makes you're love life and your life-life a lot easier.

Here are just a few, you can check out the website for the rest if your interested...

1. Words of Affirmation – Not counting verbal compliments, another way to communicate is to offer encouragement. Like understanding a difficult decision, or calling attention to great progress made on a project, or even acknowledging a person’s unique perspective on a topic that is important to them. If a loved one listens for Words of Affirmation, then offering them encouragement will help them overcome insecurities and develop greater confidence.
2. Quality Time - Quality activities are a very important part of quality time. Many of us feel most    loved when we spend physical time together, doing things that we love to do. Whether it’s sitting on the couch and having a brief conversation or playing together in a tennis league, quality time is a love language that is shared by many. Setting aside focused time with your mate will ensure a happy marriage

These are very important aspects of a relationship, and everyone communicates differently. I think that John and I have or had completely different love languages and now that we've been together so long we are sort of melding into having our own love language. {Quit your oooohing and awwwe'ing...}

{Image Source: Art Files}

Un-Momzilla!

Once in a blue moon, as a wedding consultant the bride or groom's mom becomes your worst nightmare. I don't know why this phenomenon occurs, really I don't.


But this time, the opposite… Gosh I love my job!! This makes me so happy, and proud to make peoples dreams come true!

"...We cannot begin to thank-you enough for EVERYTHING you and your staff did. You all were amazing and truly allowed us to enjoy the moment. I can't imagine what we would have done without you all (don't even want to think about that one !!!) I not only would very strongly recommend to all of my friends, relatives, and acquaintances to have a wedding planner- but probably should have some of your cards to hand out."
 
{Image Source: Unknown - sorry!!!}
 

Happy Friday!

Check out FlyAway Photography today, we had a long chat about Destination Weddings, and our casual chat turned into an interview, how fun!

And, I have a couple of confessions to make- I hope you don't mind. I've been thinking about Saundra alot, and not too long ago she started a game of tag, and I, well, I didn't participate. I was tagged at least 287 times {slight exaggeration} and I couldn't think of anything to write. So I quit. I did, I quit a game a tag, there I said it...

But now, I come to you, with at least one song that I am embarrassed to say that I know all of the words to, listen to it SO loud in car, and make myself feel like I am a Broadway star. Yes, I am a geek. There I said it.

My Name is Melissa and I love this song!

I guess that proves I can't leave anything undone... speaking of which have I mentioned I'm OCD... but I think that's for another post...

Vintage Lilac and Ivory - Beautiful!

This wedding is the epitome of beauty! The love was felt by everyone! Take a peek at some of the images from Tyler Jones.

Wedding Ceremony: Baughman Center

Reception Location: Haile Meeting Hall

Photographer: Tyler Jones
Cake: KB Kake Kreations

Flowers: Blooming Gators

Food: Celebrations Catering

DJ: Jays Entertainment

Consultant: MasterPiece Weddings

Poor Regan, was so emotional - she told me she was afraid of messing up {too sweet!}

Me scoring the cake so the the bride and groom will know what to do

Yes, there are 3 hands here {Katie and Bradley wanted me to help}

This is a RICE KRISPY treat cake!!! Little Army Men holding down the fort!

Some Ring Fun!

Me and The Guests of Honor!