One of the first decisions you have to make when planning your wedding is the location.  Do you have your wedding close to home or make it s destination wedding?  For everyone in the Bay Area, Tahoe is able to combine the two by offering the gorgeous settings of a destination wedding, and the convenience of being a short drive from home.

Where should you start when planning your Lake Tahoe wedding? Tahoe Unveiled!  Tahoe Unveiled is an amazing online resource dedicated to providing you with everything you need to plan a successful Tahoe wedding.  In addition to a comprehensive vendor list, the site has a blog full of inspirational tips, and real weddings features.

Thanks to Tahoe Unveiled, you now have the opportunity to meet some of Tahoe’s greatest vendors in an intimate setting at A Day in the Mountains, hosted by One Fine Day.  This is an inspirational event designed to showcase the luxurious side of Lake Tahoe.  It is a place for brides to enjoy the romantic side of wedding planning; to get inspired by the vignettes and vendor’s exhibit spaces, and to enjoy wine, champagne, and food tastings from local catering companies.

Your typical wedding fair is set in a huge hall filled with rows of vendor booths.  A Day in the Mountains is significantly smaller, allowing you the necessary time to speak with each vendor and develop a personal relationship.  Instead of the standard booths, each vendor was given a large space to design, allowing them to better reflect their own personal styles.

As a bride at A Day in the Mountains, you also have the added bonus of getting some advice from noted wedding professionals.  Catherine Hall of Catherine Hall Studios will share some of her insider knowledge with you on such things as the best ways to prepare for being in front of the lens for the entire day, or that when you are getting ready in the morning you should rent a suite instead of a small hotel room, this gives the photographer more flexibility for the lens they can use.

Noted designer Scott Corridan is leading a seminar called “boobs and butts,” showing you how every woman can look like a model in her wedding dress. This includes tips for picking the best dress for your body type and ways to make you look, and feel, your best for your special day.  To help illustrate his point, three lucky brides will be picked to participate in the fashion show!

In addition to fabulous gift bags and prizes, every bride gets to go home with a better understanding of what they want for their Tahoe wedding.

Check out the Tahoe Unveiled page for more information about the vendors, and extensive list of prizes and giveaways.

Specifics:

Date: October 16th

Location: PlumpJack Squaw Valley Inn

To Purchase Tickets Click Here

Bay Area Bride Guide is thrilled to be giving away two tickets to this amazing event!!  What do you love the most about Lake Tahoe? Tweet @BABrideGuide or leave a message on our Facebook page explaining your favorite parts of Lake Tahoe between now and October 9 and you will be entered to win.  One lucky person will be chosen on October 10^th!

This is a “must see” wedding toast!  I wish I had thought of this for my friend’s wedding!

Best Wedding Toast Ever!!

Let’s be honest: weddings can be very expensive, and without proper planning, the numbers can skyrocket very quickly. We often told people that when you say the word “wedding” people start seeing money signs! There are, however, ways to cut cost and keep within budget.

Before you start wedding planning, we recommend outlining your vision, and this will help you prioritize items of importance. It will also help you set your overall tone/ theme. Having a vision really gives you focus and planning with everything. When we had to make financial decisions, we often turned to the big picture goals we set to help drive our decisions.

To save money, we recommend the following:

• Draft a budget sheet with approximate costs for each item (talk with friends who have recently been married to acquire figures)
• Aim to make a complete budget sheet, and don’t keep adding little items to the sheet later on
• Make sure communication is clear with all (families, wedding party, you as a couple etc.)
• Use advertising as a trade off to help pay for things (have your wedding and/or vendors featured in various publications)
• Print your own stationary, programs, letterhead, etc.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for discounts (but make sure you arrange the discounts before signing the contract)
• If your reception is at a hotel, ask for you and/or your parents can have a complimentary night and/or late checkout
• Figure out if registering or cards and monetary gifts is best for you
• Make sure you have also budgeted for post-wedding expenses
• Consider the cost of an open bar, cost per hour to rent the space and/or vendor cost, and the meal cost (FYI it’s usually more expensive for the guests to have meal options)
• Review your budget sheet consistently, and make sure you’re staying on track with your spending and savings

The last thing anyone wants is to walk away from the big day with loans, an unexpected large bill, or inflated costs in general. Smart planning and sticking within budget really helps you before, during and after your wedding.

A couple Sundays ago, my bridesmaids and I joined Shakirah Simley, of Slow Jams, at La Cocina to make the last batch of our wedding favors: onion-bacon relish! Our friend (and wedding caterer) Chef Peter made the bacon himself, so there was lots of extra love put into these. [If you want to try Slow Jams, head to Bi-Rite Market in the Mission!]

The favors are ready to go but we have yet to label and decorate them. Here is some inspiration I’ve been looking at. Have you seen any that you love? The “Spread the Love” label is available on Etsy.com from Miss Pickles Press for $15.

“M & J” had known of each other for years, but had never really “met” till two and a half years ago when a mutual high school friend of theirs formally introduced them. Well, guess what? They ended up getting hitched!

I got a text message from the bride-to-be about a yearago, asking if I’d be a bridesmaid in her wedding, and also if I’d do the flowers for the bridal party. I said “yes” to both accounts, and we started to brainstorm about colors and textures for her flowers. She was going with a Spanish theme and her colors were red and black. Don’t worry; it wasn’t a GOTH wedding…

On a crisp Saturday morning in May, the lovebirds met me at the SF Flower market where we walked around pricing flowers and getting a feel for the textures that “M” had in mind for her arrangements. After a couple of hours we had the floral list: Red Roses (Freedom), Red Freesia, Black Schwartz Calla lilies, and Red Aranda Orchids. This selection would give us great rich colors, and really soft/lush textures.

Once we were set on the floral palette, I got to designing and decided that the bridal bouquet would be the main focus with the most color and texture; the groom’s and fathers’ boutonnières would be constructed of one Calla Lily with a fiddle stick accent; the mother’s corsages would be one Red Rose bloom with some accent greenery; and finally the bridesmaids would have simple bouquets of red roses.

I wish my dear friends “M & J” the best in their “Epic Love” and hope that it leads them onto an even more “Epic Life”! Love you both! Congratulations!!!

Tip #1: if you’re buying flowers for an event from the flower market, make sure;

a)    The flowers you want are in season (this will cut your cost considerably)

b)     Put in the order for the flowers about 2 weeks prior to the event with the different vendors, to ensure that you get great quality fresh flowers

Tip #2: Brides-to-be; make sure you have a tossing bouquet that is separate from the bouquet you walk with down the aisle. This way you can dry/preserve your original bouquet as a keepsake from your special day.

Back in March, for four fun filled hours I was an official floral designer. I wanted to share my experience with potential brides, bridesmaids, or MOBs who might want to attempt to create personal flowers for an upcoming wedding – it is doable! I met up with a group of brides and planners to learn how to make boutonnieres, corsages and bouquets and had a blast with Karen of Huckleberry Karen Designs. She holds workshops about every 2 or 3 months on how to DIY: Wedding Flowers.

It was a fantastic learning experience – how to process the flowers (roses are a real pain with all of the thorns) how to hydrate them, and when to buy which flowers so they are at the perfect opening state on your wedding day.

I decided knowing how to create these floral pieces would come in handy as a planner. I have had nightmares about the florist forgetting a bridesmaid’s bouquet and suddenly I would have to fashion one out of the centerpieces. So I am now ready to roll with my floral tape and ribbon thanks to Karen.

Karen did mention that as a bride, attempting to do flowers yourself for the wedding is definitely do-able but she warned to get more help than you think you’ll need! If your wedding is the ultimate DIY wedding or if you are just attempting to make all the personal flowers, you will need lots of hands – especially on the wedding day. This is where us planners come in handy. Not that we will be your stand-in florist, but we can really help with all of the details you envision.

Here are some before and after photos that lead to my creations:

Here we are processing the flowers.

We had 3 types of roses, spider mums, wax flower and something green, round and cool that I can’t remember the name of – I show a close up of it a few photos below.

Here is the start of my boutonniere – the sepals are gone and I am using floral wire to support the stem. There is a method to poking the hole – you can’t just poke anywhere.

Next, I use floral tape to combine the waxflower and the rose.

Then comes the ribbon – it’s starting to look a little snazzier! To be honest, the ribbon was the most difficult part. Wrapping the end of it took many, many tries.

Ta da! And here it is!

Here is a second one I did using an orchid and the cool little green accent flower (if you know what it is called please help me remember!)

Next we made our bouquets – this was 4 million times more difficult than I thought it would be. I thought mine (below) came out pretty darn ok. My new friend Greg is holding it for me so I can snap an aerial shot of it.

Trying to place each flower so that when all together they looked pleasing to the eye and have a round bouquet shape was quite the challenge. I used roses, freesia, wax flower and calla lilies. I kept the stems long so I could keep it in water when I got home – but if this was a for a real wedding I would have trimmed them a bit more and a little straighter. I used roses, freesia, wax flower and calla lilies.

And there they are! Such a fun class. If you get the chance you should check out Karen’s blog – one of the coolest things she posts on are the different flowers she uses in each bouquet so you know exactly what flower you are seeing.

Photo source: From Trisha Dean’s personal collection

By Erin Frank

I like a little wedding with my honeymoon. When you pair a destination wedding with your happily-ever-after there are a huge number of benefits. For one thing, you can leave it to the professionals. You know you’re getting a dedicated staff that specializes in handling events like yours and is familiar with what the venue can offer you. On-location lodging for you and your guests means you won’t have to worry about transportation to and from ceremony and reception venues. Throw in perks like swim-up bars and lounging on the beach, and your guests are guaranteed to have a good time with minimal planning on your part. Plus, you won’t have anyone asking if they can crash on your couch right before your big day.

During a recent stay at Azul Sensatori Hotel by Karisma in Cancun, Mexico, I found myself wondering what it would have been like if I had scrapped my DIY-intensive San Francisco wedding last year (and I do mean intense! It’s a lot of work when you handle everything from decorations to food to flowers), and gone instead for a relaxing beachside ceremony with my favorite family and friends. Here’s what I would have enjoyed:

An on-site wedding coordinator, a wedding guest concierge to get my guests settled in without my help, a personal attendant to the bride—what a dream!—and a groom’s room stocked with food and beverages before the wedding, to keep the guys out of my hair.  I think I would have opted for the Gold Wedding Package, which includes everything a couple could ask for. We’re talking a bouquet and boutonniere, a manicure and hairstyle for the bride, a haircut for the groom, a sunset dinner cruise, a professional wedding photographer (complete with negatives and a wedding album), a Mexican wedding certificate translated to English, and a whole lot more, all for $3,500. Thinking about what it costs to hire a photographer alone, I’m kicking myself for not discovering this sooner.

A beachside venue really takes your wedding to a new level. Have your ceremony on the beach or on a rooftop overlooking the water. Drink champagne while you check-in, schedule candlelight oceanfront dinners and seaside massages, and let your guests do the same! Encourage them to come to the resort early and clear out after the wedding so your honeymoon can be blissfully family-free. During their stay, your guests will enjoy the beach, pools, bars, a spa, and 6 gourmet-inclusive restaurants including Le Chique, a swanky adults-only restaurant with a creative eight-course “Author’s Dinner” where every taste and texture will take you by surprise. After the wedding, soothe away any stressors your personal assistant couldn’t take care of with soaks in the your Jacuzzi bathtub or piña coladas by the pool. Forget getting up early to head to the airport. Instead enjoy breakfast in bed to kick off your honeymoon. Relax—you’re already there!

So, you tell me, is your 1-year anniversary too soon for a destination vow renewal ceremony?

Azul Sensatori Hotel by Karisma

Cancun, Mexico

www.karismahotels.com

Wedding speeches can be very memorable and a fantastic way to honor those you care about. If you are speaking at a wedding or if you are the couple getting married, we have a few tips to help your wedding speeches to flow just right. Check it out:

Rehearsal Dinner and/or other pre/post wedding event/s:

• Have each person stand up and give a brief introduction (name, hometown, how they know the couple etc.)
• This is chance for you, as a couple, to thank family and friends

Wedding:

• If you have an informal ceremony, or in our case the Korean Traditional Wedding Ceremony, you can have key people give brief speeches and well wishes during this event
• Consider honoring mentors, friends or family by asking them to speak in between courses during the reception dinner (this is in addition to the traditional parents welcome, Maid of Honor and Best Man speeches)
• Your wedding is another chance for you, as a couple, to thank family and friends

Speech Prep:

• If you would like someone or multiple people to speak, make sure you tell them in advance and let them know the length of time they have and/or if you would like them to talk about any particular topic
• Have a microphone handy (if necessary) and make sure the speakers are positioned in places visible to the crowd
• If you have an MC, make sure their role is also clear
• During your reception or other events, people may ask to speak and/or just start speaking in front of the crowd. Be ready for this.

Speaking Tips:

• Speak from your heart
• Memorable (but appropriate) stories are enjoyed by many
• Put the focus on other people
• Keep a positive tone

This wedding was a true pleasure to work on. The bride, an Architect by training, and the groom, a Landscape Architect, had a great eye for design and knew exactly what they were looking for, yet were totally open to suggestions and changes to help their dream wedding come to fruition.

At our first consultation meeting, the bride said to me: “I’m so torn, because I want a really streamlined, modern, and architectural wedding, but then again, I’ve been dreaming about the big white poofy wedding since I was a little girl!”

Every bride has a favorite flower, or at least a flower that really speaks to her personality. This bride’s was “Billy Balls”, otherwise known as Crespedia. It has a Canary yellow color, spherical head, and tall slender stem that gives it a lot of character.

The colors were Yellow and Grey; a fantastic combination for this young couple’s modern wedding at the San Francisco Art Institute (http://www.sfai.edu/). The greys worked in concert the modern concrete architecture of the building, while the yellows added the right touch of color to help soften everything, and a hint of white helped bring in the classic white wedding feel.

With the main flower in mind, we started to chat about all the other flowers that would complement the Billy Balls while keeping everything modern, fresh, yet classic. Our list quickly became: Billy Balls, Brunia, White Freesia, White Star of Jerusalem, Fiddle Sticks, yellow Mini Calla Lilies, and Curly Willow.

The Bouquet: Modern, streamlined, yet full of texture and spunk.

The Boutonnières: A couple of Billy Balls, a sprig of Brunia, and a Fiddle Stick made the boutonnières fun and also made them pop for all the men in the bridal party.

The Corsages: Classic

The Bridesmaids Bouquets: Calla Lilies, and Billy Balls completed the bridesmaid look. Simple, sophisticated, and a fun!

The Altar Piece: At our first consultation, the bride already had a vision for the altar. She wanted tall branches with Billy Balls attached to them for her altar piece. Two large vases, 100 lbs of tumbled mirror from Builders Resources, a bundle of Curly Willow and a couple bunches of Crespedia later, we placed the altar pieces on two stressed wood pillars that the groom had hand made himself and it was ready to receive the lovely couple and their entourage!

Searching through hundreds of amazing yet sometimes overwhelming wedding websites and blogs, you can become slightly cross-eyed from staring at the screen as you search vendor listing after vendor listing for a wedding planner. Where should you start?

I’m sure you received some great word of mouth referrals from your just married BFF, then you hit up Wedding Wire as well as visited your favorite blog to see who designed that stunning wedding you saw posted last week…but now that you have names, how do you select the one person that will be managing your big day?

Here are my tips on how to find the best wedding planner, and what to ask…

1. Listening Skills – You call up a potential planner and she yaps on and on about this wedding she did and that venue she loves and never gives you the opportunity to share what YOU are looking for. As the client, you need to be able to express your wants and desires and a good planner will ask you the right questions to find out what your needs and hopes are for your wedding day and let you do the talking.

2. Trust – Once you’ve got a planner that listens, meet with them. A lot of planners have complimentary consultations so you can get to know each other better. Meet up over coffee, chat about all things wedding, and do a gut check. Does this person seem trustworthy? Do you get that good vibe and are your personalities clicking? Are they on time and do they seem organized, poised and confident? Remember, this person needs to manage you, your wedding party, your family, and your guests as well as all the vendors making the magic happen – do you get the sense they can handle the job?

3. Experience – This one goes a little deeper than the question “How many weddings have you done?” Make sure you also ask about the type of weddings they have experience with, for example if your wedding is on a boat, ask if they’ve dealt with anything similar. Or ask about any tricky or atypical situations they may have been in and how were they resolved? This will show you their problem solving skills in action.

4. References – A good planner will have quite a few references and will be open to sharing them. Past brides of fabulous planners love to share rave reviews so get those email addresses and use them. Ask those past brides how the overall experience was working with that planner.

5. Design Aesthetics – Even if you are simply hiring a planner for Month-Of Services, make sure that your design vision and your planner’s vision somewhat match. If there is a situation on the day of your wedding and the planner needs to make a call about something, you want to be able to trust that their design aesthetics are relatively aligned with yours. If you’re looking for a planner to manage logistics and design it is even more important that you like the look and feel of their events.

One last piece of advice…don’t forget to breathe! Planning a wedding is a huge job –which is how us wedding planners came to be in the first place. Good luck!