UNIQUE CENTERPIECE IDEAS

I am constantly on the lookout for great ideas for my brides. This is a great idea for a black/white themed wedding or an intimate night with your sweetie. This Ghost Candelabra is too cute! You can purchase it at 2Jane.

IMPART SOME COLOR INTO YOUR LIFE

So often I find myself answering my clients' questions regarding color for their weddings. One color that I hate (sorry, I just do) to hear them say is silver. Well, ladies, silver and gold are not colors. They can get really gawdy, really quickly. If you are going to use silver, be sure to make it more of an accent color. And then, use it in moderation, please. If you want silver, rent silver chivari chairs or utilize a pretty silver-plated bowl to hold your centerpieces. But, please do not just throw silver in there because you wanted you want to have a tri-fold color pattern. You can have three full colors in your wedding. Trust me, it won't be overwhelming. You just can't use all three colors as heavily as the one before it. If you are working with an event designer/wedding planner, they can help you filter through that process very quickly. It's okay if you can't visualize it at first. But, I promise, you will love it when it all comes together...

I have found the coolest little thing on Brides.com. It is a color wheel that you can play with to help with visualization. Although all the colors are not represented on the wheel, it can help give you ideas.

PARENTING ADVICE

I found this great article on CNN this morning. Unfortunately, I cannot post it here. I don't want to get sued. But, I encourage you to take a gander at it. It talks about marriage and parenting advice. Something all married couples can use from time to time...

27 DRESSES WITH MY BRIDE...

Well, as great a planner as I think I am, I can not control the natural behaviors of my brides. I have a bride that I have been working with for about a year now. The wedding is in March and she is beginning to FEEL the whole wedding thing. Although, all aspects of her wedding are taken care of, she had an absolute PANIC ATTACK a few weeks ago over envelopes. Yep, you read right! She was almost in tears over envelopes. Anyway...I decided she needed to relax and have a night out not thinking about the wedding. So, what did I do? I TOOK HER TO SEE A WEDDING MOVIE ON ITS OPENING NIGHT! I know, how much sense does that make, huh? But, we did have a great time hanging out together (and subsequently enjoying cocktails. I enjoyed a libation that included Citrus Vodka, Lemoncello and citrus juices. SSSSSOOOO GOOD!). And I must say, and she admitted, that she has been in a better place since then. She just needed to Relax, Relate and Release (thanks Whitney!). You can't be all wedding, all the time, right?!

I am not usually a fan of Katherine Heigl, but this was a truly cute movie. You should see it with your girlfriends if you haven't already...

NAVIGATING BRIDAL SHOWS

I just HAD to post this information on how bride's should navigate the bridal show season. Be kind to vendors, if you do not wish to utilize their services, tell them. They won't break! :-) Please read and pass along to your friends.

EXCERPT:
Bridal Show How-to
January always brings a rash of bridal shows. I know in my little market there are three in the next 6 days and that is just the beginning. On my other site I write a couple of columns a year on how to make the most of these for the bridal professionals that participate in them. I guess it’s about time I turn some of that around for my brides.
Picking the show: Face it, you can’t go to all of them; there is only so much time. If you want to be methodical about it you need to look at what vendors will be participating in each show. Every show lists their participants on their website so you can check them out. Look at who is going to be there. Are they the vendors that you are interested in? If you are doing an over the top elegant wedding why waste your time at a show where all the vendors are in the low budget range.
It also matters where you are in the planning process. If you are just starting out and only looking for ideas pick the biggest, baddest show on the block. Now it may be so crowded that you really won’t be able to talk to any vendors but you are only there to gather info anyway, right?
If you are pretty well on in the process and looking to fill a few gaps then you really want to look over that roster before you go. Look at who will be there that offers the services that you still need, check out their websites in advance get your questions down. A smaller more low key show is what you want for this. That way you will have a chance to talk to them one on one before you take the time to meet for a consultation. That can save a ton of time in the long run by eliminating those professionals that you just don’t click with.

This comes from Think Like A Bride. You can visit there to read the rest of the article.

Enjoy!

HOW DO I SEAT THEM ALL?

This is becoming a question more and more frequently asked by my brides. The best way to go is to create a seating chart. It takes A LOT of time and accuracy and checking and rechecking, but in the end it is a most helpful tool on the wedding day. AND you don't have to have place cards made. No need to tell them where to sit and THEN who they can sit next to, you know?! It's a wedding, not 2nd grade! Let them have some fun and pick their own seats!

These are two charts that I have created for brides. Whew! Late nights up getting these done! :-) After the hard work is done, we take them to Kinko's and have them enlarged. Then we place them into at least a 16x20 frame and put it at the door of the reception on an easel. It really adds a touch of elegance to the wedding.

ARGH! THE INTERNET!

Sometimes a blessing, sometimes a curse! I am in the midst of switching providers so I have had a few days of downtime. Well, I'm back! Yeah!

WHY HIRE ANDRIA LEWIS EVENTS?

Since I gave you reasons to hire a wedding planner. I thought I'd give you reasons to hire Andria Lewis Events!

• My team and I TRULY care about you having the best, most wonderful wedding possible. No strings attached! I do this because I LOVE it, not just as a money making venture.
• I won't tell you what I DON'T do for you. Some planners will let you know up front what they won't do. I find that a bit asinine. If you need to have it done for your wedding, I'm open. I will, however, let you know when your requests are unrealistic, either for the planet earth or your budget! :-)
• I have great local vendor relationships! And we don't just use the same people all the time. Sometimes you have to beware the vendor list that you get from venues. It may be more for their benefit than yours. I have open vendor relationships that benefit my clients. Hey, I have to sleep at night!
• I SAVE YOU MONEY! Every planner offers a little something different. I mean, personalities are different so that is expected. I make sure that you get the absolute MOST for your money. Now, that doesn't mean that I am a 'budget planner'. Most of my brides spend over $20K on their day, but I make it look like $30K! I make sure that every dollar is seen at the wedding without being gaudy. I do not enjoy nickel and diming vendors for their services. I understand that they are professionals at their job and deserve the rate they charge. Hey, we don't ask Schnuck's to give away their product for free, now, do we? There is always room for negotiation, and I am GREAT at that, but I always leave room for respect for the vendor's ability and their time.
• I believe that no two brides are alike, so no two weddings should be alike. Last year, I had three brides with the same color scheme. When you look at the photos, you will see how I helped them pull THEIR personality into the day. No cookie cutter weddings here!
• I'm fun to work with. Now, that does seem a bit narcissistic, I know, but I really don't mean it that way. I make sure that my bride's laugh and have fun during their wedding. Plain and simple.
• I've been planning for 12 years! My venture in wedding planning happened 12 years ago this year. I got a call from my cousin to help plan her wedding. At the time, this wasn't something that I'd ever thought about. But, that was when I was bitten by the bug! But, my bug is more like a leech, because it hasn't let go! LOL
• I'm not afraid of hard work and stress. SO many people think this is simply a glamorous business. It really is not. It's a lot of long days and even longer nights; stressful situations with family members and vendors; LOTS and LOTS of research and time (my bride's call and email me at 11 o'clock at night), but it has to be done. I never make them feel as if they are bothering me, because they're not! If it's 11 o'clock and they have a thought, they have to get it off their chests at that time before they forget. Maybe one day I'll have 'regular business hours'! :-)
• I cry at all my weddings! That's just how attached I become because I care about my girls and their marriages. Ah! Notice I said I care about their marriages and not just their weddings! Huge difference there!
• THIS IS WHAT I WAS BORN TO DO! I will be a planner until Jesus comes back.

Why Hire A Wedding Planner?

Why Hire a Wedding Planner? That is a good question! Why is it important to hire an experienced Wedding Planner? Better question!

• Your Wedding Planner has relationships created with vendors in your area and work with these vendors in the budget for your wedding. Sometimes, not always, vendors that the planner references many times, will offer discount to their brides because they are working with a planner. So many times I hear vendors say how much they love working with planners.
• We can help you determine how to best use your budget and maximize what you have to spend. Many times there are ways that you can cut costs, but may not realize.
  Working with a planner minimizes your stress of dealing with all the small, tedious details, and allows you to enjoy the process that many people only experience once.
  Wedding Planners do the legwork for you, the emailing and calling, so that you can continue with all the things that keep you busy.
• Find a wedding planner that has experience. Whether it is references, a portfolio, education, a membership with Event Planner Associations like ABC or ISES, these show the work that your planner has done on their own. There is a lot involved in creating a flawless wedding day and experience allows for the ability to think on your feet, learn from previous situations, and provide you with the utmost knowledge.
• We become one of your best friends! We are someone that you talk to many times, email with, and spend so much time with during a short period of time. We're here to make this an easy process and an enjoyable time for you!

This is not an easy process, planning a wedding, but it can be the MOST fun you have in your life!

Thanks to Mary Alice with A Delightful Day for this list!

WE NOW HAVE LINEN!

This is an undertaking that I have been looking forward to for over a year! Andria Lewis Events now offers its clients linen as a part of our services. One less vendor to visit while planning! How great is that? If you would like to see swatches or samples of linen, we also have specialty linen, give us a call @ 901.210.1458!

Photography Studio Open House

At last week's bridal show, I had the pleasure of meeting the owner of Studio Aesthetic, a photography studio in Memphis. His name is Mondonico Williams. He really has a plan for his client's and a great photographic eye. They will have an open house at their new studio at Oakcourt Mall (Lower Level near Dillards) on Sunday, January 20, 2008 from 1 p.m. - 6 p.m. Go by and take a look! They not only do weddings, but engagements, family portraits and fashion.

Ballew Bridal Open House

Ballew Bridal will have an open house at its Colliverville location on January 19. Ballew is known for its gorgeous gowns that other shops are not able to get into this market. Go by and visit Ms. Ballew and her crew and enjoy refreshments while browsing...

VIisit Us At Bridal Rhapsody

VISIT OUR BOOTH AT THE BRIDAL RHAPSODY SHOW THIS SUNDAY, JANUARY 6, 2008!

BOOK YOUR PACKAGE BY JANUARY 31, 2008 AND RECEIVE 10% OFF THAT PACKAGE!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I am really excited about what this year holds for me, personally and professionally! I wish all of you the best as well...

Now, for a bit of a rant. Whenever I attach a picture into a blog, the picture shows up automatically in my slideshow! What's THAT about?! Blogger.com needs to work out that glitch!

Okay, rant over...