Dance Lessons

It’s your wedding and you want to put your best foot forward. It will be more fun for you and your guests if you feel really comfortable on the dance floor.

We are not big dancers, so we did not do dance lessons prior to our wedding. While we danced a little at our wedding, I think we would have danced more had we felt more comfortable.

As our friends have gone through the wedding process, many of them have opted for lessons. There is a proliferation of dance studios like the Fred Astaire Dance Studio and independent studios that can provide dance instruction at relatively reasonable rates. Make sure you tell your instructor about your destination wedding plans so you can receive instruction in local dances.

Dance lessons are one more thing for you to consider in your wedding planning process.

From Chicago to CaptivaDestination Wedding South SeasCaptivapalooza Bride!

Anoher gorgeous bouquet by Floral Artistry
Each table was named a variety of fish local to the island
Welcome! Lemonade and programs
A local favorite for a guest favor, Captiva blend coffee
Corie had a special sash tie for the ceremony and another for the reception
The groom designed this one of a kind seating list!
Here's the room, all a glow. I love candlelight.
There wasn't a single slice of cake left although it was almost to pretty to eat.
The dance floor stayed packed the entire night
Nick Adams from Impact UK was Captivapalooza brides amazing photographer. He put a slideshow on during the reception of some of the great shots he took earlier that day. As soon as he send them our direction, we'll make sure you get to see them!


And to think it all started like this!

The short story of the Ugly Bouquet

At 2pm my cell rang,

"Kelly, its Jamie (Florida brides sister/Matron of Honor). We have a flower emergency. Bring whatever you've got."

That sounds pretty bad right? Yeah, I thought so too. So I grabbed the bucket of roses I had for the aisle presentation, my ER kit and some shears and I hightailed it up to the bridal suite. I almost passed out in horror at the sight of what I saw before me (slight exaggeration). This is what she pulled out of the florists box:This picture does no justice on how awful and pathetic looking it really was in person. The roses weren't open, the stems weren't cut trimmed, the ribbon was that cheap crunchy white stuff- I could go on and on, but I promised a short story.
Here's a picture of Florida bride had actually asked for (less the feathers): A round bouquet of Anna roses with white double faced satin ribbon and reminants of her moms wedding dress tied in:photo by Julie Goodacre
Yeah. I see a little bit of a difference between the two.
So off to work I went. I have never ever been so happy that I had watched the Martha Stewart Wedding DVD Series. THANK YOU MARTHA! I made Florida Brides bouquet from scratch with the roses we pulled from the petal aisle stash and then gave the bridesmaids bouquet making 101 and we remade all 6 of their bouquets as well. Here is how they all turned out:


Want to see more photos from Florida Brides wedding? Check out Mike's work at the impressions photography blog.

Dear Kelly, I want to be a wedding planner.How do I do it?

I get this email every single day. I'm really quite flattered by it to be honest. So, thanks for asking, it makes me smile. This answer is NOT for everyone. I guarantee there is going to be someone who thinks that this is the stupidest answer ever. Hopefully though, it will mean something good to someone out there.

Hi, my name is ______, I'm a 20 year undergrad at University of _____, and am addicted to your blog. As a young college student, the question of my career path has come up quite often, and with much research and thought, the one job that constantly is in the back of my mind is wedding and event planner. Ive had my hand in planning a few events and parties, and loved every tiny detail. I'm originally from _________, and with a large high end mall, and many gated communities popping up on the west side of the city, I'm wondering if soon would be the time for someone like me to start up something and see if the city can support it. It's been slightly frustrating as every search for "Becoming a wedding/event planner" comes up with results of online courses/ guide books... and finally your blog, and many other wonderful sites like junebug and weddingbee. I don't think for a second I could make a website, open doors and succeed, none the less have a clue what I'm doing and would rather do this right to make a career, and not a failed attempt :) Ive contacted a few local businesses but am not receiving the friendly response I'd expected and don't know if this is due to my approach. I'm wondering if I could throw a few questions your way, and maybe get some advice on how to approach this subject. Thank you so much for your time, and I really appreciate anything you'd be willing to offer.

My response:

Hi ______,
Thanks for reading my blog! I understand your frustration. I was there once myself. The reason you aren't getting a great response from the local wedding industry is probably one of two things. Either you're contacting them during wedding season when they are all extremely busy and can't deal with someone calling on them for help at the moment, or (and more likely), they are afraid of helping the competition.
Are you at a school that has a Hospitality & Resort Management major? If not, that might be your 1st big decision...that's where you need to head to. If you are looking to get a small business degree and use that as your foundation- then stay put and start learning events from a different angle. If you can't find a wedding planner who will let you come on as an intern, look for internships with photographers, florists, wedding cake bakers, and videographers. Photographers and Videographers are your best bet so that you can actually attend as many weddings as possible. You'll also want to get a job in sales and catering at a local resort. I say resort and not country club because a resort will allow you to hold several positions outside of food and beverage that you can learn from and use in your career as a wedding planner.
I want to tell you that you are 100% doing the right thing...look for the areas that are growing and are going to need a wedding planner in the next couple years. Get in while nobody else is there so that when it does "boom"- you are it. In other words, learn how to plan in a market that has already been built, and then open shop in a market that shows signs of becoming big.
Best wishes to you _______- let me know how it goes!

Here's the thing gang. It is HARD and I mean really hard to be a wedding planner. I am not even going to try and deny that. Is it fun? Yes. I love it. I am totally addicted. When I talk to a bride and I say, "I am so excited!" I am not kidding- I really am. You have to have a passion for it. A passion for planning your own wedding does not mean you will have the passion to plan 15 weddings at the same time, with 15 different personalities, tastes, and styles. And if you're going to do this for a career, that's what you have to plan on doing. Also, you have to be prepared to work your arse off. I work a minimum of 60 hours a week, and during our wedding seasons, there are weeks on end where I don't get a day off and I work 14 hour days 3 weeks straight. Why do wedding planners have to work so much? Because on top of the weddings that we're planning, It's a business that has to be run. Accounting, marketing, public relations, administrative- it's a long list. I so wish that there was a wedding tv show that showed what this job is really like. I think so many people would be surprised.
Is it worth it? Absolutely! I LOVE BEING A WEDDING PLANNER. And _____, I hope that you will love being a wedding planner too.

P.S. For those ready to pick up the phone and call a bunch of wedding pro's and ask for internships- don't. Check their websites first to see if they have a preferred method of contact for such inquiries. I pick all my interns via email.

Florida Bride: A gorgeous Sanibel Wedding!

Don't yell at me. It was such a busy day that we never broke out the camera. No worries though because Michael from Impressions photography was there and I know he'll have amazing pictures on their blog quickly. So, in the meantime, we staged a few detail photos and I took a couple with my iphone. Just so that we could share a few.Here she is just an hour after she became a Mrs.
Mr & Mrs Florida Bride at Lighthouse beach on Sanibel Island
This is Jessica's Bouquet. There is quite the story behind this bouquet, which I will tell you all about in a later post.
These are the wedding programs that Jessica made herself! Aren't they super cute? I love the palm tree cut out.

Instead of your ordinary guest book, Jessica & Ryan bought this adirondack chair and had a friend paint and attach the plaque. Jessica has the best plans for it, she's keeping the chair in the guest room as a luggage rack.

Instead of starting off the day with the ceremony, we planned a mini cocktail hour with pink and green signature drinks. The cocktail hour and ceremony were poolside at Sanibel Harbour Resort & Spa. They have a fantastic paved deck with palm trees and a fountain for a wedding ceremony, call Kristin if you're looking for a truly stunning sunset poolside event. So the rule is you never serve drinks without something to eat. You know me, the details count. We kept the appetizers pink and green as well: Prosciutto wrapped Asparagus with Garlic Aioli & Ahi Tuna on Risotto cake with Wasabi Creme Fraiche. Yummy and they matched too.
The reception was held at Dolce Vita on Sanibel Island. All the hot pink roses in the vases (filled with keylimes) looked amazing against the dark cherry woods of the italian restaurant. It really was a romantic scene in the candlelit dining room that night.

Brides in the Limelight, South Beach

I know you're all waiting on this post; but it looks like we're going to have to hold off until tomorrow...the camera with the photos didn't make it back to the studio today! I PROMISE its coming!

Lindsay+Larry=Drama!

Lindsay and Larry have such a romantic story! They fell in love on the stage while performing the Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera The Mikado! Their wedding was all about their passion for singing and for each other and their day was full of dramatic moments.

My favourite detail ever - gold Manolo Blahniks - divine!



The beautiful Lindsay gets ready.

The couple had their ceremony at St. Andrews Wesley in downtown Vancouver - such a beautiful church. Love this tilt-shift image our main man TimCo got from the balcony.

Lindsay gets a little teary-eyed after making it official.



Love the joy in their faces as they walk down the aisle - husband and wife!



A little rain? No matter!

NYC photog & friend Jason Groupp got this pic of me looking really dorky :) And that's our super-assistant Garrett behind me keeping things organized. We had a super-fun crew with J & Tim, and my sister Laura Ann doing videography too. Thanks guys!



The wedding party strikes a pose.





A few quiet moments between the couple as they wait to make their grand entrance into the Hotel Vancouver ballroom.

Coordinator extraordinaire Geneve from DreamGroup told me the room would look gorgeous - she was right!





Yummiliciousness by Sweet Thea Cake Co



The happy couple!



An emotional moment when Larry's daughter sang to the newly-weds.



Lots of opera singing!



Including a grooving performance by former Temptation Riley Inge.



My favourite moment from the night was when Lindsay took center stage to sing to her new husband. He joined her and the happy couple sang a duet together before their first dance.






Congratulations, Larry + Lindsay!

The NEW best wedding songs.I'm callin it

Risky right? Callin it? But I'd put $10 down that this song makes Jack Johnsons Better Together step into the number 2 slot. $10 is what's in my wallet at the moment. I spent $20 at lunch. It was a good lunch. Met with some halloween party planning people at Bacchus. Ummmm Ahi Tuna. Oh, back to the song.

Okay, so the entire cd rocks. But this song in particular spoke to the wedding planner in me. It spoke so loud I actually called Clint Wiley (the best not-a-wedding-band-that-does-weddings ever) and told him he needed to get these songs on his playlist like now. Clint informed me that I am behind the times. Seems this Jason guy has been around a while. Still, I think this is going to be big in weddings.

It's Jason Mraz and the song that 1st spoke to me is called I'm Yours . Here's the one thing I see getting in the way of this song being on the top of everyones either recessional song short list or 1st dance; Jason's other song Lucky .

You can buy the cd on Jasons hilarious website or download it from itunes. He seems to be a really funny guy. A rather talented funny guy.