Younts Center Furman University

We did a reception this weekend at the Younts Center at Furman. I can not say enough good things about the Younts Center. If you are planning a wedding in Greenville, you really need to check it out. But plan ahead; because it books up early, (I am talking a year ahead).

The center is state of the art, they have flat screen TV on the wall in the cocktail area to show your montage and they have a drop down screen in the ballroom. There is a wonderful bride’s area to get ready in and the people that work there are super nice and helpful. The building both inside and out is gorgeous. I have done several weddings there and not one single complaint. In my book, it gets an A+.

Hugs and Kisses!

Deciding on favors for the wedding is such a hard decision. Willrich brides know that I always advise that candy is your best choice. Who doesn’t like candy? One of my favorite ideas is the Hershey Kisses and Hugs in an organza bag with a note that reads “Hugs and Kisses from the new Mr. & Mrs.”. Well, Hershey Gifts just made this idea even cuter by adding “Just Married” on their Kisses plumes. Check it out.

Don’t Be Late

While talking to a group of people today I discovered that not everyone understands what exactly the time on a wedding invitation means. When you get an invitation in the mail to a regular party, let’s say a Christmas event, and the time says 6:30, everyone knows that means the party starts at 6:30. So you don’t arrive before 6:30. In fact a little later than 6:30 is totally acceptable.

Things are a little different with a wedding invitation. When a wedding invitation states 6:00 as the time of the wedding, this means the bride will walk down the aisle at 6:00 on the dot. All the mothers, groomsmen, bridesmaids, etc., will already be down the aisle. If you arrive at 6:00, you are late! Guest should arrive thirty minutes before the start of the ceremony. So you should be arriving at 5:30. Anything later and you risk walking in as part of the processional. Ok, not really, you will be held at the back of the church and only seated in the back once the bride is down the aisle.

So the rule is, for weddings always arrive 30 minutes before the time on the invitation.

The Clemson Bride

Lately I seem to be The Wedding Planner for Clemson. I have done so many weddings for Clemson brides and everyone says the same thing. “I want to use orange in my wedding but I don’t want it to scream Clemson. What should I do?”

Well I happened to be looking through The Bride and Bloom Magazine, one of my absolute favorite magazines and I noticed this page for “Vintage Glam”. How perfect would this be for your Clemson wedding? It has the touch of orange but it is muted with the deeper burnt orange tones. The golden Jim Hjelm dress is to die for, but if you don’t want to wear gold, why not have your bridesmaids wear a dress this tone. Notice that the bouquet even has tiny purple feathers dispersed throughout. What could be more perfect for you the Clemson bride.

1st Annual Trash Your Wedding Dress Photo and Video Session

What: Trash The Wedding Dress - To wear your dress without concern for keeping it in it's original condition for the purpose of unique and beautiful photos.

Who: YOU the Newly Married Bride

When: May 26, 2007

Where: Reedy River at Falls Park

Time: 9:45 am - 1:00 pm

Cost: Free

Why: To have Fun with other Brides, and get beautiful pictures on a CD, and a video of your experience. Oh, and to eat lunch!!!

The most important part of the event is having the opportunity to provide women with information about early detection of breast and cervical cancer from the American Cancer Society.

Entries will be limited. To learn more and sign up, go to IDoInSC . To see more of these unique and beautiful photos go to Trash the Wedding Dress .

P.S. If you don't want to take a chance on "trashing" your dress, check out your local thrift store and resale shops.

Sponsored by
Photography by Dennis & Yvette, LLC
Willrich Bridal & Special Events, Inc.
Oasis Videography

Who Will….? Part 2 - The Reception

If you don’t have a planner who will…

♥ will make sure the florist and cake arrive at the same time so that florist can decorate the cake?
♥ will make sure the bar does not open until the correct time?
♥ will move guests inside the reception site once the cocktail hour is over?
♥ will make sure bridal party is lined up correctly for the grand entrance?
♥ will make sure the DJ is ready, knows how to pronounce names, has the correct music, and has the correct order of people coming in?
♥ will make sure the photographer and videographer are ready?
♥ will make sure that the guests are on their feet surrounding the dance floor?
♥ will make sure that the DJ, photographer, videographer knows when each event is about to take place?
♥ will make sure that everyone is there for the special moment, that your mother does not miss the cake cutting?
♥ will make sure the vendors get their meals in a separate area, but aren’t eating when you get ready to throw the bouquet?
♥ will hand out bubbles or rose petals as you are getting ready to leave?
♥ will make sure your guests are lined up for you to run through as you go to the limo?
♥ will make sure the photographer is there ready to take the picture?
♥ stays with your gifts at the reception, makes sure nothing disappears and then packs them in your designated car so that they are safe while the reception is going on?
♥ will make sure that the cake stand, dowels, etc are washed packed up and returned to your cake person?
♥ will make sure the caterer packs you a box to take with you in the limo?
♥ will make sure it is in the limo?
♥ will make sure everyone is paid at the end of the evening?
♥ will pack up everything for you, left over programs, favors, your portrait, etc?
♥ will make sure you and your family have a wonderful stress free time?

Like I said, even if you are not having a planner these are just a few of the questions that you will need to be able to answer before your wedding day. Make sure that you have picked someone you can rely on and not a family member that you want to enjoy your wedding, because believe me the person responsible for all this is not going to have time to mingle and have fun, they are working!

Who will....?

I thought I would publish just a few of the questions you’re going to have to be able to answer (if you are not having a planner). Hopefully you are hiring a planner and hopefully it is Willrich Bridal. If you are, all these questions will be handled for you. Either way it is certainly something you need to think about and be aware of.

Who…

♥ will make out my timeline?
♥ will know what time vendors should show up?
♥ will be responsible to make sure the vendors have copies of the timeline?
♥ will make sure the vendors arrive, check contracts to make sure everything is delivered correctly and in place at both the ceremony and reception?
♥ will stay at the reception site during the wedding to make sure that nothing is moved, that weather does not affect the set up, that any late vendors show up and know what to do?
♥ will handle emergencies that day?
♥ will contact vendors that don’t show up, items that are not brought (ex, the cake stand, boutonnières, bridal portrait)?
♥ will get the spot out of the flower girl’s dress before she goes down the aisle or the spot out of the wedding dress?
♥ will bring an emergency kit to handle anything that comes up?
♥ will handle tuxes that don’t fit, loose buttons, hems, etc.?
♥ will handle the rehearsal?
♥ will set up diagrams before hand of where the wedding party will stand and sit?
♥ will help make decisions based on etiquette about seating of stepparents, grandparents, who will be their escorts, how do they line up to come in or leave?
♥ will collect items before the wedding to be set out at the reception and wedding (programs, candles, favors, table numbers, escort cards, etc)?
♥ will handle unexpected guests that show up?
♥ will pin on boutonnières and corsages?
♥ will make sure the right person gets the right corsage?
♥ will make sure that everything is running on time?
♥ will make sure everyone is lined up correctly to go down the aisle?
♥ will make sure the florist and cake arrive at the same time so that florist can decorate the cake?

Tomorrow we will go over some questions for the reception.

Wedding Maps

Here is one more, great FREE online site. If you are looking at designing maps for your wedding guests, check this out. Wedding Mapper is simple to use, has the cutest wedding icons and you just can't beat free!

Wedding Graffiti - A Great Idea

Here is a great idea to help personalize your wedding. Wonderful Graffiti Wedding just sent Willrich Bridal a sample packet of their wedding graffiti and I love it. It is a wonderful website where you can order very thin pieces of vinyl that can be applied to any surface and removed easily after the wedding. You could order your monogram for the front doors of your site, a favorite verse for the wall, your names on the dance floor, just married on the get away car or maybe your names and wedding date on the mirror behind your cake. You can use it just about anywhere. It is fairly easy to apply, (the only time consuming part is making sure it is straight) you apply it yourself and easily remove it after the wedding. I love this idea from a design point for any wedding. Use it to make your wedding truly your own.

Children Formal Attire

Here’s a great site, I just found out about. If you are having children in your wedding, you are going to want to check this out. It is called Gagas. You can rent wedding clothes for children and the prices are really reasonable. According to the site, the shipping is free and you can keep the item for up to three weeks. I haven’t actually used the site yet, but it sounds great. Children’s formal clothes are outrageously priced and they will only fit into them for maybe a week, before they out grow them, so renting is a terrific idea.

The Importance of a Plan B

Ok, for all you brides out there who are planning an outdoor event and don’t feel it is necessary to go to the trouble of having a Plan B in place, I want to share some pictures taken by a fellow wedding planner Saundra Hadley, Planning Forever . The moral of this story is to always, always have a tent or an inside area available just in case the weather does decide to turn bad. And just like at this wedding (where, by the way, the bride just absolutely refused to set up a tent, so all the guests ended up crowded into her living room) the weather can turn bad at a moments notice.

What Makes the Best Wedding?

I had a bride ask me the other day, what was the best wedding I’ve done. Well the best wedding has nothing to do with the budget or the venue or food or anything like that. The best weddings are the ones where the bride and groom are totally having a great time and since the guests follow the lead of the bride and groom, they in turn have a wonderful time.

If you are out there dancing, laughing and smiling I can promise you, your guests are going to remember it as a great wedding. Which brings me to another point, I know you have bought the most beautiful dress ever and spent more money on it than you have ever spent on an item of clothing in your entire life, but once you have walked down that aisle forget about the dress and just have fun. Believe me; before you go down that aisle I will be as diligent as you are about protecting that dress from the tiniest stain or mark. However, once the minister says “I now pronounce…” my advice is to forget the dress and party!!

But wait you say, I don’t want my dress messed up, I love my dress. I know you do, but let’s face it, what are you going to do with that dress after the wedding? Clean it and put it away. Pass it on to your daughter? I don’t think so, are you wearing your Mom’s dress? Best you can hope for is to sell it and take it from someone that knows, selling it for more than a small return on the amount you spent on it is not likely to happen.

So relax, let it go, party, smile, dance, enjoy yourself and I promise the pictures and memories will be worth more than the dress ever was.

Happy Easter

Isn’t this just the cutest picture? It was sent to me by one of the photographers Photography by Dennis and Yvette that I really enjoy working with. I just had to share it with everyone. Yvette said she just happen to walk in and catch the little girls looking at the dress. It just goes to show you that you don’t have to micromanage every detail of your wedding. Let your vendors have some freedom to do the things they do best. Some of the best things that can happen are things that just happen all on their own.

Stamp News

Starting in May the US Postal Service will once again raise the price of stamps. But this time they are offering a few different options.

The first is the new “Forever” stamp. This stamp, which will be priced at 41 cents, will be good forever. Now this doesn’t mean the price won’t go up in the future, but as long as you have this stamp (which has no price printed on it) it will be good for mailing any letter, no matter the price. So you could purchase a roll of 41 cent stamps and even if the price of mailing goes up, it will be covered by the 41 cent stamp. Now if you have to purchase more and the price has gone up to say 45 cents then it will cost you 45 cents for the new ones you purchase. To understand more see this CNN article on new postal rates .

The really good news for brides is that the cost of mailing a wedding invitation will not increase; in fact it will go down. This will be because the 41 cent rate is for the first ounce with all additional ounces being 17 cents. Currently additional ounces are 24 cents. This means a two ounce invitation will now only cost 58 cents instead of the current 63 cents.

The Marriage License

Let’s talk about what is probably the number one question I get from brides and grooms. “What do we have to do to get a marriage license?”

First of all, you can obtain one in any county in South Carolina and it is good in any county. This means, you can purchase a marriage license in Greenville and get married in Charleston. It also means you can shop around for the cheapest price. Greenville is a few dollars cheaper than Charleston, by the way. Each county can charge a different price for the license. Currently the cost of a license in Greenville is $35.00.

Another important piece of information, is that currently in South Carolina, marriage licenses do not expire, so you can purchase one any time before your wedding. Both you and your fiancé must apply together for the license. They only take cash for payment. They do not accept checks.

You must have a photo id (driver’s license) and Social Security Card. If you are under 18 years of age, you will have to have your parents’ consent.

There is a twenty four hour waiting period from the time you and your fiancé apply until you can pick up the license. After the twenty four hours only one of you has to return to pick up the license or it can be mailed to you.

For more details and the most current information be sure to check out Greenville County Marriage License .

Another Great Idea

Here’s another super cute, new idea. It’s called Bloombox and they are boxes that can be used as an inexpensive alternative to vases. What a way to save money and have vases that do not have to be rented from the florist. Check it out at Blumebox . With two sizes and eighteen colors to choose from making your centerpieces unique and cost effective is no longer such a challenge. Talk to your florist today about using them or for you DIY’s you can order them online.

Trashing The Dress

If "trashing the dress”, is not a term you’ve heard yet, it will be. It’s the newest thing to hit wedding photography and it’s big. What it means is, anywhere from one day to one year after your wedding you get dressed back up in your wedding gown and go for a photo shoot, without any concern for keeping your dress clean or in some cases even wearable again after this session. This is not for the sentimental or faint of heart bride. But it does lead to some gorgeous pictures. Brides have posed with animals, on city streets, in fountains, and in the ocean just to name a few spots. The elegant look of the dress against a rustic background can make for a glamorous and unique photo. Just take a look at this site, http://www.trashthedress.com/ , for some examples. A few of the photographers in this area are catching on to this trend and running with it. If you don’t plan on saving your dress or want to sell it, you might want to think about doing this for some once in a lifetime pictures.