Brilliant Event Planning Blog » ceremony

Flower Girl Headpiece Alternative

Sarah — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 12:46:34 +0000

Love the look of a flowery headpiece for your adorable flower girl but can’t stomach the price? Check out the lovely headpiece alternative below, courtesy of our friends at 100 Layer Cake.

Photo by Garret Grove and James Moes.

A Brilliant Wedding: Lorraine & Dave, Ceremony

Sarah — Wed, 05 May 2010 21:39:53 +0000

This adorable and fun-loving couple was married at the famous St. Patrick’s Cathedral a few weeks ago. We created a “Spring Soiree” concept featuring a color palette of salmon and green. Rountree Flowers provided the delicate florals and these great shots are by the lovely Jenny Boyle of Jennifer Davis Photography. Hair styling from the fantastic FaceTime Beauty Concierge team and makeup by Jamie Brammer. Photos of their reception including their scrumptious Cold Stone Creamery station to follow!

The Cure for a Friday Wedding

Sarah — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:23:55 +0000

I recently overheard the recessional song ”Friday I’m in Love” by the Cure and thought it was genius! It’s fun & upbeat so you can use it as your recessional or switch it to an acoustic version as your processional.Your guests will recognize immediately and make the connection (and think you are impossibly clever too).

Library Wedding: Molly & Mark

Sarah — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 01:24:15 +0000

Here is a little preview into the gorgeous pictures from Mark & Molly’s vintage library wedding in NYC. These stunning photos are courtesy of Zlatko Batistich, quite possibly the most kind and friendly person you’ll ever meet – and one of the best photographers ever.

The second shot is of the adorable bride & groom as they walked with their guests to the reception (what a classic NYC wedding!), escorted by a full band of guitarists and trumpeters. Feast your eyes on these!

Wood Wedding Signs

Sarah — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 14:32:59 +0000

These wooden signs are such a thoughtful touch to any wedding or event. Whether it’s a family reunion picnic, a cozy wedding on a historic farm or nuptials on the forest floor – these signs not only provide a useful function, they add an extra detail that will be sure to wow your guests.

My favorite is the signpost where one of the arrows points to happiness! These signs are courtesy of the folks at Vintage Sign Projects but you can also search on places like Etsy to find similar items.

Weekend Fun: Processional Party

Sarah — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 16:15:16 +0000

This is amazing…I love it! Enjoy your weekend!

Carol & Ed’s Shabby Chic Wedding

Sarah — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 12:45:50 +0000

We created a shabby chic wedding theme for Carol & Ed’s wedding day at Perona Farms in Andover, NJ. The eye candy photos below are from Mariann at Blue Daisy Weddings - she is such a talented photographer and always a dream to work with. The pink and violet color palette was started with these spectacular invitations by Inky Livie. Florals were done by Stem and Company and featured a mixture of crystal and silver vessels gathered from antique shops and flea markets to really emphasize the shabby chic theme. The beautiful violet pintuck linens set off the vibrant centerpieces and were courtesy of Laurie at Cloth Connection.

Sachiko Yanase worked her magic and did fantastic hair and makeup for all of the ladies and the super-friendly Mike Burns from Infinite Video captured the day on video as it unfolded. Marge Fitts provided the angelic harp music for the ceremony and cocktail hour and DJ Medina had the guests dancing all evening. The night closed with a jaw-dropping fireworks display by Celebration Fireworks.

For more amazing photos of their day, click here and stay tuned for even more photos as they become available…especially photos of their amazing shabby chic lounge area!

Thank you Carol & Ed for letting us be part of your amazing day!

5 Tips for Hot Summer Weddings

Sarah — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 02:02:37 +0000

Summer has always been the most popular season for weddings. As you’re planning your summer nuptials, make sure you consider the effects that really hot weather will have on your day! Here are 5 top tips for making sure your day goes smoothly.

Provide shade in the form of umbrellas or decorative parasols during the ceremony
Avoid chocolate as part of your candy bar or as favors – they’ll melt into a terrible mess
Make sure your venues have sufficient air conditioning inside and shade outside to shield everyone from the burning rays
Select flowers that can stand up to the heat and make sure your floral arrangements aren’t placed too early in the day or stored in a hot room
Keep guests happy and hydrated by greeting them with ice cold bottled water and lemonade when they arrive

Ask the Expert: Childcare for your Wedding

Sarah — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 19:36:51 +0000

Brooke Woodard of Metropolitan Sitters is a master with kids. We recently sat down with her to chat about how to keep your littlest guests happy!

What’s the best way to coax a ring bearer/flower girl down the aisle?
-Explain to the child how important the day is
-Practice so they are excited and less nervous when the time comes
-Have two flowers girls or ring bearers so the shy one can follow the other’s lead

Some couples like to offer childcare at their reception, how do they go about organizing this?
-Rent out a smaller room where the reception is taking place
-Estimate ~1 sitter for every 3 kids, this ratio will vary depending on the age of the kids

Lastly and most importantly, have a sense of humor if something unplanned occurs! Those moments are the ones that give a wedding character and charm!

Metropolitan Sitters is a boutique babysitting service for families in New York City. They offer experienced, friendly and college-educated nannies and babysitters for their children. Contact Brooke directly at (917) 575-7370.

5 Best Wedding Processionals: Non-Traditional

Sarah — Thu, 21 May 2009 15:44:26 +0000

As a follow up to our last post…here are my top favorite processionals for our non-traditional brides! It’s so tough to pick just 5 since they can vary widely depending on your music taste but, here’s a start to get you inspired.

Intro from “City of Blinding Lights” by U2
Acoustic “Sweet Child of Mine” by Guns N Roses (credit goes to one of my brides, Maya Jex, for this great idea)
Theme from Forest Gump
Instrumental version of Bittersweet Symphony by the Verve
Theme from the Princess Bride “Storybook Love”