Aug 4, 2014 | Weddings
I coordinated a really nice wedding recently. The morning ceremony was at Howe’s Chapel in Evanston, and the lunch reception was at Caro Mio restaurant in Ravenswood. Here is a tiny taste of what the day was like:
Howe's Chapel is on the Northwestern Campus. It seats about 40.
Inside, the chapel is a miniature Gothic church. You can see the flower buckets decorating the aisle.
A program and a cowbell waited for each guest on the pews.
The luncheon at Caro Mio was a warm, happy, low-key party.
Jul 28, 2014 | Budget Planning, DIY, wedding planning
Ready for more on DIY? Here you go!
Of all the things you might want to do yourself for your wedding, the one I would recommend against without hesitation is catering your wedding reception yourself. You might think this would be obvious, but I have talked to people who thought they could do it.
Did I mention that presentation is a professional catering skill? Photo courtesy of Artisan Events.
I have actually heard of self-catered weddings that were pulled off with a lot of help from friends and family. I know it can be done, especially if there are people with special skills involved. So, I won’t say you should never, ever do it. I’m just going to give you a lot of reasons not to.
Caterers do a lot more than cook in quantity. They also manage the kitchen; order and return rental items; keep the food (and so your reception) on schedule; hire and manage serving and bar staff; set up tables, chairs, and linens; set the tables; and clean up and take the garbage out. Caterers also have food sanitation licenses, meaning there is a low probability of spoiled food or food poisoning from their kitchens. They know how much ice to buy and bring. Some of them own serving equipment that they provide at no charge. And that is just the minimum of what a professional caterer has to offer.
On your wedding day, you are going to be very much occupied with, first, getting married. Second, you will want to spend as much time as possible greeting your guests. You’ll probably also want to have your photograph taken with many of your friends and family, not to mention with your spouse. These things will take up most of your day, leaving you no time to be the caterer at your own wedding.
I would say that unless you are able to provide everything a caterer brings to the table, and unless you can also delegate all the catering on the wedding day to a trusted party, hire a professional and save cooking for a crowd for another day.
Jul 21, 2014 | Weddings
Remember when I said that backyard weddings seem to be a trend? Well, here are photos of one I coordinated recently. The amazing thing about this wedding was how much of it was put together by people close to the bride and groom. While it was a very personal wedding day, there was nothing about it that was anything but classy and well done.
The bride's bouquet and the bouquets for the mothers are ready for the processional.
The garden was exquisitely prepared for the ceremony.
Here's a side view of the area for the ceremony.
A talented friend of the family created flower displays for the yard, including this one along the walkway.
These flowers adorned the back steps leading to the yard.
After the ceremony, there was a toast and time for the guests to mingle before heading off to the reception.
The reception proper was at SPACE in Evanston, a perfect place for a dance party reception.
Jul 14, 2014 | Budget Planning, DIY, wedding planning
Here’s another post on DIY weddings from a couple of years ago. Enjoy!
After decor (which I’ll talk about in a few weeks), the most frequent kind of DIY I see at weddings is in the music. I have coordinated many weddings where all the music was provided by a laptop or MP3 player. At the risk of alienating my musician and DJ friends, I have to say that this is one area where you can get away with doing it yourself. But there are definitely things to be aware of if this is your plan.
The important thing is that everyone is having a good time. Photo by Magical Moments Photography.
A professional DJ or band brings to your wedding two very large advantages: a sound system and a Master of Ceremonies. These things can be arranged for otherwise, but by paying professionals you are also obtaining these two important things.
Sound systems can be rented (for a price), but you also need someone to set up and run the sound system. You will have to put in a good bit of time in advance making play lists. And someone needs to press “play” on the MP3 player. The biggest drawback of DIY music is that the play lists are all made in advance and they can’t respond to the mood on the dance floor the way a DJ can. They also can’t get dancers on the floor and get the party going if that is what is needed.
You might have a friend who is an appropriate choice for MC. You will need someone to make announcements at your wedding. Typical announcements include: introducing the bridal party; announcing the cake cutting; introducing those who are making toasts; announcing the bouquet and garter tosses; and any other important events that happen at the reception. If you have a friend act as MC, it might be important to impress upon her or him the necessity of remaining fairly sober until all the announcements have been made.
DIY music is definitely a viable option for your wedding reception. (And don’t overlook another way to do it yourself: If you have musician friends, ask if they can play for the ceremony or the reception.) As with any kind of DIY project, it requires forethought and planning and some extra time to make it happen.
Jul 7, 2014 | Weddings
I had a fun one recently: a wedding in the forest preserve–and a big, old rainstorm. Fortunately, it all turned out well.
The welcome table at the ceremony set the tone: hand-made, offbeat, colorful, and fun.
The bride had made about a hundred pom-poms on sticks to line the driveway to the picnic shelter.
Home-made banner garland hung on the backs of the vintage chairs.
Inside the picnic shelter, there were more colorful decorations.
And more garland hung from the roof.
Here's the cake table, with photos of the couple hanging behind it.
Here's a close-up of the flowers on the cake table.
On the patio, there was more vintage furniture, creating a pleasant lounge area.
There were also games on the patio.
Inside the tent, the picnic tables were set up for eating, once the food trucks arrived.
Everything was going wonderfully: There was beautiful sunshine for the ceremony; the food trucks (tacos and gelato) kept everyone fed; the cake had been cut; and the guests were starting to trickle out. And then….
The skies opened up!
It rained and blew for about 40 minutes.
After about two inches of rain had come down, the sky cleared. The rest of the guests were able to leave, and everyone agreed it had been an exciting day.
Jun 30, 2014 | Budget Planning, DIY, wedding planning
I’m re-running my entire series on DIY weddings from a couple of years ago. I hope you find it interesting and useful. This is the second post in a series on the beauties and pitfalls of DIY.
Perhaps because her livelihood is on the line, a florist friend of mine refers to DIY wedding flowers as “f— it up yourself” flowers. And because I don’t want to anger all my florist colleagues, I am going to agree with her–up to a point.
This is a professionally designed and created floral display. Photo by Magical Moments Photography.
The reason you hire a professional floral designer is because they have specialized knowledge. It’s true that you can send someone to the farmer’s market on the morning of your wedding to pick up flowers. But will the buds all be open? Florists know how to time the opening of flowers so your wedding flowers look picture-perfect. They also ensure that the flowers stay fresh until they are needed. And do you really want to be tying bouquets on the morning of your wedding?
There is nothing wrong with this bridesmaid's bouquet that the bride made.
On the other hand, I have seen DIY flowers that are perfectly nice. It all depends on the look you are going for. If you want a home-made look or a casual feel, your flowers might end up the way you want them if you do them yourself. If you have special training in art, design, or floral arrangement, you’re probably ahead of the curve. But this is one area where I would recommend to most people to hire a professional, especially if the flowers are important to you.
Jun 23, 2014 | Budget Planning, DIY, wedding planning
When I wrote a new post about DIY weddings last week, it reminded me that I should re-run the entire series on DIY weddings. Here is the first entry:
Do-It-Yourself is all the rage. And there are lots of things you can do yourself for your own wedding (or a friend’s). But I have also heard some DIY ideas that might need a little more thought before implementation. This is the first post in a series on the beauties and pitfalls of DIY.
This is NOT a potluck, DIY place setting. Photo by Carasco Photography.
I have been to two potluck wedding receptions, and both of them worked out very well. They were very different from one another and offer some interesting lessons on how to make this idea work.
One was in a church hall with no caterer or serving staff. The other was in a rented hall that required a certified kitchen staff.
If you have no hired kitchen staff, the question is who will set up the food and–more importantly–who will clean up. At the first potluck, the bride asked some of her friends (including me) to take charge of scraping and packing the rented dishes at the end of the day. Other friends helped to set up the tables and the buffet. Fortunately, this couple have a lot of responsible (and sober) friends who helped them cheerfully. It was also a daytime wedding, meaning no one had to stay until 1:00 a.m. scraping dishes.
The second potluck had a professional kitchen staff, which increased the cost but meant that the guests were not involved in running the kitchen. If you are thinking of having a potluck buffet, this might be a better idea, unless you both have a hall that will allow you not to have hired staff and have friends who are sufficiently responsible. Hired professionals also reduce the risks of food contamination, which can happen at a potluck.
There are other pitfalls to be avoided at a potluck. The biggest one is not knowing whether you will have enough food, enough good food, or enough variety. You can overcome this by asking your guests to tell you what they are bringing and making sure the best cooks bring large quantities. That requires extra organization and extra time on your part.
And there is one more pitfall to a potluck wedding reception: One of your relatives will be scandalized. But if you can live with that, if you want an informal reception, and if you can figure out how to do everything that needs to get done, it’s not impossible. But I would not recommend it for everyone. Be sure you think it through before you commit to doing it yourself.
Jun 16, 2014 | DIY
It has been a while since I wrote about DIY (do-it-yourself) weddings. Here’s a topic I haven’t covered before: wedding cake.
Considering how expensive wedding cakes can be, maybe you want to try your hand at baking your own. There is certainly a lot of information on the internet about how to bake a wedding cake. Some of the sites even say it is “easy.” I won’t pass judgment on that, since I’ve never tried it. What I have seen is the results.
Before I tell you about the home-made cakes I’ve seen, I have to point out that sometimes professional bakers have cake disasters. (See this rather funny story as an example.) So, amateurs should be aware of the pitfalls.
My experience is that home-made cakes are likely to be a little more rustic than cakes made by professionals. This may suit your aesthetics exactly, in which case feel free to ignore anything else I say.
Here is a cake baked by the bride’s sister.
Image by theblondephotographer.com.
It is a perfectly lovely cake after its own fashion and suited their country-themed outdoor wedding reception. It might have been out of place at an ultra-formal downtown reception, though.
And here is one baked by the groom’s family.
Photo by Magical Moments Photography.
The bride and groom wanted to use the family recipe for carrot cake for their wedding cake. This was a highly informal wedding and reception, and the cake fit right in. Again, it might have been out of place elsewhere.
Here is one more example that is slightly different:
Photo courtesy of christytylerphotography.com.
The bride and groom at this wedding both had tremendous food allergies. Instead of asking a professional baker to work around their allergies (wheat, sugar, dairy, etc.) and try to come up with a recipe that would be delicious, the groom’s mother made a number of cakes from a recipe they already knew would work for them. They didn’t insist on a tiered cake but enjoyed them as regular cakes. This was a case where DIY made a lot of practical sense.
My short recommendation would be that DIY wedding cake is not impossible. The important thing to keep in mind is that the visual results may be different from what you would expect from a professional. It is probably also wise to learn some of the tricks of stabilizing and transporting tiered cakes to prevent disasters. You might also have to make more than one, in order to try out your skills. (Bonus: extra cake!) If you’re willing to take these risks, go ahead and make your own cake. If not, there are a lot of really good bakers who will be happy to do the job for you.
Jun 9, 2014 | Eco-Friendly Events, wedding planning, Weddings
Charter a trolley to get your guests from ceremony to reception. Image by theblondephotographer.com.
I never get tired of eco-friendly tips. These are my thoughts about event and wedding transportation:
Probably the largest environmental impact from any kind of celebration is from the transportation involved. Guests from other places and in-town transport cause inevitable carbon emissions and pollution. To reduce the environmental impact, you might encourage your guests to arrive by rail, by bus, or to carpool. Of course, if you have your event where public transportation is an option, you can help your guests to get around by local transit. If possible, reserve hotel rooms for your guests within walking distance of the party. If they will have to travel some distance, charter a bus for them. Or, try a pedicab.
Carbon offsets are one way to mitigate the environmental consequences of travel. Although there are some who question their effectiveness, you might know of a program you feel comfortable with. You could ask your guests to pay for carbon offsets instead of bringing gifts. Or it can be your gift to them in place of favors.
For an eco-friendly honeymoon, try these ideas: honeymoon close to home; honeymoon at home (turn off the phone and tell everyone you’ve gone away); honeymoon by bicycle; or, most romantic of all, honeymoon by rail. (As my sister says, “Anyone who says romance is dead hasn’t been on a train lately.”)
Jun 2, 2014 | Weddings
This is now a legal wedding! Photo courtesy of Artisan Events, Inc.
As of yesterday, same sex marriage is legal in all of Illinois. Here in Cook County, a judge’s ruling made it possible for anyone to get a marriage license earlier this year. But for the rest of the state, yesterday was the first day it was possible. What more is there to say except, “About time!” Congratulations to everyone getting married!!
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