{Tuesday Tip} Don’t Leave It Behind

You make a check list for all the items you WILL NEED to bring with you the day of the wedding, but you don’t make one for all the items that will need to return with you. Several items that get left behind include:

I.D.’s or credit cards from open bar tabs

Clothing that you arrived in

                                                                                                   

Centerpieces

Shoes. They get really uncomfortable and you kick them off somewhere and then forget where exactly.

Sand ceremony vases or unity candles

Jewelry

The best thing to do to ensure that items like these don’t get left behind is to assign your parents or bridal party members jobs. Now do make sure if mom and dad will be responsible for gifts that they not bring dad’s sleek, two-seater, sports car to the wedding because they will be making numerous trips to get all the gifts home.

 

Be Married,

Creative Coordinators

{Tuesday Tip} 5 Things To Splurge On

5 Things Worth Splurging on for your wedding in 2015 

We know we know most everyone has a budget and most people don’t want to hear we think you should spend more on something but here ate out top 5 picks we really truly think you should send a little extra on in 2015. We give you the A-OK to splurge on the following!

1. An Extra Bartender

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If you have over 125 people or an extra heavy drinking crowd. Even if you just plan on the extra bar tender for a portion of the wedding like from pre-ceremony beverages till the an hour after dinner (normally a 4 hour minimum) trust us your crowd will thank you for keeping the crowd at the bar moving.

2. Your Bouquet ( how often do you get to carry flowers?)

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Come on its your big day and you get to choose so don’t skimp on your bouquet.

3. The Best Photographer in Town

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Photos are worth a 1,000 words and trust us you will thank us if you opt for the best photographer you can find.

4. The DJ

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And Music you cant wait to dance all night to for that matter!

5. Superfab shoes you can dance in all night.

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If you are already set on super tall heels for the ceremony you aren’t sure you will be able to dance in make sure to plan for a second pair you can dance in.

Be Married, 

Creative Coordinators 

Score Some Super Sale Items

 

We love a great deal so we wanted to remind you that you can save a ton if you shop post-holiday sales. We love to look for color or season specific decor like red and pink vases and candy after Valentine’s Day, pastel cocktail napkins after Easter, and even green decor after St. Patrick’s day. Don’t forget it is always a great time to buy ribbon and so much more. You can score items at half-price or more if you hit the sales.

Happy Valentine’s Day and Happy shopping & savings!

Be Married, 

Creative Coordinators

{Tuesday Tip} Follow the Directions

Drive Your Directions

We recently read about this interesting tip in  BRIDES Magazine and believe it is a tip well worth sharing!  Before you send out your invitations recruit a friend who has never been to your venue to drive the Map Quest, Google Maps or Venue-provided directions to make sure they truly take you to the correct location.

This is a wonderful idea because there is nothing worse than ending up on a dead-end street and having no idea where or how to get to your destination.  Keep in mind that not everyone has a fancy phone with a built-in GPS or navigation system. Remember that Grandma and Uncle John avoid cellphones and technology at all costs. If you know written directions are the only form of information they will use make sure they are clear and easy to follow.

If you happen to notice that Map Quest or Google directions take you to a dead-end share this information with them. They don’t have the time to drive every road and update every change all over the world so it may be possible to inform them about the updated  streets in your neighborhood. If you discover this problem far enough in advance they may be able to update it before your wedding.

If you want to make driving directions a little more fun and personal we love the idea of Cartoon illustrated directions. They bring out the excitement you felt when you were a kid and dreamed of finding a map to buried treasure.  You can attempt to make your own or venture to a shop that can create a custom map that incorporates fun, detailed places that are special to you. What is great about customized maps is they are easy to read,  pleasing to the eye, extremely detailed, and one of a kind.

We found the following photos at: http://www.acartoonist.com/wedding.htm and something tells us this is going to be a growing trend with weddings.

Cartoon Save the Date

{Top Posts} Fun Favors, Awesome Activities

Today we are sharing one our of top posts for the blog enjoy!

It’s guaranteed when you attend a wedding your going to witness a beautiful and sentimental union between a loving couple, enjoy delicious food, partake in  and possibly watch some rather unique dance moves, treat your taste buds to a sweet slice of cake, be the MVP when it comes time to catch the bouquet or garter, and aside from having a wonderful evening possibly participate in unique wedding activities and walk out with a sentimental, well thought out wedding favor. We are always amazed at the unique and creative details our brides put into their wedding. We have seen various takes on alternative wedding activities besides the “established” money dance, garter, and bouquet toss.  Here are a few of our experiences with fun wedding favors and adventurous wedding activities.

The Candy Buffet

We get really excited when a bride mentions she will have a candy buffet during her reception because they are always  delicious to look at, tie in with the wedding colors, incorporate their candy favorites, and bring out the inner child in the wedding guests. Candy buffets are tempting, have a wide area of candy in various colors, and the decadent display makes your mouth water. You don’t realize how many varieties of candy there are until you see a candy buffet displayed.

What’s great about candy buffets is you can either hire an outside vendor to create a display or you can do it yourself. You can find candy that either incorporates your wedding colors or you can go with a theme. We are dying to create a candy land buffet and incorporate the fun characters and the land they live in like Gumdrop Mountains, Mr.Mint, Gramma Nutt, Chocolate Swamp, and Princess Lolly. Not only would it be delicious but it would bring back the nostalgia of the characters and the fun times you spent playing the game as a child.

Photobooths

Martha Stewart's DIY photobooth

Who doesn’t want to see their wedding guests documenting the evening with photos? Photobooths are a great way for guests to pop in and take a snapshot of the wonderful time their having. They also provide a great party favor for guests to take home and pin on their fridge. You can utilize duplex photobooth copies and have guests attach them to your guest book with a fun note beside it.

If you don’t have the budget to get a photobooth you can utilize an empty, open wall at your reception venue to create your own photo backdrop. Your backdrop can be monogrammed with your  wedding date and name, or as we just recently saw in Martha Stewart, decorate your background with real or artificial flowers to create a flower wall.  Set up a camera and a printer for the evening and you have created a do it yourself photobooth. We recommend getting a tech savvy friend to help “run” the photo booth if you plan to do it yourself so they can refill ink, fix paper jams, and other issues that may arise with the vast number of photos that will be taken during the evening.

Flip Books

The C&C Team recently went to BRIDES magazine mixer and fell head over heels in love with the flip book favor craze. We saw them on wedding programs before and absolutely loved the unique wedding favor. When we saw the flip book booth that evening we could not wait to jump in and create one. The camera man takes a 10 second video of you with a background of your choice and then turns that video into numerous photos. The photos are  then composed into a book and when flipped through show your mini movie! They are fun because you actually get to take a piece of the action home with you and share it with all your friends. We couldn’t help but show ours to everyone because they are so unique and fun.

Caricatures

Fun, silly, and one of a kind artwork. The C&C Team once again got to partake in this fun favor activity when we attended San Diego Style Weddings Spring Mixer. Caricatures are fun because you get to see yourself as a cartoon character and smirk every time you see it. We have our hilarious cartoon portrait hanging in the office for us to laugh at  and remember the fun night we had.

I wonder if they all come with a hat and white bunny? A magician will keep your guests spellbound while your taking photos during cocktail hour. Perhaps guests will even learn a few tricks of the trade.

Customized Favors

Our favorite customized favor was custom-made hot sauce bottles. The bride and groom transformed a standard everyday tabasco bottle by putting a photo of them with their name on the front. On the back they listed the ingredients with funny sayings such as, come together to make a fiery and spicy combination. Not only is it personal and humorous it is something guests will use often. We have also seen customized olive oil and peanut brittle that guests can utilize and enjoy after the wedding.

Bouquet Giveaway

We truly enjoy this new take on the bouquet toss. Instead of having all the ‘single ladies’ come to the dance floor to catch the bouquet the newly married couple ask that all married couples come to the dance floor. After dancing a bit the DJ will then go around asking couples how long they have been married. The couple who has been married the longest will receive the bride’s bouquet as well as warm wishes.

No matter what you do activity or favor wise make it your own and enjoy.

Be Married,

Creative Coordinators

{Tuesday Tip} Don’t Be A Fool

  Planning Is A Must

Weddings are  big events in our lives and there is a lot of things to think about from hiring vendors, to picking the perfect location, to who gets an invite. Many people ask what is the first thing you should plan and prepare for your wedding. Well first, you should really think about who you are going to invite that way you can find a location that fits the size of your wedding party. You don’t want to fall in love with a great location that only fits 75 and then start your guest list and end up with 200 people you have to invite.

Next, you should find the venue for the big day.  It’s best to start early because the venue may already be booked on the  day you want to get married  if you do not  reserve it early. So before picking the perfect date and time think about where and when.

After you have your venue locked in, you officially have a wedding date and you can start filling in all the rest of the amazing details for you wedding like your dress, fittings, and alterations.

Remember, a little planning can go a long way and planning ahead will pay off in the end and help you get one step closer to that amazing wedding of your dreams.

 

 

Be Married, 

Creative Coordinators

{Tuesday Tip} Memories Sweet Memories

This is something near and dear to our hearts because it’s from one of our very own events.

Sweet little mason jars to collect memories.

memory jar

A little over a month ago we meet with a bride and she was worried about what to do for her upcoming wedding. They planned the ceremony at a church and the reception at a nearby hotel and with the short drive they somehow planned for two hours between the end of the ceremony and the start of dinner and it was too late to make any changes. They didn’t know what to do to occupy the nearly 200 guests during the extra long cocktail hour, beside loads of appetizers and beverages. They wanted something quick and easy that wouldn’t break the bank since they were already just over their budget and only had a week left till the big day.

We shared with them an idea from a fabulous anniversary a few years back, mason jars with tags explaining for the guests to write a memory of the couple and place them in the jars. This is a simple, easy way to fill some down time during the cocktail hour or hours in this case.

Based on the size of the wedding we decided to place ten jars around the cocktail space with special signs on each to leave a memory of the couple. We took it one step further and made each of the ten jars a different type of memory. For example the jar near the guest book table was for your first memory of the couple of how you meet the bride or groom. The jar on the bar was for a memory of drinking with the couple since the couple had met at a New Years Eve party 10 years earlier and have hosted quite large ones ever since. Then another jar for a memory about the couples adorable little pooch.

By spacing the jars out and having a different memory to write about for each jar the guests mixed and mingled checking out every jar and many of the guests comparing stories and even writing more than one for each jar. The couple was so happy to have nearly 800 memories by the end of the night. The couple even commented they it was such a big hit with guests that they would be incorporating this idea in at their annual New Years Eve Party.

How do you plan to get guests to mingle at your wedding, share with us over on Facebook and twitter or email us we would love to hear.

Be Married, 

Creative Coordinators 

{Tuesday Tip} Less is Definitely More

You may want to share your special time of gown shopping with everyone but remember more is not always merrier.

 Less is more!

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We recommend just bringing one or two trusted companions, like mom and a maid of honor.  It is always and we repeat ALWAYS  better to limit anyone you think might make the dress shopping a drag,  leave them at home. You can always share photos with the rest of your social circle after it is all said and done trust us you and your bridal salon will be grateful.

Utterly Engaged, Lucia Dinhmodel, Annelise

Be Married, 

Creative Coordinators

{Friday Find} Skimping on The Rest

PRIORITIES, PRIORITIES

RANK YOUR PRIORITIES

First and foremost, decide what facets of your wedding are most important to you.  Focus on areas that make your heart go pitter-patter, and you’ll feel OK about skimping on the rest.

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As for what guests tend to remember, according to a survey conducted by St. Louis Bride and Groom magazine, 81 percent of guests say the entertainment is the most memorable part of a wedding.

 This is great advice from Martha Stewart Weddings and we couldn’t have said it better ourselves.

Use the link below to  see more great tips and advice about ranking your wedding priorities

http://www.marthastewartweddings.com

Be Marry, 

Creative Coordinators

2013 in Review

WordPress.com prepared a 2013 annual report for this blog.

The concert hall at the Sydney Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 9,500 times in 2013. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 4 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Attractions in 2013

These are the posts that got the most views in 2013. .

Some of your most popular posts were written before 2013. Your writing has staying power!

How did they find you?

The top referring sites in 2013 were:

  1. facebook.com
  2. pinterest.com
  3. creativecoordinators.com

Some visitors came searching, mostly for table decorations for anniversary parties, homemade 50th anniversary centerpiece ideas, and decorations

Where did they come from?

112 countries in all!

Most visitors came from The United States. Canada & Australia were not far behind.

From Everyone here at CCwedblog and Creative Coordinators we would like to thank you for making 2013 so amazing about we look forward to sharing so much more with you in 2014! 
Be Marry, 
Creative  Coordinators