You’ve probably been envisioning your wedding long before you said “I do.” From color scheme to the dress to the venue, you’ve mentally painted a clear matrimonial picture of the big day. And your guests will get their first glimpse when they receive an invitation. This paper preview will set the tone for your wedding (glam/ modern/ classic/ casual) so make sure to do your research before zipping to the stationery store! Consider the different printing options. First choose what type of printing appeals to you. This decision will help you select your colors, paper type, and envelopes. Letterpress While letterpress is certainly one of the more expensive options, it’s also one of most elegant. With letters that are slightly raised on the back on the invite and indented on the front, the look is created by a carved-out metal plate that leaves only your invite design and text behind. Thermography Thermography is a more cost-effective option, and involves a process that blends ink with a resin-like powder to create a smooth appearance that looks as if it’s engraved with raised letters (even though it’s not). Engraving Another option on the pricier side, engraving takes inked copper plates (which have the invitation text and design etched into them) and places pressure on the paper. Embossing Similar to engraving, embossing involves pressing the paper between etched metal die. The result is a beautiful raised lettering effect. Handwritten The most common style and a matrimonial favorite, calligraphy is a flowing lettering style created by artists using specialized pens and inks. What kind of paper will you use? 100% cotton Used for the more formal invitations, cotton is smooth, and ranges higher in price. Vellum Less expensive than 100% cotton, vellum adds a touch of beautiful flair with a semi-translucent finish. Linen The cross weave texture in linen makes it a favorite paper type for invitations. Parchment A touch of rustic chic is easily attainable with parchment paper. What kind of layout do you like? Pocket A sleek and modern option for your invitations, the pocket layout keeps your wedding details organized and neat. Square Stylish and unique, square invitations are a classic option. Tea-length Tea length invitations are slender, longer, and more rectangular than your square options. Tri-fold With more room for text and images, tri-folds span over 6 sides and let you include more details about the big day. Half-fold The traditional half-fold layout opens like a greeting card and makes it easy for guests to display your beautiful wedding invitation. Rectangle Versatile and simple, rectangle invites are a timeless option. Gate-fold Gate-folds give your guests a little preview of the invite design on the front, then open to reveal the full details inside. Don’t forget about the RSVP cards… Since it’s easiest to order all of your stationery at once, be ready with your RSVP info and include it directly on the invite, or on a separate enclosure. Request the RSVPs sooner than you think you need to - a few weeks after your guests receive their invites should be sufficient. Since head count will affect a lot of other details (catering, seating, centerpieces), the sooner you get those RSVPs, the better! …Or Save The Dates As the first official notification you’ll be sending out, your Save The Dates can be simple. Lots of couples include an image from their engagement photos. The text should be the same font and color scheme as your invitations to keep everything consistent! Mark your calendar! Get started early. Your guests should receive the Save The Dates no later than 6 to 8 months before the big day, and the invites no later than 6 weeks to 3 months beforehand. Note that some printing techniques take longer than others, so allowing extra time is always a safe bet. Aim to have your invitations ordered about 5 months in advance. What about invitation “wed-iquette?” While there’s no absolute right and wrong answer, when it comes to invitations, there are a few details to keep in the mind that your guests will appreciate. When requesting RSVPs, include a self-addressed, stamped envelope. If you don’t include postage on the self-addressed envelope, your guests will be responsible for snagging a stamp. It’s a nice gesture to give them the convenience of simply checking the “yes” or “no” box, then dropping the envelope in the mail. Also, make sure to keep your invitations and envelopes consistent. Meaning, if you embossed the invites, then emboss the envelopes. If you handwrote the invites, then handwrite the envelopes. If you used a regular printer for the invites, use the printer for the envelopes but refrain from utilizing address stickers. Of course, factor in cost. Cost can widely vary depending on your choice of printing technique, paper type, and other custom options. Do your research ahead of time so you can pick and choose where to invest your budget. Plan to spend 2-3% of your total wedding budget on invitations, but that could increase, depending on your choices mentioned above. Helpful hint: this may seem obvious, but don’t forget about the price of stamps! It can be all too easy to get wrapped up in the design and fail to budget for postage. Above all, remember that your invitations are a small visual representation of your wedding, and should match the theme of your big day. And if done correctly, they’ll definitely get your guests excited about joining you for the special occasion!
Once you’ve gotten engaged and shared the news with family and friends, it’s time to enter Planning Mode. Time to start making lists, making phone calls and beginning the research. But before you dive in headfirst and get overwhelmed by the myriad of details, slow down and think about the most important aspect: the venue. These days, the possibilities are essentially endless for venue choices. And since you have so many options, you want to consider all relevant logistics to ensure you make the right decision. Start looking at venues before anything else. Save yourself stress - the earlier, the better! (There’s no such thing as starting too early.) Most of your other decisions rely on venue choice, so the sooner you’ve figured out where to hold your wedding, the sooner everything else will fall into place. Some brides begin the hunt up to 2 years in advance! (But don’t worry if your timeline isn’t so extensive.) Then look at the area AROUND the venue. This may seem like a strange factor to consider, but the last thing you want is to have your guests face a massive road closure and be 2 hours late to your wedding. Will there be construction? Any large events in the area? (For example, concerts, political events, festivals, sports games, and anything else that could make travel cumbersome and cause delays during the big day.) Determine guest count. We know it’s not easy to have a final guest count a few weeks after you’ve gotten engaged, but if you don’t at least have a rough idea of attendees, you won’t know how big your space will need to be. Once you’ve sent out invites, you can calculate a “safe number” of guests by adding confirmed RSVPs to the number of “maybes.” Hint: request those RSVPs earlier than you think you need to and if you don’t hear back, follow up with a phone call. What season will it be? If you’re planning an indoor wedding, make sure there’s ample heat or air conditioning so the temperature will be comfortable. If you’re going with an outdoor wedding, make sure to have a Plan B in case of rain. Whether it’s having tents ready or the flexibility to move the wedding indoors, know your backup plan and be ready to implement at a moment’s notice. Know what the costs include. Great way to throw a hitch into getting hitched? Being handed a bill for unexpected fees. Ask how the pricing structure works, and whether there are additional fees for set up, clean up, rentals, and if the end time extends longer than anticipated. Consider accommodations for out of town guests. Are there hotels nearby? If so, check them out and see if you can negotiate a group rate. Also think about transportation to the event. If you plan on creating a wedding website, having directions to your venue is a great idea. Ask about any restrictions. Check whether there are restrictions for photography, videography, decorations, rice/ rose tossing, candles, start/ end times, music/ performances, and anything else. Once you choose the venue, start thinking about flowers. We recently featured a vendor spotlight on local florist Petals LA, and owner Saco Sarkissian recommended that brides proceed with planning their flowers as soon as they book the venue. Knowing your venue helps the floral team design arrangements that enhance the beauty of the space and highlight the bride and groom.
As you glance down at your never-ending wedding To-Do list, it may seem like “flower arrangements” are just another décor detail. But then as you ponder all of the other details such as bridal and bridesmaids bouquets, centerpieces, and decorative accents, you realize that flowers play a crucial role in the scenic beauty of your event. Owner Saco Sarkissian says he started Petals LA with a vision of “elevating the design aesthetic” for weddings and special events. After growing up in the catering industry, Saco graduated from school and dove into a new career designing events for family and friends. Years of crucial hands-on experience paved the way for his success, and soon Saco found himself doing events for the likes of Kim Kardashian, Hillary Duff, and Joanna Krupa. When Saco meets with a new bride about her nuptial flowers, he immediately asks her to describe her dream wedding. As he says, “Hearing what she's always dreamt of really helps me understand her aesthetic, and helps me guide her to create a signature look for her wedding day.” Saco also notes that most grooms understand that their brides have been fantasizing about the big day since they were little girls, so men let their brides make most of the decisions. If you’ve begun the planning process, but haven’t figured out the exact types and colors of flowers that you’ll need, not to worry! Saco shares that most brides know 1 or 2 flowers that they love, like roses or peonies, or will know what they DON’T want, like orchids, or anything with branches. Filtering the bride and groom preferences helps Petals LA design an aesthetic that really represents the couple, and showcases their individual personalities. With so many resources available online, Saco recommends utilizing Pinterest for inspiration, and visiting Petals LA on Facebook or Instagram to take screenshots of your favorite arrangements. Another more “traditional” method (and Saco’s personal favorite) is flipping through bridal magazines and clipping your favorite photos. Obviously you know better than to wait until the last minute to arrange your wedding details. Though Saco has pulled together a gorgeous wedding in less than 3 days, he urges brides to begin planning the flower arrangements between 6 months to a year in advance. (Helpful hint: As soon as you book your venue, make an appointment with your flower vendor.) Knowing the venue helps Saco and his team in creating designs that accentuate the space (not distract from it), so the flowers work in tandem with the space to highlight the bride and groom. Though it’s impossible for Saco to choose a favorite story (As he says, “I cherish all my bride and grooms, and most become lifetime friends and clients!”), one recent notable celebration was the union of Joanna and Romain from the Real Housewives of Miami. To bring Joanna’s fairytale vision to life, Saco says they covered a wrought-iron gate in florals, which was the entry to a 90-foot long floating runway over a pool. Towers of white roses surrounded Joanna as she approached the altar, and the breathtaking view overlooked over the Pacific Ocean. Live beautifully, celebrate glamorously. Contact Petals LA at (323) 389-5411 or email romance@petalsLA.com. Petals LA is located at 415 West Colorado Street, Glendale, CA 91204.
By admin
February 16, 2014
During your wedding, you savor every moment. The look in each others’ eyes as you exchange vows. Your first dance. Cutting the cake. And as you begin your journey as newlyweds, the memories will continue to make you smile. The best way to relive the big day? Flip through your wedding photo album with your new husband! Your photography is quite possibly the most important keepsake from the occasion. We’ve compiled some tips, ideas and helpful hints to help you achieve flawless and fun photos you’ll always lovingly look back on. 1) Know what questions to ask. Above all, you want to make sure that you feel a connection with your photographer. When you met, did you two communicate well? Do you feel comfortable having them capture all the special moments from your big day? Here are questions that will help you determine whether they would be a good fit for your style and vision. Keep in mind that if you’re not comfortable with them, your poses and expressions won’t be as natural, and it will be apparent in your photographs. Details happening before the wedding: Check their portfolio and get to know their background (how long they’ve been in the business, how many weddings they’ve shot, etc). Find out what kind of equipment they use and make sure they’ll shoot in both color and black and white. See if you can give them a specific list of shots you want. Details happening during the wedding: If your wedding takes longer than expected, will they stay and continue to take photos? Is there an extra charge? See if they’ve worked at your wedding venue before. Confirm that it’s ok for your guests to be snapping pictures while they’re taking photos. Details happening after the wedding: Find out what packages they offers, and whether you can customize a package. Ask about their retouching services. Confirm when you will receive the proofs, and in what format. Also check whether they’ll give you the negatives or digital images and if there’s a fee for that. 2) Use the same photographer for your engagement & wedding photos. If you met the photographer and feel like your personalities are a good match, book them for your engagement photo session. This is a great test run to ensure that your wedding photos will turn out just as you’d imagined. Plus, using the same photographer will ensure that your engagement and wedding photos will turn out consistent. When it comes to location, you don’t have to travel for a beautiful backdrop - there are tons of possibilities right outside your door. In fact, you’ve probably passed a few of these locations in your daily routine without even noticing. Look around you and take a closer glance. Ordinary elements become extraordinary backgrounds: The seemingly humdrum idea of an overgrown field or dead trees will come to life as your love brightens up and illuminates the landscape. A small pop of color creates a big impression: A bright plant, rose, or piece of clothing provides a great contrast against a darker background. Rough or industrial components can make a smooth setting: Although it may sound unconventional, bridges, rocks, industrial buildings or a dried riverbed make surprisingly elegant scenery. Cool architecture is a naturally set stage: Think: unique doorways, high arches, pillars, funky staircases or interesting hallways. Pick the best photos from the session and create a custom guest book. Your guests will love penning a thoughtful message alongside gorgeous photos of you and your husband. (Helpful hint: also use the engagement photos as test run for hair and makeup!) 3) Know what moments you want the photographer to capture during your wedding. They’ll likely have a list of specific shots to capture before, during, and after the ceremony, but why not add your own ideas? Give a photo shout-out to your parents. Have your bridal party and groomsmen make a statement. Make a toast from above. Get glittery with the camera. Spell it out. Remember that your photography will be a visual representation of your wedding, so you want the images to reflect who you are. The right photographer will understand that and make you feel comfortable and confident!
By admin
January 31, 2014
The holidays bring certain inevitable joys – scrumptious desserts, unattractive sweaters, time with family, and creamy eggy drinks. But with the holiday merriment also comes added stresses – shopping, travel plans, and crowded parking lots. Add party planning into the mix and you’ve got a …
By admin
December 20, 2013
by Vrej Sarkissian, CEO of LA Banquets Meeting in high school and getting married 15 years later? Or meeting at the office and tying the knot after 6 months of dating. We all know the story of every couple’s love and relationship is unique. Though they all start differently and take varied, sometimes meandering paths, many relationships will eventually take a walk down the aisle. Yet all too often the weddings of vastly different couples end up looking and feeling the same. Why? Of course one argument is that weddings are ancient and traditional institutions...that the very thing that makes a wedding a wedding is committing to the same traditions your parents did and their parents and grandparents before them. Without a doubt, these traditions are important, and give meaning to our events. But it’s important to make a distinction between aspiring to tradition and merely emulating other weddings. Rather than draw inspiration from Pinterest, bridal magazines and web editorials, couples are using these images as blueprints for their weddings. In search of a perfect wedding, couples are watering down their personalities, forgetting to include their passions, and producing a crop of weddings without visual or stylistic distinctions. The problem with aspiring to the chic or rustic elegance presented in these images is that the images are styled to appeal to broad audiences, and purposefully omit personal touches. What results is undoubtedly a beautiful wedding, but one that doesn’t always reflect the couple’s personality and story. The most remembered weddings are neither the most lavish nor picture perfect. They are not the ones that were timelined down to 5-minute increments, nor the ones where not a single petal on a single flower was out of place. Guests don’t remember perfection. They remember personality and passion. Think about what defines your relationship, and what makes your love unique. Celebrate these on your wedding day. Do you and your spouse-to-be cheer on your favorite sports team together every Sunday afternoon? Why not incorporate the team colors in your wedding. Are you both as in love with your dog or cat as with each other? Try donating to a humane society instead of passing out wedding favors. Take pictures in your wedding finery with your furry friend or name your signature drink at cocktail hour after your pet. If you love it, show it! Don’t forsake tradition, and don’t not include items you find beautiful. But rather, remember to look inward on your wedding day and include the meaningful reminders of who you are and what your relationships is about. Honor the passions that make up your relationship on your wedding day for a truly special day all about the both of you. Header Photo Credit: http://www.intimateweddings.com/blog/wedding-fashions-for-cats-and-dogs/
