And I bring you....the New Simply Stunning Blog!

So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, adieu! Goodbye old Simply Stunning blogspot blog! The next phase of the Simply Stunning make-over is here. First there was a new logo, then a new website, and now a new blog! From now on all posts will happen on the new blog site so please change your bookmarks and RSS feeds. You can also read all back posts from the beginning on the new blog as well so you won't miss anything. Therefore, mosey on over to the new site and check it out, I hope you enjoy and I'd love to hear your thoughts!

www.simplystunningblog.com

Simply Stunning Events
Nashville Wedding & Event Planner

Back in Town after a Beautiful Florida Wedding!

Did you miss me? Probably not but in case you've been wondering about the slow posts and lack of tweeting, I am back from a weeklong trip to Florida! We wrapped the last wedding of the year a couple weeks ago with Andrea & Mario's Union Station affair (more to come later) and then bolted out of Nashville early the next morning for a long drive to Florida. Our first stop was at my parents new condo in Vero Beach, FL which was pretty awesome. The place is right on the water and so comfortable and relaxing! Check out the view!

After two days of basically lying around and/or eating for too much yummy food, we got back in the car and continued driving as far as you can possibly drive down the Florida coast to Key West! We were headed to the wedding of my beautiful cousin who also happens to be one of my best friends! She was a bridesmaid just a few short weeks ago at our wedding, and now it was time to return the favor! Check out the cute t-shirts Colleen & Steve wore to their joint bachelor/bachelorette party:

Finally it was time for the oceanside wedding! I'll have a full re-cap of all the gorgeousness in the near future, but here are a few teaser photos. First up, me doing my bridesmaid duties!

And finally a shot of Brian and I at the cocktail hour! It was a beautiful small, intimate ceremony, right on the beach, and I loved being a part of it! More details to come soon! After a couple more days in Key West, we packed up and made the very long drive home. And now it's back to work! I have some more news coming next week, so stay tuned!

Simply Stunning Events
Nashville Wedding Planner

Photo from Nashville Photographers Chris & Adrienne Scott

I am so excited to be planning the wedding of Yael and Evan next April and equally excited to work with the amazing Chris & Adrienne Scott Photographers! I adore their style and the feel of their photographs. Here is a shot from Yael & Evan's engagement shoot last week!

They are such an adorable couple and I can't wait for next April! It will be the first full Jewish wedding I've planned! (I once did a part Jewish/part Christian wedding). To see more of their shoot and Chris & Adrienne's work, check out the Chris & Adrienne Scott Photographers Blog!

Simply Stunning Events
Nashville Wedding Planner

Full Wedding Recap - Jessica & Brandon

Kicking off the recaps for the fall wedding season we have Jessica & Brandon's beautiful day! They were married on September 5th, 2009 at Carnton Plantation in Franklin, TN and I absolutely loved the color palate of vibrant shades of green, orange, peach, deep red, ivory, and camel as it was perfect for an end of summer/early fall event! All flowers and decor were done by Brocade Designs and she incorporated some neat touches such as the wheat in the bouquets and the long ribbons that hung from them. The ceremony was held in the garden in front of the enormous beautiful tree, with a reception following in the brand new visitors center! Until recently, all receptions had to be tented at Carnton Plantation but now they have a beautiful indoor venue! The dinner buffet provided by BB's BBQ was not only delicious but cost effective! I've had a lot of couples this year serve southern BBQ as it is both yummy and affordable (typically $15-$30 per person). All rentals were provided by Music City Tents & Events.

I was so excited to finally work with photographer, Tyler Andrews! I love how crisp and colorful his images are. He did a fantastic job capturing a truly lovely day! Check out some of his beautiful work!

Congratulations Jessica & Brandon! And thank you again to all the vendors for doing a wonderful job!

Simply Stunning Events
Nashville Wedding & Event Planner

Creating a Shot List for Your Photographer

I've had the pleasure of working with some of Nashville's best photographers this past year and I always try to be as helpful as I can to them on wedding day since photography is often a huge priority for every couple. In addition to creating a wedding day timeline that outlines exactly where and when all of the various posed photos will take place, I've found it very beneficial for couples to create a detailed list of exactly who and what they want photographed on their big day. Otherwise your photographers may not get a shot of you and your great Aunt or that necklace your mother gave you. And keep in mind not all photographers take extensive photos of the wedding decor so if that's important to you, be sure you let them know, and carve out a time in the schedule for them to do so.

I also advise couples to make the list of portrait photos they'd like with first names. For example, "Bride, Groom, Mom Kathy, Dad Jim, sister Karen, brother Mike, etc." as opposed to "Me, my Mom, my Dad, my sister, my brother". It makes it much easier for the photographer's assistant or in many cases your wedding planner, to help round everyone up quickly and move through the list at a fast pace, allowing you to enjoy more of your day. On that note, try to keep your portrait list to a reasonable length. You don't need a photo of you with every person in your extended family individually or every possible permutation of your family members. Lastly, inform your guests and other family members that this is not the time for them to get their own family portraits. You have paid your photographer to shoot YOUR wedding.

If you need some help creating a shot list and gathering all the neccessary information your photographer will need, my husband put together a neat worksheet that you can download on his blog over at, Brian Kaplan Photography, and he's also included his own advise as to why creating a shot list is super helpful!

Simply Stunning Events
Nashville Wedding & Event Planning

Nashville Wedding Vendor Review - 2Duce2 Video

I've decided to get work on a more formal blog schedule if I can manage it. I am aiming to do three blogs per week from now on with helpful tips and advice on Mondays, Nashville related wedding info on Wednesdays, whether it be vendor reviews, recaps of Simply Stunning weddings, or other Nashville happenings, and finally start the recaps and reviews of our own wedding on Fridays (hopefully you're not tired of hearing about it quite yet!).

Therefore, since it's Friday, if you haven't seen our wedding teaser video yet, you must check it out!

We hired the fantastic 2Duce2 Video led by husband and wife team Eugene and Heather Brown. They also have associate videographers on staff who are trained in the same video style. They are not only complete professionals but are so much fun to work with! I was entirely relaxed around them (even with a video camera constantly trained on me). What I love most however, is their unique video and editing style. It is sooo far from the cheesy, slow motion, 90's wedding videos of the past. The style is hip, with great lighting, vibrant use of color, and lots of very smooth panning (no shaky cameras!). The edits are clean, never abrupt, and they really tell the story of the day from beginning to end. It is truly stylistic and original videography!

Now, I'll admit we were a little hesitant in deciding whether to hire a videographer or not. Mostly because we weren't blown away by anyone in particular and I was more interested using our wedding budget for other things such as photography and decor. So we put it off, and put it off, and before I knew it our wedding was in six weeks and we still had no videographer. Fortunately I had just recently met Eugene and Heather at a workshop and I was sooo excited about their work! It wasn't hard to convince my husband either. So with only four weeks to go, we had our videographers!

If you are struggling with whether to invest in videography I urge you to truly consider it! While we also had fantastic photographers, they couldn't capture certain things like how I moved in my dress, or us actually saying our vows. And while the whole wedding day is still clear in my memory, some of the details are slowly starting to fade. But it's nice to know we will have it all on video for years to come and be able to show our children someday.

If you'd like more information on 2Duce2 Video, please visit their website and blog and email them for availability and pricing. If you think you can't afford them, ask about their associates, you can still get their signature style of video and editing but at a more affordable cost!

Simply Stunning Events

Nashville Wedding & Event Planner

Wedding Guest Etiquette

Today is an exciting day for me as I am I am going to a wedding!!....as a guest!!! One of my good friends from high school is tying the knot this afternoon so I have travelled back to my hometown of Wellesley, MA to attend the celebration. It's a weird feeling to not be working the wedding or have anything to do, in a few short hours she'll be walking down the aisle and I'm sitting here drinking coffee and eating english muffins in my pajamas. So in honor of my first time as a wedding guest this year I thought I'd give some tips and etiquette advice on how to be a good wedding guest!

1) Be On Time! No scratch that, be early!! This is one of my biggest issues as a wedding planner on wedding day. The invitation said 5:00 pm, it's now 5:05 pm, the bridal party is all lined up and ready to go, the processional music has started and I am about to open the doors....aaaand another crowd of guests comes walking around the corner and gives me a look like "wait? is it starting already?" Ahh yes it is, and you are officially late. Never assume that a wedding will start late. It's not a cocktail party, it's a ceremony, and most often a religious service, so if the invitation says 5:00 pm, you need to be in your seat at 4:45 pm at the latest. And if it will take you 15 minutes to get there, you need to leave 30 minutes before that to allow extra time for traffic and possibly getting lost. Does this mean you'll be twiddling your thumbs for a little while waiting for the ceremony to begin? Yes, probably. But that's why there is prelude music. So sit patiently and listen to the lovely musicians, maybe introduce yourself to a couple of guests seated near you, and enjoy.

2) Limit your photography during the ceremony. I've seen professional photographers practically get knocked out by shutter-happy wedding guests who jump into the aisle right as the bride is walking down it and completely ruin their shot. So please leave the photography up to the photographers, it's alright to snap a couple of photos throughout the night so you'll have something to remember the occasion by, but resist the urge to become the paparazzi.

3) Respect the guest list and seating arrangements. I touched upon this in a previous post on Wedding Guest Seating, but I'll say it again, if you were not invited with a guest, do not bring one. And if there is assigned seating, sit at the table you were assigned to. Never move chairs around or ask others to switch seats with you. And lastly if you ordered the chicken, don't change your mind at the last minute and decide now you want the prime rib. The caterers usually have very specific meal counts and they often don't make extra.

4) Drink alcohol in moderation. It's a wedding not a frat party. It's perfectly acceptable to have a fun time but don't overindulge and become THAT guest. You know the one I'm talking about.

5) Avoid bringing large and bulky gifts to the wedding. If you do, someone has to be in charge of figuring out how to get them home or get them to the bride and groom's hotel room. Have wedding gifts sent directly to the couple's residence. And if you are unable to attend the wedding, it is still customary to send a gift.

6) And finally, have fun! Weddings are wonderful occasions, I love them! (obviously or I wouldn't make them my profession). Introduce yourself to people you don't know, make new friends! Get out on the dance floor and celebrate!

Simply Stunning Events

Nashville Wedding Planner

Wedding Monograms from I Do Originals

I've been a fan of wedding monograms for a while now and feel they are a great way to add a cohesive element to your wedding. There are some great sites online that allow you to choose from a variety of ready made monograms or have a custom monogram designed for you but my favorite is I Do Originals! They have such beautiful ones to choose from and so many unique products. I decided early on to use a monogram as part of the decor elements for our wedding but I was trying to be careful not to over do it and put it on absolutely everything. We decided to use it on the Save-the-Dates, on the belly bands that bound our pocket-fold invitations, on the programs, and finally on the HUGE circular wall at the Country Music Hall of Fame (Nashville Event Lighting did a spectacular job with that!). Here are some photos of where our monogram turned up!

(Photo by Mclellan Style)

(Photo by Corinne Reese)

Thank you to I Do Originals for providing our beautiful monogram! To see more of their gorgeous work, click HERE!

Simply Stunning Events
Nashville Wedding Planning & Coordination