Sharee and Daniel's Tampa Palms Country Club Wedding

On April 10th, Cristina and I had the honor of coordinating Sharee and Daniel's Tampa Palms Country Club wedding. This was our first wedding at Tampa Palms and it was a wonderful venue! Sharee and Daniel's ceremony took place on the veranda which overlooks the golf course. Since the veranda is covered and has ceiling fans, the guests were able to enjoy the shade on this beautiful sunny day. The guests were also treated to the beautiful music of violinist, Levi Mitz.

Pastor Mark Wood did a wonderful job officiating the ceremony for this special couple as they were surrounded by family and friends. The scenery at Tampa Palms is absolutely stunning, so photographer Carolina Araujo and her second shooter, Esther Louise, were excited to be able to take all of the after ceremony shots on the lush Tampa Palms grounds. I really enjoyed working with Carolina again and meeting Esther and I can't wait to share some of their professional photographs!!

The cocktail hour took place in the courtyard so the guests were able to truly enjoy the gorgeous weather! After coctails and scrumptious hors d'oeuvres, the guests moved indoors (just a few steps away) to the ballroom where they enjoyed a wonderful dinner and dancing.
Fishhawk Florist created very unique centerpieces that went perfectly with the simple but elegant design of Sharee and Daniel's wedding. Alessi Bakery
designed an amazing cake that had chocolate branches with real orchids. It was not only great to look at, but it was delicious too!

Sharee and Daniel are surrounded by so many wonderful people. Everyone danced the night away because the DJ Mike Mello from Frank Lebano & Company really knew how to rock the house! This crowd could really dance!!

There were so many personal touches that really made this wedding unique to Sharee and Daniel and the love they share. My favorite was their card box which was a vintage suitcase with stickers from their travels together. Another detail I loved was their guestbook - Daniel proposed to Sharee at a castle in Germany, so they used a photo book from that castle as their guestbook.

Sharee and Daniel are such a cute, kind, genuine, and loving couple - the kind that you can look at and tell that they are obviously madly in love. They are truly lucky to have found one another and to be surrounded by so much love and support from their family and friends. There is no doubt that they will have a very happy marriage together!

A quick shout out to Janelle who referred this amazing couple to us! Thanks Janelle!!!! We really appreciate you putting in a good word for us and connecting us with Sharee & Daniel!

I also wanted to thank Christina, my assistant coordinator, for all her hard work! She did an amazing job - including knocking on just about every door in the Tampa Palms hotel to find Sharee's Mom so she wouldn't miss Sharee stepping into her wedding gown!

Sharee and Daniel - Thank you for hiring Flawless Occasions to coordinate your wedding day. Christina and I had so much fun working with you both and being a part of your big day! Welcome back from your Aruba honeymoon!

Here are some (okay, actually there are a lot!!!) of the pictures I took from Sharee and Daniel's wedding! Enjoy!!









Ready for the ceremony!



The ceremony was full of smiles, laughter and tears of joy...






I loved Sharee's purple shoes!!!!


What a fun crowd!! Such gorgeous views at Tampa Palms too!




Cocktail hour and reception...

Bellair Beach Bridal Show and a Fresh Face at Flawless

We took advantage of a weekend in April without a wedding to participate in a bridal show at the brand new Bellair Beach Community Center. Much like the Clearwater Beach Rec Center or the Davis Island Garden Club, this reasonably priced venue is a blank slate with a prime waterfront location. A few additional pluses are the plasma screens in the room (perfect for showing a slideshow of photos), the private beach area, a wall of windows overlooking the bay, an attached patio great for a cocktail hour, and the ample free parking attached to the facility. This is definitely going to become a very popular venue!

We had a wonderful time at this bridal show seeing some of our favorite vendors and meeting new ones. The I-Do Bridal shows are all organized by Debbie of DD's Blooms, a florist we enjoy working with. We actually won a raffle to be in the next bridal show for free, so we'll let you know when that one is going to be. Also, there was someone else new at this bridal show -- our new assistant coordinator, Christina! Here are a few photos from the show, and a short bio about Christina at the bottom.















Our Flawless table decor and candy buffet!
















































A beautiful cake by Olympia Catering





































A beachy blue food display by Visual Delights

















Delectables had a delectable display, of course!




















It was great to see Michelle from Paper Players again. She did the invitations and programs for one of our May brides!













Here is one of the beautiful designs by DD's Blooms at the show





























The ladies of Flawless Occasions...


Introducing our new assistant coordinator, Christina! Christina joined Flawless Occasions this spring and she comes to us with several years of experience relevant to the wedding industry. She previously was employed at the Hunter's Green Country Club and she was also a fine jewelry consultant for 6 years. She is not only bringing some great experience to Flawless Occasions, but she also has some wonderful talents. Christina is skilled in embroidering and monogramming - she can create your wedding monogram and personalize any items you are interested in from t-shirts to hoodies to his and hers towels. She also loves to create personalized wedding favors and ceremony and reception items. Christina is a graduate of the University of South Florida and an avid Bulls fan, as well as the mother of two beautiful twin daughters.

What's better than 2 Flawless blondes...? THREE! Welcome Christina!

Bold Bridal Party Patterns

I have a confession to make... ever since Monica got married on "Friends", I have had a secret obsession with patterned bridesmaid dresses. Several years later, I still love that look!

Who says bridesmaid dresses have to be solids? I personally love the look of a patterned bridal party. It brings a whimsical and fun element to the overall style, and it's perfect for those spring and summer Florida weddings! More and more bridal designers are coming out with patterned bridemaids dresses, including David's Bridal, Alfred Angelo, Dessy, and Mori Lee, among others. But another great thing about going the non-traditional route for bridesmaids dresses is that you can get them in non-traditional places. Consider looking at stores like BCBG, White House Black Market, J. Crew, and even your local department store. Not only can you find a great deal and possibly save your friends money, but you will also be giving them a unique look by making a statement with their style. They may even be able to wear the dresses again which is an added bonus.

I've posted some inspiration photos to help you make your bridesmaids a little bolder this wedding season. As you can see, a patterned bridesmaid dress can be either casual and cute or formal and elegant. There are so many options out there, so have fun shopping! I added a few photos for the guys as well because we want them to look good, too! :)
(photos by Dessy, Brooke Schwab Photography, and TheKnot.com)

Rain or Shine...Creating Your "Plan B"

They say rain is good luck on your wedding day. I'm not sure who exactly said that.. maybe it was a wedding planner back in the early 1700's who was just trying to calm down an upset beach bride when she woke up on the morning of her wedding to a torrential rainstorm. Who knows? All I know is that I've been hearing it since I was a little girl from my mom, whose wedding day it poured on, and she and my dad celebrated their 30th anniversary yesterday, March 30th, so I believe them. But with Florida's unpredictable weather, you may want to plan ahead so someone isn't trying to console you on your big day with the "good luck" schpiel.

Couples love to get married in Florida. There is such a variety of options -- beach weddings, park weddings, garden weddings, farm weddings. And with our fabulous climate, you can potentially do an outdoor wedding any time of the year. This year, Flawless Occasions coordinated outdoor wedding ceremonies in December, January, and February, while other parts of the country were stuck in snowstorms! This is one of the reasons why Florida has become such a popular wedding destination for out-of-town couples and locals alike.

That being said, It's always good to have a "plan b". Although it could be in the 80's one weekend in Florida, the next weekend could be raining and in the 60's. If you really want to feel stress-free on your wedding day, then you need to choose a venue that has an alternate rain option - one that you actually like. This could be a covered terrace, an indoor ballroom backup, or even reserving a tent just in case. The last thing you want to do the week of your wedding is constantly check weather.com wondering if that front is coming through. As wedding planners, we can ensure you that we will do whatever is possible to make your wedding day the best day of your life... but unfortunately we can't control the weather, so the best advice we can give is to have an indoor backup and give yourself a little more peace of mind. Contact us if you need help with YOUR plan B. :)

Above Photo by Jason Angelini: our former bride Farrah lucked out; she didn't need any umbrellas for her beach wedding. Below Photo: Tampa Palms Country Club, where Beth will be coordinating a wedding next month, has a covered terrace for ceremonies. You are outside with the beautiful scenery, but you are protected from the elements. A perfect, stress-free compromise!

Alicia and Steve: Traditional with a Twist!

I've been working with Alicia since June of '09 on her spring wedding and it was so great to hear her say on the morning of her big day, "Shawna, I'm marrying the most wonderful man today". It really made all of the hard work worth it to know that Alicia and Steve are so much in love and will definitely be having a great life together.

Alicia and Steve were married on March 27th, 2010. Their ceremony was held at the Palm Harbor White Chapel with their reception following at the Eastlake Woodlands Country Club. Alicia chose a color palette of pool blue and lime green, accented with purples and deep pinks. Her Alfred Angelo gown had a stunning train with the pool color and lace appliques. Kristine from Fabulous Faces finished off Alicia's gorgeous bridal look with flawless makeup.

The beautiful bouquets and altar piece (which we later used on their sweetheart table) was created by Scott from Apple Blossoms Florist. He was great to work with and we can't wait to collaborate with him again. We did the centerpieces for Alicia ourselves because she wanted something classic with a touch of modern on a budget, so we did a combination of submerged orchids and orchid sprays in cylinder vases of varying heights. Thairific Orchids provided us with the bulk orchids, which they grow themselves at their shop in Gulfport. Beth helped with the decor and setup, and we always have fun doing weddings together. Thanks, Beth!!

During the ceremony, musician Victoria Garcia played the harp beautifully, and for the reception, John from Prolific Productions kept the guests on the dance floor all night. One of my favorite details was the cake (of course...) which was made by Le Cheesecake. I am a huge cheesecake lover so this was right up my alley, but for those who were not fans of cheesecake, the couple also had a dessert table with a variety of cakes and confections also created by Le Cheesecake.

I was able to snap a few photos here and there, but I can't wait to see the real deal from Carrie of A Fly on the Wall Photography. She and her husband Pat are a really sweet and fun couple and I really enjoyed working with them again. I will be sure to post their photos as soon as we receive them. For now, enjoy some of mine! Congrats Alicia and Steve. Alicia, I will miss our many late night phone chats so stay in touch!! :)

Brandon and Liz's Professional Photos

Thank you to Vadim Photo for sending us over this professional slideshow and photos from Brandon and Liz's wedding. It was great working with them and their photos turned out fabulous as you can see!

Liz & Brandon from Vadim Photo on Vimeo.