Jennifer and Marlon's pro pics

A big thank you to Christie Curtis from Limelight Photography for sending over these great pictures from Jennifer and Marlon's wedding that we planned and coordinated a few months ago at the Marriott Sand Key. It was such a wonderful wedding and Christie's photos really captured all of the best moments and details of the day. Thanks again Christie!

Some Design Inspiration

I've been busy working tonight on a design scheme for one of our wonderful November brides, and I came across a ton of great inspiration boards on ProjectWedding.com. Check them out! And don't forget, many of our planning packages come with design assistance. We love to help you create a vision, and then coordinate it! :)

Is it all about you?

This weekend the New York Times had a very interesting article about vegetarians and vegans - to serve meat or to not serve meat at their weddings. Although I have attended and/or coordinated weddings that had food choices related to religious requirements, the idea of food choices related to personal life choices is a different situation altogether. I like this article because it gives several different points of view. What do you think about this topic? Take our poll at the bottom!

Here's an excerpt from the article itself and you can read the rest by clicking here.

At Vegans’ Weddings, Beef or Tofu?

Suzanne DeChillo/The New York Times
The pastry chefs Fernanda Capobianco and François Payard will serve meat at their wedding, though she is a vegan.

By DOUGLAS QUENQUA

Published: August 6, 2010

WEDDINGS are all about compromise. City or country? June or November? My religion or yours?

For Chelsea Clinton, a vegetarian, it was the decision to serve meat to the guests at her July 31 wedding. (Short ribs, specifically, though there were rumors of Angus steak.)

For some couples, that is a concession too far.

“If your family loves you and wants you to have that special day, I think they can go one meal and not eat meat,” said Cecilia Kinzie, a vegan and food consultant in Petaluma, Calif., who served no meat at her 2009 wedding.

“If you go to an Indian wedding, you don’t expect Italian food,” added Ms. Kinzie, who had already appeased her family by spending her savings on a hotel reception rather than the honeymoon she’d always dreamed of. “So why should this be any different?”

As it turns out, the most political decision of Ms. Clinton’s wedding was not whether to invite James Carville. By choosing to have meat, she reignited a sensitive wedding-season debate among ethical eaters and the people who love them: To serve, or not to serve?

To read article in its entirety, click here

Should a vegan/vegetarian still serve meat at their wedding?

• No way! They don't eat meat and its their wedding, so why should they serve it?
• No, but they should let their guests know ahead of time so they can make other arrangements.
• Yes! It's not all about the bride and groom. They need to think of their guests' comfort level, too.

View Results
Create a Blog Poll

Flawless Contest Winner!!

There was a bit of a delay but I wanted to announce the winner of the Flawless Contest from last month. We were looking for entries describing a great memory that someone had with their loved one, but instead we got a great memory in need of preserving. Congratulations to our contest winner, Desiree, who was looking for someone to photograph her intimate wedding ceremony before her fiance is deployed in October. We feel really great about helping this bride and her soldier capture the beautiful memories that will be made on her special wedding day. Thanks to Memories by Erin Leigh for helping us to award this great couple with a free photo session. Can't wait to see how the photos turn out!

Congratulations Chelsea Clinton!

I admit I am not very much into celebrity news and am usually the last to know about a celebrity breakup or arrest or whatever - but I am all about Chelsea Clinton's wedding photos! Her dress was a Vera Wang and absolutely breathtaking. She mixed a little traditional with trendy by wearing a blusher veil with a more modern bling-belted gown. She and her fiance Marc had an interfaith ceremony mixing their Methodist and Jewish religious backgrounds. There were 400-500 guests at the lavish affair. I'm hoping they release some more photos because I would love to see the decor and details of this amazing wedding.
Click here for more -Dress details, Wedding details
(photo credit: US Weekly Magazine)

How to do a formal beach wedding...

In Florida, we obviously do a lot of beach weddings. Couples from here and from out of town love the idea of fun in the sun while they say "I do". But not everyone wants barefoot-in-the-sand, umbrella-in-your-drink beachy. Many couples want to combine an elegant and formal wedding with that Florida beach feel. So how do you accomplish that? Here are some inspiration photos from some of our favorite photographers that really set the tone of beachy elegance.

photo credits: Jason Angelini Photography, Stephanie A. Smith Photography, Kellie Day Photography, and Erin Chris Photography

Back from Abroad

You have probably been wondering where all the blog posts have gone! Beth, Christina, and I have all taken a bit of time off to do some traveling. I promise I will post some more fun blogs asap.

I just got back from a 10 day trip to Europe and it was amazing! It was my first time going abroad and I got to see so much in such a short time. We went to Spain, Italy, France, and Monaco.

Mallorca is the largest island of Spain. We visited its capital, Palma, in the latter part of our trip. Palma is a huge tourist destination with beautiful beaches and fabulous shopping. There were also an abundance of bridal and wedding related shops that I couldn't help but snap photos of for the blog! You'll notice that the trend right now for wedding gowns in this part of Europe is definitely ruffles and lace - very elegant, and very Spanish influenced. Their cakes are more modest but looked delicious.. enjoy!

Wedding Wire Rated

We were recently informed that we have been Wedding Wire Rated. This is Wedding Wire's way of saying we have a certain amount of reviews posted on their site. We are at their highest status because we have 25 or more reviews on our page! We would like to thank all of our wonderful clients for their kind words and thank you for posting your reviews to help other future brides and grooms.

Destination: Florida

Flawless Occasions loves destination weddings! TheKnot.com lists Florida as the #1 destination wedding location in the United States. Here is what they had to say:
With its sunny weather and beautiful beaches, Florida competes with the Caribbean and Mexico in beach appeal and is likely to be cheaper and easier for your guests to travel to. In addition to sand and surf, it boasts world-famous amusement parks and great access to golf and other outdoor sports. Each Florida location is a unique experience: Head to Palm Beach for a preppy country club-style affair, Miami for an event with international flavor, and the Keys to soak up a laid-back island vibe.

Although Flawless Occasions is based out of Tampa, we love to travel all around Florida to help our brides and grooms with their destination weddings. Here are some of our favorite wedding locations throughout Florida~

The Florida Keys
Beachside Marriott, Key West Florida
With it's private beach area and poolside cabanas, this Marriott in Key West has a laid back yet elegant vibe. They have several options for the reception including classic ballrooms and a modern dining room. It's just 10 minutes from the hustle and bustle of Duval Street so you can still visit all of the sites but your wedding will not be overrun by tourists. We can't wait for Morgan and Adam's Key West wedding in April!




































































Miami
Ancient Spanish Monastery
There really is no way to show the beauty of this location with a few photos. It's a huge piece of land in North Miami surrounded by gardens and trees. There are several areas available for rental including an indoor chapel, outdoor gardens, and the main hallways where most receptions are held around the courtyard. For a Miami location, this venue is very reasonably priced, however you need to bring in everything as it is a blank slate. If you are looking for historic and unique in the middle of a bustling city, this is your venue.
















































































Palm Beach
The Omphoy Ocean Resort
Upon first look at this hotel, I was immediately intrigued because on the outside, it almost does not look like a hotel. The Omphoy's exterior is about as odd as it's name, however when you step inside it's like walking into a different world. The entire hotel is dark, modern, and zen (they say it is water-inspired), which is a sharp contrast to the sunshiny beach outside. I think that is why I liked it so much - because it's so different. The Omphoy is Palm Beach's only boutique hotel, and since it's only a year old, it's still a hidden gem along the east coast. Your ceremony can be held on their outside terrace overlooking the ocean, or in their upstairs rectangular room which almost has a gothic feel to it. The reception room has floor to ceiling windows overlooking the Atlantic ocean as well as buddha statues and awesome damask chairs. If you are looking for a zen wedding by the water, this venue is for you.





















































































Central Gulf Coast
Sanibel/Captiva
South Seas Island Resort
Heading over to the southwest coast, Sanibel and Captiva islands are a very popular destination wedding choice because of the laid back feel and the beautiful gulf beaches. South Seas Island Resort prides itself and providing a private beach setting for your wedding. There are several gorgeous spots to hold both a ceremony and reception, including the beach itself, the lawn overlooking the beach, an outdoor terrace, and several dining room and ballroom options depending on the size of your group. South Seas Resort actually can accommodate the most guests out of any other resort on the island.











































































Central Florida
Orlando
Lowes Portofino Bay Hotel
















Many couples choose to get married in Florida to be close to Disney. If you love Disney, but don't necessarily want a "Disney wedding", the Universal Resort hotels offer an alternative to the typical Disney feel but still have that magical touch. The Lowes Portofino Bay is a replica of the Italian Riviera, so you can get a European feel in Florida without a passport. :) There are multiple courtyards and ballrooms to meet your ceremony and reception needs. There are also several other restaurants on site to host a smaller reception or rehearsal dinner. Their authentic Italian restaurant, Mama Della's, has the yummiest polenta I've ever had!














































North Florida
St. Augustine
The White Room Loft
You may remember Beth coordinating a wedding at this venue last January. It is such a unique and cool site in St. Augustine, which is the oldest city in Florida. The White Room Loft is an addition to the White Room, and it's located on the 3rd floor of the building with an outdoor terrace that gives you sweeping views of the city of St. Augustine and the water. It has a minimalist look with exposed brick walls and dark wood floors. It's a great space with or without a lot of decor. There are several cute historic inns and hotels nearby so your guests will have plenty of choices for accommodations.





































The Panhandle
Destin
The Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort
The panhandle is located in Northwest Florida, and although the oil spill in the gulf has started to affect them sadly...they need our support now more than ever. There are several beautiful options that do not rely solely on their gulf beaches. The Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort is a huge and gorgeous resort in Destin, Florida. They have many options for your ceremony and reception, including picturesque lawn and garden ceremony sites, quaint verandahs, and many elegant ballrooms. Do not write off the panhandle yet - these cities are still wonderful choices for your Florida destination wedding! (photo credit, Sandestin website)

NoHo Bistro Summer Bash Event

The Flawless ladies were recently invited to the wedding and event planner "Summer Bash" get together at NoHo Bistro in Tampa for an evening of delectable dining and drinks. NoHo Bistro does fabulous catering on site or at your location, and they pride themselves on unique presentation and fun food items.

We were treated to some delicious treats set up in a station style. There was an Americana station with mini porklet sliders "roasting" on a grill, an Asian station with Chinese takeout boxes of stir fry noodles complete with a zen fountain of bamboo, and a sweets station with mini flavored popcorn cones, mini pies, and twinkie bites. There were also some delicious drinks set up at a drink station. We got to see some of our local wedding planner friends and chat with the owners about the many options that NoHo Bistro could provide for our clients.

Basically their philosophy is, if you can dream it up, they can create it, and they can provide the guidance in helping you to plan your unique event at their adorable restaurant or at the location of your choice. Here are a few photos I snapped of their fabulous food presentations. And a big thank you to Jessica and the staff at NoHo Bistro for allowing Christina and I to experience your creative cuisine.

The Noho Bistro
1714 N. Armenia Ave.
Tampa, FL 33607
(813) 514-0691
www.theNoHoBistro.com