Mike and Jen - A Whimsical Garden Wedding

This past weekend I had the pleasure of coordinating the wedding of Jen and Mike at the Davis Island Garden Club in Tampa. Jen and Mike hired me as their day-of-coordinator a few months ago after selecting most of their vendors so that they could relax and enjoy their special day after all of the hard work of planning it themselves.
Their style was a mix of whimsical meets nature, with a color scheme of whites, creams, and grass green. There was a little bling thrown in there as well. There were several cute details such as the topiary placecards, the rice cake table (a nod to the bride's Korean heritage), and the elegant pearl balls hanging from the shepherds hooks which we later placed on the head table.
The couple started off by doing a "first look" photo shoot with their photographer, David, at the Westin on Harbour Island. The ceremony was then held at the Garden Club under the gazebo and officiated by the couple's pastor, accompanied by a string trio from their church. The guests then enjoyed a cocktail hour and reception with delicious food provided by Good Food Catering. I can say it was delicious because I tried some of it myself.. the filet and homemade mashed potatoes were so yummy.
In the reception, Ben from Grant Hemond DJ's entertained the guests with his dj'ing (and dancing) skills. He also did amber uplighting around the room which enhanced the romantic feel that Jen and Mike wanted. Jen made the centerpieces herself and they were impressive - hydranga, babies breath, and curly willow draped with crystals. The other beautiful florals, bouquets, and decor was created by Scott with Apple Blossoms.
I really appreciated all of the vendors' hard work on this event. It was truly a team effort and the wedding turned out wonderful because of it. I got the opportunity to work with David Krantzberg of Basia Mille photography for the first time (Beth actually worked with him the day before coincidentally along with Ben). He sent us photos within a few days and we were so thrilled. Not only was he professional and easy to work with, but the product is amazing. Enjoy!
Jen and Mike, I am so happy for the two of you and know you are going to have a wonderful marriage. Hope you are having an awesome time on your honeymoon right now!

A Middle-Eastern Destination Wedding

Melissa contacted me in November in need of some help planning her upcoming wedding in April. The only thing she had booked was the Grand Plaza hotel on St. Pete Beach, and she also had a theme - middle eastern to respresent her groom's background. Because she and her fiance, Kent, lived out of state, they needed someone who knew the area and could basically plan the entire wedding for them since they would not be here until the wedding day.

From there we selected some awesome vendors to help pull this concept together: Event Design provided the gold chivari chairs, gold chargers, and gold cake stand; Custom Linens provided the bright red and orange satin tablecloths. We chose this color scheme because it complimented the sunset that the guest viewed during the reception through the beautiful windows of the Presidential Ballroom, and it also went with our middle eastern theme. We had accents of deep blue and fuschia as well throughout the room. Melissa's favorite flowers are roses so this made up the majority of the centerpieces and awesome escort card tree created by Dana Dineen. She also decorated the hotel's bamboo arch with gorgeous organza fabric and roses. Before the wedding, the bride and her bridal party were given fabulous hairstyles from the amazing Cari of Kyle Lynn Weddings. Their custom ceremony was created and performed by John Melchinger of a Perfect Witness, which was accompanied by the beautiful music of Bella Musica.
For the cakes, Melissa wanted to do something very special and grand so we had a 5 tiered middle-easten inspired cake in bold colors with an intricate design. As a surprise to the groom, Laurie from A Piece of Cake also made the pillow cake which featured the couple's two cats on top and their monogram. It was so adorable!
The reception music and jewel-toned room lighting was done by Cory Barron of Grant Hemond dj's, and he's one of my favorites to work with. He is so professional and talented and the dance floor was packed all night. Later, Melissa changed into a sexy strapless dress so she could really break it down. Guests also enjoyed a slideshow video of the couple and a candy buffet. All of these amazing moments were captured on video by Randy of Celebrations and Jason Angelini Photography. It has been awhile since we worked with Jason and it was great to see him again - I was so excited when they posted all of these amazing photos on their blog. Melissa and Kent, thank you for trusting me to plan your special day from afar, may you have a beautiful life together!

Great Vendor Endorsements

One of the best ways to find reputable vendors is through other vendors. It is much easier for us when we are working with competent vendors and our clients are happy, so when we recommend others, we make sure we are confident in their abilities. It's so flattering when other vendors recommend us to others. We just received this wonderful endorsement from the wedding officiants at "A Perfect Witness". Check it out!

"Planners come and go, but a few really break through the "ordinary" barrier and make a lasting statement . They devote themselves personally to every wedding. big or small. Our view as officiants is narrowly focused on the ceremony. A good planner makes our job easier and results better by a willingness to share thoughts about a client. Collaboration makes everything work better. Professional communication becomes critical, and working always for the client is the first esential ingedient. Flawless Occasions is all of that, and delightful personalities as well. There are only a few planners I always enjoy working with, and Flawless Occasions is one." Thank you so much to A Perfect Witness for this great endorsement. We love working with you as well. To see more of our vendor endorsements, click here!

Cutting out the Clutter of Wedding "Stuff"

Do you have a box in your house holding a bunch of wedding "stuff"? We often have brides give us a box of random items to set up for the wedding without any specific designation of where it should go or how they would like it used. Many brides are guilty of this... you're out shopping at the mall and you see a cute candle set or a bridal figurine or a bunch of lace heart ornaments and you say "hey, maybe I could use that for the wedding somehow...". So you buy it, bring it home, and it goes into your box of wedding "stuff" for the next 6 months to collect dust until the big day.

Here are some questions to ask yourself prior to purchasing items for your wedding.

1. What do I want to do with this item?

2. Does it match the colors/theme/style of my wedding?

3. Have I already purchased similar items?

4. Am I buying this because I love it, or because it is a good deal?

Don't buy something unless you can think of an exact way to utilize it at your wedding. It might be cute, but will it fit in with the rest of your decor or will it become clutter on a table somewhere? If you can't think of a significant use for it in your wedding, you probably shouldn't buy it.

Not only will this save you money by keeping you from purchasing a bunch of stuff you won't need, but it will relieve you of the stress in trying to come up with some type of use for all of the crazy items in your wedding box o' junk.

Happy Planning! :)

More Dana and Jeff !

Last month I coordinated the wedding of Dana and Jeff at the beautiful Reunion Resort (which is very close to Disney for those of you who are unfamiliar with the area). I just wanted to share a few pro photos from photographer Gary Kaplan. Dana's wedding gown was one of my all-time favorites, she looked amazing! Enjoy!

Kristen and Alen's Davis Island Wedding

On March 25th, Kristen and Alen said "I Do" under bright blue skies surrounded by many friends and family at Davis Island Garden Club. The weather could not have been any more perfect for their outdoor ceremony and the bride and groom could not have been any more adorable!

Kristen came to Flawless Occasions in August of last year in search of a day of coordinator. She really wanted to make sure that her wedding was fun for her guests and she absolutely accomplished that!

Before the ceremony, guests were invited to enjoy cocktails on the patio which was decorated with beautiful chandeliers, sheer drapes and cocktail tables decorated with beautiful white and fuscia linens (which were provided by Kate Ryan Linens). Guests were able to enjoy beautiful music by a string ensemble too.

For the ceremony, the gazebo was decorated with more draping and gorgeous arrangements which were created by Botanica. Rose petals lined each side of the aisle and pails full of roses hung on shepherds hooks.

The inside of Davis Island Garden Club was elegant and charming all at once. The escort cards were boarding passes which had a destination for each guest. The destinations were the table names which represented places that Kristen and Alen had been to together.

Botanica provided draping and up lighting which transformed the room. The tables were covered with gorgeous crushed satin table cloths (from Kate Ryan Linens), silver chargers, aqua colored napkins and silver chivari chairs from First Class Rentals. Kristen created her own centerpieces which were a mix of tall glass cylinders with roses and shallow bowls with floating flowers and candles. In addition, Botanica created two huge arrangements with curly willow.

As an extra treat for the guests, a cigar roller from Cuban Dreams was on hand so guests could enjoy their own freshly rolled cigar.

I cannot say enough great things about Cory from Grant Hemond! He really kept this party crowd on the dance floor shaking and moving all night long.

Mandy & Me photography was there to capture the moments and photograph this fun loving couple. Mandy already has pictures up on her blog which is amazing in itself! It is also the reason I have these fabulous pictures to share on our blog. (Please check out her blog for more pictures though!!)

Life's Highlights was also on hand to video the entire day. I hope to have some of their footage to show you soon...so don't forget to check back!!

Most people know how much I love cake and this one was no different! As always, Laurie from A Piece of Cake created a Cake that was delicious to the eyes and the taste buds!

Last but not least, the catering and bar tending were provided by Amici's who prepared a beautiful buffet of items personally selected by the bride and groom.

It was such a pleasure to be part of Kristen and Alen's special day! I hope they are enjoying their awesome honeymoon in Turks & Caicos!

I also wanted to give a shout out to our newest Flawless Occasions member, Kelly. She did a fantastic job helping with the set up and I am so happy to have her on board. Thanks to Shawna who stopped to assist as well and one last special thank you to Cory from Grant Hemond for the help packing up at the end of the night!

Kristen and Alen - thank you for hiring Flawless Occasions. You two have a love that is contagious, fun, and inspiring all at once. I wish you both a lifetime of happy moments!


Thank you to Mandy & Me Photography for letting us share all of the following photos!

Sneak Peak!

Isn't this a beautiful picture!!!
This is a professional photo from Jen and Corey's Mahaffey Theater wedding taken by Stephanie A. Smith Photography! She really did a fantastic job of capturing their personalities!
We hope to be able to share more soon!

A Fabulous Shoe Shower!

I usually don't put very many personal posts up, but in this case my planning job meshed with my personal life and I definitely wanted to share. This weekend I got to plan an awesome shower for my friend Natalie who is getting married at the end of April. I put together the shower since most of the other bridesmaids live out of town and everyone was really happy with how it turned out (whew!).

We hosted the shower at the delicious Pane Rustica in South Tampa. Their private room, called the Blue Room, was a swanky yet cozy spot with gorgeous decor and a large plasma screen tv on which we played a dvd slideshow as a surprise to the bride.

The theme of the shower was shoes because the bride is a total fashionista and loves her shoes. We had a custom cake created by Sweets by Mindy and it came out so adorable! It also tasted delicious (we had the amaretto cake). We also had high-heel shoe cookie favors from All the Buzz Cookies. I've used Amy a few times for various custom cookie favors and she does a great job. Her sugar cookies are almost too cute too eat.. but they are too tasty not to eat. :) One of the other bridesmaids made the simple and modern tulip arrangements and we had pintuck runners on the tables as well.

Here are a few of my photos from the fabulous shoe shower!