Spring Love Wedding at the Wyndham Hotel

Manju and Angel are two of the sweetest people that I have ever met! We had a special connection from the start so I was thrilled to help plan their April 30th wedding at the Wyndham. They wanted an elegant hotel venue and the Wyndham fit perfectly. The ceremony took place at the beautiful Old Stone Church and now the couple are members and continue to worship there. I was so excited for the bright color statement they would be making at the reception. Manju saw a beautiful orange and fuschia linen and this was the inspiration for our wedding colors. She also wanted something more non-traditional for her centerpieces so we chose submerged fuschia orchids with candles to give the room a lovely glow by Prestige Floral. Dancing was a very important part of the wedding and Rock The House provided a night of music with washed walls of color that transformed for each important event of the evening. To honor Manju's Indian heritage, she changed in to a beautiful sari after dinner. She looked so beautiful. I really felt like I was planning a wedding for two dear friends and I am so happy for them! Here is a small part of the very kind letter Manju wrote to me after their wedding:

Dearest Allison,

How sad it is that I was crying at the store as I was picking out your thank you card. You touched us in a way that we did not know was possible. I don't know if I am sadder that the wedding is over or if I am going to miss going to the vendor meetings with you. Everyone speaks about how planning a wedding is one of the most stressful times, we completely disagree! Every moment of planning our wedding was fun and exciting!

Thank you just doesnt seem to be enough for all you have done for us! Kirkbrides is the BEST!!! We will surely recommend you to anyone!

Love,

Manju and Angel

Glorified Cleveland Inspiration Board: Beach/Nautical Wedding

Best season for this theme: Summer

Cleveland venues that would work well for this wedding style:
Shoreby Club
Lodge at Geneva
Kelley's Island or Put in Bay

Music:

• Using a steel drum band can really give your event a tropical feel!
• Walk down the isle to a Ukulele playing a song of your choice
  
• Some fun song choices for your event: Island in the sun by Weezer, I'm Yours by Jason Mraz, One Love by Bob Marley, Under the Boardwalk by The Drifters (consider having this song sung live or played acoustically on guitar!), Wipeout by The Surfaris, Your Love by Wyclef Jean, Somewhere over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
  

Other ideas:

• Focus on the MENU for this theme - think empanadas, crabcakes, a special chips, fresh salsa and guacamole station, surf and turf for dinner
  
• Dress groomsmen in khaki pants, flip flops, navy blazers and matching ties!
• Bridesmaids can wear bright color dresses or sundresses and flip flops!
  
• Passing out brightly colored flip-flops at your reception as favors can save your guests feet on the dance floor
• Include orchids in centerpieces or bouquets
• Use real leis instead of corsages, boutonnieres or bouquets
  
• To give more of a nautical feel make sure to include white and different shades of blue in your reception
• Using sand dollars, seashells, sand, or birchwood in centerpieces can tie in a beach theme when combined with flowers
• Name tables after famous beaches or the favorite tropical destinations of the couple
• Serve specialty tropical drinks during cocktail hour, for example a Mai Tai, Mojito, Miami Vice ( pina colada and strawberry daiquiri mixed), or have a specialty margarita bar with different flavors and ingredients!
  
• Leave a large glass bottle on the gift table and leave a sign encouraging guests to leave the Bride and Groom messages in the bottle instead of using the more traditional guest book

Even though Cleveland, Ohio may not be located near crystal blue waters Lake Erie still provides a wonderful location for beach weddings especially in the summer! Your guests have the opportunity to enjoy a changing backdrop for your ceremony or reception, blue skies during the day and a beautiful sunset at night!

Make sure to take a look at these weddings inspired by Nautical and Beach ideas on Style Me Pretty!

Inspiration Board created on Style Me Pretty

Vintage Summer Garden Wedding

Where do I begin with this vivacious young couple?! Celia and Keith are such an energetic and adventurous couple. Celia "rode in" on Keith's back for their entrance and our friends at The DJ Crew commented it was the best dancing they had witnessed. The dance floor was packed at dinner! The floors were actually shaking from the crowd of dancers that filled the room. It was a blast! When I look at these wonderful pictures from Keels Photography I just have to smile every time. There was such happiness surrounding this day!

With lots of life planning going on during their wedding planning, they had a lot to contend with but the planning process went very smoothly and we had a lot of fun! Celia and Keith are two very easy going people who went with the flow and always had a smile on their faces. We chose the gorgeous Ritz Carlton ballroom for their wedding reception with a ceremony in the Grand Foyer of Severance Hall. Everything about this wedding was opulent! Celia and her mom, Jane had a beautiful color palatte in mind from the start: tiffany blue, fuschia and yellow. I was so happy to see yet another couple not afraid of color! Their candy bar was also fuschia and yellow. I thought it was just breathtaking. Keith's grandmother also made dozens and dozens of delectable cookies for the guests. It was quite a sight. One of my most favorite moments is when Celia and her A Capella group sang to Keith upon my urging at a meeting months before. It was such a sweet expresssion of her love for him.

I had a wonderful time with this lovely couple. Celia gave me the sweetest gift that I have ever gotten. She handmade me a beautiful quilt. It was so touching! I will treasure it always. Here is a wonderful note she wrote me:

Dear Allison,

You have been a phenomenal wedding planner for us! We could have never planned anything as close to how wonderful this wedding is going to be. You always had a thoughtful answer to our questions, and you gave us fabulous suggestions and ideas about the things we were clueless about. Thank you so much for putting so much time in to making our wedding perfect! I know you've been busy every week with weddings and planning for the past few months but you always made me feel like a priority and gave me your time and patience. We appreciate everything you've done for us and we will definitely recommend you to our friends in the future!

Thank you,

Celia, Keith and Jane

Glorified Cleveland Inspiration Board: Italian Romance

Best season for this theme: Summer or Fall

Cleveland Venues that would work well for this wedding style:
Park Lane Villa
Old Courthouse
New Tudor Arms Ballroom at the Doubletree Hotel

Music:

• Use a local opera singer to perform an Italian love song with a string quartet while the bride makes her way down the aisle
• Use an acoustic guitarist during cocktail hour to entertain guests
  
• Have a live accordion player walk around during dinner to add a fun touch!
  
• Consider using some of these songs to add to the romantic Italian feel of your event: The way you look tonight or Fly me to the moon by Frank Sinatra, That's Amore or On an Evening in Roma by Dean Martin, Hold on or Sway by Michael Buble, Can't help falling in love or Ave Maria by Andrea Bocelli, Mambo Italiano by Orietta Berti
  

Other ideas:

• Name tables after different regions or cities in Italy, or after different types of wine
  
• Use wine corks to hold and display place cards for guests
• Include grapes in centerpieces to contribute to the Italian feel and add an extra pop of color
• Adding small votives or even large candelabras as centerpieces can give a soft and romantic glow to any reception
• Beautiful colors for an Italian Romance wedding include deep reds and purples with golds, greens, oranges, and pinks for accent colors
  
• Instead of having a traditional cocktail hour turn it into a wine tasting for guests!
• For dessert feature a decadent Italian dessert station, dessert ideas include mini cassata cakes, vanilla pizzelles, biscotti (goes great with a coffee station at the end of the evening!), tiramisu, cannoli, sesame cookies, amariette cookies, wanda cookies, and Italian almond biscuits
• A gelato station would also be a fun way for guests to satisfy their sweet tooth
• Pass out wine stoppers, small bags of Italian coffee with biscotti, or tiny bottles of Italian wine with the bride and grooms name on them as favors
• Food is a huge part of any Italian style wedding, consider passing antipasto h'ors d'oeuvres like prosciutto wrapped melon, olives, salami, pickled peppers, calamari, and prosciutto during cocktail hour
• An Italian wedding meal can consist of 5 to 14 courses, obviously 14 may be a bit much but make sure to include different combinations of soups, meats, salads, and pastas during the dinner course
• Specialty drinks: Bellini (white peach puree, prosecco, maraschino cherry juice), Sgroppino (vodka, lemon sorbet, prosecco, and mint), Americano (vermouth, bitter campari, soda water), also consider using Sofia Minis for your specialty drink, tiny pink cans of sparkling wine!
  

Check out photos and video on Style Me Pretty of an amazing Italian wedding in Florence Italy!

Inspiration Board created on Style Me Pretty

Peacock Glorified Inspiration Board

This theme is Elegant and Unique!

This theme would go well any time of year -- winter, spring, summer or fall.

Cleveland Venues that would work well for this wedding style:

• Union Club
  
• The Old Courthouse
• The Ritz Carlton
• Parklane Villa
  

Color Scheme: Purple, Greens, Teals

• Peacock inspired save the dates, invitations, and programs
• Orchids, lily grass, hydrangeas, green kale, dusty miller, silver brunia berries, purple trachillium, begonia leaves, green hanging amaranthus, seeded eucalyptus, fern curl for accent with crystal pins and peacock feathers would all create great decor.
• Aqua colored linens makes a pretty foundation for a table with jewel-toned dishes and chargers.
• A simple napkins folded into "pockets" with a peacock feather tucked into each pocket adds a great touch.
• Serve a blue or green-hued signature drink that will matches your theme.
  Idea: Ginger-Pear Martini
• A peacock ice sculpture, lit with white or blue lighting, displayed near the hor's d'ouevres or dessert area would be an elegant finish!

Stay tuned because this wedding style is currently in the works for Kirkbrides for a September wedding at the Silver Grille at the Ritz Carlton!

Glorified Inspiration Board: Winter

Season best suited for this theme is the Winter

Venues in Cleveland that would work well with the theme:

• Glenmoor Country Club
• Union Club
• Ritz Carlton

Music

• A Big Band that plays Christmas music would work well for this theme like the Jerry Bruno Orchestra, Art Company Orchestra
• Have a snow machine on the dance floor for the couple's first dance.
  

Miscellaneous

• Favors

Cocoa to go: Custom travel mug fulled with a warm beverage
Box of Fresh Chestnuts
Personalized packs of Hot Chocolate

• Drink

A Blizzard Cocktail
Hot Cocoa bar with assorted alcohol and trimmings,
complete with assorted pastries and desserts

• Centerpiece

Candelabras
Lush arrangements of white flowers
Dusty miller

• Place Card

Place cards: Silver ball place card holder on the table
It will add a little extra bling.
As well as tie in well with the crystals in the decor.

• Decor

All white and cream flowers would work well
(Garden roses, hydrangeas, gardenias, dendorbrium, orchids)
Lots of Rhinestones and Sparkle
Silver and white branches with hanging candles, crystals, and mirrors
added into the decor.

• Photo booth

Have Christmas or winter themed attire for guest to wear as props

• Transportation
  

Vintage silver Rolls- Royce

Check out a real Winter Inspired Wedding

Pictures from: dianescakesandmore.com, Brides.com

Summer Tented Wedding at Shoreby Club

Something I enjoy but often do not get a chance to do is plan a wedding in a very short amount of time. I enjoy the challenge and also the results of a wonderful wedding! Jenn and Scott's June 24th wedding was planned in just ten weeks! They were such a great couple to work with because they understood that time was of the essence and they had to make quick decisions. They walked in to Shoreby Club and knew instantly that this would be their wedding venue. Jenn is from California so being on the water was a great bonus for her. Everything for their wedding looked beautiful with this location as the back drop! We were able to utilize their centerpeices by the boys at Grande Designs since our ceremony space was also our reception space. We used feathers and crystals to create Jenn's Old Hollywood wedding and named the tables after Hollywood stars and starlets. Their beautiful lace fondant cake with crimson flowers was a real showstopper by Flour Girl. The kid's table was named "Shirley Temple" and we provided them with bags of goodies to entertain them. Jenn was such a doll to work with. She kept the focus of her day on their marriage and made important decisions without blinking! I was sad to see the planning go so quickly but I am excited for them to start their lives together! I wish them the very best.

pictures by Chris Smanto Photography

Glorified Inspiration Board: Carnival Wedding Theme

SEASON: Spring, Summer or early Fall

VENUES in Cleveland that would work well with the theme

• Kirtland Country Club
• Bohemian Hall
• Shoreby Club
• Lodge at Geneva
• Manakiki
• Sammy's in the Flats
• Cleveland Browns Stadium
• Hyatt at the Arcade
• Any country club with an outdoor space
  

MUSIC

• Play list of Elvis or oldies 50's music for cocktail hour
  
• Edith Piaff french tunes might work well for dinner
  
• a Cirque de Soleil soundtrack as dinner music
  

MISCELLANEOUS

• Placecards

o Mock prize ribbons to make everyone feel like a winner

o Lollipops with guest name and table name tied around the stick displayed in a bed of candy

o Balloons!

• Favors - a photobooth would be perfect for this theme!
  
• Save the Dates - check out these awesome red balloon save the dates to mail out to your guests!
• Invitations

o You’re invited to the greatest show on earth – one admittance ticket

o Vintage style tickets

• Dress up your DJ in a ringmaster outfit (tails, top hat, red vest, and cane) - you can actually rent this from Men's Wearhouse (we checked!)
  

• Hire a mime, clown, or even a simple magician with card tricks to walk around during dinner performing tricks for guests at their tables

• Carnival style dessert stand serving all kinds of carnival favorites
  

Rent a cotton candy machine and/or a popcorn machine to inspire the nostalgic feel!

• Drink: Candy Apple Martinis
  

Check out this real wedding on Green Wedding Shoes blog for more carnival wedding inspiration!