Sarah Jane & Matt Wed At The Ancaster Old Mill on Sat, June 5th

Decor & Photos courtesey of Stephanie Thompson Wedding Design

We've Moved!

My blog is now available on my website... www.stephaniethompson.ca

To Moon Or Not To Moon

Beaches Turks & Caicos

Should You Wait Until Much The Wedding To Take A Honeymoon?

In order to spend more of their wedding budget some couples opt-out of taking their dream romantic honeymoon months following their wedding. But is this a good idea?

As a former bride who has been married for over a year, I'm still waiting to take my honeymoon. At the time we decided not to go away because my daughter was an infant and because money was tight with buying a new house and planning a wedding. Well over a year later, my daughter is older, my husband just got a new job and is building up vacation time, I'm busy with the business and we're no further ahead then before.

So my advice to you as a former bride and wedding planner. Go for it!!!! There are so few special moments in our time that you need to take advantage of every single one. Your honeymoon is very important for your relationship. It's a great romantic time that you can spend as husband and wife. It will be a trip unlike any other. And after all of that hard work, stress and headaches over planning your wedding... YOU DESERVE IT! Even if its a weekend away at the cottage or a bed and breakfast, spend that time together!

And if you need any help with booking a romantic honeymoon in the Caribbean we'd love to help you out, just e-mail us info@stephaniethompson.ca.

Every moment matters,

Stephanie Thompson WPICC, SCS, CSS

Wedding & Honeymoon Wish Specialist

Inspiration For Your Wedding

Inspiration For Your Wedding



So you're engaged and now is the time to think about your wedding vision. Maybe you haven't always known what your wedding will look like. So where do you find inspiration to incorporate into your wedding day details. Well when I work with my clients I always get them to tell me about things they like... nature, fashion, art, history, culture... for example.



Are you like me and love the beach? Perhaps a destination wedding is what you've been dreaming of. Unable to have a destination wedding? Then consider pulling in the beautiful blue or turquoise of the ocean for your wedding colours.



Have a favourite Guess purse you just love? Maybe that can be your inspiration for your colour and wedding design. Add some brooches to mimic the buckle on the purse. Use the colour of the purse for linens.




So where can you find inspiration?

-Online Blogs & Websites

-Magazines

-Travel

-Nature

-Architecture

-Art

-Film

-Literature

etc.

As you plan your wedding before you chose your theme, style, colours etc begin collecting items that stand out to you into a folder. Before you are ready to chose your theme etc look over these items again. Which items do you LOVE. Add these into the details of your decor, flowers, cake, invitations etc.

If you need any help with designing your unique wedding, this is our speciality and you can contact me or visit our website for more information.

Inspiring Your Wedding Guests

Source




The Olympic Games in Vancouver this past week has inspired me to write a blog article on inspiration. As human beings we love to be inspired. Whether it's in movies we've watched, something on the news, a story we heard about someone, watching athletes achieve their goals...whatever it may be... we love happy endings.


Well a great way to wow your guests is to really bring them into your wedding and your relationship. They would love to be inspired. Do you have a great love story on how you met? Have you overcome a triumph together? Are you volunteers or active in the community? What do you hope to achieve for the future? Have you overcome obstacles? Do you have a great engagement story? Are their people in your lives who inspire you?

How To Convey it To Your Guests?

Tip 1: In the wedding details & theme.

Tip 2: Tell your story through your wedding vows or in a speech.

Tip 3: Surround your guests in your inspiration by choosing a location that matches your vision.

Don't Get Burned By Shady Vendors

So I came across this story from Florida about a mother of a bride who thought she was getting a great deal on a wedding cake, only for the shop to be completely gone when she stopped by there. She lost her deposit and her daughter was without a wedding cake. http://www.wpbf.com/money/22508074/detail.html

Last summer a well known wedding decorator from Toronto who was known for having incredibly low rates. Only to leave couples without decor, flowers for their weddings and hundreds to even thousands of their deposits gone!

And I keep hearing about bridal shops going bankrupt in our area as well.


I have worked with the vendors I recommend, I trust them completely and don't go by cheapest cost alone. You will pay a little more for professional vendors who do great work and more importantly are reliable and won't leave you stranded on your wedding day. However, I do recommend their pricing, styles and services to match your budget. So if you only have $2,000 to spend on a photographer I will only recommend photographers who offer this price range. And even better, my vendors offer me a discount that I pass onto all of my clients.

So if you are looking to save money on aspects of your wedding and don't want to hire some shady wedding vendors, then hiring me to be your wedding coordinator is the best way to ensure that doesn't happen

We offer a free initial meeting so it doesn't hurt to see if I can help you.
e-mail info@stephaniethompson.ca or call 289-286-3013 for more information.

Does Out Of The Box Thinking Freak You Out?

I find a lot of brides and grooms are terrified to let their cool and unique ideas for their wedding day out! What are people going to say? My parents will never agree to that? Or if I suggest something different to them, they say... that's too out there for me, I just like plain, or simple and elegant.

Now I'm all for having the wedding you've always wished for. And I don't want to push an idea on you that you hate. That defeats the purpose of hiring a wedding planner. But sometimes I worry that couples want to step out of the box, just a bit, but are too freaked out over what other people think.

And I get that, if there's anyone who worries about what other people think, I used to be the poster child for that. However since I've ventured off this unique path to fullfilling my dream as a wedding designer, I'm giving off beat ideas a chance. At least a chance. I think about it for a moment (boy that's crazy or ugly, or whatever), but I let it sink in a bit, then I find something I ended up hating... grows on me.

I need to stay open to different ideas and concepts for my couples because sometimes they aren't too sure what's out there in the event planning world. There are some really different ideas that can make your event or wedding so cool your guests will love it. Why would we want to have the exact same party after party... Amanda & Paul's wedding: ceremony, dinner, dance...Rachel & Mike's Wedding....ceremony, dinner, dance... and so on.

You only live once, our attention spans are limited...lol... so I'm encouraging you to follow your heart if you want something that's a bit different or unique then go for it. Don't worry about what everyone is going to think. Because those are the events that they will have a great time at. Your wedding will be the event of the year, something they will never forget!!!

And if you need help making these distinct ideas to come to life, I'd love to help :)

Beware Of The Wedding Trolls

Source

Beware Of The Wedding Trolls

Ah the wedding trolls.... definitely not as cute as the photo above.

So who are wedding trolls... they are those people in your life that when you talk about your engagement or upcoming wedding... some sort of a switch flips and instead of making you feel positive, you end up walking away feeling miserable and like being happy is wrong. Well I don't want you to let these wedding trolls take over your good mood. Everyone deserves happiness and for some reason a lot of people don't chose to be happy and instead would rather hurt you so they feel better about their miserable lives.

Here's a few things you can do with these wedding trolls...

1. Surround yourself with positive, happy people who make you feel good about yourself. Who are uplifting and supportive. Let the troll stay in the dark.

2. Call the troll on their behaviour. Tell them it's not appreciated and you won't tolerate their negativity any longer.

3. Wean these folks out of your life and move on... who needs them anyways?

In a negative world there are really only a few moments when we can celebrate and be happy. Your wedding is one of them. And you deserve this time to be on cloud 9. Don't let the trolls in your life tell you any different.

"Life is not measured by the breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."

unknown

Every Moment Matters,

Stephanie Thompson WPICC

Wedding Wish Specialist

www.stephaniethompson.ca

Encouraging Brides To Donate To Haiti On Their Guests Behalf

How Your Wedding Can Help Earthquake Survivors

I can't even imagine what the people of Haiti are going through right now. Well as a nurse I probably can. But having the life that we have here in Canada little things seem so trivial, don't they? There are people in Haiti right now struggling for basic needs like water, housing, gas, food, who have lost their loved ones and are fighting for survival.

Even celebrities are getting involved and donating thousands and some millions and are also encouraging people to donate to Haiti and that's great! But there is something that I want you to consider as well. Donating money for wedding favours has become popular over the last several years. I'm asking brides to donate this money on behalf of their guests to Haiti and to do so before February 12, 2010 as the Canadian government is going to match our donations dollar to dollar. That's even more money to help those in Haiti.

Imagine that your love and celebration of your marriage could help provide someone who has lost their husband and family a little hope that people in this world do care. So please consider your donation.

Here are some places you can donate:

http://www.worldvision.org/ (great organization we sponsor a little girl from Malawi here)

Donate $10 -Text 'GIVE' 20222

Canada For Haiti or call 1-877-51Haiti Join their facebook group www.facebook.com/canadaforhaiti

www.unicef.ca/earthquake

The Maggie Dress

Photos from The Maggie Dress

I was watching the Dragons Den and saw this 8 in 1 dress called The Maggie Dress. I immediately thought this might be a great option for bridesmaids dresses or even for mother of the bride/groom. I think what's so great about this dress is the fact it is easily wearable for another occassion. It's available in blue, mango and black and is around $136.

The Wedding Co Show At The Carlu

Photo www.theweddingco.com/events

So yesterday I went with a wedding planner colleague of mine, Roxane Bobb Semple, to The Wedding Co Show at the Carlu in Toronto, where we confused many vendors as to which one was the bride or if we were both brides ; ). Knowing that I needed to dress to impress I wore a pair of high heeled boots that I haven't worn in a long while... well actually I haven't worn heels, higher than 2", since I had Allie and gained all my baby weight... But I knew I was in the lap of bridal luxury and wanted to not look a mom with an almost 2 yr old. Fashion over comfort, or so they say... right? Now I know you want to hear all about the wonderful artists I met, yes not "vendors", very talented artists who excel at their craft and have done so for years. But I feel like I should share a funny story of myself instead. The show was excellent and I found a handful of vendors that I feel really reflect my style and personality and that my clients would love. But the funny part of the show was me leaving it. Walking very gingerly (and if I wasn't laughing about it, I would have cried) with extremely sore feet through the mall, that as soon as I got to the parking garage (when no one was looking) I took those cute little high heeled boots off... and walked in dress socks to the car. At that point, I didn't care. My feet were so cramped...haha... (didn't help that I just got a pedicure on Thursday either). Got to the car, my salvation, and proceeded to drive from Toronto to Hamilton in my socks. :) I will suffer in pain and look good doing it, to find you the best of the best artists for your wedding and to be the best wedding planner I can be. And despite the next day blisters... I had a great time at the show and I can't wait to show my brides the exquisite wedding professionals Southern Ontario has to offer.

Stephanie Recommends: Take own advice that I give brides when going to bridal shows. Wear comfy shoes.

Rustic or Rustic Chic Farm Weddings

Ever since a presentation I did in my wedding planners course through http://www.wpic.ca/ I've wanted to actually do a farm wedding.

Why?

#1. It's such a beautiful location to have an intimate wedding.

#2. Decor is less expensive and authentic... there's always things around the farm just perfect for your decor.

#3. Homemade stuff like jam, syrup, apple pie.

#4. Great places for photos... rustic looking barns, wooden fences, in a corn field, cowboy hats, a muddy wedding dress, tractors, on a horse, beside your favourite cow... need I say more.

#5. The look of wildflowers from the garden, sunflowers etc.

Check out on bridal canvas (warning... music is on)

Here's my latest inspiration board for a rustic farm wedding. Want it to be more chic upgrade to chiavari chairs... Fancy things that would look completely out of place in a barn... there's your rustic chic. If you are interested or considering a farm wedding, come talk with me I have so many great ideas for farm weddings, I'm the right wedding planner for you~! ;)

Pick The Right Party

Many brides, including myself, run into some troubles with their wedding parties. Did your maid of honour go AWOL 2 months before your wedding, did your best friend stop being your best friend because she couldn't be your MOH. You just want to get married damn it, where did all of the animosity come from anyways?

It's hard once you get to this point to sort things out. And its not fun. Tears will roll, names will be called, hair may be pulled. So I'm going to give you some tips to prevent things to getting to this point.

Picking The Right Party
- When chosing your wedding party you need to really think things through. I know its hard because you are super excited. But you have to really think it through.

- You need to figure out what their role is going to be, think about how much money they will need to fork over, how much of their time will be required. Write all of this down.

- Now think about those people in your life who are of most importance to you. Siblings usually trump friends. Or take the new passive aggressive approach and have multiple maids of honour or best men.

-Its best to meet them in person but if not, actually call this person (vs email). Tell them you want them to be apart of the celebration. Tell them all of the roles, responsibilies, time and money you believe will be needed in order to be apart of the bridal party.

-Tell them you will give them some time to really think about it. Then hang up the phone or change the conversation.

-Give them time to let it all soak in, no pressuring. They will give you the best answer for them. If they say 'yes' awesome now they know what they are getting themselves into. If they say 'no' please don't be offended. Sometimes people don't have the time or the money to really devote to being apart of your wedding party, doesn't mean they don't want to be apart of your special day.

Bridal Show Aftermath

This past weekend was the Hamilton Halton Spring Bridal Show at the Hamilton Convention Centre (January 2010), where we showcased a booth of inspiration for couples. We had such a great time chatting with excited brides and grooms and even some moms who were their on behalf of their daughters. We got lots of great positive comments on the booth which was decked out in chartreuse green, aubergine aka eggplant purple, white and pink rose petals. Some of the elements of the booth contained our new coloured LED lighting, upgraded satin fabric for backdrop and table linens, white chiavari chairs, antique silver crystal candelabra, silver charger plates, large crystal tree branch arrangements, all available to our clients to rent.

I wanted to share with you the now what following a bridal show. Now that all that craziness is over and you have all of your bags of loot, what should you do now. Here are some tips based on my article "Bridal Show Aftermath".

So your feet may be aching a little still, your head spinning from all of those people wanting to sign you up for something, you know what those wedding dresses in the mags look like on a real womans body... so now what do you do?

1. Take a day off to recouperate.

2. Bring out all of your loot, sit down together and start to sift through the content.

3. Keep in mind your vision (what your dream wedding looks like), your budget and what
vendors or venues you are still looking to book.

4. Sort out and group into piles the following vendors/venues...DJ's, Planners, Venues, Photographers, Videographers, Florists, Confectioners, Decorators, Limo companies.... etc.

5. Did some stick out in your brain? Did you chat with some and liked what they had to say? Put them on top of the pile. Or do the opposite, ones that were a definate no, put on the bottom of the pile.

6. The first places you need to look to book are your wedding planner, your venues for ceremony, reception and your officiant. Those would be the ones you first go through, visit their websites and set up consultations. Then your photographer, videographer. Your florist, decorator, confectioner, limos, DJs/entertainers. Don't do it all in one day though. You'll stress yourself out.

7. Start with one category at a time. View their website & their work. Do you like their style, are they within your budget. Contact them, ask questions. If you like what they have to say, set up an appointment. Work in threes. More than that it may be hard to compare.

Gearing Up For The Next Bridal Show

1. Come prepared do your homework prior to the next show, visit the vendors sites and chose who you want to go and spend some of your time with then visit their booth and ask your questions.

2. Bottle of water & comfy shoes.

3. Never go alone, there's just too much to carry. Bring your groom (tell him its not all girly there is food, tuxes, DJ's, photographers/ videographers that you need help and you need help lifting all of your heavy bags). If he absolutely refuses then bring your mom, sisters, bridesmaids, friends etc.

4. Bring address lables with your name, address, phone number, e-mail on them verses getting hand cramps from all of those ballots.

5. Bring a "no" bag. If you're like me, and can't tell people I don't want your stuff. No worries. You can still be polite and accept their stuff, just have a bag that is your No bag. Throw it in there instead.

6. Get the admission coupon to save a few bucks at the door. e-mail one of the vendors you are interested in and ask them if there is a coupon to save money off admission to the show. Every little bit helps right?

I hope these tips were helpful for you. For FREE helpful wedding planning tips check out my FREE report "10 Haute Tips For The Sylish Bride" or sign up for my bi-weekly ezine at www.stephaniethompson.ca. I don't share, trade or sell your e-mail information and you may opt-out at any time you wish to no longer receive it.

What Did Santa Bring You?

Happy New Year!

And just like that Christmas and New years is over. I want you to post a comment on what your fiance got you for Christmas this year or if you received any great gifts that were wedding related.

My Christmas...

Steve and I didn't exchange gifts this year as we wanted to go away for our anniversary at the end of the month.

Your Turn...