It’s that time of year - and the rain has contributed to me being so blue…

Actually not talking about being soggy and wet or hearing about brides freaking out over rain on their wedding day…. {like those who didn’t hire a wedding planner}

The BUMPER crop of fresh South Jersey Blueberries is in- the HUGE amount of rain the past month or so has boosted the size and plumpness of the berries….at home I’m eating them daily and putting them in everything…

But for our brides - here’s a great summer martini to use for your wedding day….. (maybe just for the guests- let’s keep it away from your gown!)

Blueberry - Lemon Martini

1 ½ ounces -       blueberry vodka

1 ½ ounces -       vanilla vodka

1     ounce  -        lemoncello

2 Tablespoons    fresh blueberries

Muddle or crush fresh blueberries in food processor.

Fill shaker glass with ice.

Add blueberries, both vodkas and lemoncello to shaker glass.

Shake well.

Strain into a well chilled martini glass.

Float several blueberries on top as garnish.

Enjoy!

WE love when our clients incorporate fresh, local and seasonal ingredients into any of their menu items….

When Maura and I met a little over a year ago she was very clear on a few things…

“I want the wedding to be here on my parents property” and “I want the reception to feel like you were invited to dinner here at the house, sitting at the dining room table, and we went out and picked flowers for the table”

Being that the property had been part of a working farm with stone walls, a pond, barn, and spring house Maura also wanted to be as eco-friendly as possible…

After this Saturday’s wedding- when Maura kept repeating to her mom “mom this is just what I dreamed of…”

I knew we had done our job!

First we brought in EventQuip - it was a tenting job that had several revisions, additions and a ‘rain plan’. It was important to have a tent with 10′ sides and clear side walls to allow for the breeze over the rolling hills as well as to be able to see the pond and waterfall…

Dan from feastivities catering and their entire team did an INCREDIBLE job {especially the day of in the rain} - Dan worked with us to come up with things that lent to the homey feel like 8 foot wooden farmhouse tables, mixing different styles of wooden chairs, rustic table runners, carafes of water on each table and a self serve station of iced tea and lemonade with mason jars…

The food also reflected their desire for fresh, seasonal and local ingredients wherever possible.

Flowers by Elaine’s Flowers of Chester Springs really captured the feel of the property using lots of natural elements, and flowers found on the property which had been planted with TONS of beautiful local flowers….

Other natural décor elements rounded out the details - Christina Gargano-Lupo from our staff designed beautiful invitations, table numbers which fit into birch wood branches and escort cards which were all eco friendly {more about that in Christina’s post!}

Moss monograms and a wheel barrow of fresh flowers greeted guests at the end of the driveway (many arrived in shuttles)…

Soy candles in old mason jars, milk bottles and containers of reclaimed wood were used to decorate tables…

Wedding favors for each guest we evergreens they could take home and plant…

It was truly everything Mara dreamed of…

Other event professionals who made this day possible were:

Hair and make-up: Claudia Seyler

Lighting : Eventions Productions

Ceremony Music: French Creek Players

Cocktail Music: Douglas Mapp Trio

Reception Music: Silver Sound - DJ Vaughn

Valet Parking: Empire Valet

Shuttles: American Trolley

Videography: Video One Productions

Wedding Cake: Doughmain Baked Goods

And of course to Alison Conklin for the beautiful images…

As wedding consultants and as leaders in the Philadelphia market… we haven’t gotten this far by telling clients things “We Don’t’ Do”

However in this case I think you’ll forgive us…

     1. We don’t wear skirts, dresses or heels….

Sorry, I just don’t have the legs for it…

But you also won’t find any of the ladies on my team wearing them. We find that crawling on the floor to find guests earrings, bustling wedding gowns and carrying boxes for programs, favors and other assorted wedding ‘stuff’ is best handled in tasteful slacks and flat shoes.

     2. We don’t leave until the reception is over…

We’re there until the end of the night… the party is not over after the cake cutting for us.

Expect that you’ll see us packing up your personal belongings, checking in with the photographer and videographer when they’re done and saying good night to your guests as they leave…

     3. We don’t leave without saying Good Night…

Once your night is over and you’ve said good night to your guests - we excuse our selves, say good night to you, and your parents’ …

You’re the guest of honor and they’re the hosts of the party… we weren’t there as guests but we appreciate being invited and so after reviewing where we’ve secured all your personal belongings and gifts- we say good night, and thank you!

     4. We don’t eat your hors d’oeuvres…

We’re not guests at the wedding and don’t feel it’s appropriate to be taking butlered hors d’oeuvres or eating from your food stations…

It’s always a good idea {and appreciated} when you provide a meal for the wedding professionals {many will be with you for 10-12 hours}…. But we’re not there for the cocktail party.

     5. We don’t drink…

This is not our night off at the Continental - it’s our job, I’m pretty sure your boss doesn’t allow you to drink at work…. We don’t drink and request that the other event professionals working with us don’t either!

We don’t like telling our clients things we DON’T do…. But these stay in the rule book… it’s what sets us apart…

There stood Maura and Bill….

After adding extra tenting to cover the cocktail area, rerouting shuttles and moving the ceremony to a nearby church (backup plan “D”) and wedding professionals loading in with a driving rain….

The stood on the front lawn where they were to be married, the pond and the waterfall in the background -smiling into the sun and everything was as it was meant to be…

These photos by the INSANELY AMAZING Alison Conklin and her husband Geoff made the entire day look like it had been sunny, warm and picture perfect…

This slideshow chronicles the day … as you’ll see there was only one song Maura wanted to reflect her day

Seems KYW News Radio is running sound bites from an interview I did yesterday with reporter Hadas Kuznits….

Experts Examine Economic Impact on Wedding Season

Her interview focused on the fiction that doing an “At Home” wedding is a great way to cut expenses…

While it could be… we discussed the fact that you can be building everything from scratch- and unless you have focus and prioritize; you can allow the cost of tents, generators, bathrooms, tables, chairs and everything else needed could spiral out of control…

One again the focus is -

Know what you want for your wedding, what’s important to you as a couple and what things you will and won’t spend on…

Philadelphia Daily News and KYW in the same day… now that’s sweet!