I suffer a bit of post-partum depression, following each wedding. For a year or so, I interact with and get to know my couples quite intimately. Then comes the wedding day and poof! - they are off to married bliss and I am off to gear up for my next event. Afterwards, with Sarah and Brad, I certainly had the blues. I worked with them for over a year, and although they didn’t need much attention (they really knew what they wanted) I enjoyed getting to know them and their upbeat, sweet, friendly, dynamic even spiritual energy. I don’t think I have ever enjoyed coordinating an actual wedding weekend, as much as I did theirs. Throughout the entire weekend, they were just so cool, relaxed, sweet and fun, as were their family members and friends. I was hopping around Buttermilk Falls Inn and Spa like a bunny from task to task. I think too, a bit of my elation was because I knew I had a surprise for them, to take place during their reception. During our first meeting, Sarah mentioned her two dreams for her wedding day (1) to float in on a unicorn and (2) for them to sit in thrones. I knew there was nothing I could do about the unicorn (though I appreciated her vision) but the minute she mentioned thrones, a envisioned a pair of king and queen thrones sitting in the private party area of a local roller skating rink. I just knew I could pull this one off, but I did not let on. During the reception, when I surprised them, they sincerely just enjoyed it so much - they had so much fun with it. They spent the evening, at their sweetheart table, sitting in those thrones and they belonged in those thrones – they will always be my king and queen! The vision for their wedding was “to look like a bag of skittles threw-up all over the place”. There are a lot of avenues we could have taken with this vision and from looking at the color and design of the lanterns, the flowers and the linens, we obviously took the classy route. Sarah wanted the flowers to not only be very colorful but also have a woodsy appeal - stunning job by Steven Bruce Design. Oh and pumpkins – they wanted lots of mini pumpkins everywhere! Check out the adorable cocktail table pieces by Steven Bruce, where a fresh mini pumpkin acted as the container. Sarah’s bouquet was stunningly dramatic yet still “bridal” – you can’t help but just sit there and stare at the beauty of it (click each photo to enlarge). Nothing less for my punk Barbie bride! J. Ferrara was their photographer (these are of course all of his photos) and he was such a delight to be around all weekend. Jimi truly knows how to capture all of “THE moments”. Their ceremony was short and spiritual, celebrated by special friends Sacred Owl and Sacred Phoenix. I particularly loved their choice of music throughout the day and into the evening. Guests arrived to Native American instrumental (Sarah has a bit of Native American ethnicity) and Sarah walked down the aisle with her Cousin to Deja Vu by Enigma. Sarah & Brad recessed to Soy by the Gypsy Kings. Cocktail hour was enhanced by Latino instrumental and upbeat Caribbean music (Sarah also has a bit of Spanish in her blood and by the way, Brad is Canadian if you couldn’t tell by the groom’s cake and the adorable custom, local champagne bottle labels). Dining was accompanied by light Motown selections, as well 30’s & 40’s jazz. Dancing was a mixture of current and older club/dance music. They cut the cake to Harry Belafonte’s Jumping The Line, which I thought was super fun. DJ H2O had the dance floor packed! I usually do not care for DJ “give-a ways,” but those that DJ H2O created were really impressive from the package design to the way the CD included all of their great song choices, beginning with walking down the aisle through the end of the reception. By listening to it, you can relive the entire day. Sarah & Brad’s dear friend Courtney made all of the delicious cupcakes to be provided as favors. We found take-out cupcake boxes with inserts that carry two cupcakes and enhanced the boxes with a personalized label. There were three, seasonal flavors to choose from. Sarah’s Mother did an amazing job creating the programs, table numbers (zodiac signs) and escort cards. As always Main Course Catering presented a cozy and tasty dessert buffet and dinner was fantastic, as many guests commented. Guests had three scrumptious entrée choices to choose from: Duo of Duck, Braised Short Rib of Beef and Pan Seared Halibut Kombu. I have to mention that Sarah & Brad made a speech and toasted their guests which is always such a classy move, especially when there are a lot of guests who travel to attend the wedding. Everyone wants to hear from the bride and groom!
