Real Wedding: Danielle and Jay

Danielle and Jay were married in a stunning ceremony last weekend, and the feel for their reception was "Modern Garden Chic." I am so thrilled to share these details and some behind the scenes info about their wedding!

It's a bit bittersweet to have this wedding over with, because I absolutely loved working with Danielle. She has an awesome sense of stye, and really wanted her event to have a modern feel, which is our specialty! She's also an alum from my alma mater Liberty University, so when she called me over the summer we definitely hit it off.

Please enjoy these STUNNING images from photog phenom Scarlett Lillian!

Getting ready at the ceremony site, gorgeous Riverside Baptist Church.

Doesn't she look amazing?


Jay and Danielle did a "first meet" before the ceremony so they could get some amazing pictures!


After the first meet, Danielle, Jay and the entire bridal party headed over to the Cummer Museum of Art and Gardens to get some gorgeous photos taken. (When we contacted the Cummer this summer, one of the only spring dates they had left was March 21st, so we took it. We couldn't have picked a better time of the year. EVERYTHING in the gardens was in full bloom!)




Danielle's color scheme of navy blue and bright green was so refreshing and fun.



Pat with Flowers by Pat did an amazing job with all the bouquets and arrangements. She knew we wanted an out-of-the-box look and feel and she definitely pulled it off!

I personally feel that Riverside Baptist Church is one of THE most beautiful churches in the city. I LOVE its the gothic architecture.

The ceremony was so meaninful and appropriate, as Danielle and Jay had family members who were ministers, and they officiated with a very personal touch.




We ushered their 200+ guests out to the front of the church to watch Danielle and Jay exit as husband and wife!

Back at the Cummer for the Reception, I brought Danielle up to speed on a few timeline adjustments.

First Dance!!

The reception room looked amazing! Specialty lighting, unique linens, and multi-height flower arrangements add drama to the room.


Danielle did a lot of the graphic design work herself, and the green and navy colors were showcased in almost all of the details.

Classic Cakes provided the beautiful and oh-so-delicious wedding cake!





Guests were treated to a fun green candy bar at the end of the night.

A few last portraits before the couple Jet-set to Jamaica to enjoy their Sandals Honeymoon!(This next one was taken with the full "moon." It was originally supposed to be floating above the dance floor via helium, but it was too windy that day so we had to mount it on a tri-pod. It still provided a cool glow to the evening though!


Other vendors who contributed to the event's success are Riverside Event Design (rentals), The Chef's Garden (catering), and the fun music was provided by Spike at the Beach.
Thanks also to my two interns, Ali, and Sonja, who helped make the event a success!

Congratulations Danielle and Jay! It was a pleasure helping you create your dream wedding. You two make a beautiful couple and I wish you nothing but years and years of happiness!

Q&A Monday: Careers and Employment

Wow. It's really Monday already? The past week flew by.

Ok so today's question is not really for brides-to-be. But it IS one that we get on an almost daily basis. (In fact, I got two emails today asking this same question.)

So without further ado, here's this week's Q & A Monday!

Question: I have always wanted to be a wedding planner. Do you have any positions available at your company?

Answer: The answer to this question is very complicated, so I'll have to answer it in steps.

First, yes, we do have several positions available. These are internship positions. (Which means non-paid.) We do not currently have any paid openings.

Now, with that being said, our internships are only available to a select group of individuals. These are individuals that make a good impression on us, and give off the air that they will represent our company well. These positions are also not available to those interested in starting their own event planning company. We are looking to add to our team, not train the competition.

For those still interested, here are several do's and dont's when inquiring about jobs with a wedding planner. (I know several prominent event planners have also written about this topic, and I wholeheartedly agree with and second everything they've published on this topic. But I just have to contribute my two cents as well, even though much of it is very similar!!)

1) Don't use the wedding planner's website contact form to submit your inquiry. We are currently in a recession. Everyone needs business. Imagine our disappointment to open up what looks like a potential lead in our inbox only to find it's someone inquiring about a job. So sad!

2) Please read over your email. Very carefully. If it sounds to us like a 16-year-old wrote it, we're probably not going to give you a call back.

3) Please do not send your email to "whom it may concern." Most planners have an "about-me" section. Find out who the owner of the company is and address your email to that person. Show you've done your homework.

4) Don't copy and paste the same email and send it to 15 event planners in town. Show the planner why you want to work with THEIR company above any others. Know something about the company, and express that in your email. Reading their blog is a good place to start.

5) Please double check your spelling and grammar. This is a professional business. Need I say more?

6) PLEASE please please don't tell us that you'd be great at this because you planned your own wedding. Every wedding planner I've ever talked to inwardly cringes when they hear this.

7) DO get some education. Join an association. (I'm a member of ABC and it has given me a wealth of information and tools to use as I continue to grow my business.)

8) DO be willing to work, unpaid, for as long as it takes to get your foot in the door. No event planner will be willing to pay a virtual stranger to help out at an event. There is too much at stake.

9) DO understand how seriously the owner takes their business. Wedding planning is our life's work. We've spent thousands of dollars and many years to build our businesses to the places they are today. We aren't willing to jeopardize that, and anyone who comes on board must be FULLY committed to upholding our business reputation.

10) Be persistent! If this is something you really want to do, work at it to make it happen. Just do it the smart way.

To read other planners' thoughts on this very topic, check out these posts:

"Becoming a Wedding Planner" by Saundra Hadley of Planning...Forever Events

"Why I Won't Hire You" by Terrica Skaggs of Fabuluxe Events

"Advice on Being a Wedding Planner" by Liene Stevens of Blue Orchid Designs

How to Spot a Bad Apple

My last post inspired me to think about the issue of the thirty-plus wedding planners here in Jacksonville. With all that competition, what's a bride to do? Who's trustworthy and who's not?

With that in mind, we came up with our top five tips for How to Spot a Bad Apple -- that is, who's running a legitimate business and who might not be?

Tip # 1: The planner has no website. In today's technological world, not having a website is like broadcasting "I'm stuck in the eighties!" It could also mean the planner is brand new and has not invested the appropriate funds to begin running a legitimate business. (This goes for other vendors, too -- I rarely even consider a caterer, photographer, etc. for my brides that does not have a website.)

Tip # 2: The planner's "portfolio" showcases "borrowed" or stock images. This one can be trickier to spot. Being familiar with your favorite designer's "looks" can help you spot when other planners have "borrowed" their images, marketing those images as their own. If you'd like to verify that a planner's images are from her own events, ask her questions about the images (albeit in non-threatening manner.) Ask questions like, "What venue was this wedding held in?" "Who was the florist for this wedding?" While they're not going to want to give away their entire vendor list, a legitimate business will be using photos of their own events and will be able to speak knowledgeably about those events.

Tip # 3: There's no specific "about us" info on their website. While this initially may not seem like a big deal, it begs the question -- why isn't this information there? No one wants to talk to a faceless company. We want to know that there is a living, breathing person running this company, we want to know their name, and we want to feel comfortable with that person. A photo is a plus.

Tip # 4: The planner is not a member of any professional organizations. While obviously not a requirement, by joining a professional organization, the planner is showing that they are committed to excellence and high standards. The Association of Bridal Consultants is an excellent place to start.

Tip # 5: A search through city records turns up zero mention of the company. Anyone running a business in Jacksonville (or anywhere for that matter) is required to go through the necessary steps to be considered a legal business entity. If you'd like to check through a list of Jacksonville businesses, there is a search engine here. Just type in the business's name, and the website will show you any records of that company.

Of course it goes without saying that no "research" beats an in-person consultation, in which you can form your own opinions about the person or company and your comfort level with them and their services. But if you're trying to avoid having 30 sit-down consultations, weeding out the "bad apples" using some of these methods is a good place to start!

Planners in other areas -- is your area full of bad apples? How do you deal with this?

Brides -- other ways you searched for reputable vendors? Let us know!!

Vent: Copy-Cat "Wedding Planners"

Ok -- so I hope in advance the tone of this post does not come across too harshly. But I need to take a moment to vent.

The Wedding Planning industry is a very transient one. There are SO many companies that begin this way: a girl plans her own wedding, LOVED it, and sets-up shop as a wedding planner because it just sounds SO fun and she's SO good at it. (Or maybe she just rented Jennifer Lopez's The Wedding Planner and thinks this career would be perfect for her!)

Great! Fabulous! Good luck, and we hope it works out for ya. A year later, an internet search of her company turns up nothing. Nada. Zilch. She's worked with a few brides, and discovered that it's actually TONS of work, and makes you very little profit, if any, for the first several years of business.

So, I take it all in stride when the lastest listings on Decidio.com or Onewed.com or some other wedding directory turn up 10 new weddings planners in the Jacksonville area. Some I'm sure will blossom into awesome companies, others will fade away as quickly as they started. It's just the nature of the beast.

But imagine my irritation, when looking over the website of one of these newcomers, I find the product/service descriptions to be almost word-for-word matches of my own service descriptions on my website. Oh, a few words have been changed here and there, but in a direct, side-by-side comparison of the two sites, the copycat is pretty obvious.

On the one hand, I guess I should be pretty flattered that my company is seen as one of the standard-setters here in Jacksonville. On the other hand, it's irritating. Extremely.

I understand that everyone has to start somewhere. Because I, too, was a newcomer, three and a half years ago. But I didn't copy other planners' styles. I created my own look, my own package offerings, my own pricing. And, I joined a professional association, ABC, to hone my craft. I've attended workshops, seminars, and conferences to better myself and my business. And I'm continuing to strive for new heights with my business. I'm constantly evaluating, reworking, and updating to be sure that my service offerings are innovative and relevant. So it's frustrating when other planners aren't putting in their own effort, but are trying to latch on to someone else's bootstraps. (Don't know if that's a saying or not, but it made sense to me!!)

On the brighter side, if you are considering a career in wedding planning, a great way to "test-drive" that desire is through an internship!

Flaire Weddings and Events is currently open for applications to our Spring Intership Program. We will be accepting applications until December 15th, so if you're interested, you still have two weeks to get that application in!
See the details here.

Good luck -- we'd still love to hear from several more applicants!!