::Disclaimer!  The photos in this post are purely inspirational and not from events that Wish Special Events has planned or coordinated unless denoted by a link to another wedding on this blog.  We can re-create what you see below for your event but these are not a part of our portfolio::

Ah, New Year’s Eve.  Some people go skiing, some people go to black tie parties, some people spend it drunk at a bar or, as we did when we were little kids, lighting sparklers and banging on pots and pans.  (Did other people do that?  Or was my family just weird?)  Some people, though, spend it getting married!  New Year’s Eve is all about celebrating new beginnings, so a New Year’s Eve wedding is PERFECT for that!  And what better way to make sure your friends and family are all around when the clock strikes midnight?!  Here are some great touches you can use for your New Year’s Eve wedding.

How cute is this idea, to put centerpieces in a champagne bucket?

Holiday ornaments can be put to great use for a New Year’s Eve wedding.  And not on a tree!

Martha Stewart Weddings:

Clocks are also a great way to decorate your space for the night (Martha again)

Taste of Home:

And, of course, you have to have noise makers around for your guests for when the clock strikes midnight!

When I think of New Year’s Eve weddings, I think silver and gold.  Sparkly touches are perfect for New Year’s!

I wish I remembered what blog I got this from — too cute!

I love this idea of everyone writing their resolutions and hanging them on the tree

Cute gold touches from one of my favorite party supply web sites, Plum Party

Martha Stewart Weddings:

You can even wear cute silver and gold touches like this bride’s gorgeous dress, photographed by Meg Baisden:

Or these hot gold shoes:

Or this ADORABLE flower girl’s shoes from Rachel at Millie Holloman Photography:

And of course, you have to end the night with the perfect send off, whether it’s a balloon drop:

A confetti drop (from Jessica Claire)

Or, of course, sparklers!

Millie Holloman Photography:

So what are you doing New Year’s Eve?

WAHOO!  For the third year in a row, Wish Special Events has been included in Washingtonian Magazine’s best wedding vendor list.  This is no small deal, folks.  Washingtonian Magazine has been publishing this list for quite a few years and has really become the gold standard in the DC area.  We’re thrilled to be included yet again!

Here’s what they had to say about our team:

Sounds like us, right?  They hit the nail on the head.  I’m really fortunate to have such a wonderful group of planners on my team.

A special round of applause goes to all our (friendly) competitors who also made the list.  We’re honored to be included amongst: Aimee @ A. Dominick Events, Alexandra Kovach, Atrendy Wedding & Event Co, Sara @ Bella Notte, Bonnie Schwartz & Co, Alex @ Cherry Blossom Weddings & Events, Creative Parties, Distinctive Events by Susan B. Katz, Katie @ Elegance & Simplicity, Laura @ Engaging Affairs, Events by Andre Wells, Events by Ayran Kanter, For All Occasions, Jodi @ Jodi Moraru & Associates, Michele Hodges Events, Party Portfolio, A Perfect Wedding, Pineapple Productions, Rave Reviews, Maria @ Ritzy Bee Events, Sandi Hoffman Special Events, Jamie @ Simply Chic Events, Sara @ Social Scene Events, Soco Events, and Terri Bergman Events.  Congratulations everyone!  We did it!

I have a few extra copies of the magazine and would be happy to mail one to you.  The first five commenters below will get a copy!

We’re so excited to announce that Hallie & Matt have been published!  Their July wedding at Glen Echo made it into the sparkling new Eco-Beautiful Weddings magazine which was just released this week.  The e-zine focuses on environmentally friendly wedding ideas without compromising style, design, or quality.  There are some gorgeous things in this baby!

Best of all?  The magazine is ONLINE which means you don’t need to drive to a store to pick up a copy.  Just click here to flip through the pages in your browser!  What could be easier?

While you’re there, be sure to check out Hallie & Matt’s wedding on pages 102-104.  Here’s a sneak preview:

Our congratulations goes to Rebecca Dick, a WishPlanner who coordinated this event.  This is Rebecca’s first published wedding and we’re so proud of her!

Another huge round of applause goes to our friend Katie Martin who poured out her heart and soul for this magazine.  A ‘green’ wedding planner since before it was trendy, Katie really knows her stuff and is passionate about sharing her eco-friendly advice with the wedding industry.  We glad we could be a part of it, Katie!

PS – for more eco-beautiful ideas, check out the blog!

If you’re mailing save the dates, wedding invitations or even your holiday cards any time soon, I just thought I’d share this  bit of information I learned the hard way from the United States Postal Service.

I’ve been doing save the dates, shower invites, bachelorette invites and wedding invites for friends, family and clients for years.  Often times, these include some sort of knotted ribbon.   This is particularly popular on Save the Dates (tying the KNOT).   I did a variation on this for my own holiday cards/Save the Date, which I’ll share more on in a later post.   My STD is a simple cardstock-weight folded card with a ribbon in it.  I’ve sent similar designs out many times before without paying extra postage, so I didn’t worry about getting a sample STD weighed at the post office first.  Here’s a shot of our Holiday/Save the Date cards to give you a general idea of what they looked like before going into envelopes:

After stamping all of my envelopes with a festive Christmas stamp, I waited in line at the Georgetown post office to ask them to hand cancel my box of envelopes so they had a nice DC postmark on them.   Apparently, USPS folks don’t like to hand cancel very much because I was immediately given a hard time.   Then she informed me that it would cost $.20 extra to mail each envelope because of the “bump” (the bump being the knot on the ribbon).  She told me if I mailed them, either my guests would receive an envelope asking for the additional $.20 in order to deliver… or they would be returned to me a full two weeks later with a stamp that says “insufficient postage.”    Since this was the first time I’d ever been told this, I left – WITH all of my Save the Dates in hand.

I returned to my local Virginia post office the next morning and decided to mail a few, make sure they arrived, and then would return to mail the rest.   A gentleman working at the post office stopped me as I was putting the envelopes into the mail slot (I had given up on hand canceling for these) and asked to see one.  I handed one over and to my surprise (and dismay), he also told me that it would cost an extra $.20 to mail each envelope due to the bump.   He repeated the info about the addressee having to pay the difference or that they would be returned to me two weeks later.

!?!?!?!?!?!?!

I asked if this was new and the gentleman informed me that they started enforcing it with the last rate increase in the spring.    Since I don’t want my guests to be charged to save the date, I proceeded to the counter to purchase $.20 stamps.  Of course, they only had $.10 stamps, so my cute STDs looked like this by the time the USPS got done with them:

I returned home, and did some research on the internet.  It is very hard to come by, but I did find this info on the USPS site:

“Letters that meet one or more of the nonmachinable characteristics… are subject to the $.20 nonmachinable surcharge.”

As it turns out, non-machinable characteristics include ribbons, bows, buttons, embellishments (that are common on holiday cards!) and even things like STD magnets inside the card.

Here’s my best advice on how to avoid getting caught off-guard:

1.) Check with your stationary designer on whether your design will require extra postage.   If it’s heavier than 1 ounce, is a square shape, is addressed vertically (instead of horizontally) or has the aforementioned embellishments that cause a “bump” in the envelope, you might have to pay more.

2.) Double-check with the post office by bringing a sample in BEFORE purchasing stamps, or possibly before purchasing the STD, invite, etc…

3.) If you do require extra postage and want to avoid having 2 or 3 stamps on your envelope, be sure to purchase stamps in the right amount.  You may find that sites like Stamps.com or Zazzle.com are very useful in that you can design your own stamp with the exact value required for your envelopes.

4.) Skip the embellishments if you want to save money.    There are ways to “tie” ribbons without a bump.  I’ve already mentally changed my DIY invitation design to include a bump-less ribbon!

I know this isn’t the usual post filled with swoon-worthy inspiration that most of our blog reader enjoy the most, but since ’tis the season for snail mail, I thought some of you out there might find it helpful since the USPS doesn’t promote awareness of this new charge.   Have any of you experienced similar problems with the USPS?   Please share to help your fellow readers avoid the same situation!

Until next time… happy mailing!

Remember Lindsay & Josh from their wedding back in September?  I just HAD to share some of the professional images I got back from Freed Photography.  Here’s our stunning bride:

These two make such a lovely couple:

Lindsay & Josh had a HUGE bridal party!  TWELVE bridesmaids.  Count ‘em!

Somehow Lindsay found twelve absolutely gorgeous friends:

Here are some beautiful images of the reception at the Omni Shoreham hotel in Washington, DC:

….and of course our beautiful lace-covered cake!  You could smell the sugar from three feet away:

Menus by The Dandelion Patch:

Congratulations again, Lindsay & Josh!

For more information on this wedding and the vendors who pulled it together, check out our original blog post on Lindsay & Josh’s wedding.

::Disclaimer!  The photos in this post are purely inspirational and not from events that Wish Special Events has planned or coordinated unless denoted by a link to another wedding on this blog.  We can re-create what you see below for your event but these are not a part of our portfolio::

I LOVE Winter Weddings.  The temperature is perfect for those of us (aka me) that hate the heat, it gets dark early, allowing for tons of candlelight, and if you’re lucky enough to get snow, it makes for AMAZING pictures!  Today we’re going to look at some great ideas for winter weddings.

The first question, of course, is what are you going to wear?  Well, if you’re the bride, there are lots of great options, including some gorgeous long sleeved dresses out there.  My sister wore this amazing dress, which is strapless, but has a beautiful long sleeved overcoat, from David’s Bridal, for her December wedding:

(Hmm…I wonder if she’ll let me wear it if I ever get married??)

There are also lots of gorgeous shrugs, wraps, and sweaters out there.

(Gorgeous bouquet too, right?!)

Martha Stewart Weddings:

Life on Prints via The Knot

(Yet another gorgeous winter bouquet!)

Grazier Photography:

And how cute are this bride and her bridesmaids in matching fur wraps?

I love the color of the bridesmaids dresses for winter as well.  Grey can be SO pretty!

Speaking of bridesmaids, there are some great options out there for winter weddings.  Ice blue, a pretty green, red, black, or the aforementioned grey are all great colors for winter.

Michael Bambino Photography:

Jennifer Lindberg Weddings:

Altura Studio:

Perfect Bound:

(How much do I LOVE the grey tights?!)

Shelby Leigh Photography:

Of course, guests need to stay warm too — here’s my friend Coralie and I at a friend’s winter wedding.  I LOVE that green wrap!!

Speaking of Karen’s wedding, look at the gorgeous centerpieces she and her mom came up with:

Centerpieces are a great way to bring the season into your wedding.

Amy Martin Photography:

Can you tell how much I love cranberries as decor?  LOVE this centerpiece photographed by the Weibners:

Martha Stewart Weddings:

And how cute would this be as a centerpiece, from Paper Source!?

Yes, that’s made of PAPER!!!

Centerpieces aren’t the only decor at your wedding, though.  Here are some other great winter touches:

Martha:

More Martha:

(I love the idea of blankets used as decor!)

More cranberries!

Erik Ekroth Photography:

Snippet and Ink:

OMG, how GORGEOUS is this curtain of HAND FREAKING MADE snowflakes from Bugs and Fishes?  How beautiful would this be over windows at your reception venue?

Of course, having your wedding right before Christmas is great if you’re looking to save on decor — a lot of places, such as churches, hotels, and historic venues, are already decorated for you!  (Again, my friend Karen’s wedding):

And finally, we can’t forget about gorgeous winter bouquets, like this one photographed by our friend Kate Headley:

LOVE this bouquet from the Carolina Herrera Spring show:

Jeff Reeder Photography:

A Bryan Photo:

Are you having a winter wedding?  What colors are you using for the season?

Hi all!   I know it’s been a while since I first announced my big news, but we’ve been busy with tastings, meetings and contracts so that we can relax over the holidays.  Now I’ll have to catch you up on my plans!

When it came to picking a location, I have to say that it was an easy choice for us.  As a wedding planner, I’m pretty familiar with most of the DC area’s venues, and there are some amazing options.  But our choice was just PERFECT for us.

A few months ago, I went to go see a children’s theater production at Glen Echo Park with a friend.   I fell in love with both the park and the carefree feeling I got as I walked around.  What surprised me the most is that I’ve somehow lived in the DC area for seven years before visiting this hidden gem that’s INSIDE the beltway!   My fiancé and I try not to take anything too seriously and love being outdoors.  So when I brought him back to this old art-deco amusement park with a running carousel, he was sold as quickly as I was.   It’s the perfect backdrop for a chic and whimsical wedding with some very personal vintage flair.  We’re confident that our guests will be comfortable just being themselves (no tuxes or sequins required!) and will remember the day long after the last dance.   Some of our longtime blog followers might remember that we did a venue spotlight on Glen Echo Park way back when Wish Special Events was Soiree Special Events!  Here is the sign at the front entrance to the park, which overlooks an old trolley that is parked there, seemingly freezing a moment in time.

Weather permitting, our ceremony will be held outside on a grassy tree-lined grove in the center of the park.  But in the event that it’s raining or too sunny, we will be married underneath this Cuddle Up Pavilion, which is the structure that used to house the Tilt a Whirl! 

Guests will be able to explore the park and take a ride on the carousel in between the ceremony and reception.  I’m not a carousel expert or anything, but I have to say that this carousel is beautifully restored and is sure to make any rider feel as happy as John and I will be on that day.  This gorgeous night shot of the indoor carousel is courtesy of Michelle Lindsay Photography.   

When the fun begins, we will be in the Bumper Car Pavilion… a covered structure with fantastic hard wood floors that used to house the… you guessed it… bumper cars!     That’s a coincidental nod to my fiance’s love of all things with wheels.    He’s more in to the motorcycle, truck and racecar variety… but since we couldn’t (read: wouldn’t) get married at a racetrack, this is a pretty good compromise.  This photo is courtesy of Documentary Associates, who were the photographers that worked with Rebecca on Hailey & Matt’s Glen Echo wedding in July 2009.

This park has a LOT of history to it and the friendly park rangers are more than happy to give tours and share this history with anyone that’s interested.   Here’s a picture of the Bumper Car Pavilion when it housed the Dodgem Scooters:

A few other points about this park that makes it perfect for us:

1.)     At one point, this was considered a branch of the Chautauqua Institution.  The original Chautauqua Institution still exists, is one of my favorite places to visit and served as my home for two summers that I worked at its theater company.   Since I’m hugely into the arts (studied voice in college) and Glen Echo  still serves as a home to many artists, I feel a particular connection to the park.

2.)    The park only allows wine, beer and champagne… no liquor.  While some might see this as a downfall, I embraced it as a budget-friendly way to offer adult beverages all night.  Plus, our quick mental review of our guest list proved that most are beer or wine drinkers anyways.

3.)    We chose August 2010… both because of availability and because we’ll receive off-season rates.   I know what you’re thinking:  an outdoor August wedding in DC?   Are you crazy?  Well, maybe a little bit, but we’re also smart.   We’ve having the wedding later in the day after the sun goes down so it won’t be unbearable.  And if it’s a little warm, guests will dress accordingly and we’ll still celebrate just the same.   Let’s face it:  it doesn’t matter what time of year you choose, if you’re having an outdoor wedding in DC, you’re at the mercy of some of the most unpredictable weather I’ve ever experienced.   So you might as well do it at a lower rate when possible!

That’s all for today.   I’ll be back soon with posts on building a wedding website and our DIY Save the Dates!   I’ll leave you with one more shot from Blink Photography of a couple dancing in the Bumper Car Pavilion.  I L-O-V-E the hard wood floors, the geometric patterns in the ceiling and the natural light shining through!

Be back soon!

M.J. and Corey were married in October in a gorgeous ceremony at one of the nicest hotels in DC, The Mandarin Oriental.  Lara Swanson, their AMAZING photographer, was kind enough to share some of the beautiful shots she captured that day:

LOVED M.J.’s gorgeous bouquet, compliments of one of our favorite florists, Petal’s Edge:

A family friend of M.J.’s, who just happens to be the White House Calligrapher, helped design all of the printed materials:

My favorite string quartet, Cherry Blossom Strings, performed for the ceremony and the cocktail hour.  You’ll see their violist’s wedding in a few months, as we’re coordinating hers in January!

The adorable flower girls making their way down the aisle:

M.J. and her dad in the gorgeous light of the day.

LOVE this shot taken from the balcony of the bridal suite at the Mandarin:

It’s lovely when brides pick a color for their bridesmaids but then let them choose a dress that fits their personality and body type.  M.J.’s ladies all looked wonderful.  Here are more beautiful bouquets from Petal’s Edge:

How cute is the flower girl, trying to get a peek of the first kiss?

I really loved the straps on her gown:

Cute shoe shot:

Beautiful calligraphy by Bonnie Jean Eastep (email me if you need contact info!)

Beautiful cake from Kendall’s cakes:

More great touches:

This band was AMAZING.  The John Winntet is based out of Richmond, and I HIGHLY recommend them.  These guys rocked the house with everything from smooth standards to Jimmy Buffett:

Corey is an incredibly talented pianist (in fact, he was playing on stage the first time he and M.J. saw each other).  The John Winntet set up a piano so that Corey could jam on a few songs with them!

Adorable cookie favors sent the guests home at the end of the night, provided by Bundles of Cookies in Bethesda (the bride says to tell you she highly recommends them!).

Congratulations, Corey and M.J.  Have fun in Brazil for your New Year’s honeymoon!

I just beam when I see lovely letters come in from our brides about our team.  Of course I know we do a great job for our clients but it’s nice to be reminded now and again.  Here’s a fabulous letter from one of our October brides that I couldn’t help but share:

Hi Cristin!

We’re just back from Grand Cayman (I actually kissed a stingray!!) and I wanted to write a quick note to say a HUGE thank you for everything you did to make our day so awesome!!!  We truly couldn’t have done it without you!!  I know people always say that, but this time it is really, really ture!!  You made everything run so smoothly and we all felt so comfortable with you organizing the day!  From your quick, helpful responses to emails when we were far out, to communicating with vendors the week of, to lighting a million candles, tipping folks at just the right time, fixing my mistakes on guests’ names (oops!), and keeping us on schedule throughout the night, you were fabulous with ALison, our flower girl, and that wand was perfect and taking her to get her sundae first!  Her parents were so impressed with you and your skills.  You’re AWESOME and I “wish” I knew someone getting married soon so I could recommend you to them right now!!!  I’ll be singing your praises for a long, long time!  You made our wedding a success!!

All the best & much love,

Holly

Thanks for your note, Holly!

::Disclaimer!  The photos in this post are purely inspirational and not from events that Wish Special Events has planned or coordinated unless denoted by a link to another wedding on this blog.  We can re-create what you see below for your event but these are not a part of our portfolio::

There are plenty of aisles that need no decoration at all.  A gorgeous church or synagogue, a beautiful ceremony setting amongst the trees, or a scenic beach doesn’t have to have flowers or candles to make it perfect — it already is! However, even amazing locations like these can be spruced up by some great aisle decor.  Below are some great ideas for decorating your walk down the aisle.

First up we have pew decor — you don’t have to use boring pew bows, we promise!

Martha Stewart Weddings:

I think buckets are a really cute idea:

But these flower baskets are great too!

Outdoors, you have even more options!  You can decorate your chairs or benches in a variety of ways.

Sherman Chu Photography:

Love Life Images:

More buckets!

More Martha:

Rather than decorating the chairs or pews, you can decorate the aisle as well:

Laurel McConnell Photography:

I LOVE decorated aisles like that!  Rose petals can go a long way, but you have to use lots of them, like this:

(Photo from Sedona Bride:)

Martha Stewart Weddings:

More great aisle decorations that can go on the ground.

Emilie Sommer:

Millie Holloman Photography:

Shepherd’s Hooks are also a great and easy way to decorate your aisle, like these next few pictures from The Knot:

Shepherd’s Hooks are so versatile!  They can hold flowers in vases or jars:

Pomanders:

Genevieve Leiper from Danielle & Ryan’s wedding:

Lanterns:

Or even these adorable chandeliers, photographed by Jasmine Star:

How are you decorating your aisle?