We aren’t huge drinkers, but this afternoon, we decided to pick up a “sipping” beer which is what we call it when we just want a beer to leisurely hang around for the afternoon without risk of a hangover in sight.  Today we picked a nice German pilsner called Warsteiner (pronounced “Varstiner”) which was introduced to us by my beer loving brother and his German wife. 

Having had a couple of these delicious beverages, I feel the need to expound upon how alcohol factors into your wedding.  This has been a debated topic for us since day one.  We’ve considered so many options for the bar including everything between “cash” and “open.  If you’re not savvy with those terms, a “cash” bar would be where the bride and groom do not sponsor any drinks and guest are responsible for paying for what they would like.  An “open” bar is the opposite where the bride and groom are footing the tab for all their guests’ drinks. 

Arguments have been made for both sides with fans of the open bar accusing the cash bars of being cheap and fans of the cash bars accusing the open bars of being lushes.  So let’s get this straight up front, I can see reasoning for either side which is why we still haven’t made a decision about our own reception’s bar.  We don’t want people to be partying so hard that someone gets sick or gets into a fight or something, but we do want our guests to feel relaxed and taken care of while at our wedding. 

photo by Jennifer Schumacher Photography

Here are some pieces of advice that were suggested to us by our vendors, friends, and family:

-          Give a certain number of drink tickets out to your guests that will be sponsored by you.  One those have been “spent”, the tab is on the guests.  This route was chosen by one of my very best friends for her reception as she and her now-husband are non-drinkers so a fully hosted bar was not a priority for them. 

-          Sponsor beer only since it is the most popular and most inexpensive drink.  Suggested by my brother who loves beer, and my father who loves his dollars.  J

-          An open bar will encourage “experimentation” and half-drunk drinks lying around at the end of the night.  Noted by my wedding planner. 

-          You can figure on one drink per person per hour (including drinks) as a good estimate of how many drinks will be consumed.  Figure in your taxes and gratuity and bar fees, and figure out if your estimated bar tab falls within your budget.  Suggested by our event coordinators at our reception location.

In the end, we decided that we would sponsor a light beer, a heavy beer, a red wine, and a white wine while leaving mixed drinks and what not to be paid for by our guests.  While there will be a small percentage of guests who only drink a mixed drink, most guests will be pleased as punch to have a good beer or a nice glass of wine.  We are expecting about 125 adults and 25 kids, and our reception will last approximately 4 hours.  If we were to follow the afore mentioned equation, we would need to budget for 600 drinks.  With the prices quote to us, plus the tax and gratuity, it falls right within our budget range, so we think this is a solution for us…

What did you do to figure out the bar situation? 

Whew!  As the time is winding down towards our wedding, I am starting to feel the weight of my to-do list.  My major problem is that I keep adding unnecessary things to my to do list such as “make pinwheels for the kiddies”.  While I hope to get to the pinwheels (post coming soon), there are other things that just must get done and get done soon.

The above program is a from Etsy shop MTK Designs

One of those line items is that I need to create our programs.  Originally, I didn’t think that we were going to have programs, but then I thought of all the good reasons why programs are helpful…

1)       A keepsake not only for the bride and groom but also for the parents.

2)      It gives adults a rundown of what’s going to happen next and how many things have to happen before they can run over to the bar.  J

3)      It gives kids paper to draw on if they get bored.  Let’s face it…kids get bored, and programs are made of paper. 

4)      If it’s hot, the program serves as a fan.

5)      You can make the program fit into your wedding theme.

6)      If you and/or your fiancé do not especially care for the spotlight, it gives your guest something else to stare at rather than at you. 

So when I came to the conclusion that we’d be making programs, I thought to myself that at least I’d get to play around with the design and fonts and such.  I’m kind of a fontaholic.  I probably have at least five hundred fonts on my computer, and I’m always adding more.  You can get many for free at sites such as Dafont.com, which is where I found all the fonts for our invitations, programs, table numbers, etc. 

Anyhoo, once I had in mind the design and the fonts that I wanted to include, I became stuck.   What exactly goes into a program?  What do you have to have?  What is optional?  How should it be organized?  Here’s what I’ve gathered:

Things you might include: 

1)       There might be some sort of cover or title area where the full name of the couple, date, location, and maybe a monogram or design can be included.

2)      Generally speaking, the ceremony starts the wedding, and so the events of the ceremony should be listed next, possibly including: the prelude, seating of any important family members, vocal/music selections, processional, entrance of the bride, call to worship, statement of intent, prayer, scriptures/readings, charge to the couple, exchange of vows, exchange of rings, pronouncement of marriage, special parts of the ceremony (i.e. unity candle), blessing of the marriage, presentation of the couple, recessional, postlude, and a line inviting the guests to the reception. 

3)      A listing of the wedding party including:  your officiate, parents, grandparents, bridesmaids, flower girls, groomsmen, ring bearers, musicians, bell ringers, attendants, hosts/hostesses and possibly your wedding director and/or coordinator.  You may want to also list the relationship of your wedding party members to the couple. 

4)      A thank you to those who have helped or contributed to make your wedding day possible.

5)      Directions to the reception site.

6)      A dedication.

7)      Your new address.

8)      Special poems/scriptures/lyrics.

9)      Notes of interest.

10)   Explanations of special ceremonies.

11)   A brief story of how the couple met.

What you may NOT want to include:

1)       Generally, those who are paid vendors at a wedding are not thanked in a program, however, you may feel differently and can do as you please if you feel the need to thank people.

2)      Please do not mention anything about gifts, money trees, etc.  Not nice.

3)      Too much embellishment.  This is where I have problems as I love embellishments!  But keeping your program simple is probably a good idea.  Sigh…

4)      Keep away from hard to read ink colors especially if you are in a darker area.

My big mistake so far in this project is that I started to create our program before we’ve even settled on details for the ceremony.  So this weekend’s absolutely to do activity is to pick music and finalize the ceremony wording.  Then, I’ll keep strong and carry on with my fonts.  And embellishments.  I can’t help myself.  J

By the way!  A fantastic resource if you’re not sure about what to do for a program can be found on Martha Stewart’s Wedding site. 

Hello all, I've calmed down from my mini temper tantrum from last week.  Turns out, all I needed was a project, and boy do I have a good one for you this morning.  Today I am going to give you a play by play account of how a mildly frustration situation resulted in a really fun project that I got to do with my fiance that turned out spectacularly! 

A long time ago when I was first searching around the blog world, I came across this picture.  I thought it looked so cool to have multiple smaller cakes...very homey...very cool.  I loved the pedestal cake stands which seemed to make the cake look like giant decorative candles of some sort. 

So I started the hunt for pedestal cake stands.  You can find some really amazing ones out there if you're willing to fork over the price.  Check out this adorable 12" cake stand that is made by Vessels and Wares for $160.  It's beautiful, but $160 is really outside of my price range when I could just suck it up and rent a silver one from my rental company for like $20. 

So I kept thinking.  Then one day, another blogging bride posted this picture of her cake table which made me gasp for a couple reasons.  1)  Not only did she have awesome large pedestal cake stands, but they were also bright yellow which just so happened to be our color.  2)  I looked to see where she had purchased these lovely bright yellow pedestal cake stands only to find out that her father actually made these out of wood and painted them for her!  Awesome! 

So I started drawing some pictures and making a list of what I would need to make my own super cool yellow pedestal cake stands.  Then I super sweetly asked my fiancé if he would help me with cutting the wood as power tools give me the heebie geebies.  He was happy to oblige. 

So here we are.  We started with this sheet of pine (I think) that we got from Lowes.  I was going to buy a smaller piece, but my fiancé insisted that we get extra in case of mistakes.  I also bought some pre-cut and routed circles from Hobby Lobby, and some short staircase spindles from Lowes. 

Turns out that we ended up using all but about three inches of this stuff, so I’m glad we did.  We wanted to make one stand that was 16x16” and two stands that were 12x12”.  We also wanted to put a second smaller layer under the first layer to add some depth and some additional sturdiness to the top of the stand, so we also cut a piece that was 13x13” and two that were 8x8”.  (I didn’t take pictures when we were cutting the wood because I was being Helper Girl.  J)

Fast forward to where all the pieces are cut to size.  Now we are ready to make the edges pretty.  A raw cut piece of wood is just flat, and I wanted to add a curved edge like you see on molding pieces.  To do this, you need to use a router.  Don’t worry if you don’t know what that is because I had no idea.  Apparently my fiancé is some secret carpenter because he had all these things ready to go.  Basically a router takes a sharp metal bit and spins it around really fast which, when moved along a piece of wood, carves out the nice molded edge. 

This is what it looked like when we were done.  See all that feathery stuff?  Don’t worry…it won’t be there for long.  That’s where I come in.  Helper Girl took off her glasses, donned her cape, and became Sanding Girl.  Some simple sanding along each edge and side (don’t forget the nooks and crannies) will take off all the “feathers” and will make your edges nice and smooth and ready for painting.  I used 220 grit sand paper. 

Ooops!  How’d that happen?  To this day, I’m still not sure.  Don't worry...we'll fix it...

My fiancé came to the rescue again with some wood putty which is kinda fun to use.  You use take a putty knife or your finger and mush this stuff into any hole or gouge in the wood.  Then it needs to sit overnight to dry.  Then you need to go back over it with the sanding paper again. 

Okay!  We have perfectly cut, routered, sanded, and repaired pieces of wood that are ready for paint.  Before I put a drop of paint on these bad boys, I needed to get any leftover dust or debris off of the wood by running some tack cloth over all the surfaces.  Have you ever touched tack cloth?  It’s tacky.  I mean, you’ll need to wash your hands afterwards…it’s weird, but it does the trick.  Think of it like the ultimate Swifter. 

Now we are ready to prime.  This step is super important!  Wood is a porous material which means that it will suck moisture in rather than leaving it on the surface.  Have you ever seen an untreated deck verses a treated deck after a good rain?  An untreated deck looks soaked while a treated deck has water beaded on the surface.  Lots of people try to skip priming, but don’t you dare be lazy!  You’ll be happy in the end that you did.  Anyhoo, this is the can that I used.  I got it at True Value, but you can find it just about anywhere.  I can vouch for this brand that it worked really well.  In fact, I had started out with another brand that did not do very well, so I had to go out and spend more money to get this brand.  Gr… learn from my mistake and get the good stuff.

Here’s my wood all primed and ready for paint.  And this is where my awesome step by step picture taking ceased to exist.  My camera went through a melt down and refused to work, so let me just sum it up.  I used two entire cans of Valspar gloss yellow spray paint and one can of double glaze gloss finish paint.  I wanted to make the surface glossy like a ceramic platter and also food safe.  Note:  My stands are not glossy like ceramic, but they are pretty shiny.  Also, spray paint is toxic, so I plan on putting down a piece of wax paper between my stands and our cakes so that I don’t poison our guests.  Don’t eat paint chips. 

Then after all the pieces were painted, my fiancé came back in to play by attaching everything by predrilling holes and then using long screws to attach all the layers.  It’s important to do this carefully because this step will make your pedestal stands either steady or totally topsy-turvy. 

Here is our finished product!  They are exactly what I had envisioned, and I’m so happy with them!  I told my fiancé that we should quit our jobs and start a square yellow pedestal cake stand business. 

If you’re interested in making your own custom cake stands, here’s a summary of the materials that we used to make three cake stands: 

·         Pine plank from Lowes ~ $15

·         Saw/Router/Drill – If you have these, great.  If not, maybe you can hunt for pre-cut and routered pieces…I’m positive that they exist somewhere.  Or maybe you’ve got a friendly neighbor that would help you if you mowed their yard or baked them some cupcakes.

·         Sand Paper ~ $5

·         Tack Cloth ~ $2

·         Primer ~ $5 each can (I used two.)

·         Paint ~ $5 each can (I used two.)

·         Glaze ~ $5 each (I used one.)

·         Screws ~ $2

 So that’s it folks.  We are set for our desert table! 

But, I’m curious…where have you turned frustration into innovation by creating something for your wedding??  Share on the message board!    

Hear ye, hear ye!  I declare this post in the name of random wedding rants!  I know that brides are supposed to be delicate and demure and that grooms should be gallant and composed, but damnit!  Sometimes planning a wedding can be a little taxing.  This post today is in substitution of a therapy session.  You, dear readers, are my surrogate psychiatrists.  Here we go…

RANT NUMBER 1:  CONVERSATION AUTOPILOT

Do any of you brides and grooms feel that sometimes you’re answering the same questions over and over?  As our wedding has approached, I feel like I am having the same conversation on auto play repeat no matter where I go.  It sounds something like this:

Someone else:  Hey, your wedding is coming up soon isn’t it?

Me:  Yeah, it’s in (fill in appropriate number) weeks.  It’s coming so fast!

Someone else:  So what do you guys have left to plan?

Me:  Oh not much…just little odds and ends.

Someone else:  How exciting!

Me:  Yeah.

Don’t get me wrong, folks!  I’m excited to get married!  I love all things wedding!  I love imagining how the day will look and feel.  And it’s so nice to hear how people are excited for us.  I’m just a lil’ tired and answering the same question over and over tends to become automated.  Surprise me and ask me something unexpected like how does your cleavage look in your wedding dress or have you considered having a petting zoo at the reception?

RANT NUMBER 2:  SUMMER WAS APPROXIMATELY THREE HOURS LONG. 

At the beginning of our engagement, I would have maybe one wedding project a month which would be leisurely addressed, and I could change my mind a million times without feeling the time crunch of my impending nuptials.  Lately, time has become a precious commodity that seems to be dwindling. 

I’ve had a full schedule this summer of projects, contacts, parties, double checking, fittings, tastings, crafting, bartering, shopping, and blogging.  I still have things on my to do list!  Grrr!!

I remember thinking that I was so happy that I would be done with my school in the spring before we got married this fall because that meant that I could easily finish up any wedding projects this summer without rush or crunching. 

It seems to me that I’m the type of person who will find something to occupy her time even if she’s finished all her projects.  This is my own doing, and I need to come to terms that my to-do list will never end. 

RANT NUMBER 3:  PEOPLE ASSUME AN INVITE.

I’ll make this one short and blunt.  People should never ever ever assume that they are invited to someone’s wedding, especially if they are not a close friend or family.  It is just plain rude for someone to approach a bride or groom to be and ask them for an invite or tell them that they hope they’re invited to the wedding.  I cannot tell you how many people (who I think should know better) have blatantly asked if they could come to our wedding.  Who does this???  I know that weddings are exciting and fun, folks, but you really put a bride or a groom in an EXTREMELY AWKWARD spot when this question is posed.  It has some to do with whether or not the bride and groom likes you, but the scope of a guest list is also dictated by many other factors.    

RANT NUMBER 4:  THE “WHAT IF” GAME.

Unless a bride or groom specifically approaches you and says that they would like to brainstorm possible disaster scenarios and back up plans for their wedding day, don’t play devil’s advocate.  It causes unnecessary drama.  No matter what happens on the wedding day, things will work out.  If someone forgets something or stands in the wrong place, IT WILL BE OKAY.  So stop with the what if, and just let the bride and groom enjoy their time leading up to the wedding.

RANT NUMBER 5:….UM…….

Hmm…I guess I have no more rants right now.  My apologies for this unusually negative post, but I could feel these thoughts banging around in my brain, and I needed a cathartic experience to get them out.  I feel much better.  Thanks for listening as my verbosity ran amuck.  Now it’s your turn.  If you need to scream, scream.  If you need to shout an explicative in the middle of the mall, do it…in Swahili.  If you need to karate chop something, take a rug outside and beat the ever-loving mess out of it.  Then straighten your veil, get your nails did, and slap that smile back on. 

Tell me on the message board what you’d like to rant about today.  It will make me feel better for being so cranky in this post!  J

Oh, do I have a treat for you today, boys and girls.  I know that I often put teasing photos on my posts of places that only exist in our QCA imagination, but today, we have a bona fide luxury hotel property to show off that 1) IS in the Quad Cities, and 2) IS available for QCA brides!

Today on the blog, we are introducing the newly renovated Hotel Blackhawk which is simply a dreamy slice of posh sitting right smack dab in the middle of downtown Davenport.  Nestled right next to the River Center, the Hotel Blackhawk is in the neighborhood of places such as the Figge Art Museum, the Bucktown Center for the Arts, and the riverfront area. 

I recently had the priviledge to pick the brain of Tim Heim, the Director of Marketing and Sales for the Hotel Blackhawk who filled me in on just how this delightful place is going to be a much needed luxury property that will suit the needs of so many brides and grooms.  Check out all the juicy details in our interview below…

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JB:  When a bride and groom decide to book their reception with the HB, who will they be working with (also the person they should contact if interested in booking or a tour)?

TH:  For the time being, the couples can contact me directly.  With the opening of several hotels and the execution of QCA bridal shows, I have had extensive direct experience in the QCA bridal market.  As the Director of Sales and Marketing, I can say that the Black Hawk Hotel is positioned really well.  Our staff understands the bridal market and we are offering high end services and amenities.   Our goal is to  create fairy tale weddings to our QC brides and grooms. 

We are soon bringing on an event coordinator who will be a great addition to our team.  This person has worked at luxury properties in major tier cities and is very familiar with high end services and amenities in the bridal market.  Together, we have over  fifteen years of bridal experience. 

JB:  It sounds like the staff of the HB knows their weddings!  How does the HB property tie in to the “fairy tale wedding”? 

TH:  You should come down and take a look!  The HB is truly going to be a luxury style boutique hotel with an old meets new type of feel:  high end furnishings and amenities.  Our sleeping rooms have a modern feel and our atmosphere is similar to high end hotels in larger markets.  The Hotel Blackhawk will be a very unique property to the QC area. 

JB:  With not all weddings being the same, what size of weddings can the HB accommodate? 

TH:   We can accommodate any size of party!  On the larger side, we can hold up to 300 people for a reception, and we even have space on site for the wedding ceremony.  We have a built in stage for a dance floor and a mezzanine area as an overflow area for cocktails and hand passed hors d’oeuvres.  If a couple is looking to have a smaller wedding or if they are looking for a smaller space for a rehearsal dinner or other gathering, we can do that too!  We have the Club Davenport room up on the 11^th floor that can hold up to 60 people, and we have other break out rooms as well!  We even have an 8 lane bowling alley that can be used.

JB:  A bowling alley?  That is so unique!  I could see that being a really fun place for a bachelorette party!

TH:  Yes, or even if the couple wanted a place where children can  go hang out during the wedding. 

JB:  Great idea!  So many of our couples are looking for something different in their reception catering.  What kind of banquet is the HB equipped to host? 

TH:  We do all of our catering in house here at the HB.  We can do anything from a plated dinner, buffet, action stations, heavy hors d’oeuvres, cocktail receptions, brunches, gift openings, you name it!  If a couple would like to know more about our menu, they can send me an email, and I will send info along to them. 

JB:  It sounds like you guys can do anything!  Beyond food, what services are included in a reservation and what services can be added?

TH:  We have all the tables and chairs that a couple would require, and all of the tables will be covered in linens.  All the china and glassware are also included with their booking of the catering services.  We also include the cake cutting service in most of our bridal packages.  We also have some audio/visual equipment that the couples can rent. 

JB:  If there is a service that the HB doesn’t provide, for example a DJ, do you make recommendations for the couples?

TH:  Definitely!  I have worked extensively in the QCA bridal market over nearly a decade, and depending on what a bride and groom needs, I can definitely steer them in the right direction.  We have established relationships with many local vendors and will even help the bride and groom by making contact with the vendors when the wedding approaches to ensure that all details of the day are covered. 

JB:  What about services beyond a wedding?  What information should brides and grooms know about reserving a block of rooms for their guests? 

TH:  We like to make the wedding guests happy too!  A block of rooms can be reserved for a Friday or Saturday as needed.  All rooms include wireless internet, shuttle  service to the QC airport, and access to the pool and fitness room.  We have valet parking available as well as concierge service to help our guests feel at home in the QCA. 

JB:  Well it looks like you’ve got all angles covered!  If brides and grooms are reading this and are interested in more information on booking, how far in advance can they contact you?

TH:  The couples should call as early as they like to see which days we have open that can accommodate their needs.  We have our official opening this December, and we have already booked several wedding and events all the way through 2012!  We can also show brides and grooms some sample storyboards with swatches to help them visualize their wedding ideas.  We are still developing our website, but couples can have direct access to our services by calling me at 563.639.9124 or by accessing our Facebook page where we continually add information, pictures, and updates! 

JB:  Well what can I say?  The HB property is gorgeous, the service available is superb, and I’m definitely going to have to come down and try out that bowling alley!

TH:  Please do!  We are so pleased to be able to offer our QCA brides and grooms a high end luxury property that can accommodate any gathering with impeccable attention to details and service! 

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Talking to Tim was such a delight, and I can tell you that whoever decides to book their event with the Hotel Blackhawk is going to find themselves in very capable and stylish hands.  Give Tim a call or stop in to the Hotel Blackhawk after its grand opening in December.  Remember that you can book today, and with a property this hot, the dates won’t stay open for long!  Happy Planning!  J