Susan and Tom's Wedding at Second Empire!

Tom's mother, Jane, contacted me to see if I could officiate for Tom and Susan because she had been at the wedding of her best friend's son that I officiated. I love these word of mouth referrals. They had not yet set the date nor the location and we discussed possible times and places for small intimate weddings. They decided on December 12th at the lovely Second Empire restaurant where I do many weddings. They also hired my friend and colleague, Hollis Brown, of Cardinal Strings to play the violin for their ceremony. I then met with Susan and Tom to talk about their ceremony. Susan is from Mexico and was brought up Catholic so they wanted a fairly traditional religious wedding and with input from them, we created the perfect ceremony. 

The wedding was held in the East Parlor in front of the bay windows in which a pretty Christmas wreath was hanging. There were about 30 guests eager to see these two get married. I arrived alone for this wedding and asked one of the guests to take some photos with my camera and I thank her for these great images to capture the beauty and sweetness of this ceremony. In the photo above, Tom's father, Jeffrey was honored to escort in the bride on behalf of her parents who were unable to attend the wedding but we remembered them in the ceremony. Our best man was David and our maid of honor was Lauren.

After the pronouncement of marriage and the kiss, we closed with a prayer for Susan and Tom and their new life together.

See how happy they are! They were hiding in the West Parlor while the guests went downstairs to the Capitol Room for the reception when I snapped this photo. 

 

Back into the East Parlor for official photos which were taken by a family friend from out of town. What a handsome couple they are.

So here are the majority of their guests in one group photo. They are ready to celebrate. Tom's mother, Jane, is in blue to the left of the bride and Tom's father, Jeffrey, is behind Tom on the left. Tom and Susan seemed very devoted to each other and I wish them all the happiness life can bring!

This is Hollis Brown making beautiful wedding music! What an elegant touch for a small intimate wedding. Thanks Hollis.

Thanks also to Tracey at Second Empire for keeping everyone organized and ready to go. It is a pleasure to officiate weddings at Second Empire.

ISES, NACE, TBA Holiday Mixer at Crabtree Marriott!

On December 8th, three wedding industry organizations collaborated to produce a fund-raiser Holiday Mixer at the Crabtree Marriott Hotel. It also happened to be my birthday--how nice of them to throw a party for me! NACE is National Association of Catering Executives, ISES is an association of event planners, DJs and others in the entertainment business, and TBA is Triangle Bridal Association.  

The theme this year was a Dr. Seuss Christmas in Whoville. It was adorable and so cleverly executed. The clever invitation by Carol Klenke of Classic Party Rentals read:

Last night I lay sleeping all tucked in my bed

When the Who's down in Who-Ville popped in my head

GET UP! GET UP! They started to shout

The Holiday Mixer-it's coming and we JUST found out!

It's coming to Raleigh, quite soon we hear

It's such a success, it's in its third year

ISES, NACE and the TBA

together again for the big day

Toys for Tots will be there at the door

So stop what you're doing and get to the store

A gift for a child who might not have one

It's easy to bring and you just might have fun

DO IT! DO IT! Do what I say!

Click on the link and sign up today!

It's quick, it's easy, we've made it a cinch

Anyone can do it, EVEN a Grinch!

I do not remember the name of the gal with the Dr. Suess hat on but the lovely lady in the photo below on the right is Megan Brewer of the Renaissance Inn at North Hills where I love to do weddings. I also have the great honor to be officiating Megan's wedding in May.

 

Here are Lenny Fritts of Touch of Class DJ and Sarah March Litty  with Paperwhites Press in Chapel Hill.

 

I was delighted to see Marc Dabagian from Sisters' Garden and Catering, another great wedding venue. Marc and I have formed a mutual admiration society and love doing weddings together.

One of my favorite photographers, Brian Mullins, was partying tonight. He and Devon Schwartz from the Hilton RTP were busy filling their plates with the delicious food at the party when I stopped to snap this.

On the right here is another wonderful photographer, Bianca Palmer of A Moment Like This Photography. Her baby is due in January and she looks like she is ready to pop now! Her husband, fellow photographer and business partner, Seth, was home babysitting. On the left is another photographer, James Walters of Walters and Walters Photography.

This handsome guy is my wonderful husband, Dave Davenport. He is such a sweetie to go with me to events like this. He also subs as my roadie at weddings to take pictures. He grabbed the camera from me a few times this evening to get some shots of me, especially when I won a funny door prize that  had some stringent requirements.

 

I managed to catch Ryan Pflumm off guard for only one time this evening! He was all over the place, especially the dance floor. Not only is he a great DJ with Island Sound, but the man can DANCE! He is probably 6'6" at least and head and shoulders above the crowd. You rock, Ryan!

To get this photo, I interrupted an animated conversation between Ami Wheeler of The Umstead (one of my favorite venues and directors!) and renowned wedding photographer, Neil Boyd. It is so much fun to be on this side of the camera for a change, especially taking photos of the photographers who are usually shooting me at a wedding!

These are the Marines who were on hand to receive our donation of Toys for Tots. Handsome bunch of guys, agree?? I think they were having a good time too.

Donna Parks of Southern Bride & Groom was talking with Tim Oxendine of Blue Diamond Limos and Diamond DJ services. I think Tim invited a bunch of us to another holiday party later in the month.

Diane Tighe is in thoughtful conversation with someone here! She is so wonderful. We have worked weddings together for 11 years at the Washington-Duke Inn. She actually helps brides choreograph their processionals if they want something unusual and spectacular for their weddings. We have done some great weddings together. Great to see you Diane and you look spectacular in RED!

Our DJs and lighting experts for the evening were Jeff Simpson of Simpsound and Rick Bryda (not pictured) of Total Production Services, Inc. 

These lovely ladies are from left to right are Michele Allred of Triangle Catering and The Cotton Room, Alison and Julie of the wonderful Carolina Inn, another favorite venue for weddings.

Kevin Seifert, wedding photographer, got into the dancing once in a while! Go, Kevin! To the left you can see Ryan Pflumm and Joy Edwards (A Joyful Occasion) dancing. 

Brian Mullins again, and this time with his beautiful wife, Ginger, who is a professional make up and hair artist that I see at a lot of weddings. She makes the brides (and bridesmaids) beautiful and Brian photographs them! 

Next came the second set of door prizes. Tracy Adams of Adams and Events was our door prize MC. She called my number and I dashed up to the dance floor and was greeted by Peter Krumenacker of Island Sound DJs with a large polka dotted bag. Inside was a springy Dr. Seuss style Santa hat that was made for someone with a very large head.  I had to hold it on with one hand.

Then he handed me a tubular box to open that  had mistletoe glued to one end inside with a note to "Quickly kiss someone under the mistletoe!" Whoa....where was my husband? I could not see him but a cowboy jumped out from the audience lining the edge of the dance floor so I kissed him! (Turns out my husband was diligently taking these photos all this time.)

 Because I passed that test, Peter told me to find what was in the bottom of the tubular box which was a giant green chocolate kiss! Wait, there is one more thing!

The grand prize was a gift certificate for dinner for two at McCormick and Schmick, the new seafood restaurant at Crabtree Mall. Hey, it was all worth it! Scott Faber just posted a photo of me he took on Facebook with the silly hat on.

A good fit on my husband, Dave, and with a handy saftey pin taking a tuck, it fit me!

There were many more folks there that I did not get photos of. Jennifer Kidd of Kidd Photography just about burned up the dance floor! Tesh Parekh was busy painting a picture of the party. He is great and promised to send me a photo of his finished painting. Ashlee Adams from The Sutherland was there having a good time. It was good to see Gail Stephenson from Premiere Catering again. There are many more photos of the party by Scott Fabor on FaceBook. Go take a look.

What a great party. Thanks for all who made this possible. I understand that $1,000 was raised for Toys for Tots in addition to all the toys each guest brought. Looking forward to next year. Joe Bunn, I hope you can be there then. Unfortunately Joe was unable to come due to a family gathering that evening.

Lisa and Brandon Wed at Caffe Luna!

Lisa and Brandon were married on December 6, 2009 at Caffe Luna in downtown Raleigh. It was a wonderful wedding and the space was filled with their guests. Caffe Luna is a wonderful place to get married and have a casual but elegant wedding with the reception right there too. Ryan Hill, catering manager, was there to make sure everything flowed smoothly for the ceremony and reception. Thanks, Ryan. It is always a pleasure to do weddings at Caffe Luna.

Lisa was escorted in by her Uncle Joe who was a bit nervous but Lisa was such a beautiful bride radiantly sweeping down the aisle to her sweetheart!

Lisa and Brandon chose to have their guests facing the Hargett Street side of the restaurant and placed a drape behind the ceremony area for some privacy. The Christmas wreaths in the window remind us that it is the Christmas season. We paid tribute to their dear mothers which evoked a few tears and then asked their guests for a community blessing. Lisa was cool and calm until it came time for her to say the words to Brandon when they exchanged rings. She started choking up but after a deep breath she was okay. I could tell that Brandon just wanted to hug her and comfort her but I told him "no kissing yet!" which got a good laugh from everyone. We proceeded on to the pronouncement and then they kissed and I presented the newlyweds to their delighted guests. They wedding party and parents exited and the guests went to the two back rooms which were all set up for the reception. Then the staff started transforming the front room for the reception too. It was pretty busy and I joined the couple in the VIP room to congratulate them and get some photos.

Have a great time in Vegas, Lisa and Brandon! You are a dear couple and your love for each other is so evident. I wish you all the best ever!

This is one of the rooms in the back of the restaurant all set up for the reception. The owner, Parker Kennedy, is a dear friend and neighbor of mine and his talented wife, Nicole, painted all the wonderful paintings that hang on the walls.

Lisa and Brandon are big time Disney fans. See Mickey and Minnie topping the cake! They would have gone to Disney World for their honeymoon except that they had recently been there on another trip. So they decided to immerse themselves in the glitz and glitter of Las Vegas instead. This cake is by Lisa's friend, Melissa Taylor.

Melissa Taylor was also our wedding director. She did a super job directing the wedding party in. Here she is with Gene Raffel, our DJ with Gene's Mobile DJ Service  getting their cues lined up. Gene was really good to work with. Thanks, Gene and Melissa. Our florals were done by Ty Batista of A Floral Essence. Our photographer was Kelly Martin. It was good to work with her again.

See this Slideshow of Courtney and Denny's Wedding!

Hello! I just received a link to this fabulous slide show of Courtney and Denny's wedding that took place on November 7th done by their photographer, Robin Lin, and I thought you would have fun looking at it. http://www.robinlin.com/courtneydenny/

It shows the couple getting ready for the ceremony, the ceremony at All Saints Chapel and the reception at the Capital City Club. Looks like they had a great time! Notice the beautiful candles and fall leaves theme that is consistent with the altar decor at the chapel. Beautiful. Thanks to Fresh Affairs fabulous florals.

The original post of this wedding on my blog  is here. 

The thoughtful groomsman who sent this link to me is John Evans--the bald groomsman, he says! John was talking to a woman at Blinco's about starting his own wedding DJ business and this woman happened to be my daughter and so they made the connection with Courtney and Denny's wedding. John has been a DJ with a DJ company for the past 10 years and is ready to spin out on his own. He can be reached at johneraleigh@hotmail.com.

Where Do You Find a Wedding Officiant? Tips for Your Officiant Search.

I saw this post on the Wedding Bee Pro Blog tonight and thought I would share it with you. It is an excellent article; in fact, I should have written it myself!

Where Do You Find a Wedding Officiant? Tips for Your Officiant Search.

"I frequent the Weddingbee message boards, and one of the frequent questions I find myself answering over there is “Where do you find a wedding officiant?”

Sometimes I think the Wedding Industrial Complex has forgotten about the wedding officiant. I've met with couples who have been planning their wedding for 18 months – but didn't think to hire an officiant until three weeks before. Many couples worry about who is going to marry them if they don't get married in a church or a temple, or if they are non-religious or don't want a minister or a rabbi. The WIC tells brides that they need to match their bridesmaids’ dresses to their shoes exactly, that you need monogrammed napkins and signature drinks – but tells you nothing about customizing or personalizing your wedding ceremony, which is one of the most important parts of the entire day – otherwise, it's really just a party.

Here's the thing: wedding officiants and Celebrants are out there! And we want to perform your wedding ceremony – exactly how you want it to be! My weddings have NO requirements when it comes to their structure or content. Sure, I'll guide you in certain directions, based on my past experiences on what works, but you can basically choose exactly what you'd like to include in your wedding. It's always personal, and truly reflects the people being married.

And I'm not alone in doing this – there are Celebrants all over the United States (and a few scattered across other countries, too!) who want to work with you to create a beautiful wedding ceremony. You just need to find them! And we really do all that we can so you don't feel like you're being married by a wedding vendor or professional – we try to make it feel like you're being married by a friend (well, at least, I do). A friend who knows a lot about wedding traditions and the ins and outs of ceremony, that is.

So here are some tips when you begin your officiant search:


The best time to start looking for an officiant is when you decide WHERE your ceremony is going to be. Not only is it a peace of mind to know that you can be confident in your ceremony being as beautiful as your venue, but we also book up around four to twelve months before the wedding. We may not be available or able to put together a great ceremony on very short notice (but it can be done!)

Start by Googling “wedding officiant in [your state]” to find some jumping off points. You can also check out websites like WeddingWire that have reviews from real brides (i.e., we can't edit the responses) or TheKnot to see who is out there, too.

Schedule a meeting or phone call before signing a contract. There are some wedding pros that I think are OK for just one person to check out – but try your best to BOTH be at the phone call or meeting. All Celebrants offer a no-obligation meeting, and I think it's important to click and have a real connection with the person who is marrying you. [Personal note: my fiance and I met with a few officiants for our wedding. I spoke on the phone with one who I had a good connection with, but my fiance did not connect with her at all at the meeting - I was ready to hire her over the phone. Meetings are important.]

Ask good questions at your meeting! I find that I almost always answer all of my couple's questions in my initial wedding spiel, but here are some good questions to ask:

Are you legal to solemnize marriages in my state?
How do we get our wedding license? Who files it?
Can we customize the ceremony? Can we write our own vows?
Do you have a PA system you can bring, or a preference for amplification?
What do you wear?
Can we see the ceremony before hand?
How long are your typical wedding ceremonies? How long do you think our wedding will be?
Do you prefer to communicate via email or phone?
Is a rehearsal included in the fee? Do you recommend a rehearsal? Do you attend the rehearsal?
How early do you arrive on the day of the ceremony?
Do you stay for the reception or the rehearsal dinner?
Do you have a backup? What happens if you can't make it to the wedding?
If we forget to get the license, will you still perform the ceremony?
Do you provide props for the ceremonies (handfasting, unity candle, etc)?

I think you should walk out of your meeting with your wedding officiant excited about your wedding and your ceremony, with a clear picture of the ceremony in your head. A good officiant should be able to offer you assistance with your vows (either suggestions if you don't plan on writing them, or editing if you do), reading suggestions, and help with rituals you may want to include.

I hope this helps with the daunting task of finding a wedding officiant who is right for you. Have you found your wedding officiant yet? How did you feel after meeting him or her?"