Brides, I ask you the same question.

Here is my take and a plan to do something about it.

Pinterest is jam packed with the most gorgeous images. Brides scroll for hours sparking their imagination and fueling their wedding dreams.

BUT…

and this is a really big but. They have no idea of what some of this magnificent splendor costs.

Every week I see the look of shock and horror on the faces of the brides I consult with when they hear the price on the stunning bouquet that they just have to have or the floral chandelier or sky high centerpieces. It really isn’t their fault. The one thing you can’t find on Pinterest is pricing.

Here is my plan, I want to create a group of event florists from around the country, or the world for that matter to review one Pinterest image every week and price it out. Now I know no one wants to be quoted or held to a price, so we can do all this in private and I’ll just list your quotes by locations. Wouldn’t it be interesting to see what the same design would go for in New York vs California vs Oklahoma. How about urban center vs rural America.

Don’t you think this would make life easier for us floral designers if our clients were armed with a little reality before they set their heart on lining the entire staircase with floral garland?

Who’s in? No commitment to participate every week and I promise to not reveal your identity. You can also feel free to comment on the item.

I think it will be a fun and informative project. If you want to participate you can email me directly at Christine@thinklikeabride.com

To get this ball rolling

The post Calling All Floral Designers: Reality Check Wednesday first appeared on Wedding Dish.

Here is the thing, would you take on a major home remodeling project without hiring a general contractor? Of course not. I know, you are asking how are those even remotely the same. Let me ask you,

“How are they different?”

• Both have budgets in at least the 5 figure range. That is a LOT of money.
• In both instances you want a high degree of personalization. In short, you want YOUR dream to be executed.
• Both will require a long list of sub-contractors that you have most likely never dealt with before.
• Both require tight scheduling to make sure everything comes together on time and on budget.
• Both are going to have glitches and unexpected issues pop up that someone is going to have to deal with.
• The results of both are going to be with you for a long, long time.

Am I beginning to make some sense here?

All those things listed above are what a wedding planner does.

• They know which vendors are reliable and match your style.
• They help you translate your dreams to the people who are going to make them come true.
• They know all about how your venue works in terms of timing and convenience for load in.
• It is their job to keep that timeline on track so, for example, the flowers show up after the tables are set up, dinner is served hot and the MC know when to do the first dance.
• It is their job to keep all those sub-contractors working together on the right plan.
• They are there to look you right in the eye and say “Yes you can have that, but you are going to have to give up XYZ”
• They are there to handle those last-minute glitches and issues in a way that you don’t even know they happened.

There is a wealth of information online today on how to plan a wedding, but until you actually do it, you have no idea of everything involved.
Seriously, when you look at it in this light, why would you even think of not hiring a wedding planner for one of the days you are going to remember for the rest of your life.

Sure, I could watch HGTV, DIY Network, House Crashers and This Old House until my eyes bleed but one episode of Holmes on Homes or DIY Disaster will cure my ass of thinking I can remodel my kitchen on my own!

*To my wedding planner friends, please feel free to copy this to your own blog. All I need is that you leave the following attribution:

By: Christine Boulton

Wedding Dish

Think Like A Bride

…and of course hit the buttons below to share it on G+, Twitter and Facebook

The post Do You Need a Wedding Planner? Would You Remodel Your Home Without a General Contractor? first appeared on Wedding Dish.

Now how fun is that!

At the Campfire Ball benefit for Children’s
Oncology Services in May at Venue One in
Chicago, Cork Catering set up a make-
your-own s’mores station.

Photo: Gerber + Scarpelli Photography

While you are inspiring the kid in your guests, why not add an old fashioned soda bar.

At a promotional event at Skylight West in New York in June, Great Performances showcased its house-made sodas, ice cream floats, and handspun milk shakes at a soda jerk station.Photo: Mimi McCormick

p.s. This is a great way to end your reception. No one will notice that you have closed the bar.

The post S’mores! first appeared on Wedding Dish.

Brides.com announced a fun new toy on thier website, a virtual dressing room.

You upload your photo (they give you tips on getting that right)

Select your gowns and try them on to your hearts content.

Here is how they describe it…

Virtually try on bridal gowns and experiment with wedding makeup and wedding hairstyles to create your unique look. Choose from editor-approved gowns, celebrity-inspired styles, and more. Share your favorite looks online and invite your bridesmaids to try it out too—you can style your entire bridal party right from your computer!

Now it isn’t a replacement for the real thing, but it sure can give you a head start.

Why do I see a TON of wasted hours in everyone’s future?

The post Virtual Dressing Room first appeared on Wedding Dish.

If you have ever considered a photo booth but you thought they were to big, bulky and ugly, then you haven’t seen this.

Picture this Nashville is the photobooth with out the booth. Instead the system uses 21″ touch screen iMac computers specially created for Picture This.

I could tell you about this until I am blue in the face, but until you play with one you just won’t get it. I had so much fun at last Sunday’s bridal show, I kept grabbing friends and dragging them to the booth.

To find out more, vist their website. Go to their Facebook page to see a whole bunch of fun images from the booth (including yours truly) AND find out where they will be so you can see this set up for yourself.

You can try it out at the Put a Ring On It Bridal Show on Sept.25th

The post Picture This Nashville first appeared on Wedding Dish.

Linzi Jay will be intoducing these at The British Bridal Exhibition Harrogate next month. Can you think of anything prettier for a beach wedding?

The post Twinkle Toes! Foot Jewlery by Linzi Jay first appeared on Wedding Dish.

Who Is Your Customer?

I got to thinking about this today as I was following a fairly heated conversation on a couple of wedding blogs.

By and large, the customer base of wedding blogs and the wedding print media is wedding vendors, not the bride & groom.

Now think about that for a minute. Any information based business is going to advocate for their customer base. They are going to speak in such a way and feed their readers information that is going to enhance the position of their customers. Again, please remember, their customer is the wedding vendor.

What does this mean for the bride and our industry?

It means that today’s bride is being fed a steady diet that is not always in her best interest. She is being told what to do and what is hot based on what the wedding industrial complex wants to sell. Just take a look at the dramatic rise in staged photo shoots on wedding blogs. Yes, they are gorgeous, I won’t argue that. The problem is they aren’t reality, although they are often presented as such. Most are unreachable by the average bride. I hate to tell you, but not every couple is hipster or shabby chic. don’t even get me started on the wedding gowns shown in the major magazines editorial. I have ranted on that until I am blue in the face.

It is no wonder that today’s bride is turning to alternatives to wedding professionals. As heavily exposed as brides are to over the top weddings they are beginning to believe that they both will not be able to afford a “wedding” professional and that even if they could, said “professional”  wouldn’t listen to them anyway. It isn’t that they are exploring using professionals and deciding against it, they are looking for alternatives first.

Is there an answer? Maybe.

I think that every wedding professional out there has a blog, why not start using it to really advocate for the bride. There is this little thing called Karma. If you as wedding professionals start telling the truth, being an advocate for the bride, showing them that you do offer alternatives  they will come back. Not only that, they will see you as a savior, a bright light in the darkness and they will be your evangelists.

The post What Brides Need to Know first appeared on Wedding Dish.

To hear Jerry tell it, “I just do what I do.”  Um,did I say humble? Heck, he won’t even post his many award winning images on his website!  Uh, no my friend, what you do is fine art photography meets fashion photography like I haven’t seen before.

Take a look for yourself. All of the images are linked to the original post on Jerry’s blog. Check it out and send him some Dish love.

This is from the wedding that Jerry shot for the VH-1 reality series, “My Big Friggin’ Wedding!”

This is also from Alyssa & Tyler’s VH1 wedding. I love what this image says about the couple.

This is perhaps my favorite wedding image of all time. It just screams, “Anna Karenina”The size limitations of this blog don’t do it justice. Click the image to see it on Jerry’s blog.

Jerry isn’t for the couple that just want a record of their wedding. His is the bride that sees the art in the finest photography and understand that to capture it on this one day, that is all that matters. You can view Jerry’s website at Gerard Tomko.com.

The post Gerard Tomko: Fine Art Wedding Photography first appeared on Wedding Dish.

And last but not least, because nothing makes life better than cookies and a breath of spring..

The post Wedding Cake Inspiration first appeared on Wedding Dish.

Well now you do! Just go to the same place the pros go: the wholesale suppliers. You can be sure they know what’s in season when.

Mayesh Wholesale Florists are one of the largest suppliers of wholesale flowers in the United States. As such, they do not sell to the public, but their site is still a wealth of information; information from REAL experts for professionals. You may not be able to buy directly from them but you can still benefit from their knowledge and information.

I found this very handy Flower Library on their site. It lists flowers by color, by group and yes, by season.

What better place to get your information than from the authorities on flowers.

The post What Flowers Are in Season for Your Wedding first appeared on Wedding Dish.