Almost Perfect

Liz & Matt got married on Saturday. They had to get married at their church using the required Wedding Coordinator who they had to PAY additional for. That's right...they HAD to use her and they HAD to pay extra. Apparently, it was not a good situation with little miss church wedding coordinator either. The couple had made the decision not to have me there and to instead put all my efforts into picking up their wedding day items and setting up their reception at The Miller Room. Very smart on their part, but I sure did feel bad for everyone when they told me how horrible this girl was to work with before the ceremony.

Setting up at The Miller Room or The Harbor Lights Room is always a challenge. Mainly, because you are not allowed in until 3pm and even then the crew is just starting to put out the tables, chairs and linen everything. I use that time to unload my truck and haul it all into the room. These venues also do not allow you to drop anything off prior to 3pm so I make sure I wear sensible shoes on these days because there is A LOT of walking and lifting going on! Despite all this, it really is one of my favorite venues to work with. The staff is always great and by this time, we know each other so well and work in tandem to pull it all off flawlessly. Their staff truly lets me make judgement calls if need be which is rare, but very nice and helpful. They know that I know the couple and their vision better than they do and they trust that I'll make the right decisions.

It really was a perfect day for the most part. With only 2 hours to set everything up and the vendors included a 15-piece jazz band that meant a ton of people running around, at 5:30 we opened the doors and the guests were greeted with a room that was FULL of candlelight. It simply glowed and I must say...I did one hell of a gorgeous job. Their vision was candles, candles, a little floral here and there, and more candles. I must have set up more than 500 candles total and while it sounds like overkill, it truly was spectacular.

They did food stations for their dinner, which is such a great concept that no one ever does. I love it. It gives wedding guests something different than the same sit-down dinner that every other wedding does. It provides the opportunity for more guest interaction and mingling. It looks classy and high-end while still being affordable. Nice job Liz & Matt! The other unique concept to this wedding? A cigar bar. They did it themselves with a beautiful humidor, top notch cigars, cutters, matches, modern ashtrays, etc. All just set up nicely on a cabaret table for guests to enjoy and help themselves to. It was a hit!

Did I mentioned they looked gorgeous? They did. Her dress was to die for. Her chocolate brown color complimented the few floral centerpieces she had and by sheer coincidence went so well with the recently renovated Miller Room. Another unique twist? She had a male attendant alongside her two bridesmaids and he had two female attendants alongside his best man. This couple bucked tradition on so many things and it was such a fabulous event that I'm sure their guests will be talking about for months to come.

Oh, and one of these days I'm going to actually remember my camera so I can share pictures! I was so bummed I didn't have it for this one. I'm hoping Front Room, their photographers, will let me steal some pics from them.