Naturally Chic

I was so thrilled to get the mail today. I love mail at this time of year with all the Christmas cards, letters and family photos that come rolling in. Today I got an envelope thicker than most and couldn't wait to open it. Sharon, from Naturally Chic sent me the most amazing gift.



Sharon is amazingly talented and engraving on wood is one of her specialties. When my daughter was born, she made her a beautiful keepsake box with her name and birthdate on it. We use it to keep cards my daughter has been given. Today, we received a precious ornament, made by Sharon with a photo of my baby girl on it. It is truly a precious keepsake that we will treasure forever. I was just talking with a friend today about wanting to buy Grace a "First Christmas" ornament - and this one is better than anything I would have found.
Thank you, Sharon for being so thoughtful and thinking of us this holiday season. You are a great friend, inspiration and colleague in the wedding industry. Naturally Chic is going to go great places because of who you are and what you can bring to other people's lives. I cannot wait to see your website go live in 2010 and wish you all the best. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

I am sorry the photo doesn't do it justice - I have to try again in the daytime. I was just so excited to share it with all of you!

Photo Walk

Back in September, I joined Scott & Jaime from Scott Gage Photography to walk some streets in Calgary taking photos. This photo walk was just that - walk and take photos. You don't have to even know what you were doing (I sure didn't!). It was so fun to see the photos that the other participants took and submitted to Scott to post on the Calgary Photo Walk blog.

It is amazing to see the different points of view, items and focal points that each person took a photo of. We were challenged to take an abstract photo as well. It was a great time, a chance to learn and challenge yourself if you are at all interested in photography.

Here is one of my photos from the first Calgary Photo Walk. Watch the Calgary Photo Walk for news on upcoming walks! And check out Scott & Jaime's site too - they do awesome work and are a great couple to work with!

Early Christmas

BRIDES & GROOMS...My friend, Terra Law at Inspired Occasions is having a fabulous sale that you just can't pass up! Terra & her staff are ah-mazing at what they do...so go check out what she is offering. I would.

Great Surprise

Imagine our surprise while looking through Google Reader that Noteworthy Designs was given a nice spot on Wishahmon's blog. A while back we posted about Monica and her great work here. She has great talent and does great floral and decorating design work. Thanks Monica & Wishahmon!

And because every post deserves some sort of eye candy... just a simple Thank You note perfect for those men in your life.

Details!

This morning, while checking my google reader, I came across a post that I really like. Aletha VanderMass from Pearl Events in Michigan posted about Three Wedding Details Not to Miss.

- Ceremony Programs
- Assigned seating
- Nice thank you notes

And guess what...Noteworthy Designs can help you with all three! Check out her blog for some information.

photo courtesy of www.flarephotography.com

photo courtesy of Noteworthy Designs

photo courtesy of www.flarephotography.com

wishahmon

I had the privilege of meeting with a great Wedding Decorator a couple weeks ago. She is a fellow WPIC (Wedding Planners Institute of Canada) graduate and owns Wishahmon.

"Wishamon stives to assist couples in creating a personalized wedding; saving time; and relieving wedding-related stress" - from their website 'Why Us'

Monica is friendly and has some great ideas. From what I could tell, I think she would do a fabulous job really (I mean, really!) listening to what you are saying and be able to pull your decorating vision from that. Cause really, 'classy' wedding means all sorts of things to different people. The photos and work I have seen are beautiful and creative. It is obvious she is a hard worker!

Check out some photos from one of her latest weddings.

Beautiful Bride

Check out this bridal gown sale in Calgary:


"Beautiful Bride" Bridal Boutique is having a Spring Sample Sale on April 2, 2009 from 11:00am-8:00pm at their Macleod Trail location. If you have not already purchased your dress this is the perfect time to start looking. They will be marking down a lot of their sample dresses, making in store draws and offering incentives for ordering new gowns and ordering from their new couture line Martina Liana. There will be food and beverages on hand and it should be a great day!

6700 Macleod Tr SE
www.beautifulbride.ca

Contest for Christmas

My friend and fellow coordinator, Terra Law from Inspired Occasions is having a great contest on her blog! Seriously check it out - if I was getting married again, I would love to win it! The winner will be fortunate to have 16 customized Out of Town welcome bags (OOT). It is a nice touch to offer your out of town guests - a way to get them excited for your wedding, to thank them for travelling to your wedding and to welcome your guests in style.

The contest is open to residents of Canada and the U.S.A. and closes December 31, 2008 so be sure to get your entry in early. A winner will be selected by Inspired Occasions and announced by January 7, 2009.

To enter send an email to terra@inspiredoccasions.ca. Be sure to write CONTEST in the subject line. Include your wedding date along with a brief description of you and your fiancé, your vision for your upcoming wedding day and why it’s important for you to welcome your guests in style.

Photos taken from Inspired Occasions.

Marina & Bruce

On a lovely, hot day in July, Noteworthy Designs was a part of the union between Marina & Bruce. They were a lovely couple that we started by doing their invitations and that leaded into a "Day Of" package.

The ceremony and reception were both held at the Shriners Center in Bowness in Calgary right along the river. They couldn't have asked for a better day and the guests were thankful for all the little touches - including bottled water, sunscreen and insect repellent.

I was able to get some photos of their day from their photographer Sarah Khalland. In addition to wedding photography, Sarah owns a fabulous business called "she was stunning". The concept is amazing and Sarah is doing very well! Keep it up! Love women entrepreneurs. Speaking of which, Marina is also an entrepreneur and wanted to support as many other women entrepreneurs (i.e Noteworthy Designs too!) as their wedding vendors. Marina owns Cadbury Banks - a personal shopping and creative gift giving business.

This is Marina and myself just before the ceremony!

Marina and her dad starting to walk down the aisle. Those lovely topiary's were made by a friend and they looked great!

Marina was so happy and looked beautiful!

And Bruce was so proud and handsome!

They preformed a hand binding ceremony and had a great use for the cloth at the reception (see the photo further down).

What a great location with a lovely waterfall in the river. The gazebo was great for such a hot day - the bridal party used it to their advantage!

Married! With rose petals showering them as they walked down the aisle.

Love the mood in this one!


And who can resist loving colored shoes! I love this trend!


I like the sassy-ness of this photo - that is Marina for you!!


Having fun at Bowness Park.
Marina's florals were beautiful and I loved the feathers and the wire twists througout.


The hand binding cloth from the ceremony was filled with messages from their guests to hang in their home.


Very simple, yet effective centrepieces. Marina & Bruce named the tables by places they like to frequent - how unique!


Ummm, any local Calgarian would know where these are from! Crave Cupcakes always taste great.

I have a feeling this may have been the toast to the groom by the best man (his brother). Bruce looks worries and Marina looks like she is soaking it all in!


Marina and her dad had a wonderful dance. I think it is so cute!


Here are Marina and Bruce along with Terra (who assisted me from Inspired Occasions) and myself. Terra was an awesome help and I couldn't have done it without her. We had a lot of fun and I look forward to working with her some more! Check out her blog for some photos of another wedding that we worked together.

Wild Wedding

On the Sunday of the long weekend, I had the opportunity to assist Terra from Inspired Occasions with one of her weddings. Terra and I know each other through our Wedding Planners Institute of Canada alumni program and have worked together on one of my Noteworthy Designs weddings (which I still will blog about - I just got some great pictures to share!).

Back to the Wild Wedding. Check out Terra's blog for some pictures of the wedding and details. Terra was fabulous to work with and I wouldn't hesitate to refer couples in Calgary to her. She also does great stationery (who wouldn't love a gal who does weddings AND stationery - we are meant to be!). Terra helps me with a surprise for all my brides...but I don't want to give it away! Guess you'll just have to book me...hee hee.

Manners Monday

So this one goes out to all wedding GUESTS! Sometimes I think the guests need more etiquette advice than the couple!

My number one word of advice...RSVP on time and in the manner asked! I have seen many couples and my clients who has provided an RSVP card (including postage, self addressed, etc) and still have to follow up with replies. It doesn't take a guest long to check off yes or no, write their name and sometimes choose what they will eat and then pop it in the mail. Done. Took all of 5 minutes, but saved a ton of time and stress on the couple.

Arrive on time. That one should go without saying, but the couple (and coordinator) has done a fabulous job on getting the timeline right and trying to be on time for their ceremony. There are the times that the bride and maids are all ready to walk down the aisle, but alas, they are still waiting for the late guests who arrived to find a seat.

Read who is invited on the invite. If your invitation is addressed to the Jones Family, for example, then yes, kids are invited. If it is addressed to Mr. & Mrs. Jones - no, the kids are not invited. It is considered bad etiquette if you ask if you can bring your child/ children when it isn't clear on the invite.

This one is overlooked often, but etiquette suggests not bringing your gift to the reception. Ideally, you could have it sent prior to, or better yet, after the wedding. It relieves the stress of who is getting the gifts home. If you are unable to attend the wedding, it is still nice if you sent a gift.

Overall, enjoy the wedding and celebrating the new marriage of the couple! You have been invited to share a very special day with this couple and honor them in their new life together. What a great gift to be a part of!

Why Do I Do What I Do?

How many "do's" can you put in a title? Anyways, onto the purpose of this post.

Yesterday was a great reminder for me and one of the many reasons I am a Wedding Coordinator. I was at a tasting with a client (and no, although that is definitely a perk of my job, not a main reason!). The venue manager asked my client if they were stressed and the bride answered "no, I've got Laura for that!". It's true! One of the benefits with having a coordinator is we worry about the details and getting things done (with the bride & groom, of course).

I was so elated to hear that they weren't stressed and that they were enjoying the wedding planning process - the way it is supposed to be! Plus I am super excited for their wedding - cannot wait!!

Well Groomed Grooms

Is your groom feeling left out? So groom's don't want to have too much to do with the planning and some want more.

Well check out these sites - something related directly for the groom!

the groom's groove - the web's best roadmap for a groom's trip down the aisle

Groom 411 - We make you look good. Or at least not dumb.

Dreams & Updates

Since Noteworthy Designs has been in business, I have always continued to think, get inspired, plan, explore, discuss, and dream about what I want it to look like. I love my business and how we are doing, but as most businesses, continuously looking how to improve, change, stay current and ultimately, give our clients the best service that they can imagine.

All this to say that Noteworthy Designs will be making some changes in the next few months, updates and new packages to serve our clients better. After all, Noteworthy Designs strives to have your event get noticed - whether it be in Wedding Coordinating on one of the biggest days of your life or in stationery to set the tone of your event. Keep checking back - one of my changes includes blogging more!!

Clay Floral Design

Yup - you read right - flowers made out of clay! How cool. I know you are thinking "cheesy", but wait till you check out her site! It is this girl in Hawaii (also featured on Martha Stewart) who makes amazing clay flowers.

Such a unique idea - I like it for hair pieces and to make a bouquet if you want to keep it forever.

Check her out at DK Designs and her blog as well.


Thanks to my colleague from the school and stationery client Karen for sharing her link. I can't wait to see her flowers!

photo courtesy of http://www.dkdesignshawaii.blogspot.com/

Why Hire a Coordinator

Here is a video I want to share on Wedding Coordinating and the value it will add to your wedding.