Wedding Wednesday: Bridal Jewelry Tips

Wedding Wednesday: Wedding Day Jewelry 

The first rule in wedding jewelry - don't over do it!  AE brings you a jewelry guide to match your metals to your whites and your jewelry to your necklines.

Select the metal that compliments your white dress best!   

Bright White

Stick to pearls or platinum.

Off-White (or Diamond White)

Pairs with gold or silver, or rose gold or pearls (you get the picture)! 

Ivory

Gold will pull out the tint in the fabric. 

Necklaces and necklines - pick the perfect pair!

Strapless or Sweetheart 

Pick a statement piece!  A dramatic necklace will take this style of neckline from pretty to pretty amazing!  Our STUNNING bride, Katie B, chose a bolder option to complement her sweetheart neckline and kept it simple with a beautiful stud earring. 

Pull back long hair to make some room for this piece.

Photo Courtesy of photographer, Amanda Julca  

One-Shoulder

Skip the necklace all together.  

Instead, slip on a pair of dramatic earrings and/or a thick cuff to balance out the look. 

Photo Courtesy of Martha Stewart Weddings

V-Neckline

Pair this plunging neckline with a delicate necklace.  A pendant will compliment the cut nicely! Pick out a noticeable earring to draw attention to your face.

Photo Courtesy of Coral's Bridal 

Halter and Reverse Halter

Accessorize your tresses, it's great way to dress up your halter gown!  Whether using a headband or crystal hair pins, adding some sparkle to your coif will complete this look.

Photo Courtesy of Sweet Beginnings 

Bateau Neckline

Pick a necklace with little length!  When done right, layers complement this neckline beautifully.  When matching earrings, don't over do it, select a slight drop or stud to complement the jewels on the necklace. 

Photo Courtesy of Martha Stewart Weddings

When in doubt, remember, the wise philosophy of Ms. Coco Chanel:
When accessorizing, always remove the last piece you put on.  

This is surefire way to stay well-edited when deciding on your bridal bling.  

AE Events: 2013 Year in Review

What a year 2013 has been for us!  We count our many blessings as we say goodbye to one fab year and HELLO to a new one. 

January rang in the New Year with Dan and Alicia's fantastic New Year's Eve celebration. Oh how we loved this evening!  A&D and their family remain dear friends.

Image courtesy Red Gallery Photography 

Check out more prettiness courtesy of the talented Red Gallery Photo.   And Studio Z Films.  

February brought us back to one of our favorite events of the year and one with an amazing and touching cause: The Black Tie Blue Jackets Style Show.  It's such an honor to be involved. 

Image courtesy of Capital Style

See footage from the 2013 event.  We can't wait for 2014! 

May kicked off a busy summer for us with three events...

Heather and Willy's charmingly perfect Downtown wedding...

Image courtesy Rouxby Photography

...which was also recently featured on Style Me Pretty! 

Ashley and Tom's swanky soiree at the Ivory Room...

Image courtesy of Red Gallery Photo

...we just ADORED these two!  

And, another one of our favorite recurring events...The Nicklaus Museum Dinner for Nationwide Financial/The Memorial Tournament.   

Photo Courtesy of Andy Mahr

See more here!  Gosh, we sure were proud of this event. 

June brought us Maggie and Quinn's uber special wedding in Knox County...these high school sweethearts and their families are about as lovely as they come. 

Photo courtesy of Lauryn Byrdy photography

 See more here! And one of the most touching wedding vids ever. 

July brought us a trip to our favorite part of the country - WINE COUNTRY, for our best friend's wedding.  It was such a special experience to be in the wedding and to play a large part in the planning process.  Cheers to G&B.   Love you!

Image courtesy of Mike Arick 

See more love, pretty, and happy here...

July also brought the wedding of Emily and Nick.  Super sweet affair at the Columbus Museum of Art for a super sweet couple.

Image courtesy of January Newbanks

August brought the first of two big bits of news for AE Events.  Brittany Sitz, our long-time intern, starting with us as our first full-time employee.  Brittany has been an important part of AE and it's been great to have her official.  

Image courtesy of Ink and Ivory Design Studio

September came with another of our favorite yearly events - the always fabulous Rowe Fashion Show celebrating it's 5th year (and 5 years with us, too)!  This event is near and dear to us for several reasons:  Maren Roth (owner) was our first friend in Columbus and the Rowe Show was one of the first events we booked when we launched AE.  We cannot thank Maren and Rowe enough for the constant support, friendship, and fashion advice.  xx

October was also filled with fun.  It was Adrianne and Sherman's birthdays, as well as, we had Lauren and Ed's amazing affair at the Columbus Museum of Art. This event and our beautiful bride were grace and elegance through and through. 

And here is a little teaser video - their day was just so special!

October also brought to Leah and Tom's wedding.  Brittany did an amazing job planning and executing while Adrianne had the honor of being in the wedding.  Leah and Tom are so in love and truly epitomized what it means to be a bride and a groom.  

We also embarked on a site inspection to the British Virgin Islands for our special client and friends, Lacey and Blake.  Man, this sure is a tough job! 

November and December have been filled with friends, food, fun, new clients, and the holidays. 

January begins with yours truly speaking at the 2014 Columbus Bride Show and then we zip off to Ft. Worth, TX for the Nationwide Financial Sales Summit.

We have also been keeping very busy the past couple of months with our second peice of exciting news.  We have moved into our very own darling cottage.  We can't wait to share it with you!

It's been a fabulous year.  We love our job, we love our clients (past, present, AND future), and we love life.   Cheers, my dears.  xx, AE 

Wedding Wednesday: Winter Wedding Attire

It's Wedding Wednesday and today we are bringing you a few tips for dressing yourself, your gals and your guests for a stylish wintry affair. 

BRIDES

We adore a long-sleeved wedding dress for your winter wedding.
Too heavy?  A lace sleeve is also seasonably appropriate, and won't make you feel overly covered.

You can also find beautiful removable pieces that will add warmth during pictures and the ceremony (churches can be drafty!), but that can be removed for the party.

Pair a strapless dress with a bolero jacket or fur wrap.  Here is a lovely and moderately priced beauty from Alice and Olivia.

Try evening gloves!  They are a "look" but when done right, they make for an impactful and beautiful accessory.  

And the creme de la creme (in our humble opinion) of winter accessories is the under-utilized fur muff.
Oooh La La!  

Photos Courtesy of Ruffled Blog

BRIDESMAIDS

Don't feel like to have to dress your maids in wool and long-sleeves for your winter wedding.
Go with what speaks to you and your your wedding style...
...BUT, DON'T LEAVE THEM FREEZING!

If you plan to take outdoor pictures, give your gals something to cover up with!

Common winter accessories make for fun pictures!

TOPSHOP has an array of mittens at great prices that will complement almost any wedding style/color palatte.    

We also love festive hosiery to complement a winter look.
(we think every gal should own a pair of Wolford's).

You can find fab faux fur wraps and capelets at many moderately-priced stores starting in the Fall.  We love this one from Kohls.  Etsy is a great resource, too!

Tip: be careful with hats and even scarves, they can wreck havoc on beautifully coiffed do's.

Photo Courtesy of Koru Wedding Style   

GUESTS

Dress appropriately for the occasion, but be prepared for the cold weather!

When in doubt, call ahead to ensure the venue offers a coat check.

Bundle up and protect your feet, too - we don't want you turning blue or ruining your Choo's in the snow.

xoxo

Wedding Wednesday: How to Nail a Toast

Wow!  It's such an honor that the bride or groom chose YOU to give the toast on their special day.  But, as you prepare you may feel the pressure mounting:
Will I be funny?
Will guests be bored?
Will my voice crack?
Will I sob uncontrollably?
I sure don't want to embarrass myself - or worse, THEM!
(well,  maybe just a tiny bit) 

Don't worry, we're here to help!

AE Brings you...

How to Nail a Toast:

Photo Courtesy of Bridal Musings

Practice makes perfect! 

Write your speech down.  PRACTICE!  Try to memorize key phrases.
BUT, don't read it word for word, and DEFINITELY, don't read it from your phone. 

Do it alone.  

A joint speech can get messy!
Unless very very choreographed, duo speeches can be distracting and confusing. 

Photo Courtesy of Bridesmaids 

Be Specific.  

Give short elaborations. Stay away from long sagas.
Keep content personal to the bride and groom. 

Be appropriate. 

Leave exes and former love life out of it!
Rule of thumb - if you are questioning whether to add a particular anecdote, don't. 

It's okay to get emotional.

Bring a tissue. 

Photo Courtesy of Southern Weddings 

Be yourself.

 Mean what you say.
Humor needs to be heartfelt and authentic.
Don't force funny.

Still need help?
Follow this formula:

Introduce yourself and your relationship to the bride/groom
 +

Tell a catchy story about your friend
+
Tell the crowd why you love him/her
 +

Tell why the spouse is such a great match
+

Give your blessing to them
+

"Cheers!"
+

A big hug for both
=

A TRULY KILLER WEDDING TOAST

Go Get 'Em Tiger! 

Ask Ady: Budget Convo Advice

Dear Ady,

My fiancé has recently proposed and we are in the very early stages of planning our wedding.  Both sets of parents have previously alluded to contributing financially to the wedding, but since we have been engaged, neither has brought up the topic.  I know I need to establish my budget, but I have no idea what they are planning to give.  

I am feeling a little bit shy about asking for and discussing financial help for our big day, especially with my fiance's parents, and I was hoping you could give me some suggestions.  Do you have any recommendations on how to initially bring this topic up with our parents?  Is this a meeting that we have with both sets of parents together, or should we have separate conversations?  Thanks, Ady!  Any advice will help!

Sincerely,
Meghan J., Columbus, Ohio

Dear Meghan, 

Ah yes, the dreaded budget conversation.  This topic is tricky on many levels, but especially tricky when you have to bring it up!   Your first step will be to do your due diligence and put together a budget for what you THINK your wedding will cost.  Make some initial venue calls and put down some preliminary numbers on paper.  Be thorough - don't forget little details like tuxedo rentals, save the dates, and transportation.  Smaller budget items tend to add up quickly.  

After you have established your preliminary budget, talk with your fiancé about what the two of you can afford to contribute, IF you need to.  

At that point, it is best that you have individual conversations with your parents rather than a group conversation.  If you are uncomfortable about being included in the conversation with your fiance's parents, there may be a good reason for that.  You should each be prepared to speak to your parents privately and independently of each other.  

It is "tradition" that the bride's parents host the bulk of the wedding day activities, while the groom's parents host the rehearsal dinner and the "day-before" details.  It is important to ask your parents what their expectations are before launching into what you expect of them.  If the two expectations do not coincide, you will then need to have a deeper conversation about what you actually need.  

A few further bits of advice:  

Until you know how much you have to spend, refrain from making big planning decisions.  You don't want to blow a large chunk of your budget on a designer dress or super expensive venue if you can't actually afford it.  

Embrace your budget.  Whatever it is, is what it is.  You must work within it.  It does not make sense to go into debt to host a party more lavish than what you can comfortably pay for.  

Be grateful that your parent's are contributing to the costs, no matter how much that amount is.  Be sure to show them your gratitude.  

You can do it!  You aren't the first and won't be the last bride to find herself in this predicament.  It WILL work out!

xo, Ady 

Wedding Wednesday: What to do with that big blank wall?

Dressing up a naked wall is a great way to add visual interest, intimacy, and cool decor to your space. 

Use a blank wall to exhibit personal photos!  Whether canvas prints or gorgeous frames, personal photos will create visual interest for your guests and bring a truly personal element to your wedding decor.

Blank walls are also a great area to display a cool guestbook or out-of-the-box seating chart.

 Consider create a photo moment!  Whether you have a back drop (or any actual booth!), put some props on display and let your friends and family go at it!  These pictures make a fun guest book or, just give you some really great candid memories :)

Tip:  Be sure to talk to your venue manager about their rules regarding affixing items to their walls.  You don't want to be surprised when they say nails are a "no-no."

Photos Courtesy of Martha Stewart Weddings and Esty

Another idea… play home videos on your blank wall.  This can create a wonderful background ambience and you can make it a classic, timeless piece when family movies are projected in black and white.
Tip: Make sure the wall is either not placed in a major thoroughfare or be sure to project from high enough up that guests won't constantly be standing in the projector light.

Play around with lighting!  Ambiant lighting can easily fix a blah space and using a GoBo for walls or makes your monogram larger than life!
Tip:  Be sure to test the hues before making a final decision.  While pink lighting may sound like a great idea, when translated into a large space, it might be overkill.  

Photos Courtesy of Peak Styles, Rent My Wedding, The Bridal Detective, and Aves Photographic Design

Draping blank walls with fabric gives the most luxurious results (but it is also the most costly)!  Fabric can also be used to hide open ceilings that may not be the most attractive.

Tip:  Fabric does not work well when done sparsely.  If your budget doesn't allow you to drape the room appropriately, then opt for a less expensive decor option.  Lighting does wonders to transform a space. 

Photos Courtesy of The Knot and Pix 2 Brix

Happy Hour with AE: Spiked Cranberry Apple Cider

Surprise guests this Fall with a new twist on an old classic by adding cranberry juice to your hot apple cider.   The blend of apple and cranberry is sweet and tart and the addition of cranberry turns the cider a beautiful red color, making this a perfect beverage to carry through the fall and right into your holidays! 

Photo Courtesy of Betty Crocker

Serves 24

Ingredients:

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 tsp whole Allspice

4 sticks cinnamon 

1 bottle (48oz) apple cider (6 cups)

1 bottle (48oz) cranberry juice cocktail (6 cups)
4 sliced navel oranges
1 orange cut for garnish 

1 bottle Clear Creek Apple Brandy
(spiced rum or whiskey can be substituted) 

Directions:

Mix all ingredients, expect the Apple Brandy, in your medium-large slow cooker.  Heat on low 4-6 hours.  With a slotted spoon, remove allspice, cinnamon and orange rinds before serving.  Add a shot of Apple Brandy to individual mugs, throw in an orange garnish, and fill with cider.  Voila!  

AE Tip:  This recipe freezes beautifully.  Double or Triple this recipe and make a nice big batch this fall.   Freeze in smaller individual containers and serve all throughout the season!  Note - any cider that has brandy already added, will not freeze well, so save the liquor for serving time!  

ENJOY!