Vivian, Jen and I held our Best Wedding Ever Workshop last week at Space in Highland.  I can’t tell you how much fun we had putting this together.

Hold on a second.  Yes, I can tell you, and I will.  We had so much fun!

It all started with Jen’s presentation, an enlightening education on the essentials of wedding day timing.  She warned about the dangers of not leaving enough time at those critical moments and suggested an ideal timeline for maximum enjoyment…and minimum stress…throughout your wedding day.

I’ve attended hundreds of weddings, but my perspective is so different from a videographer’s.  Jen’s suggestions were spot on, and things that I would never know to advise a bride.  She stressed the importance of eating, especially if your friends are going to force you into doing shots later.  Yep, you can imagine how ugly that can get!

Vivian followed with and amazing, inspirational demonstration of color and individuality.  With her trusty assistant/beautiful model in a wedding gown, she showed us how to kick up your look with colorful accessories and details, from shoes to hair and sashes.  In seconds she threw together a show-stopping (cheap!) centerpiece idea.  The colors and ideas were flying!

Finally, I gave my presentation on the importance of finding your Wow Factor and using it to make your wedding totally unique.  It’s all about telling your story.  I won’t rehash that now…I’ve been blabbing about it on this blog for months, but one of my brides volunteered to share a bit about herself and her fiance so that we could brainstorm how to weave it into her wedding for added uniqueness and meaning.  Man, I love telling stories!

I am so pleased at how everything went and so thankful to all the brides who attended.  Oh, and to Jeff, who was the only guy in the room.  (Truthfully, he didn’t mind a bit.  He likes it when ladies get together and talk fashion, especially when the conversation comes around to undergarments.)

Got a wedding topic you’d like us to cover?  Leave me a comment and I’ll work it into our next workshop.  ‘Cuz you know there’s going to be another one!

Best Wedding Ever Workshop:

How To Make Your Wedding Totally You and Enjoy Every Minute Of It!

WHEN: Thursday May 28^th 6:30-9pm

WHERE: Space Studio in Highland

SPEAKERS: Jen Cassaro of Masterpiece Video, Stephanie Padovani of The DJ Solution and Vivian Lanzarone of Vivian Photography

The three of us wedding gals will put our expertise to work for Hudson Valley brides with an evening of wedding insights, inspiration and FUN. And we’re giving out over $100 in door prizes!

Here’s just a sampling of what you’ll learn:

• The secret that makes your wedding day a unique experience that is totally you…and how to pull it off without spending one dime extra!
  
  
• How to avoid a cookie-cutter wedding with these 3 accessory details of color, design and texture to blend elegance, personality and meaning into a wedding you and your guests will never forget.
  
  
• The 4 common mistakes most brides make that lead to stress, wedding day “drama,” and unnatural photos.

• 7 inexpensive or free ways to “Wow” your wedding guests.
  
  
• How to pick the unique touches that perfectly fit your personality and wedding in only 5 minutes.
  
  
• Timing tips that guarantee a relaxed, stress free wedding day…so you won’t be one of those brides who says, “It all just went too FAST!”
  
  
• The often overlooked wedding essentials you need to enjoy every minute of your wedding day and stay gorgeous for your photos.
  
  
• Why the wrong color choices can ruin your day…and the easy way to pick the palette that’s perfect for you.

Don’t worry…we’re NOT going to bore you with a stuffy lecture.  This workshop will be fun, upbeat and interactive.  Come prepared to have fun, check out the coolest new accessories and dresses on real models, and meet other awesome Hudson Valley brides to get inspired about your wedding.

The cost is $20 per person or $15 if you bring a friend. Snacks and beverages will be provided. We’re so excited about what we’ve got in store that we’re offering an Unconditional Money Back Guarantee: if you don’t have fun or you’re not satisfied for ANY reason…you get all your money back!

Seating is very limited so RSVP immediately to reserve your spot.

Call Stephanie at 845-473-1086 or Vivian at 845-691-4680 for more information and to make your reservation.

P.S. We’ve only got room for 20 brides and it’s first come, first served. Reserve your seat right now by clicking on my email address below.

We rocked!  If I do say so myself.  You can check out videos of the performances posted in my previous Guitar Parlor post here.

Our final total donations made to Hospice was $1,150!

Here I am plucking the heart strings (and purse strings) of our generous guests, about to introduce my all-time favorite singer songwriter, Jeff Padovani.

Jeff and Mike Murphy from Hospice.  Gee, I wish Jeff smiled at me like that…

Handsome Jeffrey opening up for Guitar Parlor V.

Here’s a rare photo of the camera-shy Kyle Davidson in action.  It’s been said that Kyle is a musician who transcends his instrument.  Ethereal, bittersweet, spiritually transformative music.

And finally, Lawrence accompanying Gary Levitt of Setting Sun.  Gary’s music is a quirky, provocative addition to the Hudson Valley indie  music scene, performing here with Lawrence as his “soul.”  You can see how much Jeff is diggin’ it.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again…it is such a pleasure to support talented Hudson Valley music and local charities.  Music for a cause, baby!

(Thanks for the awesome pics, Viv.)

Hospice services focus on comfort and quality of life for terminally ill patients.  Whereas hospitals are driven to provide treatment and prolong life…even when these efforts only make things worse…Hospice allows patients the peace and comfort they need at the end of life.

My grandmother was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, an extremely deadly and virulent form of cancer, in 1998.  She was a vital, active sixty-six year old woman who played tennis twice a week and was an EMT volunteer for the Beacon Ambulance Corp.  Only four months after diagnosis, she was lying in a hospital bed on a respirator.

My grandmother died in that cold hospital room.  And though she was surrounded by her family, if we had known about Hospice she could have spent her last days in the comfort of her own home.

I am so proud of our Guitar Parlor patrons for helping us raise money for such a worthy cause.  Thank you so much!

On a lighter note, the performances were awesome.  I recorded some clips on our new Flip Mino HD camera so that you can enjoy them, too.

A HUGE thanks to Vivian Lanzarone who did a fantastic job hosting our Guitar Parlor at her studio, Space, in Highland.

And thanks to our talented performers and video clips of the performances below…

Jeff Padovani (or “Handsome Jeffrey,” as I like to call him)

Kyle Davidson

Gary Levitt of Setting Sun

Lawrence (who filled in last minute with an outstanding set of covers from The Smiths to the Carter Family…I don’t even know his last name!)

What do you think?  Watch the videos and leave me a comment.

Jeff and I started the Guitar Parlor over three years ago.  It began as one of Jeff’s crazy, spontaneous ideas.  We were planning a party and it went sort of like this…

Steph:  Let’s have a cocktail party and invite all our Hudson Valley wedding peeps.

Jeff:  If we’re having a party, we should have some live music.  Wouldn’t it be cool to have musicians jamming out in our living room?

Steph:  Uh, sure.  But where are we going to put them?

Jeff:  There’s plenty of room.  Hey, I’ve got an idea.  Since we’re gonna have live music, why don’t we make it a fundraiser?  Like, music for a cause…

And the Guitar Parlor was born.

It’s a cocktail party/fundraiser to raise money for a local charity.  Jeff invites his talented local musician buddies to perform in our living room, and while guests munch on hors d’ouevres and sip good wine, we collect donations for charity.  Over the years we’ve collected hundreds of dollars for Adopt-a-Family, the Children’s Home of Poughkeepsie, and the Community Foundation of Dutchess County.

It’s all about supporting local music and charities serving our Hudson Valley community.

Up until now, we’ve kept it small, usually only 30-50 guests invited to our home.  But our vision has been slowly growing…

Next month, Jeff is collaborating with Vivian Lanzarone to host our best Guitar Parlor yet at Space in Highland.  We’ll be taking donations to support the music program of a local hospice that’s desperately in need of funds.

Jeff will perform his original songs (I know I’m biased, but he’s really good!)  Stay tuned to learn more about our chosen charity and the musical acts who’ll be performing.

It’s one of the most exciting and rewarding things we do every year.  We get to hang out with all our friends while we are entertained by some of the best local musicians, and we get to make a difference.  What could be cooler than that?

Thursday February 19th is the date.  Interested in attending or helping out?  Leave a comment or shoot me an email.

Let’s use MUSIC to make a difference!

Where will you get ready on your wedding day?

With all the hours you’ll spend planning the tiniest details of your wedding…from the colors and flowers to the soles of your shoes and the polish on your nails…this is one question that often doesn’t get the consideration it deserves.

Why is it so important to think about where you’ll get ready on your wedding day?

Well, according to my photographer friend, Vivian Lanzarone, the environment you get ready in sets the tone for your entire wedding day.  Start out calm and serene–you’ll be glowing and relaxed the whole day.  But if you start out agitated and stressed, that negative energy can hang over you like a cloud.

Think about this scenario:

You decide to get ready at your house.  You wake up feeling excited and maybe a little nervous about your day.  You get up…and your bridesmaids arrive.  They immediately start rummaging through the house looking for hair spray and bobby pins and coffee…yelling out questions every five minutes.  Meanwhile, your makeup artist and hair stylist show up and start getting you ready, but you keep getting interrupted because you have to play hostess to their needs.

On top of that, your visiting family pops in for breakfast.  Then your photographer shows up to take photos of you getting ready.  The girls have dumped their stuff all over the place, the house is a cluttered mess, and you’re going crazy.

Seeing this chaotic wedding day scenario play out again and again inspired Vivian to create Space, a studio/living room/bistro designed with a bride in mind.  It’s the perfect place for you and your bridal party to escape the craziness as you get ready for one of the most important days of your life.

As you can see from these photos, Space has lots of natural light, neutral colors, and simple decor…necessities for great pictures.  Vivian urges you to create a peaceful, quiet environment to get ready in so that you can start your day out right.

Space is an ideal environment for getting ready on your wedding day.  I wish I was getting married again, just so that I could hang out there!  It’s relaxing, peaceful, and really romantic for a photo shoot.

But even if you aren’t getting ready in Space, here are some tips to make your wedding day stress-free.

1) Choose the place you’ll get ready in carefully.  Ideally, it should be a quiet space outside your home (to avoid distraction) with lots of natural light, neutral colors, and simple decor.

2) Choose the brightest room in that location to get ready in.  Natural light and muted colors will complement and accentuate your gown in the photographs.

3) Clean and de-clutter the space BEFORE your wedding day, so that you can relax and be pampered on the day of the wedding.

4) Ask your photographer’s opinion beforehand if you aren’t sure whether your home has enough light or the right decor for great photographs.

Here is space at night in cool uplighting.  Jeff and I will be hosting our Guitar Parlor fundraiser here next month.  I can’t wait!

(All photos courtesy of Vivian Photography.)

Your cousin’s wedding invitation has arrived in the mail and it’s addressed to you and only you.

After days of wondering if you can bring your boyfriend, you pick up the phone, dial her number and ask.

In an apologetic tone, she explains that she’s trying to keep the cost of the wedding down by only inviting spouses of relatives. You hang up, embarrassed you made the call.

Stop blushing. With so many wedding do’s and don’ts, people make mistakes more frequently than a bride is late to her ceremony. On the other hand, couples spend on average $30,000 on their special day. You don’t want to be remembered as the guest who ruined it, do you? A handful of Hudson Valley wedding professionals have come to the rescue. They’ve attended hundreds of weddings, seen just about everything taboo and are sharing their advice on what guests can do to make the wedding as big of a smash as the cake cutting.

Stephanie and Jeff Padovani, of The DJ Solution in Poughkeepsie, say the first thing guests should do is respond to the invitation promptly.

“I can’t tell you how many complaints we hear about this one,” said Stephanie, who provides music for dozens of weddings each month. “The couple goes to all the trouble of sending the invitation, pre-addressed and stamped for the guests’ convenience, and then never gets a response.” Often, the couple resorts to the telephone for an accurate head count, and that, Padovani said, causes headaches.

The invite, according to Kristy Rice, of Momental Designs in Poughkeepsie, is a clue for guests as to what to expect at the event. Rice, who designs custom invitations, said very formal stationery probably means the couple is hosting a formal affair, so dress up, rather than down. A very funky, colorful invite means a more casual, creative affair, she said. One of her brides requested the invitation read: “Ladies, bring your Keds for a comfortable afternoon.”

Don’t just look at the colors, consider how the invite is worded, said Melinda Diecidue of Bridal Affairs By Melinda in Poughkeepsie. If it states that the bride’s parents have “requested your presence,” that usually means they are the hosts, she said. If both couples’ parents’ names are mentioned, both could be hosts or if there’s no mention of parents, usually it’s the bride and groom running the show.