Jackie's Wedding Planning Journey - Thank you

This past Wednesday was exactly one month from my wedding day! I have to admit it has been hard to get back into my daily groove after 2 weeks off of work, and a week playing on the beaches of St. Maarten. I am back though and ready to blog updates from the wedding and honeymoon but first some kudos to my vendors.

I am sure - or I would hope - every bride ends up feeling like her wedding day was perfect, and I am no different. I knew from the moment I booked my vendors that I had nothing to worry about. I had surrounded myself with some of the most talented people I know; and more importantly, people who genuinely cared about my wedding day. It also helped that I had enlisted Tricia, Ainsley and Genina from Tricia Huddas & Co. to run around and save my family from themselves!

First, the flowers! There are few words that can explain how blown away I was with how they turned out. Heidi and Natalie, A to Zinnias wonder women, searched high, low and across oceans to find pink peonies in late July. Some would have just told me no. Not these two. Check out my peonies!


Carrie Briscoe, of Two Cakes, was my cake designer. Yes, I say "designer"! We wanted something on the cake that really represented us. The ceremony was very traditional so I wanted more of our fun, quirkey sides to be represented at the reception. We gave Carrie an engagement picture that we loved and she re-created us (being silly) with fondant and stuck us on the cake!

Here is the picture we gave Carrie.....


and here is the cake with Matt and I made out of fondant and other sugary media! I just love it..she even gave me hot pink shoes!


Teresa Earnest, with Memories 'n More photography, took all of these amazing pictures. She is so laid back and calm that she is a true joy to be with as she is capturing all of the night's events. Many more of her photos to come in later posts!

Dewayne, with VIP Entertainment, comes highly reccomended. He is just grand. I wrote about him in an earlier blog and he did not dissapoint us! He even played the Gator "chomp" song...when in Georgia that is risky but he knew this crowd would love it!

I am blessed to be surrounded by such talent and I just want to thank each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart for what you do.

More pictures to come...

Welcome to the biz!

Though my wedding is months off, I have been thinking about recent trends, styles and how I want to style my own wedding almost non-stop. I am aiming for a wedding with a timeless feel, and I've chosen my ceremony venue, reception venue, caterer, bar service, etc. But as I make a final decision on my dress, bridesmaids' dresses and décor, I have decided to consult with a good friend who - though she is not new to the business of event design and overall style - has just recently decided to enter the world of weddings!

Liz Demos is the owner of @Home here in Savannah – a wonderful and unique store filled with furnishings, antiques, textiles, home and garden accessories and so much more! Well, Liz has decided to jump into the world of Event Design and Styling – something that, as your planner, we can absolutely help you with, but we always welcome Event Designers because it is fun to collaborate and see a fresh take wedding style.

I have a decent idea of a color scheme and what I'd like the overall feel to be; but with this being MY wedding, I am having much more trouble focusing then I ever thought I would. I have decided that a little consulting with such a fabulous stylist is just the thing! Keep your eyes out for some great things from Liz!

Tricia Huddas & Co. Weddings in Savannah Weddings Magazine

The new Fall/Winter 2009 issue of Savannah Weddings Magazine features two of our real Savannah weddings - Lauren and Ian, and Roya and JB!

Tricia Huddas & Co. Real Savannah Wedding: Amanda & Jeremy Part 3

We wanted to feature a few of the details from Amanda & Jeremy's wedding now that you have seen the beautiful couple. She went with a very simple and chic white color palette featuring classic white rose bouquets, black bridesmaid’s dresses, crystal candelabras in the ballroom accented by crisp white linens and candles – beautiful!

It was such a beautiful set with a mix of square and round tables and a large head table that sat the bride and grooms family. It was truly a spectacular wedding – and I love the table mix of square, rounds and banquet style – it is exactly what I have planned for my wedding and I love the set once I saw it. That is the nice thing about being a wedding planner – I get to see some of my ideas before my wedding day!

Also, we addressed one of our Forsyth Park brides most common concerns about how do I make sure everyone doesn’t see me before I walk down the aisle. We used cute paper umbrellas that the bridesmaids held, and one by one as they walked down the aisle, they dropped their umbrella – and slowly, the bride was revealed. It is hard to really see in the pictures, but it was a super cute reveal!

Cheers to Amanda and Jeremy!

Photography by Memories n More.

Wedding Q&A Thursday - Vendor Meals

**I know what you're thinking..."Yay, Q&A Thursdays are back!" Sorry for the little hiatus.**

Q: Do I need to provide vendor meals for the florist? What about the ceremony musicians? My band has it in their contract, but other vendors don't, so do I only provide meals for those that request it?

A: Vendor meals! They are a hidden cost that is often not revealed to a bride until the week or so before her wedding when she, or a the family member paying, is reviewing her final bill. They may even be forgotten, leading to frustrated vendors and possible scrambling and annoyance at the reception. But they are important!

Many of your wedding vendors are working long hours (active work at that) on your wedding day. If they are smart, they know they need to eat. Some vendors do include a meal requirement in their contracts, other don't. So how do you know who gets a meal? I generally use the 4-hour rule - if a vendor works for 4 hours or more, they get a meal. This typically includes your planner, photographer, videographer, and reception entertainer (dj or every member of the band). But there may be more, so do the 4-hour test with all of your vendors. For example, photo booths usually include a technician for the entirety of your reception to make sure the machine continues to function properly, not run out of supplies, etc. This attendant should be included in vendor meals.

What that meal is will depend on your preference and the options provided by your caterer and may be anything from a boxed lunch to the same entree you are serving your guests. Obviously, I am biased, so I won't make a blanket statement about the choices you should make, but I will give you a few pointers that your vendors will appreciate:

1- You ask your guests about their food restricitions, give your vendors the same curtosy. Ask if any of your vendors are vegetarian because unless you specify, they will most likely not be able to eat their vendor meal. If there are food restrictions that cannot be accomodated by your caterer's vendor options, let the appropriate vendors know that you will give them money ahead of time to bring their own food.

2- If you have a buffet or stations reception, it is fine to have your vendors eat from the buffet, but it is nice to have a private area for them to eat in. After all, this is their break time.

3- Vendor meals will usually be available when your guests are eating. If there is a scheduling reason to have any of your vendors taking a break much earlier or much later, let your caterer know so that their food is available for them when they are ready to break.

Readers, do you have an unclear vendor-meal situation that you would like clarification on?

Do you have a question for us? Email us at info@triciahuddas.com and we might feature your question next!

Tricia Huddas & Co. Real Savannah Wedding: Amanda & Jeremy 2

Check out how beautiful of a couple Amanda and Jeremy - take this external beauty and multiply three fold for their internal beauty. They were such a gracious, loving and friendly couple. Their friends and family were so happy for them, and you can just tell how great a couple is when their guests can't stop gushing about them to anyone that will listen.

This is a classic Savannah ceremony in front of the sought after Forsyth Park Fountain. On any given Saturday you will be able to either see a couple weddings happen or you will see wedding party after wedding party stop for wedding pictures. I think I noticed at least three other brides during the 3 hour permit time that I was in the park for Amanda’s wedding!

I absolutely love black and white images, so as I was working on the second post for Amanda and Jeremy, I was naturally drawn to the images that Memories n More provided that were in black and white.

Tricia Huddas & Co. Real Savannah Wedding: Amanda & Jeremy Part 1

Amanda and Jeremy were married in Forsyth Park, in front of the fountain in a classic Savannah ceremony. It was a hot day, but once they saw each other there were no more thoughts about the heat - just thoughts of their love for each other as they wed their high school sweet heart.

Amanda prepped for her true love at the Mansion on Forsyth Park, were the reception would later take place. She wore a stunning Melissa Sweet dress that looked amazing on her. Stay tuned, more to come...

Photography by Memories n More