Mirror Mirror on the Wall

As you know, I gave in to slowing down on my current painting, rather than college cramming.  I put in some additional time at the Wheaton Wedding Walk this weekend to keep things moving along.  There's really not much left!

One of the projects that occupied some time this week was a special table seating chart for the Bride's Choice event going on tonight from 6pm-9pm at Room 1520.  If you'd still like to get tickets, they are available here.  Clementine Custom Events asked if I would help them out with their display, and I was all too eager to showoff my skills.  Below is a mirror I wrote on with wash-off-able marker.  It's tricky to take a picture of a mirror!

Stop by and see how this Frenchie display fits into Clementine's Parisian inspiration!

Day of Wedding Inspirations

You may have noticed that I've been a little m.i.a. lately…especially with my painting.  Don't worry, I have something really special in the works that you'll hear about next week, but in the meantime, I've been keeping myself busy with other projects.  Calendars sales (do you have yours yet?), meetings, working weddings, a wall painting project, and a solo day of have had me occupied.

This solo day of service has my focus this week.  Definitely be sure to follow me on Instagram this Saturday for all of the details.  Here are a couple of items I've put together for Kristen and Charlie's big day:

My hand in this is the painted lettering!

Super easy diy project…painted wood letters, ribbon and some hot glue.

Though I'm not doing any extensive bouquet paintings, it's projects like this that keep me on my creative toes.  This wedding is bound to be gorgeous….I'm working with Petal Play Design!  If we can curate an 8 x 8 ft. space at Indie Wed, imagine what we can do with a Downton Abbey feel and Cog Hill as the venue!  Stay tuned!

Sunday Secret

I have a confession to make, and one that might come as a big surprise to a lot of people.  Get ready.....painting is not my passion.  As a matter of fact, Reenie Rose is not my passion.  Crazy, right?! How disappointed are you to hear this when all along you thought I had created and built this business all out of this passionate love for art and my skill.  Sorry, but nope.

Curiosity #1: Travel

I felt compelled to write this today after reading an article that almost made me feel like I finally had permission to say such a thing.  I've always been a pretty passionate person, mainly about travel and food, but tend to feel guilty when people have made the statement, "It's so amazing that you are doing something you are passionate about."  In my head I'm thinking, "If you only knew..."  So, when I received my Splendid Sunday email from Think Splendid this morning, there was the statement "*Forget your passion, follow your curiosities." that completely caught my eye.  Emily Olson, co-founder of Foodzie, wrote about wanting to find and define her passion in life.  After creating what seemed like the perfect business, she sold it and was left again to find her next passion.  But here's the thing she discovered along the way....it's all about discovery.  She writes, "Toss out the notion of finding your passion (at least to start) and explore your curiosities."  Think about it...if you continuously discover what you are curious about, the path you journey down will eventually intersect with your passions.  You wouldn't keep trudging through mud if it wasn't going to lead you to greener pastures.  

Curiosity #2: Food

I also love this: 
Finding your passion is a lot like finding a husband. Who wants to evaluate every first date, asking yourself if he is the one? It’s far easier to ask yourself, if you simply want one more date with this dude.  So my advice? Go on dates with ideas, until you realize there’s this one you just can’t stop hanging out with…when you’ve found that, you’ve likely found your passion.

Talk about some words of advice I'm going to start following!

Curiosity #3: Flowers/Nature

So yeah folks, I'm not passionate about painting but I like it and I'm good at it and I'm always curious about what the next painting is going to look like and the customers and fellow vendors I'm going to work with.  I'm sticking with this for now while I indulge in all my other curiosities.....

Curiosity #4: Beer & Wine tasting

Curiosity #5: Weddings

Curiosity #6: Crafting

Curiosity #7: Reenie Rose

Meet the Planner: Clementine Events

What do you think of the new look!?  Figured it was time for an update...new year, new look (how long can we use this excuse for every change?).  Special thanks to Jennifer Kathryn Photography for the header image...she makes my painting supplies look interesting.

On to bigger, better things....

One of the things I am looking forward to the most in 2013 is continuing the working relationships I developed last year as a day of wedding assistant.  I worked with several amazing event planners that I could endlessly rave about.  Instead of a mega love fest, where I go on an on about their fabulousness, I thought I would let them speak for themselves.

This summer I had the opportunity to work with Clementine Custom Events on several occasions.  The team of 3 is comprised of Kelly, Melissa and Loren, all of whom I absolutely adore as people and professionals.

The Clementine Ladies: Loren, Kelly and Melissa

Owner and senior event consultant, Kelly Cavanaugh, is one of the funniest ladies I know in the industry.  An evening spent working along side her is never a dull moment....

      1.  How long have you been in business?

       Clementine has been in business for a little over 3 years. We’ve planned about 100 weddings under the Clementine name and we are currently working on about 40 already for next year!  I have been in the wedding planning business for 11 years.  Clementine as a company has a combined 28 years of experience in wedding and event planning. 

2.  Toot your own horn....what’s your specialty?

        We specialize in planning “off premise” events.  Many of our weddings are in very unique spaces around the Chicagoland area.  We work in a lot of museums, art galleries, photo studios, gardens, libraries etc… a lot of our clients are a little bit “out of the box” and we really enjoy a good challenge

3.  What would be your dream event creation?

         My dream event creation would take place at a venue I’ve never worked in, with really crazy logistics and a creative space for menu development.  I seriously love a challenge and I love trying something new!

4.  Wedding trend you love and one you’d like to see disappear?

         I love that bridesmaids are mixing it up and that not every girl looks exactly the same.  I could live without the bouquet toss and garter toss, but to be honest, a lot of my clients are choosing to skip that tradition lately. 

5.  Craziest request you’ve had?

         This isn’t that crazy but I get a lot of requests for flying lanterns as a send off at the end of the night. 

6.  What do you like about working in the wedding industry?

         I love working with such amazing people.  This industry is full of creative, colorful, nice, hard working individuals and I just adore all of them.  I love working together as a team to create something amazing for the couple.  I love the feeling I get when the bride walks down the aisle, sees the room for the first time, has her first dance….it’s just the best!!

7.  What is something you wish your clients knew about your job?

         I don’t think there is anything I wish my clients knew about my job.  I don’t ever want them to feel like I’m juggling 20-30 other clients.  I want them to feel like they are the only client I have.  I think giving good service is never letting them know exactly how demanding and time consuming my job really is.  I don’t think anyone realizes that planners work about 50-60 hours a week on a normal week.  I think a lot of people think we just attend a lot of parties and drink champagne while looking at fabric swatches! 

8.   When you are not working, what are you up to?

         When I’m not working, I spend every moment of my day with my beautiful daughter Chloe and my amazing husband Ryan.  I’m lucky to have such a great family life. 

9.  Anything new and exciting coming up that we should know about? (either professionally or personally)

         Clementine is always up to something new and exciting, we’re always out and about and meeting new people and coming up with new ideas.  Keep an eye on our facebook page!  Personally, I’m excited to be expecting another little bundle of joy in February! 

Bonus interview with Loren Carpenter!  Interviews from 2 out of 3 of these busy ladies is pretty good.  We will definitely catch up with Melissa in the near future.  For now, here's Loren....

    

  1.  How long have you been in business?

         I’ve had the privilege to produce events in Chicago for the past seven years. My event experience is quite diverse, having had the opportunity to work on extravagant corporate functions, not-for-profit galas and social events. I was thrilled to join Clementine earlier this year, and to be working once again with my dear friends Kelly & Melissa.

2.  Toot your own horn....what’s your specialty?

         I believe most of us in the industry excel at logistics, it’s in our blood. However, if there is one attribute that I’m especially proud of, it would be grace under pressure. “Grace” is my mantra through work and life, and finding it, is a skill I’m constantly working on. In the most challenging event situations, exuding grace has been key to putting my clients and their families at ease and enjoying their beautiful day.

3.  What would be your dream event creation?

         I have many dream event creations, but my most personal will be to someday plan my sister’s wedding day. I can guarantee most traditions will be out the window for her, so it will be an adventure for us.

4.  Wedding trend you love and one you’d like to see disappear?

         I love how thoughtful couples are when developing their menus nowadays. With the popularity of showcasing culinary experiences, (i.e. food shows, blogs, e-magazines, etc.) I find that couples are really using the menu as an extension of their personalities. I suppose the one trend that I’d like to see fade into history would be the faux mustache. They’re everywhere and I can’t help but think that our children will wonder what on earth we were thinking when they look back on all these images. Perhaps we’ll get a reprieve after Halloween.

5.  Craziest request you’ve had?

         I haven’t received any crazy requests to note.

6.  What do you like about working in the wedding industry?

         In my years of event planning, I’ve never experienced the camaraderie as I do now in the wedding industry. It’s refreshing to be so friendly with other planners and to share experiences.

7.  What is something you wish your clients knew about your job?

         This would be specifically for my couples who I’m contracted for day-of services. In these situations, although we won’t connect until about six weeks before their wedding day, I’m always thinking about them and here if they need me!

8.   When you are not working, what are you up to?

         I adore spending time with my husband and our dog. We love experimenting in the kitchen and entertaining our friends and family at home. I’m also an avid window shopper, and completely addicted to my Kindle.

9.  Anything new and exciting coming up that we should know about? (either professionally or personally)

         I’m really excited about how next year is shaping up. My couples are fantastic, and their personalities are really going to show through in their preparations. Also, now that my busy season is coming to a close I’m looking forward to planning a few trips for next year on my off-weekends! Vacations are very important in my family.

Take a look at the fabulous work these ladies orchestrate and a few more words from Loren to embellish a bit:

Like so many newly engaged couples, the engagement period marks a lot of change. With the help of good friends and family, Genie & Derek crafted the essential elements of their wedding day from afar. While living out of state, without seeing the event space, they choose to host their wedding within the landmark Art Institute of Chicago (AIC). It’s always a delight for me to see how my couples carve out what makes them unique on their wedding day, and Genie & Derek truly left their mark. The dramatic McKinlock Court served as the backdrop for a very personal wedding ceremony officiated by the couple’s close friend. Personal touches throughout the evening such as the incorporation of traditional Korean Wedding Ducks, sport-themed escort cards, personalized wedding cake design, and Alexander & Company “guest book” made their September wedding day all their own.

As always, it’s a team effort to pull off such a momentous event. With the help of these vendors, Genie & Derek’s wedding day was picture perfect:

Venue: Art Institute of Chicago

Planner: Clementine Custom Events

Caterer: Bon Appetit at the Art Institute of Chicago

Wedding Cake: CAKE

Flowers: Scarlet Petal

DJ: Style Matters

Lighting: Frost

Linens: BBJ

Thank you so much to Kelly and Loren for sharing a bit about Clementine with us!  Definitely pay them a visit to get to know them a bit more.  You can bet you'll hear more about them this year as we continue to work together!

Clementine Custom Events

Website:  www.clementinecustomevents.com

Email:  info@clementinecustomevents.com

Blog:  http://www.clementinechicago.com

Day of Coordination

Friday afternoon I swooped in like MacGyver to assist a wedding.  I've been doing a lot of this lately.  No, not MacGyver moves, but day of assistance for weddings.  I'm actually totally loving working with different planners and vendors.   I'm going to start a series of interviews with all of the wonderful people I've worked with so far, but to start, here's a visual introduction to some of the work I've assisted on:

Place card table with City Girl Weddings

Umbrella backdrop I created for City Girl Weddings

Place card tree for Clementine Events

Lollipop place cards for SQN Events

I Dabble in Other Things

A week ago today I was putting the final touches on the timeline for Kristen and Dave's wedding as their day of coordinator for their Sweetest Day wedding last weekend.  Mind you, day of coordination is something I tend to do as an assistant to the other fabulous planners in my wedding circle...not very often am I going solo for the day.  I've worked quite a few weddings with a couple of ladies this season and so admire the women I have had the honor of assisting.  After this past weekend though, I have a new found appreciation for everything they do.  For Kristen and Dave's wedding, I was only involved in the process for about 3 weeks in which everything was already planned out, and I just swooped in to coordinate the day and vendors for a smooth flowing event (according to my timeline).  For the months and years that planners spend putting every last detail together flawlessly, and thinking on their toes for everyone that special day (including myself...I just come in and do what I'm told), I commend you.  I ran around calmly all last Saturday while having a mini tornado in my head of thoughts and problem solving and a constant check list.
Bravo ladies, you are to be admired and commended for all that you take on during the course of planning.

Now for what I took on....

Getting the bride down the aisle

Florals by Michelle's Petal Designs

Cake by Bittersweet

The fabulous candy bar I put together at Pazzo's.

The day went off without a hitch and Kristen and Dave couldn't be happier.  I on the other hand, have invested in some new "day of" shoes for the next long wedding day.  My feet couldn't be happier.