part!02: the inspiration

So what was my inspiration as a result of my attendance at engage!08: the encore? Simply put, "I Do Vow To". How did engage!08: the encore bring about such an inspiration? It started with a question I posed to Carley Roney and David Liu, founders of The Knot, the largest and most successful wedding planning website in the world.

As a wedding planner and owner of my own business, Fete Perfection, I am cognizant of concerns couples have about excess and waste and benevolent causes when planning their wedding. I asked Carley and David if they would consider featuring stories about wedding professionals who do more than provide goods or services to couples. For example, I am well acquainted with many wedding pros who donate their time to building homes and schools in third world countries, or contribute a sizable percentage of their fee towards community service projects, benefits or charities. And I work with vendors who are committed to minimizing waste, minimizing harm to the environment and giving back to community as thanks to their good fortunes.

Although Carley and David agreed my suggestion is good, the focus of their publication is to provide inspiration and updates on wedding trends, planning tools and useful new ideas to their brides. They didn't see stories about some of these benevolent vendors fitting their audience needs.

At first I thought, "oh well, I tried" but after hearing encouragement from a number of the engage!08 attendees, I thought "oh well...I'll try again! After returning home I began researching and developing my idea into what is "I Do Vow To" helping engaged couples and wedding planners to positively impact community through thoughtful planning and educated decisions. My goal is to meet the needs of couples who want to work with those wedding professionals who build homes or schools for the underprivileged, or those who sponsor a child through World Vision. My goal is to find florists and caterers who will work to find the freshest ingredients from local sustainable farms or purchase flowers, when possible from local cooperatives or small local greenhouses so jet fuel isn't consumed sending flowers from South America.

For now "I Do Vow To" is my newest blog and with continued research and networking look for "I Do Vow To" the website and team of wedding consultants dedicated to helping couples committed to making a positive difference locally and globally while planning their wedding.

Thanks to Donna von Bruening of DVB Photo for all the great candid photos posted here.

engage!08: the inspiration

The true name for this outstanding symposium I attended in October is engage!08: the encore, however for me it should be engage!08: the inspiration...why you might ask? Well in order to truly answer I need to explain what this opportunity meant to me.

The one-day symposium was held at the Ritz-Carlton of Grande Lakes in Orlando, which of course set the stage for perfection from luxurious accommodations to fabulous food and first-class service. Engage!08 successfully debuted in June 2008 as a "high impact wedding business symposium designed to take you and your company to the next level" as outlined by founders Rebecca Grinnals and Kathryn Arce both of Engaging Concepts.

I was fortunate to be able to attend encore in conjunction with planning meetings with Disney Fairytale Weddings and was able to meet and network with 80 wedding professionals from 5 countries and 25 states. In addition to meeting new friends and colleagues, I had the good fortune to hear from dynamic leaders in the wedding industry starting with Rebecca Grinnals, co-founder of Disney Fairytale Weddings and founder of Engaging Concepts which provides expert consulting to the wedding and honeymoon industry.

Other featured speakers included Carley Roney and David Liu of The Knot, Sylvia Weinstock, Bee Kim of the Wedding Bee, Sean Low, President of Preston Bailey Designs and Simon T. Bailey renowned author of Release Your Brilliance. We had an entire day of interaction with these industry innovators and learned some of their secrets to success. Everyone of them challenged us to push our potential beyond all boundaries and to release the inhibitions that may have been a road-block to future success.

So what does this have to do with engage!08: the inspiration? Stay tuned to part!2: the inspiration.

Celebrity Chef and Restaurateur for Catering

Brenda Langton, award winning chef and successful restaurateur is the driving force behind Spoonriver Restaurant dedicating her life to the advancement of organics and supporting local growers.

Brenda understood the need for local support of sustainable farms, organic growing and the need for healthy eating at least two decades before the rest of the world "got it". Brenda traveled extensively in Europe where she observed the origins of co-operative markets and restaurants rooted in local ingredients.

Brenda will customize your wedding day menu based on food preferences, style, presentation and seasonal ingredients. I recommend you stop by Spoonriver for your first taste of delectable dishes and then call her to discuss further. You can find Spoonriver at 750 South 2nd Street next to the Guthrie in Minneapolis.

Cool Lighting for Winter Weddings

When I say "cool" you have no idea I really mean "cold" lighting ideas for winter weddings. We created these ice lanterns for Ashley & Shea's January wedding at the Landmark Center in St. Paul. They were very easy and for just a few cents for candles were also very cost-effective. Here are other examples of ice lanterns that could easily be adapted to your winter wedding motif.

One tip however, it's best to freeze the water in a flat level portion of your freezer rather than depend on the outdoor temperatures to do the freezing for you. Unless we're in the middle of an arctic deep freeze, make two lanterns at a time and use the steady temperature of your own freezer to consistently obtain the most uniform shape. They can be stored outside once they have been frozen to perfection.

Experiment with food coloring, colored pillar candles or as the water freezes, add touches of ribbon, garland, flowers, berries or evergreens...the results are amazing.

Pumpkins for Weddings? Yes!

Two years ago late October my daughter Jenny had a destination wedding of sorts...she and Nate were married in Brainerd, Minnesota and had their reception at Sherwood Forest the fine dining restaurant owned by GrandView Lodge. Trying to be objective of course, everything was perfect and the attention to detail with both food, ambiance and service we could not have asked for a better experience

We used white pumpkins consistently through out the design in both the ceremony at the very formal St. Francis Catholic Church and at the reception at the very rustic but elegant setting of Sherwood Forest. When the weekend was over we took the pumpkins home, carved them and used again for Halloween pumpkins just a few days later. Who says jack-o-lanterns have to be orange? I have to mention Jenny and Nate's wedding was my first experience with Biff Ulm of Vada Photography and, as anyone who knows me, will not be my last.

Fabulous Earth-Friendly Ideas

A number of earth-friendly elements were combined to make Regina and Justin's amazing fall wedding...well...amazing!

Yesterday's post focused on "previously-viewed" ceremony displays doing double duty at the reception. The images to the left show how this one dramatic display is almost completely transformed once moved to a new location.

Thanks to Martha of Martha's Gardens for inspiration and her commitment to earth-friendly wedding flowers. With close to 200 guests, we had 23 guest tables, however not every table had a dramatic floral centerpiece. At least 10 tables had a variety of candles, vases both square and chunky with candles, votives and colorful newly fallen leaves adorning the tables. This not only saved money but the environment by using completely re-usable vases, beeswax candles and of course leaves which would have blown into the Mississippi River anyway!

At the end of the night, the flowers were gathered and reused the next day for Sunday brunch and some made their way to a nearby nursing home to brighten a few lives.

Recycling Ceremony Flowers

A commitment we make to couples who hire us is to get the most out of the flowers we use for both the ceremony and reception. In these next few photos check out the ceremony displays...they're magnificent but they're also recycled for the reception and do not look out of place. I love it when we can find new uses for "previously-viewed" flowers.

Smart Wedding Flowers

From buying in bulk to re-using petals for a fairy tale send-off, the editors of Portovert.com have rounded up ten of their favorite ways to save on flowers (hint: these ideas are all eco-friendly, too!).

1. Buy in Bulk: Ecuador's long days and cool nights yield some of the world's most perfect organic roses, but only Organic Bouquet ships carbon-neutral pesticide-free blooms from the region. The company's wholesale site makes bulk orders cost as little as ninety-eight cents a stem.
2. Location, Location, Location: We've said it before and we'll say it again: buy locally! Packaging and transportation can significantly increase the cost of goods. Buying local, seasonal flowers can save you as much as 40%.
3. Double Up: Repurposing flowers is thrifty and sustainable. Display your bridal bouquet purposefully in a thematic container to dress up your couple's table.
4. Reuse: Want a spectacular send-off? Ask friends to pluck rose petals from table arrangements for the end-of evening toss.
5. Less is More: Choose large, full flower heads, like the hydrangea, forcenterpieces. Fewer large-headed flowers will produce the same wow ffect of a dozen or more smaller blooms.
6. Branch Out: Add an architectural element, like curly willow, which can be harvested from your backyard (and replenishes itself quickly!).
7. Something Borrowed: An eclectic collection of containers can add warmth and romance to a space. Skip the rentals and borrow vases, pots or unusual containers from friends and family.
8. Mix it Up: Exotic flowers are lovely, but you can achieve the same element of surprise by combining flora and fauna with other natural objects like fruits, vegetables, shells and nuts.
9. Take Root: Well-spaced pots of manicured plants can add a special touch to a wedding, and can be found at your local garden nursery. They're inexpensive and make lovely favors for guests.
10. Skip It: There is no one way to decorate a wedding. Flowers are beautiful, but there are other ways to bring color to your celebration.

This is a re-print from iDo Foundation which I came across today - these are sound practices and ones we have adopted for "I Do Vow To"

Affordable Edible Centerpieces

What could be a more perfect solution to "tastes great - less waste" than centerpiece cakes? Here are just three examples of the six different styles and flavors of cakes from the delectable kitchens of April Wysocki of Country Cake Cupboard in Long Lake for a wedding we designed and coordinated this summer.

The mother of the bride came to us with concerns over excessive waste associated with her daughter's wedding and as it turns out, this was the driving force behind every decision made or vendor hired.

Three caterers were hired for various other events that weekend; the casual welcome dinner on Friday, rehearsal dinner Saturday and going-away brunch Monday morning after the wedding. In all three cases, the caterers worked with local sustainable farms for organically grown produce. They also committed to providing less waste and using recyclable materials for decor and serviceware.






















This wedding was truly a one-of-a-kind from start to finish in both functionality and design and I know our couple and mother of the bride felt their goals of designing and producing an environmentally and socially responsible wedding were exceeded.

Why "I Do Vow To"

With a very uncertain economy and even shakier sense of life as we know it, our confidence and security are being tested daily. Gas prices are up, gas prices are down, global warming threatens human existence...not to mention terrorism threats and the daily roller coaster we call the stock market.

I have been meeting with many couples who want to go beyond just planning their wedding. They want to show gratitude for their blessings as well as wanting to contribute in some small or large way to leaving a smaller carbon footprint, reinvesting in the local economy and improving the lives of others. They want their wedding to represent an awareness of the greater good, in addition to having one heck of a good time.

So, why "I Do Vow To"...we want to meet the needs of these couples and wedding professionals who recognize the opportunity to make life just a little better for those less fortunate than themselves. For example, one of my favorite photographers does more than photograph weddings - he donates a minimum of four weeks every year to building homes or schools in third world countries. He also sponsors a child for an annual membership fee in the name of the couples who hire him to photograph their wedding.

After extensive research, networking and hand-selecting vendors, I have put together this opportunity which I believe will fulfill the needs of those couples who feel a commitment to making a lasting impact to community in big or small ways. Every couple who contracts with "I Do Vow To" will have the benefit of choosing other wedding professionals who are committed to making a global difference as well.

Watch for additional posts as "I Do Vow To" adds additional professionals to our recommended list of vendors and new ideas we would love to see catch on.