Breakfast At Tiffany’s Themed Bridal Shower // July 21, 2014 // Private Residence // Fairwood, WA

I’ve known Laura since she was five years old-I used to babysit her and her brother.  I can’t believe the time has come for her to get married.  Along with a wedding, comes a bridal shower(s) and I jumped at the chance to plan one for a wonderful young woman that I have watched grow up.  What a special honor.

I knew immediately I wanted to have the shower theme be based around something classic.  Who is more classic than Audrey Hepburn?  So that decided the theme: Breakfast at Tiffany’s.  I was able to plan this shower with Laura’s aunt Nancy, mother Susan and my mother Sue.  We had a GREAT time.

I hit Pinterest, as I knew I wasn’t the first to use this theme, but I was curious about all the different party ideas and options that were out there.  And there were a TON.  I gathered all my thoughts and ideas, made lists, printed pictures and got the planning underway.  I presented my ideas to the planning committee and we decided what would be best for this shower and got to work.

My mom and I spent an entire day running around to different stores gathering anything that reminded us of Breakfast at Tiffany’s and everything in the colors of Tiffany blue, black, sliver and white.  My car was FULL.  It was so fun.

We purchased and customized the invitations off of Etsy and they were perfect.  I found white envelopes with a sparkle silver flap at Michaels and finished the look with a custom Tiffany blue stamps-yes, I HAVE to create a full package.  On the invitation, we suggested the guests wear black and white, which EVERYONE did!  With the invitation we included a ‘Whishes for the Soon to be Mrs.’ card for each guest to write their wishes and advice for the Bride to Be and bring to the shower.

We had a full house with 26 guests, Laura is very loved!

As guests arrived, they were given a strand of pearls for a game that would run throughout the shower.  The guests were not allowed to say Laura, Grady, wedding or beautiful.  If another guest caught someone saying any of those words, they could steal a strand of pearls.  Whoever had the most pearls at the end of the shower was the winner.  Of course, we had two winners (thankfully we had a back-up prize)!  Also upon arriving, family and friends were offered a big ‘diamond’ ring, a pair of black sunglasses and a tiara (remember Audrey Hepburn style) to wear during the shower and take home with them.  We also played ‘Guess the Pearls.’ There was a large martini glass filled with pearls.  Each person made a guess at the number of pearls in the glass.  After everyone had taken her turn, we revealed the winner.  There were 737 pearls and the winner guessed 732!  Most guesses were under 300.

After arriving, playing the first game and mingling, guests also helped themselves to the beverages.  We had a table full! Red and white wine (the labels were in Tiffany blue of course), champagne and assorted fruit and fruit juices for mimosa’s and a basil lemonade.

The shower started at 2:00 pm, but we still had a brunch theme for the food.  3 casseroles, fruit, and croissants filled the food table.  So SO yummy!  Once everyone arrived and had a bit of time to mingle and play a couple of games, we opened up the food table.  Once everyone was done eating, we moved into a quick and simple game.  We handed out Tiffany blue scratch tickets with a big diamond on them.  Each guest scratched the tickets at the same time until one card revealed WINNER! Quick and simple, but enjoyed by all.  From the scratch tickets, we moved into our final and most difficult game…’Match the Famous Couples.’  Each lady was given a card with 20 famous men and 20 famous women. They were asked to match the famous man to the famous woman they may have dated or been married to, young and old, and possibly not currently together.  We thought we made it difficult-apparently not! Five guests got all 20 right!  So…onto our tie breaker.  The five first round winners were given a second sheet with 10 famous men and 10 famous women to match up.  This time only one person got five couples right-we had a WINNER!

Once games were over, the bride opened gifts.  Laura and her future husband were well stocked!  After gifts, we mingled a little more as our beautiful afternoon came to a close.  Upon leaving, guests were offered a box of macaroons (in a Tiffany blue box tied with ribbon!) and a choice of Tiffany blue or soft pink nail polish.  They were thrilled with their favors.

Everyone, especially Laura, had a great time.  I am so honored that I got to be a part of throwing her a beautiful bridal shower and I am really looking forward to coordinating her wedding in less than two months!

Congrats on your engagement Laura and Grady!

Laura + Grady // August 16, 2014 // The Hollywood Schoolhouse // Woodinville, WA

Where has the time gone?!?  It feels like just yesterday I was 13, Laura was five and I was babysitting her.  Now I was helping plan her wedding!  This was a really special wedding to me.  I have known the Beaty’s for 18 years.  I have watched Laura grow up.  I was very honored when they asked me to coordinate the Beaty-Dillon wedding.  What a fun adventure!

Laura is a grade school teacher so The Hollywood Schoolhouse was a perfect fit for the ceremony and reception.  I love the look and feel of the building.  Wood and brick accents make the best backdrop for photos!  The grounds around the venue are kept up beautifully.  Laura knew what she wanted, but didn’t want to do a whole lot of the planning.  However, her mother, Susan, loves planning!  So Susan dove right in to bring Laura’s ideas together.

Laura knew she wanted a whimsical garden feel to the day with hints of her profession intertwined.  Her vision turned out more beautiful than I could have imagined.  The venue already set the perfect backdrop and she brought in apple green, coral and cream accents with her colors.  Laura and her mother fell in LOVE with this amazing book arch they found at the Seattle Wedding Show and they complemented it with big bundles of baby’s breath.  It was the perfect look in front of white sheer curtains for Laura and Grady’s ceremony.  Laura and Grady each had four attendants standing with them, two handsome ring bearers and the most adorable little flower girl.  The girls wore knee length chiffon dresses, different styles, in gray and the guys were dressed in gray suits.  Laura was a stunning bride in her long lace strapless gown and cathedral length veil.  She wore her hair up with simple and elegant make-up and jewelry.  Laura is definitely not five anymore!

The ceremony was a perfect 20 minutes.  Their good friend officiated and it was beautiful and heartfelt.    Wonderful words of wisdom and advice.  Laura and Grady also had two close friends play and sing their ceremomy music.  Following the ceremony was a cocktail hour outside so we could transition the ceremony into the reception.  It was a beautiful sunny 75 degrees.  The guests enjoyed the bar and passed appetizers while the new husband and wife enjoyed some quiet time upstairs signing the marriage license and taking a breather before the reception festivities.  As soon as the room was transferred over, guests were invited in to find their escort card.  The escort cards were printed on a cream paper to match the invitations and programs and each one was inserted into a decorative binder clip and stood in a tray of silver decorative pebbles.  Once each guest found their table and got their drink of choice, the bride and groom were introduce into the reception.  The tables were adorned with white linens, a large round mirror, painted white books, glassy baby’s, thin vases with flowers and a painted white wooden apple with a pencil holding the table number.  Very creative and perfect.  Each place setting had homemade jam, the bride’s moms specialty, for the guests to take home and enjoy.

To kick off the reception, Grady’s brother Conor and his wife hosted a little game.  They would hold up a sign with a word or phrase and if it pertained to you, you were asked to stand.  After standing, Laura and Grady tried to guess what was on the sign based on who was standing.  This was very fun and a great way to get the guests involved.  Following the game was dinner.  It was a lovely array of food that everyone seemed to enjoy.

After dinner, were some heartfelt toasts from Kristina – maid of honor, Conor – best man, Shannon – matron of honor and Mark – bride’s father.  Each toast was thought out well beforehand and very meaningful to both Laura and Grady.  This couple was definitely surrounded by a room full of love.  From toasts, they moved onto the cake cutting.  Laura and Grady chose a small cutting cake and to serve their guests cookies and milk for dessert, a favorite for the couple. The first dance was next and Laura and Grady danced to a song sung by Annie and Jonah, long time family friends.  It is the first wedding I have ever planned or been to that has done something like this.  Following the first dance, was the father-daughter dance and then the mother-son dance.  I had to hold back tears through each dance.  I don’t normally cry at weddings…but, this one almost brought on the tears a few times.

Then, the traditional event all the singles had been waiting for…or not.  The bouquet and garter toss.  First up, the bouquet toss.  Laura and Grady are still in their early twenties, so they had a good crowd to throw into.  A good friend of Laura’s happily caught the bouquet.  Grady took the guys outside for a garter toss…with a soccer ball and a good friend of his was the lucky guy to catch it.  Everyone seemed to want to catch the bouquet and garter.

With the traditional events done, it was time for everyone to get their party on and show off their dance moves.  Everyone was very eager to get out on the dance floor.  The DJ, Yoshi, was phenomenal and really kept the crowd going.  As fast as the party started, it came to an end and before anyone knew it we were sending Laura and Grady off through a tunnel of sparklers.

What a fabulous day.  What an honor to be asked to play such a big role for someone so special to me.  Laura and Grady I wish you nothing but the best in this adventure and I can’t wait to see what life has in store for you!

VENUE// THE HOLLYWOOD SCHOOLHOUSE
DAY OF COORDINATION// CASSIE RENAE EVENTS, LLC
PHOTOGRAPHY// MATTHEW LAND STUDIOS
VIDEOGRAPHY// LANCE WATTS FILMS
CATERING// THE HOLLYWOOD SCHOOLHOUSE
CAKE// BELLEVUE QFC
FLOWERS// BEE’S FLORIST
CEREMONY ARCH// LOLA CREATIVE
DJ// YOSHI WITH BUGSIE PRODUCTIONS
OFFICIANT// SETH THOMAS – FRIEND OF THE BRIDE AND GROOM
CEREMONY MUSICIANS// MICHAEL AND ERIN – FRIENDS OF THE BRIDE AND GROOM
HAIR// JAMIE HAWKES
MAKE-UP// MAKEUP BY JUSTINE
INVITATIONS, PROGRAMS AND OTHER PRINTED MATERIAL// DESIGNED BY DJ MORGAN, LETTERPRESS BY CORBIN WATKINS