Renaissance Gothic Themed Halloween Wedding for Melissa and Greg at Dayton Art Institute

Greg and Melissa had one of the most creative wedding days I've ever had the pleasure of doing yet! The couple wanted to have a wedding that reflected their passion for the renaissance period and "Lord of the Rings," with a twist of Gothic and black for their Halloween Day wedding. We put our heads together and the result was this classy, true-to-the-period wedding at the Dayton Art Institute that was enjoyed by all!

Greg wore a period jacket with buttons while the bride wore a custom made black velvet gown and custom made veil. The seamstress, Johnna Brough, has sewn and designed costumes for the Ohio Renaissance Festival for years.

The bridesmaids were no exception and also wore custom-made burgundy period dresses.
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All of the ladies carried red magic roses complemented with black feathers and tendrills, made by the talented Cady Vance. The ladies look like rock stars (or renaissance stars?) thanks to the talents of Nancy from Brideface.

Programs and guest invitations were in a Gothic font and sealed with a wax sealed crest emblem.
A hand ceremony was performed by Persephanie, a member of the Wicca community

The bridal ceremony was complemented by the talented music of Rose Trio.

Melissa's favorite pose of the day

The Gothic Cloister of the Dayton Art Institute was uplit with red lighting on the pillars and a red rose pattern on the dance floor by Party Pleasers.

Silver chargers, red napkins with silver holders complemented the black crinkled linens and black chair covers tied with silver sashes. Rentals were provided by Finch Rental and Prime Time Party Rental.The cake was the only white thing at this event. In true Melissa and Greg fashion, the Ele Cake Company wedding cake was cut to Billy Idol's "White Wedding."

Tables were adorned with white and black feather centerpieces, or immersed red magic roses, that were illuminated with internal vase lighting and candles. Each table was named after something from "Lord of the Rings" and in a Gothic-style frame and font.

Halloween would not have been complete without a candy bar. This was served during the same time as cocktail hour and the candy was gone before dinner. (Tip to brides to be -- serve your candy bar after dinner has been cleared!)

Photographer Daniel Michael could not resist getting in the electronic lift to get this ariel shot! It shows the dance floor, pinspot and column uplighting, done by Party Pleasers, who also DJ the reception. Elegant Fare catered the delicious food.

A great shot of the lighting detail on the dance floor and the shape of the Gothic cloister room

Congratulations to Greg and Melissa on an amazing wedding day! Here is to a lifetime of happiness and centuries thereafter!

Got Wedding Stuff -- 2/17/2010

Yesterday, I met with Pam Vitale at Country Club of the North to discuss the details for the next "Got Wedding Stuff" event, which will be held at CCN on 2/17/2010 from 5 to 9 p.m.

We anticipate roughly 100 vendors will be exhibiting at the bridal cocktail, so you can chat with them and learn more about their services. The event will feel like a wedding cocktail reception. A fashion show will showcase the latest and greatest in bridal attire. A silent auction, which will be loaded with generous gift certificates from local wedding vendors off their services, and lightly used wedding items such as dresses, jewelry, shoes, centerpieces, favors, unity candles, guest books, garters, and other accessories, will be at the event for all brides. (At the last event, more than $50,000 worth of items were donated! A bride won a $1000 brand new wedding dress for $50!) We're also planning to have other games and activities, such as a dollar dance with a local celebrity, to add fun to the festivities.

Cost will be $5 per person and includes one drink ticket for those over the age of 21. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Lupus Foundation and all brides will certainly benefit from the fabulous deals at the auction! Lightly used wedding items and gift certificates may be pledged on the website and dropped off on 2/16 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. and on 2/17 by 3 p.m. All donations to the silent auction are tax deductible. (Gift certificates only may be dropped off to Your Dream Day before 12/31 for a 2009 tax donation.) We'll get the items up as they are pledged and dropped off, so check the site regularly in the weeks and days leading up to the event. We encourage brides with lightly used items left from their own weddings to donate them to this event!

This event will be presented in sponsorship with Your Dream Day, Country Club of the North, Finch Rental and Party Pleasers. (We are still tying down the details for the fashion show, and PSAs with the local television media. Radio ads will start running in February.) If you are a vendor and interested in exhibiting or donating to the event, please call me and we'll get you signed up.

Danielle and Michael, February 21, 2009

Danielle leads by example! She is a fellow wedding planner who owns the company Soiree in Cincinnati. She and I spoke late in 2008 and she said to me, "Kathy, I need a wedding planner." At first, I was like, "Danielle, you're a planner?!?" She's said, "I am no different than any other bride, I need someone to help me tie down the details the weeks prior and make sure that everything goes smoothly on the wedding day. I'm a total hypocrite if I don't. I'm setting an example for my clients." She actually let go and let us handle the details so she could enjoy the wedding day. This is an example of how well the wedding planners in the Association of Bridal Consultants in our market get along so well and act as co-opitition instead of as vicious competitors.



We also helped Danielle pull off a surprise performance for her new husband, Michael, from their favorite performing artist. The two spent their honeymoon at the Willis Graves in Burlington, KY. Congratulations Danielle and Michael!! Thanks for choosing us to help you on your special day!

The testimonials below were pulled from Danielle's website. The video footage is compliments of Studio Z Films and the amazing Steve Zugelter and photos by Tine Hoffman. (My added comments are in parentheses).

Ceremony Location: Norman Chapel at Spring Grove Cemetery (Gorgeous!)
Reception Location: Private Recording Studio (Very contemporary and unique venue for a cocktail reception.)

Videographer: Glass Eye Video Steve Zugelter simply mystifies me with his many cameras and knack for being able to literally shoot everything at once. I have never seen a video of his that didn't leave me holding my breath and mine is no exception.

Wedding Coordinator: Your Dream Day
I tell brides all the time that they just cannot do this by themselves and I am no exception to that rule. Kathy and the Dream Girls were there from 9am till midnight taking care of every little detail from setting the room to making sure Michael didn't find out that I hired our favorite band to play a surprise private concert at the reception. There is absolutely no way I could've gotten through the day without them.

Ceremony Musicians: Ashley Peacock, Marjie Long, Alison Haynes
This is one area that I was so so glad to have the inside scoop on. I have been to so many weddings where the vocalists were painful or awkward and I knew I certainly didn't have to worry about that. Ash and Marjie sounded like absolute angels and were backed up on the piano by Alison Haynes, who I swear belongs on Broadway. (She gives private lessons by the way so check her out.)

Catering: Cincy Art of Entertaining
I cannot say enough amazing things about Julie and Chef Jacob. Amazing vision, fantastic staff, and they found a way to give our food some Indian Infusion without compromising the style of the event. (Dreamgirls thought they were amazing and easy to work with behind the scenes!)

Linens and Rentals: Finch Rental
This could be my new favorite rental company. Visiting was such a pleasant atmosphere and the owner, Russ Finch, was there to answer any questions I had. He was incredibly accommodating when I needed particular set-up and pick-up times. When he couldn't make the pick-up time I needed work out, he made a special trip from Dayton to do the pick-up himself. Huge thank-you to you, Russ!

Florist: Timothy's
I love this guy. I changed my flower order about 16 times and he stayed tracking with me the whole time. My bouquet was gorgeous and the way me got the feathers to look in the Bridesmaids bouquet was like magic.

Cake: Tres Belle Cakes
My favorite Cincinnati baker by far. Tracy makes amazing cakes and you get her awesomeness at no extra charge. ($2.50 a slice to be precise! She's amazing!)

Hair and Make-up: Hair and Body Works of Hyde Park
I stuck with my personal salon for hair and make-up and am so happy that I did. Debrah did an incredible job with my challenging veil. This place is an oasis of peace and beauty. Stop in for a new hairdo from Debrah or a life-changing facial from Benny.

Photo Booth: Say Cheese Photo Booth
Not only are these booths great fun but the operators are a blast to work with as well. It was so great to come back from our honeymoon and have a scrapbook full of photo booth pictures to look at. Frank had a flash drive with digital files of all the pictures in the mail to me within days of the wedding. This is must-have fun! (We love these guys! They are a great addition to any wedding and very professional to deal with.)

Photographer: TM Photography
Tine is, in my opinion, the very best photographer in Cincinnati. She knows how to shoot a woman and make her look like a rock star. Whether it is for wedding pictures, trash the dress sessions, or boudoir photos, she is absolutely the most creative and talented photographer I have ever worked with. Plus, her accent is fantastic.

Custom Jewelry and Veil: Meg Jewelry
This woman is just too many things. She is my friend and jewelry goddess. Every piece that Meg delivers is made with the purest soul and most positive energy. She designs magnificent pieces, intended to look as well when worn alone as when worn with a wedding dress. Please, please do yourself a favor and check out her phenomenal work. She made both my necklace and hairpiece/veil. (I loved her veil! It was one of my favorite things about the day!)

Invitations: Momental Designs
Our invitations were custom designed by Kristy Rice of Momental Designs. All of her invitations contain original artwork by Kristy.