Congratulations! You’re engaged! Now what?  Chances are there are a million and one things racing through your head as you begin to plan you wedding to your beloved. Two of the first questions to consider are ‘When?’ and ‘Where?’  The ‘When’ is certainly a personal decision. You might select a date because it is meaningful to you and your family, or because it is your favorite time of year, or simply because your favorite photographer is available that weekend. Only you can pick your perfect wedding date.  The ‘Where’, however, is something that we certainly can assist with or at least help to be your trusty guides.

A couple of years ago, we had the pleasure of partnering with our clients for the creation and development of a venue in Grand Rapids: The Ballroom at McKay.  Through that project we assisted with sales and bookings, staff training, collaborative business development, operations strategy, event furnishings and lighting procurement, art direction (collateral, website and branding materials) and so much more.  Through that partnership, we learned a lot about wedding venues most importantly, what to consider when choosing yours.

Pictured Above: Cherry Basket Farm

What is included with the rental?

When choosing a venue, it’s important to know what all is included with the rental.  This is imperative as anything that’s not included would be an additional expense and potentially a large chunk out of your overall wedding budget, not to mention, more vendors for you (or your planner) to worry about on the day of the wedding.

Cherry Basket Farm, located in the picturesque Leelanau Peninsula is “a private setting that celebrates the best and most special qualities of Northern Michigan”.  Cherry Basket Farm, also happens to be the home of Epicure Catering, an award winning caterer specializing in local, sustainable cuisine.  By choosing Cherry Basket Farm as the location for your wedding, their comprehensive catering and day-of vendor management packages also include the following: separate bride and groom dressing areas, a forested ceremony site with chairs, lower barn area with bar, cocktail tables, bar stools and a gift table, farmyard and yard games, crisp white pole tent for dining with removable window sides and dimmable lighting, tables and chairs, upper barn with dance floor, seating for 50, a coffee station, dessert station and ample power for your band or DJ, handicapped-accessible mens and womens restrooms, and on-site parking.  With all of these items included in the cost of your package, the value of the rental has increased, leaving less for you to worry about on the day of your wedding.

Pictured Above: Pacific Oaks Vineyard Estate

How long do I have access to the space?

As much as you want to believe that your wedding is the only one of importance to the venue, unfortunately, that is not the case.  Along with making sure that your wedding goes smoothly and that you and your guests have the time of your lives, the Venue Coordinator is also focusing on the next couple to get married and making sure that all of your best interests are kept in mind.  In order to accommodate multiple events, venues have established hours of rental. This typically includes a few hours in the morning prior to your wedding for setup, the duration of your event and a couple hours after the party (for tear down).  When working with your wedding vendors, it’s important that you (or your planner) make sure that your vendors are aware of these time constraints, what you are asking them to do, and that what they are proposing is able to be accomplished during the rental period.  If you are considering a lengthy setup, it may be worth your while to chat with the venue coordinator about the opportunity to purchase additional hours for setup and teardown.

Pictured Above: Four Season Resort Vail

Is there a Food and Beverage minimum?

For larger resorts or hotels, it’s not uncommon for them to forgo the room rental all together and instead establish a Food and Beverage [F&B] minimum that must be met in order for you not to incur additional room rental costs or fees.  The F&B minimum typically excludes taxes, fees and gratuity and is formulated based upon your guest count, specific location (which room you decide to book within a larger facility), the time of year (high season events typically incur a higher F&B minimum) along with a handful of other factors that come directly from the venue.  The F&B minimum is not something to be scared of but rather just something to consider.  If you are choosing not to serve alcohol, you may need to enhance your hors d’oeurves selections in order to ensure that you meet the F&B minimum.

Pictured Above: The Ballroom at McKay

Are there certain Vendors that I have to use?

When we were developing The Ballroom at McKay along with our clients, we know that it was important to surround ourselves with vendors who would respect and care for the venue just as much as we did.  Because of this, we created a Preferred Caterer list, or a list of caterers for couples who booked with The Ballroom can choose from.  As a venue, this ensured that the onsite kitchen was only to be accessed by licensed and insured professionals.  As a soon to be married couple, you can rest assured that the caterer you select will be held to the highest of standards and has proven time and time again to be “tried and true”.  A Preferred or Recommended Vendor list should provide peace of mind, however, if you are dead set on using a professional who is not on the list, you may want to reconsider your venue prior to remitting a signed contract and deposit.

These are just a handful of questions you should ask your venue prior to signing on the dotted line.  One last helpful tip to consider…we sometimes start our venue conversations by asking “What can’t I do [in this space, location, room, etc]?”.  This usually throws the Venue Coordinator for a loop, as it is not a question they get asked very often. Trust us when we say, you’ll be glad you asked!

The 2016 Fall Ready-to-Wear collections debuted at New York Fashion Week last month. We were instantly inspired by the collections showcased on the runway by acclaimed American designers. Here are five of our favorite fashion trends for Fall and how they can translate into the event world.

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Black…always classic and always chic! We love how Marchesa interpreted the infamous little black dress this season. It is ever the wardrobe staple and we look forward to seeing how it is reinvented year after year. Incorporating black elements at your event, like a statement chandelier or floral accents, add great depth and contrast to your design. You can’t go wrong with neutrals in your palette like black, white and ivory.

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Metallics were all over the runways this season. DVF’s gold wrap dress (shown on the left) is truly stunning! Let your wedding day shine by mixing in gold, silver or rose gold accents for a bit of sparkle. With proper application, metallics can transform stationery, floral and decor into show stopping elements of your event design. A silver foil on a letter-pressed invitation, a gold leaf floral accent or a rose gold tier on your wedding cake will add excitement to these pieces.

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Velvet, ever the plush and luxurious fabric, adds such a lovely texture to both fashion gowns and event decor. Why not select a guest book that you will have for years to come in a lush fabric? We love the option shown on the left from a wedding by Easton Events. Consider adding a delicate velvet ribbon to your invitations or place settings for a thoughtful detail.

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Menswear inspired pieces that incorporate plaid printed fabrics frequented the latest runway collections. Jason Wu used a bold patterned textile in his fall pieces. Consider adding a plaid ribbon to your welcome gifts or a beautiful herringbone runner to your tablescapes. Adding pattern to your design creates interest! Mixing unexpected prints and colors is always a good idea in our book.

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Ulla Johnson’s gown, shown in the center, captures the nomadic, spirited vibe of the modern bohemian woman. You can incorporate this style at your event by combining rustic wooden tables with bold blooms. We especially love the cascading greenery and the airy fabric of the drapery shown at right. Patterned rugs, metal lanterns and bold blooms and soft textiles can help create the bohemian aesthetic you are looking to achieve.

Four years ago I attended my first Engage! conference, created by Rebecca Grinnals and Kathryn Arce of Engaging Concepts. I could spend a whole day talking about what they have done for our industry but that’s for another time. (However, if you are in the luxury wedding market, you need… strike that… you SHOULD know about these women.)  Rebecca and Kathryn always say, “we’re better together” and that’s a founding principal that guides our process like a rudder on a sailboat every single day.

Ever since I was little, I’ve bled Maize and Blue. For those who you not from the midwest, those are the school colors of the University of Michigan. My alma mater. I grew up watching the Michigan football team play every Saturday during the fall and loved watching old playbacks of Coach Schembechler. To give a bit of context, Bo Schembechler was the head football coach of the Wolverines from 1969-1989. In his 21 years at Ann Arbor, his teams won or shared 13 Big Ten Conference titles. With Coach Schembechler, it was never about the accomplishments of the individual players, it was always about teamwork. He is a legend in college football and is likened a Saint on campus.

As a student at U of M, I’ll never forget my first time walking through the tunnel from the locker room out onto the field at The Big House and reading Coach Schembechler’s words overhead. The words painted in the tunnel at Michigan Stadium weren’t written in a foreign language, or deeply philosophical, or even in code. They weren’t written in vain or with ego. They weren’t complicated or a work of art but they were powerful and they resonate with me every day. “The Team, The Team, The Team.” In 1983 Coach Schemblecher gave his “The Team” speech to his Wolverine’s in the locker room and to this day, it’s one of the most celebrated speeches about the bettering of the team over oneself.

We have many players on our team. We have our clients, we have our vendors, we have our business advisers, we have our colleagues, we have our friends and families. Every single person on our team plays a specific role in our successes and failures. We win as a team. We loose as a team. No single individual is more important that another. Now, being that we are in the service industry I bet you are thinking, “wow, how can she say that her client’s aren’t the most important element to her business? Without them, they wouldn’t have any work?” You are right, that is a true statement- without people connecting with A Day in May Events and ultimately contracting us to produce goods and services for them, we would not have work. However, in that same breath, I can easily say without our vendors that we work with to execute the particular goods and services for those clients, the client’s vision wouldn’t come to life and without these suppliers we wouldn’t have any work either. Same goes for our board of directors; the accountants, bankers, lawyers and all the not-so-glamourous-but-neccessary-to-business-advisers, when we are working with our clients and our vendors, these team members keep the day to day operations in check. Without them, the lights may not stay on. Our colleagues in the industry are like our friends and family- if they didn’t support our cause, what we were called to create with A Day in May Events, then we would not have the same confidence and stamina to do what we do every day.

No matter what you do for a living or the stage of your professional career, if you can understand that you are a part of a bigger team and that you are better with them, you will go far. Your successes will be sweeter and your failures softer. And you will find that no matter what, you cannot do this alone. I never make New Years Resolutions. Why? Because I can never keep them! But in 2015 I broke my own rule and made one; it was “to work with people that I love, for people that I love” and I’m proud to say I haven’t broken that resolution yet, nor do I plan on it, because I love my team.

… we couldn’t agree more! In a world where gratification can be instantaneous, we’re fighting harder and harder to enjoy the creation and discovery process. Andy Warhol was many things; a pop artist, a social commentator, a celebrity, an entrepreneur, and an innovator. Mr. Warhol is a cultural icon and one we regard highly. It’s simple really… anticipation should be celebrated, just like being engaged or planning for a holiday celebration. Embrace the wait- it makes that moment, when it arrives, that much sweeter.

Image courtesy of Andy Warhol Museum.

We believe that every great party starts (and ends) with champagne! There’s something about being greeted with a glass of bubbly that says fun and frivolity await. Whether you are registering for your wedding or hosting a dinner party and want to show off your stems, these are 9 of our favorite looks of the season to serve your bubbly in. Our very own Tana shared her recommendations for five bubbling beverages sure to make you the life of the party over on Dempsey & Carroll’s blog, Eighteen Seventy Eight.

Appearing left to right…

1. Anthropologie Gilded Rim Coupe
   The ever so delicate and dainty blush hued glass with gold rim is the epitome of poetry. How could you resist the pinkie-pop sipping from this glass?
2. Schott Zwiesel Pure Champagne Flutes
   A clean and classic design, this is the perfect flute to watch all 8 million or so bubbles dance in your glass!
3. Ralph Lauren Brenna Champagne Flute
   This vintage inspired flute marries two of our favorite surfaces, glass and metal. We approve!
4. Kate Spade Larabee Dot Crystal Flute–
   The etched glass detail brings the bubbles of champagne into the design element, we can’t resist it’s charm!
5. Vietri Optical Smoke Gray Champagne Glass
   Champagne has a beautiful hue,and this smokey glass is the right kind of lens to observe it’s shine.
6. Monique Lhuillier Waterford Ellipse Flute
   Monique can do no wrong in our book and this partnership with Waterford has our hearts fluttering!
7. Juliska Graham Flute
   The feminine embellishments and elongated bowl on this flute are the perfect accompaniment for a memorable toast.
8. Saint-Louis Oxymore Crystal Champagne Flute
   Architectural yet approachable- one cannot deny imbibing from this glass when a tray waltzes by!
9. Baccarat Massella Champagne Coupe
   This timeless glass begs to be positioned with it’s friends in the most epic of champagne towers filled by a sabered bottle, but of course!

*All images provided by the listed links, Cover image by Jen Kroll Photography.