We’ve already discussed how technology is really starting to make an impact on weddings. Remember this awesome Hollywood-style Save the Date? It’s so awesome to see couples really inject their own style into their wedding from beginning to end. As certified wedding and event planners you know there is always something new out there to be discovered in the wedding industry. So how about this: 8-bit video game wedding invitations! As the bride explained to Offbeat Bride, “We knew that we didn’t want standard paper invites. We wanted something for people to keep and remember. We are geeks. We love video games. Why not have a video game invite?”

Grooms (and their friends and groomsmen alike) will likely flip out over this awesome invitation. Its old-school style and rules are reminiscent of Nintendo games of yesterday, such as Super Mario Brothers. For brides who beg you to figure out ways to interest the grooms in the wedding planning, well, this is it, wouldn’t you say? This bridal couple designed the game themselves, which makes it a great task for couples to do together (with your encouragement!) If the couple is game (hardy har har) it would be a lot of fun to carry the video-game theme through the rehearsal and maybe even through the wedding! Think cakes, flower colors (that correspond to a specific game), favors and programs. Hmmm … a program or favors popped inside a video-game box - with a customized label - would be really cool!

This is one theme where you can really let your imagination run wild. With the right couple you can really take this video-game idea far! Consider setting up a folder just for funky ideas like this one. As a professional, certified wedding and event coordinator you never know who’s going to call next!

He’s one part basketball coach one part … wedding planner? Chris Mooney’s duties as the men’s basketball coach at Beaver College were only part of his duties. He was also known to take a timeout from practice to talk to brides! Mooney had to talk with any bride whose wedding was going to take place in the Grey Towers Castle on the campus of Beaver College, now Arcadia University, in the Philadelphia suburb of Glenside, Pa. His coaching job was part-time, but as professional, certified wedding and event planners you know that planning any wedding is a full-time job!

* Fashion alert! Urban Outfitters, the brand of young, hipster clothing loved the world over, is planning to dip its toes into the world of wedding fashion. The new line is expected to launch around Valentine’s Day 2011, just in time for all the newly engaged couples of next year. We’re not sure what this line will look like, but we expect it to be heavy on color and funk. Full lines of bridesmaid dresses and wedding jewelry are expected, too, and the entire line will be designed with the help of Anthropolgie.

Princess Diana

* It was truly a fairytale wedding. When Princess Diana wed Prince Charles all the eyes of the world were on them … and on her dress. While it was indeed a showstopper it was also a dress that very few other brides could pull off. While the marriage didn’t end up as all had planned the gown has gone down in history. Now it’s Di’s brother’s turn to wed (yes, for a third time), and he’ll be saying vows with Lady Bianca Eliot. What kind of gown do you expect for this royal wedding? What kind of gown would you suggest, considering the circumstances?

* Move over Bridezilla because this Groomzilla may give you a run for your money! In our experience brides have the opposite trouble when it comes to wedding planning: Getting their grooms to participate in the planning at all is like pulling teeth! This U.K. groom, however, took the reins and took care of all the details, much to the delight of his bride. Well, almost. The bride did choose her own gown!

As certified wedding and event planners you may think you’ve seen it all, but as stories as these prove: Think again! Do you have any stories to share? Every wedding experience is one to learn from!

As a certified wedding and event planner you are trained to be prepared for everything. This means unexpected pops and rips in gowns; unexpected tardy caterers and florists; and even unexpected requests from wedding guests. The point of a wedding is for couples to begin their new life together but to also begin it with their friends and family. They want their wedding to be beautiful and touching, but they also want it to serve as a gift to the people they plan to call on as they grow as a couple. This means that no matter what a guest needs their request should be taken care of. When you first meet with a couple and begin to plan their special day it’s a good idea to ask if anyone in either their wedding party or anyone on their guest list has special needs.

1) Do they have someone attending the wedding who is hearing prepared? Will they need an interpreter or special equipment made available to help these guests take part in the ceremony? This is an easy request to plan for, and it makes it easier on you - and the guest - if you know about what they need in advance.

2) Will there be guests who are unable to walk, or walk up steps? Make sure that the venue you choose has entrances made specifically for those with disabilities. It would also be a good idea to choose, perhaps, a specific usher or groomsman to help these guests to their seats. Grandparents are often a special part of the ceremony, and sometimes they need more help. Having a plan in place, including accessible parking, restrooms and reserved seating will make things go a lot smoother when guests begin to arrive at the wedding.

In addition make sure that their seats at the reception are accessible - not too high. This may mean a special, reserved table is required. When it comes to helping them at the reception try not to attract too much attention. Find out if they have a caregiver or relative who plans to help, and discreetly explain what has been set up for their convenience. Buffet tables could be an issue, too, so let the person know in advance what they’re dealing with.

3) Dietary concerns are an issue at every wedding no matter who is on the guest list. There are guests who vegetarians, guests with dairy and gluten intolerances, and guests with allergies. A well-planned meal with a few options that can please everyone is often in order. The bridal couple should know who and what type of preferences they are planning for, but remember to ask! They have a lot on their minds, and since planning a reception for possibly hundreds of people is stressful enough, remembering all the special requests they have is even more stressful.

4) And lastly, as always, plan for the unexpected. We know this seems counter-intuitive, but while your bridal couple knows about the people they’re inviting they don’t necessarily know about their guests’ dates. Thanks to most state and federal laws most buildings are handicap accessible in regards to walk-up ramps and restrooms. If your couple is planning to say their vows on the beach, however, you want to have a plan in place in case someone arrives who needs help. Organization and preparation are the keys to every successful wedding and event planner, and that means you! You know what they say: Expect the unexpected!

Do you have any tips for planning for the unexpected? Have you learned from experience what a wedding and event planner should be prepared for?

Jus as such things as invitations and programs set the tone of a wedding the favors can set the memory of the wedding in the guests’ minds. There are always the run-of-the-mill favors that we’ve seen time and again: CDs of the couple’s favorite tunes; miniature boxes of colored M&Ms; bags made of netting filled with Jordan almonds. Those are great ideas, and they always look cute on the reception tables, too. But as a certified wedding and event planner it’s always nice to have a few tricks up your sleeve, and presenting a few possible unique favor ideas to your bridal couple is sure to go over well. Here are a few really cute ones we’ve run across recently.

Photo courtesy of iDIY

1. When it comes to food trends these days we’re all about going local. Is your couple marrying on a farm? Consider offering guests small packets of seeds, tied with a pretty bow so that they can remember the wedding’s beautiful setting. If the wedding is taking place at an apple orchard a jar of homemade apple butter would be adorable, tied with string, with a wooden spoon attached. (And if the labels are hand-written? That’s all the better.)

2. Beach weddings will never go out of style because there are very few things more romantic. Choosing favors for wedding guests, however, can be difficult because if there is anything a brides doesn’t want to be it’s cheesy. Candles and picture frames and dried starfish or sand dollars are all nice options, but we can think of something a bit more romantic. These corked glass vials, filled with a small thank-you note from the couple, would be a cute touch to any beach wedding. Tied with a string and a note that says, of course, sealed with a kiss, they would be sure to be a hit!

3. There are many brides these days who are choosing to Go Green with their weddings. Favors don’t always fit in with this mentality, but there are ways to show a couple’s love for the environment and their guests. Anything that grows (along the same lines as the seed packets above) is a good idea: bulbs, flowers native to the area, tree seedlings from the Arbor Foundation (our personal favorite). For the couple who wants to avoid the physical gift but still honor their guests there are tree-planting programs where saplings are planted in honor of anyone a couple wants to name. If there is good food and good drink to go around guests may be more than happy to accept a favor in their honor instead of a trinket to take home!

Photo courtesy of Smitten Sticks!

4. We also absolutely love the idea of these smitten sticks. Can you even imagine how crazy the kids at the reception would go for these? Throw in a photo booth, and guests will be in love with the idea. And we can imagine them taking home these adorable sticks to make even more silly photos. The memories for the bridal couple would be great, and the guests would have a great time with them!

It’s obvious that favors are a great way to add fun and whimsy to a wedding and that they are a wonderful way to showcase a bridal couple’s style. As certified wedding and event planners coming up with fun ideas is one of the best parts of the job! These are a few great ideas to pack away in your folder, but the sky is truly the limit when it comes to wedding favors. Try to think outside of the box and let the sky be the limit when it comes to the creative parts of wedding planning. If your bride has an idea in her head of what she’d like to try - run with it! Make her day special and fun with unique favor ideas!

One of the key attributes every certified wedding and event coordinator should have is being at ease with conversation. When it comes to working with bridal couples you want to be personable and show your fun side. Here are some great stories we’ve found this week to help you break the ice!

Image courtesy of weddingwhirlwind.wordpress.com

* You catch more flies with honey: One bride recently went berserk in a bridal-gown salon when her request for alterations was turned down because, the shop owners say, of her bad attitude. Not only did she trash the store, but she also brought in her family members who helped make a huge mess. If you look up “bridezilla” in the dictionary, this is whose picture you’ll find! Yikes.

* An old wive’s tale: Have you ever been told to avoid throwing rice at a wedding couple because, horror of horrors, the rice will expand and burst open the birds that eat it? Scary story, right? Even those of us who aren’t card-carrying members of PETA want to avoid, you know, murdering the birdies. But good news! This tradition can begin again because surprise (or not) - it’s an old wives’ tale. Rice is a grain just like bird seed, experts say, and it won’t hurt our feathered friends. So while birds everywhere have been fattening up on showers of birdseed it may be time for a change of diet!

* We all know that a great way to Go Green at our weddings is to go vintage. But another way is to get in on the action and, perhaps, bid on a celebrity wedding gown! In this case it was Christie Brinkley, who seems eager to rid her house of all signs of her former husband as she moves on to her new life and new loves. Brinkley recently donated her old gown, a white Armani suit, to clothesoffourback.org and offered all the proceeeds to the American Red Cross.

* And finally, in these times of economic difficulty weddings can be an expense for which many people just can’t spare the cash. What to do? Why, try to get the attention of a celebrity, of course. A woman from Michigan was recently found on Twitter by Conan O’Brien when he decided to follow a random, regular person. She instantly became a cyber celebrity, and with the help of Conan she’s now getting custom shoes and a wedding gown, as well as a limo and wine for her reception. “My fiancé wants Conan to be his best man,” she added. “That would be really cool. And hey, if he wants us to come on his show, we’d get married on there. That would be fantastic,” she said.

Have you heard any fun wedding stories this week? A laugh is a great way to ease the tension that bridal couples are bound to have as they work out their budget. Calm their nerves with stories like these, and show them what a fun and personable wedding planner you can be!

Before a bridal couple can do anything else, i.e. order invitations, book venues or hire caterers they must set their date. As certified wedding and event planners it’s your job to know which dates should be off-limits if the festivities are to go off without a hitch. Here is a list of dates you may want to encourage couples to avoid in 2011. Yes, 2011! Since it’s March, and Valentine’s Day is just recently behind us, there are lots of newly engaged couples out there looking for wedding planners right now! You can never be too prepared in the wedding industry, right?

* January 1: New Year’s Day
* February 5 and 6: Super Bowl Weekend
* February 12 through 14: Valentine’s Day Weekend
* April 2 through 4: Final days of NCAA Basketball Tournament
* April 22 through 24: Easter Weekend
* May 7 and 8: Mother’s Day Weekend (and many college graduations)
* May 27 through 30: Memorial Day Weekend
* June 18 and 19: Father’s Day Weekend
* July 1 through 4: Fourth of July Weekend
* September 2 through 5: Labor Day Weekend (End of summer and last vacations for many.)
* October 29 through 31: Halloween Weekend (Although some couples may want to choose this weekend.)
* November 24 through 27: Thanksgiving Weekend
* December 23 through 25: Christmas Eve and Christmas Day
* December 30 through January 1, 2012: New Year’s Eve and Day

What do you think? As professional, certified wedding and event planners do you steer your couples away from specific weekends? It may be a good idea to discuss family birthdays and big anniversaries, as well as due dates for relatives and members of the bridal party. How do you help a couple choose their date or dissuade them from using one they may have already set?

We know that as graduates of Lovegevity’s Wedding Planning Institute you dream of having a successful wedding and event-planning business of your own. Just like in any part of life it’s helpful to gather hints and learn from people who are living the dream! We welcome today’s guest writer, Nadia Digilov, a celebrated wedding and event planner in New York City. She has great insight into the trends for 2010, which you can pass on to your brides and clients this year as you plan their festivities!

Top 10 Wedding Trends for 2010
By Nadia Digilov, the founder and CEO of NYC event-production firm Celebrating in Style

Whether you are planning an ultra classic or a super modern wedding you can implement some elements of the trends that are happening this year in to your wedding day. Here are some of the latest styles in catering, decorations, flowers and much more!

1-Reception Venue: Transform a restaurant dining room into an ultra chic reception with the creative use of the right lighting. No longer do you need a family country club or a local catering hall that has already been used over and over again by friends and family!

2-The After Party: The after party is a great marriage of the old and new at one significant event. During the reception you will have traditional wedding customs such as your first dance and in some cases some religious traditions. The after party is pure music and dance and is usually held at a separate room that is transformed into an ultra chic lounge.

3-The Decor: The natural trend is still going strong this year, with the use of trees being a unique way to replace the traditional flower decorations. Candles hanging from the trees are a wedding classic, however, this year why not get creative and mix in a feeling of whimsy by add in ribbons and wind chimes.

4-Seated Dinner Twist: Consider serving some dishes family style and having your caterer arrange the platters on a couple of different levels. Serve your guests food rich in color, which adds a feeling of abundance, color and life to your wedding tables.

5-Late Night Surprise: Your guests will love you for some late night snacks after they dance up a storm and a hefty appetite. Just when the guests thought the food, was done have the caterer bring out some late night snacks like mini hotdogs, cheese and crackers!

6-The Bar: Last year we saw a whiskey and bourbon trend, the year before it was champagne, and the 2010 trend is tequila! Margaritas anyone? Impress your guests with non-traditional cocktails like cool refreshing blackberry mint or grapefruit basil martinis.

7-Cake Top: The classic bride & groom cake top has some competition this year. The trend of the year is to substitute the good ol’ cake top with gorgeous symbolic flowers, custom made by your florist at the cake top of your wedding cake.

8-The Wedding Dress: Add some color to your wedding dress with the use of flowers, head-pieces or jewelry. Check out the line of unique jewelry from Marie-Lise Lachapelle which incorporates real flowers such as orchids, pansies, and roses covered in gold, silver and lacquer to preserve the shape and color of the actual flower. These unique pieces can be worn as necklaces, earrings, or even pinned into the hair for a boho-chic look: http://marieliselachapelle.com

9-The First Dance: Many of brides are going back in time to the 1940’s for the music and are choosing the romantic classics such as “I’ll Be Seeing You Again” and “Moonlight Becomes You.”

10-Dessert Table: A candy table in place of a full Viennese table is a very hot trend for 2010. The traditional Viennese table is filled with heavy cakes, while a candy table is fun and arouses a feeling of adventure and youth in your guests! Who wouldn’t like that?

Nadia Digilov is New York’s premier luxury wedding expert and the founder and CEO of NYC event production firm Celebrating in Style, www.celebrating-instyle.com. After seven years on the trading floors of the largest investment banks on Wall Street, her passion for production led her to begin creating luxury events that leave a lasting impression. Since 2002 Nadia has created weddings, corporate events, concerts, trade shows, and marketing events in major cities around the world; including New York, Miami, Moscow, Tel Aviv and St. Petersburg.

Even in times of financial strain and political uncertainty there is a willingness to help others. We offer our money and time to organizations that help children and victims of natural disasters, and weddings are no different. Everyone loves a happy ending, and it’s even better when we join together to make a fairytale come true. Horace Prescott and Dawn Barrett of the U.K. were recently married, but they weren’t always sure it would happen.

Dawn Barrett and Horace Prescott

They have been a couple for the last 10 years but first met as teenagers in London. Mr. Prescott suffered bowel and bladder cancer three years ago, and sadly it has now returned in his stomach and kidneys. Suffice it to say, medical bills and general stress have put a strain on the couple, who thought they may never become husband and wife. Mr. Prescott’s condition is terminal, and he has been told he has only months to live. After a story in the Evening Telegraph about the couples’ hardship support from the community started pouring in. The use of a vintage Rolls Royce was donated by a fellow resident, and a local Holiday Inn decided to offer a free reception, including a three-course meal, to the couple and their 60 wedding guests. Other local businesses pledged favors, food and decor for the wedding and reception.

Paul Noble, the general manager at the Corby Holiday Inn, said, “When a member of my team brought to my attention to the predicament of Horace and Dawn I felt compelled, as did the team, to help. Their touching story tugged on the heartstrings of all here and I don’t think anyone with a heart couldn’t relate to their plight. I know the team will do everything to make this one of the happiest days of their lives.”

“People are just so warm and it has given us such an lift. It is a lovely thing and they are all so kind. There are no words to express how kind they are being. A lot of kindness is going out of the world and it is great to see that there are people out there who are willing to help us,” Miss Barrett said.

As certified wedding and event planners your schedule is packed, and it’s easy to get caught up in the details and forget what a wedding ceremony is all about. A quick look around your community may reveal opportunities for you to give back. Everyone deserves a beautiful wedding - budget or no budget - and all children deserve wonderful birthday parties given in their honor. Building your business is important, and Lovegevity encourages its graduates to work hard and build their reputations, but it also encourages you to share your talents with your community. It’s a great way to recharge your batteries, so to speak, and lift others’ spirits at the same time!

One of the top reasons that brides turn to Lovegevity’s certified wedding and event planners is because they have great relationships with vendors. These relationships can equal big savings for couples, and they expect their wedding planner to know all the best vendors in the area. One of the hardest parts of planning a wedding is researching and interviewing vendors so that brides know they’re getting a good deal. As a wedding planner this is your job so it’s important to have a long list of friends in the wedding industry! Here are a couple of tips for establishing relationships with the wedding vendors in your surrounding area.

1. First things first. Get out and introduce yourself! Sure, phone calls are a great way to talk to someone, but a vendor is much more likely to trust you if they meet you face to face, or, put a face with a name you might say. Make a list, check it twice, and hit the pavement, including local bridal shows. If vendors know you and know you’ll bring them business they might carry your cards in their store and refer you to brides who stop by on their own. It’s a win-win situation.

2. Put your best face forward. In other words, act like a professional! Dress the part and talk the part. Research each vendor before you make contact with them. Know what their philosophy is. Know what their prices are. Ask them for pamphlets that you can keep in your folder. Professionalism goes a long way, and vendors will be more likely to recommend you if they know you’re serious about what you do.

3. Think beyond the obvious. You need to have a deep list of florists, caterers, photographers and musicians to recommend - the more you know the more likely you’re to have the perfect vendor for any bride’s budget. But there are other vendors to consider because you never know what a bride will request. Do you have any of these in your area? Consider ballroom-dance instructors, travel agents, insurance agents, and financial planners among others.

4. Make (and keep) appointments. Vendors are unlikely to turn away any bride who comes into their business, but it’s a lot easier on them when they’re expecting you. Consider giving them a bride’s budget in advance so they can prepare their presentation. They’ll appreciate the advance notice, and the bride is sure to get the best options for her day when everyone comes prepared.

5. Take notes. Some business people say there is no better advertising than through word-of-mouth. Referrals go a long way in the wedding world because every vendor-client relationship comes down to one thing: trust. When you work with a vendor for the first time take notes about their performance. What were their strong points? Weak points? What kind of bride do they work best with? All of this information can be invaluable when it comes to matching brides to vendors.

Good, strong vendors are the lifeline for every certified wedding and event planner. Knowing your area’s business community is the first step to planning a fabulous wedding.

What other suggestions do you have for the newest graduates of Lovegevity’s Wedding Planning Institute? What questions are important to ask? Do any of you experienced planners have any stories to share?

Gray and Yellow Palette for 2010

One of the first ways a bride sets the theme of her wedding is with her invitations. Everything about that single piece of paper conveys a message about a bride’s style: colors (classic or funky?); fonts (simple, whimsical, dramatic?); shape (horizontal and traditional? square and modern?); and even wording (funny? romantic?) As a certified wedding and event coordinator it’s a good idea to be up on wedding-industry trends, especially in the world of invitations. It shows a bride that no matter her style you know what’s what in the bridal world. Plus having suggestions at the ready for every style bride is a great way to show you’re, you know, coordinated!

Wedding Paper Divas, a leader of premium, personalized wedding stationery, has recently announced the top stationery trends for 2010. From the save-the-date cards to the post-wedding thank-you notes there are new themes and color choices to be had! Among the newest trends are:

Enchanting Forest for an Ethereal Feel

* Enchanting Forest: These invitations have an ethereal feel, with earth tones and pastel colors. They would be a gorgeous addition to any outdoor wedding. With their simple branches and birds they would give guests an idea that a bride is trying to achieve a natural setting; perfect for an early spring ceremony!

* Old Hollywood: Imagine a bridal party made up of Old Hollywood Glamour - pin curls and waves, bright red lips and form-fitting gowns. There’s a reason that Mad Men is all the rage right now, and brides can have a retro wedding but still fill it with glamour and class.

* Fresh color palettes: We’ve already discussed that turquoise is the IT color of 2010, and the perfect accompaniment? Orange! You can also expect brides to ask about violet (again with orange as the perfect accent), as well as paler colors such as champagne, pink (with vintage gold accents. *Sigh*) We at Lovegevity also expect a rise in a gray and yellow palette. Vintage is all the rage right now, and these two colors fit right in!

Old Hollywood Brings a Touch of Fun and Glamour

There is definitely a distinct business side to being a wedding and event planner. You have to know how to budget and how to find brides. There is definitely a fun and creative side to wedding and event planning, too! The instructors at the Lovegevity Wedding Planning Institute can teach you everything you need to know, but it’s up to you to stay on top of the trends (but this falls into the fun category!) There will always be traditional, classic weddings to plan, but there are brides who like to run with the pack and ones who like to forge their own path. Keep these great new ideas in mind as 2010 weddings start to take shape. An invitation is the perfect place to begin working out a wedding theme, and all the choices in stationery make this a fun place to begin. Help your brides get their creative juices flowing with some of these great ideas!