Administrative Professionals Conference 2011

CONFERENCE

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Yesterday we participated in the vendor fair at the local IAAP conference.  This is the third year we've been a part of this conference and we've made some wonderful contacts each time.

A few photos of our booth...

 The booth after the everyone visited.

 We made these small floral posies for the attendees.  They are a hit every year!

The favorite of 3 bouquets created for door prizes.  We had a yellow one, a pink one and this purple one.  These deep purple carnations were definitely the most commented on!

Design Workshops

The Do-It-Yourself wedding trend seems to be here to stay...or at least for a good loooong visit.  There are mixed feelings about this trend in the wedding industry.  Some vendors hate it; some don't care one way or the other.  And some (like me) are all for it.  Well, I'm all for it with reservations.  If it adds stress to your wedding day, I think you should avoid DIY at all costs.  Talk to your vendors. You may be surprised at what you can actually afford.  

But if you love the idea of making your wedding even more personal, do-it-yourself projects are a great way to go.  

Flowers as a DIY project can be tricky.  With fresh flowers, you really are on a tight time schedule.  This isn't something that can be done months or even weeks ahead of time.  You are pretty much limited to the two days before the wedding.  

To help with the planning of a successful DIY floral project, we suggest practice! Learn what it takes in materials and time to create the designs you want.  Take class--or two. Buy the materials and practice at home.  But DON'T wait until two days before the wedding to try for the first time.  This path can easily lead to tears, frustration and STRESS.

Still interested in floral DIY?  Did you know that you can schedule a Bridal / Large Event Workshops for you and up to 11 of your closest friends/helpers/wedding slaves?  The Workshops are designed to help the Do-It-Yourself bride or host. We will meet with you to decide on the style of arrangement and the flowers you want to use for the event, then schedule a class where we will show you how to create that design, using the flowers you've chosen. This allows you to plan enough time to create multiple arrangements for the event. Oh, and you get to keep the arrangements you make!

If interested in booking one or more classes, please click here to complete the CONTACT FORM.

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Comments? Questions? See below...

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Sunny Wedding at Cooper Chapel & The Garden Room

"The architectural aspects of this
impressive design, coupled with the
 beauty outside, can't help but take
 your breath away..."

The Mildred B. Cooper Memorial Chapel (Cooper Chapel) in Bella Vista is one of the area's most beautiful wedding locations.  The chapel, designed by E. Fay Jones, is nestled in the Ozark woods overlooking one of Bella Vista's many lakes.  The chapel is open to the public, but can also be reserved for weddings and other events.  

The Garden Room (215 W. Dickson St., Fayetteville) has long been a favorite of mine for weddings and receptions.  The back garden, which seats 100, is perfect for extending the dining area (seats 130) or hosting a small wedding ceremony.  Inside has beautiful wood beams, high ceilings, wonderful full-length windows looking out to the garden, and tons of unique details that come together for a beautiful and unusual location.  Plus, the staff is easy to work with and extremely helpful!




Kristen and Clarke chose these two locations for their wedding and reception--a perfect combo for this couple!  From the Converse sneakers worn by both the bride and groom to the polka-dot accents, this couple truly made their wedding their own!  


The colors were bright yellow and charcoal gray with green accents.  When I first met with Kristen, she told me that she wanted to avoid 'traditional' flowers.  No roses, orchids, carnations, iris, or lilies were to be used.  Instead we used Billy Balls, Gerbera Daisies, and French Tulips.  

Because Kristen didn't want the usual hand-tied bouquet or a traditional cascading bouquet, we created a trailing bouquet of yellow French Tulips tied with a wide gray ribbon.  The bouquet was carried at her side, rather than held in front.  

And for her attendants, we designed a custom hand-made clutch in gray (created by Eileen Jennings) with a yellow floral accent that could be removed.  The clutches were presented as gifts to the attendants as well.  Eileen's quirky design style was a great fit for  Kristen.  

At the reception, we brought in dark grey table runners and placed a mix-match of vases with yellow Gerbera Daisies (to keep with the polka-dots) and Sticherus--one of my favorite foliages.  The overall look was cheerful, playful, and fun!

Congratulations, Kristen and Clarke!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


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Photo Credits: 
 Cooper Chapel: http://www.beautifulbellavista.com/chapel.htm
 The Garden Room: http://www.gardenroomcatering.com/
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Shown in Celebrate Magazine

See full article here: (pg 46-48) CELEBRATE APRIL 2011

Celebrate April 2011

Blushing Bride at Pratt Place Barn

Located at 2231 W. Markham Rd in Fayetteville AR,  Pratt Place Barn  has been a wonderful place for weddings and events for many years.  If you are looking for a casual but elegant place to host a larger wedding, Pratt Place Barn is the place for you.  The Barn has a capacity of 350 guests, but with the addition of tents in the adjacent pasture, more can be hosted.  The renovation of Pratt Place Inn in recent years has added more choices for ceremony and receptions of all sizes.  Located at the top of beautiful Sassafras Hill, Pratt Place Inn and Barn are worth visiting--for your upcoming event or just to enjoy the wonderful location.  

Samantha and Scott's wedding was held in the Barn on March 19th.  The ceremony was held inside, followed by a cocktail hour outside while the room was 'flipped'--a quick change-over from ceremony decor to reception decor by a team of  vendors and volunteers.  Flips aren't always easy, but this one went off without a hitch.  Afterwards, guests moved back inside for the reception.  

Sam's choices of blush pink and chocolate brown, were beautiful in the Barn and Sam's bouquet of pink garden roses smelled heavenly!  

This image was captured by Callie Ganderson -- can't you just feel the love here? Samantha was one of the happiest brides I've known and was a complete joy to work with!

Congratulations, Samantha & Scott! 

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