Monday, January 14, 2013
Planning a wedding can be a difficult task – even for those who normally enjoy planning parties. The high level of emotions, energy and pressure can come together to turn almost anyone into an infamous Bridezilla. Luckily, in the DC area, there are several great wedding and event planners to turn to so that you can have your perfect wedding without driving yourself crazy.
Bliss
Owner Emilie Staats Hilsenrath has been planning weddings and events professionally since 2007 and is a member of the Association of Bridal Consultants. She and her team of experts specialize in walking their clients through the entire planning process before they walk down the aisle. Bliss covers everything from budget planning to design services.
Ultimate Events
Ultimate Events takes on party and wedding planning literally from conception all the way through to completion. Their clients don’t even have to know what they want their wedding to be like. Clients can work directly with the Ultimate Events planning staff to develop a concept for the wedding and then work on how to make it happen. Their unique approach to wedding planning means the possibilities are endless and that Ultimate Events is truly a one stop shop.
True Wedding Events
Aimee Hardenbergh launched True Wedding Events after a successful career as a Special Event Coordinator where she earned the nickname ‘The Idea Girl’ for her brainstorming skills. Today she brings a flair for the creative as well as a strong background in management, organization and professional contacts to her private wedding clients. That creative streak coupled with her eye for detail means she’s able to give her clients the wedding of a lifetime with every detail in place – from the venue selection to reception activities.
Pineapple Productions
Pineapple Productions is based out of Washington DC but their flair for event planning has them frequently working major events in Florida, Cape Cod and California. Pineapple made a name for themselves by planning events at historic properties and exclusive private properties. They tailor each event to their client’s needs so that every detail reflects the life, vision and spirit of their client couple.
Cherry Blossom Events
The Cherry Blossom team of designers and coordinators has been working to deliver memorable weddings and events since 2006. Their award-winning team has established connections with some of the most highly sought-after vendors in the area and has coordinated weddings in truly memorable venues such as art galleries and historic hotels around the DC area.
Junebug Weddings
Junebug co-founders Blair de Laubenfels and Christy Weber first met in photography school. The two have risen through the ranks together working first as wedding photographers and then taking on a more comprehensive role in the entire area of wedding planning. The result is a wedding that is not only one to remember, but one that is literally made to be photographed. Their combined eye for style has ensured artistic and visually striking weddings for all of their clients.
Blue Canary Events
Blue Canary events is made up of planners with plenty of experience who have been featured in The Knot magazine as well as recognized by Bride & Groom, Wedding Wire and So You’re EnGAYged. Their modern and fanciful take on wedding planning means they’re able to deliver stunning weddings that manage to combine timeless class and beauty with a modern twist. Their team has even taken wedding planning to the next level and were contributors on the book ‘The Father of the Bride Wedding Guide’.
Invited Special Events
Invited Special Events bill themselves as a boutique event production firm which means each event is a truly unique experience. Pavaune Pearson began the firm in 2007 after having spent time as both a corporate event coordinator and an interior designer. Her combined skills and years of experience mean that she and her team can deliver a visually stunning event. Invited Special events has been featured in Washingtonian Bride & Groom magazine and has also made waves on nationally associated websites like WeddingBee, BridePOP and Premier Bride magazine.
Event Accomplished
Event Accomplished covers everything from rehearsal dinner venues through to accommodation for out of town guests and the full service wedding package. They go out of their way to focus on every detail so that the happy couple is free to relax and enjoy their special event without having to worry about the minutiae. They’ve been serving clients since 2004 and have been able to coordinate weddings that combine art deco with sports or lend a touch of Carnival to a classic wedding theme.
Elegantly Chic Events
Elegantly Chic prides themselves on reviving the classic images of chic sophistication with a touch of timeless beauty. The result is exactly what you think – part Audrey Hepburn, part Jackie O. They’ve built their reputation on customized weddings that lend this touch of classic elegance to any personality so even if your own style is more bohemian, they’ll be able to ensure your personality shines through.
A. Dominick Events
A. Dominick Events has become synonymous with some of those most visually engaging events in the DC area. Their focus is entirely customer driven and they remain one of the few coordinators who do not work with vendors based on commission. Though this is a fairly common practice in the world of event planning, A. Dominick maintains a detached but professional relationship so that their clients know any vendor they suggest is based on them being a good fit and nothing else. This level of dedication has resulted in their coordinating one of a kind events throughout the DC area as well as Mexico, the Bahamas and southern France. As a result, their events have been featured in Bride & Groom, BizBash, Destination I Do and Style Me Pretty, to name a few.
These are the wedding and event planners making waves and headlines in Washington, DC. So, if you’re still on the fence about creating and designing your own wedding or hiring a serious professional to make your dream come to life, check out the Bridal Dozen, you’ll be amazed and inspired!
Posted in Washington DC Event Resources, Wedding Resources
Friday, December 28, 2012
(Left to right: NPR reporter Elizabeth Blair, Heather Noss, NPR producer Liz Baker)
If you heard a recent interview on NPR with a local wedding invitation designer in DC who got her start on Etsy, it was in fact me, “Rose”, aka Heather Noss! Since I have heard from a lot of friends and clients who heard the story and had other questions, I thought I would expand on the story here!
NPR’s Elizabeth Blair came to the Digby & Rose studio in NW DC recently to talk to me about my experience starting the business, from a the perspective of a seller who successfully grew a business through Etsy. The story focused on Etsy’s growth and how it has changed over the years. Although it’s true that the focus of the site and profile of sellers has changed, when I started my own business at the end of 2008, it was a perfect place for a “micro” business to get a start. (At the time calling it a “small” business would have been too generous!)
I read once that every small business entrepreneur has had a moment of insanity, which strangely enough happens to coincide with the very moment they decide to start the business. My moment came when I decided that October 2008 was the perfect economic climate in which to quit my government job as a Foreign Service Officer at the State Department, become a professional artist and inventor, and start my own handcrafted paper business out of my home. The kitchen table became my workspace, and over time every other available space in my apartment became the home of boxes of envelopes, printers, paper cutters, and stacks of paper. Thankfully I had early encouragement, as within 3 weeks of starting the business I had my first sale, a box of 6 handmade thank you cards.
As a generous boss, I gave myself a lot of opportunities to work on all the sections and departments of the business. I was the head of Accounting, Chief Photographer, VP of Customer Service, IT guru, lead consultant for Special Projects, and of course “the one who makes the stuff”. Once I even scored Employee of the Month! For a long time it was on Etsy alone that my sales grew, and at the same time I was able to grow as an artist and a business owner.
At the beginning of 2010 the limit of operational capacity in my apartment was reached, and I was able to move into a first studio space, which is now one of three studio spaces at the current Digby & Rose retail location in NW Washington, DC. The business naturally moved beyond just selling on Etsy, as referrals from previous clients and a local reputation grew. (Also a worldwide reputation, as I’ve now done invitations for clients as far away as Uganda, Switzerland, and Argentina…and we’re really big in Australia!) By now I think we’ve graduated from “micro” to “small” business!
So I now get to work with customers that are at a particularly happy moment in their life, on a very personal item, their wedding invitations. It’s a chance to be creative and indulge a love of letterpress, where every finished order is like a new present. A big thank you goes out to all of my clients who have put their trust in me to make invitations they love. There was a lot of hard work involved with many of the ups and downs you’ll hear from many small businesses, but getting started was really made much more possible by the ability to sell my first items through Etsy. For all it has changed and all of the criticisms mentioned in the NPR piece, for myself I can only say Thanks Etsy for Helping Me Grow a New Life!
Posted in Washington DC Event Resources, Wedding Resources
Sunday, December 2, 2012
The Christmas holiday season brings with it an amazing combination of tradition, spirituality and consumerism. No other holiday season is embraced by such a diverse cross section of the public and, as a result, controversy surrounding the holiday is bound to make local headlines during the season. Often, the grumbling has to do with how ‘adult’ Christmas has become. Traditionally, Christmas and the entire holiday season has been treated with a kind of childlike wonder. Card companies and retailers would play up the images of the ‘Good Old Days’ and most decorations and themes revolved around a Normal Rockwell kind of Americana. Families gathered around a golden brown turkey, children cuddled on a couch playing with toys, dogs lounging by a fire. But, as society has evolved so, too, has the way we think about these holidays. These views typically poked fun at the traditional scene and instead focused on themes of families fighting over the last drumstick, children wailing because their batteries have worn out already and dogs rifling through the holiday kitchen garbage in the middle of the night.
The Vision vs. The Reality
The truth is that this ability to embrace the holiday season with a ‘warts and all’ attitude can go a long way in making people feel better about their own crazy families. When cards, decorations and the like all focused on the idealized family holiday, it drove some revelers straight over the edge. But the 90s brought with it a relaxation of these ideals, a point driven home every year on the national scale with the popularity of family shows like Married with Children and Roseanne, which featured episodes focused on the family drama and stress associated with the entire holiday season.
The Cards You Might Not Send to Grandma
This relaxed and more open attitude can be seen in a variety of holiday decorations and shows but, by and large, the easiest way to see it is by checking out modern Christmas and Holiday cards. Initially, the market branched out simply to include other religious, spiritual or cultural holidays and, since then, has branched out even further. From Kwanzaa to Festivus, every conceivable holiday is now covered by a selection of greeting cards. On the other end of the spectrum, there are cards featuring rude and crude cartoons, scientific explanations to disprove Santa and, of course, a host of cards which celebrate the FUN in dysfunction.
This progression towards the inclusion of adult themed and more tongue in cheek holiday greetings work not to divide the holidays, but to actually bring them closer together. The winter holiday season appeals to a wide variety of people across social, religious and economic backgrounds. As a result, the things we all use to celebrate the holidays—from home decorations to greeting cards—have expanded to reflect everyone who celebrates the season in their own way. The wide array of new holiday cards also gives people the chance to really customize their own celebration of the holidays. After all, you might not send the South Park Mr. Hanky the Christmas Poo card or the Festivus card to your Grandma, but it’ll do nicely for the best friend who sends out a card declaring ‘The Grinch Had it Right the First Time’.
Posted in Washington DC Event Resources
