Hot Southern California Wedding Locations July 15, 2011

Southern California has long been considered a premier destination for weddings and receptions.  These are top wedding planner choices for unique wedding venues in Southern California:

Wedgewood at Glen Ivy Trilogy Golf Club is located at Glen Ivy.  This is your premiere choice for an Inland Empire wedding.  This golf course location is nestled at the top of a hill with an enchanting ambience and a ceremony site that overlooks a waterfall. 

The Spanish Hills Country Club is located in Ventura County.  At Spanish Hills Country Club you will enjoy the friendly warmth and elegance of a gracious private club which provides a spectacular outdoor ceremony site to hold your wedding.   You can have your ceremony services in a lush garden setting on top of a Grand Terrace. In our Grand Dining Room you’ll be delighted by luxurious Spanish Mediterranean design.

For a wedding on the beach, La Palapa Del Mar is beautiful in its French Empire Style located in Long Beach.  The Del Mar Banquet room overlooks beautiful Catalina Island, the Queen Mary, Pacific Ocean and boasts a spectacular view of the Pacific Ocean and the City lights at night.  The wine, the cobalt blues and the antique gold lace create an elegant and charming background for any occasion. It reminds one of going back in time, when crystal chandeliers, crystal candlesticks and antiques were the fashion.

Rancho Las Lomas is one of the most elegant wedding venue and private estates in America. This restored early California rancho offers a private and intimate atmosphere, set amidst exquisitely manicured botanical and zoological gardens.  Located in Laguna Beach, this is one of Orange County’s best kept secret.

Located in San Diego, at Carmel Mountain Ranch, guests are of highest priority.  Set amidst panoramic views of the surrounding mountains, Carmel Mountain Ranch Country Club is the picture perfect setting for your much anticipated day.  For wedding ceremonies, the enclosed outdoor gazebo offers an idyllic setting only steps away from your splendid reception. This is a classic wedding setting with the graceful flavor of a country club.

Villa Casa Bella is the perfect estate for destination weddings in Santa Barbara.  Located in the Ocean-front area of Santa Barbara and designed specifically with alfresco entertaining in mind, the stunning Villa Casa Bella has all the elements one would expect in the quintessential reception and wedding location.  The impressive bluff-top positioning of the villa affords the grounds with dramatic coastal and spectacular island views- perfect for an awe-inspiring wedding ceremony to unfold.

The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway provides a highly unique wedding and reception location in Palm Springs!  Located nearly 3 miles above the Coachella Valley with panoramic views of the desert and the Mount San Jacinto State Park, begin your journey into matrimony with a 10-minute ride aboard the World’s largest rotating Tramway and the only rotating Tramway in the Western Hemisphere.    There are outdoor and indoor locations with patios and private banquet rooms along with the backdrop of giant pine trees and majestic mountains.

Southern California is a perfect place for a beach wedding or for a venue wedding.  From beach bluffs and Pacific Ocean views to private, enchanting settings, and snow covered mountain top views in the winter, you can have it all in Southern California.

Cameo Wedding Theme June 24, 2011

A cameo wedding theme brings back the ambiance of the Victorian era.  When a cameo wedding theme is planned it exudes European elegance and old world charm.  However, the idea of antique cameo pins and jewelery as classic as it is also may seem old-fashioned.  When wedding planning with this quintessential theme, the colors that are chosen to compliment black silhouettes and cameo are what will determine whether there is a modern flair or a very traditional old world tone to the wedding.  If black and white is used, it can be very striking and modern.  The classic wedding color pink can be very traditional, but when various shades of pink and different styles are used with the cameo wedding them it can be very modern.  Other nontraditional colors that may be used with this theme are blue and green.  Lavender on the other hand is a very traditional wedding color, but deeper tones of purple can bring across a very modern element to a very traditional theme as the cameo.

Black and Pink Cameo Wedding theme with European Baroque charm that exudes old-fashioned elegance.

Black and White Cameo Themed Wedding for the modern bride.

Old traditional charm to the Black and White Cameo Wedding theme.

A spectacular Black and White Wedding Cake for a Cameo themed wedding.

A Wedding black wedding cake that will please the modern bride.

Traditional Soft Blue and Cameo wedding theme.

Blue and Cameo wedding with a modern look.

Shades of Green and Cameo Wedding ideas.

Indian Wedding Cake June 21, 2011

A royal Inidan wedding cake that fits with vibrant colors of Indian culture.

Authentic Indian Wedding Favors June 20, 2011

To keep up with the spirit of India and the Indian wedding theme it is important to really delve into ethnic traditions.  Focus on common practices and aspects of the Indian culture to find the most unique Indian wedding favors.

One of the oldest practices of the Indian culture is tea or chai.  Indian’s have been drinking specialty tea for centuries and including a special tea as part of your Indian wedding menu will be great.  Not only can you serve special Indian tea but you can offer it as a wedding favor as well.  Create a special blend of Indian tea and package it in little jars or tins.  Embellish the packaged tea with personalized labels and include the recipe for your guests to take home as wedding favors. 

Mango chutney is another Indian favorite.  Mango is the national fruit and a revered part of India.  Mango leaves are used to decorate homes for Indian weddings and celebrations.  So, serving mango chutney as part of your Indian wedding dinner condiments and then offering miniature jars of the chutney as wedding favors for your guests to take home is a truly ethnic Indian Wedding idea.

Indian Wedding Mehendi Celebration June 14, 2011

A mehendi celebration is one of the oldest and most celebrated rituals of an Indian wedding.  Indian wedding planners pride themselves in elaborate décor for mehendi celebration rituals.  Mehendi also called henna signifies strength and power of love in a marriage and there for a very good omen for the bride.  It is also one of the 16 must have adornments of an Indian bride.  At a mehendi ceremony skilled henna artists are invited to apply the henna or mehendi to the bride.  It is an old belief that the darker the henna color turns out to be the more her husband will love her.  Indian wedding mehendi ceremonies are colorful and traditionally set apart from other Indian wedding celebrations with the color green.  When planning a mehendi ceremony it is ideal to use green in the decorations, cake decorations, Indian sweets, etc.  Give out green wedding favors like henna candles or bookmarks with henna designs.  Traditionally the mehendi party is mainly for women, so bangles or jewelry as wedding favors would also be lovely. 

Indian Wedding Traditions – Haldi Ceremony June 10, 2011

Indian wedding traditions are plentiful with colorful rituals.  The Haldi ceremony is a pre-wedding custom that is celebrated to bless the bride and groom.  This is a very colorful event with the focus on flowers for decorations.  Here are some beautiful ideas for the Haldi Ceremony prior to an Indian Wedding.

Gift Box Candle Wedding Favors June 6, 2011

This is a unique favor that is ever so elegant.  It is a suitable party favor for weddings, bridal showers, baptisms, brithdays, or just abot any celebration.  The candle sits in an elegant glass box wrapped with a white satin ribbon.

http://www.chicweddingfavors.com/pc/IT5831/Wedding_Favors_Sale/Gift-Box-Candle-Favor.html

Southern California Garden Wedding Locations June 5, 2011

Garden weddings are charming and Southern California is idyllic for garden wedding locations.  Wedding Planner choices for some of the best garden wedding locations in Southern California are simply enchanting:

Hummingbird Nest is an out-of-the-way location in Santa Susana. This is a premier estate that is surrounded by the Santa Susana Mountains.

Castle Green in Pasadena is landmark that is a unique place to hold a wedding.  This historical treasure is full of visual delights with ornate wrought iron balconies that lend the Castle distinctive silhouettes.

Tivoli Too! located in Laguna Beach offers an ornate background nested against the Laguna Beach mountains.  It is an enchanting and romantic garden setting for weddings.

Los Willows Garden Estate and Vineyard in Fallbrook is a private estate that can be reserved solely for weddings.  This is a 35 acre venue nestled in the hills of San Diego that offers lush splendor of a tropical vineyard.

Selecting A Wedding Planner June 4, 2011

Planning a wedding is never simple and you want the best when it comes to your wedding.  To ensure that you get the best for your money you want to hire the best wedding planner possible.  Selecting your wedding planner is nor just about finding a reputable wedding planner with strong recommendations, but you need to make sure that the wedding planner is a good fit for you.  There are specific questions that you should ask a wedding planner, which will give you a better perspective in selecting a wedding planner. 

One thing to ask and be clear on is what you are getting for your money.  Make sure your contract with the wedding planner is clearly defined with exactly what you are paying for.  That way there are no last minute surprises, which may put you in a panic during your wedding.  Ask details such as how many wedding planner assistants there will be and are they included in the price of the wedding planner package.

Ask the wedding planner what he or she thinks about your budget and what you want for your wedding.  It is important to hire a wedding planner who is comfortable with your budget and does not push you to go beyond your budget.  You want a wedding planner who understands your needs and accepts the budget you have planned for it.  If your wedding expectations are beyond what your budget can fulfill, then you want a wedding planner who will gently explain that to you and help you work to plan your wedding within your budget.

Also check with the wedding planner to see if he or she is familiar with the vendors and venues you have in mind.  You don’t want to be pushed to work with vendors that you are not comfortable with or aware of.  Although a wedding planner can give you a great inside scoop on a vendor you are not aware of, you still want the wedding planner to be knowledgeable about other vendors as well.

Once you start feeling comfortable and in sync with a wedding planner, your wedding coordination will go much smoother and you will have a peace of mind.

How To Stay Within Your Wedding Budget June 4, 2011

To stay within your wedding budget it is important to think about what parts of your wedding are most important to you. Focus on areas that you have your heart set on and you won’t regret skimping on the rest. As for making sure your wedding is still memorable, guests tend to remember the entertainment the most because that is what will keep their attention for the night. Making sure you have good entertainment may be important for your budget, so you know all your guests enjoyed themselves.

Other things you can think about to stay within your budget is to what really requires a professional and what you can get done yourself with the help of friends and family. Also, save money by spending it on a planner. Wedding planners are not shy when it comes to haggling; they can draw from years of experience working with brides on budgets, and have working relationships with vendors. Wedding planners can help reduce a big sum off your final bill.