I am so excited to invite all you Sacramento brides out there to a truly decadent event happening at the end of this month!  Let Them Eat Cake will be a confectionary competition held here in Sacramento with a truly fun theme, Marie Antoinette.  Local talented cake designers have been asked to create a Marie Antoinette themed cake as well as tasting cakes for you, the brides to judge based on creative style and taste! If you are interested in putting these talented cake designers to the test, and want see who’s fit to do your wedding cake, contact information for the event is below:

Sunday, February 21st

Antiquite Maison Privee

2114 P Street, Sacramento, California

Admission is $10 at the door

R.S.V.P. to wish_bridal@yahoo.com

Or call: 916.969.9721

Wish Bridal Boutique will be hosting the event.  If you are in need of a bridal gown, call Kristina with Wish Bridal!  Offering designer gowns at discounted prices, what girl could ask more!

The best thing about being a bride is all the pampering and fun events you as an engaged girl get to attend! One of the most recent events was hosted by Wish Bridal at the new wedding and event venue, Antiquite Maison Privee, located in mid-town Sacramento.  Prizes for those V.I.B.’s {Very Important Brides} who were in attendance, were raffled, and brides and grooms were able to meet some of Sacramento’s wonderful wedding vendors. A fashion show showcased some of  Wish Bridal’s gorgeous featured gowns.

If you are a bride and would like to attend educational and fun wedding shows such as this event, send me an email, and we’ll make sure to invite you to the next bash we’ve got going on!

Below is a re-cap of the evening, video and edited by the very talented Eric Leas with Acti-Video:

Wish Bridal Event Highlights from Audrey Gardemeyer on Vimeo.

Other participating vendors included:

TLC Catering{wedding, corporate and event catering}, Ryan Douglas {custom clothier, men’s suits},River City Cakes{wedding and event cakes}, Monkey Glue Lighting{lighting}, Angela Dal Bon Custom Invitations{custom invitation, announcements, save-the-dates}, Carmen Salazar Photography{wedding, senior portraits, children and pet photography}, Pizazz! Event Planning{wedding and event planning}, A Perfect Pour{wedding and event mobile bar service}, In the Mix 916{DJ for weddings and events, Basket Works and Beyond{custom baskets for corporate, favors for weddings}, Classic Party Rentals{all your wedding and event rental needs}, Anderson Hair Design{hair design, coloring, cut}, Definition Beauty{wedding make-up, special event make-up, how-to lessons} and Revolution Wines{winery}.

You are cordially invited to:

Unique Elegance

An Evening At Carvalho Family Winery

Friday, January 22, 2010

6-9 pm

$10 pre-registration, $15 at the door

Tickets Available At:

www.carvalhowines.com

All event proceeds will go to benefit Kiwanis House, the umbrella organization for Kiwanis services to children.

Sacramento’s Designer Showcase + Symposium

Are you a recently engaged Sacramento bride?  Want to attend an evening of pampering and get educated all about your upcoming wedding?  Well then join us and some of Sacramento’s premier wedding vendors this month!

Wish Bridal is hosting a designer showcase and symposium for engaged Sacramento wedding brides.  From invitations to gorgeous gowns, custom men’s suits to florals and catering, it’ll all be under one building!  Here’s your chance to speak with the pros, and get some added information to take your wedding to the next level.

January 14th from 6pm-9pm

Negative Space Studio

2114 P Street

Sacramento, CA 95693

Free admission with a donation of a new or gently used bra for {Bra}vo, a campaign for women’s homeless shelters.

Please RSVP to Kristina Smith at:  wish_bridal@yahoo.com

We look forward to seeing you there!

Sacramento’s Designer Showcase + Symposium

Are you a recently engaged Sacramento bride?  Want to attend an evening of pampering and get educated all about your upcoming wedding?  Well then join us and some of Sacramento’s premier wedding vendors this month!

Wish Bridal is hosting a designer showcase and symposium for engaged Sacramento wedding brides.  From invitations to gorgeous gowns, custom men’s suits to florals and catering, it’ll all be under one building!  Here’s your chance to speak with the pros, and get some added information to take your wedding to the next level.

January 14th from 6pm-9pm

Negative Space Studio

2114 P Street

Sacramento, CA 95693

Free admission with a donation of a new or gently used bra for {Bra}vo, a campaign for women’s homeless shelters.

Please RSVP to Kristina Smith at:  wish_bridal@yahoo.com

We look forward to seeing you there!

Photo By: Jensen Videography

Thanks to all of the wonderful Sacramento brides who stopped by to meet us at the Premier Wedding Show this past Sunday!  We had such a wonderful time getting to meet you all!

As a newly engaged bride, you may be overwhelmed with the magnitude of details before you.  When it comes to your flowers and decor, we are here to put you at ease.  Working alongside your other vendors, we will help you come up with and coordinate the perfect flowers and decor to go with your venue and style.

Forecasters say that 2010 will be a very busy wedding year, with couples pushing back their 2009 dates due to the economy.  What does that mean for you?  More brides, the same number of venues and vendors, so more competition to book the vendors that are the perfect match for you!  If you haven’t done so already, make sure you contact us to set-up your complimentary consultation where we can come up with a custom proposal for you and your beautiful Sacramento wedding!

To get in touch with our design studio, you can complete a Contact Form on our website or phone us at 916.673.8650.

Botanica Floral Designs would like to congratulate all of the newly engaged Sacramento couples!  This is one of the most exciting and memorable times of your life, and what better time to start planning than right now!

I would like to invite you to come see some of Sacramento’s finest wedding vendors at the upcoming Premier Wedding Show Sunday, January 3, 2010 at Arden Hills Resort.  From caterers to venues, florists to invitations, every aspect of your wedding will be represented by the best of the best in the wedding industry.

To see more information, please visit Premier Wedding Show’s website.

Make sure you stop by our booth, see our floral artistry and set-up your complimentary consultation!  We will be offering some un-passable show incentives, so make sure you stop by to say hello!  We look forward to meeting you and starting the planning process!

Botanica Floral Designs | Sacramento Wedding Florist

www.sacramentoweddingflorist.com

With the New Year just around the corner, we were in need of a make-over!  So, what do you think of our new logo?  We’re loving the girly look and new crown icon.  What do you think?  Graphic Artistry By: Denialle Chabot

Are you a Sacramento bride in need of some inspiration?  Want to come enjoy an afternoon of being pampered, as well as seeing some of the latest trends, beautiful gowns and awesome Sacramento wedding vendors?  Well, then you need to come to The Designer Showcase and Symposium hosted by Wish Bridal.

Admittance is free with a small donation:  bring in a gently used bra for the [BRA]VO Campaign for local homeless shelters and help support our community.

By Invitation Only:  If you are interested, please rsvp at idobridalconsignment@yahoo.com.

When:  Sunday, December 6th, 2009 from 1-4 pm

Where:  Negative Space Studio |  2114 P Street, Sacramento

For more information, please visit wishbridal.com

More and more brides these days are trying to cut costs for their wedding day by hiring a “friend” or “family member” who knows how to make a cake, take photography, do flowers or create videos.  I am sure you have heard this before…. or are you one of these brides?

As a wedding professional, yes, I said professional– this is not a hobby, not something I do every now and then, this is what I do week in and week out. Here’s a question:  Would you hire a friend to invest your money in the stock market because he/she has “had some experience,”  I think not, so why would you trust a hobbyist to handle the biggest day of your life?  The point I am trying to make is that I have heard countless horror stories of how these so-called helpers actually turn out to be hindrances on your most special day.  Who wants a wedding cake that is toppling over because Aunt Suzy didn’t properly place dowels through the tiers, or who wants their photos to be ruined because they  let an amateur capture their day?

Your wedding is just too important to put into the hands of people who don’t do this for a living.  Here’s a little bullet point list of why you should hire a professional when it comes to your wedding:

• No room for mistakes. A professional has a reputation that is at stake, he/she is there to make all of your requests come to reality.  Having an official contract and expectations… because you are paying them, holds people accountable for their services.  If a friend or a family member is providing a service, they may cut corners or do things inexpensively because they know you on a personal level, not business level.

• Experience, experience, experience. As I mentioned before, a true wedding professional does weddings throughout the year, and knows how to deal and prevent bad circumstances from happening.  There have been many times where I as a florist have been asked to help to fix a problem other than flowers on a wedding day because somewhere along the lines a professional was not hired.

• It’s not a personal relationship, it’s business. Sometimes mixing family and friends into business dealings can create for some unneeded tension and unfortunately burned bridges. Telling your future mother-in-law that her contribution of hand-made invitations is not your style is much harder than just hiring a professional to create exactly what you are looking for.

• Professionals have connections. Getting in touch with the right professionals can have many added benefits.  As for my business, I am often asked for advice when it comes to colors, decor, ideas, and other vendor referrals in addition to flowers.  My clients see the added benefit of “picking my brain” to solve problems because they know that I do, attend, and see weddings all the time.  There is more than just the service of floral designs that I offer for my clients.

• Is it worth the time? When it is all said and done, is it worth the time and risk invested in doing it yourself?  Will your family and friends really enjoy your day while they are stuck working?  For myself, I have found that hiring a professional can be well worth the dollar sign, rather than trying to figure out how to do things, and ending up with sub-par results.

What it ultimately and unfortunately comes down to is price for these brides.  Now, I am not saying that you have to spend a fortune to have a wedding with no hiccups, but you are definitely going to pay for a professional with professional services.  For the biggest day of your life, I don’t see why anyone would chance hiring someone without experience and having doubt, rather than hiring someone who’s dedicated to surpassing your expectations.  So, before you set your mind on saving a few extra dollars by hiring a “friend” or “family member,” consider what could go wrong, why you might want to hire a professional, and what you truly want for your wedding day.  Happily Ever After!