A Wedding Workshop

The First Annual Wedding Workshop was the brilliant idea of Gregory Costa-Saint John owner of Flouer. His idea was to pull together an exclusive group of wedding vendors to create a workshop atmosphere where brides could come not only to be educated but also have a platform to ask questions. I first met Gregory while working with him on the Reason To Give Wedding and know first hand how professional and talented he his. I was truly honored that he asked me to be one of the vendors and knew the event would be first rate. The workshop took place a few weeks ago and exceeded my expectations by leaps and bounds.

The workshop was held at Flouers studio which was transformed into three mini weddings each having their own tablescapes; Platinum Elegance, Natural Elegance and Simple Elegance. Each table design began with an inspiration board, these boards do not have to be fancy but every bride should make one it will help you organize your vision and will give your vendors a starting point as to what you want for your wedding.

Platinum Elegance began with a color palette of hot pink, black, and white. In this design we started with what I had chosen for card stocks for the invitations. Event planner Jen Hansen will tell you first hand to start with your invitations, most brides do their invitations last but the save the dates and invitations are the first thing your guests will see. The invitations will set the tone for your entire wedding and give your guest a prelude of what's to come. I was truly amazed at how Alice was able replicate the design from the table linens directly on the cake. The flowers are mainly white with just a hint of pink and the leaves normally green were painted black. To finish the whole look a centerpiece light was added with a hue of pink to make this table complete.  The little details........these are what will make your wedding unique, look at what Gregory did with one of the flowers from the arrangement; he put it into a flat glass vase and set it in front of each place setting as a favor. Not only have you added another element of design to your table but each of your guests are now leaving with a favor that won't end up in the trash. The glittered table number actually has a pocket on the back where your menu can be inserted. A typical wedding program will list your wedding party I decided to use silhouettes with the wedding parties names below.  Candy Bars and Cocktails Bars are extremely popular why not add a custom glittered drink menu that can sit at the bar.......little details make the biggest impact.

Natural Elegance was one of my favorite tables, the linens were a mixture of silks, satins and textures. Most people think centerpiece think flowers but Gregory took this centerpiece to a whole new level. Keeping with the Natural Elegance he created an arrangement of flowers and lit candles suspended from branches......SERIOUSLY STUNNING. The table was also lit by a pinspot which made the centerpiece pop and the table crystals sparkle. The invitation had a double layer of ribbon threaded through a crystal buckle which Alice incorporated to the cake design along with flowers from the centerpiece. This invitation does not have envelope but a custom mailable box......when you send an invitation this way it will make your guest feel as if they are receiving a little present in the mail. I used the twist card for the place card design, each guests name is printed on the front and when you pull the card it will twist to show them their table number which I hand embellished with glitter. The numbers for the table were also hand embellished with glitter as well as the custom Mr and Mrs signs that hung from the back of the chairs.........remember its the little details!

I find it hard to refer to this table as Simple Elegance because it is anything but. For this tablescape the linens were chosen first so I used them as inspiration when creating the invitations. The table linens have this stunning but subtle pattern scrolling throughout which led me to choose a brocade pattern in gold. The invitation is a perfect 7x7 square with 4 layers of pattern, antique gold and textured cream card stocks. The main invitation envelope has a two layer custom address label wrap. In one of the photos you can see how the table is lit from underneath which gives such a look of elegance. I can just imagine an entire grand ballroom of this tablescape design.........STUNNING! I love how the chair wraps also incorporate a matching flower from the centerpiece and how each placesetting has an accent linen underneath it........again little details they make all the difference. The cake design is absolutely flawless you can see the wrap on the cake matches the linen wrap on the chair. The motif in the table linen perfectly matches what is on the cake..........that people is what you call TALENT!

The workshop was a huge success and we have received such wonderful feedback. Every bride and her guest were greeted with a Champagne Mimosa, yummy pastries and were able to sample all of the wedding cakes throughout the workshop that are shown. When leaving each bride was given a lingerie bag made by Carolyn of BBJ Linens and filled with goodies from all the vendors. Jen of Gracious Events set up a Sweet Candy Bar that all the brides were able to fill a bag to take with them, Alice gave a yummy cupcake and Gregory provided each bride with a petite flower arrangement each one in a unique bud vase. I would like to also thank North Shore Magazine and The Knot for providing issues of their magazines for the bags. A HUGE thank you to Peterson's Party Center in Winchester for donated all the tables and chairs and an even BIGGER thank you to Alex and Amy of Gateway Productions for getting it to us:)

Although each of us operate our businesses separately we felt it would be nice to have a name for our newly formed group as it is our plan to do more workshops and events. Let me start by introducing the other members of the Platinum Wedding Group, founder and Floral Artist Gregory Costa-Saint John owner of Flouer, renowned Event Planner Jennifer Hansen owner of Gracious Events Management, extraordinary Linen Designer Carolyn Colberg of BBJ Linens, Lighting Production Experts Alex Sommerfeld owner of Gateway Productions and Amy Zediana Director of Sales and Operations for Boston Lighting and Pastry Chef and owner of Bean Counter Bakery Alice Lombardi.