Off Beat Brides

Dance to the sound of your own drum....that is the tune of Off Beat Bride - a website dedicated to unique, creative and sometimes outlandish weddings.

The website also features ideas for ceremony and reception themes - like Halloween, 1930's, rockstar, gothic and fantasy.

Check out the site...if there isn't anything on it that interests you and your style, you will at least have fun looking at some of the wild and kooky ideas of other real brides.

I always find something on this site that I like....check out the picture below. When Carolyn (the Bride) didn't know what to put on the back of her programs, she added different styles of mustaches. She says this way when she looked out into the crowd gathered to witness her vows she didn't imagine them all in her underwear to calm her nerves - instead they all had mustaches!! Creative, silly and unique!

Themed weddings have much more and often different elements than a "regular" wedding, so if you have the budget to hire a Planner, I recommend you do. It'd be a shame to have put so much time, effort, money and creativity into a themed wedding only for it to not all come together as planned.

Enjoy being offbeat, it is afterall Halloween!

Happy Halloween!

TRICK OR TREAT???

TREAT!!! When you book your 2010 Day of Coordination package with The Bride's Butler and you quote the word "mustache" in  your inquiry email (when you ask us to help you cause you want a professional to assist you with your wedding) - we will knock $100 off the total price!!!

Now, that's a good treat if you ask me! :)

Foto Flare Photography

Everyone say cheese!

Taking a picture with a professional on your wedding day isn't like getting your school photo done. There usually isn't too much of the "say cheese", or "smile!"anymore. Most photographers like to take what they call 'photojournalistic' pictures.

Photojournalism is a particular form of journalism that creates images in order to tell a story...like the events of your wedding day. You want your pictures to convey timeliness, objectivity, detail, narrative and emotion.

The Bride's Butler works with a few photographers that all have the ability, experience, knowledge and equipment to capture all of the moments from your special day.

We like to refer Lucas from Foto Flare to our clients. He has his own studio in Hamilton (302A Brucedale Ave E) - and has many packages available to meet the photography and budget needs of every Bride and Groom.

Any clients of The Bride's Butler that are refered to Lucas and decide to use him as their photographer will recieve a discount depending on the photo package you choose. We also have a discounted rate for clients of Foto Flare - so visit the studio to find out how you can save money!

I invite you to visit Lucas' website, blog and studio to see his photojournalistic photos. http://www.fotoflare.ca/

When you're looking for a photographer for your wedding,

do you know what questions to ask him or her?

Here are just a few......


Are you the only photographer in this company? If I hire you, am I guaranteed that you will be the one showing up to shoot my wedding?
Can you show me 3 or more complete weddings you’ve done?

Is color and B/W photography included or is there an extra fee for B/W?
Are you willing to come extra early to get shots of us (the couple) before the ceremony if we choose to do that?
Do you work with an assistant?


How many and what kind of cameras do you use? 


Do you offer a website and CD of my images? 


Ask your photographer plenty of questions, they should always be glad to answer them - it shows your care about their service and the product that they can create for you.



BB Tip #5

When compiling a list of photos that you 'must have' for your wedding, remember to keep it simple.
Immediate family, wedding party shots, and details (dress, shoes, cuff links, etc).
Your photographer will do their very best to capture every moment and emotion...and you as the Bride do your best to relax, enjoy and SMILE! :)

Creative goodies....

Mmmmm......

One of the most important aspects of a wedding (other than the vows of course) is the food.
As more and more couples are trying to make their wedding unique, and sometimes in crazy off the wall ways, I went looking for ideas on how to be different, yet still remain classy.

I was on a wedding blog the other day and came across a few ideas for favours and buffets that I thought were very creative...and also looked very yummy!

Cookies & Milk

What a great idea this is instead of your typical late night buffet. Serve shots of cold milk (you could have strawberry and chocolate flavoured ones too) and pair them up with homemade cookies - perhaps the Grooms favourite? Serve this idea either laid out on a table with some cookies wrapped 'to-go' with the recipe attached on a nice label with ribbon, or have this comforting treat served to guests on a tray (pictured) - only be sure each guest gets a napkin with their homemade treat.

This idea would also be a good one if children are at the reception. What child wouldn't like some milk & cookies before they are shuttled home to bed by mom and dad?

Ice Cream Sundae Bar     

This would be fantastic for not only a summer wedding, but for the theme of a Bridal Shower. It's a little messier than some regular dessert/snack options, but can be personalized by your guests by what they top their ice cream with! Offer all kinds of different toppings - ranging from the classic like coloured sprinkles to the not so classic like pretzel pieces. Display all of the toppings in nice dishes and be sure to have title tags for each so your guests know what they're eating. A sure way to eliminate some of the mess would be to have your venue

pre-scoop ice cream into dishes for your guests.
What a fantatsic idea....and don't forget the cherry on top!

S'mores

When I saw this idea I wanted to whip out my fondue set and try it right then! What a wonderful idea! I think this idea would be best suited as a dessert, where each table would have their own fondue set and goodies needed to make the yummy summer treat! Can you imagine the sight of all of your guests huddled around the centre of their tables making s'mores? Fantastic pictures!

Along with this treat, you have to have wet naps available as it could get a little messy.

There are plenty of different ways to have your favourite dessert or snack available at your wedding for your guests to enjoy along with you.

Think about some of the things you enjoyed as a child, or about treats you shared with your fiance during your courtship. Almost any idea can be brought to life these days. Use your imagination!

Ask your Wedding Planner for some ideas if you're having troubles thinking of something different and creative. We at The Bride's Butler can find almost anything you need to satsify your sweet tooth.

Bon Appetite!

Pictures provided by www.bridalpartytees.com/blog.

The Bride's Butler would be more than happy to recreate these images for you for your wedding or event.

Congratulations Liz & Devon King!!

Liz and Devon got married over the Thanksgiving weekend. John's sister has been planning her wedding for the past 18 months, and asked me to help her along the way. We met a few times for a few hours in the months leading up to her big day, and I acted as their Wedding Planner on the wedding day.

Liz and Devon got married at Town Hall in Ancaster, and took an old fashioned fire truck (cause Devon is a firefighter) down to the reception at The Art Gallery of Hamilton. It was an awesome sight - and a great photo opportunity for guests! The wedding was a cocktail reception with approximately 165 guests.

Given the fact that they had an 18 person bridal party...>gasp<...I know, that's a lot.. the day went well with very little issues. With such a large Wedding Party (WP), it was quite the task to keep them all focused, doing their duties (ushering guests most specifically) and keeping them out of the ceremony hall before it started!

Once we all got to the Art Gallery, again it was hard keeping track of where all of them (WP) where, and were going - outside for a smoke, to grab a drink, to talk with family/friends...it got a little frustrating chasing them around to prepare for their 'Grand Entrance' - but in the end, everything went well and was beautiful.

Liz looked fabulous, and I've got to say, was quite the calm bride. She was always smiling, and just wanted to make sure everyone was having a good time - and they were!

Her colours were ivory, purple and yellow - so both venues (ceremony & reception) had sunflowers, gourds and mini pumpkins placed throughout for the 'fall' theme.

This was my first Cocktail Reception wedding, and it's a good concept - very relaxed - but I do stress that you must have enough food on hand. Guests could choose from appetizer sized items that consisted of cheeses, breads, cold meats, antipasto, pasta and veggie/meat skewers. I noticed that many guests went up to the food table more than once, more than twice - sometimes 3 or 4 times!!  They even ran out of coconut shrimp within the first 20 minutes... they must have been a favourite! Thankfully Liz & Devon were saved some to enjoy later by the Catering Manager.

 The bar was open right from the get go, and the dance floor was always hopping.

Once the speeches were taken care of, I tried my best to be there as a guest and enjoy the wedding with my family, but my Planner instincts kept clicking in. I made sure that the bouquet toss, garter retrieval and the cake cutting were all done on time. Devon even said to me - "oh, thanks for reminding us, we would have forgotten!" And that happens - Brides and Grooms sometimes will forget to follow timelines because they are enjoying themselves so much and having fun. Just another excellent reason to have a Wedding Planner.

 

Congratulations Liz & Devon...you had a beautiful wedding filled with love, laughter, family & friends!

All the best!!

BB Tip # 4:  Only ask close friends and family to be in your WP. More than 3 or 4 on each side will most likely be unmanageable. Remember, just because you have more hands does not necessarily mean you will get more help.

Congratulations Leah & David Craig!

Yesterday The Bride's Butler was on hand to help Leah & David with their wedding at The Edgewater Manor. The ceremony was to take place outside, but given the overcast and wind, we decided to have it indoors - and thankfully so, as they were saying their vows it started to pour!


My assistant for the day was Ashley, she's in college for Tourism & Events and would like to be a Wedding Planner. She currently works part-time at Invitations by SanSheira’s in Burlington, so when it came time to decorate the wedding and tie bows - she was my savour! She did a great job all day!

Since the ceremony was held indoors, that left us with just a little over an hour to flip the room over into the reception dining hall for 70 guests. With just Ashley, myself and 2 staff members from the venue, we managed to do it with 10-15 minutes to spare! Because of the limited staff from the venue, Ashley and I even set the tables with the dinnerware and napkins! Anything goes when you have a deadline...as a Wedding Planner you need to wear plenty of hats, and look good in all of them!

Leah's vision for the day was beautiful - inspired by nature and quite unique. He colours were green, brown and ivory. Her menu consisted of locally grown vegetables, and her favours for her guests was a white spruce tree planting kit. Her and David also donated to Tree Canada as part of their favour. Fantastic idea!

One aspect that was the most fun in setting up was displaying the Candy Buffet. David likes salty treats, and Leah likes Sweet - so the table was a mixture of both! Guests were encouraged to fill take out Chinese boxes with goodies prior to their departure.

The cake was magnificent and the aroma of the vanilla could be enjoyed anywhere with a ten foot radius of the cake table!

Overall, the wedding was fabulous. Her bridesmaids were very helpful with the initial set up (flowers, outside decorations, and taking care of Leah) - and her MC was wonderful and easy-going.

The Edgewater Manor was a great venue for this romantic intimate wedding.


Wishing Leah & David all the best!


BB Tip #3 -
Have your wedding on a Sunday like Leah did - it will be less costly than a Friday or Saturday.