5 Tips Before Walking Down The Aisle

The ceremony portion of your wedding day is probably the most nervous your going to be that day. Many brides are so nervous about having all eyes on them that they forget to smile and enjoy the moment.

It’s your special day… you should be excited but relaxed. Here are a few tips to get you down the aisle looking and feeling your best for the camera.

Before you even get to the church or ceremony site drink lots of water. Keeping hydrated is very important especially if you’re getting married outside or in a church without air conditioning. Have your maid of honour or a friend bring a cold bottle of water with them to the ceremony so that if you need a drink of water before you walk down the aisle it will be available.

It is also important that you remember to eat even if it is only snacking. It may be a busy morning with hair and makeup appointments. Bring snacks with you if you need to. The last thing your guests want to see is the bride fainting halfway down the aisle.

Before you take your father’s arm, give him some kleenex to hold for you in case you tear up on your way down the aisle. You may also be able to wrap a piece of kleenex around your bouquet.

Make sure your bouquet is positioned properly at hip level and not in front of your chest. Place your elbows on either side of your pelvic bones and make a V with your arms. The flowers should be in front of your pelvis. A beautiful dress should not be hidden behind your flowers.

The most important thing…Remember to smile! Your future husband is waiting for you and this is the happiest moment in your life!

Till Next Time
Tracey

Samantha & Michael

This summer it was my pleasure to coordinate Samantha & Michael’s wedding. The ceremony took place at Blessed Sacrament in Ottawa, Ontario. Thanks to Carol-Anne, for the amazing rehearsal at the church, everyone was well prepared. The talented Jeff Rogers played beautiful jazz music during the ceremony and cocktail hour. In keeping with their vintage wedding theme, guests enjoyed the splendor of Restaurant Eighteen in the Byward Market. Thanks to Lachlan and his service staff, Mark, Matthew, Damian and Elizabeth everything went smoothly. Denise, from Heaven’s To Betsy wowed us with her beautiful flower arrangements on the candelabras with strings of pearls and ribbon. The bridal party travelled by party bus to the National Art Gallery for pictures. A special thank you to James from Xtreme Partybus who took very good care of his passengers. I can’t forget to mention photographer Derrick Rice of Union Eleven and his assistant John who captured all the events of the day. What a great team! Guests enjoyed old Hollywood favourites during dinner service by DJ Rocky. Thank you to all the amazing vendors that helped make Samantha & Michael’s vintage style wedding the wonderful success it was.

photo provided by Samantha's Mom

Instead of table numbers, tables were named after movies. Samantha & Michael had a friend photo shop their faces on their favourite movie posters. Pretty woman, Mr & Mrs. Smith and 50 first dates to name a few. I loved this idea!

A large three-foot photo frame was used for the seating chart. A large lantern decorated with black ribbon and a sign stood by the entrance for guests to leave cards.

Guests were able to enjoy the photo booth complete with props. A polaroid camera was provided by the bride & groom for guests to take their picture and then add to the guest book that was ready to be signed.

Boxes of popcorn favours were available for guests to eat as a snack or to take home for later.

Congratulations Samantha & Michael! It was such a pleasure to be part of your special day. I wish you both a life of peace, love and happiness always.

Till Next Time
Tracey

Octogon: Catering With Flavour

There are many options available to couples looking for wedding venues in the Ottawa\ Gatineau area. From hotels to restaurants, golf courses, and ski lodges you can find the perfect location for your needs. All these places will provide food and beverages for your guests for a cost. Some brides want to be different, they don’t want a sit down dinner or speeches they just want good food, amazing music, and a party where all their guests can relax, have fun and enjoy themselves. I discovered this while speaking to a bride recently. She fell in love with a traditional lace veil and found a very beautiful traditional wedding dress to compliment it. The problem was there was an expectation that this dress would require a traditional plated reception. She is a modern bride that comes from a traditional background. She did not want to follow tradition; She loved the dress and was now second-guessing her choice.

With inter racial weddings we are sometimes challenged with pleasing both sides of the families. This bride wanted a cocktail reception that would allow her to serve both Romanian and Jamaican food. She can still have her traditional church ceremony with her beautiful gown and then change later into a more appropriate dress for her cocktail reception. For all brides looking for a venue that fits your personality and style but does not have kitchen facilities, don’t give up.. all is not lost… Whether it’s an outdoor wedding at a cottage, under a tent, or at a museum there’s options of catering in which they will bring the food to you.

Aliza Hutmann is the owner of Octogon catering. She specializes in traditional Moroccan and Spanish Cuisine. Her business is located at 707 Gladstone Avenue. When I walked into her shop she was preparing for a party the next day. The aroma coming from her kitchen was heavenly. If your planning your wedding rehearsal at home or even a small dinner party, Aliza will sit down with you and go through the details of her menu selections. She is able to come to your event or if your party is very intimate, she can host the gathering at her central location. I was very fortunate to meet this lovely lady at an event earlier this year and look forward to taking cooking classes in the fall. Check out her website for more information and look into her meals to go. www.octogoncatering.ca.

Till Next Time
Tracey

Special Wedding Ceremonies

There are a number of beautiful ceremonies that can be performed during your wedding. If your getting married in a church a unity candle is used often during the ceremony. This symbolizes the union between two separate individuals becoming one. The bride and groom both have a separate candle and together they light a larger candle in the middle.

If you are considering getting married outside, there are a few different ceremonies that can be added in addition to the regular exchanging of vows. One of my favourites is the rose ceremony. Red roses are exchanged between the bride and groom. This ceremony is also used during second marriages where there are children from previous relationships. Each adult gives the children of their future spouse a white rose. The child accepts the gift of a rose as a token of love and all family members express their commitment to the new family being created.

Another ceremony that can be performed during an outdoor wedding is the sand ceremony. Three glass containers are needed with 2 different colours. If you want to incorporate your children, additional colours can be added. The colours are blended one after the other. The mixed sand symbolizes the blending of two hearts and lives.

Hand fasting is another ceremony that you can include in your wedding. As your hands are tied together, so are your lives now bound. Ribbon is used in this ceremony to symbolize the new bond between the bride and groom.

In the wine ceremony there are two small carafes and one larger carafe. The bride pours wine from her carafe into the marriage carafe. The groom then pours wine from his carafe into the marriage carafe. They then take the marriage carafe with the mixed wine and each pour the other a drink from it. The marriage carafe symbolizes the blending of two lives.

All of these ceremonies are a beautiful addition to any wedding celebration. Which one would you choose.....

Till Next Time
Tracey











Till Next time
Tracey

Amanda & Alexandre

It was an honour to be a guest at Amanda & Alexandre’s August 6th wedding. An evening of fun and adventure was planned to entertain the guests during the reception. The theme of their wedding was travel. Alex has a passion for travel and has travelled all over the world. Instead of the traditional table numbers, guests were seated using names of places that Alex had travelled to. We were seated at table Tokyo. A world map completed the seating chart. Guests could check the map if they were curious about all the countries and cities that Alex had be to.

I was impressed at how much thought and creativity went into the planning of the entertainment for the evening. Amanda had no idea where she was going on her honeymoon. Alex had been planning the details for over a year and wanted it to be a surprise. He also used the surprise destination as way of providing his guests with a challenge. If guests wanted the newlyweds to kiss they clanged their glasses. The bride would then pick a table that she wanted to hear a clue from. The MC provided a member of that table a clue from a list. The clue was read and thus began the challenge. Guests tried to guess the honeymoon location by putting all the clues together.Whoever guessed right won a GPS! Everyone at table Tokyo had so much fun trying to figure out the mystery. What a great idea!

In keeping with the theme, an old-fashioned brown suitcase complete with stickers from all over the world was placed on the gift table with a slot on top for cards. Silver-plated airplane luggage tags were left at each place setting as favours. They also served as name cards with our names inside. The wedding cake was a beautiful two tier white luggage set. At the centre of our table were two purple calla lilies inside a tall cylinder, lighted from inside.

At the conclusion of our dinner service, papers were collected and Amanda was asked to the middle of the dance floor. Alex brought out a brief case as the theme to mission impossible played in the background. Amanda opened the case. Instead of an envelope with the answer…a DVD was inside!

A screen and DVD player was set up in the corner of the room. Alex put the DVD in and
The mystery unfolded in a surprising twist! The virtual plane took off from Ottawa and landed in Honolulu Hawaii. Everyone cheered! Then…. Alex surprised his bride further by telling her that it was only for 4 days to relax then the plane took off again only to land in Beijing and around the world the plane continued for a once in a lifetime trip that they had both dreamt of and discussed when they had first started dating.

There was a winner of course but it wasn’t us. I had thought of Hawaii but the other clues misled us because they were for the remaining locations throughout the trip. Table Tokyo had a wonderful adventure while enjoying the food service of the Delta Hotel. Amanda & Alex danced the night away.

Peace, Love and happiness always!

Till Next time
Tracey