Everyone wants to know about the newest, hottest things to Dallas....I mean, after all, we don't want to all plan the same parties in the same locations. As event planners we are always wanting to bring in new ideas to create parties that stand out and are remembered for years to come. We have a front row seat to a new event venue in downtown Dallas. It is the original Dallas Courthouse and Post Office. The Post Office, which is located on the first floor, is actually still a working post office. The lobby is available for evening cocktail events. The third floor of the building is where the ballroom (courtroom) is located. It is old, historic, renovated and eclectic. The Venue is perfect for the bride who wants a something that is different and no one else has used. Picture beautiful tall windows, dark hardwood floors, original marble, and restored ceilings that were originally painted by a french artist. What is it called, you may ask? It is The Venue at 400 North Ervay. The cool thing about the space is most of the renovations were done to protect the original ceilings, floors, walls etc. of the building. The room is classy and elegant. The space holds about 150 for buffet/cocktail style reception and 110 for a seated dinner. The Venue has already been featured in Dallas Bride (Dallas Modern Luxury) and D Weddings.

Valet is required and a doorman will be waiting for your guests as they arrive... downtown classy!

214.793.1023

sales@400northervay.com

Happy Day!

Something Blue...

Photo Credit from top left corner: Southern Living – Blue bouts; Blue dress by Maggy London, available at Nordstroms;Shoes – Manolo Blahnik, available at Neiman Marcus;Blue Cake – Photo via www.stylemepretty.com; Blue Dress, available at Threads; Shoes – Stuart Weitzman available at Stuart Weitzman

Unless blue is one of your wedding colors most brides have a hard time finding their “something blue” item. Many brides have blue on their garters but with garters being less and less present on bride’s legs…. You’ll need to find another way to incorporate your blue.

What is blue? It is always nice to have a beautiful sapphire ring on your hand that represents your “something blue.” I’ve had quite a few brides take this approach. An idea I always love is to get a personalized label made for your fabulous wedding gown. You can have it made with blue stitching and your seamstress can attach it to your dress. It makes for sweet memories and of course a fun picture to have in your wedding album.

Some ideas that are a little easier and more DIY …. You can have your bridemaids sign the bottom of your shoe in blue ink. You can have a calligrapher write your name and wedding date on the bottom of your shoe….just in case you wear them again and don’t want eight names on the bottom of your NEW Christian Louboutin’s. ...attaching a blue ribbon around the top of your bouquet is also a simple option.

There are many ways to bring in your “something blue.” I am more traditional and love to see the “something blue” present during the ceremony verses the reception. …as I always tell our brides, “It is your wedding and you can do just about anything you want.” One of my favorite "something blue" idea was a bride who used her grandmother's broach, that contained sapphires, as her blue item. It was attached to the ribbon on the stem of her beautiful bouquet. It served as her "somethiing old, something borrowed, and something blue." Be creative and make it special to you!!!

Happy Day….

Something Borrowed...

Your mother’s pearl necklace, your grandmother’s diamond ring, your best friend’s beautiful lace veil…. These are all “something borrowed” you can use for your big day! A fun idea and something that can be used for years to come is to create a handkerchief that is used among your group of close girlfriends. As each friend gets married you can get their name and wedding date monogrammed on the handkerchief. It is a unique “something borrowed” that can be passed down through the years….even to the daughters of the original brides. The “something borrowed” item gives you, as the bride, an opportunity to be as creative as you see fit. Other than symbolizing happiness, the “something borrowed” also reminds you, the bride, that you can always depend upon your friends and family. ….what better way than to bring your best friends into your special something!!

Happy Borrowing!!!

Map it out...

Brides always want unique items for their wedding...whether it is having a unique favor for their guests to having their reception at a unique place... brides crave individuality!!!  I love reading wedding blogs to find new and different items to suggest to our brides.  I found a map, similar to the one above, a few years ago in a magazine.  The price for the customized map was a little ridiculous to me so I've never suggested it to a client.  However, when I ran across this map on one of my favorite blogs today, I had to share it!!!  The creator, Laura Hooper, is based in Los Angeles and owns LH Calligraphy.  She is so talented and her work is beautiful....as well as, UNIQUE!  She sells her customized maps on Etsy.   You can hire her to do your calligraphy through Etsy or contact her directly.  

Happy Mapping!!!

"Something New" to Dallas and you...

What will be your “Something New?” For most brides, their bridal gown is what they consider to be their “Something New” on their wedding day. What better to serve as your “Something New” than the most beautiful dress you’ve ever worn, unless of course it is your mothers and is serving as your “Something Old.”

Dallas has a “Something New” that we are so very excited about…. Bridal gown designer Carolina Herrera is not only a fabulous designer with one of the most famous runway collections, but has also become a new addition to the Dallas area. She just opened one of three (let me repeat…1 of 3!!!) bridal stores in the United States. The Carolina Herrera Bridal Boutique is located in Highland Park Village with many of our favorite stores…. Tory Burch, Anthropologie, Warren Barron, Scoop….a girl could spend hours at HPV! We highly recommend visiting the boutique if you are in search of a wedding gown or if you just want to be inspired. The gowns are absolutely stunning and have personalities of their own. The store carries the designer’s bridal runway collection as well as accessories by profound designers including Nancy Gonzalez, Manolo Blahnik and Judith Leiber.

Trunk Show. July 24-26, 2008
Store Hours. Monday-Saturday 10am-6pm
Call to make your appointment with bridal consultant, Elison Presser at 214.219.6060.

With their fabulous selection of gowns presented throughout the overwhelming 3,600 square feet store you are bound to find the “Something New” that screams you for your special day!

Happy Shopping!!

**photos from www.carolinaherrera.com

Preston Bailey comes to the Big D!! (and we got to take a picture with him.)

pictured above: Jessica's twin sisters & maids of honor- Helen & Heidi, Preston Bailey, Jessica (our fabulous bride), Angie and Kristin

Celebrity florist and event designer, Preston Bailey, spent an evening of luxury with future brides and vendors in the bridal industry at the Rosewood Crescent Hotel on Wednesday, June 17th. We happened to bump into him as we were wandering the halls and ended up riding the elevator with the wedding guru. We chatted the entire ride about the wedding of the beauty in the middle of the above picture, which is one of our fabulous brides. Mr. Bailey was kind enough to take a picture with us, which we will treasure and Jessica, our wonderful bride, can add to her wedding book.

Preston Bailey has created events for such celebrities as TomKat, Donald Trump, and Oprah, just to name a few. Mr. Bailey gave a wonderful speech about all the lessons he has learned from his 27 years of business…the great ones and the not so great ones. He was very honest in saying he has made mistakes with business and design, but learned from them and will not repeat them.

He offered a few tips to making an event grand and creative…
Every 15 minutes create a different ‘element of surprise’ for your guests. How... You might ask… by creating theme changes during the various events of your wedding (ceremony, cocktail hour, reception and exit), to lighting that changes throughout the night, to adding scented candles to a room. OOOLaLa. Preston is also a fan on taking a space and completely transforming it to look like you are somewhere else. He is a design genius and we are so glad he made a visit to Dallas.  

We encourage you to visit his website to see all his fabulous work.  Also, his blog is where he gives you design inspiration and how to’s on décor and other fun items.

Happy Creating!!

Something Old

For most brides today, wearing your mother’s wedding dress is not an option for your “something old”, whether it is because the dress is out of style or that it will never fit…no matter what crash diet you try. There are several other creative options that have been substituted and still carry the same sentimental values. One option recent brides have chosen as their “something old” has been to use a piece of fabric from their mother’s dress and make a handkerchief to carry the day of their wedding. Another fun idea is to wrap the wedding dress fabric around the bouquet. Other brides have chosen to carry or have one of their bridesmaids carry their family Bible at the ceremony. If you are fortunate enough to have heirloom jewelry in your family incorporating it into your attire is another great option.  Another recent bride we worked with used her late grandmother’s broach on her bouquet. Our bride stated, “It is like my grandmother is right here with me on my special day.” Get creative when thinking up ways to bring your “something old” into your wedding day.

Happy heirloom hunting!!!