Recently I watched a couple of friends plan their wedding.  Since they were having a small wedding they thought a planner would not be necessary.  Throughout the planning process I did ask how things were going and it was nice to see that they were happily planning away.

About a month before the wedding they began asking for advice and quickly realized how much time and money I could have saved them.  I took them through all the details of their wedding to make sure all was covered.

The best request came one week prior to their long weekend wedding where they decided they really did want a videographer after all.  With the help of the great wedding professionals I work with, I was able to find them an amazing videographer – a task I know they would not have been able to do on their own in such a short period without the huge price tag. 

Every wedding needs a wedding planner.

Happy Planning!

Thinking of getting married in Italy? Stop thinking and start planning it!

Italy is so magnificent from the beautiful beaches the South has to offer to the rolling hills up North that any simple photo taken turns out stunning.

Most of us are familiar with the popular destinations in Italy like Venice, Rome, the Amalfi Coast and Milano but the small towns should not be overlooked when planning your wedding in Italy.

One venue I found, Locanda Dei Mail Intees is located in the medieval town of Azzale in Varese, a town very close to Milano.

Locanda Dei Mail is situated on a small hill which overlooks Laggio Varese. Couples have the option of an outdoor ceremony on the grounds or a Catholic ceremony in the church located right across the street.

Locanda Dei Mail Intees has 12 rooms and the dining area accommodates up to 100 guests. Their menu consists of a variety of wonderful local dishes and fine wine.

Other fine qualities this location has to offer that your quests will truly enjoy are:

- is only 30 minutes away from Milano Maplensa International Airport;

- very close to the great lakes – Lago Maggiore, Lago di Como, Lugano in Switzerland!;

- jump on the local train and in 45 minutes your quests are enjoying the fabulous shops of Milano;

- or guests can simply explore the surrounding area with guided horseback riding tours, wine tasting tours and let’s not forget the ice cream and fresh milk at the local farms.

A very romantic place to have a wedding!

Having a lot of children attending your wedding?  A great idea is having an ice cream truck come to the wedding.  Turns out it’s not only the children that really like this but so do the “big kids” at the wedding.

Tina and Dan had a lot of children at their wedding and they really wanted to do something extra special for them. 

Ice Cream tickets were placed on each quest’s napkin which instantly created excitement as guests were being seated and read what would be in store for them later in the evening.

When the guests heard the DJ play the ice cream song I almost didn’t get the doors open quick enough as children, young and old, rushed with excitement to get their ice cream.

I had the pleasure of meeting Kamna Mirchandani, who owns with her husband Kalpesh Patel, Lifestrummer Inc. – www.lifestrummer.com.  Together, they have created a really unique concept for the wedding industry and as we all know, couples are constantly looking for that unique idea to bring to their wedding day.

Photo Courtesy of Mango Studios

Lifestrummer Inc. is an innovative online business that is creating exciting offerings for the wedding industry. The company’s concept involves couples sharing their love story by using inputs from the couple and adding a splash of drama, adventure and comic relief, Kalpesh creates a hand-drawn, intimate and organic interpretation of their love story in the comic book style.  In addition to the comic book style, couples can tell their story thorough other work of arts including save-the-date, invitations, guest books, guest collages and animated videos or slide shows. 

Lifestrummer’s business is conducted online so customers come to the site, create an account, upload their photographs and share their story. The artist then reviews the story and conducts an hour long consultation session with the couple in order to learn about their personalities and to get a sense of their vision for the art work. A blueprint is then created which is reviewed by the customer and then moves along to inking, shading and coloring. Voila! The end result is a personalized, eternal and unique work of art created especially for you based on your love story!

The couple chanced upon the idea when they started creating art work based on their own love story. They knew they were onto something when they saw the reactions they got from friends and family about their weekly comic book series titled “Kimi + Kal Adventures”. “Before we knew it, we decided to take the plunge and do this for other couples! It’s just an amazing feeling to know that something you worked on can bring happiness in someone’s life. It’s a really collaborative process, our customer’s vision and insights really shape the artwork”, says Kalpesh.    

Kamna adds “We are storytellers, weaving stories of love, friendship, hope, connections and more. We are always grateful to meet people who trust us with their stories. As gatekeepers of these beautiful stories, we promise to handle them with great care!”

I can’t say enough about how much I love this idea and company!