Destination Wedding with a Very Specific Bride
I recently produced a large Destination Wedding for a bride and her fiancé from New York City at the Ritz-Carlton, Key Biscayne … we initially spoke via cell phone while she was at the waiting to return to New York … we immediately hit it off because she had time to kill and was excited about the possibilities of the South Florida area … she was originally going to have the wedding at the Westin Diplomat, During our conversation I told her about my past events at the Diplomat, so this made the conversation much easier … while we chatted, I started to realize this bride had a very specific vision and a great sense of humor … I also learned that both she and her fiancé were in very powerful positions on Wall Street.
Since we chatted for such a long time and I began to feel comfortable with her and her sense of humor, I asked about the dynamic of their relationship … she explained that she and her fiancé were together for many years and had a 5 year old son together … she wanted him to be a part of the wedding … he walked her down the aisle in his tiny tuxedo!The largest hurtle with this bride was she wanted to have the Ceremony outside … in June … in South Florida!! I explained South Florida heat was different than New York heat, but she would have it no other way … I finally agreed and said it would be a good idea to have a casual “beachy” dress code … she immediately said NO WAY, let them suffer … she would have her dream wedding ceremony outside and that was that!
In mid planning she changed her mind on the venue! She went into a panic and flew back to town to visit the Ritz-Carlton, Key Biscayne … her fiancé had recently attended a business seminar and said he really liked the property … when they were in town, they came to ME to take the tour and see a Sample Table Set-up … during this meeting, we sharpened the pencil and got a very specific direction and design … she loved our glass stands and brought a picture of a lamp shade she liked … it turned out our Floral Director was having a very difficult time finding large enough lamp shades … the Bride was frantically searching New York city for large lamp shades upon her return … the large ones desired via the internet were way too expensive … so the South Florida Lamp Shade search began … it took weeks, but Charles (Floral Director) came through and finally found a large enough shade!
The Ceremony was held OUTSIDE at the Gazebo on the back lawn with a beautiful view of the ocean … and yes, the guests were not that happy to be outside in full black tie, but the Ceremony was quick … I finally convinced her to have the Cocktail Reception inside so her guests wouldn’t melt … she finally agreed
The Dinner Reception had an all white on white theme … the centerpieces were created with glass stands and the lamp shades … the tops and bottoms of the shades where accented with fresh orchid heads … we draped the entire room with white crushed satin, had white satin linens, white spandex chair covers and chair bands … very simple, yet very chic and hip … a simple elegance with a contemporary touch.
Due to the internet and cell phones, we remained in constant contact with one another during the planning … we became quit close and always ended the conversations with a chuckle about something.
Destination Weddings can be challenging, but covering every detail over and over again through emails, emailed photos and constant communication can put an out of town bride at ease
It was a long day, lots of work, but it turned out flawlessly … the Dinner Reception looked spectacular
I remain in contact with my newly weds and have plans meeting when they are in South Florida and when and if I make it to New York … I had mentioned that I really wanted to see Wicked on Broadway … a couple of weeks after the Wedding I received a very nicely priced Ticket Master Gift Certificate … she mentioned we could all go together and she would take care of dinner and drinks after … she wrote “You gave a 100% on my Wedding … So I’ll show you my New York”
The devil’s in the details with Destination Weddings
Ted Boyd
ME Productions