The Jewish View of Marriage

Image found at www.Aish.com

For another, entirely personal reason, Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge was browsing the website of Aish.com. Aish.com has become the world's largest Jewish content website. Their goal is to give every Jewish person the opportunity to discover their heritage in an atmosphere of open inquiry and mutual respect.

I happened to come across an article by a Rabbi Dan Silverman entitled "The Jewish View of Marriage".

As a Wedding Planner (and a Jewish one at that), this article spoke to me because it's not about the Jewish view of planning a wedding (although there are many books about that including a great one called "The New Jewish Wedding Wedding" by Anita Diamant).

To me, this article is about what marriage is about and how to try and live those ideals together with "your chosen one". It's about what the goals of marriage really are; sharing love, living and supporting your goals together and having a common destination. With that right person, even with ups and downs, Life together IS a beautiful journey and every year of marriage a noble destination.

Whether you are Jewish or not, I feel the lessons are very universal so I hope you take what inspires you from this article and some of the other posts you may find useful from this website on dating and love and marriage.

This is one excerpt that I particularly love (as I come upon 10 years of marriage).

"Which brings us to a shocker: True love comes after marriage. The Torah says that Isaac took Rebecca into his tent and he loved her (Genesis 24:67). Love should grow continuously as your appreciation of your spouse grows.

A friend of mine was sitting with his father and said to him, "Dad, after five years of marriage, I think I finally understand what love is."

The father said, "Wait till you're married 25 years, then you'll understand what love is."

The grandfather was also in the room and overheard this exchange. He told them: "Wait till you're married 50 years. Then you'll really understand what love is."

Celebrate Today and Every Day with Love, Life & Style (and with those you Love)!
Tracey

For Love or Money? Plan Properly to Opt for Former!

Image found at GetMarried.com

I don't care too much for money, 'cause money can't by me Love"-The Beatles!!

But money does make your celebration of Love and Marriage possible so it is important to make sure your budget is in shape (from the very beginning) and all your money matters pertaining to the wedding day BEFORE the wedding day. Your wedding day is the time to be indulging in the love of your friends, family, enjoying being pampered as you look forward to that very special moment of saying your vows with your future husband and then basking in LOVE, LIFE and FUN and having a great time.
Your wedding day is not the day to be worrying about whether your florist or DJ or venue or caterer is paid. On top of that, it is perfectly acceptable and appreciated for you to show your sincere appreciation for your wedding professionals who put their LOVE of their craft into your wedding day and offer them a gratuity or (tip) for service that you feel went above and beyond.

Please note that "gratuity" is not considered the same as "service charge" (which is a percentage, generally anywhere from 19%-23% in Las Vegas, of the catering bill for food, beverage and labor like additional bartenders or personal chef attendants at food stations). But do you really need to be flaunting money or bills (or even be concerned about it) on your wedding day? Do you need to be concerned that your beautiful bridal clutch is full of envelopes or your new husband's tuxedo's pocket is bulging from a wallet stuffed with bills. Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge thinks not. That is neither attractive or secure.
My wedding photographer/wedding journalist friends and colleagues from Write Shot blogged about this exact topic recently and they were kind enough to include some of my tips (pun intended) about tipping wedding professionals on your wedding day.

• Recommendation 1: Pre-pay all your vendors fully at least 15 days prior the wedding. That way, checks and credit card payments can clear their accounts prior to your wedding.

• Recommendation 2: Calculate and distribute cash tips ahead of time for creative partners. Place cash tips in sealed envelopes with each recipient’s name clearly printed on the front. Give these envelopes to your planner or your maid of honor to distribute on your wedding day.

*I love these luxury, customized thank-you gratuity notes created by Mimio Papers with wedding planner Mary Dann. Presenting your wedding pros in this way truly shows graciousness and appreciation with STYLE!

• Recommendation 3: Confused about tipping? Creative partners (these are professionals, not "vendors") who own the business do not necessarily have to be tipped on the wedding day. Their assistants and associates should be. If you would like to tip a creative partner who owns the business, send a gift and thank you note, post-wedding. Always include a personal testimonial sharing how much you appreciate what that person did for you.

Also, please do ask your wedding planner (or your caterer or venue) about the accepted amount to tip wedding creative partners whether your wedding is in your home town or ESPECIALLY if you are planning a destination wedding celebration. Every city and every country has different tipping customs and expectations.

Finally, don't forget to allow to budget for the extra tips for those valets, the bell men/women who help you with your bags, your gown, all your favors and wedding personal items and get them up to your room and to your venue safely. Here is a general tipping guide from Vegas.com while you are visiting us be it for your wedding, a friends or just because it's VEGAS!

You can read the entire blog post here. Thank you Natasha & Chris!!
Do you have any questions about tipping, gratuities regarding a Las Vegas wedding? Feel free to comment and ask your question right here on the blog.

"Dream Big" & Sign up for Colin Cowie's New "Wedding Chic" Newsletter

Colin Cowie, truly a wedding and lifestyle style setting hero of Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge, is launching his revamped "Wedding Chic" newsletter this summer.

Whether you are a bride, groom, industry professional or "wedding junkie" (put me down for the last 2), I am sure this newsletter is going to be fun, educational and always inspiring to read.

You can sign up for Colin's Newsletter here. I just did and then we can look forward to getting "Wedding Chic" together!

Celebrate your Day with Love, Life & Style!

*Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge receives no monetary compensation for this recommendation or limited time banner on this blog.

Redefining the "Perfect Wedding"...Again

 Bride Lauren truly enjoying her wedding day with her friends
Image by LorenzFoto

  

My friend and super-fantastic Wedding Planner & Designer, Sasha Souza just recently posted on her blog, Sparkliatti, about making the madness stop when it comes to the "Perfect Wedding" rhetoric & other "catch phrases" that encourage less than gracious behavior. 

Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge wrote about this myself quite a while ago on my blog and I can't think of a better time than now to re-post my views and stand with Sasha, and many other wedding colleague friends on this subject. It IS important!

Here is the post (I made some revisions) from March, 2007.

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My good friend, Andy Ebon, who is a marketing specialist for the Wedding Industry, posted on his Wedding Marketing Blog, the problem with using that overly cliched term; "Perfect Wedding" in advertising to brides.

From Andy

"Just for laughs, I ‘Googled’ the phrase "Perfect Wedding". Sadly, it received over 1 million results. That’s a lot of people living in the fantasy land, either believing or creating unrealistic expectations..."

I could not agree with Andy more! And,unfortunately, the majority of those search results are generated by wedding & bridal media propagating the myth. You know who you are! 

I don't like it one bit! It's deceptive because the "Perfect Wedding" is unattainable.

Asking for and expecting perfect brings undue amount of stress and STRESS IS a BEAUTY KILLER! Look at the faces of those "Bridezillas" who expected perfect on their wedding. They will have to endure the results with images of their tired, sour, sad, mad faces when they could have been joyous and glowing, knowing their day was not about "perfect" but happiness in confirming their life together with the person they love the most.

I never use the term "Perfect Wedding" in conversation with brides or in my literature. If you tell me that is what you want, truthfully, I may not be the planner you are looking for. I am a very accomplished wedding planning professional but I can not and will not promise you a "Perfect Wedding".

But, I will promise you this. If you allow yourself to relax, trust in yourself, in the tasteful details you choose and wedding professionals you hired (with the guidance of your wedding planner), you will find it much more enjoyable to go through the entire wedding journey, the wedding itself and the next day when your new life going forth together with your partner begins.

And down the road, those special little unplanned, spontaneous and surprise moments of your wedding day; the ones that made you laugh and cry and smile, are what you will always remember as being "Perfect"!

Celebrate Your Day with LOVE, LIFE & Style.

Happy New Year 2010! Now, .....BEGIN!

Photo by: Tracey Kumer-Moore

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010! Now….BEGIN

This is a picture Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge took of a very special gift I received at the Engage ’09 Encore Luxury Wedding Symposium in Las Vegas.

All attendees received one of several different hand-stamped custom created eggs with different messages from Caroline Colom Vasquez, owner of Paloma’s Nest who creates Handcrafted Modern Heirlooms™ like the “Original Ring Bearer Bowl™”.

Although the egg I received didn’t really have my own name on it, I believe that this egg really was meant for me (I’m sure every other attendee feels similar thoughts about theirs as well). And although I appreciated the message then, it is today, on the dawn of a new year and decade, as I look at it sitting on my desk, that the message resounds LOUD & CLEAR.

What I see today in this gift of this egg with its simple word, “Begin” is…

POTENTIAL and POSSIBILITIES

All of the great potential I hold, you hold, this new year (and decade) holds to create new ideas, new weddings, new celebrations, new life and new POSSIBILITIES…

To make my life (and yours and this worlds’) happier, healthier, more loving, more fun, more organized, more successful, richer, more inspired and more of whatever you and me and we all wish for it to be.

So, let’s BEGIN, shall we:)? To continue the egg metaphor, let's crack this new year open and "hatch" all of it!!

Here is wishing all the very best to my family, my friends, my colleagues (who are also friends), my extended friends around the “Twitter-verse” and you, my wonderful “Diary” Readers...

A very Happy, Healthy & Wonderful 2010.

Celebrate it and every coming day with LOVE, LIFE & STYLE!

Tracey

To buy these custom eggs and all of the custom designed, inspired work from Caroline, visit her website at Paloma’s Nest.com and the Paloma's Nest Etsy Store as well.

Some "Wedding Wisdom" for Us All

Jacket Cover Image of “Wedding Wisdom” book

Including image by photographer Jasmine Star

SOME "WEDDING WISDOM" FOR US ALL

Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge highly recommends to you, my readers this new book authored by well known professional Los Angeles based Wedding Planner, TV personality & author, Mary Dann-McNamee, and created with Leila Khalil, wedding publicist and owner of her PR firm, Be InspiredPR, also in L.A.

The book is called “Wedding Wisdom: An Insightful Approach to Wedding Planning and Life”

Whether you are a newly engaged couple just beginning your wedding planning adventure, in the throes of planning an upcoming celebration or a wedding professional (but planners are the focus), this book is for YOU.

Mary offers, with an easy writing style and personal antidotes, her wealth of life and wedding/event planning experience & wisdom to help you properly prepare (practically, mentally, physically and spiritually) for the planning ahead (be it your wedding & marriage or your wedding business) so that you can completely enjoy the exciting journey you are about to immerse yourself in over the course of the next year and years ahead.

It’s an easy and fun read with many life lessons that can’t be repeated often enough or translated often enough, as Mary so aptly does, especially when it comes to planning such an important life event as a wedding.

Advice on how we should express “Thank You” as often as possible (in person, by phone, by card) and being grateful to all those that give you their time, their talents, their passion and their love, up to and including the wedding day & every day in business and in life a habit that will pay you back & forwards in dividends.

And Mary’s advice (and I will agree 100% with her on this) not to forget to thank yourself by taking care of you, being fair to yourself, expecting great things but accepting life’s way of adding its own special touches to your plans and loving the results anyway.

The good life is inspired by love and guided by knowledge.-Bertrand Russell

I don’t think this quote could be more perfect to describe what “Wedding Wisdom” is about and I am sure Mary & Leila would agree. It was inspired and created by their love, passion and desire for this great wedding business and to share and pass on to you, those values and their wisdom to help inspire you to create a successful business, a beautiful wedding and a beautiful life worth celebrating every day!

Thank you again for the gift of this book Mary and for the wonderful inscription.

You can purchase the book "Wedding Wisdom" right here. Enjoy it and...

Celebrate today with LOVE, LIFE & STYLE!

Celebrating Changes!

Hello Friends and Diary Readers,

It has been a long time since I have been in touch and blogged after a bit of a tumultuous summer and lots of time for reflection on where I have been, what being the Las Vegas Wedding Concierge has meant to me, my clients and the industry and where I am going and taking things from here.

Perhaps another birthday, another year older and wiser (I hope) has helped to provide some perspective?

However, it was most likely the opportunity to tap the inspiration and knowledge of so many creative, talented friends in the wedding and events industry who, in the middle of this tumultuous summer have made me come to realize that being a part of a couple's journey in planning their wedding is really a gift and one that I don't want to let go of.

Actually, I look at the opportunity for two people to find each other, join their lives together in "Celebration" of uniting in marriage and bringing those they love and who love them together a REAL GIFT. So much in our world these days is sad and hard that the opportunity to come together to celebrate happiness, joy, love and life is a true blessing.

The more I thought about this, the more I decided that I want Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge to reflect these ideals and values that are, I admit, a bit nostalgic and infuse them with a contemporary and, of course, STYLISH vision and sensibility.

Being of Jewish heritage and with the Jewish New Year coming up this weekend, I thought this would be the perfect time to share this news with you. A new and sweet beginning...

So my first step is to happily announce my new branding as Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge, "Creating Stylish Celebrations of Love & Life".

You will see this immediately reflected in a new header for my blog. The blogging will continue of course. I do LOVE to write and hope you will find my thoughts, advice and ideas fun, inspiring, thoughtful and motivate you to inject love and heart and joy in every part of your wedding celebration and in your life too of course.

Over the coming months, you will see more updates with a new website, some updated logo branding and eventually, a new and improved blog as well.

I am excited for these changes but you can be assured of what won't change...

I will always maintain the highest standards and ethics, value my clients and my professional colleagues and "take care" of every wedding and social client personally from consult until the last dance & beyond that I am honored to have the gift of working with.

Thank you for staying true and here is to celebrating positive changes, to love and "To Life"!

The Economy & Your Wedding-FOCUS on What is Important!

I wanted to share with you a post I wrote a while back but feel the message needs to be rejuvinated. I look forward to your feedback. And so without further ado...

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Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge knows these are very crazy times right now and a lot of you are wondering how life is going to look trying to deal with all the challenges ahead as we all navigate our way through this economic downturn.

It’s hard enough figuring out how to balance your household budget; never mind adding the costs of planning a wedding on top of that.

I get it! I really do! And while I am a realist, I am also an optimist who is going to focus (and help you do the same) on the positive opportunities, lessons and tips for planning and budgeting for your wedding during these challenging times.

Wedding celebrations are and should be a bright spot in our lives amongst all the other things that are getting us down because G-d knows we all need a reason to come together to focus on what is important in our lives; the people that we love and who love us and trying to build a better life and future for ourselves and our kids.

 So here is my first piece of advice and these are the key words...

“focus on what is important”!

Right now is the perfect opportunity to let you really evaluate (if you are just starting to plan) or reevaluate what your priorities are and what ideals and values you hold most dear when it comes to celebrating your wedding. Everything you do and what and how you spend those very hard earned and precious dollars should be an extension of these priorities and ideals.

In the detailed questionnaires I give all my new clients, I ask them to consider the following…

·         Provide three words that describe how you want your wedding to be remembered by you and your guests?

·         Provide three elements of your wedding that you will absolutely NOT compromise on.

No matter what your budget is, think about these carefully, write them down and refer to them often to help guide you and keep you “focused on what’s important”, put your positive energy, your money and your time (all valuable commodities) throughout the months ahead.

And please do remember to also focus on what is truly MOST IMPORTANT; the loving relationship that you and your fiance have that is the foundation and the reason for having this wedding celebration. That is PRIORITY #1!

This is good planning advice in any economic climate but even more important when your pocketbook is tighter.

Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge would love to hear from you on this subject. Please comment here and let me know what important elements you are focusing on for your wedding, challenges, ideas…whatever you want to share.  We can all use every bit of inspiration and advice there is from all of you.

Stay positive, stay focused and have a Stylish Day!

Wedding Planning & the Economy-A Little Advice Goes a Long Way!

Image from Flickr.com

With the economy being the way it is these days, couples that are in the midst of planning or just starting to plan a wedding are certainly re-thinking a lot of things and how they will proceed and plan and manage to make their vision happen with less. Some couples or families who are blessed to have the funds for a big budget wedding are also reconsidering some elements out of concern that they would be perceived as uncaring while others are suffering. Then again, some other bride's are throwing all caution to the wind in favor of having "their day"; sagging economy and shrinking pocket book be damned.

I found these interesting comments on one of my favorite wedding industry websites, "The Weddex Blog" by Rebecca Grinnals of Engaging Concepts in her most recent post on a New York Times article about all this.

I believe there are going to be a lot of couples who are going to approach the planning and dealing with the expenses by "using a hatchet instead of a scalpel" as our Democratic Presidential Candidate" was quoted as saying in the first debate in referring to spending cuts. (This is not to be taken as a public endorsement of the candidate by any means but I just like the analogy).

This concerns Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge because I fear that many couples will be making uneducated cuts or taken advantage of in trying to go cheap (I HATE THAT WORD) to make their budget. 

This isn't a good approach in the best of times and I fear it will be a common problem in the future so here is what I suggest. I bet you will never guess what I am going to say?

If you thought I would say "Hire a Professional Wedding Consultant", you are 100% right!

So why on earth would you spend money in hiring a Wedding Consultant right now when every penny counts? Because a professional wedding consultant understands just that. 

I understand that not all of  you are in the position to afford a planner for wedding day direction or full planning services, but for a small investment and a few hours of time, I (or any professional wedding consultant in your area) can help you avoid costly mistakes by...

• Giving you suggestions on how to best prioritize the very precious dollars you have to spend.
  
• Guiding you to the most talented, ethical and responsible wedding professionals I know and trust to take good care of you and make sure you get the very best service and/or product possible for your money (whether I am part of  your wedding day or not).
  
• Time is money and a 2 hour consultation can put you on the right track to finding the good and trusted resources quickly so you can get tasks taken care of sooner; get back to your important job and not be stressed out (we have enough to stress about right now for heavens' sake!).
  

My consultation services are available at any time during the planning process so never fear that it is too late to ask for some advice. I will be happy to work with you on an hourly basis as well based on your needs. And, you can always reach me here online and comment or ask me a question here in my Diary. 

The economy is taking us for a wild, gut wrenching ride right now. Weddings should be a bright spot in our lives to enjoy the loving relationships that help get us through all this madness. I am here for you to make sure you stay in the car with your seatbelt buckled and help you get to the church on time with your sanity and pocket book still in your pocket.

Have a Stylish Day!

When Good Cakes (& Bakers) Go Bad!!

I was directed to a blog by a friend/assistant of mine called "Cake Wrecks" which chronicals, rather hilariously I might add, the foibles, follys and weird, scary and downright awful results of what are supposed to be the creations of "professional" cake bakers.

Some of the cakes (they include all kinds, not just wedding cakes) are really unbelievable and the commentary is just fantastic and my eyes are watering from laughing so hard from some of these posts.

However, in the midst of all the funny, there is unfortunately very costly and unfortunate stories behind the laughter. That is, someone who entrusted a supposed "professional" with baking and creating a very important element of their wedding day, only to have that very special element and moment that they envisioned ruined by someone who could care less about their reliability or professionalism or think they had "talent".

Observe the wedding cake below. Doesn't look too bad, does it? Obviously selected by a tartan loving couple but a nice, well made cake all the same.

This cake was the inspiration for a bride named Linda from Texas who asked a "professional" baker to recreate this cake for her. The post & commentary from "Cake Wreck" blog is here

THIS IS WHAT THE BAKER (WHO WAS DRUNK BY THE WAY) DELIVERED!!

Are you kidding me?

According to the original story submitted by Linda's friend Summer, they let that cake sit out in all its pitifullness during the wedding and the poor couple spent their first year of marriage in court trying to get their money back.

Had I been this person's wedding planner, I would not have let that monstrosity out of the kitchen!

Had I been this couple's wedding planner, I would hopefully have been able to guide them early on enough to tell them to research a bit more into this so called "professional's" credentials and referral history (or lack of it) and stop a disaster in it's tracks.

A professional & reputable wedding planner will assist you in finding reliable, professional and truly talented pastry chefs that you can choose from that will be realistically able to tell you if they can provide what you you are envisioning for your wedding cake within your budget. If they can't they (the planner & baker) will help you find attractive yet lower cost alternatives or other reputable bakeries.

Even if you are not planning to or can't afford the full services of a wedding planner, some planners, like Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge, do offer a la carte consultation services that include referral services to qualified professionals.

The fee for a consultation definitely would have worked out to have been much less than this bride wound up paying in court fees, time from work and dissapointment!!

Please, don't let this happen to you. Do your homework & hire the best you can afford. That is being smart and that my friends...is always in STYLE!

Cell Phones & Wedding Cake-Not a Sweet Combination!

I saw this post on GeekSugar.com today and felt compelled to comment.

I am a self confessed gadget junkie. I have a desktop, a laptop, a Blackberry, an iPod (planning on buying an iPod Touch this summer to feed my new You Tube addiction), etc., etc...

I think technology is the best thing to happen to weddings and couples planning weddings in the 21st Century.

Technology has the potential to bring us together with all of these amazing resources and inventions and what is more about bringing people together than a wedding, right?

But on the other hand, this wedding cake topper you see above represents to me the very flip (or maybe it should be "flip phone") ugly reality of where technology can also take us; alienating inter-personal relationships, social skills devolving, and communicating with machines instead of with each other because it might seem easier and safer. It is sad to think that these very things that have the positive potential to bring us closer, if we let it get out of hand, can tear us apart.

I think Emily Post would have a fit if she were alive to see this.

This cake topper actually makes me angry to be honest! Just look at this "couple" if you can call them that. They are not even looking at each other and are self involved and talking to other people and this is supposed to go on top of their cake as a symbol of what THEIR relationship is to others who will see it?

I don't even see it as a joke for those who will say they are just expressing and personalizing their techie geek side on their wedding day.

I am all for personalizing your wedding too! You can express your love of tech though in so many other ways-with edible cookie favors that look like your favorite cell phone with a picture of the two of you, snuggled in a hug together for example. Or put together an awesome, customized wedding website. Heck, even a second cake could be made to look like your phones.

I understand and sincerely appreciate the concept of "to each their own", but on a day that is supposed to be about two people "coming together", love, communication and being "as ONE", this cake topper just does not CUT IT in this wedding planner's opinion.

I really think that the people who are making and marketing this item got this one totally wrong.

I would love to hear your opinions on this.

Thanks in advance for chiming in and have a Stylish Day!!

Wedding Concierge Featured on Ashley Bartoletti Photography Blog!

I love when my fellow Wedding Professionals "get it" as to what a professional Wedding Consultant can do to help not only our mutual clients (The Bride and Groom), but also those professionals themselves have an easy, smooth and hassle free event so they can be free to do whatever it is they do best; create a beautiful room, put the finishing touches on an incredible "work of art" of a cake or expertly document the entire day with images (still or moving) to last a lifetime.

As a Wedding Consultant, having great relationships with my wonderful photographers and videographers is so important as I rely greatly on their images as the sole document of any of the small influence I had in collaborating on a beautiful, well run and memorable event. In turn, my images help them too by crediting their incredible artistic work on my website and blog as it is their images that bring it to life.

I am so pleased that one of my favorite Las Vegas photographers, Ashley Bartoletti, thinks so highly of the role of a Wedding Consultant and of my work to ask me to share some advice on her blog on The Importance of a Wedding Consultant!

Ashley and I had the pleasure to work on the beautiful Wynn Las Vegas Wedding of two of my favorite people, Bill and Kaylynn last September.

Thank you so much Ashley and it was a pleasure and honor to share this advice with your blog readers! *And thanks for sharing my blog contest too:)

Have a Stylish Day!