Portland Wedding Coordinator

Reminder - The Portland Wedding Coordinator Blog has moved!

How time flies! We've been doing some really fun things over on our own website, ejpevents.com

Photo: Evrim Icoz

Come check it out! This is also where The Portland Wedding Coordinator Blog has found a permanent home. It's hard to believe we've been writing this blog for *gasp* 12 years! We've seen technologies, venues, and vendors come and go, and it's been so interesting to document how people wed in our area, the beautiful Pacific Northwest. 

We decided to combine all of our blog interests into one place, and cover Weddings, Destination Event Travel, Corporate Events, How-Tos, and Advice to the Events Industry. Ambitious maybe, but when your company has been around for 20 years, it's time to look for more challenges, and never stagnate, only innovate. Happy 20th Anniversary to EJP Events!

We've planned special events from Portland to Boston, from Minneapolis to Texas, throughout this time. We added (back!) our conference and corporate event planning departments in 2009 -- Corporate is where our love of events started in 1997, so it only made sense to come full circle and serve our most loyal customers with our signature creative and inclusive style. 

So even though we haven't been super active here on Typepad, this site will remain as an archive -- feel free to browse our posts going back to 2007. And then roll with us into the future over on ejpevents.com.

With love,

Emee Pumarega
Founder, EJP Events LLC

WeddingWire Newlywed Report Exposes Some Harsh Truths About Planning

I was just glancing through the 2017 WeddingWire Newlywed Report - a market research report where recently-wed couples are polled for data. A couple of items really stood out to me:

• 40% of couples underestimate their wedding budget. This means almost half of people planning a wedding have a picture in their head of their wedding, but an incorrect estimation of what it will cost. To me, this is a recipe for heartache and stress, and could be easily solved if instead of picking a venue or a design vision first, couples first took their budget and evaluated it line by line to find exactly how each item should be allocated. (This is something we do in our very first meeting with clients.)
• 50% of weddings occur on just 22 dates of the year which are all Saturdays. This means that, for example, if you take the approximately 16,000 weddings that occur in Oregon each year, about 8,000 of them are vying for venues on the same 22 Saturdays. It seems like it would help to have an organized planner on your side to help you find the perfect location. (We have venue sourcing services that range in price from no cost, to a small portion of your wedding planning contract, so get in touch!) 

 

Hope you find the report as interesting as I did, and that it helps you in your planning!  -- Emee

Related articles

{ Design Roundup } 5 sites to help you choose a wedding color scheme

{Destination Weddings 101} Traveling with a wedding gown

Portland Wedding Coordinator: Wedding Shows in Portland, Oregon for 2017

When and how do we sign our Oregon marriage license?

{ Portland Wedding Venues } Planner's Roundup - 5 sites that allow outside catering

2013 Global Wedding Study from Splendid Insights

"Splendid Insights will be releasing the 2013 Global Wedding Study during first quarter 2014. In order to represent each segment as best as possible, we'd love it if you shared the survey with your clients, readers and friends! The diversity in responses helps us take a better look at the realities behind the global wedding market. As always, Splendid Insights has no financial bias hinging on the study results, so we're able to share an unfiltered look at the wedding industry..."

via www.thinksplendid.com

The lovely folks at Think Splendid are doing their part to educate us about why we make the choices that we do for weddings. If you got married in 2013, won't you please take a moment to take their research survey?  http://wedn.gs/wed13

Read more: http://www.thinksplendid.com/2013/12/2013-global-wedding-study-from-splendid.html#ixzz2qSdOA8gC

{ Portland Wedding Coordinator's} Top Wedding Trends for 2014

2014 is roaring in and we are so excited to see what this year's couples are planning for their wedding designs. Here are some wedding trends we hear are going to be super-hot in Portland, from our own clients and also talking with colleagues around town:

Interactive art walls or art installations. So fun we had to do a whole post about it, read here. We even had one couple grab all the art off the walls of their own home and display it during cocktail hour, creating an art gallery atmosphere.

Image: EJP Events

{ Portland Wedding Coordinator Loves } The Day of the Doctor

Today is the Day of the Doctor - the 50th anniversary of iconic British sci-fi television show Doctor Who. We know many of our clients grew up watching DW on PBS in the United States and wanted to acknowledge its cultural significance. Hat-tip to the many Doctor Who-themed weddings we've seen on the internet; here are just a few of our favorites:

Brianne and Michael's Time-Travel-themed wedding from Offbeat Bride

 

Subtle Doctor Who inspiration wedding shoot from Green Wedding Shoes:

 

Another inspiration shoot from British weddings website Rock N Roll Bride, shot by photographer Kat Forsyth:

And finally, this lovely song ("Rose's Theme") that would be appropriate for any wedding party processional:

Ultimately, Doctor Who is a romantic, idealistic show that is more about the magic of positive thought than straight-up technical sci-fi. The time travel trope makes it easy for any fan to find a motif, subtle or overt, that works for their wedding. What better way to show your love than to promise one's beloved "All of time and space"?

Related articles

{Portland Wedding Coordinator's Hot Tips} Six Venues Where You Can Party 'Til Late

{ Fall Roundup } Autumnal Wedding Inspiration

{ Portland Wedding Planning } What is a "kick-off" consultation?

Vintage English Garden Wedding from Morning Light by Michelle Landreau

{ real wedding features } We're in Portland Bride and Groom magazine!

Make sure to flip over to page 58 of this summer's issue of Portland Bride and Groom magazine and check out a feature on a wonderful, colorful wedding day that EJP Events helped plan last September for bride and groom, Kiran and Siddharth. Thank you to the editors of the mag for choosing to feature our work, and to the amazing team of vendors who put it all together: JOS Photographers, Shields Films, 1st Comes Love Invitations, East India Co. Catering, The Foundry at Oswego Pointe, Paradym Events, Geranium Lake Floral, DJ Prashant, and Papa Haydn Cakes.

Photo by JOS Photographers, as featured in Portland Bride and Groom.

Wedding Wonderland Sneak Peek — Crafty Wonderland {Upcoming Wedding Planning Events in Portland}

Image via http://craftywonderland.com/2013/05/wedding-wonderland-sneak-peek/#

We just got a reminder about a really fun-sounding event this coming week! On Saturday, May 11, Crafty Wonderland is happening again at the Oregon Convention Center. And this time, there will be a special "Wedding Wonderland" area featuring handmade and vintage items from local Portland retailers, all carefully curated by the clever folks behind Crafty Wonderland. Definitely check it out!

"We are super excited to have a special Wedding Wonderland section in our Super Colossal Spring Sale this year! What is Wedding Wonderland, you ask?! Vendors with items we thought might be of interest to folks planning a wedding have been conveniently placed together in several rows! All of our vendors have amazing goods to show you, so please be sure to visit all of the booths whether you’re planning a wedding or not!"

via craftywonderland.com

Mad about Macarons

Book cover photo courtesy Les Petits Macarons website.

Macaron Day 2013 just passed, and it just reminded me how much I love these little cookies and how fun they are to offer at weddings. Whether they are used in a wedding cake, as wedding favors, or in guest welcome bags, macarons are a delightful little addition to a Portland wedding weekend. BONUS: Many versions of macarons are almond-based, and are often flourless or gluten-free. Check with your baker.

Wedding favor photo courtesy EllyB Events on Instagram

 

Macaron tower wedding cake photo courtesy Macarons by Mimi

 

Ladurée Storefront on Madison Avenue, NYC, photo courtesy Allan Zepeda

Macaron stationery / Wedding thank you notes photo courtesy Paper Source

A few Portland, Oregon locations where you can find French macarons for your wedding:

- Nuvrei Bakery

- Papa Haydn

- Elephants Delicatessen

- Pix Patisserie

Are you using macarons in any way for your upcoming wedding? Please comment or share a photo with us! [email protected] 

 

 

Related articles

Favorite wedding gown picks for 2013

Honeymoon Primer for 2013 { Guest Post by MoonRings Honeymoons }

Currently Baking {French Macarons}

Happy Macaron Day! Sample the Best From Around the World

Favorite wedding gown picks for 2013

Designer: Badgley Mischka

I've really been loving the instantaneous, up-to-the-minute info about my favorite topics that I can get through Instagram. I combed through over 5,000 Instagram photos tagged "#bridalmarket" that covered the recent New York City Bridal Market fashion shows, so you wouldn't have to. Here are my favorite wedding gown designs and trends for the upcoming season, linked to the user who took them.

Designer: Claire Pettibone . Soft drapey ribbons, gorgeous!

Designer: Jenny Packham (I'm seeing a little Downton Abbey here, yes?)

Designer: Ines di Santo. Definitely not a boring ballgown.

Designer: Elizabeth Fillmore. Everyone was talking about the Art Deco-esque butterfly.


Designer: Elizabeth Fillmore


Designer: Claire Pettibone. Both this style and the last showed off the drapey, flowing embellishment trend.

Designer: Elizabeth Fillmore (Sorry, couldn't find the Instagrammer! If this is yours, please email me and I'll add your credit.)

What do you think? You love? Or is there a gown you are just dying over and want to share? Leave us links and info in the comments.

Want to look at all the #bridalmarket goodness? Hit this link on Statigram (a web viewer for Instagram photos). And here's my Statigram feed: http://statigr.am/ejpevents

Related articles

All the Details on Anne Hathaway's Fairy-Tale Wedding Gown!

The hottest day of the year...

A little sunshine on a cloudy day {Portland Indian Wedding by JOS Photographers)

Claire Pettibone Spring 2013 Bridal Collection

Wedding Dress Inspiration: Claire Pettibone

Go Ahead and Imagine Kate Middleton in All These Jenny Packham Dresses

Print Not Dead! { Digital Magazine Giveaway - Offered by Zinio}

** Free digital magazine giveaway, see below! **

I admit, I am a bit of a clinger when it comes to technology. I cling to my rapidly-aging devices, refusing to let the latest new gadget woo me away from what is tried and true. (I'm typing this on a 2008 MacBook running Leopard, if you must know!) So, no, I do not yet have an iPad, for the above reasons, and also for fear of the havoc it will wreak on my children's minds if they get a hold of it and get too much screen time.

However. I was checking out the Zinio digital newstand recently, and oh! how pretty all the bridal magazines look. And how little office space they would take up! I love a good, glossy bridal or fashion mag - and now there are hundreds of titles available to me if I just break down and get that iPad that I secretly want. (Actually, the issues read just fine on a laptop as well.)

Tons of great bridal titles available, such as The Knot, Grace Ormonde
Wedding Style, and Indian Bride Lookbook.

We'll see. It's enough to break this technology-clinger out of her rut.

You, my readers, are probably not as Luddite as I, so Zinio is currently offering you "Sweet Deals", which means you can save 50% off many of their already-discounted titles. To get the deal, click through to http://bit.ly/ziniosweetdeals and have fun shopping! The promotion ends February 21.

** Oh! AND. I have also been given, by Zinio, ten free subscriptions to give away. To enter the drawing to win a free digital magazine subscription, simply comment anywhere on this blog, as many times as you like, and email me a link to your comment, as well as your real first and last name, and the title you would like, if you are drawn as a winner. Comments must make a reasonable level of sense. Each comment will count as an entry, and I will choose 10 names randomly from all the entries, on or before February 23, 2013. Winners will be notified and be sent redemption instructions by email.**

FTC Disclosure: I haven't been offered any monetary compensation to mention Zinio on my blog, but they have offered me one free subscription in return for posting the link to their deals page.

More fine print: Winners can:

• choose any title Zinio carries
• get the full subscription period as indicated on the site (some are 6 months, some are 1 year, etc.)
• the 10 giveaways must go to 10 different people; thus only one prize per person
  
• subscription winners can live anywhere in the world - as Zinio titles are all in digital format