Spring 2015 Internship

Does this look like fun?

We are currently seeking smart, professional and outgoing students to apply for our Spring 2015 internship! Interns must be enrolled in a Bachelor's/Master's program at an accredited college or university and provide documentation from their school stating they are able to receive academic credit for this internship. This unpaid internship will run from January through April or May, depending on your school's calendar and/or requirements.

Intern Office Duties:

• Assist with daily office operations
• Email information to prospective clients
• Follow up on inquiries and book appointments
• Create blog entries
• Work on marketing campaigns
• Answer phones in a professional manner
• Respond to emails in a timely manner
• Work with the First Coast Weddings team to create new procedures, promotions, etc.
• Use proper grammar and spelling at all times
• Maintain a clean and organized work area
• Other duties as needed

Internship Requirements:

• Minimum of 12 hours in the office each week, and availability on weekends.
• Dress in business casual attire while at the office, black suit on wedding days. Remember, first impressions are everything in this business!
• Represent First Coast Weddings in a professional and courteous manner at all times.
• Be pro-active and look for tasks to assist with when your assignments are complete
• Willingness to sign a agreement stating that all paperwork, files, vendor information or client data is proprietary and confidential
• Act as a team player
• Failure to report for a scheduled shift without notice (no-show) will result in termination of the internship. If you cannot work your scheduled shift, you must notify the lead coordinator at least three hours prior to your scheduled start time.

Application:

To be considered for an internship, please complete the application by clicking here.

ABC Florida Shine Conference 2014

I had such an amazing weekend last week! Not only did I get to attend the Association of Bridal Consultants' Florida State Conference - shine - but I also got to speak at the event. Here are a few images from Day 1 of the conference, taken by fabulous photographer Claire Pacelli. If you've wondered what happens when a group of wedding planners get together for continuing education, here's a little peek:

My fellow speakers, along with the conference co-chairs: Sharon Baragona, A Chair Affair; Kelly McWilliams, Weddings By Socialites; oh hey, that's me!; Mark Kingsdorf, ABC Florida State Manager; Coach Jenn Lee; Brian Joyce and Richard Streitler, Flourish Floral Productions; Elisa Delgardio, A Flair For Affairs

Oh, and did I mention, another fellow speaker: celebrity wedding planner Donnie Brown?

There are so many more fabulous photos, but this one I think is my favorite:

"The Speaker Selfie." This beauty was captured by Kelly McWilliams (and posted to Instagram) after we posed for a more formal group photo. Love it!

If you work in this industry, and you aren't attending conferences like this, you are missing out! And if you are a bride or groom, as your wedding professionals what they do for continuing education. It makes a huge difference!

Introducing Bowing Oaks Plantation

I've been keeping a secret! Please don't hold it against me. For almost two years, I've been consulting with some dear friends that had a crazy idea to build a new wedding venue in Jacksonville. And now, that crazy idea is a reality! What started as a "simple pole barn" has turned into a magnificent venue with all the amenities you can imagine! Introducing Bowing Oaks Plantation... Plantation amenities include:

• Indoor Seating for 200 Guests (with Dance Floor and Food Stations)

• Wrap-Around Porches

• Two Outdoor Ceremony Areas - Under Beautiful Oak Trees, Or Open-Air Chapel

• Bride's Suite and Groom's Cabin

• Catering Kitchen

• Fully Air-Conditioned and Heated

• Indoor Restroom Facilities

• Ample On-Site Parking

• Secluded and Private Location

Bowing Oaks Plantation is debuting this fall, with our first wedding booked for November 16th. We're also booking weddings for 2015 and beyond! I will be handling all the bookings for this fabulous new venue, so feel free to contact me for more details! Be sure to visit our social media sites for more photos and construction updates: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram

Having A Detailed Backup Plan For Your Wedding

Here in North Florida, we see a lot of outdoor wedding ceremonies. Most venues have a great indoor space that they reserve as a backup, in case of rain. Which let's face it, happens a lot here, especially in the summer months. (Side note: did you know that Jacksonville gets an average of 14 more inches of precipitation every year than Seattle, which is "known" for it's rain?)

But what if you reception is planned to be an outdoor event? It may not be as simple as "we'll just move inside."

We're working with a sweet couple getting married in October, and planning a "dinner under the stars." Today we met at the venue to talk through all the logistics. As we talked, we came up with very detailed Plan A and Plan B options. Because of the logistics of the space, the two are very different. In fact, quite a bit of the reception schedule will change from Plan A to Plan B.

As you are working through your plans, be sure to think through all the logistics from the guest perspective. Talk to your venue staff about the timing of weather calls, which could be anywhere from 2 hours to 24 hours, depending on the complexity of the setup. And communicate Plan A AND Plan B (and Plan C and D if needed!) to all the wedding professionals that will be on-site on the wedding day. But don't wait until the day before! Preparation is key when dealing with Mother Nature.

Note about the photo above: we were playing beat the clock with a storm rolling in just before this ceremony! Luckily we made it, and Ashley and Matt were married in a beautiful ceremony at TPC Sawgrass.

Love Note: Kyle & Brian (06.06.14) - Ponte Vedra Beach Wedding

What a lovely note in the mail this week!

Dear Heather,

Thank you so very much for all the help, support and handling that you cared for throughout our wedding celebrations. You made all of our planning and our visions just come to life! You cared for all of the little details and helped to ensure it was such a special day. Thank you for bringing it all together in a meaningful way.

Most Sincerely, Kyle and Brian

(photo by Dawn McKinstry Photography)

Honoring Your Dad At Your Wedding

Weddings are often full of very "girly" moments shared between the bride and her mom - picking out the dress, getting hair and makeup done, etc. Dad is usually expected to show up with the checkbook. In honor of Father's Day, we thought we'd look at some ways to make Dad feel extra special on your wedding day.

• Ask your dad for a military medal, a tie you particularly love, or a piece of jewelry you could incorporate into your wedding day ensemble as your something old.
• If you won't be seeing your fiance before the wedding, stage a first look with your dad. Fathers often get very emotional the first time they see their little girl in their wedding gown and veil!
• Take dance lessons with him, and your father-daughter dance will be a big hit.
• Create something special for him to wear. Dads often look like all the other groomsmen or ushers, wearing the same tuxedo or suit. Get a special tie for him to wear, or add something unique to his boutonniere.
• Ask your dad to sign your marriage license as one of the witnesses.

Do you have a special way you are including your father on your wedding day?

(Photo above from Marta and Michael's wedding earlier in 2014 - copyright Deremer Studios)

Kathleen and Robby - Sawgrass Beach Club Wedding, Ponte Vedra Beach

Here's a peek at Kathleen and Robby's brunch wedding at Sawgrass Beach Club! Thanks to Fox Fotography for the slideshow.

Breath of Fresh Art Fundraiser

Weddings aren't all we do around here! I was happy to serve on the planning committee for the Breath of Fresh Art fundraiser last night. The event benefited Wish 2 Breathe, a National Foundation for Transplants' campaign in support of Jacksonville resident Lindsey Miller. The campaign's goal is to help raise money for expenses related to Lindsey's double lung transplant and the lifelong care she will need as a result. The fundraiser was held at one of Jacksonville's newest event venues - The Fountain View Room. Several area restaurants and caterers donated food stations for the event, including Nippers Beach Grille, Davoli's Catering, Renna's Pizza, Red Elephant, Flippin' Good Cookies, and Edgewood Bakery. PRP Wine International also offered wine tastings to the events' guests.

The event also featured a silent auction (with some heated bidding at the end!) as well as an art exhibition by two local artists -  Mobarick Abdullah III and Adam Brett. It was a fun night for a great cause!

Personalizing Your Wedding Ceremony

We see a lot of short and simple, get-the-job-done wedding ceremonies. In all honesty, it takes about 10 minutes to actually "get married." But what if you want to incorporate some personality or pizzazz to your wedding?

We've had several ceremonies recently where the bride and groom traveled to Ponte Vedra Beach for their weddings.  But rather than hiring a local minister, they brought theirs with them! When an officiant has a personal connection with the couple, the ceremony is so much more meaningful. They can offer little anecdotes, and put the bride and groom more at ease during one of the more serious parts of the wedding day.

Lots of couples chose to include a unity candle or sand ceremony into their wedding. But there are also other options - rose ceremonies, handfasting, seashell/stone blessings, wine ceremonies, to name a few. Ask your officiant if they have suggestions. Also look to your religion or culture for ideas. Even if you aren't have a "religious" ceremony, there may be little nods to your heritage that you can include.

Of course, the best way to personalize your ceremony is to write your own vows! If you decide to do so, be sure to give yourself plenty of time! This isn't something to be rushed. Also, discuss the tone of your vows with your significant other. You don't want to make yours funny while his are super serious. You may also want to ask a close friend or family member to read both sets of vows (if you plan don't plan to read them to each other before the wedding) to be sure they match in tone and length.

However you chose to personalize your wedding ceremony, remember that you are promising to love, honor and cherish your fiance til death do you part. Make it a special and meaningful time for the two of you!

Selecting The Perfect Church For Your Wedding

One would think choosing a church for one's ceremony would be simple, but I found it to be a bit more complicated than expected. It was very important to me to have our wedding in my hometown, Orlando, FL. Picking our reception location was easy; my godparents live on a beautiful property in the Gotha area of Orlando. They have seven and a half acres on a lake, and I knew it would make for an ideal tented, rustic/chic reception location.

I grew up Methodist, and still belong to a Methodist church in Orlando, but Charles was brought up Catholic, and we both decided that we wanted our ceremony to be Catholic. I had to basically start from scratch when it came to selecting our Catholic ceremony location.

I started by looking up all the Catholic churches that were near my godparents' house. The closest church totheir home was a very large and well known Catholic church in the Orlando area. My mother and I attended the Christmas Eve mass to examine the size, look and feel of the church. It was very voluminous and grand, and all of the people who were there seemed to truly love their church. I thought “This could very well be the church!” After Christmas settled down, I emailed the church to gather all the information for having a ceremony there, and what the pricing situation was. I’d always assumed that a church rental for a ceremony wouldn't be more than a couple hundred dollars; this church started at $1,200.00 for non-members. There was also a complication in booking the church. For a Catholic ceremony, you have to take pre-marital classes that last 6-8 months, and this church wasn’t going to allow me to reserve my date until after my classes were complete. I didn’t want to take the gamble of someone else stealing my date, so I decided that church just would not do.

After researching a few more Catholic church options, I stumbled upon a charming little Catholic church that I often passed when I lived in Orlando. The church is also close my reception location, but I overlooked it at first because it was a Maronite Catholic Church, asopposed to a Roman Catholic Church. I did my homework and found that there are many types of Catholic Churches, and that they’re all recognized by the Pope as equal. My fiancé, mother and I attended a mass one Sunday and absolutely fell in love with the people, charm, and most importantly the priest. Everyone in the congregation made us feel at home. We all knew right away that we’d found our church.

Finding the all-important perfect church location for your ceremony can be overwhelming, but just remember to do your research early, attend a service before-hand, and get on the churchcalendar/marriage class roster as soon as your decision is made.  Once these steps are underway, you can feel excited that you are well on your way toward your perfect church wedding!

Fun To Do This Weekend: One Spark

Looking for something fun (and FREE!) to do with your sweetie this weekend? Head to downtown Jacksonville for One Spark!

One Spark is the World's Crowdfunding Festival, and it takes place right here in Jacksonville. Over 600 creators are on hand to showcase their ideas in the fields of art, innovation, science, technology and music. Held over 20 square blocks, you can also enjoy the food village and beer village, plus tons of live bands. And where else can you see a giant Goldfish (known as "Colonel Crackers") floating in the Hemming Plaza fountain?!

The 5-day festival started on Wednesday with an estimate 40,000 people attending the first day. Free parking is available at the convention center parking lot, and then you can take the free Skyway (did you know Jacksonville has a Skyway? A lot of people don't!). Or, you can park at EverBank Field and take the free shuttle bus.

You're probably asking, what exactly is crowdfunding? Well, the concept is that great ideas can be found everywhere. But not everyone has the resources to find large-scale investments. So crowdfunding take little donations or investments ($5/$10/$50 etc.) and pools them together to make big things happen.

When you visit One Spark, you can vote for your favorite projects (known as "creators"), and the creators that get the most votes win a share of over $300,000 in prize money. Or, if you see a project you are passionate about, you can even contribute right on the spot.

One Spark is FREE to attend, so why not check it out? Plus, it's a good chance to see how awesome Jacksonville is, in case you might forget. Visit http://www.beonespark.com for everything you need know!

The Most Important Day Of Your Life (And Why Your Wedding Day Isn't It)

I'm about to type something that many people will find controversial.

I know - I spend my days surround by all things wedding. How can I possibly say this?! Because it's the truth. I've had some wedding reality shows playing in the office lately as I've been stuffing envelopes and assembling welcome gifts for some of our spring/summer weddings. I normally don't watch them, and now I know why. They insist on perpetuating this mantra that "your wedding day is the best day of your life" and creating the hype that everything must be perfect. So much emphasis is put on the party that the marriage part tends to get overlooked.

I'm not saying you shouldn't have a gorgeous wedding, but don't forget that there are many more "best" days to come.

The day you close on your first house. The days your children are born. The day  your spouse returns home safely from a military deployment. The day you beat cancer. The day you get that big promotion you've worked so hard for. The day you save someone's life. The day you win the lottery. (we can all dream, right?)

Hopefully, your wedding day means marrying your best friend, surrounded by friends and family that mean the world to you. Anything beyond that is just gravy.

Marta and Michael - TPC Sawgrass Wedding, Ponte Vedra Beach

Marta and Michael were married on March 1, 2014 at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL. They planned their wedding long-distance, all the way from North Dakota, with the help of Marta's parents and sister who live in Florida. What a beautiful weekend, and an amazing blending of two families and cultures! Thanks to Nate and Bryn from Deremer Studios for sharing these photos with us.

Since Marta and Michael are both dentists, they created these cute little bags as favors - they contained toothbrushes, toothpaste, and other cute goodies!

Venue: TPC Sawgrass  //  Photographer: Deremer Studios  //  Videographer:  CollabCreation  //  Floral and Decor: Rose of Sharon European Florist  //  Cake: Classic Cakes  //  Band: Diggin' Rhythm and Brass  //  Ceremony Music: The String Group

Tips From A Recent Bride

Even as an experienced wedding planner, there were still things I learned from my own wedding! Here are my tips for brides-to-be:

• Print out labels for your RSVP cards and put them on the back of the card, or write numbers on the back. You WILL get RSVP cards back that do not have return address on envelopes and the stamp from the post office from where it shipped from will only go so far.

• Go to wedding expos! See what and who your choices are first hand and in person. Bridal shows give you a chance to see everyone in one place whether you are looking for one vendor or all of them, and you don’t have to drive all over town to find out they are what you are looking for. Hint: Take your fiancé! If he/she isn’t a part of the wedding planning, they sure will appreciate you after a bridal show experience!

• Please, oh please, don’t buy a dress that weighs more than you. I had a light strapless dress and the only thing I could think about 30 minutes until the end of the reception was taking it off! (And no, not only for that reason). You don’t realize how much a heavy dress can interrupt your night.

• Do schedule a little nighttime photo shoot with your photographer. We did pictures around 10:00pm when everyone was comfortable on the dance floor. We snuck away and took some great shots, along with having a little breather and a few minutes of sweet alone time.

• If you choose to wear a veil, as much as you love that veil and won't have another opportunity to wear one, let me just share my experience before you make the decision to wear it the whole day. Everyone that hugs or dances with you will tug on the veil (without knowing, of course) and whatever style your hair was at the beginning of the day will look torn up! If I were to do it again, I’d take it of after dinner!

• Do a fake cake! The bottom layer of our 5-tier cake was the only part of the cake that was real so we could cut into it and get those priceless pictures of smashing it in each other's faces. The rest of our cake was in the kitchen already sliced and put out right after we cut into it. Instead of having waitstaff at your cake table for 30 minutes making a mess, it was already done.

• Make an email address only for wedding correspondence. I had (my name)2B(future last name) and it worked great! If you want to stay in contact with any of your wedding vendors after the big day, send an email to specific people politely asking them to update their address book.

• Do eat! My hubby and I didn’t make it around to everyone’s table. If that’s rude, we sure didn’t get any complaints. We noticed as we were eating, people came to us that were going to leave early or knew they weren’t going to run into us on the dance floor later.

• I worried up until a few weeks before the wedding about what “Our Song” was going to be. It's really easy getting frustrated finding a song if you don’t already have one when you’re listening to every word making sure its perfect. However, not you, your hubby, or your guests will hear every word like you did listening by yourself. My advise, pick a song that’s just special between the two of you.

• Do make sure your in-laws and parents have a speech planned. Our wedding was pretty traditional. The groom's parents threw the rehearsal dinner, where his parents said a little something, and my father had a toast at the wedding. I know it sounds very traditional, but it really sets the tone for two families becoming one. Everyone could feel the love our parents had for us and our new spouse with the words they spoke.

Do you have any tips you'd like to share? Leave them in the comments below.

Love Note: Marta & Michael (03.01.14) - TPC Sawgrass Wedding

Such a sweet card from Marta and Michael, who were married on March 1, 2014 at TPC Sawgrass! They planned their Ponte Vedra Beach wedding long-distance, all the way from North Dakota.

Heather -

You were such an amazing planner! All we talked about was how organized, professional you were throughout this entire process. I couldn't have done this without you. Thank you again!

Love, Marta & Michael

We loved helping them with the design of the wedding and the logistics. We can't wait to see the photos from Deremer Studios!

Custom Calligraphy & Watercolor Wedding Maps

We are so thrilled with our bride, Sarah Jo, for introducing us to her friend Catherine Woodward! Catherine creates stunning wedding maps using ink and watercolor, and each one is custom-created featuring the information you provide. This can include the ceremony and reception location, area landmarks, and even the spot where you got engaged!

We love the idea of using these maps in your welcome bags. But it will also be a stunning piece of art for your home! Check out Catherine's Etsy shop, Maps Of The Moment, for more examples of her work. But hurry if you want one - Catherine starts her med school residency in mid-May, and will have to put her love of creating art on hold for a bit.

Here's a little bit more about Catherine's story:

I started painting and drawing when I was little, but kind of over did it in high school - I took lots of classes and got totally burnt out. I think I took a single class in college, and then for about 7 years I only painted once... I just didn't have time and didn't really want to.

Then I became a fourth year medical student, and went from having no free time to actually having a pretty good deal of it. So, for the first time in years, I did a series of acrylic and news-print cityscapes for a friend...then other friends started requesting things and pretty soon I had done about 15 works.

One painting - the house below - got put on Instagram by my friend. His friend saw it and she reached out to me to see if i would be willing to draw a map of all the venues in her wedding.

I had never done anything like it, but it seemed like it would be a really fun project... so I bought watercolors (which I hadn't worked with in years and years), and just started sketching. The first one was REALLY just like a hope-this-works sort of thing! And she loved it!

I will be a bridesmaid in a bunch of weddings this year, so I did more of them as gifts for the brides. Each piece got such positive feedback and were such a special gift! Then finally, I showed my boyfriend's mom who really has to be credited for the Etsy idea.

I was really hesitant at first, but I had enough time and I really LOVE making them, so one random morning I finally made a shop. I sent the link out to my close friends and they sent it out to their friends, and it has just taken off!! It has just been the most awesome thing! I'll get requests from all over the country and I get to learn about all these cities. People get so excited about them and that for me is the coolest part.

I'm obviously looking forward to starting residency but it'll be sad to take a break from this. However, they say that after the first two years, you get a lot more free time, so I'm hoping I can always have this as a hobby!

As Seen In Destination Weddings Magazine

Check out the latest issue of Destination Weddings & Honeymoons magazine, featuring my Expert Picks for three of North Florida's hottest wedding venues!

Premier Wedding Expo Bridal Show - Sunday, February 23rd

Looking for a great way to meet lots of wedding professionals in one place? Stop by the Premier Wedding Expo this Sunday! We have been proud to help produce these great events for many years, and they keep getting better.

• Over 100 exhibitors
• Great discounts and prizes will be available for brides planning their weddings
• Each bride gets a bridal bag when entering the show

The event runs from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm at the Renaissance Resort at World Golf Village. Tickets are $10 at the door, but if  you purchase the online in advance they are only $7! Be sure to visit the show's website, www.PremierWeddingExpo.com, to learn more.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day from the First Coast Weddings team!