It’s official – the new website is up!
September 25, 2009 | Filed Under studio news and happenings | Leave a Comment
If you’ve been wondering why we have neglected our blog lately, it has nothing to do with not wanting to blog and everything to do with designing our new website. We do everything ourselves….because why pay someone to do something that we can figure out on our own? (not without extreme frustration and lots of html books of course). While I am sure there are things that true web designers would love to pick apart…..we are so proud of this site. It has been a true labor of love. We still need to title and keyword about 20% of the pages….and fix a couple of links, but the new site is 99% efficient! We hope you’ll agree that the new design better represents the products and services that we offer and makes it much easier to find specific topics within the site. We’ll be putting the finishing touches in the next few days and we promise that regular blogging will resume in October!
Real Brides: Meghan and Lance (my co-DMB super fans!) and a tribute to Janet from the Sheraton
September 11, 2009 | Filed Under accessories, custom invitations, posts featuring other vendors, posts with pics, real brides | 1 Comment
Since I have been so behind on blogging, we had several brides to choose from for our September “Real Brides” feature. I always have a hard time picking because I want to feature EVERYONE but I managed to narrow it down to 3 brides. Then it hit me – today is Janet’s last day at the Sheraton. (Janet is the in-house wedding coordinator at the Sheraton. Our brides often tell us that they chose the Sheraton solely because she is that awesome). What better than to feature a bride who was not only referred to us by her but who *loved* both Janet and the Sheraton to pieces! Not to mention, I’ve been wanting to feature Meghan and Lance’s wedding because I have a super soft-spot for them. They are such a great couple and HUGE Dave Matthews Band Fans to boot. We bonded instantly – often chatting for 4+ hours about music, food and life in general! Plus they always brought music to share – my cd collection grew not only by what they gave me but by a few albums I picked up based on their suggestions.
Their pocketfold invitations were simple yet elegant – and I especially love that the accent panel on the front of the invitation contained a quote from their first dance song – “Oh” by Dave Matthews (of course!). The invitations had three inserts – response, reception and accommodations.
We flip-flopped the colors for the ceremony programs but used the same song quote on the accent panel.
The table tents were my favorite thing about their wedding. Instead of numbering their tables, Meghan and Lance named their tables after concert venues they have attended together. Below the name and location of the concert venue, there was a brief description or statistic about the place and then a list of the bands that played or memorable songs they heard at that particular venue. I could not believe how many places they have been to see not only my favorite artist (DMB) but several other groups like U2.
A few weeks after the wedding, DMB played Blossom Music Center in Cuyahoga Falls. Meghan and Lance were lucky enough to “run into” Dave Matthews and Stefan Lessard. They “happened” to have their Red Rocks Amphitheatre Table Tent on hand for them to sign. Below you’ll see Stefan actually signing the table tent…and then Dave just as he finished signing the tent! Meghan asked Dave if he’d play “Oh” that night….but all she got was one of his signature goofy looks in return.
Back to wedding stuff….
We tried something new with Meghan and Lance’s Escort Cards. The Sheraton needed to know who was eating what, but M&L wanted one escort card per couple or family. Rather than indicate each persons meal choice with a sticker, we used a hole punch shaped for each selection. This picture shows the escort card from above so you can see the names on front and hole-punches on back.
Here’s a closeup of the shapes punched on the backside of the escort card. The cow shape indicated “beef” the chicken shape indicated “chicken” and the little boy and girl punches indicated “kids meal”. This was Meghan’s idea – and she found the hole punches online…but we are now the proud owners of the set and other brides have started to hone in on this concept!
So that wraps up the stationery….
Here’s what Meghan and Lance had to say about their wedding experiences:
Wedding Date: 6/19/2009
What part of the planning was the most fun? Invitations of course! Many of our “fun” experiences were in large part due to our vendors. Stephanie and Stacy are amazing, that goes without saying, but Janet (The Sheraton Suites) has also been amazing…I’m not sure we would have made it without her!
What part of the wedding planning was the least fun? Research, research, research! I felt like I was in school again!
Do you have any advice for the bride-to-be currently planning her wedding?As painful as research can be, do it! At the end of the day, go with your heart. Remember, in some cases you will be spending all day with your vendor. If you can’t handle 15 minutes with them, keep looking!
How was your overall experience with Paper Persuasions?We followed our hearts and can’t express how happy we were with Stephanie and Stacy. They are like family now…(That’s right girls, you are stuck with us!) And Steph solidified our instinct when she started reciting Lance’s favorite song…”What’s the use in worrying, What’s the use in hurrying…”
Did you receive comments from your guests regarding the invitations and accessories?ABSOLUTELY! I was getting text messages, Facebook messages, you name it! Even the guys were calling Lance (LOL)! And his aunt wouldn’t let anyone touch it. Can you imagine?!
Heres a list of other vendors that Meghan and Lance used
- Bride’s Apparel: Alfred Angelo
- Groom’s Apparel: Men’s Warehouse
- Reception Site: The Sheraton Suites – Cuyahoga Falls
- Cake: Phyllis Lester Designs
- Floral: Prestige Floral
- Photography: Best Image
- Videography: Graham River Productions
- Entertainment: Jon Blair Quartet (Jerry Bruno Productions)
- Transportation: Thomas Limo
As you can see by Meghan and Lance’s comments above, Janet was an asset to the Sheraton. We’ve shared quite a few brides with her and we know that she will be greatly missed. We wish her all the best in her new endeavours!!
And finally a couple other photos from the big day!
The happy family!
group shot of the bridal party
the bridal party stopped at Hudson’s Restaurant (one of Meghan and Lance’s favorite place to eat…and home of the MOST.DELICIOUS.HOUSE.CHIPS.EVER.) for photos and appetizers.
the happy family – being serious :)
meghan and lance did such a great job choosing dresses that weren’t identical but worked well together – these could be my favorite flower girl dresses ever!
look at those gorgeous tablescapes!!
a classic sheraton elevator shot!
Something we discovered on our ‘working’ vacation…
September 5, 2009 | Filed Under Uncategorized | Leave a Comment
We escaped to the Finger Lakes area of New York last week for a mini ‘working’ vacation. Our dad has a vacation house on Keuka Lake, so during the past few years, we have not only become familiar with the numerous wineries, but both local towns – Hammondsport and Bath. The primary purpose of our trip was to seclude ourselves from the hustle and bustle that our studio has become so that we could finish our new website (we came close – but still not quite there). The secondary purpose of our trip was to meet with some of the local wedding vendors and popular ceremony sites as we have toyed with the idea of expanding our business to that market. All in all it was a great trip – we had great weather – great meetings – great focus…and my dad even decided to tag along like old times! The highlight of the trip however, was our discovery of the First Presbytarian Church in Bath, NY. As many times as we have driven past this church, I never realized how truly special it is! You see, it is one of 5 churches whose sanctuary was designed by Lewis Comfort Tiffany who is best known for his work in stained glass. Talk about amazing!!! This church is not only a local favorite for brides but a tourist attraction as well! Tours are held every Wednesday – and are absolutely worth making the trip for if you are ever in the Keuka or Seneca Lake area. Here are a few pictures….
This beautiful church is located in the town square.
Check out this beautiful long aisle and stunning alter.
This is one of the side windows made of Tiffany Glass
This circular rose window was made with irridescent favrile glass.
This crown-style chandelier is a prized piece which won awards before being used in the church
There are two of these acorn shaped lamps which were originally gas lit!
