Real Brides: Jill and Paul

March 12, 2010 | Filed Under custom invitations, posts with pics, real brides | Leave a Comment 

Jillian and Paul came to us as a referral from The Sheraton Suites. And you know how much we love our Sheraton brides! By the first time we met with Jill she had an all-star lineup of vendors and quite a few unique ideas for her fall wedding (my favorite being the large tree with hanging escort cards). Meeting with her and her mom Rebecca was always such a pleasure….not only because we had great conversations (they always made me laugh…) but also because we stayed on task and accomplished so much!!  We truly enjoyed providing the invitations, escort cards, ceremony programs, memory cards, table numbers and thank you cards for this amazingly beautiful wedding.

What part of the wedding planning was the most fun?
Honestly, I can’t pick! I had an amazing time during the entire wedding planning process. I truly felt like our vendors became friends (i.e. Stacy and Stephanie) and due to all of their hard work, our wedding day was beyond perfect. Our wedding was a dream come true and a wonderful start to a new life with my new husband!

What part of the wedding planning was the least fun?
I had fun during the entire process. Who doesn’t have fun planning their dream wedding to the perfect man???

 Did you receive comments from your guests regarding the invitations and accessories?
The feedback from our guests was overwhelming in its praise of our invitations and accessories. Words used by our guests included: beautiful, brilliant, creative, elegant and classy. Our wedding invitation truly set the tone of our wedding and there is nothing I would have changed.

 Please list anything you would like to include regarding your experience with Paper Persuasions:
Working with Paper Persuasions was truly a remarkable and quite memorable experience. Stacy and Stephanie provided the total package. They walked us through the entire process from the initial consultation, to the drafts, to the end product. We are so grateful to have found Paper Persuasions and to have had the opportunity to work with them. We look forward to planning another big event where we can use their creative services once again!

 Do you have any advice for the bride-to-be currently planning her wedding?
Before you get overwhelmed, take a deep breath. Enjoy your wedding planning…I promise, it can be lots of fun! I believe a successful bride and groom do not plan their wedding alone – they get help, and lots of it! One of the best ways to have a successful wedding is to be organized and begin planning your event as soon as possible. The earlier you begin preparing the better your chances of getting the vendors that you want.

 Here is Jill and Paul’s vendor list!

Ceremony: Pilgrim Church
Reception: Sheraton Suites – Cuyahoga Falls
Bride’s Apparel: Steven Yearick from Henri’s Cloud Nine
Groom’s Apparel: American Commodore Tuxedo
Floral: Klaus from Wildflower
Linens: Sitting Pretty
Photography: Lyon’s Photography
Reception Entertainment: Redline – Jerry Bruno Productions
Ceremony Music: Suite Elegance
Transportation: Lolly the Trolley
Lighting: Pro-Disc Entertainment
Cake: Zoey’s
Ice Sculpture: Elegant Ice Creations
Hair and Makeup: MC Hair Consultants
Stationery: Paper Persuasions

In lieu of favors, Jill and Paul made a donation in honor of Jill’s father – the late Mr. Lewis Crouch. On that card, they shared a quote with their guests…and it has stuck with me since I first read it. “It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.” – Mother Teresa

Jill and Paul – may you have many many happy years together!

Bi-Weekly Recap – February 6th – 20th

February 20, 2010 | Filed Under catalog invitations, custom invitations, posts with pics, weekly recap | Leave a Comment 

We skipped last weeks recap because 1) we were too busy to do the recap and 2) we didn’t really have much product to photograph. Last Saturday we may have even set an all time record for the number of people here at once. At one point, we had 4 groups of people looking…and 2 groups of people waiting for tables to open up. It was c-r-a-z-y busy but despite the chaos, everyone left happy! This past week had several catalog orders arrive PLUS we were able to finish up 4 custom jobs making for a very colorful collage today! Enjoy!

1)      Custom Designed Pocketfold Wedding Invitation in Deep Purple, Hot Pink and Ecru Shimmer stocks. Ribbon and Custom Monogram tag on front of pocket

2)      Custom Designed Pocketfold Daisy Wedding Invitation in Clover / Grass / Lime Green with Light Green panel and inserts. Unique 4×9 Size with daisy belly band

3)      Catalog Wedding Invitation Ensemble – a soft textured paper with grey, white, and soft purple accents. Monogram frame and grape motif used throughout

4)      Catalog Wedding Invitation Ensemble – a brown slide with ecru double sided invitation with a chocolate brown satin ribbon pull

5)      Catalog Wedding Invitation Ensemble – a triple border white embossed invitation with swirl motif used throughout

6)      Catalog Baby Shower Invite – a white invitation with pearl embossed alphabet blocks around the border and cutesy little animals in the corners

7)      Catalog Bat Mitzvah Invite – Hot Pink, Lavender and Gold foil tied into the star and the liner

8)      Catalog Fall Themed Save the Dates – gorgeous cream cardstock with rich texture, ginger ink and fall leaves

9)      Custom Design Flat Panel Wedding Invitation – Grape/Dark Purple, Lavender, and Ecru Shimmer with bling! Three Swarovski® Crystals were incorporated into the swirl design

10)  Custom Designed Pocket fold Wedding Invitation in Tiffany Blue, Champagnee and Ecru Micha Shimmer stocks. Custom designed monogram included a single Swarovski® Crystal on the bride’s name.

Real Brides: Emily and Andrew

February 9, 2010 | Filed Under accessories, catalog invitations, custom invitations, posts with pics, real brides | 1 Comment 

We first met with Emily and her mom Marianne not long after we opened our new studio. It was clear from our first meeting with them that the invitations needed to be classy, formal & traditional while still setting the tone for a somewhat contemporary color scheme of chocolate brown and orange. Emily selected a gorgeous pearl border invitation from the Carlson Craft line and added a chocolate brown satin ribbon below the monogram to make the invitation unique to her. The orange was first introduced into the wedding stationery when Andrew’s mother Angie surprised the couple with custom rehearsal dinner invites which happened to match the custom wedding accessories we designed for the ceremony and reception. Sending thanks to Paul Floyd Photography for taking some of the best shots we’ve seen of our work. Of course what blog reader of ours is going to pay attention to the stationery photos when the entire wedding party is this gorgeous?!?!  

A non-professional photo of the invitation ensemble that we took when her order arrived…

Heres a list of other vendors that Emily and Andrew used:

• Bride’s Apparel: Brides by Demetrios (Legacy Village)
• Groom’s Apparel: American Commodore
• Ceremony Site: Hudson Community Chapel
• Reception Site: Sheraton Suites 
• Cake: A Catered Affair
• Floral: Frank Feysa – Ohio Green
• Photography: Paul Floyd Photography
• Entertainment: The DJ Crew
• Salon: Salon 180 (Hudson)

 Here’s what Emily and Andrew had to say about their wedding experiences:

Wedding Date: 8/1/2009

What part of the planning was the most fun? Choosing all of the details that made our wedding unique – the colors, favors, music, locations, menu, etc. Anything where we could add our own personal touch and flare was fun for us!

What part of the wedding planning was the least fun? Assembling favors, tying ribbons on bubbles, writing check lists and to-do lists!! All of the tedious tasks that were easy but time consuming.

Do you have any advice for the bride-to-be currently planning her wedding? Enjoy it! It goes so fast. Get as much planning as you can out of the way early on so you can relax and take it all in toward the end.

How was your overall experience with Paper Persuasions? Steph and Stacy were fabulous and made the paper and invitation aspect of our planning so enjoyable and easy! We would recommend them to absolutely anyone!

Did you receive comments from your guests regarding the invitations and accessories? Yes! All positive! We got raving reviews about every paper product – from the invitations down to the table numbers!

*******

Working with Emily and Andrew (and each of their mothers) was such a treat! From their very first visit to look at invitations – all the way through finalizing the table numbers and escort cards for the reception – our meetings were a breeze….sometimes it simply felt too easy!

To Emily, Andrew and Marianne: Thank you so much for all of your kind words…and for the numerous referrals you have sent our way. From close family friends to people you’ve bumped into at the supermarket, we’ve had at least half a dozen people mention that you told them about us. You have no idea how much this means to us!

Weekly Recaps are back!

January 27, 2010 | Filed Under catalog invitations, custom invitations, posts with pics, weekly recap | Leave a Comment 

One of our goals for 2010 was to show some love to our blog. It’s not that we don’t love blogging, it’s just that so many things get in the way (phone calls! walk-in clients! lunch breaks!  production of orders! processing shipments! 50+ emails per day! ) So even though blogging is always on the to-do list, it is the one thing that continuously gets snaked to the next day…and the next…and the next. To combat this, we’ve decided to re-commit to ‘Weekly Recaps’, which we’ve heard people love to read. And we are going to try our darndest to stay true to the title. We figure that if nothing else, we’ll get to share several of the things we’ve been up to all in one little post.

The first weekly recap of 2010 is going to cover a few weeks. We weren’t prepared to bring this blog series back, so we had to grab photos of orders that we are currently working on and of things we had sitting around. Some of these might stretch back into the end of December, but you get the point! Enjoy!

1) custom designed 40th anniversary invitation – pink and green 6×6 pocketfold with lime green paisley invite border and lime green cardstock topped with light green text paper

2) custom designed bachleorette party invitation – red and ecru with a corset theme

3) catalog ordered white cocktail napkins incorporating a monogram in purple foil. (monogram matches that of the invitation in #15)

4) catalog ordered scratch-off save the date! (scratch the license plate of the ‘just married car’ to find out the wedding date!) super fun!

5) custom designed purple and ecru flat panel invitation. multiple shades of purple topped with ecru metallic paper. deep purple swirl design carried through on all three pieces of the ensemble.

6) catalog ordered poker themed invitation. this invite was for one of our fave wedding coordinators – heidi from heidzillas. check out the party recap (including a few how-to’s) on her blog!

7) catalog ordered save the date – white and navy blue single layer card.

8) custom designed 6×6 pocketfold wedding invitation in black, hot pink and white shimmer stock.

9) custom designed 6×6 pocketfold wedding invitation in hot pink, silver and white shimmer stock.

10) custom designed bridal shower invitation for a beach themed wedding shower. tiffany blue, black and white shimmer with a tiffany blue shell accent.

11) catalog ordered lime green and black wedding invitation ensemble. this was a mix and match set – lime green invite with black writing, black reception card with white writing, lime green response card with black writing and a black envelope, a black inner envelope and a lime green outer envelope.

12) catalog ordered photo save the date tri-fold. on the outside, a childhood picture of the bride on one side and the groom on the other. open the tri-fold to reveal a current photograph of the two of them! how could you not love it?

13) catalog invitation in red, ivory and black. this invite design can be printed in any two ink colors on ivory or white stock!

14) custom monogram wrap in black, hot pink and white with a 7/8″ white satin ribbon

15) catalog invitation in green, purple and white. this invite design can be printed in any two ink colors on ivory or white stock!

16) catalog ordered save-the-date magnet – man proposing. we love that the proposal scene is carried through as a motif on the back flap of the envelope

17) custom designed deep red, ivory and gold swirl design invitation.

18) catalog ordered white flat panel invitation with embossed border and shimmer design. this is one classy (and affordable) invitation ensemble!!

Bring on 2010 (and a tribute to 2009)

January 4, 2010 | Filed Under accessories, catalog invitations, custom invitations, studio news and happenings | 2 Comments 

The start of a new year – time for resolutions, goals and a fresh outlook for what is to come! As we sat down today to list the things we want to accomplish at Paper Persuasions in 2010 – we couldn’t help but review the progress we made in 2009. All I can say is this: we are blown away at the support and growth we experienced this past year. In a year marked with significant economic slowdown and several new competitors in our area, we experienced a 48% increase in sales  from 2008. We feel truly blessed to have worked with so many wonderful people this past year and we continue to be amazed by the awesome things our customers say about us! Stephanie and I get to live out a dream every day that we go to work, and it’s all because of our amazing customers!

Now, I’m not usually the one blogging (we leave that up to the more creative sister)…but the other day I was glancing over some of the spreadsheets I’ve created along the way and I thought it would be fun to start 2010 by sharing some of the statistics I tracked for 2009.

People always ask us: “How long does it take to make 100 invitations?” Well – every job varies…the total time it takes depends on the number of layers and the number of type of adornments. Here’s a few fun facts regarding our custom design jobs from 2009.

• 12.76 hours: Average labor hours on a custom design  job
• 27.61 hours: Our highest hours of labor on one custom invitation order. It was an order of 175 pocketfolds with ribbon, three inserts, 5 response card layouts, and all addresses printed by us.
• 29.89 hours: Our highest hours of labor on one custom accessories order (this was one huge wedding!) It included 300 booklet ceremony programs, 300 menus, 300 placecards, and 30 tented table numbers.
• 88.41%: Percent of custom orders that included return address printing on the back flap of the mailing envelope
• 31.88%: Percent of custom orders that included guest addresses printed on mailing envelopes (aka computer calligraphy)
• 71.01%: Percent of orders that were pocketfolds (yup, that’s what we’re known for!)
• 45.98%: Percent of invitation orders that also included custom accessories

At Paper Persuasions we offer various discounts to stay competitively priced, to reward our clients for previous purchases and/or subscription to our newsletter AND for the support of community outreach. Below are statistics that show where our clients saved the most money.

• $16, 896.53 in discounts were given to catalog clients for various promotions and sales throughout the year
• $3,016 in discounts were given to customers who donated 5 items to the Domestic Violence Project with their catalog invitation order
• $1,810 in discounts were given to customers who purchased accessories after purchasing invitations from us
• $156 in discounts were given to customers who redeemed money-saving offers from our newsletter Paper Points

We value our clients opinions because without them, we wouldn’t know how to improve….so with almost EVERY SINGLE ORDER we send out a survey and a SASE to encourage its return. From the completed surveys, we have compiled the following information…and let me add that we are humbled by the results. Statiscally, surveys are more often completed by people who have a gripe – as you will see, that’s not the case here!

• 98% of invitations ordered are for a wedding
• 100% of customers who responded rated Paper Persuasions as ”Excellent” on the following: Quality of final product, Meeting expectations, Customer service, Clear and concise communication, and Overall ease of process (choices are Poor, Good, and Excellent)
• 100% of customers who responded rated Paper Persuasions as “Above Average” on those same categories when compared to stationery providers they have previously utilized (Choices are Below Average, Average, and Above Average)
• 100% of customers who responded said they would recommend us to family and/or friends

We pretty much said the same thing in our 2008 year-in-review post but it bears repeating: We  just cannot believe how much we have grown and how far we have come in the past 12 months. Of course, we wouldn’t be where we are without our past brides. Many of whom we still keep in touch with,  many of whom we miss seeing on a regular basis – and all of whom are the reason we were voted BEST INVITATIONS IN AKRON/CANTON for the SECOND YEAR IN A ROW!!! Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.  We eagerly await the blessings and challenges that 2010 has in store for us and we thank each and every one of you for your continued business, support, and referrals!!!

Real Brides: Jenny and Nathan – October 24, 2009

November 28, 2009 | Filed Under accessories, custom invitations, posts featuring other vendors, posts with pics, real brides | Leave a Comment 

We were first introduced to this fabulous wedding when Denise, the mother of the bride, came in to look at invitations on behalf of her daughter. We’d later learn that Jenny has a CRAZY work schedule….and mom was doing all the ‘wedding errands’ during the day then sharing the choices with Jenny at night. Normally when this situation presents itself, mom and bride do not see eye-to-eye…but not in this case! Denise and Jenny definitely shared the same vision for this wedding. In fact, we didn’t even meet Jenny until a week before the wedding – yet we felt as if we already knew her! Here’s one of my favorite shots of Jenny and Nathan on the big day:

(c) rick sheridan - LAMS

(c) paper persuasions

(c) paper persuasions

 Although we designed and printed the programs, Jenny and Denise provided the labor to save on some of the cost. They folded both layers,  punched holes in the spine and strung and tied the ribbon into perfect little bows! Denise’s bows are so perfect I see future employment opportunity for her here at PP!

(c) denise v.

Here’s a glimpse of the 36 x 24 custom seating chart that we made for them! We provided the layout, printing and mounting and gloss finish. Although our seating charts look great without a frame, Denise added a black frame and a small bunch of flowers to the corner to complete the look.

(c)rick sheridan - LAMS

And wrapping up the stationery pics….we made these two layer menus with the flat-knotted ribbon on top…as well as the tag that was tied to the gift bag.

(c) Rick Sheridan - LAMS

Here’s what Jenny and Nathan had to say about their wedding experiences:

Wedding Date: 10/24/2009

What part of the planning was the most fun? The most fun was all the activities leading up to the wedding and then of course our wedding day. Our family and friends were amazing. It was the best time of my life!

What part of the wedding planning was the least fun?Making all those decisions! We chose not to hire a wedding planner and it was overwhelming at times, but with my mom’s help and our awesome vendors, I loved the end result.

Do you have any advice for the bride-to-be currently planning her wedding? Don’t skimp on stationery or linens. Your invitation and accessories set the tone of your wedding and nice linens (tablecloths that fit properly, chair covers etc) dramatically change the appearance of any venue. Also, make a list of the pictures you want your photographer to take and make a copy for a reliable friend/family member because you won’t remember with everything going on that day.

How was your overall experience with Paper Persuasions? I don’t know what I would have done without Paper Persuasions help and creativity with my invitations, thank you cards, menu, tags, programs and seating chart. They produced first class all the way! I LOVED everything. I’m so glad I had the pleasure of meeting you both and we are honored and humbled to be a part of your blog! Thank You!

Did you receive comments from your guests regarding the invitations and accessories? DID WE EVER! Most everyone said they were the most beautiful invitations they had ever seen. One of my favorite comments was from a family friend (who happens to be a politician) said when she saw the invitation in the mail, her first thought was that she got an invitation to the White House because it was so pretty!! Ha…! Everything was beautiful!

Here’s a list of other vendors that Jenny and Nathan  used

And now….a few more non-stationery related pics from the big day!!!

(c) jenny v. - the gorgeous atrium at NEOUCOM (cocktail and hors d'oeuvre hour was held in here)

(c) rick sheridan / LAMS - isn't the view of the ballroom absolutely breathtaking?

(c) rick sheradin / LAMS - bridal exit with bubbles!

(c) rick sheradin / LAMS - the dove release!! jenny and nathan set "lovey and dovey" free to return to their home loft.

(c) rick sheradin / LAMS - we had to include a shot of jenny and her mother denise! the perfect mother/daughter wedding planning team!

(c) rick sheradin / LAMS - group shot of the bridal party. love those cinnamon dresses!!!

Jenny, Nathan and of course Denise – We had such a great time working with you throughout this entire process. I still can’t believe how beautiful NEOUCOM turned out to be!! I will be sure to recommend it to any of our brides still looking for a Reception Hall in that area! You guys put so much hard work and pure love into planning this wedding and it really showed! Stacy and I both wish you the best…for many years to come!!!

Real Brides: Lindsay and Aaron – July 11, 2009

October 30, 2009 | Filed Under custom invitations, posts featuring other vendors, posts with pics, real brides | 1 Comment 

We first met Lindsay and her mom Bonnie in October of 2008, and we knew from the very moment we started discussing invitations that this wedding would be stellar. And it was. In fact, you may even recognize this photo since Riverfront Photography used it in their new ad for the Today’s Bride Magazine.

(c) Riverfront Photography

As with any wedding, the planning wasn’t exactly easy. After several things went wrong during the planning process, worries began to surface regarding the day of the wedding. When Bonnie expressed her concerns about missing parts of the wedding due to coordinating the vendors and guests, we instantly suggested she hire a Day-of Coordinator to alleviate her stress, and we sent her to Heidzillas! Luckily Heidi was available, and according to the bride and her mother – she was invaluable!

One of the things we really enjoyed about this wedding was how involved Aaron (the groom!) was. From tagging along to several of our meetings to actually designing the monogram that was used throughout all the stationery – he actually enjoyed helping make the decisions, which is a rarity for grooms. Lindsay and Aaron ended up selecting custom designed pocketfolds in pink, silver and white with a single swarovski crystal placed within the flourish design.

(c) paper persuasions

(c) heidzillas

(c) heidzillas

(c) heidzillas

Here’s what Lindsay and Aaron had to say about their wedding experiences:

Wedding Date: 7/11/2009

What part of the planning was the most fun? Picking out my wedding dress, and of course, designing the invitations and accessories!

What part of the wedding planning was the least fun? Realizing that the church we booked would be in the middle of huge renovations at the time of our wedding and having to quickly find a new church and inform our guests (the invitations had already been sent).

Do you have any advice for the bride-to-be currently planning her wedding? Enjoy the process no matter what is thrown at you along the way. Just remember, at the end of all this planning, you will have a day you will never forget – and you are marrying your prince!

How was your overall experience with Paper Persuasions? Stacy and Stephanie are the best! They are by far the best vendors i’ve worked with during this whole planning process. Their work is phenomenal and I would not go anywhere else for invitations. When my church for my ceremony had to be changed due to renovations AFTER my invitations went out, they quickly came up with Addendum Cards with the new church address on them to send out to all of my guests. The addendums matched my invitation perfectly and fit right into the pockets of my invitation. They took a lot of the stress out of the situation when they came up with this quick and easy solution for informing my guests of the change. Their efficiency allowed us to send the addendums out in a timely manner.

Did you receive comments from your guests regarding the invitations and accessories? Yes, tons! I even had someone say “Where did you get your couture invitations?”

Heres a list of other vendors that Lindsay and Aaron used

 And finally a  couple other photos from the big day!

(c) heidzillas

(c) riverfront photography

(c) heidzillas

And of course we can’t forget the custom thank you stationery we designed for the couple. And look – they even sent us one :)

Thanks Lindsay and Aaron for being such a great couple to work for! Everything turned out just perfect for you – congratulations and best wishes!

Bridal Show Recap – Today’s Bride / Sheraton Suites – October 2009

October 26, 2009 | Filed Under catalog invitations, custom invitations, do it yourself, posts featuring other vendors, posts with pics, studio news and happenings | Leave a Comment 

stacy & steph -sisters and owners!

paper persuasions booth display - october 2009

Holiday Album Preview

October 23, 2009 | Filed Under catalog invitations, custom invitations, posts with pics, studio news and happenings | Leave a Comment 

I’m sure I am one of many who feel that this year has flown by. What year doesn’t, right? When we started receiving holiday albums back in August, I couldn’t conceive of the fact that winter was on its way - so I shelved them…and continued to do so until now. I am offically unveiling a glimpse into our collection of holiday greeting cards (both corporate and personal), photo cards, calender cards, gift tags, thank you notes and holiday party invitations. The photos below are from the Exclusive II Holiday Album which offers 24 different 8 piece ensembles - you choose the pieces you need (or want!). This album boasts contemporary designs and vibrant colors and I L-O-V-E love every. single. one. of them. In fact – I might not be custom designing my own holiday cards this year….and that says alot! Be sure to visit our studio to check out this – and several other holiday albums.  Our gift to you: a discount of 30% if you order before Thanksgiving and 25% until December 10th. And as always – if you are looking for something extra special, we’d love to custom design holiday cards or party invitations for you!

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.

Meghan and Lance planned somewhat of a “tiffany-themed” reception so the paper products all incorporated black, white and tiffany blue colors.

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!

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