What a great New Jersey wedding Ceremony!

You’ll love these; they are irreverent, stylish and free. What could be bad?
www.someecards.com

And an unexpected touch can add a note of style and grace to any small space at your wedding or reception; this beautiful kissing ball hung from a welcoming front door. You might want to tuck small blooms in the restrooms, on the table with your sign in book, or in the folded napkin at every place setting. Each blossom will be appreciated and show your attention to detail and beauty.

This is my most recent headshot, taken by my favorite photographers, Shelley and Keith (and you’ll want to check them out for your wedding; they are superb, fun to work with, and as you can see, good with retouching). This will be the photo that replaces my fuzzy one in all my promo materials, so if you have feedback, I’d love to hear it.

And thanks again to S and K!

Your vows are just that; your vows; they should reflect the promises that are important to your marriage. Love and honor, very cool. Obey? Maybe not.

You can write them yourself, with the help of many sites online and books; you can steal them from me, if you’d like (just write me off the board and I’ll get you some samples). You can use lyrics, poetry, prose; just about anything that expresses your intentions to your spouse and partner. Make them joyful; not obligations. Make them personal, not oblique. Make them funny if you wish; make them sappy if you must. They are yours to play with and follow out….

Every state is different, but every state is the same…..to get your license, you’ll need to arrive at the town health department (or vital statistics bureau, or town hall ) with your ID’s, your witness or witnesses, and a check. You’ll want to call them first to see what the waiting period is (in NJ, it’s three days, like buying a gun……in NY, it’s only one) and what documentation you’ll need to show them. Calling ahead or visit your state’s official website might save you a second trip, and really who has time to do anything twice when you’re planning a wedding?

You want to visit Black Eyed Susie’s in Riveredge, NJ, and talk to her about your wedding flowers. We did a fabulous wedding at the lush Indian Trail Club this weekend, and the flowers were just stunning. Jewel toned bouquets for the women, an archway draped with autumn hued chiffon (Think “The Gates” only prettier), and centerpieces that echoed the season. It was all quite magnificent and individual, as your wedding should be.

Susan’s work is amazing, by all reports she is fun and relaxed to work with (surround yourself with vendors like this…..) and her creations are magnificent. She is familiar with most of the venues in New Jersey and New York. After you meet with her, you’ll be checking another “Who’s gonna do that???” off your list.

Orange is the hottest color right now, (didn’t you see the NYTimes Sunday Style section?), and these little orange babies would make terrific favors if you and your fiance are animal lovers. You can order them from the ASPCA online store (www.aspca.org), they are a buck apiece and you can support this great charity (and maybe inspire others too; instead of a tip cup, put a cute doggie food bowl on the bar and ask your bartenders to encourage tips for pups….)

If your wedding is coming up this fall, boy are you a lucky camper (no pun intended…) decowise. Those gorgeous autumn leaves can be used in so many ways, and BONUS….they can be FREE~~~

Use them everywhere you can; under your centerpieces on each dining table…to decorate the buffet….use them down the aisle instead of a runner or rose petals; let your flower girl or boy toss them, hot glue them to your flowerdog so he/she looks festive as they deliver your rings at your ceremony (OKAY, I’M KIDDING, JUST WANTED TO SEE IF YOU WERE PAYING ATTENTION…..)

Ideally, your wedding should reflect the season you chose, instead of being some disembodied decorative event, so use those leaves!!! (And donate the money you saved to some enviromental charity!)

And if you’re having a wedding in September or October, I’m sure you’re thinking the same thing….what happened to that long, lazy stretch of time…you know, the one where you were going to hand color the invitations, lose 10 lbs, calligraph the placecards and grow the baby lettuce for your salad course…

It’s gone. Time for plan B. Black and white invites are fine, so are you, with or without the ten pounds, a funky felt tip will do for the placecards, and no one eats the salad anyway. Problems solved. See how easy that was?

On to bigger and better things! If you’re going to write your vows, you should probably start working on that right now. If you haven’t applied for your license, you should probably start working on the right now. If you haven’t told your equally stressed out partner how much you adore them…..yes…you should do that right now!

Everything else will take care of itself…..