Happy Thanksgiving!!

I really hoped to post this yesterday, but between the tryptophan and shopping in the early AM hours...I missed it! I wanted to post how thankful I am for everything that I have - a house, a loving husband, a great family, and a thriving business. I am truly happy and blessed. I hope everyone had a chance to realize what you have and how thankful you are!!

God bless!

A Beach Bash for Jen & Shane!!

I had the pleasure and honor of being a part of Jen and Shane's wedding at the Sandbar on Anna Maria Island this weekend. It was a sunset ceremony on the beach. The groom is a graphic designer and he created a logo of two bunnies & two rings as a logo for the entire wedding. It was everywhere, from the invitations, to the cake, there were even large banners hanging in the pavillion with the logo on it. Their interesting color pallette of sage green, dark brown, and white was unexpected for a beach wedding, but flowed beautifully. The decor had a modern, minimalist elegance to it. While the weather was a little chilly, the newlyweds and their guests danced the night away and kept warm all night!

Jen and Shane, I wish you a life of love and happiness!

Developing your Wedding Design

While working with brides, I come across a number of them that have a box, a closet, or even a room of different wedding "items," but without a clear vision of what they want. While I am a HUGE fan of a great bargain, you will find that a large number of the things that you purchased will not make it into your final look. Or if they do, they will be forced. Before you buy a thing, you should have a clear vision for your event and there are many different ways to come up with the "look."

First, you can start with a theme, that emcompasses you and your fiance's personalities. For example, if the two of you love to go to the beach, then incorporate beach elements into your overall aesthetic. You can use sand, starfish, sea glass, etc. If you are more into hiking or camping, maybe a rustic look with exposed wood and warm colors will create the perfect atmosphere for you and your beloved to celebrate your love.

Another way to create an overall design for your big day, is to let the venue inspire you. Take a look around, what colors or elements are present in the space? If you are getting married in a historic mansion, you could compliment the gold guilding on the wall by using gold chargers or add hanging crystals from your centerpiece to mimic the chandelier design. Let your event compliment the space, not fight it.

If all else fails, hit your closest hardware store and start looking at paint chips. They have pretty much every color under the sun and you can create a color scheme that you love! Do want to create a monochromatic look, with different shades of the same color (ie. light pink, dark pink, & red)? Or is it a complementary scheme that you want, by using colors that are the same types of shades (ie. blue, green, & purple)? Or are you going for the most popular kind of color scheme, a contrasting scheme (ie. blue & brown or pink & black)? Which ever scheme you choose, be sure it's something that you truly love! Because these colors will be present all over the event, through linens, attire, flowers, etc. Make sure it's not something that will get old. Another version of selecting a color scheme, is to not select one at all. An all white wedding has an heir of elegance. Only using different shades of white with a silver metal accent could just be that timeless, pristine presentation that you were seeking

Whatever you choose, be sure it's you making the decision! Don't worry about what's "hot" at the time or what other brides are doing. You'll want something that is timeless and can be appreciated through the years in your wedding album and video. If you strive for something trendy, when you look back at your wedding album years from now, you'll ask, "what was I thinking?" You want to look back at your album and remember the beauty and fun and how the event was created uniquely for YOU! After your vision has been created, get out there and start shopping!!

For more tips or design advise, feel free to contact Staci at staci@uniqueeventdesign.com.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Here I am...another year older (I also hope a little wiser!) My darling husband sent me roses at work and the office celebrated with cake. So far, it's been a good day. This is probably the most "low key" birthday I've ever had!

There's a great wedding this weekend that I'm gearing up for! Ceremony on the beach, reception in the sand...it should be beautiful! Keep a lookout for the pics!

Calm Before the Storm...

Sunday is a day of relaxation, the Sabbath...to me, it's the calm before the storm
I've got a crazy week ahead of me! Between a wedding, my birthday, a friend in the hospital (don't worry, she's okay), meetings, projects, a workshop, friends, the website, etc, etc, etc! I am run, run, running all this week! So, hopefully this day will be productive and relaxing and prepare me for the week ahead!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Happy Friday!

Don't you love how Friday is something that we celebrate? No one says, "Happy Monday" or "Happy Thursday!"

I'm gearing up for tomorrow...I'm off to school! I'm taking a class at USF, "Contracts, Vendors, & Negotiations." Even though it's all day, it should be quite informative. I'll let ya know what I learn!

It's the little things...

I'm super excited! I received my new business cards in the mail today!! I can't wait to start handing them out!!!

In Print!!

Well, I got UNBELIEVABLE news today!! My wedding photographer e-mailed me to inform me that one of my wedding photographs is being featured in the 2009 issue of The Knot's Best of Weddings magazine!! How exciting! I designed the bouquet and my fabulous florist - Fish Hawk Flowers put it together!! It should be on newstands in April. Keep an eye out for it!

A Fall Lovefest for Mindy & Jeff!!

My latest clients, Mindy & Jeff, were married last weekend, in a beautiful ceremony in Walsingham Park in Largo. The ceremony overlooked a lake and the serene sounds of nature, and the occasional bicyclist ;), made the ceremony truly special! Maybe I’m a little biased, because I love the fall, but I was a big fan of their color scheme of oranges, browns, reds, & beiges. It really fit into the atmosphere beautifully. Their event embraced the autumn theme with their unique design elements, such as a carved willow cake topper, pumpkins lining the aisle, and Halloween candy as their favor. Mindy and Jeff’s wedding was very emotional, even bringing a tear to my eye, because not only were they being joined as husband and wife, but their children were also being joined, creating a family of six. To keep the emphasis on family, a sand ceremony was performed and each person had a different color of sand. I wish them and their newly joined family all the best!

A Frightful Good Time with IIDA

Well, not even 60 hours after landing back in the states after my own honeymoon, was I lucky enough to be a part of a great event for the International Interior Design Association. Just one night before Halloween, they celebrated their Halloween “FUNraiser.” I was given the challenge of creating an event that had a gothic theme, but that was still really fun! I interpreted “gothic” to be the dark part of Halloween. No happy ghosts or smiling pumpkins! So, in two days, we transformed an office space into a gothic Halloween extravaganza! We created different areas within the office – a graveyard in the lobby, a laboratory in the conference room, etc. But like any party, the place to be was the bar and of course, the blood red chocolate fountain, which was a huge hit! The guests snacked on “bat wings” and “graveyard gravel” and they weren’t too upset to find a spider or two on their plate!

Congratulating FBI with a Cuban-themed Welcome!

I had the pleasure of planning, designing, and executing a great event welcoming Florida Business Interiors to Tampa. The Grand Opening was complete with a ribbon (well, giant cigar label) cutting with Tampa Mayor, Pam Iorio! The office is located in Ybor City, which was the inspiration for the theme of the event. By embracing everything that IS Ybor City…cigars, sangria, & of course, the Columbia, we created an experience for each of the guests. The color scheme was taken from the colors already present in the showroom – orange, yellow, & black.

Hello World! Welcome to the Unique by Design Blog!!

Welcome to the Unique by Design Blog! I'm been meaning to start this whole blogging thing, but I've so crazy busy lately to do so!! There are so many things that I want to share, I don't know where to start!!! ;)

Thanks for stopping by and check back for updates!!