The "New" Holiday Inn Gaithersburg

This past Tuesday, I met with Cynthia Lynn, Sales Manager of the Holiday Inn Gaithersburg and took a tour of the “new” Holiday Inn located in Gaithersburg, Maryland.

They are just finishing up a $9 million renovation. I have to say I was quite impressed with the new look. The entrance into the hotel and lobby look completely different. They have replaced all guest room windows, re-designed the entrance with a modernly designed porte cochere to give their guests “an impressive and welcoming sense of arrival.” They have upgraded all the bedding in the guestrooms with lush, pillow-top mattresses, installed all new carpeting, wall coverings and new paint throughout.

The Holiday Inn Gaithersburg has also “gone green” by installing fluorescent and LED lighting in their building interior spaces and building signs, replaced guestroom showerheads and toilets with low-flow models and have placed recycling bins in the public spaces as well as in the guest rooms, plus much more.

Check out their Web site at: www.higaithersburg.com to read all about their “new” look. You’ll be pleasantly surprised. You may want to consider having your wedding reception, rehearsal dinner or out of town guests stay at the "new" Holiday Inn Gaithersburg.

To Change or Not to Change

One of the latest trends today is finding brides changing into a more comfortable or sexy gown for the reception. They wear the more traditional gown for the ceremony and sometime before or during the reception, they change into something a little bit more lively, sexy and/or comfortable. You probably have seen many celebrity brides do this.

Maybe you just absolutely loved two gowns that you just had to have both. Or maybe it’s a cultural thing. You might be marrying into a culture that wears a different type of “wedding dress.” You would wear the traditional one for the ceremony and the “cultural” style dress for the reception out of respect for your new husband’s culture. It usually is more colorful and, therefore, you would really stand out at the reception and end up with fabulous photos.

However, before setting your mind (and money) on two dresses, consider that staying in that beautiful gown you have been dreaming about may well be worth keeping with one dress. You probably already spent a lot of money on it, wouldn’t you want to wear it as long as possible?

But, if you have your heart and mind set on doing the “change thing,” then think about the following factors in considering a “reception gown.”

• Is the gown comfortable for dancing?
• Will I need to change into different undergarments, shoes, or accessories?
• Will my hair be “mussed” by changing into the second gown? Or, can I simply let it down and put a beautiful hairclip on?

When should I change into the second gown? You may choose to do it during the cocktail hour so you are in your new gown when you and your husband make your grand entrance into the reception. Or, you could wait to change after your first dance. Whenever you decide to make the change, plan ahead. Have a separate room available close by so you don’t have to waste too much time getting to and from the changing room. It’s no easy task removing a wedding dress quickly, so have your bridesmaids help you. Having your ladies there with you will help you change faster so you can get back to the reception before your guests even know you are gone.

Now, if you love the idea of having two dresses, but it is just out of the question, budget-wise, there are still ways you can change the way you look from your ceremony to your reception. If you are wearing a veil, remove it. I did for my reception. You could buy a wedding dress with a detachable train. Depending upon how the dress is made, having the train removed can really make your gown look totally different and guests may think you actually did change into a different gown.

Consider all your options before making your final decision.

(photo above from Vera Wang on Weddings)

Photobooths at Your Reception

You've seen them in malls, maybe recently at a friend's wedding. I'm talking about the photobooth where you go in and have about four to five pictures taken really fast. Wait a few minutes and out pop your strip of small photos.

Well, now there is a new photobooth in town. Maryland-based company, Booth-O-Rama, has designed and built their own photobooth. This baby is 4' wide and can take up to 12 people at a time, and instead of getting that strip of small photos, you get hi-resolution, 4 x 6 prints in just under 12 seconds. It is 100% digital, professional grade equipment.

All photobooth rentals include: delivery, setup, and breakdown, unlimited usage and prints for up to four hours, a personalized banner with your names and wedding date on each print, on-site photobooth attendant and a password protected online gallery of all photos from your reception. For an additional fee, you could have an extra hour, double prints, all images on a CD and an on-site scrapbook to use as your photo guestbook.

It also makes a unique favor for all your guests. Wouldn't this be so much fun?

Great Place to Buy Wedding Items or Sell Your 20 Leftover Centerpiece Vases

I just discovered BravoBride.com. This is an online site where you can buy and sell new and pre-owned wedding items. You can shop for designer dresses, accessories, favors, even engagement rings, plus much, much more.

If you want to sell anything, they allow you to list your items for FREE. How can it get better than that? In today’s economy, who couldn’t use a little FREE every now and then.

Another great thing about using BravoBride is that they donate a percentage of their proceeds to the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women Campaign.

You are also “going green” by purchasing items at a great price by making the choice to “re-use and pass along.”

I think I’ll look through some of my leftover wedding stuff and see if I can sell it to someone who needs it for their wedding.

Happy shopping. Let me know if you find a great deal.

I'm Stoked!

I was notified today that I had been chosen to receive the 2009 Bride's Choice Award from WeddingWire.com. Wow! What a wonderful surprise! This is all because of you - my past clients who have helped me become a success. Thank you so much. Below is the press release.

WeddingWire, the nation’s leading wedding technology company, just announced that Smooth Weddings, LLC has won the 2009 Bride’s Choice Awards™!

In its inaugural year, the Bride’s Choice Awards recognizes and honors vendors from the WeddingWire Network that demonstrate excellent quality of service, responsiveness, professionalism, value of cost and flexibility. This year’s recipients represent the top three percent of WeddingWire’s vendor community, which includes over 100,000 wedding vendors from across the US. That means Smooth Weddings, LLC is one of the very best wedding planners.

Unlike other awards in which winners are selected by the company, the Bride’s Choice Awards are determined exclusively by recent newlyweds through surveys and reviews.

“We are excited to launch this annual award program to honor high-performing vendors based solely on the experiences of our WeddingWire community,” according to Timothy Chi, WeddingWire’s Chief Executive Officer. “This year’s recipients have set the bar high, exhibiting excellent service and expertise in the wedding industry.”

Smooth Weddings, LLC would like to thank our past clients for speaking on our behalf and helping us win the 2009 Bride’s Choice Award!