Suzanne & Brandon asked for help with Day-Of Coordination and Rehearsal because they already had most of their vendors selected when we first met. They had their ceremony and reception at the Leasburg Retreat Center. This is such a great space for an event! The log cabin building was very spacious and included all the tables and chairs, as well as a huge functioning kitchen! However, the wrap-around porch overlooking a huge pond won me over! They were able to rent the retreat center for the whole weekend so they could decorate a day before the wedding and clean up the day after.

Hay bales, pumpkins, and mums decorated the ceremony site for this October 14th, fall wedding. The weather was perfect! Suzanne and Brandon got married in front of their family and friends in front of the pond.  After the ceremony, DJ Gene Deese of Hollywood Entertainment got the reception started, while The Homestead Steakhouse served the food. "DJ Hollywood" and his wife were so accommodating and were well-experienced. I appreciated his words of wisdom at the end of the night and his praise for me sticking around as a planner (even after the ceremony, which he said is rare!) The Homestead’s staff was very friendly and they were willing to help with more than just catering if help was needed! And, the food was delicious! It was so good, I had to go try the restaurant within the next couple of weeks.The cake was provided by Edible Artistry. Elaine Robbins delivered the cake and set the flowers on it. She was very creative and it turned out beautiful!

Suzanne and Brandon are one of the sweetest couples we have ever worked with! They both put a lot of work into making the décor for their wedding and Brandon assembled all the flowers himself! Being a past florist, he made stunning floating flower centerpieces.  Spotlight Photography captured pictures of the day. It was a pleasure getting to work with Jennifer again! I have attached some photos to this post and more in our gallery! Eye Stream Media filmed the wedding day and you can watch their video here. 

Brandi was my assistant for this wedding. She is always so much fun to have along! She is very autonomous and willing to do what needs to be done to get tasks done, all while keeping a smile on her face! Thanks Brandi! You can read more about our team on our About Page.

Vendors:
Coordinators: Exceptional Events NC
Venue: Leasburg Retreat Center
Photographer: Spotlight Photography
Videographer: Eye Stream Media
Catering: The Homestead Steakhouse
Cake: Edible Artistry
DJ: Hollywood Entertainment

I got a call from a soon-to-be groom named Ryan just a few weeks before their scheduled wedding. He explained both he and his fiancé, Leigh, were in the military and they were on a time crunch since they would only be home for a short period of time. Ryan was nervous about everything coming together and said they had nothing planned but once we talked about their ideas, they actually had more together than they thought! The original plan was to have the ceremony at a family chapel and reception on a family farm. Two days before the wedding I got a call from Ryan saying the plans had to be changed to a new ceremony and reception site. This was very unexpected but the new location was gorgeous! I quickly contacted Leigh and Ryan’s vendors and let them know of the change and everyone was so patient and accommodating.

On September 9th, 2017, my team and I headed to the ceremony and reception location, which was a stunning family home in Hillsborough.  Jeremy and Brandon, some Exceptional Events team members, helped deliver the rentals Leigh and Ryan chose form our inventory. While Brandi and I set up the decorations and rentals, the guys set up the vintage furniture rented by Eventful. Their pieces were in such great shape. Also, Risé & Amy were such sweet ladies to work with! They delivered the pieces on the night of the rehearsal and picked them up a day after the wedding. It was nice to have the flexibility of having the pieces the night before so the clients could play around with them and see where they fit best.

The ceremony took place behind the log cabin house, in front of a huge pond. The pond and green trees were the perfect backdrop for a wedding.  University Florist added florals to the arbor and chairs. Henry was very nice and so easy going. Wes McMurray was the officiant. He was such a gentle and caring man. He had a calming personality that made the ceremony seem so smooth. My assistant, Brandi, helped me direct the family and wedding party down the aisle. Arioso Strings, a string cortet, played beautiful background music during the ceremony and reception.

Whole Foods Catering in Durham provided the heavy hors d’oeuvres .  Brandi and I loved the fried green tomatoes! Sugarland bakery provided the yummy cake. I heard countless great reviews about the cake from the guests at the wedding. As another dessert, The Parlour ice cream truck came and set up for the night. They are one of my personal favorites because they always carry a couple vegan flavors and I actually get to eat some ice cream!

Caroline Lima was the photographer for the day. She is such a sweetheart! Her pictures are amazing and show so much emotion.  I have attached a few to this post and there are more on our photo gallery page. 


Vendors:
Co0rdinators: Exceptional Events NC
Photographer: Caroline Lima Photography
Catering: Whole Foods Catering, Durham
Cake: Sugarland
Ice Cream: The Parlour
Florist: University Florist
Music: Arioso Strings
Ofiiciant: Wes McMurray
Vintage Seating: EventfulNC
Decor Rentals: Exceptional Events

 On Friday, 21st, 2017, I assisted Jodi of Jodi Gray Photography execute her very first styled photography shoot. Jodi contacted me about a month or two before and asked if I would coordinate a dream wedding shoot for her. I gladly accepted! First off, just look at these pictures. (I will post more in the Photo Gallery.) Are they not flawless? Jodi always does an amazing job with her creative-eye, but to see her ideas come to life in her pictures is remarkable!

Jodi had a vision to style a Fall, Romantic, Southern Wedding shoot. She had a few specific vendors already picked out but she asked me for some recommendations to fulfill her dream. After contacting several vendors and communicating with them about their talents, we assembled a seamless team! We allowed each vendor to incorporate something they have always wanted to do but might not usually have the opportunity as long as they followed Jodi’s inspiration photos.

We chose to use Boxwood Estate in Mocksville, NC. The estate was built on a family farm in 1933 to be used as a winter hunting retreat. Originally known as Yadkin Lodge, the property later became Boxwood Farm when it became a full time agricultural operation. The current owners purchased Boxwood Lodge to preserve the property and rehabilitate the manor and grounds as a certified historic structure. (More history on the venue can be found at the link below.)  Connie, the present owner, welcomed us with open arms when I mentioned the shoot to her. She had the utmost hospitable and sweet hearted personalities. The property and gardens are well kept, the estate is impeccably designed and the services offered sound very reasonable for a wedding ceremony, reception, and weekend stay! I definitely recommend this venue to any couple looking for an estate / garden venue and would love the opportunity to work with Connie and her loving dog again!

Ashley with Ashley Marie Cakes and Co. stated she has always wanted to write a script love quote on a cake. She sweetly gave us a dusty blue ombré, two tier cake. Tonya Anderson, the owner and operator of ABBA Design of Greensboro, designed the florals. Her work is inspirational and I would love to be able to learn more from her about design! She gathered vintage pieces from Southern Event Rental and The Prettiest Pieces to match Jodi’s ideas. She used her professional experience and creativity to suggest the perfect color scheme, tableware, flatware, napkins and candles! Jodi paired all of Tonya’s table design ideas with some cotton and chiffon runners from Party Crush Studio in California. I absolutely loved the mood the decorations set.

The invitation suite, menus, and place cards were custom-made by Rebecca Long, The Keen Bee. Her watercolor and hand written calligraphy, matched with vintage stamps complemented the Maroon, Cameo Pink, Ivory, and Dusty Aegean Blue color scheme we chose!

Jodi assembled the team of models from past clients and mutual friends. I think her idea to choose a dark haired bride and groom sets a mood for fall. Ashleigh looked gorgeous in the 2017 Anna Barge, long-sleeve wedding gown provided by Monica at Bellissima Bridal Boutique. Cameron was a southern gentleman so he really fit the part in his White Coat Tuxedo supplied by Sammy at T.N. Boone in Burlington and his feather bow tie given to us by Brackish Bowties. I had never seen the feather bow-ties and I cannot wait to see those used in the future! I think guys would feel more optimistic about being “stuck” in a tie all day if it is made with different bird feathers.

Corrie and Alix modeled as the Bridesmaids. I adored their dresses, provided by LauraLee at Shop Revelry! The off the shoulder look Jodi chose in the dusty blue was a perfect dress to sideline the Bride and Groom.  Jessica from Studio 111 styled the girls’ hair and Tara Sorrells was their makeup artist.

Jodi contacted Wind and Silk for ribbons featured in several pictures and tied around the bouquets made by Tonya. She also was able to borrow custom-made rings from her good friend Eric Farmer, a ring designer at Windsor Jewelers.

We had trouble finding a vintage car last minute. My dad graciously towed his Jaguar two hours to let us use it! I think the white car against all the greenery of the Boxwood property really popped! I am so appreciative of his love a support to help me achieve my goals in this company!

This was a great experience for me! I hope to design and execute my own styled shoot one day! I enjoyed making new connections with vendors I have never gotten a chance to work with before. Thanks Jodi for thinking of me!

Feel free to click the links below to see the websites of the other vendors in this post.

Photo Gallery
Jodi Gray Photography
Jodi's Blog Post
ABBA Design
The Keen Bee
Boxwood Estate
Bellissima
Reverly
T.N. Boone
Brackish
Wind & Silk
Windsor Jewelers
Party Crush Studio
Southern Event Rental
The Prettiest Pieces
Ashley Marie Cakes & Co.

On April 22, 2017, I coordinated a wedding in Smithfield, NC at the Atkinson-Smith House. This was the farthest distance wedding to date, but it was so worth it! The house is gorgeous both inside and out! Mr. and Mrs. Wales have added Southern Charm all throughout their property. The back porch was my favorite!

Jinna was the sweetest bride and Blake was such a gentleman. The love between Jinna and Blake’s families shined all weekend long! Blake and Jinna wanted the ceremony to take place outside; however the predicted weather said rain. We watched the radar all day and finally fifteen minutes before ceremony time we decided to go for it, and I am so glad they did! I quickly moved all the ceremony decorations outside to the front lawn, with the help of Jinna’s kind father and brother. The weather held off for the ceremony and made for perfect pictures by Magnolia South Photography! Perry Hardison was their officiant. I love working with him! His laid-back personality puts everyone’s nerves at ease.

The reception started off with delicious food from Happy Cardinal Catering, also known as The Boot in Durham, NC. Their crew made sure to cater to everyone’s needs including special-made vegetarian dishes for two guests and a “exceptional” dairy-free dish for me! The cake was provided by Once in a Blue Moon Bakery in Cary, NC. The chocolate cake…so, so good! A must try!

I adored getting to coordinate Jinna and Blake’s wedding and I am so glad they chose Exceptional Events!

Check out Magnolia South’s blog post here:

Recently, we had a Bride who asked us for a creative way to ask her friends to be her bridesmaids. We finally stumbled upon this cute idea online! They are so easy to make and the girls loved them!

These could also be great "Thank You" presents for your mother or mother-in-law.

Hit the Contact Tab if you are interested!

 
Today, I attended a networking luncheon in Thomasville put on by Jessica Smith Nance, owner of Left Lane Productions, an event planning company in Thomasville, NC. It was held at The Gallery by Left Lane Productions, which is a cute bistro-style event venue. It is perfect for small groups and gatherings! 

Everyone at the event met with each other, talked, had lunch, and listened to a speech by Mark Scott from Thomasville Tourism. I met several people who are proud of their city and small businesses. I hope I can one day do an event or wedding in Thomasville, "The Chair City "

 

This weekend I went to a wedding planner certification course by The Bridal Society in Greensboro. The class was taught by Laurie Hartwell a well known wedding planner all over the United States. She was awesome! Her personality was so positive and fun. She was very honest and giving. I highly recommend taking her certification course to everyone wanting to have a career in wedding planning. It really opened my eyes on things I need to start doing and change within my business. I cannot wait to try all of her ideas and suggestions!

After two information-packed days, I am officially a Certified Wedding Planner (CWP) of The Bridal Society!