Paper Passionista

This just in: The highly coveted Elum Designs and Umi invitations are offering 25 FREE with purchase

Paper Passionista is your custom Elum Designs and Umi by Elum dealer in the Greater Puget Sound. We would be happy to schedule an appointment for you to see these lines and get your order placed while you're able to take advantage of this rare opportunity. Email us at info@paperpassionista.com for more information, or to schedule an appointment.

THE Seattle Wedding Show is this weekend!!

Photo courtesy of the Seattle Wedding Show

The Seattle Wedding Show, the "granddaddy of them all" when it comes to wedding shows in the Puget Sound area, is coming up this weekend, January 12-13, and if you're newly engaged and wanting to experience a mega-wedding show this is the one to visit.  Back in the day when Paper Passionista was a storefront retailer we participated in this show every year, and even though we don't have to be at the show as exhibitors with our new business model, we always attend to walk the show, visit our friends in the Seattle Wedding vendor community, and see what's new.

If you're looking for a place to find "deals" on tuxedos and dj's, and the opportunity to taste wedding cake samples galore this is a fun field trip.  There are fashion shows featuring wedding attire from many gown salons in the area, and a gown sale as well if you're looking for a chance to score a bargain on your wedding gown.   The fashion shows are on Saturday at 11:30 a.m., 1:30, and 3:30 p.m., and on Sunday at 12:30 and 3:30 p.m.

The location for the show is the Washington State Convention & Trade Center (800 Convention Place, 4th Floor). Hours for the show are Saturday, January 12, 2013 from 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. with ticket sales opening at 9:30 a.m., and Sunday, January 13, 2013 from 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with ticket sales opening at 10:00 a.m. Admission is $17 per person. Tickets are available at the door or may be purchased in advance at seattleweddingshow.eventbrite.com.

Newly engaged? What now?!

 Photos by La Vie Photography

Did you become engaged over the holidays? First of all, a huge “Congratulations!” to you! You are entering that phase of your life that you’ve either dreamed about (or dreaded), perhaps most of your life. There are some key things to keep in mind, and to put in place, as you begin pondering all the components that will make up your perfect celebration.

Perhaps one of the most, if not THE most important is to have a frank discussion with both sets of your parents, if you are planning to rely on their financial assistance for your wedding. It is important to know, rather than assuming, what level of assistance your parents are able to, or willing to provide. By having a meeting with your parents you will be better able to set the budget for your wedding. The preliminary budget for your wedding should be set before you move ahead on planning anything. Planning a wedding without a budget is like taking a trip without a map - a sure ticket to disaster and disappointment.

Before you plan a meeting with your parents, make sure you’ve done your homework. Visiting wedding websites, such as weddingwire.com, will give you some helpful information about average budgets, percentages spent on various categories, and some tips on prioritizing .  Any wedding planning website  should be viewed only as a guide, as different budget categories will vary depending on areas of the wedding that are higher priorities for you.    Be prepared for your parents to suffer some sticker shock if this is the first wedding they’ve been involved in planning for 20+ years.  Hiring a wedding consultant/planner at this stage of the game is a great move. If you plan to work with a wedding consultant, budget planning is an area she or he can be very helpful with as well. Once the budget is established then you can move ahead to securing a location for your wedding, setting the date  and putting your other wedding vendors in place.

Photo Save the Date from Tag & Company

After you've set a date you may want to get some Save the Date cards sent out, ideally six to eight months in advance of your wedding.  This helps your guests with busy schedules do some advance planning, particularly if they need to make travel arrangements.  Paper Passionista is a great option to visit with and I'll be happy to help you look at Save the Date options, along with other wedding stationery you'll want to coordinate for the various events surrounding your wedding.  Enjoy your planning, and I'll look forward to meeting with you sometime in the near future!

 

Rein Fire Ranch is a wonderful new location for your outdoor summer wedding

Rein Fire Ranch in the Sugarloaf Mountain Valley

Over the past year Paper Passionista has had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know Rich Kaalaas, owner of the newly opened event facility, Rein Fire Ranch.  Rich has built this beautiful ranch setting into the perfect spot for weddings.  It's been fun talking to him and following the progress of the Ranch and he's now ready to book weddings May through September at Rein Fire Ranch, accommodating groups up to 300. For rates and more information visit their website: http://reinfireranch.com/rates.html.  Paper Passionista is looking forward to creating many fun invitations for outdoor garden weddings at Rein Fire Ranch!

Kaalaas describes the property like this:

"Nestled within the serene Sugarloaf Mountain valley, and only 45 minutes from downtown Seattle and Tacoma, Rein Fire Ranch is the ideal setting for your ideal moments. Whether you are looking for a uniquely beautiful backdrop to stage your own event, or a full service team to do it for you, at Rein Fire Ranch we strive to exceed your expectations. Spread out over more than 10 acres, this rustic country setting includes a number of unique features, allowing you to freely customize your event. Relaxing meadows make for a perfect setting for your ceremony, outdoor reception or special gathering. Our cocktail cabana allows for a more intimate affair, and a nearby guest house is available as a bridal suite or your event headquarters. We look forward to seeing you here, and making your moment ideal."

A view of the garden and ceremony area from the Cabana deck

The beautiful ceremony gazebo

An inside view of the cocktail cabana

Wedding guests enjoying the Rein Fire Ranch garden

Feeling like a winter outdoor wedding?  How beautiful is this?!?

In honor of Referendum 74's passage we give you "Bella Bride"

Please follow this link to read an article about a very heartfelt and homespun wedding featured on the blog of Bella Figura last year.  Greatest part about this wedding is the women who married were from our very own Olympia, Washington.  Enjoy, and congratulations to all the couples in the great State of Washington who will now be able to celebrate their love in the same way all other couples have been accustomed forever.  The ladies featured in this article were just ahead of the curve.  Enjoy! On behalf of same sex couples everywhere, THANK YOU for voting to approve Referendum 74.  Paper Passionista is looking forward to working with all couples, regardless of their sexual orientation.

Bella Figura and Paper Passionista are awarding VOTING with a special offer!

Our wonderful socially conscious friends at Bella Figura just let us know there's a reward out there for all of you who take your civic duty seriously and VOTE on or before November 6.  This promotion offers 25 free invitation sets when you purchase 75, just for voting.  So they're buying your votes???  Seems so, but the good news is, no one from Bella Figura is on your ballot so all they're really buying is your participation as a good citizen.

So what's the catch? You must have someone take a photo of you or your partner in the act of voting.  The promotion said you needed to have a photo of you at the polls, but I let the kind folks at Bella Figura know that here in the great State of Washington we don't go to the polls, so they said a photo of you as you begin to fill out your ballot (but before you actually fill anything in because they would NEVER want to peak at who you're voting for).  The other catch? You must place your Bella Figura order with Paper Passionista in time for it to be completed and submitted to Bella Figura  no later than November 30, 2013.

HAPPY VOTING, and Paper Passionista looks forward to helping you with your Bella Figura wedding invitation order in the near (very near) future. This is the equivalent to 25% off of Bella Figura invitations, and this is an unheard of offer from one of the most popular letterpress invitation lines on the planet.  Enjoy reaping the benefits of fulfilling your civic duty!!

Tying your wedding day look together through Invitations & Stationery

Delightful wedding program beautifully photographed by Belathee Photography

Our friends at True Colors Events posted about one of their weddings from 2011, and it took Paper Passionista back to last year when we were working with their delightful clients,  Lyndsey and Bobby.  In our part of the wedding (invitations and stationery coordinates for the wedding day) we are often unable to see the finished product and how what we've helped create comes together with all the other details.  The shots provided from this wedding at the beautiful Cave B Inn at Sagecliff, Quincy, WA, show how a wedding's paper details can so perfectly tie everything else together.

It all begins with the invitation, which Paper Passionista created with the help of Designers Fine Press to give a glimpse to guests of the yellow color scheme and the whimsical wind-tossed feel that would be carried throughout the wedding.

Invitation and directions card from Paper Passionista

 See how beautifully the bridesmaid dresses and bouquets by Fiore Blossoms mimic the tone set by the invitation?

Photo by Belathee Photography 

 Moving on to the reception, see how the table cards once again have that 'blown in the wind' motif, but very subtly? (The place cards did too, but I don't have any photographic examples of that for you.)

Photo by Belathee Photography 

And last, but definitely not least, look at how this gorgeous but simple cake from Creme de la Creme shows us the wind-blown flowers just one more time. 

Photo by Belathee Photography

Such a simple motif that ties everything together for one beautiful and well executed event.  Great job, True Colors Events!!! And thank you, Lyndsey and Bobby, for allowing Paper Passionista to have a part in your special day.

Where in the world has August gone? Paper Passionista has been happily distracted by lots of clients, and even coordinating a wedding!!

Sara and Mike Montgomery with their officiant taking their vows at the Plateau Club

I just now slowed down long enough to take a look at my last post, and was shocked to see it was four weeks ago!  I'm so sorry that I've kept you waiting so long, but I promise you I've been busy with lots of productive activities, all of which involve weddings and invitations.  I've always had a commitment to post at least once a week and I promise to get back on track going forward. 

 I'd like to devote this post to telling you about the wedding I was lucky to coordinate Friday night (August 24) at the beautiful Plateau Club in Sammamish, WA.  Yes, I said it - I returned to my roots of wedding coordinating for one very special bride, Ms. Sara Hostetter, and her groom, Mike Montgomery (pictured above).  I've known Sara and her family since her father and I began working together at Children's Protective Services way back in 1985, and we've remained close family friends ever since.  Sara, at the young age of 8, attended my wedding to Jim O'Donnell  back in 1988 with her sister, Lisa (Hostetter now  Worthington), and their parents, Eunice and Dennis Hostetter.  And now, 24 years later, there I was at her wedding.  Sara's dad, Dennis, was the videographer at our wedding, and her mom, Eunice, helped me out from time to time when needed at my former wedding boutique.  So now it made perfect sense that I would happily agree to coordinate Sara's wedding, just like I did for her sister Lisa's wedding 14 years ago. (Back then I was a full time wedding coordinator with "Last Detail Events".)  After all, it's what friends do, right?

In addition to wedding coordination services, Paper Passionista was also pleased to work with Sara and Mike on their wedding invitations. They chose a lovely ivory and champagne layered invitation with ribbon embellishment from bt elements, and it perfectly mimicked the color scheme of the bridesmaids' dresses.  Here it is!

 

When Sara and Mike became engaged and began talking about plans for the wedding there was some discussion about  having a destination wedding in Maui.  But due to logistics that didn't seem feasible, so Sara and her mom, Eunice, decided to have a Hawaiian themed wedding and do it on the outdoor deck of the Plateau Club overlooking the golf course. With the gorgeous weather and the setting, it was hard to notice we weren't actually at the Diamond Course in Waileia on Maui! Timing was such that the ceremony ended right at sunset, and what a beautiful sunset it was!  Sara and Mike included a sand ceremony in the festivities to keep the theme going.  The entire ceremony was written by the couple and beautifully officiated by Kristin Olson of "Best Seattle Officiant", a long-time family acquaintance.  The florals were luscious tropicals  from TJ Blooms, lanterns lined the aisle, tiki torches and palms trimmed the front, and the "Hawaiian Wedding Song" and other selections were played masterfully by Susan Haas, harpist extraordinaire.  The bride, always a knock-out, was even more gorgeous in her strapless and ruffled gown from Princess Bride Couture, with hair and makeup by Salon Maison.

Here's a full length view of the dress as Sara waits to make her entrance on the arm of her dad.

After the ceremony, Sara and Mike greeted and treated their guests to a delicious dinner reception with halibut and chicken entrees featuring Hawaiian preparations and garnishes, and toppped it off with a wedding cake that was coconut with a pineapple filling from Morfey's Cakes in Seattle.  The reception's emcee and DJ for the evening was Travis of Adam's DJ Service. The Hawaiian theme was followed flawlessly from beginning to end, and Sara's mom, Eunice should be VERY proud of her execution of this exquisite wedding.  As she said in a Facebook post, Sara was their dream girl so it only made sense that she should have her dream wedding.  Dreamy it was, and I was just very proud to be a part of it.  I want to thank my dear hubby, Jim O'Donnell, as he filled his time at the wedding clicking many photos while I was busy with my coordination duties, so I've been able to use his shots for this article. (The couple of course also had a professional photographer on hand, as this wedding coordinator emeritus would NEVER suggest to any bride to have "Uncle Jim" or "Uncle Anybody" take their precious official wedding photos. This isn't the time for amateurs!)

Here's a shot of the yummy Morfey's Hawaiian cake

 I want to wish a HUGE CONGRATULATIONS to the new Mr. and Mrs. Montgomery, and may you enjoy many long years of happiness in your new life. Mahalo for allowing Paper Passionista to share in your day!

A kiss for luck and they're on their way!

Now Paper Passionista will be back to focusing on invitations for special couples, and the next two blog posts will be about two of our new lines which have arrived this month while I've been too busy to tell you about them.  Stay tuned.  But for now, here a couple more photos from Friday's wedding. You'll see the proud mother and father of the bride making their exit, and big sister and hubby, Lisa and Darrin Worthington looking wonderful as they did on their wedding days 14 years ago.  And we can't forget a shot of their two darling offspring, otherwise known as flower girls Alexcia and Kailee. What a great family affair it was!  Cheers!!

"M.O.B. and F.O.B." Eunice and Dennis Hostetter

"Lady of Honor" and hubby, Lisa and Darrin Worthington

Lisa & Darrin's daughter's, the flower girls Alexcia (in front) followed by "KK" (Kailee)

Sara and Mike, may your cause for celebration never end so this fairy tale can end with "and they lived happily every after". The end.

Not to be outdone, Bella Figura introduces a new Seattle cityscape invitation at Paper Passionista

Some new invitation designs just arrived at Paper Passionista, and Bella Figura has done it again.  Their new Seattle cityscape invitation, Charmed Seattle, features a panoramic view of Seattle's skyline and the Space Needle.  This one differs from the version from Alice Louise Press which debuted in my last post, which features a different Seattle landmark on each piece of the ensemble.  Isn't it great to have choices?  Here's a photo of Charmed Seattle:

"Charmed Seattle" by Bella Figura

Palisade Wedding Open House was a great stage for Paper Passionista to show the latest in reception tabletop paper trends

Beautiful weather combined with a scenic setting made Palisade the best place to be on April 28, 2012

Palisade Restaurant's Alani room was all decked out this past Sunday afternoon, with seven different tablescapes to get brides' creative juices flowing.  This Bridal Open House event, hosted by Robin Schauer and her team at Palisade, and masterfully designed by Katy Griffiths of VOWS Wedding and Event Planning was where we had a chance to visit with lots of fun couples working on plans for their upcoming weddings.  With centerpieces created by Aria Style, chair covers and linens provided by Cort, and paper goods by Paper Passionista, each of the tables gave a different spin to wedding style.  Thanks to Azzura Photography we have some photos to show some of the different paper creations we provided for the themes and schemes on the tables.  There was much more to the day than our paper focus will show you, so for more highlights be sure and visit the Palisade Facebook page.

Inside the Alani Room, a great setting at Palisade for small wedding receptions or rehearsal dinners

Fresh and green was the theme for this natural tablescape, featuring menu card and place cards by Alice Louise Press

Black and white with splashes of yellow and pink were right on-trend, according to the latest issue of Stationery Trends magazine, which actually featured this Umi placecard ensemble on their cover.  The menu card was from the Dauphine Press line of exquisite paper goods.

Another up-close shot of the Dauphine Press menu card with Aria Style's beautiful yellow tulips as the back-drop

Dauphine Press provided this menu card for the classic silver formal table scape

Purple was the theme for this table featuring paper goods from Umi by Elum

Another close-up shot of the Umi place card, with Aria Style's purple florals as the back-drop

This elegant menu card from Designers Fine Press was featured at the gold elegance table

This beautiful peony themed menu card from Umi looked tailor-made to coordinate with Aria Style's centerpiece

This cute paper collection by Umi shows red and aqua paired for a playful spin on paper goods. This one would be so perfect for elementary school teachers tying the knot!

Another shot, closeup, of the precious Umi menu card at the fun red and aqua table

Our hosts for the day, the super staff at Palisade Restaurant

What was not to love about a gorgeous day spent along side Elliott Bay Marina, looking back at a view of the City?!?

A wonderful time was had by all, and thank you to Palisade Restaurant for hosting such a fun event.  I also want to thank calligrapher extraordinaire, Kelli Reiter of Kelligraphy, for providing the personalizations on all of the place cards for the event tables. Her skills never cease to amaze me!