Time for Winter!

The weather is getting chillier and it's time to find some fun things to do indoors! One of my favorite sites for entertaining my creative side and filling lulls on quiet evenings is Polyvore.com

The site lets you either clip fashion and design inspiration from other websites to piece together your own collections or use items that other users have already found to spark your imagination!

Their latest newsletter contained this cute piece of advice - "Glow without outshining the bride by taking clues from the invitation. Is the script flowery on beige paper or is it more modern? Is it outdoors or indoors? You may want to bring layers and even a change of shoes if you want to get down on the dance floor!"

What to Wear to a Winter Wedding by polyvore-editorial featuring a bow clutch

And this weekend, as the weather FINALLY turns colder down here,  I put together my own winter inspiration board!

Winter Chill by lindseymason featuring suede shoes

Cool Shots PhotoLounge heads to a Bar Mitzvah

Well, 2009 was a very cool year for the Cool Shots PhotoLounge and it's off to a great start in 2010 as well!  One of the first events of the year was a Bar Mitzvah for a really cool guy named Charlie.  Charlie and his family worked very hard on all the details and it showed!  The theme of the event was karate, since Charlie is a black belt, and the colors were black, red, & white.  They had a DJ for entertainment, the PhotoLounge, an airbrush artist, a sorbet & ice cart, yummy food including a candy rollup that looked like sushi, and then a "take-out" candy counter where the guests chose their favorite candies to take home and enjoy!  So many cute details are sure to make an event feel special and really show the time and effort that was put into the planning.  It was this attention to detail that inspired the next 'upgrade' for the Cool Shots PhotoLounge.

Now,  if you're not familiar with the "PhotoLounge" concept yet - I'll catch you up :)  We take the Photo Booth and create a lounge by surrounding it in drape and then add in a bench and lamp for a swanky effect.  Add in some silly props plus the happy party-goers and you have hours of entertainment!  Typically with an event with a guest of honor, like a birthday, bar/bat mitzvah, or a wedding, we also put together a scrapbook for them to keep.  The Photo Booth prints out two identical prints - one goes home with the guest as a keepsake and the other goes into the scrapbook.  Well, for this event, we had the help of a professional scrapbooker, Dina Glass with Close to My Heart Scrapbooks, and boy did she make a difference!  Her cool scrapbook pages were just another element of planning that really added some "Wow" factor to the final product!  Here is a picture of a couple of the finished pages (the kids got to add on the photostrips & stickers themselves).

The next week, I grabbed up some colored paper and a few scrapbooking supplies and tried to recreate the look myself!  It was much more challenging than I had expected but also a lot of fun.  It inspired me to pay more attention to this aspect of the PhotoLounge. Putting together the scrapbook at an event is just another cool activity to engage your guests.  It lets them be spontaneous and creative, while also giving them a chance to leave special messages to the guest(s) of honor.   I get chill bumps thinking about how twenty years from now, Charlie will find that scrapbook and look back through it, and have such a great record of everyone that was there and all of the fun they had.  To be able to be a part of someone's biggest life events like that is truly one of the greatest rewards of my job.  Thanks to Charlie & his family for having us out, and special thanks for letting me make a few choices from the candy counter :)  Also, here are a few of the scrapbook pages that I did -

The First Bride of 2010!

Happy New Year!!                  I  am so happy to share some pictures with you all from the first wedding of 2010, although Feel the Beat was not involved with the event.  My long-time friend and former college roommate got married to her high school sweetheart on January 1, 2010!  The event was held at Jester's Florist in downtown Tuscaloosa.   The setting was casual and intimate, with only the bride & groom's closest friends and family in attendance, which fit this couple perfectly.  The entire occasion was filled with unique & personal touches that really spoke to the couple's personalities and proved that even on a smaller budget, you can still create an event that reflects your style.

The venue was a unique space in historic downtown with an open, lofty feel and more space outside to mingle by the fire pits.  The food served was a twist on typical New Year's Day fare with black-eye peas, ham sandwich sliders, and spanakopita to reflect the groom's Greek heritage, but made with greens so that we can all look forward to a prosperous new year! In lieu of the traditional wedding cake, we had bridal cookies from Celebrations Bakery and a Little Debbie groom's cake from Mary's Cakes!   I have to admit, I was nervous about Swiss Rolls on a cake but one bite and I was a believer! Yummy!

Tables were decorated in silver and white to create a simple and elegant background.   Carnations, packed tight in large, low silver urns, took on an elegant air surrounded by candlelight in the center of the tables.  Even the music was hand-picked by the bride & groom and had all of their favorites including Band of Horses' beautiful ode "No One's Going to Love You" (which seems like an unromantic title until you hear the next line - "more than I do").  It was a beautiful event with special touches everywhere and I was happy to be a part of it!  Here's to more beautiful weddings in 2010!!

Linda & Harriet Moose Lovelies

Linda & Harriet Moose Lovelies: "



I am loving all the moose items over on the Linda & Harriet site for the holidays. Go check them out!  Although, I think these are mainly for Christmas gifts, this is such a great example of how to tie a theme into various parts of your wedding.  Start with a basic image used on your printed materials - invitations, save-the-dates, etc - and carry it on throughout the events with it recurring in the placecards at the rehearsal dinner, a theme for the cake table, or incorporate it into the favors.  It creates a great unity and ties everything in to your special day!

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Get with the Program!

If you are looking for an easy way to add some creativity into your wedding ceremony, there are tons of ways to play up your program!   The program is a great guide for guests to know what to expect during the ceremony, but it can also convey theme, formality, and a little bit of personality!

I loved these 'ribbon' folded programs pictured to the left!  How clever to just use the way the program is folded to make a statement!  The color is gorgeous and I can imagine it makes a stunning presentation to have them all stacked at the entrance to your venue.

Are you serving a delicious dish at the reception?  Include the recipe in the program, and your guests leave with more than just a favor.  If it's a family recipe be sure to give credit!  Personalize it even more by including a short explanation of why you and your fiancee love the dish or how it came to be a family favorite!

Bless the Broken Road

I found a wedding idea today that I just love! It was featured on Laura Hooper Calligraphy, a green invitation company located in LA (no not Lower Alabama!). She creates Emotional Maps for couples that show the journey of their lives, when they met, and dates that have been important in the relationship. What a wonderful way to share some of the more personal highlights of you and your fiancee's courtship with all of your friends and family!  You could also use this idea to map out the locations of all the events that are taking place on your wedding weekend.  Check out the website for more ideas for using the map for save-the-dates, programs, or just on display at the reception!

Green Tip of the Day: Use local, seasonal flowers

Did you know that there are 2.5 million weddings a year in the United States, with an average of more than 150 guests each.  When you add up all of the stuff that goes into weddings (single-use bleached white dresses, chemically treated imported flowers, toxic makeup and skin care products, mined gem-based jewelry, individual packets of rice, etc.) you see that the environmental impact from these events is enormous.


Going green for your wedding day may not be as difficult as you might think.  There are hundreds of things that you can do to cut down your wedding day's impact on the environment and every little bit helps!  


Today's tip is to talk to your florist about using local flowers.  Flowers that do not have to be transported long distances have less of an ecological impact and flowers that are in season during your wedding will already be a perfect match with the season of your event.  You can even take it a step further and re-purpose old teapots like the ones shown in the picture to use as centerpieces that will benefit not only the earth, but also your wallet!


For more green wedding tips, check out The Green Bride Guide at http://www.thegreenbrideguide.com/