Wedding Inspiration: A Fiesta At Carnivale!

Dear readers, it can be tough to choose a venue. Once you have your venue locked in, the style of your wedding  is also limited. We booked a historic mansion for our wedding because we wanted a wedding that is formal and elegant with a bit of vintage flair. I'm really happy about our decision but I can easily imagine us getting married other places too.

One such place is Carnivale in the West Loop.  I l-o-v-e the bright colors and creative lighting. And their private dining menu seriously makes my mouth water! Ropa vieja with crispy plantains? Yes please!

The Samba Room, one of several rooms you can rent for your reception or rehearsal dinner. Photo via carnivalechicago.com

Of course we would have to have a salsa band. Because the venue is so colorful and lively, I would wear sassy little number to match:

Jules by Monique Lhuillier, via brides.com

As you already know, I'm a serious shoe addict. And a short dress calls for a show-stopping pair of shoes. I'd wear heels in Valentino red:

At $695, these Valentino babies are a little out of my price range. But a girl can dream, right?
Photo via http://store.valentino.com.

My lovely bridesmaids would wear short dresses in a variety of brilliant colors that coordinate with the venue. I'm imagining bright blue, red, pink, green, yellow...

Priscilla of Boston, style no. PB401. If ever there was a "wear again"
bridesmaids dress, this is definitely it.

Our champagne toast would be a mojito toast and we would have pictures of sangria on each table for dinner. For dessert, I'd have either classic flan or Caribbean fruit cake soaked in rum.

As for my groom, he would wear a black, slim-fitting one-button suit. I like this one by Armani:

He'd wear a skinny tie and would skip the boutonniere in favor of a square-folded pocket handkerchief.
I say "he," but let's be real--he usually just wears what I want him to wear. Photo via emporioarmani.com.
  

Since I'm half Aruban, our favors would be cigars made from Aruban tobacco for the gentlemen and cocadas (coconut candies) to the ladies.

Yum! Cocadas, cocadas with cloves and brown sugar, and cocadas with condensed milk. Photo via maria-brazil.org.

Sounds like a pretty great party to me! If you could have a wedding re-do, what kind of venue would you choose? Would you go for a totally different style of wedding?

Introducing: Good Reads for Brides

Check out All Dressed in White: The Irresistible Rise of the American Wedding at Amazon or Barnes & Noble. Carol McD. Wallace's blog is carolwallace.wordpress.com.

Are you going to read All Dressed in White? What's your favorite/most useful wedding book? Can you recommend any books for me to review in future installments of Good Reads for Brides?

Shopping For Wedding Vendors: A Few Ways I'm Keeping My Sanity

by Samantha, via Wikimedia Commons

How many wedding photogs are there in Chicago? Only a gazillion or so. How many DJs and bands for hire? Way more than I can count. And reception venues? Don't even get me started.

The metropolitan area of Chicago has, quite literally, thousands of talented and professional vendors who are happy to provide their services at your wedding. Unfortunately, it's your job to sort those vendors to find the ones who are perfect for your budget and style.

Now I'm a persnickety person with an obsessive streak and control issues, so my natural inclination is to spend hours slogging through lists of bakeries, photographers, and officiants. But as I found out rather quickly, it can be time-consuming and overwhelming. I had to figure out ways to shorten the search so here's what I've done so far:

1. Ask your friends. Browse your friends' wedding albums and ask which of their vendors went above and beyond on the big day. Some of them may even have personal connections with vendors (which may translate into discounts!). One of my married friends sent me a link to her online album and the name of her photographer. If she says her photographer was great, then I definitely want to check him out!

2. Narrow your search based on location. If you choose a bakery or florist a few miles from your reception site, they may be willing to waive any delivery fees since the distance is negligible. At the very least, you may be able to negotiate lower fees. And if you choose a photographer who has previously shot weddings at your venue, he may be familiar with the layout, the lighting, and the best spots for portraits. That kind of knowledge will translate into better photos and a better album after the event.

3. Select a few large resource websites to search for vendors. Pick two or three that you like, preferably the ones you find easiest to navigate. You've already tried The Knot, right? I also like Wedding Wire, My Chicago Wedding, Chicago Bridal, and Chicago Style Weddings. Don't try to wade through every vendor catalog on the internet. You will go mad and start pulling your hair out. And you don't want to be a bald, crazy bride, now do you?

4. Throw in the towel and hire a wedding planner. I haven't gotten to this point yet, but I can see why some brides consider their planners a must-have. An event planner has been to a million weddings, dinners, and galas. She can recommend vendors she trusts and can sometimes negotiate lower rates. Sounds like a pretty good deal to me!

How are you searching for and choosing vendors for your wedding? Can you recommend any vendors or websites for me to check out?

This Will Be A (Gluten-Free) Cakewalk: Planning A Wedding With Food Allergies

So delish! I'm craving a piece of chocolate cake right now! (Via Style Me Pretty)

First, I should give a shout-out to Chelsea Clinton, who made life a tiny bit easier for gluten-free brides when she planned a gluten-free wedding of her own. Like Chelsea, I have a gluten intolerance. Fortunately I chose a venue well accustomed to catering gluten-free events. The venue consultant assured me that they prepare gluten-free dishes quite frequently and that she would work with me to draw up a dinner menu sans gluten. The cake, however, is a different matter.

Since I cut gluten out of my diet over a year ago, I have a new appreciation for piece of sweet, decadent cake. And if there's one day I want to enjoy an edible slice of heaven, it's my wedding day. Because gluten-free bakeries are harder to come by, I have several options. This could be a difficult choice!

1. I could go full monty and shell out for a big, fancy gluten-free cake. The upside is I could eat as much of it as I want. After all, it's my wedding! I want be able to eat the effing cake! But, and this is a huge downside, a large gluten-free cake will probably come with a big price tag.

Based on a some quick research, I'd estimate that a full-size sheet cake will cost around $150-$200. A regular tiered wedding cake will usually set you back at least $500, so a gluten-free tiered cake will very likely cost upwards of $700 or $800 (gluten-free flours and mixes are often double the cost of regular white flour). There are some aspects of the wedding I'm willing to pay big bucks for, but $800 for flipping cake? That's highway robbery!

2. I could serve regular cake and a gluten-free groom's cake. The added bonus here is that the groom's cake would be virtually free! My own dear mother is a fabulous baker and cake decorator. I don't want to saddle her with the job of making my main wedding cake. She's done it before for other people, and it seriously stresses and exhausts her. And she'll have plenty of other things to do to prepare for the big day. But a groom's cake, a smaller and easier creation, is something she could manage just fine. Still, I'll be a little sad when I have to cut into that beautiful cake and can't have a piece for myself.

3. I could serve a different dessert altogether. I'd need to talk my mother into this. Traditionalist that she is, she thinks our reception will be seriously lacking without a "real" wedding cake. But the brilliant bakers at Swirlz Cupcakes in Lincoln Park make the most yummy gluten-free cupcakes you can imagine. And Nitro Dessert Station offers a mobile ice cream maker, which means you can have fresh, homemade ice cream served at your reception. (I sampled their ice cream at a bridal expo. It was seriously scrumptious!)

What should I do? Should I spring for a gluten-free or should I go with a more creative option? Do you or any of your guests have food allergies? Will you plan a customized menu for your reception?

Choosing Your Venue: Three Things to Consider Before You Sign that Contract

The first major step planning your wedding is choosing a venue. And hopefully that venue is a gorgeous space that truly suits you and your fiance, a place where you can envision your wedding from the very beginning.

Once you've established a budget and a rough guest list, it's time to go venue shopping. But before you sign a contract for that special place, here are a few things to consider:

1. Where would it be most convenient to host my wedding? If your family lives in Indiana and your sister is your go-to person for dress shopping and DYI projects, you might want to reconsider that lovely venue in Evanston. Or at least know that location may cause you some extra headaches in the planning process.

2. What style do I hope to achieve at the ceremony and/or reception? More than any other element, your venue can reinforce or undermine the mood or theme of your wedding. If you're the traditional sort, your reception will feel out of place at a downtown loft, no matter how pretty or stylish the loft is. If you get married in a church (particularly the old, stained glass sort), people will assume you're at least moderately religious.

3. Does this venue suit my priorities? Want awesome food at your reception? Book a trendy restaurant. Or would you prefer a huge dance floor? Then a banquet hall or hotel will give you what you want. Better yet, before you go venue shopping, make a list of three things you absolutely want at your wedding. Take that list with you as you visit different sites. It will immediately help you narrow down your options.

Have you picked your venue yet? I've picked mine (more on that later!). If not, what are your three "must-haves" for your ceremony and/or reception site?