So, without further ado, please join me in welcoming Sarah Gai to our team! Thanks to Elle Parks Photography for the sweet headshot and fun team pictures below!

I also just had to post a picture of Sarah from her wedding…she was so poised and stunning on her wedding day and truly had a blast! Her hubby Nathan is pretty cool too. This sweet pic is from the uber talented Laurel McConnell Photography (miss you, Laurel!!) For more pics from Sarah and Nathan’s wedding check out their feature on Style Me Pretty here!

I just adore our new Sweet Pea Team pictured below!  Sarah made the trek to Dallas in April to work a wedding with us, to develop her strategy for the Seattle office, and to experience Texas! We loved having her here, and are so excited to officially bring her on board.

Here’s the proof that we’re slightly dorky and try not to take life too seriously…we’re spelling out “SPE” for Sweet Pea Events – get it?  

Welcome, Sarah!!!

Shannon and Scott – married in Oregon on 6.29.07

Sweet Pea’s name – Jace, 2 years old

Jennifer and Gavin – married in Seattle on 7.4.08

Sweet Pea’s Name – Brighton – 21 months

Jill and Ben – married in Seattle on 8.16.08

Sweet Pea’s Name – Jacob, 7 months

Michelle and Brian – married in Seattle on 7.5.08

Sweet Pea’s Name – Stella, 1 year

Amy and Jonathan – married in Seattle on 9.13.08

Sweet Pea’s Name – Ian, 7 months

Angela and Danny – married on 9.18.10 in Fort Worth, TX

Sweet Peas Names – Carter, 2 1/2 and Hayes, 9 months

Happy Mother’s Day!

Not only do we plan fabulous weddings, but we like to plan social events as well. We were contacted last year to help coordinate a 1940’s themed New Year’s Eve party! We were super excited to help bring this party to life. We started off by creating an inspiration board and then brought in some amazing vendors including a jazz band to complete this party!

Please enjoy these awesome pictures from Amber Knowles Photography!

NYE Event Team:

Catering: Eddie Deen’s Catering

Photography: Amber Knowles Photography

Jazz Band: Serenata Strings

Floral and Décor: DiFiori

Event Planning: Sweet Pea Events

You’ve picked your bridesmaids and now you’re searching for the perfect bridesmaid dresses. You are probably realizing it is hard to find a dress that will flatter all six or seven of your bridesmaids. So what should you do about it? How about let your bridesmaids pick their own dresses? EEEEK. That is a scary thought! What if they don’t pick the right color? What if it is hideous? We went ahead and asked one of our past brides, Caroline, how she handled letting her bridesmaids choose their own dresses.

You may have seen Caroline and Nick’s wedding posted on our blog last week! Here is what Caroline had to say:

“I just let my bridesmaids choose their own dresses (they came from JCrew, BHLDN, Nordstrom, TJ Maxx and Dillards) . Lucky for me, I have friends with great taste and they all know what looks good on them and since the grey colors for the season were really only in two shades, it worked out well. I think the best part about the dresses was the way the colors looked the same- I believe this was accomplished by me giving examples of colors I liked to the girls — I chose 4 dresses that I liked the color and style-theme, cocktail, of and emailed them with instructions. So then as each girl chose her dress, I emailed a picture of it to all the girls so they each had an idea of what the overall look was. And then I saved the pics in a word doc so I could see them all together. And one dress REALLY didn’t work and so I gave her a dress I thought matched the other girls and she was happy with that! Anyway, I think the key points are:

1) totally let go of style restrictions if you’re letting them choose their own dresses and you’re NOT selecting a company to specifically buy from (like don’t say it has to be strapless or something). And if you make a style restriction and someone chooses a dress violating it, try to let it go until you can see the big picture of all the dresses. This helps because it’s really hard for the girls to choose a dress that’s actually cute when you put too many restrictions on the dress or tell her she has to choose something you, the bride, would like. I learned this from being in a wedding where I chose my own bridesmaid dress.

2) I think it also helped that I decided one of the "themes" of my wedding was "doesn’t match". Because I had a look of things not being uniform, it all fit and seemed cohesive. “

Photo courtesy of Perez Photography

Caroline and Nick tied the knot last summer right here in Dallas! Their ceremony took place at Highland Park United Methodist Church and the reception was held at 333 First Avenue. We loved Caroline and Nick’s super simple and modern style with succulents and shades of gray.

Caroline and Nick’s wedding was also featured on Junebug Weddings last month. Be sure to check out the post with Caroline and Nick’s input on their wedding planning process here!

Thank you so much to Perez Photography for these amazing images!

Caroline + Nick’s Wedding Team:

Photographer: Perez Photography
Event Planner: Sweet Pea Events
Ceremony Venue: Highland Park United Methodist Church
Reception Venue: 333 First Avenue
Invitations: Wedding Paper Divas
Catering and Rentals: Edisons
Personal Flowers: Red Sole Events
Centerpieces: Bride & Family, with boxes from Ikea
Cake: Sugar Bee Sweets
Wedding dress: Monique Lhuillier
Bride’s Shoes: Jimmy Choo
Groom and Groomsmen Apparel and Accessories: Al’s Formal Wear
Hair: Katie Page at Green Peridot Salon
Make-up: Kay Castro
Live music: Identity Theft
Dance instruction: Vow to Dance
Favors: Pecan Pralines made by bride
Stickers: Sweet Sanity on Etsy.com
Calligraphy Return Address Stamp: Emilie Friday
Tissue Paper for Pom-Poms: Container Store
Glow Sticks: Glow With Us

When your big day finally arrives, you typically have guests that are coming from all over to help you celebrate. In order to make sure they feel welcomed and are prepared for your wedding weekend you can package together a welcome bag that is given upon their arrival. We have compiled a list of fun items that you may want to include for your guests. Being in Dallas we made this list Texas friendly, but you can customize it to your city, state, or the destination of your wedding!

• Bottled Water
• Tylenol
• Starbucks VIA
• Dr Pepper
• Granola Bars
• Hand Sanitizer
• Sunscreen
• Bug Repellent
• Gift Card to Whataburger
• Lint Rollers
• Tide To-Go Pen
• Tissues
• Popcorn
• Mints
• Band-aids
• Chap stick
• Things to do in Area
• Local Restaurants List
• Bottle of Stubb’s BBQ Sauce
• Wedding Weekend Timeline

Photo taken from Martha Stewart Weddings

We have many upcoming weddings and we wanted to share one of our sweet couples and their engagement photos taken by the lovely Allison Davis! Lindsay and Russell are getting married next month on May 5th at The Trinity River Audubon Center. We are absolutely thrilled about their wedding and can’t wait to be a part of their big day! Be sure to check out blog to see other fun weddings we are working on here at Sweet Pea Events!

We are so excited to be working with this talented couple in a few weeks and just wanted to share a little about them on our blog today! Please meet Sara and Rocky Garza of Sara and Rocky Photography!

• How did you get started in the Photography business, and specifically with weddings?

Sara got her first camera when she graduated from college in 2008 and we started taking photos together just as a hobby. We thought we were SO good at first, (we were awful) but we found that we really enjoyed doing it together. After about a year and a half of taking as many photos as we could, Sara resigned from her job as an architect and went full-time as a photographer. Once she was full-time, we decided that we wanted to try our hand at wedding photography. We shot our first wedding in March of 2010 and fell in love with it. The more we shot the more we realized that this is exactly the type of photography we wanted to be doing. Rocky resigned from his job as a pastor in February of 2011 and now we both shoot full-time exclusively as wedding photographers!

• What is your typical day like as a Wedding Photographer on the day of the wedding, and also on a non-wedding day?

Wedding days start like any other day for us. We have coffee, take our dog Samson out Rocky makes breakfast. Then we get our gear ready and head out the door. Once we arrive, Sara heads off with the ladies and Rocky goes with the guys and we start shooting. We shoot all day long (usually 8 hours) and love every minute of it! Especially the cake! As for a non-wedding day, we have the same routine as above. Coffee, Samson and breakfast. Then the majority of the day is spent editing images, emailing and taking Samson to play a little fetch. We try to squeeze a run in here and there and usually at the end of day by having dinner with clients or just some friends!

• What would you say makes your style or personality unique from other Photographers?

We are both very relational people. We love to get to know our clients personally and we have every one of our bride and grooms over to our home for dinner, (that we cook), before the wedding day. We really want to take authentic and emotional images and feel that the best way for us to do that is to make a real investment in our clients. Our business is personal to us and we love it that way!

• What are some of your favorite images from your portfolio?

• Favorite tips or advice for the bride and grooms to be?

1. Remember why you are getting married; it is not to have pretty flowers, crazy details or out do all your other friends, it is about committing to each other in the company of your dearest friends and family that you love each other, forever.

2. HAVE FUN!

• When you aren’t working, what are some of your favorite things to do?

We love to travel. We want to go to every continent! Sara loves to read and Rocky loves to do anything but read! We love playing with our dog Samson and we are both active so running and biking are on the top of the list too! We are self-proclaimed foodies, so great dinner with friends happens quite often and we will never turn down a glass of red wine (Sara) or scotch (Rocky).

• What are some of your favorite venues in the DFW area, and why?

If it is outdoor we love it! Sunshine is our best friend, so any venue that has lots of window or is outside is perfect!

As wedding planners we are asked so often where are great places to host your rehearsal dinner. It’s so easy to get swept up in the planning of your wedding day that you may push aside the night before. We have created a list of some of our favorite rehearsal dinner locations and wanted to share with all of our readers! A fun fact about Sweet Pea Events is that we also plan rehearsal dinners! If you are interested in those planning packages please feel free to contact us!

Dallas Locations:

Sambuca Uptown - Enjoy the casual sophistication of Sambuca. With private and semi-private space, and live music nightly, Sambuca is the perfect place to host your wedding festivities. From engagement parties to rehearsal dinners.

Private Social – With two distinct themes, this space offers an intimate dining experience showcasing a full lunch menu, along with a dinner menu of delicacies in Private, and a casual and stylish lounge area featuring shared-plates in Social. While the menu is chef-driven, it remains accessible to every palette and every wallet.

Mattito’s - The best Mexican food can be found in the Dallas area. Mattito’s has established such a strong reputation that it’s well-known by many throughout the entire country, not just the Dallas area. That’s because this isn’t just your average Mexican restaurant. You can rest assured that everything will be of the highest quality. After all, the food here is based on 50 years of family recipes.

Maggiano’s - Your event deserves a warm environment, a touch of something special and, of course, the best Italian food. With locations close to downtown Dallas and even further north in Plano.

Union Bear – This little restaurant is located in West Village and is known for their 40 beers on tap including local brews and independent ones from across the country. Not to mention their unique pizzas are to die for!

DUO – DUO is located in the center of Dallas at Lovers and Inwood, offers a spacious floor plan, graciously appointed and equipped with a kitchen that more than accommodates all types of events with the ambiance and style that pleases any audience.

North Of Dallas Locations:

Whiskey Cake – Whiskey Cake serves up tasty farm-to-kitchen dishes and cocktails, all made from scratch with ingredients sourced from local and regional farms and markets. They use slow-cooking methods on their wood grill and in their smoker. You dine with them at their communal tables, in one of their booths, on their sofas or rocking chairs, or perhaps on the porch next to the fireplace. They also have a projector and screen for slideshows or videos!

Blue Mesa – Blue Mesa Grill restaurants are a fun, relaxed place for private parties. They are happy to host your next corporate, social or family event in one of their private dining rooms. For larger events, they will rent you the entire restaurant (minimum food and beverage amounts vary).

Gather - GATHER in Downtown McKinney continues the family tradition to provide incredible food in a stylish setting in historic downtown McKinney, TX. Exceptional plated or buffet dining options are available at GATHER. We offer a wide array of passed hors d’oeuvres, appetizers, entrees, and desserts all prepared with the freshest ingredients.

A couple of months ago we were introduced to this super sweet company. Loreen makes precious paintings of bride’s bouquets so that they are able to always remember one of the most important days of their lives! We had the opportunity to ask Loreen from Reenie Rose a couple of questions about herself and her business! We hope you love her work as much as we do!

1. What is your business, and what do you offer to brides?

My business is Reenie Rose, and I provide couples or the ever thoughtful gift-giver with a modern alternative to traditional bridal bouquet preservation by creating a custom oil painting of a bride’s bouquet.

2. How did you get started in the painting business, and specifically with weddings?

Though I did go to school for art (BFA in illustration), my business literally started with a blank canvas. A neighbor friend of mine had been a fan and a client of my artwork back in college and approached me on creating a painting for her niece as a wedding gift. After brainstorming over different ideas, we settled on me painting the bride’s bouquet. Upon completion of the painting, the client and I both stood back, observing the piece and thought, “Huh, this is something more than just a painting….it’s an idea.” Thus, Reenie Rose was brought to life with the lucky fortune of building my portfolio with many of my friend’s bouquets.

3. What is your typical day like as an artist on the day of the wedding, and also on a non-wedding day?

With any luck, I am not around on the day of the wedding….I wasn’t invited to the wedding and have no intention of crashing the party. Instead, I prefer to visit the florist the day before the wedding to take photos of the bouquet at its freshest. If I am unable to take my photos because the wedding is out of town or I am commissioned after the wedding, then I do rely on high resolution images from the photographer to work from. All of my paintings are completed post wedding after I have put together several compositions for the client to choose from. Generally, the paintings can take anywhere from 3-8 weeks to complete, depending on the size and complexity of the composition.

So, in between painting I am doing everything else it takes to run a business….blogging about my projects, marketing, networking, bookkeeping, research, social media-ing…. This, of course, is all with the help of my mom…the marketing/studio manager extraordinaire!

4. What would you say makes your style or personality unique from other artists?

It’s funny, I’ve always said I’m not a typical artist….primarily because I use both my left and right brain equally (not to be an insult to any “typical” artists). I am one of the most organized artists you’ll find, and I enjoy being an entrepreneur just as much (if not more) as painting some days.

In regards to the artwork I’m creating, I like to think it has a modern edge to it while still being classic and timeless. There are many artists that paint flowers, but I’m doing it with the critical intention of capturing the memory of a wedding day in something so unique and personal that it will be passed on from generation to generation (that’s a long time to maintain quality and something “in style”).

5. Favorite tips or advice for the bride and grooms to be?

Ask yourself, “What am I going to do with my bouquet after the wedding?” Many couples don’t actually think about this, and the dried up alternative is pretty sad when you think about it. Book a painting! They also make a really good anniversary gift if you want to get a jump start on that big day (hello grooms!).

Another big one: I can’t say enough about getting a wedding planner (hint, hint: a good one heads up this blog). Because I am an anal-retentive, detail-oriented individual, if I were getting married today, there is no way I would want to be worrying about all the elements of a wedding day (or having my mom worry about them). Hire someone that is professionally trained to handle missing placecards, rain delays, drunken guests, and the multitude of things that could go wrong.

6. When you aren’t working, what are some of your favorite things to do?

What? Time for other things? I do spend a lot of my time working these days, but when I manage to pencil in that ever allusive free time, I enjoy the simple things in life: friends, family, eating and traveling. I’m lucky enough to sometimes experience 3 out 4 of these things at once…multi-tasking even in my free time!

Be sure to check out the new Reenie Rose video that shows the creation of a masterpiece from start to finish! www.vimeo.com/reenierose/unveiled

Facebook- https://www.facebook.com/ReenieRose

Twitter- Reenie_Rose

Blog- www.ReenieRoseBlog.blogspot.com

Site- www.ReenieRose.com