Invitation Week: Praez Occasions

Cake by JCakes

Last year I was a rookie in the industry. Although I'd made jewelry for weddings, I hadn't spent much time in the presence of other wedding professionals. 

That changed in early December 2009 - when I was invited to a networking event by Connecticut Perfect Wedding Guide.

It's no understatement to say that the course of my life changed that night.

I caught the bug.

And since blame needs to be laid somewhere, I'll credit these two lovely ladies, who were introduced to me by ... my husband! He came along as my guest (handholding at its finest) and did his fair share of networking on my behalf.

You know how people say that the conversation flowed like wine?

It did that night!

Architecture, ceramics, and the Old World (which is where I was headed a few days later) in the space of a few short hours. And we parted with a promise - that I would bring back a piece of the Old World in the form of lace from my homeland.

I am happy to say I kept my promise, and that when we met again in February of 2010 I was given a personal introduction to the world of Praez Occasions.

What a world!

Praez Occasions is a full-service design firm with an unconventional flair for making lasting impressions.  

The focus is on helping clients announce their affairs with exceptional quality and sophistication; expressive of their distinct vision, style and persona.

Praez Occasions was birthed in 2004 - as an extension of its mother company Praez Media; to provide couture, bespoke invitations to brides, corporate and individual clients alike.

Rae Boykin and Zeb Powell came from corporate backgrounds in business administration, marketing and accounting, but were disenchanted by the mundane, cookie-cut, customized invitation companies available to them. Thus began a journey, through their innate passion for graphic design, font and paper, to unite their two passions into what is known today as Praez Occasions.

Design for Therez Fleetwood Bridal of Dallas, Texas

Zeb and Rae have this to say about their art. 

 

Inspired by everything around us, we design and hand-craft custom creations that entail rich tones, textures and unique embellishments from around the world.

Authentic Swarovski crystals, beautiful jeweled brooches and pins, imported Thai silk boxes, folios, wraps and pouches.

 

Save the Date cards, invitations, programs, escort and menu cards are all fabulously handcrafted to the clients' specifications (including use of different languages) and shipped all over the world.

Today's luxury events require a higher level of detail and impeccability than beautiful paper and fonts, Rae says. We answer the call with exquisite options that take your stationery to the next level.

Photo by Dina Rudick for the Boston Globe

They are certainly getting their point across.

Not only are they signature partners of Chad Michael Peters - the renowned floral and event guru from Boston - they have also been featured in several high end publications and websites.

Grace Ormonde

Well Wed

 

 

 

The Ritz-Carlton

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Luxurious Weddings

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have to add here that - upon request - Zeb and Rae can also service your event with sustainable specialty papers that are eco-friendly, FSC / SFI certified, and even tree-free.

If you're looking for people you can trust to take your vision and bring it to life, I can't recommend Praez Occasions highly enough. And as you can see - their work truly does speak for itself.

Experience the difference Praez Occasions makes – and see what gorgeous things they can do for your next event!

Visit their website, email them on invitations@praezoccasions.com, follow them on Facebook, or call them, toll-free, on 888.697.7239.

Alternatively you can talk to them on Skype using praezoccasions.

If you are in Connecticut, you can visit them (by appointment) at their studio.

60 Connolly Parkway

Suite 10C

Hamden, CT 06514

This Sunday, November 7th, Zeb and Rae will be at the Perfect Bridal Extravaganza at The Woodwinds in Branford. The first few brides to visit their table will get $100 gift certificate towards their invitations - so make sure you get there first!

Invitation Week - a short historical overview

The first installment of Cake Week went down so well that I thought I'd go thematic again this week - and talk about the history of wedding invitations.

There's so much to say that it's likely we'll revisit this theme more than once - but lets kick off with a bit of historical perspective, shall we? Lets look at the people and the inventions that shaped the invitation as we know it today.

The Town Crier played a pivotal role in days gone by.

Mostly because people were illiterate.

Anything of importance - including weddings - was announced rather loudly. Consequently this meant that anyone within earshot was invited to the wedding.

This may have worked for the population at large - but the nobility had a rather different view of things.

Religious monks were known for their beautiful work, and it was very fashionable to pay monasteries large sums of money to create hand-drawn and illuminated wedding invitations when sons and daughters of the upper crust were being married off.

These invitations were then delivered  by a specially-appointed courier.

As the Middle Ages wore on, changes swept across Europe. Between the birth of printing and the Protestant Reformation, literacy became something to aspire to.

Basic printing did not produce high quality invitations, however. Mainly because the ink was merely stamped on the paper.

By the mid-1600s, metal-plate engraving had been invented. A carving tool allowed words to be engraved in reverse onto a plate - and this gave invitations a more sophisticated look. 

Smudging, however, was still an issue.

So a piece of tissue paper was placed over the invitation. This is one of the traditions carried over from the early days; although today the effect is purely decorative and for the most part vellum is used.

Another important milestone of the 1600s was the newspaper - and the tradition of announcing one's upcoming nuptials started gaining popularity.

early newspapers

The next big invention to impact wedding invitation design was lithography.

lithography

Not only was the result crisp, it also eliminated most of the time constraints that metal-engraving had placed on design.

Things remained pretty much unchanged until the end of World War II. People's lifestyle changed fairly dramatically as incomes increased, and the 1950s ushered in a stylized way of looking at and dealing with matters.

Thermography (in this case the use of heat to create raised ink lettering) lent itself beautifully to wedding stationery - and most important, it was within the budget of the average couple.

thermography

Over the past few decades wedding stationery has really taken off. The days of sterile wedding invitations are over - and everywhere you turn people are infusing themselves and their personality into their creations. Suffice it to say that you can truly get anything these days.

On Wednesday we'll be talking to the fabulous ladies of Praez Occasions; a full-service design firm with an unconventional flair for the fine details. Till then I'll leave you with a photo of an invitation I am partial to.

It isn't what you might expect, though. This is not an invitation to a wedding, but an invitation to be in the wedding party. 

SDezigns

CT Bridal Event 2010: Vendors (part ii)

As promised yesterday, here are a few more of the wedding vendors you'll be able to meet at the CT Bridal Event 2010 which is being held on Sunday, November 7th at the UConn Alumni Center.

Tiff's Wicked Cakes

Tiffany Flanagan of Tiff's Wicked Cakes will be there. She works out of Rhode Island and can be contacted through her website, via email, or through Facebook.

London & Hartmann

London & Hartmann Photography will also be there - and these two lovely ladies can be contacted through their website.

Wedding Reports

Chris Bajda will be representing Wedding Reports. They can be reached through their website and through Facebook.

Cookie Creatives

Cookie Creatives will be there - and you can reach Jennifer Burkhardt through her website and Facebook. You can also read her blog and follow her on Twitter.


I will be there too. Representing lili lutu - my handcrafted bridal jewelry company. You can reach me through my website, follow me on Facebook and Twitter, and read this blog.

lili lutu

Erin Kelly Perry will be there for the Chocolate Rose Bake Shop. She can be reached through her website on on Facebook

Chocolate Rose

Lauren LeBlanc will be there for UConfections. She can be reached through her website.

UConfections

On behalf of all the featured vendors, I wish you happy browsing - and look forward to meeting all of you on November 7th!

CT Bridal Event 2010: Vendors (part i)

Vendors galore ...

Over the next two days I thought it would be fun to do a virtual walkthrough with some of the vendors - so that those of you attending the show will have an idea about some of the wedding professionals you can expect to meet on Sunday, November 7th.

A Favor For All Occasions

A Favor For All Occasions can be found on their website and on Facebook.

Kim Bova Photography

Kim Bova can be reached through her website or on Facebook.

DL Video Productions specializes in Cinematic Wedding Films and can be contacted through their website. They are located in Massacheussetts.

Lia Sophia

Denise Moore Fleming represents Lia Sophia Jewelry. She can be contacted through her website or through Facebook.

Tiffany Hall

Tiffany Hall of Tiffany Hall Beauty can be reached through her website.

Love Me Two Times will holding the Bridal Gown Trunk Show. Be sure to check them out. You can reach Cam Fogg through the store's website or on Facebook.

Love Me Two Times

Jessica Enos does the design work for EstoPrints. Budget-friendly one-of-a-kind work. The company can be reached through their website, via email, or through Facebook.

EstoPrints

Heather Henry is the owner of HGK Designs. She can be reached through her website or through Facebook. You can also follow her on Twitter.

HGK Designs

Looking for candles? Look no further than Candles By Laura LLC. Laura can be reached through her website or on Facebook.

Candles By Laura LLC

CT Bridal Event 2010: UConn Alumni Center

UConn Alumni Center

Today I thought I'd give you a sneak peek at the UConn Alumni Center in Storrs, CT - where the 4th Annual CT Bridal Event is going to be held on November 7th, 2010.

CT Bridal Event

"This is our 3rd year at this location," Kia Martinson-Wenzel of ESTOccasions explains. "We keep coming back to it because of the amazing space. It also gives clients the chance to have their ceremony there if they want. They also have a great cocktail space. But most important, it's open to everyone - not just UConn alumni. It gives couples the freedoms to really create a wedding, not just a wedding package, because they have control over everything. You bring in your own caterer and linens, so you really won't be having a cookie cutter wedding."

Melissa Wilson Photography

The Alumni Center's Great Hall, with its distinctive staircase and charming layout, is a stylish and sophisticated site.

UConn Alumni Center

It's the perfect location for your wedding, shower, reception or other special event. Whether you’re new to the area or have fond memories of the campus you know and love, you are invited to discover what the Center has to offer. 

A complimentary consultation and facility tour is available upon request. 

To request a consultation contact Julie Sweeney, Alumni Center Manager at 860.486.1828 or 888.822.5861 or by email at Julie.Sweeney@uconn.edu.

CT Tuesdays: Kia Martinson-Wenzel

Today we're catching up with Kia Martinson-Wenzel - the woman behind ESTOccasions, and the organizer of the CT Bridal Event. 




Although I haven't had the pleasure of meeting Kia in person ... yet ... it became very clear to me during our phone, email, and Facebook interactions that she loves what she does.




So with that in mind, I think there's no better person to talk about Kia than Kia herself.



ESTO comes from the fact that my parents are both Estonian and that Estonian is my first language.  Besides that, ESTO is a large celebration held by Estonians every 4 years in different parts of the world.  So it's always been a way to inject a little bit of me into everything I do.  


I made ESTO an acronym - and it stands for Events, Special Themes  and Occasions. 

We are a full-service planning & design company for weddings. I’ve been in business for over 6 years and I love what I do.  I simply just love to create and pull together any type of event and work with the size and budget.  Creating a stylish wedding, while mixing in tradition and the couple's wishes, is always a wonderful challenge.  I make a point to listen to my clients, make sure they know they are being listened to, and that their wedding represents them and their story.  

 Vineyard

I’ve also made a point to show that wedding planners are affordable. 

The amount I can save couples might seem to be a little here and there; but when you pull it all together, it is extra money to spend on something they may want.  I enjoy finding a cost-effective way to give my clients what they are looking for.  Finding creative ways to design a wedding is one of my passions.  I am always looking at products and trying to create something personal for each client.

Wickham Park

While there are parts of my job that are a lot of fun, it also takes organization, thinking quickly and handling the pressure.  No matter what is going on, I work to be on top of everything and make it all work out. A lot of elements need to work together to make a wedding successful and that is my passion.

Boca Beach

From large scale wedding to small, intimate ones, I make it all work.

I’ve been a wife for the last fourteen years, and spent eight of them as an Army Wife. 

I feel this has made me a good planner. 

I handle change well, I’m quick on my feet, and the one thing the Army loves is paperwork!  I have two young boys, aged 11 and 4, and they are another reason I love what I do. I have the chance to spend time with them while running a business. 

I work throughout the state, RI, MA and NYC.

Four years ago I thought why can’t we have bridal shows that are affordable for vendors and give brides a relaxed setting to really connect with them?

As a result the CT Bridal Event was born.

Some of the larger scale expos are great, but I’ve gone through them with my own brides and they hate it by the end. After seeing 12 photographers and 7 cake decorators they are lost and overwhelmed.  This is why we only have 4 wedding professionals from each category, and allow CT vendors in first. 

CT Bridal Event 2009

To pull together a large scale show is a bit different than a wedding for sure - since you never know who is really coming.

I have about 35 or so vendors to keep happy, I need to make the space work to display everyone in the best possible light, and still represent and work on my own business.

Three years ago I added in a bridal gown trunk show - as a way for brides to shop for dresses at a friendly cost.  It's been a great success. 

Trunk Show

Due to the success of our last three shows, we've added our first Spring bridal show for 2011.

I'm very excited over this because the goal has always been to showcase the very best talent for our engaged couples.  Plus I love showing off the hottest trends, color combos and give couples a chance to explore their wedding needs in one setting.

The CT Bridal Event is open to all engaged couples!

See you on November 7th!