FORE!!!!! Tips for your Wedding Outing

Making your “wedding weekend” special involves a lot of planning, for you guests, your wedding party, and the two of you. Depending upon the day and time of your wedding, you may have “down times” during the weekend that you want to fill with some organized activities for some or all of your guests.
One of the activities that is mentioned often is the idea of having a golf outing for the golfing members of your guest list. This can be great fun for the groomsmen, or larger groups that might involve some of the guests.  It's a wonderful "mixer" for guests, relatives and friends that might not know each other.  There's nothing like a round of golf to make strangers into lifetime friends! 

Here are my TOP 10 TIPS to consider when you arrange your outing:

1. Consider the time of your outing very carefully. Keep in mind that it will probably be a little longer than your usual round. Don’t schedule things too close to rehearsal times or other activities where the bride might need you to attend! The last thing you want to do is tick off the bride right before the wedding! Of course, if the bride plays golf, there's no reason to exclude her or her attendants from the outing, but most brides and bridesmaids prefer to use this time to get the mani's and pedi's taken care of, and maybe have a nice lunch together.  It's nice to make the offer to the girls though.

2. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure—take a change of clothes with you and your toiletry kit, just in case you do get caught short of time and need to change at the course to save time. And make sure that your groomsmen follow suit! Be prepared for unexpected delays.

3. Consider the format. Especially if you have some duffers, think about a scramble format to speed up play and make it more fun for everyone. If you have a couple of non golfers in the wedding party, they can always be designated cart drivers, or score keepers if they don't want to be left out of the fun.

It’s nice if the groom has an opportunity to spend some time with everyone who participates in the outing. This can be done a number of ways, but one of the easiest is to have the groom play a couple holes with each foursome. Particularly if you use a scramble format, having a fifth player for a couple holes shouldn’t slow down play. So if you have 16 people playing in addition to the groom, or 4 foursomes, the groom would play the first 4 holes with the first group, then drop back and play the next 5 with the 2nd group, then after the turn, play the next 4 with the 3rd group, then drop back and finish up the last 5 holes with the 4th group. Of course, the number of groups you have will determine how many holes he joins in for. If you have a small outing, you might have two foursomes. Maybe you could put the groom in one foursome and the best man in the other, and they could switch at the turn, so that the groom gets some time with everyone.

4. Be respectful of other golfers. Try not to slow down play. Keep the alcohol under control, so that you can participate in other wedding activities later in the day.  In a word guys, don't be stupid. :)

5. It’s fun to provide a little goodie bag for each of your golfers. You can get as crazy as you want to with this one! Custom embroidered golf towels in the wedding colors, imprinted tees with the bride and groom’s names and wedding date, imprinted golf balls, golf shirts, caps; you name it! Bag tags, pencils, umbrellas, T-Shirts, divot repair tools, the sky is the limit! Obviously, you probably don't want to do everything, but a couple of nice imprinted items in the "wedding colors" with whatever theme you are using, help to add a little festivity to the day. You can also include a small snack, a bottle of water, maybe a short written explanation of the format, some wrapped hard candies, a damp iced wash cloth if it's a hot day, whatever . Assemble everything in a small gift bag that can be placed on the cart for each golfer before the round begins.

A quick note about personalizing and imprinting;  Decide what you want to imprint and how many, then find companies that will do multiple items if possible to save on set up costs.  For example, I have linked the clothing items above to http://www.queensboro.com/ which is an amazing site to purchase small quantities of caps, shirts, and lots of other items in small quantities at great prices.  If you have a "wedding logo" or motif that you want to use, you'll be paying a set up charge, either in the cost of each item or in a separate set up charge.  Also consider the shipping charges into the total cost.  If one company does multiple items, your shipping will probably be less than if you purchase from multiple companies.  There are, of course, many companies that imprint and personalize items.  I've had good luck with the companies that I linked, however it never hurts to shop around!

6. Green fees can be a bit of a touchy subject. Some grooms pick up the cost of the round for their participants, others expect everyone to take care of their own greens fees. It kind of depends on the budget. Some grooms include the outing for their groomsman as part of their groomsman’s gift. In any case, however you decide to handle it, make sure that everyone knows in advance whether they are paying their own greens fees and how much it will be so that there are no nasty surprises.

7. Provide prizes for the winning foursome.  Extravagance isn't necessary--it is, after all, the crowing rights that are important here!  Some fun things for prizes: a golf umbrella, a putter or driver, coupon for a free round in the future, a golf shirt, golf glove, cooler bag, you name it.  Remember that you need to think about having 4 of a prize if you have a scramble, as the winners will be the foursome and not necessarily an individual. 

8. Games on the course are fun, a prize for the longest drive, longest putt, closest to the pin, can spice things up.  The first group out can place the signs and the last group can pick them up as they go.

9.  Photographs of the event are always a wonderful keepsake after the big day.  The photos can be included with your wedding weekend photos, or assembled separately into a book or album to reminisce over in years to come.  Some photos to be sure you get:
a nice intro shot of the clubhouse or the sign at the entrance
one of each foursome with the groom
detail photos of any special items you provide for the outing--imprinted items, goody bags, shirts, etc.
carts leaving for the first tee
Teeing off photos
Action shots on the course
pictures of the prize winners with their prizes
19th hole shots as everyone enjoys a cool drink after the round

10. Most importantly, HAVE FUN!  Let the details take care of themselves the day of your outing.  If you have planned carefully and covered all your bases, you should be able to relax and enjoy the company  and companionship of all the people who love you and are thrilled to spend this time with you.  As with everything having to do with weddings, it's all about you and your guests, and the joy of being together at this happy time.  Everything else is window dressing.

The Course at Aberdeen, and their manager, Chad Hutsell, are anxious to help you with your outing plans. Aberdeen is very convenient to the Manor, for those of you having your weddings with us. It is a beautiful track, with lots of what Jim calls “interesting little golf holes”! Their pro shop is staffed with folks who can hook you up with anything you need, and they will make advance tee times for wedding outings so that you can make sure your timing is good. Aberdeen also has some nifty discounts for our wedding outings!! They have beautiful practice facilities, with a huge driving range, putting green, and chipping area. They also have a top shelf locker room with showers and locker storage in case you need to change clothes after your round.

Give Chad a call at 219 462-5050, or send him an email and get your outing plans started today! The Course at Aberdeen will help you make your wedding outing a fabulous event, and a special memory of your wedding weekend in the future!

Mike and Danielle--5-7-11 The French Connection

 I just love these two!  They put so much thought and attention into all the little touches that make a wedding personal and special.  They were engaged in Paris, so of course, they used that as a kick off point for a wedding that had touches of France all over. 
Mike and his mother danced to a rock and roll song and really cut the rug!  Mike said he knew he would be all weepy if they did a slow dance, so they used a song from Pulp Fiction and really busted a move!

 Mike and Danielle did the choreographed dance that is offered by Transaudio, their DJ, and the crowd loved it.

 Cupcakes with a small layer for them to cut at the top were served instead of traditional wedding cake.  Cream filled cupcakes by Chesterton Cake Shoppe were a huge hit.

Cute cute cute!!!!

Each table number had a French statement related to love with the translation. Their centerpieces were wine bottles that were cut to go over candles in a holder, tres chic!

We had great fun setting up the favor table for them!  We used some glass shelving to set out the Orangina on several levels, and give the table some dimension.  Mike spent hours wiring a little Eiffel Tower with twinkle lights.  They also had yummy little shortbread cookies with the Eiffel Tower pressed into them that were dipped in chocolate (oh hurt me!) These were in little glacine envelopes in a basket for guests to help themselves.  So cute. 

So you ask, "How did they get so many people out there for the garter and bouquet? 

It was a terrific idea!  They put a lottery ticket with the garter and also with the bouquet, and invited ALL the ladies, married or single, and then ALL the men, married or single, out to try to catch it.  Nothing like the hope of a winning ticket to get everyone out on the floor!!  It was very clever, and Mike and Danielle figured there wouldn't be many "singles" at their wedding reception, so this was a great way to get folks out there.

All in all it was a wonderful wedding for a terrific couple!  We had so much fun planning it with them!

Congrats Danielle and Mike!  Nos meilleurs voeux à vous!

"Pretty in Pink" Erin and Bo -- April 2, 2011

I think if I had to choose only one color for every wedding, forever more, it would be pink.  There is just something so "weddingish" about pink!  It's feminine and frilly and of course it is the "girl" color!

Erin chose to use soft, pastel pink with ivory for their wedding colors.

Wedding programs gave the guests a run down on what was going to take place, as well as who the participants were. 

Pew bows with hydrangea and roses on every other row were repurposed across the head table for the reception after the wedding, along with the table arrangement which was placed in the center of the head table, and the two side arrangements that were positioned behind the head table.  The flowers were done by The Flower Cart in Chesterton.  As usual, an awesome job!

Aberdeen Manor provided the balloons for the balloon release.  They all stayed in the coat room until after the ceremony ended, when our servers took them over to the chapel and gave them to the attendants to pass out to the guests.

Three little flower girls took their job VERY seriously!  So cute!  Their petal gowns (from Affairs) were adorable, especially with the pink organza sashes.  One little flower girl was older than the other two.  She was able to lead the way and help get the little ones down the aisle.  It was a HUGE help. 

I know you are wondering--well, the groomsmen wore champagne vests and ties, and the groom wore ivory.  None of them were required to wear pink!  (although, we have some beautiful pink vests and ties, and personally, I think it's a very becoming color on most men!)

The balloons were passed out to the guests after the ceremony as they left the chapel, with instructions to wait to release them till the bride and groom stepped out and released theirs.  It was a beautiful sunny day, and the guests didn't mind waiting outside the chapel.

After greeting all the guests, the new Mr. and Mrs. Casey stepped out and released their balloons!

Absolutely beautiful!!  (And contrary to popular belief, the balloons freeze in the upper atmosphere and turn into dust.)

A beautiful placecard table awaited the guests' arrival after the ceremony. 

Their cake was simple and elegant, with pink spray roses decorating the tiers, a sparkly "C" on the top!

 Their tables were decorated with alternating centerpieces.  Half were tall, like on the placecard table, and the other half were low bowls with huge pink roses--the size of teacups!  Beautiful!

 Bo and Erin opted for the "Crystals and Candles" ceiling decor, as well as a gobo heart shining above the head table.  Magical!  And of course, it snowed over their first dance!  Mike the DJ commented afterward: "Well folks, let's hope that's the last snow we see for this season!"

A magical evening for a terrific couple!  If you want to see more photos of Bo and Erin's wedding you can go to Bella Photography's website.  They have a terrific montage set to music of their photos from the wedding.
http://weddingsbybellaphotography.blogspot.com/2011/04/wedding-of-erin-and-bo-april-2-2011.html

Peacocks, Plumes and Plenty of Colors!

Have you ever really looked at a peacock feather? There are SO many colors to work with! Eggplant purple, teal, green, chocolate brown; they are SO beautiful!
Peacock feathers do have their disadvantages though. The peacocks drag those long, long tails around behind them, all folded up, and then when they get really ticked at another peacock, or they see their lady love peahen, they fan it out ala NBC. Consequently they are one sided, because the peacock doesn't really care what the view from the side or back is, he is only concerned about his tail being visible to whomever he is facing.
This makes for some unique problems when it comes to using these gorgeous jewel like feathers in floral arrangements and bouquets.
We have used them flat on the placecard table, under a fitted glass, with wonderful results. We have also done this on the cake table, and it looked amazing. It just doesn't work though to put a few feathers in a vase. It takes some special talent to make them work.
Our wedding this evening really showed what you could do with peacock feathers to use them to best advantage.

Not all of the tables had tall arrangements, there were roughly 5 per side of the room, and then the remaining tables had our tall hurricanes with a pillar candle, and votives around them.  The black aquarium rock in the vases was also used in the hurricanes which helped to tie the two designs together.  Personally, I'm not fond of tall arrangements on ALL of the tables, it can be really overwhelming!  This was the perfect number--visual impact, interest, and not at all "too much".  I also liked the use of the pampas grass plumes in the arrangements.  This grass grows wild all over Northwest Indiana, and many times you can pick it along the side of the road.  It's a beautiful filler with the peacock feathers and gives the arrangements a lot of volume and substance without the cost of additional fresh flowers. 
The bridesmaids wore black gowns with teal sashes, and the groomsmen wore black tuxes with teal ties and vests. It was a very elegant look.
The bouquets and boutonnieres had fresh flowers with peacock eye feathers and sword feathers mixed in. Just enough to nod to the peacock theme ( you don't want to SCREAM it! Peacock feathers can easily be overdone :)

All in all, Ryan and Jessica did a terrific job designing their wedding! It was done with style, elegance, and just the right amount of pizzazz!  And, it never hurts to have a stunning and elegant bride as the centerpiece!

Congratulations you two! It was a beautiful evening for a delightful couple!