KC Photobooth-So much fun!!!

We had our final event of the year last night (more info to come on that event). One of the vendors featured at the event was KC Photobooth, owned by Patty Johnson. If you haven't seen one of these at an event yet, just wait because it is a very hot commodity these days. There are so many reasons to tie this into your event and everyone can have fun with a photobooth. Use it as a party favor, guest book, just to make more laughs, etc. KC Photobooth is fun to work with and very full service. Here's one of the photostrips that my team took last night. We clearly enjoyed it!

Congrats Jamie & Sam

I completed my final wedding of the year on November 8th for Sam and Jamie. Jamie used to work for me back in my promotional products days, so it was a blast to have her ask me to plan her wedding reception! They got married in Mexico, so it wasn't your usual wedding reception. The event took place at her dad's office building and we were able to have some fun in planning a unique event that completely fit her style. The wall orchid design (by Andrea at Branches & Twigs) was created to match the design of the invitations (by Jessica at Catie Cards), which were very architectural in nature. We used the outdoor built-in grill from the space for Above and Beyond Catering to create some amazing (and yummy) straight from the grill seafood kabobs and quesadillas. Dessert was Sheridan's frozen yogurt...wedding cake flavor of course! Here are some photos.

We Won!

We finally received the news last Friday that we WON the Kansas City's A-List award for top wedding planner! Thanks to all of you who voted for us. We couldn't be more excited! Check out their website for more area businesses, as well as wedding vendors who won in their respective categories. KMBC A-List

Perfect Wedding Guide Bridal Fair

What a fun show! We had a blast getting our booth together and chatting with brides, as well as vendors. Here's a few photos of our booth and our team who worked the show (l-r: BJ, Jamie, Kim, Carrie and Leslie). A big thanks to Monica at 18 Flowers for working with us to create the perfect floral design.

Thanks to everyone who stopped by or commented on our booth!

Vote for You're Invited

Hey All,

We're in the running for Kansas City's A-List #1 wedding planner. If you haven't done so already, please vote for us!

http://kmbc.cityvoter.com/contests/best-of-kansas-city-s-a-list/1926

Amanda's Funky Wedding at the Aladdin

We had the pleasure of doing a really cool, funky wedding at the Aladdin hotel downtown in February for Amanda and the Marine, Rob. It was funky because the space lent itself to a challenge...the carpet in the main ballroom. However, once we figured out the right way to tackle the challenge, we think we nailed it!

One thing that Amanda was very adamant on having was uplighting to illuminate the room and I am so glad she did! It really added a great element to the entire design of the event. The ceremony was held in the ballroom, cocktail reception was held in the martini loft and the dinner reception was back in the ballroom. Check out the before and after photos with lighting.

When planning, we try to keep some form of the same element all the way through. Notice Amanda's monogram throughout: on the programs, dance floor and cake. We used a company called Wedding Graffiti for the dance floor design, as well as a few other locations throughout.

Oh yeah, we totally believe in making your wedding YOUR own. Check out her ring bearer...Maize her dog. She made a big fashion statement with her pearls!

A big thanks to the Aladdin, Monica at 18 Flowers, Josh Solar Photography and Marc O'Leary for making this a spectacular event! We look forward to our next event at the Aladdin in November!

Makes me smile!

These are the sorts of things that make wedding planners know they are doing their job. Courtesy of Kate. Thanks! You made my day!

Congrats Leah & Ryan

We'd like to say a quick congratulations Leah and Ryan! I had a great time getting to know you the last couple of months. You are an amazing couple and I wish nothing more than the best for you. Keep in touch! -Leslie

P.S. Check out the Josh Solar Photography blog for pics of the event

Behind the Scenes: BJ Smith

Whereas Leslie, Jamie and myself are what we call "lead" planners, the people who are the face of You're Invited, we MUST have a support staff of reliable, smart, fast thinking, witty people to back us up at events. And we have one heck of a staff!

Meet one of our our secondary planners. B.J. Smith...Many days, she's been a total Godsend to me. We love B.J. and are so happy to have her back after a brief hiatus! What clients don't realize is that while we take on their stress, we can have a few stressful moments ourselves. B.J. is that gal that I just have to look at and she knows what I need from her at events. I swear she can read my mind :))

B.J. has been with the You're Invited team since January 2007. I knew her in a previous life and found out that she was interested in helping with events. Her background includes Marketing and Graphic Design but she also enjoys Fashion Design. She has assisted with the choreography and music selection for high school fashion shows and co-directed two shows at Johnson County Community College.

B.J. also helps out at Branches & Twigs Floral Design, which is a great asset to have onsite when we have a large floral set up.

Thanks for all you do B.J. Smith!

Welcome Back to Heather at Botanica Floral Design!

A warm "welcome back" to the KC wedding industry to Heather @ Botanica Floral Design! Heather and You're Invited go way back to when You're Invited first opened it's doors in 2003. She even supplied floral arrangements for our first kick off event. Heather took some time off from doing weddings, but is now back in the floral design business. We look forward to working with Botanica again very soon! In the meantime, enjoy some images of her work from some of our previous weddings together. Don't forget to check out her blog at www.designbotanica.blogspot.com

Vibrant Colors for Spring Wedding & Personal Party Favor Touch

One of Jamie's first weddings was and outdoor ceremony and elegant reception for Noor and Jitan at the Simpson House. Noor had a wonderful array of colors and really wanted an elegant setting for her guests. She selected a very talented florist in Michelle at Bella Designs. Noor and Jitan also did something that we really push our clients to do with the small elements of the wedding. Their party favors were Krispy Kreme donuts, picked up fresh that day by Jamie!

This is new...

So, this is a bit new for the You're Invited ladies. We've decided to add a blog to our site. We can't promise that we'll be able to keep it up all of the time, but it will be fun trying!!! I'll post some photos from our spring weddings. We had quite the variety!

The great thing is that we are able to work all over the city. We're not married to an area or a budget, so we get some flexibility.

I will also try to add some info about our secondary planners. They keep Leslie, Jamie and myself on mark during the wedding day. We can't love them enough!

Brand New

Testing out a new addition to the YI website to showcase ideas, updates, etc. Now, we're in the real world!!!