So Hard To Say Good Bye

One of our favorite clients got married last Saturday and it will be hard to say goodbye to talking with them every week. Allison and Jeffrey's wedding was beautiful and chic and we heard the word "perfect" quite a bit throughout the evening.

The planning process is always easier and much more enjoyable when we have such great clients like Allison and her mom. They had a wonderful vision for the wedding and then thoughtfully considered all the options we presented and made decisions based on our recommendations and their good taste.

The decor was gorgeous with flowers by Simply Beautiful Flowers and lighting by Mike Blondell of Accents on Events. The rental crystal and china was selected with care from Party Rental, Ltd and they provided the celery green pintuck linens and cream chivari chairs as well.

If you have never eaten at The Baltimore Country Club, you are missing out on a wonderful dining experience. The food at BCC is always amazing and beautifully presented. The staff is kind and always accommodating. We love, love doing events at BCC and working with Carmen.

It didn't take long for the party to get started after dinner as the band Escapade kept the dance floor packed all night. For those who needed a break from dancing, a staff from Cold Stone Creamery was on hand to custom make their favorite ice cream sundae.

We normally don't taste the wedding cake every week anymore after all these years, but Saturday was an exception. It just looked so darn good that we took a piece home and had a (way past) midnight snack. Wow. Sugar Bakers once again produced a winner of yellow cake with coconut cream filling. It was delicious (and beautiful)!

Many thanks to Joanna at The Limo Lady for once again providing flawless limousine transportation to our VIPs and to the bride and groom at the end of the evening. Ally and Jeff were (hopefully!) surprised when they arrived at their hotel room which little elves had decorated during the reception. A heart of rose petals on the bed, snacks and drinks at the ready, and a honeymoon tote bag filled with magazines, eye pillows and travel candles were waiting for them in their room. Oh and we should mention the best part: custom made pillow cases on their pillows with the new married names. So cute...

All the images above are from fabulous wedding photographer Arthur Remanjon.

Congratulations Allison and Jeffrey!

Welcome!

It is traditional to begin the reception with a welcome from the host of the wedding.  In most cases, this is the father of the bride or father of the groom.  Be mindful that a welcome is not a toast, the toast is given by the best man.

Here are a few tips to make the welcome speech picture perfect.

1.  The bride and groom should stand with the father at the top of the dance floor.  It is a great photo and a show of respect.  The mother should stand with the father and may also speak if she wishes.

2.  The welcome should include a few key points:

*Welcome to the wedding and gratitude for guests making the journey

*Acknowledge any guests celebrating an anniversary or birthday on the wedding or if Father's Day or Mother's Day is the following day

*Mention any grandparents who are in attendance

*Mention the groom and how happy you are to have him as part of the family

*Mention the bride and share a growing-up memory

*Acknowledge the groom's family and welcome them as part of your extended family

*Acknowledge and commend the wedding planning efforts of the bride's mother and/or bride

*Introduce the next speaker: either the best man or the person giving the dinner blessing.

Crazy Straws!

Need something to perfectly accent your signature drink?

How about a crazy straw?

ForYourParty.com

Saturday's Wedding ABC's

S.  S is for signature or speciality drink.  A signature drink is a super special drink offered to your guests.  The drink can be anything you love and is usually offered as your guests arrive at the reception.



T.  T is for tent.  A tented wedding can be a beautiful, wonderful event.  In order to have a tented wedding done well you will need to hire a great tent company and a planning professional who has experience with tented events (like us!).  They are tricky and there will be tons of little details to consider.



U.  U is for umbrella.  If you're totally panicked (as opposed to being okay and go with the flow) about it raining on your wedding day, then pick up a couple of too-cute umbrellas.  They'll make for great photos and you'll be so excited to use them that you'll forget about the raindrops.

Expecting Bridesmaids?

This past Saturday 3 of Anna's 6 bridesmaids were expecting.  It's rare that we even have 1 expecting bridesmaid in a wedding party!

Anna did a few things to help keep her mama's-to-be happy and comfortable.

*She chose a style of dress that worked with their growing bellies.  For her Matron of Honor, they chose a maternity-style gown that worked perfectly with the other dresses.

*She gave her girls the option of choosing their own shoes.  This was a key factor in their comfort.

*She gave them a few minutes at the church before the ceremony to put their feet up and catch their breath.

*She assigned another bridesmaid who wasn't expecting to pay attention to her train and rearrange it when she walked around during the ceremony.

*She and Alan created a non-alcoholic signature drink for the reception so they could have a festive beverage.

Most of all Anna and Alan were just thrilled these ladies could be there on their special day.  When you have an mom-to-be in your wedding party be aware of their needs and try to make the process as easy as possible.

America's Next Top Bride - Gown Fitting!

Another installment in our series from Sara Albert - America's Next Top Bride

This past week I finally got to do something that I had been looking forward to for months now: try on my wedding dress! I flew home to California and, with my Mom, Dad, and bridesmaid Shelby in tow, went to the boutique in Sacramento where I bought it. The dress buying experience was what really made this whole wedding thing first feel real to me (seeing myself in a veil was actually the first time I ever really felt like a bride!), and the way that I found my dress was a little serendipitous as well.

Even though I am living 3,000 plus miles away from my parents, it wasn't ever a question of whether or not I would fly to California to go dress shopping. I knew that I wanted to find my dress with my Mom by my side. What I didn't expect was that Dad would be so helpful as well- I swear he learned a whole new vocabulary that day! Rouching, tulle, etc. etc.

Well the grand plan was to go to San Francisco for the big hunt, but we decided to go the day before to a couple of places in Sacramento as a "warm up." After a few stops, we ended up our day at a cute little boutique. I tried on a bunch of dresses and kind of liked a few of them, but none were quite what I pictured. Thinking that the day was officially a failure I put my own clothes back on and got ready to leave for home. While I was walking out I noticed a dress hanging in one of the other dressing rooms, so I asked the salesperson about it. It turns out that they had just gotten it in that day and had it in the dressing room to steam it before putting it out on the floor.  Despite being tired (and honestly a little sick of dresses in general) I asked if I could try it on. Low and behold, that was it!! I didn't end up buying it right then since we still had our grand plan to go shopping the next day, but the San Fran trip ended up really solidifying that I had already found the dress that I was going to get married in!

I can't tell you too much about it because I want to keep the surprise factor intact for John, but my dress is strapless and ivory, and it is fairly simple and traditional. Trying it on for the first time last week made me even more excited than I was before, something that I didn't think was possible! Now, on to the next task: accessories!

Wish me luck!

They're Famous!

Want to get to know Anna and Alan, from last Saturday's wedding, a little better?  Now's your chance!  They were featured on New York Times.com telling their engagement story!

Scroll down to watch their video!

It Takes A Village

The team at Elizabeth Bailey Weddings and Events just completed six fabulous, wonderful events in a span of 10 days!

How did it happen that we planned and coordinated four weddings, a 55th birthday party and a rehearsal dinner in 1.5 weeks and each event was amazing? Well it takes a staff of very dedicated and very talented women

So Elizabeth would like to say thanks to Christina, Kate, Betty (who came in from Cleveland to help), Lisa (wow does she have stories to tell), Alexandra, and Sharon. Surprisingly, everyone is still looking forward to the next event!

Actors in Love

Anna and Alan were married on Saturday in a ceremony that combined their Catholic and Jewish faiths. The ceremony was held at St. Andrew by the Bay Catholic Church in Annapolis, which was recently refurbished and just beautiful. Father John led the ceremony with a final blessing from David Katz of Son of David Congregation.

The reception, held at the Governor Calvert House, was beautiful.  Anna and Alan designed the wedding around the colors chocolate brown and cornflower blue.  The chocolate linens were accented by yellow and white flowers.  One of the highlights of the reception was the custom "Anna and Alan" gobo light projected onto the wall by Perkins Productions.

Anna, Alan, and Anna's Mother Pat put a lot of time and hard work into making the wedding a personal experience.  Each guest table was named after a show that Anna and Alan were in together and each table number featured a photo of the Bride and Groom in that show.  Gathering those pictures was a task unto itself.  The couple even spent time to personalize the bar menu.  They featured three drinks that highlighted their honeymoon plans.  The Arc de Triomphe, Peter Island Sunrise, and the Virgin Gorda were all enjoyed throughout the evening.

The guest book was a drawing of the Governor Calvert House with a matte that guests signed and share their well wishes.  It will certainly be a treasured piece of art in the newlyweds home forever.

Anna's Father, Bert, surprised everyone during his welcome speech.  He formally invited all of the guests into the "Anna and Alan Fan Club" while servers passed out pin on buttons for guests to wear to future shows.  The buttons were a huge hit!

Since music is a huge part of Anna and Alan's lives they had planned the music selections down to the note.  Each song they chose had great meaning and were preformed perfectly by NightSong.

Congratulations Anna and Alan!  Enjoy the Caribbean and Paris!

Keys to Cocktail Hour

There are a few keys to a good cocktail hour.

Key Number 1:

Keep it to an hour.  Of course you want to get all of your favorite photos, but if the list is too long and is going to hold up the flow of the wedding then consider having photos done before the wedding ceremony.

Key Number 2:

Passed drinks.  No one likes to wait in line at the bar, but bartenders can only move so fast.  Pass trays of water, white wine, and a speciality drink and the lines will be dramatically reduced.

Key Number 3:

Passed hors d'oeuvres.  A variety of tiny treats will keep hunger at bay.  Add a sushi station and guests won't want to go into dinner.

Key Number 4:

Music.  Keep it light and keep is simple, but guests will appreciate the gentle music.

Key Number 5:

Avoid the gap.  Here in Baltimore, we prefer to have the cocktail hour begin directly after the ceremony.  It differs in different areas of the country, but we like the events and the guests to be on a flow throughout the day.

Saturday's Wedding ABC's

P.  P is for place card.  A place card tells your guests in which seat to sit at the table.  They are usually placed above the charger plate and above the dessert fork.  Some hosts choose not to use a place card and simply allow guests to choose their own seat at their designated table.



Q.  Q is for quickly.  Yes, photographs are hugely important, but you want to get them done quickly.  Be sure to have a clear list for your photographer and make it as short as possible.  You want to get to your cocktail hour - unless of course you're very smart and taking all of your photos before the wedding!



R.  R is for rest.  Be sure to get some rest the night before the wedding.  It's a long day and you don't want to be grumpy tired.

Is Paris your Passion?

Looking for something French to add to your Hotel Hospitality Gifts for your guests or perhaps as a favor for the wedding or a shower.  Whether you're planning to travel to France on your honeymoon, were engaged in France, or just has a passion for all things French.  Here's some ideas:

Lavender Scented Sachet from L'Occitane $8

Vanilla Bath soap from L'Occitane $4

Chocolate Eiffel Towers from Chocolate Fantasies $4.50

USPS

With the new rate change over at the United States Postal Service there are some new stamps to choose from.  Be sure to have your invitations weighed and measured before stamping all of them!

For your Invitations

59 cents

62 cents

90 cents

94 cents

There are even more great location images to choose from!

42 cents - for Thank You Notes and RSVP's

or maybe even

Honeymoon Destinations

The guys over at AskMen.com have rated their

Top 10 Honeymoon Destinations.

Honorable Mention:  Amalfi Coast, Italy

10.  Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada

9.  Islands of the Bahamas

8.  Nice, France

7.  Turks and Caicos Islands

6.  Aspen, Colorado

5.  Las Vegas, Nevada

4.  Tahiti, French Polynesia

3.  Africa

2.  Costa Rica, Central America

1.  Hawaii

by Peter Fueller see the entire article here

A Mt. Vernon Wedding

It certainly was a romantic and amazing wedding for Elizabeth and Kevin on Saturday evening at historic The Engineer's Club. It would be hard to choose our very favorite thing about this wedding because there were so many special touches throughout. Elizabeth's gorgeous Reem Acra wedding dress certainly would be one of our favorite things. The dress was perfect for her, perfect for the event, perfect for the summer, just perfect. The all white flowers by the always incredible Victoria Claussen of Romance of Flowers were another favorite thing. The Engineer's Club glowed with the soft light from the candles and the white flowers. Did you see that chuppah? How amazing is that?

The bride's mom spent a lot of time on certain things for the wedding that really made an impact. She carefully selected all the linens for the wedding from Table Toppers and the look was fabulous. She also designed and made the cute favor boxes filled with a flower bulb and went all over town looking for just the right vellum envelope for the very cool menu card.

Once again some of our favorite vendors like Jeff Thompson from Premier Deejays, Bobby Dill from lighting company Event Dynamics, Steve Canning from Steve Canning Photography, and Bob Bollhorst from Courtesy Parking really stepped up and did a wonderful job to contribute to the success of this wedding.

The wedding cake from Patisserie Poupon smelled and tasted as good as it looked. The wedding guests loved the chocolate cake.

Once again the friendly staff and chefs at The Engineer's Society of Baltimore did a wonderful job in making sure the guests were happy and the food delicious.

Congratulations Elizabeth and Kevin!

Angela + Trey

Even more amazing images from Angela and Trey's Wedding on Saturday at the Hyatt Chesapeake Bay. All of these images are from David Michele Photography - amazing!

Color Splash on the Eastern Shore

Saturday was a beautiful day in Cambridge at the Hyatt Regency Chesapeake Bay for Angela and Trey's Wedding. The ceremony was held on the Manor Lawn with amazing views of the Choptank River. Hotel guests watched from their balconies as the bride and groom said their vows.

The flowers in shades of pink, orange, and green added the perfect punch to the green grass and crisp white chairs. Rennie from Simply Beautiful Flowers also draped the backs of the ceremony chairs in garland. Guests stayed cool inside the hotel until the magic moment. Once seated, they stayed cool with brightly colored orange and pink parasols and fans. Angela and Trey were married by a cousin of Trey's while facing a large oak tree.

After shouts of congratulations, the guests walked over to the cocktail hour where they were treated to sangria and madra's to perfectly match our color story.

You may be wondering about the cake featured at the top left of the photo collage. Angela and Trey own GunPowder Bison, a bison farm in Monkton, Maryland. Since bison (or buffalo) are a huge part of their lives they chose to have one of the not-so-friendly creatures immortalized in a grooms cake by Charm City Cakes. The grooms cake was the highlight of the rehearsal dinner held at Suicide Bridge Restaurant on Friday the 13th. Guests "risked their lives" to attend the dinner and were treated to a paddle boat cruise back to the Hyatt at the end of the evening.

Now, back to the wedding. Cocktail hour ended and guests made the journey over to the ballroom on a leisurely stroll around the resort led by the violinist. They were greeted in the ballroom by the sounds of The Source, who kept everyone on the dance floor all evening. The father of the groom loved them so much - he asked them to stay another hour!

Guests were treated to a variety of stations for dinner - the most popular being the bison carving station from the couple's farm. The night ended sweetly with cake from Bay Country Bakery. The entire day was captured by David Michele Photography. We will post their images soon.

Congratulations Angela and Trey!

Hand Bagged

Looking for the perfect wedding day handbag?  Check out this cuter than cute clutch bag from Lauren Merkin. You can choose your shape, fabric, color, and even have it personalized with your new married monogram!

$165 - $235 plus $15 for the monogramming and worth every penny.

Saturday's Wedding ABC's

M.  M is for menu card.  The menu card is a the perfect place to add personality to your place settings.  For a stations dinner the menu card tells your guests that there are many stations and encourages them to try them all.  For a sit down dinner the menu card tells them what to expect and let's them tell their server early in the meal if there's an item on the menu they can't eat.  It makes for easier, faster dinner service.

N.  N is for navigation.  If your ceremony and reception are in different locations be sure to give directions and maybe a map inside the invitation and on the back of the ceremony program.  Guests may forget the directions included in the invitation and you want to ensure they arrive at the reception.  Also include information about parking or valet service.

O.  O is for open mind.  It's so important to keep an open mind during wedding planning.  You will incorporate lots of opinions into your own vision and you just might fall in love with an idea that contrasts what you started with.  Keep your mind and vision open to new concepts and you just might stumble onto fabulous.

A Sash Splash

Searching for the perfect sash for your gown, bridesmaids dresses, or even the flower girls?

White Aisle.com has a selection of sashes handmade in Cambodia.  All of the profits from the sale of the sashes go back to a day car center they have partnered with in Cambodia.  For more information visit the site.

Long sashes are $20 and Short sashes are $15 each.

Perfect for Brunch

Just Married!

This tray is just perfect for your brunch!  $22 from Plum Party

A Virtual Martini with Dulany from Gala Cloths by Dulany

Let's Have a Virtual Martini with Dulany Noble from Gala Cloths by Dulany!

Share a fun fact about your home life.

My husband Jim and I live on a small horse farm in Upperco. We have 3 cats, two dogs and numerous horses. My daughter, Deloise, is a horse trainer and I foxhunt. I am one of three Masters and also hunt the hounds. You can find me in the hunt field on Wednesdays and Sundays from September through March.

How did you get started in business?

I was a theatre major at Towson University and although I loved working in the theatre, it was not conducive to a marriage with a child. I searched and searched for a job and fell into the rental business. I believe special events and theatre share a lot of similarities. I loved the rental business from the first day of my very first job as a rental consultant. After managing several rental stores, I decided it was time to start my own company and Gala Cloths was born.

What has been the highlight of your career to date?

Some of the events we have done have been absolutely over the top. The Baltimore Symphony Gala for over 1000 people was an enormous success. I think the highlight of my career was to be named the 2005 NACE National Affiliate of the Year at the NACE National Conference.

Give us your favorite wedding or event planning tip.

I really like to see clients mix and match linens so things don't all look the same. I think the same can be done with flowers, especially in a tent wedding. When we did my daughter's wedding, no two tables were alike. Dale from J. J. Cummings made the tables look as though I had taken things from my house and made beautiful arrangements with flowers I had in my gardens. It was most charming.

When you travel, what is the one thing you cannot live without?

I can't travel without a book to read.

Tell us some of your favorite places to shop both local and out-of-town.

I love shopping in Greenspring Station. The Sporting Life always has things I like. Of course, the best stationary in town is at the Pleasure of Your Company. In New York, I try not to miss Lord and Taylor.

And we must know your favorite local restaurant.

Well, there are two in my neighborhood that I would recommend, Mia Carolina and the Harryman House. Both are fairly reasonably priced and it is hard not to have a good meal in either restaurant. For the over the top meal, I would go to the Antrim.

Let's say you have a day off and you are able to do anything at all for 24 hours (money is no object). What would that day look like and who would you be with?

I would take my best girlfriends, Judy, Betsy, and Leslie and go to Palm Beach in the dead of winter. We would stay at the Breakers, spend a few hours on the beach, do some shopping on Worth Avenue, go to a spa in the late afternoon for a facial, massage and hair styling with make up for a night on the town. We would choose some fabulous 5 star restaurant for dinner and then our chauffeur would take us to South Beach in Miami for some night club action! Ain't life grand!!

Aren't These Neat?

A neat find from Etsy.com

From Seller LHCalligraphy these Compass Place Cards are perfect if you love to sail, get lost all too often, or are treking around for your honeymoon.  $8

Best for Your Bar

FineLiving.com just ranked 10 great wines under $20.  When you're choosing the wine to put on your bar be sure to give it a taste test to make sure it's something you and your guests will enjoy.  If you're struggling, give these 10 a try.

1.  NV Barefoot Bubbly California Chardonnay, $11

2.  Bennett Family Chardonnay, 2006, $18

3.  7 Daughters White, $14

4.  Sokol Blosser Evolution, $14

5.  Salneval Albarino, 2006, $9

6.  Fazi-Battaglia Verdicchio del Castelli di Jesi, 2006, $9

7.  E. Guigal, Taval, 2005, $14

8.  Acacia Pinot Noir, 2005, $19

9.  Renwood Sierra Foothills Zinfandel, 2005, $12

10.  Big Red Monster, $10

by Maureen C. Petrosky

Get Carried Away

The Sex and the City Movie has been out for about a week now and still going strong.

Want to live out your Carrie dream on your wedding day.  You can wear her gown!

The gown is from Vivienne Westwood and is made to order.  Price upon request.

I'm just not so sure I'd go for the feather headpiece.  But to each her own!

Image and information from Brides.com

Saturday's Wedding ABC's

J.  J is for java.  It is always a good idea to set up coffee as a station after the meal.  The wedding cake can also be served on the same station.  Guests shouldn't be sitting at their tables by the time coffee is served - they should be dancing!  Add to the coffee station by adding an espresso bar.  And remember, coffee cups are never on the table at the start of the meal.  They're added later.

K.  K is for keepsake.  Ask someone to collect things from the wedding for you to keep.  Your escort card, your menu, your bouquet, imprinted napkins, programs.  In the celebration you will probably forget, so asking someone to collect these items is always a good idea.

L.  L is for linens.  You can easily rent linens to use on your guest tables, cocktail tables, cake table, etc.  Rented linens will give you a big impact for a relatively small investment.  

Getting to Know Flowers

Getting to Know Flowers

Hydrangea

Comes in white, pink, blue, lilac, green, and red/brown

Tulip

Come in nearly every color except for blue and a true black

Agapanthus

Comes in shades of blue to white

A Room with a View

We had a wonderful few days down at the Eastern Shore at the Hyatt Chesapeake Bay in Cambridge, Maryland.  We had a few goals while we were visiting:  finalize everything for Angela and Trey's Wedding on the 14th and work on a birthday celebration weekend in August.  Kim Seward from the Hyatt made our visit extra special with a wonderful room and a special

 wine and cheese treat.  Work hard, play hard right?  We did all of our research and then some!

The view from our oh-so-wonderful room.  We didn't want to leave.

 

Our wine and cheese treat from Kim.  Yum!

The view from our lunch at Town Dock Restaurant in St. Michaels, Maryland

Fix it Fast

Fix it Fast Makeup Quick Fixes

Urban Decay Lingerie & Galoshes for Lashes

$17 on Sephora.com

Tarte Rest Assured Brightening Wand

$22 on Sephora.com

Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer

$36 - $42 on Sephora.com

Stamp out your Stamps

With all of the changes at the United States Postal Services we've run into issues with stamps for wedding invitations.  The problem?  They're just not pretty enough.  The answer?

Custom Stamps

Zazzle.com and PhotoStamps.com will both create custom stamps with the image and denomination of your choice.  The custom stamps run about $5 - $10.00 in addition to the postage costs.

Be sure to have your invitations weighed and measured by the post office before ordering.  There are so many rules about the size, weight, and flexibility of the final envelope you have to go to the actual post office and have them test it for you.

What to put on there?

An engagement picture, a favorite snapshot, or even a picture of your dog!

You can use them for your Save the Dates, Invitations, RSVP cards, or Thank You Notes.

Modern with a splash of Purple

Amy and Adam were married on Saturday in a beautifully simple ceremony. They stood under a pretty cherry blossom and willow chuppah (designed by Christine at Fleur de Lis and Perkins Productions) with their parents, brothers, and sisters.

Although an earlier rain storm threatened to move the photo session indoors, the skies cleared and fabulous photographer Amy Deputy was able to photograph the bride and groom and wedding party on the amazing grounds of the Elkridge Furnace Inn.

The tent dazzled with cool cucumber green linens from Select Event Rentals and were accent by deep purple roses and hydrangea centerpieces in crystal bowls. Natural wood chivari chairs also from Select complimented the soft color pallette.

The bride's mom spent many weeks gathering beautiful picture frames (shown in the photo here) and a photo of each couple attending the wedding. Once assembled, the frame and photo served as both the escort card with a table assignment and a wedding favor. It might have been a lot of work to complete the project but the result was terrific and the talk of the wedding.

The couples wedding logo was designed by the bride's sister Carrie, a graphic artist and was repeated on the ceremony programs, menu cards, cocktail napkins, and chocolate chip cookie favor tags. It was a simple, modern element that showed Amy and Adam's simple aesthetic. The romantic decor was enhanced by the large lighted lanterns hung in the tent by the staff at Perkins Productions. They glowed all evening and managed to stay clear of the raised chairs during the Hora.

Guests dined at various food stations positioned throughout the tent until the talented Johnny Artis Band cranked it up and the dance floor was full to capacity. There was even a surprise performance by the 'Blues Brothers' - a one night only show led by Amy's father.

Congratulations Amy and Adam!

A Helping Hand

We love listening to the toasts at wedding receptions.  They're a little peak into the non-wedding planning lives of our bride and groom.  We learn so much about their taste and style but often learn a lot about their friendships and family relationships in the toast.

At Heather and Andy's wedding we heard about how they met (on a trek through Burma!) and about their giving natures.

We wanted to share one element of the toast - specifically about Andy's Bachelor Party.  Now, normally we frown upon sharing details of the bachelor party during the toast.  No one wants to hear that much about drinking and debauchery.

Andy's Pre-Wedding Celebration had a different feeling.  He went to a shelter and served meals to those persons less fortunate to himself.  It was a great bonding experience for his groomsmen and they were able to help people who needed it.

What a terrific way to balance out that feeling of decadence and self indulgence that is sometimes involved with a wedding.  Add it to your bachelor or bachelorette party or make it a separate outing.  It's sure to make an impact on you and your wedding party.