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1 In Events/ Lounge/ Wedding Planning

Prost! Visit the Wedtoberfest Wedding Lounge

If you don’t already have enough reasons to attend the upcoming 9th Annual Winter Indie Wed, let me give you one more!  As with year’s past, we’ve tasked one special Chicago event planner with transforming the entire 3rd floor of the Ravenswood Event Center into a lounge for attendees to relax in between visits with vendors below.  This year we are partnering with the Carlene Smith of Naturally Yours Events to create an elegant Wedtoberfest-themed lounge.

Interested?  Well, let me tell you more! Oktoberfest has come early this year at Indie Wed! The third floor has been reimagined into the chicest beer hall in the city, with a quirky and bright color palette that will combat any winter blues. Immerse yourself in a mix of hops and neon. Yup, I said neon! Take a peek at her lounge themed Pinterest board right here for some ideas you can swoon over.

Carlene has curated an incredible selection of vendors for you to experience this weekend. Atmosphere Events Group will help set the mood with lighting and decor while Relics Vintage Rentals showcases a warm and inviting tablescape. Nibble small bites paired with beer and beer cocktails, courtesy of FIG Catering. Sugar Fixe Patisserie will help you indulge your sweet tooth. Don’t miss the bespoke ceremony backdrop created by Black Candy Design. Paper Love Club has all the paper goods taken care of with their whimsical take of wedding invitations. Do a double take on the stunning floral arrangements created by The Striped Petal as they are all created from paper. Look your best with attire from The Groomsman Suit and make sure you say ‘beer cheese’ as photographer Ryan Moore Photography is on hand to capture the day. Last but not least, Gussied will get you up and moving as they play live music throughout the day.

So if that doesn’t get you in the mood even more, I don’t know what will.  This year’s show is going to be amazing and this will be just one more reason you will be glad you came.  Tickets are on sale now.  Visit here to get yours while they are still available.

And if Wedtoberfest sounds a little familiar, that is because it is our sister show. Naturally Yours Events and Indie Wed, pair up every fall for a unique event that pairs wedding planning with the casual atmosphere of a beer fest. The Wedtoberfest lounge will give you a preview of the next event, coming in October of 2018.

 

 

February 1, 2018 By
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1 In Events/ Wedding Planning

5 Reasons You Wont Want To Miss Indie Wed

Some of the Indie Wed staff with rentals via A La Crate Vintage Rentals

Are you on the fence about whether you should attend Indie Wed? Are you thinking it is just another lame wedding show with pushy vendors? Are you wondering ‘What IS Indie Wed?’  Well fear not. Here are 5 reasons why this year’s Indie Wed event in Chicago is not to be missed.

1. The Coolest Vendors On The Planet

Okay so I may be a bit biased, but Indie Wed vendors tend to be some of the coolest folks around. With close to 100 vendors participating, you will have a huge variety of wedding pros in every category from cakes and catering to florals and fashion and beyond. Important to note is that these vendors (or ‘friendors’ as you will get to know them after working with them) have been thoughtfully curated from hundreds of applicants. The goals was to have a wide selection of styles and price ranges perfect for all tastes and budgets. The best part is that the vendors chosen represent the very best of small businesses in the area. By attending Indie Wed, you are helping to support a ton of amazing, independent business owners.

2. Live Music On All Three Floors

Yes, you read that right… THREE floors. So usually we have one stage on the first floor with a variety of performers throughout the day. Well that wasn’t good enough. This year we are multiplying that by 3. Each floor will have some sort of entertainment.

One the first floor, we will continue with our larger stage highlighting all our musicians. We have everything from loungey jazz & spanish guitars to brass bands and strings. In between acts, a DJ will be there to keep the party going.

The second floor will keep it a bit more intimate with our new ‘small acts’ area. During the day some of the smaller musical acts will play live for you. Again, a DJ will fill the down time with a variety of tunes.

On the third floor, our special themed lounge (see #5 below) will feature our favorite pop-twangers, Gussied playing sets on and off all day.

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January 26, 2016 By
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1 In Events/ Inspiration/ Lounge/ Wedding Planning

Moroccan Daydream Wedding Lounge

If you don’t already have enough reasons to attend the upcoming 6th Annual Winter Indie Wed, let me give you one more!  Similar to last year’s event we will be transforming the entire 3rd floor of the Ravenswood Event Center into a lounge for attendees to relax in between visits with vendors below.  I asked local event stylist (and Indie Wed alum) Katie Jayne from Jayne Weddings to plan this year’s lounge.  After some serious brainstorming, we are excited to introduce….

lounge-logo

Interested?  Well let me tell you more!

Inspired by a 1970’s California-meets-Morocco vibe, Katie is bringing the warmth and radiance of the sun to Indie Wed! Experience a state of zen while sipping on bright libations in our mystically alluring Moroccan cabana. Treat yourself to our complementary manicures and massages. Nibble on global themed fair while listening to some relaxing melodies. Catch up with friends or capture the moment in our photo booth. Soak in the good vibes and plentiful inspiration provided by the unique wedding vendors. Yes this is a wedding show, but the 3rd floor will be the perfect oasis for you and your love to unwind from all that wedding planning.

 

To entice you just a bit more, here is a list of the amazing vendors who will be participating in the lounge.

Under the careful stylings of Jayne Weddings, Art of Imagination will magically transform the 3rd floor space with a beautifully draped cabana, lighting and over 900 feet of tissue paper swag crafted by Jayne Weddings.  Katie from Jayne will also have a boho tablescape as inspiration to help anchor the room.  Bowery & Bash, Chicago Farm Tables, Chicago Vintage Weddings and Re:Find Joy will be providing vintage rugs, gorgeous furniture and details for the space while Ultrapom will bring the sexy to the lounge with their sequin linens and gold poufs.  The Foxglove Studio will adorn the space with lush florals in vibrant colors along with making floral crowns you will see on the wandering models.  Paper Stories is designing all the signage and paper goods while Julia Franzosa captures some amazing photos throughout the day.  Elysia Root Cakes will have a sublime Moroccan inspired cake on display.  If you are hungry, The Publican/Publican Quality Meats will have a tasting menu that is sure to dazzle and will be providing the perfect libations for this fete.  Have a sweet tooth?  Blackdog Gelato can sweeten you up with their tasty gelato cookie sandwiches.  After noshing, head over to the Smilebooth photo booth to snap a few pictures or get inspired to move with the playlist provided by Cage and Aquarium.  And if all that doesn’t get your relaxed enough, Spa In Your Space will be providing free mini-manis and massages from 11-3.

So if that doesn’t get you in the mood even more, I don’t know what will.  This year’s show is going to be amazing and this will be just one more reason you will be glad you came.  Tickets are on sale now.  Visit here to get yours while they are still available.
January 27, 2015 By
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0 In Events/ Wedding Planning

Bridal Bootcamp at Mignonette

Now that Indie Wed is over and you narrowed down your list of potential vendors, perhaps you are looking for some more advice….

A group of Indie Wed alums along with some other local vendors are participating in a Bridal Bootcamp.  The day is chock full of great advice and tips for the bride to be, in a more intimate setting.  Space is limited so sign up soon.  Tickets are $25 per person.

Here’s the day…

11:00am-11:20am
Bananas, Apples and Pears, Oh No!
Finding the Best Fit for Your Shape

11:20am-11:40am
Those Mason Jars Cost HOW MUCH?!
Planning a Realistic Budget for YOUR Wedding

11:40am-12:00pm
But I Look Funny When I Smile!
Working With Your Photographer To Look Picture Perfect

12:00pm-12:30pm
A Foodie’s Dilemma
Using Your Personal Taste To Create A Unique Wedding Menu

12:30pm-12:50pm
Story & Imagination
Planning the Wedding of Your Dreams

12:50pm-1:10pm
Please Don’t Stop The Music
How To Pick The Right DJ and Honor Your Musical Tastes At The Same Time!

1:10pm-1:30pm
Blossoming Possibilities
Why Picking Seasonal, Local Flora is the Smart
and GREEN Way To Go

1:30pm-1:50pm
Orange You Glad I Said Hello
Save the Dates and Invitation Etiquette, simplified

1:50pm-3:00pm
Meet & Greet with Vendors

 There are some wonderful local vendors participating so please check out this event.  It is organized by Mignonette Bridal & Citygirl Weddings & Events.

February 15, 2013 By
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0 In Wedding Planning

Cloud Parade

So unless you live under a rock, you should know all about sites like Etsy and Wedzu for shopping handmade.  Mostly likely you are also aware, if not addicted, to Pinterest for all your online ‘pinning’ needs.  Each of these sites serves a purpose and can be super helpful to anyone planning a wedding.  So what if there was a site that combined the ability to create virtual inspiration boards but also shop directly from the items you bookmarked?  I give you… Cloud Parade.

Cloud Parade from Cloud Parade on Vimeo.

Cloud Parade is a pretty new site that lets you design and shop your wedding from one site.  After using Etsy for so long, it takes a little while to get used to the navigation and where to find everything but I think this newly launched site shows a lot of promise.  Essentially when you sign up, you can start saving items to your various clouds.  (Similar to your boards in Pinterest).  You can also view other people’s clouds.  See something you like and want to buy?  No need to worry about a broken link to the original source.. Cloud Parade is the source so you can just click and buy.  Super easy.


 Cloud Parade

The Cloud Parade home page highlights ‘featured products’, ‘featured vendors’, & ‘featured clouds’.  At the very top you can go straight to the shops or view various clouds.  If you want to customize your search a little more, they have an adorable pop down feature that lets you customize the search based on color, categories (favors, flowers, decor, and even services and rentals!), and style (bohemia, modern, rustic etc)  There is also your standard search bar for simply typing in what you are looking for.

Cloud Parade

 

Since this site is pretty new, I don’t expect it to be perfect.  There are a few things that lack some of the intuitive nature that Etsy has grown into.  I think this will change.  As more people use the site, I am sure the folks at Cloud Parade will received feedback and continue to improve the site.  Also, since the site is new, there aren’t a ton of shops to go through… however the ones on the site seem to be pretty top notch.  Besides, you have less to sort through making it easier to find what you need.

Have you used cloud parade?  Let me know what you think.

February 15, 2013 By
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2 In Wedding Planning

Big Announcement

If you keep up with our Facebook page you may have seen a few cryptic posts about a fun partnership I’ve been working on.  Well I can now officially spill a little bit of the details.

I am excited to announce that Indie Wed is partnering with Design Bureau magazine as a national media sponsor for the coming year.  DB covers all facets of design and their mantra is “Inspiring Design Dialogue“.  They believe that all art (and artists) is intertwined and they cover everything from fashion, industrial design, to interior design and landscape architecture. Design Bureau is distributed nationally in all major newsstands, specialty bookstores and Barnes & Noble, as well as internationally in 13 countries.

Okay, so you may be wondering what this has to do with weddings.  Currently they are working on a new project, a huge, special edition issue; Weddings By Design featuring inspirational, unique wedding events & those involved with bringing it to life!  This special edition will also have a great resource guide for brides to plan their perfect day. The issue will be distributed nationally in early 2013.   Their hope is that this will become a yearly edition.  I have seen some sneak peeks of the issue but since they are still in the planning stages, I can’t share anything yet. Of course I will as soon as I can.  In addition to the print issue, they will be creating a microsite online to correspond with the launch that will become an online resource for everything in the issue and beyond.

So what does this mean for you and for Indie Wed?  Well for Indie Wed, it means full page ad space in a nationally distributed magazine for all our 2013 events as well as a presence for all our events on their microsite.  There are a few other little details we are working out that are exciting but I want to keep under wraps for now.  This will mean greater exposure for us and in turn for all our fabulous vendors.  In return for all this press love, Design Bureau will be at all our events, handing out magazines, and other related treats regarding the wedding issue.  Attendees will get to see the special issue up close and in person.  From what I have seen so far, this will be jam-packed with all sorts of wedding inspiration that is way cooler than what is on most newstands today.  If you love good design and are interested in the most innovative things in wedding design and planning going on nationally and worldwide, this will be the magazine for you.

Whew.  I’ve been eager to share this for a while.  Although I still keeping some details hush-hush, this is very exciting and I hope something that will be good not only for Indie Wed but for our vendors and attendees.

May 31, 2012 By
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