Tonight is the 2nd Annual Bitter Bridesmaid Bash! Last night, the Bridal Studio ladies, Beth from All Occasions and I put together all of the gift bags and raffle prizes… we have over $1500 worth of fabulous prizes to give away from: Knickers, Arbonne, The Coffee Shop on Madison, Vintner’s Winery, Dove Chocolate, Sassy Boutique, Hyde Bark, World of Beads, A Collection Jewelry, Les Studios des Parfums, Pure Romance, Saks Fifth Avenue, Fleur a Flair, Brideface, All Occasions, Courtenay Lambert Flora, Bluebird Photography, Letterheads, and Aviva Events :) Raffle tickets are only $5 each and all of the money will go directly to Kenzie’s Closet.

Below, just for fun, are some dresses I’ve found on UglyDress.com (fabulous time-waster and way fun to click through). These would would certainly make any bridesmaid bitter! Just a note, these are NOT what we’re looking for to give to Kenzie’s! We’re looking for dresses that a modern high school senior would be happy to wear to her prom :) (We will take everything though!)

As a heads up, our gift in the 100 gift bags is a coupon for $150 any wedding package or 10% off any other event package! The gift bags have lots of other fun things like cute picture frames from Bluebird Photography, fabulous samples from Mary Kay, $5 gift certificates to Yagoot, Dove Chocolates, cards good for a free drink at Avenue Lounge, and more!

I hope to see everyone tonight. If you can’t make it but have dresses you would like to donate, contact me and we’ll arrange an alternate pick-up or drop-off.

Just got an email from the ladies at Chasing Spayde letting me know of their current sale, so I’m passing along the info! Chasing Spayde has handmade favor boxes and placecards in a variety of gorgeous custom designs. Check out their website and blog for details on the sale!

1. The Aviva Events website went through it’s hopefully final redesign this week. Let me know your thoughts! And if any of my (4? 5?) readers are web-design-savvy and have tips on how to create a faster-loading gallery slideshow, please let me know! I took the easy route through Keynote, and it shows ;/

2. The Bitter Bridesmaid Bash is Thursday. I know, you know… I don’t mean to beat it into everyone’s heads, but it’s a great, fun event for a very worthwhile cause. If you have dresses you want to donate, but aren’t able to make it, let me know and we can arrange an alternate pick-up/drop-off. If you need further Bash details, e-mail bbbash@the-bridal-studio.com.

3. Spring Internships. Current college students studying Event Management, Communications, Hospitality, etc. are welcome to apply for our spring internship. To apply, you must mail your cover letter, resume and a letter of recommendation (from a professor, advisor or employer) by November 15th.

4. Photos, photos, photos. I have a bunch of fabulous pro pics coming in at the moment from our summer weddings that I can’t wait to share with everyone! Watch for them to appear on the blog soon.

5. Newsletter. The Aviva Events newsletter has been on hold all summer but will be back monthly starting in October. You can sign-up to receive our newsletter on the right. What do you most want to see in the newsletter? Vendor profiles? Event tips? Listing of public events? Pictures from past events? Something altogether different?

Last Wednesday (September 10th) my mom’s friends Mary Rita and Paul were married at the amazing Turnberry resort in Scotland, and I was fortunate to be one of their 7 guests. In typical Scottish fashion, the weather was miserable and they were unable to have their ceremony at the lighthouse. However, the indoor room (safe from wind and rain and cold!) was gorgeous and overlooked the water. The ceremony was followed by a fabulous meal and delicious chocolate cake. And I learned that in Scotland, your first meal as a married couple is always referred to as your “Wedding Breakfast”, no matter the time of day. Originally I thought the hotel just had a typo on the sign… silly me, the Turnberry doesn’t make mistakes!!

On September 13th, my sister and her husband Colin had their 2nd wedding reception– this time in Glasgow, for all of the Scottish guests who were unable to make it to the US reception (or maybe it was just an excuse for my sister to wear her dress again?). While there I met the Scottish equivalent of Nancy, the lovely Brenda of Eye Candy. I truly wish I had a Nancy or a Brenda to do my makeup every day. Life is just better with fake eyelashes. Anyway Brenda was awesome and made us all look great — we were her last clients before she leaves to travel the world working on a cruise ship!

The reception was held at the Millenium in George Square and the guests enjoyed music from a traditional Ceilidh band as well as a “regular” band. Elements from the American wedding were brought over as well – a white and purple wedding cake, purple hydrangea centerpieces and a slideshow of photos set to the ceremony music. We all had a wonderful time, many thanks to Colin’s parents Arlene and Michael who were fabulous hosts. And all of the American men fully enjoyed wearing their kilts… pictures soon!