Blog Archives

Katie + Joe's Elegant Saint Thomas Wedding - 1.24.15

8/28/2015

Katie + Joe wed at the lovely Saint Thomas Preservation Hall in downtown Wilmington, NC on Saturday, January 24, 2015. I've always wanted to work with a January bride so we can play "January Wedding" by The Avett Brothers at the reception. (If you don't know the song, go listen now. It's one of my favorite songs from one of my favorite bands.) The ceremony took place in the old church now event venue with about 140 guests. We tied gray and navy ribbons on the chairs lining the aisle and used the tall flower arrangements for the reception guest tables along the aisle. The ceremony took place upstairs, then guests moved downstairs for cocktail hour as we quickly flipped the space for the reception.

The reception looked beautiful with navy linens and pretty flower arrangements from Beautiful Flowers by June. Half of the tables had a trio of white flowers in vintage vases while the other half used the tall arrangements we used lining the aisle previously. This was a great way to save cost on flowers for the ceremony and reception. There were a lot of cute, personal touches at this wedding that I really liked, such as the antique ladder we used to hang the escort cards. Instead of giving away party favors, Katie + Joe decided to donate to their favorite charity in honor of all their guests.

Matt McGraw Photography was hired to photograph the big day, including a first look between the bride and the groom before the ceremony. They even had time to stop at one of their favorite downtown watering holes, The Husk, before they tied the knot. Speaking of tying the knot, they actually tied a knot together during the ceremony. Instead of a unity candle or sand ceremony, they shared a piece of rope and tied a knot to represent their forever bond and love for each other. Being "Knot Too Shabby Events", I especially thought this was a cool moment.

Dinner was prepared by the infamous Middle of the Island Catering. Then, we enjoyed a variety of mini cupcakes from Creative Cake Design by Tammy Hodge. I made some mad-lib and words of wisdom cards that we had at each place setting for guests to fill out for Katie + Joe to later enjoy. I can only imagine what some people may have written!

After dinner, we all hit the dance floor thanks to Jason of Absolute Best DJ Service. These folks knew how to shake it! We had such a great time with Katie, Joe and their loved ones! This was Knot Too Shabby Events' first wedding at Saint Thomas Preservation Hall and we really enjoyed working in this great space. We look forward to working there again in the near future! Congratulations Katie + Joe! We wish you all the best!

Katie's The Knot Review:
"It was an absolute pleasure working with Melissa while planning our wedding. We met multiple times during the planning phase and I never felt rushed during any of our meetings. She took the time to listen, envision, and lend new ideas. She was always quick to answer any questions I had via email. The day of our wedding, she ensured that everything was done perfectly with the help of her assistants. She pulled a very long day for our wedding and never complained once! She is fabulous at what she does and is sure to amaze you too! Her services are affordable and very worth the money spent! Melissa was the sweetest, hardworking Wonder Woman behind the scenes of our wedding! Everything was perfect! She handled everything on our big day and everything ran so smoothly because of her. I was very comfortable working with her and contacting her throughout the planning phase. Melissa and her team do exceptional work to make your day everything you've dreamed of and more! I highly recommend Melissa for any of your event planning needs!!"

Click on images below to enlarge.

Favorite Wedding Moment:
Seeing Katie for the first time on her wedding day. I always build a close bond with my brides but I especially loved Katie. She treated me like more than just a wedding vendor - we were friends. She always asked how my day was and we really cared about each other. We spent a lot of time prior to the wedding talking about the wedding, life and love so when I saw her looking absolutely stunning in her wedding dress on the big day, I wanted to cry. She was and is so beautiful. Now I see one of the reasons Joe married her! I didn't have the pleasure of meeting Joe until the day before the wedding but I really enjoyed getting to know them both! They are just two super sweet people perfect for each other!

Vendors
Venue: Saint Thomas Preservation Hall
Ceremony + Cocktail Hour Music: Guitarist Trey Hamlin
Reception Music: Absolute Best DJ Service
Catering: Middle of The Island
Photography: Matt McGraw Photography
Lighting: High Performance Lighting
Rentals: L +L Tent + Party Rentals
Flowers: Beautiful Flowers by June
Cake + Cupcakes: Creative Cake Design by Tammy Hodge
Officiant: Joe Harrell
Transportation: Wilmington Trolley Co.
Month-of Coordination: Knot Too Shabby Events
Attendees: 140 guests

0 Comments

Tammy's 40th Birthday Party turned Surprise Vow Renewal - 11.9.14

8/27/2015

0 Comments

If you have a sweet tooth and live in the Wilmington, NC area then I bet you've heard of Creative Cake Design by Tammy Hodge. If you haven't had the pleasure of eating one of Tammy's pies, cake pops, banana pudding cups, cake or cookies, then you need to get out more! Tammy's personality is sweeter than the best cakes! Everyone who meets her wants to be more like her. Tammy is a fellow wedding vendor and friend so when she approached me about planning her 40th birthday party, I was more than enthused. Tammy wanted to have a fun party with about 90 of her closest friends and family members to celebrate her 40th birthday. Then, she threw me a twist. She wanted to surprise everyone in attendance and renew her vows to her equally sweet husband, Eric. So, we got to planning and this is what we did.

Tammy hired her fellow photographer friend, Kelly with Anchored in Love, to take photos and baker assistant, Staci, to make lots and lots of desserts for this 1940's Old Hollywood glam themed party. We enlisted in ETC Party Rentals for additional tables, linens and plate ware. I loved the black and white damask print we chose to use on the tables. Bella Florals by Theresa made pretty white and green centerpieces and even incorporated one of my favorite elements - cotton! A Boxed Event designed the perfect Old Hollywood lounge complete with a photo booth from DJ Professionals + Video.

As guests started to arrive to the party, they enjoyed sipping on coffee from the coffee bar provided by AM Coffee Bar and lots of delicious food from Middle of the Island. Tammy arrived through a red carpet entrance with her family in the fashionable British Taxi. They were introduced to the party by DJ Professionals and we all sang her "Happy Birthday". What happened next was completely unexpected. Tammy changed into a cute, white cocktail dress and came out as "At Last" by Etta James played over the speakers. The dress was custom made from her from Camille's of Wilmington! Everyone was on the dance floor with husband Eric front and center. Their pastor from Northside Church was also in the middle ready to surprise everyone with their vow renewal. Everyone stood around enjoying this special moment as Tammy + Eric experienced the wedding celebration they never got to have with everyone that mattered most to them.

After they renewed their vows, it was back to dancing and eating more sweet treats. At the end of the party, The British Taxi took home our special cargo and we left with memories for a lifetime. It meant so much to me to be a special part of this day for Tammy and her family. I continue to work with Tammy during "wedding season" but it's always nice to see her outside of work too. And like I said in the beginning, if you haven't tried any of Tammy's made-with-love desserts, do so now!

Click on the images below to enlarge.

Favorite Party Moment:
The surprise, of course! Since I as a little kid, I've always enjoyed planning surprise parties. I think it started in 5th grade when we surprised our teacher with almost 5 surprise parties that year. We threw one on her birthday, holidays and the last day of school. We even got the principal to call her up to the office so we could set everything up. I have planned surprise parties for many friends and even a surprise wedding in October 2014. I recently found a list of things I want to do before I'm 30 written at the age of 13. Two of the items on the list were to throw a surprise party for someone and to have a surprise party for me. Soo...I'm still waiting on someone to throw a surprise party for me but I like throwing them for now ;)

Vendors
Venue: The RiverRoom
Music + Photo Booth: DJ Professionals and Video
Catering: Middle of The Island
Photography: Anchored In Love
Lighting: The Audio Visual People
Rentals: ETC Party Rentals
Flowers: Bella Florals by Theresa
Cake + Desserts: Creative Cake Design by Tammy Hodge
Chalkboard Bar Design: Southern Bee Designs
Dress: Camille's of Wilmington
Transportation: The British Taxi
Officiant: Pastor Mike Morley
Partial Planning Event Coordination: Knot Too Shabby Events
Attendees: 90 guests

0 Comments

Laura's Bridal Luncheon + Rehearsal Dinner with Chris - 11.6.14

8/26/2015

0 Comments

Laura + Chris wed at 128 South in downtown Wilmington on November 7, 2014 but not before Laura's bridal luncheon and rehearsal dinner on Friday night at The RiverRoom. Laura enlisted Knot Too Shabby Events to help her plan an intimate bridal luncheon at The RiverRoom and a rehearsal dinner later in the afternoon with their closest loved ones.

The luncheon was laid back and sweet. We used navy chevron linens from ETC Party Rentals with teal napkins. Sweet N' Savory catered the brunch. YUM! Fiore Fine Flowers designed the floral centerpieces that we were able to use for the rehearsal dinner too. The ladies enjoyed a mimosa bar with three different fruit choices and then left to get their nails done!

About 40 guests returned around 5:00pm to enjoy a catered dinner by Middle of the Island. This black + white reception looked beautiful with the addition of hanging Edison lights from The Audio Visual People. The amazing Carolina Hurricane's hockey groom's cake was designed by Imaginary Cakes. The hockey player was even made to look just like Chris!

We had a great time dining on the River before their big day. Congratulations Laura & Chris! KTSE loved being a part of your day before the big day!

Laura's WeddingWire Review:
"Melissa was incredible. She is full of advise and ideas. She took the little bit I gave to her and ran with it. I walked in the morning of my bridesmaid brunch and was in complete shock over how beautiful she made the room look. After leaving to enjoy the day with my bridal party and returning for the rehearsal dinner Melissa had done it again. The room was transformed into the perfect atmosphere for us all to enjoy a beautiful, relaxing evening together. All the vendors were coordinated without me having to make one phone call. I never even had to clean up a mess or pack a box up after either event. Melissa took care of everything including my bridal nerves! She is well worth the investment and in my opinion underpaid! It shows in her work and planning that she is experienced and loves what she is doing."

Click on the images below to enlarge.