Tag Archives: wedding venues in Utah

Avoid 4 Flower Mistakes at Wedding Venues in Utah

wedding venues in utah with wedding flower suggestionsHere are 4 common mistakes that Brides often make – Don’t fall into the trap!

Utah reception centers that let brides do their own flowers

Mistake #1 – Miscalculating the Cost

Realize that there are more to flower needs at wedding venues in Utah than just the bride’s bouquet and the groom’s boutonnière.  There are bouquets for bride’s maids, corsages for mothers, grandmothers, boutonnières for uncles, groomsmen, flowers for centerpieces, throwing bouquet, buffet table and the list could go on.  See basic lists of wedding floral packages here.  Also, our prior Flower Basics blog post gives a lot of ideas as well.   Whether you go extravagant or simple, don’t forget the costs of the vases for your flowers, the labor to create them, and any accents including pearls or simple ribbon.  It is not just buying a bouquet from a big box store and plopping them in a jar.  At least a little time, effort, and resources must be dedicated to it.  If you do not hire a professional, then at least put a trusted family member or trusted friend in charge of all the flower needs.

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Mistake #2 – Forgetting that it’s YOUR wedding, not a wedding found on Pinterest!

Don’t get too set on what you find on Pinterest and similar sites.  A few photos to your designer is a wonderful way to capture the overall feel of what you want for your wedding.  But allow your designer to make it personalized for you.  Think of ways you can put your own style into your flower designs or let them run ideas past you.

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From this Pinterest feel (above) to this Ivy House reality! (below)

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utah wedding receptions with elegant wedding flowers

Mistake #3 – Being stubborn and Insisting on Out-of Season Flowers!

Flowers can be seasonal.  It is very common for brides to have favorite flowers they want for their weddings.  Pink peonies are a good example. There are times in the year that a florist can absolutely not get any or enough of them delivered for an event.  You either need to change your wedding date to accommodate the flowers you desire or be willing to compromise a little with the local flower shops.  Seasonal flowers are not only less expensive; they are easier to obtain.  Click here to find out what flowers are in season during your wedding month.

 

Mistake #4 – Considering only the Appearance of the Flower

Some flowers are incredibly beautiful but have an odor that wouldn’t please your guests.  For example, Paperwhite or Narcissus is a very popular spring forced bulb, but some people find the odor quite offensive and gives them headaches in enclosed areas.  Guests at wedding venues in Utah wouldn’t enjoy that!  There are so many flowers that have sweet scents on their own. Other flowers have complimentary scents when grouped together. Your professional florist will know.  Consider all the senses when choosing your flowers.  One bride invited her aunt to supply flower bouquets at Ivy House.  She simply used pink & white lilies cut from her garden with greenery.  The reception hall was filled with the beautiful refreshing sweet fragrance of lilies.

Odor of paper whites can be offensive in wedding venues in Utah

 

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wedding flowers at wedding venues in utah

Romantic in Red reception centers in salt lake city

Reception Centers in Salt Lake City with Romantic Red roses

Recently the newlywed Anderson couple had their classy and stylish reception at the Ivy House, one of Western Gardens wedding reception centers in Salt Lake City.

Since the Ivy House is paired with Western Garden Centers, many of us employees have a particular love for plants, which extends to our observation of some of the floral arrangements that come through the reception center.  I would like to personally compliment the Anderson couple on their taste in florals.

One can never go wrong with a classy and romantic red rose.  The red rose has been a symbol of romance and deep love since the ancient greeks.  Perhaps the rose holds this meaning because of how long the blooms of a rose last into the fall. Or perhaps it is how the beautiful color of love is held so delicately above the thorns and hardship beneath, symbolizing that even through hardship and trial, love can prevail and bloom.  The red red rose is truly a metaphorical embodiment of the saying “Love Conquers All”.  What a glorious declaration for a reception!

Red roses on cake in wedding venues in utah

We absolutely loved how the Anderson couple chose a classic color arrangement (black, white, and red) and gave it a fun modern feel.  The red, which usually tends to overwhelm this color arrangement, was used in such moderation that it created a glorious and stunning punch to the feel of the reception center.  Plus, by displaying the red purely through roses and petals the effect held the complexity of the roses symbolism, but also held the simplicity of modern design.

To the Anderson newlyweds, we wish you an eternity of deep love and time together, red roses and wonderful memories.  Thank you so much for making the Western Gardens family of reception centers in Salt Lake City part of your rose red memories.  We at Ivy House Weddings wish you all the best!

written by Katelyn Pettit

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reception centers in utah, smartphones and smart brides

Get organized before looking at reception centers in utahBefore you begin searching all the reception centers in Utah and other wedding vendors, be the smart bride who gets organized and then begins the wedding planning.  Wedding celebrations can become very complicated.  With your smartphone in hand, planning Utah wedding receptions can be such a breeze.  Save yourself headache and frustration from not knowing what you’ve done or need yet to do as the big day draws closer.  Stress is the last thing a bride needs on the day before her wedding or even on her wedding day!

The Wedding TO DO lists – There are many organizational apps to help with the seemingly never ending wedding tasks.  I used to just keep all my notes in “notes” but that became ridiculously long and difficult to find a particular list in mind.  My daughter introduced me to the app WunderList.  It is indeed wonderful!  It lets you prioritize, reorganize, share with others, email, and even print the list for an older person who just can’t break away from the pencil and paper.  Check out your app store.  The key is to find something that works for you.  There are many other apps just for wedding planning as well.  Find one that will work for you.  I like WunderList because you can still be organized with your other-than-wedding life plus you’ll continue to use it even after the wedding!

Organization apps for helping plan your wedding
WunderList is one of many apps that can help you be organized and efficient. Find the best one for YOU.
planning your wedding smart phone app
Manipulate your To-Do lists to fit your needs.
wedding planning for utah wedding venues
You can have sub-tasks, set due dates & reminders, share, prioritize, move, print and email your information.

Separate Wedding Email Address – Another great suggestion is to create a separate email address for use only for your wedding vendors and other wedding communications.  All your many reception centers in Utah, florists, cake designers, etc. can communicate directly with that designated email address.  Add that address to your smart phone with folders and sections to hold their contact information so you don’t have to look up their information again and again as you zero in on who you choose to hire.  Over several months, you’ll be gathering all kinds of information that you won’t want to misplace and the smart phone is a perfect little file cabinet for a bride.  Remember to take photos of your favorite cake designs, the flowers you like, even the style of boutonniere you want to see on your husband. Your wedding ceremony and reception ideas will be blended to create the Utah wedding that is uniquely and perfectly you.

Photos, Photos, Photos – I find myself taking photos of products with their sizes & prices, schedules, menus, plates of foods, little girl dresses, photos in magazines, people on the street, mannequins in a window, and the list goes on. Everything is at my fingertips when I have a moment to plan and work with my budget. I can look items up and make educated decisions as to what will work for my style and my budget.

Wedding cake topper that doubles as our treasured china piece.
A few years ago, a friend of mine took a photo of my wedding cake topper that has been on our hutch for 28 years now! I still love it. I still love him!
Party favor at wedding venues in utah
My daughter liked her cousin’s idea of sharing the history of the pretzel love knot with her guests. This was a cute simple bag she made and filled with chocolate covered pretzels as wedding favors for her wedding guests.
Saying thank you at all reception venues in utah is a respectable thing to do
Take a photo of photo ideas you want to do at your own celebration!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sometimes you will find yourself without your phone and an idea presents itself. I still jot it down on a receipt, scrap of paper, etc. But my advice is to quickly get the note into your phone as soon as possible, even if you simply take a photo of the note when you get your phone in hand again.

Give The Photo – Finally when your decisions are made of items you want created for your special day, you can print a 4×6 copy of particular products and leave the photo with the vendor so they know exactly what you have in mind.  Or they may appreciate a digital version instead. Remember the adage “A photo is worth a thousand words”?  Actually it was originally stated as “a photo is worth ten-thousand words” in 1927 by a Fred Bernard. The point being that your photo will help your vendor more successfully help you achieve your dream.  The smartphone now helps brides accomplish that task much easier.

Photos will help you get your wedding reception centers in utah looking just the way you want.
A photo from a magazine with the colors and feel wanted for the Florist to create! This picture is worth 10,000 words!

Your wedding ceremony and reception will be so much more enjoyable for you and your guests if you’ll take some time now to get organized and stay organized.  Also, look for those wedding reception centers in Utah like Ivy House Weddings that provide wedding planners that will help you make sure you remember all the little details for your celebration at their wedding venue.

Utah Wedding Venues Give Bride’s Choices

Choose your caterer at utah wedding venuesLexi and Connor had had their gorgeous wedding reception at one of Western Garden’s Utah wedding venues, Ivy House Weddings.  Their base linens were Ivory topped with a navy topper linen.  Atop this, the bride chose the reception center’s standard candle with their vibrant boxwood green wreath.  This set a happy yet cozy mood reflecting the couple’s zest for life.  Their guests were invited to put on fun attire and take memorable photos in the groom’s changing room where a photo booth was set up.  The groomsmen were in charge of this activity and they had a blast doing it.

Bride and groom as wedding location in Utah

Ivy House is one of the reception centers Salt Lake City offers that has Cold Stone Creamery (Draper store) as one of their preferred caterers.  Lexi chose to use them rather than self-cater, which is allowed by Ivy House.  Along with the high quality ice-cream, the family provided several sheet cakes to serve the guests.  A family friend created the masterpiece wedding cake which was displayed in the cake nook upon the Ivy House cake pedestal which is available if the bride is bringing her own cake rather than use one of our recommended cake designers.

wedding venues in Utah with homemade wedding cake

Lexi and Connor hired Chelsey Rae Photography as their photographer who took beautiful photos of the couple outside before dark and of their special first dance as husband and wife in front of the romantic fireplace.  Their evening culminated with the traditional Ivy House sparkler send off and with such a big crowd of family and friends, extra sparklers were brought in.  The wedding venues Salt Lake City brings to our Utah brides are many, but few are as classic and easy to work with as Ivy House.  As you view the many happy faces of the guests, you can see that Salt Lake City wedding venues like Ivy House are happy places to be.

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Special Guests at Wedding Venues in Utah

Wedding places in Utah with Elvis showing upIt’s not every day that wedding venues in Utah can enjoy the appearance of a very special guest who comes to honor a beautiful bride and groom.  We have photos to prove the visit of Elvis to Lara and Korey on May 10, 2014.  He attended their romantic Utah wedding reception celebration at Ivy House Weddings and played a significant role in their farewell from the event.

Elvis visits wedding venues salt lake city in May

This couple chose to have a simple ceremony with about 25 guests followed by a small reception for the closest of family and friends.  Lara chose the stylish black and white Damask linen table toppers and runners over a hot pink base linen.  These were included in her venue rental price.  These colors set off the green boxwood wreath topped with hot pink rose petals with the classical tall silver candlestick centerpiece.  With real candlelight and the fireplace, the ambiance was romantic and intimate.  She used the Ivy House table ware package and self-catered with sandwiches and salads made by dear family and friends.  Utah weddings can be affordable when the wedding venue allows the bride to make choices like these for her celebration.

Beautiful cake by Granite Bakery at Salt Lake wedding receptions

Lara and Korey’s beautiful three-tiered cake was created by Granite bakery.  The middle tier was lined with fully opened roses.  The base tier was lined with seemingly perfect rose petals each delicately cascading over the one below it.  Again the cake was in shades of pinks and whites set upon the black and white table linens.

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Skyline Flowers created the bride’s bouquets, the boutonnieres, corsages, and simple rose petals for the tables.  With close friends taking all the photos to document this momentous occasion, the wedding party of about 150 enjoyed simple socializing and the traditional bouquet and garter toss along with the bride and groom cutting the cake.

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After a dazzling sparkler send-off, Elvis was their chauffeur driving the newlyweds away in his vintage pink cruiser!  What an enjoyable and one of the most memorable departures from Utah reception centers!

Ten Basic Flower Tips for Celebrations at Wedding Venues in Utah

utah wedding receptions flower tipsFlowers are an important focal attraction of a wedding celebration.  Many wedding venues in Utah require brides to use their in-house florist for the event’s floral needs; however, Western Garden’s two wedding reception centers do not require but only recommend their favorite wedding florist.  As a courtesy to our brides, we recommend Hillside Flowers.  (Click to see their sample pricing)

Whether it is Hillside or other chosen florist, or even if you do your flowers yourself, here are 10 basic tips to know and remember.

1)  The Bare Basics include:  bride’s bouquet, groom’s boutonniere, corsages for each mother, boutonnieres for each father.

2)  Additional flower needs for the wedding party – Maid of honor’s/matron of honor’s bouquet, bridesmaids’ bouquets, best man and groomsmen’s boutonnieres, hair piece for the flower girl and rose petals for the flower girl to gently toss down the aisle.

3)  Wedding reception flower needs include:  table centerpieces, customary bouquet that the bride throws, flowers on a gift/guest attendance book table, and cake flowers.   Flowers for a food buffet table may be considered.

4)  The wedding’s theme and colors can be incorporated in the flower selection process.  Consider the types of flowers, flower colors, ribbons, greenery and accents to be used.  Your flowers can be a beautiful reflection of your personality for all your guests to witness.  A bridal bouquet reflects the final touch of the bride’s gown and is an accessory that completes the attire.  Flowers also help capture the theme of a wedding albeit romantic, elegant, rustic, modern, antique to simple.  Exotic orchids to timeless calla lilies, your flowers can tell your guests a lot about you.

5)  To keep the flower budget reasonable, it is less expensive to select flowers that are in season and locally grown if possible.  You may need to improvise and coordinate colors and flowers around certain seasons, but this means you may be able to afford more flowers.  Being open-minded and willing to work with your florist so you don’t have to import flowers will save you a lot of money.

6)  Consider your reception venue.  Utah reception centers that already have some greenery, won’t need as much floral decoration as those that have none, containing only walls and hard decor.  Brides that book at Ivy House and Atrium find that they don’t require as much floral design as other Salt Lake City wedding venues.

7)  Coordinate with a florist that can accommodate you for both the wedding venue for the ceremony and the Utah wedding reception center for your celebration.   This will help you deal with one single florist who can create one cohesive theme for your entire day.  These professionals are able to provide guidance and advice to you about what flowers will work best for your needs.  Sometimes they can even supplement flowers in bouquets and centerpiece with more greenery, feathers, pearls, or artistic elements.

8)  Inquire about vases.  Does your florist rent them to you?  Are they purchased by you as part of the cost of the arrangements?  This is important to know.  You will want to know if  you can send floral arrangements home with guests as a gift?

9)  Does the florist set up the floral pieces?  Does the florist take down the pieces at the end of the reception if the vases are rented or do you do this and return the vases?  These little details are important to know ahead of time.

10)  Many brides want their bouquets professionally preserved.  Some florists provide this service.  Inquiring ahead of time will help save you significant time and help to preserve the bouquet while it is still vibrant and fresh.

Flowers are a vital part of your wedding celebration.  Whether you choose one of the many Utah wedding venues that require the use of their in-house florist or use one of Western Garden’s two wedding reception venues in Utah where you can choose your florist or do it yourself, take heed to these 10 tips to have your flowers be the final accent to your beautiful celebration.

***J&S Wedding 133 credit SONY DSC SONY DSC SONY DSC Codymoffat-040414--8 View More: http://ravenbergphotography.pass.us/allieandsteve View More: http://ravenbergphotography.pass.us/allieandsteve IH12 06-02 Angie & Chase 105 IH12 12-01 Warnock small resolution 27 mfkphoto-ivy-wed-20 RLT CREDIT - 50

Wedding Venues in Utah with Real Events – December 12, 2013

IH H RE 12-30-13 Mr Mrs Smith Cake topperWedding venues in Utah host fun couples like this beautiful couple at Ivy House wedding reception center at Western Gardens Downtown.  The fun personalities of this couple Genevieve and Robert were on display with their cake topper – a bride and groom “packing heat”!  They obviously are jovial but at the same time have a classical taste.  The bride chose black base linens with white damask toppers.  A simple calla lily with a touch of green accented as centerpieces.

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One of our recommended cake designers – Carrie’s Cakes

We allow our families to self-cater if they choose, but Genevieve chose to utilize our highly recommended vendors for catering and cake design. Utah Celebrations catered with fresh fruit, appetizers and hot drinks for the cold wintery yet romantic day! One of our favorite cake designers created her wedding cake.  Carrie’s Cakes does beautiful and delicious work.  They are truly works of art!  Bacchus was their certified bartender for light alcohol service.  Flowers were provided by Flowerama.  Beautiful Utah wedding locations like Atrium Weddings, are reasonably priced wedding venues that allow your wedding celebration reflect your personality!

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Utah Celebrations is one of our preferred caterers!

So many guests said how much they liked the venue.  Thank you so much!  ~ Peggy, Mother of the Bride.

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Real Events at Wedding Reception Venues in Utah – February 15, 2014

utah reception centersThe mother of this bride deserves to be awarded this year’s most dedicated mother of the bride award at all wedding reception venues in utah.  Not only did support her daughter in all the stress and details of planning her daughter’s wedding, but she also dealt with the stress and time to make the wedding cake.  That in and of itself is enough to make any mother have her nerves completely frazzled and ready for a day at the spa.

Beautiful couple at utah wedding reception
wedding cake at wedding venues in salt lake city

The cake is a solid four tiers of exquisite unique decoration styles on each level.  It appears to have a fifth tier made up of gorgeous coral & white roses and blue chrysanthemums.  She created a beautiful masterpiece that was the envy of any of any Utah wedding venues.

utah weddings at Ivy house weddings

wedding locations in utah Guests at wedding venues in Utah

The couple enjoyed a beautiful sit down dinner for about 100 guests of family and friends that was hosted by Utah Celebrations.  Their photographer was the wonderful local professional Margaret Evans.

Comments from Kate, the Maid of Honor, included “Everything was wonderful and everyone was very helpful.  The facilities are absolutely beautiful too.”   We invite you to check out wedding places in Utah like Ivy House Weddings for a stress free beautiful wedding celebration!

wedding reception mantel decorations

Real Events at Wedding Venues in Utah 02-22-2014

Today Simple elegant wedding venues in UtahI’d like to share about this wedding celebration that took place in the cold of winter, but you’d never guess it.  Liz and Matt added their touch of style and personality to the classic lines of Ivy House, one of our wedding venues in Utah; thus creating a Utah wedding reception with simple elegance that reflected the love they share together.

Pastel winter colors in reception venues in Utah

Liz chose beautiful pastel peaches and pinks and accented with golds, silvers, and ivory including a touch of lace.  It was elegant, warm, and inviting.  Not only was this Utah wedding reception a beautiful site, but even the sounds were elegant.  Liz and Matt invited a friend to come play the harp as background music before the dancing began with their iPod music.  The string instrument definitely added some class to the event that matched the classic charm of the style of this wedding venue.

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The tables were covered with ivory base linens and topped with gold pin tucked toppers.  Atop this was the centerpiece option of our tall Silver candlestick centerpiece to which Liz accents with color coordinated ribbons, a touch of mirrors, votive candles, and photos of her and Matt within beautiful silver frames.  Again, it was absolute simple elegance as you will see in the photos.

Table Centerpiece at wedding reception places in Utah

We are one of the Utah reception centers that allow for self-catering and that is what Liz and Matt opted to do.  They brought in a variety of scrumptious desserts and platters of fresh fruit.  Loving neighbors kept the serving tables full for the guests.

self catering at salt lake wedding venues

Simple elegance can include a lot of fun too.  They created their own photo booth with streamers in their wedding colors hanging from a garden harbor as the background and a few fun props.  These photos were glued into the guest book and signed by all their fun family and friends.

group photo at wedding reception
Utah wedding places with photo booth

Liz hired Natalie Gray of The Cake Market to create her exquisite cake.  It was a unique two tiered ruffly and pearled masterpiece with a beautiful rose bouquet on top.  The flowers were done by First Blossom, and her videographer was Dan Kettle with Elements in Motion.

Wedding Reception two-tier cake

Cutting the wedding cakeSlice of wedding cake is goneUtah wedding venues are fortunate to have photographers like Lori Romney Photography and we were pleased to have her photograph Liz and Matt at Ivy House.  As you can tell, her work is beautiful and we hope she returns with another bride and groom to our reception
centers in Salt Lake City.

Sparkler send off at wedding venues in Utah

Liz’s mother wrote:   “Wonderful venue!  It was beautiful.  All the staff was so helpful.  So glad we had it here!”

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Tuesday’s Tip – Utah Weddings Wise to Heed Mother Nature

Utah Weddings Listen to Mother Nature

Utah is known for its fickle spring and fall weather phenomenons that can change hour by hour.  Utah also can have very hot summers.  Knowing this, brides planning Utah weddings would be wise to listen to Mother Nature if they want to optimize their success and pleasantness for all attending their special celebration.  Heeding weather warnings and planning ahead will help avoid potential annoyances.

Weddings in Utah weather plannerMany guests have been known to leave early from hot tent gatherings or wedding venues in Utah that don’t have good air conditioning.  Bugs at certain times of the year can also pose a problem if not attended to by the hosting venue.  Spring cloud bursts always seem to catch the unprepared wedding party at Utah weddings, especially those that think they can simply use their backyard garden.  Consider wedding venues that will give you a garden feel but you don’t have to worry about getting those emergency tents or canopies from neighbors and friends, or purchase lots of umbrellas and hire lots of neighbor boys to walk your guests from their cars to your home with umbrellas.  Wedding reception centers have done it all before and can alleviate your worries and actually can be more cost effective.

Reception centers in Utah with air conditioning for guests
In the well air conditioned Ivy House, the Groom and all the guests won’t be over heated as the party rages on during the heat of the summer!

A great tip is to check out the local news weather forecast history for your area.  Utah’s local KSL has a great service where you simply submit the date for which you are planning your event and up pops the information of the chance of precipitation for your given day, the average temperatures for that day, even average hourly temperatures.  You can also check out the sunrise and sunset so you can time saying your wedding vows at that perfect photo shot moment with a sunset behind the bride and groom.  It is KSL’s “Wasatch Front Outdoor Weather Planner” found on their website.

KSL Weather Planner

So remember when planning Utah wedding receptions, listen to Mother Nature and heed her weather tendencies by planning accordingly.  Utah weddings are so much more pleasant for everyone involved when this tip is followed!

Utah wedding venues for cool as cucumber couples
The climate is just right inside Ivy House while it can be storming a spring thunder burst outside! Peace and calm inside!