Planning an Outdoor Wedding

Raj Tent, courtesy of Pavilion Tent Company

If an outdoor wedding is the stuff of dreams for you, but stormy weather gives you nightmares, then consider the following tents for your back-up plan.  You don’t have to settle for plain-vanilla tents when planning outdoor weddings. There are exotic and unique designs to satisfy all kinds of wedding styles. 

Maharajah Tent, courtesy of Pavilion Tent Company

From the Pavilion Tent Company, we have the Indian-style tents with arched cutouts, as seen above and below. They can also line the inside of the tent with colored fabric such as this brilliant red, providing instant sophistication to the setting. Tassels can also be added to the edges of the tent for a whimisical touch!

Clear span tents, courtesy of Starr Tents

If you don’t want to block your guests’ view of the incredible outdoor setting of your wedding, consider using a clear see-through tent.  Whether it’s a majestic mountain lake setting or a sleek city skyline, these Clear Span tents from Starr Tent will frame the outdoors perfectly. 

Clear span tents, courtesy of Starr Tents

If you're interested in learning more about wedding planning, we encourage you to explore the Sheffield School, New York, NY. Sheffield began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.

Wedding Alternative: Plan an Elopement

A popular alternative for some couples is having an elopement versus a traditional wedding. Wedding planners are still usually involved, so our wedding and event planning students don't have to worry about getting cut out of the picture.

Elopements usually have some kind of venue, albeit more informal, there are lodging accommodations for the couple and a small number of witnesses, arrangements to be made with the officiant performing the ceremony, and - drum roll, please - usually a large-scale reception for family, friends, and invited guests after the couple is formally married (that's when gifts are given, the registry is set up, and planners get involved to coordinate the catering, photography, venue, and so on).

Elopements suit couples who are less formal, want to dial down formal ceremonies, want to be less formal about dress and decor and protocol, and want their guests to focus on the reception food and party. Click on each photo to see inside different elopements, thanks to coverage from 100 Layer Cake.

Katie Berger, our Wedding and Event Planning student advisor, had these observations about elopements.

Don't let the laid back feel of the elopement fool you. While they are often more intimate in feel than a large affair, for the planner they can mean an increase in the amount of work leading up to the event. Planners become the go-to person for all vendors, the couple, friends, and family - even more so than in a regular wedding. The guest count may be small, but the workload is not! But with that being said, elopements are a wonderfully intimate way to say 'I do.'

Thanks to 100 Layer Cake for their beautiful photographs, posts, and wedding inspiration. 100 Layer Cake is a unique, comprehensive wedding planning resource for and by thoughtful, crafty modern women. Their vendors, projects, weddings, resources, sponsors, and marketplace are hand-picked and thoroughly researched with the hope that every single one is a truly unique addition to both your wedding and your planning process. Visit the 100 Layer Cake website today.

If you're interested in learning more about wedding planning, we encourage you to explore the Sheffield School, New York, NY. Sheffield began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.

Request a free Sheffield School catalog describing our distance education courses.

Subscribe to the Sheffield Designer newsletter.

From Inspiration to Reality - Wedding and Event Styling

Recently, I wrote a blog post on the new trend in weddings and events, the Styling aspect. Above is a great video on transforming your inspiration into a reality.

The Barn at Walnut Hill is a post and beam barn with attached farm house, built in 1887 and restored in 2009 to serve as a wonderful wedding location nestled in Maine.

Film by Meg Simone Wedding Films - megsimone.com

Style Me Pretty's "From Inspiration to Reality Challenge." (This board is all about that picture perfect, Farm-inspired wedding that is full of super-chic details.) 
Meagan Gilpatrick of Maine Seasons Event Planning - maineseasonsevents.com 
Sara Fitzgerald O’Brien of Griffin-vites Stationery - griffin-vites.com 
Photography by Brea McDonald Photography - breamcdonald.com 
Flowers by Dawn Kelly of Soiree Floral - soireefloral.com 
Barn located at: 655 Walnut Hill Road - North Yarmouth, Maine, 04097

Sheffield School began as an Interior Design school in 1985, and then expanded our course offerings to train people in other design-related fields, including Feng Shui, Wedding and Event Planning, and Jewelry Design. With thousands of active students and more than 50,000 graduates, Sheffield has trained more design professionals than any school in the world.

Request a free Sheffield School catalog describing our distance education courses.

Subscribe to the Sheffield Designer newsletter.

Green Weddings are Perfect for Eco-Friendly Couples

Stephanie and Bobak planned their wedding with the intention of minimizing their impact on the environment as much as possible. Sometimes you don’t think about how, shall we say, wasteful a huge party can be. We’re all for cuteness as you know, but cuteness does often come with an environmental price, so it’s lovely to see a wedding where pretty details and eco-mindedness collide.

In keeping with their earth loving theme, they chose green and white as their colors. Their caterer served local, seasonal, organic food. The bouquets were made from local peonies and ranunculus, their invites printed by a green printer, and their wedding rings were made from recycled platinum and gold.

Click to read more ...

Sheffield School Graduate Shelly Stone Enjoys Success as a Professional Event Planner

When Shelly Stone enrolled in the Complete Course in Wedding & Event Planning, a home-study course offered by the Sheffield School, she was already working to establish herself in the field. Signature Events by Shelly, her wedding and event planning business, is now three years old. And for Shelly, it’s been something that she’s been working towards most of her life.

“My previous experience in event planning mostly regarded my family and friends,” Shelly said.  “I like to entertain – and take it seriously – so I knew that I had the organization skills to create a menu, decorate, and keep things on task.”

Shelly got into the business of wedding planning because she enjoys making people happy. She sees it as an opportunity to allow those involved in the wedding, namely the bride and groom, with a relaxing and memorable experience. The Sheffield School’s home-study wedding planning course allowed Shelly, a working mother, to learn more about the field and how to earn money from the comfort of her own home.

“When I enrolled in the Wedding and Event Planning program I really wanted to make sure I knew how to handle every situation that might come up” Shelly says.  “I wanted to give myself that extra boost of confidence to be able to call myself a Professional Wedding Planner.  Even though I’ve done a good number of weddings and events, when I finished my last unit and received my grades I finally felt like a REAL Professional.”

Based in Wisconsin, Signature Events by Shelly is still growing. With fifteen weddings, and a dozen other events under her belt, Shelly is preparing to expand into new fields.

To request information about the Complete Course in Wedding & Event Planning, visit www.sheffield.edu or call 1-800-445-7279.

About the Sheffield School

For over 25 years, the Sheffield School has trained successful designers and wedding planners.  Founded in 1985 as an Interior Design school, it has since added courses in Feng Shui Interior Design, Wedding & Event Planning, and Jewelry Design.  All of the Sheffield School’s programs are distance education courses and serve students all over the world. The Sheffield School is owned and operated by Distance Education Co., LLC, with two sister schools also located in Manhattan, the New York Institute of Photography and the New York Institute of Career Development.