wedding ideas

A great many of our New Jersey wedding couples have gone back to the tradition of offering wonderful wedding favors for their guests to take home as they leave our wedding reception venue. (In the past few years, some couples chose to skip the favors as a way to save money, but thoughtful take-home favors are now back on the Must list!) What the couples choose to give as wedding favors has evolved from those tiny photo frames and wine glasses embossed with the bride and groom’s name to a new trend that makes guests much happier – edible gourmet treats.

Your wedding reception lasts several hours, and the wedding cake and desserts may have been served an hour or two before the close of your celebration. So when guests find that their wedding favors are delicious frosted brownies or theme-decorated cupcakes, they very often treat themselves to these treats before they even leave your reception! That’s the mark of a great edible wedding favor. Guests can’t wait to enjoy them.

Here are some of the most popular edible wedding favors that we’ve seen, and made, for our New Jersey wedding couple’s take-home treats:

• Frosted brownies
• Frosted cookies, in heart-shapes or cut into wedding theme shapes like a bride’s dress or a wedding dove
• Chocolate-chip cookies
• White macadamia nut cookies
• Gourmet truffles
• Theme-shape chocolates, such as hearts or butterflies
• Pastel sugar-covered Jordan almonds (a traditional, symbolic favorite of our New Jersey wedding couples!)
• Gourmet flavored wedding cupcakes
• Hazelnut cream-filled cookies
• Personalized candies, such as M&Ms sporting the initials or names of the bride and groom
• Wedding color-matched jelly beans
• Chocolate bark
• Fudge squares in a variety of flavors
• Seasonal-matched wedding favor treats, such as maple brownies for a fall wedding
• Baggies of gourmet-flavored popcorn or kettlecorn, the couple’s favorite snack
• And more…

Presentation is key for wedding favors, so package each edible treat in its own ribbon-tied box or cellophane baggie, and affix a thank-you message label right to the package, expressing your gratitude that guests came to share your day with you.

All the best, Caitlyn Bradley, Director of Private Dining, Ram’s Head Inn

As New Jersey’s top wedding venues, the Pleasantdale Chateau, The Manor and the Ram’s Head Inn have been home to countless wedding rehearsals, and we’ve seen the glowing bride and groom prepare for the biggest day of their lives. Who’s invited to attend this very important practice run? We have the wedding etiquette-approved list of who needs to be there…and who isn’t.

First, obviously, the bride and groom need to be present, so that they can not just learn what will happen during each section of the wedding ceremony, but so that they can co-create the personalized ceremony of their dreams. Today’s bride and groom have a voice at their wedding rehearsal, sometimes switching the order of ceremony elements, re-pairing bridesmaids and groomsmen and otherwise designing the most important part of their wedding day.

Next, the bridal party members, and their guests, are invited to the rehearsal dinner. Bridesmaids and groomsmen need to learn where they’ll wait, how they’ll walk down the aisle, what they’ll do during special moments of the ceremony, and how they’ll participate in the recessional. The maid of honor will learn when she’ll need to adjust the bride’s train, hold her flowers, and otherwise be at her service. Why the bridal party guests? According to wedding etiquette, it’s proper to invite them to the rehearsal dinner, so it just works out conveniently to let them attend the wedding rehearsal itself.

Child bridal party attendants, flower girls and ringbearers, are also invited, along with their parents, so that the little ones can practice how they’ll walk and where they’ll stand, so that they’re comfortable and confident in what’s expected of them.

The wedding planner is invited, if you’ve hired one, and may be the person in charge of instructing everyone on each element of the ceremony. The officiant and his or her guest will obviously be there as well, to guide the proceedings and to work with the bride and groom in adjusting any wording, the vows, or other special portions of the ceremony.

Musical performers may also be invited to the wedding rehearsal, although that’s not a Must. Your musicians may require that they attend the rehearsal, so that they can learn the cues of when they’re playing during each portion of the ceremony, so ask your musical experts what their rehearsal policies are, and what you may have to pay them to attend.

Ceremony participants, such as those performing readings or cultural rites, are smartly invited to the wedding rehearsal, so that they too learn when they’ll be expected to stand up and walk to the microphone, and so that they can practice speaking their material on-site.

Parents and grandparents are also invited to the rehearsal, as a special event to witness, as are additional special family members. The smaller the circle of people at the wedding rehearsal, the more efficient the practice session will be, and the sooner you can all get to your lovely rehearsal dinner.

Thank you!

Rolf Shick, Banquet Manager, The Manor

Some of our favorite wedding ceremonies that we’ve hosted  here at the Pleasantdale Chateau in West Orange, New Jersey have been masterpieces of wedding ceremony décor that truly took our breath away. Our wedding gardens and ballroom have been home to some of the top NJ floral designers’ works of art, including the following top wedding ceremony décor ideas:

Altar Décor:

• Trellises and chuppahs bursting with colorful flowers and greenery, including garlands, ivy and light-reflecting crystals.

• Flower petals scattered on the altar area ground, for the bride and groom to stand on.

• Decorative pedestals on either side of the ceremony altar, featuring large, lush floral arrangements.

• The bride and groom’s birthmonth flowers incorporated into the altar floral décor.

• Crystal bowls and vases filled with roses and other flowers, or colorful flower petals.

Aisle Décor:

• Traditional white aisle runner with crystals embedded into the fabric.

• Colorful aisle runners with the couple’s names and monogram printed at the start of the runner.

• Floral nosegays or pomanders attached to the ends of each row of seats.

• Each seat covered with a fabric chair cover, tied with a colorful ribbon.

• Each seat covered with a fabric chair cover, accented on the back with a tiny floral nosegay.

• Instead of an aisle runner, colorful flower petals are lined on either side of the aisle.

Wedding Garden Décor:

• Flowers strung from invisible wires ‘raining’ down from the trees.
• Large, dramatic crystals on invisible wires ‘raining’ down from the trees.

• Trees encircled with floral wraps or garlands.

• Lanterns suspended from the trees for evening ceremony décor accents.

• Floating candles in water features.

• Our garden lighting accents transforming the evening scene with colors and highlighting our manicured wedding garden landscaping.

We invite our brides and grooms to share their most wished-for wedding ceremony décor ideas with our banquet manager team, and we will help you create your beautiful wedding décor scene.

Have a great day!

Laura Madden, Senior Sales Manager, Pleasantdale Chateau

Every bride and groom wishes to personalize their wedding décor, looking at their wedding ceremony site, their wedding reception venue, their wedding gardens…and one of the most popular décor ideas right now is decorating with your wedding monogram.

When you entwine your first initials together, or simply use the initial of your new, shared last name, this style of décor carries a great sense of symbolism. Your new, married monogram depicts your partnership, the joining together of your lives.

Here are some of the most inspiring ways that our New Jersey wedding couples are incorporating wedding monograms into so many aspects of their wedding décor:

Ceremony Decor

• On your wedding programs, with your entwined monogram featured on the front of your wedding programs or as a small, top-of-page accent on each wedding program page.

• At the start of your aisle runner, with your wedding monogram design silkscreened beautifully onto the fabric.

• As a part of your unity candle décor (some styles of unity candles feature oval ‘frames’ where photos can be slid in. Use this ‘frame’ to showcase your entwined monogram instead)

• As part of aisle or pew décor, such as a small silver frame containing your single last-name initial, attached to a pew bow or floral accent piece.

Outdoor Wedding Garden Décor

• Individual flowers, such as white roses, spell out your last name initial or entwined first initials in a large garden hedge or shrub.
• Your wedding monogram can be spelled out in staked flowers on the grounds, perhaps by a walkway.

• Pedestals at the start of the aisle can display floral pieces that showcase your monogram in flowers.

Wedding Room Décor

• ‘Gobo’ lights can project your wedding monogram beautifully onto the dance floor or onto the reception ballroom walls.

• Your guest book can feature your beautiful, custom-designed wedding monogram on the cover, and also at the top of each page.

• Your monogram can be printed at the top or far left portion of your place cards.

• Your monogram can be printed on each table number sign.

• Your monogram can be printed at the top of each guest table menu card.

• Ice sculptures can be designed in your monogram design, set on buffet tables or on food station tables.

• Place setting plates and chargers can feature your married last initial monogram.

• Table runners and napkins can be printed or embroidered with your married monogram design.

• Centerpiece designs can be made using flower petals arranged into your monogram shape at the center of each guest table.

• Pillar candles used as table centerpieces can feature your wedding monogram.

• Wedding favor votive candles and favor boxes can be imprinted with your monogram.

Wedding Food Accents

• Your wedding cake can be piped with your beautiful, intricate married monogram as the ultimate in indulgent wedding décor.
• Cupcakes on the dessert table can be piped with your last initial on top.
• Our pastry chef can swirl your wedding monogram in dessert sauce onto each guest’s wedding cake serving plate.

Have a great day!

Laura Madden, Senior Sales Manager, Pleasantdale Chateau

Your sisters, friends and cousins will certainly be thrilled to hear you say, “Will you be my bridesmaid?” It’s a very big moment for the ladies who are asked, since being invited into a bridal party circle is a great honor, a sign of great admiration, one of the biggest thrills that you can share with each other.

In today’s world of wedding planning, especially in our northern New Jersey region and in the surrounding counties of our tri-state area, brides are taking extra steps to make this invitation even more special to their future bridesmaids. Here are some of the creative ways that brides are planning unique ways to ask, “Will you be my bridesmaid?”

• Send your bridesmaids flowers at their homes or offices, with a hand-written note from you (if possible, since long-distance flower-sends will produce computer-printed notes) asking the big question.
• Send your bridesmaids chocolate-covered strawberries or chocolates from one of our award-winning NJ chocolatiers, with a note inviting the bridesmaid to make the bridal party a sweeter circle of friends with her involvement.
• Send a voice-recording greeting card, especially to a far-away friend, so that she can receive an indulgent gift and your voice-added greeting card inviting her to the bridal party circle…and serves as a keepsake of your relationship and this big moment.
• Send your bridesmaid a stuffed bear, outfitted to look like a bridesmaid, with a hidden voice player that you’ve used to record your invitation message.
• Schedule a Skype meeting with your friend so that you can ask her in a high-tech way.
• Buy each of your ladies a bridesmaid guidebook or a New Jersey wedding magazine and send them to your bridesmaids with a personal note from you, inviting them into your bridal party group.
• Invite your bridesmaids to a VIP dinner party, cocktail party, a fine dining restaurant or your favorite gourmet cuisine spot, or simply out for cocktails at your favorite cocktail bar or family restaurant as a celebratory get-together where you ask the big question, then clink cocktail glasses for the first time as bride and her bridesmaids.

Best,

Michael Mahle, Director of Communications, Pleasantdale Château

When a wedding celebration lasts long into the late-night hours, our recent New Jersey brides and grooms love to serve their guests an unexpected additional wave of wedding menu items during the last hour of their reception. In the past year, the trend of ‘late-night bites’ has increased dramatically, as a growing number of New Jersey, New York Metropolitan and Long Island brides and grooms experience post-midnight food service at company parties, fundraising galas, and even university formals. Further inspired by shows like Top Chef and upscale wedding reality shows, local brides speak to our illustrious banquet managers and chefs about creating a gourmet, late-night menu that’s served in style.

Here are the top two categories of late-night wedding menu features, as well as some of the foods most often requested by our local tri-state area wedding couples:

Late-Night Snack Bites:

• Hamburger and cheeseburger sliders, with gourmet toppings such as artisan cheeses or marinated onions and peppers
• French fries and onion rings, dusted with gourmet spices and served in ceramic bowls or fair-inspired paper cones
• Mini pizzas, again given the gourmet treatment such as spiced sausage topping and five types of cheeses on top
• Empanadas filled with pork, beef or chicken
• Tacos filled with pork, beef, chicken, beans, fish and rice or vegetables, with gourmet salsa
• Soft pretzels, served with gourmet dipping mustards
• Funnel cakes or zeppole, a New Jersey-favorite snack bite, especially when made with a flavored sugar sprinkling.

For brides and grooms who wish to end their receptions with sweets rather than snack bites, we offer you the top trends in surprise second dessert offerings:

Delectable Desserts

• A second slice of wedding cake, which many of our New Jersey wedding guests say is their top wedding wish…one slice is just not enough.
• The groom’s cake may be presented at this time, as a twist to the tradition presentation alongside the wedding cake, designed in a theme, shape and flavors of the groom’s choosing.
• Chocolate-covered strawberries, bananas, raspberries, cantaloupe and pineapple half-moons, pound cake squares and other dessert tastes, already dipped in a variety of chocolate sauces and paired with fresh whipped cream and berry sauces.
• Tiramisu squares, for a touch of alcohol-tinged sweetness and perhaps the bride and groom’s favorite dessert incorporated into their wedding menu.
• A gelato bar, also a favorite of our New Jersey brides and grooms who wish for a different, richer taste at the end of their wedding reception, with their favorite flavors featured.
• Cake pops and cupcakes are also top trends in wedding menu desserts that our pastry chefs have arranged for our wedding receptions, with a wide variety in classic, creative and even cocktail-inspired flavors.

The key to these late-night wedding menus is formal, detailed presentations, with each slider plated with great care, chocolate-covered berries arranged in artistic designs, dipping sauces presented in modern ceramic bowls, and more. Even with so-called ‘bar food’ bites, we elevate each wedding menu option to its most attractive and most impressive presentation, all to impress your guests and make your night unforgettable from the first to the very last bite.

Best,

Michael Mahle, Director of Communications, Pleasantdale Château

When brides design their bridesmaids’ bouquets, they follow the latest trends in coordinating these pretty wedding flower pieces with their own spotlight bride’s bouquets. Of course, the bride’s bouquet stands out above all with its size and the lushness of its florals, the sparkle of rhinestones or the shimmer of crystals accenting the bouquet. Most of our New Jersey brides want their own bouquets to shine, but they also want their bridesmaids’ bouquets to be lovely both in person and in their wedding photos and wedding video. They want their bridesmaids to love the flowers they’re carrying.

Another trend that carries into bridesmaid bouquet design is the use of those bouquets as wedding décor accents, perhaps surrounding the wedding cake, or placed as decorations by the guest book, tribute photos, on the family photo table and at other spots throughout the wedding venue. With a décor spotlight on bridesmaid bouquets, great care is taken to design these beautiful bouquets.

Here are the top bridesmaid bouquet design trends that we have seen here at the Pleasantdale Chateau and that local New Jersey special event planners and floral designers have reported as being the most often-requested wedding floral design ideas:

• The bridesmaids’ bouquets are a few inches smaller than the bride’s bouquet. Not dramatically smaller. Not half the size of the bride’s bouquet, but just a few inches smaller in diameter.
• The bridesmaids’ bouquet colors coordinate with the bride’s bouquet flower colors, with the bridesmaids’ flower colors featured in more pastel shades than the bride’s vibrant bouquet hues, or the bridesmaids’ vibrant bouquets being comprised of two bright colors – such as red and orange – while the bride simply carries an all-red bouquet.
• The maid of honor’s bouquet is most often designed to stand out from the bridesmaids’ flowers, often including a greater number of brightly-colored flowers.
• The bridesmaids’ bouquets consist of mostly the same types of flowers that the bride has included in her own bouquet, but the bride gets a greater number of exotic or larger flowers in her bouquet.
• Bridesmaids’ bouquets are made in the same style as the bride’s bouquet, with the vast majority of our New Jersey brides from Short Hills, Mendham, Morristown, Far Hills, Franklin Lanes, Basking Ridge and other local regions choosing hand-tied bouquets for their bridesmaids. This is a return to a true bouquet style for bridesmaids, a welcome change from the budget-saving trend of having bridesmaids carry a single rose or a single calla lily. Many brides feel that a single bloom doesn’t fit with a lavishly-planted, floral garden wedding venue or a wedding ballroom decorated with large, dramatic floral arrangements. So bridesmaids’ bouquets have returned to a chic, modern hand-tied style.
• Bridesmaids’ bouquets are designed to include a touch of sparkle from crystal or rhinestone pin accents within the blooms or affixed to the handle.
• Brides are using unique leaves and tiny flower filler in their bridesmaids’ bouquets to provide a visually interesting look and also keep their floral design costs lower, giving them more of their wedding flower budget to devote to their own bouquets, centerpieces and wedding cake flowers.

Best,

Michael Mahle, Director of Communications, Pleasantdale Château

What will be the hottest wedding colors of spring and summer 2011? We checked out the fashion runways and the bridal industry’s latest color trend reports, and we see a bright future for you. Also, an earthtoned one. The hot wedding colors of the upcoming wedding seasons may be in one or the other color family – bold and vibrant, or calm and sunwashed neutrals – or a stylish blend of hues from each palette.

Wedding Colors

To inspire you, here are some of the trends in wedding colors that you can build into your bridesmaid dress choices, wedding flowers, décor, linens, invitations, and all other details of your big day:

Brights:

Tangerine, hot pink, apple green, celadon, coral, cherry red, vibrant violet, daisy yellow, fuchsia, and especially vivid aquamarine (the #1 wedding color of 2010, according to the Pantone® color report for the bridal industry)

Earthtones:

In a range of hues, the hot earthy neutrals of spring and summer are: slate gray, taupe, light brown, chocolate brown, sage to medium green, and metallic silver, bronze, copper and gold. Chocolate brown was a popular wedding trend a few years ago and is now making a big comeback, especially when paired with a vibrant color such as aquamarine.

Jewel tones:

In spring and summer, rich, deep jewel tones are smart wedding color accents, and in fall and winter they become the larger part of the color motif, with lights, brights or metallics as their accents. For spring and summer 2011 overall, the hot jewel-tones are: sapphire blue, emerald green, royal blue, peacock blue, teal, currant and ruby red.

What about pastels? A soft rose pink has made the list of top wedding color choices for this spring and summer, but it’s quite alone in the trends as last season’s lavenders and baby blues fade back, awaiting next year’s trend possibilities.

Do you have to abide by this color trends list? No, you can design your wedding to feature your favorite colors in any combination you wish, and our event specialists can help you create perfectly color-coordinated décor all around our establishment.

Best,
Michael Mahle, Director of Communications, Pleasantdale Château

Renewing Wedding Vows

Every so often, celebrity couples grab the headlines for renewing their wedding vows, sometimes just a few months after their splashy wedding celebrations. Recently, Khloe Kardashian Odom and her husband Lamar Odom were reported to have renewed their wedding vows, and other stars such as Heidi Klum and Seal have made it a tradition to renew their wedding vows every year, sometimes in creative theme celebrations.

While celebrities often drive wedding trends, their example in the world of renewing wedding vows has become a bit confusing to couples. So to clear away that confusion, here are some reasons why renewing vows is so popular right now:

• Renewing wedding vows re-connects couples, especially if they’ve had a challenging year for any reason – a health crisis, financial stress, job search struggles, a move to a new city, what have you

• Renewing wedding vows allows couples to celebrate milestone anniversaries – the 1st, 5th, 10th, or more – as well as any anniversary they choose. So a 7th anniversary is completely welcoming of a celebration

• Renewing wedding vows allows couples to plan their wedding ‘re-do’ their way, which is quite wonderful for those who were perhaps unhappy with how their original weddings turned out, or whose parents overtook the plans

• Renewing wedding vows gives military couples the chance to celebrate their appreciation of one another before or after a deployment

• Renewing wedding vows serves as a wonderful example to the younger generations of what a positive, successful marriage looks like

• Renewing wedding vows may be done privately, just the two of you on a beach or mountaintop, or it might be a large family and friend gathering in a ballroom

• Renewing wedding vows allows you to show appreciation for your spouse, a healthy element of a strong marriage

In these challenging times, so many people want something cheery to look forward to and enjoy, and a wedding vow renewal provides exactly that.

Best,
Michael Mahle, Director of Communications, Pleasantdale Château

Many brides and grooms wonder what they should register for when they already own all of the cookware, linens and décor they could possibly want, so a new trend is focusing on the honeymoon as a wedding gift inspiration. While honeymoon registries do exist, offering guests the chance to give the wedding couple the gift of a romantic sunset dinner cruise or couples’ massages on the beach or even a share of the couple’s stay at their resort, some couples prefer to register for items they’ll use while on their honeymoons.

Honeymoon gifts

Here are some of the most popular wedding registry items that can make that dream honeymoon getaway all the more special:

• A Flipcam or digital camcorder to record their adventures

• A top-of-the-line digital camera (Bridal parties often choose this item as their split-expense Group Gift to the happy couple)

• Luggage (Upgrading the couple’s existing older or mismatched sets, this too is a popular ‘group gift’ as well as a popular gift from parents.)

• Luxury pampering items, such as massage lotions in top-brand sets

• Spa robes made from cashmere or soft bamboo fabric

• Gift cards to the couple’s favorite clothing stores, so that they can purchase new formal outfits, casualwear or bathing suits for their honeymoon wardrobes

• Gift cards to their booked resort, so that they can treat themselves to an ultra-romantic private dining experience on the beach, or enjoy all of their meals and drinks for free

• Travel pillows for long-flight comfort

• Monogrammed luggage tags

• Monogrammed travel journal for recording honeymoon memories

• Travel guidebooks about their destination’s history and attractions, and more.

If the mention of gift cards surprises you, please know that it is acceptable in today’s wedding etiquette rules to add gift cards to a wedding registry. It is not acceptable to request cash gifts on a registry, no matter how much cash gifts are preferred. As an added bonus: guests love giving the happy couple honeymoon-centric gifts, adding to their trip of a lifetime.

Best,
Michael Mahle, Director of Communications, Pleasantdale Château