Venues to Host Your Wedding Welcome Party in Cleveland

Your wedding welcome party is the kickoff to the wedding weekend festivities! It's a time for you to greet out-of-town guests, spend some extra time with your family + friends, and generally get the weekend off to a great start.

When choosing a location for your welcome party, low-key + casual is a great choice! This party is more about quality time with your guests than fancy food or intricate details.

We've compiled a list of our favorite spots in the Cleveland area to host your welcome party that we think fit the bill!

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Punch Bowl Social

https://www.punchbowlsocial.com/location/cleveland

Located just a few blocks from the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, this lounge boasts a rooftop hangout, multiple bars, a restaurant, and games (like pool, foosball, and arcade games) that your guests are sure to love! It's a fun and trendy spot with plenty to keep you entertained amidst the party mingling.

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Platform Beer Co.

https://platformbeer.co/

Breweries are a great, low-key spot to host a gathering, and Platform Beer Co. is no exception. The Cleveland tasting room has 20+ beers to try, seating inside, and a patio. It's the perfect spot to welcome your closest family + friends!

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Bar Cento

http://barcento.com/

Bar Cento is a modern Italian eatery focusing on locally sourced, seasonal ingredients. The food is out of this world and the vibe inside is rustic and comfortable. Your guests will love circling up around a table and sharing a bite and a good time!

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The Cambridge Room at House of Blues Cleveland

http://www.houseofblues.com/cleveland

The Cambridge Room at House of Blues Cleveland is a great space that is perfect for this type of event! It's equipped with AV capability so you can use a microphone for toasts, play a custom playlist for the evening, or include a slideshow as part of the party's entertainment.

The Cambridge Room at House of Blues Cleveland

Photo Credit:

Dale McDonald

Thursday Therapy at House of Blues Cleveland

Thursday Therapy is a place for us to meet, mingle, and share… and in September, wedding professionals in the Cleveland area met at House of Blues Cleveland for our monthly Thursday Therapy mixer. Our generous sponsors for the September event were: House of Blues Cleveland, Canela Bakeshop, and Lindsey Beckwith Photography.

We’d love to see you at an event soon! For more information and to RSVP for an upcoming event, click here. And for a little preview of what a Thursday Therapy event is all about, check out the photos below from our September event, care of Lindsey Beckwith Photography.

Oak & Honey Events is Hiring!

Photo Credit: Sarah Renee Studios

Oak & Honey Events is seeking a creative, detail-oriented candidate to join our team as an Associate Wedding and Event Planner. The ideal candidate will have a minimum of 2-4 years of wedding planning experience along with excellent sales skills, a strong work ethic, and the ability to take initiative with new projects and tasks.

We are a team of planners and designers passionate about creating unique weddings and events with an environmentally friendly approach. Our clients’ experience is our top priority so we strive to provide extraordinary customer service to every client, every step of the way.

Duties may include but are not limited to:

• Networking and relationship building for lead generation
• Selling wedding/event planning services to prospective clients
• Writing proposals
• Managing the client experience
• Vendor/client communications
• Event planning/production
• Management on-site at events
• Consultation meetings with clients
• Leading your own team on an event day (1-2 assistants)

The selected candidate will independently plan between 8-10 events in 2019, with the potential for growth dependent on personal sales and lead generation. The selected candidate will be on-site for those events, and will be required to handle all client/vendor planning and communication leading up to and following those events. The estimated time required for planning and communication is # hours per week, and will need to be completed both during standard business hours and during nights and weekends as needed.

Must-haves:

• College graduate
• 2-4 years of wedding planning experience
• Drivers license and reliable vehicle
• Laptop and smart phone
• Knowledge of Google Applications
• Excellent communication and writing skills
• Availability and eagerness to work weeknights and weekends

Preferred:

• Knowledge of Honeybook
• Knowledge of Aisle Planner

The selected candidate will be a part-time, hourly, Oak & Honey Event employee.

Please send your resume and cover letter demonstrating why you would be a good addition to our team to Melanie Tindell at melanie@oakandhoneyevents.com.

What is Wedding Management?

Wedding management... what is it, really? You're probably more familiar with terms like "day of coordinator" or "month of coordinator" but here at Oak & Honey, we're not sure that really exists! As wedding planners, the details are so important to us. And because of that, it's really hard for us to step in for just one day, or even just one month, and execute your wedding day flawlessly. After all, you've been planning the details for months or more!

So instead of trying to step into your wedding day plan, we designed a package that lets us support you in the weeks leading up to your day, understand your wedding vision and design, and jump in on the day-of as your logistical team. We call it wedding management, and it's a great fit for couples who need help getting across the wedding finish line.

Photo Credit: The Heartlanders Co.

Our wedding management package is comprehensive. We'll spend some time chatting in person and on the phone to understand your vision and what you have planned for your big day. And then we'll help you:

• build your wedding day timeline so that the day flows smoothly and you have plenty of time for everything that needs to happen throughout the day, without feeling rushed

• interface with booked vendors and contracts to confirm timing and other important details that are critical to a well-executed wedding day

• manage all your day-of logistics, including: greeting and directing vendors, coordinating set up, managing the schedule so the day runs on time, acting as a point person for your vendors throughout the day, coordinating a sendoff, and assisting with clean up

Photo Credit: Nancy Pauline Photography

Ultimately, wedding management is perfect for you if you want a team by your side on your wedding day to make sure that your only job is to enjoy yourself!

We have a full breakdown of our wedding management package here, and if it sounds like a great fit for you, we'd love to hear from you! Contact us here!

Thursday Therapy at Spice Acres

In August, the Thursday Therapy crew headed 20 miles south of Cleveland to Spice Acres, and it was a great time! The dedicated time each month to connect with fellow wedding pros from the Cleveland area is invaluable. We all work better when we work as a team, and the Thursday Therapy group helps bring us together to network and build wonderful friendships that turn into productive working relationships! In August, our generous sponsors were: Spice Acres, Spice Catering Co., Piccadilly Artisan Creamery, Sarah Renee Studios, and Event Source.

Tips for Stocking the Bar at Your Wedding

Photo Credit:

Addison Jones Photography

Among the many decisions that couples need to make for their wedding day, one of the fun ones is deciding how they'll stock the bar. There are a few standard options, and also some unique touches that a couple can choose to make the bar just as personal as every other wedding detail for their day.

To help shed some light on the bar options, we chatted with Krissy at

Sweet Water Caravan

.

What are the typical bar options for a wedding?

A typical wedding bar consists of a signature cocktail (or two!) along with a full bar. A full bar is usually vodka, whiskey, rum, gin, beer, and wine. We recommend always serving at least one signature drink because it's usually something fresh and seasonal, and it lets the couple add a personal touch to the bar. They can choose a drink concoction that they personally love and add a fun name! Also, for the bartender, a signature drink makes it easy for a guest to choose when it's their turn at the bar which makes the line move along faster!

What are the differences between a more traditional bar option and a mobile bar option like Sweet Water Caravan?

A more traditional bar option is a basic table with a linen. The benefit of this bar is that can go pretty much anywhere in the venue space. With the mobile bar option, the setup is much larger so we have to be able to fit into the location and also have sufficient power since we run lights inside of the bar car. But the mobile bar is super unique and adds a visual element that you won't get with a traditional bar.

Photo Credit:

Addison Jones Photography

With each option, what does the couple need to plan for or be prepared for?

In terms of planning, the traditional bar doesn't require much planning - the couple just needs to dedicate a space for it. With the Caravan, we plan, meet and go over everything logistically together. Since having a mobile bar is really providing an experience for your guests, you really want it to stand out. It becomes a focal point of the evening, so making sure it's somewhere close to the dance floor is a must! You don't want the floor empty because everyone is hanging out by the bar.

What do you recommend that a bar is stocked with at a wedding?

I recommend a bar always be stocked with plenty of vodka, good wine, and no more then 3 types of beers (a light, a dark, and something you both love or something that is local).

Tell us a bit about Sweet Water Caravan! How can we find you and work with you?

Sweet Water Caravan is a vintage camper mobile bar for hire. We serve all of northeast Ohio with professional bar service like no other. We pride ourselves in making every event as memorable as possible. We come with plenty of extras like yard games, glassware, copper mugs, and our newest addition - a vintage camper photo booth!

Website:

www.sweetwatercaravan.com

Instagram: @sweetwatercaravan

Facebook: 

https://www.facebook.

com/mobilecaravanforhire/

Photo Credit: 

Mann & Wife Visual Storytellers

Thursday Therapy at Rock Hall

In July, wedding pros from around the Cleveland area gathered at Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for the monthly Thursday Therapy meetup. All Access Dining at Rock Hall was the host of July's event and served guests a spread of delicious food while enjoying music on the Plaza. We'd like to thank our sponsors for the July event because, without them, this wonderful networking opportunity wouldn't exist: All Access Dining at Rock Hall, Jessica Vidmar Photography, L’Nique Specialty Linen Rental.

If you're a wedding pro in the greater Cleveland area, we'd love to see you at a Thursday Therapy event! For more info and to RSVP, click here.

A Whimsical Woodland Wedding

Kelly + Tim's story began with a long-distance relationship. With 95 miles between them, the couple spent a year traveling to see one another until finally, Tim asked Kelly to marry him while vacationing in a rustic treehouse (in the dead of winter). Cleveland.com featured their story on its website - you can read it here. After Tim popped the question, we were thrilled to be invited to plan their woodland wedding.

The beauty of the outdoors was infused into every detail of Kelly + Tim's wedding at The Grand Barn at the Mohicans. From the fresh florals, to the soft candlelight, and the long tables full of loved ones, it was the perfect day to culminate a beautiful relationship.

The Vendor Team: Planner: Oak and Honey Events, Photography: Whitney Neal Photography, Venue: The Grand Barn at The Mohicans, Catering: Nosh Eatery and Creative Catering, Floral: Ashley's Floral, LLC, Beauty: Carley Randall Beauty, Entertainment: DJ Marcus from Selective Sound Entertainment, Signs: PosyPine

Event Recap: Saint Martin de Porres Ribbon Cutting

Back in April, the team here at Oak & Honey Events was honored to help Saint Martin de Porres plan a ribbon cutting ceremony for their new high school, located at the corner of East 62nd Street and St. Clair Avenue in Cleveland. Each year, our team helps plan Saint Martin's annual Birthday Bash (click here for a recap of the 2018 event!), but this event was different. Instead of fundraising, this event celebrated the unveiling of a new, state-of-the-art school.

The tech-savvy building is designed to give students a taste of what a college experience might look like for them, and what they might find in their workplace environments in the future. Not only that, the new school is projected to add capacity for 100 more students.

It was an exciting day, and we were thrilled to be a part of it!

Photo Credit: Kayla Lupean Photography & Cinema

The Top 5 Menswear Trends to Style Your Groom

Your wedding is a day to share your love and commitment with your closest friends and family. It's your introduction to the world as a married couple! It's also a time to showcase and celebrate your personal style. As a bride, you put a great deal of care and attention into choosing the perfect wedding dress... something that suits your style, something you can twirl and move around in, something that makes you feel beautiful.

The dress, the venue, the decor, the food, etc. all play a role in showing your taste and preferences, so why not apply that same level of personalization to the menswear for that big day?

There are so many ways to make sure your groom's style is represented, so we chatted with Brandon at Self-Made Custom Menswear to get the scoop. Below are five trends he shared with us to ensure the suit garments are as full of personality and uniqueness as the special man wearing them.

#1: Pattern Blazers

The traditional black tux has been replaced with beautiful, elegant pattern fabrics that are for the most stylish of grooms. Stick to dark tones with bold accents or go with a lighter base and dark accents. You can even mix different textures on the blazer like satin and velvet for a truly unique garment.

#2: Accent Buttonhole Stitching

Nothing says “custom” like a hint of hand-stitched color on your sleeve and lapel buttonholes. The first buttonhole on your sleeve could be all the accent your outfit needs, or you can get super creative and add color to each buttonhole. These tiny details make a huge impact and show your guests how no detail went overlooked.

#3: Bold Linings

Who said the inside of the blazer needed to match the outside? Get funky with a contrasting inner fabric or match the outside swag with equally fabulous fabric on the inside. You can even stitch details (like your wedding date or lyrics from your first dance song) into your garment for a subtle, yet special, touch of flair.

#4: Unexpected Socks

One of the items that can be most easily forgotten on the “Wedding To-Do List” is the socks! Forget the ancient notion that your socks have to match your dress pants, and instead shake things up a bit. Let your groom and groomsmen pick the socks that show their personalities best. The subtle splash of color will leave their ensembles looking perfectly inspired.

#5: Bold Neckwear & Brilliant Boutonnieres

Flowers aren't just for the bride! The simplest way to add personality to your suit is with a coordinating boutonniere, an elegant bow tie, or a fun pocket square.

About Self-Made Custom Menswear

If you're in Cleveland, Ohio or Edmonton, Alberta, schedule an in-person appointment with their expert stylist to go over the customization options, fabrics, and measurements for your garment. Not in either of those cities? Visit their website to design your custom garment easily online.

If you'd like to connect with Brandon and the Self-Made Custom Menswear team, find them below on Instagram or Facebook.

Instagram: 

https://www.instagram.com/

selfmademenswear

Facebook: 

https://m.facebook.com/

SelfMadeMenswear/