Jaime on the Rocks

Attention Spring/Summer 2011 Brides!

2011-03-30T11:41:00.002-04:00

Jaime on the Rocks is now booking consulations for Spring and Summer 2011 weddings! Email today to make your appointment! riverrocksbyjaime@yahoo.com

Some More Fun Suggestions...

2009-05-28T11:20:00.005-04:00

Of course I couldn't give away ALL my fun ideas for my wedding in my first blog about my vendors. Since my big day is a ways behind me now, I am ready to pass on some other vendors/ideas I had along with some fun ones have heard since then...

Guestbook: I definitely wanted a different sort of guestbook for the big day. I loved the idea of having guests sign a platter or matte frame of a picture of us but then I heard horror stories of people writing distasteful messages on them. (Not something I would want to share with my children someday). I eventually decided on making a quilt. I went to Wall-Mart and bought some fairly inexpensive fabric and brought it to a place in Glenville (on Glenridge Road) called The Joyful Quilter (518.399.0128) . For $10, they cut my fabric into 5'x5' squares. With the bribe of some wine, my wonderful mother-in-law sat down with me and taped the fabric down with masking tape and traced a 4'x4' pencil square for a guide for people. (I ordered the cardboard squares from www.uline.com, an online shipping company). The finished squares went into a wicker basket and I provided fabric pens for people to write their well-wishes to us on them. People got very creative and some even drew some cute pictures. And sure enough- we too got one square that I found distasteful. That square, of course, did not make it to the quilt. If you are not a quilter, but you like this idea, The Joyful Quilter can also make your quilt for you! Just imagine a cold winter night cuddling with your honey and looking down every now and again and reminiscing about that wonderful day!

A Creative Surprise: I had planned 95% of my wedding on my own- which I was okay with because it meant that I could make the decisions myself (not that I have a control issue or that my husband has bad taste- but I think every bride has a vision in their mind of how they want their big day to go). I decided about a month before the wedding that I was going to plan something that would surprise everyone- including my husband. I hired a professional cigar roller from Habana Premium Cigar Shoppe (downtown Schenectady next to Proctors 518.346.4052) to come during the cocktail hour and hand-roll cigars for people. They are the people that are at the Saratoga Race Track and they even left there a little early that day to be on time and ready for my wedding. I found them wonderful to work with. The man had his whole station set up with his cutting board, spotlight, and even sported the all black shirt/pants topped off with a Cuban hat. He was a HUGE hit!

Sand Ceremony: Since we had our ceremony outside, there was no way I was going to risk doing a unity candle and have it blow out with a gust of wind! Instead, we had two small decorative glass jars on a small table on each side of the first row. Since our colors were black and tan, I had one jar with black sand and one with tan. A verse about the sand was read and each of our mother's brought up the sand jars to Joe and I (just like they would a unity candle) and we poured them into a third jar already up front on a table. We alternated the pours and the jar came out amazing- kind of like the sand art we used to do as kids but it was more a zig-zag pattern right down the middle. It was brought inside to use as a decoration on our cake table and now it sits in our China cabinet with our toasting glasses. All of the supplies for this were from Michael's Crafts and cost about $10. Here is a link to some examples of wording that may be used during this ceremony: http://www.calgaryweddingsource.com/unity_sand_ceremony_wording.html

In Lieu of the "Toss": I was never a big fan of the tossing of the bouquet. Instead, I had our DJ play Alan Jackson's "Remember When" and had him invite all of our parents and grandparents out onto the floor for a special dance. (It was also at this time, Joe and I stood off to the side and took a few moments to ourselves to take everything in). When the dance was over, Joe and I presented the bouquet to my grandparents who were going to be celebrating their 64th wedding anniversary that October. It was a wonderful surprise that brought a tear to many eyes!

Favorite Vendors

2008-06-01T11:37:00.012-04:00

Many people have been stopping in the Bridal Resource Center with similar questions about vendors. There are, of course, some areas of any wedding that you will want to splurge on. The trick is to figure out those areas first, then see where you can be frugal around them.
Here is a list of my suggestions as a Bride-to-Be who is trying to have a beautiful wedding, while trying not to "break the bank":

Ceremony/Reception: no surprise, River Stone Manor (Scotia). If you are someone that has an outdoor wedding in mind, you absolutely HAVE to go and see this place. They can accommodate a small intimate wedding of 20 people to an extravagant celebration with a couple hundred guests. Ask for Skip or Patty and tell them I sent you! http://www.riverstonemanor.com/
If you do decide to book with River Stone, your cake is included in your package. You will have a choice between 3 bakers. I highly suggest the Cake Lady, Betty Wildermuth. She has been making cakes for over 30 years and does not use fondant- only the good stuff- and her cakes are delicious! (I should know- she made my Cookie Monster cake when I was 3 years old!)

Photography: Casey Connell Photography. Jessie and Pat do this as their hobby, and are they fantastic at it! The one thing that impressed me the most was their love for taking pictures. You could tell they do this because they love it, not because they are getting paid. You will get affordable packages, professional attitudes, and breathtaking pictures. Also, you will notice that most photographers have a time limit on their services. Casey Connell's packages include 2 photographers for unlimited time. This is great so you can have one of them be with the bride and the other with the groom. All of your photos appear online to order and you will get a cd with your photos (including all the rights to print your own) as part of your package. I am using a wallet-size engagement photo and putting the web address/event code on the side of the picture using Photo Shop. I will have a basket out at the reception with the pictures so that guests will be able to access the pictures online. Again, a mention that I sent you would be much appreciated! http://www.caseyconnellphotography.com/

Flowers: Central Market Florist (Price Chopper). You will get beautiful flowers for a fraction of the cost of most florists.

Invitations: I have actually printed my own (Wilton kits available at Walmart and Michaels Crafts) and they were extremely cheap and easy to do. Plus, they looked professionally done. To be honest, this was one thing that I could have cared less about. I figured as long as the people got there, I didn't need anything fancy to lure them. Its a big party, people are going to show. Besides, we all know that every wedding invitation ultimately ends up in the circular file (aka: the trash can). If you are someone that does not want to bother with this task, I also found a very reasonable online company: http://www.theamericanwedding.com/.

Centerpieces: Well, you know where I am going to go with this one... My vases would make an elegant addition to any table. I never pictured a floral arrangement on the tables so I tried to think outside the box. I have some of my centerpieces filled with small stones and tall twigs and others with small stones and pillar candles. Most of the supplies can be found at Michaels Crafts (40-50% off coupons are in the paper every Sunday). Other ideas that crossed my mind to put in them: floating flowers or fruit. I even entertained the idea of having beta fish.

DJ: Mike Guzzo, Plug and Play DJ (http://www.plugandplaydj.com/ )

Formal Wear for the Guys: Samuel's (Schenectady) was our choice. Since we have an outdoor ceremony, our groomsmen will be sporting champagne colored suites in lieu of tuxes.

Hair, Hair, Hair! I absolutely have to give HUGE kudos to Rachel St.Onge of Endless Creations in Scotia.(372-8030). It is right across the street from the High School and less than a 5 minute drive from River Stone Manor. Let her know Jaime Plantz sent you!

If you have specific vendor questions that you would like my opinion about, please do not hesitate to email me. All advice is strictly my own opinion and is free of charge =). Every detail of your wedding should represent you, as a couple.

AlbanyWeddings.com Bridal Resource Center

2008-04-20T12:59:00.003-04:00

Come check out Jaime on the Rocks at the AlbanyWeddings.com Bridal Resource Center located at Crossgates Mall upstairs by Macy's. You can gather information from many wedding professionals, use the conference space to meet with vendors, and browse the AlbanyWeddings.com website at our kiosk. All your wedding resources right at your fingertips- what a brilliant idea!

New Item: Hand-Painted Monogrammed Vases

2008-02-27T13:25:00.010-05:00

Add yet another personal touch to your wedding! I am now offering monogrammed glass vases as part of my collection. Use them to create your own centerpieces or pass them on to your florist to be filled with fresh flowers. Vases are available in a variety of sizes (both square and round styles). Monogram fonts are customized to match the theme of your wedding and can be painted in many colors. Vases range from $15-$35. Contact me today for a free consultation!

I just couldn't "skip" this!

2008-02-07T14:29:00.003-05:00

What a team! I have to give a very big thank you to my mother-in-law, Annie and my mother, Dawn for accompaning me at the River Stone Bridal Show on February 3rd.

A big kudos also to all the grooms-to-be who made it out on Super Bowl Sunday and to Skip Sgarlata and the rest of the River Stone crew for hosting such a great show!