pinkgerbers's biography
I started out here as a PW bride. I have planned many events throughout my career as an educator. Once I planned my own wedding, I was hooked. I love to help others make their day special and have an eye for how to bring ideas to life. From that, Pink Petals Event Planning has been born. I have had the chance to DOC several weddings, including our very own Kohler44. In the near future, I have several other PW brides coming up (D1rtyMartini, Jess143, KK36), as well as a few not from this site.
Pink Petals Event Design is an event design firm serving the San Francisco Bay area and events throughout California. We provide full service event planning for weddings, parties, corporate, and non-profit events. Partial planning and day-of coordination is also available to help bring your ideas to reality. We believe that the role of the planner is to listen to the client and help make their unique ideas meld together and happen.
My parents drove out the week before the wedding, but the weekend really began on Wednesday. My family started to arrive from Iowa so we hosted a little barbecue for everyone already there. On Thursday, we went to Capitola to hit the beach. That night was my bachelorette party. Woot Woot! Friday was a spa day with all of my girls. Then my BIL hosted a cocktail hour. It was so neat to see my great aunt playing pool with my BIL - and beat him! That night we had the rehearsal in the courtyard of Pruneridge Plaza Hotel (where most of the party was staying) and the rehearsal dinner at Buca di Beppo. My MOH has put together a slide show with pictures of us and with our bridal party for that night. She and my DOC (also a friend) stayed the night. I could barely sleep!
Saturday started out perfectly. My DOC surprised us with bagels and we headed down to the ceremony. Other than getting caught in festival traffic on the way, it went off as planned. We had lunch at the site and then started preparing! I thought I would be stressed, but I was just so excited and wanted to get it moving! I was so thankful when I was able to start walking down the aisle and start my life with my DH.
We were teachers at the same school. Our common students kept guessing that there was something between us, but we vehemently denied it. Little did they know. . .
We kept playing around with the idea of dating, but weren't sure we
wanted to risk five years of friendship. A year and a half ago, we gave in and never looked back. I am so excited to be marrying one of my best friends!
I knew the it was coming at some point, but I was not sure when. Little did I know that he asked my parents for permission over three months earlier. It was a Christmas present, but Esteban is like a little kid and can't wait. The night before school got out, he asked if I wanted to open just one present. When I said okay (thinking I knew what it was), he said he had to go home and get it. I had been in my sweats and wanted to change, but it was late. If it wasn't a ring, I didn't want to feel stupid and be dressed up for no reason. So I stayed how I was. When he showed up WAY later, he had taken a shower and dressed up. It had to be it! He walked in and said, so let's open your present first. It was killing me! I gave him a jersey that I had custom made with a player that died at training camp that he really liked and a fishing pole. Not only did he open them, but he had to play with them and try on the jersey. I was out of my mind. Finally he walked out and said, "I love the presents; I love you." I can't remember the rest. I just remember yelling, "Get on your knee!" and hugging him!
This flower will be used on the invitations, menu card, and programs. I love gerbers! I bought the picture from bigstockphotos.com. Unlike other sites, I could download a good sized photo for $10. We actually made the color darker for use on all of my stationary, but that one couldn't be uploaded on here for some reason.
I am getting married on July 26, 2008 in Gilroy, CA. The ceremony and reception are at Eagle Ridge Golf Course. The theme is gerber daisies, especially in hot pink. The accent color is celedon green.
My gazebo will be decorated similar to what you see below, but the flowers will be gerbers.
Mine:
We will have shepherd's hooks with hanging bowls like below, but we will not be covering them in greenery to keep them simpler.
This is what mine actually looked like:
I love the idea of ceremony reservation cards.
The cocktail hour will take place on an outdoor terrace overlooking the golf course. The view extends in three directions, so our guests will be able to enjoy watching the sun set.
We will be having a live mariachi guitar trio perform at this time, as it's a tradition in his family.
We purchased a guest book from guestbookstore.com. In it, people are prompted to have their pictures taken, write notes of their favorite memories to us, and predict fun things like how many kids we will have.
I decorated scrapbooking markers to look like gerbers to sign the guestbook. I put them in a glass bowl (a recurring theme throughout the wedding) and clear rocks like those in my centerpieces.
A few weeks ago, I had my first shower. My mom's friend made some cute boxes and pots filled with gerber daisies and tied with hot pink ribbons. I will be using the pots to decorate the outdoor terrace for the cocktail hour.
This box will go on the guest book table.
The bar at Eagle Ridge is beautiful wood. The hanging bowls from the gazebo and the shepherd's hooks will be placed along the bar as decoration.
The dinner will take place downstairs in the ballroom. The room has huge windows overlooking the golf course. The dance floor will be right in the middle and will be flanked by our sweetheart table. 
The tables will have ivory linens and napkins. I will use green runners on the top.
Mine:
For the sweetheart table, I want to do decorated letters that say "MR" and "MRS". I bought the letters and was glad to discover they fit the chair well. Now I need to paint them and attach them to the ribbon. They will also move the spray from the gazebo and put it on the sweetheart table.
Centerpieces
Since we want this to be a fun reception, we decided to add a little whimsy to the wedding. This is what the centerpieces will look like, but there will be two goldfish swimming around each bouquet.
The tables will be numbered. Each table number will have a picture of each of us from the age that matches the table number. They will be held in daisy placecard holders, to keep it tied together.
Here are some examples of the table number pictures:
Table number sign:
On the entry table, there will be a large bowl filled with floating gerbers, my sparklers, and the guestbook pages.
My card box:
We are having a cellist play during the ceremony. As a former violist, I am so excited!
Each of our GM and BM will walk down the aisle separately. We attended a wedding where each attendant shook the groom's hand (or gave him a high five or hug) at the end of the aisle. It really eased his tension and was very touching. We are planning to do this at our wedding.
We had one little flower girl that I wasn't sure was going to make it down the aisle. She made it about halfway. Not bad for a 1 1/2 year old!
We have three little ring bearers. One will carry the pillow. I bought the one below from Michael's and will be added a colored ribbon. The pearls match the pattern that will be on the cake.
The two twins will carry down a "Here Comes the Bride" banner.
I made mine by designing it on power point and having my dad (a mapmaker) blow it up really big. Then, I used spray glue to attach it to a white board, poked holes, and added ribbon. It matches my theme and uses my flower on it.
At the end of the ceremony, the boys followed us back down the aisle with this sign:
Here it is in action:
My father will be walking me down the aisle. My mother will meet us at the end to help give me away. I wanted to honor her for all that she has done in my life.
My FI is Mexican and we will be doing the trece arras tradition. My groom will give me 13 coins to signify that he will support and take care of me over the years. Orignally the tradition meant taking care of me financially, but we mean it in a broader sense. By accepting the coins, I am pledging to trust in him. Most people buy special gold coins to be the arras, but we are using state quarters from the different places we visited on our cross country road trip last summer.
The engraved box:
We are also doing an unusual unity ceremony. Our mothers will pour water from a pitcher that signifies their heritage (Delft for my Dutch mother and terra cotta for my Mexican FMIL) into a common pitcher. Then my FI and I will pour the water onto a tree that we will later plant. During this time, the parents will pledge to support out love and help it grow. We will give a rose to each mother to thank our parents for planting the seeds of a good marriage.
We wanted traditional vows, but before they are said, we decided to tell each other why we appreciate each other. It was one of my favorite parts of the wedding!
A few other pics of the ceremony:
Songs:
Bridal party entrance: Suite No. 1 in G Major - Bach
Bride's Processional: Bridal March
Unity Ceremony: Grow Old WIth Me - Mary Chapin Carpenter
Recessional: Undecided, but some pop song played on cello
Before the cocktail hour started, we wanted a big group picture. I'm so glad we have it:
We are doing a three tiered cake. The top and bottom layer will be white cake with fresh strawberries and cream. The middle layer will be chocolate with raspberry mousse. The frosting is really light and airy - it is called chantilly lace.
We are planning to wrap hot pink ribbon around the cake - similar to what you see below, but without the black too. It will be accented with gerber daisies, but probably more than you see there - with four layers there is not much "shelf space"
It will have flowers on it kind of like what you see below (not the colors - just the placement):
The cake will have icing pearls on it like you see below:
Our actual cake:
The cake cutters are really special to me. My grandmother passed away about two years ago. When I helped clean out the farmhouse, I found a serving set she used with the wedding cake business she used to run. It made me feel like she was there!
On the cake table, we will put photos of each side of our family. Both of our parents have been married for at least 37 years, so we want to honor that. I bought some frames on sale at Kohl's that perfectly match our table runners.
I was going to try to make a photo card box, but then saw these at Michael's. They will go perfect in my pink and green wedding!
The bathroom baskets match the card box perfectly. Yeah for Michael's sales. I have not really started collecting the items, but I know they will include: contact solution, aspirin or tylonel, feminine products, lotion, dental floss, and more. I am sure the list will grow over time.
Bathroom basket signs:
Sparkler send off:
I have purchased sparklers for our grand exit.
Here's ours:
Then we jumped in the car and drove into the night!
MUSIC:
Bridal Party Entrance: "Rocky Theme Song"
Couple Entrance: "Grow Old With You" - Adam Sandler
First dance: "You Are My Lady" - Freddie Jackson (my FI insisted on it)
Father / Daughter dance: "Because You Loved Me" - Celine Dion
Mother / Son dance: "Have to Say I Love You In A Song" - Jim Croci
Cake Cutting: "Cut the Cake" - Average White Band, then "21 Questions" - 50 Cent
Bouquet Toss: "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" - Pat Benetar
Groom Gets The Garter: "Legs" - ZZ Top
Garter Toss: "Another One Bites the Dust" - Queen
Last Song of the Night - "Good Riddance (Time Of Your Life)" - Green Day
My engagement ring in yellow gold - the wedding band follows the pattern:
My dress is an Alfred Angelo halter dress. I got it on sale for $144!
These are my shoes. They pick up some of the coloring in the embroidery. I also have high flip flops for the reception.
My mother planned on getting my jewelry for my 30th birthday, but them my FSIL offered to let me borrow hers. It matches my dress so perfectly and is now my something borrowed!
My FI is wearing a charcoal suit with this tie. He will have oxblood shoes.
My bridesmaids are all choosing the tea-length dress of their choice in watermelon from David's. These are the ones they chose. I love that they are all different materials!
My bridesmen and groomsmen are all wearing black suits, white button down shirts, and these ties (part of their gifts).
Here's how it all came together:
I had my hair trial just before my 30th birthday party. (Might as well use it for something good!)
I had my makeup trial at Bliss Salon. I think it turned out great! It will look even better now that I have a little more of a tan (like above).
LADIES:
My Bouquet:
It will have gerber daisies in it (especially hot pink)
but I didn't want it to be that simple. We are also including spider mums to give it color with some interest.
I will also be using circus roses.
My bouquet will be framed by folded ti leaves, like what you see below.
What I ended up with is below. The white cloud is part of my mom's veil that she wore 40 years earlier when she married my dad. It was a surprise to me and I loved it!
The BM bouquets will be similar, but will not have as much hot pink in them since they are in hot pink dresses.
I am not sure if our moms / grandmothers will want wrist corsages or pinned. It seems like a mix right now, which is perfectly fine with me!
MEN:
The men will have boutonieres made out of the circus roses, seen above, placed on ti leaves. The guys did not want hot pink flowers, so there will be a hot pink wire wrapped around them to tie in the color. An example of wrapped wire is below.
Save the Dates:
We created our STDs to look like we took them in a photo booth. Pictures and scrapbooking are important to me. We took a bunch of pictures on my camera and then put them into Publisher to format them. Afterwards, we put magnets on the top and bottom of each. We typed up more information on a letter with a gerber daisy border. It all went out in a hot pink envelope. Fun!
Invitations:
My MOH flew into town and one of my BM took the day off of work. What great friends! My mom also took the week off. With the three of the them and the help of my awesome grandmother, we knocked out 80 invitations in a day. We were tired, but it was fun! The paper was purchased from Alphagraphics. It's hard to see, but it is Classic Laid, so there is some definition to the white. We also paid them to cut and score the paper. The gerber was downloaded from BigStockPhoto.com, and then my mom tweaked the colors. We added the color background and the border. The ribbon is from Michaels.
Inside, we put four inserts. We created an RSVP postcard in Publisher.
We also created a map on autocad.
Our gate pass to the golf course was provided by the venue, but we added directions to the back.
We also created a graphics-heavy wedding weekend timeline.
Programs:
At first, I really wanted a fan program. However, I get really bored when I am waiting for ceremonies to begin, so I decided to put more information in mine than there is space on a fan. In my program, I will include: the order of the ceremony, an explanation of the traditions, biographies of the family and bridal party, a memorial to our deceased grandparents, a list of my something old, new, borrowed, and blue, and a thank you note to all people who came. I tied it together with a ribbon.
Out of Town Bags:
I had totally planned to use gable boxes, but then I saw these bags in the Dollar Spot at Target. They are so perfect that I decided to change directions. There is no reason to DIY when you can find something wonderful for a good price without the hassle!
FAVORS:
Our wedding is taking place the weekend of the Garlic Festival in Gilroy. Since we love barbecuing so much, it only seemed fitting to make a dry garlic BBQ rub for our guests. My FI put them together and his family and I packaged it. The back can be sliced off to be a recipe card that they can keep. I think they turned out really fun!
SEATING CHART:
I made a seating chart board instead of escort cards. It was just one less thing to worry about that day. I blew it up and then put it in a frame. So easy!
Menu:
I had extra paper left over, so I thought, "Why not?"
We went down to Capitola for the afternoon. It was so fun!
We went on Wednesday and got our marriage license. So fun!
For the bridesmaids, I got each of them a tote bag, make up bag, robe to get ready in, and flip flops that matched their dress to dance in. Then I got each girl something that matched their personalities:
For the traveler, I got her engraved luggage tags from weddingstar.com
For the outdoorsy wine drinker, I got her an insulated wine case for hiking from sierratradingpost.com and then put a bottle of local wine in it.
For the jigsaw puzzle lover who just got married, I had a custom puzzle made from her wedding photo.
For the bridesmen and groomsmen, we gave them ties for the wedding and engraved zippo lighters. For some, my DH engraved a Hard Rock Cafe lighter from a city that had significance to them both.
For the ringbearers, we got 3-D sidewalk chalk.
Since so many of my guests were in from out of town, I wanted to be able to spend more time with them. To do that, I planned to have everything done by one week before the wedding. There were a few small things left to do after that deadline, but it was minor. I had everything boxed up, labeled, and dropped off at the venue by the Wednesday before. (If your venue will let you do this - DO IT! I could add last minute projects because it was all gone!)
Wednesday night, my family all came in town. We had a BBQ at my place and played games.
Thursday - Day - We went to the beach
Night - My bachelorette party! We met up at Dave and Busters for dinner, hit the karaoke bar, and then went dancing - all in a stretch limo my friends kindly got for me
Friday - Morning - Spa day with the girls!
Afternoon - My BIL hosted a welcome cocktail party. My great aunt played him in pool - and won!!
Evening - Rehearsal:
Rehearsal Dinner at Buca di Beppo (They did a slide show of pics of us and our wedding party through the years - it was a nice twist):
Night - slumber party with a few close girl friends
Venue: Eagle Ridge Golf Course
Grade: B-/C+
Cake: I Do Wedding Cakes
Grade: A
Flowers:Weddings by Sweet Pea
Grade: A++ (My favorite vendor)
Photography: Chett Bullock
Grade: B
DJ: Jordan Rivers Entertainment
Grade: C
Ceremony Musician: Cole Tutino (PM for the info)
Grade: A
Mariachi Trio:
Grade: A
DOC: Kendra Kisling (PM me for the info)
Grade: A+
Officiant: Jeff Budd
Grade: A+
Hotel - Bridal Suite: Hilton Garden Inn
Grade: B-
Hotel - Guests: Pruneyard Plaza
Grade: A
Hotel - Guests: Campbell Inn
Grade: A
Rehearsal: Pruneyard Plaza Hotel
Grade: B
Rehearsal Dinner: Buca di Beppo
Grade: A
