A sweetheart of a deal just came across my email.  Sandal Resorts are offering a February special for destination weddings and/or honeymoons. Book a honeymoon or wedding and get 65% off a package plus 2 days free!!  This is the best deal yet and the only stipulation is a blackout date on Feb. 13 -15th.  If you are thinking of a warm, sunny relaxing beach with lovely accommodations then give Joy  a call at 919-810-0777 or click on the Sandal logo under Weddings or About Us section on the website www.ajoyful-occasion.com for pricing. Ah, if we could only be there now!!

He has popped the question and you said "YES".  So, what's next?

The Ring

If you did not receive a ring at the time of the proposal, then this is the chance to select a ring together. If he would like to surprise you with the ring, then go shopping together to look at styles and let him make the final choice. It is also helpful to discuss your budget first and have some guidelines in mind before you shop. Researching is invaluable at this stage, the more you know about diamonds, their cuts, the different quality and style, the greater your chances will be in making an wise and informed decision. Purchase a quality ring, the best that your budget will allow. Remember, you want a ring to last, look good, and to be happy with for years to come.

Who Do You Tell First

Etiquette states that you should tell your parents first. Whether you decide to share the news together or to tell them privately on your own, it's the parents who should have the honor of hearing the news before anyone else. Once the groom has told his parents, the groom's mother should call the bride's parents and arrange a meeting to meet.  After the parents have been told of the couple's engagement, then the news can be told to other family members, relatives and friends.

Length Of Engagement

Couples today are busy people whether it's a career or still going to school, time is of essence. Therefore, the ideal length of engagement is between nine months and one year, unless there are specific reasons for a shorter one. This gives the couple time to plan and to enjoy the process without having the high stress that a shorter engagement may bring.

Engagement Parties

For the most part, the bride's family will usually take on the role of hosting an engagement party. Although  today, it's not unusually for close friends of the parents or members of the bridal party to throw the party instead .  

Gifts

Unlike the wedding, guest are not expected or required to bring a gift to the party. If they do, they should be open later, not in front of the guests. If a gift is open in front of the giver and you have the opportunity to thank them in person, then a thank you note is not required.  A written thank you note should be sent to the giver of a gift if you are not able to thank them in person when their gift is open. However, thanking your guest with a thank you note is never out of fashion and shows good manners. 

NATIONWIDE TOUR OF GOWNS

 "FIND THE GOWN OF YOUR DREAMS AND MAKE A WISH COME TRUE"

Brides Against Breast Cancer™ gown sales continue to be an important fund-raising event for Making Memories Breast Cancer Foundation™. Our 32 yearly shows provide brides-to-be with a unique opportunity to find their dream gown at an incredible savings, while making wishes and dreams come true for women and men who are losing their fight against breast cancer. Most gown prices range from $99 to $799*, more than half the gowns presented during each event are NEW designer gowns that arrived directly from bridal shops, trunk shows and manufacturers. The Nationwide Tour of Gowns has something for everyone, boasting a wide range of styles and fabrics, in sizes 4 to 24. Slips, veils, shoes and other accessories are also available in select locations. *Exclusive designer and couture gowns valued up to $20,000 are also available at an incredible 25% to 75% savings.

Pre-register at www.nc.weddingpro.com  or at BridesAgainstBreastCancer.org.

All profits are donated to the Making Memories Foundation
The Assocation of Bridal Consultants will be hosting once again their annual Brides Against Breast Cancer Charity Gown Sale during the weekend of February 5-7 at the Raleigh Sheraton downtown hotel.  Everyone is invite to attend this charity event for free on Sat. from 10-6:00 p.m. and on Sun. 10-5:00 p.m. 

The fund raiser begins with a ticketed event for a preview of the gowns for sale and a VIP dinner Friday evening Feb. 5th.  On Sat. and Sun.brides can purchase the wedding gowns and meet with a variety of vendors in the wedding industry. 

If you are a bride and haven't purchased your gown yet, this is a wonderful opportunity to have a beautiful gown for unheard prices and to help others at the same time who are less fortunate. I hope I will see you there!
For more information you may go the www.nc.weddingpro.com

We are excited to announce that A Joyful Occasion has been selected by  The Knot as the “Best of Weddings 2010 Pick” in the wedding planner category in the Southeast Region of the United States.  

 

An independent survey company was asked to conduct surveys from newlyweds in the area. These surveys included a variety of criteria pertaining to the vendors that each newlywed had engaged for their wedding. The criteria had categories such as professionalism, quality of service, and creativity and each, was rated by the couple  . Our goal has always been to achieve excellence and success for every wedding and to have happy contended clients. Therefore, we are honored and thrilled by such a prestigious award from The Knot and from our clients!

 

The Knot is one of America's leading wedding resources for engaged couples reaching them  through award-winning website, books, magazines, and broadcast offerings.

 

You can find us listed in The Knot's Best of Weddings publication at local news stands and on their website at www.theknot.com.

The following link is a blog by Sweet Life Photography and is a wonderful perspective from the stand point of a photographer about the benefits of using a professional wedding planner on the day of the wedding.  

Unfortunately, photographers are the ones who end up taking up the slack when a professional wedding planner is not hired for a wedding. This puts them in a uncomfortable position since they are not trained in the duties of a wedding planner, organizing the event and managing the day. Every moment a photographer spends away from their cameras with other duties means missed opportunities of priceless shots of that memorable day, which the couple have paid for and are hoping to have.

Having a planner for your wedding not only helps the couple to have a stress-free enjoyable day for themselves and their guest, but even their vendors can relax and do their jobs to the best of their abilities unburdened by these other duties. Think about it, you only have one chance to get it all right that day, so hired your planner, it is a win, win situation for all!

http://sweetlifephoto.com/blog/2010/01/05/so-we-were-just-thinking/

Wedding Secrets, an informative and educational event at Brier Creek Country Club will be offer to bridal couples on Thursday, February 18th from 5:00 pm - 8:30 pm. This is promising to be a wonderful event for couples who are engaged and wanting to be more knowledgeable about the wedding industry and therefore make excellent decision concerning their wedding planning, their vendors and sites.  We will have an informative fun evening planned with delicious food, an open bar and prizes.

You can buy tickets for $15.00 on line at http://www.briercreekevents.com/weddingsecrets/index.html.  Plan to attend and for further questions call Kristie Taylor at Brier Creek at 919-206-4695. I hope to see you all there since I will be discussing wedding planners and travel but best of all, I will be giving away another FREE HONEYMOON TRIP to some lucky couple!!!  Who knows, it might just be you! 

The Forever Bridal Show on January 2nd and the 3rd was a big success. I haven't heard the statistic for the weekend but I know our booth had a steady flow of business with brides wanting help with their weddings and eagerly signing up for our free honeymoon give aways. Katie Young and Brooks Moore won the 7 Days, 6 Night Condo Vacation Honeymoon anywhere in the world on Saturday and Lindsey Dermoff and her finance Josh Black won the 4 day Bahama Cruise Honeymoon on Sunday. Both couples were thrilled with their surprised honeymoon wins!

As a show special, we are offering $200.00 off on all of our wedding packages until January 30th so if you are interested in getting in on the discount you will need to call or email us as soon as possible since we are swamped with appointments for service. To receive the bridal show special you will need to mention this blog or the show.  This is the only time of the year that we offer a discount so plan ahead and get in on the deal now!

If you visited us at the show, it was a pleasure meeting you and talking about your wedding.  If you missed us at the show, we would love the opportunity to speak to you personally about your day and  our services that we offer to make you wedding a success! Give us a call at 919-810-0777 to make a appointment and if you haven't had the chance to visit our website at www.ajoyful-occasion.com  for weddings and www.joyfuloccasiontravel.com  for all of your travel needs, check them out for further details and more information.

                                  You're engaged, you need information, you need a plan, let us help you get started! 

I just got back late Tuesday night from my trip to Antigua to be trained as a Certified Sandals Specialist and what a place!! The resort at Antigua was out of this world! It was top class with BEAUTIFUL white sandy beaches and gorgeous clear blue water and fantastic pools! 

If you like eating and drinking to your hearts contend then this is a place for you. The food was excellent and delicious and available at all times in many location throughout the resort with theme nights as well as fine dining. They had a total of 8 restaurants to serve you, pool bars, pubs and private candlelight dinner for two by the water with your own butler!  How romantic . 

There are activities galore from all types of water sports and sailing to horseback riding on the beach.  I had an awesome SPA experience, which was so relaxing and refreshing and even danced the night away with one of the many live bands on the resort nightly. 

The accommodations are wonderful since you have many options to chose from including on the beach, luxury suites, and private villas with your own private swim up pool at your door step. It's hard to decide which situation you want since they are all terrific, private and so romantic! 

If you are thinking of a destination wedding, this is a place that caterers to your every wedding need and are detailed minded. You get to pick packages arranged and developed by Martha Stewart in a variety of styles, colors, prices and even a wedding dress if needed!  You can even pick the wedding ceremony location whether it's on the beach, in the garden under a gazebo or other beautiful locations, which ever is meaningful to you. It's so relaxing and peaceful with no stress, it's a dream.

The best part of this resort is that it's all inclusive meaning you never have to pull out your money or a credit card to pay for things, it's all ready paid for! So, you get to relax and just enjoy.

Whether you want to get married at home or on the island, a honeymoon at  the Sandal Resorts on Antigua or their other islands resorts is a must if you want a beautiful once in a lifetime romantic experience for the two of you!!

Call Joy at 919-810-0777 or email me Joy@ajoyful-occasion.com for any questions or for further information about any of their resort trips and specials and I will set you up with a memorable trip.

Yes, it's that time of the year for the biggest bridal show in the area, The Forever Bridal Show at the NC State Fairgrounds at the Jim Graham building. This year the date of the show is January 2nd and 3rd with the time on Sat. from 9:00 a.m. -  4:00 p.m. and on Sun. from 11:00 a.m. -  4:00 p.m. You may purchase tickets on line or at the door.

Be sure to come out and look for my yellow and black booth because we are having a drawing on Sat. for a FREE 7 day, 6 nights Condo Honeymoon Vacation anywhere in the world and on Sun. we will be drawing for a FREE 4 day Cruise Vacation and stay in the Bahamas! You don't want to miss this, the drawings will be at A Joyful Occasion booth towards the end of the show on both days so come to our booth for more details and to sign up.
 
Also, don't miss our travel and shopping on line website www.joyfuloccasiontravel.com which can assist you with any of your travel and your shopping needs.  So, all you who are engaged and hoping to get married, this is a great opportunity for a wonderful honeymoon. We hope we will see you all at the show in January!!

Looking for that special Christmas gift for under the tree and you don't have time to run around hunting from store to store. Avoid the hassel and go to www.Joyfuloccasiontravel.com and sign up for SHOP YTB to find those gifts right at your finger tips and even get money back!  Over 700 stores, gift cards, flowers and much more! Just click on the SHOP YTB on the screen and sign up for free. For more information there is a video that you can preview or call me at 919-810-0777 for further assistance. Happy Shopping!