Since I have been with Plaza Lecea, I have worked 20+ wedding trade shows and have seen the overwhelmed faces and sheer exhaustion from most of the attendees. It’s hard on everyone attending and showing at these events, but you can do a few things to help take the stress off of yourself and so that you are really able to make the most out of your experience.

-Preregister! By going to http://www.weddingfairshow.com/orderform.asp you not only save $3 on admission, but you also save about 15-20 minutes when you get there by filling out your information online instead of waiting in line. Just remember to print out your receipt so there are no hassles or confusion on the day of the show.

-Wear comfy shoes. You’ll be thanking me afterwards. Since the show is at the JW Marriott, there is a lot of close, convenient parking; however, if you arrive when the show has already started, you may have to walk a pretty good distance. And, when you get inside you’ll be spending a good 2+ hours walking around. Give your feet a little break. On the flip side, if you wear something uncomfortable, there are some couches outside of the large room where most of the booths are if you (or fiancé or dad) need a break. And if you are super tired, check out the 5 hour energy sample booth! How awesome is that?

-Don’t eat ahead of time…unless you’ve already chosen your caterer, cake and chocolate fountain company. There is a lot of food at these shows, and you’ll get to taste and critique with your fiancé/mom/friend/insert any other person attending with you here. And seriously? Who doesn’t love a little cake or a chocolate dipped strawberry? They are hard to resist! Some of our caterers that will be on display at the show are:

• Absolutely Delicious Catering
• Catering by Celebrations
• Heavenly Gourmet
• Spice of Life Catering

And if you are super thirsty after tasting all of these delicious foods, you can stop by our booth for some water and to chat! We love to see our already booked brides just as much as the new ones.

-Make labels with your wedding info. Most vendors will ask you for your info, including us. Instead of your hand going numb from writing your wedding info over and over again, we have found that if you includes these items in a label, it will really save you a lot of time and hassle:

• Name, Fiance’s name
• Contact info: Address, email, phone
• Wedding date
• Approx. number of guests

-Bring a camera/camera phone. There will be lots of fabulous ideas and trends to check out at the show, so take some pictures to help you remember it all. And do not be afraid to go to booths and just take pictures of their set ups–we love the compliment that you like our taste and style, even if you’ll be having your event at another venue!

We really hope you have a fabulous time at the show. There are so many vendors to check out and we’d love for you to stop by our booth for more information about our facilities. There are only a few opportunities each year for wedding fairs and they really are worth the money to attend. You can knock out half of your wedding to-do list (or at least do a lot of the leg work with narrowing down your list of vendors) with your best friends while checking out some of San Antonio’s finest wedding vendors!

Til next time…happy planning!

By Laura, ECC

“Autumn, the year’s last, loveliest smile.” -William Cullen Bryant

Autumn has officially arrived and while the weather here in San Antonio may not always look or feel like autumn, let Plaza Lecea give you some great autumn décor ideas to bring the look and feel of autumn to your event!

Party favors are great ways to thank your guests for coming to your event and can also add that touch of festivity to your event décor.  When we think of autumn, it just doesn’t seem complete without pumpkins!  Mini pumpkins can be purchased locally at craft stores and some grocers.  A simple ribbon hot glued around the pumpkin adds a great finishing touch to these easy and fun party favors.  For extra detail, a “thank you” note can easily be tied on to the stem!

Centerpieces:

For those events with multiple or even one main table, think candy corn for the centerpieces!  These bright and colorful little candies add the perfect blend of fall colors to create a brilliant centerpiece.  By filling a glass jar with your desired amount of candy corn and topping off with either candles or flowers, a festive and elegant centerpiece is born!

Another fun idea is using pumpkins and leaves! What isn’t more autumn than this duo? We love the idea of pinning leaves to the top of a pumpkin so that the pumpkin looks like a vase and the leaves look like flowers. Using silk leaves with wire “veining” works best and using lots of leaves will give the best full-effect. Even using a combination of pumpkins, leaves and candy corn will really bring an autumn theme to life!

Decoration:

When deciding upon your event decorations, don’t think expensive, think CONSTRUCTIVE!  For a spook-tacular event, these fun and simple decorative candles can be made with an inexpensive glass votive and black construction paper!  A hole punch and a permanent marker can be used to create the appearance of eyes.

Want a more elegant feel to your candles?  Choose a burnt orange or a crimson red and a leaf or floral shaped hole punch that can be located at your local craft store!

Linens:

Don’t forget that your table linens can create all the difference when it comes to bringing color to your event!  We have tons of fall colors, including burnt orange, deep red, chocolate brown, champagne, olive green, plum and ivory in lots of different textures! At Plaza Lecea, we provide linens for your booked event with us, so stop in and we will show you the perfect linens for your autumn event!

Photo Credit: Alamo Photographic

Looking for a makeup artist or hair stylist for your big day? Here is a short list of some of San Antonio’s finest:

Makeup

MAC Stores:

• Macys

2310 Southwest Military Drive

P:210.334.2000

• MAC (Northstar Mall)

7400 San Pedro

P:210.375.7804

• Dillards (Northstar Mall)

7400 San Pedro
Suite 900

P: 210.344.3450

• Macy’s

200 Northstar Mall

P: 210.340.4302

• Macy’s

6301 Northwest Loop 410

P: 210.647.2562

• Nordstrom

15900 La Cantera Pkwy
Building 13

P: 210.332.1900

Even if you don’t wear makeup on a regular basis, it’s important to have some on your wedding day as you will be taking a lot of photos and you’ll want to look your best. Just a little cover up, blush and lip gloss goes a long way if you are not comfortable with a complete look. Another note is to make sure you do a trial run before your big day (the day of your bridal shower would be perfect so you don’t have to worry about doing your makeup for the event and you’ll get to show it off to family and friends who will give you their opinion of how it looks). It’s important to do this so you will be comfortable with someone else doing your makeup if you haven’t had it done before and you’ll also be able to give the makeup artist feedback as to what you like and don’t like before the big day.

Hair:

Visible Changes:

• Northstar Mall

7400 San Pedro

Suite 810

W: www.visiblechanges.com/locations/northstar.pdf

P: 210.349.1581

• La Cantera

15900 La Cantera Pkwy.

Suite 10020

W: www.visiblechanges.com/locations/lacantera.pdf

P: 210.256.8770

Versi:

5528 Broadway

W: www.versi.com

P: 210.828.8725

Changes Natural Salon & Spa:

11745 IH10 West

W: www.changesnaturel.net

P: 210.641.0900

Sergio’s Salon & Spa:

116 Losoya Street

W: www.sergiossalonandspa.com

P: 210.224.4968

If you are comfortable with your hair stylist, ask them if they specialize in up-dos or wedding-day styles as some only prefer to cut or color hair. If they do, use them as you already know them. Ask for photo references if they have any or any suggestions for styles as they know your hair and see a lot of styles on a regular basis. Also schedule a run-though as well!

Hair & Makeup (in-store or on-location specializing in wedding day looks)

Madame Makeup & Hair:

520 N. Main Ave

W: www.madamemakeup.com

P: 210.826.0138

Blush:

On location

W: www.facesbyblush.com

P: 210.842.3794

A Very Good Hair Day:

On location

W: www.averygoodhairday.com

P: 210.836.5885

Pure Posh:

Village at Stone Oak

W: www.pureposhsalon.com

P: 210.490.7873

Indulgences Hair & Body Salon:

300 W. Bitters Ste. 229

W: www.indulgenceshairandbodysalon.com

P: 210.384.0134

Ciao Bella:

On location

W: www.theciaobellastudio.com

P: 210.385.8005