Billie Ball Wedding Board

Two great inspiration boards in one day!  This one is complements of Lauren, our Fort Worth wedding rep.  As you can see it features loads and loads of BILLIE BALLS, which is my current fav!  I also love the use of sage and succulents.

Summer Yellow Inspiration

Ahhh...  I love summer weddings.  I've put this lovely inspiration board together for a couple who is getting married in May at the Maple Manor Hotel in Dallas. 

Credits:

Custom Wooden Cake Toppers:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=35905649

Eco-Friendly Invitations:
http://www.theeventmessenger.com/

Yellow, Blue, and Sage inspiration:
http://www.utterlyengaged.com/category/issues/issue-002/page/35

Vera Green Charity

Giving Back

Being a socially concious company means more to us than just supporting eco-friendly vendors, and recycling. It is also important to us to better the world by giving back. Starting in May 2009 we have instituded a policy to donate 10% of our monthly profit to charity. Causes that we are proud to support:

Save Darfur Coalition- www.savedarfur.com

Humaine Society of North Texas- www.hsnt.org

Susan G. Komen for the Cure- www.komen.org

Catholic Charities USA- www.catholiccharitiesusa.org


Fundraising

I am happy to provide special assistance to those planning charity events or fundraising . Philanthropy is where I perfected the art of planning fine events, and will always have a special interest in events that do good. We are pleased to offer our services pro-bono for planning your charity fundraiser. Please contact one of our consultants today for more information regarding these services.

A word...

I am excited to share what we are doing with the world, and hopefully through the course of business we can inspire others to do good. Vera Green Productions is a motley crew of wedding professionals that all have a passion for living life to it's fullest. I founded this company to provide couples with an alternative aspect to wedding and special event planning, and the hope of making an impact on the special event industry.

I have been planning eco-friendly events since 2004, and am one of the first wedding planners in the country to make doing right the way we do business. We are proud to support vendors who share our mission to provide top quality cutting edge work at affordable prices while conserving our resources. It is our goal that by creating a network of vendors who offer eco-friendly wedding services we can inspire others to follow suit and band together to make eco-friendly events more acessible to North Texans.


Here are some FAQ's to provide you a with a rundown of what we do:

What is a Green Wedding?

A green wedding is simply a wedding where couples try to incorporate more eco-friendly choices. Examples include using invitations from recycled or plantable paper; local flowers, food, and drinks; or vintage items such as decor, attire, or jewlery. The sky is really the limit, that's where we come in.

Why Plan a Green Wedding?

Weddings are often an extravagant affair, with much money, care, attention to detail and time being lavished on creating the ultimate day for the bride and groom. If you are an environmentally and socially conscious couple, you may like to consider sharing your eco-savvy and social awareness with your family and friends by actively demonstrating how it is possible to "green a wedding" and still maintain the essence of elegance and sophistication many expect from such an important event.

Great New Photographer

My favorite new photographer in DFW!

http://www.johnhweddingpix.com/

John Harris is a new face on the wedding scene that is offering up an amazingly unique eye. And his rates are rediculously reasonable. He isn't some young pup coming in with naive ideals, and no experience to offer up either. John has over 20 years of photography background, from his work on the commercial side of things.

John shot a wedding for me a few weeks ago, and we had so much fun. Aside from his regular fancy pants photography gear, he brought a vintage polaroid camera. Once the dancing had commenced at the reception, he broke out this awsome piece of equipment, and got some snapshots of the wedding guests as a little suprise for the bride and groom. So, so cool.

Please visit his website, and have a look at his awsome work. I will highly recommend this company for years to come!

Ellerbe Fine Foods soft opening

Me and some of my favorite gal pals took the stroll up the street today to the neighborhood's newest dining establishment Ellerbe Fine Foods. Weeks of anticipation has built this place up for us greatly, and luckily we weren't disappointed. Co-Owners Richard King and Molly McCook (executive chef) have a good thing going here, and in the spirit of other Magnolia Ave. eateries like Lili's and Nona Tatta will keep it packed with near south side foodies craving seasonal, local fare.

Upon arrival to Ellerbe's I was a bit confused on how to get into the building. There are several false entries to the building. Once we made it in we were greeted by several smiling faces that quickly turned to horror when they noticed the several small children that we had in tow. They wanted a test for their soft opening, and we gave it to them!

Earlier in the month one of my accomplices had stopped by to make sure that they could accommodate a large party with several small children (three adults, four kids) and she was assured that it would be no problem by both the owner and restaurant coordinator. Obviously they had forgotten about this meeting, as they were unable to accommodate us at one table and only had one high chair available.

Vera drew the longest straw for the high chair, so I was the lucky one not dealing with a baby in a booster seat. Of course she is also the smallest at eleven months, so it worked out well. We ended up splitting our party up between two tables which left one parent and her son sitting alone, but we were still close enough to socialize without disturbing other parties.

The decor is very clean, and almost a little lacking. But what is up is very personal, ranging from a vintage apron collection, and fresh herbs in mason jars, to photos of the owner's three spaniels. I could stand to see more of the decor to tone the place down and make it seem a little more welcoming. Also, one of the things that I mentioned to Richard, is that the uniforms seem to be a bit stuffy. The starched white shirts, sage green ties, and khaki pants are a bit too Olive Gardeny for my personal tastes. Also they make the staff seem very uncomfortable and un-inviting. I would like to see them dressed a bit more casually, perhaps in black t-shirts and dark colored jeans. I think that it would just be one small step to make the place seem a little more casual, and draw more attention to the food. Upscale with a casual twist, which I feel is a perfect description of this establishment.

After we had baby proofed the tables, i.e. moved all knives, glasses, and plates out of reach of small hands, we were able to review the menu. The menu consisted of great seasonal offerings such as cauliflower soup, fresh salads, and sandwiches made from fresh baked breads and same day purchased veggies. One more kid related rant and I will stop, there were no options on the menu for kids other than a $12 hamburger. However, I got the cauliflower soup for Vera and she loved it. And about halfway through our time there (which was almost two hours) they decided that bread would make our kids happy.

It did take a while for our food to come out (about 30 min once we ordered), which is a bit extreme for two hamburgers, two bowls of soup, and three tomato and basil sandwiches. But they were very busy trying to get everything organized and streamline their operation. Once the food came though, it was all worth it. The Cauliflower soup, which I have developed a severe addiction to, is indescribable. The little bits of roasted cauliflower, truffle oil, and guere crostini all blended together to make a creamy bowl of perfection. I HAVE to have more, and will probably be going back sometime this week for my next fix. I also ordered the tomato and basil sandwich with arugula salad. That is the worst description ever by the way. Basically the bread was fresh with bits of proschuttio baked in, filled with fresh tomatoes and basil and an aoli spread. The arugula salad was simple, just arugula tossed with lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. My husband, the arugula fiend would be so jealous. I wanted to cut off my waitress's hand when she took my bowl of soup without asking if I was finished, which I wasn't!

I think that it's safe to say that Ellerbe's soft opening was a success, and I will definitely be going back on a regular basis.

Green tip of the day: Invitations

Reasons I love, love, love these all in one plantable invites:

http://tinyurl.com/cy6kj5

1. These great invitations require no envelope, velum paper, insert cards, direction cards, rsvp cards, etc. It is all included in one compact piece of paper, so you are greatly reducing the amount of paper that you use.

2. They are beautiful! And 100% sustainable. Once your guests receive these awsome invites, they can drop them in the ground, add water and wait for the wildflowers to sprout!

Green Tip of the Week

These little earth themed sugar cookies from www.organicbouquet.com make the most adorable wedding favors.

http://www.organicbouquet.com/p_1846/Organic-Certified/Gourmet/Baked-Goods/love-the-planet-cookies.html?subCatId=145

Try this tip from Martha Stewart:

To turn these adorable cookies into a charming centerpiece, simply place flowering branches in a sturdy vase. Wrap cookies in cellophane bags and ribbon, and hang from branches. At the end of your party, add signage that instructs guest to undecorate the tree and take a cookie with them.

career opportunity

Wedding Planning Apprentice Opportunity

Greenfeet Productions has really taken DFW by storm, and we are glad to announce that with this increased business we are ready to expand! We are currently looking to add a couple of hosts and/or hostesses to our staff. So if you or anyone you know is interested in getting into the wedding industry this is the chance of a lifetime.

Qualified candidates will possess the following qualities:

Basic knowledge of Wedding traditions and customs,
Good organizational skills,
Fast responsiveness,
Punctuality,
Ability to work well with others,
Strong networking skills,
Must possess a basic understanding of green living,
Computer Literate,
Must be somewhat crafty (the Martha Stewart kind, NOT the Beastie Boys kind)
Must be able to explain that reference,
Self motivated,
Need to have reliable transportation,
HAS to be available to work on weekends (don’t even bother replying if you can’t,)
Must be able to take direction,

This is a contract to hire position, and compensation is based on performance.

What the position entails:

Networking with Vendors,
Promoting our business and sustainable events,
Learning the ins and outs of the wedding industry,
Corresponding with clients and vendors, and responding to leads,
Designing every aspect of various social functions from conception to execution,
Being responsible for maintain clients budgets,
Staying up to date on the latest trends in wedding planning,
Advising clients on eco-friendly alternatives to traditional wedding customs,
Offering etiquette advise to clients,
Tracking and Organizing all aspects of social events,
Coordinating social functions and keeping any potential problems at bay by clever thinking and preparedness

If this position sounds like something that you would excel at then please email me and tell me why. Please provide a professional resume as well as minimum pay requirements.

We will be conducting telephone interviews within the next week, so please respond ASAP to be considered.

Ashley Paz
www.greenfeetfw.com
Ashley@greenfeetfw.com

Going Green For Good

Dear Faithful Customers and Colleagues,
It is my pleasure to announce that Ashley’s Events is making some big changes this spring!

As many of you know, we have been planning socially conscious events for some time. Now we are taking things one step farther and splitting Ashley’s Events into two separate eco-based companies: Greenfeet Productions and Greenfeet Designs. It is our goal to use these entities to make eco-friendly options available to Fort Worth brides, and hopefully bring green weddings to the mainstream.

Did you know that the average wedding creates 14.5 billion tons of carbon waste? It is our goal with Greenfeet Productions to show brides how to reduce the amount of carbon waste from their wedding through traditional wedding planning services as well as ongoing advice on eco-friendly alternatives.

Our second venture is Greenfeet Designs, an all eco-friendly wedding product line. We will be putting our crafty talents to use and offering everything from organic flower centerpieces to vintage wedding gowns. Everything is custom made to order, so it will be a while before we get any designs online. Our list of products and services includes:

* Vintage Scouting- let us go scour the thrift stores and vintage shops to find you the perfect vintage items to reuse in your wedding. Whether it be the gown or the cake plate, we’ll find the perfect one for you.

* Floral arrangement and design- breathtaking floral arrangements made with as many green elements as possible. We strive to use locally grown flowers, but when that is not available we try for availability from a domestic organic nursery. We also strive to take things a step farther by implementing other various decorative touches that utilize reused, repurposed, and recycled materials.

* Custom wedding favors designed from repurposed items.

* Gift Bags for out of towners that showcase local goodies and products.
Today is our big launch at the Fort Worth Urban Futures Sustainable Living Symposium being held at the new Omni hotel in Downtown Fort Worth from 4 to 7:30 pm. We would like to invite everyone to join us for this special occasion and to learn more about what Cowtown businesses are doing to go green.

For more information about the symposium and to register online you can view the website below.

http://www.fortworthurbanfutures.com/index.html

We look forward to continuing the relationships that we have built with all of you, and to build our referral base. We are also pleased to offer the attached offer exclusively to all of you in lieu of this event. Please feel free to pass it along to anyone you may know wishing to plan a green wedding.

Wedding Wire bride's choice award

WeddingWire, the nation’s leading wedding technology company, just announced that Ashley's Events has won the 2009 Bride’s Choice Awards™!

In its inaugural year, the Bride’s Choice Awards recognizes and honors vendors from the WeddingWire Network that demonstrate excellent quality of service, responsiveness, professionalism, value of cost and flexibility. This year’s recipients represent the top three percent of WeddingWire’s vendor community, which includes over 100,000 wedding vendors from across the US. That means Ashley's Events is one of the very best Bridal Consultants in the country.

Unlike other awards in which winners are selected by the company, the Bride’s Choice Awards are determined exclusively by recent newlyweds through surveys and reviews.

“We are excited to launch this annual award program to honor high-performing vendors based solely on the experiences of our WeddingWire community,” according to Timothy Chi, WeddingWire’s Chief Executive Officer. “This year’s recipients have set the bar high, exhibiting excellent service and expertise in the wedding industry.”

We would like to thank our past clients for speaking on our behalf and helping us win the 2009 Bride’s Choice Award!

Favorite things

Wow! I have really not held up to my resolution to blog daily. Bad wedding planner, BAD, BAD!

I have a lot of things that I'm really excited about right now. And I can't wait to share them with everyone.

• The first is my new bookstore find The Green Bride Guide. Forgive me but I can't tell you the author's name, as the book is in my car at church with my dear husband. I will definately update later with her name though. Anyway, this book has so many great ideas for planning the perfect green wedding. The best part is that she offers ideas that work for all budgets.
• Feathers in decor. I absolutely love the fluffy and floppy vintage look of ostrich wing feathers, however I do not love the way that they are harvested. There are a couple of farms out there that will gather naturally molten feathers, but they are few and far between. Also, once the feathers fall off the heavy birds often trample them and they aren't the quality you would like to have in your centerpieces. On the other hand, peacock and peahen feathers are always gathered after molting. And they are almost always in great condition.
• Sublime Bakery, Fort Worth, TX. Chef Catherine Ruehel has a great thing going over at her Country Day Plaza Bakery. I can honestly say that I have researched a lot of bakeries in the DFW Metroplex, and Sublime is my shining star in what is otherwise a dark dark sky of cakeries. Catherine really seems to care about her customers, and has a mission that she holds dear to her heart. They are the first bakery that I have come across in the Fort Worth area that TRUELY bakes their deserts from scratch. Her confections are made fresh, and they use organic ingredients where available. There is another unique aspect to this business. They use biodegradable cornstarch containers, and they even serve vegan and gluten free offerings for guests with restricted diets. In my opinion other area bakeries could take a page from Chef Catherine's book.
• Dark chocolate covered pomegranates. Ok, so this has nothing to do with weddings, but these little balls are a little piece of heaven. If you haven't tried them yet, then run to the nearest Costco and buy yourself a 10lb bag!
• Finally, this is what I have turned to a lot lately when I need a smile: