New Exhibitors

The 2013 Clarksville Brides Wedding & Event Showcase will take place January 13, 2013 at the Wilma Rudolph Event Center from noon to 4:00 pm. We've got LOTS of new exhibitors signed up for the bridal show, including:

Bella Bridal Network
Covered with Icing
Hilton Garden Inn
Visions by Debra
Craig Hodge Photography
Burdoc Farms
Premier Designs Jewelry
The Tanglewood House
Scentsy
Bombshells Salon & Spa
Joan of Art Photography
McKenzie & Smiley Jewelers
Pixel Ink Photography
Clarksville Country Club
Helen's Flowers
Epic Music Service
Katie Wright Photography
James E. Bruce Convention Center
and more!

Click here to visit the growing list of exhibitors and click here to find out more information about the show.

Brides, be sure to pre-register for the showcase. Admission is normally $8 per person at the door, but it is just $5 per person for Pre-Registered Brides and their guests!! Pre-registration not only gets you the discounted admission price, but also gains you expedited entry into the show! Click here to pre-register for the event and be sure to print your $3 off coupon at the end of your registration.

Clarksville & Hopkinsville Weddings Magazine

Attention Wedding Professionals: The 2012 issue of Clarksville & Hopkinsville Weddings Magazine is in the works!!! The new issue is set for publication release this November. The deadline to sign up is NOW and payment and artwork are due September 30, 2012. Don't miss this opportunity to advertise in Clarksville and Hopkinsville's only magazine dedicated completely to local weddings and local wedding businesses. Place your ad at solsticebridal.com and contact beth@clarksvillebrides.com for more information.

Place your ad: SolsticeBridal.com
Email: beth@clarksvillebrides.com


ClarksvilleBrides.com
Clarksville & Hopkinsville Weddings Magazine


(cover photo by Bethany Ann Photography)

Renovations Sale!

"The Riverview Inn is having a renovations sale and EVERYTHING MUST GO. We have sofas, end tables, coffee tables, lamps, lots of decor items, and much much more!! All of our items are priced to sale. This sale is first come first serve and by appointment only. All of our items are cash and carry we will not hold anything. Please contact January to set up appointments at 931-552-3331." -The Riverview Inn, Facebook.com

Riverview Inn
Website: theriverviewinn.com
Address: 50 College Street, Clarksville, TN
Phone: 931-552-3331
Facebook: facebook.com/theriverviewinn
Email: renee@theriverviewinn.com

$ Saving Tip for 2012 Weddings

Click here to check out a post by our very own Debra Harris of Visions by Debra on ClarksvilleNow.com. In this post, "Money Saving Tip for 2012 Weddings", Debra encourages brides and grooms to hire their wedding vendors as soon as possible. "This is the time of year that vendors began to reevaluate their fees. Hiring vendors before their prices increase can stretch your budget and insure their availability on your wedding day. The money you save can purchase other items needed for your celebration." -Debra Harris, Visions by Debra, ClarksvilleNow.com

You can click here to read this post and other wedding related articles on ClarksvilleNow.com.

(photo by Katie Wright Photography)

Visions by Debra
(270) 887-9231
(270) 889-7989
Website: www.visionsbydebra.com
Email: visionsbydebra@newwavecomm.net

Weddings Magazine

Attention Wedding Professionals: The 2011 issue of Clarksville & Hopkinsville Weddings Magazine is in the works!!! The new issue is set for publication release on November 8, 2011. The deadline to sign up is September 1 and all artwork is due in early September. Don't miss this opportunity to advertise in Clarksville and Hopkinsville's only magazine dedicated completely to local weddings and local wedding businesses. Contact beth@clarksvillebrides.com for more information.

ClarksvilleBrides.com
Clarksville & Hopkinsville Weddings Magazine
Email: beth@clarksvillebrides.com

(cover photo by Bethany Ann Photography)

Cassie & Greg: The Cake

Today we're sharing more details from Cassie & Greg's wedding day, and we are on to the cake! The happy couple chose Yaya's Cake Shoppe to create both their wedding cake and groom's cake.

"The Bridal cake was a 4 Tier square cake. The flavor was white cake with two of the layers being filled with lemon. The cake was iced smooth with white butter cream and decorated with yellow fondant ribbon and a large yellow bow on top. Both the ribbon and bow had hand painted white polka dots on them. On the second tier from the top there was a pear green monogram with the couple’s initials.

The grooms cake was a chocolate cake decorated with fondant and butter cream icing. The cake top was decorated to look like a baseball field with a large Base ball cap on it. The cap was made from rice krispy treats covered in white chocolate and then covered in fondant. The sides of the cake were decorated with butter cream icing and then a sign was made to go on the side of the building with fondant and an icing image." -Gayle Howard, Yaya's Cake Shoppe

Yaya's Cake Shoppe
Website: yayascakeshoppe.com
Phone: 615-382-7707
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yayas-Cake-Shoppe/108165182548917?ref=ts
Email: yayascakestn@yahoo.com

Cassie & Greg: The Photographer

Check it out! There's a new Featured Wedding on ClarksvilleBrides.com! Cassie & Greg chose Bethany Ann Photography to capture their beautiful wedding day this past June right here in Clarksville, TN. "Cassie & Greg were so sweet with each other. Their 7:00 ceremony was intimate and really special and they partied all night long. It was a pleasure photographing their wedding." -Bethany Stuart, Bethany Ann Photography

Click here to check out the feature and click here to see the full wedding post by Bethany Ann Photography.

Stay tuned to the blog this week for more details from Cassie & Greg's special day!

Bethany Ann Photography
Phone: 931-444-9203
Website: www.bethanyannphotography.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/BethanyAnnPhotography
Email: photos@bethanyannphotography.com

Gown Shoot: The Photos

We've got a brand new Featured Gown shoot up on ClarksvilleBrides.com, photographed by the super talented Katie Wright Photography. "I was so honored to be asked to do a gown shoot for Clarksville Brides. I had the chance to work with local vendors in the area to showcase all of our services. Debra Harris of Visions by Debra helped organize the shoot at Ms. Ann’s Teahouse in Hopkinsville. Special Occasions supplied wedding dresses, mother of the bride dresses, and a fun yellow bridesmaid dress. She had the adorable McCullen Morris model for us along with the lovely Debra herself and her daughter Daffoni. Thank you to everyone who helped make this happen. Everyone pitched in to make a great shoot!" -KatieWrightPhotography.org
I have to say, the photos are FABULOUS - click here to check out the feature on ClarksvilleBrides.com. Katie did an amazing job photographing so many different styles of dresses. "To see more of her wonderful photos, learn about her wedding photography packages and be eligible to win your own photo session with Katie, visit her blog now! Leave a comment on Katie’s blog and you will be entered to win:
Free mini photo session and disc of images
(Up to 30 min. Session, 1 location, 1 outfit. $200 value)
plus Free lunch at Ms. Ann’s Teahouse for one individual"
-clarksvillebrides.com

Click here to visit Katie's blog and don't forget to leave a comment to be entered to win!

Katie Wright Photography
Website: www.katiewrightphotography.org
Phone: 270-881-2543
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Katie-Wright-Photography/120122731356896?ref=ts

A Simply Timeless Wedding

Today, we're sharing photos from a recent Clarksville wedding, coordinated by our very own Simply Timeless Events! Jason and Joanne had a beautiful wedding ceremony on May 13, 2011, with their reception following at the Cumberland Room. Joanne looked gorgeous in her wedding dress, veil and shoes from Something Blue Bridal Shoppe. The reception was DJ-ed by Scott Chase and the decor included white table linens with gorgeous satin eggplant table runners from Clarksville Linen Rental and fabulous flowers from Sango Village Florist. Check out photos from the event throughout this post and be sure to visit simplytimelessevents.com for information on their coordinating and event design services.



Coordinator: Simply Timeless Events
Flowers: Sango Village Florist
Bride's Dress, Veil, & Shoes: Something Blue Bridal Shoppe
Linens: Clarksville Linen Rental

Simply Timeless Events
Website: simplytimelessevents.com
Phone: 931-216-5331
Email: kristin@simplytimelessevents.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Simply-Timeless-Events/158430414210376

YaYa's Cake Shoppe

Today is all about getting to know Gayle Howard! Gayle is the owner, cake baker and decorator of Yaya's Cake Shoppe. I was hangin' around the Yaya's site when I read this wonderful bio about Gayle and why and how she started her business:

"My Name is Gayle Howard and I've baked cakes for years, although they were just for my family and friends. After my daughter's wedding in 2009 I had so many people asking me if I would make cakes for them. Just a few months after her wedding the building materials supplier I worked for closed their doors after 130 years in business. It was then that I started thinking about how I was going to make ends meet. Things started to fall into place with the help of family and friends...With their help I decided that opening my own specialty cake shoppe could be an answer to my prayers. So we built an addition to our home to serve as my cake room. I have always loved baking...I look forward to working with you & designing a cake for your special occasion."
-yayascakeshoppe.com

Click here to visit the About section of YayasCakeShoppe.com to read the full story, and be sure to contact Yaya's today for your custom cake needs!

Yaya's Cake Shoppe
Website: yayascakeshoppe.com
Phone: 615-382-7707
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Yayas-Cake-Shoppe/108165182548917?ref=ts
Email: yayascakestn@yahoo.com

NEW Bouquet Gallery

Looking for inspiration for your wedding bouquets? Look no further! There's a brand new inspiration section on ClarksvilleBrides.com, the Bouquet Gallery! You can see fabulous photos (from fabulous photographers) of some of their favorite bouquets from weddings. To the right are some sample photos from the bouquet gallery.

From top to bottom:

Katie Wright Photography

Joan of Art Photography

Laura Kay Photography

Holly Ann Photography


Photography by Shea

Bethany Ann Photography

Click here to check out the new gallery - there you can click on any of the bouquet photos to enlarge them to see more details.


Looking for more inspiration for your wedding day? Don't forget to check out other Inspiration sections on ClarksvilleBrides.com:

Cake Gallery
Featured Gown Shoots
Featured Weddings
Clarksville Bridal Planning Blog
Clarksville & Hopkinsville Weddings Magazine
And stayed tuned for more coming soon!

BaLaNcE Cakes!

Being willing to learn is a true sign of a great wedding vendor. Wedding trends are constantly changing and it's important that you choose vendors who are willing to take the time and effort to learn and master new trends. Heather Noble of Covered with Icing is definitely one of those vendors! She recently took a class with award winning cake artist Kaysie Lackey of The People's Cake, located in Seattle, Washington. Kaysie has many awards under her belt, including:
*2010 Best in Show, People's Choice and Best Use of Color at the Washington State Sugar Art Show
*2010 Food Network Challenge: Extreme Villain Cakes
*2010 Food Network Challenge: Paranormal Cakes
and more!

Heather attended Kaysie's 3 day class, which "focused on sculpting, hand painting, and stacking the balance cake. Everything is edible, including the plates, save for the very top of the teapot which is styrofoam. Balance cakes, like most sculpted cakes, are only done with fondant and with a cake that is more dense like my Five Flavor Pound Cake which took top honors at the TN State Fair or my Margarita Pound Cake." -Heather Noble, Covered with Icing

Want more info on balance cakes? Heather is able to do several tiers (see photo), growing smaller on each tier. The cake must be taken apart to be sliced and served, and the cake in the photos includes approximately 120 cake servings and took 26 hours of time. Because of the time, technique, and tools involved, balance cakes are more expensive than your average cake. For a Covered with Icing balance cake, depending on the design, the price starts at $8 per serving.

Contact Covered with Icing today for more information!

Covered with Icing
Website:www.coveredwithicing.com
Phone: 615-338-0466
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/coveredwithicing

25% Off Special

This beauty to my left (the big, bold, fabulous one) is the Carnival Necklace from Stella & Dot. You can snag this fab piece of jewelry from our very own Stella & Dot Independent Stylist, Michele Gayler! "You can get the Carnival at 25% off in March with a $50 Trunk Show order!!" -Stella & Dot by Michele Gayler, Independent Stylist

Can't beat that ladies! This 25% off special runs through the end of this month so contact Michele today for more info!



Stella & Dot by Michele Gayler, Independent Stylist:
Phone: 931.338.2309
Website: www.stelladot.com/gaylergirls
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Stella-Dot-by-Michele-Gayler-Independent-Stylist/136963459669300?v=wall

Ch-Ch-Changes

We've got some new "stuff" (for lack of a better word) goin' down on the ClarksvilleBrides.com site! Venues have been split into 2 categories: Tennessee and Kentucky. For all you brides-to-be out there, be sure to check out both sections of the site. We have SO many amazing bridal shower, rehearsal dinner, ceremony, and reception venue options, so don't let state lines be your boundaries. :)

Cakes and Catering have also parted ways (no hard feelings). :) One of our newest website members, Ms. Ann's Restaurant and TeaHouse, not only offers delicious catering at their venue, but will also deliver to your venue!

We've also posted a new featured wedding - click here to check it out - Ryan & Joann had a ClarksvilleBrides.com member-packed wedding last fall and we'll be blogging about all of the details next month.

We gained 3 fantastic new website members this month, Simply Timeless Events, Twilight Photography, and Katie Wright Photography. If you haven't had a chance to check out their sites, definitely take the time to do so. They are all fabulous new additions to the ClarksvilleBrides.com community!

And one of our old members (that came out wrong...sorry Bethany!) Bethany Ann Photography has a brand spankin new ad on the site. Click here to check it out!

That's all the changes for now! But there's more to come, so stay tuned...

Riverview Inn Coupon

Make sure you grab a copy of the most recent Coupon Mint magazine for a sweet deal from the Riverview Inn: Book a Wedding/Reception Banquet Room and Receive the Rehearsal Dinner Banquet Rental FREE!!
(click on image to enlarge)

The Riverview Inn has special wedding packages ranging from $2000 to $6000, including room rental, catering, linens, decor, set-up and clean-up services, Honeymoon suites, hotel rooms for your guests, and more! Click here for a list of their wedding packages and don't forget to take advantage of the Riverview Inn's FREE Rehearsal Dinner Banquet Rental! This offer expires June 9, 2011 - click here to check out the coupon.

Riverview Inn
Website: www.theriverviewinn.com/rvstie/
Address: 50 College Street, Clarksville, TN
Phone: 931-552-3331
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/theriverviewinn
Email: renee@theriverviewinn.com

Brides Giving Back

With everything going on in Japan right now, I'm going to pause from our normal posting to blog about giving back. There are so many less fortunate people out there who need help - your wedding day is special, so why not use that special day to help others. Charity is contagious - if your guests see you giving back, they will be more encouraged to do the same. There are many ways for you to help, and I've listed a few below:

Brides Against Breast Cancer - you can purchase a wedding gown & proceeds are donated to Making Memories or you can donate your used gown

I Do Foundation - create a charity registry, create an online registry where 10% of purchases are donated to your favorite charity, etc

Charity Wedding Favors

Charity Gift Cards

-Ask your wedding vendors if they ever donate a portion of their proceeds to charity. For example, last October, several ClarksvilleBrides.com members recognized Breast Cancer Awareness Month by donating a portion of their proceeds to a local breast cancer awareness group

There are TONS of charity wedding ideas out there online - take some time to look around and see what works for you!

FREE Massage/Facial!

We have a seriously AMAZING deal from Tummy Solutions this month - they are offering a FREE "30 minute massage or facial to those brides/family who come in for a Lypossage consult." -Lorna Lewis, Tummy Solutions

Let me repeat that...it's FREE!! So contact Tummy Solutions today for your FREE massage or FREE facial! (I'm just a little excited about this) :)

Tummy Solutions
Phone: 931-906-8083
Website: tummysolutions.com

Elements Event Planning

Elements Event Planning and Design Firm "is a full service event planning and design firm servicing Clarksville and the surrounding areas." -Elements Event Planning & Design Firm, facebook.com

Owners Mary Beth Russell and Terri Tenholder are also managing the newly renovated Waterstreet Events Center. Mary Beth is a former corporate designer and Terri has 20 years of experience in design. "Please call us for a FREE consultation!! We would LOVE to plan your next event!!" -Elements Event Planning & Design Firm, facebook.com

You can meet Elements tomorrow from 1-5 PM at the 7th Annual Bridal Expo at James E. Bruce Convention Center.

"Elements" Event Planning and Design Firm
Phone: 931-368-8457 or 931-368-8458
Email: marybeth@eventplanningbyelements.com
terri@eventplanningbyelements.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/Elements-Event-Planning-and-Design-Firm/166259726735888
Website: www.eventplanningbyelements.com

$50 Discount!!

Reminder! Only one week left to take advantage of this awesome discount from Tummy Solutions: $50 off any package for participants in the 2011 Clarksville Brides Wedding & Event Showcase. Tummy Solutions specializes "in holistic, whole-body healing: Colonics, Nutritional Support, Fitness Training, Energy Balancing, and Massage Therapy." -tummysolutions.com

Contact Tummy Solutions today for more information, and remember, the $50 discount is only valid through February 28, so be sure to mention the bridal show when booking your appointment.

Tummy Solutions
Phone: 931-906-8083
Website: tummysolutions.com

NEW site for ClarksvilleBrides.com

ClarksvilleBrides.com has revamped their site! The new site has an "Inspiration" section featuring a:
Cake Gallery
Online Version of the Clarksville & Hopkinsville Weddings Magazine
Featured Weddings
Featured Gowns
Special Features
and more!

There's also an "Expertise" section, highlighting Clarksville & Hopkinsville's premier wedding vendors. Each vendor's listing includes their contact info and you can visit each vendor's site by simply clicking anywhere on their ad. Click here to check out the new site!

Photo courtesy of Joan of Art Photography