Inspiration Week: ONEHOPE Weddings

We are so excited to be featuring ONEHOPE Weddings today! You can find ONEHOPE Wine in stores here on the East Coast, but today we would like to introduce Megan Robinson, Director of ONEHOPE Weddings (the wedding division of ONEHOPE Wine). Something that inspires us more than women in business and small business owners is women who are in business and giving back to the community! Megan Robinson is all of those things! ONEHOPE Weddings boasts 5 different types of wine and also a sparkling wine, and 50% of each bottle of wine purchased is given back to the charity supported by that particular wine. Ex: Chardonnay gives back to Breast Cancer. When working with ONEHOPE Weddings you also have the opportunity to give back to your charity of choice, so with every bottle you purchase 50% will be given to the charity already associated with that wine AND and additional 10% to your favorite charity.


We have had the opportunity to work with ONEHOPE Weddings in our West Coast Market, and have  absolutely loved their product. We have sampling of their work in our studio, and our clients have jumped on board as well. They love the idea of serving their guests, as well as giving them as favors, and giving back to a good cause (all at the same time!). Their product looks stunning, and has won numerous awards. Here is a photo of their product at HammerSky Vineyards in California. 

Images by another inspiring woman in business; Allyson Magda Photography


1. What was your inspiration in the creation of ONEHOPE Weddings?

ONEHOPE Weddings actually developed fairly organically.  ONEHOPE Wine was in its third year of business when we started noticing that more and more brides were requesting bulk pricing for their wedding wine, favors, welcome bags, etc.  We had developed a really loyal customer base of people who loved both our wine and our causes so we were flattered and excited when our supporters started reaching out for bulk pricing for wedding wine.  Additionally, we started noticing that weddings with a cause were becoming the way of the future.  Couples spend so much on weddings so it's refreshing for a portion of those expenses to go back to causes that they care about - whether it's by wearing a pair of TOMS shoes under your dress or with your tux, asking your guests to donate in lieu of gifts or by serving our wine! 

2. Where is an unexpected place, that you have found new inspiration for furthering the vision of ONEHOPE Weddings?

Our customers have by far been my biggest source of inspiration.  We are constantly receiving emails from brides and grooms that are in Africa completing HIV/AIDS awareness and water projects, people that have just lost a family member to cancer and want to give back to a charity in their name on their wedding day, Veterans who honorably served our country, specialists for children with Autism... the list is endless.  I wake up incredibly grateful every morning for the opportunity to work with not only the ONEHOPE team, but with our undeniably game-changing customers who are out there bettering the world in their own way.  They have inspired me to develop new offerings through ONEHOPE Weddings from donating an additional 10% to the cause of your choice, to custom bottle neckers and wedding signage that explains the wine, causes and why the couples selected it for their day.  

3. What do you find most inspirational about the charities that you work with?

At ONEHOPE, we're committed to working with charities and organizations that have a direct dollar-to-impact ratio.  We expect, and our customers expect a high level of transparency with where their money is going and what their donation is able to provide.  Our charities know that the way to inspire their donors is to empower them with information and I really, really respect and admire that.  Not only do our charitable partners work tirelessly to create positive change in their respective causes, but they commit to a high level of transparency to allow their donors to feel the impact they are having at the time of the transaction.  We're constantly trying to integrate this philosophy further into our business model by creating things like giving reports for every couple - something that's being developed as we speak :-)



Here's some information about Megan, the marketing genius behind ONEHOPE Weddings:

Megan was born and raised in south eastern Michigan and attended Michigan State University where she majored in Political Theory, International Relations and Chinese.  After completing various college internships in Los Angeles in Public Relations (for ONEHOPE Wine) and entertainment (for New Line Cinema), she knew she had to get back to the sunny, warm west after graduation.  She made the journey to Los Angeles in January of 2008 in pursuit of a career as a Talent Agent at William Morris Agency.  When a life striving to become the "Female Ari Gold" proved to be less rewarding than she had hoped, she jumped on the opportunity to co-found a fashion tape company, ShowStoppers, with friends and fellow entertainment industry dropouts, Shannon Mattingly and Adriana McMahon.  There she got back in touch with her creative side - leading the way with packaging, design, branding and customer experience and decided to make a career out of design.  In October of 2010, she went back to school at FIDM Los Angeles to gain the skills necessary for a creative career and in the process stumbled across the concept of ONEHOPE Weddings.  ONEHOPE Wine had been near and dear to her heart since her summer internship with them in 2008 and upon learning of the increasing requests for ONEHOPE Wine as a wedding wine, she knew she had to help.  After some initial R&D proved that there was indeed a tremendous market opportunity for a cause wine brand in the wedding space, she took the plunge and launched ONEHOPE Weddings in January of 2012.  Megan currently lives in Hermosa Beach with her boyfriend, Jake and kitten, Lily.  She works in ONEHOPE Wine's El Segundo office. 


Inspiration Week: Lover.ly


It is day 3 of our Inspiration Week here at ACE, and we are so excited to introduce to you Kellee Khalil, the creator of Lover.ly. Lover.ly is similar to Pinterest, but better because everything is wedding inspiration! You can search by categories such as: theme, color, flowers, venues, stationery, etc. And create your on "bundles" of your favorite inspiration pieces! The ACE team has had the honor of personally knowing Kellee for the past 4 years, and we are always inspired be her creativity and work ethic.

Loverly has been featuring is publications such as: The Huffington PostGlamour MagazineForbes to name only a few!



1. Often, inspiration hits when we least expect it. What is an unexpected place that you have found wedding inspiration?
I love good ol flea market inspiration. So many awesome and unique details you can find in the most unique and unexpected pieces can be bought on the cheap! I love mix and matched details and for anybody on a budget  this is a great way to bring in some pizazz without breaking the bank! :)

2. Typically there are a few popular wedding trends that we see over and over again, however, what is one wedding detail that you love, that has run "under the radar" ?
I always love the first look! Especially when captured by the photographer. I believe it is the most intimate and sweet moment between a bride and a groom before the whole party gets started!

3. When beginning to plan a wedding, it can be difficult to know where to start. What is one piece of advice you would give to a bride beginning her search for wedding inspiration?
Lover.ly of course! We have hundreds of thousands of great ideas, people to hire and now things to buy. We pull in content from the top wedding bloggers and categorize those images to make them searchable. See something you like it will take you directly to the blog where you can read more about that wedding and bride's style! We also just launched commerce so now brides can find things to buy! Browse our galleries of products from Nordstrom Weddings, Minted, Wedding Paper Divas, Rent the Runway, and more! :)







And if you'd like you follow our bundles on lover.ly, you can do so by clicking HERE.

Inspiration Week: Ever After Honeymoons

Today is Day 2 of our inspiration week, and fun in the sun always inspires us so we want to introduce you to Katie Frederick, founder of Ever After Honeymoons. Katie serves her clients by planning their dream honeymoon. They have been featured in magazines and blogs such as: destination i do. , Martha Stewart WEDDINGS , Utterly Engaged Blog , Smitten online magazine , Exquisite Weddings Magazine and many more!


1. What was your inspiration in the creation of Ever After Honeymoons?
It should come as no surprise that I love to travel.  I also really love the planning process that comes along with traveling.  I started out doing general travel planning, and then planned a few honeymoons for clients and absolutely loved it!  So I quickly decided to specialize in honeymoon planning.  I really enjoy helping clients with such an exciting trip, and it is so rewarding to hear what an amazing time they had once they return.

2. Where is an unexpected place, that you have found new inspiration for furthering the vision of Ever After Honeymoons?
Pinterest!  I have had a few brides send me links to their Pinterest accounts recently.  Even if they don’t have any travel images, it helps me to get an idea of their style and interests.  This definitely helps me to recommend destinations and hotels that fit with their aesthetic.

3. What is one piece of advice you would give to a bride looking for inspiration for the perfect Honeymoon?
A lot of couples get really overwhelmed with the amount of possible destinations for their honeymoon.  Endless Google searches and suggestions from friends only add to that feeling!  When couples are feeling this way, I encourage them to talk about what a perfect day on their honeymoon would be like. This will really help them narrow down the type of experiences they would like to have, which will make picking a destination much easier. Most couples don’t know where they want to go when they contact me, so by knowing more about the experiences they want definitely helps me to make great recommendations for them.






Introduction: Inspiration Week!


Team ACE is so excited to run a new feature of wedding inspiration. We have whipped up interviews with some of the leading industry experts across the nation and asked what inspires them...  their favorite industry trends and their wisdom. Below are some snap shots of their websites. Check out their styles and check back daily the next two weeks to hear from them. Grab a coffee, pen, paper and be inspired, we know we are!







Something Savy Saturday: The Appy Couple

Yesterday, our office team stumbled upon this fantastic new wedding application for smart phones called Appy Couple. Appy Couple is like creating a website for your wedding, but better! All of you bridal party, family, and friends, can download the app and receive updates on planning, pre wedding parties and such without all the hassle of group emails. You can include your engagement story, update pictures, and your app is also website accessible for those friends and family without smart phones. 

You can design your app with the same colors and theme of your wedding- with 100 designs ranging from $49 to $200. They have been feature in The New York Times as well as The Wall Street Journal's All Things Digital

You can check out their site at HERE!





An Engagement Story: Casey and Phillip


We are proud to feature another fabulous ACE couple, Casey and Phillip! Casey is an absolute ball of energy, and we love all of our meetings with her! The couple lives in Texas; Phillip is in the Navy and Casey is from Hampton Roads. Here's a fun fact: Casey's father is a musician and we are so looking forward to incorporating his original music that into their wedding day. 
Here is a peek at some of their beautiful engagement photos by the always fun Jen and Ashley Photography.







Ball of Energy! Look at her laugh, it's contagious! Love it! 




An Engagement Story: Lauren and Mark

Earlier this summer we had the pleasure of doing an engagement shoot with Trivium Studios for a fabulous ACE couple, Lauren and Mark! Mark is in the navy and Lauren a nurse, they both love the beach- so this engagement shoot is perfect for them. We love the nautical details, and can't wait to continue working with them on bringing their ideas to fruition over the next year! Here is a peak at some of the photos from their shoot!



Remember I said, He's in the Navy, She's a Nurse...love it! 








Free Tip Friday

It's Friday and here is our Free Tip for the day! When picking a song for your wedding- read ALL of the lyrics first. I know this sounds crazy but meeting with a fun client today reminded us how great of a tip this is!

Often times, our clients will pick a song with a title that at first seems to be a perfect fit. However, upon reading the lyrics they decide otherwise.

Here is a perfect example:

Example: "Lips of an Angel"

Well, my girls in the next room
Sometimes I wish she was you
I guess we never really moved on
It's really good to hear your voice saying my name it sounds so sweet
Coming from the lips of an angel
Hearing those words it makes me weak

And I never wanna say goodbye

But girl you make it hard to be faithful 
With the lips of an angel

** Its probably not best to dance to a song about being cheating on your spouse on your wedding day. Food for thought. 


Monday Meetings: Waterford Event Rentals

A friend introduced Team ACE to the amazing women of Waterford Event Rentals in middle of last year's wedding season. We have been hooked ever since! We love their customer service, quality of product and their attiention to detail. If you are looking for a good linen rental, Waterford is a great place to start! Meet Waterford Event Rentals:


Owners Hollie and Alyse photo courtesy of Waterford Rentals
Tell us about your business!
Waterford Event Rentals specializes in chair covers, sashes, table runners, table cloths, overlays, napkins, and more! We offer fresh new ideas to enhance the overall "look" of your event. We carry over 80 different colors and many different fabrics. Don't see the color you're looking for? No worries...we special order!


What kind of packages do you offer?
Waterford Event Rentals is a full service linen provider. This means that in addition to high quality linens at affordable prices, you also have the opportunity for our staff to set up your event. No matter how big or small, Waterford Event Rentals can relieve your stress by taking care of not only the product, but the service as well!


How do you make your work unique from other vendors?
Waterford Event Rentals is unique because we spend a great deal of time getting to know our clients. We find it very important to understand the style of our clients in order to suggest the right linens for their event. We enjoy working together to arrive to a conclusion that is sure to impress others.


What advice would you give couples who are in search of nice linens?
If we were to give couples advice about searching for nice linens, it would be to do your research! There are a lot of different types of materials out there and some that are definitely better than others. If you come across a price that is "too good to be true," it probably is. Be selective when it comes to choosing linens! Also, don't be afraid to mix colors and fabrics. Too many people think everything needs to match...this is NOT true! Have fun with your linens...put different shades and textures together to achieve a unique look.


What has been your most favorite moment while in the wedding industry?
We don't think there was one particular moment, rather a series of events that resulted in excitement. Waterford Event Rentals is a fairly new company that gained experience in the wedding industry quite quickly. The rapid rate of success has been attributed to wedding planners, such as Antonia Christianson Events, and venues that believed in our products and services from day one. We think the day we realized Waterford Event Rentals was going to be a huge success was an extraordinary moment for both of us. As recent college graduates, this is truly a dream come true.


See some of Waterford Rental's work below: (all photos courtesy of Waterford Event Rentals)








 

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