Friday, November 27, 2009

Best of The Knot 2009/2010! Yeah for Us!!

I wanted to thank everyone who voted for us as " Best of The Knot Weddings" in 2009/2010! I was also so EXCITED to see that 3 of our recent students were also named "The Best of Knot"! I couldn't be prouder! Our team is continuing to strive on being the best with education/customer service satisfaction! Without my fabulous team, we would just be another cookie cutter business. I've learned it's the people who work with you that are the ones who rise to the top! Im very fortunate to have such a loyal and hardworking crew! This is not an easy task let me tell you! Its like finding the "perfect" guy! You have to kiss a lot of toads in order to find your prince! In our case we have to weed through many "me" types of people in order to reach the "WE" folks! I want a team! There's no "I' in team right?? We always love your feedback and will continue to offer the best customer service possible! Here's to a fabulous 2010! We have much to share for 2010! Press and More Press! Samantha's book is in progress and hopes to have a tour date in late summer 2010! We have been chosen for the 4th year to be a columnist for the Star Ledger regarding bridal trends and advice! Keep your eyes open for an upcoming issues in the Bridal Planner! We have also been featured in NJ Bride January 2010, where we discuss our experiences with reality television. Some of our fab brides are being featured too! www.bridalguide.com New post is up!! Samantha Goldberg's Red Carpet Weddings! The Knot 2010 Winter!! Profile story and advice advice advice! Keep checking back to see our new taping schedule and Samantha's new show in the works!! Lot's going on and were all very excited for the new year! Please welcome planners Kim and Elizabeth to our team!!! We currently have 16 planners ready to make your event as fabulous as it can be!! Trust me these gals don't understand anything but perfection!! Happy Holidays To All! xo Samantha

Friday, November 20, 2009

Wedding Blues...Post Wedding Blues???

Post Wedding Blues I am sure you have all heard about post partum depression. It comes from a plethora of reasons from hormones to losing your time in the spotlight. But have you heard about post wedding blues? Same feelings one has when focusing on wedding activities 24/7 and then once the day has come to an end, so is your stardom! Everyone forgets about the planning, the excitement of being engaged and getting ready for that moment you say I do. People stop focusing on you period! It makes perfect sense why one would be depressed. You feel like your kicked by the roadside until something else is the focus...Yes..I mean babies. Well, this would be the sure fire way to keep all eyes on you for at least another year right? But after you spent so much time getting your body bride fit, are you sure you want to expand in every direction for attention? I don't know about you, I would think of a plan C...Like having part 2 of your wedding a year from now! Much easier and maybe less stressful depending on how elaborate you go! BTW..The baby thing...This is an area I would implore you wait. You'll want to spend time as the new Mrs. Jones and get your feet good and grounded before you step down as #1 and take second runner up. That's not a bad thing, but don't rush to Babies R Us so fast OK? Not a good way to get long term attention there are better ways trust me! I have watched countless brides go down this spiral leading to disappointment when their vision of how life should be doesn't appear the way they had hoped. They tend to fall in love with the concept of being in love and living happily ever after. The wedding has to be perfect in order to achieve this "perfect" life right? Wrong! Focusing on anything 24/7 isn't healthy. I am sure we can all agree, but can you stop yourself from doing it? Can you allow yourself to focus on life with your finace' and career, family or anything that does not pertain to that date you asked people to save? Many cannot. I don't want to destroy any one's excitement about planning their special day, but the reality is if you don't smell the coffee every now and then, you lose who you are and that leads to major disasters! Even a divorce before the marriage! Scary huh? Take some of the celebrities that have been married to several people. The reason why they are so short lived with a mate is due to the excitement wearing off. For a celebrity to give up after 6 months, isn't a good sign. Or is it? They do get tons of publicity about their love life and the more dramatic it is, the more people want to talk about it. I guess they live on this very unstable roller coaster day by day. But when is it enough? They are always in the limelight and once their out of it, you can only imagine how alone they feel. One thing I would suggest is to split up tasks where you are able to delegate certain things and wait to complete others. Call it a timeline if you will. I would call it a guarantee that you won't make your significant crazy enough to run to China. or anyone else in your circle for the most part. It is completely normal for many women and men to have a down period after the wedding. You have just been the center of many and it ends so quickly! What you have to keep in mind is the vanity doesn't have to end, you just have to learn when to shut it down and get back into your routine again. When you don't focus on perfection of this new type of relationship you won't be disappointed. You have the rest of your life for many surprises and exciting events to plan! If all else fails, have a renewal of vows for your first anniversary. Seal and Heidi Klum do this even after 4+ years. They throw a themed wedding reception to rekindle and celebrate their love for each other! I think that is a fabulous idea! Just keep one thing in mind after your special day, this is the first day of the rest of your lives. You can make it as exciting and dramatic as you want! Just because your gown is retired, doesn't mean you can't still be the bride right??? Here's a toast to many newly engaged couples this Thanksgiving having the best planning experience ever! Savor the moment each day, you don't get this time back! So take it slow and enjoy the ride. I promise you , there will always be drama around the corner! Marriage is never a bore! xo Sam

Education Time! New Classes For 2010!!

Hello Everyone!! First I would like to thank each and every student that has attended the CAES course in Summit NJ! Everyone has been extremely gracious with emails and calls! I need to get better by taking more photos during class and post them! I want to show everyone how absolutely awesome you are! I've finally gotten my act together and designed a separate course for design. We have talked about doing this for a year now and one of my resolutions is to offer more of a variety! After all, I wouldn't want my parents hard earned money to go to waste! I should be teaching Kindergarten, but I have to admit this is much more fun! Event Design With Basic Coordination: Date Jan 23rd 2010 This class will consist of schematics of design, color wheel, linens, rentals, lighting, texture vs no texture, layout and centerpiece design. Please make note, this is not the floral class which is taught monthly. We will still continue the 2 hour course with an award winning florist for $250! Please check my blog for dates in 2010. This class is for those who want to focus their speciality in design with little coordination. You should have some basic event experience before attending this course. Unfortunately, I can only accommodate 8 students not 10! You will be assembling a few types of decor and we have space allotted for 8! Fee: $800 Date: 1-23-2010 Location: !2 Bank Street Suite 201 Summit NJ 07901 Time: 10am to 6pm (It's a long one! Wear comfy shoes!) Contact our Special Events Coordinator Lacey Borman Cohen at lacey@samanthagoldberg.com for more info and to reserve your space. CAES 200 Beginning Planning January 9th 2010 This course is for the novice planner. The CAES 200 teaches the basic essentials to coordinate Day and Month of Coordination. You will work on timelines, sales methods, organizational skills, client assessments, where to begin in this crazy market and the fundamental skills you must have in order to succeed! This includes vendor relationships, venue information and much more! You will be required to intern at one of our offices as well as visiting some of the local venues in your neighborhood. You will need to work an event with a certified planner as an assistant and then asked to complete your own event which will be given to you by Samantha Goldberg. You may use this one event to begin your portfolio. Date: January 9th 2010 Saturday Time: 9:30 to 4pm Location: 12 Bank Street Suite 201 Summit NJ Fee $695 10 Students Max Please call Lacey at 908.219.4028 for more information or email at lacey@samanthagoldberg.com I hope this brings some interest your way! I look forward to meeting everyone in 2010! Let's make next year one that counts! Here's to new careers in the exciting world of events! xoxox Samantha

Monday, November 9, 2009

What Not To Say During a Wedding Toast

What Not To Say During a Toast At a Wedding.... I'm sure we've been to enough weddings where it was time to hear the best mans or maid of honors toast. Sometimes they can be well thought out and heartfelt. Other times you wonder if the one giving the honorable speech is drunk or just plain stupid. Face it, it's a lot of pressure standing up in front of any crowd and you want to make sure you say something tasteful along with being fun! I have learned during my career that there are just certain things you just don't say. For example, say this is your brothers wedding and the date was pushed due to him getting his girlfriend pregnant. It probably wouldn't be appropriate to say how your brother used to be so irresponsible and now thank goodness he's taking responsibility for his actions and how proud you are...I would say this may not get many laughs and may be your ticket out of the relationship you could have had with his wife. You may want to reminisce about your single days with your best girlfriend and how you used to travel and compete for being with the most men. How she would always come home with someone new every night. You thought how could she possibly ever settle down. You may also mention how grateful you are that she found one person that satisfies her every need. Thank goodness you don't have to worry about her going home with the wrong guy too! No matter how you try and dress this one up, you are going to be toast when the groom get's to you later...Even worse, your best friend may be so mortified and embarrassed that she regrets asking you to stand up and asks the videographer to delete this portion. I wouldn't want to be you! One of my all time favorites is someone who might have been married a few times already. I have heard the bestman explain how it's 3 times the charm and sometimes you have to try out the merchandise before you place your bet. Or maybe he knew that the other 2 women were never the right ones once he started dating the bride. Rule of thumb, you never talk about the ex. Not only is this distasteful but not funny at all. Who would even want to think of any relationship that caused the bride or groom any anguish or pain? Trust me your not doing them a favor by reminding them of their past mistakes. So while you prepare the toast, do everyone a favor and speak of the here and now! This could prevent a huge fight between the newly weds after the fact! Would you want to start the marriage with thoughts of divorce? While these may sound funny when you are alone with the bride or groom, it's probably not a good idea to talk about the "topics off the list" in front of 100 guests. If you are the type who cannot handle their liquor, I would keep the toast nice and short. Maybe wishing them well and toasting to a long and joyful life together. His or her family may think some of the private topics are funny. However, what if they don't? All eyes on you babe and that is worse than Marsha Brady and her fear of speaking in front of an audience. You cannot just picture everyone in their underwear and get through it. It will stay with you a LONG time after the wedding! I think a smart rule to follow is "what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" right??? You can always look to a professional toast writer to give you something appropriate. That may be the best gift you can give to your newly wed friends..Call it a good investment! Cheers! xo Sam

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Is This You??

I thought I might share a VERY funny video with all of my favorite brides out there! This gave me a chuckle! Please let your groom have a breather every now and then!!!!
I devote my time to ensuring our clients recieve fab service. There's another "calling" for me. To give back to my peers that aspire to be the next "best" fancy pants somebody! Those who play it safe standing behind me, will fail. I do serve as a warning to others and yes, I'm nutty. It's who I am & it's not going to change, as it works. Feel free to comment & join me on what could be the best road trip EVER!

Not That Sassi Planner Again???

Bling and Pearls Can Be The Icing on The Cake!

Bling and Pearls Can Be The Icing on The Cake!
Too Good Too Eat.

Just admit it, I say off the wall things...And it works!