Green wedding

Its been a while since I got to blogging on this page. More than a month. I've had loads of paperwork and organization work to adjust to. Now that the balance is achieved I thought why not write something about green weddings today.

Irrespective of why one chooses a green wedding, its a beauty to work with. A green wedding can appeal due to various reasons. Some brides are
attracted to lush green gardens, for outdoor weddings. It makes them select the venue. Most of my floral arrangement have some greenery in them. Whether the foliage or lime green flowers due the arrangement involved.

Then there is the different shades of green that a bride can settle for as her color theme. This she can choose to work with on the bridesmaids dresses and the fabric drape of the wedding. One other way to have a green wedding, is by using materials that are eco-friendly to the environment in different aspects of the wedding.

Photos: Tony Wainaina Photography

I'm glad to have worked with all aspects of a green wedding. Its interesting to see how you can easily translate it on a wedding. I once worked with a bride who wanted lime green as one of the many colors she was working with and wanted me to stay as far as possible from white flowers. I found that quite odd but I was open to the idea and I loves the outcome.

So,on today's blog I thought I could share some green weddings whether in color of flowers or weddings theme or drapes of brides I have worked with in the past. The ones I have selected  I did their weddings between one to four years ago.

With myself slowly warming up to green and how versatile it is, I cant wait to see if i get a different opportunity to work with a completely different green or just the same  greens but in a different way. Either way, working with different shades of green has been interesting.

Polka dot themed wedding.

This is the second of my twelve articles on real weddings I plan to blog about. Time flies so fast. This particular wedding happened a year ago precisely in February. The planning though started way in advance. I must say, sometimes there are couples we start planning together but its usually just that: planning without committing deposits to anything.

 They were different in a lot of levels.  They wanted something unique that represented them. During the planning process, it was easy to tell that polka dots wasn't just an idea that came up but she wore a lot of outfits that in whole or in parts kept to this theme. Having this pattern combined with aqua blue was a perfect fit.

 Cake was done by valentine cake house

Interesting bit about this wedding, the theme stuck out throughout. The wedding cake, the drapes used on the tents, the signing table, bridal car and the list continues. All in all, every aspect of the wedding tied in together.

It was initially a challenge finding polka drapes for the wedding but the fact that they committed early enough, it gave me enough time to look for all the rolls of materials that we would use for tie backs. Finding 2 different textures of polka dots for the tie backs and tent drapes. It all worked out: I'm glad. In the end, everything worked out just fine. I liked the fact that she chose a different color all together for the wedding invitations. That meant just a handful of guests wore polka dots and aqua blue. Those who weren't aware of the wedding colors but got it right with their outfit selection.

In the end of it, I loved working with this couple. They were organized, they knew what they wanted and starting early enough was good not just for me but also them.

African Themed Wedding : Flashback

This year, I've decided to do something different in my blogging. In addition to my usual articles, I thought it would be nice to talk about 12 different themed weddings I have done overtime and why they stood out for me and probably if there is anything I could do different.

My first article would be on an African themed wedding that I did 2 years ago in the month of February. I guess this was one wedding that had to confirm whether I was really up to the challenge of something really different and gratefully, I was.

Right from the start, I knew I was dealing with a different kind of bride who knew exactly what she wanted. From the usual fresh flower arrangements on the cars to using dried flowers for the arrangement. The commonly called "uteo" in African language, was a great option to use in bringing the arrangement together on the bridal car.

The bridal bouquet and her maids too were dried floral arrangement instead of fresh flowers. The use of pots and animal prints fabrics added more to the overall African themed wedding. I guess at the end of the day, I loved the way all the pieces came together and the earthy colors connected the theme. Wouldn't change anything about it if I was to do it all over again.

2014 in review.

Time does fly very fast. Sometime this year, it will be the start of my 8th year in my wedding planning business.  As far as being in the wedding industry, its already been more than a decade: 11 years to be precise. I have learnt a lot and grown in this business in ways I never expected. I've learned how to handle the planning pressure better (yes, planners do have pressure to meet the wedding deadline and make sure everything runs smoothly and as per clients expectations.)

Last year was a great year for my business but along with success, it brought a number of challenges and changes that I very much need to make. Like I said, my blog today will focus on my lessons of 2014 despite the fact that there is much I have learned in all these years.

1: Its important to have a contract with clients right from the start especially when they are your friends. When respect is maintained in doing business with friends, then it saves a lot of headaches later when misunderstanding arises and in most often than not ,they DO arise.

2: Many brides have in mind to start planning their wedding early but this is usually done verbally. To everyone else concerned, their plans are great and the wedding is well in progress but the sad bit is they identify their vendors early, negotiate everything and fear taking the step to pay a deposit or sometimes hesitate due to financial constraints. I've learned to be weary of them and I've learned that 2 free appointments with such is  enough before I opt out or patiently wait as I commit to others as they make up their minds whether to work with me or not.

3: I love to think out of the box when it comes to planning so do afew clients that I met last year but not everyone is willing to pay the price to be different. When one talks of being on a tight budget but has grandiose ideas and want out of the box ideas, I'm weary of such brides.

4: Brides are different one after the other and not well communicated ideas can prove to be a costly idea. I've learned to communicate even the smallest changes. It caused me a financial setback to assume on myself changes that I considered really minor. Fortunately, social media has made it really easy to request adjustments. I'm so grateful for Whattsapp. I can have my text request send to the bride and have instant response.

5: Even an easy going bride can have a personality change when pressure sets in. This is why I handle the pressure and constant change when necessary. Something can always go wrong so its  important to be ready for any eventuality.

6: While its important to have a client timeline, mine too is important with all my staff. Knowing what's expected at every stage is important. As they say, time is money.

 7: I've always allowed my clients to make changes at the last minute or even drag on a decision until the last minute. Experience with that hasn't been the best teacher. Unnecessary changes have led to compromises on my work. I will tread carefully on this in 2015.

8: Not all brides who I talk to will work with me or even afford my services. I'm at peace with that finally. Good work lead to referrals or even brides who are just price shopping. Well you win some and loose some

wedding dances the nairobi way

one tradition locally in most of our weddings is dances that involve everyone. We go in circles dancing to popular songs. The great thing about our local song choices is that they have no tribal barrier.  Anything or song that's currently trending and loved across all age groups is acceptable interesting enough, we might not know the words but just enjoy the beats that are usually easy and fun to dance to.

 Our dancing traditions usually begin in the same way and the time that the bridal team arrives at the reception from the wedding photo shoots. The Mc announces their arrival and everyone stands to meet them and we dance in circles. Some dances are slow but some are really vigorous. I  love the pace of luhyia dances. They are usually vigorous when its immediately followed  by a slow dance then its easy to survive the dance duration.

 One thing about dancing at wedding reception is that it's easy to learn. No shame in holding back if you dont know how to dance to the song of the moment. Usually someone or more people already know it hence you learn as you move around. In a few cases, the mc usually introduces a few routines to be danced to. It usually take below 15 minutes for the dance to be enjoyed in a wedding. Hence its a  nice way to stretch  in a wedding and most times it comes after guests have already had lunch. You can try it if you haven't but if you have, you know its contagious to shake a leg.

Grass is always greener.......

2 years ago, I wrote about garden weddings being a popular selection for wedding receptions. That fact still applies a lot in Kenya. The way things are going, its not a trend that will go away soon.


Today I remembered the famous words that
"grass is always greener on the other side."I picked this meaning from urban dictionary online "comes from the idea of looking at a neighbour's lawn and seeing it as better looking, healthier and overall greener than your own when in reality you are just ignoring anything negative about it and downplaying anything positive about your own.

Finding a garden for your outdoor wedding is not the challenge. There is a lot of gardens that can hold different number of guests. Whether small or large. The quality of the grass differs though in different seasons.

There are grounds that rely on rainfalls to water and give you good quality grass. Then there are those that are well taken care of and even during dry seasons, the grass is still green. Just like the saying, grass is always greener on the other side.....any ground for a garden wedding with lush gardens or not is suitable for any wedding or theme with just a little added creativity.

Wedding Reception timings

Months have passed so fast. 3 months already. This being since my last blog. I still have a second article to write after the last article, which hopefully I will get around it sometimes this month. When I wrote the last article, it was a cold season and it still is. That's how unpredictable the weather has become. More like Nairobi traffic on the weekends. It's a bit tricky to get the timings right when it comes to it.

Getting to today's article, it was usual for wedding receptions to begin between midday and 2pm in theory. With Nairobi traffic being factored in alongside with the distance from the ceremony to reception area, including where the bridal team had selected for photo shoot area, that usually meant that the far everything is from one another, the more it meant that guests would reach the reception really late and the bridal team made it as late as 4pm, that's an hour or two before the reception ended. A lot has changed though with time. That will be a discussion for another day on what's made this changes possible.


Receptions timings have greatly changed. What to consider when one sets the reception time? The distance from the ceremony and the reception still remains a major factor, the time of the month is also a contender. End months usually have crazy traffics in Nairobi. Its always like everyone drives their private cars. Considering whether the time selected will be possible for your guests to attend. If you have a wedding in the middle of the week, it becomes tricky for some guests to make certain times that you'd prefer. Cost and length of the reception. If you consider spending time with your guests and have ample time, then here is where the timing of your reception really comes in. A majority of the wedding receptions end either in good time or really late and the wedding couple along with a few guests gather at a different place for the evening dinner party. The stress of the days leading up to the wedding day itself might make all or some on the bridal team be too tired to enjoy themselves at this. This makes others settle for a late reception from 4pm afterwards to avoid an extra gathering and to spend as much time as possible with their guests.

Whatever works for the wedding couple, a consensus usually is that the timing selected helps them and their guests to have fun and enjoy themselves.