Copy vs. Being Inspired

Telling myself that I was too busy to blog was a lie. I'll be honest, I was somewhat disappointed with the wedding blog world as a whole because people seem to just reap off other people's ideas. Worst thing is, when CREDIT is not given to the original designer or creator of the idea and the other person tries to pull off the idea as their own. There has been so much copying due to the fact that the blogging community is so open and readily accessible.  Although I completely understand that originality and creativity come from being inspired/stimulated by each others' works but I also believe that you need to do this on a conscious level.

What is the difference between being "inspired by" and straight out copying someone?

In my humble opinion, if one sees something they like and say "Wow, I'm going to try something similar to that and bring it to the next level", then it's "inspiration".
If they copy it and say "Look what I did" with no reference to the original source then that's copying.

To make my point clear, here's our veggie/fruit bar we created which was featured on Amy Atlas last year. Photo Credit: Serena Grace
Some months later, another planner copied our design and posted on her portfolio section. I said 'copied' because she did not reference back to my site and posted the pictures under her portfolio section.

I won't reveal this planner's site out of courtesy.

If you are a fellow industry professional reading this post, I only ask you to credit your sources and link back to the original site. I wrote a post on this topic a while ago if you'd like to read further.  I'm sure all the bloggers/photographers/designers would appreciate this courtesy. To those desiring to be in the wedding industry or just starting out.. CREDIT your "inspiration" posts or pictures that you get from other blogs!  That's just good blogging etiquette.  ;) Here's an awesome post about crediting photos written by Chelsea from Frolic! http://www.frolic-blog.com/frolic/2011/03/blog-talk-crediting-photos.html
I would love to hear some of your thoughts on this topic. Please do remember that my intention of writing this post is not to point fingers at anyone. After all, it really doesn't matter WHERE you got your inspirations from as long as your work proves quality and better content.

P.S I actually held off posting a lot of our clients' weddings but I will be back to blogging now that I'm taking a maternity leave.  No more once-a-month posting! I promise! ;)

Planning a multicultural and interfaith wedding...

Hello Readers,
Time sure does fly by these days and today, I wanted to blog about something very important before I head off to Nor cal. Every wedding is uniquely planned by the bride and groom and this ceremony is a tribute to Julia & Chris as they appreciate the differences between their traditions. It joins their cultural traditions and symbolizes their wonderful commitment of honoring their very different heritages.
It has been a long planning process as three of us have gone through in selecting appropriate Christian, Korean, and Jewish elements so that EVERYONE can take part and understand. Every word and technical term & order of the program have been carefully reviewed and selected with much consideration. And I'm quite pleased to let you know that it will be one beautiful, touching, & meaningful ceremony as the guests witness and celebrate one of the most unique weddings ever! To those who are also planning a multicultural and interfaith wedding, here's a sample of the bilingual order of ceremony we have come up with. Hope you find this ceremony resourceful and inspiring as you plan your own unique wedding.

Processional/ 입장

Bride's Entrance/ 신부입장

Welcome & Opening Words/ 개식인사

Statement of Intentions/Declaration of Purpose/ 예식선언문

Message/ 말씀

Reading of the "Ketubah"/ 혼례의식낭독 (A Jewish Tradition)

Exchange of Vows/ 결혼서약

Exchange of Rings/ 예물교환

Pronouncement of Marriage/결혼선포

Lighting of the Unity Candle/ 촛불점화 (A Christian Tradition)

Appreciation of Parents/ 부모님께 인사 (A Korean Tradition)

Statement of Thanks/ 인사 및 광고

Concluding Well Wishes/ 축복기도

Breaking of the Glass/ 유리잔 전통 혼례예식 (A Jewish Tradition)

Presentation of Couple/ 신랑신부 소개

Recessional/ 퇴장

Ringing of the Church Bells/ 축화의 종소리 (A Christian Tradition)

유대인 혼례예식와 한국식 전통 혼례예식을 같이드리고자 하옵니다. 서로 다른환경에서 자란 신랑신부가 한 몸 이뤄 새가정을 꾸미는데 종교와 문화의 차의점을 양해해주시고 이처럼 뜻깊은 행사의 동참하셔서 축복해주시길 바람니다.

Esther's advice: Please note that although you are being married into the family, the wedding is about you & your loved one. Although you want to be considerate of the two different cultures & families, don't lose your voice while planning your own wedding because you can't satisfy everyone. However, use your discretion & common sense when dealing with sensitive issues that may arise during the planning process. If you aren't familiar with the traditions and cultures, don't be afraid to ask because that's more polite than ignoring each other's differences. Here's a great article I found from Love Empire

After your wedding....

After opening this blog, I've been getting some interesting emails & phone calls from all over the States...One of the readers emailed me today asking if I can post more entries in Korean. I actually prefer writing in Korean but I have such difficulty typing in Korean that thinking about it gives me a headache! But I will definitely post some more once in a while for my Korean readers out there. With this in mind, I am going to write an entry about what needs to be done after the wedding and a proper etiquette you shouldn't forget.
결혼식을 마친 후에..
결혼식 이라는 전쟁(?) 을 마친 후엔 드디어 재미있는 신혼여행을 떠나지만 여행 후 막상 현실로 다시 돌아오면 정말 해야될 것이 아직까지 산더미로 있을 것이다... 집 청소 부터 결혼식 선물들 정리하며 아직도 계속 마련 해야 하는 가구들...성도 바꿔야 하고..아이고.. 한 두가지가 아니다... 그래도 그 순간만큼은 행복하고 아직은 내가 결혼 했다는게 실감이 안 날것이다.

충분히 바쁘고 하지만 한가지 꼭 잊지 않고 신부가 챙겨야 할것은 그래도 결혼식에 참석해 자리를 빛내준 친구들과 하객분들께 thank you card를 보내는 것이다. 뭐 이런것까지 말하면 좀 그렇지만 요즘 gas값도 만만치 않고 부조금에서 부터 bridal shower gift 까지 챙겨야지. 축하해주는 마음으로 오시지만, 그래도 하객분들도 이래저래 깨지는게 많다... thank you card 보내는거 쉽게 들리지만 막상 생각해 보면 이것도 또 하나의 일이다... 아주 중요한 일!
하지만 사소한 일이기때문에 많은신부들이 까먹거나 시간을 놓칠 수 있지만 오히려 사소한 것에 소홀히 할 수있다. 보낼 때 하객들 (혹 내가 모르는 어르신분들이 오셨어도)과 또한 꼭 vendor 들에게도 보내야 하는게 기본이라 생각한다... 이분 들이 없이는 결혼식이 possible하지 않았기때문에. 언제 한번 꽃집 사장님과 통하하면서 그분이 이런 표현을 하셨다. 결혼식 마치고 신부, 신랑한테 전화 한통 없으면 섭섭하다고... 정말 그렇다.. 이런 business 도 다 customer care인데 고객의 소리를 듣고 싶어하실 것이다. 서비스가 막상 맘에 들지 안았을 경우에는 전화나 email로 꼭 말씀 해드리고 그 부분에서 어떤 것들이 맘에 안들었는지 말할 자격도 있고 또한 그 vendor 들의 발전을 위해서도 말씀 드리는 것이 옳다고 본다..

그럼 thank you card 는 언제 보낼까요? 빨리 끝내버릴수록 더 속이 시원할 것이다... 한달 안에! 그렇지 않으면 그냥 시간이 흘러 가버리기 때문에.. 자 우리 그럼 센스있는 신부, 남을 배려해주고 감사의 표현을 잘하는 신부로 마지막까지 화이팅!!!

P.S Hope everyone is enjoying their summer. I promise I have plenty of weddings to post so stay tuned... I will be finally receiving all the wedding photos this month.

Etiquette about the seating chart

Image from the knot
Why is it that some people just don't respond back to RSVP's? Nowadays, online RSVP seems to work best, but what do you do when most of your guests are your parents' friends and relatives you hardly know? It's just not in our Korean culture to respond back right away and some adults just show up on the wedding day asking for their seats. This topic makes me reminisce on all the experiences I've gone through in the past with seating charts and let me tell you one thing: it wasn't a pleasant experience. I usually tell my clients to leave one extra table or a few empty seats at every table just in case some unexpected guests show up. Once you've collected all the guest lists hopefully 2-3 weeks before the wedding (and you might need to call them and bug them to send it in) here's what you need to know before you start working on your seating chart.

Who Sits Where?
The Bridal Table
The bride and groom may sit at a long rectangular head table with the bridal party or their own "sweetheart" table.
Family Tables
Often, the parents of the bride and groom sit opposite each other at a large family table, with grandparents, the officiant, and other close friends. An alternative is to have the bride and groom's parents "host" their own tables, consisting of their family members and close friends. In the case of divorced parents, each parent may also host his or her own table, smoothly diffusing any awkwardness or discomfort.
Mix or Match
As for the rest of your guests, should you put friends together or seat them with "new" people? The answer is a bit of both. While it is a great idea to mix in a few new faces at each table, remember that people are most comfortable when they know some of their dinner companions. Be considerate and put acquaintances together when you can. If you have guests who don't know anyone, seat them near guests with similar interests. If you have a group of friends that cannot fit at one table, split them down the middle, and fill in each table with other guests.

What about the guests you don't know? If you have no idea what to do with your parents' friends, let your mother and mother-in-law arrange those tables. This is very important! You want every guest to feel special.
Some guests will take it personally if they're sitting way in the back. Be sure to ask your parents and mother-in-law where they should be seated to be considerate of their needs. Go over the seating chart one last time with your parents a couple days before the wedding day. And no matter how perfect your final seating plan seems, you will undoubtedly receive at least one last minute phone call begging you to change or add more names. In this case, try to be accommodating, but don't let this stress you out too much!

Seating Arrangement for Weddings is a free wedding planning software that helps you designe the floor plan, mange the guest list, track RSVPs, and more...