Wow, somehow it’s March already. Time flies when you’re busy stressing over the most expensive day of your life. Yep, that means another wedding post.
When we started planning our wedding I relied a lot on online research, and it was very helpful but also very stressful. Too many choices and too hard to differentiate those choices. Luckily we got engaged right before “engagement season” which meant that bridal show season was soon to follow. I was a little skeptical at first and the first one we attended didn’t wow us. Yes, I said we – my groom has been very involved in the process. I don’t know about y’all but when I’m looking to do something I research it – A LOT! Do y’all remember when “Get Motivated” toured the country? I spent hours reading reviews so I knew exactly when the legit speakers were coming and when the scam speakers went on. But when I went to research the various wedding shows I I couldn’t find much beyond their own websites and social media which is cool but I want to know what the show would be like. So, for all you brides to be doing your internet sleuthing here’s my first bridal show review. Oh, and best wishes to you on your wedding planning.
The Pink Bride is held in major cities throughout Tennessee twice a year; we attended the January 2016 Memphis show. We prepurchaed tickets online for $10 each and paid another $10 to park.
We arrived at the convention center shortly after the doors opened and although we didn’t have issues parking we were shocked at the long line to check in. It took about 25 minutes which honestly annoyed me because what was the point of buying tickets online then? Luckily I had broken down a few months ago and bought a pair of ballet flats crocs which have become my go-to standing around shoe.
One we had our badges we stopped for a quick photo opp. Lame, I know but I was caught up in the bridal excitement.
And no, those are not leggings. They are skinny (real) pants and not as comfortable as leggings.
Attendees wear badges to indetify why they are there – bride, groom, bridal party. The crowd was 95% women so I suspect these are to help the vendors out but they were cute and I totally saved them for our scrapbook.
One of the things that irritated us about the last bridal show was some “scam” vendors, here all of the vendors were legit which was nice.
I knew from chatting to other brides to come hungry and man was I glad we did because we left stuffed! Knowing that caterers would only bring so many samples we made our first pass just to see them as that was our top vendor priority. Everyone brought their A game and not only was the food delicious but nicely presented.
Filled up on yummy nibbles we took a 2nd lap to talk to vendors. Our already book venue, florist and photographer were all there so we stopped by each to say hello. I really want a pic of a booth to give an idea of what they were like and our photographer was nice enough to let me take his:
Shout out to 3eight photography!
I also took an “action shot” of our florist booth – Kacie Cooper Designs
There were several photo booths and each vendor was letting people take pictures. We didn’t want to be shameless nor did we need a bunch of photo booth pics but we did stop by one.
There were also several DJs in the house and we wound up booking DJ Devin as a result of the show. David’s bridal, Jos A Banks, Men’s warehouse and Macy’s were there representing the national chains but most vendors were local.
The party rental places were all there as well. Elegant Chair solutions gave out the best swag of the whole show and we booked an appointment at the show.
We were also reminded how freaking expensive non wedding essential can be such as bouquet preservation and live wedding painting. Why oh why do I have to want both of these things????
I the far corner The Pink Bride had their own take your own photo booth and sold tshirts. Shaun convinced me I didn’t need a pink colored bride tshirt but I kinda regret it – good thing they are available online
Vendors that I was hoping to see but we’re not there were stationary, event planners and musicians.
At each show The Pink Bride has a cash giveaway at the end so of course we stuck around, as did most attendees. We also watched the fashion show right before the giveaway which I thought was very well done. We were there for four hours and spent most of that time busy looking at booths or talking to vendors. We were very pleased with the show and thought it was well worth our time.
One thing I really like about The Pink Bride organization is that they publish a magazine with each show. This has by far been my most useful bridal magazine since it shows real local weddings and local vendors, in the back are several planning tools – their checklist is by far the most through of any checklist I have seen. No lies, I would be soon excited if pictures from my wedding made it into future issues.
Happy planning to all you Tennessee brides and grooms!