Anneliese & Gilead ~ September 2, 2007

The rain didn't ruin this beauitful day. I began working with Anneliese and Gilead just about 3 months before they tied the knot. We selected the beautiful and historic Marriott Plaza Hotel Conference Center for the site of the wedding and reception. The Marriott Plaza really does a wonderful job. This venue is one of my favorites. The ceremony was held in front of the fountain underneath the gorgeous oak trees. As the guests arrived they were greated to wooden fans and lemonade. The bridesmaids looked wonderful in their blue and chocolate colored dresses. And then men looked very handsome in their brown tuxedos. Anneliese was glowing as she walked down the aisle. I LOVED her flowers. They were so pretty. The French Connection did her flowers and my wonderful florist did a beautiful job at bringing to life our vision. Not many couples choose to write their own vows like this couple did. It was so special!!

Following the ceremony we had just enough time to get a few formal pictures before the rain began. It was not a problem though. We were able to quickly move the cocktail reception and everyone stayed dry.

One of my favorite things this couple chose to do was instead of having a traditional wedding cake they wanted pie! And lots of pie!! We had every single flavor of pie that we could get from Marie Callendars. It was so much fun.

The guests loved it.

Following dinner and pie everyone made their way into the dancing room where they witnessed the toast and the first dances. I could hardly keep from crying during the mother son dance. It was so touching. Once the slow first dances were done this group was ready to turn things up. It seemed like all othe guests enjoyed themselves on the dance floor. I really pride myself in working with wonderful vendors who will make my client's day special. The French Connection provided the DJ services and their guests danced until their shoes came off! Literally.

The gals all had their shoes off.

Everyone had a really great time.

Here is a note from the bride:

From: anneliese r.
Sent: Wednesday, September 05, 2007 8:15 AM
To: Tracy French
Subject: Thank you

Good Morning Tracy!

First, I want to say thank you so much! Our wedding truely was perfect. I could not have asked for anything more. Your photographers even went out of their way to teach our guests how to line dance. It was wonderful! I can not wait to get the pictures back.

Well thank you again and if there is anything I can do, please let me know. You and Alex are the best!

Anneliese

Marcela & PJ ~ July 14, 2007

I can not believe Marcela and PJ are married! I have been working with this family for the past 2 years!

When you plan a wedding for this long you have the time to plan out all of the little details that really make the day memorable.

The couple had a traditional wedding at the Little Flower Basilica.

Because of their love for Hawaii the couple decided on a seaside themed reception. As the guests arrived at the reception they were greeted by hula greeters and presented a lei. When the bride and groom arrived they were escorted in by dancers and the hula show began. Not too many people think about bring a little bit of Hawaii to their San Antonio wedding but we did and it worked. The dancers did a wonderful job of interacting with the guests and keep everyone entertained. Just as the hula show ended and the dancers exited the sound of mariachis began playing from the back of the room. Everyone faces lit up as they turned to see the mariachis enter the room in a seamless transition.

Another special touch we added to the day was a slide show that we played during the first dances. During the father/daughter and the mother/son dances pictures of the couple growing up were shown and then during the couple's first dance we played pictures of the couple together. It was enjoyable to see the entire room entranced by what they were watching.

With the wedding cake snowcones were served to the children and the big kids too!

The wedding was a huge success!

Savannah, Georgia

Destination Wedding
Well I just returned from working with my New York couple and finishing up the details for their wonderful Savannah, Georgia wedding. It was my first visit to Savannah but hopefully not my last. Savannah is a great location for a destination wedding.
My couple had 95 of their closest friends and family travel to Savannah for a weekend of celebrating. It was truly intimate.
The wedding was held at the Mansion on Forsyth Park. Stunning! And the service is superb!

Lori & Ben ~ June 23, 2007

This adorable couple came to my office needing photography services. And from there they decided they could greatly simplify their planning process by taking advantage of as many services as they could with our company.

Lori used our hair and makeup services, floral, DJ, photography and wedding cake services.

When it came time for them to finalize the details for their big day they decided they really needed to have us there to help them insure their entire day went as smoothly as possible.

So they hired us to set up their reception and coordinate everything so they could simply relax and enjoy!

Are you planning a destination wedding?

Are you drowning in details? Are you ready to ditch your wedding plans? Do you only have a small amount of money but still want a great, unique wedding? Would you rather walk down the aisle - off the beaten path? We can make it happen! Say "I do" in Indonesia! Share champagne toasts in Colorado! Cut the cake in Cabo! We'll take you there!!

Yes I am looking for couples who are dreaming of a destination wedding! I want to feature you on the next season of MARRIED AWAY. This destination wedding show is hitting some of the world's most luxurious hot spots, and we want to take fun couples with us. We'll hook you up with an amazing venue and you leaving the planning to us. Even if you have your location set but you're in need of a planner, we'd love to hear from you. This is your opportunity to have the most amazing destination wedding imaginable, without breaking the bank!
All participants must be 21 years of age or older, have a wedding date set in 2007. Please get in touch with me at tracy@thefrenchconnectionevents.com or (210) 349-8301

Michelle and Nimo ~ May 5, 2007

The sweetest couple!

Michelle's gown was so pretty! I think it is one of my favorites.

The wedding ceremony was at Our Lady of the Lake and the reception was at the Marriott Plaza Hotel. We originally planned to use the outdoor areas at the Marriott for much of the reception but the threat of rain and extreme humidity made us decide to move it in doors. I think it was a wonderful decision and everything turned out better than we had planned.

The bride and her bridesmaids got ready at the Marriott Plaza's Diaz House. This is such a great space to be to utilize. No messing up a sleep room and plenty of room to move around. Of course the bride utilized my on staff hair and makeup artist! We think every bride should have their hair and makeup artist come to them! No running around for our bride's!!

Once everyone was beautiful it was off to the church in trolleys. We really love using the trolleys to transport everyone. This way everyone is together and arrives at the same time!!!! And the trolleys are just fun!

Following the ceremony the guests enjoyed cocktails and passed hor'd outside of the ballroom at the Marriott Plaza. Once the bride and groom joined their guests the doors to the main ballroom were opened and the guests made their way to their seats. The dinner was wonderful. The Marriott has a wonderful chef and they go out of their way to make sure everyone is happy.

Picture of me helping my bride put her heals back on.

The bride and groom and all of their guests danced the evening away. Everyone was happy to see this special couple marry.

What a sweet couple!!!

Eva & Garrett March 31, 2007

This was a spectacular event! We utilized every part of the beautiful Southwest School of Art and Crafts Center for my couple Eva and Garrett's special day.

We began the day with guests arriving to a pre-ceremony beverage in the Convent Garden. This gave all of the guests who had rushed to get to the ceremony time to relax and mingle. During this time we set up a Martha Stewart inspired photo station where we hung a piece of floral fabric and took Polaroid snap shots that the bride will later place in her wedding scrap book.



We then escorted the guests into the beautiful chapel to witness the ceremony.


The romantic ceremony was followed by cocktails in the River Garden. Passed Pink Martini's and comfy lounge furniture placed in the middle of the gazebo created a mood that made guests gather and mingle.

Dinner was on the other side of the River Garden under hanging lanterns. We treated the guests to active stations to keep the mood of a very social event. Guests took their time and really seemed to enjoy themselves. We could hardly get them up from this area when it was time to move to the next phase of the event.

During dinner we transformed the chapel. After dinner the guests were led back into the chapel for wedding cake, chocolate fountain and coffee station. We created many areas for guests to sit and talk and other areas for guests to dance and watch. We had specialty up lighting throughout the chapel and illuminated the stained glass windows from outside. The cake was surrounded by floating candles and lights.

I always say that a wedding should be thought of many small events inside your large event. We created this by taking guests from area to area. This maintained interest throughout the evening. Also we created a very social environment for all of Eva's and Garrett's guests to mingle and enjoy one another.

Heather & Philip January 27, 2007

Winter wonderland success!!! The bride's vision of a winter wonderland was achieved and I had a perfectly happy couple and family. Heather and Philip were married at Trinity's Parker Chapel and their wedding reception following at the beautiful St. Anthony Hotel. Together with my very talented florist, William Garza, we were able to accomplish Heather's vision of a perfect wedding day. Sparkle was to be everywhere! From the escort card holders to the wedding cake!

It was such a joy to see the families have fun and enjoy themselves. So many people commented on what a FUN wedding it was. We had live music by my very own guitarist duo and then a nine piece band. Even the band that was playing in the next ballroom kept coming over on their breaks to check out the fun!

Diana and Mark Wedding January 11, 2007

Even though the weather was not what we had hoped for the day was perfect for the couple. Diana and Mark were married at Holy Name Catholic church with their wedding reception following at the Southwest Art & Craft Center.
Catering was provided by Absolutely Everything, floral by our very own William Garza. Deserly Photography provided us with the photography services. I can not wait to see the pictures!!

I was so surprised to receive a beautiful floral arrangement the week following the wedding. It was a special thank you from the couple. We are always happy when a couple is able to simply enjoy their day while we manage all of the details!

Wedding Fair

Come visit us at the largest San Antonio Wedding Fair on Sunday January 21st from 12-5PM at the convention center downtown. We will be running some great specials that you will not want to miss out on. We look forward to seeing you there!
Visit www.weddingfairshow.com for more details.

Style Network New Series Premieres - Married Away

The name of The Style Network's
new show has been chosen!
It is called Married Away.
I am thrilled to be on the premiere episode of this new show. Watch this Tuesday December the 5th 9/8c. In San Antonio if you have Time Warner it is channel 65 or if you have Grande it is channel 151.

Destination Wedding-Hawaii

Renay and Joe were married September 23rd at a sunset ceremony with the gorgeous ocean as their backdrop.

Renay contacted me as she envisioned a seaside wedding but had no idea of how to pull it off. The only thing Renay did know was that she wanted to get married as soon as possible because her groom is in the military and could be sent to war at any time. So the rush to plan her special day began.

Renay was wonderful. She completely trusted that I would pull together her vision and create her dream wedding. We chose her gown at the fabulous Blush Couture in Dallas. It was absolutely perfect! Different and yet the perfect gown for her seaside ceremony. The wedding and reception were held the gorgeous the Ihlani JW Marriott Resort on the island of Oahu.

I arrived in Hawaii several days early to review the site and meet with all of the vendors who would provide the services for Renay and Joe's day. Renay was able to arrive with her family and enjoy the resort and take advantage of some of the fun things Hawaii had to offer while I looked after all of the details.

On Thursday before the wedding the bride and groom hosted a cocktail hour for their friends and family that had traveled so far to witness their wedding. It was a relaxed gathering and gave everyone a chance to get to know one another.

For the rehearsal dinner I scheduled all the guests to attend traditional Hawaiian Luau. At the rehearsal itself one of the bridesmaids was surprised with a proposal from her boyfriend! It was so romantic. She did not suspect a thing.

On the wedding day the bride and groom woke up and went snorkeling. Since their wedding was at sunset and I and my staff was their to handle all of the final details, they had time to enjoy their day and really make the most of their destination wedding.

When the guests began making their way to the ceremony site each of the female guests were given beautiful parasols. Upon arriving at the ceremony site all guests were given a lei. Rather than the traditional corsage and boutonnières for the parents I had special leis made for them. The parasols also acted as wedding favors. For the wedding flowers we used gorgeous green cymbidium orchids for the bouquets. The bride's bouquet had cascading ribbons with small white dendrobium orchids tied on that gracefully floated in the breeze.

Following the ceremony the guests were led to the reception site were they enjoyed passed hor'd and cocktails. Once the bride and groom finished with their pictures they joined their guests and everyone showered them with love as they congratulated the couple. Everyone then was seated at one long table for an intimate dinner where they shared stories and many laughs. The toasts were made and tears were shed. After dinner the dancing began. Instead of the traditional 1st dance being the bride and groom we decided the bride would dance with her father. After all she is his only little girl and it was a very touching moment to see them dance. It seemed perfectly normal for the parents dances to come first. The groom and his mom then tore up the dance floor with their fun dance. You could see they have a very special relationship that was wonderful to witness. Then the bride and groom finished off the dances with their special dance. The dance floor was then opened and the guests enjoyed mingling and dancing. Most were entertained by the grooms dance tricks.

When it came time to cut the cake the bride was visably upset as she had forgotten to tell us that she had brought her grandmother's cake topper and that it was sitting in her room. Not to worry, that was why we were there. I had my assistant run up to her room to retrieve the family heirloom. The cake topper was put into place and the tears were replaced with huge smiles as the bride smashed wedding cake all over the grooms face!

Renay and Joe selected my company,The French Connection, to provide her with her photography for the weekend.

My assistant, photographer and I all flew to Hawaii to make a bride’s dream of a wonderful destination wedding come true. To view more pictures visit our website www.tfweddingconsultant.com, select photography link and then select order photos online and then select portfolio at the top of the page.

WOAI Interview

Jenna Walker with WOAI contacted me for an interview for her wedding blog. It was so much fun! I had a terrible cold that I was recovering from so please excuse my voice. Otherwise I think the interview turned out to be very informative. Click here to watch or cut and paste into your brower. http://www.woai.com/mediacenter/?videoId=295809#top (note: be patient. It takes a second to load. The interview will come up after a quick commercial.)