New Nashville Wedding Stuff! -- Part One

Happy Friday, blog readers! It has been too long since I've posted, but I promise I have a good excuse...WOW has it been busy here! This post is "Part One" because I'll have more to share with you over the next few weeks, but I wanted to pass on some tidbits now since I know many of you are deep in the midst of planning your weddings right now.

First, I want you all to meet Sue Davies-Rephan, our new Director of Catering.

Sue is a Colorado native who has lived in Nashville for 18 years. During her time in Tennessee, she has planned weddings for Natural Design, Top O'Woodland, and Opryland. She co-authored a book about wedding planning. She is left-handed, she adores her blue-eyed, Red Merle Miniature Australian Shepherd (Izzi) and her Jack Russell (Jasmine), she plays guitar, she loves to garden, she's an ordained minister and a florist...to say she is multi-talented is an understatement. We are thrilled to have her here, and, to borrow a famous line from one of my favorite TV cooks, she is helping us "kick it up a notch" in weddings. BAM! :) She and I are BOTH taking care of weddings now, so you've got even more experience and creativity working for you when you hold your event with us.

One of the first things Sue did here was pick out some lovely new centerpieces for our lunch and dinner functions. Many of you are familiar with our traditional mirror tile / hurricane globe / taper candle centerpiece, which definitely has its merits, and that will continue to be available for any of you who would like to use it. In addition, we'll now be offering our new Feng Shui centerpiece!!

This is a bowl made out of a dark resin with 4 glass containers on top. This matches pretty much everything -- think of the versatility! Four candles, four flowers, add something taller in the middle...it's just endless. Here, we chose 2 candles and 2 floating flowers. We are happy to offer the base and the cups COMPLIMENTARY for all of our wedding packages. Just bring in your own flowers and marbles / pebbles, and you're done!

Another recent development here is the complete re-vamping of our wedding packages. We'll still be offering the ones you're used to, but we'll soon be introducing some themed ideas for receptions. Ever described your reception style as "URBAN CHIC?"

Or are you more "VINTAGE CHARM?" What about "COUNTRY GLAM" or a laid back "ISLAND STAY-CATION?" We've got great ideas for menus and decor for all of those styles, plus a couple more. We're putting some really fun packages together with draping and lighting that will allow you to have a beautiful wedding with a great value. I'll have some absolutely incredible pictures to show you in a couple of weeks, thanks to Events Plus, Ace Photography, Connie Duglin Linen, and Cakes by Shara. We're VERY excited about our new ideas, and we hope you'll love them too!

Lastly, I've added a new display in our lobby / atrium dedicated specifically to weddings. If you're ever in the neighborhood outside of normal business hours, you can always stop at this table to see some pictures, grab my card or Sue's, and read about the latest and greatest news in weddings at Embassy Suites Nashville.

So there you have it...lots going on here! Hope you all have a great weekend, and keep an eye out for PART TWO coming in about two weeks.....