The last time we spoke, Jimmy and I were celebrating our engagement party! Since then, we’ve been finalizing details for our big day, starting with our first planning trip to Los Angeles. Since we are having a destination wedding, we’ve left a lot of the details up to our awesome planner over at Modern Weddings LA. However, we still had a lot of decisions to make, including doing a walk through of our venue at the London West Hollywood, finalizing our dinner menu for the reception, designing and choosing our wedding cake flavors with The Butter End Cakery, and attending a bridal show to meet local vendors in LA. Oh and did I mention, I was also attending my first Nigerian wedding that same weekend! We had a lot to do in a short amount of time, but we had a blast while doing it.
One of our favorite parts of our planning trip was attending the Bruncheon bridal fair at the LA River Studios. I reached out to Melanie Embry of Melanie & Co. Productions, who is the producer of the Bruncheon and friend to Black Bride, and she invited us as her guests. I had been to several bridal events, but this was my first time attending as a bride ( and yes, It was totally different), and it was also Jimmy’s first wedding event ever! He was a little reluctant at first, but he ended up having a great time and we’re both glad that we went.
Melanie curated a team of amazing vendors and created an event that felt more like a chic day party instead of a bridal expo. It was the most chill bridal fair I’ve ever attended. Vendors mixed and mingled with couples in a relaxed setting. There was also a series of panel discussions where wedding pros educated attendees on various wedding topics like, photography, videography, beauty, bridal fashion and more. Oh and did we mention the delicious brunch! (That’s what really sold Jimmy on this event)
I must admit, it felt weird being on the other side. I am so used to speaking on expert panels for Black Bride events and answering questions from brides. However, once I got into bride mode, I realized that there’s always more to learn (like how to manage your expectations and step away from Pinterest). Jimmy and I met so many great vendors and we were even able to cross a couple of items off our to-do-list. Click here to see a Bruncheon recap video by Ace Wedding Videography.
The countdown is on and we only have a few months left until the big day. Stay tuned for my next adventure in bride land. What was your first experience at a bridal show like? Let me know how your wedding planning is going in the comments below.
Credits:
Event: The Bruncheon
Venue: LA River Studios
Hosted by Melanie & Co. Productions
Video by Ace Wedding Videography
Photography by Amy Gray
