The fabulous core members of Wedding Hive worked feverishly to pull together what turned out to be a truly enchanted night buzzing with the excitement of newly engaged couples, curious passers by and many new and old Hive clients/friends. The turnout was just wonderful!

Not only was the show a great time, but I had a serious blast cutting, pasting and all out crafting my magical woodland/vintage inspired table! I’m not sure if it translates in the photos, but there are various birds and furry creatures placed throughout the scene made out of book pages and white glass…I mean, how much more Melissa can you get?? I also gave myself a bit of a personal challenge; to showcase as much of my work as I could while remaining ‘unplugged’. What fun!

Here I am chatting with one of my adorable visitors — note the expression of the sweet woman looking at my Bliss Book…makes me happy.

And though I stayed glued to my table for most of the night it was fortuitously positioned right next to the runway so ‘no way, Jose’ was I going to skip capturing the splendid fashions of Gown Gallery, Janay A. Handmade, Ornamental Petal and Meadowbelle Market!

Look closely….I do believe that is the beautiful Lea Collins of Monkey Wrench Clothing modeling for Ornamental Petal ( left half of image below!)

Janay Andrews trailing her beautiful runway show. She is so cute! (below..)

And just to give you an idea of the turnout – look at all of the people!!

I am so lucky to have found such an amazing group of artists that also happen to be in the wedding industry. Wedding Hive has made it so much fun to find new and interesting clients and friends to work with. 2010 is going to kick some serious behind and I owe so much of it to the darling Hive.

I can’t wait to hear what the 2011 theme is going to be!!!

In case you haven’t heard, it’s time for the (now) annual Wedding Hive Show. Yippie! I had an excellent time participating in last year’s 1920’s themed Wedding Hive show and I cannot wait for this year’s ‘An Enchanted Wedding: A Brothers Grimm Inspired Event’. The good news is that it’s only 7 days away!!

ArtsTech located at 1522 Holmes St. Kansas City, will be hosting some of KC’s most creative and wonderful wedding talent on Thursday Feb. 25th from 5:00 – 8:30 pm. And the talented core members aka: ‘Queen Bee-ches’ will be transforming ArtsTech into a terrifyingly romantic ‘Grimm’ forest where we ‘Honey Bees’ will be showcasing our talents right along with the ‘Bee-ches’ to help you complete your wedding day plans.

Enter to win prizes, marvel at the inspired runway show, bid on items to benefit ArtsTech and leave feeling completely enchanted.

I hope to see you there!!

I’ve been incredibly fortunate this year in spite moving to a new town and scrambling to rebuild my business where no one really knows who the heck I am yet, so I’ve decided to make it a point to give back to the universe since the universe has been so kind to me!

The first cause I would like you to join me in supporting is close to home. My brother, after being diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes (the kind that doesn’t go away), never stopped to feel sorry for himself. Instead he became the healthiest he’s ever been in his life and traveled down the grueling path of training for and racing in marathons, biathlons and soon he will be in the Iron Man Triathlon!! He’s an inspiration to say the least!

Currently, my brother is trying to raise money for Triabetes “…a Title C Non-Profit, promote fitness and healthy living for diabetics worldwide. Through programs like “Triabuddies” we hope to enlighten and inspire everyone we meet by promoting our message, especially to children, who often have the hardest time coping with being a diabetic.”

Donations of any size are welcome, but he is giving away his 58cm Cervelo P2SL a professional grade bicycle valued at $800.00 to one $50.00 donor!! Click the picture below to see what it’s all about!

I would also like you to help me show support for a friend of mine in Chicago who connected me with Tammy & Tom earlier this year and is trying to raise money for the Susan G. Koman foundation. She is participating in the September 26th Race for the Cure and is close to reaching her goal!

Again, any amount of donation is wonderful and please show your support for a cure for breast cancer by clicking the picture below and donating!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read about two very important causes to me! Your support is EXTREMELY appreciated.

Last month I was invited by Garnet of Scarlett Garnet Jewelry to help create product images of her FANTASTIC jewelry. Scarlett Garnet is putting more emphasis on their bridal jewelry and I love their pieces so I jumped at the chance!

As luck would have it, Garnet is as gorgeous as she is talented so we dressed her up in a one of a kind Janay A Handmade gown to compliment her marvelous pieces and let the inspiration flow!

Last week Garnet sent word that she had blogged about our shoot and she had some wonderfully kind words to say about me and my company! Click here or their logo below to read what she said and see more pictures!

Garnet is one of the many awesome people I’ve befriended in the KC wedding industry within the past 6 months!  She is a such a creative and passionate jewelry designer and has a big, big heart. Her pieces – some reclaimed and some carved by hand – have a delicate whimsy to them as well as an elegant vintage flair. Scarlett Garnet currently sell their pieces out of their KC Wearhaus studio on First Friday’s and through various boutiques.

I can’t wait to collaborate again!!

In my continued search for KCMO related wedding tips, the name

1924 Main kept coming up and I knew I needed to check this place out! 1924 Main is owned by Rob and Margarita Dalzell and is located in Kansas City’s Crossroads area at 1924 Main St., no less!! 1924 Main is an upscale restaurant at a fantastic value that can accomodate seating for 30 to 35 guests.

My visit there consisted of sampling 3 very delicious cheeses – the Valdeon, Fontina Val D’Aosta and the Delice De Bourgogne – as well as the fried green beans. The cheese was served with a variety of fruit spreads and toast and I was pleasantly surprised by the crispness and the perfectly fried thin batter coating my yummy green beans. I have not gone for dinner YET, but I’ve heard many wonderful things and suggest that you make a reservation today!

Also owned by Rob and Margarita Dalzell check out Souperman, Pizza Bella and Chef Burger.