What of Wedding Shows?

Me and my Dad heading to the Rocky Mountain Bridal Show (:

Let’s talk wedding shows. Raise your hand if you’ve ever been to a wedding/bridal show! ✋ I have! I remember when I got engaged a little more than a year ago, I jumped all over that train. There are a lot of them throughout the year, each one offering a little bit of this and a little bit of that. Different vendors of different skill sets come from all over the place to bring their businesses to brides and grooms. And truth be told: each vendor is just as excited to be at the event as you are! We’ll explore some things to consider when you are heading to a bridal show and then I’ll put a shameless plug at the end for one I’m going to be at this month (ok, no shame in my game!).

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Types of Shows-Big Shows

Picture from The Great Bridal Expo

Wedding shows are as numerous and diverse as the couples that attend them. That being said, some may be more your speed than others. It’s important to check each event out before you decide to go to determine whether or not it will be the right show for you.

If you are into the fast-paced, hustle and bustle (think the mall at Christmas time) you may want to check out some of the bigger wedding shows in your area. In the Denver area, we have the Rocky Mountain Bridal Show which is put on several times a year. This is a HUGE event. Right after I got engaged, this was the only show I went to and it was a really big deal. Big shows like this one are very fast paced which certainly adds to the fun, especially if you go with members of your wedding party.

Bigger wedding shows tend to cost a bit of money. The cost for the Rocky Mountain Bridal Show isn’t a big one for general admission-it’s only $10- but it does cost money to attend. In most cases with shows like this, there is one cost if you buy tickets online ahead of time and if you decide to buy tickets at the show when you arrive, the price is slightly higher. For the Rocky Mountain Bridal Show, and many shows, there are also VIP tickets that can be purchased. With those tickets, you might get things like a swag bag, mimosas, a magazine subscription, or other wedding related items.

When you arrive at a large event like this be prepared for a fast-paced experience. Your first stop will be the line to get into the event itself. There will be tons of people smiling, wearing cute “bride-to-be” sashes, and laughing with their friends. You’ll notice lots of people moving quickly around you and when you finally get to the table to show proof that you bought a ticket, you’ll more than likely be given the opportunity to sign up for different giveaways or subscriptions before they send you off into the main space where the event is taking place.

Entering the space is when the real fun begins. From my own personal experience, after I had my tickets scanned and entered into the event, I became overwhelmed quickly. There were SO MANY people!!! Oh my gosh. I don’t know if I’d ever seen that many people in one place. And all of them were there to learn more about these potential vendors that had their booths set up. This fast-paced atmosphere means that you may have to push your way through crowds of people in order to move anywhere. It may also mean that you may not get to talk with vendors for as long as you’d like to. I found that because of the large amounts of people, I didn’t get much time to interact with any of the vendors at all. Instead, I walked by each booth, smiling at them as they talked with a different couple, and grabbed their card. I ended up with a ton of cards (which was great!) but I didn’t make a whole lot of personal connections.

​Who would these types of events be best for? Research-driven couples. If you are all about doing research on businesses that you want to work with, you could totally do a wedding show like this. You could go around grabbing business cards without talking to any of the vendors there, and do all of the research from home. Then, after you’ve had a good look at the vendors you like, you could schedule a time to meet with them and make a decision on which ones to pick from there. These types of events would probably work well for you if that’s how you operate.

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Types of Events-Small Shows

Photo from The Makery Cake Co. http://www.themakery.com/

Here’s where you get to see exactly who I am as a person. Though I LOVE talking with people and in front of people (I do it for a living!) I am also an introvert. I would rather be able to interact with people on a small scale. One-to-one conversation is more my speed. There. I said it. Big wedding shows are NOT my thing (but they are fun). Smaller wedding shows allow for brides and grooms to have conversations with potential vendors, giving them an opportunity to learn a little more about business and the owner, about their expertise, and ask questions they wouldn’t be able to ask at large wedding shows. It also allows couples to get more personal with potential vendors and really determine if that vendor and their personality is right for them to work with.
Who are small wedding shows for? Couples that want more connection. If you value having the time to chat and get to know potential vendors on a personal basis, these are probably the shows for you. You will have the opportunity to stop and talk with vendors, ask questions, and possibly take down a few notes while you are there. You may even be able to hire vendors on the spot without feeling rushed! (Thanks to The Makery for letting me use this picture! Click here to visit their website for awesome cakes in the Denver area!)

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Where I’ll be a Vendor

Overland House

With all of that said, I’ll be a vendor at a wedding show on February 17th, 2019, taking place at the Buffalo Rose in Golden, Colorado. This place has been the hub of Golden since it was built in 1849. Back then it wasn’t the saloon that it would become in later years. Instead, it was called the Overland House and was a place where Colorado’s Territorial Legislature met (yes. Colorado wasn’t even a state back when this location was built!). Throughout the years, the space would become other places like a garage, a swimming pool, and a department store before finally becoming the Buffalo Rose in 1985. It would become a spot to eat, dance, go to a local concert, and of course, drink! Just last year or so the saloon was closed and I had a bit of a panic. How could you close the heart and soul of my beloved town?! Only later did I find out that the owners were not closing it forever. Instead, they closed up shop for a MAJOR renovation to bring all of the innards of the building up to code while keeping as much as they could of the old-timey feel. (You can find out more history of the Buffalo Rose by clicking here)

A few weekends ago, the Buffalo Rose reopened as an event venue. It will continue to serve as a restaurant but it has not opened to the public in this capacity and won’t do so until the Spring of this year. As a Certified Life-Cycle Celebrant®, I was contacted by the Director of Special Events and asked to participate in their 2019 Winter Wedding Show and of course, being a native of Golden, I said yes. The event will take place from 11-3 and I am overjoyed to be a part of it! I’ll be bringing with me some pictures of unique rituals I’ve performed over the years, examples of other rituals that could be done, and copies of a few of my favorite keepsake ceremonies for engaged couples to see. I expect this to be a really fantastic time and since it’s a smaller scale event, I also expect that I’ll have some time to interact with couples and learn more about them! If you are a couple that likes smaller scale wedding shows that feel like home, I really think this event will be for you! Check out the event page on Facebook by clicking here and consider registering for it. You can meet me and other vendors. Who knows! We might get along so well that we’ll get to work together! I think that would be pretty darn swell!

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Photo by Kate Merrill Photography