Fear not, hopeless romantics:
The rocky economy hasn’t upended the beauty and bliss of the classy American wedding and reception.
If anything, U.S. weddings are evolving into more uniquely customized affairs, with more classical and personalized touches.
That was a clear theme all day Sunday, as nearly 1,000 brides-to-be turned out for the third annual Wedding Showcase at the Bryce Jordan Center.
Put on by StateCollege.com, Altoona.com and the Jordan Center, the show featured nearly 70 vendors from across the central-Pennsylvania area. Offerings ranged from make-up and catering to honeymoon options, wedding-day transportation and entertainment.
‘This is extremely overwhelming, yet extremely helpful,’ said Amanda Marquez, a bride-to-be from State College. ‘ … There are lots of ideas that I wouldn’t have thought of.’
She called the scope of wedding services offered at the showcase ‘eye-opening.’ Most helpful, Marquez said, was the ability to develop a budget for her wedding events. She said many vendors were willing to negotiate on price — a point that she appreciated a lot, she said.
At the Peter Vdov photography booth, Tina Vdov said the Harrisburg-based business has seen an increase in demand for more flexible, individualized event-photo packages.
‘People are finding that they want more choice — period,’ both in pricing and product selection, Vdov said. She said the economy doesn’t seem to have influenced that trend one way or the other.
Nearby, a leather-appointed, 14-passenger stretch Hummer sat parked on the Jordan Center’s arena floor. Owned by Susquehanna Valley Limousine, the vehicle is one among several larger specialized vehicles now frequently sought by wedding parties, driver Ed Jones said.
‘Even with the economic times, people still have their special day,’ Jones said. ‘It’s amazing. They know it’s always something that’s going to be in their albums, that they’re going to look back on.’
On the entertainment front, too, wedding parties aren’t cutting back dramatically; instead, their ‘expectation is that they’re going to get more for their dollar, that they’re going to get more for less,’ said Roger Tharp, owner of Red Brick Productions. The State College-based company provides lighting, sound devices and other specialized equipment for receptions and other events.
Tharp said adaptability — and the ability to collaborate effectively with other vendors — is pivotal in the wedding business.
And ‘experience helps a lot,’ said Gregg Boland, owner of Moments Photography in Altoona. He shot his first wedding in 1978.
Since then, Boland said, he has seen the proportion of outdoor weddings in the area skyrocket. This year, about 75 percent of the weddings he has photographed were held outdoors — up from just an occasional outdoor wedding in the late 1970s.
Boland said trends in popular culture have helped to drive that transition.
The showcase helped to put other wedding trends on display, too, event coordinator Alex Nepa said. An hour-long fashion show highlighted styles from local stores, every vendor participated in prize giveaways, and informational seminars ranged from honeymoon presentations to fashion advice.
A simplicity theme extended to the floral front, where wedding parties are often looking for simpler, understated and classic designs, said Allen Baney. He owns Avant Garden in State College.
Baney said arrangements that can be repurposed and moved — from a wedding ceremony to a reception, for example — are particularly popular right now. He underscored that families are looking for efficiency in event planning.
At the same time, lighthearted extras appeared in demand, as well. Local businessman Jerry Noviello has launched Nittany Photobooth, an entertaining booth that evokes circus attractions of similar names.
The booth, available for wedding receptions and other events, offers celebrants a chance to squeeze in behind a camera and mug for the lens. The device then produces images for the party group.
Noviello said the booth has been so popular in the past year, his business may soon add a second one.
Earlier coverage
