Wedding planner Anseth Page Richards may go down in the annals of bridal history for the wedding she planned for supermodel Nikki Taylor and Nascar driver Burney Lamar, but it is the other, lesser-known unions that deserve attention. Now Richards has taken her gift for planning matrimonial celebrations and opened a retail store for brides-to-be.
Imagine an “Alice in Wonderland”-themed wedding, with swirling colored lights, oversized teacups, hookahs and a lily pad carrying two flower girls. This wedding, which Richards (whose company is called Creative Occasions) said cost between $40,000 and $60,000, took place at the Hyatt in La Jolla.
Richards calls La Jolla the jewel of San Diego when it comes to marriages. She said San Diego is the second or third most requested spot in the country to tie-the-knot; Vegas ranks first.
“The bride [for the ‘Alice in Wonderland’ wedding] actually just wanted a normal wedding at first,” Richards said. “But she brought in a frog king on a lily pad and it went from there.”
Richards said the frog king kicked off their imaginations at Creative Occasions, and before they knew it, the wedding turned into a fantasy, complete with hand-painted “this way” and “that” signs, thrones for the bride and groom at the reception, and cookies that said “eat me” and “drink me.”
Richards’ company also fulfilled the wishes of brides who wanted a more classical wedding but couldn’t find the right fit. One woman wanted a site overlooking the ocean in La Jolla that would accommodate 250 people, so Creative Occasions utilized a sparse place called La Jolla Patio. After the lighting and flowers, the bride’s vision was a reality.
“That’s my specialty,” Richards said.
She finds the right fit for her brides, including the site. In addition to the new Bird Rock retail store Richards opened with her partner Regina Bagdasarian, the two are designing a new Web site to utilize her unique talent for finding the perfect site for brides to hold their weddings.
Because San Diego is one of the most requested places to wed, Richards began to plan a Web site for her “Bar-Tenders” ” the concierges at the Bridal Bar ” so they can expedite the process of site planning, no matter where the future bride is located. She said the information is so useful that the company decided to make the site available to everyone, by subscription.
The San Diego site-planning Web site, which she says will be available in 30 days to the public by subscription, is yet to be named, but will give the user information such as available dates, projected costs of the site and different sites available in an area.
While Richards said she is excited about the Web site and the help she believes it will bring, she was also eager to open her retail Bridal Bar in the Bird Rock area at the end of January.
Bar-Tenders at the Bridal Bar are available Tuesday through Saturday from Jan. 29, and by appointment to help brides plan everything they need to customize their weddings.
A bride can come into the Bridal Bar and plan her fantasy wedding, free of charge, Richards said. It is also a retail shop, with the best candles, stationary, jewelry, candy, sweets and everything a person needs to plan a wedding. Bar-Tenders analyze a bride’s needs and match them to the right vendors.
In addition to the Bar-Tenders, the retail store has accessories for wedding showers and will have a line for men soon, Richards said.
“The new picture of the wedding planner is that of a tech-savvy woman,” Richards said, describing how she views herself.
Because she is so busy, her company is only available on a limited basis, but brides can come into her Bird Rock store to receive complimentary matching services from her Bar-Tenders.
The Bridal Bar is located at 5646 La Jolla Blvd. For information, visit www.sandiegobridalbar.com.