By Crystal McGough, Editor
TRUSSVILLE – The second annual Alabama Wedding Showcase will be held this coming Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024, at the Trussville Civic Center exhibition hall from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
“It’s basically a show for brides, brides-to-be, their moms, their fiancées, their bridesmaids, to come out and have a wonderful day spending some time looking at pretty much everything a bride is going to need for their special day,” said The Trussville Tribune’s director of Sales and Marketing, Leigh Hays, explaining that the local chamber of commerce used to host a bridal show in the past but stopped several years ago. “The demand in the market had been pretty significant to bring the wedding show back, so (The Trussville Tribune) stepped in and we decided to give it a try. Last year was the first one and it was a tremendous success, so we’re back again this year by popular demand.”
The presenting sponsors for this year’s Alabama Wedding Showcase are Rock House Events and Creative Entertainment.
“It’s a great show; this is the second year that we’re doing it,” Creative Entertainment co-owner Ryan Jones said. “I like it a lot because it’s more of an intimate bridal show. Some of the bridal shows that are done, there’s massive amounts of people and tons of vendors. “(At the Alabama Wedding Showcase) there’s a handful of select vendors, so you get more of an intimate, personal connection and one-on-one experience with the vendors compared to a lot of different bridal shows. That’s probably the thing that excites me the most about it.”
Creative Entertainment will DJ the Showcase, as well as provide lighting and special effects for the event.
“We’re bringing our 360-video booth, which is a fun thing,” Jones said. It was a hit last year; we had that on the stage. … Instead of a traditional photo booth where you get a strip, this is a platform that you stand on and the camera goes around you – it’s literally 360 degrees around you – and makes a fun fast-and-slow motion video. We’ll have some music in the background with it and everybody will get a copy of it sent to their phone so they can share to their socials and all sorts of stuff.”
Jones said they will also have a traditional print photo booth where people can get their pictures made.
Other services they offer couples for their big day include karaoke, dance floor lighting, and even a dry ice fog machine called “Dancing on a Cloud.”
“It is perfectly safe; it does not affect the fire alarm,” Jones said. “Some fog machines are not water-based and they will set off the fire alarm. This does not; this is pure water, heat and dry ice in the machine. … It is a very popular thing for the first dance.”
Another popular first dance option, Jones said, is Cold Sparks, a popular special effect for weddings and other celebrations that produces a column of “cold sparks” that shoot into the air. These sparks are created using special granules and a controlled electrical charge, so it produces a safe and non-flammable effect. Cold Sparks machines do not produce smoke or any other odor, and are safe for indoors use.
“For your first dance, it’s a really cool effect,” Jones said. “This also can be used for your exit. One thing that you need to know about Cold Sparks is they are indoor safe. It comes out at about 65 degrees.”
Creative Entertainment will be offering attendees the chance to win a $250 gift certificate that can be put toward any of their services.
“Everybody that comes will get a chance to enter in for that,” Jones said. “For people that are newly engaged, or if you know someone who is engaged, tell them about the show. There’s not a lot of chances, especially in this fast-paced digital world we live in, that you get to get face-to-face with your potential wedding vendors. So, I would highly encourage everyone to come out.”
Rock House Events, a beautiful wedding venue conveniently located in the city of Clay, is the other presenting sponsor for the Alabama Wedding Showcase.
“Basically, what I try to do is reach couples who are doing a small wedding, under 150,” owner Sara Horton said. “We have a historical home in Clay. I retired about seven years ago and some friends suggested that I do weddings here, so we started an event venue.”
According to Horton, Christmastime is a popular engagement season, so having the Alabama Bridal Showcase in January is a perfect way for those newly engaged couples to get ahead on their wedding planning.
One of Horton’s main goals is to help those looking for a smaller wedding to be able to afford the wedding of their dreams.
“If couples only have 75 guests coming, they don’t have to pay as much as they would for a venue that offers an area for 200-250 guests,” she said. “Basically, that’s what we’re about. We’re trying to reach couples and help them to start their lives and be able to live together 52 years, like my husband and I.”
Another thing that makes Rock House Events stand out is their policy to offer brides and grooms the entire weekend for their wedding.
“That kind of relieves some of the stress and gives them more time to do everything that has to be done in order to pull a wedding off,” Horton said, adding that she will be offering a 50% off her “save the date” fee to those who book at the Showcase.
Come out and see these and other vendors this Sunday from 12 – 5 p.m. Other door prizes will be awarded by The Trussville Tribune toward the end of the Showcase, so make sure to come out, sign up, and have a great time.