LOCAL WEDDING PROFESSIONAL IN MARTHA STEWART WEDDINGS PUBLICATION

     Local Wedding Professional Darcie R. Swedelson has reached what some in the wedding industry might say is a pinnacle in the business: an interview with Martha Stewart Weddings Magazine.

     In response to a Q & A regular feature “bride’s question to the editor” about chair covers, Swedelson, owner of Slip of Elegance CHAIRCOVERS and now A Dazzling Day…by Darcie full-service wedding planning company, was selected to “reply” in the magazine’s current Summer 2009 issue. The magazine’s in-home annual circulation, which is printed four times per year, is 835,775, according to Echo Media, on-line print media experts.

    “I was overwhelmed with excitement and very happy that I was the one off of a map that was selected,” Swedelson said about finding out she was to be interviewed about her ideas by the magazine’s Editorial Manager
Tally Sue Holhfeld.

     Swedelson said she’s already received congratulations from her peers in the industry as well as from her family and friends. “They’re very proud and excited for me too,” including her grandmother who has hand-sewn “all the chair covers, bows and specialty lines,” said Swedelson.

     Swedelson got started in the wedding industry in 1995, with a start-up wedding publication currently known as Sacramento Today’s Bride. She also had several years in the floral business and was owner of Petal Pushers Florist in Folsom. But it was her interest in the design and decorating business that she brought together in 1997, with the idea for CHAIRCOVERS, her own custom design and fit that was like no other in the linen rental industry. Since then, her 2,000 chair covers have topped the local market in more than 2,000 weddings during the last dozen years.

     “Custom, longer length side-angled sashes were made over the years to keep up with the color trends and wedding themes,” Swedelson said about the chair covers. “I also have a staff that looks at detail in the same way I do--with perfection!” adding that she personally hand ties each every bow on the back of the chair covers. “It’s been my quality trademark in the professional wedding industry.”

     In addition to her businesses, Swedelson said she enjoys being directly involved in the wedding/event planning profession and the opportunities it offers for traveling and experiencing all types of events. She is a member of both the National Association of Catering Executives (NACE) and the Association for Wedding Professionals International (AfWPi). She has been honored by both organizations in recent years, including the NACE Presidents Award in 2002, NACE Affiliate of the Year in 2006, AfWPi Presidents Award in 2007, and AfWPi Mixer of the Year Award in 2008. She’s currently an AfWPi Advisory Board member and also Team Leader for the Foothills El Dorado & Amador Chapter of AfWPi, each for 2009-2010.

     Earlier this year, Swedelson transitioned her expertise in several industry arenas into a new direction with her most recent endeavor,
A Dazzling Day…by Darcie wedding planner.

     “I’ll be the bride’s visionary, negotiator, facilitator and from the beginning, giving personal attention to her specific needs,” Swedelson said.

     It’s that kind of attention to detail, expertise and personal service that has earned Darcie Swedelson a spot in...
Martha Stewart Weddings Magazine.