Eugene Wedding Showcase offers something for every bride and groom

The 15th annual Eugene Wedding Showcase returned to the Lane Events Center this weekend to connect brides and grooms with wedding professionals from across Oregon.

The showcase runs Saturday, Jan. 14, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, Jan. 15, from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Lane Events Center, 796 W. 13th. Admission is $10 at the door or $7 online, and there will be samples, prizes and giveaways.

Over 70 exhibitors are offering wedding ideas, advice and inspiration, ranging from dressmakers and event planners to photographers and wedding cakes to party favors and ceremony locations. A bridal fashion show takes place twice a day at noon and 3 p.m.

Michael and Michelle Jackson, owner of MJ’s Photography, said this is their fourth wedding show.

“We are a husband and wife wedding team,” Michelle Jackson said. “We started our company in 2008 and really got it moving in 2010.”

They specialize in wedding and engagement photography, even using drones to memorialize every aspect of special events.

“Just making sure that their moments are captured, ” she said. “You never know what’s going to be the most important.”

Michelle said the most rewarding part of being at the wedding show is being able to show potential customers photographs that are more beautiful, unique and intimate than people thought they could be.

Another exhibitor, Action Rent-All and Party Time, has been participating in wedding shows for 20 years and is a full-service party rental company.

Owners Kevin and Lora Journey said they love being able to meet engaged couples and share their event ideas.

“We have the most of everything in town, from oddball 8mm projectors to old-school things from the ’70s that people still call about and want to rent,” Kevin Journey said.

Judy Van Valkenberg, owner of Oregon Wedding Showcase, enjoys bringing together wedding professionals and engaged couples.

“We have so many amazing people in one room, meeting and listening to couples and helping them reach their vision,” she said.

Lynette Mason attended the show looking for inspiration for her upcoming spring wedding.

“I didn’t grow up in Eugene, so I don’t know a lot of venues that are here or businesses that can help with my wedding,” she said.

Van Valkenberg said it’s important for people like Mason to attend events like the Oregon Wedding Showcase.

“There are a lot of venues online, but your wedding isn’t online,” she said. “You have to meet people face to face.”