How Sweet it is...

Candy buffets have been such a big trend that's been around for several years now. I remember when I got married almost 5 years ago and they were beginning to pop up every where. What is it about a surplus of a variety of different candy that is so appealing to our guests? Is it the idea that they can take something home in lieu of a favor? Or is it the idea of bringing in a whimsical factor to your event that brings adult to that time when they were kids? The idea of a sweets table has definitely evolved since then.

Amy Atlas is to me the guru/goddess of any sweets table. She's taken the concept of desserts and taking it to a whole new level. I was really thrilled when I heard that she was writing a book and had to run to the nearest Barnes N Noble to pick up a copy the Tuesday it was released. Sweet Designs is such a fun read not only for the colorful images but just so inspiring with all the ideas that Amy was gracious enough to share with all of us. I didn't know this but Amy was a former lawyer who is now a sweets stylist - she knows how to re-invents all kinds of stunning dessert tables displayed to perfection. Her designs are always very vibrant & eye-popping which make her a favorite in the dessert styling world! These dessert tables are perfect for any events - weddings, birthdays, engagement parties, baby showers & more!

One of my favorite chapters in the book is this bee inspired table. So gorgeous!! Reminds me of one of my good friend - The Beeson's!!

Can you believe that runner is made out of Necco candy? Who would've thought? Just an imagineer like Amy of course.

<images via Amy Atlas, Amy Atlas' Pinterest & the book>

George & Michelle are married 10.14.2011

All of the events that I've worked are all special since I get to see my design elements come to life. But Michelle & George's October wedding holds a special place in my heart since it was the beginning to all of my dreams coming true with this business.

George & Michelle's wedding was romantically set in the harbor of Newport Coast and their ceremony was rightfully scheduled with the setting of the sun which gave their ceremony space that natural amber glow. The couple had a lot of  their personal touches to their day including the personalized table numbers with a different picture of the couple in each table to the lace wrapped bouquet of the beautiful bride. They infused their love for the Southern California beaches into their wedding by bringing aspects of the outdoors like seashells and sand in their wedding cruise. The guests enjoyed their buffet dinner cruising along the harbor for several hours and dancing the night away. A gondola was waiting for the bride and groom to whisk them away to enjoy their after party.

Thanks to George & Michelle for letting me part of your very special day!

Vendor Love:
Day of Coordination: Premier Soirees Event Design & Coordination
Wedding Cake: Cinderella Cakes
Floral Designs: Gary David Designs

Modern Pink Meets Vintage Bridal Shower

Bridal showers are one of my favorite events leading up to the special day along with wedding dress shopping and the very FUN & CRAZY bachelorette party also of course! I had the amazing privilege to design and plan a very special bridal shower for a very detail oriented bride. One of the things that I had to make sure from the beginning of my design & planning process is the overflow of details that I know she would love - from the delicious food, fun for all of the guests in attendance and a yummy dessert buffet station. Started with the concept of using bright pinks and deep reds as the color palette that I wanted to incorporate in the party. The colorful pinwheels are one of my inspirations for this event and made a great backdrop for our dessert buffet station. We got started in making over 40+ pinwheels in different sizes to use for this backdrop. Pinwheels were super easy to make and I promise to post a DIY tutorial soon. The bride is crazy about the Turtle Chex Mix trail mix so we used those and packaged them in small mason jars topped with a plaid pink fabric as the perfect favors.   Tonality Designs made the coordinating escort cards, favor tags and the cutest cupcake toppers. Lavender and Bloom created an imaginative centerpiece with the use of bird cages and birchwood branches in each table that captured the guests' eyes as soon as they sat down. A smaller manzanita tree branch was used as a centerpiece for the escort card table where guests can hang their advices/wishes for the newlyweds as they came in. The bride got the opportunity to read through some of the advices and picked out a few of her favorites where the guests received prizes. 

My favorite moment was watching the bride walk around the room in so much awe at all the details that wrapped up her bridal shower. Perfect shower for such an amazing bride! 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vendor Love:             

Venue: Café Hidalgo – http://www.cafehidalgo.com/

Photographer: True Bliss Photography – http://www.trueblissphoto.com/

Florals: Lavender and Bloom – http://www.lavenderandbloom.com/

Pinwheels: Premier Soirees – http://www.premiersoirees.com/

Cupcake Toppers/Favors/Escort Cards: Tonality Designs on Etsy – www.etsy.com/shop/tonality

Desserts: Frost my Cake – http://www.frostmycake.com/

Invitations: Michaels – http://www.michaels.com/

Event Design/Coordinator: Premier Soirees – http://www.premiersoirees.com/

I heart Pinterest!!

Who doesn’t love to “Pin”? I heart Pinterest so much since it’s been such a wonderful tool for scouring for things/ideas on the internet. When I first started pinning, I pinned mainly for outfit & jewelry ideas and my birthday wish lists. Then I started to pin different food ideas that then led me to pin for ideas for my business. I love how you can pin and organize your thoughts into different boards. It’s like having multiple bulletin boards that you can tack your stuff to for inspiration. I’ve gotten a few of my inspirations from Pinterest that I’ve used for some of my recent events like a DIY pinwheel tutorial that was a party guest favorite. I was at a recent bridal show and one of the brides I had the pleasure of meeting actually gave me her pinterest address for me to check out her pins for her wedding. Genius! More than just an online bulletin board, it’s also a great way to collaborate with brides and event planners on the vision of your special day. You can simply pin the stuff you found online that you’d like to incorporate to your day and then let your planner or florist or photographer check out your boards. Did I mention that my mom hearts Pinterest too?

This is what my current Pinterest boards looks like. Find me and pin with me! Happy Pinning Everyone! xox

Signs why you need a wedding planner

Found this great article online on bridefinds.com and thought this would be great to share with all of you. I always get the common questions on why should a bride hire a wedding planner and I think this sums it up well. Happy Reading!!

http://www.bridefinds.com/2011/10-signs-that-you-need-a-wedding-planner/

Ron & Hazel are married 2.19.2012

Ron & Hazel are definitely one of the nicest couples that I have ever met. Their scenario was a little unique in a way that the couple were planning their SoCal wedding while the groom was in the Bay Area and the beautiful bride was transitioning from Manila to California. With the help of their creative matron of honor (also the groom's sister), their wedding was a celebration to be remembered by all of their guests.

One of my favorite parts of their wedding day is the best man's toast. It was very touching to listen to the older brother speak of how proud he is of his little brother and the man that he has become. All the best to you both Mr. & Mrs. Aquino!

   



 

Vendor Love:
Ceremony: St. Denis Catholic Church in Diamond Bar, CA
Reception: Embassy Suites in Brea,CA
Florals: Lavender and Bloom Floral Designs
Photography: Cattura Event Photography

My life as an event planner

I can't even begin to tell all of you how thrilled I am to finally get back to blogging. Starting this blog has always been on my to do list but have been pushed back to the back burner a few times already. So, this is my first official post in my life as an event planner.

Five years ago when I first started my wedding planning process, blogging has been one of my favorite parts of the planning process. Many of you that are blogger fans or "stalkers" like myself must have heard of Weddingbee. Weddingbee is a wedding blog updated by real brides all over the country - maybe all over the world even. They blog about every aspect possible of wedding planning and my most favorite part of it are all the DIY projects that the bees share with everyone. I was Mrs. Gardenia back at the bee and you can read through my posts here. I loved blogging about the planning and my DIY projects but got very busy after the wedding that I had to take a blog hiatus. But now I'm back!!!

Premier Soirees has always been a dream of mine and now I can say that it is a dream come to life. I'm so blessed to have worked with the best brides and vendors as well just this year alone that I cannot wait to share with all of you some sneak peeks from those events. Besides sharing some insights on my events, I plan to share some vendor highlights on some local vendors that I have worked with as well as share some DIY ideas with all of you.  

I'm looking forward to sharing some inspiration with all of you!!

xoxo