Ringing in the New Year

We couldn't have chosen a nicer couple to spend New Year's Eve with than Lindsey and Christopher who were married on 12/31/07 at the historic Basilica of the Assumption in Baltimore. The Basilica is the United States' first cathedral and it recently had an extensive renovation to make it one of the most breathtaking churches anywhere.

The candlelit ceremony was a subtle start to what turned into the most festive evening ever. After the ceremony, over 250 guests made their way to another historic Baltimore venue, The Hippodrome Theatre. The cocktail hour, with Broadway tunes playing in the background, was filled with delicious food including a sushi station and a huge raw bar.

The guests (who each picked-up a mini champagne bottle with their place card attached) were then invited into the main theatre and were surprised and delighted to find that they would be having dinner and dancing on the same stage where many famous people have danced and performed over the years.

The gorgeous decor of the stage started with an over-the-top beautiful sequined turquoise tablecloth and black chivari chairs with sashes from Select Event Rentals. The flowers were gorgeous from designer Jeanne Graham of Blue Sage Floral Design and some of the photos here were taken by Jeanne's talented husband Geoff.

Over 800 pieces of NYE fun blowers, hats, horns, and glasses were creatively and equally distributed among the guest tables. The black and white dance floor and black lighted curtain were provided by Perkins Productions.

The dinner of lobster and tenderloin catered by Spectrum Caterers was fabulous and kudos to such a wonderful staff at Spectrum for making sure with their great and attentive service that all guests were comfortable and happy.

The dance floor was filled from the very beginning and with each song as the popular band Powerhouse rocked the stage. Photographer Arthur Remanjon and videographer Jim Skipper of Black Tie Video captured each moment of the party.

The wonderful wedding cake complete with frosting fireworks was created by the talented staff at Charm City Cakes.

A few minutes before midnight as the staff was serving more champagne and confetti poppers, a huge screen appeared above the band (dropped from the ceiling) and the ball drop from Times Square appeared. The guests got to count down to midnight with Dick Clark as Auld Lang Syne filled the stage.

Oh, and if that wasn't enough, when the guests finally started to leave well after 1:00 am, while they waited for the valet parkers from Courtesy Parking to retrieve their cars, they helped themselves to a wonderful lobby buffet of coffee and hot chocolate in to-go cups and cute bags of munchkin donuts.


Congratulations Lindsey and Chris!

Puttin' On The Ritz

The Ritz Carlton in Tysons Corner, Virginia was the romantic setting for the wedding of Megan and David on December 29th. The weekend of activities started with a fun and flirty bridal shower at the Betsy Johnson store in Tysons II on Thursday evening. On Friday the wedding party and out-of-town guests spent the morning at a very cool bowling party and then everyone had a chance to chill before a ceremony rehearsal and a fabulous rehearsal dinner at Maggiano's.

The wedding day brought beautiful weather and a bride so in love with Monique Lhuillier gowns that she just had to have two! She wore the first ballgown type dress to the ceremony and a sleeker party gown to the reception. No wonder she couldn't choose between the two because each was so beautiful.

The ceremony which took place at a church in Reston was made even more special by the fact that the groom's father was the officiant. The walkway to the church was lined with luminaries and after the ceremony the guests were each given a custom labeled CD with a compilation of special wedding songs to play on the way to the reception.

The stunning reception flowers by Jose of Art with Flowers filled the ballroom at The Ritz in a lush winter wonderland. Jose added 200 Black Magic roses to a magnificent cake designed and baked by Duff Goldman at Charm City Bakery in Baltimore.

Fun elements like a photo booth, martini bar and monogrammed cupcakes as a take home favor ensured a good time for all. The decor of the ballroom was accented with a white dance floor (complete with a custom lighted monogram) and band stage by Mike Blondell at Accent on Events.

The wedding guests entered the reception and enjoyed delicious hors d'oeuvres as six strolling violins serenaded them. Later as the doors to the Ballroom opened, the swing and jazz sound of The Joker's Wild, a DC area band, drew people right to the dance floor. To finish out the party, the more contemporary sound of deejay Steve Burrows of MSE Productions filled the room.

A Sunday morning brunch wrapped up the weekend nicely at The Ritz and wedding guests who attended from all over the country made their way back home filled with happy memories.

Congratulations Megan and David!

Warm Winter Wedding

Five Farms is one of our very favorite wedding sites. Located in a beautiful section of Baltimore County, it was the setting for the marriage of Lori to Cary in early December. The rooms were decorated tastefully for the holidays and Lori added her own special touch with her wedding colors of chocolate and Tiffany blue.
The wedding cake was created by the talented staff at Sugar Bakers and the amazing floral designer Rennie from Simply Beautiful Flowers decorated the club with just the right touches of fresh flowers from room to room.
Deejay Jeff Thompson had no problem keeping the dance floor full with this very lively crowd and there were baskets of Chinese slippers at the edge of the dance floor for that moment when the heels must come off.
The beautifully designed food stations were overflowing with jumbo lump crab cakes, roasted beef tenderloin, New Zealand lamb, and a delicious looking pasta display.
Dessert was an incredible gathering of hundreds of Italian cookies made by the bride's mom and her family. We added cello bags and pieces of ribbon so that guests were able to take their favorite cookies home with them.

Lori and Cary spoiled their guests staying at The Marriott Hunt Valley Inn by providing wonderful hotel gift bags upon their arrival, a great dinner on Friday evening at The Cinnamon Tree restaurant, and a shuttle service to the wedding and back on Saturday. No wonder the guests felt comfortable about partying the night away.

Congratulations Lori and Cary!

Happy Birthday Tom!

The Ravens may have lost on Sunday, but we had a winner of a Birthday Party for Tom!

It was a last minute scramble, due to the train derailment, our party scheduled at Raven's M&T Stadium was moved to Oriole Park.

The Aramark team from M&T Stadium stepped up to the plate and delivered the party we designed.

Gala Cloths accented the tables with purple satin and gold sequin toppers.

Face Painting by Melissa kept the kids entertained with all sorts of painted designs.

On of the highlights of the evening was 2 Ravens Cheerleaders that greeted guests, signed autographs, and kept the conversations rolling.

We put together football centerpieces, custom trading cards, and a kids craft corner.

It was a wonderful evening for a great family!

All You Need Is Love

Mindy and George's Wedding on Saturday was not traditional but just perfect them in every way. The evening started with laughter throughout the ceremony at Grace Episcopal Church.

The laughter continued at the American Visionary Art Museum - the perfect setting for our 50's inspired decor in hues of pink and orange. Perkins Productions gave the room structure with pipe and drape, washed the ceiling the hot pink, and scattered lanterns that reinforced the circles throughout the decor.

Fleur de Lis created the perfect 'pop' floral arrangements. They matched the fun, festive mood of the wedding. Linwoods Catering kept all of the guests visiting the stations throughout the evening.

The highlight of the evening was the performance by The Mahoney Brothers, a Beatles tribute band. The kept the guests on the dance floor all evening and topped the night with a special appearance by Elvis. The were amazing performers with costumes, wigs, and even British accents.

Congratulations Mindy and George!

WATERFRONT WEDDING

It was a lovely fall day for the wedding of Lauren and Baldwyn in Annapolis. The flowers by Sharon Gordon of Flora et Fauna were beautiful and the guests raved about the catering from Ken's Creative Kitchen. Our heros Loane Brothers provided the wonderful tent, dance floor, stage and many other essential details of the wedding venue set-up. They are truly the best in the biz and make all of us look good!

The fireworks at the end of the evening were a fun surprise for everyone including the bride and groom.

We enjoyed working with the bride and groom from Belgium to create a Maryland wedding that they will remember always.

Autumn at its Best

It was a gorgeous Autumn day on Saturday for Sally and Jeff's wedding. The Baltimore Country Club looked amazing with linen from Table Toppers, flowers by Simply Beautiful, and lighting by Accent on Events.

Onyx, our band for the evening, kept the crowd jumping and played all our favorites. I even heard "It's Hot in Herre" near the end.

Guests wrote notes to the Newlyweds in the Polaroid photo albums and were treated to custom mixed ice cream from Cold Stone Creamery.

The evening ended with cake from Sugarbakers and a sparkler send off.

A Theatre Production

Congratulations to wedding clients Neda and Anis who were married on Saturday. The wedding took place at the incredibly beautiful Strathmore Hall Music Center in Bethesda. The dramatic ceremony which included 165 guests took place on the magnificent stage. A spotlight followed the bride and her parents for their processional down the aisle and then focused on the bride and groom during the ceremony.

Afterwards the guests enjoyed a fabulous dinner catered by Restaurant Associates in the soaring room of all glass called the Lockheed Martin Lobby. Family and friends filled the dance floor as DJ Nick Terkanian played Middle Eastern, Latin, French and Modern American songs.

Congratulations!!

Like a Wedding on the set of Dirty Dancing...

Candles glittered in the Sherwood Dance Hall on Saturday night for Emily and Malcolm's wedding.

The food was plentiful and presented beautifully by the staff of Ken's Creative Kitchen. Guests mingled and mixed through the stations while waiting to taste the delicious cake from The Main Ingredient.

The band, Liquid Pleasure, kept the crowd on the dance floor the whole evening. They capped off the evening by bringing out hot pink suits for the last set.

The flowers from Romance of Flowers added color and depth to the rustic environment. The arrangements were creative and unique and even hung from the rafters.

A sparkler send-off topped off the evening as Emily and Malcolm made their getaway in a vintage golf cart.

The Peabody - it's just like a Harry Potter Movie

As guests entered the Peabody Library there were resounding 'oohs and 'ahhs. Everyone was blown away by the sheer size of the room and the stacks upon stacks of books. One gentleman asked if we were expecting Harry Potter to fly in - as it looks just like a set from a movie.

The linen from Select Event Rentals gave the entire room a warm glow and the menu from Chefs Expressions was terrific. The gorgeous floral arrangements from Flowers and Fancies added a sense of whimsy.

The band, Second Nature, kept the crowd on the dance floor all evening.

Guests loved the Adesso guest book! They were through all of the Polaroid film and filled the books with well wishes. The pictures got more creative and silly as the evening progressed.

Holly and John had a wonderful evening celebrating with their family and friends. The love and admiration of the newlyweds was overflowing all evening.

Cute as Can Be

Congratulations to Katie and Chris who were married on August 11th. Katie was such a cute bride with her hair in little ponytails. Katie wore the same hairstyle the first time she and Chris met.

As we often do, we planned the wedding with the bride and groom long distance as they live in Florida.

The church was the lovely Grace UMC with its beautiful windows and white pillar porch. The guests then drove the short distance to BCC where the menu was an incredible feast.

Since the bride and groom are musicians, they chose the talented New Legacy Jazz Band as their reception entertainment and danced to classics such as Cheek to Cheek, That's All, and Wonderful World.

Blue Sage provided the beautiful flowers and we were quite impressed with the services of The Limo Lady.

Many thanks to Gary Landsman from David Michele Photography for all of the wonderful images.

Congrats to the happy and fun couple!

Fun Downtown Wedding

The American Visionary Arts Museum is such a cool space for a wedding! The downtown location, funky artwork, huge spaces, and great management support makes it a wonderful venue for an event.

Our clients Jackie and Tony had a beautiful wedding reception there on July 28th. The colors of blue, yellow, and white were perfect for a mid-summer wedding. The large guest count of 325 was easily comfortable in the JRVC at AVAM.

The flowers by Narbers Floral Design were very creative and were accented with other decor such as table linens from Gala Cloths and hanging white lanterns from Perkins Lighting.

Classic Catering provided wonderful food and DJ Evan Reitmeyer from mydeejay.com kept the dance floor completely full all night.

Time flew as guests ate, drank, and danced the night away. It was a very fun wedding. Congratulations Jackie and Tony!

An Island Wedding

What happens when the daughter of a busy event decorator gets married? Well judging from these photos, magic happens.

Katie and Jake wanted an island theme for their July wedding at Belmont Mansion and that is exactly what they got. The bride's parents own Perkins Event Lighting and starting with a single photo that the bride's mom found in a magazine, the theme and decor were designed. The colors of orange and yellow were brilliant and incredibly gorgeous.
Hundreds of yards of wispy fabric were installed in the ceiling of the tent and the bride's mom hand-sewed panels of fabric that were placed between the outside tent poles.
The table linens from Gala Cloths worked beautifully with the color theme and flowers by Carol Westerlund accented everything wonderfully.
Favors were Malibu rum candy bars and everyone visited the "cookie bar" filled with wonderful Italian wedding cookies made by many of Jake's family members.
Oh, did we forget to mention the huge palm tree ice sculpture that was also an ice luge? It drew a crowd all night to the fabulous "tress bar" also set-up by Perkins.
These beautiful photos were taken by event photographer Arthur Remanjon.

We'll take credit for being the wedding planners on this spectacular wedding, but the real creative brains behind this incredibly beautiful wedding are the talented staff at Perkins Event Lighting.

"Perfect!"

"Perfect!" was the word the bride's mom
heard most often from the wedding guests who attended Hannah and Ali's wedding on a spectacularly beautiful June evening. We feel very fortunate to have worked with this bride in planning the wedding. She was sweet and agreed to let all the creative team "do their thing". The Belmont Manor was the setting for the wedding weekend which included guests from all over the country.

We can't even begin to choose our favorite part of this wedding, but the ingredients of : nice bride and groom + beautiful floral decor (including the cool lounge furniture) by Romance of Flowers + creative tent decor (dance floor, lighting, stage, fabric) by Perkins Productions + amazingly nice wedding guests = a night to remember.

These gorgeous photos were taken by event photographers Gary and Renee of David/Michele Photography (http://www.davidmichele.com/).

"Apple Green and Raspberry"

We certainly heard those colors mentioned a lot in helping to plan a spectacular wedding for Michael and Sarah which took place on the last day of June. The weather was so fantastic that the outside setting was perfect. Imagine signature cocktails (one green and one raspberry) by the pool which included an all white lounge and then walking along the brick path to a gorgeous dinner tent filled with fabric, lighting and flowers.

The white dance floor with custom monogram (in apple green) was in the center of the spacious Loane Brothers tent which was filled with square tables and apple green linens from Table Toppers. The flowers designed by Li at Rutland Beard added a touch of raspberry to the decor.

Dinner? Well Catering by Carlton stole the show with a first course of incredibly fresh and wonderful homemade gazpacho followed by an entree of lobster and filet mignon.

One of our all time favorite bands from Philly, Jelly Roll, was fabulous and the guests insisted on an encore after the last dance. The guests were treated to a delicious ice cream bar by the famous Cold Stone Creamery.

The bride and groom left in a vintage white Rolls Royce to the dazzle of over 100 sparklers. The departure gift to the guests was a cute bag of gummi bears (apple green of course).

Congratulations to the bride and groom as the girls at Hannah Elizabeth and Elizabeth Bailey Weddings check off another successful wedding.

Evening at the Museum

Congratulations to Lisa and Chris who were married on a beautiful Saturday evening in June.

The setting was the stunning Walters Art Museum with decor designed by Robert Zimmerman.

The incredibly delicious wedding dinner was catered by Linwood's and the guests danced the night away to the always entertaining Janis Nowland Band.

It was our pleasure to be the wedding planners on such a glorious event.

Photos by talented event photographer Robert Isacson.

Weather

Weather - the ultimate uncontrollable part of a day. It plays a huge role in any party and you never know what you're going to get.

To get an idea of what you're in for - try Weather.com's Wedding Planner.

It will give you averages for your special day, wedding, or party so that you know how to plan!

Flip Flops and Slippers

At a party or wedding, it is so cute to have baskets of flip flops near the dance floor so that the women guests may kick off their fancy (uncomfortable) shoes and continue to dance the night away in comfort. Throughout the year we have turned to the Old Navy website to get flip flops in lots of wonderful colors at a great price. This week Target has them on sale and they come in good summer time colors. Be sure to label your baskets "Small" (5-6), "Medium" (7-8), and "Large" (9-10) and make sure to cut off those pesky plastic rings that hold the pair together. An assortment of colors look best unless of course your party has a "theme" color.

For winter time events, we always suggest Chinese slippers instead because the women guests are less likely to have had a pedi and may be shy about baring their feet.

A Wonderful Wedding

Congratulations to Rebecca and Dan who were married on Sunday. Rebecca's family has often turned to the event team at Elizabeth Bailey Weddings to plan parties with them and we love working with a family who loves to spoil their guests.

Since Rebecca and Dan were engaged in Venice, the cocktail hour started with a signature drink of peach bellinis which were a big hit with the guests. After wonderful passed hors d'oeuvres (by the fabulous Linwood's Caterers) and a Peking Duck Crepe station, the guests walked into a beautiful ballroom designed by Victoria Claussen of Romance of Flowers. It was colorful and creative using both square and round guest tables, Venetian masks, feathers, and orchids. A hand painted stage and lighted gold curtain by Perkins Productions really gave the perfect finishing touches to the room.

Galaxy, one of our favorite bands, played a wonderful variety of music and the guests responded by filling the dance floor with each song. The music paused long enough for the traditional cake cutting and there was also a groom's cake designed by Charm City Bakery which was a computer game character (the groom designs computer games).

We love, love when weddings are this wonderful and we know that the guests had a terrific time.