Crabby

Hotel gifts are a wonderful "We're so glad you are here." first impression for the guests travelling to Baltimore for your wedding. In addition to the traditional Berger Cookies, Goetz Caramels and Jeppi Maryland Mix, here are two more fun items to add to the gift bag:

This personalized bag of seafood seasoning costs as little as $ 1.50 each. Available from J.O.Spice in Baltimore. In addition, throw in a pair of these cute personalized mallets for fun (1.85-2.95 each).

Date Night In Baltimore

If you are looking for a fresh and fun night out that doesn't cost a fortune, you must check out Tapas Teatro (www.tapasteatro.com) on North Charles Street in Baltimore. The food is crazy good, incredibly fresh and the atmosphere is charming. They have a very nice wine list or choose the oh so fabulous pomegranate martini. Look up the menu on line and we dare you not to get hungry.

Many of the ingredients come from their own farm in neighboring Howard County and are picked hours (not days) before they are part of your delicious small plate. Order two-three small plates (tapas) per person and get ready for a flavor explosion. Outdoor seating is also an option.

When you are finished, stroll through the open door directly to the lobby of the historic Charles Theater (www.thecharles.com) where a variety of wonderful movies are playing each week. We opted for Brideshead Revisited and while it was not riveting, it was a true joy to experience a film made with beautiful scenery, interesting dialogue and a real story.

What a great Baltimore experience.

Baltimore Top Spots

The Baltimore Business Journal just published the Most Popular Tourist Attractions in the Baltimore area, as ranked by 2007 attendance.

If you're visiting Baltimore, or have friends or family coming in to see you - consider sharing these Baltimore highlights with them.

1.  Harborplace & the Gallery

2.  Arundel Mills

3.  Power Plant

4.  Lexington Market Inc.

5.  Power Plant Live!

6.  Oriole Park at Camden Yards

7.  National Aquarium in Baltimore

8.  First Mariner Arena

9.  Historic District of Fells Point

10.  M&T Bank Stadium

Our top picks?

National Aquarium in Baltimore

Maryland Science Center

Maryland Zoo in Baltimore

Baltimore Museum of Art

American Visionary Art Museum

Ladew Topiary Gardens

So Hard To Say Good Bye

One of our favorite clients got married last Saturday and it will be hard to say goodbye to talking with them every week. Allison and Jeffrey's wedding was beautiful and chic and we heard the word "perfect" quite a bit throughout the evening.

The planning process is always easier and much more enjoyable when we have such great clients like Allison and her mom. They had a wonderful vision for the wedding and then thoughtfully considered all the options we presented and made decisions based on our recommendations and their good taste.

The decor was gorgeous with flowers by Simply Beautiful Flowers and lighting by Mike Blondell of Accents on Events. The rental crystal and china was selected with care from Party Rental, Ltd and they provided the celery green pintuck linens and cream chivari chairs as well.

If you have never eaten at The Baltimore Country Club, you are missing out on a wonderful dining experience. The food at BCC is always amazing and beautifully presented. The staff is kind and always accommodating. We love, love doing events at BCC and working with Carmen.

It didn't take long for the party to get started after dinner as the band Escapade kept the dance floor packed all night. For those who needed a break from dancing, a staff from Cold Stone Creamery was on hand to custom make their favorite ice cream sundae.

We normally don't taste the wedding cake every week anymore after all these years, but Saturday was an exception. It just looked so darn good that we took a piece home and had a (way past) midnight snack. Wow. Sugar Bakers once again produced a winner of yellow cake with coconut cream filling. It was delicious (and beautiful)!

Many thanks to Joanna at The Limo Lady for once again providing flawless limousine transportation to our VIPs and to the bride and groom at the end of the evening. Ally and Jeff were (hopefully!) surprised when they arrived at their hotel room which little elves had decorated during the reception. A heart of rose petals on the bed, snacks and drinks at the ready, and a honeymoon tote bag filled with magazines, eye pillows and travel candles were waiting for them in their room. Oh and we should mention the best part: custom made pillow cases on their pillows with the new married names. So cute...

All the images above are from fabulous wedding photographer Arthur Remanjon.

Congratulations Allison and Jeffrey!

In Local News

This years Memory Ball Baltimore is this Saturday evening.  We're so happy to be able to help out with such a wonderful event.  The Memory Ball raises funds for the Alzheimer's Association through ticket sales and their celebrity "Dancing with the Stars" style dance off.

For information about tickets and donating please visit the the Memory Ball website.  

You can always vote for a dancer and donate - even if you can't make it to the Ball.

Have a Bloody Mary for Me Too

One of our favorite Baltimore restaurants The Brass Elephant www.brasselephant.com is offering a fabulous Sunday brunch starting on March 2nd. What could be a more delicious way to spend a Sunday than with Antipasto, Eggs Benedict, Surf and Turf, Omelettes, Fresh Fruit and a Dessert Display with a Flambe Station?

Also included for a price of $ 35.00 per person is a glass of Bubbly or a Bloody Mary. Reservations are recommended (410) 547-8480.

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.

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!

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.