Timeless Beauty

After 10 months of planning, it was the most amazing feeling last weekend to bring everything together for Sharon and Lawrence's wedding of 120 guests. It really reminded me why I love what I do. Not only have Sharon and Lawrence been the absolute DREAM couple to work with, but their families and guests were equally as nice and appreciative throughout the day. I also had a wonderful team of vendors that just worked incredibly well together. We worked hard, yet we had so much fun along the way! The weather was perfect, even with that surprising July shower in the middle of the day which we saw as luck for the wedding....

The morning started off in a blissful, serene setting at the Four Seasons Hotel in Palo Alto, with only Sharon and her identical twin sister Patty in a suite getting their makeup and hair done by Irmina, an associate of Taylor Pham's. When I arrived midway into their beauty session, I ofcourse had to make sure that food was brought in for Sharon and Patty. Protein and a bit of carb is always needed for a bride to make it through the first part of the day!

After Patty and her mom helped Sharon into her gorgeous Pronovias wedding dress, they were whisked downstairs for some fun photo opps around the modern and chic hotel lobby with their fabulous photographer Augie Chang and his lovely assistant Veronica.

A stretch limo awaited outside the hotel when it was time to head over to the Stanford Memorial Church for the ceremony. A graduate from Stanford, the campus was of special significance to the groom Lawrence, so they chose to exchange their vows inside the iconic church there.

It was a short, but sweet ceremony. After the ceremony, Augie took the couple around the Stanford campus for more photos while guests eagerly headed to the Four Seasons for cocktails and hors d'oeurves.


We completely transformed the ballroom to create the elegant and romantic style that Sharon envisioned. Our set up had begun Friday afternoon, with John Woods of Enhanced Lighting and his crew on site to begin the installation of drapery and lighting. John built an awe-inspiring backdrop for our escort card table, with hanging bubble bowls in front of a champagne taffeta fabric. Between the bubble bowls were orchids by the talented Nancy Liu Chin, and 320" of orchid garlands swagged at the top to finish it off. Everyone was ooohing and aaahhing about this wall the entire night!

Inside the ballroom, Nancy had alternating tall and low centerpieces. The tall centerpieces were gold manzanitas blooming with orchids, inspired by Sharon's love for cherry blossoms. The tablescapes included gold beaded chargers, the 'magnificence gold' glassware from Classic Party Rentals, camelot vanilla linens, and cherry blossom menu cards by Hello Lucky.

As beautiful as all the flowers and tablescapes were, it would NOT have been complete without John Woods working his magic with all the ambiant lighting in the room. From uplighting to pinspotting to the cherry blossom gobo projection on the dance floor, John once again took us from 'beautiful' to a whole new level of 'enchanting'. Lighting is what makes your guests' jaws drop when they walk into a room.

The icing on the cake was the icicle lighting that hung above the dance floor. John and his crew always manage to exceed our expectations! When I first described to him my vision of using the christmas icicle lights for this event, he only asked me two questions and that was all the direction that he needed to made it come alive.....even beyond what we had all imagined. Thank you John!!!!!

After a sumptuous four course dinner by the Four Seasons, Sharon and Lawrence led their guests to the dance floor for the rest of the evening. At the end of the night, they could not have been more gracious and appreciative to Amanda and I......we just had to hug them and tell them that we love them too!

Here are a couple more 'sneak preview' images by Augie. I love his fresh, modern approach to photography while still keeping the timeless essence that is so important for weddings!

The last photo above was one of our 'team photos'. From left to right--me, Augie Chang, John Woods, Carl Mindling, and Amanda Chan (my Production Lead).

Thank you to the amazing team of Event Professionals that worked so hard!

Ceremony Venue--Stanford Memorial Church
Reception Venue--Four Seasons Silicon Valley (superb food and service--hospitality at its very best all the way!!)
Floral Designer--Nancy Liu Chin
Lighting and Draping--Enhanced Lighting
Music--Carl Mindling
Makeup/Hair--Irmina of Faces by Taylor
Photography--Augie Chang
Videography--Royal Weddings
Limousine--Pure Luxury Transportation
Cake--Four Seasons Silicon Valley
Paper Goods--Hello Lucky
Favors (cherry blossom coasters)--Beaucoup
Rentals--Classic Party Rentals

Straight from the Horse's Mouth!

The Wedding University rocked! That was pretty much the consensus from the student evaluations that we collected at the end of the day. Whew! They liked us! Yay!

One student even blogged about us on her personal blog, which I thought had a cute name--{with the pixie grin} Here's what she said, verbatim!

"i didn't know what to expect really when i decided last minute to attend the "wedding university" on sunday. i had never been to a wedding event .. so i didn't have it anything to compare it to, but i imagined it to be some huge commercial for local vendors, lots of walking around, and lots of pushing and shoving by a bunch of bridezillas. i was so wrong.

the event was held at four season's hotel in palo alto california (about 45 min. south of san francisco). the hotel was magical...beautiful, serene, and comfortable. we were greeted with a glass of champagne on a silver platter and were welcomed to try a freshly sliced cut of prime rib with truffle au jus, roasted brussel sprouts, and potatoes. there was an array of fresh beverages that were available throughout the day, including pelagrino, fiji water, soda's, and tea with honey or coffee.

we each were given a folder with an agenda..each bride's agenda varied to the color of her name tag, so we were split most of the day, which made for a relaxed atmosphere, as the groups were made up of about 20 girls. the mini-classes were great! not only did we learn about the vendors giving the presentations, but they were very informative...like how to choose a photographer or dj...the right questions to ask, what to look out for, and normal pricing and what to expect for each price point. i learned so much and wished there was an event like this one earlier in my planning that i could have attended. i hope to go over some of these tips within the next few weeks, but for now, enjoy some eye candy from the day...'

Wow, thanks Amy, for such a wonderful endorsement. We are so, so happy that you enjoyed all the different elements of the day!

The Inaugural Wedding University--Part III.

One of the most amazing aspects of The Wedding University was definitely the design and decor room. It was completely awe-inspiring, and students' jaws literally dropped when they first entered the room. Our design team had 4 very distinct designs, with a lounge in the center of the room. Enjoy the eye candy here!

SHANGHAI TANG

GOLDFINGER

WALDORF

MODERN LUXE

LOUNGE AREA

Last, but not least, the Love Letters dessert bar and tables were set up as the 'case study' for the design team's presentation.
All photos above by Kevin Chin.
Kudos to our design team for their spectacular work--Gloria Wong Tritasavit, Nancy Liu Chin, Viola Sutante of Chewing the Cud, and John Woods of Enhanced Lighting

The Inaugural Wedding University--Part II.

At 10am, we (The Deans) were brought upstairs to the suite for an interview with KMTP, a new local 24/7 Wedding Television network airing on Channel 32. I was a bit nervous, but Christina, the host and producer of the show, was extremely easy going as she interviewed us which put us all at ease. I actually enjoyed it!!
After the interview, we went back downstairs and was delightfully surprised to see that a few students had arrived already even though it was not 11am yet. They admitted that they wanted to come early, because they were so excited about the event! We arranged a warm welcoming for all the students, with our modeling brides and grooms as greeters, passed champagne, and the beautiful tune of a harp. Our registration table was ready to go, filled with smiling volunteers to help students find their name tags and student folders.
During the first 40 minutes, students enjoyed sampling fine culinary creations from the Four Seasons, including a prime rib action station that was the most popular. They also relaxed with hand massages from the Four Seasons spa, and got inspired by the different tablescapes in our design and decor room.
At 11:45am, all the students were seated in Ballroom A. Kelly Nelson, Director of Marketing at Four Seasons Silicon Valley (and also one of our Deans for TWU) gave a warm welcoming before Jean and I went into our presentation on Planning + Logistics. Following that was the presentation on Menu Planning by Julie Kiendra, Catering Manager at the Four Seasons Silicon Valley.
After the first hour, students were separated into 3 groups, based on the colors of their name tags and student folders that we had preassigned them. Each group had one of our volunteers as their 'group monitor', to guide them and to answer any questions that they may have throughout the day. There would be 3 different presentations going on at all times:

MUSIC + ENTERTAINMENT

(Professors: Carl Mindling + Peter Rudolfi + Ron Grandia + Cynthia Glinka)

Cynthia was her usual enthusiastic self, bringing so much laughter and excitement in the room as she taught students how fun dancing can be. At the end of each class, she even asked all the students to get up and do a few moves together. Everybody had a great time.

DESIGN + DECOR
(Professors: Gloria Wong Tritasavit, Nancy Liu Chin, John Woods, Viola Sutante)

PHOTOGRAPHY + VIDEOGRAPHY
(Professors: Lara White, Kevin Chin, Chuck & Jewel Savadelis)

As students transitioned between each class, they were surprised with new food stations set up for them. These included sushi and a variety of small plates, fruit, candy, and an awesome dessert bar.
For the last hour of the day, all the students joined together in one group again in Ballroom A and listened to the final presentation on beauty and attire by Armando and Gabrielle. The models were asked to do a small fashion show as Gabrielle described the various wedding gowns that they were wearing and Armando picked a student to do a live updo demonstration. During this hour, all the grooms were asked to follow Bennie of Eli Thomas to a separate room to learn about trends in tuxedos and suits.
We ended the day with the much anticipated drawing--first for the 3 night stay at one of 3 Four Seasons Resort including Lanai, Bora Bora, and Whistler. The second prize was a complimentary engagement session from the fabulous Kevin Chin. The two lucky winners sure left with big smiles on their faces, but every student got to leave with a goody bag that included special gifts and never-before discounts from some of the top event professionals in Northern California!
All photos above by Janae Shields

The Inaugural Wedding University--Part I.

Previously, I posted some tidbits on the night before our big event--the inaugural Wedding University. Now, I am ready to start blogging a series about the day of, providing you some behind the scenes exclusives!

The morning started off early for many of us--6am! Ofcourse, John Woods and his crew were the exceptions--they were up the entire night installing the drapery and lighting! The whole design team and our volunteers were hard at work at the crack of dawn, setting up the various tables in their different themes.

The Deans--Jean, Julie, Kelly, and myself, took on a role that we were not quite familiar with. Rather than having our sleeves rolled up like we normally do at an event, we were instead taking turns having our makeup and hair professional done by the fabulous Armando of Get Your Do Up and his lovely assistant of the day Joey. I have to admit...I loved every minute of it!

At 9am sharp, all the Deans, Professors, and Volunteers met in the Conference Room for our 'Staff Meeting'. The Four Seasons provided coffee and pastries to bring everyone's energy up as we went over the timing and logistics of the day together. I could sense the excitement, anticipation, and enthusiasm in the room!

Janece was our very competent leader for the registration process, which was crucial to the success of our event. She delegated various tasks to our many volunteers that day, making sure that each of them understood their roles and responsibilities clearly.

My fabulous Production Lead Amanda was our 'day-of coordinator', making sure that we were on schedule, and being the go-to person for questions and support. While she was managing the final set up in the various rooms downstairs, Armando and Joey continued working their magic upstairs in the spacious suite--this time on the models that we had casted for this special event.
Gabrielle of Gabrielle's Bridal Atelier was also there to help style each model, as they got dressed in her beautiful gowns.

With less than one hour before the students were due to arrive, the professors began doing one last 'practice' run with their presentations. We were ready to rock!!

All the above photos by the fabulous Janae Shields, who was present from 8am-6pm to document the entire event for us from beginning to end.

Stay tuned for Part II...for our television interview and the arrival of TWU students!

The Wedding University Slideshow Recap

Four Seasons Hotel Silicon Valley

I've watched it be built from the ground up. I've passed by it numerous times as I drive up and down Highway 101. I've seen its recognizable logo every time I make my way to University Avenue. But I've never had the opportunity to experience it until today.

It's the Four Seasons Hotel in Palo Alto.

Under the pleasurable company of about 20 other Event Professionals, I spent a relaxing evening by the poolside of the Four Seasons Hotel. We enjoyed sumptuous hors d'oeurves, wine and champagne, and ofcourse.....my favorite dessert bar! The interior of the hotel reminded me of the Four Seasons and St. Regis in San Francisco--very modern and minimalistic, with a sophisticated touch. Ceremonies can take place outdoor and makes you feel like having a beautiful, natural garden wedding in the middle of a chic city. I love seeing the simplicity of clean lines everywhere. The ballroom is unlike the 'typical' hotel ballroom. Its neutral colors make it a blank canvas for any design, and its architecture is sleek and modern. I would love to design a wedding there!

The weather was absolutely perfect this evening, and the poolside was the perfect place to host this cocktail party. Cabanas lined up alongside the pool, leaving us to imagine the amazing spa experience there.....

http://www.fourseasons.com/siliconvalley/


My good friends Jean marks and Carrie Topoian, both wonderful Wedding Coordinators!