A Fairytale Wedding

An enchanted forest in a modern museum. Does that sound like a a fairytale wedding to you? Emily and Leonard's wedding day was so extraordinary in every way that it truly felt like a fairytale. From the astounding redwoods that they got married under to the luxurious marble staircase that they made their first entrance as husband and wife, it was a wedding to be remembered!

Let me backtrack to August, 2007......

I met Emily and Leonard at Crossroads Cafe in San Francisco and right away they really made an impression on me by bringing lots of pictures and magazine tear outs to show me their wedding inspirations. From that day on, we journeyed into 11 months of very detail-oriented wedding planning, from color palettes to design meetings to tastings to logistical planning, and much more. We had a blast!

On July 12, 2008, Emily and Leonard exchanged their marriage vows at the beautiful Valley Presbyterian Church in Portola Valley. Surrounded by redwoods and 180 of their closest families and friends, Emily officially became Mrs. Ng! After that, guests made their way to the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco and were immediately greeted by a row of striking floral arrangements by the amazing Kathleen Deery, and a specialty drink named Elan created by McCall Catering.

Guests strolled up the marble staircase to the Loggia, where they enjoyed delicious hors d'oeurves, music by Nob Hill Ensemble's string quartet, and a stunning 'photo tree' to bring them down the memory lane of Emily and Leonard's courtship. When it came time to open the doors to the Samsung Hall, I made sure that Emily and Leonard were the first ones to walk inside.

They were completely speechless when they walked in the awe-inspiring room. The tabletops featured tall, elegant floral arrangements with orchids cascading down. We had chosen to use several different hues of the color green throughout the wedding, as a tribute to Emily's talent as a landscape architect. The lighting was absolutely spectacular and completely transformed the space into one that was warm, elegant, and inviting. It was like walking into a magical, enchanted forest that you discovered!

I can go on and on about this wedding, but I feel that the gorgeous photos by the incredibly talented Lisa Lefkowitz can tell you the rest of the story...






            

And they lived happily ever after.....

A big thank you to an exceptional team:

Photography--Lisa Lefkowitz

Caterer--McCall

String Quartet--Nob Hill String Ensembles

DJ--Carl Mindling

Floral Designer--Kathleen Deery

Lighting and Draping--Enhanced Lighting

Rentals--Classic Party Rentals

Dance Instructor--Cynthia Glinka

Makeup/Hair Stylist--Taylor Pham

Wedding Cake--Flours

Transporation--Pure Luxury

Wedding Planning can be fun!

Are you a newly engaged couple that is dreading the wedding planning process ahead of you? Are you overwhelmed by the infinite number of vendors on all the wedding planning websites and magazines out there? Are you terrified at the thought of having the wedding planning consume your lives for the next year?

If your answer is yes to any of the above questions, you should really consider a wedding planner!

I strive to make the wedding planning as fun as possible for my clients. After all, this is a very exciting time in their lives and the excitement cannot be lost before the Big Day arrives! I'm not going to lie though. There will be stressful moments, such as trying to trim down the guest list. However, my clients have a lot of fun throughout the planning process. A few highlights that you can look forward to are, ofcourse, the tastings (with caterers and cake designers!), the selection of linens, chairs, and other rental items, and the walk through at your venue to finalize all the details!

With my clients, I like to have them focus on the areas that they love most. Everything else, they trust me to take care of. Ofcourse, they always make the final decisions on everything but it sure helps to have an expert guide the way. I'm not going to go on and on bragging about how great my services are (even though it sure is!) but I think the best gift any couple can get themselves is to hire an experienced and reputable Wedding Coordinator.

Last week, I accompanied my clients Emily and Leonard to a fabulous tasting with their caterer McCall's. They had so much fun tasting all the food that they were considering for the wedding. At the end, one of McCall's exceptional bartender worked with us to mix the perfect specialty cocktail for them....in the exact shade of color they were looking for. Talk about details and perfection--love it!

Today, Emily, Leonard, and I met with their amazing floral designer Kathleen Deery at Classic Party Rentals to pick their tabletop settings. We got to PLAY--that's what I like to call it. We played with different linens, napkins, chairs, chargers, and had a fun time pulling the decor elements of the wedding together. Kathleen is one of the most talented floral designers I've had the pleasure to work with in the industry, and I just know this wedding is going to be extraordinary!

Love, Sweet Love

Sara and John, a young sweet couple from the Big Apple, tied the knot in San Francisco this past July and I couldn't have been more honored to be their Wedding Coordinator! Since Sara and John couldn't physically be in the Bay Area throughout the planning, I worked closely with Sara's lovely mother, Marg, on many aspects of the planning. We had such a great time during the process, carefully selecting a decadent menu with McCall's, arranging 3 full days of transportation for their guests, brainstorming with Miguel the fabulous floral designer, and many more tasks! During the months that we worked together, I found myself continually being touched by the warmth of the Mikulsky family and how close knitted they were. Marg told me many wonderful stories about their families and when I finally got a chance to meet everyone several days prior to the wedding, I felt like I have known them for a long time already! It's one of the things that I love most about what I do, and there is no better delight than seeing families get together for such an intimate occasion.

The wedding weekend began on Thursday, with a welcoming dinner at the Mikulsky household for close families and friends. Friday following the rehearsal, John's mother Carol, hosted a delicious dinner for the Wedding Party and families at R & G Lounge while other guests were invited to a cocktail party at the Grand Hyatt hotel. Saturday was the wedding day, and we were greeted in the morning with beautiful, clear weather. Sara and John exchanged handwritten vows to one another at the Old St. Mary's Cathedral. After the touching ceremony that officially joined the two families together, guests were whisked to the San Francisco City Hall on cable car trolleys. As a special touch to this black tie affair, we laid out red carpet on the front steps to greet the guests, making them feel like they were part of the Oscar's!

During the cocktail hour, guests feasted on a seafood bar full of fresh oysters, shrimp cocktail, and crab as well as a variety of creative hors d'oeurves. When the silver Vera Wang dinner bells were rung by servers, everyone walked down the marble staircase to be seated. Tall white branches with hanging votives and white orchids sat at the center of each table. Gordon Ng, a very talented artisit, drew caricatures of Sara and John under different San Francisco landmarks to indicate each table's name, and periwinkle fabric boxes with Sara and John's name sewn on the cover sat on each charger as favors. Decadent chocolate sat inside, along with a note of gratitude to let guests know a donation was made in their name to a special charity.

The evening was magical, as guests enjoyed a sumptuous 4 course dinner paired with the perfect wine, a lavish dessert bar, and lots of dancing. At the end of the night, everybody lined up in front of City Hall to send Sara and John off.....to their beautiful and exciting journey ahead as Mr. and Mrs. Capman!!





All photographs were taken by the incredibly talented and artistic Kevin Chin (www.kevinchin.com)

Romance in San Francisco

Jill and Conor, two highly successful and beautiful New Yorkers, decided to have a destination wedding in San Francisco where Jill grew up. Throughout the planning, I corresponded with Jill mainly by email but she was so sincere and nice that our email exchanges were quite warm and fun....not at all distant! I loved her sense of style and attention to detail from the very beginning, so I was not surprise to find out that she worked in the advertising department at Ralph Lauren. From her invitations to the programs to the escort cards, everything was beautifully designed and crafted to reflect an elegant, old world theme. They selected the perfect place for their wedding--the exquisite Julia Morgan Ballroom in the Merchant's Exchange Club, right in the heart of the San Francisco financial district.

On the wedding day, Jill looked absolutely stunning in her Reem Acra gown. To incorporate personal touches, she had her seamstress sew a small piece of her mother's veil inside her gown, and her bouquet had her grandmother's vintage pin attached to it. Pictures of Jill and Conor with their families were placed on one of the fireplace mantels at the Julia Morgan Ballroom. For her "Something Blue", Jill had the bottom of her shoes colored! Guests flew in from New York and as far as Ireland, where Conor was raised. For their photoshoot prior to the ceremony, Jill and Conor picked San Francisco landmarks such as Nob Hill, Legion of Honor, and Polk Street. They flew their photographer in from New York--the renown Christian Oth. Reverend Ed Holt performed a heartwarming ceremony with a light touch of humor in front of the charming fireplace inside the ballroom. Guests arrived early and took the time to admire the amazing architecture of the building. Following an hour of sumptuous hors d'oeurves and cocktails, guests were invited into the ballroom once again, as they gushed in awe at the transformation.

Guests feasted on an opulent menu prepared by McCall's while David Martin House Party made an astounding performance on stage. The party lasted late into the night before guests picked up their boxes of Godiva chocolate and were sent home to "Sweet Dreams."

The exceptional team for this wedding included the Event Professionals I named above, plus Jim Avila (hair and makeup stylist), Karen Baba of Plan Decor for flowers, Rudolfi Artists in Music, and Katrina Rozelle for the delicious wedding cake.