Wedding Gown Detail...a second look!

When you are in love with the details on your wedding dress, why not allow those details to be enjoyed at other times during your wedding day?  Grace, one of my Fall brides, chose to copy the amazing flower design from her gown into the decorations for her wedding cake...

and in her hair, for a touch of interest when her veil came off after the ceremony.

Photographer:  Lisa Lefkowitz
Cake Designer:  Rachael Myers, Sweet Tooth Confections
Venue:  Menlo Circus Club
Florist:  Hunt Littlefield.

In the upcoming blog posts,  I will be sharing creative ideas from several of my 2011 weddings...I have learned so much as I worked alongside my wonderful brides and grooms this year, that I can't wait to share them with my readers!

Nancy and Steve's Summer 2011 wedding celebration!

Please enjoy with me the wonderful images by Catherine Hall from Nancy and Steve's wedding day at the Stanford Chapel and
Sharon Heights Golf and Country Club  by clicking the link below:
  Nancy & Steven

Candy and cocktails, 32nd floor!

I have seen many types of candy buffets in the last few years since the fun favor display became popular; but Shasta and Anthony broke all records for the number of candies provided to their guests at their Westin St. Francis wedding reception last month.

Thirty six jars of different candies were displayed on the Imperial Floor of the Westin St. Francis as guests entered Alexandra's for dinner.  The candy was provided by Shasta's father who is in the food industry, and the display was created by Grant Rector, who was our florist/designer for the wedding.  This was one of the sweetest parts of his set up, according to Grant!  The guests  had a hard time waiting until after dinner to begin filling their "take home" containers with the bounty.

 View from Alexander's on the 32nd floor (Imperial Floor) at the Westin St. Francis in San Francisco where Shasta and Anthony's guests enjoyed cocktails, before they saw the candy buffet, with background music by Anthony's grandfather at the grand piano.

Anthony's grandfather, relaxed and confident, provided beautiful background cocktail music for Anthony and Shasta's wedding guests in Victor's on the 32nd Imperial Floor at the Westin St. Francis.

A MOUNTAIN TOP WEDDING VENUE

A rainbow greeted us as we reached the Ritz-Carlton Lake Tahoe; the ski lift between the hotel and North Star Ski Resort is seen in the foreground.

Recently I was welcomed into the beauty and luxury of the brand new Ritz-Carlton Lake Tahoe for two incredible days and nights. Several Bay Area wedding planners were invited to experience first-hand this "Mountain Top" wedding venue so we can confidently recommend it to couples who are looking for a truly unique wedding venue. The Ritz-Carlton Lake Tahoe has been open for little over a year, and is as yet undiscovered by many people. First time visitors arriving to attend a wedding here are immediately in awe of the massive wood and rock structure, and surprised by the personal and cozy atmosphere permeating entire Lodge like interior.


As a part of helping us understand what a wedding ceremony and reception would be like at the Ritz-Carlton Lake Tahoe, the event staff created a wedding rehearsal dinner, as well as an entire wedding reception for us to experience, with cocktails, 5 course dinner and a dessert bar, just as it could be for one of our clients.


First was the Fall themed Cocktail Reception, with design and decor by Sara Spurlock of Bellissima Floral Creations in the Tahoe area

Enjoying a glass of wine in the ballroom pre-function space with from left, Kelly Dolata, her assistant Tracey, Jubilee Lau, me, Michelle Barrionueva-Mazzini, Andrea Daly, Director of Catering Sales for the Ritz-Carlton Lake Tahoe, and Janece Shellooe.


Dinner was presented in the Ballroom amidst a Winter Wonderland theme with sparkling crystal table runners, hundreds of candles, linens and florals in shades silver, light blue and ivory.

The food was all as elegantly presented and incredibly flavorful as this second course Seared Sea Scallops with fresh corn and micro greens.


The last treat of the evening was to have been presented outside, but due to the chance of rain for that evening, the dessert buffet was moved inside. We were all happy to enjoy this delicious display wherever it was; many of us took our coffee and treats out to the fire pit to relax and enjoy the full moon over the mountains...happily the rain did not materialize.

The chef created a wedding cake for the evening so we could see the intircacies of his cake design including the hand made candy flowers.


One especially welcome treat for tired wedding planners was an afternoon in the Ritz-Carlton Spa Lake Tahoe; before our treatments, the Spa Director gave us a tour of the entire facility which is one of the most extensive spa facilities in any of the Ritz-Carlton properties. This couple's massage/hot tub area was particularly inviting, reminding me of the couples I work with in planning their weddings whom I would love to have enjoy relaxing in this ideal location.

On the last day of our visit, the Ritz-Carlton Catering team provided shuttles to drive us down to Lake Tahoe to tour a very exclusive venue, Thunderbird Lodge, where many couples choose to have their wedding ceremony and cocktails, followed by their dinner/dancing reception at the Ritz-Carlton.

Thunderbird Lodge was built by George Whittell and named after his famous yacht, The Thunderbird.

Kelly, Jubilee, Andrea, myself and Elisheva Basseri enjoying the beauty of Lake Tahoe from the lawn at Thunderbird Lodge just before we left to return to our work in the Bay Area.

I hope that each of you are able to enjoy the newest treasure to be discovered in the Lake Tahoe area; for snow boarding and skiing, hiking, mountain biking and summer sports of all kinds, the location is perfect; but as far as as a wedding planner is concerned, the Ritz-Carlton Lake Tahoe is the perfect spot for an elegant mountain wedding celebration! I hope to introduce some engaged couples to the possibility of a Mountain Top wedding in 2012 and beyond!

Why to Consider Wedding Videography

I often encourage couples to hire a wedding videographer because the images that are captured during the wedding day on film, when combined with the work of an excellent photographer, can tell a complete story of your day.


I recently met with Grace and Henry, who were married early this Fall, to review their wedding day, ask for evaluation of my service, and find out if they have advice for couples planning their wedding...without hesitation, the lesson they wanted to share is: Don't rule out having a wedding videogapher!

Henry and Grace were not enthusiastic about hiring a videographer during the wedding planning process, but because many relatives in Taiwan would not be able to come to the wedding, the family wanted a video to share with them. Henry and Grace chose to work with Weddings on Film, and their sister company, Basico.

Now after seeing this short video, Menlo Circus Club, Grace and Henry-the video , Grace and Henry are incredibly grateful to have hired Weddings on Film to capture their memories in video format.

As Grace said, "I could not believe how quickly the day goes by; watching this short video is like reliving the day, but seeing what was happening from all different angles; the video is a treasure we would not want to have missed."

 I am excited to share James Burkart's creative film teaser of Tom and Angie's wedding day....enjoy the loving and unique phenomenon of "Tomgie"!

Tom and Angie, by James Burkart

Grace, Henry, and their Great Team!

Grace and Henry's wedding this weekend at Menlo Circus Club demonstrated the beauty of teamwork; Grace and her family spent many weeks and months creating and gathering elements which would intimately personalize the wedding celebration for them.

The vendors Grace and Henry selected became a dynamically supportive team to carry out professionally and passionately the plans and details Grace, Henry and their families had lovingly put together.  The wedding celebration day was full of warmth, laughter, beauty, and flawless execution, which would only be possible with a well-organized and enthusiastic team.

From the customized cake topper designed ordered by Grace from an Etsy artist to include details such as Grace's wedding hair style, Henry's  distinctive glasses and their new, puppy...

...to the escort cards (hand written and stamped by Grace's mother)  presented on a display board customized in Grace's colors by Hunt Littlefield,

...to  Grace's mother's hand-written labels for wedding cake/dessert buffet...

...to the one-of-a-kind "memory tree"  drawn and produced by Grace's mother,

 Guests loved the opportunity to leave their fingerprints as leaves on the tree to create a fun reminder for Grace and Henry of everyone who was a part of their wedding day.

...the details in Grace and Henry's wedding represented many levels of family love and creativity, especially that of her mother Nancy.

The team of vendors and venue staff who worked together to prepare for the wedding day, as well as to be available from beginning to end of the day itself was one of the best I have had the pleasure of working with during my wedding planning career. 

 The pre ceremony photo team included Lisa, her assistant fluffing the train, and my valuable assistant for the day, Tony White.

Pre ceremony photos were taken at Gamble Garden in Palo Alto by our wonderful photographer Lisa Lefkowitz.  Hair/Makeup Artist Maria Chang went from the Four Seasons Silicon Valley where she started the day with Grace, to Gamble Garden for these photos and then on to the Circus Club where she remained until Grace and Henry were introduced into dinner; Maria made herself available to keep Grace looking lovely and feeling truly pampered.  It was fantastic!

Lisa Lefkowitz capturing the golden moments at sunset time...with results below!

The Menlo Circus Club is a gorgeous venue for any celebration, but it is particularly perfect for weddings with its cozy ceremony site nestled under a sheltering oak tree and  surrounded by well manicured polo fields,

...and the Polo Patio beside the polo field for post-ceremony cocktails and after-dinner relaxation. 

Working with Barbara Brooks and her top-notch catering staff at Menlo Circus Club made each step of the wedding planning and wedding day itself truly a pleasure.

I want to thank the team of wedding professionals who were alongside me during Grace's wedding day and in all the months leading up to that day, for their commitment to impeccable service and attention to details, including each lovingly crafted family creation.

VENUE/CATERER:  Menlo Circus Club
FLORIST:  Hunt Littlefield
PHOTOGRAPHER:  Lisa Lefkowitz
VIDEOGRAPHER:  Weddings on Film, BASICO
DJ/LIGHTING/PHOTOBOOTH:  Denon and Doyle, Solomon Dauber
HAIR/MAKEUP:  Maria Chang
TRANSPORTATION:  Lone Star Limo
HOTEL:  Four Seasons, Silicon Valley
CAKE/DESSERT DISPLAY:  Sweet Tooth Confections
MOTHER/ARTIST: Nancy Law
JMW TEAM MEMBERS:  Tony White, Yvonne Fox