I just returned back from the amazing wedding conference Engage!12 in Las Vegas and couldn’t wait to share all the wonderful details and pictures from my trip! A group of CT talent (Beth Chapman, Carla Ten Eyck and Nichole Michel) flew down to Sin City for a few short days of business inspiration and hard core idea generation. I’m a triple baller and love going to this conference for so many reasons. Rebecca and Kathryn put together an itinerary and group of amazing individuals with many unique talents. Their conference is the only wedding conference you should even think about attending. Nothing can compare to the content, speakers, swag, decor, ideas, details, networking and sheer open-heartedness that’s felt throughout our three short days with the Engage! family.

A huge thanks to ReadyLuck and Scott Clark for the gorgeous images below!

allan z and I left the pool to hit up the registration desk and grab our swag, put together by gifts for the good life. these ladies are totally out of control, crazy talented.

my beautiful friends laura grier and sarah natasha | speaker and event designer ed libby kicks off this years engage | engage co-founder and truly gorgeous kathryn arce

myself with dear friend and barbados event planner malissa blackman. peep the letterpress goods by two paper dolls and hand painted by kristy rice

the knot co-founder and incredibly smart carley roney telling us how the knot was started

the beautiful and smart duo of sharon sacks with the editor of brides magazine anne fulenwider

me with my close friend and travel cohort beth chapman and the crazy talented abby larson, editor of style me pretty

groups of lots of friends, including aimee monihan, elan villamor, bernadette coveney smith, kelly mcwilliams, nichole michel, lindsay landman, sean low, amanda allan, heidi bartlett, rachel troyan and ashley olivier

the many outfits of elan villamor… my new style icon

my first new favorite person, brian worley. insanely talented and a hell of a good dancer

matthew robbins, whose new book i am in possession of, talking with my girl ali phillips. you must buy his book.

liene stevens of think splendid gave a very compelling talk on the new generation of today’s wedding consumer.

my second new favorite person.. jes gordon along with sean low

peter callahan won worlds best speaker award when the trays of his famous mini grilled cheeses came out

Engage ends with a spectacular party. Let’s face it– most of us spend our weekends watching other people dance and have fun, so when this crowd gets the opportunity to go to a party that they didn’t have to plan– we are bound to cut a rug and tie one on. Edger from Revelry and the ladies of engage did not disappoint. Peep this decor!

One big surprise at the engage! gala during the band’s break was an entire set preformed by these cuties. Take a room full of Millennials and add in new kids on the block, n’sync, back street boys and boyz II men and this is what happens. Pure girl pandemonium. At one point I could have sworn Joey Mcintyre asked me for my number.

I Do Films put together three hot recaps of the week long event. Check them out below!

A huge thank you to the team at Engaging Concepts for putting together, yet again, a gorgeous and wonderful conference. I loved meeting so many new people and of course, seeing those familiar faces who I hold dear. See you at The Breakers! xx

When we were asked to help plan the Winemakers Dinner at Jonathan Edwards Winery last February, I could not stop myself from doing a little happy dance. The vineyard is not only one of my favorite spots in Connecticut, but it has also been the location for some of our prettiest weddings.

Diana was there the day of to make sure it all went down according to plan. Here’s what she says:

The Winemakers Dinner is an annual soiree where the winery’s case club members have the chance to wine and dine and enjoy a night out. It was chilly then in February, but no one remembered as soon as they were greeted with a smooth glass of wine and impeccable hors d’ouevres courtesy of Gracie’s in Providence Catering. Our taste buds were in for such a treat that evening as Gracie’s prepared a five course meal including gnocchi, monkfish, and the freshest ingredients while pairing it with Jonathan Edwards’ libraried wines. I highly recommend the Napa Valley Zinfandel Port!

One of my favorite moments was the enlightening video that our good friend, Mike Cyr from Buzz Media compiled of behind-the-scenes wine making, from grape to bottle. There were a few special moments of the Jonathan Edwards Winery team as well–what a fun camaraderie! It was such a pleasure to be a part of that night!

Anthony DeCarlo was on hand to capture the whole evening on film.

For this winter dinner, which took place in the Barrel Room, we wanted a look that was clean and masculine. To achieve that, we drew inspiration from one of the masters of menswear, Ralph Lauren. His classic styles were the perfect inspiration for creating a mood that felt luxurious, yet still relaxed.

On the tabletop, twine wrapped menus were folded into textured napkins, and cream-colored linens helped add a warm glow to the room. Lush floral arrangements from Blush Floral Design sat in sturdy urns and were accented with feathers and pops on burgundy. For a final touch we couldn’t resist surrounding each table with sleek ghost chairs.

Credit Reel

Photography: Anthony DeCarlo
Video: Buzz Media Company
Design: Jubilee Events
Flowers: Blush Floral Design
Catering: Gracie’s in Providence

When Beth from The White Dress by the Shore approached us all about doing this shoot, I went back to when I graduated-all the excitement, all the fun! I wanted to infuse every bit of that into this shoot and I wanted to bring in colors and details that made me feel this way. Now, a few years after I’ve graduated, I find myself looking forward to the next big party and wanted to design this so brides and their maids would find inspiration for a special shower or fun luncheon. Yellow and pink were easy to choose because they exude the energy and playfulness you will experience at either event!

The shoot took place in the beautiful Elizabeth Park Rose Garden in Hartford, so I took some inspiration from our surroundings. I wanted the flowers to play a role in everything! Our table was draped in pink, everything from the linens, chargers, and napkins right down to the chairs-it was a girly girl’s dream. Tony from Datura, A Modern Garden created a yellow rose runner down the table with pops of pink peonies. Hope from A Little Imagination Cakes not only designed individual cupcakes with colorful florets, she coupled them with an incredible pink and yellow-layered cake! Beth styled the models in fun sherbet colored dresses that played perfectly off the surrounding flowers. Throw in the charming paper details from Metal Mermaid Press and Carla Ten Eyck Photography and you have the day made!

Credit Reel

Photography: Carla Ten Eyck, Carla Ten Eyck Photography

Shoot Design: Diana Chouinard, Jubilee Events

Fashion Styling & Accessories: Beth Chapman, The White Dress by the Shore

Flowers: Tony Palmieri, Datura, A Modern Garden

Beauty: DD Nickel, DD Nickel Makeup Studio

Confections: Hope Wright Martell, A Little Imagination Cakes

Paper: Josh Bryant, Metal Mermaid Press

Rentals: La Tavola Linens, Party Rental, Ltd.

Our in WHITE launch soiree on Wednesday, January 11th was a huge success! A big thank you to all our friends, colleagues and clients who dusted off their finest white attire and came out to celebrate with us. We couldn’t be more grateful for your support and encouragement. What better way to toast a luxury collaborative than to work with the industries best of the best? The biggest thank you and credit goes out to our talented team of creatives who truly made in WHITE’s launch such a success. From the talented gourmands at A Thyme to Cook, the gorgeous Sperry Tent and it’s transformation by Ryan Designs, the stunning white floral decor by Datura: A Modern Garden, the rockin’ band and electric violinist from Elan Artists, the delicious prosecco from VOVETI, the stunning white jeweled cakes from A Little Imagination Cakes, the comfy (and warm) white chariots from Gateway Limo, and our cute and fun props from SayCheese for our black and white photobooth!

Thank you to Julie from Carla Ten Eyck Photography for these gorgeous images! We hope that you had a wonderful time and enjoyed all your little treats and gifts along the way. Until the next party… xoxo

I’m so excited to share with you today the fun and colorful Bar Mitzvah of Teddy! We had the pleasure of working with Teddy and his all-star planning team at Kathy O’Boyle Events to design a fun party to celebrate with his family and friends. We started off with a nautical and masculine seersucker pattern and incorporated pops of orange, navy, and green to create his cool party. Ryan Designs not only made custom orange chandeliers for our ceremony tent, draped in clean white fabric.. but they also created custom seersucker fabric-wrapped lamp shade pendants for our dining tent which hung above our tables. We used a seersucker linen on the long and round tables, accentuated by brightly colored floral from BLUSH Floral Design which included unique textures like grass, ranunculous, and orange protea. The fun paper, designed by Coral Pheasant, included these elements along with a custom monogram for the navy hoodies that Teddy gave away to his guests. I absolutely love the design that Nichole came up with, which was part colleagette and included some of Teddy’s favorite activities: lacrosse, boating and music. Chris at Culinary Concerts took our color story and incorporated it into the food, serving delicious orange drinks on the table with family style bits when guests first sat down.

During dinner, we transformed the ceremony tent into an fun lounge, complete with a white dance floor, semi-circular white resin smoothie bar, and sleek white couches with orange ottomans from Taylor Creative Inc. Culinary Concerts also designed a dessert bar round our style, creating white and blue seersucker cookies with shots of milk and Teddy’s favorite brownies. A huge thank you to Tricia Bohan photography for these images!

Thanks to Teddy and his wonderful family for the creative outlet– and congratulations!!

Credit Reel

Photography: Tricia Bohan Photography
Catering: Culinary Concerts
Flowers: BLUSH floral design
Design: Jubilee Events
Planning: Kathy O’Boyle Events
Lighting and Draping: Ryan Designs
Rentals: Jubilee Events
DJ and Uplighting: Boppers Entertainment
Tent and Dance Floor: New England Tent
Paper: Coral Pheasant

I haven’t been home in nearly 12 days after an exciting trip to both Costa Rica for a destination wedding and Grand Cayman for the 8th Engage conference at the Ritz Carlton. I had such a fantastic time connecting with industry friends and listening to the inspirational speakers such as Barbara Corcoran, Marcy Blum, Ed Libby, Todd Fiscus, Brian Rafanelli, Sean Low, Jasmine Star, Randy Fenoli, Carley Roney, David Beam, Darcy Miller, Mindy Weiss, Ceci Johnson, Marley Majcher, Simon T. Bailey, Andy and Brian Marcus, Sylvia Weinstock and an awesome Media Panel discussion lead by Michelle Rago. It was great to meet so many people that we chat with on a weekly basis but never get the opportunity to sit down with!

Check out these two videos of Engage11! Grand Cayman, produced by Elysium Productions:

Happy weekend. xoxo

It’s almost that time of year… holiday season! It’s my favorite time of year because I get to see and spend so much time with my family and friends. Thanksgiving is a huge holiday for us and one filled with so many years of memories! Whether this is your first year hosting Thanksgiving in your home or it is a time honored tradition, here is some inspiration for your holiday table from a photoshoot at Tyrone Farm that we collaborated on with a list of incredible talents!

 

 { all photography by carla ten eyck }

No. 1; Tablescape by Jubilee Events / Just For You Floral Design with handwashed burlap linens, farm chairs decorated with green moss and hanging mirrors.

No. 2; Fresh artichokes decorate a vintage silver serving bowl (my grandmothers, to be exact!). Consider purchasing or borrowing vintage pieces and using them as decor in your Thanksgiving tablescape like the artichokes pictured.

No. 3; Thanksgiving inspired fashion styled by Beth Chapman of The White Dress by the shore. A cute knee length cream colored dress paired with a vintage fur stole completes this look. I love the nude and fresh makeup by Catie Bane of Dana Bartone & Company and the feathered headband our model Kelley is wearing!

No. 4; Our tablescape up close with white Pottery Barn dinner plates and alternating rusty brown salad plates with a bird motif from Pier 1. We used antiqued looking mercury glass egg cups from anthropologie to hold some of our mini pears at each place setting. Our tablescape was a mixture of old silver containers, limoncello cups, and ivory taper candles in short candle holders from ikea and tall clear bubble candle holders from CB2. We pre-poured water glasses with lemon wheels to give it a pop of added color (and flavor!). When decorating your holiday table this year remember to play with sizes, shapes and heights in our centerpiece. It will add dimension to your design!

No. 5; A close up shot of our individual place settings with tiered dinner, salad and dessert plates. I purchases some vintage floral napkins from a local antique store and folded them length-wise. A mini pear holds into place our placecard, which is done on a piece of wood veneer by Pretty Mail Calligraphy.

No. 6; Inexpensive mini-jars are wired to curly willow branches with candles and ivory spray roses tucked in. This would be a gorgeous arrangement for your front foyer or on an accent table and fairly inexpensive to create! Curly willow lasts forever and spray roses can easily be found at your local flower shop.

No. 7; One of our beautiful centerpiece arrangements by Just For You Floral Design using ivory roses and local greenery. Most of the flowers we used were in an ivory / yellow / green shade. I love the neutral palette!

No. 8; I always LOVE to play with chair backs, and this time we added long strips of green moss down the backs of this old farmhouse chairs. In the center, we tied (at varying heights) inexpensive mirrors I purchased at the dollar store. Jane fastened some hearty greenery to the mirrors using a little bit of floral wire.

No. 9; Warm apple cider in white Pottery Barn mugs accented with a fragrant cinnamon stick. This is why I LOVE fall! This would be great served to guests as they first arrive on a silver platter (as pictured).

No. 10; S’mores cake pops by the talented Lovely Lollies from Danbury, Connecticut. We love pastry chef Corine Dell’Orso’s play on the cake pop with these s’mores pops. They as much fun to display as they are to eat, shown here in an inexpensive urn draped with moss to cover the floral foam we used inside to keep these beauts upright.

Happy entertaining! xoxo

1. via coco+kelley | 2. via pinterest | 3. via call me a cupcake | 4. via martha stewart living | 5. via tumblr | 6. via kate spade

It’s hard to believe that half of 2011 is already over and summer is in full swing! It’s hard not to be inspired by this upcoming holiday weekend so I created a fun and stylish inspiration board with you in mind. What are your favorite 4th of July traditions? I’m sure you all are attending or hosting a party this weekend– and whether it is an intimate gathering with close friends or your yearly family reunion, enjoy a little patriotic inspiration! xxoo

We were so excited to be apart of the planning for the grand opening of the newest event space in Connecticut– the historic Lace Factory in Deep River. It was a gorgeous and fun filled evening hosted by Bliss Celebrations Magazine and catered by Cloud Nine with nosh and nibbly from made to order mac n’ cheese to personal pizzas and sliders. Guests road on the antique Essex Steam Train and were greeted with champagne alongside the newest line of gowns from The White Dress by the shore, Ivy & Aster.

We transformed the raw, industrial style space with gorgeous lounge furniture, custom pillows, driftwood furniture, draping and chandeliers from Ryan Designs. The evening’s plighting and entertainment was provided by Rob Alberti Special Events. We brought in a gorgeous black and white checkered dance floor from Connecticut Rental Center and bright citrus orange linens from Rentals Unlimited.?Datura: A Modern Garden created artistic centerpieces using floral, greenery, rock, moss, and other interesting pieces. Tony even suspended tropicals from the ceiling! Coral Pheasant designed a beautiful e-vitation for the event.

The Lace Factory is a gorgeous location for your wedding or event. With it’s raw, industrial space, the possibilities for a uniquely designed event are endless.

Big thanks to all our amazing vendors who participated and the Lace Factory for inviting us to join them on such a wonderful grand opening!

xxoo