paint your party

are you looking for a unique way to entertain your guests and at the same time create an incredible keepsake of your event? a live event artist is just the thing! it's a hot new trend at weddings, and makes for great entertainment at other special events as well - think golf outings, galas, VIP soirees.what is a live event artist? essentially, an artist will come to your event, set up a blank canvas, and start painting away. you will meet with the artist ahead of time and designate any important people whom you would like to appear in the artwork. your guests can watch the artist create a masterpiece, and at the end of the event, you get to take home a piece of one-of-a-kind artwork to display in your home, office, or wherever you like!

the picture above was created by laura swytak in seattle, but live event artists are growing in popularity and you will be able to find a great one in your area as well. the pieces often take anywhere from 3 to 5 hours to create, and come in standard sizes of 36x24 or 48x30 inches, although many artists will create custom sizes as well. artistic viewpoints vary widely, so be sure to interview the artists you connect with and choose one who's style is most representative of your own. these masterpieces can cost anywhere upwards of $1,000, but if that's too steep for your event budget, consider finding a local art student who would barter his talent for a free meal!

pearls for the elegant bride

surprisingly, many brides invest a lot of time and money in their wedding style, but then don't know where to get started in choosing jewelry for the special occasion. if you are a bride looking for something classic and elegant to compliment your wedding gown, look no further! Andrea D'Ambrosia, who has been designing jewelry for years, recently launched a new line exclusively for brides. either choose a piece from her portfolio, or have her custom design a piece for you. best of all, all of her pieces are affordable! after the big day, have her modify your "something new" so that you can wear it again and again!

save the date

save the date for the IONA Senior Services "art of caring" luncheon on wednesday, april 29 at the mayflower. senator Claire McCaskill will be the keynote speaker, and Ellen Proxmire will be the recipient of an honoree award. more information will become available on IONA's website.

40 and fabulous!

laurita celebrated a fantastic 40th birthday last weekend at dc coast. highlights of the glitzy affair included green laurita-tinis, and a retro candy buffet featuring laurita's favorites from her kid-years. we had so much fun working with laurita to create a whimsical candy land with a touch of sophistication. she and her guests were all adults after all. candy buttons anyone?

guests indulged in late-night snacks like mini sliders, and celebrated with a champagne toast and a delicious lemon and raspberry cake from Just Cakes.

as the night went on, laurita's guests got crazy over some skittles! there was plenty of fun dip to go around. great times were had by all!

is the blog the new wedding website?

i've had a lot of questions recently from brides who are interested in setting up their very own wedding websites, but are disappointed by either a) the lack of customization on some of the free sites like theknot.com, or b) the expense of some of the grander sites like weddingwindow.com. what's a bride to do? especially in this economy, where she would rather spend her hard-earned cash on beautiful ranuncula centerpieces for her tented reception, than on a single wedding website that great aunt sally may not have access to anyway.

the solution? inspired by one of my current brides, create a wedding blog! check out gina's site as an example. try using blogger.com to set it up. also check out this tutorial for a step-by-step guide on how to make your blog look and act like a website!

your blog will be easy to use, much more personal than a website, and you'll have your guests checking in much more regularly as they eagerly await much anticipated details of your wedding day. best of all, it won't cost you a thing and you'll have an extra few bucks to toast your honey with champagne over views of the eiffel tower! mais oui!

happy new year

it's a new year, and with the new year come new trends, new events, and new blogs! stay tuned and check back often for highlights about our ongoing events.