Are You Really Enjoying Your Las Vegas Wedding?

Grooms @MGM Grand on their way to their double wedding!

Image taken by Tracey Kumer-Moore

Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge met these these two "dapper" blokes (and a whole bunch of their mates) from England earlier this week while at the MGM Grand! They were on their way to meet their brides and celebrate their weddings in a double wedding at one of the chapels on the strip (didn't mention which one).

So yes, these two maybe be propagating the stereotypical good bad & ugly and wacky, tacky "Vegas Wedding", but I've got to tell ya, I could not have been more happy to see these two fellas having the time of their lives (at the best time of their lives) and really enjoying and embracing what Las Vegas Weddings are all about!

FUN...YES, they are about FUN!

Whether plain and simple, extravagant and elegant, sexy and sophisticated or just plain slap-happy, silly in love, Las Vegas weddings are about setting yourself free from the conventional and just embracing the romance of your love and celebrating it with your friends in Style. Here are three tips for you...

• Plan a great wedding to start (regardless of what your budget is; there is something for everyone here) by finding solid & talented wedding professionals (Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge can assist you with this from consults to full planning & production of course)!

• Embrace your imagination and be bold; try something interesting on (maybe not the gold suit), but be open to ideas to take your vision and your party (no matter the size) to where it will be memorable-the fashion, entertainment, food, whatever!

• Trust your instincts, trust your wedding professionals, enjoy yourselves & HAVE A BLAST!

I wonder how the brides were dressed?:)!!

Did you enjoy YOUR Las Vegas Wedding? I would love to hear from you. Leave a comment & let me know something special about how you celebrated your fabulous day?

Happy Cinco de Mayo! "Viva La Vida", "Viva Las Vegas"!

View of Lounge & Restaurant, Dos Caminos Mexican Kitchen, Palazzo, Las Vegas

View of interior of La Madonna Restaurant

HAPPY CINCO de MAYO!!!

Nevada is home to a very large Mexican and Spanish population and if there is one place that knows how to celebrate it's Las Vegas! Put those two things together and you have the makings of one MAJOR HOLIDAY FIESTA my friends!!

Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge would like to wish all my friends who are celebrating their Mexican heritage today (and those who just love the holiday), a very Happy Cinco de Mayo!!

Being a Jewish kid from the north east (Toronto), Mexican, Tex Mex and the like, were never really done all that well as I was growing up. For the record, it's MUCH better and easier to find great Mexican food in Toronto now. Anyway, when I moved to Las Vegas and married a Texan, I "discovered" good Mexican food. And although I still can't get my lips around the whole refried beans and guacamole thing...I am warming to some great Mexican cuisine available in Las Vegas beyond the standard taco shops.

Two favorite Mexican Restaurants that Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge loves and who are celebrating Cinco di Mayo in Style today are Dos Caminos Mexican Kitchen at Venetian/Palazzo, Las Vegas on the fabulous Las Vegas Strip and La Madonna Restaurant, located in the southwest of the valley & serving Mexican avante-garde Cuisine. 

The ambience, the food, interesting menu and service at both of these restaurants are absolutely the best and I always have a fabulous time and a great, memorable meal whenever I go to either one. Both places have their own unique vibe and make for a great night out whether you are celebrating a special occasion, a holiday or just to enjoy some great high quality Mexican cuisine and cocktails.

Check them out if you have the chance. Love the Queso Fundido and the White & Chocolate Fondue at Dos Caminos The Tortilla Soup, Queso Flamiado, Steak Alambre and that amazing Street Style Corn at La Madonna have attained "comfort food" status. Don't forget the drinks. Both venues have amazing bars with huge tequila lists for a wide variety of concoctions that will have you saying "Ole" faster than you know.  

Enjoy and if you are visiting Las Vegas and looking for somewhere to celebrate Cinco Di Mayo, here a few other resources for you to check out what's happening in town today. 

Las Vegas Sun Cinco Di Mayo Guide (article)

Las Vegas Weekly.com

Las Vegas City Search Cinco Di Mayo Guide

Beautiful Wedding in Gold & Red at Four Seasons, Las Vegas 4.17.09

Wedding was held at the beautiful Four Seasons, Las Vegas Resort

Bouquet of deep red roses, flame cala lilly wrapped in bronze & accented with some sparkle!

Decor was inspired by Bride's bronze gown & wedding song "Lady in Red"

The beautiful ceremony site also featured a red high gloss dance floor for the aisle

Stunning Custom Staircase Decor for some fabulous photo ops

Gorgeous Belly Dancers in the wedding colors were just 1 part of the amazing entertainment

All images provided by Ray Iavasile, Ray Anthony Photography

To see more "Sneak Peek Images of this event, visit Ray's Blog

Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge had the pleasure of planning this gorgeous wedding celebration that took place at one of my favorite venues, The Four Seasons, Las Vegas Resort, on April 17, 2009 in 28 days! Yes, JUST 4 WEEKS! 

That was the first time, believe it or not, I had the opportunity to squeeze about 6-12 months of planning into less than a month and I must say for the record that it was a very busy 30 days and one of the most unexpected pleasurable planning experiences I have had to date. 

From the time I met the Bride & Groom (due to a privacy contract I signed with the couple, I am not at liberty to reveal their names or any images of them or guests), I quickly discovered this was going to be a fantastic and very memorable party for them and their guests. 

With the assistance of Asst. Catering Director Dennis Silknitter of the Four Seasons that served a sumptuous 6 course wedding meal, I began assembling a team of some of Las Vegas' top (and my favorite) wedding professionals to create this gorgeous, warm ambience set in tones of bronze, golds, reds and oranges to compliment the bride's gown & love of beautiful, bright and warm colors. 

The wedding party walked down a petal lined, high gloss red aisle to a collection of red & orange florals on pedestals. Guests dined under a fabric canopy accented with crystals and flowers, lounged on European style gold sofas & ottomans, at antique gold mirrored tables and a monogrammed bar. 

The beautiful decor was created by Andrea Sage, Marian Menezes and Nina Sauter of Destinations by Design.

The bride wanted to treat their guests to an after-dinner show and boy, DID WE PUT ON A SHOW. Thanks to Bruce Sampson of Steve Beyer Productions, we assembled a parade of entertainment to dazzle guests including belly dancers, a magician, "Cirque" performers, ballroom dancers and a magician, all orchestrated by a DJ & and "All Night Mike", a great MC who kept everyone happy, laughing and dancing on the red dance floor all night long (when they weren't enjoying the hot wedding trend Cold Stone Ice Cream and Hot Doughnut Stations)!!

The bride looked gorgeous thanks to my ace makeup artist Barbara Jo Batterman (THE BEST) and all the incredible images here were taken by the uber-talented Ray Iavasile of Ray Anthony Photography. I picked Ray to work with this couple as I knew this wedding was a great match for his style and I'm sure you will agree, I was right on!

The rest of the week long celebration included golf at Shadow Creek Golf Course, a Maverick Helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon, a family dinner at Charlie Palmer Steak and welcome in-suite receptions & brunches.

The event was a fabulous success which proved to me that when the stars align and you get  amazing clients and wedding professionals to work with, planning a fabulous Las Vegas Wedding with great Style like this one in 28 days is a pleasure! THANK YOU!

 

Luck be an Irish Lady Tonight! Happy St. Paddy's Day!

The Herradura "Green Agave Cocktail"

Well, Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge doesn't have one lick of Irish in me that I am aware of , but hopefully I can enjoy some luck o' the Irish today as everyone gets to be green on St. Paddy's Day. Perhaps a good day to try some at the "Megabucks" machine later?:)

But, If this is your day, by birth, marriage, or by hook & crook...then hope you have a great one.

If you feel like starting off with something a bit more sophisticated before you hit the green draft, check out this very cool & festive cocktail I found in a post from Kori Ellis titled "More than just Green Beer" at She Knows.com (great living/lifestyle blog by the way!)

The cocktail, all decked out for the holiday, is called a "Herradura (that's a brand of Tequila) "Green Agave Cocktail" shaken with melon liqueur. Yummy! I love how how it's garnished with a lime carved to look like a lucky shamrock. How stylish is that? 

Not only a great idea for St. Paddy's day, but for a modern touch for an Irish wedding as well.

Recipe provided by Herradura.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 oz. Herradura Silver tequila
• 3/4 oz. melon liqueur
• lime
  

Directions:

1. Add tequila, melon liqueur and a squeeze of lime into a shaker with ice.
2. Shake for 15 seconds.
3. Pour into a chilled cocktail glass.
4. Garnish with shamrock carved lime and serve.

This same post also offers some recipes for spin-offs on the cocktail called "Emerald Isle" (naturally) & an "Irish Whip". 

So I'll raise me a fancy green cocktail & wish you all a happy day. Have fun and stay safe!

Las Vegas Welcomes CaterSource & Event Solutions 2009

What do you get when you combine thousands of people; chefs, catering professionals, event planners, designers, entertainers, decor suppliers and more and bring them to Las Vegas?

You get an amazing 4 day event filled with education, inspiration and fun called "CaterSource/Event Solutions 2009". It's sponsored by National Association of Catering Executives (NACE), of which I am a member, Event Solutions and Catersource Magazines.

Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge will be attending this conference this week. I'll be out of the office Sunday through Wednesday learning new ideas to better my business and planning, creative skills, getting inspired by professionals from all aspects of the catering and event planning business. On the trade show floor, I'll be seeing amazing new ideas in decor, tasting and experiencing great new food and beverage products and presentation ideas, checking out cool new event rentals, lighting and more and attending some cool events to see how it all amazingly comes together. 

Oh, and meeting tons of other incredibly talented, creative and dedicated wedding, food and catering & event professionals from around the country and beyond; sharing stories, ideas and more. 

Very lucky to have this opportunity on annual basis here in Las Vegas to attend for another year.  

So excited to bring back more great ideas for all of you. Have a great week!

All You Need is Love, Cupcake!

all you need is love cupcake, originally uploaded by Retro Bakery in Las Vegas.

Oh does Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge LOVE these!

Just in time for Valentine's day, Retro Bakery in Las Vegas gets in the holiday spirit.

Available with 24 hours notice at Retro Bakery OR in the case from Feb. 11-14 (at no extra charge during those days)!

Now that is what I call "Sweet Lovin'"!

I need to take a trip up to Retro Bakery for one of these and also because I just love their "classic Vegas retro" style of their website and the store. Plus, they are fun to follow on Twitter!

If that wasn't great enough they have all these great "Memory Lane" cupcakes like "Cookies & Cream" cupcakes and breakfast varieties like a "Coffee & Doughnut" cupcakes that is a glazed vanilla cake doughnut with a dollop of coffee cream icing. Come on now, who could not get their frown turned upside down with one of those? 

Yes, they make custom cupcakes for showers, weddings and more! I found all kinds of goodie images on their Flickr site (the link is on their site as well as to their Face book page, etc.)

Retro Bakery is located at 7785 N. Durango Dr. #130, Las Vegas, NV 89131 | Phone: 702-586-3740

Delicious Discoveries: Edible Cocktail Glasses Inspire Mouthwatering Ideas!

Dark and white chocolate are combined to create glasses with a marbled effect. 
Photo: Courtesy of Bar Candy 

Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge  thinks that that Liz Green, the creator of Bar Candy, based in New York, has a special place in my heaven for coming up with this amazing edible chocolate cocktail glass. 

This is one of my favorite Delicious Discoveries (a new blog category I just created) so far for "raising the bar" on style for your signature wedding cocktail.

The cone-shaped vessels come in melt-free milk, dark, and white chocolate (the white can be dyed your signature wedding color) and sit inside custom-made glass bases. Go over the top with custom rims made from a variety of gourmet options such as crushed cookies or gold or silver leaf or edible glitter! These are perfect for a very special champagne toast that will make for very sweet memories!

If that doesn't sound divine enough already, Bar Candy provides a variety of different syrups to make custom desert martinis with a variety that will boggle the mind. They mix easily with suggested liquors but all of them can be made non-alcoholic so your venue can get them made up easily to tray pass or create an amazing liquid dessert display. 

Or for a delicious favor or gift idea, offer your guests Edible Chocolate Bar Candy bar kits that includes 2 edible martini glasses, a mini shaker, Bar Candy mixer syrup, and rimming sugars. 

Edible Chocolate Cocktails? Yes, I will most certainly drink to that!!!

Wedding Professionals at WIPA Show of 2009 Wedding Trends

Photography by Henshall Photography, Los Angeles

On January 7th, I had the opportunity to visit Los Angeles for the inaugural 2009 meeting for WIPA (Wedding Industry Professionals Association) of which I am a "Founding Member".

Kicking the year off and the day, was a discussion of top wedding trends featuring America's "sassiest" lifestyle guru, Steve Kemble! 

The event was held at RRivreWorks which, for a wedding planner/designer or bride is BETTER THAN DISNEYLAND! RRivreworks is owned by the amazing RRivre Davies, an event designer who's work you have seen in major bridal magazines from The Bride & Bloom to Your Wedding Day Magazine and more. 

The decor and furniture rentals like his incredible chandeliers, in what is really a large warehouse, created a pallet for room after gorgeous room of wedding decor and table top vignettes courtesy of other top wedding design trend setting companies like Chameleon Chairs & Wildflower Linens. 

And the food was as much a prime time player with delectable offerings from one of the top Catering & Event companies in the country, Good Gracious Events was completely merchandised and styled as part of the entire decor it was situated in.  The candy bar, hosted by Epicurean Umbrella up on a fabulous white bar with white shelving hutch behind it, was chock full of the best new & classic sugar fixes everyone just gobbled up.

Which is a great tip Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge can pass on to you. Your food is such an important part of the reception being 45-50% of your entire budget. With so so much variety to choose from in the way of your food and beverage these days, styling your food displays; especially with stationary food displays and interactive stations and bars for cocktail hour or receptions, ensure to work with your caterer, floral designer, event designer and rental specialist so that your wedding style is represented in this area as well. 

Interesting presentation and service of food compared to those utilitarian buffet warmers will make a definite impact for your guests and your photos and video!

Enjoy the photo gallery of all the fabulous food, decor, florals and lighting. 

As the first not for profit wedding association in the country, "WIPA members set the standard for our industry, working creatively and ethically to produce weddings with panache-*from WIPA Website.

Happy Chanukah!

Your Las Vegas Wedding Concierge wishes my family, Jewish friends, clients and colleagues a very Happy Chanukah or Hanukkah. 

However you spell it, have a wonderful holiday, sing "The Chanukah Song" (even Adam Sandler's version), enjoy the latkes, the dreidel games, lighting the candles, eating some chocolate "gelt" (or silver coins=money) and opening a gift or two or, if you are real lucky, 8!

"Hanukkah", from the Hebrew word for "dedication" or "consecration", marks the re-dedication of the Temple in Jerusalem after its desecration by the forces of Antiochus IV and commemorates the "miracle of the container of oil". According to the Talmud, at the re-dedication following the victory of the Maccabees over the Seleucid Empire, there was only enough consecrated olive oil to fuel the eternal flame in the Temple for one day. Miraculously, the oil burned for eight days, which was the length of time it took to press, prepare and consecrate fresh olive oil.

*From Wikipedia.com (Love that website!)

One day I would love to plan a Chanukah/holiday wedding! I think it would be so meaningful and fun at the same time to have a twilight ceremony with guests holding candles during the ceremony, and the bride and groom would light a menorah under the chupah (wedding canopy).

Crisp, white flowers, elegant blue and platinum table decor with lots of light and menorahs that guests would also light in a large candle lighting ceremony.

Of course, the "latke" (potato pancake) would be styled up served at an interactive latke station with a variety of flavors; regular, sweet potato, even spicy and served with different gourmet toppings  and paired with  "He'Brew: The Chosen Beer" and also a vodka based (because it's also made from potatoes) festive cocktail 

And, to top off a fabulous meal with a modern take on a traditional Israeli tradition of serving "Sufganiot" (donuts) with a donut station from "The Fry Girl" (thanks Green Orchid Events Blog for this resource) for desert making mini-donuts on the spot with powdered sugar, cinamon, and jelly toppings. Serve with a sparkling wine or desert wine.

Of course, the band would have to play a hora or two because what's a Jewish wedding and Chanukah without some dancing, right?

To send guests off in style, treat them to a little "to-go" bag filled with chocolate "gelt", a dreidel and box of gourmet Chanukah candles for their own menorah. 

So, nu? Anyone out there interested in a Chanukah wedding?