Setting The Stage On Your Special Day

This video came from one of my video friends out in Hawaii. Watch as the Kihei Community Center goes from bland to grand in under 10 hours.

The reason I’m sharing it with you is so that you will better understand my role. As an Entertainment Designer, one of my goals is to work together with you and your entire team of wedding professionals to transform a room – that can be as simple as a community center – into something magical.

The tools are out there, let’s unleash your creativity and build your dream wedding today.

As you wish…

Movies have a big influence on many of the weddings I’ve done over the years, but only one can take top honors. The Princess Bride celebrates 25 years of memorable quotes, and they want you to know about it! If you register for the Brute Squad Community you could win 1 of 25 prizes (one a week for twenty-five weeks). Each winner will receive Princess Bride merchandise that may include a t-shirt, or Blu-ray DVD, or book (The Princess Bride: A Celebration) or similar product.

Head over to sign up today!
http://princessbrideforever.com/contests/

It was the two-year anniversary of when they first met, and a weekend carefully selected by Erica when the San Francisco Giants would be out of town. The colors for this fantastic wedding celebration were Cobalt Blue with Orange accents. It made for beautiful bridesmaids dresses, and you had to love the socks worn by all the groomsmen and Alfred, the groom. In fact, Erica and Alfred were a blast to work with for this San Ramon wedding ceremony and reception held at The Bridges Golf Club.

Telling of Alfred & Erica’s Love Story

The introduction of the wedding party is a great time to set the mood or tone for the rest of the evening. With a “party” theme in mind, our four pairs of bridesmaids and groomsmen were appropriately welcomed to the room with the following theme songs: Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO, Get This Party Started by P!nk, Party in the USA by Miley Cyrus, and Party Like a Rockstar by Shop Boyz. Alfred and Erica were introducted to Crazy In Love by Beyoncé.

Everyone is familiar with guests tapping their glasses in order to get the bride and groom to kiss during dinner. We opted for a different route based on a suggestion in the book, The Best Wedding Reception…Ever!, which all my clients receive during planning. Each table was required to, as a group, stand and sing a song that has the word “love” in it. Then, and only then, would Erica and Alfred share a kiss for everyone’s delight. After the first two or three tables, it became a competition that also included several mash-ups of multiple songs, and some tables working together!

Perhaps my favorite part of every wedding is telling the Love Story of the bride and groom. Erica and Alfred didn’t disappoint, with great bits of humor and amazing stories of how much they love one another. In fact, they told me it was their favorite memory of the wedding day!

The magic of this wedding couldn’t have be captured better than with the unique eye of photographer Julie Cahill. She took all of the amazing photos you see on this page, and I thank her so much for them!

There is one thing I encourage all of my brides and grooms to do: Be Creative. Will and Daniela were certainly up to the challenge, and they didn’t disappoint. This San Jose wedding reception was held at Bella Montagna.

Telling of Will & Daniela’s Love Story

When they told me they were going to do sparklers as a twist, my brain politely said, “been there, done that.” When they told me they wanted to do it for their First Dance, I knew I was thrilled to be working with them on something different. I also know that I would need to create a much shorter edit of their chosen song, In Your Eyes by Peter Gabriel (the original single is over 6 minutes long!).

Oh, but the fun didn’t stop there.  See, they have this cake topper made out of Lego bricks. Yet another first for me, and I loved it. Lego ties right into the telling of their Love Story. In fact, it was under the pretense of playing with his childhood Legos that Daniela agreed to go to Will’s place after their first date.

And then there’s the family. Nothing can be more entertaining that a bunch of New Yorkers cheering and toasting these two all night long. Of course, I couldn’t have done it without the help of Marcia at A Joyous Occasion; who is also the contact for the private estate, Bella Montagna. All of the fabulous images you see here are from Rosaura Sandoval Photography. The team at MotionScope Studies captured the entire day on film, and they were a blast to work with.

“Green is the most abundant hue in nature,” according to Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute. “This powerful and universally appealing tone translates easily to both fashion and home interiors.”

That also means that PANTONE 17-5641 Emerald — the lively, radiant, lush green Color of the Year for 2013 — will have a major influence on weddings. Expect everything from dresses for women and formalwear for men to table overlays and floral arrangements to draw from this.

While not an out-of-the-box color, Emerald Green (and many shades near it) can also be achieved as a wall wash or other enhanced ambient lighting effect for your wedding reception or evening ceremony.

Not sure where to get started using this color for your wedding reception? Just ask, and I’ll be happy to get you going in the right direction! If you still need entertainment, fill out an information request or give me a call at (408) 426-8117 today!

Already have an idea how you’ll be using green at your wedding this year?  Leave a comment below and tell the world how!

Rosaura Sandoval Photography

One of my favorite moments of a wedding ceremony has to be the kiss. Why? Because that’s usually followed by the moment you are married and walk back down the aisle. This is also a key moment in your wedding day where you can set the tone of things to come. While many couples opt for traditional pieces to be played during this moment, fun couples with style will find a song that picks up the pace a little. This is the chance to tell your guests that the rest of the day is going to be a blast, and they won’t want to miss one single moment of it.

Real Wedding Ceremony Recessional Songs

• Stevie Wonder – “Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours)”
• Plain White T’s – “1, 2, 3, 4”
• Ben Harper – “Better Way”
• 10,000 Maniacs – “These Are Days”
• Talking Heads – “This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)”
• Bon Jovi – “It’s My Life”
• The Turtles – “Happy Together”
• The Beatles – “All You Need Is Love”
• Angry Birds – “Angry Birds Theme Song”
• U2 – “Beautiful Day”
• Natalie Cole – “This Will Be (Everlasting Love)“

Keep in mind that these songs can be edited and reworked by your wedding entertainment professional, be that a wedding DJ or live musicians. Shortening them or jumping to a song hook earlier than expected will also help build energy into your cocktail hour.

Listen and Watch Ceremony Recessional Songs on YouTube

Is the silly copyright preventing a video from playing? Watch these Ceremony Recessional Suggestions directly on YouTube instead.

Special thanks to Rosaura Sandoval Photography for this blog image from our wedding of Daniela and Will.

I asked the room a simple question. “Who here has even been told that DJs all do the same thing?”

Darn near every hand went up. I think the ones that didn’t were still catching up on sleep.

An actual review from Yelp. I never met this person, only exchanged two emails.

I decided to make a more tangible example during the seminar by comparing two purchases that (seemingly) were identical. Prior to my trip, I had searched for car rentals in the area. I discovered that a Kia Rio, the lowest and cheapest class you can find, was $64.88 for a three-day rental period at Budget Rent-A-Car. I compared that to Hertz, who wanted nearly twice the price, $120.12.

But… They are the same thing, right? Anywhere in the country I go, a Kia Rio is still a Kia Rio. These two rental companies are side by side at the airport. Why wouldn’t they cost the same? I gave some reasons, such as the results of a Zagat Survey rated Hertz #1. I brought up that Hertz was the very first car rental company, founded in 1918 with just a dozen Model T Ford cars.

When we got to the Q&A session at the end someone asked, “Which car company did you choose?” I took the easy answer, stating that my father was in the back of the room and had just driven out from Phoenix.

But after the show I realized two things I should have said. First off, Hertz is able to charge what they do because of the experience they deliver to their customers. This is much like the talent and personality that you are likely seeking in your entertainment choice.

The second thing that I should have answered was that, in this instance, I would have probably selected Budget. In this instance, I did not need anything extraordinary, I just needed a car that would get me to the hotel from the airport, and a few trips up and down the Las Vegas Strip. In this instance, the rental car experience was not important to me.

However, if I knew that I planned to drive out to the Grand Canyon or Lake Mead or Area 51 or my favorite Moapa Paiute Fireworks Stand, then my priorities shift. Now I’ve got to change my mindset from getting the best deal to getting the best quality, which will result in the best experience. This is something that Allen Tucker mentions on his blog about how paying more can actually get you more in the long run.

This is why I rarely will offer a quote via email or phone. This is why I insist on a meeting before I quote, and it’s also why I will not let someone sign a contract without meeting me first. I need to know that you are not simply seeking the best price, and I want to know what your expectations are before any contractual agreement takes place. Only then do I know that the experience you are after can be achieved and delivered with the best talent available. Sometimes that’s not me, but at least we discover that before you’ve spent any money.

When I do find the couples that understand this value, moments like this are achieved:

Daniela and Will, courtesy of Rosaura Sandovol Photography

What I mean by that, is Chris Isaak was the first concert my wife and I went to together. We actually took a weekend to travel up to Reno, Nevada just to see him perform at the Hilton (now the Grand Sierra Resort).

After the show, I remember us being towards the end of the autograph line. My wife got a glossy picture of him signed with devil horns. I, however, had a copy of the local paper, which had a huge picture of Isaak on the front cover. It seems that management frowns upon the signing of objects not purchased on site. Instead, I got a long “secret handshake” and a conversation with him. My [then] future wife was quite jealous.

Today is Isaak’s birthday, and I figured it would be a great way to share some of his more wedding friendly songs with you. If you have a favorite, wedding friendly or not, be sure to tell everyone in the comment below!

Two Hearts

Hands down, this is the number one Chris Isaak song that you can get away with at a wedding. All the lyrics are dead on happy and about love. I’ve had requests to play this during the cake cutting and during the recessional of a ceremony, but I think it lends itself well to a first dance. If you are a shy bride and groom, this song transitions from a slow beginning to and upbeat ending — easy enough to pull all your guests onto the dance floor and open it up part way through the song. This is also a great one to watch live, as the band always does a little synchronized dance. (smile)

I’ll Go Crazy

I honestly just found this, but I like to play the James Brown version quite a bit. It’s probably best reserved for cocktails or dinner time, but it’s still a great song, and done well by Chris Isaak and the band.

Dancin’

This is probably one of my favorite mellow tracks, and there are two versions out there. My favorite comes off the Baja Sessions album, but any version is great. This live version is actually better than both of those, in my opinion. This song works great during cocktails or dinnertime.

Baby Did A Bad, Bad Thing

I know what you are thinking, but hang on a second. This is a great song to use when you are doing a garter toss. The bass provides a great intro, and it allows you to have a little bit of fun with it in the process.

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Lyrics provided by Spencer Weddings and Entertainment

When the rain
Is blowing in your face
And the whole world
Is on your case
I could offer you
A warm embrace
To make you feel my love

When the evening shadows
And the stars appear
And there is no – one there
To dry your tears
I could hold you
For a million years
To make you feel my love

I know you
Haven’t made
Your mind up yet
But I would never
Do you wrong
I’ve known it
From the moment
That we met
No doubt in my mind
Where you belong
– Lyrics provided by www.spencerweddings.com –
I’d go hungry
I’d go black and blue
I’d go crawling
Down the avenue
Know there’s nothing
That I wouldn’t do
To make you feel my love

The storms are raging
On the rolling sea
And on the highway of regret
The winds of change
Are blowing wild and free
You ain’t seen nothing
Like me yet

I could make you happy
Make your dreams come true
Nothing that I wouldn’t do
Go to the ends
Of the Earth for you
To make you feel my love, To make you feel my love

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Lyrics provided by Spencer Weddings and Entertainment

One night to be confused
One night to speed up truth
We had a promise made
Four hands and then away

Both under influence
We had divine scent
To know what to say
Mind is a razor blade

To call for hands of above
To lean on
Wouldn’t be good enough
For me, no

One night of magic rush
The start a simple touch
One night to push and scream
And then relief

Ten days of perfect tunes
The colors red and blue
We had a promise made
We were in love
– Lyrics provided by www.spencerweddings.com –
To call for hands of above
To lean on
Wouldn’t be good enough
For me, no

To call for hands of above
To lean on
Wouldn’t be good enough

And you, you knew the hands of the devil
And you, kept us awake with wolf teeth
Sharing different heartbeats
In one night

To call for hands of above
To lean on
Wouldn’t be good enough
For me, no

To call for hands of above
To lean on
Wouldn’t be good enough
For me, no