Jennifer & Nick's Inspiration Board

Vendor Feature - Chocolate Pi

Chocolate Pi is truly a staple in the Tampa Bay area. Their work has been featured in numerous magazines, as well as television shows, such as Platinum Weddings. Chef Kim creates the most amazing designs and continually tops herself with every cake she makes. Their cakes are a true work of art! Some are so impressive, they should not be eaten, but just admired! The detail and time that Kim puts into each cake is easy to see! Out of their cakery and dessert shoppe, located on MacDill in South Tampa, they create not only wedding cakes, but groom's cakes, party cakes, favors, and lots of other sweet confections. Kim has the capability to turn any vision into a reality! Whether it's a simple design or full blown "bling," Chocolate Pi can create the perfect cake for you and your groom! Their creation will surely make your cake one of the most memorable aspects of your wedding!













Chocolate Pi
2821 South MacDill Ave.
Tampa, FL 33629
813-831-2195
http://www.chocpi.com/

All photos courtesy of http://www.chocpi.com/.

The Importance of Hiring a Professional Photographer!!

I received this link from a local photographer. It's extremely interesting and paints a picture why it's so important to hire a professional photographer to capture the special moments in your life, especially your wedding. There are no "do overs" or "retakes," so it's important to understand the investment you are making in your memories.

You must read this article from Seattle Bride Magazine!

Thank you to Sarah McDonald from Limelight Photography for recommending this very interesting article!

Photo and article courtesy of http://www.seattlebridemag.com/.

Cheers to You Recap!!

What can I say? The first annual Cheers to You Event benefiting the Queen for a Day organization was a huge success! Thank you to everyone that donated their products and services! We couldn't have done it without you! Our goal was to raise enough money to fund a year's worth of parties. We made that and even more!! Ashly Olivier of Olivier Events did an amazing job heading up the event. Everything was so beautiful and *pink!*

The event took place at Hunter's Green Country Club, and the staff was top notch, especially Gretchen Hill, who was all over the place, making sure that everything ran smoothly. A totally pink color scheme, of course, filled the room. The tables had dark pink tableclothes with light pink linens, from Linens by the Sea, and tall pink floral centerpieces on glittered cylinders, provided by Events in Bloom. There were also hi-top tables with a paisley linens and martini glass arrangements, complete with feathers! Single rose heads and votive candles accented the base of each centerpiece. Each table had an embellished frame with the logo of one of sponsors. Behind the stage, were two hanging frames with flowers on them. This was such a cute touch! The silent auction room was FILLED with a number of different prizes. We accented with tiaras everywhere and martini glasses with pink water and LED lights really set the tone of a good time! One of the major highlights of the decor was the dessert station with a white textured overlay. A silver tree with butterflies and tiaras accented the center of the table, filled with sweets such as brownies, tiara-shaped cookies, cupcakes, and a gorgeous hot pink and white cake, all from Sweetie Pies, and there to entice the guests all night. Prior to the dessert, we snacked on treats such as carved turkey, a mashed potato bar, and multiple hot and cold hors d'oeuvres. The presentation was fantastic! Leah Campanella, President of the Tampa Chapter of Queen for a Day, was a great MC for the evening. Angela Harwell, Mrs. Florida, did an amazing presentation on volunteerism and why it's so important. We also had a guest of honor, a little girl with cancer and who's mom spoke about how their family has truly benefited from the Queen for a Day organization! Anglo Couture created a "princess" dress for her to wear all night. One of the highlights of the meeting was after we all watch a video compiled by Tampa Wonderworks, an award was presented to Donna Cacciatore of The Children's Home for her commitment to volunteering for others. The guests enjoyed the caffeine delights of the A La Carte coffee station and documented the night with the photo strips from Shutterbooth! Josh from Inspire Entertainment kept the party going all night. Paper Presence also graciously donated invitations for the event that were passed out prior. Check all the great pictures captured by Carrie Wildes Photography!

We had so much fun dancing all night! Yes, that's me in the middle getting down!

To keep with the "giving" spirit of the night, we donated all the floral arrangements to local nursing homes and hospitals. This event was an amazing experience and we look forward to partnering with the Queen for a Day organization on many more activies. Details to come!

Photos courtesy of www.carriewildes.com.

Cheers to YOU!!

We are so excited! Things are buzzing around here today! The “Cheers to You” event benefitting the Queen for a Day organization is tonight!!! We are so honored to be a volunteer and sponsor for this event! There are some amazing things planned for tonight, as well as a fabulous location, food, and décor. We truly appreciate everyone’s support in purchasing tickets and attending. And, a very special “thank you” to everyone that donated products, services, and silent auction prizes! We could not have done it without you! We have some AH-MAZING silent auction prizes that will up for the bidding, so please continue your support!

For any final details about the event, visit www.cheerstoyouevent.com or to learn more about the Queen for a Day organization, check out www.queenforaday.org.

Once again, thank you for all of your support! You are all Queens…and Kings!! :)

Cheers to You - Last Day!!!!

It's the last day to purchase tickets for the Queen for a Day "Cheers to You!" So get on it, and support this AMAZING organization!!!

The Importance of Lighting

Something that is usually overlooked in the planning process, but that can make or break the look of your event is lighting! Some think that specialty lighting is a luxury, but you would be surprised at how affordable it can be, and the amazing impact that it makes.

You can uplight the walls of your venue with your wedding colors to create your own personalized look within the room. You have two choices when you uplight, you can use can lights or LED lights. There is a large difference between the two. Can lights are more economical, but they also emit more heat and you are only limited to one color film through the night. Also, you should always have these installed by a professional because they use alot of power and if they are not planned correctly, you may take a chance that the circuit could become overloaded and blow a fuse. With the LED lights, they are more expensive, but you can create any color you choose. You can also tweak the color ever so slightly to reach your desired shade. LED lights also use significantly less power, therefore they will not get hot or overload a circuit. Another positive with LED lighting is the option to set the lights to change color through the night. You could start your event with a hot pink and end the night with an ice blue. The color will change with the flow of your event.

Lighting your event with an amber color is another option. Amber is the color of candlelight and everyone looks great in candlelight. Why not fill your space with this shade?

You spend so much on your flowers and your cake, why not pinspot light them? Pinspotting will shine a small white light in significant areas, like on the cake or each centerpiece. This is perfect for tall centerpieces considering most of the light is on the table top, not two or three feet up in the air.

A popular option to bring specialty lighting into your event is with a gobo. A gobo is a template that slips into a light and it shines a pattern, monogram, logo, etc. onto the surface that the light is shining on. These are great for the dance floor, a large blank wall, or the ceiling of a venue.

No matter your budget, you can bring some kind of specialty lighting into your event and create the perfect atmosphere your guests.

Images courtesy of A Fly on the Wall Photography, Limelight Photography, http://www.precisionvideos.com/, http://www.lightyourname.com/, http://www.wetv.com/, http://www.countymarquees.co.uk/, and http://www.goldensoundsentertainment.com/

Happy 4th of July!!

We want to wish everyone a Happy 4th of July! We hope that everyone gets the chance to spend some R&R time with the ones they love. We also want to thank those men and women who have given their lives to protect our country and our freedom!

To celebrate our Nation's Birthday, we designed Paper Presence's July window. We created a fun, patriotic escort card display. For the background, we utilized different size cylinders of water colored blue and red, as well as left clear. We put strips of red ribbon across the table to create the lines for the tent cards. In between each of the strips of red ribbon, we lined silver star-shaped beading. The escort cards are blue with glitter writing, handmade by Andrea at Paper Presence. We, of course, had to line the window sill with American flags! This display is simple, yet fun and patriotic!

Happy 4th of July to Paper Presence and all of you!

Neither Rain, Nor Snow, Nor Sleet, Nor Hail...

Just something fun to share...



We had a meeting with our bride and the florist yesterday, the morning with all the crazy rain and tornado warnings, and the only way I could get out the door for our appointment was to sport my husband's paramedic rain gear! Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail...is going to stop this wedding planner!!!