6 Days of Sex and the City: Our Party Planners, Vision, Event Decor
Monday, June 28, 2010
Last month, AshleysBrideGuide.com hosted a Girls Night Out to celebrate the debut of the second Sex and City movie. We threw a fabulously fun party at Nashville's Aloft Hotel, which is one of my favorite places to celebrate anything! We just received the party pictures from Kristyn Hogan, lifestyle photographer and Jonathon Campbell Photography!
Over the next 6 days, Tabitha and I will share our "Six Days of Sex" - to take you behind the scenes and give you the inside scoop on the party. These details will give you everything you need (from ideas to a full list of event vendors) to plan your own wedding, rehearsal dinner, bridal shower, birthday party, anniversary or corporate event.
THE TEAM: Nashville Wedding & Event Planners + Me
No successful event can be achieved alone. With me, no event can be undertaken without wedding and event planners - no event! I break out in hives just thinking about planning a party. I dont event like to coordinate dinner plans with friends. It's just not my thing. For this reason - I strongly advise brides to hire a professional wedding planner. Your wedding is much more involved than my SATC party. You're emotional, trying to manage family and friends who are emotional, spending more money on a day that you will ever spend again - you need a planner!
Tabitha of ABG (left), Sharon of Jonathon Campbell Photograph (mid), Amy of Swizzle Events (right)
For my event - I turned to ABG wedding planners. I like to work with planners on my site because I like to know their strengths and who is best to recommend to you as you plan your wedding. Plus, I know many of them personally and it's always fun to work with people you know and trust.
My SATC planning team was large because I didnt want to overwhelm out any single wedding planner, since this wasnt a paid gig:). My team consisted of:
Event Planners: Meropi of By Heart and Hand, Kristin of Simply Stunning Events, Amy of Swizzle Events
Event Decor: Toni of Celebrations by Design and Stephanie of You're Invited Gifts, Paper and Events; Jennifer of Reveal Event Style.
Stephanie of You're Invited (left), Toni of Celebrations by Design (right)
THE VISION: The Look and Location
My vision for the SATC2 party was sexy, city chic. I wanted a venue that was modern and sleek. Initially, I selected Events @1418, a wonderful downtown venue with exposed brick, rooftop party, great location. I was concerned about rain because I had to use the rooftop to achieve the "vibe" but I would need a tent as the month of May can often be rainy in Nashville (hence the May flood!) but a tent was not in the budget. So Events @ 1418 was out:(...for this event - maybe not the next!
Then it hit me - Aloft Hotel! I love their look, it already had the NYC look and was right off the interstate with ample parking, making it equally accessible. (You should also consider accessiblity as you plan your wedding. It will make your guests happy:).
I called Kristen of Aloft and she said yes! Aloft made it super easy! They were flexible, accommodating and worked with us as we transformed their hotel lobby into an all out girls party! Aloft is a great option for guest rooms, small parties. All of our partygoers LOVED the look of the hotel. You really feel like you are in a big city when you're in the hotel. You should check it out.
THE DECOR: A Sexy Welcome
My one specific request was that you needed to know it was a SATC party when you walked in. That wasn't easy! By the end of the party planning - a few days before the event, those famous SATC pink letters were no where to be found. I turned to two wedding magicians to help - Jen of Reveal Event Designs who then referred Designs in Paper.
Jen is the girl when you need hard to find design elements or are planning an event that requires out of the box styling. She designed movie sets and is one of the most creative folks I know. I told her that I needed a backdrop that guests could take pics in front of and one that would also serve as our entrance. She said "no problem!". And like that - my sexy backdrop problem was solved. She turned to Blue Nova Designs and together, they created the party's entrance wall with custom draping. It wasnt easy due to the space's ceilings but Blue Nova made several trips from their warehouse to the hotel until it was perfect!
I told Jen that I still needed the SATC letters and she informed me that Designs in Paper created a vinyl floor monogram for one of her brides. I spoke with them on Monday to tell them what I wanted and by Wednesday, the letters were done and were EXACTLY what I wanted. These letters are vinyl stickers that adhere to just about any surface and are removable! I reached out to a few printing companies to quote the letters and their rates were double DnP's rates!
If you need letter so for your dance floor or accent walls - contact DNP! It would be great for a wedding monogram that you could then remove and place in your home.
We placed the SATC monogram on the floors, the fabric backdrop and the bar. These vinyl letters from Designs in Paper can also go on windows, doors, anywhere!
THE DECOR: Sexy Party Rentals & Accessories
The party had to be sexy, vibrant and fun! Aloft didnt require a lot of decor since it's colors are vibrant and modern. Plus, the space was very limited so my decor team had a lot of contraints. I was "that client" who had a list of wishes but no budget AND many obstacles:). I told Toni and Stephanie, my decor experts, that I wanted it sexy and sleek but they couldnt have any floor space. Yikes! The delivered!
They headed to the party planners dream resource - Fabu Event and Wedding Decor! The goal at Fabu was bling! They were looking for stunning elements that could be used in limited space. They did a great job with my crazy restrictions. The also went to Hobby Lobby for the oversized SATC letters which they spray painted and glitterized.
The large bar cylinders are from Fabu. They added pop and bling without taking up space.
The jeweled votive holders are also from Fabu; letters from Hobby Lobby and customized by You're Invited.
Don't miss more party details tomorrow!
About the Author:
Ashley of Ashley's Bride Guide
Hey - I'm Ashley! I started AshleysBrideGuide.com to give Nashville brides, or folks planning a Nashville wedding, a local resource for inspiration and resources. Hope to see you at a bridal show soon! Happy Planning.
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Posted on June 28, 2010 |
Filed under: Inspiration & Trends, Wedding Planners & Coordinators, Wedding Resources
