The Mike Colón Experience

Mike Colón, one of my many favorite destination wedding photographers from Newport Beach, California, is having his educational workshop "The Mike Colón Experience X - Retreat in Paradise" here on Mau`i from Sunday, December 7th to Friday, December 12th. Although I am a beginner/amateur photographer (and I don't plan on becoming a wedding photographer), I really would love to meet "the legend".

If you are reading this post, Mike... I'd love to come by and say "aloha" and perhaps sit in on one of your sessions! I know your workshop is for professional photographers only, but I am a huge fan and just wanted to meet you! :)

Signature Cocktails - Go Green

A few months ago, I blogged about how popular signature drinks are now, and almost every one of the wedding that I plan has one. Not only do they match the colors of the wedding, they are also very yummy!

This month, I'd like to share with you a few "green" recipes of these delicious drinks:

SONIA
Spicy cocktail or after dinner drink
1 oz. vodka
1 oz. green peppermint flavored liqueur
Garnish with mint

BLUE MOON
Fruity and refreshing drink
1/2 oz. gin
2 tsp. Blue Curacao
2 tsp. Cointreau or other orange flavored liqueur
2 tsp. pineapple juice
Lemonade for topping off
Garnish with a pineapple or lime

GREEN PEACE
Sweet and refreshing drink
1/2 oz. vodka
1/2 oz. dry vermouth
1/2 oz. Pisang Ambon
2 tsp. apricot brandy
Top off with pineapple juice
Garnish with a cherry or lime

Wedding day survival kit

As a planner, I always have my "emergency kit" with me on the day of the wedding, just in case if my client needs anything last minute. However, some brides are very prepared and have their own as well.

You can get your very own at Ms. & Mrs. The kit includes:

Toothbrush, Toothpaste, Dental Floss, Mints, Drinking Straw, Pain Reliever, Antacid, Hand Lotion, Emery Board, Clear Nail Polish, Nail Polish Remover, Facial Tissues, Deodorant, Tampons, Adhesive Bandages, Hair Brush, Hair Spray, Bobby Pins, Interior Mirror, Lint Remover, Mending Kit, Scissors, Safety Pins, Stain Remover, Static Remover, Super Glue, Double-Sided Hem Tape, Earring Backs, Corsage Pins and Extra Wedding Bands!

That should cover it!

"OMG, my wedding is on TV!"

No, no, no... not my own wedding, but one of my June 2008 weddings will actually be featured on the new TV segment - "OMG, my wedding is on TV!" of Get Married. I don't have the exact air date yet, but as soon as I find out I will post it here. YAY! That's very exciting!

AND... Colin Cowie, my idol and wedding planner extraordinaire, is going to be the new host of Get Married starting on January 5th... so don't miss it!

Pink Tiki

For those tying the knot on O`ahu, now you can check out the "Pink Tiki" at the Tiki's Grill and Bar in Waikiki for your girls' or guys' night out!

Tiki’s Grill & Bar, located across from Waikiki Beach launched a weekly club night called Pink Tiki on Friday, November 21, 2008 at 10:00 pm. Building on its current success of nightly live music, Pink Tiki will be featuring a DJ in the Ocean Room, drink specials, VIP Bottle Service, dancing and a late night class on drink making.


A long time community supporter, Tiki’s has created a drink called “Pink Tiki,” and a dollar for every Pink Tiki drink purchased will be donated to the Queen’s Cancer Center. A unique pink ceramic tumbler will be featured on the daily menu to support the Queen’s Cancer Center on an ongoing basis. Tiki’s will also be giving the Queen’s Cancer Center, unlimited VIP cover passes to give out to donors, volunteers, and cancer survivors.

“Pink Tiki is the something we have wanted to launch for a long time but have been busy with other projects.” said Bill Tobin, Tiki’s Grill & Bar Managing Partner and CEO. “We are looking to attract a late night crowd after our dinner rush. Tiki’s has always been about bringing fun back into Waikiki!” Additionally, prior to opening Tiki’s, owners Tobin and Kelly McGill, and Greg Montgomery as well as other Tiki’s managers worked in nightclubs and lounges and all agreed that they missed the energy that a great DJ can create in a club.

The 10,000-square-foot, 380-seat Tiki’s Grill & Bar, featuring a South Pacific ambiance with a casual island theme, is located on the second floor of the ResortQuest Waikiki Beach Hotel at 2570 Kalakaua Avenue. Tiki’s Grill & Bar, open from 10:30 am to midnight, serves lunch and dinner, and is a popular venue for island entertainment. Free validated valet parking is available.

Inviting Ideas

A lot of my 2009 brides have started working on their wedding invitations already. Here are a few tips and advice especially if you are planning a destination wedding:

1. If you want all of your paper products to be personalized and have the same "look and feel", make sure that when you work on your Save-the-dates and your invitations, you are also thinking about your programs, escort cards and/or place cards, your menus and possibly your thank you cards as well.
2. Since most of the guests will be coming from out-of-town, it's a good idea to send out the invitations 3 months prior to your wedding. That will give them enough time to book their travel arrangements.
3. An RSVP deadline of 4 to 6 weeks prior to your wedding is highly recommended. That will give the planner, the caterer and the rental company enough time to finalize all the details.
4. NEVER put your registry information on the invitations. If you have a wedding website, you can include that on the site.
5. If you are having a smaller, intimate wedding and not inviting all of your friends and family, you should send out announcement cards after the wedding. Include a nice little wedding photo, and thank them for their thoughts and prayers.
6. You can certainly hand cancel each invitation, but the post office will still run them through their machine. If your invitations are delicate, it's a good idea to include both an inner and outer envelope.
7. For eco-conscious brides, instead of doing different inserts for maps/directions, and activities...etc., you can include those information on your wedding website.
8. Always order at least 5 to 10 extra invitations with envelopes. As for thank-you notes, you should order an extra 50 to 100. You are going to get gifts all along, from your engagement to your shower to your wedding... why not have a full set of thank-you notes with both of your names on there?! :)
9. It's VERY important that you proof read every single draft from your designer, and it's always a good idea to have at least one or two other sets of eyes to look through everything. Once the invitation goes to print, that's it... any changes after that point will be costly.
   
   
   

Photo Credit (top to bottom): Smitten Invitations, Bella Figura, Cards De Luxe

Featured Wedding - Lena and Noel

Lena and Noel are such a laid-back couple. They have been together for 14 years and they finally tied the knot on October 12th at the Sugarman Estate. I met them for the first time when they came out to Mau`i on their scouting trip back in March. As I get to know them better, I realized that they love things that are unconventional. Instead of going to a bridal salon to pick out her dress, Lena had it made by a designer in San Francisco. It was beautiful.

Here are the professional photos by Amity Mason:


CATERING: Aloha Events Catering. FLORALS & LIGHTING: Dellables. LINENS: Pacific Event Group. PHOTOS: Amity Mason. RENTALS: Pacific Isle Rentals and Envisions Entertainment.

As we started the planning process, Lena told me that she liked crimson red, teal green and bronze. We tried to incorporate all of those colors in her decor, from the flowers to the dining canopies to the lounge furniture...etc. Everything turned out perfectly.

Congratulations, Lena and Noel! All the best to both of you and hope to see you again here on Mau`i!

Happy Birthday to my hubby!

Yes, it's my hubby's birthday today but we celebrated this past weekend. We went out with some friends on Friday night, then I took him out for dinner on Saturday at Merriman's Kapalua and we went to see the new James Bond movie "Quantum of Solace" on Sunday.

Here are some pictures of our dinner at Merriman's. OMG, the food was AMAZING; the service was impeccable and the restaurant and view was just unbelievable. I have to say it's our favorite Mau`i fine dining restaurant right now. Joanie and Brandi, thank you so much for your wonderful hospitality. We had a great time and it was the best dining experience ever! Stay tuned for a later post on the restaurant, and more photos to come.

Oh, and the 007 movie was fun and action-packed; not to mention that Daniel Craig was just pure eye-candy. Even my hubby thought he looked pretty suave! :)

Pupu #1: House-made sausage and clams
with tomatoes, garlic and parsley in a broth

Pupu #2: Tempura shrimps

My pan-seared scallops with Kula sweet corn,
asparagus and Apple smoked bacon

My hubby's "Mixed Plate" - beef filet, mahi mahi and ahi tuna
with macadamia nut brown rice and greens

Dessert #1 - Flambe peppered pineapple,
with caramel sauce and vanilla ice-cream

Dessert #2 - The chocolate molten purse
(phyllo dough with melted chocolate)

That's us!

"Life is Like a Movie"!

I would love to take this opportunity to introduce you to Jewel and Chuck Savadelis of Savadelis Films. This wonderful husband and wife team is based out of the San Francisco Bay Area, and their work is just AMAZING! Just see it for yourself...

Here are some notes from Jewel of what it took to make this 3-minute movie trailer:

1. When we saw their logo, we thought it was very nice. So we asked for and received the Illustrator files of the logo from the graphic designer and animated Emily and Danny's logo.

2. Emily's Mom and Dad were at the second story window looking out. The window was too blue, due to the reflection of the sky and ocean. Chuck masked the window and color corrected it so their skin tones looked normal. He then gave a different color correction to the area outside the window so it matched the other images of the exterior of the building. Then, he did the same thing for each FRAME (there are 30 frames per second). We color correct pretty much every clip in the entire wedding movie. This adds 2-3 weeks of effort. We also modulate and "sweeten" the sound throughout a wedding movie.

3. At the last minute, Emily and Danny asked us to do a time lapse of empty to full seats. Since this was the weekend of the women's golf tournament, we could not leave a camera outdoors unattended. So, at our own expense we hired someone to "camera sit" just to get that 3-second shot.

4. After the bridesmaids walked down the aisle and Emily was waiting alone in the foyer, we finally see a bit of her nervousness. It was charming.

5. By coming to every rehearsal (no extra charge), we know what is going to happen and when. So, we were in the best positions to catch Emily hugging her in-laws and Danny hugging his in-laws.

6. Chuck caught Emily's favorite uncle sketching at the rehearsal. He finished the drawing during the ceremony. We were able to scale the sketch to create the maximum impact when we dissolved from the sketch to real life. This impact can only be achieved in a moving picture medium. A photo would not convey the same dynamic feeling nor the emotions it creates. This unexpected event inspired the opening and closing scenes of this piece. Chuck bought a special piece of software to create a look that was similar to the Uncle's art style.

7. During the table toasts, we wanted a specific look. It was very dark in the ballroom, so we needed small (20 watt) lights. Instead of having them mounted on the camera which would light people from the front, giving an unflattering flat look, our assistant was lighting each scene from the side, for a softer and more sophisticated look - still using only a 20-watt light. We aim to be unobtrusive. In fact Emily's parents thought Chuck was the only cinematographer there. They never saw me or our assistant! And the only reason they saw him was because he was in the foyer with them just before they walked down the aisle.

8. We went back to the Ritz and filmed the ocean scenes on a non-wedding day.

9. The scene where the camera pulls back from a couple standing at the window watching the sunset? It was shot much earlier in the day when the sky was blue. Chuck color graded it to look like it occurred at sunset to match the other images immediately prior.

10. Because Emily and Danny are real foodies, we made special arrangements in advance with the staff at the Ritz to be able to film the food preparation without interfering in the flow of their work.

11. The second course was burned on the top, so Chuck lightened just the burnt tops so they looked more appetizing. (No need to mention this, as it's a poor reflection on the Ritz.)

12. We knew the photo booth would be a centerpiece of the reception. So, the week before the wedding we spent several hours experimenting to determine the best combination of strobe flashes per second, direction of supplemental lighting, and a few other factors which matched the photo booth flashes best. So, on the wedding night, we were able to flash our strobes for less than 3 minutes total time. Everyone thought the strobes were the band's mood lights.

13. We asked for and received the DVD of all 663 photo booth images. We combed through every one of them to find the ones that matched our footage and found some additional ones that had a lot of energy.

14. We strongly suggest couples engage us until the end of the evening because you never know when great moments will happen. The bride's cousin started break dancing. This occurred well after the end of our contracted time. We had packed up and were ready to go. Nevertheless, we grabbed a camera and shot this scene.

15. In order to know what images we need, we storyboard a short piece like this. That takes hours. We allow for whatever will happen at a ceremony, but we need to think through transitional elements in advance to give a sense of movement. For example, we knew ahead of time that we would need to film a steadicam shot entering the front of the Ritz and a steadicam shot following some couple, any couple, out to the gazebo area. So, we put these shots into our schedule for the day.

16. In general, we have close-up and wide shots, camera angles that are on the ground and way overhead. There are small camera moves and steady shooting. It is a matter of knowing which of these techniques to use and when to restrain your movement for maximum effect.

17. And, we need to know who are the key people and capture them without fail.

18. We looked at over 500 pieces of music to find the one that had the right beat and mood to match Emily and Danny's personalities AND match the images we brought back.

As you can see, it requires at least 100 to 200 hours of editing time to create each of their wedding movie. Every little detail and emotions are captured on film. In fact, I cried watching a few of them because I was so touched by everything... and I didn't even know the people who were at the wedding!

If you are interested in seeing more samples or hiring them for your wedding, please send me an email.

Wedding feather banners

The first time I saw these wedding feather banners, it was at my friend's wedding in Bali this past March (photo #1 below). They look amazing in person and will definitely transform your outdoor wedding to something extraordinary. I just wish they come in different colors to match my clients' decor.

For my clients who are interested in these banners for your wedding, please send me an email.

Critsey Rowe Photography's new boudoir site

One of my good friends, Critsey Rowe of Critsey Rowe Photography, just launched her new boudoir site and she is having a contest. Please read below for details:

Critsey Rowe of Couture Boudoir is having a fabulous contest! The contest includes a four day three night stay for the winner and a guest at one of the Couture Boudoir tour locations.

Boudoir is the hottest new trend in bridal photography!

Imagine having your Couture Boudoir session photographed in a suite at the W Hotel overlooking Times Square, on a white sandy beach in the most crystal clear blue water or in a Chateau with the Eiffel Tower peeking in the window. Imagine yourself having a fabulous time in a beautiful location while getting pampered and surprising your fiancé, husband or boyfriend with the most gorgeous photos of yourself.

This would be a great girls weekend! Share the experience with a friend while you shop, explore, couture boudoir!

Here is the scoop on The Couture Boudoir Contest:

The winner will receive a luxurious Couture Boudoir session to include a Custom Designed Couture Boudoir Album with the session photos. The session includes a fabulous Hair and Makeup Stylist to create different looks throughout the shoot plus multiple wardrobe changes. A $100 lingerie gift card from Victoria's Secret. A four day three night stay for the winner and a guest. The Couture Boudoir Tour is starting in New York and going cross country then abroad, ending in Paris in April.

Check the calendar for dates in select locations on the Couture Boudoir website:

New York
Chicago
San Francisco
Puerto Rico
South Beach
Germany
Italy
London
Paris

To enter, submit the following to critsey@critseyrowe.com

• A short story about you and your guy;
• Two photos of yourself; and
  
• Your name, location and phone number.

And don't forget to mention that you saw the contest on Events by Evonne's blog! Contest ends on December 15th and the winner will be announced on the Couture Boudoir website.

Valentine's is just around the corner - what a great surprise!

Sponsors are:
The Bridal Showcase
Joni Lineberger Stylist
Best Wedding Blogs

Grace Ormonde Wedding Style Magazine Platinum List

Events by Evonne is extremely honored to be invited by the Grace Ormonde Wedding Style Magazine to join their Platinum List of vendors for 2009. The listing will be under "Destination Wedding Planning" in both Hawai`i and Northern California.

The magazine is one of my all time favorites, and it is the most stylish one you will ever see out there. If you haven't read it before, you NEED to get a copy at your nearest bookstore right now!

I feel privileged to be listed among all these amazing and talented wedding professionals in the U.S., as well as Australia, Canada, Caribbean, France, Italy, Mexico, Puerto Rico and the U.K. Again, thank you very much for the invitation, and I look forward to seeing my listing in the January 2009 issue!

Liz and Nelson's Scouting Trip

I spent all week with Liz and Nelson meeting with vendors and going to food/cake tastings. It was a lot of fun! They thought they had their venue all figured out until I showed them this last estate yesterday. Now they are going to select this private estate in Kapalua for their big day. It is everything they are looking for - a private, gated, oceanfront home that has upscale and modern architecture.

Their wedding will be fabulous as we are going to bring New York City all the way to Mau`i! It will be totally high style, trendy, chic and modern (think "Sex and the City"), and I will finally get to see Liz's "Carrie Bradshaw's" blue Manolo Blahnik's! Can't wait to put together this wedding with my design team... 10 more months to go!

Featured Wedding - Lesley and Kris

I met Lesley and her mom Barbara back in February when they flew out to Mau`i for the scouting trip. They were such joy to work with and it was a blast planning their wedding together. Barbara is such a sweet person that I actually asked if she would adopt me as her 2nd daughter! :) And Lesley is just a doll... every time when we talked on the phone or in person, we would burst into laughter. She is always so happy and you can see it in all of her photos.

FLORALS: Bella Grace Flowers. LINENS: Pacific Event Group. PHOTOS: Amity Mason.

Lesley and Kris had their Catholic ceremony on September 23rd at the Saint Theresa's Church in Kihei, and the reception afterward was at the Five Palms Beach Grill. Lesley loves vibrant colors and she chose orange, fuschia and purple for her flowers and decor. They totally complemented the bridesmaid's clover green colored dresses. It was an amazing wedding and everyone had a wonderful time!

Congratulations, Lesley and Kris! All the best to both of you and hopefully I will see you guys again either here on Mau`i or back in California!

Events by Evonne is featured on Melissa's Smitten Blog

Events by Evonne is honored to be featured on the Melissa's Smitten Blog. You can read the post here. Melissa, thank you so much for featuring me again. Keep up the great work! :)

If you are looking for amazing invitations ideas, please check out Melissa's website at Smitten Invitations.

Sneak Peek of Eri & Aris' wedding

Here is a sneak peek of Eri and Aris' wedding at Lanikuhonua, O`ahu on Monday, November 3rd. It was a gorgeous day with clear sky - no wind and no rain! The votive candles actually stay lit the entire night! :)

Can't wait to see more professional photos from Visionari. The finale of the wedding was a Polynesian show with hula dancers and the fire-knife dancer! It was awesome. Stay tuned...

Photo Credit: Events by Evonne